Knotty Mouse

This whole “Blogging Without Obligation” thing has made me a total slack-ass about posting because I don’t feel pressured to come here and ramble at you for no damn good reason. Unfortunately for you I don’t actually have anything to show - but I popped in because I decorated around the blog for the holidays and thought I’d let y’all know. (aka. there’s a new banner & holiday tag line for those of you who read on Bloglines)

The weather here in Georgia has been so weird that I haven’t really been put in a knitting mood. Its cool/cold here (around 38F)   in the mornings (7am) when I take Munchkin to the bus but warms up to ‘throw a sweater over a teeshirt’ weather  (60F) by 3pm.  I did totally botch NoroVember because I wasn’t happy with the Noro I had in my stash and wasn’t about to purchase anymore with our finances being sort of ugly (tis the season and all that) again this month.

So.. I am alive and everyone is doing ok here at Chez Mousie but I’m just really not up to blogging lately.  I will be updating my Etsy shop again in the next week with new sheepie bags, beaded & fimo spinning wheel orifice hooks, handspun yarns (which you’ve seen here on the blog) and possibly some destashing of yarn & fiber.   Yes, I’m shamelessly plugging my shop this time..  as all shop funds this time of year go directly to Munchkin’s Christmas gifts.  I’ve already put up some inexpensive beaded markers for holiday gift giving….  buy handmade!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of my US blog friends! I’m writing early because I will be busy tomorrow with the inlaws and stuffing my face full of turkey & gravy…  but I wanted to thank everyone who has stuck with me through a really tough year.  I appreciate your friendship … thank you.

Um.. about yesterday’s lack of posting…   OOPS!  I guess it wasn’t meant to be another NaBloPoMo year.. considering I couldn’t even get through the first 2 weeks of November with a post a day. Seriously, I don’t know how you people that post every day nearly all year long do it! Its exhausting!! I’m off to sit on the sidelines and ‘cheer on’ the other folks who took on this crazy task month of daily blogging.

Clearly since you’re supposed to post daily for the whole month.. that “knocks me out of the running” for NaBloPoMo.  I’ve also frogged the Tree Jacket which puts me out of NaKniSweMo as well…  I guess its down to seeing if I can screw up NoroVember! (Ok.. I’m kidding.. I don’t think I actually can “screw up” on Norovember)  Real life has sort of been a  pain in our ass lately here at Chez Mousie — so I’m just hoping for a little break in the madness. I’m off to watch some tv (its CSI:Miami Monday!) and spend some time on the couch with the cat.

I’ve been hanging around online today going through blogs and street style sites and thought I’d share some with y’all.  I was also sort of killing time while waiting for the mail to come - I ordered the “Rattatouille” movie for Munchkin on Netflix (love, love, love my Netflix even if I do only get one movie at a time now. Budget cuts.. boo!) and we’re going to watch it while eating dinner.  I was hoping to wait until later for dinner but my stomach is awful grumbley today and I think I’m going to go heat up some veggies &  rice.  Hubby’s off playing air-soft all day today so he doesn’t get a choice in dinner… and my stomach (as well as our budget.. have you SEEN the price of meat lately??) could use some veggies.  I thought about doing a veggie curry but realized that we don’t have any cauliflower.. which sort of makes Aloo Gobi (potatos & cauliflower curry) a little hard to do.

Have a great day y’all!

——————————–
Change the Margins — a great idea on how to use less paper when printing documents via your computer!
No Shampoo instructions —How to use vinegar & baking soda instead of shampoo. I’m planning on trying this very soon both for frugal reasons and the fact that I’m highly allergic to most shampoos on the market. Go right ahead and look at me like I’m crazy.. but I use regular bar soap or Dr.Bronner’s Peppermint liquid soap on my hair. I will say though that I have very thick and strong hair that can withstand any abuse and ill-treatment without falling out..
Wardrobe Remix Flickr Pool — I love looking at street fashion photos and this is one of my new(er) favorite places to waste time. I think the thing I enjoy most about this site and these photos is the thought that went into these outfits. I also love that its a lot of thrift store finds and not about brand new or designer duds. Looking cute does NOT require a trust fund or huge paycheck… and the thrift store finds are also nice for environmental reasons.   Reuse & re-purpose! (ok.. ok.. I’ll shut up. Sometimes my  granola-crunching, birkenstock wearing, inner hippy comes out and I can’t help it.)
HEL Looks– Street fashion photos from Helsinki, the capital of Finland. I love the write ups on the side about what they are wearing and WHY they are wearing it. Some of the ‘inspirations” are funny too. I also love their wild use of colors and accessories.  This site tends to inspire me creatively and makes me happy.  (especially scarves.. anyone who knows me IRL knows how much I love me some scarves. One of these days I really need to organize and photograph my growing collection.)

 After telling the story of my silly dream to two people today.. I was told that I HAD to post this because it was entirely too goofy not to let other people hear it.  So.. here it is.  (this was previously an IM conversation but I removed the names.. so its a bit choppy and with my usual mind-numbing lack of proper grammar and half assed punctuation)

Some local knitter friends and I were getting on a train to go to MDSW and we’re standing in line to get on the train and we all have our knitting.  The man who is taking the tickets is all “are you SURE y’all want to bring YARN on THIS train?” We’re like.. “um.. yeah..”  and he says.. “ok.. well good luck with that”  and lets us on board..  There are business people in suits with laptops.. and other folks..
We sit down and start knitting and chatting. After a while the train starts moving and the announcer comes on and says “HERE THEY COME” or something.. (I can’t remember what it was exactly..) and there is this strange sound from the back of the train.
All of a sudden.. there’s like eleventy million kittens in the train and everyone is playing with kittens and petting them.. and rolling on the floor… and this goes on for a while.. hours even..
When we reach Maryland the train workers come through and round up the kittens and they’re like.. whisked away to the back of the train. The business people pull out lint rollers.. and roll the fur off of their clothes.. and straighten their ties and get off the train like nothing ever happened…
and we’re left sitting there like.. WTF?
When I go to get off of the train.. we’re AT MDSW.. (which is impossible.. but.. you know.. its a dream)  and I’m like.. I HAVE to tell RABBITCH about the Kitten Train!!!

… and then I wake up because the phone was ringing.  It was one of those weird birthday club call things for the toy store with the giraffe.. and I tell my husband… “ Dude.. I had to get off the Kitten Train for THAT?”
(and he looks at me like I just suggested that we go play with plague rats)

And THAT folks… is how I started my day.

 As promised..  a photo of handspun yarn.  This is about 3 ounces of the “Wicked Witch” Corriedale roving that I bought before my birthday.  Its about 10wpi and is 90 yards of navajo plied 3-ply yarn.  The photo was taken before its bath so I’m hoping it will even out a bit and get a little less sproingy..  I think I plied it with a BIT too much energy!

I’m still a bit upset about my yardage issues with my handspun..  I even went online to see if there was something I wasn’t doing right with  the math and my niddy-noddy.  Apparently I still just spin too thick to get much yardage out of 3-4 ounces of roving. Boo-hiss.  More photos tomorrow of this yarn once its dry!

• I seem to be fizzling out of all things that start with “Na” and end with “Mo” - Currently I hate my KniSweMo - I’ve decided that since I primarily wear sweaters over things as jackets that something tight fitting and with holes in it wouldn’t be something that I would necessarily wear. I’m also unsure about the color.. so I may be turning the cowl neck portion into a spiffy hat.
• I haven’t really been doing well on the NaBloPoMo front either.. since I’ve resorted to links and lame quizzes on day 6.  I am not real positive about making it through this month blogging every day.. though this seems to be the time when I post actual things going on in my life instead of my usual where I wait until I have a chunk of knitting or a wad of handspun to show you.
• Speaking of handspun.. that’s tomorrow’s post.  I spun up a bobbin of the Wicked Witch roving singles and then Navajo plied them earlier tonight. My lower back and right butt-cheek is not happy with the fact that I sat in front of the wheel long enough to ply an entire Louet bobbin (I just typed “boobin”.. hee hee) but I did it anyway. I was just so impressed by the fact that I spun thin enough to make a light worsted yarn after Navajo plying that I had to keep going until I had finished the whole bobbin. I still have more to spin up if I want to… depending on the yardage.
• I  haven’t gotten to knit up Yarn Harlot’s spiffy hat that I linked to in yesterday’s post.. but I did look at my possibilities with yarns.  I will probably have to do the “s-word” (*whispers* swatch…)  to see if anything I pulled from the stash is the right thickness.
• I bought a cute pair of fingerless gloves just in time for the weather to be too cold to wear them to the bus in the morning.  As much as I hate them (wearing them.. I think they’re perfectly adorable otherwise) .. I may end up knitting some mittens.  This would be a good NoroVember project.

My computer is getting glitchy and I’m getting tired so I’m going to bed before the computer and I get into a fight about how many times I’ve ACTUALLY pushed the backspace key. It seems very keen on deleting everything I write..  it may be cursed.  If the cat is missing tomorrow.. I know the cursed keyboard ate it.

Yes.. over there… HERE! Isn’t this hat cool?

You could so use handspun on that project!

I’m starting one tomorrow!

(no.. I can’t think of anything else to say tonight and have no photos to show.. )

Oh look.. a useless quiz!!

You Are 64% A Child of the 80s

Not only did you experience the 80s… you are practically an expert. You should be totally stoked!

Are You a Child of an 80s?

A whole month of this nonsense… aren’t you glad its November-mo?

Keep in mind today that any discomfort brought on by change will be overshadowed by the positive results that are caused by change. Embracing change can give us the strength and courage to persevere through the uncertainties that await us. While change can often create positive results in our lives, we might not always feel ready for these changes. If we can remember that resisting change will cause struggle, we can choose to embrace the process of change and consciously go with the flow rather than holding ourselves back. We then feel stronger and more optimistic about dealing with the consequences of change. If you can release your hesitation and allow change to transform your life today, you may find that you are thrilled with what achieving your goals can do for you.

That was my Daily Om horoscope (scorpio) today… which is totally amusing since I just got back home from doing something totally out of my comfort range. First, I got up and drank a very strong cup of coffee (coffee w/ chickory.. aka “Liquid Courage”) so that I was all caffinated and ready to face the day. Next, I went outside and used the jumper box to jump start my car (beastie needs a new battery) ALL BY MYSELF… and did NOT blow up! (hooray.. success!!) and then… I drove myself* to the gas station and then to the emissions testing place (completely out of my comfort range.. I usually can only make it to the local grocery store without freezing up..) to get my car checked. HOORAY –IT PASSED! Then.. in an act of courage so shocking I surprised myself.. I pulled out of the emissions place ACROSS TRAFFIC ( I turned left.. I’m usually not, as Zoolander would say, “an ambi-turner”) and went down to the tag office to get my plates renewed.

I’m now home safe and (relatively) sound - a new silver “October 2008″ sticker on my license plate.. and I am TOTALLY proud of myself. I’ve probably got a few gray hairs and I know I’ve got a few more knots in my tail today from the anxiety but I’m disgustingly thrilled with myself for having the guts to drive.

*For those of you who don’t know.. I was in a rather serious car accident a few years ago and it shook me up pretty bad ( I was driving.. and had my son in the car) and ever since I was really shaky and unsure behind the wheel. When we came down here to Georgia I had a second accident (again.. with my son in the car.. and again.. not my fault) which pretty much did me in as far as confidence and driving was concerned. I’ve spent the last 2 years barely driving at all.. I go to the grocery store down the road and won’t go beyond it. My car is basically falling apart and isn’t reliable.. but its safe to drive short distances. It was the fear that kept me trapped in my little area of the city. Today I went on a road I haven’t been on in at least a year.. a road which leads to my LYS! I’m hoping that I’ll be able to go down to the yarn shop myself in the next month.

I’m posting this so that it might count for todays post toward NaBloPoMo.. but I’m pretty sure that I’ve crashed and burned at day 4 here folks. Assuming that just simply posting counts, here’s some quick random before I go to bed…

• I’m out of clever titles. Completely OUT. I think after over 3 years of blogging I’ve emptied my brain of interesting ways to say ” I have nothing to say so here’s a post with mindless drivel”
• I have a week filled with crap I don’t want to do.. including parent/teacher conferences because they’re jerking my kid around at school, taking my car (late) to get the emissions test (that it may not pass.. poor old girl.. cross your fingers y’all.. she’s got to make it through!) done, going to the tag office and getting my tags renewed (late.. pay a fine I already can’t afford.. blah blah..) and do a lot of standing in line, figure out how to pay for a battery for my car so that I don’t have to keep using a jump box DAILY on the poor thing, and of course run a household on nickels a day (so it seems). fun!
• The mail has been a constant source of happiness to me in the last week.. birthday giftie boxes are coming in from various friend-folks and its making my 30th birthday last even longer.. which is very cool. I have the most awesome friends.. honestly y’all.
• I wanted to thank everyone (speaking of awesome friends) for their birthday wishes and assurance that my 30’s are going to rock. I’m really behind in emails.. (again) so hang in there and know that every comment was read and appreciated.
• You know that sweater I’m supposed to be knitting in a month? Yeah, we’re STILL not going to talk about it.

ok.. its rather chilly here at Chez Mousie.. so I’m going to crawl into bed and hope that the cat has been doing her job and kept my side of the bed warm!!

Edited to add: hey WP bloggers.. you might want to change your time settings because otherwise your posts will be off by 1 hour! (ask me how I know.. lol)

It occurred to me as I was writing my post the other day that I had signed myself up to not only knit an entire sweater but another item made out of Noro  as well all while blogging daily for an entire month.  I realize now that NaBloSweNoroMo might end up with me huddled in the corner in a fetal position clutching my teddy bear and furiously sucking bleach through a straw (that’s for you Rabbitch).. but I’m willing to give it a go.

How’s the sweater going? Um.. I think it would be going better if I were actually knitting on it AT ALL. Clearly I don’t have any knitting elves in the house that are willing to help. Hmpf. I have been spinning up more of the Wicked Witch roving and I think its coming along nicely though I think if I navajo ply the yarn I won’t have nearly enough yardage for a scarf.

Hubby is gone for the weekend to a friend’s house to help set up a computer and I’m planning on spending the night sitting on the couch watching Torchwood on BBC America with the cat. I’m thinking that a cup of hot tea and the package of “southern style grands” biscuits I have in the fridge might be in order too. Mmmm… I love hot biscuits with butter and its cool enough tonight to crank up the oven without melting us all into bits.

Right before my birthday (but after I realized there was no way I was going to be going to SAFF) I had what Yarn Harlot would call a “trip & fall” and when I got up.. I had accidentally purchased this roving from Etsy. Yes, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it (and it would be nice if y’all backed me up..) so there.   The colors in the roving range from a dark purple to a neon acid green - when I saw it I HAD to have it, especially since it was called “Wicked Witch” and is corriedale wool.. one of my favorite things to spin.  Usually every season I end up finding a color that I really love that is out of the ordinary for what I usually choose (jewel tones, purples, earth tones..)  and this time its neon green that has caught my eye.  I’m not sure whether I’m going to 2 ply this or navajo ply to keep the colors separate but I do know that its going to end up as a scarf ..  I haven’t decided what type yet.    oooh.. the timer in the kitchen (finally) went off..   dinner (beef stew-type-roast/with potatoes..) is done!

*photos return to the posts thanks to the kindness of The Hubby who gave me some rechargeable batteries for my camera this week. I’m not sure if he was tired of hearing me whine or what.. but we have PHOTOS! Hooray!  In crappy battery news… the battery in my digital scale died and I never realized how much I use the silly thing until faced with the purchase of a $5 8 volt battery.

Um.. or something. Yes.. its that time of year again when I ramble on the blog every day for 30 days and you silently beg for me to shut the f–k up. I’ve also decided to unofficially take part in Na-knit a sweater in 30 days-mo* in hopes that I’ll be able to finish a hand-knit sweater this year. I’m doing the Tree Jacket and I’m working on the cowl neck at the moment. I’ve also joined NoroVember.. and I’m thinking of doing one of those stripey 2 skein scarves or some fingerless mitts. In short, welcome to November.. I’m suddenly a joiner.

I actually MISSED posting a “Happy Halloween/Samhain” message yesterday because I spent the entire day out with MIL for my belated birthday lunch.  We were supposed to go shopping but we ended up at Olive Garden for the “unlimited soup, salad & breadstick lunch” and were nearly unable to move from the booth after putting away entirely too much food.  We DID get to finish up winter clothing shopping for Munchkin (thanks to the kind monetary donations of great-grandparents) who decided that NOW would be the perfect time to grow out of EVERYTHING he owns.  I’ve been sending the poor child to school in pants that are like 4 inches too short ever since the weather got too cool for shorts and I even tried to take down the hems of a few pairs of pants to no avail.  I seriously considered sending him to school in a pair of camo waffle knit ‘long johns’ with shorts over the top but figured that the school probably already thinks  Chez Mousie is a crazy enough place.

* I was too lazy to go look it up and find out what it was actually called. (its NaKniSweMo I think)