Trivia Night at the Store

I'm sitting in on Trivia Night at the Store (that's the only place I can get wireless to work) listening to the game and I am totally amazed that no one knows the name of the butler from Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.

What kind of cultural wasteland is this anyway?

MultiCraftual

I'm still here!

I've been crafting it up, craft-style.

Here we have a beautiful basket, which is in progress and approaching the finish line. I ordered the reed a couple of weeks ago and then some friends and I dyed it. It's not perfect, but I'm pretty excited.

Inside the basket you will see the Baby Surprise Jacket which matches the Love Booties and Hat I made for my cousin's baby a few weeks ago. I can't believe I still haven't taken pictures of the hat. Nothing I can do about it now, it's in Wisconsin. This little jacket isn't quite finished. It needs the picots on the cuffs and to have a few more ends tucked in.

There is also the almost finished pair of Nutkins Yoga Socks (which don't have toes, but are otherwise Nutkins.) I am thinking about finding a place to do yoga when we get to Austin, so obviously I had to knit something to represent that desire. Again, I just need to weave in the ends to consider this finished. This yarn is STR lightweight Jonagold.

A couple of nights ago I finally decided to frog my most recently started Stock Socks, and then I began to knit another Ishbel. This is Dream In Color Knitosophy, color Superhero. I don't know if I'll keep it going, but I sure think it looks pretty.

Friday night I also started the March Shipment of the Rockin' Sock Club - Slip Jig Socks by Irishgirlieknits. I'm actually doing these 2 at a time on one circular needle, but the picture with just one was better. Newsflash: I love this pattern. I have another skein of Chickabiddy mediumweight at home that I was thinking was going to be a baby sweater for one of my many pregnant friends, but now I'm thinking more along the lines of another pair of Slip Jigs.

Here is a picture of the Shawl that Jazz I've been working on for a few months. It has been recently resurrected from Time Out Due to Miles of Garter Stitch. It's gorgeous and made with luscious yarn (Old Maiden Aunt Silk Alpaca) but it's all clubbed up on the needle and impossible to see, so please just enjoy this beautiful color.

In other news I have recently read The Mysterious Affair At Styles by Agatha Christie. I am not putting it on my New To Me list of books because I'm pretty sure that I read it in 7th grade - I went through a big Agatha Christie phase and read almost all of her books. This time I found a box by the side of the road full of books with a sign that said "Free Books - Please Take!" so I took that and Five Little Pigs.

Yesterday I started The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. He also wrote The Lightning Thief and the rest of the Percy Jackson books. So far I am really enjoying it. The kids have a lot of questions (the biggest question is 'WHAT IS GOING ON?') and so do I!

Last Thursday was my night NOT to work, so I went to the Craft Shop and started a stained glass project. Spoiler Alert: I love it. I have always wanted to learn stained glass. I came across Louis Tiffany in college and fell deeply in love with his work. It's just another extension of my love of Arts & Crafts and Art Nouveau. I'm worried though - how will I possibly make room in my life for another craft? A whole new stash of glass - new equipment, cutters and grinders and torches? We'll have to see.

Uncraftily, but still exciting, I learned to play Mahjong last night! The power was out so three very nice people who live in my house taught me how to play and we sat around a card table all holding flashlights and saying, "Pong!" It was super awesome and I foresee lots of Mahjong in my future. I told them that it was clear to me that when I get to Austin I'll have to buy a set and teach Jorah to play, and then we would have to make some friends, at least two.

Today is the halfway point of my summer incidentally. I am here for 10 weeks and two days total, and as of today I have 5 weeks and 1 day until I am reunited in Austin with Jorah and my dogs. It's been a fast, fun summer so far! Here's hoping that the rest is just as good!

Craftiness

One of the perks of working the the Craft Shop is all of the peripheral crafting that is going on. I tend to get a little bit lost up in the weaving room (good news is that I'm back to Minus One - only one empty loom right now) and so I missed some of the trainings . . .

I did get to make a glass and concrete stepping stone:

Very fun and pretty! I have a thing for trees and trees of life as you may know.

And also a Dichroic Glass Pendant.

The swirls are from the vacation to to Ireland last year, specifically when we went to Newgrange and Bru na Boynne. Here's the post I made last summer about this. These spirals are inside the mound. I was really taken by them and I've been doodling them ever since. I completely love this pendant.

I want to do some stained glass too, but I don't know yet what I would want to make.

Missed Anniversary

I feel terrible about this, but I have to admit that I have recently missed a really important anniversary.

June 20th was the 35 year anniversary of the movie JAWS.

Let me just say, so there isn't any confusion, that this is one of the greatest movies of all time.

Tell me the way to go home

I'm tired and I want to go to bed

Oh I had a little drink about an hour ago

and it went right to my head

Nothing can match the music playing while those black eyes come right for you.

In other news, I went swimming three times today!