Seventeen Hours to Go...

Until I'm back in CT. I'm sure I'll be shivering and missing NM.

My Secret Pal's final, wonderful package arrived earlier in the week. I finally took some pictures, but I'm only taking a second away from packing...so I'll just give you the big reveal: Brianne from A Journey Beyond Boredom! She's such a lovey--totally upbeat and just, well, zesty about life. Until the pix are up, here's a tease...lots of fabu stitch markers, including some personalized ones, two skeins of yumster yarn (Cascade tweed and Noro Kureyon, which will be made into a mini felted tote over my winter break), a wonderful lilac-scented lotion (my favorite scent), refreshing foot spray, holiday treats and more! Thanks, Brianne. You're amazing, and I adore you! xx

Sunday I'll be going to see Wicked at the Hartford Bushnell. Broadway it ain't, but at least it's a show! Plans for dinner include Dandy Lion's, where I had a yummy dinner on Neal's birthday.

I'll do my best to post while I'm away. Gotta figure out how to go wireless at Starbuck's in Granby. Hope you have a joyful holiday.

I'm Done & I Gave in to Yarn Porn

Yippee! I submitted my last paper last night and my grades today. I owe the prof I'm doing a little research for a few last notes, and I'm outta here like Vladimir.

Meanwhile, check out this porn. Yeah, baby. Hear the thumping music?

Rome Pictures!

I'm a little slow with formatting pictures and text, and I seem to have a difficult time uploading multiple pictures on blogger...so I've posted some pictures on Flickr. Check 'em out. There's tons more, but I won't bore you!

Countdown updates: Classwork: check; Marking portfolios: 50% done; Time until I'm back with Neal and the girlies: about 65 hours!

Turn the Other Cheek

So even though Crazy Aunt Purl hasn't posted a picture of her favorite knitting spot (Scout's fun meme), I will respond to her universal meme.

Ten random things you might not know about me
1. I have three tattoos.
2. One of them covers a Chinese symbol that was supposed to mean student.
3. It meant Saturday.
4. I’m healthier when I live with my dog, Maddie.
5. Maddie fulfills my desire for children. So does Tilly.
6. I get bitter about my divorce still. And jealous.
7. That mostly happens when I feel uncertain about the future of my relationship with Neal.
8. I’ve watched the Winona Ryder version of Little Women about 30 times this semester. It reminds me of New England. There’s some bird songs in it that make me want to cry from homesickness.
9. After I saw Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet, I cut off all of my hair and bleached it blonde.
10. I should be finishing up my Classical Rhetoric paper. It’s already late. But my professor is nice and gave me until tomorrow morning to submit it.

Nine places I’ve visited
1. Australia
2. Luxembourg
3. England
4. Italy
5. Montreal
6. Graceland
7. France
8. Ireland (“Ya must be shattr’d”)
9. Belgium

Eight ways to win my heart
1. Cook for me.
2.Read good stuff so we can talk about it.
3. Ask me questions about writing, knitting, reading, or spinning.
4. Have a good vocabulary. Use words like “gloaming.”
5. Slow dance in the living room with me. Without my asking.
6. Surprise me with flowers. Especially if you picked them on the side of the road.
7. Love dogs and be kind to other animals even if you don’t love them.
8. Be willing to have an adventure with me.

Seven things I want to do before I die
1. Ride my bike across the country
2. Publish a few novels
3. Read Finnegans Wake
4. Visit Kenya
5. Kayak in Iceland
6. Really learn to watercolor
7. Marry a man who can’t live without me

Six things I’m afraid of
1. Most insects
2. Car accidents
3. Losing my independence
4. Heights
5. Childbirth
6. Hospital stays

Five things I don’t like
1. Not being able to turn on a light to knit by when Neal is watching tv at night.
2. Television.
3. Bad, unpredictable drivers.
4. Liars.
5. Incompetence disguised as competence.

Four ways to turn me off
1. Be a racist or chauvinist or be mean to an animal
2. Act like crafts are quaint
3. Don’t read
4. Act like birthdays and holidays are not important

Three things I do every day
1. Talk to Neal
2. Read
3. Write

Two things that make me happy
1. My dogs
2. Writing and knitting and reading and sleeping late (except when it makes me late)

One thing on my mind right now
Figuring out how I’m going to make through next semester without having a breakdown.

Crafts Rock

Go read this. Now. Then come back.

Wasn't that a great interview? Don't you want tivo and a copy of Vickie's new book?

And don't you love that she does all sorts of crafts? 'Cuz that's how I am. Knitting is the one I always return to, but I spin, I crochet, I quilt, I sew (well...my ex will tell you my sewing skills are fairly limited, but I knocked out some rock 'n roll garments in my day!), and I've recently scooped up a bunch of stuff from Sublime Stitching. My girly in CT (who knits & is taking up spinning in January!) got me into embroidery. And, by the way, one of the things so cool about HER is that she tackles the hard stuff head on...I'm still making scarves and she's making a complicated Debbie Bliss pattern for her little one.

A lady walked by the KnQ group on Saturday and basically called the lot of us "quaint". Usually I'm fine with that...I love knitting in public. I like thinking that maybe it reminds people to slow down. To make something. And so, when said lady went on about how she's just too busy with her computers, I noted that most of the knitters I know are super computer savvy. She was too busy boxing us up as quaint relics with nothing better to do with our time. Well, lady, I ain't quaint. I come from a line of women (ok, so it skipped my mom's generation) who were good at making stuff to nurture their loved ones. Every stitch I knit has pure love in it, and I, for one, don't think there's anything quaint about love. I embrace the fact that women were made to create (hell, what do you think having a baby is? Ultimate creation). I may not be creating future cool people, but I can write, I can knit, I can CREATE. And creation ain't quaint. It ROCKS. So get off your damn computer, lady, and get out that cross stitch you mentioned. There's time for both.

Ahem. Snooks signing off. Before I start trashing my knitting stuff. Cuz I'm a knitting rockstar, too. Sort of.

Call me Snooks.

I've got 3 out of 5 of my grammar exam sections finished. I'm tired of looking at my grammar exam, so you know what that means: goofy quiz time.

Christmas Elf Name My Christmas Elf Name is Get your Christmas Elf Name at JokesUnlimited.com

Yeah, that's me. Snooky. Snooks, my friends call me. Miss C.L. when you're nasty. Or naughty.

Knitters not Quitters was festive yesterday. Jump showed us all her nifty no-sew fleece blanket project, so I've finally got gift ideas for my little godson and one of Neal's pals. The owner of Napoli's where KnQ meets every Saturday from 1-3 (it's on Carlisle) gave us a tray of cookies to enjoy. Don't tell, but I'm gonna have another cookie on Tuesday night at Flying Star when I go to my SnB. Triple ginger cookie. Mmmm. My favorite. Wish I had one now. But I'm trying to curb my cookie obsession by limiting myself to one a week. Scout made cookies at our needle felting extravaganza, but that was last week. And it was just one. Really.

Ok, I'm off to tackle some Classical Rhetoric. Well, maybe a cup of tea and a few rows on my little cousin's Christmas scarf. THEN Classical Rhet.

Love ya. Snooks.

Quiz= Procrastination

There's a pattern I'm seeing. I have a lot to do. So I surf blogs instead and take on-line quizzes, which I justify by saying, well, MB gets such a kick out of doing them. Really.


You're a little gold key, and you unlock other
people's hearts. Your kindness and willingness
to be there for those you care about lets
people open up to you knowing they will be
accepted. People will rely on you, but be
careful not to give more than you have.

What sort of key are you and what do you unlock?
brought to you by

Advent and a Countdown or Two of My Own

Here's a website worth visiting every day until Christmas. Despite all the Christmas knitting I've been at since this summer, I don't yet feel the Christmas spirit. It may have to wait until I see A Charlie Brown Christmas, which always does the trick.

I spent the afternoon with Scout and her gang. We needle felted. It was fun. Once the recipients have received their gifts, I'll show you what we did. I'm convinced, by the way, that Scout is the Albuquerque knitting super star. She's going to be interviewing Vickie Howell on her (Scout's) blog on Monday, December 12. Check it out, knitters!

I stopped at Joann's today to pick up fabric to line a few purses with. My sewing machine is hunkered down in my office closet, and I'm a little afraid to try and set her up after a few years of neglect. I used to be a quilter, you see, and we were on excellent terms. But a baby quilt for Julia is the last thing we made together. Do you think she'll cooperate with purse liner sewing?

Here's the first countdown: one week until I'm done with papers and projects and grades. Another countdown: nine days until I'm in CT for the winter break. Back with Neal and the pups.

Tagged by Scout

Scout started this fun meme: post pix of your favorite knitting spot. When I'm knitting at home, I usually sit on my side of the futon (even though Maddie's not living with me, I don't sit on her side, nor do I sleep on her side of the bed!) and either watch a movie (this semester I've been addicted to Sex in the City...I'm on season three...can you believe Carrie and Aiden?) or listen to a book on itunes while I have a warm drink--my own brand of cappucino or tea. I can easily get to my knitting book shelf when I need a reference book, and I can also enjoy the fireplace...and look at my yummy bubblegum handspun. Once I finally get a wheel, I'll be spinning some truffle brown to ply with the pink.

ETA: Ok, so I had pix of the fireplace, the handspun yarn, the dvd, the bookshelf, but Blogger's not letting me post pictures too easily today...so just imagine!

I'm tagging Brittany, Sheila, Crazy Aunt Purl, Amelia, and Beth.

W*A*T*E*R or I Get It or Noelle-Approved 'Cuz She's Seen the Well

There she is, Miss Maddie Mulligan, in her fashionable pink and brown with white polka-dot collar. And here's a little story about our dear Miss M.

She's got some problems. Pulling problems, one might call them. She pulls on her leash. But she can't run free because she forgets to come back. She's not always as sharp as you'd think.

So Neal's been working with the little dolly. "Don't pull." x 1,000,000 = working with Maddie on how to walk properly. Because she's forgotten between the summer and now. And usually, Neal must reel in the leash to emphasize his point.

But today, there was a breakthrough. A moment oft rare, and so worth celebration. A moment not unlike that between Miss Annie Sullivan and her young charge, Helen Keller. "Water," Miss S. signed into Helen's hand. "Water," as she pumped the well. And a lightbulb shone above Helen's head. Imagine Neal in the role of Miss Sullivan, and Maddie playing Helen.

"Don't pull," commands Neal as Miss Sullivan.

And Maddie as Helen stops pulling.

A miracle. And Neal? The new miracle worker.

Rome will be posted soon, as will my very own original wrist warmer pattern. Oh, yeah, and the Roman loot. How do you say "cashmere" in Italian?