Category Archives: Those Cats

Alongs, Those Cats

Trek that lace, baby

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For Trek Along with Me, I’ll be knitting with Trekking 78, a lovely combination of purples and a hint of blue for Project Spectrum June.

“This is a particularly tasty shade of Trekking. I recommend it to all discerning kitties out there.”

I’m sort of hindered in the first Amazing Lace challenge, because unlike some, I’ve never seen the Amazing Race. Hey, I don’t get any tv stations. Cut me a break, will ya?So, last night the team met for the first time. On the left, we have Mim’s Adamas Shawl pattern, handily mounted on a magnetic board and stand (gadget geek alert!). In the front, we have a skein of Christine’s Fingerpaints laceweight yarn in Cabernet (with some blue, for Project Spectrum June!). On the right… we have, well, chaos.

“Cabernet? Are you sure? I’m thinking it’s actually a really good pinot noir.”

Greetings are exchanged among the team members.

*sniff sniff sniff*

Oh, dear, I’m afraid that not all team members have the same goal…

“Bwah-ha-ha!”

Knitting, Project Spectrum, Those Cats

Final Project Spectrum May pictures

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Yes, yes, I know everyone wants to see pictures of luridly purple yarn. Hopefully tomorrow. Right now the yarn is eluding my best efforts to capture the color. Grrrrrr…

So, in order to placate Marina, I finished my Chaotic Black Lagoon socks last night.

Yarn: Sundara Black Lagoon
Pattern: Judy Gibson’s generic toe-up pattern modified for two circulars, with this cast-on and Maeve’s Cherry Blossom Lace pattern
Needles: Addi Turbo 0s
Duration: 28 days

And on to the last few PS May images… A treasured green card from my grad school friend Deb:

One of the best wine labels ever (and the wine’s not bad, either!) – does that face remind you of anyone?! 🙂

For Chaos size reference, the wine bottle is 12 inches tall…

“Wait a minute, what the heck is a gooseberry bush?! Can’t I just use my litterbox?!”
Project Spectrum, Those Cats

Project Spectrum craftiness (with even less knitting than ever!)

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The Craft Modster posted a very inspiring entry about t-shirt stenciling a few days ago and got me all excited to try stenciling some onesies for my friends’ baby. (You remember the fate of the onesies, right?) I definitely need to try something else for the lettering, but I’m pretty pleased with my first effort, made with emerald green Jacquard fabric paint. The owl is a stamp that my dad sells (it’s on the Rango Zoo 3 sheet).

I also tie-dyed several onesies, since the parents are tie-dye fanatics. I used dark green Rit dye. The onesie on the left (slightly obscured in this picture) had rubber bands around it in three places. The onesie on the right (also slightly obscured in this picture) was simply tied in a big knot. I like the big knot effect much better!

“If I sit on them, she won’t be tempted to put them on me, right?”


“Oh, well that sort of ‘putting on’ isn’t so bad, I guess.”


“Duuuuuuuude, I could sure use a hit of catnip and some tuna. Must be the tie dyes.”

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, 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, 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.”
Dyeing, Those Cats

Belated Mother’s Day wishes

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Belated Mother’s Day wishes to Chaos’ mom, Riley (black, below), from Chaos (not pictured) and his brother Diablo (white, below).

Some semi-solid yarn I dyed over at Jeanne’s a week ago. These were two skeins of white Lamb’s Pride Superwash (a truly unpleasant yarn), soaked in vinegar water in loosely twisted hanks (as pictured below, but not so tight), then liquid purple Jacquard acid dye was dumped into the vinegar water. As the dye kept exhausting, I would add more dye and swish things around a little bit. I like the effect enough that I’ll try doing this again sometime.

I have my dye buddy’s yarn all set, but I’m not going to post pictures of it until it’s sent and safely received. Moving right along – remember the blindingly bright yarn from my dyeing class at Shepherd’s Harvest? Here’s how it looks after a few turns on the old niddy noddy – socks? Or a crazy bright baby sweater? Hmm… Anyway, I think we might have been using Cushing’s dye in the class – it was in those little cellophane envelopes and we used vinegar to set it.

“Here, Furry Orange Mouse… come to Papa.”

Tomorrow, more on the two new mice that arrived from the UK yesterday! Furry Orange Mouse (FOM), above, and Furry Red Mouse (FRM), below. FRM might indeed be hiding from someone…