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Aug 232010
Aug 182010
Aug 122010
Aug 082010
(for those of you on a feed reader- there’s an embedded video on here.)
I found this TED talk by author Elizabeth Gilbert (“Eat,Pray, Love”) on being creative & the creative vision and thought it really interesting and inspiring. As someone who lives with their sarcasm dial permanently stuck on 11- I really appreciate her snark & her lack of gigantic ego one might expect from a bestselling author. The part about muse or “genius” being like Dobby the House Elf also made me snort my tea…
It is about a 20 minute talk, so you might want to take a bathroom break and get yourself a cup of something before you settle in to watch it. Admittedly, it took me about 3 sittings to get through it but it was because I was being “mommy- mommy-mommy”ed to death over a snack at the time. Enjoy!
Jul 272010
Hello! Not only am I NOT dead but I’ve also actually knitted something and finished it! (I’ll wait while all two people who still read this blog pick themselves up off the floor) This is the Boneyard Shawl from Westknits – knit in 2 skeins of SWS Karaoke with a size 8 circular – and I LOVE it! Many thanks go to the fabulous Shadkitty for finishing this shawl before me and getting my wheels turning on knitting my own. I decided to go with the yarn-over version (rather than the non-holey version) because I love the detail that the centered holes make. After seeing the finished object, I’m glad that I did because the purl ridge accent (which I added at random because I totally forgot I was supposed to be counting rows) doesn’t show up that great in the variegated yarn.
The finished shawl blocks out about 45×25 inches with about 16 inches from cast on edge to the point in the center – a really nice “mini-shawl” size which will be awesome for fall & winter. I love the way this looks with the point forward (which is how I wear my triangular scarves as well) and will probably NOT be wearing this as a traditional shoulder shawl. It also looks awesome worn as a headwrap!
Jun 202010
Since Munchkin’s last day of school, I’ve been totally neglecting this blog due to real life stuff. Apparently I had taken for granted the luxury of having most of the day “free” from entertaining a nearly nine year old boy from the hours of 730am- 330pm !!! It’s amazing how little one gets done when spending countless hours talking about wrestling, bakugan, PS3 games, and movies… not to mention the trips to the “fountain park” to cool off in this ungodly Georgia heat and spending a lot of time in the dark due to storms & power outages. Admittedly, my blog title is both literal and figurative….
Behold the current situation in our kitchen…
I’m sure that you can already see the “problem” we’re having here at Chez Mousie… puddles of cat everywhere. They’ve pooled in splotchy shapes on the floor (Captain Jack), started oozing off of the window sill (Ms. Kitty), and melted themselves with their laser eyes from in front of my husband’s office door. But wait– 1, 2… THREE kitties??
Yes blog, meet “Fizzgig” (50 geek points to anyone who gets that reference…children of the 80′s unite!!) our “Summer Vacation Kitty” otherwise known as “Temporary Cat”. Her real name isn’t actually Fizzgig but for blog purposes and because she makes that god-awful snarling growling noise that the Muppet did… it’s what we’re calling her. She actually belongs to my husband’s best friend’s teenage son (sister’s cousin’s former roommate…) who is visiting for the summer. Sadly, hubby’s friend is horribly allergic to cats AND they have two very large dogs — making this whole ‘bringing the cat for the summer’ living arrangement *interesting* to say the least. We agreed to take the cat into our house until he returns to his home state for school in August because we’re either a) really awesome friends or b) completely mental and out of our damned minds… I’m leaning more toward the last one personally.
Ms. Kitty & Captain Jack are doing pretty good with their temporary friend, although Fizzgig isn’t quite sure what to make of the two of them!!! There is a lot of hissing, snarling & growling (hence the name) on her part when she’s not sleeping behind the sofa in hubby’s office or hanging in out in my studio window. Admittedly she’s not my favorite cat I’ve ever met (opinionated! OMG. This cat is constantly telling me “I haz a complaint!!!”) but we’re learning to be friends (slowly) for the summer.
Jun 192010
*** Edited to add: Ok folks, I’ve loaded up a new template and am in the process of putting everything back in the side bars- Not sure what is still broken but I’m slowly getting it all back in order!!
I just updated WordPress and completely broke my blog.
I’m currently trying to locate another template that will work for me — please excuse the “mess” around here if you aren’t viewing this through a feed reader!!!
May 282010
If you are a cat.. this is what “helping with the laundry” means.
May 192010
May 162010
A friend and I went on a Friday night run to the local Goodwill shop and I made out like a bandit in the book department! All of their adult paperbacks are $1.50 so I snagged :
Stardust: Neil Gaiman
Eat, Pray, Love : Elizabeth Gilbert
The Road : Cormac McCarthy
Surfing the Himalayas : Frederick Lenz
The Handmaid’s Tale : Margaret Atwood
I already finished ‘The Road’ because I read it all in one sitting -it was one of those books that you really want to find out if they ever reach their destination. I was looking forward to the movie because it seemed like an interesting concept (I have a weird thing for post-apocalyptic type movies) but after reading the book and having more than one panic induced anxiety attack over the subject matter… I’m sort of not sure I’d like it lived out on the big screen for me. That said.. I did really enjoy the book and felt like I was right there with the father and son on their journey – hence my fiction induced anxiety attack.
I’m now reading ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ – I know I’m way behind the times with this book and the popularity of it (seems to be a theme here..) but I couldn’t get my hands on it at the library (and now with the movie coming out the wait is HUGE) and cannot justify purchasing books at full cost on our current budget. I also had no idea that the book took place in India & Indonesia (as well as Italy) or I’d have sought it out sooner.
Dragging my brain back to my thrift store purchases… I also bought 2 pairs (one brown & one olive drab capri’s) of linen pants for around $6.00 for both pairs. I usually wear my pants to death and I was VERY happy to find these gorgeous pairs for so cheap! I’ve been drooling over linen clothing from Thailand online for a while and I was really excited that I managed to find basically the same things I was looking at for a fraction of the cost. Linen is awesome for Georgia weather in the summer, especially for someone like me who doesn’t like to wear shorts or short skirts outside of the house.
May 092010
Wishing all of the moms out there a Happy Mother’s Day!
May 042010
It was a sneaky sneaker weekend here at Chez Mousie! Munchkin needed a new pair of shoes because his old ones were making his feet hurt, so we took a trip to the local shoe store with the mother-in-law to see what we could get the very opinionated (hmm.. wonder where he gets that from??) Mr. Munchkin to wear.
Turns out he takes after his mama and is a new member of the Converse (Chuck Taylor) All-Star fan club!! He bought his first pair of gray Converse – I’m so proud! *wipes imaginary tear* Those are his feet on the left… isn’t he stylish?
I know what you’re thinking – but Mousie, what’s with those photos of the weird olive drab looking Converse in the other photos?? Um.. yeah. Those shoes are the product of the sales guy telling my Converse hating MIL that there ARE “uglier” Converse in the store than the gray pair my son picked out. He said something to the effect of “yeah.. we have this olive green pair over here on clearance because they’re so ugly. Look at them! ” at which point my eyes glazed over, my mouth dropped open and I said “Are those CORDUROY?? — OMG I must have them!!!!” … and now I do. Oddly enough, these are my first pair of low top Chuck Taylors because I always preferred the look of the high tops.. but I love them!
Apr 292010
Beware the laser eyed kitties!!
Apr 222010
Ummm… hi! I completely missed my own blog anniversary! You’d think after 6 years of doing this that I would actually remember this date but I always have to look it up. This time.. I looked it up almost a week too late! I did find this awesome My Little Pony cake for us to share… so I think that totally makes up for it!
Captain Jack would like to tell you that its been one year since he first found his way into our home… he’d also like for me to please make the public humiliation stop. Munchkin brought home an art project made from recycled plastics (Happy Earth Day everyone!) and the little critter he had made was wearing this cup hat… it looked like the perfect kitty sized party hat! Want some cake, Jack?
So, thank you for reading my blog for another year… I can’t believe I’ve been doing this for SIX whole years now. I know that a lot of people have quit blogging because of the popularity of the forums on Ravelry but I still have absolutely no intention of shutting the hell up. While I love the forums and spend quite a bit of time in them, I still like having my own personal space to talk about whatever I want to… and be able to look back at what was going on at a certain time. I hope to get back to writing & posting here more regularly in the future. Thank you friends!
Apr 152010
(January 4, 1962 – April 14, 2010)
I found out this morning that the lead singer of the goth industrial band ‘Type O Negative’ had died of a heart attack at 48. I spent a good portion of the day wondering if it was another publicity stunt and am very sad to find out that apparently it isn’t.
Type O ‘s music was a huge influence in my life and lifestyle from the moment I heard Peter Steele’s amazing deep voice. I was only able to see them in concert once.. but it was a small venue and I was fortunate enough to meet him. Their music still speaks to the black trench coat wearing, clove cigarette smoking, clubbing until dawn person that I used to be… and for that – they’ll always have a special place in my cobwebs, velvet & black lace covered heart.
R.I.P Peter Steele.. we’ll miss you.
Apr 042010
Happy Easter! (we’re off to the in-laws after I’m done making ‘candied’ carrots & homemade rolls. There I will stuff myself with ham until I can’t button my pants… afterwards we’ll stop at whatever big box store we come across and purchase half price Easter candy to take home and gorge ourselves on while watching movies or playing Playstation.)
Mar 272010
Seeing: More empty floor space in my studio- finally getting some things put away and organized. Piles of things needing to be photographed for my Etsy shop.
Tasting: Homemade macaroni & cheese with bacon (yum) & ranch rolls. It was my turn to cook dinner at our friend’s house tonight.
Touching: A warm hand knit sweater.. its 36 tonight and it is a bit chilly in the house.
Hearing: The musical remnants of a night of playing Guitar Hero with friends.. I’ll be hearing ‘Sympathy for the Devil” in my head for the next week.
Smelling: Lavender and patchouli from my freshly washed dreads.
Mar 112010
“Alice” was awesome! I loved every colorful, quirky, and nearly sensory overloading minute of it and I can’t wait to see it again! The costuming (layers and layers of costuming), sets (whether cg or real.. doesn’t matter), and gratuitous use of Tim Burton’s trademark stripes were so overwhelming that it nearly made you feel sort of drunk. Alan Rickman’s caterpillar & the (madly cute and equally bad kitty) Cheshire Cat were my favorite characters.
There were a lot of reviews out there trashing this version of “Alice” which I admittedly didn’t read before attending the movie.. I like to make my own assumptions. I’m a long time ‘Alice in Wonderland’ fan (I’m totally blaming this on hearing Jefferson Airplane’s ‘White Rabbit’ one too many times as a child) so seeing some of my favorite literary characters on an adventure makes me very happy.. regardless of what sort of adventure it is. I should mention that I also really enjoyed the SyFy Channel version of ‘Alice’ that was put out at the beginning of this year in all of its steampunk/post apocalyptic oddness. (I especially loved ‘The Hatter” in that one.. rawr.)
My only black mark on my viewing experience (besides the hateful little buggers that were seated in front of my friend & I who decided to pass food back and forth and talk loudly for the entire movie…..) was that I expected it to be a bit darker. I didn’t realize that it wasn’t Tim Burton’s screenplay until I read a review after the movie.. so that sort of explains my only disappointment in the lack of crazy-mad, melancholy, tortured, gothic sort of characters that I expect from a Burton film. Johnny Depp was awesome as usual and really made the Mad Hatter his own creation — though I could have really done without the dancing.
(Sorry this took so long to post.. I’ve had a terrible and unexplainable migraine headache on and off all week which has made me avoid bright lights & retreat to the darkness of the bedroom like some sort of silent film Nosferatu.)
Mar 052010
Please don’t let me down tonight!! I’ve been waiting for a twisted Tim Burton “Alice in Wonderland” for so long!!!!
-Mousie(before anyone asks.. I have no idea where to find a shirt like this now. I’ve had mine since high school…. it says “I’m mad, You’re Mad, We’re all mad here” on the back. It was one of my favorite shirts – I <3 the Cheshire Cat.)
Feb 282010
The days tend to sort of blend together here at Chez Mousie and I often realize that a whole week has gone by when I’m being asked for ice cream money “again”. (me: “Ice cream money… didn’t I just give you some?” munchkin: “No, silly Mama- that was last Friday!”) I’m going to have to chalk that up to being one of the many ‘dangers’ of being a stay at home mom…
Last weekend I celebrated with Lady Deathwatch & Little Black Crow for the 2nd annual Internet Thankfulness Tea. I’m thankful for many things this year…. including HEAT!! I’m also thankful that we found such a great house in a nice neighborhood. Everyone is very happy here in the new Chez Mousie.. especially the kitties! My husband has gotten some really good leads on some new business opportunities.. I’m hoping for a prosperous year!
I didn’t end up finishing my Liesl sweater for the Ravelympics.. I didn’t even come close, to be honest. My hand/wrist started hurting and I started making stupid mistakes in the pattern because of feeling rushed with the time limit which made the knitting less than enjoyable. I’m hoping to get it done in time to wear this spring though.. its a bit too cold here in GA for a lacey sweater.
I did however finish spinning some fiber that has been on my wheel since before we moved in November.. its from Spunky Eclectic (“grand opening 2007″ is its name) and is some sort of ‘wool blend’. I don’t have any idea of yardage yet b/c its still hanging out on the bobbin after plying. No plans for this yet other than the fact that its going to be knit up for sale.. the colors aren’t ‘me’.