Just another day in paradise

AKA, paradise fish sweater update. I finished the front panel yesterday and got DBF's camera after watching Survivor last night (poor Nick) and took a few shots. They're really not that great because the light wasn't that good, so bear with me. I'll get some outside shots when the sweater gets done so that you can see the true color of it.

I slept good last night for the first time in a while. I'm refreshed and ready to take on the day. How long do you think that will last? I've got about three rows knit on the back panel of the sweater and about 3 feet on my little cousins' scarves. I still haven't touched the sock. Maybe I'll work on that some this weekend. Of course I think Saturday will be all about playing games at the convention, so who knows if I'll knit then or not. I could always take it with me...of course that's one more thing to carry. We'll see how ambitious I am.

I keep eyeballing some new knitting books. After seeing the Inspired Cable Knits book on the harlot's site, I now want it. Sure, I don't know how to cable yet, but it was the next thing on my list to learn how to do!

I guess I should get to work. Lots of deadlines today. Figures. Happy Friday!

Knit on...

So, looking at the new issue of Vogue Knitting...

I have two projects I for sure want to make. I better lose a little more weight though, else these will look like crap. I'm working on it though. Three good days in a row, working on number 4! Anyways, here's some pictures of what I want to make. First is the cover of the new magazine.

Then comes a corset top. I just love the coloring on this one. I must find yarn to make it. I must use up the yarn I have now since I'm not allowed to buy anymore until I use up the stash. I could probably use that cotton chenille for something like this...hm...


I really like this little cami. It's flirty and fun and it looks sexy. Now I just have to remind myself that the model has no boobs and I do, so I'll have to make some room for me. I'd rather have the problem of having too big of boobs than no boobs at all.

OK, so what about the rest of my current projects? I'm almost done with the front panel of the paradise fish sweater. I'm at about 20 inches now, so just another couple of inches and it's on to the back. I still have not decided how the heck to work the sleeves. Looks like another Kim consultation there. The sock has about 3-4 inches done on it and I haven't picked it up since last Friday. I've got about 2 feet on a crocheted kid's scarf for one of my little cousins. Once I finish that one, I have to make another one for the other little cousin so that they can match and not fight over who gets to wear the rainbow scarf.

So, DBF created the owling mine deck for Magic last night...I got beat by it once, but it was not fun when I did get beat by it. That deck is mean. Now I need to work on my black/white life gain deck. I found the list here at work, so it's just time to pull cards and sleeve up. Gotta get stuff ready for this weekend. There's a gaming convention that we'd like to go to. Since I can't buy any more yarn, looks like I'll be buying more Magic cards instead :oP I need more Ravnica, Champions, and Core apparently.

OK, I need to start working. We've got a deadline to meet by Friday, so that means lots of tracing for me. Fun fun.

Knit on...

Is there hope?

Perhaps there is hope for the french market bag/kitty bed. I was talking to Kim while at Stitch and Bitch today and between the three other knitters there, I think we have a solution on how to make this bag actually work. It will require effort and it will require some time, but it can be done.

Last night was good at Stitch and Bitch. I'll be able to stay longer next week though. I'm almost done with the front panel of the paradise fish sweater and I'm working on two rainbow crocheted scarves for my little cousins. I've got enough to keep me busy for a little while at least.

I'm dragging this afternoon. Only 2.5 hours left and I can get out of here. Lunch made me sleepy today. It tasted good though. I still have some pretzel sticks left, so that will be the afternoon snack instead of the usual popcorn. Yawn. I better go wake myself up and get some work done. Blah.

Knit on...

New Meme from Erica's blog

If you're reading this, consider yourself tagged. Keep it going, or else gloom and doom will strike you...ok, so maybe it won't, but consider yourself warned!

1. A blog which you think people have not discovered. Kim's Blog, see links to the right

2. A blog whose author lives close to you physically. Knit and Nine-Oh http://knittingandnineoh.blogspot.com/

3. An unusual or weird animal picture. OK, this whole song has plenty of funny weird animal pictures: http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/llama.php

4. An entry that made you laugh and got you strange looks from family members or co-workers. Anything on the harlot's site http://yarnharlot.ca/blog

5. An idea you wish you'd thought of. Knitty.com

6. Something you'd like to knit. Heirloom aran sweater from knitpicks.com

7. A picture of something you consider beautiful. This:

8. A blog whose author you'd like to one day meet in person. Erica, see links to right

9. A blog of someone you have already met in person. www.theanticraft.com. I've met both Renee and Zabet and they are awesome knitting goddesses.

Almost done with the front panel of the paradise fish sweater. I decided to join the stash-a-long group and will post more about that later. I need to get pictures ready for the flash-your-stash day on April 1. God knows I need to use all this up. Do I have to count all the crappy acrylic yarn I have lying around. I was young and naive when I bought it, I swear!

Knit on...

Ah, the blahs are gone

So I apparently just needed to see the light of day to get rid of the blahs. I don't know why I was feeling that way, but once I got some sunshine, I started feeling much better. Mind you, it wasn't much sunshine, but it was a little. Walking from the car to the movie theater does count.

DBF and I went to see V for Vendetta this weekend. I really liked the movie. You can take it as just an action movie, or you can read into it more for a political commentary. Very interesting. Go see it and you'll see what I mean. I now want one of those masks too. I wonder who might be selling them.

OK, so you're wondering what the deal is with Niv Mizzet up top, huh? I played Magic yesterday and tried out the new Niv deck I built. Yeah, mana acceleration needs to be added. It's just too darn slow. But I did get it to go off once yesterday, and when it did, man did the damage fly. The dragon is just good with certain combinations. Never thought I'd find a use for some cards that are in this deck either. It was fun. I also copied a red/green Gruul deck and it's uber fast. Might tweak it some and get it ready for some tournament play. Let's just say I need to get ready for a big event coming up.

DBF and I won't make it to the Dissension pre-release like we hoped because we have a photography weekend to get to that same weekend and we already have room reservations which are non-refundable. Oh well. Hopefully we'll get to the release tournament instead. Why did they have to come out with Coldsnap and bump the Dissension pre-release up a week. Oh well.

On the knitting scene, I worked a little bit more on the paradise fish sweater and got another inch done on my sock. I also started crocheting some charity scarves. I have all this acrylic yarn sitting around, so I decided to make a bunch of scarves and donate them to a homeless shelter who always takes them and gives them to their patrons. As long as it helps someone.

That was pretty much my weekend. I enjoyed getting to play Magic finally. I need to work on some more decks now. I also need to finish the front panel of that paradise fish sweater so that I can get to work on the back. I'd like to finish it pretty soon. I know that won't happen, but you never know when I'll have some free time and can do that. Well, gotta get to work.

Knit on...

Blah

I've just been in a blah mood the past few days. Don't know why either. I think I'm just ready for Spring to get here. I now have about 15 inches on the front panel of the paradise fish sweater and about 2 inches done on my first sock. I've been busy at work too, so not much goof off time the past few days. I really need to do some cleaning soon too. The yarn stash has gotten a little out of hand this week. I took a little time yesterday to wind the hank of sari silk Kim traded with me into a ball. I really like that yarn a lot.

Not much else is going on. I have to go to a photography thing tonight, so there's my exciting Friday night. I'm ready to go home already and it's only 1. Blah.

OK, I guess I should get to work. Maybe I'll do something exciting this weekend, who knows.

Knit on...

Blah

I'm having a blah day today so far. Things just don't seem to be going right. I dressed down at work, thinking that half of the people would be at a convention. Turns out they're leaving tomorrow, so here I am dressed down when I'm not really supposed to be. Blah. My own fault, I know. The digitizing I've been doing seems to be messed up too. Blah again. I forgot lunch and have to order out. Blah. I weighed myself this morning and I was up another pound. Blah times 3. OK, enough with the blahs.

Stitch and Bitch was fun last night. Quite a few showed up. I gave away two balls of fun fur. Now Kim will get the rest of the constantly growing pile of fun fur. I think the yarn must be related to tribbles because I swear it keeps growing and all my grain keeps dissappearing. OK, so I lied about the grain :oP

Tonight is the mini yarn wallow and I don't know if I'm going to have the energy for it. I'm just blah today, so I might go home and curl up and play Magic instead. Some days I just shouldn't get out of bed. Maybe once I take my happy pill for the day I'll change my mind. Speaking of that, I'm an hour late on taking that. Blah again. Gotta figure out what I'm going to eat for lunch. Does anyone know of a way to do nothing and lose weight? Damn those who have fast metabolisms. Mine crawls. At least I know I'll be fat and it'll sneak up on those of you who can eat anything they want! I think I might take some quizzes today. There should be one on what kind of Magic player are you. We'll see if I can find anything. Until then...

Knit on...

Alphabet Meme

I got this off of Plain Jane's site. In case you're bored, copy it to yours and keep it going:

A-Age: 23
B-Bed size: Twin
C-Chore you hate: Organizing my yarn
D-Dessert you love: Chocolate anything
E-Essential start your day item: Cereal of some sort
F-Favorite actor(s): Um, hm, good question. Will Ferrel, Ben Stiller
G-Gold or Silver: Silver
H-Height: 5'10"
I-Instruments you play: Um, harmonica?
J-Job title: Geotech
K-Keeping track of your day: Day Planner
L-Living arrangements: Granparents, three fish
M-Mom's name: Cindy
N-Not liking right now: Not having enough money to do everything I want to do
O-Overnight hospital stay other than birth: Stupid unknown virus that swept through college 2 years ago
P-Place you were born: Orlando, FL
Q-Quote you like: "It means I grabbed the bull by the horns, it's a metaphor...but it really happened" Ben Stiller-Dodgeball
R-Right or left handed: Right
S-Siblings: None
T-Time you woke up today: 6:30 AM
U-Unique habit: Saying "At some point" too much
V-Vegetable you hate: Onions
W-Worst habit: Not keeping track of everything
X-X-rays: Broken ankle
Y-Yummy food you can make: Chicken Parmesean Casserole
Z-Zodiac sign: Scorpio

There ya go, now you know a little more about me.

Knit on...

Pictures!!! And what the hell happened??

Ah, pictures are in. So, um, let's begin with the crappy french market bag. I'm not sure what the hell happened to this. It was huge pre-felting as you can see.


OK, so as it was felting, I caught it wrapped around the agitator in the washing machine. I think this did something funky to it, because it never really shrunk all that much. So, the french market bag is now.... A fancy kitty bed! Kim, guess what you're getting on Wednesday seeing as I currently have no felines of my own at this moment and you have ten! Purl needs a new bed too, right?

OK, so there's the kitty bed/french market who knows what happened bag. Now, here's the paradise fish sweater so far, all 11 inches of it.

I know it's hard to tell, but it's a K5P1 rib on it and it's about 18 inches wide. I should have spread it out so you could see all of it instead of half, but oh well, you get the basic idea there.

Now, I talked about yarn the other day. Here's the two colors I bought. I don't like how the picture came out, but it was the best I could do since it's been raining for 2 days now. It's called Novita and it's a fuschia and a lavendar color. I see a spring shirt being made out of this.


Ah, I also am knitting my first sock. Crappy picture, but I have about 1/2 inch done on a sock. Here ya go.


And for the final picture of this post, I talked about the two headed giant competition. Here's the costume. We're going to get a better picture of this because you can't really tell it's not just two shirts. So here you go!


I had a little too much fun making us look like giants in Paint too :oP We couldn't just look like normal people for this picture, could we? :oP

Well, there you have it, lots of pictures. DBF and I worked on Magic decks last night. I think I have a decent deck built, but it might just be crappy. I'll post it once I narrow down a few more cards. Blah, too many cards, too much knitting, so little time.

Better get to work.

Knit on...

Looking for Chenille Yarn?

I got my yarn from the Chenille Shack on ebay on Saturday and I just wanted to roll around in it. These are the skeins that I got. I got them in blue, parsley green, and marble. I'm going to work on a spring sweater with them, just not sure what type of shirt I want to make. All I know is that it will be soft. I got a good deal on the yarn too and if you're looking for chenille yarn at a great price, I really recommend the seller mickeysamouse. I'll put the link to her ebay store in my links section. It's just all super soft.

What is a paradise fish?

OK, I've had some emails already asking what a paradise fish is. For those of you who are too lazy to google it, here's a picture. This is a male blue paradise gourami. They are also known as paradise fish. They are in the same family as the betas or siamese fighting fish. They are pretty aggressive, especially the males. Knit seems to like to beat up on Purl some, but she will only take so much before she flares up those gills and fights back.

OK, so there ya go. If you want to learn more about paradise fish, go google it :oP

I just spent a nice lunch hour knitting on my paradise fish sweater. It's 11 inches long now for the front panel. I'll post the pattern once I figure out what I want to do with it. Gotta love original stuff, you never know what the pattern is until the very end :oP

Well, back to work...

Knit on...

Weekend Update

OK, so I played Magic this weekend. It was nice to play in a tournament again. DBF and I won free entry to the tourney (saved us 50 bucks) by dressing up as a two-headed giant. I put my sewing skills to work for the costume. We decided on a cowboy theme and bought two plaid shirts at goodwill and then I created a two-headed concoction out of them. DBF has the pictures on his camera, so as soon as I get them, I'll show you the costume. We didn't do too well at the tourney, but at least it was free!

I did meet another knitter there though. She was pretty nice. Hopefully she'll start coming out to one of the Stitch and Bitches around here. It's always good to meet another knitter. Now if we can just get her hooked on magic, we might have a second knitting magic girl around here :oP

I casted on my first attempt at a sock on Friday. So many needles! I'm doing OK though so far. I'm at the easy part of just working a K2P2 rib for 6-8 inches. Not too bad at least. I've got Kathy to help me here at work, so I'll be able to figure it out I think.

I've got about 8 inches on my green Pia sweater. I have dubbed this the paradise fish sweater because the colors remind me of my male paradise fish named Knit. Yes, I have two paradise fish named Knit and Purl, Purl being the female. I also have a red and blue beta fish named Niv-Mizzet after the red/blue dragon from Guildpact in Magic. Yes, I know, I'm a dork :oP

My parents get home from their trip today. Sounds like they had a good time. I'll probably talk to them tonight if they're not too jet-lagged. We'll see. Well, I should probably get to work, huh?

Knit on...

We drink green beer in honor of this guy...

Meet St. Patrick. He's the patron saint of Ireland alongside St. Brighid. While Brighid might actually be the Irish goddess in Catholic disguise, St. Patrick seems to be an actual person who did exist. So, what's with the driving snakes out of Ireland legend? He converted the country to Christianity, so he drove out the pagan snakes. There ya go. Have some green beer now.

I'm partial to Brighid since I'm a woman, but Patrick is pretty cool too. I'm 50% Irish thanks to my mom's side of the family, so I definitely have some ties there. So in honor of that, I'm wearing green, knitting a green sweater, and will go drink green beer for lunch.

I did bind off the evil french market bag today. I think it would make an interesting rug based on how it looks pre-felting. I hope this turns out all right. It's for a birthday present, so if it doesn't, I'll send it to her anyways with a scarf for apology :oP

I saw Kim yesterday and she got to see the Furry Beast, aka the purple sweater I made out of homespun yarn. She also got to see the green Pia yarn and the new merino superwash yarn I picked up the other day with Kathy.

What, you mean I have to actually work on St. Patrick's day? I have red hair, green clothing, and green beer...I should get the day off! Blah. Back to the squiggly lines. Damn deadlines.

Knit on...and have some Guiness...

Shopping in Bethlehem, aka Parental Update

Greetings to all again from Jerusalem:
We started off today EARLY at the Rabbi's Tunnel in Jerusalem. For those unfamiliar with the layout in Jerusalem, the Dome of the Rock now sits where the temple mount once was before its destruction in 70 A.D. The Wailing Wall is to the side of it. The Israelis have been excavating underground now for some time, creating a tunnel that runs along the western wall. We went down in the tunnel and were able to see the bottom layers of what they are excavating, which includes roadways that have been dated back to the time of Jesus, meaning he likely walked these same roadways. Quite incredible to see. Before entering the tunnel, we stopped briefly at the Wailing Wall to pray. There, Mark inserted Bishop Frank's photo int he wall and prayed for him there. He took a picture as well, which we'll show you when we get home. The tunnel visit took place at 6:30. That's a.m., not p.m. Ouch! We returned to have breakfast before taking off to Bethlehem. Although not very far away, it is now a complicated trip in the fact that Bethlehem is Palestinian controlled. What that meant for us was that we had to stop at the border, get out of our Israeli-run buses, change buses and then go across the gates. Quite a contrast in cities. The first thing we noticed was how run-down, dirty and neglected much of the city is. We stopped at the Shepherd's Fields, which to the best of their ability to figure out exact sites, is pretty darned close if not the very site where the angel appeared to the shepherds in the field to announce the birth of Jesus. Very pretty area. Lots of rolling hills. Then we headed to the Church of the Nativity (still in Bethlehem). Inside, the church was a contrast of elaborate decoration and yet plain construction. We saw the site where Jesus was believed to have been born. We fought our way back to the bus through a horde of street vendors who wanted to sell us everything from handbags with Jerusalem on it (OK, now, we're in Bethlehem. If we wanted Jerusalem bags we would have bought them in, hmmm, maybe Jerusalem.) to slingshots like David used to hit Goliath in the head. From there, we went falafel-ing at a nearby restaurant. We are getting quite hooked on these sandwiches, perhaps because it's the major source of lunchtime nutrition in the Middle East. Next, we did what all of us have been waiting for this whole trip: We went shopping! Bethlehem is known for its olive wood products, and we went to a shop owned by Christian Palestinians where we saw some absolutely breathtaking sculptures, artwork, jewelry, etc. The day ended at the Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem. It is hard to really explain what it's like to go through the museum. You are surrounded by so many things that stimulate your senses and emotions that it becomes quickly overwhelming. But it was a great way to end the day, and perhaps fitting as well to come back out of Bethlehem (under Palestinian control) back to Jerusalem right after that. We don't think it was planned that way, but it somehow seemed right. After many trips up and down the hills today, we are pretty tired and hungry! Tomorrow we visit the Mount of Olives, Mount Zion and a few other areas. Until then ...

Love to all,
Fr. Mark and Cindy

Olive wood knitting needles perhaps?

I officially hate the French Market Bag

No offense to the creator or anyone who loves this bag, but after knitting the same thing for over a month now, I'm sick and tired of seeing this bag. I hate how the handles look, so I'm saying screw the handles. I talked with Kim last night and she suggested wooden handles. I happen to have some lying around the house right now, so wooden handles it is! So I'm now in the process of binding off the dumb bag with the frou frou boa yarn and two strands WOTA. It's much harder than it sounds.

I raided Knit One Purl One yesterday afternoon with Kathy. She bought some gorgeous yarn for a sweater and some sock yarn and some yarn for a really cool, funky scarf. I can't wait to see how it looks when she gets all of it done. Oh, she also got a really neat pattern for a blocky sweater. I wish I had known about K1P1 prior to her declaring she's going to close the store. Of course that would mean that I would have spent much more money there :oP

I know, I know, you're thinking, well, what did Magic buy? Of course I bought something. Yes, I will get pictures up as soon as I get DBF's digital camera. I bought 16 balls of a fuschia and lavender yarn to make into a sweater. Yes, I'm on a sweater kick right now. That yarn will have to wait until the green Pia yarn sweater is finished though. I've got about 4 inches knit on that right now. I'll get a picture of that too, I swear.

So, now I'm about to fall asleep. Darn coming into work early to make up time from having the flu last week. Darn flu. I should actually do some work I suppose. I'll get to that after I get some liquid caffeine. Blah.

Knit on...

Another parental update: Dad and Camels

I especially liked the last sentence of the letter. Wonder what the camel wanted?

Hello to all from Jerusalem:
Our day started off with a trip to the Church of the Primacy, which is the site that commemorates John 21 where Jesus was on the beach and called to Peter and the disciples from the shore. Interestingly enough, as we stood on the shore this morning, a small boat was about 100 yards offshore, about the same position Peter's boat was in in that story. Once again, it was a reminder of the story in context, and you could understand why he neither recognized Jesus nor could see him. From there, we went south to the Jordan valley and stopped at Beit She'an, where major archeological digs are going on. They have literally recovered an entire city there that was destroyed by a severe earthquake around 750 A.D. The site was complete with an amphitheater, a shopping area, public baths and theaters. Quite amazing to see. We continued south into the desert, circling around Jericho :). We went on to the site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were uncovered. Really cool terrain there, and it's quite amazing that the scrolls were ever found when you look at the landscape. We took pictures of the cave where they were uncovered. By the way, Mark got to see Mount Nebo today. He even tried to photograph it out the window, but the bus was too bumpy. Maybe tomorrow. Next we went to a Wadi that follows a path that apparently runs from Jerusalem to Jericho (think story of the Good Samaritan). Spectacular view needless to say. We were on top of a ridge looking down. At the base was a monastery (Monastery of St. George) which we would have loved to have been able to visit. But no rapelling gear, I'm afraid. The day ended with the acsent into Jerusalem at sunset. We stopped on the way in at the Hebrew University where we had a great view of the entire city at sunset. Dr. Rutland chose to read Psalm 124 there (although not very well, because the words of it made him break down and weep, which inturn made everyone else weep as well). We checked into the hotel Inbal around 6 p.m. and will be here for the next few days. Thanksfully, they are a first-class resort with Inetrnet access, so you can expect to hear from us again without any problems. Tomorrow, we start off with the tunnel tour beneath Jerusalem, which is supposed to be the best of the best as far as things to do. And just for giggles, you'll be happy to know that Mark had his picture taken next to a camel that seemed very interested in whatever he had hidden in his pocket. Until tomorrow ...
Love to all,
Fr. Mark and Cindy

Darn Ebay

This is what I get for going on to ebay this morning and typing in "yarn" into the search engine. I just won two auctions for yarn and there's a third one that I might win tomorrow. That's all I'm buying, I swear. It's a cotton chenille and I loved the colors. I can see a pretty spring sweater or cardigan being made in these colors. Blah, like I need more yarn. DBF will probably just laugh.

So, Amazing Race last night was a to be continued episode. I wish we could have seen who was the last to arrive at the check in, but looks like they'll be racing some more before then. They went to Russia this week. DBF and I really want to go to Russia. Anyone want to pay us to do it? I'll bring you back yarn!

Tonight is Survivor. I really hope Shane gets voted out. I'm really not liking him at all. He's just too psycho for my liking. Oh well, we'll see what happens.

So what's up with AR being put on at 10? I want it to go back to 8 or 9! It's past my bed time at 10! End rant. I'm ready for morning break already. Today is Stitch and Bitch at work, so I've got some more work to do on my never ending French Market Bag.

Last night was the formal Stitch and Bitch gathering at Natasha's. Jane has decided to throw a yarn roll sometime next week. Personally, this is something I have wanted to do for a while. I'll be sure to get pictures of a bunch of us rolling around in woolen delight. She gets some free labor to move her books, and we get the chance to romp in the yarn. It's a win-win situation.

Oh, I bought a book last night too. It's called Hot Knits. I like what I see so far. Here's a picture of the cover. Good pictures, nice patterns too.

Well, back to work.

Knit on...

Parental Update

Here's the latest email from the parents in Israel:

To all:
Breakfast on Day 3 started off engaged in conversation with Dr. Rutland. He's currently president of Southeastern University in Lakeland and formerly was the head pastor at Calvary Assembly in Winter Park. He also is leading the Holy Land tour. It was a nice time of catching up and sharing the directions our lives have taken since Mark ran the Overcomers groups at Calvary when Mark Rutland was there. After breakfast, we boarded a boat across the Sea of Galilee on a foggy morning, so much so that you couldn't see very well across the lake. Makes that story about Jesus walking on the water and scaring the bejeebers out of the disciples very understandable. We also had a demonstration on how the fishermen fish at the lake, although no fish were caught during that brief time. Once ashore, we landed on the northwest side of the lake and headed to Capernaum. There, we saw lots of interesting ruins, such as what was believed to be Peter's house, an ancient synogoue and the foundations of the old city. From there, we went to the Mount of Beatitudes where the Sermon on the Mount took place. Very peaceful and serene there, and the hillside was a gently sloping area. You begin to understand much better the context of all the things you read about when you see the actual place where they took place. Next, we headed to the "Jesus Boat," an old boat that was only discovered 10 years ago that dates all the way back to the time of Jesus. Quite fascinating how they found it and got it out of the water in remarkably good shape. Then we headed north to Caesarea Philippi. There, we saw the rock cliffs and all the various sites dedicated to the many gods of the other religions at the time of Jesus. The cliff face was full of them, and you can see with much better insight how Jesus was there when he asked the disciples, "Who do men say I am?" It was in this very setting that took place. And when he then asked the disciples the bigger question, "Who do you say that I am?" Kind of gives you chills as you imagine that whole story unfolding. From there, we toured the Golan Heights. Quite fascinating to see all of the bunkers where the Syrian armies tried to use to take that part of the Galilee area. Also saw burned out vehicles that were abandoned after the Israeli army fought back and reclaimed the Golan Heights and more. We finished the day at the south side of the Sea of Galilee at the Jordan River where a number of people got baptized. (The water temp, by the way, was 65 degrees!). The day ended with dinner back at the hotel where we ran into a couple from Calvary Mark knew from his days of working at the Calvary counseling center. Was nice to catch up with them as well. Tomorrow, we head to Bethlehem and then Jerusalem. If we find Internet access, we\ll e-mail again. If not, it may be a couple of days before we move to another location. Having a great time.
Love to all,
Fr. Mark and Cindy

Darn Chocolate

OK, an email from a good friend of mine just got my butt motivated. Thank you, Rebecca! She asked how I was doing on Weight Watchers. Not too good actually. Why does chocolate taste so good? Why do I crave it all the time? OK, so here it is, I'm motivated. I just created a new WW blog called Motivation Comes in Many Sizes. It's true, especially if you are a knitter.

Remember the gorgeous Pia yarn from Italy. It's being made into a form-fitting sweater. I need to lose the gut before it is time to finish it. I'm intentionally making it a little snug so that it will motivate me to slim down some. If I'm spending that much time on a sweater, it better look good on me.

So anyways, there's my WW rant for the day. You can check out my new WW blog at http://magicknitsdiet.blogspot.com or click the link on the sidebar. Darn chocolate!

Knit on...

What the hell????

You are Dishcloth Cotton.
You are a very hard worker, most at home when

you're at home. You are thrifty and seemingly

born to clean. You are considered to be a

Plain Jane, but you are too practical to

notice.


What kind of yarn are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Dishcloth cotton??!! I'm cotton?!! What the hell? Oh well, I guess that would explain that huge cone of Sugar and Cream sitting in my room, huh? I thought I would be wool or something like that. Oh well. Take this quiz and see what kind of yarn you are. I'm curious if there are any more dishclothers out there like me. I really wanted to be wool too! Blah.

I'm awake today which is confusing the crap out of me. I'm never awake. How did I wake up refreshed? Must be the weather change. That rain always puts me to sleep it seems. Well, back to tracing squiggly lines on the computer. I just needed a little break.

Knit on...

Parent Update!

Well, I should have waited an extra minute to get this on the last post. Just got an email from my parents, so here's the update from Israel:

To all: Today we spent much of the morning and afternoon traveling to a variety of sites, starting with Caesarea. We toured the ruins of the city, which included a Roman amphitheater and Pontius Pilate's palace. Dr. Rutland gave a brief teaching at Mount Carmel about Elijah and the prophets of Ba'al. Next, we headed to Armageddon. There, we overlooked the plains below and could easily envision how the armies of the world might one day gather there for war. The valley stretches on as far as the eye can see. Next we headed to Nazareth, where we visited the site of the synogoue where Jesus quoted the Isaiah passage ("The spirit of the Lord is upon me ..."). Dr. Rutland prayed for Mark there in the synogogue. Tonight we are in Tiberias, and on the way there passed by the city of Cana. Every day of traveling takes us by more familiar names. Really neat to actually see them for the next time the scriptures come up regarding them. We had a hard time finding Internet access here, but if we can get back to the cafe from which we are sending this letter tomorrow, we will e-mail again. If not, you may not hear from us before we get to Jerusalem.
Love to all,
Fr. Mark and Cindy

So, my parents have actually seen Armageddon now. And they thought that was just when I was a teenager! Glad they're having fun. Hope they continue to have fun. I hope they bring me back olive wood knitting needles! :oP

Knit on...

What kind of knitter are you?

You appear to be a Knitting Guru. You love knitting

and do it all the time. While finishing a

piece is the plan, you still love the

process, and can't imagine a day going by

without giving some time to your yarn.

Packing for vacation involves leaving ample

space for the stash and supplies. It can be

hard to tell where the yarn ends and you

begin.
http://marniemaclean.com


What Kind of Knitter Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla


Yep, it's another day in paradise, what can I say? It's raining outside, so no sitting on the bench and knitting there. So, I decided to try a few quizzes. This one was first. So, where am I going to find more space to put all my knitting stuff? I really have to clean tonight. I was thinking of getting some of those new Ziploc big bags to store my stash in...but I might be apt to buy more yarn unless I see the stuff overflowing on my shelf! Argh!

Knit on...which I am about to do...

Deep breath, Ah, I can breathe again!

The flu is gone after nearly a week of agonizing over breathing. For half the time, I didn't even feel like knitting! What? Not feel like knitting? For shame! I'm finally better now and it's time for....drumroll please...pictures! Yes, I am finally going to show the finished homespun evil sweater! Also, I'm going to show you all pictures of my latest yarn raid that I promised I would show. So, without further ado, let me show you!

Here I am modelling my finished sweater. It's nice and toasty and rather heavy, but I love it. It's a boatneck by accident. Next time I modify a pattern, I have to remember to modify the neckline as well. Knit with 4 skeins homespun in the color gothic. Mostly stockinette stitch with a little k1p1 ribbing at the bottom and the sleeves. An easy knit and it only took me 23 days to finish it. Sure, I was supposed to finish in 16 days, but that would mean a lack of sleep, and we all know I like my sleep.

Next up is the yarn I bought at K1P1 the other day. The green yarn is Pia from Italy and I love this yarn. It's already being made into a form-fitting sweater as I type :o) It feel like woolen butter! I bought 16 balls of this. The multi colored yarn is a hank of lambs pride worsted in English Garden. I bought 2 hanks of this for a purse. The last ball is fortissima socka yarn for a pair of socks...once I learn to knit socks. I'm ambitious at least! I bought two balls of that. I also bought a pair of bamboo DPNs in size 2. Yep, it was a big splurge. Now I'm looking at knitpicks.com going, hmmm...spring yarn!

So, now I must close and go do some work. Next up will be reports from my parents who are in Israel. Wish I could go. I guess I'll just knit here and work on tracing some more squiggly lines!

Knit on....

I hate the flu

Just so that you all know....I really hate the flu. I've been home from work since Tuesday, lying around and feeling miserable. I've even felt too bad to knit. I know, it's crazy.

I will get some pictures up here soon I promise. I haven't seen DBF here recently because of flu, but I'll get pictures soon.

Ugh, back to bed...

Knit on...if you can...

Splurge!!!

OK, I went to K1P1 this weekend. Probably good that I didn't know about this place before now. I spent way too much on yarn, but it was beautiful yarn. I got the above pictured lamb's pride worsted for a new felted bag. I also got some other yarns and I will post pictures of them as soon as I can borrow DBF's digital camera. I also bought some bamboo DPN's for my first pair of socks. I went yarn crazy, what can I say.

I finally finished my olympic sweater yesterday. It just took me one more week, so that wasn't too terribly bad at least. Next time, I'll make sure I have some sick days so that I can get it done on time :oP Again, I'll get pictures up here ASAP, I promise.

So, now I'm working on the French Market Bag from the felted bag KAL that was supposed to be done last month. Too much knitting, too little time. I've got about three inches on the sides now and it's supposed to be at least 8 inches deep. I might make it longer since I like a deeper bag. Plus I'm adding frou frou boa yarn to the top, so I need it to be a little deeper for that.

So here I am at work, wearing my new sweater (pretty good since I'm not ashamed to wear it!), watching the rain fall outside. I had a good weekend full of yarn, knitting, and just general fun with DBF. We even bought a paint-by-number kit at Michaels the other day and worked some on those. It was fun doing some crafty stuff with him. Now if he would just learn to knit...

Yep, I doubt that will happen. I'm the yarn ho of the two of us. He did like the yarn I got though. We also played some magic this weekend. Of course we both sucked at the tournament. How come we never get decent cards in any sealed format? Oh well. Maybe next time. Until then...

Knit on...

Sari Silk yarn

I love this yarn. It's so nice. I was given a skein of the unrefined silk and a skein of the millefiori yarn and I made these two little scarves. The first one is the unrefined and it went to DBF's mom. The second is the midas millefiori yarn and it went to a friend of mine.

I just found out that Knit 1 Purl 1 is going out of business! I can't believe that! They're having a sale! Can I use any more !!!'s? I may have to go over there soon and see what they have left. Like I need more yarn...

If I get more yarn, I'll post about my yarn porn obsession. I have to go get taxes done tomorrow too. Blah.

Oh, I finished the pieces of my sweater. Now I just have to block and sew it together. I'll be wearing it on Monday. Whoo-hoo! I'll post a picture of that. I might even post a picture of me holding yarn while wearing my new sweater :oP

I was reading the harlot's blog today and she was talking about things you learned while doing the KO. I learned that to finish a sweater, you have to be fully dedicated. You can't rely only on lunch breaks at work to finish it. Oh, and if you have sick time, use it to knit! Gotta prioritize what you use your sick time for after all.

Well, I guess I will finish up for today.

Knit on...

Hats

OK, here's a mini gallery of a couple of hats I've made. They're both crocheted. the first one is felted and the second is wool that will not be felted. I call the second one my elf hat. I gave it away since it clashed with my hair :oP

For the update, I'm almost done with the last sleeve for my knitting olympics sweater. I'm just an angstylvanian who likes to be late, what can I say? I'll post my olympic flake icon when I get the thing done.

My NCAA team won last night, so that was good. Go Big Blue! Tonight is Survivor night, so looking forward to that. I still haven't decided who my pick will be. Whoever I pick for Survivor usually gets voted off that night. Amazing Race seems to be different. I've picked the first place teams the past two seasons. So far I like Danny and Lori, but I also like the two Puerto Rican women. We'll see.

Well, I better get to work.

Knit on....

Getting right back into things

OK, this post will have a bunch of pictures on it. Here's the bag gallery for you.

This was my first knit bag: the felted booga bag. Done with WOTA in Pumpkin and Maple Syrup.


This was my first felted crochet bag. Made with a conglomerate of left-over yarn.









I then went on a fuzzy bag kick. Here's a mini gallery of the fuzzies. Crocheted with a strand of homespun and fun fur.








Yep, this was a Christmas present





Same here











This is my version of a crocheted messenger bag. Didn't know the flap would felt that way.











I am currently working on yet another bag: the French Market Bag from Knitty. I'll get pictures of that as soon as I finish it. There's the mini bag gallery. Enjoy!

Knit on...

Welcome to my world

Welcome to my little world. I'm not a new knitter. In fact, I've had other blogs. Due to some technical difficulties, I have had to move my blog here, to magicknits.blogspot.com I like the name anyways. To those of you from Felted Bags KAL, you know who I am. From SNB, you'll also know who I am. However, for the rest of you, I will be the mysterious Knitting Magic Girl.

Now, I will be posting some in the next few days. I will try to get some of my older projects posted with patterns so that you can see what all I've done. I'll also try to get some more recent pictures up here as well.

So, without further ado, allow me to introduce my mysterious self:

I am from the USA. I have been crocheting for about 2 1/2 years now courtesy of my friend Kim. I have been knitting for almost a year now. Projects I have made in crochet include shawls, blankets, purses, and sweaters. Knitting-wise, I have made scarves, purses, and now the never-ending sweater. I'm a basic knitter, so I'm working on some more interesting techniques so I can expand my resume.

I like to design my own crochet patterns, but I don't feel comfortable making my own knitting patterns. One day though, I shall.

My other interests include Magic: the Gathering card game, any type of game really, video games, reading, photography, hiking, and anything outside. Magic: TG is how I got the second part of my online name, if you were wondering at all.

I also am an Amazing Race addict as well as a Survivor fan. I don't watch much else on TV though.

Elvish Champion is a Magic card. I bet no one knew she knit! No wonder she's pissed, her needles got bent!

OK, here it is. Welcome to Magic Knits. Welcome to my world. Oh, and...

Knit on....