I'm Back

I'll bet you thought you'd gotten rid of me, but no such luck.

I've been attempting to do some housecleaning, with very little luck. What I've learned from this little exercise is that I'm really good at finding other things to do rather than doing what I should be doing.

I may skip around to a few different subjects while I catch up on what I didn't write.

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If you're reading this and it's still today, turn on the TV and tune in to AMC! They're having a Walking Dead marathon on today, ending with the last episode of last season, and following that with the first episode of the new Fall season! Do it now!

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This is really about socks, so keep reading, even if it doesn't sound like it at first. Or, if you're not a knitter, you can skip this part.

I watched the Graham Norton show on BBC in America the other night. I don't usually watch it, but he had David Tenent and Catherine Tate, so I watched it.

There was a big discussion about weird things that people do, and bizarre habits people have. Some of the guests revealed their strange likes and habits.

They eventually got around to David Tenent, and asked him if he had any odd habits. He said that he wears all-black socks, and because they're all the same color and dark, he can never find a pair. He opens the windows and turns on the lights and spreads socks out on the bed, and holds prospective pairs up to see if the ribbing matches, etc.

But he's found a solution to the problem! He pulled off his shoe, and revealed that his proper black socks had heels and toes that are PINK! He color-codes pairs of socks for easy match-up later!

Personally, I hate to lose one sock of a pair, and always make at least four pairs alike (from the same yarn in the same pattern) so I can still wear them if I lose one.

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In more knitting news, I have a commission to make five Christmas stockings. A couple of years ago, I did this for one member of a family. They had a relative who made Christmas stockings for each member of the family, but she's gone now, and they want matching socks for the newer members of the family (which they keep churning out), so two years ago, I made some stockings for them. This time, a different family member has asked for five more.

Here's what they look like:

Those are ones that I made in the last batch. I have an order in for the yarn, and new knitting needles because I can't find the ones I used before.

The part about the knitting needles will be interesting if you're a knitter.

I've been reading some knitting forums about different brands and types of knitting needles, and I'm trying something new this time. According to one review, the points on the Chiaogoo lace needles is almost exactly the same as the stiletto points on the Signature needles. So, I ordered two pair of circular needles in size 4. They should be here soon, and I can hardly wait to try them out.

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I'm going to go watch what's left of Walking Dead now, and I'll post again soon!

I hope you've been having a wonderful weekend!

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Ghost Story!

I finished reading the newest book in the Dresden Files series, Ghost Story , last night and and loved it! When I got to the end, I wanted to jump up and shout "Yes!"

This is the book I wanted the last time around and was disappointed.

I really want to tell you what it's all about, but don't want to spoil it for you.

What you'll find out at the beginning of the book is: Harry's back, and he's a ghost! Three of his friends will die if he doesn't find out who killed him. So, he's working on the case of his life: finding his own murderer!

Jim Butcher is one of the few authors who can write a thriller that has all the excitement and suspense it should, but also makes me laugh at the same time, and this one is no exception, in fact, it shines in this respect. Late in the book, Harry gets into Molly's mind while he's trying to save her, and it's a wonderful place!

Oh, I want to go on and on, but as River Song says, "Spoilers!"

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I may be doing some knitting for profit soon. When I say "profit" in relationship to knitting, you know it's a joke, don't you? It's more like I may be knitting some things on commission.

I have been contacted about knitting more Christmas stockings, and it would entail a lot of knitting, but a good piece of change at the end. My hands are going to hurt!

The other thing is someone has asked me to design and knit some baby hats in various sizes. I'll get a little for the hats themselves and will retain the rights to the design, so I can write up the directions and sell the patterns. That should be more lucrative in the long run, but it'll take a while for the money to trickle in in dribs and drabs. This will be more of an ongoing thing, and will require less of my time at any one point, but might require more over the long haul.

The stockings, on the other hand, will be a lot of intense knitting at a point in time when I wanted to spend my knitting time on Christmas presents that I intend to give. They require following a chart, and a lot of colorwork, which means lots of ends to weave in, and a big, tangled mess to sort out over and over again while I'm knitting. But there will be money, and I've been pretty short on that for a while.

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Some of the new shows for the Fall season have been starting this week, and more will start next week. the new season of The Big Bang Theory will start in five minutes (as I'm writing this). At the same time, the new Charlies Angels will come back to TV.

Holly is always down on me because she disapproves of Charlie's Angels and I don't. She feels it's anti-feminist, and I think it's one of the best things that ever happened to feminism. Sure, a lot of guys tuned in for the jiggle factor, but they got to see women doing things that only men had done before that, and they did it not only competently, but with flair and style. Week after week, they tuned in to watch women who were intelligent, strong, and independent doing things that women had never been shown doing before. They rode motorcycles, blew up things, used firearms, and caught the bad guys. And the guys who watched were completely unaware that they were being brainwashed each week.

I can't stand this. I have to go catch The Big Bang Theory!

Have a great evening!


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Miscellaneous Thursday

Yesterday I walked over to the library to get some books that were in for me. It turns out they were comic books!

Excuse me, graphic novels.

I saw Avalon High on the Disney channel over the weekend, and back when they were just showing trailers for it, I found out that it was written by Meg Cabot, one of my favorite authors! Which immediately drove me to the library website, and an order for the books. It turns out that you can get it either as a book, or as three graphic novels, and the listing on the library website didn't tell me that! And, since I ordered them (because they didn't have them at that branch of the library), I had to wait for them. It turns out that the had the book in the library all the time!

So, I went back today, returned the graphic novels, and got the book.

Meg Cabot writes most of her stories about kids in high school, but she's a writer who really tells a good story. I love her Mediator series, about a girl who can see and talk to ghosts. In fact, I looked to see if they had the beginning books of the series to borrow, but they're out at the moment.

So, I've finally got the book in my hands, ready to read!

But I won't be reading it immediately.

Two things I ordered from Amazon showed up today. The first is a book by Jim Butcher, full of short stories and one novella about Harry Dresden. It's called Side Jobs.

In the last full book of the regular series (Changes), it ends with an outrageous cliffhanger, and the sequel to that is the novella in Side Jobs called Aftermath. So, I'm going to read that first.

I have to find out what happened to Harry!

The other thing that arrived is something that I've been wanting to see in it's entirety ever since it aired on ABC Family and was broadcast without the closed captioning by Comcast. Since I have hearing problems, and Comcast also broadcast it with the sound going off and on, I missed a lot. So did people who can hear just fine! I can't wait to see the whole thing! Comcast has a lot to answer for!

If you're a science fiction fan, you'll probably love The Middleman! It pokes fun at other SF programs, and has a comic book flair that so absurd it's truly lovable! Holly, if you're reading this, the DVDs would be a great gift for Malaia and John. It's nearly as funny as Red Dwarf!

The package comes with a sticker on it that says "Sands of Zanzibar! The cult hit on 4 DVDs. Packed with Extras! As serious as a garbage bag full of rottweilers!" And it is, indeed, that serious!

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So, naturally, instead of arriving on Tuesday or Wednesday, when there is almost nothing on TV, it had to arrive tonight, when I expect to be recording two programs at once for at least three hours, and then more after that.

Tonight, we have Vampire Diaries, Bones, and The Big Bang Theory, although they're on at the same time, so you'll have to choose what you want to watch. I expect to record Bones and Big Bang, and then switch to Diaries for the last half hour. There's a new Fringe tonight, too, and The Mentalist!

And, as if that weren't enough, there's a new episode of Burn Notice on tonight called Hot Property! An embarrassment of riches! I'm so thankful I have TiVo!

Bones just came on, which means that Big Bang is on, too, and I'm missing it! I have to go!

But I'll leave you with a photo of the yarn that arrived yesterday:

The white Fun Fur and white yarn for the heels and toes hasn't arrived yet. I'm hoping it'll be here tomorrow. Doesn't that look like it will be perfect for some Christmas stockings?

Have a great evening!