Trudging.

I feel kind of like a heel because as of late, "Knit or Die" has been a real misnomer. It's been "Granny Squares or Die" and "Use Proper Caps or Die" and "Eat A Stick Of Butter or Die", all kinds of other NOT-KNITTING stuff. I just have not been knitting much. I don't quite know why. My life has kind of changed a lot recently. Could it be the nine pairs of fingerless gloves have temporarily killed my knitting drive? I started a sock based on Kate Gilbert's sock chart, but once I turned the heel, I got bored. I knit that green pickle pillow in one evening out of some Lion Brand Big I got for 1.75$ at Hancock Fabrics on US17s (I made those big buttons out of Fimo, it was fun). If the non-knitty stuff doesn't interest you then I'm really sorry but here comes another one.

I GOT FORTY VINTAGE ZIPPERS FOR 1.95$ AT THE D.A.V. THRIFT STORE. As we all know, zippers are the devil, but they come in handy once in a while, and I'm probably never buying one ever again because I found 40 of the little bastards for less than two dollars.

This was .50 and it's a slightly bigger version (with a lift-out tray) of the sewing case my mom gave me for my drawing supplies freshman year. That poor case took a beating after four years of hauling charcoal around campus.

I also got a huge bag of really gnarly faux-as-they-come floral bits and a big old bag of lace trims, and a lovely embroidered lacy thingie I want to frame, and a little flower charmie necklace that I don't feel like photographing. It was a really good trip. I never find that much good stuff in one go. The thrifting has been really good here in D-port. The lady in front of me at the checkout (who totally beat me to a full roll of turquoise pompon trim) handed me a 10% off coupon, and I was like, "Oh, uh, thank you" and I felt weird using it because, um, it's a thirft store, it's cheap as hell to begin with, and the money goes to a good cause.... But they give 'em out on their website... I still sorda feel like a dirtball who just robbed the disabled veterans of like 75 cents.

It wasn't easy but I faced my fear of letting someone other than my lovely sister Alex cut my hair. It was sort of scary but the girl had her work cut out for her (that was so not a pun don't even go there), because it was just too long and shapeless. And my bangs were crooked because someone thought it was a smart idea to trim them herself with the good Fiskars, but she was totally wrong. I feel better now. Thanks for asking.

Waving.

This is pretty much all I accomplished this weekend. Whoop-dee-doo, no? After seeing this cutie by Anna Maria, I needed one with a big old cherry-printed "E" and a handful of buttons and some crocheted laceyness. I love stuff with my name on it (like my husband, right!?) because I am a dweeb. It's not that I think "Erin" is the most amazing and spectacular first name ever (not that there is anything wrong with it), it just makes me feel special. I'm mad because I haven't seen any "Erin Go Braugh" St. Patrick's stuff this year to festoon my little house with. Wow, I'm going to stop because this is getting far too dorky.

This is how we spent Saturday night. WHEE! Power outage for almost 3 hours. We couldn't make a pizza with no electricity, nevermind that we had no heat and no way to watch L&O:SVU on DVD. It sucked. NO PIZZA, YOU GUYS.

Granny Square Count has reached 20. I have a new plan. I am weaving in the yarn tails as I go along now (ok I still have 8 left that need their tails darned), because I do not want the reason I never finish the blanket to be because I let 1690 little yarn ends scare me. I have to go buy a ball of red because that is the only color I am really missing (secret: I don't have any purple but I don't think that's going to be a problem. I do not love purple. I have too much PINK, are you surprised?) and if I only have to buy one ball of yarn to complete this project, I don't think anyone can call the Use What You Have police on me. What knitter doesn't cheat on their yarn diet? Fr realzies.

Crumbling.

I made these biscuits last night from the recipe off the can of Zingerman's Irish oatmeal. They are so good it's frightening. With that much butter, yeah, they had better be transcendant. I think baking a batch of these took less time than actually making porridge.

Irish Oatmeal Biscuits (about 2 dozen 2" biscuits)

3/4 cup Stone-Ground Irish oatmeal
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 3 tablespoons salted butter
1/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix together oats and flour. Rub in the butter and add the sugar. Knead mixture into a pliable dough. Rocll out dough to 1/8" thickness. Cut the dough into rounds or rectangles, about 2" across. Place biscuits on a floured baking sheet and bake until lightly browned, about 12-14 minutes.

Also, I added a few sprinkles of ground cinnamon to my coffee grounds. I didn't know French press coffee could get any better, but I found a way. Scrummy.

Have a super day.

But time is on your side, it's on your side now
Not pushing you down, and all around
It's no cause for concern.

Blanketing.

I want desperately and feverishly to make one of these lovelies and I vow I will someday. Right now though, it's granny squares for me. I read my stash and this is what happened. I work on this at night on the couch with Aaron and the cats and David Caruso or whatever. On a good evening, I make four squares. On a bad day, I fall asleep after one. While considering color combinations, I ask Aaron, "Which is grosser, this one or this one? Does this one hurt your eyes? Yeah? You like the lime green with the orange? OK, good." At an estimated 70% plastic, this garden will outlive us all. When the world ends, the only thing gonna survive are the acrylic afghans. Y'all have been warned. Rochester certainly got more snow than we did here, but Mississippi River Valley cold is unlike any other cold I've ever experienced. Sure, Buffalo is buried, but Midwest cold makes you wish you were dead as you walk from the car into Target or wherever. The Coldest Cold That Was Ever Cold. Seriously. Another 155 or so granny squares (Shooting for 13x13. I have a weird thing for 13. Probably just don't ask.) and I've have a nice, eyeball-blisteringly ugly blanket to block it out! JOY. But I can't complain, it's a tropical 47 degrees here in the QCA this afternoon.

I will be right here piecing a quilt-top for a baby that's already been borned. Have fun out there.

Sprouting.

My baby herbs are growing! From L to R, in ABC order, there's basil, chives, dill, and parsley. Love plants, oh yes, but the attention span isn't long enough to care for them properly. When I was twelve, I fancied myself a little aromatherapist. I got a book on soap and candle-making and a gripload of baby plants from the nursery. Planted them and all that, crushed some leaves, inhaled deeply, and clear forgot about them. The lavender perished, peppermint and spearmint continue to go bananas and my dad discovered that Sweet Woodruff (when dried, smells like hay, how romantic I was at twelve!) makes lovely groundcover. Eleven years later I'm making a mess of potting soil and plant food on the kitchen floor, dumping a whole packet of seeds into a 4" terra cotta pot. I don't know any better? The rhododendron cuttings my mom sent me off to Iowa with are looking kind of dire, but the Wandering Jew (yo I didn't make up that Un-P.C. name, swear it) that she yoinked from my grandma is happy. I just can't believe they're growing. You can't see it but the basil has two tiny sprouts in there. I am so proud of my little herbs. They keep on keepin' on even though their mama is a blooming idiot who has no idea how often to water them.

One of my cousins had a baby boy (name's Adrian) yesterday. I bought the fabric for his (mostly lime green!) baby quilt in December, before we even moved, and I was just thinking this morning, "Dang, I ought to get cracking on that quilt so it reaches them before he begins kindergarten", and of course I check my e-mail and there it is, he came at 4pm yesterday and both baby and mommy are well. Glad to hear, but rats. I'm strip-piecing this mohunker, hopefully it will be done much more quickly than Elke's quilt was. OH, LE SIGH.

Tomorrow I'll show you my mostly-acrylic "garden" that could quite possibly survive the Apocalypse.

Peeping.

I came here with a load
And it feels so much lighter, now I’ve met you
And honey, you should know, that I could never go on without you
Green eyes, you’re the one that I wanted to find.

Romancing.

Hello and Happy Valentine's Day. I had today off. So what did I do on this romantic holiday? I cleaned the house! Whee. How sensual. So I tried to treat myself special with some nice strawberry-rhubarb jam on potato bread with some soy-milky English Breakfast in my most hilarious mug. Then I made some Nestle Tollhouse because nothin' says lovin' like six dozen of The Tollhouse. You know this.

Le Playroom is coming along into a lovely and productive space. This beast is finally finished. Oh, I speak so harshly of the nice ribbon board, don't I? Well, after finding that the (I thought) safe-side SEVEN YARDS of yellow twill tape I bought was nowhere near enough, I had to make some design decisions. I told myself: Hey, Self, now calm down. Life thinks it's funny to do this to you sometimes, you know, throw you a little curveball, to make you think. Keep you on your toes. Lemonade and what-have-you. And thus the very Sally Shim pocket was added. OH LIFE, you almost had me there. But I win. NEENER NEENER.

When His Hubbiness gets home, we are going to Village Inn for some PANCAKES. Yeah, giiiiirl. No, we're not normal. We know. Hope you are having a lovely day. Go lavish someone (huzz, wife, dog, cat, self, knock yourself out) with affection. XOX.

Testing.

Aaron and I have a theory. I think I can call it a theory because it started as a hypothesis and I think we've proven it through experiments. Get ready to be blown away, because it is really scientific.


Everything looks cuter in a jar.

Would you look at that big ol' motherlode of candy? Can you even handle this much cute? Do you want SOME MORE?



Are those or are those not the cutest cotton balls and Q-tips you've ever seen? Do you like how that jar still kind of smells like a pickle after I washed it three times? I DO.


So anyways. I think I am getting a cold. It is probably from being exposed to freezing temperatures (and the germy public) while doing register all weekend long. It's fantastic.




Anybody needs me, I'll be right here (not pictured: Mason jar of M&Ms keeping me company).

hatching.

i feel stuffy calling it my studio, like i'm fancy and i'm going to make really groundbreaking important stuff in there. like valentines and knitted hot pants and baby quilts. very heady, i know. the paint color is glass green by laura ashley (from lowes, our second home). i love it. it looks amazing with the gumwood (no kelly we're not going to paint it, pinky promise). i did it myself. and it really needs a second coat. it's the perfect shade of robin's egg blue, which is fitting, because i'd prefer to think of it as my little nest anyways.