Nichole D.
Albuquerque, New Mexico

I currently live in New Mexico with my boyfriend and beautiful daughter in The Retro Palace. I'm currently a student double-majoring in Cosmetology and Architectural Drafting. I spend what little free time I have knitting, crocheting, sewing, and almost any other project I have time for. I do occasionally eat and shower, but only if there is no knitting to be done.

SavingNine on Ravelry

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Monday, March 31, 2008

Kids Are Cute

For those of you who haven't seen this yet, it's great. Don't leave in the middle, either- the end it the best part! Enjoy!

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Sunday, March 30, 2008

Wee Sock

I got my wee sock knit up, and all ready to mail! It was really fun to knit, and I'll definitely do more of them in the future. Good thing, too, because typical of me and swaps, I forgot to take a picture. D'oh. Hopefully the recipient will blog about it when they get it, and I can show you guys! I'll show you the one I get, too, of course. Fun times! Well, besides the breaking a needle thing. Yep, I broke one of my brand spankin' new KnitPicks Harmony sock needles. Luckily, a set is six needles, in case you break one. That, and it wouldn't be too expensive to buy a new set. Oh well. That's what you get when you knit with toothpick sized needles! See you tomorrow...

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Saturday, March 29, 2008

Abo Ruins

One of the things I really wanted to see on our road trip were some ruins. We originally planned to go see the Gila Cliff Dwellings, but it didn't work out. I spotted some marked on the map, only a few hours from Albuquerque. We stopped at one of the three sites, and were pleasantly surprised. We're planning to take a day trip out to see the other two sites, and possibly revisit this one.

I really have a love for these kind of things, from ancient ruins to old, decrepit houses. Something about the history, and the fact that this exact spot is where people lived their lives is really intriguing. Here, at the ruins, I was so tempted to walk around the ruins barefoot and feel the earth beneath my feet- the same earth the Pito Indians and Spanish settlers walked on. It really sparks something inside me, and I can't wait to go back.

A little bit of history: The first mention of Abo was in 1598, by Juan de Onate. What is left of the large church was built by a Spanish missionary named Frey Francisco de Acevedo, who built over the very small, existing church. The church is surrounded my the ruins of the pueblo- the small houses that most of the people living there called home. They estimate the population during the early mission days to be approximately 2,000 people. Abo was abandoned sometime before 1680 due to Apache raids. It was used as a post office during 1910 and 1911.

Abo Ruins 4

Abo Ruins 2

Abo Ruins 5

Abo Ruins 1

Abo Ruins 3

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Friday, March 28, 2008

Relaxing

We're home from the road trip, and just settling in. I think we're going to kick back and watch a movie, and I'll finally get some knitting done- I forgot to grab it for our "day trip" on Wednesday. More on the vacation and stuff soon! I hope you guys didn't miss me too much.

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Thursday, March 27, 2008

Day Two- 1
Day Two- 2
Day Two- 3

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Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Day One

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Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Ten on Tuesday

This week's theme is "Ten Things to do Before You get Married". I'm not really feeling that. Instead, I'm going to do this meme I got from Carole. I figured it would be more fun, and it sticks with the "ten" theme. Here's the low-down- have fun guessing, guys!

1. Pick 10 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDb and find a quote from each movie (or from memory).
3. Post them on your blog for everyone to guess.
4. Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, and put who guessed it and the movie.
5. Looking them up is cheating, please don’t.

1. My nerves are shot. This is a catastrophe! What would her father say? I'll tell you what her father'd say. He'd say he's gonna kill himself a crab, that's what her father'd say! Leigh got this one! The Little Mermaid- one of my all time favorite movies.

2. Oh, but you can't expect to wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at you. Leigh got this one, too- Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

3. We have a great life here in Alaska, and we're never going back to America again!

4. I'll tell you what he said! He told me to forcibly insert the lifeline exercises into my anus! Blogless Sean got this one. (Hi, Sean, glad you still read.) It's from Donnie Darko- a great movie. Everyone should see this.

5. The point is, how do you know the fairy isn't a crazy glue sniffer? "Building model airplanes" says the little fairy; well, we're not buying it. He sneaks into your house once, that's all it takes. The next thing you know, there's money missing off the dresser, and your daughter's knocked up. I seen it a hundred times. Way to go, Katie! One of my favorite lines from Tommy Boy.

6. Raving psycho! Butchered 400 chickens and screwed a beagle. I'm taking him back to Nevada where he's wanted for banging horses!

7. Tyrone, you know how much I love watching you work, but I've got my country's 500th anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife to murder and Guilder to frame for it; I'm swamped. Another one for Leigh! This one's The Princess Bride.

8. Chancho. When you are a man, sometimes you wear stretchy pants in your room. It's for fun. Diane was right- it's Nacho Libre!

9. Well, then, I confess, it is my intention to commandeer one of these ships, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder and otherwise pilfer my weasely black guts out. Diane got this one, too- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.

10. So what you're saying is that even though you are an almost-paralyzed, multiphobic personality who is in a constant state of panic, your wife did not leave you, you left her because she loves Neil Diamond?

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Monday, March 24, 2008

Wee Tiny

Hey everyone! I've signed up for the Wee Tiny Sock Swap. Want to play too? Go sign up! There's a Ravelry group here, too. Hmmm... does this mean I can buy some sock yarn?

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Sunday, March 23, 2008

Happy Easter

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Saturday, March 22, 2008

Ten Things

Robyn challenged people to find ten things in their home that they've never used, which goes hand in hand with her slow month. Here are my ten things!

Ten New Things

1. In Stitches by Amy Butler
2. Tab dividers for my knitting/crochet pattern binder
3. Photo frame
4. Stupid Sock Creatures book
5. Notecards- I have a hoard of these, but most I've used. Some I've never opened. Must send more notecards!
6. Sheepy journal. I got it to organize my knitting projects. With Ravelry, I've put it off, but would still like to, so I can keep ball bands and such together.
7. Markers. I got these a few weeks ago, and haven't used them. I know I will at some point, though.
8. Bead stacker organizer.
9. Black beads. I got these to make myself some stitch markers.
10. Knitpickers mini travel bag for knitting.

Apparently, I missed the contest deadline by a day- I, for some reason, thought TODAY was the 21st! Oops. Oh well, it was still fun. My goal is to use all these things by the end of the year, or get rid of them.

See you tomorrow!

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Friday, March 21, 2008

Allergies...

...are kicking my ass. I have nothing to blog about, really. See you tomorrow. (I'll try to limit these lame-o posts. Sorry, guys.)

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Thursday, March 20, 2008

N is For...

N is for nostalgia. With Easter coming up, I thought I'd share some of my childhood Easter memories and traditions.

When we awoke on Easter morning, we'd (my younger brother, sister, and I) rush downstairs in our pajamas. Mom would usually be cooking breakfast, most likely egg bake (it's like a scrambled egg casserole) and bacon and cinnamon rolls. The three of us would start hunting- both for our Easter baskets, and those little chocolate eggs, wrapped in colorful foil. Mom and dad would hide at least an entire bag of the little chocolate eggs for us to find. We never found all of them on Easter. For weeks later, we would be finding them tucked away in folds of the couch, or in the corner of a windowsill.

After we'd found our Easter baskets and chocolate eggs, we'd sit down to breakfast. (Mom never let us have any candy until after breakfast.) We'd eat and laugh, eying our candy, then go upstairs to nibble away on the goodies as we got ready for church, always in a new dress. A few of the years, I remember my mom sewed our Easter dresses herself. My sister and I always had matching dresses and shoes, and sometimes a hat.

After church, we'd head straight over the my Grandparent's house. My Grandpa would hide plastic eggs for us all over the house and yard. We each had a specific color that was "our eggs" , and we'd run off with an old ice cream bucket looking for them. (My grandpa still makes us do this if we come over for Easter, even though we're all now over 18. We still love it.) After we'd found all of our eggs, we'd go back into the living room and open them up to see what prizes were to be found. We always got change and candies, sometimes little erasers or things like that. Then Grandma would give us our Easter baskets, filled with more goodies and toys and whatnot.

Easter dinner was always at two. We'd have ham, green bean casserole, Swedish meatballs, and this awesome creamy potato casserole my grandma makes. We'd sit around and talk, laugh, and enjoy the company of each other. We'd drive home, and usually crash from our sugar high, happy and stuffed.

What are your Easter memories?

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Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Sock Knitting and Goodies

Now that the wedding shawl is done, I can finally start knitting what I want to knit! a few days ago, I cast on for the Aquaphobia socks with the rockin' yarn I got from Sarah at Perfect Day Yarns:

Aquaphobia Sock 1

I love this yarn! It's nice and soft and smooshy, and the colors are great. They work wonderfully in the pattern, too!

The pattern itself is really nice. Not too hard, but definitely not boring. I picked it because I didn't want to do a plain stockinette sock, but didn't want something too complicated, either. I have a knitting plan, too, to avoid the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome (for my non-knitting readers, this is when you've knit one complete sock, and then lose interest before you have a pair). I split the skein into two even balls of yarn, and plan to knit the first one up to the heel, knit the second just past the heel, go back to the first and knit up to the toe, back to the second and complete the sock, and then knit the toe and finish the first sock. hopefully that'll help!

Oh, I'm using the KnitPicks Harmony dpn's that I finally received, as well! I really like them, they're great to knit with. I've been taking extra care to make sure I don't break any- my big fear is stepping or sitting on one and it snapping.

I picked up some roving while I was up in Durango:

Pencil Roving

A little out of my color comfort zone, but for some reason, I really like the colors. something about the smoky, cloudy greys and the bright, citrusy green...

The roving is a 100% new Merino pencil roving, made by Zitron. Soft and smooth, I'm excited to spin this up! Mostly, I love it because technically roving isn't yarn yet, so it doesn't break the yarn diet. Woo!

I also got some pretty sock yarn for my FCS3 pal, but no pictures...Maybe a sneak peak later.

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Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Ten on Tuesday

Ten Places I'd Take a Tourist to see in my Hometown- Albuquerque, New Mexico edition

1. The Tram. Unless, of course, they're afraid of heights.
2. The Albuquerque Biopark.
3. Historic Old Town
4. The Frontier Restaurant
5. Flying Star Cafe
6. A walk in the Bosque (along the Rio Grande river)
7. Balloon Fiesta
8. Santa Fe, New Mexico (I know, that's kind of weird.)
9. Somewhere to get some chile. (Garcia's Mexican Kitchen?)
10. Hmmm....a nice mountain drive, I guess.

That was hard! I might try to do one for Minnesota sometime- probably much easier. See you tomorrow!

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Monday, March 17, 2008

Behind The Scenes

Happy St. Patties, all! I hope you have a great night, whatever it is you plan on doing.

Since my two year blogiversary will be on April first, I thought I might give a little history behind the good ol' blog here. I found this meme over at Lick My Sticks.

1. Why did you start your blog?
Really, to share my life with people. I love to connect with the online knitting universe, and to make friends. It also helps my friends to keep updated on my life, hopefully. It's really nice to belong to some sort of community here. I also love to have a place to archive my knitting and other projects (although with Ravelry, not so much anymore), document life events, and keep track of what I thought of books I read.

2. How did you come up with your blog name?
It's a play on the phrase "A stitch in time saves nine".

3. Do your friends and family know about your blog? What do they think of it?
I don't think anyone in my family reads my blog, most probably don't even know about it. I know a good chunk of my friends read it, I think. Maybe if they left more comments, I would know...

4. How do you write posts?
With my fingers. HA! I write at a desk, on a PC.

5. Have you ever had a troll or had to delete unkind comments?
Once in a blue moon, I get some spam. If anyone ever said anything mean, I'd track 'em down and make them pay. ;)

6. Do you check your stats? Do you care how many people read your blog? If you do care, how do you increase traffic?
I do check my stats, I use sitemeter and Google analytics. Mostly, though, I just like to see how people find my blog. I suppose I care how many readers I have, it's always nice to feel the love! I don't much try to increase traffic, though.

7. What kind of blogs/posts interest you?
Some blogs I read because they're my friends' blogs, some I read because they're hilarious, some because I love the pictures. I think as long as it's well written and something that appeals to me, I'll stick around. I'd say 75% of the blogs I read are knitting blogs, 10% are other crafts, and the rest are things like I Can Has Cheeseburger? and Passive/Aggressive Notes.

8. What do you like and dislike about blogging?
I love the sense of community, and being able to connect with people I've never met, but may get to someday. I love being able to share my crafts, my life, my stories, with whoever cares to read them. I think it's awesome that I have people who I feel like I know, and have a sense of friendship with. I love getting inspired, or finding things I may have never stumbled upon otherwise, like a great yarn, or a cool knitting pattern. (You know, if it wasn't for a blog contest I won, I might have never fallen in love with Malabrigo?)

The thing that sucks about blogging is really just the assholes out there. The people who spam, leave crappy comments, or steal your content. Besides that, though, I think the blogosphere rocks my face off.

I'd love to know if you do this, too!

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Sunday, March 16, 2008

Home Sweet Home

Oh, it is good to be home again! I had a blast this weekend, though. I'd tell you more, but we have a "what happens in Durango stays in Durango" agreement, so my lips are sealed. Let's just say there was lots of drunken debauchery, dirty dancing, and girly fun. I never got to bed before three AM, have a bit of a headache, and I have horrid blisters on my heels. Signs of a great party weekend, if you ask me! I am more than happy to be in my PJ's, chillin' on the couch with Hubbster, and ready to go to bed well before midnight tonight. I hope you all had a great weekend, too!

Tomorrow I'll try to get a picture of my purchases from here.

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Saturday, March 15, 2008

Woo Boy.

Hi everyone! Free internet access in the hotel, so here I am blogging.

Lat night we went out on the town. Okay so, Durango is kind of small, but still a fairly happening place, since it's a college town. Nonetheless, we had a blast, and were out until four this morning. I had a lovely time sleeping in (usually to Monsterette is up by 7), and about to go to the bridal shower. I'm planning to hit the LYS here after that, and then et ready for another big night out! Tonight is the official bachelorete party. More drinking is definitely in my future...

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Friday, March 14, 2008

Horror

In the wee hours of Thursday morning, I cast off on the wedding shawl. A very sleepy me went to bed, and washed and blocked the shawl Thursday afternoon. Blocking went well, the yarn got nice and soft, and I was happy! This morning, the shawl was completely dry, and I unpinned it. I admired it, tried it on with it buttoned like a wrap, admired my handiwork. I spread it out on the back of my couch, at breakfast, and got ready to wrap it all up for the bridal shower tomorrow. I admired it a little more, and to my complete horror, saw this:

Horror.

Two dropped stitches. HORROR. Now, had I had a week or more, or it was for me, I would put in a lifeline, take out the cast off, rip back to the boo boo, and reknit the rest. It was about 5 repeats from the end of the shawl, so it would suck, but life is life.

I, however, am giving this as a gift tomorrow. TOMORROW. No time to rip back, knit five repeats or so, and rewash and block the damn thing. I had to get creative. First off, I picked up the dropped stitches. I figured, since it was two stitches, that they ended in a decrease.

Picked Up Stitches

(That little tool, by the way, I love. It's an itty bitty crochet hook, but it's totally perfect for picking up dropped stitches. I use it all the time. ) At this point, I was at a loss. What do I do know? I perused the interwebs a bit, and found no help. I decided to just go for it, and grabbed some of the leftover yarn, and thread it onto a tapestry needle. I went through both of the stitches from the front, then underneath one of the legs between two stitches, like so:

Repair 2

The red is the extra yarn, the blue the two dropped stitches, and the green, the leg. After that, I went back through the two stitches, and pulled both ends through to the back. You can hardly see the boo boo at this point:

Repair 1

I know knots in knitting are generally a no-no, but I wasn't about to have this one fall apart. So on the back, I firmly tied a square knot:

Square Knot

I then wove in the two ends, and now you can barely see where it was. I have to really look for it, and even then, can only really find it by finding where I wove the ends in. A non-knitter should never see it. Success!

Blowing in the Breeze

A truly beautiful knit. It is light and airy, but warm and cozy at the same time. I love it. I'm totally going to make myself one!

A few side notes: tomorrow I'll be out of town, and probably not able to blog here. I promise to do some old-school blogging (AKA journaling) tomorrow, and I'll post it when I get back on Sunday.

Lastly, some tags for those poor folks who have the same issue and need some pictoral help: finished knit lace dropped stitch stitches help fix repair pick up

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Thursday, March 13, 2008

FCS3 Questionnaire

Favorite Color Swap Questionnaire

1. What are your top three favorite colors?
I love pink, orange, and chocolate brown. For spring, though, I've been loving juicy, bright colors.
2. What crafts do you really enjoy?
Knitting, crocheting, drop spinning (I'm new to this), cross stitch (but not the old lady stuff). I've also wanted to try embroidery, and have done a bit of needle felting, which is a blast!
3. What products do you really covet?
See number eight.
4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things?
Reading, listening to music, playing video games and role-playing games ( the nerdy kind, wiht dice and books and character sheets. Like D&D.)
5. Is there anything you collect?
Dice, yarn, stitch markers, earrings, and note cards.
6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol?
I'm a Libra, born in the year of the rat. Please not rat stuff.
7.What are your favorite…

…scents/smells?
I like light, fruity scents, and soft floral scents. I love anything "tea" scented. Oh, and all of those fresh, clean scents.
…types of music and/or bands?
TOOL, Snow Patrol, Hayden, Nelly Furtado, Imogen Heap, Alison Kraus. I love a wide range of music, but lean more towards rock stuff.
…authors?
Neil Gaiman, Ayn Rand, Joyce Carol Oates, Terry Pratchett.
…animals?
Sheep and Llamas, obviously. I also have loved butterflies for a super long time.
…places to shop?
My LYS, Etsy, Target, Hobby Lobby, Michael's Arts & Crafts.
…season?
Hmmm. I love both spring and fall.
…yarn/fabric/paper/other craft supplies?
My favorite yarn is definitely Malabrigo. I love thick and thin yarns, and anything soft and cozy. I've wanted to try silk and bamboo.
…candies or goodies?
Anything gummy, milk chocolate (Cadbury dairy milk bars are my favorite), Bit o' Honey, caramel goodies.
8. Do you have any wish lists?
I have Amazon here, and one here. this last one, though, isn't accurate as far as needles go. You can also look at my favorites on Etsy.
9. Are you allergic to anything?
Well, please don't send any sulfa based medications. Other kinds are fine.
10. Do you have any pets? What are they?
We have hermit crabs. Very low maintenance, and super hard to kill.
11. Please include anything else you would like your secret pal to know about you- anything that would be helpful in finding you little gifts that you will really enjoy. Also, if you have a Ravelry ID, please include it here. My ravelry user name is SavingNine. I am married, and have a two year old daughter. I keep my knitting needles in a homemade needle roll that I love. I have a knitting bag, and a mini project bag. I love amigurumi. Ask away, secret pal! I've been blogging forever, too, so my archives should be helpful. With a bit of digging, I'm sure you can find other swap goodies and questionnaires.

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Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Yaay!

The Spring Knitty is up! I'm totally in love with the Lace Ribbon Scarf and the Spirogyra gloves (do these remind everyone else of the Mermaid gloves, too?). What are your favorites?

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Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Ten on Tuesday

Ten Things I'm Looking Forward to in the Spring

1. Going to the park with Monsterette.
2. Yummy fresh fruits- I want to try to get to the local farmer's market this spring.
3. Opening up the windows and smelling the fresh air.
4. Knitting and spinning on the balcony.
5. Going on Vacation to Minnesota, and the family reunion in Kansas City.
6. The green coming back- trees, grass...
7. Planting flowers.
8. Easter!
9. Giving myself a pedicure. (I never go to get them- I don't like people touching my feet!)
10. Spring cleaning and organizing. I know, most people don't like this, but we really need it! I love the feeling of being organized, and for as much time I spend at home, I like it to be clean. Otherwise, I get crazy.

See you tomorrow!

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Monday, March 10, 2008

What's Knitting

Still cranking away on the wedding shawl:

Wedding Shawl 2

I'm 12 repeats (out of 17) in. Like I said, getting a little sick of it, since it's really all I've been working on. Not much progress on any other knitting, though. I've cranked out a few dishcloths, mostly on Saturday nights while we do nerd things, and I can't focus on anything more complicated. I should be able to get it done by this weekend- keep your fingers crossed for me!

I did three loads of laundry with the new laundry detergent today. As far as I can tell, it works just a good as the stuff I was using (ALL Small & Mighty, for the curious). There's not much of a scent, but the clothes still come out fresh. I'll be sticking with it! for those of you wanting to give it a try, I'd say go for it! I'm totally pleased.

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Sunday, March 09, 2008

A Mild Shade of Green

After reading this post, I decided to make my own laundry detergent. Now, I am not really one of those people who is totally obsessed with renewable sources and protecting the environment. Mainly I don't buy organic produce or products that are better for the environment because they're too expensive. This laundry detergent, though? Cheap. Muy cheap. Cheap enough for me. it was actually very easy to make and smells great. Tomorrow, I'll give it a whirl and let you all know how well it cleans. And hey, I like the earth just as much as the next person! The recipe can be found here, but I'll put it right here for you guys, too. for reference, I found all this stuff in the laundry aisle at my local Smith's (Kroger) grocery store.

1 bar Fels Naptha soap, grated on the small side of a grater
1 cup Borax
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (This is NOT the same as baking soda. I promise.)

Just mix it all together, store in an airtight container, and it's ready to go! I added about 10-15 drops of tangerine essential oil, to make it smell extra nice. When your ready to do some laundry, just scoop one tablespoon (two for big or extra dirty loads) into the washer, and run enough hot water to dissolve the soap. Switch it over to cold water (or whatever your preference is), throw in your clothes, and your done! (I'll let you know how this goes tomorrow.) Here is the "fabric softener", which is supposed to help get everything extra clean and nice.

2 cups white vinegar
10 drops essential oil

Add 1/4 cup to each load of laundry, the same way you would fabric softener. If you have one of those fancy washing machines with the special cup for softener, your extra lucky! Just pour it in there.

I also found a recipe for dish detergent, which uses a lot of the same stuff. Once I run out of my little tabs, I'll give that a try, too! It's kind of nice doing something "green", even if the Hubbster looks at me like I'm crazy.

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Saturday, March 08, 2008

I've Been Tagged!

Donyale tagged me for a meme, which is totally cool with me. Apparently, though, she thinks I'm weird. Which I guess is okay with me, too. Onwards with the meme...

THE RULES:
1. Once you are tagged, link back to the person who tagged you.
2. Post THE RULES on your blog.
3. Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog.
4. Tag 7 people and link to them.
5. Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged.

Alright, I'll try to make these "weird" ones, since I've done this "seven things" twice now, apparently.

1. When I eat Skittles or M&M's, I like to dump them all out, sort them by color, and eat them in sequence. Sometimes it's by color, sometimes it's least to most, sometimes it's least favorite to most favorite.

2. I've had pretty much every color under the sun as a hair color at one point or another. Not just the natural colors, either! Hmmm...makes me want to color my hair.

3. I love animated Disney movies. Most of them make me cry. Even more, I love their soundtracks.

4. I used to have a lot of piercings. I still have my labret (under my bottom lip), two tongue piercings, and a custom ear piercing. (I really should take a picture of that someday. It's cool.) I also have about seven regular holes in each ear.

5. I like to put milk over my ice cream. Not blended or anything. Like a root beer float, but with milk instead.

6. If I have more than one type of food to eat, I have to eat one, then the next. for instance, Thanksgiving dinner- I'll eat my mashed potatoes, then my veggies, then turkey, then my roll, then my sweet potatoes... You get the idea.

7. I have a song for everything. It's like my brain has an unnatural repertoire of song clips, that I'll sing whenever they relate to something we're doing, or something someone said. Erin can vouch for this. Example: Every time we cross the Rio Grande, I sing: "Her name is Rio, and she dances on the sand!" and that's it. Just that little bit. EVERY TIME.

Alright! I normally don't tag people, and I'm not going to on this one, either. But if you read it, and haven't done it, you should feel obligated to do it, and feel quite guilty if you don't!

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Friday, March 07, 2008

Life.

I guess I don't really post often about my life and things going on here. Nothing too deep, nothing that's too "real". I guess i've always been like this, sheltered, putting up a wall. Cautious, too, about what is on the internet. but life is life, and you guys are my friends. So, here goes.

Things have been a little hectic and stressful lately. at the end of February, the place where my husband worked for three years closed it's doors permanently. He applied to a few places in the same business, and the only one that really looked interested in him didn't offer him a job until his last day at work for the old business.

Fortunately, they offered to pay him a dollar more an hour than he was making, and we'll also be able to get health insurance for the whole family. He says they seem like good people, and it'll be a good job. He'll be working less hours a day, but one extra day a week. (Before, he was working Monday through Thursday, now he'll work Friday as well.) It'll take some getting used to a more corporate environment, coming from the small and laid back shop he was at, but it shouldn't be too big of a deal.

The thing that sucks, really, is he can't start until March 31st. That means we have a full month with no income. His old boss (who is a really great guy) did give him one weeks pay as severance, and off the books. He's applied for unemployment pay, but there's a one week waiting period before they'll send a check, which really means it'll be almost two weeks. This means we'll only get three checks total from them before he starts working again, and at about 65% of his pay before- not enough to support a family.

His dad graciously offered to help out iwth money, but it still kind of sucks. I'm weirded out that he's been home all the time, and feel a bit overwhelmed. I'm stressed, as well, because finances is my job, and now it's difficult, because the money isn't there. on top of all that, he being here totally throws off me eating healthy, because he comes home with fast food and buys crap at the grocery store.

I'm also starting to worry about the wedding shawl for my sister in law. I've finished 11 repeats out of 17, and should be able to finish it by next weekend for her shower. I'm just now getting to the point where the knitting for someone else is getting tedious and annoying. I want to knit for me, and only when I want to, not because I have to! Sometimes I wonder why I do this to myself.

In addition, there's been all this drama about her shower, which is being held in Durango, Colorado. (Lord knows why when almost all of the attendees live here, in New Mexico.) There's been shit about who's going, and who's riding with whom, and I've been kind of stuck in the middle. All this, on top of wondering how much I really want to go anyways, has been stressful, as well. Ugh, I guess we'll see how it goes. I'm personally not looking to a four hour drive one way with someone I hardly know and her two pre-teen girls. I don't even know if I'll have my own bed in the hotel room! Although, the LYS in Durango sells Malabrigo...

Okay, maybe this is why I don't blog about real life. I get all crazy and write forever. See you tomorrow...

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Thursday, March 06, 2008

Project Spectrum: Elements

Another round of Project Spectrum began at the beginning of February. I've participated in the two previous ones, and am pretty excited for the third. These have always been a lot of fun, and a great inspiration to branch out in my color choices, knit something new, and explore new things.

This time around, the idea for color choices is fresh and fun. Each two month section will have a focus in one of the four elements- fire, water, earth, and air. I love this idea, and I think it allows for a textural influence as well as colors. I'm hoping to be inspired to take some more pictures and try some new things, as well as play with the colors and visual impact of the elements in my knitting.

It's taken me a while to find the time to start a project for this part of PS:E, which is focusing on the fire element. Reds, pinks, and oranges are some of the color suggestions. Thinking about it, I knew I wanted to use this yarn for something. It's only about 140 yards, so I had a hard time finding a pattern. I eventually settled on doing this with it. I knew that the thick and thin yarn would look great in the stitch, and that this yarn would make a super cozy scarflet.

Not wanting to take the wedding shawl to Stitch n' Bitch (it's too much for my brain to handle there), I had to think of something quick to grab last Tuesday. I decided to finally start this project! I absolutely love how it's knitting up:

Herringbone Scarf 1

She called the color "Neopolitan", but to me it screams "campfire!". I absolutely love the colors, and love it in this pattern. It's super sqooshy, and will definitely be quite the cozy knit! I'll leave you with a close-up shot:

Herringbone Scarf 2


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Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Galapagos

The Hubbster and I started watching the BBC Galapagos series in high definition tonight. All I can say is "wow". I have always been fascinated with the Galapagos islands, they really are amazing. From the exclusive wildlife to the beautiful landscape, the volcanoes and ocean activity. Hubbster and I would both like to go someday to see it in person. Right now, though, seeing it in such amazing quality is pretty freakin' awesome. This totally makes the HDTV and Blu-Ray playing PS3 worth it. If you get a chance to see this series, do it! It is completely stunning. I'm looking forward to watching more!

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Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Ten on Tuesday

My Ten Favorite Drinks

1. Water. Can't live without it!
2. Pink Lemonade
3. Hot chocolate with Irish cream flavoring and whipped cream.
4. Iced Tea (Real stuff, though, unsweetened, maybe with a wee bit of lemon.)
5. Chocolate Milk. My mom never let us have any growing up, so it's still a bit of a naughty indulgence.
6. Cosmopolitans (Thanks to Erin and blogless Cathy)
7. Johnny Jump-up (Hard cider with a shot of good Irish whiskey in it. YUM.)
8. French pressed black coffee.
9. Italian soda with a splash of half and half. (Tangerine Grapefruit is my favorite flavor.)
10. Jones' Green Apple Soda.

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Monday, March 03, 2008

Santa Fe

Another mini-trip to Santa Fe for us. For those non-New Mexicans, Santa Fe is about an hour north of Albuquerque, where we live. We lived in Santa Fe for about a year when we first moved here, but are much happier here in Albuquerque. Moving on...

We go up to Santa Fe a few times a month to visit family and friends. The large majority of our friends live in Santa Fe, as well as my aunt-in-law, who is my acting mother-in-law. My father-in-law was in town and celebrating his birthday, so up we go! My mother-in-law is a great cook, which makes it fun to visit as well. The Monsterette always has a good time, and everyone is always happy to see her.

Hubbster also works in Santa Fe, and commutes. It's a long drive every day, but so worth it to live here. It's much cheaper to live in Albuquerque, and we're a lot happier here. Both cities are beautiful cities, nestled against a mountain, with beautiful views. Albuquerque, though, has all the great stuff that comes with living in a big city. Santa Fe is a very tourism-driven town, and doesn't have much to do for locals.

So, there you have it.

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Sunday, March 02, 2008

What's Knitting

Not much going on in my little world of knitting. I've been working diligently on the Wedding Shawl, and am hoping to be halfway done tonight. It really is an enjoyable knit, thank GAWD! I'm hoping to have all the knitting done by next Sunday, so I have ample time to wash and block it. (I'm hoping to have it as a shower gift, and the shower is on the 15th.) I love how it is turning out so far! I really want to finish it soon so I can start some socks.

Other than that, I've knit almost three dishcloths. Boring, I know. These are the first that I've knit this year! it's nice to have something mindless and easy on the needles for those times when I can knit, but not necessarily follow a lace chart. No progress has been made at all on my other works in progress.

Sorry for the lack of pictures- It was a cloudy, crappy day here in Albuquerque today. I'll try to get pictures of the shawl in the next few days!

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Saturday, March 01, 2008

Four

Here's a little meme I got in some weird email chain. I thought I'd just post it here instead. Do it if you want to!


Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. 411 Operator
2. Barista
3. Telemarketer
4. Mom

Four movies I've watched more than once:
1. Chicago
2. Finding Nemo
3. The Little Mermaid
4. Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Four places I have lived:
1. Santa Fe, NM
2. Minneapolis, MN
4. Albuquerque, NM
5. St. Paul, MN

Four T.V. shows that I watch:
1. Heroes
2. America's Next Top Model
3. Medium
4. Martha Stewart

Four places that I have been:
1. Denver, CO
2. Mexico
3. New York City, NY
4. St. Louis, MO

4 People who e-mail me:
1. Erin
2. My Grandma
3. Jake (my younger bro)
4. Eva

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Pizza
2. Cheesecake
3. Green Chile Stew
4. Jelly Beans

Four places I would rather be right now:
1. Minnesota with my family
2. Day Spa
3. Yarn Store
4. Kieran's Irish Pub, Minneapolis

Things I am looking forward to this year (2008):
1. Warm Weather
2. Family reunion in May
3. Christmas
4. More Knitting

Let me know if you do it, too! Thanks Erin!

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