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Rhymes With Mango

Woooooooooooooooooo!
02.24.05 (1:50 pm)   [edit]


Is this the Shiznit, or is this the SHIZNIT!

I got this puppy fast!! check out the personalization!! LadyBean, The Knittin' Mama! Wooooooo This badboy is way cool(omg I sound like a teenager!). The Ipod does the coolest thing: if your headphones come out of the jack(for some reason I'm always having this problem) your music STOPS!! So you don't miss the rest of your song, digging in your (purse,pocket,whatever) trying to put them back in the hole.

I've got to go digging in the stash to get the cotton yarn and some funfur to hold with it so I can make the cozy. A new-to-knitting friend of mine reminded me there's a cell-phone cozy in Stitch N Bitch, so I'll check that out before I do any major swatching.

I was at the ENT office today awaiting a date for the SugarBoogers to get her tympanic grommets. (ear tubes). While I was there the receptionist called me, and I went over to her window, green sock in hand. She said, "Whoa, that's a sock? Is that hard? I want to make socks..." I replied, "It's easy, I learned from online and books!" "Could you make me some?" "Sure, for $25!".... It was hilarious.. By the time I sat back down a few more people were staring and asking me similar questions. And to think, I was late for my appointment(and didn't even KNOW!) :lol:



Oh, remember the paisley 'waist-pack' knitting bag my lovely Secret Pal sent me? Everyone I see asks me about that too! And it's so convenient! I've been using it almost since the day it arrived! I don't wear it around my waist though, I don't have hips like other women and if I tighten it enough to stay around my waist it makes my jacket ride up and I look like Urkel or something :)

Hmmmm:
I am 40% Asshole/Bitch.
Part Time Asshole/Bitch.
I may think I am an asshole or a bitch, but the truth is I am a good person at heart. Yeah sure, I can have a mean streak in me, but most of the people I meet like me.
 
Q&A
02.23.05 (4:19 am)   [edit]
Time to answer some questions!

Yes, Secret Pal I just received your postcard yesterday. No, the kids aren't torturing their pets. They don't really touch them that much as it is. I'm sure they understand now that they will be punished if they mess with the bird cage again. They don't touch the hamster either. She's cranky. :lol:




Yes, Michelle, I'm still working. My poor feet are being tortured but I've been to the foot doctor and although he didn't have much to say he did point me in the right direction for some help. More than likely I'll have to have fitted arches made for my shoes or even special shoes. Which means a trip to the orthopedist(why the HELL didn't my doctor just send me there FIRST? IDJIT!)... ugh...

Here's more clarification on the SSK/K2tog tbl issue:

Upon executing the SSK, you'll notice that the two slipped stitches retain their normal orientation, but the NEWLY made stitch is the one that becomes 'twisted. In the K2tog tbl, the two stitches being knit together are the 'twisted' stitches, but the NEWLY made stitch is in the normal position. Weird huh? I was practicing these and started to realize there was more to what made them different than just how they're done.


Clothesknit: ThangQ for the link to the buttonhole bag. I've seen that pattern before. In fact, I've seen that blog before too! At least ONE skein of my stash will become one of those bags! :D

In other knitting news, I still haven't attached the sleeves to CPRRL yet, but I'm almost done with the first green sock. I'm also going to be starting an Ipod Cozy. Yeah. I finally gave in and got one of those joints. But the cases are expensive and plain. I want something with a little "ME" to it. Hubby kept saying he wanted one and he wouldn't shut up about it so now I've ordered one. :P And he'd better not touch it either... always swiping and then LOSING my stuff :evil:

:lol:

Off to work!
 
You won't believe this....
02.21.05 (10:57 pm)   [edit]
Some of you may remember me making comments about how SSK and K2tog tbl are the same thing, just in different methods. Well, boy was I wrong!. While perusing Folk Socks, by Nancy Bush, I came across some basic knitting instructions which discussed decreasing techniques. I don't know what made me read that particular section, as I consider myself a rather seasoned knitter(Ok, so I've been speed marinated, sue me). But once I'd read the instructions I realized there IS a difference between the SSK and K2tog tbl.

You see(forgive my cheesy explanation but I'll give it my best shot!), with SSK, you are slipping the stitches as if to KNIT which means you keep the stitch orientation normal as if knitting regularly, and THEN you would excecute the movements which are identical to K2tog tbl. Whereas, with a K2tog tbl, you are essentially knitting them them TWISTED, which DOES change the stitch orientation, from frontward, to 'twisted'.

I had NO idea there was a difference because I'd been(gasp) slipping the stitches as if to PURL when I first 'learned' to SSK. So all along, it looked as though both techniques resulted in twisted stitches, when in fact, only the K2tog tbl "twists" the stitches. Oops. (knitting instruction disclaimer: do NOT attempt to understand this unless you know how to knit; I am not responsible for any brain scrambling that results from trying to understand any of what I just wrote).

So,I've been SSK-ing the PROPER way ever since and though I had to look at the result to really understand how different SSK looks from K2tog tbl, I now can see the distinction.

In other knitting news:

Knit something green!!

I put the Green-along button on my blog a while ago and never actually knit anything new that was green except for that potholder I made out of left over dyed wool. So here:


is a sock I'm knitting myself from some dark green Kroy sock yarn. I'd originally intended to knit the kids some socks with this yarn because their school uniforms are green. But after my first attempt at knitting the kids socks I decided I'd wait til I could afford the Sock Wizard program before attempting to knit a sock smaller than my feet again. I still haven't ordered it, but I will soon.

And here's another foray in to the Awwwww Zone:



That's my hubby(again--wow he's been a recurring theme lately!) holding our son when he was but a few days old. Sadly I think I've lost all my just-born pics of the littlest one, as I had them on my hard drive and didn't get around to burning them to disk before my drive went errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.... crsh... So. There.

Altogether now... Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! :lol:
 
Woo!
02.17.05 (9:03 am)   [edit]
The second sleeve of CPRRL is done! YES!. I'm going to go out on a limb and set it for blocking tonight after the runions go to sleep. In the meantime I'm going to start my Fuzzy Feet. I'm using the Lamb's Pride Bulky I got the other day. Yes, I know. The pattern calls for worsted weight. Oops. I'm certainly not going to plunk down more money for more yarn(OMG did I just SAY THAT?!), when I can easily adapt the pattern to fit the bigger yarn. After all the slippers are really just a BIG ass sock, felted down to size, right? Right.

I finished the second Janet Evanovich book, and I'm in withdrawals already :)). :oops:

That's all for right now :))

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

edit to add:


BAM! What a haul! I got a notice from the Post Office about a package I'd missed yesterday. Thought it was something hubby ordered from ebay but I had to go out so I figured I'd get it myself. And what do you think it was? DING DING DING! You got it! My Secret Pal came through again!

Oh you got me SP, you really did. I opened the packet of 'rattlesnake eggs' and about fell out :)) ThangQ for the laugh! I let out a whoop and Hubby said, "What the hell?!" I had to hurry up and put it back together so I could scare him with it too! I'm writing down a list of people I wanna 'get' with that :lol:

Then there's: 3, not one, not two, but THREE skeins of Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky!! :D *squints her eyes and giggles* eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee... I have no idea what I'll do with it. But some felting seems in order!! Then again maybe not, because my Pal also sent me:

a bulky yarn slipper pattern(not felted), so maybe I'll use it for those. Also She sent me a printout of some really funny signs as seen on the highways and biways of our country! Totally hilarious! I was just about to go get some more needles for weaving in ends; but now I don't have to because I also received 3 wool needles, with wide eyes for threading thick yarns! I get so frustrated with trying to thread big needles that still have regular-sized eyes.

If you look closely you'll see a green wire. It's a sample of the kind of wire I'd need for making blocking forms. I'm not sure what my Pal meant about this as I don't really use forms, but I'm sure it'll come in handy.

And Ooh OOH. See the small plastic bag with the Tofu in it? That's Tofu and Ghirardelli(YES!) chocolate morsels for making FUDGE, complete with a fudge recipe to make !! I just need to get my blender back from my friend and I'm gonna go fudge myself! :lol:

I'm not done yet, though, as my pal also send me some more pocket-sized goodies. In that brown paisley print bag(which is a small-project bag I can wear AROUND MY WAIST!! complete with little areas for dpn's and circs), I also found a Gauge Wizard ruler, and collector's Pyrite(fool's gold), Amethyst, and Geode crystal rocks!! I don't want to break the Geode like it says to.. Or should I? :twisted:

I'm still tickled with the 'rattlesnake eggs'... should I try them on my daughter? :twisted: nah. I'll be a nice mommy tonight! :lol:

Wooooooo ThangQ my Secret Pal, you're the best!! I'm REALLY starting to wonder who you are!


And check THIS out:


This is one of the Fuzzy Feet, pre felting. I don't know about this one. I sure hope it comes out right. I'm gonna go against common sense here and felt this first, to see if it'll be usable afterwards. I've found other knitters who've used the Bulky yarn for this pattern instead of the worsted it called for. So I really shouldn't have any problems.

We'll see.

 
Didn't I tell you?
02.14.05 (9:02 am)   [edit]
I wasn't done yarn shopping. Nope. Don't ask me where I got the notion from but I've picked up on Belle Epoque from Knitty.com. Somewhere deep in the recesses of my brain I must have fallen in love with this sweater because I just pluncked down a small fortune for 11 balls of Lane Cervinia "Softer" to make it.



Strangely enough, it's about the same color as the original. Mind you, the pattern designer herself found she wasn't going to be able to find the yarn she'd specified for the item much longer. So there were yarn substitutes on her blog. Hell, even some of the SUBS are discontinued so I hope this yarn works.

I also promised myself I would one day make myself a mohair sweater. So I absolutely HAVE to finish this one. This will be sweater number 4 for me. (I don't count that disaster Sonnet sweater from last year).

CPRRL's second sleeve is almost done. After I finish that off I can block the sleeve caps so it'll be easier to sew them on.


Edit to add:

Look!! :D Isn't this too cute!? My Secret Pal is ON the ball!! Thank You Secret Pal!! Would you believe it's the only card I got today? :( I don't know whether to laugh or
cry..


Edited to add(again):

Well I guess I was wrong! I got a valentine from my son! :D
 
Emergency Posting Service
02.13.05 (10:43 am)   [edit]
We interrupt this journal for a test of the Special Emergency Posting Service. Were this a real emergency, I'd have posted ALL the pics I can find like this:



This is my oldest napping on hubby when she was just a wee baby. I can't believe this same child helped her brother release TWO of the parakeets from the cage today :evil:. Lord, help me not to kill my children(sung to the tune of "Swanee River".

*sigh*
 
Shop O Rama!
02.12.05 (2:24 pm)   [edit]
I have done went fool.( I know, that's poor English, but I can't help myself!) I decided to hit up some LYS's in a quest to find goodies for my Secret Pal. I won't divulge what I got for her. But I'll tell you what I got for me! :D



Kaffe Fassett's Pattern Library. I saw this in a bookstore once and had to have it. But I didn't have the cash then. I had it today so it came home with me! Ever since I did the fair isle hearts on CPRRL I decided I liked working fair isle. My understanding is that Kaffe is THE final word in fair isle designs--at least in the commercial knitting world.( I have since learned that this is not the case. Whoops)

Then there's Folk Socks. I love knitting socks. This time though, I'm going to try fair isle socks. I needed something to rekindle my sock-knitting enthusiasm and this was it! Plus it has a history of folk sock knitting!!

I got these from Seaport Yarn. I'll tell you though, they have this policy of asking people to take off their coats and bags, claiming it gets hot in there. Please. I know a we-think-you'll-steal-som ething 'policy' when I see it. I won't be going there again. I shouldn't have even bought the books from them.

Next I went to Downtown Yarns. And picked up the Lamb's Pride Bulky in Red and the Noro Kureyon. And the double-point needles, size 11 Brittany Birch, and size 1 Clover bamboo.


Then I hit KnitNY, which is where I got the Koigu. I like it there. I have a punchcard I can use to add up purchases and then I get a discount after like $200 worth of purchases. I've already redeemed it once and the best part of it all, the discounted purchase COUNTS toward the next $200! Sweet! :D



Oops! here's the pic of post card I promised!!

All in all I think I did good today, and I'm not done yet!
 
Bad Bean
02.09.05 (1:37 pm)   [edit]
I've been slacking off on my knitting. And this is why :



This, if you remember is one of the books I received from my Secret Pal. I picked it up and didn't put it down(except to sleep and work), until I was finished. yes Secret Pal. I LOVED this book; In fact, I loved it SO much I went and bought book number TWO in the series.. "Two for the Dough" by Janet Evanovich. I got it at the drug store and I intend on getting the rest. No, SP, don't do this for me. I love book shopping :lol:.

And I received the most lovely tulip-covered postcard from her, but alas I finally got batteries for my digital camera, and someone(who shall remain nameless) took it to his mother's house and LEFT it there!! @#$#@%#@. So much for that.

It's been a long day at work and my feet are KILLING me. I even got some arch supports.. but they didn't help. Oh well, back to the drawing board.
 
Blockerized and Obstructivated
02.07.05 (9:56 am)   [edit]
I've been on a quest for a good blocking board. I have found some but they're all between 40 and 80 bucks a pop! I've read about people who make their own blocking boards out of foam boards and a vinyl tablecloth :lol: I was going to try that and headed for a Michael's craft store.

What a WASTE! The Woodside store doesn't have anything I needed. If I wasn't short on bus fare I'd have gone all the way to the LI store. But as luck would have it, I decided to try the Woodside store because I hadn't been there before. I won't be going back there again.

I'm ankle deep in the second sleeve of CPRRL. All I need is to block them so I can sew them to the sweater.

Nothing much else to report..
 
Goodies!!!
02.05.05 (8:57 am)   [edit]
I was sleeping in this morning. Or so I thought. I'd had a wild first day at work yesterday and a nice long soak in the tub was the perfect end. Then I awoke this morning to "Mommyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy yyy get up, someone's at the door!!!". Knock Knock. The mailman was early today! 10:00 early.

He gave me two boxes. One was some books I'd ordered from Overstock.com, Weekend Knitting by Melanie Falick, and The Weekend Crafter:Rubber Stamp Carving. I think the stamp-making book is VERY informative and has some really pretty designs in it.

And then, there was THIS:



A most delectable assortment of goodies from my ever-thoughtful Secret Pal!!

Lookie :D

I don't even know where to start first! lol I love to read and my SP knows this! In the box was a mystery by Janet Evanovich(a la Dick Francis and Charlotte MacLeod?) I hope so!;

"Fuzzy Logic", a compilation of Darby Conley's comic strip "Get Fuzzy"; "The Secret Footprints", by Julia Alvarez, a very sweet, short story about a little girl from under the sea who's just a little different... I read this story cover to cover, I just couldn't stop! I'm sure my kids will love this! This is a very special gift indeed, as there are parts in Spanish, which I plan to teach my kids to speak as they get older. Equally special, is the fact that the author is of Dominican heritage, as is my husband(I swear my SP is psychic!)

Then I went through the rest of the goodies.... BioFreeze roll-on pain reliever! Who'da thunk? and it's soooooo much better than the flexall creme I sometimes use, it's soo messy and gets everywhere, this way I can just roll it on and keep going!;

Smartie candy Necklaces(Bad sweet tooth, down, girl.. teehee); Haribo HappyCola gummy cola bottles.. I'm already tearing into these as I type this!!;

a self-healing cutting mat(how did you know I needed one of these, SP?); a little ruler for(I'm not sure about this, but I'm sure my SP will tell me soon enough lol); blocking pins for blocking my knitting pieces(ThangQ! Next stop, Blocking board!!);

And last but NOT least!! a small clay sculpture of an Irish Setter(?), a clay tile made of millefiori cane faces!! from Bainbridge Arts and Crafts, and, *crying here*, 3 genuine Duck Eggs!! For covering with clay! I can't WAIT to use these... I'd always wanted to cover an egg but was afraid of screwing up the process of emptying the contents so I wouldn't wind up with a mess. And these bad boys are Way bigger than achicken egg. I didn't even KNOW that!! They feel like porcelain, I'm afraid to use them..

My daughter thinks there's real ducks in them lol.. I had to show her the hole and tell her what really happened, :lol:

*sigh**chomp**chew* gummy candy :D Good reads, all wrapped up with care. ThangQ, ever so much my Secret Pal!!
 
Ohhhhh that felt good...
02.04.05 (4:37 pm)   [edit]
the bath I just had, that is. It was a longgggg day at work. Not a full shift, but seeing as I haven't worked outside the home in about ohhhhh, 2 years... It sure seemed long. Got to meet some of the crew and um.. well, anyway.. yeah.

Got home and my feet were KILLING me. Had to have hubby massage the tootsies and that didn't help much.(That and the fact that he kept STOPPING). So I had to go soak and I feel loads better.

I did take my knitting with me but I didn't really knit. The bus ride is a little nerve-racking. I don't know WHAT possessed the MTA to put a citybus on the highway, but they did! I mean it's good cause it's a shorter ride than to take two buses and a train. I just can't help but get nervous and grab the bar in front of my seat when we hit the Belt. Still no pics, sorry.
 
WTF????
02.04.05 (2:59 am)   [edit]
It's my first day of work, and it's @##$^ RAINING!!! :evil:
 
What's up?
02.02.05 (4:23 pm)   [edit]
I want to thank everyone who's given suggestions these last few posts. I've obtained black sneakers( ThangQ Payless for being cool on the side,even if they DO look like bootleg K-swiss!), and I'm sticking with my pink knapsack for now. I don't really need any more knitting baskets. I just have to stop carrying the one I have with me. It won't fit in anything at work so I won't be bringing it there anyway.

Still plugging away at that CPRRL sleeve. I'm done with the increases. How I managed to be off by 2 stitches is beyond me. But I corrected that in a jiffy. As much as I'd hate to do it, I'm going to have to leave my knitting home that first day, just to make sure I can bring my stuff in with me. Actually if I remember correctly I can because when I went for the interview I just waltzed right in. Of course I wasn't getting on a plane, so I guess that made a BIG difference :wink:.

My digicamera batteries are out of commission or I'd show you my progress and these sweet/tangy Lemongrass travel candles I got for a steal at Target the other day. Of course I won't be burning them-- I'll scoop them out so I can use the tins to cover! Yes, I'm addicted to polymer clay, sue me.

I'm going to take the plunge. Well, sort of. I'm looking for a new hair color but I don't want to commit to anything permanent. So I'm going for a rinse. I've done this before so it's nothing new to me. Too bad I can't get it as bright as I'd like. I'd need to bleach first and I do NOT want to go there. Especially in my own bathroom :)) Maybe some day in the future I'll get a salon stylist to do it.
 
Ground Hog's Day
02.01.05 (10:15 pm)   [edit]
Today is Ground Hog's Day. Supposedly, some ground hog is supposed to peek out of his hidey-hole and if he sees his shadow he'll go scrambling back in. This is supposed to mean another 6 weeks of Winter. If he comes fully out then I guess we get Spring.

I think it's all horsepucky. I can't recall the last time that bloody rodent actually didn't go back hiding. And if you look at the freakin calendar it's ANOTHER SIX WEEKS til SPRING anyway!! Hello? Is this thing on??

I really like those Lantern Moon rice baskets but mine is starting to fall apart. I'm starting to think this was only meant for home decoration. I really like being able to sit the basket down on the floor/ground and knit from it wihout too much trouble. Other bags(at least, ones I can afford) just don't hold up that way. I'm still on the lookout for a bag I can sash around my side and knit from. It looks like a messenger bag will be it, but I didn't find any at Target. I DID find some black slacks I need for work. I still don't know where I'll get the black sneakers from. I just want something all-black, nothing fancy. All I really hope is that I'll be able to get into the terminal with my knitting. I sure as hell couldn't get into the Social Security office with it :evil:. But fook them, cause they stink! :)) How many knitters do you know who'll ruin a days work to stab someone with their needles. Shame on you, security guards.. buildings don't fly! They couldn't even HOLD the items for me. Bastiges..

Ugh, I knew I forgot something.. I was supposed to get some rechargeable batteries and a new battery for my cordless phone. Oh well, that'll have to wait. Dang phone doesn't stay charged off the base as long as it used to. I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that the phone is almost 6 years old... hmmm... nah! :lol:
 
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Hi there! I'm LadyBean and this is my journal home on the web. Hope you like my blog!


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