dc was such a fun adventure. how lucky am i that i got to fly to dc and spend the afternoon exploring, all expenses paid? i got to work early monday morning, and within an hour was asked if i could deliver a grant application in dc right away. i would never say no to that! i left my bike at my desk and was driven straight to the airport from the office. fortunately i had my copy of ulysses with me, so my time in transit was well spent.
and then: i delivered the grant on time and was free to spend my afternoon doing all the touristy things i’ve never really done on past trips to dc. i saw an islamic art exhibit, learned about amelia earhart and outer space at the smithsonian, walked through sculpture gardens, the botanical gardens, the national mall. i tried to go to stitch dc (because checking out the lys is always one of my favorite parts of visiting other cities) but i had gotten distracted by primeval gardens and didn’t get to the shop until just after 5 pm. and it just happened that monday they close at 5 instead of 7. next time, stitch, next time. the other thing i wanted to see but didn’t make it to in time was the international spy museum. but again, next time. dc is one of my favorite cities, it’s not like i won’t visit again.
i saw lots of surly teenagers crossing their arms while their parents took pictures of them in museums and every time i wanted to say, hang in there guys, in a few years, you are going to be stoked to hang out with your parents i bet. you are totally going to think this is more important and awesome then than you do now.
and then it was time to go back. i ate a delicious burrito, wandered to union station and took the metro back to the airport. and now i am getting back to my regular schedule. lots of knitting. lots of reading. my new apartment is finally habitable and honestly, it’s also kind of awesome. also i just bought the half marathon issue of runner’s world. so you know, lots of running. can’t stop won’t stop.
Filed under: adventures
i want to tell you about how utterly absurd my fourth of july was, and soon i will. but it’s not happening right now because i just found out my office is flying me to dc in about an hour to deliver a federal grant. straight from our nation’s best holiday to our nation’s capital. cool. too bad i’m wearing business casual today and not my patriotic muu muu.
if we are friends and you have my number, get at me today. tell me what i should do with my evening in dc after i deliver this grant. i can’t really process yet entirely how hilarious and awesome my life is. it kind of gets better every day.
i’m starting to really wish i’d washed my hair today.
thunderstorms this morning made staying in bed the most appealing thing in the world. i eyed up my bag of knitting and my big fat envelopes of zines that i’ve yet to read and i thought, well maybe. BUT there is so much to do that i just can’t justify that kind of day right now. my options are: working on the new apartment or going to the office. my fingers still feel raw from pulling up carpet yesterday, and neither i nor my toolbox can face any more staples right now, so i choose the office. whereever you are, i hope it’s not raining.
so. knitting. a little while ago i knit this shawl/scarf with the spinning bunny corriedale singles i mentioned maybe last month. it’s really basic but i think a good choice for showing off the yarn. meg and i recently had a discussion about needle size, and i will share with you something i have learned about myself: i knit pretty tight. like almost problematically so. and try as i might, i just can’t stop it. i also tend to favor smaller needles and finer yarns. i always think bulky yarns are pretty, but i am less inspired by them in terms of imagining completed projects. i am slowly learning to overcome these things, however, by giving in and using larger needles. i am weirdly proud of myself for knitting this scarf on size 13 needles. i am weirdly proud of myself for even owning size 13 needles. i am promising myself that when it comes to needle choices from now on, i will go big or go home. to seal the deal, i even bought myself some addi turbo size 9 circulars. see? i’m invested in this now.
this is all. ravelry details for this project do exist. my crazy ominous neighbor is moving out of the downstairs apartment soon. jess gets here tonight. i feel like that poster that says “hang in there kitty!”
sometimes i wish i could sleep in, but generally, for me, it’s just not possible. i guess there’s just a lot that needs to be dealt with at the moment. a new apartment is like a new year probably. a fresh start. you want everything to be bare and clean and to make sense. i know by now it can’t always be like that. it hit me for real the moment my new neighbor pointed his finger angrily at me and upstairs at my new apartment and yelled in broken english “MISTAKE! MISTAKE!” thank you sir, that’s not ominous at all. but it will be fine. i walked over early this morning to see if the electricity had been turned on (it had) before biking to work, a new commute which allows me to look at boats, saves me easily 20 minutes, and is definitely the right way to start my work day.
moving will take over my life for a brief period, or at least will seem to. but i’m still working on socks and i’m still working through ulysses, although now i have lost my reading partner, so i will be going it alone. i won’t lie: that’s sad. but it will be alright.
yesterday i had a really crucial conversation with the boy i mentor. it seriously shed light on a lot of things for me in ways that he will never understand. a few weeks ago someone had asked me about the mentoring program where i work, and while i was explaining some of the benefits for the kids we serve, he said, “but what about you? like what does the mentor get out of the partnership?” and honestly, i wasn’t entirely sure what to say. but now i totally get it. i’m so lucky to be a part of everything i’m a part of. my imperfections overwhelm me on an almost daily basis, but at the same time i’m learning so much.
while i’m working on socks, i figured i might as well talk about some past knitting (mis)adventures on the internerd. pretty soon i’m going to photograph and tell you about a recent knitting project that was a pretty serious failure (for me at least). but before i do that, i thought maybe i’d try to lift my spirits by thinking about projects i was actually psyched on.
knit moustache? i rode a bus overnight to maryland to knit that. then i took the bus back that same day. there’s nothing like travelling with nothing but a clean shirt, two cans of pbr and some yarn and a moustache pattern. i love life. knit anatomical heart? first plush thing i ever knit. a present for my friend courtney. it was so fun to knit! striped socks for my nana? first successful socks i ever finished knitting. so an obvious victory. hot pink hot pants? i don’t have to explain this. they are awesome. i spent my last week of college knitting those. glittery gold ski mask? i can’t believe i don’t get asked to more proms. bunny slippers? these are actually crocheted and not knitted, but this is my mosaic and i really like those slippers.
now i’m going to get back to assembling zines and knitting socks. i’m hoping to make so much sock progress this weekend because next week i move into a new apartment!
if you have any favorite knitting projects that you consider to be serious successes, you know i’d like to see ‘em, too. hit me with your best shots.
Filed under: books
being grown up means i can take a hot toddy in a travel mug to a spelling bee and stay out late on a monday night. that’s seriously what it means. and honestly, that’s kind of great. i spelled silently along in my head and watched sarah and nicole spell their little hearts out, and it was awesome. sarah spelled so quickly it blew my mind, and nicole made it to the top three.
ulysses is actually treating me pretty well too. i love waking up early to read before work while it’s quiet and my little brain hasn’t had a chance yet to feel tired and/or frustrated. the last time i attempted to read this book, i gave up 150 pages in and instead i embroidered a picture of james joyce.
this was also clearly a good use of my time, but i’m glad i’m sticking with the book this time around.
i also want to throw this out there: “beer: now scientifically better than water.” as someone who has long understood the wonder of a large, ice cold beer after a long run (i prefer to drink mine in the shower), i would just like to say, duh but also thank you. i love when anyone confirms or validates things that i know in my heart to be true.
i meant for this update to happen last monday. but life gets in the way and i am notoriously always a little late. updates will be more frequent over the next week or two though. i have some leftover yarn from mass market and i want to get it out of my life and into yours.
i posted four skeins of handspun yarn today, so go check ‘em out and keep checking back! i’ve also decided that this time around i may add copies of my zine to the etsy shop. it just seems like an organized and efficient way of keeping it easily available, although i still recommend that anyone interested in my zine still order it from any distro that carries it – i’d rather see people supporting diy zine distros! so eventually a few copies will go onto etsy, but i’ll also be letting you know what distros carry nothing rhymes #5, and how soon they have it in stock.
that’s all – just some general shopkeeping! my personal life remains largely uneventful, but i will say that gary and steph and i might be addicted to the tv show the wire after watching the first three episodes last night, and also i don’t think i can get behind the website last.fm. but maybe that’s just because i wouldn’t want anyone actually knowing how often i listen to the annie soundtrack. if you listen to cool music, it’s probably not a bad website i guess. oh, and also, look how great my little weasel is:
we’ve been together exactly four years now. i still hate that anyone would have abandoned this little freckleface, but i’m so glad that she found her way to me.
i haven’t had a whole lot to say about current knitting finished objects lately, and honestly, it’s because i haven’t finished anything recently. that’s not entirely true: i have finished a few pairs of socks. but i don’t want to really talk about them until i’ve finished all five pairs. i’m looking at the set of five as one project. when all of them are finished, i will have something real to say. but just for the sake of acknowledging that i’m making progress, here’s a peek at the latest pair:
and apparently i’m just a glutton for punishment, because i decided that a relief project might be nice. you know, something to knit for when my fingers are tired of socks. something on big needles. something like… a blanket? WHY?! why, in the midst of a long-term project would i start an even longer-term project. no, actually, an ENDLESS project. i’m using up all of my gross worsted weight yarn scraps and knitting a zig-zag stitch throw. this is going to be one ugly blanket. or at least, it will be in approximately five years, when i finish it.
so after admitting that i started a blanket as my “non-committal knitting project,” i kind of hate to admit that i’ve also started reading ulysses. um you know, just one of the longest, slowest books i could choose to tackle right now, or ever. this is my second attempt at this book, actually, but this time i have a partner in crime, so i think i might be able to stick with it. and the thing is, for all its difficulties, it’s honestly kind of an enjoyable book. i’m keeping track of some of my favorite parts on my tumblr, so follow along if you wanna. maybe you’ll even want to take this beast on too, who knows?
yesterday i also noticed that the bridge reopened so i can start biking to work for the summer, which is awesome. at around the same time yesterday, i was thinking about switching from distance-measured running to mostly timed running. this winter at the gym i could run slowly for an hour. how about an hour and a half? maybe eventually two? i normally hate things that require patience, maintenance, stamina, etc. but suddenly those are the only things in my life. no instant gratification to be found. there’s no end in sight, for any of this, i’m afraid.
on saturday night i stayed over at nicole’s house so we could get up and leave for boston straight from there. we made pizza and ate gross snacks and also awesome snacks and then we candled our ears! this is something we’ve been talking about for a little while, and seriously, it was really cool. according to some things i’ve been reading, ear candling has been pretty thoroughly debunked. that said, my ears feel great, and we had a lot of fun. when you cut up the candles, it’s so wonderfully disgusting:
obviously i’m no doctor and i’m no scientist, but here is my endorsement: if you have a friend to do this with (doing it alone is probably really unsafe) and you don’t have tubes in your ears (also unsafe for candling) and you like things that are gross, why not just go for it? i mean, read into it and make sure you’re being safe of course. but then just go for it. whether or not the buildup inside the candle afterward is ear wax or candle wax, it rules to look at.
sunday morning we got up and went to boston for mass market 4, which was really fun! i’m always a little nervous doing a craft show i haven’t attended at all before. it’s hard to know what the overall atmosphere will be. like will my stuff not fit in at all, or will there be too many vendors selling things similar to what i have, or will the space be weird, etc? but this was a pretty good setup. the space was nice, the music was fun, and i thought there were a lot of neat things being sold, a good mix of vintage/thrift finds, handmade crafts, art and records. the day really flew by, too.
i just sold handspun yarn, no knit things, and my new zine. i got to talk with lots of really nice knitters and yarn-lovers, and that is always one of the most fun aspects of tabling. i got to meet ciara from learning to leave a paper trail, which was another really high point of the day. i always get so happy and nervous meeting people i’ve known through the mail/zine community/craft community, but not in person. so that was really nice! i sold a few zines and skeins of yarn and had a really good time. it was social but not overwhelming, which is good because i do get overwhelmed! and sharing a table with courtney was a lot of fun. her stuff looked great and sold well, which was not at all surprising, but still exciting.
that’s just a tiny bit of what she has to offer. you can go to closertotheocean.etsy.com to buy things soon. it was a nice day and i’m glad i got to be a part of it. the show seemed really well run and organized, and full of great things.
this morning over coffee, also, i read a really weird article on bbc news. i’m honestly a little unclear as to how this is on the front page. in 2009. is crowd surfing really a new or relevant news topic? and do people honestly get trench foot at concerts? keep your feet dry when wet? gary was convinced that i was either reading the onion or that i had written this article myself. but it’s real. it’s so real. i think i need to write to bbc and tell them to give me a job. i’ll write stuff like this all day long if that’s what they want.
dear everyone: this sunday! come see me and courtney at mass market 4 in boston. courtney makes beautiful things like this and this. i’ll be peddling a few knit things, some handspun yarn, and copies of nothing rhymes #5 which i seriously JUST made copies of. tonight i’ll stitch ‘em up and be glad to at least cross this one thing off my list.
SO. go to mass market. it’ll be really fun. check out their myspace page for directions and also a full list of who will be there – there are going to be a lot of good things! i’m excited! they also might still be looking for people to help out with working the doors, cleaning up, etc, in case you are interested in being involved!
