Happy President's Day!

Happy President's Day!

Congratulations to all those out there who got a paid holiday out of the deal!

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I've gradually been feeling yuckier and yuckier over the past few days, and it finally dawned on me last night that I'm actually sick.

All this seems to have started on Thursday (possibly Tuesday), but it took me until last night to realize that the lump under my ear that hurts, the sore muscles, The desire to take a nap all the time, the ache all over, and the food that wants to escape via the nearest exit shortly after I eat it might be trying to tell me something. It took a thermometer that told me that I had a low grade fever to make it actually sink in.

I spent a lot of last night too tired to keep my eyes open, but not able to actually fall asleep.

So, I've given myself the day off. Usually, I have a mental list of things that I plan to accomplish in a given day. But today, I can do anything I want. Take a nap, have some chicken soup, whatever.

So, I'm going to sign off for today. I feel like I'm rambling anyway, and I'll do better another day.

Hope you're feeling better than I am!

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Oh, wait! I found some neat knitting things on the internet that I wanted to tell you about, and nearly forgot!

Knit Picks has a new yarn out called Aloft! It's a mohair and silk lace weight yarn! I've wanted a fuzzy mohair type yarn in the past and looked in their catalog and gave up in disgust, but I (and you) don't have to do that anymore. Don't forget, you could knit two strands of this together to get a different gauge and a quicker knit!

Jimmy Beans has a broken knitting needle exchange program. If your knitting needles break, you can get them replaced through them for much less than buying new needles. Their plan only covers certain brands, but it's a big step forward for knitters!

Lion Brand Yarn has a really nice pattern out for a unique scarf! You'll have to sign in (if you've already signed up) or sign up, but it's free, and the scarf is terrific!

Have a great evening and don't miss Chuck or Castle, both of which are new! There's a new Being Human on tonight, too, on the Syfy Channel, but I saw the first episode of the original Being Human on BBC in America on Saturday, and the new one can't begin to compare to it!

Catching Up

As you know, I've been having internet problems, which has been discouraging me from blogging as frequently. By the way, they're not over. There are so many things that could be wrong, and I've been working through them one by one, and haven't found a definitive fix yet. All that troubleshooting has been using up time that I could be blogging, too. Or doing other things.

So, I'm going to catch you up on all the stuff that's been happening. A lot of people have been commenting on a hat I made on another website, and I've referred them here, so there may be a lot more people reading this blog.

To them, I'd like to say "Hello!" and say again that I cover many topics in a typical post, and separate them with some asterisks, so if you're not interested in a topic, skip down to the next break.

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On Wednesday, Holly and I went over to the VA Hospital in DC, and picked up my new hearing aids. This sounds quick and simple, but wasn't. They had to be fitted, and I had to learn how to insert batteries, turn them on and off, clean them and take care of them, and use the bluetooth aspect. They can also be plugged in to things like my home phone so that I can make and get phone calls without having to hold the phone up to my ear.

I have a loop which uses bluetooth or can be plugged into something, but they didn't send the cord to connect it to something else that way. I bought a cord on Thursday, but the connector is big and chunky, and the jack in my phone is in a little dimple with a rubber cover, and I can't plug the cable in all the way because the end of the cable has that big, clunky plug, so I'll have to get something else.

First of all, they work so much better than the ones I had before! Some high sounds and sibilant sounds cause a tiny feedback squeal, but they make human speech so much more easy to understand. Part of this may be that I went through part of the learning curve with the earlier aids.

One of the neat things about these is the way they look. My old aids were skin-colored hard plastic, and if you happened to see them in my ear, looked more like a malignant growth.

The new ones look more like jewelry!

The aids themselves are a metallic navy blue, and are very pretty! They don't look as good in this photo as they do in real life. The connection between the aids and the earmolds, and the earmolds themselves is a translucent soft plastic.

Here's a photo of the earmolds in their soft, clear plastic. You can see a bit of how pretty the blue metallic finish is, just above the earmold.

Isn't that close up photo amazing? It's all thanks to the wonderful camera that my sister gave me for my birthday! Thanks, again, Lynn. I find the camera doing something wonderful that most cameras have trouble doing and it just amazes me almost every week.

The best part is that I can hear so much better, though. These are an amazing experience!

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And now, to the knitting content!

I put up a photo of the Mobius hat that I made for Kyle two Christmases ago on a knitting website connected with facebook, and I've been getting many comments on it.

Everyone wants the pattern, and I never wrote one out. I've decided that I'm going to do it, but since the original is in Wisconsin somewhere, and I don't have it to photograph, and I'll want more photos for the instructions, that I'm going to knit a new one and write up the instructions and report on my progress here.

Just so we're all on the same page, here's a photo of the hat I'm talking about.

I also did a simpler version of this hat for the daughter of a friend the same Christmas, and I think I made a similar one for Holly, too. I plan to write the directions for the simpler one as a different pattern, and I'll write a pattern for a scarf and cowl to go with each of them. Here's the other hat. Both had scarves, but I didn't take a photo of the scarf for the hat with the cable, so I'll have to make a new one in order to take photos and show the construction as I go.

This hat (unlike the other) has a cuff that's actually a true mobius strip. The one with the cable has a fake mobius.

I plan to have several lines of knitting patterns, and this second, easier, mobius hat will be part of my Screaming KnitFit patterns. These will be a group of patterns set up by a lazy knitter (me) to be really easy to knit. They'll have unconventional construction meant to minimize finishing (I don't like to have to sew things together), and, best of all, you'll be able to knit them using any weight yarn. Most of them will let you start knitting, and check a little while after starting for gauge. If it's good, you can just keep knitting. If not, you can consider it a gauge swatch and rip it out and start over again. And by gauge, I usually don't mean "16 stitches to 4 inches" I mean "Is it too stiff or too loose?" They will mostly let you ignore gauge and just start knitting, have minimal finishing, and will actually fit.

I chose the name because I used to love Screaming Yellow Zonkers, and loved the name even more. I also wanted to give the idea that these were easy knits that fit, and while I was in Basic Training, I had a barracks-mate who used to talk (all the time) about her mother having screaming knit fits, and I always thought that was an amusing way to express it.

I've already written three Screaming KnitFit patterns (although I didn't call them that then) that are available in printed form, but I plan to republish them as PDFs since I'm getting more and more requests for them. You can see the current printed patterns here. There's a listing for a Christmas stocking that I haven't taken down yet, and I'll write a pattern for that, too, soon.

The hat with the cable on the cuff will be one of my Unconventional Knits line. They'll be things that for one reason or another will actually need to be knitted in a particular weight yarn at a particular gauge. Sorry, guys. No getting around gauge swatches here!

They'll also be things that are knitted in a more conventional way, frequently with separate pieces knitted flat and sewn together, although this particular hat will need no sewing. When you're done knitting, you're done! That covers the "conventional" part of the name, but these will be special in some way, which is why I added the "un" at the beginning of conventional.

Stay tuned for more information!

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I went over to the library yesterday, and noticed that the ice on the lake is starting to break up. It looks like Spring may still be far off, but it's on it's way!

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There's a Burn Notice marathon on USA today! In honor of Valentine's Day (which is tomorrow, by the way, happy Valentine's Day!) they're calling it a Heart Burn marathon!

If you're into a Valentine frame of mind, there are a lot of that type of movie on today and tonight. Check your local listings.

Next Saturday, the original Being Human will be all new on BBC in America as part of their Supernatural Saturday.

I've got to go now, or this post will never get up on the internet.

I hope your weekend has been wonderful, and wish you a fabulous week!

Mea Culpa! Errata and Other Stuff

Well, I got ABC Family's Harry Potter Weekend all mixed up!

Tonight is Goblet of Fire and Sunday night is Half Blood Prince. I still don't know of any plans to put on Order of the Phoenix.

Sorry!

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I just got back from the grocery store, where they had one last copy of Vogue Knitting! They don't have any now, because I couldn't leave without it.

There are a lot of beautiful things in this issue, but three things really caught my eye. The least of them is a "Scarf" shown below. I think this is actually circular. It looks like it could be worn without the coat as a poncho, too.

I LOVE things with wings, and the rectangular wrap in this photo is no exception!

There is also a sleeveless coat with similar wings, and I love that, too, maybe even better!

As usual, though, I immediately want to change it all around. I think I'd like it with a hood, sleeves, and I can't leave out the pockets!

I have to run, now. Being Human is on BBC in America, and I may be wrong, but it looks like there are two new ones! Hope you're having a great weekend!

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Important addition!:

After extolling the virtues of Vogue Knitting, and then paging through the magazine, I feel I should issue a warning!

A large percentage of the patterns in the magazine require charts, and they're NOT included with the magazine! You have to go online to find the charts and print them out. In the case of the sleeveless coat, I need to study it more, but it looks like the chart provided is really for the wrap, and I don't see how you could possibly use it for the coat. This requires more study, but at least at first glance, it looks like a colossal mistake!

I Ignore the Universe for One Day, and It Gets into Trouble

I had lots to do yesterday, and was online for about a half hour, and then went to do my stuff. As a result, I didn't get to read much on Facebook or really connect with other people.

I thought that would be all right. I mean how much trouble could all of you get into, right?

Well, John's sister, Doris had a heart attack and died. I found out about it when I got on Facebook today.

I feel sad about that. The last time I saw her was right after she'd had heart surgery. There's so much I want to say, but words are failing me at the moment. We'll miss her.

Then I read down further on Facebook and find that his daughter, Sara's boyfriend was in a theater when someone started shooting randomly. He's OK, but someone else was shot and died.

What's wrong with the world? I can't leave it alone for a minute!

There were a bunch of things I wanted to talk about today, but this has really taken the wind out of my sails. Everything will be postponed until later except for the TV info.

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Tonight, the new shows on include: Warehouse 13 (SyFy), White Collar, and Covert Affairs (USA).

On Saturday, BBC in America will be having a Doctor Who marathon, culminating in The Pandorica Opens, and The Big Bang, two episodes comprising a two-part story, and the last two episodes of the season. They showed The Pandorica Opens last week, and it is so good! I expect that the final episode will be equally good, maybe better.

And, as if that weren't enough, it will be followed by the first episode of the new season of Being Human.

I am so excited to see the last episode of the season of Doctor Who, but am expecting to be really sad that it's over.

For any of you out there who haven't been watching the Doctor and thought there was no way for you to catch up, BBC in America is giving you the chance to see the whole (new) thing, right from the beginning. They've been airing Doctor Who episodes every day at 5 pm (here), and they've cycled through, and will be starting with the first new episode (Rose) on Thursday!

Do not be discouraged by watching by the first episode. It's almost a rip-off of one of the old series, and not one of the better ones, either, but it sets things up for what is to come, and the stories get better and better as the season progresses. For Torchwood fans, you can get to see the beginning of Captain Jack Harkness in the two-part story The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances! Those two are followed by Boomtown, which has a kind of reunion party vibe, and Rose wears a beautiful knitted scarf. And learn about the founding of Torchwood itself in Tooth and Claw. Eventually, you'll work your way along to Blink, which is one of the best little horror stories I've ever seen. If you don't want to see Doctor Who, watch for Blink anyway, because it's a teriffic stand-alone story that you won't want to miss! And Captain Jack reappears from time to time, and fills in the blanks about what happened when he was absent from Torchwood.

On Friday, there will be a new Eureka and Haven on SyFy! Haven (the series) is based on a Stephen King book, The Colorado Kid, which I haven't read, and so can't comment on, but the series is shaping up to be good.

So, now I'm caught up on the TV part of the blog for the next few days, at least through Saturday.

I plan to blog before then, but if something happens and I don't be good and have fun!

Miscellaneous Sunday

I have a batch of unrelated stuff to report on today. There will be lots of pictures!

Last weekend, Holly and Robin went to Clinton Bay, along with a lot of family and friends.

Here are all the ladies that went. That's Holly on the far left in the front, and Heather at next to far right.

Here's (L to R) Holly, and her sister, Heather.

Here's Holly, Chad (her brother) and Heather.

I shamelessly copied these photos from Facebook. I'm going on the assumption that if they didn't want these on the internet, they wouldn't have put them up there.

These photos are not from Clinton Bay, and some are from a Renfair, but they're more family photos.

Here's Malaia, my granddaughter and her husband, Johnnie.

And the same pair in Renaissance gear.

And Johnnie at a Renfaire.

Finally, for this group, is Malaia.

Next time, she shouldn't ask a dwarf to take her photo!

You've all heard me talk about my friend, John Ellis, and I thought you might like to see some photos of him to give you a better idea about the person I keep talking about.

First, to segue from the above photos, here's a drawing John did of Malaia when she was in her teens.

Here's a cartoon he did of himself.

I usually think of him more this way, though.

This was from a while ago, and I think it was while he was working on I Go Pogo.

Here we have John and Phil Cook with one of the models from Invader, so you can see that this was a while ago, too.

Here he is setting up dailies, and I'm pretty sure this was also on I Go Pogo.

John is currently working on getting out the last Steve Canyon DVD, which I'm doing the covers for, and you can see the finished covers for three of them, and the preliminary cover for the one that will be released real soon now if you click the link.

He's also going to get to go to the San Diego Comic Con! I envy him! I'm going to give him a list of freebies I want him to get for me. I asked for The Middleman DVDs last year, but nobody was giving them away. I don't truly expect to get anything out of it this year, either, but I'll probably harass him with requests anyway.

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In other family news, my sister, Lynn had a car accident the other day. It's almost the same thing that happened to me: someone pulled out right in front of her.

The most important thing to know about this is that she's all right. She skinned her right knee, and got a scrape from the seat belt, but is otherwise fine.

Her car can't say the same:

It's so mangled, it's hard to tell, but that's a Prius, and it's really not too old. I feel sad just looking at it.

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Finally, I'm getting around to the knitting portion of this post:

I got a new garment steamer to replace the incontinent one that I'm now afraid to fill with water and plug in, and I finally got around to taking a photo of it. It's sleek and beautiful, with big wheels, and I will try it out any day now.

I love steamers for blocking knits! Steamers are fabulous for knitters. They can change a knitted item from something that looks clumsily homemade to something that looks skillfully hand crafted! There's probably not much that you can buy that will change the finished look of a garment more than a steamer!

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I hope you read my Tweet yesterday about the Being Human marathon on BBC in America today, because it's almost over, and I wouldn't want you to miss it! They're getting everybody ready and up to speed for their Being Human second season premier next Saturday.

In that same Tweet, I also mentioned the Doctor Who marathon that will be on BBC in America tomorrow.

There will also be a rerun on The Big Bang Theory tomorrow night. Check it out!

I hope you've been having a wonderful weekend and will have a terrific week coming up!