Tuesday, January 15, 2008

flash review

Last night I was watching one of my favorite movies Keeping the Faith. It's one of the only movies (/things) that I have ever laughed at, Edward Norton is in it, it has a love triangle (a staple of literature), and it features religion.

I love books/movies about religion - or, more specifically, Catholicism. Dad and I had a run where we watched a great deal of Catholic inspired, mysticism style movies, which we then graded on a scale of A through F. And, while I did not do this for books, I can tell you that in the movie and book area of works about Catholicism (tangential or not) nothing will ever live up to Stigmata (movie) and Graham Greene's The End of the Affair.

All that being said, Keeping the Faith isn't really a religion movie to me so much as a comedy that happens to feature religion - thus it is not on the same list. It stands as a classic all its own. Anyway, I don't want to go on about it because that would give stuff away and I only got to start watching it last night, and I want to finish watching it now. This post is just a plug for it (and for Stigmata and for Graham Greene's work - although he probably doesn't need my help). I promise that if you laugh at nothing else in Keeping the Faith, you'll at least like the scene with the incense.

p.s. I have finally received and invite to Ravelry, a site for showing off knitting and crochet. Anyone who uses Ravelry who is reading this (Missy), check it out! (Also, Missy, I was unable to stash Eight Crazy Nights on Ravelry; I don't think it's listed.)

Sunday, January 13, 2008

knits while watching wrestling

Last night was my good friend David's first professional wrestling match. As I have lived with David and know him quite well, I wanted to go and support him. That being said, there were going to be a lot of wrestling going on that wasn't going to be David, meaning that I didn't have to pay that much attention. With that being considered it only made sense to again bring my knitting to a professional wrestling show. (Recall I did this when I went to the show at UMass.) Also, David requested that I do so. And, since it was his night, who was I to refuse that request.

I thought a great deal about what project to bring. I could bring the sock - after all, it did quite well at the UMass show. But I am about to knit the heel flap and turn the heal (for the second time) and I didn't want to have to pay that much attention. Truly I wanted to bring the blanket I am knitting. It is lovely and fun and everything one could want in a project, but, as Seth said, it was a bit much.



Then I remembered I had some cool yarn. Yarn from Missy via Seth. Lovely yarn that she sells online at her store Keegan Lane Yarns. The yarn is called Eight Crazy Nights - for Chanukah. Now I am not one for intense yarn love. I pretty much knit with anything and most often knit with acrylics, which are sometimes gross, but when you have to buy enough to make a blanket - well they are cheap. So, I don't usually think about yarn. But then, oh, oh, this yarn.



It was love at first long tail cast on. Lovely wool and alpaca. Glorious! Seth even called Missy during the wrestling to tell her because I was going on so. (Apparently she didn't seem surprised that I was knitting while watching wrestling....interesting.) Patrick took a picture of me knitting on his cell - I'll have to see if I can get it. Apparently I am not even looking at the wrestling in the shot. It was agreed by all that this was appropriate. Although, to clarify, I did see most of everything - I just have to look down at my knitting now and again. The yarn is making a scarf in horizontal herringbone stitch.


It's moving very quickly, as a woman commented after the show.



Incidentally, David did quite a fine job at the wrestling match. He should be wrestling again the first weekend in February. Seth, Patrick, and I (that's the group I went with) are all planning to go again. Additionally convenient is the fact that the show is in Southington, so I can visit with my family at the same time.

(Funny side story. I purchased this lovely bag for my knitting at Webs during their sale. A perhaps slightly-more-than-I-should-have-spent style bag. I bring it home and now sooner do I take it out the bag then this happens:


Oh, kitty!)

n.b. It has come to my attention that I have never mentioned this: I don't proofread my blog posts before publishing them. That's just too much for a blog, which I feel should be informal. I apologize for any sort of illiteracy that you may have been plagued with when reading this.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

new tea

When we were at Whole Foods over the weekend, Seth noticed something extraordinary. New tea! There was a company with loose leaf tea that I hadn't tried before. Better still, because he is so wonderful, Seth purchased some of this tea for me. The brand is tease (no capitals for them), and it is sold by a company called Tea Guys. It is absolutely delicious.

Best yet, they make unique flavored blends because while I like tea, I do admit that I am not a traditionalist - I like my tea flavored - I don't want some boring old cup of plain silver tip or gunpowder. I know that some people, ex. the tea lady at Cooks Shop Here in Northampton (a fine store), will think that this preference of mine is a sin. I know that all unflavored green (or white or black or yellow) teas taste different. I can indeed taste the difference. But I still have to say that flavored tea is always more exciting and, dare I say it, interestingly tasty.

But back to the Tea Guys. Well don't you know it but they're local! Very local as in Hatfield, practically no drive at all from Sunderland. And I am just ever so wanting to go and visit their showroom! I hope that Seth will want to go with me. Maybe we can go with Mom and the Sibley's, as my mom and Seth's mom are both fond of tea. I have no idea when we'll have time to go. Oh, maybe the first weekend in February, after the Phonathon and my spinning class at Webs but before the CASE Conference. Yes, tea. Oh, and I have been tea-less all day in the Phonathon Center. Thank goodness I had that cup of sweet matcha this morning when I did.

Wednesday, January 9, 2008

?

Seth's good friend, Patrick, made a New Years resolution to update his blog everyday. Now, while I know that Patrick is most certainly an overachiever, at least in the blog arena, the entire situation made me feel kind of bad for having not posted in, well, forever. But times have been busy. There were the holidays and New Years and now I am trying to get the In Memoriam Winter Appeal out at work and the Phonathon is starting up - the first training is tonight. But enough of my excuses; Patrick is getting his PhD is some complicated BioEngineering science, taking his qualifying exams, and still posting his blog daily. (To be fair, I am not sure the latter is accurate having not taken the time to actually read Patrick's blog - but I digress.)

Greg's forever blanket project is done! Can you believe it? I keep telling people that when I started that blanket I was unemployed and didn't have Lily yet. That blanket took 1/44 of my life to make. All that and I forgot to take a picture. That's right, in my joy at finishing it by Christmas (although it was a birthday present for last June) I brought it home and didn't take a single picture. When I am home next I'll take a few shots. It looks like a finished version of what you saw before. It's very... square. I should have known this looking at the measurements, but it was still a surprise. Greg is enjoying it. He slept with it on his bed the first night, which makes me happy because knitting is made to be used.

I am not onto a new blanket in lovely hourglass cables, which are not actual cables because I have irrational cable fear. The new blanket is half way done, blue, and lovely. I can't believe what knitting does. All I do is sit there and stick a needle through a loop and wrap some yarn around all of it and poof then I look down and there is this elaborate blanket. I certainly don't think I am doing anything fancy. What a wonder how the knitting must do it all on its own.

In unrelated news: Seth and I want to go here for vacation. Click on the link - trust me you won't be disappointed. (Although you may need to install Flash.)

Oh, goodness! I have two dozen girls arriving here in an hour for training, and I haven't set up a thing yet. I am off to train the next group of phone fund raisers!