yummy

This morning I got through washing all the strawberries we picked over the weekend. On Saturday we went to Lookout Farm in Natick. Friends of ours went the weekend before, and said it was packed; so we left relatively early and picked a ton of strawberries. The picking was good; we didn't find too many large strawberries, but small and sweet ones. The Farm itself is huge and more like a theme park. What farm has a petting zoo with ostriches, emu, and reindeer? Owen had a blast riding the "trains" all over the farm, the catepillar ride, and the burlap maze. There's a gigantic playground with a mountain climbing structure and a treehouse slide. I only wished we had packed a lunch or picked up a sandwich from the market, because the food served at the playground was superbasic and priced conveniently.

Guess what we had for breakfast on Sunday? Strawberry pancakes! And for dessert? Coconut sorbet with...strawberries!
If any are left after tomorrow, I'm freezing them.

The delicious Sea Dog blueberry wheat beer I had tonight reminded me that blueberry picking will be here before we know it. Especially if we keep having hot humid days like today!

Currently reading: Overclocked: Stories of the Future Present by Cory Doctorow.

what's up with imports from China?

First, it was the cat food. Back in February, the Wileymonster stopped eating his wet food, Nutro Max Light pouch food. Luckily he was still eating the light Science Diet dry, even if he was occasionally throwing up, and I played around with the Friskies/9 lives/Fancy Feast for treats. I took him to the vet in March, where thankfully, his blood & urine didn't test for anything. That same weekend was when the first press release came out about the tainted wheat gluten in pet food. (He continued to lose weight, but has started gaining it back with a low-allergy dry food). Totally opened my eyes to the insane stuff that's in pet food.

Then the fake Colgate toothpaste arrived. Yes, that's my brand. Great. Good thing I don't shop at dollar stores.

Now, the staple toy of choice for my kid has been recalled: red paint on wooden Thomas the Tank toys. We happened to be watching the news the first night they announced the recall, and we're sending back several trains as a result. Lucky for me, Thomas and Percy are the favorites, and not James. But I look at Bertie the bus and wonder if I should I should send him back because he's red, junt not that vibrant bright red. In addition to the horror and disgust at the thought of "who still uses lead paint?!", I just hope these toys are being destroyed. If they're using the tainted production methods, what the hell are they using for their own kids?

Thanks too, to everyone who's told me about this.

An insight to why this stuff happens was a great documentary we saw on PBS called China Blue about a girl who works/lives in a jeans factory. Takes the fun out of shopping, and is just a facet a consumer culture.

same fight, different day

We have on a UFC fight that we watched last week (the guy in green trunks wins).

Owen has been having problems with transitions which is hard. I go to pick him up at school, and he gives me a hug an then he hits me/bites my clothes, won't go to the bathroom, runs off to the elevator. I try and help him go to sleep and he hits me, headbutts me, unleashes a torrent of poophead talk. (BTW, the word for today was booger.) When I threaten to leave, he begs me to stay and starts crying. It sucks. The situation has been snowballing for the last week or so. Tonight we didn't give in and Tak helped him go to sleep. It's funny, but going to sleep is that last little thing that he really wants me to help him with. I see it as a sign he's really torn about getting bigger. It would be great for him to go to sleep without so many problems, but it makes me sad because it's a kind of weaning.

He's making great strides reading: reading signs, high frequency words like and and the. He finished reading the title of Minerva Louise and the Red Truck; he loved the book and totally has a sense of humor.

Last night I sat in bed and knit: I finished a coaster for my sister (how I love self-striping yarn) and ended up ripping out the cap I'm knitting for my father-in-law. I admitted defeat that not only were the stitches twisted and going moebius, but also that it was going to be way too big. Do over!

a little bit of shameless promotion

...For Secret Asian Man in the Patriot Ledger: http://ledger.southofboston.com/articles/2007/06/20/life/life04.txt
Hopefully the link will work, and if not, I'll fix it later if I can remember the code. Go ahead & copy/paste if it doesn't. Enjoy!

blogging in bed

This past Father's Day weekend was exciting: Tak got a new computer, a spankin' new 15" MacBook Pro, wireless, the whole kit and caboodle. Sure, we still have the 4-year-old iMac with a whopping 800MGhz connection and OS 9 to work Word. But it pales in comparision to a light-up keyboard and widescreen. Sigh. Tak also got a new desk, because the dinner table where he'd been working was constantly littered with mail and crap, which entailed moving a bunch of stuff around in the living room. The dinner table still needs a thorough douching, but that can wait until we get the rest of the garbage off the floor and vacuum.

At least the bathroom and kitchen are clean, even if Wily has been stalking mice. He had one last night, but he dropped it on floor to show me, it came to, and scampered under the floorboard, avoiding the carefully laid out trap. Delightful. Better than on Sunday, when we came home from brunch, and Owen picked up a dead mouse, not knowing what it was. Luckily, I was in the bathroom for that 2-minute interval, and Tak had the pleasure of freaking out. We checked out the body, and figured that Wiles got that one too. He's been keeping watch over the kitchen for us, thankfully.

Secret Asian Man is going to be running in my parents' local paper, The Patirot Ledger. Our new summer schedule is working out so far, so good. I finally finished my knitted cotton shell, and still need to weave in the ends, even if I did bind it off too tightly. Looking forward to the Order of the Phoenix movie and final Potter book, as well as in the fall/winter, I think, Stardust and the Golden Compass films. Found this great magazine I can't believe I'd missed, Venuszine, which is like a more music-based version of BUST. Bjork's on the cover, and there's also an interview with Tori Amos. OK, I think Tak needs his computer back. Sometimes, it's hard to share.

finally!

Finally, I am able to get in a few words. Mr. Man has been dominating the computer, which is just as well because I haven't really been able to put together a possible cohesive blog entry for at least the last week.

Owen turned four, and had a little party. He also finished with the 2-half-days (Tuesdays & Thursdays) of preschool at the South Shore Science Center with a graduation on the same day as his birthday. Some of his Science Center friends came over after the picnic for ice cream, cake, and to take turns driving his ride-on jeep in my parents' backyard. We've met some wonderful people that I hope we can keep in touch with.

We've enjoyed this week of not running down to Braintree on the train 2x/week and being crazy with "What are we doing today?" Owen has had a fun-filled post-birthday week of going to the vet with me & the cat, going to the dentist (see below), going to the top of the Pru (the 50th floor), a trip to IKEA, and riding in the car while Tak DROVE with my dad (my mom & I were at a bridal shower for my cousin's fiancee).

You know it's a good sign when you bring your kid to the dentist and the movie being shown in the reception area is Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky. We still haven't let Owen watch it with all of the shooting and flying robots on fire, but the part he caught was the best for him--the train chase. The dentist was awesome, very sweet--and Japanese. He doesn't have any cavities, either, which is a big relief. Owen especially liked riding up and down in the chair, and also wearing rainbow sunglasses while the dentist checked his teeth under lamp. What I want to know is how did he learn, "Pink is for girls"?

I finally broke down and bought a new rice cooker for Tak as an early father's day gift--a $30 one at Target. We've been eating curry for the last couple days and I have to say that now, I missed having one.

when turkeys fly

Last week at my parents' house, we came in there was a 20-25lb male turkey standing outside, just walking for at least 5-10 minutes. I pulled out my camera to try & take a picture, and I think the movement scared him off. The even cooler thing was that he flew into up the tall trees, where they roost at night--which was an amazing to see.

Thanks to the Best Buy pre-sale, I was able to get Police tickets--for November. The band had better be good.

Right now I am making cupcakes for Owen's birthday party at school tomorrow and watching Borat. What a frickin' crazy movie. The cupcakes came out OK. Note to self: if you have a choice between using spray-on oil, flour, or both--just go with the spray-on oil. These cupcakes came out the easiest. I had to frost the cupcakes with a dusting of oil & flour or just flour on the muffin pan upside-down. All because I didn't have cupcake liners!

fun friday thing

My friend Susan at work sent this to me. I've never posted a silly questionnaire on my blog, so here you go. Enjoy.

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
No, although I was supposed to and my mom changed her mind.

2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?
The other night when I was trying to go to sleep, I kept thinking about if something bad happened to Owen.

3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
most of the time

4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
I like most of them.
healthy: turkey; naughty: pastrami or bologna

5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
yes, just one (for now)

6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
probably, although I'm terrible at keeping in touch with people, and tend to say what I'm thinking (good and bad!)

7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
who, me?

8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
yes

9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
only out in nature--not in the city

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
all-time: peanut butter cap'n crunch or alphabits
but most of the time I eat old-fashioned oatmeal

11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
clogs don't have laces

12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
I can move heavy furniture & put up with a lot of crap.

13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
half-baked; Edy's girl scout cookie line; chocolate & vanilla twist soft serve in a plain cone

14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
the whole package: how they're dressed (no judgement!), their eyes & breath, what they say.

15. RED OR PINK?
hot pink

16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
overprocessing; losing my temper with my kid; in some situations I don't know what to do, don't do anything, and feel badly about it or like I should have done *something*

17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST
my nana

18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU?
only if they fill it out with their answers

19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Jeans, black beat-up clogs.

20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Trader Joe's 99% fat-free blueberry muffin

21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Amy Winehouse, Back to Black

22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
purple

23. FAVORITE SMELLS?
Lilacs, freshly mown grass, the ocean, that clean earthy smell right after it rains, (these are weird) the smell of a clean T-shirt drawer that smells kind of like paper money (reminds me of my dad), and my aunt's house in NJ

24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
either my sister Kate or Susan

26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
Japanese game shows, Iron Chef, UFC, the sox & the Pats if they're in the playoffs

27. HAIR COLOR?
Today it's medium golden brown, but the grays are starting to come through.

28. EYE COLOR?
Hazel (brown/green)

29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
If I'm going out or if I have time in the morning to put them in.

30. FAVORITE FOOD?
Pastries (cupcakes, donuts, brownies), hamburgers, lobstah, chicken curry. Baked fish with seafood stuffing on top. Waffles & pancakes. So hard to choose!

31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
As long as it doesn't have zombies, yes, scary movies...preferably with happy endings, although that usually doesn't happen.
According to my answer, Shaun of the Dead is a perfect movie. (it comes quite close)

32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
All the way through? Probably something I've already seen a gazillion times but watched it because it was on...either Wings of a Dove or Happy Gilmore.

33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
mismatched shades of green long-sleeve T-shirt & sweater. It's always ridonkulously cold in my cube.
Shouldn't there have been a question "What are you wearing?" Or does that sound like a dirty phone call?

34. SUMMER OR WINTER?
Fall isn't an option? WInter.

35. HUGS OR KISSES?
Toughie...both. Hugs are less germy.

36. FAVORITE DESSERT?
Chocolate anything.

39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?
Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix. Just finished The Invention of Hugo Cabret, which was amazing.

40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
One of those built-in wrist cushions and the whole thing is yellow, pink and blue psychedelic swirls that I've had for ages. Although I'm noticing now it's starting to get pretty gross and might need a new one!

41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT?
Ultimate Fighter, the reality show (not my choice); The Daily Show; Colbert Report; Showbiz Show

42. FAVORITE SOUND?
the ocean, Owen laughing

43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
Beatles, although everyone needs a little Satisfaction once in awhile.

44. WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
West: California; East: London

45. DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
I can sing most of the time, and I don't usually have a problem getting up in front of people and making an ass of myself.

he's got a permit to drive

Mr. Man got his learner's permit today! It's only taken a few years... Now we can start cruising around in the Caravan. Woo-hoo!

Green Day

You know those days it seems like everyone in the office wears the same color? Today, it's spring green.

According to http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/, Owen is the 58th most popular name, up from #476 in 1992. Tracey is down in the 900s.

happy mothers' day

Happy Mothers' Day to all the awesome moms out there! We went to my parents' and we had a blast playing catch and sort-of T-ball. Owen made a great card for me, which included pipe cleaner stitching on the envelope.

(Yes, I know I still need to blog about our trip. And the improved Children's Museum & Charles MGH T stop. I was sick and needed sleep, or Mr. Man was using the computer. I'm also almost done knitting my first sweater. But tonight, I did a facial mask and really need to wash it off.)

Owen did his first real magnetic words on the fridge last night. My new in-laws at Thanksgiving gave us a set of "artistic" magentic poetry. (We took some words out: smoke, drugs, psychedelic, beer, sex, cigarette.) He kept adding to it until it arched across the bottom of the fridge. I had to say, each time he added more words, "Say, 'Oh my goodness,' then laugh really hard." This is what the complete line was: I ate mess imagine did miasma surreal mount never you scale almost approach you full how we wild open shard fashion pain death glass piece

currently listening to: Amy Winehouse, Back to Black.

bermudaful!

We got back from Bermuda this afternoon, and it was amazing. My sister is a married woman! We have a whole new wing to our family. My ears are still blocked from the plane landing. I'm still finding super-fine grains of sand in our luggage. It's hard to put it all down now; photos & commentary are up at flickr.com. We didn't do very much of what we wanted, but Bermuda is gorgeous and I want to go back. A 1-gig photocard is a wonderful thing. The cat is fine and very happy to see us.

After getting wrapped up in packing & wedding prep last week, I don't think I mentioned how awesome Loreena McKennit was in concert. She did a wide variety of her music, and "The Highwayman" gave me chills. There were about 7 other musicians on the stage. She was incredible live and is so talented. The Wang Center is a great place to see music, because it's such a beautiful hall.

lesson learned

The other night, in an effort to break up the Miyazaki repetition, I put on Disney's Alice in Wonderland, thinking that Owen would like the silliness of it. We've also been reading Bill Peet's The Caboose Who Got Loose, and he worked on a bunch of Disney movies, including Alice in Wonderland. We start watching, and we get to the part after Alice has fallen down the rabbit hole, and is looking through the keyhole as the White Rabbit is running away. Owen comes over to me, tells me to turn it off, and bursts into tears. When I get him to tell me why he's so upset, he says, "She lost her kitty!" The crying jag lasts a good 15 minutes. So, I guess we won't be watching a good chunk of the Disney catalog for awhile!

Currently listening to:

knitting at symphony

Since it's spring vacation and the little guy doesn't have preschool 2 days this week, I missed my recent usual knitting group night near my parents' house to go to the open rehearsal at Symphony Hall. Usually, there's a talk before the rehearsal; the lights are up, people are still coming in, it's pretty casual. I break out a small project, and my mom says not to, that it's rude. Really? It seemed pretty OK, or am I just clueless? We're sitting up in the balcony, the lights are on, I'm paying attention. I tell her I'll stop before the performance begins. So I look around, and there were 2 other knitters doing the same thing in our area where we're sitting. My mom grudgingly relented. I stopped when we were joined by some friends of my mom's. The talk was great, the music was great: Mozart (Nachtmusik, Serenade #13; Violin Concerto N1 in B-flat); Ravel (Ma Mere l'oye/Mother Goose) with Sir Andre Previn & Anne-Sophie Mutter.

Other knitting projects: I finally joined the 2 halves of my first sweater for me. I'm knitting the one-skein shell from WEBS in white cotton. Now I just need to keep knitting in the round & stitch in edges. woo-hoo!

There's a fugly vest for Owen that needs its edges finished & stitched together. It was one of those things that I bought a skein of Lamb's Pride Bulky on-line and didn't realize what the true shade was until I started knitting it--and had to figure out what other colors to match with it. It'll be a good layering piece for next year. At least he likes the orange.

wedding countdown

There's a little over a week to my sister's wedding. I still have some things to do (get luggage, clean the house, make appointments, finish husband/son shopping, lose 3-5 lbs.). At least I have my dress, shoes, and some of the little things.

Oddly enough, one of my landmarks to my sister's wedding was the wedding of one of my best friends from high school on Saturday night. Michelle & Darren came to our wedding in Vegas, that's how long they've been together. Michelle looked beautiful, and Darren is so sweet. They make a great couple and I'm so happy for them. They've been dating for almost 10 years and it's nice to see them finally married. Stacy, our 3rd amiga, was there too, and it was awesome to hang out with her. It was also fantastic that my favorite teacher in high school was also there, Ms. V.; I ended up talking to her quite a bit. My parents were invited, and the oddest twist is that Tak & I ended up getting a ride with them, both to and from the wedding.

With the torrential downpour we've had with the Nor'easter this weekend, Morrisey Boulevard was the most flooded I've ever seen it. On even a small rain day, Morrisey Blvd. gets flooded, and walking to Shaw's from the JFK T stop involves navigating puddles that go into a whole lane of traffic. Down by the beach, it so bad they were closing the road off, but were just doing it at 10:30 this morning. Owen & I found out the hard way by suddenly driving into two massive puddles on the way to Ikea this morning. Luckily, our side of the road was farther away from the beach; the other side was completely overtaken by the tide. There was no beach.

Owen's quote of the day: We read our first few of Shel Silverstein poems tonight. Owen loved the "Ickle me, Tickle Me..." poem from Where the Sidewalk Ends. His reaction: "Is there a silly poem about a froggie and a duck? It's called 'Take me to the water and I'll swim.'"

Happy Birthday, S.A.M.

April 11 is Tak's birfday, so we sent Owen stayed at my parents' overnight so we could have a date. Granted, we did the sort-of boring dinner & a movie. Since we were seeing The Host at Kendall Sq. Cinema, we ended up having upscale dinner at the Blue Room, which was excellent. Our waiter was great with suggestions, we had great drinks, delicious food (ricotta gnocci with spring peas, spinach & prosciutto; ceasar salad with white anchovies; mahi mahi with mango salsa, black beans & plaintain cake; stuffed eggplant with cous cous, chick peas and minty yogurt). I made the mistake of eating most of the dessert (banana bread & pudding) which put me over the edge. No room for popcorn! The Host was not your typical Asian horror film; the characters are bumbling & flawed, it's got a lot of humor in it. Weta helped out with the creature's effects; it shows--it's really well-done.

Owen's quote of the week, regarding my 95 or 96-year-old Uncle Francis: "He's old, but he's great."

what noisy cats are we

Happy accident: While typing in the url for the Boston Public Library (bpl.org), I typed in the bplo.org. Imagine my surprise to find the Brad Pitt Light Orchestra, an Irish cover band. Enjoy.

In avoiding putting together our stuff to finally pay our taxes, I'm blogging, and probably knitting. There's a crapalanche of half opened mail that needs going through, too.

Over the weekend we checked out the Art of Dr. Suess at Newbury Fine Arts, which runs until Thursday, 4/5. In addition to lithographs & proofs for the more well-known books, they also have advertising art and political cartoons. Owen & Sofia wanted to pet the large, $3000 statue of the Cat in the Hat. We took them to Ben & Jerry's, then to the Frog Pond playground. I'll have to go again either tomorrow or Thursday to actually read the work during my lunch break. Owen was just as interested in talking to the woman who worked in the gallery and playing at her desk than the art with corrected proof from the Cat in the Hat book.

sister of the bride II

I should start with my sister's shower/bachelorette, except we're watched the new Casino Royale, which is excellent. And now White Chicks is on, and I've never seen the whole thing.

The shower was good and went off without a hitch. The Old Colony house is a lovely place to have an event, service was great, the food was good. It was wonderful to see people, and Kate will need to re-register.

The kids' birthday party was hectic, going from one event to another, but Tak did fine going solo while I was still doing best-woman duties. I went & picked them up, and brought Owen & gifts to my parents' house. Then back home to party. Tak went off to meet the boys, and I left to meet the girls.

1st stop: Flash's for dinner. Started the night out right with Dark & Stormies. Food was great and we were there for 3 hours. They were very nice and let us have our Sweet n'Nasty cupcakes, which went over very well.
Oh, yeah, and it snowed.
2nd stop: Limelight for karaoke. I opted for the "private" studio, which was fun because we could be as cheesey as we wanted to be and not have to worry about Emaerson students. The drinks were big and strong, but our waiter kept opening & closing the door instead of bringing them all in on a tray. The singing was so much fun I'm just getting my voice back.
3rd & last stop: JJ Foley's. There isn't a better place to end a long night of drinking than at Foley's.
2:15AM: time to go home. Katie, Meredith & I hailed me a cab, miraculously on Beacon Hill. I hadn't been out that late in a looong time, and was shocked to see so many people out trying to get cabs. It was surreal.

Tak beat me home: he was back at 11:30, but the grooms' men started at noon. Their party included tequila shots. The next morning/afternoon we didn't recover until 12:30-1pm, when my parents brought back Owen. Needless to say, I've gone to bed early most nights this week. And "Heaven is a Place on Earth" has been jumping into my head at random times this week.

nature shock

Tonight at my parents' house, a big fox came trotting through the yard, and across the field next door. It was sudden, and had just caught something. Sometimes I forget how closely these creatures live to us. When it snowed Monday night, I saw--maybe it was even this same fox--animal prints close to the house before the tracks went towards the woods. All of us just watched the fox in the twilight.

On an odd note, I have weird memories from childhood--I must have been 5ish--of checking books out of the library where we lived in upstate NJ that had color photos of teddy bears doing stuff outside. Although I might be getting them mixed up with the Leo Lionni books, I feel like some of them may have been mice in the (real) grass.

Owen has been asking for his own library card, but I have to find out what the minimum age is. We are currently reading George & Martha, and he loves them.
I am reading Stolen by Kelley Armstrong, the follow-up to Bitten. Since I'm on my parents' computer, I don't want to download anything that I won't be able to figure out how to delete later. It's amazing how much I've forgotten about using PCs since I've been back on a Mac for the last few years. It was bad enough that I had to explain to my mom what a blog was and that I had to tell her I had one.

We're in the home stretch for my sister's wedding. The shower & bachelorette are this weekend. Should be a treat!

jolly good show

We're finally watching Bridge on the River Kwai. It's fantastic...and long. What motivated us to watch it was Sessue Hayakawa, one of the first Japanese actors to break into Hollywood--in 1915.

Happy Evacuation Day and St. Patrick's Day. We've been invited to a friend's family home in Southie to watch the parade on Sunday. Again, something I've never done in all my years of living in Boston. Maybe it's the insanity of dealing with the yahoos who come in, like on First Night. But this year will be fun, and Owen's first big Irish parade.

Also on Sunday is a new Boston Comic Con, at the Back Bay Events Center. Something to do before or instead of the St. Patrick's Day Parade. People I know who'll be there: Paul Gould, Hannibal King, Mark Poutenis, and Frankie B. Washington

In other comic book geekery, my friend Pete does a fun improv show in NYC called the Comic Book Club at the PIT. Congrats on the show, the website, and interviewing the editor of Captain America. Keep up the good work.

Just finished: Gene Yang's American Born Chinese. It got a lot of hype as being part of the graphic novel wave, and deservedly so. Quick read and superbly done.

Owen and his jingly hippo have stumbled into the room, so it's time to get in the big bed. Good night!

Knits in the Dig

Here's the photo used in the Dig of the mini hat & scarf I knit for the photo shoot. (It'll open in a new window.) The little blue hat & bag came out better. Big props to the design team who made the whole set from scratch.

Owen's been using the gift bag I made to carry his nice stones/rocks in. Guess I'll have to make another.

cold snap

Crivens! Winter isn't done yet. It's still ridiculously cold. Finished Wintersmith, though, and liked it better than Hat Full of Sky. It's just a really enjoyable series. Love those Mac Nac Feegles.

Knitted a smaller version of the gift bag on the cover of Last Minute Gifts, but in Malabrigio yarn. It came out really nice, especially as my first time doing yarn overs. Now I just have to figure out what to put in it! Next I'll have to do the gift bag in the yummy Blue Sky Alpaca yarn like in the book.

Finally saw the Departed. Holy smokes. It's amazing. There are very recognizable scenes from Infernal Affairs, but it's also its own film--as it should be. And the language is outrageous. The extras are worth it for the second disc. We also got to check out Letters from Iwo Jima, which was also incredible.

Oh, and remember how I didn't think I'd need another circular knitting needle? I need a 24" size 15 for my next projects, a felted handbag and the Diotoma shell from Webs. Oops. Of course, Michael's didn't have one in 24" (or 32"), but in 29". At least I can return it.

aw, shucks

Thanks, you guys for being so supportive. Really, I wasn't fishing for compliments. I know I am not a bad knitter, and I wish I just had more time to practice.

Where I failed in Police tickets (so far), I succeeded in Loreena McKennit tickets. I'm taking my mom. So psyched.

I did end up finding the Departed at Borders--a couple days after it came out. Everyone probably bum-rushed the stores in case we got a ton of snow. (We didn't, but it was cold and messy.) We still haven't watched it yet. I know, I know... Infernal Affairs is great, so it's not like I don't know what happens. We are going to the movies on Sunday, and it's still playing in Boston. Or we might see Children of Men (thanks Bob!). Or Letters from Iwo Jima. We'll see.

Taking a break with Terry Pratchett (thanks Liz!), and reading a vaguely trashy British mom lit called Yummy Mummy by Polly Williams. It's awful and totally engaging, like the Shopaholic books. What's even funnier is that I know a Polly Williams, and this is so not her.

Tak is doing a talk tomorrow at UMD, so what did I do? Shop for yarn like an imbecile. Like I need more? Actually, I've been seriously coveting this Lexie B. bag in Baja, and was debating whether to buy it from WEBS or kpixie. I'm hoping kpixie has a store front so I can go look at it, because I am NOT going to Webs (yet). Now I'm just waiting for Owen to wake up to come in the big bed.

Note: links will open in a separate window. Hope that's OK. I lost my sticky note with the code so links do not open in a new window, and I'm too lazy to hunt through blogger's help menu. thanks!

will knit (poorly) for Police tickets

I had it in my head to call this post Driven to Tears, but I have better things to talk about than being one of the many to not get Police tickets. But still...I've seen Sting live on his first solo tour, and Stewart Copeland with Animal Logic at the Living Room in Providence (with Bob), so it would be nice to see them all together with Andy Summers. And ticketmaster is being stingy (sorry, it's a really appropriate word) with tickets. The shows aren't sold out, but tickets are not available now. oops, I'm kvetching. Onward & upward...

Coke & Nestle have come out with a new line of calorie-burning drinks called Enviga. I tried the green tea one, and it was OK at first but very quickly went bad. Blech. Maybe it's a calorie burner because it upsets your tummy so you don't want to eat anything else. And it has enough caffeine in it that now I'm wide awake.

Tak asked me to knit some little hats & scarves for an upcoming photo shoot for the Dig, which was a ton of fun. I got to test drive my Valley Yarns from Webs & my new ebony Lantern moon needles.

Since I've been knitting for a whole year, I've come to realize that although I like it, I'm not very good. Not that I let my ineptitude stop me. And I'm still trying to learn more new things--like cables, which are still not so easy for me--and continental style.

No knitting tonight, though. Work has left me feeling achey in the mouse-arm and leg joints, so I'm going to try to sleep. Thin Mints didn't help the achiness, but they did help my upset tummy. And yay! to Edy's ice cream for not only making Girl Scout cookie ice cream, but using "Samoas" instead of "Caramel deLites." They will always be Samoas to me.

How do I love thee?

Happy V-day everyone! I know I should probably do something gushy, but... I'm at work. Here's the best news, though, that I can finally sort-of broadcast since it's been leaked via Angry Asian Man: Tak's comic is in the process of going daily.

Just finished Terry Prachett's Wee Free Men, and I'm hooked. Good Omens is one of my all-time favorite books, and this is my first (and successful) foray into Prachett's Discworld.

The Departed came out yesterday on DVD, and it seems to be sold out everywhere in Boston. What a shocker!

Yet another reason to love Google: Its weather is currently describing the weather here as "light ice pellets," which is the most accurate one I've seen today.

Enjoy!

NO... Sleep...for Cranky

We watch quite a bit of Thomas the Tank engine at our house. The other day I got out a DVD from the library with the story about Cranky. It doesn't even matter now what it's really called, because once we sang the title to the tune of "No Sleep 'til Brooklyn," that's what it'll be known as now. Owen ran around the other night yelling "NO... SLEEP...for CRANKY," and he hasn't even heard the song yet.

leopardmonster

I was going to wait until Wiley's birthday, when he and his sister Cloud turn 12! If you want to see more photos of Wiles, click on the flickr button, and he has his own public tag. But I found this link in an old email, and it's too funny not to pass on. It's the site for a Swedish Bengal breeder, who translated something...into leopardmonster and leopardkatten. Now, I don't speak Swedish, but I can guess that this means leopard cat.
www.bengaler.com/jungle_cats.htm

Here's the original text, which has since been taken down. (It looks like German, but I did a lookup on the country code for the breeder, and it's in Sweden.) Bengalen är resultatet av en korsning mellan den Asiatiska leopardkatten och tamkatten. Det utmärkande för Bengalen är att den har en ultramjuk päls med leopardmönster i form av rosettliknande spottar eller tvåfärgade spottar och ljust färgade magar.

They've since updated the site to include English text, but the FAQs are just funny. The photos are beautiful. Ja!

yay librarians!

Well, actually, yay to the supervisor at the circulation desk. I was a dummy and left this photo in the copy of Children of Men when I returned it to the library. After one call to ask them to look for it, and another call to see if they had found it, I was told that it had already gone back. If I wanted to find out more I should come in ask for a supervisor. So I did. Luckily, the really nice circulation desk person got me the supervisor on duty, who was AWESOME, and after looking in several places and checking the computer, came back with it. I think he was going to offer some marriage advice, but was called back to duty. Thank you! Thank you, BPL circulation desk supervisor, for finding a photo of me as a blond and Tak with a mohawk from Halloween '93.

Children of Men was a good read. Took awhile to get into it, but it was very satisfying. I'll see the movie eventually, which I've heard takes some liberties (as most movie versions do). Also saw A Scanner Darkly, and I was surprised how true to the book it was. The animation made it better, too; although I'd be curious to watch the live action footage that was used for the animation. We got a babysitter to check out Pan's Labyrinth, which was amazing. The fairy tale part had the otherworldly quality needed, and the "real life" is gritty. The effects & makeup are incredible.

Yesterday's brouhaha over the Aqua Teen Hunger Force stunt in Boston is all over the news--and I haven't read/watched much of it. Luckily it didn't snarl my commute, but I can't imagine the gigantic inconvenience to those whose day was wrecked.

On a closing note & back to yay! librarians, Lydia, who's a librarian, used to write for the Dig in the early days. Check out her site renegade librarian, which has lots of cool links. She's got a Bengal kitty, too!

bardot? or bettie page?

I took the "which pinup are you" quizilla from Leslie's myspace page, and depending mostly on where I'd like to vacation and what did I with my date's hand at the movies, I was either Brigitte Bardot or Bettie Page.

Speaking of which, a bunch of us met at Match for drinks & I got to see Leslie & Erin, which was great. Match, as Marcie put it, was very New York. But not even really good New York. The slider/mini burger was greasy but good; combined with the massive onion rings it was still yummy. Yet, even worse than Chinese food, I was hungry and hour later and I felt like I'd eaten a package of hot dogs. At least the pricey martini drinks packed a punch, but it was still kind of...eh. The company was the best part of the night! And happy birthday Nicole! ^_^

Took my first morning commute from the South Shore yesterday in the 'van, and it was only 45 minutes. Not too shabby, but definitely not something I'd like to do everyday. I also found that a tape cassette adapter is how I can listen to my iPod over the radio, and the speakers are still in good shape. Not too shabby.

Currently reading: Thanks to William Gibson's blog, I found this neat book about George Appo. He was a famous Chinese/Irish pickpocket in New York in the late 19th century. Of course, the same day I bought it, my request for Children of Men came in for the library. So I hustled through the rest of Blood & Chocolate (easy & fun read, not too sure about the movie).

OK, now I have to figure out what is going on with Battlestar Galactica. I've seen the same episode from different parts, and it's kind of confusing.

catching up

We've been so sleepy lately. Maybe it's the cold finally come to bite us. Maybe it's staying up too late finishing Christmas gifts. Owen doesn't want to get out of bed and is super clingy.

I finally made myself a pom & vanilla vodka & it was just what I needed tonight...
Owen wanted one too, and laughed when I called it a cocktail. Of course it's funny. So I just gave him just the juice, and he liked it better than when we gave it to him the other day. 'Cause it's better when mom's drinking with you, too.

My girlfriend Ilona always gives us fun liquor from her travels, and christmas was no exception. She sent us a nip of Cuandole Marzipan Sahneliqueur from Germany. Yes, it's yummy. How can almond flavored liqueur not be sweet & delicious? Even when it's mixed with coffee liquer. I'm almost embarrassed to say all I could find in the house is the Starbucks liqueur, which is surprisingly good--and also a Christmas gift last year from my future brother-in-law.

Speaking of weddings, we found a bridesmaid dress. Angie, Jason's sister, liked the dress that Katie, my mom & I liked. So we're doing the same dress, different colors (Wtoo, #352). Mine will be "midnight" (dark blue), and Angie's will be powder blue. Now we need to figure out all the shower stuff. Wish me luck.

Currently reading: Necklace of Kisses by Francesca Lia Block.

maiden voyage

Ok, not the greatest photo of our new wheels, but there it is. I got the plates & insurance Tuesday, my dad took it to get a sticker Wednesday, and yesterday dad & mom drove it in before they left for FL. It did shockingly well on emissions for a 1994 Caravan that's 16.9 mpg. For its maiden voyage I drove it to...South Bay Center. That's right: Target, Stop & Shop, Old Navy, etc. Not very exciting, but it was great not having to wait for the shuttle & get on the train when it takes 10 minutes to drive. Owen loves riding in it too. Of course, Zipcar now has Subaru Outbacks in its fleet, and I won't be giving up my membership just in case. But this'll give us an idea of how often we'd really use a car now that we have one at our disposal and don't have to rush to return it by a certain time.

On a separate note, I love having a Google account for a reason I'd never thought: two of my favorite authors' blogs--Neil Gaiman & William Gibson--on my front page. The quick link to post on my blog is nice too, but I'd much rather read about how the movie version of Coraline is coming or see Gibson's Xmas gift from Thomas Pynchon.

comic geeks rejoice!

My friend Pete LePage just got a mention in the NYTimes today for the "Comic Book Club" production he & his friends put on at the PIT in NYC. Yay Pete!

happy birthday to me

We just got back from the weekend in NYC and it was great. We hung out with Tak's, and got to see our pals in Brooklyn (always fun). Thanks to the grandparents, we were able to go out New Year's t0 Dan & Sarah's, which was so awesome we were still a little out of it New Year's Day. Came home this morning afternoon, with the delightful bum smell still on my jeans from the subway this morning. Now I'm off to go food shopping & clean out the fridge. Woo-hoo.

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 41 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

the day after

Christmas was really fun this year. It was all about owen and his trains. We went & saw Santa at the mall, who offered the O-man some good advice about being nice vs. naughty. Owen was pretty good when my parents had people over both Christmas eve and Christmas night, except that the noise from the grown-ups talking got to him after awhile. My cousin's daughter Zoe pushed him around and grabbed his trains, but he took that pretty well. The hightlight for him was a shiny electric train that went in circles and sputtered real smoke. It was hard to tear him away from that for long, and he's spent the last two days mostly in his jammies. Pretty mellow.

My Christmas was spent mostly knitting, which was just what I wanted to do. I finished a "capped" mitten (a fingerless glove with a hat for your fingers=mittten), and am almost done with Owen's other mitten. I hardly "got" anything from anyone, which for once I'm OK with. It seems like so many people had a hard time figuring out gifts. I did get the dustbuster I asked for, and K & J got me an iTrip for our "new" car. That's right: I am almost in possession of a vehicle, a 1994 Dodge Caravan. The funny thing is that my dad has been having fun driving it in the last few days that I'm not sure I'll get it. ^_^

Wiley's pretty happy to see us after the last few days, although we're going to NYC this weekend and he'll be PO'd all over again. He did break a Mexican tablet that my mother-in-law got us that gashed our floor, but at least he didn't throw up. Tomorrow is back to work for all of 2 days. Have myself a nice little work week...

Merry Merry!

I think we may be almost ready for Santa. Tomorrow we head to my parents' house, and the O-man will get a haircut, write his letter in time to get to the North Pole, and go to the local mall to see Santa. Should be fun.

Here's what the cat thinks. Enjoy the holiday!

getting in the spirit

Finally! The craft fair is done, I sold a few wine charms and reinvested the cash into my co-workers pockets I got a cute pair of citrine earrings and a sachet that the cat decided to take over.

Last night I worked super-late to get stuff done, and then I crashed out. I absolutely refused to start the various Christmas gifts I have on my plate. The other night I joked to my girlfriend that people would be getting swatches wrapped up! I've also decided to knit sweaters, one for the boy and one for me, after the holidays. I had a coupon from the Knit Out for free shipping at Webs that had to get used. And because I live in Massachusetts, it arrived within a week. More yarn! Yay!

I still need to do the bulk of Christmas shopping, and find the hanger for the wreath on the front door. We're still torn whether to get a real tree, or if the fiber-optic disco tree will come home from the Dig office. At least we have the Christmas cards, and those will go out over the weekend.

Tonight was the Dig party/benefit at the Cyclorama/BCA. Fun to see people & meet new ones. Weird to say that I used to work at the Dig, weirder to define myself as so-and-so's wife. Oh well. We missed ice cream from JP Licks, but the open bar was good, and the music was manageable. At least you could have a conversation without shouting for very long.

One of my new favorite things are the CVS knockoffs of the Ponds' Cucumber exfoliating facial cleaning wipes. One side is bumpy for exfoliating, the other is smooth to take off all traces of caked on glitter eyeliner and mascara. They smell nice, don't leave a greasy residue, and are $4.99 for a pack of 30. They are probably packed with unpronoucable chemicals, but the tiny Trader Joe's I go to hasn't been carrying the Comodynes Oatmeal ones. I think they're $2.99 for 20, but I don't like the oily feel on my face & hands, although they're the right price and I don't go to bed wearing my makeup. Now if I just had a box of the On-the-Go disposable toothbrush finger condoms, I'd be all set.

domestic goddess

Last weekend I had a bit of a yarn attack at Michael's craft store, and managed to gobble up a bunch of $2 novelty yarns. All for a good cause though, because they're going towards stuff for the craft fair. We'll see if I can get enough knit in time! I'm starting to freak out about it. Hence, no blogging lately.

Let the bake sales begin! I baked 3 bowlfuls (several oven batches) of strawberry or lemon cookies. The recipe came out of my company's Employee Cookbook, so I can't take credit.
Lemon Cookies by Adele Carew
1 box lemon cake mix (or strawberry cake mix)
1 8oz tub of Cool Whip
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a bowl until they make a big sticky ball. Use a tablespoon (or small melon-ball/ice cream scoop) to drop doughballs onto a greased cookie sheet (or parchment paper). Bake 10-12 minutes, or until golden. Dust with confectioner's sugar.

Now, you can use Fat Free Cool Whip, and the cookies come out fluffier and the batter was more liquidy. Disgusting fake nasty stuff, yes, but the cookies taste yummy. But Extra Creamy Cool Whip mixed very quickly. It took several trips in the oven for a bowl to be emptied because I wanted the cookies to be nice and round, spaced far apart on the cookie sheet, and not bake into one big cookie. I also have a new appreciation for parchment paper!

I'm off to bed to knit & watch something other than guys beat the stuffing out of each other on UFC.

passing the torch

First: I finally watched the show Heroes last night, and I love it. I only saw two whole episodes, and Mr. Man is catching me up on some of the backstory. It's been awhile since I've seen a really good TV show. (sniff, sniff, Firefly) Now I just need to get caught up on Battlestar Galactica.

Ok, now catching up: Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It seems so long ago, now.

We went to my parents and ate ourselves silly. I dropped the apple pie my mother & sister made taking it out of fridge #2 in the garage. It fell on the floor and the glass plate shattered, making the pie inedible. That pie is part of the family tradition, and it was weird not having it. However, there were two other pies, and by the time dessert rolled around we were all stuffed.

My knitting aunt has not been herself (due to various medical conditions I won't go into here), and she brought over the bulk of her knitting supplies for me. One of books is a gem from 1953 (it has patterns for shrugs!) I shouldn't ever need to buy circular knitting needles again.

Katie found her wedding dress. Yay! It's gorgeous (of course). Now we just need to find bridesmaid dresses. Bella Sera, the shop we went to Middleton, MA, was down the street from Richardson's Ice Cream. This is probably one of the best ice creams I've ever had. The low-fat frozen yogurt was creamy and amazing. The farm is right behind the restaurant, and you can go back and see the cows. AND there's mini-golf next door, too. The place must be insane in the summer. I can't wait to bring the little guy here.

sister of the bride

So, my sister is getting married next spring in Bermuda on the beach, and I'm one of the bridesmaids. My mother blurted this out last spring before my sister could ask me, so because there wasn't a nice to-do around it, I think I may even be the Matron of Honor. OK, who's the genius that came up with that title? It makes me feel a gazillion years older than I really am.

Anyway, we went dress shopping today, and on the whole it went well. For a woman who didn't want a strapless dress, Miss Kate found one she loved, and it just might be her top choice. We'll see...she's doing more shopping tomorrow, and hopefully remember to bring her digital camera. I actually found a couple dresses I wouldn't mind wearing either, so that takes some of the stress off. Oh yeah, and having my nutty aunt talk keep on asking me to tell Kate to lift her boobs up higher into her bra? Yeah, that was a treat too.

On a totally different note, my proud moment of the day was while making dinner and throwing together something to put on pasta because we're out of sauce. I sauteed an onion and a clove of garlic in olive oil, threw in a can of diced tomatoes "Italian Style" with basil & oregano, another can of no-salt diced tomates, and a handful of chopped parsley. Surprisingly, it was light, flavorful, and complemented the balsamic vinegar sauteed onions, peppers & chicken sausage really well. Woo-hoo!

health roofie

Yeah, that's right: sneaking in super healthy things into your kid's food. Like cold pressed flaxseed oil into a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Popping a hole in the capsule & squeezing out the oil makes natural-style peanut butter easier to spread right out of the fridge. Next stop: investing in some flax meal and adding it to oatmeal or yogurt.

The boy has also taken a liking to celery, mostly due to the Wonderpets TV show. The whole show is in musical-theater form and is pretty entertaining.

My health roofie this week has been falling asleep with Owen at 9ish. Tonight I was lucky to wake up at 11 to blog & knit, and now I've been sucked into the second half of Once Were Warriors on IFC. It's one of my favorite movies, and even though it's depressing, I can still watch it again (unlike Grave of the Fireflies and Dancer in the Dark).

We've been reading lots of Dr. Suess, and I can't wait to read the Grinch, hopefully this weekend. I've been catching up on the Series of Unfortunate Events books now that it's over. I'm on book #12 and I can't wait to read The End.

links of note

Torn between Count Olaf and Tyler Durden:
http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/politics/mock_the_vote.php

needles & stitches

So I haven't written lately because Mr. Man has needed the computer at home. He's been working on a deadline and getting stuff together to get trademarked (finally!), which is very cool, but frustrating for me since I really don't want to blog at work.

But today Owen's school is closed to celebrate Veterans' Day, and he squeaked into back-up daycare at the last minute when I'd planned on taking a personal day. Tak is bringing in Owen so I can do "stuff around the house" before I go into work. Of course, this includes blogging in addition to cleaning and bills. And I have to say, it's a pleasant change to leisurely have a cup of coffee in the daytime and blog, instead of slipping in a half-assed bleary-eyed blog at 1AM.

Anyway, the upside to the computer being unavailable is that I've been knitting more. Presents (hence the lack of pictures) are coming together, and I'm working on my first ever pair of mittens made with Double Pointed Needles. They are for Owen (so it's OK if they're not perfect--yeah, yeah, I know), and they are red. Working the thumb is tricky! I also signed up for my department's craft fair, and I'm making sets of the little wine glass/coffee mug handle scarves/charms and hopefully matching coasters. The wine glass scarves are nice because they go quickly (unlike knitting something on DPNs).

Stitch update: Owen got his stitches out last Saturday, and he was a trooper! He stayed still and didn't cry at all while the doctor cut the stitches (well, I guess you would too if you had a pair of scissors in your peripheral vision). The cut still looks wide, but clean. He really liked the blue lollipop afterward that turned his lips, tongue and teeth blue. The bruise that he had before the gash (in the same place, no less!) is finally fading, so it looks less scary. Now if he & his classmates can keep their fingers off of it, it should heal nicely.

happy halloween

Happy Halloween, a day late. It's been a crazy week full of meetings. Monday night was a parent meeting for the Nature Center preschool.

Tuesday, Owen fell into a wood coffee table at my mother's house, gashed his cheek, and had to go to the doctor's for stitches (6 total). He's mostly OK (so is my mom), and the best sign was that after 3 hours at the pediatrician's, he still asked to go trick-or-treating. So we went around the block for about 15 minutes, which was just right. He still got candy and go out at night, we got to see our neighbors, and my hard work Saturday night sewing his costume didn't go to waste.

Tonight we had a condo association meeting, and ended up having dinner with a couple other owners. We as condo trustees have some issues to go through, but we're in OK shape.

Now I have to get some things together for my parents to bring to the Science Center for their fundraising yard sale on Sunday. There's gotta be some stuff we can donate that someone else might buy.

stuck in the middle

Tuesday night marked a first in family history: Owen, Wiley the Cat, Tak & I all slept in the same bed, with me in the middle of everyone. The cat even slept with us on Friday night, too; he slept with me while I watched TV & knitted. Owen thankfully didn't join us until the next morning.

Before Owen arrived, Wiley slept with us every night. Then came the new baby, who was also soon sleeping with us and it was just too much for Wiley. I can count on one hand how many times Wiles has slept with us in bed, and it was either when we were sick or, like now, that it's become colder at night. And he's probably lonely too, since Owen & I are gone two nights a week and Tak isn't even home until super late Mondays. Wiley has even napped with Owen once in a great while, when we can still get Owen to a)nap and b)in his own bed.

We'll see how long it'll be before the cat gets fed up with being tossed around all night, but for now, it's kind of nice again.

love them apples

Finally, after 3+ years, I'm back in the Dig. It's a yarn review, of all things. Now I have to get crackin' and do it more often.

Today, we made it on probably one of the last good days for apple picking. We went with our friends Frank & Patrice and our kids to Cider Hill Farm up in Amesbury MA, and it was a gorgeous fall day and a beautiful spot. They still had loads of pumpkins and some apples (one of the few left), the farm had an awesome shop and bakery, a couple of big pigs, plus a bunch of things for the kids to do.
Sofia & Owen particularly loved the hay maze. The only real bummer was poor signage; we didn't know where to go to find the Mustu apple orchard. Luckily we strayed far enough to get some Cortlands to bring home.
We went this time last year to Honey Pot Hill in Stow MA; the donuts were better, but it was mobbed. But then, last year had better weather for apples & pumpkins. I would definitely go back to Cider Hill, especially since it took us less than an hour to get there on the highway. It was laid back, and the people were really nice. And the food was really good, too. They not only had donuts ('scuse me while I channel Homer Simpson...mmmm...donuts), but the homemade fudge was excellent. We bought a tub of chicken salad and fresh bread for sandwiches. I'm still debating whether or not I should share the whoopie pie with my mom.

This trip also marks the first time I've successfully pumped my own gas at a self serve station. Woo-hoo!

slip slidin' away

I've been fighting off a nasty cold this week with the help of Sudafed, tea, cough drops, and sleep. There are a gazillion things I should be doing, like winding yarn, making Owen's costume, or--dare I say it--more sleeping. But I think I'll save costume making for this weekend. I didn't have a chance to hit JoAnne's while I was down in the 'burbs, so I went to Winmill fabrics instead and ended up sharing Thomas the Tank Engine tips with one of the owners.

update: I wound yarn.

I've also been looking over the last couple months for an inexpensive (under $30) full slip to wear under wrap dresses, and finally found one at H&M for $15 with a built-in bra. Score!

Maybe tomorrow night I'll be able to check out the Museum of Kitschy Stitches tomorrow night. Her website is hilarious. And it's not just 'cause I'm a knitter, either.

on a tear

I've been ambitious in the projects I have in the pipeline (mostly gifts to be made) and, unfortunately, the money I've been spending to do so. And it doesn't help that I can't walk into a yarn/craft store without buying something, especially if I have a coupon.

For example, last weekend I explored the South Shore when we were playing house (house-sitting for my parents), and visited The Creative Stitch in Cohasset. I came out with some very sexy size 11/16" circular Addi Turbo knitting needles and 2 balls of Queensland Kathmandu yarn in a yummy plum. During the week I used a coupon from Newbury Yarns and in the space of 20 minutes had 2 hanks of wonderful Malabrigo wool, 1 hank of Manos del Uruguay, and 1 hank of Colinette chunky. Granted, I had a 20% off coupon, which always helps, but still. To make matters worse, I went to Windsor Button to (successfully) match the Manos, and picked up another Kathmandu and exchanged a roll of Lamb's Pride, followed by a trip to A Good Yarn in Brookline to check out the Susanne's knitting needles (they're made from reclaimed wood at a piano factory), but opted instead for a $15 sale kit of yarns and size 19 needles. Whatever will I make with all this stuff? (most likely hats, handwarmers, cell phone cases, wine charms, and probably a scarf.)

THEN I have Owen's Halloween costume to make. I don't like the polyester smock style Thomas the Tank Engine costumes, and many other small boys will have the same one. Luckily, that will be in felt. JoAnne's, here I come!

good and bad

Sometimes, you can't have just one.

Like the other day, I went to b.good and tried a new burger for me. I usually get the b.good burger with garlicky greens, but with the whole spinach snafu, I figured this would be an opportunity to branch out...to the West Side. Whoa. What an amazingly yummy burger, and very Weight Watcher friendly too, with avocado, salsa and cilantro on a whole wheat bun. It was SO good, I went back for another today (and, it was just as delicious). Plus I got paid, so I can front the $7.35 combo with the fantastic baked fries and a drink. Sure, it's can be crowded at lunchtime, but I'd rather have a hand-packed healthy burger made by good people than chain store food. And they have good music, too.

Then when I went out for a coffee, I stopped by the farmer's market at Copley. Hamilton Farms had a special of fresh raspberries, 2 for $5.00. What do I get to go along with them? A home made whoopie pie, that's what. Boy, did that go really well with my tall non-fat decaf sugar-free vanilla latte. Just the ticket on a Friday afternoon.

home on the range

For the last three weeks Owen & I have been staying over at my parents' house twice a week so he can go to preschool there (in addition to the one he goes to in Boston.) This is mainly because he'd spend a day with my mom anyway, and this way he has something to do on the other day plus make some new friends while my mom can get some work done. The really scary thing is that I'm starting to like staying down there. I get a lot of sleep. I don't have to worry as much about what a wreck my house is. So, this is why I haven't been blogging as much.

What else is odd is that I was one of those kids who *could not wait* to get out of the 'burbs. When I'm tempted to move back down, I dig up this article from the NY Times"Goodbye, Suburbs" about how city-folk just can't really adjust to suburban life. That could be me...

Another thing is that I finally colored my hair red. I had been super lazy and let the gray grow in. Plus, it kind of looked like highlights, which was OK for summer. But after fielding some well meaning comments from people and equally misguided comments from my mother (like "I was never that gray at your age" to "Are you trying to get pregnant?"), I celebrated fall with some Garnier Nutriesse in #56/ Sangria. It would have been Torrid Outrageous Cherry, but the beauty supply store was closed. Owen likes it, and wants me to color my hair blue next! Needless to say, I've had the Tori Amos song Take to the Sky running through my head. "I know I've got some magic/ buried deep in my heart yeah." Sing it , sister. Happy fall everybody.

chocolate chip pancake recipe

Here's the recipe for the pancakes Owen & I made, adapted from a flapjack recipe from Parents magazine, March 05. I halved it. (*= halved for recipe)
1 cup flour*
1.5 tsp baking powder*
dash salt (double into 1/2tsp)
1 Tbsp sugar (was originally 1.5 tbsp)
sprinkle of cinnamon
1 cup milk*
1 egg*
splash vanilla

Mix dry stuff together; add wet ingredients. Mix or whisk. Fold in 2/3 or 3/4 cup chocolate chips (minus a few to make sure they're good).Melt butter or use cooking spray on a hot pan; pour batter in 2-5 inch circles onto pan. Flip. Makes 12-15 pancakes (enough breakfast for 3 and leftovers for late night snacks).
Enjoy!

sheep shop saturday

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, what do I do? Yarn shop! Circles Salon in JP held a Sheep Shop Yarns event with Fonnie, the owner of Sheep Shop. Fonnie's done a great job with these yarns, they're soft and the colors are amazing. I can't wait to knit with them. And Circles is such a warm, homey space. Everyone there was so friendly, sweet and great to talk to.


It wasn't just a shoppy kind of day. Owen & I made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast. Do skim milk and whole wheat flour balance out the chocolate chips? And yes, I am wearing my Duran Duran t-shirt from the concert last year.

We managed to tear Owen away from the Duoplo Legos and train tracks to check out the Children's Book Festival at Copley Plaza. Some of the events we wanted to see weren't running on time (or at least in the order that ran on-line), so Tak took Owen home for a nap after lunch. After I got my yarn on at Circles, I visited Dan & Sarah et al at the Freedom Rally. Went home, had dinner, did our night time thing. Got locked out while doing laundry; luckily our neighbor came home and let me call to wake up Tak, who fell asleep with Owen. He didn't wake up until after I'd been knocking at the door/wall for about 10 minutes. At least the laundry got folded while it was still warm! I also finally finished my sister's scarf. As in: it is for her, but she also began it when she learned how to knit, and she didn't want to finish it. So now it just needs to be blocked. Birthday present: done.

jam packed

Finally writing about the NY trip. It was great. Bus ride sucked. At least I was on Greyhound/ Peter Pan (not Fung Wah). I was totally exhausted, so I'm sure that didn't help my bus-sickness. Then, it was so long, we had two movies: The Pacifier and Just Like Heaven. I thought I was going to hurl as we drove stop and go through the city. was so glad to be off that bus. I ended taking the train back--and it was totally worth the extra cash.

So, I did a ton but still managed to relax. Ate, drank, and shopped. After I had a couple Tylenol and a ginger ale to recover from the bus ride, I got my eyebrows threaded. One of my coworkers suggested Pinky, so I checked out her salon (on 6th between 38th & 37th), which was fast (less than 10 minutes), mostly painless, and cheap ($6! vs. $18 in Boston). I met up with Lorie and we had a drink at Bryant Park. Sarah arrived and I dashed off to meet Karen at Penelope for an early dinner. Best Mac & Cheese ever (even better than Scollay Square, and they have amazing Mac & Cheese), and the catfish finger salad was delish. The "penny" sized chocolate cupcakes with mocha frosting were, dare I say, better than Magnolia's. Karen went off shopping, and I met back up with Lorie & Sarah at PS54 (Lexington & 30th), with an OK mojito but super tasty Mac & Cheese puffs (balls of Mac & Cheese deep fried), fish tacos, and shredded braised rib nachos. Really good size portions for "small plates," and not horrendously expensive ($9-15 each). We got in a cab back to Brooklyn, dropped my junk off at Lorie & Pete's, and hung out for awhile at Soda Lounge. We walked Sarah home, and crashed out. What a blissful, child-free night of sleep--until 10AM. Luxurious.

We went to Beast for brunch, and while we were waiting for Sarah & Dan, we checked out a cute little shop, Red Lipstick (560 Vanderbilt Ave., Brooklyn), where I got some cute hoop earrings (can't remember the designer's name) & a shirt (the owner is a knitter & sells her hats, scarves, etc too). Beast was fantastic. I had the French Toast, but it was really the bread basket that sealed the deal. Because I wanted to check out Brooklyn General Store (it's a yarn shop), D & S gave us a ride in their adorable new Mini. Fun! But BGS was closed (dammit), so we went to Knitting Hands on Atlantic Ave instead. And also to Layers (394 Atlantic Ave.), where I found a really neat pair of Tuareg earrings from Africa. Then we went home, packed, got a sandwich from City Sub, walked around a little bit, and I got on the train. This is, of course, after getting that awful sick sinking feeling in my stomach upon getting off at Port Authority/42nd St., so we turned around & went to Penn Station. Such a smart choice. Comfy seats, walking around, eating the rest of my sandwich in the dining car without bothering anyone else. Here are my souvenirs.


Finally got home around midnight. Next morning: made breakfast for Tak's parents. Took them to South Station (yes, they take the Fung Wah since it's down the street from where they live), and took Owen to the Children's Museum.

8/30-9/2: Spent the better part of the week cranking through knitting a birthday gift, and slept over at my parents' with Owen. Crashed out around 9:30 Thursday and Friday night.
9/3-9/4: Stayed up late Saturday night cleaning for my friend Michelle's visit--she's one of my best friends from high school AND she introduced me to Tak on her 21st birthday (they went to BU together). She's out visiting for the week & came by for brunch.


Now I need to get back on the program after all the hanging out & period/binge eating.
Owen starts preschool #2 next week. Should be interesting. At least his aim has gotten better!

lessons in gravity

Now that Owen is using the big potty (yay!), the next lesson will soon be in aim. As we cheer him on when he goes in the big potty, I also can't help but notice that his pee always hits the back of the toilet, or the seat, or all over the rim.

Of course, it's the best when we run out of cleaner (found some ancient bleach, though), it's 12:20am, the in-laws are coming for a rare overnight visit, plus I'm going to NYC tomorrow and I have to finish packing.

Hooray, solo mama/girlfriend trip!
Boo, crazy late night cleaning!

potty party

We've been sloooooowly working up to going diaper-free since at least March, so there were a couple things that finally needed to happen. I told him last Saturday that I wasn't buying any more diapers to wear during the day, and we gave him the choice of diapers vs. underpants (staying away from the "big boy" label since he's pretty conflicted about it). We've had less than 5 accidents in the last week, which is great. The drawback is that he's been wanting to sleep with us, he's outgrowing his daytime naps, and he wants me to rock him before bedtime. Minor.

The last hurdle was getting Owen to poop in the potty. We set up a reward chart, so that when he went 3 times, he'd get a party. He made poop #3 last Sunday, so we set the party for Thursday, complete with pizza, cake, and a "Way to Go" balloon. But now he wants a party all the time, and he's coming to the realization that you don't get a potty party all the time.

The cake, by the way, wasn't a chocolate bundt cake with white frosting. I was really wanting to make one, but the night before the party, Tak & I went out for wedding anniversary #8, and cake making was not going to happen when we got home. Instead, Owen got a fudge cake with a cherry in the middle (ha!) from Shaw's bakery--which has really great cakes and possibly the best frosting ever. Thank heaven it's almost gone.

Now, Owen is sleeping and Tak is on his way home from a Dig photoshoot with photos for the Fall Style guide. Nice, huh?

BTW, I've only watched the 1st half of Nightwatch (Nochnoy Dozor) and I love it. Can't wait to finish it tonight and will probably be chomping at the bit to watch the sequels.

my favorite typos

Maybe it’s because I’m an editor, but there are some things that I see over and over that drive me bananas.

whose (possessive) vs. who’s (abbreviation for “who is”)
your (possessive) vs. you’re (abbreviation for “you are”)
periods and commas outside the quotation marks (In America, they go “inside,” not outside.)

zombie-phobia "cured" by (P.K.) Dick

Ha! sorry. I couldn't help it.

Ever since the remake of Dawn of the Dead played in heavy rotation in April/May, I had awful nightmares about zombies. It kept me awake at night. What would happen if there was an outbreak and they broke into our house? How would we fight them? How would we try & escape? Maybe it was a mother instinct, but I was pretty freaked out. And I love horror films. Something about this movie, every time it was on, I had to watch it. It was my own stupid fault. Finally, Mr. Man took control of the remote when it was on (thankfully).

But it's weird, there are just some things I can't watch anymore. I can watch all kinds of freaky, creepy, scary-ass movies (the Grudge, Ringu, Audition, etc.). I even sat through all of The Blob (the 80's version, mullets, shoulder pads, pegged jeans, and all) last month when it was on. But Resident Evil? Saw? Hostel? No thanks, I'm not interested. Can't do it.

It got me thinking, vampires are really just pretty zombies, depending on which movie version. I'll take Underworld/Buffy vampires over the 'Salem's Lot version, thank you. Any monster movie preys on the audience's fear of losing control/thrill of regaining control. What makes us human? What sets us apart from the undead freak that's eating brains, the werewolf, the serial killer? The will to fight? The ability to choose who are the victims, if any? That maybe I really needed to sit down with a few old episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and make sure I have my super-long knitting needles with me at all times? What about voudoo zombies, the kind that need a master, a la Serpent and the Rainbow? That helped temporarily. I figured it was best not to get into the psychology/ philosophy of zombies. Especially since they're already dead and don't think, or feel, anything.

On a sidenote: Shaun of the Dead is too funny to scare me. At the end, the army comes in and saves the day. Happy endings, all around! 28 days later has enough of a really faulty lynchpin that it doesn't scare me so much. Rage? C'mon. Well, not that Zombie-ism is really supposed to make sense anyway. The victims are still kind of human, too. Plus, not only does it happen in England, but the film also has Cillian Murphy naked. But that's not quite the dick I'm talking about.

About the height of my zombie-phobia, I got two excellent reading recommendations at a friend's wedding from my table-mates (all well-cultured sci-fi/horror/cult film afcionados):
One was for the Zombie Survival Guide, a part tongue-in-cheek, part Boy Scout manual to living through a zombie invasion. I know, in my conscious brain, that it's a joke. Author Max Brooks is Mel Brooks' son, and Brad Pitt's production company Plan B just bought the rights to a pseudo-sequel; they are all laughing on the way to the bank. My subconscious brain, the one that goes into overdrive at 3 A.M.--because from my bed, I can see my unit's front door (yes, BAD feng shui. we're working on it.)--was oddly comforted.

The other reading recommendation was for Philip K. Dick. (Yes, finally the long winded punchline.) Oh. My. Wow. Blade Runner is in my all time top film list. Philip K. Dick's work is still being looted for really well-done sci-fi/action films. But it's bleak as hell. In the future, humanity is defeated, over and over, by its own undoing, usually creating machinery that perpetuates a vicious cycle of destruction. Or in a post-apocalyptic world, innocence is lost, religion is alien, pointless and/or frightening, reality is a hallucination, and memory is never to be trusted. Those are just a collection of short stories (including Minority Report and We Can Remember it for You Wholesale/Totall Recall). The most hopeful story hinges on the character's ability to rebel. I'm still digesting it, and I haven't even read A Scanner Darkly or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

Don't worry, I'll get to them--after I've read a truckload of picture books, Peter Pan, the Wee Free Men, City of Ember, a couple of historical romance novels, and a few potty training guides.

I don't need zombies to keep me up at night now that I know in the future it won't really matter. We'll be going through the motions, if that. Um, thanks? I think I'll watch Reign of Fire now. Dragons plunging the civilized world into chaos seems more reassuring.

the muffin man

Owen is all about helping to cook these days. Luckily, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree and he's a dessert devil, just like me! But finding eggless batter (hooray, botulism!) is tricky. Mixes that stand out are Krusteaz Blueberry Pancake Mix (just add water), No Pudge Brownie mix (add fat-free vanilla yogurt), and mixes from the Country Gourmet. The Lemon Poppy Scone & Muffin mix is a fave, and the Blueberry Oat Scone & Muffin mix also makes good size muffins--not the lame kind that have zero rise. Oh no. Made incorrectly, these babies could break a window. If small children aren't going to be licking the bowl, go ahead and add the lone beaten egg to the mix and water. The best way to enjoy them is cut in half, toast, and add a little butter or jam. A little "gourmet" at Marshalls ($3.99/lb bag), but they're healthier than a coffee shop muffin.