Here knitty, knitty!

Amusement

I don't read or speak German, but I found this very entertaining. The pictures are great.

posted by KackieC @ 10:55 AM 1 Comments   

Picture time

Here's the fabric I got for my skirts. I also got some great great great trims for each one, but the groovy effect of the trims was totally lost in the picture. It just looked like so much string. I'm going to work on them over the weekend, so maybe soon there will be some completed pics with more detail showing.









I had a pattern for the last skirt I made, and I think I am going to make another one from that pattern, but the other three will be sort of made up as I go along. I couldn't find anything that I really liked pattern-wise when I got this fabric yesterday. I'll probably end up with a pleated one, an a-line one, a fluted one like I already have, and something else that is somewhere between a-line and pleated. But who knows? It'll be a suprise to me too!

posted by KackieC @ 10:34 AM 1 Comments   

Crafty stuff

I knitted for about 3 straight hours tonight, and my right thumb has a
really sore spot on it now. I also had such a great time making that
skirt on Sunday that I got the stuff to make a couple more. Actually 4
more, but they are all different. I'm tired and sleepy and I just got
home from knitting and wine-ing (not to be confused with whining,
although some of that did go on too) with my girlfriends or else I would
take a picture of the stuff I got. It is all really cool, so tomorrow I
will make time for a Kodak moment and show you my goodies.

G'night kids!

posted by KackieC @ 11:16 PM 1 Comments   

EEKS

The sprinklers in the yard just kicked on and scared the CRAP out of me. I swear I just jumped 8 feet straight up.

posted by KackieC @ 11:33 PM 0 Comments   

Me me me me meme

Someone commented on a not-so-recent-past posting today, anonymously natch, that says I'm smokin' hot. I've no clue who left it, but I do appreciate the sentiment. I love compliments of all kinds, espcially the extravagant, over the top, bordering on theatrical ones praising my great beauty, sparkling wit, and dazzling charm. Keep 'em coming, kids! (I should note that I am not unaware that the posting could have been delivered in a tongue in cheek, sarcastic manner. However, I choose to believe that the poster had nothing but the kindest intentions at heart.)

Ok, here are my responses to Christie's meme:

What was I doing... 10 years ago?

I lived in New Orleans and worked in IT. Hobbies included gardening, knitting, reading, sewing, and going to the beach on Ship Island, near Gulfport. Mississippi.

5 years ago?

I moved to Silicon Valley during the Internet boom to take a job at a dot com startup doing IT. Hobbies included gardening, knitting, reading, sewing and going to the beach in Santa Cruz. My first book was published in May of 2000. It was on computer stuff.

1 year ago?
I continued to live in Silicon Valley, doing IT. Hobbies still included gardening, knitting, reading, sewing, and going to the beach in Santa Cruz. My second book was published in July of 2004. It was on computer stuff too.

yesterday?
Still in Silly Valley. I bought a new sewing machine. I sewed a skirt. I watered my plants. I listened to an unabridged reading of Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat on DVD. I went to Santa Cruz. I thought about knitting but couldn't find time.

today?
My residence in San Jose continues. I put away my sewing machine and skirt sewing related mess that I left out all night. I am working from home today (still in IT). I met with the previous editor of my neighborhood association newsletter so we could do an orderly transition from him to me (I am the new editor). I've thought about knitting, but it is too hot in my solar-heated house to do much more than that till after dark. I watered my plants.

tomorrow?
I'll still live in San Jose. I will work in IT in San Francisco. I will probably either actually do or think about these things: knit, garden, read, and sew. I will probably only think about the beach, since time won't permit much more than that.

(Did you notice a couple of recurring themes here? 1) I'm practically like Dustin Hoffman's character in Rain Man in terms of my routine. 2) Change is something that I do not undertake lightly)

5 snacks I enjoy:
Warm M&Ms
Peanut butter right from the jar
kosher pickles
almost any kind of cake
almost any kind of pie

5 bands and singers for which I know most of their stuff:
Maroon 5
Cher
ABBA
Train
The Carpenters


What would I do with $100,000,000?
Maybe I'll go to school and become a vet or an economist, but most likely I'd just continue on doing what I am doing now. I'm lucky enough to have a fantastic life in and of itself. I would take care of my family so they can do whatever they have always/ will someday dream of. I'd give to my favorite charitable organizations (Human Rights Campagn, OXFAM, the local animal shelter and ASPCA). And naturally I'll spend a lot of time managing my money so I can continue to take care of my family and give to my favorite charitable organizations.


5 locations I'd run away to:
Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii
Northern California
Southern California

5 bad habits:
I'm copying Christie here: Procrastinating. Spending money irresponsibly. Bitching and moaning about nothing. Creating piles. Starting too many projects.

5 things I like doing:
Knitting
Reading
Sewing
Gardening
Beach

5 things I would never wear:
Pantyhose
high-waisted jeans (noted in the new Lucky Magazine as a hot trend for fall)
white fishnet tights (ditto in the new Lucky Mag)
gold jewelry
white shoes of any sort

5 TV shows I like:
Masterpiece Theatre
Nature
Nova
Mad Money
JAG


5 Movies I like:
A Different Kind of Love
Send Me No Flowers
Take Her She's Mine
Lover Come Back
Indiscreet

5 famous people I'd like to meet:
Renee Zellweger
Ioan Griffud
Michael Kitchen
Robson Green
Francesca Annis

5 biggest joys at the moment:
long daylight hours
homegrown tomatoes
hiking in Los Gatos
thinking about fall clothes
bayarealinkup.com

5 favorite toys:
sidekick
laptop
new sewing machine
iPod
gas powered tiller

posted by KackieC @ 4:09 PM 3 Comments   

I've finally finished something!

I started and and finished something in the same weekend! Woohoo! Here's the skirt i started Saturday night and finished Sunday afternoon. Yeah for me!




Sorry for the lack of decent photography skills. I didn't realize that the pic was so fuzzy. You get the general idea though. It's really cute, but I need to wash it before it looks super great. There's a lot of sizing in the fabric and I feel like I am wearing a 1950's crinoline skirt or something, it sticks out so far. But none the less, I like it. I may make another one in grey.

I haven't finished Christie's meme yet, but i promise I will today!

posted by KackieC @ 8:44 AM 3 Comments   

My day is mucho mucho better

Today I did wake up tanned, rested, and ready to take on the world. Or at least rested and ready. Not so much on the tanned part. It's 1:55 am right now. I have been cutting out a skirt pattern for the last few hours. I was trying to watch Muriels Wedding at the same time, so there were a few lengthy delays here and there. Cutting out patterns is my least favorite part of sewing. Yuck. At least it is all done though, so tomorrow morning I can come home from yoga class and sew, sew, sew. I like the sewing and pressing seams part. In fact, pressing seams is my favorite part. I hate ironing in general though.

While I was at the fabric store tonight I discovered that you can buy all sorts of groovy purse handles and straps. This is going to expand the bounds of my knitting (and sewing) in many many many ways. I also discovered some really great pink fun fur in the same pink as ballet shoes, and some really cool pink and green flower-and-butterfly print brocade fabric. I didn't get either one of them, because I can't think of a thing to do with them. Pillows maybe, but they don't go with anything I own. Clothing is out, because both are super heavy. I'll probably just continue living my life without either of them. They were nice to see though.

Time for bed. I can't believe it is this late. I have no idea how I will be able to get up at a reasonable time in the morning. Oh well. It's a weekend...

Christie, I'll get to your meme tomorrow! I read the questions and it looks like I am going to have a lot of fun trying to answer them.

posted by KackieC @ 2:04 AM 0 Comments   

my day sucked

My day has sucked eggs. I've been crazy busy, and I have pretty much expended all my energy on writing epistles, epics, and edicts for my client. Well, not literally- they were actually emails, reports, and work orders. But you get the idea. I've used up all my words, I think. Don't get me wrong, I love my client and my work. LOVE them! I just happened to have a sour mood today, and that went along with a crap day in general and rather than shake it off and just be happy I decided to take a big ol' wallow in misery, and then go for a swim in the pity pot afterwards.

Sometimes there's just something absolutely decadent about deliberately choosing to be bitter and wretched and disconsolate. It almost feels like being a spoiled rich kid or a super model, except without the paid staff who have to stand around and take the crap you dish out. Lucky for the world in general I worked at home today, and so no one actually saw me give my computer the finger a half-dozen times and then dramatically fling myself across the floor and begin to kick and scream and thrash about, all while pondering the mysteries of a file I had a hard time locating, a website that refused to load at any speed close to reasonable, and a fax machine that insisted on jamming everytime I tried to print a transmission report. Minor things, really. And those are the best kinds of things to go ape-shit about, aren't they?

Early this afternoon I decided that tonight I would sit in my favorite chair, watch The Birdcage with Robin Williams and Nathan Lane on DVD, and work on my felted bag from my Secret Pal. I revisted that decision later in the afternoon and determined that what I really needed was a manicure and pedicure to make me feel better. Around 5:45 I headed out to get that renovation project underway, but it seems like everyone else had that same idea too, since none of the 35 nail salons in my neighborhood could get me in before 7:30pm. I decided to take my woeful self shopping instead, and I got some random stuff to take the edge off my day, including (but not limited to) some flavored coffees, a new coffee cup, and some sugar-free chocolate covered almonds at Trader Joe's.

I did have my knitting in the car with me (I never leave home with out it and a good book, don't ya know), and I thought about taking my needles for a drink after I finished shopping, but the more I thought about that the less appealing it sounded. I wanted to sit in peace and have a nice little visit with my good friend Jack Daniels, but I figured it being Friday and all, the bars would be crowded and I'd have to have a number of conversations with people that are amazed at the whole knitting thing. "Is that knitting or crocheting?" "How long have you been knitting?" "Did you know that knitting is really making a comeback?" "How long does it take you to knit something?" "How much does a ball of yarn cost?" If you have knitted in public then you know all the questions. Normally I am positively thrilled to discuss knitting, or anything else for that matter, with anyone anywhere anytime. I think I am addicted to the sound of my own voice. Today though I just couldn't do it, and rather than have people whispering warnings to "stay away from the bitch-woman-from-hell at the end of the bar with the pointy sticks that would just as soon poke your eyes out with them as to talk to you," I decided to just come on home and have a cup of my new decaf creme brulee coffee in my new coffee cup.

My crap day got even crappier at that point. The coffee didn't work out as well as I had hoped. I somehow managed to jam the coffee pot under the drip thingie so that it blocked that flange thingie that lets you pour a cup of coffee while it is still brewing. The filter thing backed up and flooded the counter top with coffee. Thank god I only made 4 cups. I would be mopping up coffee till next Tuesday if I had decided to make a full pot.

On that note i am going to take my sad and pitiful self to bed now. Hopefully when I awake I will be tanned, rested, and ready to take on the world. I am going to the beach tomorrow, so if I am not all those things first thing in the morning, I can certainly work on them once I get to Santa Cruz.

posted by KackieC @ 12:02 AM 1 Comments   

La Bonita

I have been so busy lately I haven't had time to wind my watch. Oh wait- I don't wear a watch! Well, anyway, I am busy. Last night I went to Emma Prusch Farm Park in San Jose for a picnic. They had farm animals there, and the cutest pig you've ever seen. Her name is La Bonita and she oinks when you scratch her in the right spot. I need a pig like I need a hole in the head, or that Hello Kitty USB hub, but boy oh boy wouldn't it be fun to have a pet pig?

Ya'll remember that show Designing Women, and Suzanne Sugarbaker had that pet pig?

posted by KackieC @ 3:07 PM 0 Comments   

How cool is this?

There are a lot of other things in the world that I'd rather (and probably will) waste $80 on besides this little gadget, even if I was JLo AND I won the lottery. However, it's still just as cool as cool can get: DreamKitty.com

posted by KackieC @ 4:44 PM 2 Comments   

First it's hot, then it's cold

This morning it's so chilly I am wearing a coat to work. Thank
heavens. I was about to have a cow it was so hot the last few days.

I'm knitting on the train today- yeah!

posted by KackieC @ 7:55 AM 0 Comments   

Great weekend

I had a fabulous weekend. The ABBA thing on Saturday night was a total hoot. I parked my self front and center of the stage and danced and sang like a fool. Not that anyone else noticed, as the rest of the crowd (85% women) was too busy singing and dancing like a fool too.

I went to the beach yesterday, but it was pretty chilly so I spent most of my time walking and exploring beachy things, watching surfers (there was NO surf yesterday but there were 15 million surfers out), checking out gardens in the nearby neighborhoods, and that sort of thing. Gazella went with Turbo and me, but she stayed in the car.

By chilly I mean it was like 60 degrees. I wore a long sleeve shirt, windbreaker, and long pants. Contrast that with the 104 degrees at the oven (aka my house) where I live. Where just coincidentally we do not have air conditioning. Since it is only over 85 degrees about 5 days a year there is really no need for AC most of the time. Usually I walk around in a sweater all the time,and a couple of weeks ago I had to turn the heat on it was so cold. The last few days though have been a bear though. Total misery. The weather man says to expect it for the next week too. ugh.

posted by KackieC @ 9:19 AM 2 Comments   

I'm ready for a vacation

Today was so nice, I just sat around and read and knitted and did nothing. That's not to say that I had nothing to do- my bedroom looks like a bomb went off in it, I have 4 or 5 errands I need to run, and the garden needs some TLC. Doing nothing but fun stuff today really started me thinking about vacation. I'm taking a week off in August and spending it at the beach. I can hardly wait!

Now I have to go jump in the shower. I am going to San Francisco tonight with friends to see an ABBA tribute band- http://www.bjornagain.com/usa.htm That's going to be sooo much fun!

posted by KackieC @ 4:06 PM 0 Comments   

Today is Thursday, but I wish it was Saturday

This is the first time this week I went to bed before midnight and got up after 7. It's still not 8 hours, but it's a lot better than what I'd been doing. I'm not walking into walls this morning. Yeah!

There are a couple of kittens living under my shed in the back yard. They are the cutest little things, and they are scared of their own shadows- two classic examples of scaredy-cats. I can't get close enough to take a picture that you can tell is a kitten or else I'd slap one up here. There's a grey one and a black and white one, about 8 weeks old (I am having a moment of de ja vu here, if I am repeating myself please forgive me. This feeling could be a side effect of sleep deprivation). I'm not really a cat person, I tend to prefer dogs, but these are so tiny and so goofy when they are playing around that I can't help but want to bring them in the house and give them names and call them my friends. They are totally not on board with that idea though, so I shuttle out a can of tuna a couple of times a day and hide where I can watch them eat it. I'm going to get some catfood for them the next time I go to the grocery, but at the moment this is working. The cats aren't complaining, anyway, unless I stay where they can see me when they are trying to eat. Then they vote with their feet and go hide.

Yesterday was a very stressful work day. The events that transpired were so over the top that they bordered on theatrical. I am hoping that all the drama is behind me now, and that it's going to be smooth sailing from here on out.

Speaking of work, it's time for me to put on my work hat and get down to business. Have a nice day, ya'll!

posted by KackieC @ 8:36 AM 1 Comments   

Weekend knitting plans

With the exception of the last few days, I haven't been knitting as much lately. Life has just been getting in the way. There are so many things I want to do and so little time to do it all. I could really use a 27 or 28 hour day, and it would be swell if my body didn't demand exactly 8 hours of sleep every night. Whenever I try to skimp on sleep to make time to do other things, even by just 30 or 45 minutes, my brain mutinies the next day. My hand-eye coordination goes to pot and my memory (which is dodgy at best) enters the realm of early stage Alzheimers.

I finally had a chance to take a look at the new Knitty this morning. I'm so dying to sit down and knit knit knit knit knit. Funny how you can just get totally energized just by looking at a website. I'll be sitting at my new beach Saturday and Sunday and knitting myself silly.

posted by KackieC @ 9:45 AM 1 Comments   

I need a nap

I went to bed at 1:45. I got up at 5:40. This is the 3rd night in a row I have done that, and I am soooo tired I am staggering around like a drunk. I need a nap. Desperately. Or coffee. A whole lot of coffee.

posted by KackieC @ 7:18 AM 0 Comments   

Boy it's early

It's early. Well, not really that early. It just feels like it. I went to bed late becaue I was working on gazella and it seems like the alarm went off two minutes later. I could really use another couple of hours betwen 1:30am and 6:00 am, know what I'm saying?

posted by KackieC @ 5:45 AM 0 Comments   

Camping fun!

The camping trip to the Russian River was great. Absolutely fantastic weather. I even knit quite a bit, but I think I may have to rip out the last few rows I did. I was pretty far into a bottle of wine at that point and the tension is a tad loosey goosey. But realistically speaking that is about 3 minutes worth of effort so it's not a big deal.

I think I like this camping thing. With the nice weather we have in California and all, it's a whole different animal than camping in the jungles of Arkansas.

posted by KackieC @ 11:39 PM 0 Comments   

Oh what a beautiful morning!

Hola, como esta kitty cats? I'm doing just peachy, thanks for askin'. Gazella and I are headed off to the Russian River for a little camping action in our new tent and sleeping bag. We're working under the pretense that it will be neither as hot nor as humid as the camping trip in Arkansas. I'm hoping to make some serious headway on that dress this weekend, since I'm oh-so-ready to wear it. I'll be back tomorrow, and hopefully I will have the majority of Gazella completed by then. Chances are I won't, but I can hope anyway.

I don't know what my guinea pigs are doing in the other room, but it sounds like they're rearranging the furniture and threatening each other with bodily harm. They're making more noise than the rooster two doors down.....OK, I just checked, and that is exactly what they did. They've played some elaborate game of chase and knocked over the food hopper and spread the food all over their habitat (the hopper holds about two pounds of food, which, in case you are interested, covers about 3 square feet to a depth of .5"), moved their "stable" around so the entrance is smashed against the side of the habitat, and the drip pan that sits under the water park (aka the water bottle, the pigs' favorite toy) has been flung to the opposite side of the guinea pig palace.

These little dudes are nutty. They are kind of on the big side (nearly 8 pounds between the two of them) so their "stable" is something that is big enough to hold two pigs sprawled out like Jabba the Hut. Usually a shoe box or an amazon.com box plopped on its side . Every so often their recreational activities will result in the box being turtled, with one pig trapped inside and relaxing in the relative solitude of the now-single-occupancy-only stable and the other pig screaming bloody murder to get in.

If you've never had a guinea pig as a pet, I'd highly recommend getting a couple. Two is just as easy as one to care for, and they are much happier and more social when they have a buddy to play with. If you have kids that are hankering for a hamster or a gerbil, skip the smaller rodents and go straight for the pigs. Those teeny little guys don't like to be held, they bite, are extremely nocturnal, and only live 18-24 months. Pigs on the other hand LOVE to be held and will follow you around the house like a dog, squeek and squawk with joy when they see you (and when they hear the fridge door open, and the rattle of any plastic bag that may contain veggies, and when one of them gets attention and the other one doesn't), and they live 5-7 years. I've had a gazillion hamsters and gerbils over the years, and finally got my first pig 3 years ago. I can't imagine why I didn't get one sooner.

Holy crap, what am I doing? I'm waxing on about guinea pigs when I need to be packing and getting dressed to leave here in less than an hour!!!!!

posted by KackieC @ 7:40 AM 0 Comments   

lazy ol' me

Is it just me or does anyone else have the summer doldrums? I don't feel like doing anything. I can't seem to work up the mental energy to even knit right now. Or read, or garden, or anything. Pretty much every bit of brainpower I can harness is devoted to my job. I may be slacking in my personal life, but a steady paycheck is something I've gotten addicted to over time so I can always gather up plenty of energy for work.

Actually, now that I think about it, I don't think I've got the summer doldrums after all. I'm just tired. I've been working out more and harder than usual for the last couple of weeks, and my brain and body are just a little tired. No real reason for the extra workouts, except that some friends have been running and hiking trails I like and they've invited me along, and it's sort of snowballed. It's also taking more time out of my regular routine so I guess all those things added up make it seem like I am not doing anything I usually do (like knit, read, or garden). I am also eating like a horse it seems. Speaking of eating, it's almost lunch time...

Ohmigosh- an airplane just flew over the house and it was so loud the windows rattled!

posted by KackieC @ 11:49 AM 0 Comments   

I wish I was in Hawaii

The first day back from a 3-day weekend is always so sad. I could really use a 4 day weekend. Actually, a week in Hawaii would be even better. Since my schedule for the next few months doesn't really accomodate that, I guess I will just pretend that I am in the Rainbow State while lolling on the beach in Santa Cruz instead.

Speaking of beaches, I've started going to a new beach. Moran Lake Beach is awesome and will always be one of my favorites, but I've just added Privates Beach to my list of places to become one with the ocean. Isn't that name a riot? I always thought it was a nude beach because of the name, but it's not. It turns out it's just called Privates because it is a private neighborhood beach. You have to get a key to the gate from the surf shop down the street. Here's the website: www.privatesbeach.com. Isn't is gorgeous? The beach is at the bottom of the cliff, and you enter it through a gate between two houses. I've driven by there a billion times and never saw the gate till recently when I was walking to The Yarn Place in Capitola a few weeks ago. It's just tucked away there, a little jewel just waiting for folks like me to discover it...

Holy crap, is it 10:40pm already? I gotta go to bed.

posted by KackieC @ 10:42 PM 1 Comments   

Happy Fourth of July

I hope everyone had a happy and safe day today. I know I did!

XOXO,

Kackie

posted by KackieC @ 10:17 PM 0 Comments   

I love long weekends!

The weather at the beach was really great today. I missed a few spots with the sunscreen, so I have a few little pink dots here and there, mostly along the edges of my bathing suit. I'm one of those people that burns in about 8 minutes flat, so I tend to abuse sunscreen, applying copious amounts of SPF 30 every 45 minutes, all day everyday, even when I am not going outside. Add to this the fact that I hide under an umbrella all day at the beach and it's wonder that any sun made contact with my skin at all...Well, anyway, it's minor thing that is more humorous than inconvenient. It certainly doesn't cut into my knitting.

Speaking of knitting, I got a new brand of contacts yesterday. They are actually the same prescription of contacts I was wearing before, but these suckers give me bionic distance vision. I can see the freckles on the face of the man in the moon. Unfortunately, they seem to reduce the crappy near vision I had to nothingness. I didn't bring my reading glasses to the beach because I was wearing sunglasses, so my knitting wasn't so productive. Nor was my reading. And I had to adjust the resolution on my monitor to give me bigger text. God what an old woman I am.

My neighbors here in Little Saigon get into the 4th of July almost as much as they do Tet. It's been fireworks non-stop for the last week, but Friday they started pulling out the big artillery. About every 3 minutes there's a HUGE bang, and a constant crackle of strings of firecrackers going off all the time. Day and night. Cary Grant, one of my guinea pigs, is extremely high strung. I think he's going to need some Zoloft before this is all over with. He does a triple back flip everytime one of those big bangs happen.

posted by KackieC @ 9:50 PM 0 Comments   

Well, it started raining

I chucked in the beach after the weather turned wet, went back over the
hill to San Jose, and hung out by the pool at a girlfriend's apartment
with some gal pals. I'd like to say I got a lot of knitting done, but
mostly we talked about boys, hair, and our nails. Specifically: two of
us had gotten our hair done in the last 24 hours, and one of us at a new
salon; all of us needed manicures and pedicures and we debated the pros
and cons of going to a nail shop vs staying at the pool (we ended up
staying at the pool); two of us broke up with boys recently and another
two of us just started dating someone new (plenty of scoop to be had on
all fronts there). Tomorrow's schedule includes more of the same.
+kac

posted by KackieC @ 10:30 PM 1 Comments   

Super Saturday

Hola, como esta? I am in Santa Cruz, finishing up a brunch of
cheeseburgers and fries. I wanted pancakes, but all the breakfast
places were full and I didn't want pancakes anough to wait for a table.
It's 11:45 am and the sky could not be more overcast if it was raining.
Weather.com did not disclose this fact as accurately as I'd have liked.
And surfline.com, which has a webcam of the surfing spot down at the end
of my beach, also made it seem sunnier than I am currently
experiencing. Oh well, I will live. It's not cold, and its not
raining, and with any luck it will clear up. Right now I am going to
walk back to the beach and work some more on my felted bag from my
Secret Pal. Later. Gators!

posted by KackieC @ 11:48 AM 0 Comments