Yay! Illness!

I've been sick, the last two days. It has been awesome.

Since last we spoke, dear bloglet, I have done the following:

Renamed the Ruby socks:to World Series Socks. Because they are red, and Philadelphia has finally won something! They look like this (See Right)












I turn a mean heel. It's true! Lookit!













I have also started Connor's sweater. He has named it the "Sweater of Destiny". Mostly, it is a modification of Elizabeth Zimmerman's Seamless Hybrid sweater (from Knitting Without Tears). It will probably end up having an obnoxious manly shawl collar (a la "Piers" from Rowan's Vintage Style pattern book) and some sort of wintery motif (I'm thinking trees? Reindeer?) across the super-manly chest. Note the strong, masculine language. Yeah. That's for Connor.

I cast on 180 stitches of Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool and knit for an hour and a half while watching the BBC Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1988) (My favorite movie). I've done about an hour today on it and here's what's finished so far:

I think Connor is going to like it. This will be my first sweater project in a while. I'm pretty psyched. Also, design plans are in the works for Sergeant Carl's Jayne Cobb Hat. Woo. I'm a machine, despite my crippling stomach pain!
Fear me.

I am the girl anachronism

Dear self,
Don't be such a jerk.
Seriously. You are a pretty gentle person the vast majority of the time, but you have these moments when you are so insensitive! Knock it off.

Also? No more using other people's sweater patterns. Unless they're vintage, and you've fact-checked them. Because there is just not a market out there for hand knit items in 36/25/47. You will only end up frustrated, disappointed, and tearful if you think that any pattern in a book someone managed to SELL to people will lend itself to your freakish freakish figure. Elizabeth Zimmerman will save you. That and your crazy math skills, eye for creative texture-work, and a set of US size 6 aluminum circular Addi turbos in various lengths. Or some of those needles from Knit Picks. How I covet them.

Discouragedly yours,
-Self.

In other news, I have the basic motif worked out for the first of the Twin Peaks sweater series:
and I'm working on getting the proportions between the waist/hip ribbing and the bodice. It needs to drape correctly, which I know can be hard to manage with fair isle, since it alters the tension so dramatically. I'll have to work up a nice-sized swatch to make sure it works. I'm also not sure about yarn choice. I'll get on knittersreview, and see what happens. Mull it over.

Somebody out there loves me.

Holy. Crap.
The APA (of which I am dues paying member) dedicated this issue to philosophy and knitting. I am currently printing ALL of it. Totally. Effin'. Sweet.

In other news, it is cold again today at work, and I am still wearing my pajamas (sweatpants, tee-shirt, sweatshirt). I want cinnamon toast pretty badly, and have to focus on papers this week instead of knitting. Anti-thrills, and drudgery. Reward? Spooky Symposium on Friday, and the annual Galloway All Hallows' Eve Gathering on Saturday. Thinking about a secondary costume to go with their theme --- seance and divination. Apparently, these things require more duct tape than Adam was counting on, which is a very interesting thought, indeed.
So! Secondary Costume: Bettie Page? A Gypsy? Something less 1983 than Jem? We shall see.

Green Eyed Lady

I've chosen the yarn for the Knitty Thrum-a-long I'm trying to organize. PrairieSarah's package needs to be taped closed and addressed, and then it will be ready go to. I have my own roving combed out and sitting in cedar and lavender, just to be sure. I never trust free fibre.

Gotta run to Philosophical Society meeting, then American Pragmatism. I THINK we might buy PUMPKINS tonight. Sweetness.

And I sang and danced about a high-rise

Pittsburgh = awesome.
SPEP = pretty cool.
Open bar at philosophy events = priceless.

Had a great time at SPEP with the posse. Photos and details will follow sometime when I have 15 spare minutes and my laptop at the same time.

Right now, its time for a "Dear So-and-so..."

Dear Professors of Universities Everywhere,
I'm a big fan of yours, generally speaking. You do one of the most important jobs around, and its one I would consider for myself if academia and university politics weren't so market-driven, counter-educational, and egomaniacal. That said, I like what you do, and wish I were not so delicate a person that the organization imposed on the post-secondary educational system caused a visceral reaction in the approximate region of where I would imagine my soul would be, if I had one, which I probably don't.
This is why I will one day open up a charter school that will change the American educational model, and hopefully make your jobs much more productive, fulfilling, rewarding, and socially significant. You can thank me later.

...

IN THE MEANTIME!
What, precisely, is with you people? That's right. I said "you people". Now you know I'm pissed. Whenever the sweeping generalizations hit the pavement, you can bet the gloves are off, and I'm going to come at you swinging like the drunken low-down dirty Mick I am.
My job -- you know, the one I actually get paid for? The one that makes it possible for me to participate in your classes, while racking up astronomical amounts of debt (that's $75,000 and counting not including interest for any of you keeping score) -- that job is specifically to help you compile, acquire copyrights for, scan, crop, clean up, copy, print, bind, and sell your course packs. It is a large part of what I do, and I'm pretty damn good at it. You've even said so.
What boggles my mind, what cooks my noodle, what makes me irritable and grouchy, is how you make this ideally simple task completely torturous.

No bibliography? Really? What if your students are looking for more source material for their papers? Do you submit papers or anthologies for publication without any citation? No? Well, then. WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU GIVE IT TO ME LIKE THAT?? Why. I have to obtain copyrights (which is an entirely different rant, given that I'm an anarchist, and sort of skeptical about intellectual property to begin with) in order to make sure that you are protected from copyright infringement liability. Yet NONE of you EVER give me the information that I need to acquire those copyrights quickly, efficiently, or migraine-free.
I want to stress: It is totally rad that you provide me with lists of articles, for those of you that give me at least this much with which to work. Please don't stop doing that. If you don't do it already, please start.
But I don't know how to be clearer. Obviously, you have the original source material. It had to come from somewhere. Why would you not give me the publication year at least? Or the authors' names? I have in front of me a list of 67 articles that I now have to hunt down in all corners of the interweb (*bows head in thanks to GoogleScholar*) for each article, which often has multiple publication dates, journals, and anthologies, because all of you still live by the adage, "Publish or Perish," therefore making multiple articles with almost identical names and content being published in six different journals an occupational necessity for you, and an occupational hazard for me.

Whoa. BIBLIOGRAPHY! Maybe you should try it.

I am going to go impale my face on copyright law now.

Thanks for your time, and have a lovely day.
Sincerely yours,
Prag.

Quelqu'un m'a dit....

THIS is an awesome motif design tool. Like whoa.

Heavy Metal Hangover

Winds of Plague!
Danzig was awesome!


Also, I heard Winds of Plague for the first time, and I loved them. Then I hung around their Merch Booth like a groupie, talked at Jonny Plague for 15 minutes in a drunken rambly manner, and got my CD signed by all the members, and Kristen hugged me. Twice! And said I'm pretty. I swear I didn't hyperventilate. Much.

Now I have a headache from too much Jack Daniels and a lot of brutal music.

In other news, Corinne is back! Plus the general consensus in the apartment is that Obama has a genuine shot at winning the election! I might not have to flee the country. How rad would that be?!

Time to tidy up Philosophy HQ! Then, school work. Blech. Why couldn't schoolwork be more like (and by more like, I mean identical with) knitting?

Pumpkin Pie Scarf

So here it is. The beloved and beauteous Pumpkin Pie Scarf in Blue Sky Alpaca Bulky. I added a lot of details on the fringes to match the flicked-in black and white tweedy bits in the larger orange ocean of goodness. As alpaca is wont to do, it grew a few feet in length and looked like ugly terrible twine when wet. It's still drying now, out on la veranda (the deck), but it should puff up and be all marshmallowy and wonderful again in a few hours.


Danzig tonight!!!!! How excited am I? The answer is very. Very Effin' Excited. I have to change in a little bit, and transform from a lazy girl into a heavy metal princess.

Oooh... And I got my wig for my Jem and the Holograms costume at Tar-jay today. It's hot pink and completely ridiculous.

And We Wear Our Scarves Like Nooses, But Not Cos We Want Eternal Sleep

The Pumpkin Pie Scarf is done, fringed, and blocking on the deck. I also started a knitting pedagogy idea, since Corinne is learning to knit. It also may work for my Jingle Balls Swap Secret Pal, depending upon his or her preferences. Quick and easy! Thrills! Plus, I'm using some of that lovely yarn that Emily gave me before leaving for New Zealand.

Donovan is making omlets in the kitchen, and Antonomous is home from work and doesn't need to ref until 5. Cubic buttload of errands to do today: Market run for supper fixins, I need batteries for my camera, a few blouses for SPEP, and to clean out my trunk.

I smell onions frying in the cast iron. Mmmmmmmm.

In other news, Antonomous helped me fix the sewing monster last night! It works! It doesn't do anything too impressive, but it is a functional machine, which is a vast improvement on two days ago. Post-battery purchase, I'll try my hand at getting some pictures up on le blog.


That's all for now!
H.

Don't Socrates Me!

Oh yeah. Sooz just revealed she wants to go to LUSH in Philly. It's only one of my three favorite places in the city! Wooo hooo! Maybe before Danzig....

O, Valencia! With your blood still warm on the ground!

Why have I never heard of this before?!

Coursepack: Done! I don't have to think about the holocaust for the rest of the day. Unless Sergeant Carl continues to suggest that I rename my blog "Adolf Knitler" which he, of course, finds hilarious, and at which I am entirely unamused. ENTIRELY, CARL!

Then I might have to think about it more.

Between Yarn and Felt (and Dye) school and Philosophy for Young Children next year, I'm going to have to generate serious travel funds in the next nine months or so. There goes my next three tattoos. Oh well. I can get a tattoo any old time, right?

Dig Ophelia, Consider it dug.

This course pack is a source of infernal misery. It is also about the holocaust.
Professors who don't provide bibliographies for their selections make my life both difficult and frustrating. I am occasionally tempted to suggest that their students ought refuse to provide works cited when submitting a thesis, and see how that goes for them.

My coffee is cold, and I've posted a thread on the Knitty Coffeeshop asking if anyone is interested in a Thanksgiving Secret Pal event. I'm halfway done these damnable copyrights (by the way, property is theft. Why is an anarchist [read: me] in charge of copyright acquisition? This does not make a lick o' sense.)

The amount of school work I have to do over the next two weeks is intimidating. I just looked at my day planner and it looks like Heidegger exploded in it. Also? Nietzsche. But let's face it. Nietzsche is practically my boyfriend.

Rarr rarr rarr. I wish I could do philosophy at my own pace, for a change. Everything is always so rushed. I did get a good grade on my C.S. Peirce paper, though it needs some work if I plan to present it. Also, I am supposed to present my Chewing QUD paper sometime this month in the Autograph Library. I wonder when that is happening. I should prepare a powerpoint. That way, everyone will REALLY hate it! *snerk*

Exhaling the wail of black widowhood's toll /Waxing eternal night entered Her soul

Cradle of Filth's "Cruelty and the Beast" is ridiculous and amazing.
An Elizabeth Bathory concept album with a true aria? So Eff'n Sweet.
In other news, Sooz and I are going to see Danzig on Tuesday night.

Gonna fix teh sewing machine monster when I get home from work tonight. I dumpster dove that thing with Adamantium probably 5 years ago now, and it worked for a bit. It is a circa 1950 Kenmore 158-120 that folds into a table. Perhaps pictures will be posted upon my victorious belt changing apres la travaille. -- Oh, and I shall pay at least some of my bills. Ok. Two.

The Pumpkin Pie Scarf is almost done -- it should be complete and fully blocked before I have to leave for Pittsburgh on Friday morning --- holycrapSPEP, Batman! I have a fun plan for the fringey bits. MMMMmmm Fringey bits.

Tried my hand at a little lacework idea generating. I think I need to know more about the mechanics of my stitches. It is a strange thing to have done something for sixteen years and not learnt much about how it actually works. In my defense, I was ten years old and Nana didn't see fit to explain to me the structural differences between K2tog and S1, K1, PSSO. I just knew that S1K1PSSO is way more fun to do than K2tog. I was TEN! But NOW! I'm 26, rapidly approaching 27-with-a-mistress'-degree-in-philosophy and have grandiose plans for a charter school and/or fiber arts empire of epic proportions.

How do I learn the things I need to know. I have a bunch of ideas, but my efforts at trial and error never seem to pan out in any meaningful way. I need advice. *whisper* perhapsIshallgetupthenervetoemailalex?*


I will have a good think while I scan in this coursepack for Professor L. and try to obtain the copyrights to reprint it. I mean, I don't even know what to ask. Le Sigh.

Also, HOLYCRAP All Hallows Eve is coming, and I NEED a pink wig. I'm going as Jem from Jem and the Holograms. Eighties-tastic.

Don't be a lobster / Friends are best!

I am a terrible bloggeress. No cookie for me.

However! This has been a busy 10 months! I have moved in with philosophy people (Donovan, Corinne, and thee famous Antonomous) along with several floofs (Sebastian and Dr. Patchwork of Tweekin). I'm ridiculously happy!

I am not doing my thesis anymore! Instead? Comprehensive exams, and attempts to adjunct with a Mistress' Degree, upon their completion.

I have been devoting serious time to my craftworks, and have completed at least 20 projects over the last 10 months. All of which have been gifted away, but I'm hoping for some forth-coming pictures.

The list right now:
- Finish Second Red Sock of Beauteous Simplicity (pour moi, bien sur!)
- Jayne Hat for Sergeant Carl -- Before Yule, as his last wish before being sent to Iraq is to vomit Egg Nog over our balcony wearing said hat. Needz Yarnz for dis. Also? Pom-poms! Great fun!
- Fingerless and knuckled Gloves for D-van.
- Glamourous scarf for Queen Gaby. CROCHET! Oh yeah. I learnt it gooder!
- Still haven't done that man-scarf for Antonomous.

My main goal is to deplete the stash, right now. I also have to seriously consider beginning to sell projects, great or small, in order to fund stash renewal goals. I made a serious score at a yard sale a while back... for $7 I got seven stuffed gallon ziplocks of fiber, roving, handspun (by yardsaler) and commercial yarn of quite lovely quality. Queen Gaby's scarf is largely coming out of that stash and my own handspun efforts from years ago. Sergeant Carl is procuring a real live spinning wheel pour moi, la petite knitrice! C'est vrai! Je suis tres heureuse! Totally sweet.

I want to become more involved in the fiber commuknitty. Knetworkz iz importunt. There are a few blogs that I read eagerly (presentsknits, yarnharlot, and Eunny, mostly) but I should stop being so shy about my interest in their projects and progress. I'm an accomplished knitter, I just don't know where to begin when it comes to designing. So I just accumulate skills. I turn a mean heel! And can finish socks at rates that defy reason, given enough techno, gimmecoffee, and the lovesac (c).

Self-reliance! Commuknitty! Focus!