"Nothing Happened"

I kept diaries off and on when I was a kid. Sometimes I'd have trouble thinking of something to write about. Sometimes, the day was just boring. And sometimes I'd miss several days, and I would be stuck with blank pages with the dates printed at the top. On these days I would simply write "Nothing happened."

Over the last two weeks I broke my New Year's Resolution and didn't write a blog post. So if you're wondering about last week, don't worry. Nothing happened.

For the past two and a half weeks I've been house sitting for the third time since January. This time it was for Lyndsey's family. That's part of the reason I didn't blog. Since all my pain issues started, I've had trouble finding a comfortable place to use my laptop. With all the furniture in Lyndsey's house, I couldn't find a spot comfortable enough to use my computer for long periods of time. And blogging takes time.

I did take some pictures. Here are:



Mercy,




Kelly




and Lady.

I also took this picture one evening of the view from their deck. I wish it turned out a little better:





I included my latest knitting project, which I somehow managed not to blog despite all the progress I've made. Remember the sweater I was dreaming of that I eventually decided would be an Adult Surprise Jacket?





I present the Epic Adult Surprise Jacket. I'm already at the armpits.





You can see pictures of the evolution of the jacket here. Between the four stitches per inch gauge and the six inches of ease, I'm a little worried that it's going to be too bulky. I think it will be ok, since I am aiming for more of a coat than a jacket.

Later on I'll list more details, including the different yarns I'm using. I'm trying very hard to choose yarn that keeps the gauge consistent.

For now, I'll leave you with two things in honor of International Yarnbombing Day. First, a sighting from the Alamo Drafthouse on South Lamar on Saturday. I made asked Katie, Aaron and Aaron's brother Jacob to pose in front of the pipe with me.





The yarn is very soft. I wonder what they used. It didn't seem to be acrylic, but I didn't have a lot of time to examine it.

Finally, I have more coverage of A Knitted Wonderland. This time it's a short movie is by Sarah E. Gonzalez.

Crochet WIN!

see more Hacked IRL - Truth in Sarcasm

Fun Fact of the Day: When I was in middle school, they put up a large chain link fence around the school with razor wire on top. A few years ago, they closed down the school. The building is now home to The Ann Richards School for Young Women. They took down the razor wire. I haven't set foot on the campus since the Ann Richards School opened, but I'm positive it's much happier place.

"The Magic of Amigurumi"

Aaron sent this to me this through Must Have Cute a while back. I think I know how they did it.*


* - They unraveled the crochet and played it backwards.

Chu-kichi's Muffler

It's amazing what a single strand of novelty yarn can do.

*Insert Swine Flu Joke Here*

I can't quite tell if these pigs are knit or crocheted. I think they're crocheted.

The Demon Doily

I'll overlook the fact that she has crochet magazine on her coffee table, but says she likes to knit. Maybe she does both. Either way, this short film is definitely worth watching.

Not *That* Ravelry

This is an ingenious use of crochet in stop motion animation. Apparently this is just the preview. I hope we see more soon.

Automatic Crochet Hook

I wonder where I can get one of these.

Make Magazine on Knitting

I think everybody's first project should be a pixel.

Also, I find it amusing that they talk about the alternatives to knitting needles (as if they're hard to find), but never mention where you can find fiber optic wire.

Tom Selleck: Shepherd

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Tom Selleck

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

I was actually listening to The Daily Show as I was getting ready for bed, and when I came back, Tom Selleck was talking about his sheep. And while his intentions are good, it didn't seem like he was the best shepherd in the world.

Bonus: Tom Selleck didn't know that cows have to have babies to give milk? My class learned it on a field trip to Crowe's Nest in the first grade. Of course, I was ahead of the curve. They asked us what cows need to do to make milk. Everyone else said "eat", but I knew that had to make babies. It's the same with humans.

The Knitwitz

A documentary about knitting addiction. These guys aren't very experienced. Obviously, that angora has been cut with something, probably acrylic.

Do You Want a Danish?

These guys have good taste. (In reading, and in cookies.)

I think at some point I had the pattern book to crochet these guys.

It's a beret!

more animals

"Knitting helps me keep my mind off all the things I can't have on my diet..."

I saw this on tv not too long ago, and I've been looking for it online for a couple of weeks now.

Is this supposed to be a knitting insult? It looks like she makes pretty good stuff (except the basketball jersey.) I'd like my apartment to look like that.

On the other hand, the first diet book ever seriously followed recommended keeping your hands busy while watching tv to avoid the temptation to snack. Knitting was one of the things they suggested. It wasn't a bad idea. (Although that's not why I started knitting. I learned before the first diet.)

Either way, aspartame-sweetened yogurt is a poor substitute for sweets. In fact, it's a poor substitute for regular yogurt. Yuck.

The Lego Knitting Machine

It doesn't knit at the finest gauge in the world, but it's pretty impressive considering it's all made of legos.

"Don't look at me. I'm a failure. All I can do is crochet."

The Sarah Silverman ProgramThursdays 10:30p/9:30c

Silverman Reunion

Black God
Alternative Comedy

Abortion Song
Stoner Humor

Awesome crochet sighting near the end of the clip.

11/25/08 - Edited to add direct link, in case the player doesn't work.

Tuesday Tens: Ten Knitting and Crochet Videos

Sorry I crapped out on you Tuesday. It's a good thing Thursday begins with a T. While I pack to go out of town, here are ten videos featuring knitting and crochet for your enjoyment.


1. Shreddies - Knitted by Nanas - I was completely baffled by this video of a master knitting camp where very little knitting gets done, until I saw the commercial above. Apparently Shreddies is a cereal (I'm assuming sold in the UK) with a whole Knitted by Nanas campaign attached to it. Of course, the way it's explained in the commercial, you would think a quilting metaphor would make more sense. Four layers "knitted together" doesn't quite work. (Reminds me of the Quilted Northern debacle from a while back, although less obvious.)


2. Knit Wits - This is a riot, although for such seasoned professionals, these guys seem awfully inexperienced.


3. Knitting Club Recruiting Video - A little confusing if you haven't seen commercials like this one. The best line is "I want to knit something of myself!"


4. ONE MINUTE MELTDOWN - Wanta Danish? - A short music video featuring amigurumi.


5. woodstock hooker showing off his wares (puppet hats) - Jonathan James is having a bad hair life, so he crochets surreal hats.


6. snip snip snip - I don't quite get it, but the octopus is cute.


7. Disco Knitter - Pretty self explanatory, and pretty accurate for animated knitting.


8. Knitimation - Do The Brane - Maybe fun fur is evil. (Although I still don't know how to do the Brane.)


9. DOLLS UNITED - Someone did a lot of intarsia. (Or duplicate stitch.)


10. Sheep - Funny Animation - Is there anything better than a knitting sheep?


4/4/11 - Edited to Fix Title

Mommy felted my hat!

I just saw this commercial earlier this evening. I tried the best I could to get a closer look at the hat. Is it crocheted? It must be acrylic or superwash. Otherwise, his mom would have felted the hat.

Knormal Knitters

Since I got DVR, I've been taping Oprah. Tonight I was watching an episode I recorded earlier this week, and I spotted some knitting in an unexpected place.

The episode was about sex (a rerun, I found out.) In the course of the episode, they interviewed a couple in an open marriage. The wife, named Hollie, has a boyfriend that her husband knows about and approves of.

They showed a clip of her and her husband at her house, to show that she's a "normal" wife and mother. And in the clip they revealed something interesting. (At least to me.)

Hollie is a knitter.

They show her knitting something yellowy-orange with double pointed needles during the clip of her at home. "I knit for everyone and anyone," she says. As they go to commercial, they showed a little more of her knitting.



You can read her story here.

It was a surprising place to see knitting.

I'm not going to go into the pros and cons of open marriage here, although personally, I couldn't do it. But you'd expect someone who uses double-pointed needles in the age of magic loop to go against the grain. (I know I do.)

I wonder how the sweater curse applies in this situation?


Speaking of Kinky...

I finished my milk fiber single. Now how do I set the twist in this stuff?

I'll probably go on Ravelry tonight and see what I can find. I have so little, I don't think I'll ply it. And while it doesn't seem to need setting as much as other singles, it does kink up. But it doesn't act like normal yarn. See for yourself.



Yes, I'm holding the drop spindle between my toes.

It seems to hit some kind of ... something. Critical mass? Tipping point? It lies almost perfectly straight, then suddenly kinks up like crazy when you get the two strands close enough together. I need a physics expert to help me out. (Hi Heather!)


Shout Outs
My buddy Sam just got his website up and running recently. Go say hi and read some of his writings.

I finally got permission to use all the photos I need for my Tuesday Tens list. Thanks Hannah!

The Ravelympics begin tomorrow, and I am officially on Team Austin, but I'm still picking my events.

Happy Independence Day

I spent Independence Day with my family and Aaron's (my sister's boyfriend) family. There was brisket, coleslaw, baked beans, potato salad, peach cobbler, a lizard riding a car...

Seriously.

Aaron's enterprising little brothers made this car from an erector set. Spiny, the Bearded Dragon, doesn't seem to mind the ride too much. He's very mellow. (I tried to take a video of it, but it didn't come out.)

Spiny had a hard childhood. He was the runt of the litter, and he lost one of his hands early on. He grew up to be very mellow and sweet.

(In addition to lizard cars, Aaron's little brothers also have a solution to the gas crisis.)

I also had a couple of good crochet sightings.

I saw a couple of these crocheted potholders on the table. When I got out my camera, they got out the whole collection. I'm sure grandma is proud that they are getting used.

I also saw a scrubbie, crocheted out of netting.

After we ate, we saw fireworks. I did the best I did to preserve them in another 15-second masterpiece. We went to St. Edwards, so we weren't right at the action, but the view was better than the video lets on.


Of course, I brought my Knit Lite Knitting Needles and some Patons Twister for my Fourth of July Scarf.

I expect to finish it today.