Category Archives: Randonymity

Randonymity, Reading

Randomly Wednesday

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All sorts of interesting little bits and bobs this morning.

Jeanne has a funny post about making some absolutely adorable felted catnip mice.

Jenn suspects her cat Cocoa has been reading about Chaos while Jenn’s at work.

SRP: Sunday I finished reading Treasure Forest by Cat Bordhi, 288 pages. Winner of the 2004 Nautilus Award. I was familiar with Cat Bordhi’s Socks Soar… and moebius books, so when I heard she had also written a fantasy novel, I was intrigued. It’s a sweet story, with bits of spinning and knitting intertwined with spiritual, new agey bits.

Some of you know I read while I knit. I firmly believe that reading while knitting is a skill that can be learned (with many thanks to WildKnits for convincing me of that!). However, it really helps to have the right bookstand. I use a ReadUpon, which is a small pillow with a clear plastic bookholder attached. Unfortunately, the company that made this bookstand appears to have gone out of business. There are some other bookstands that might work – but please note that I haven’t seen or tried any of these, ok?!

The BookGem might work, if paired with a pillow. The Peeramid might work, although I’m not sure that it will hold the book open for hands-free reading. The Reader’s Laplander Lap Desk seems a bit big (and expensive) and I’m not sure it will give you a good reading angle. The Hold-and-Read might work, if paired with a pillow, but looks like it can only handle paperbacks. If anyone has other ideas, I’d love to hear them!

Shannon of Yarn and Chocolate had a contest to collect ideas for thrifty knitting and I won the lovely skein of Mountain Colors pictured below. Thanks, Shannon! (The skein is the bit on the right side of the picture…)

“I’d like to see you try to knit with me. Hmph.”
Knitting, Randonymity, Reading

Reports of my move were greatly premature…

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I’ll just warn y’all straight out that I’m a bit crabby this morning. Things were going well with the blog move until their tech support mentioned that they couldn’t integrate my blogger data. Um, well, that’s a deal breaker, since I know there are places that can integrate my data. So I’m taking a deep breath, waiting for my refund, and doing better research this time. Thanks to everyone who’s given me tips!

I’m also PMSy. ‘Nuff said.

On the plus side, I’m meeting Renee at Bad Waitress in Minneapolis (26th & Nicollet) at 11:00 am today – it’ll be our bit for for Worldwide Public Knitting Day. Drop by if you’re in the neighborhood!

I’ve started the log cabin baby blanket from MDK and am enjoying it. Please excuse this blurry picture, as my camera batteries were dying… These are all the colors I’ll be using, although, since I’m just doing the 4th square of 10, I have a lot further to go! The edging will be in the tan.

I’ve also gone on a bit of a joining bender… I’m participating in Dave’s Bitchin’ Mittens KAL (after getting special dispensation so I don’t have to knit any thumbs – you’ll have to stay tuned to see how I manage that). Frarochvia talked me into signing up for Scout’s Knit Sock Kit Swap (signups are Sunday, June 11 8 am EST through Tuesday June 13 8 am EST), so I talked her into signing up for Kat with a K’s Summer Reading Program. My goal is 30 books for the summer, including two nonfiction.

Here are the books I’ve read so far in June:

Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot, 368 pages. Total chick lit and a fast read, but it was fun and Meg Cabot had a great afterward about body image.

Summer Knight (Book 4 of the Dresden Files) by Jim Butcher, 371 pages. What’s not to like about a mystery series set in Chicago and featuring a wizard for hire? This installment detours into the land of Faerie.

The Hour Before Dawn and Two Other Stories from Newford by Charles de Lint, 114 pages. Newford stories – what else is there to say?

Anyone but You by Jennifer Crusie, 224 pages. Somewhat predictable chick lit, but that didn’t stop me from reading the whole thing in a single sitting.

Fare Play and Full Frontal Murder by Barbara Paul, 252 and 251 pages. These are from a series about NYPD lieutenant Marian Larch – quick reads, and the rest of the series is now on my to-read list.

The Road to Lisdoonvarna by Charles de Lint, 190 pages. A de Lint novel with no magic, set in Ottawa in the 1980s. Although the hardboiled detective novel is a bit of a departure for de Lint, it kept me engrossed.

Heart of the World by Linda Barnes, 321 pages. The latest of the Carlotta Carlyle mysteries, this takes Carlotta and her “little sister” Paolina to Colombia. Many twists and turns!

Hmm, I’m just realizing that my goal of 30 books isn’t going to be much of a stretch if I maintain this reading pace, is it?!

Here’s what Chaos looks like first thing every morning as I get his breakfast ready:


“Food food food food food food food food food.”

I feel a lot less crabby now. Thanks for listening/reading!
Randonymity, Those Cats

Red tuna at night

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A big thank you to Just a Knit Wit (aka Kelly), who sent Chaos and I a sweet care package. Great timing – it arrived during a totally crazed day at work on Friday and cheered me up immediately.

It included a lovely skein of Kureyon, some mini Tootsie Pops (used to calm my equally crabby coworkers!), a tin of Knitting Girl mints, a Hershey’s pencil, red and grey mini-tuna toys for Chaos (clever!), a mysterious tin…*

and a great cd of Celtic music to listen to while knitting!

The tin contained a stunning black cat bookmark and two very fun bracelets, one of which has a little sheep and says “I Luv 2 Knit.”

Thanks, Kelly! Oh, and I think that Chaos likes the tiny red tuna (TRT):


“Yeeeeeee-ha!”

*As always, click on the pictures to see larger versions.
Randonymity, Those Cats

If you could see what I see

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Anmiryam has posted some great insights into successful knitblogging. Definitely worth a read, if you haven’t already.

Kelly of Minneapolis is celebrating her six-month blogiversary with a contest, too! Stop by and wish her well (and offer lunch suggestions, eh?). Discovering a Minneapolis Kelly made me realize how many Kell(y)(ie)(ee) people are in my bloglines. Y’all should start a ring or something… Besides Minneapolis Kelly, there’s Celtic Kelly, Just a Knit Wit Kelly, Peevish Kellie, and Obsessive Kellee. (If I’ve missed other Kellies, you’ll have to let me know!)
Added from comments: Giggling Kelle.

Jen asked for pictures from out of our windows and wouldn’t take “but my windows are so dirty!” as an excuse.* So here you go.

East window with cat butt

East window without cat butt

North window looking up and out

North window looking ou… let’s try that one again.

North window looking out – the people who used to live across the way had an orange tabby who would crawl out the window and sit on their air conditioner, which always worried me – we’re on the third floor here… He and Chaos would sit and stare at each other before that boxelder got so bushy.

What I usually see when looking out the north window:

“Shhhh…. I have my eye on that bird. I’m sure I’ll get him, if he just comes a little closer…”

*The windows are totally filthy. My excuse? They’re being replaced in two weeks, so what’s the point in washing them now?! You’ll notice very little glass appears in these photos.

Randonymity

Simply boggled at the horror

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Thanks for all the fun name ideas for my new stuffed black kitty – right now I’m leaning toward Loki the Imp. For the curious, he was purchased at the Bibelot Shop in the Minneapolis neighborhood of Linden Hills, as was the black cat mug. The onesies are for a tie dye and stenciling experiment.

Moving right along, I must ask you all to brace yourselves… I found a knitting magazine at the thrift store that was so horrific I was compelled to buy it and share the horror with all of you. (Aw, Chris, you shouldn’t have – really.)

With no further ado… the bikini issue! (You can click on the pictures to view larger versions if you really want to…) We’ll start with the cover, featuring the lovely Christmas red and green bikini.

Inside, more bikinis on the right – but check out the picture on the left, of a reader’s cat wearing a twee little bonnet. Chaos might occasionally wear a strawberry hat, but he would so not put up with that bonnet action.

More swimming suit action, including one for the boys, if y’all were feeling left out (Hi, Dave!).

“You better not be thinking about knitting me any swimwear is all I’m saying.”

Moving right along, look at the fabulous sweaters you can knit for Barbie and Ken for their trips in the Barbie Camper. (I had one of those Barbie Campers, along with the obligatory Malibu Barbie. I didn’t have a Ken, but I did have Wild West action figures who were the same height as Barbie. So Barbie ran off with Geronimo in the Barbie Camper, with his horse tied to the back bumper.)

Finally, some clothes for the kids. Check out the crazy stenciled cat – I think he would’ve given me nightmares at that age!

Now, I actually thought the little blue jumper in the lower right corner was cute… until I looked at the pattern and realized the gauge was 17 stitches per inch. That’s right, it’s knit with cotton thread. Eeeeeeeeek! It’s not that cute. I’m not sure anything is that cute.

Randonymity, Those Cats

Tales of Chaotic naughtiness

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Rebekah is asking for people to knit toys and blankets for cats and dogs in the shelters in her area. It’s the chance to do some community knitting and possibly win prizes – I know that Amy Boogie and Wendy/Lucy have contributed prizes for those who donate items (they say Wendy wrote that book, but Chaos insists Lucy was the mastermind behind it all), among others. For cats, Wendy has a great catnip mouse pattern available. For dogs, I’ve made this tug toy and found it held up very well.

Meet the newest member of our family… I was helpless to do anything other than purchase him after I saw those eyes (which are more green than they appear in the picture).

Any name suggestions?

When I got home last night, this is what I found on my kitchen table. Formerly, it was a sealed five-pack of onesies that I’m planning to use for a craft project.

Hmm, only four… Where could the other one be? Oh, there it is on the floor.

Maybe Chaos was afraid I was going to make him wear the onesies?! After all, Jeanne’s Bugsy did have to wear one for a while (to keep him from scratching an injury). And Margene’s dog Moxie is wearing a t-shirt right now. This might have been a preemptive strike.

In the interest of further naughtiness disclosure, here’s the perp with Exhibit A, my formerly favorite mug that he knocked into the sink and broke last week.

“Must be careful – that looks sharp!”

So I picked up a new mug yesterday…

“What are you up to, Mom?! Should I be worried?!”

Randonymity, Tales of the Neighborhood, Those Cats

A winner, flamingos, and a very odd billboard

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Congrats to Heide, who was lucky random number 68! Her caption was “Fibery, mousey goodness. Yum!” Heide, drop me an email with your address if you haven’t already. Thanks to everyone for playing and for the kind words on my blogiversary! You so know that there will be other contests in the future…

Yesterday was lovely here in Minneapolis – sunny, not windy, and warm but not too warm (too warm is coming this weekend). I took my camera along as I walked around Lake of the Isles after work and quickly realized that it’s pretty easy to take Project Spectrum May pictures right now, since everything’s very green.

This heron is my favorite statue near the lake.

I’m quite fond of little Peavey Fountain.

Curious about what the sign says? It’s worth a read – not every fountain is a memorial to horses who died in World War I.

This house on the southwest side of Lake of the Isles has a flamboyance of plastic flamingos in its front yard every year. The flamingos “migrate” around the yard during the summer, clustering in fanciful arrangements.

This picture wasn’t taken around Lake of the Isles – it’s a billboard near work that amuses me no end. See those cats? They’re statues! When the billboard went up, there were only a few cats. Each week, more cats are added. Very clever advertising strategy.

“Give me a break, Mom. Why would cats be that interested in a fishing lure that’s obviously not for catching tuna?”

Knitting, Randonymity, Those Cats

Unpaw that Addi!

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Last chance to participate in my 6-month blogiversary contest – follow the link before 6 pm CDT today (May 22) and leave a caption comment to play. I can’t believe I’ve already been blogging for six months – my, how time flies. To everyone who stops by to visit Chaos and I, and to everyone whose blogs I visit – you have all enriched my life immeasurably! Thank you.

The Knit Wit has been writing a ghost story about me, but things aren’t looking so good at the end of Part 2… If I suddenly stop posting, it’s her fault for finishing me off in the graveyard!

Jane posted about a nifty blogging event happening on Wednesday, June 7 – A Day in the Life, inspired by the book This Day in the Life: Diaries from Women Across America.

In addition to the Lace from the Black Lagoon socks I’m working on (in the homestretch – doing the cuff on the second sock!), I’m also working on a pair of plain socks from Meilenweit Cotton. Inspired by JennyRaye, these will be biking socks for me. I had two singleton balls of this yarn, so I’m doing toes, gussets, and cuffs from one color and foot and heel from the other color. There’s a bit of green in them, so they’re nominally Project Spectrum, too. (Please note that the red blobule you will see in the following pictures is simply a red fur ball, not SRM!)

“Socks, socks, I love socks! Let me just slip this sock off your foot – you won’t miss it at all.”
“Oh, wait, I love these pointy things – so handy for cleaning between my fangs, where all that tuna gets stuck.”


“What’s your problem?! You don’t use these things to clean your teeth? Your loss.”

Randonymity

Bountiful randomnymity

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I keep forgetting to mention the yarn I picked up at Shepherd’s Harvest… I bought a ball of Trekking 144 (further complicating my decision for Trek Along with Me) and 992 yards of black laceweight alpaca (further complicating my decision for The Amazing Lace). I also picked up some Country Classics one-shot acid dyes for Jeanne and I and some Cotton Fleece that I had ordered from Earthsong Fibers – the Cotton Fleece is going to be a log cabin baby blanket (from Mason-Dixon Knitting), but I’m still waiting for two of my colors.

Last night my friend Lisa and I went to a play. We saw a great production of Little Shop of Horrors, put on by the homeschool theater company Theatrix. You can still go see it tonight or Saturday night! Neither Lisa nor I had seen the movies, so we were surprised at the twists and turns of the storyline. The tickets were a gift from the wonderful Eileen (thanks, Eileen!!) and after the show, we got to meet her very talented son, the Vampire, who was the Voice of Audrey II. The Vampire surprised me with a bag of goodies from his mom (who I will hopefully meet someday), which leads me to this:

Sorry about the crap photo – it was late… On the far left is a great book called Cameo Cats, which was a surprise gift from Mama Tulip! (More on that book in a minute.) In the center are the treats from Eileen – some kitty treats for Chaos (which he actually liked, shockingly – he’s a chowkitty who doesn’t usually like cat treats – go figure),

*sniff sniff* “Hmm, could this be… tuna? Sort of?”

gluten-free cookies, mix cds, and organic dark chocolate espresso beans for me. Thanks, Eileen! On the right, Project Spectrumy goodness from Kelly and Sockies of Celtic Cast On.(Detail picture below.) Kelly made me the cutest bracelet with a clasp that’s a cat playing with a ball of yarn (hmm, wonder where she got the idea for that?!) and matching earrings. For Chaos, a crinkly fluffy ball and a very fancy featherbutt mouse – exotic Canadian cat toys! All of this arrived in a green envelope with a cute green and pink card – Kelly is great with the Project Spectrum fun touches. Thanks, Kelly and Sockies!

A bit more about Cameo Cats from Mama Tulip – it’s a gorgeously illustrated book with poems and quotations about cats. Chaos found it interesting:

“Hmm… Smells like… Canada!”
“Definitely Canada.”

I wonder why this book reminded Mama Tulip of us?! Thanks, Mama Tulip!

Randonymity, Those Cats

Bounty (not the paper towels)

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Actually, this is Bounty – the UK Edition. Tomorrow we’ll have Bounty – the Canadian Edition. But first – head on over to 144 Inches of I-Cord, where Jen is having a contest to help out Kirsten of Gluten-Free Knitting. Kirsten’s heading to Croatia in a few weeks to help outfit a ship for the ministry she’s part of. If you know me, you know that I’m not a religious person. But I do respect people like Kirsten who live their beliefs in a passionate and peaceful fashion. To help Kirsten out, I’m donating one of the prizes you can win – another skein of Sunburst Treadsoft sock yarn and a Chaotic Cat mix cd.

Which reminds me – there’s still time to participate in my 6-month blogiversary contest – follow the link before Monday, May 22, 6 pm CDT and leave a caption comment to play. I’ve been enjoying the very creative and funny captions that have already been left!

Monday I was very crabby and crampy… and then I received a fun package from MrsPao in the UK. Look at all that chocolate – that is so what I needed to perk me up! Thank you, MrsPao! She also included some tasty coffee, the mind-bogglingly named Uncle Joe’s Mint Balls (“Keep you all aglow”), furry mice and a ball for Chaos, a great mix cd, and a very cute Project Spectrum green cat.

Check out the cover of The Meow Mix – pictures of Mrs Pao’s many cats!

The Furry Orange Mouse (FOM) and Furry Red Mouse (FRM) are already a hit around here.

“What mouse? I don’t see any mouse.”
“See? No mouse.”