graduation weekend (and week), part 2.

Posted on May 27, 2015 by barefootrooster

Alright. You asked for regalia pictures, so here are a few:

Fancy robes, poofy hat.

And here’s a picture of my doctoral hood. (My parents were really into the hood; I had to stand with my back to them for several pictures.)

And here’s how I continued celebrating after they headed home: with champagne from my dissertation defense and a new nameplate, courtesy of a dear friend. (“Professor Rooster,” it says.)

Here’s my sweet dog being sort of silly — stretching out his back leg for a scratch.

And here’s my Avery cowl. I’ve knit a few rows on it–the counting makes it a bit more involved than most of what I’ve been knitting more recently, but I do think it will be squishy and lovely.

Course prep with a furry footrest.

More pesto and a sleepy dog.

Phlox along the path we walked on Tuesday.

Boh does a little light reading.

Here he is, in his first ever ride in my new-to-me car. Also his first ride in his dog hammock (that thing that goes between the front and back seats to protect the cushions and keep an animal from leaping into the front, not that Boh ever really does that). I was so sad to say goodbye to my 03 CRV, but it has needed a lot of work lately. So, new wheels, thanks to Mom and Dad Rooster. They’ve been planning to get a new car, and as a graduation present, they offered to trade in mine, which was considerably older than theirs. So Boh and I are getting used to our new ride. I know he looks nervous, but he really did settle right in once we got moving.

And this picture is in the running for what may be the greatest selfie I’ve managed to take of the two of us, mostly because of his goofy face! (We’re at our favorite spot by the creek here.)

Out cold, and using his bone for a pillow.

A strawberry buttermilk cake. Just because.

More napping.

Avocado, sriracha, and cheddar on toast, all put under the broiler. A favorite snack. I made some an hour ago, so you are all caught up on things here in Roosterland. More of an indoor day today because it is hot and humid, but Boh and I are planning a really nice walk for tomorrow.

there and back.

Posted on May 11, 2015 by barefootrooster

A friend (and fellow member of my grad cohort) gave me this JJ’s Diner mug to celebrate the defense and filing of my dissertation. I LOVE IT. I’m hoping it will help me channel Leslie Knope a little more often.

This guy, being silly.

Gorgeous spring weather for the conference I was at last week.

Beautiful flowers, lots of sunshine. (And I really enjoyed the conference.)

On my way home, I was able to stop off to visit dear friends. They cooked me dinner and breakfast, which we enjoyed on their amazing porch-balcony, and they even parallel parked my car into a space tinier than I’d ever attempt on my own. It was the perfect way to break up the drive back from the conference, and such a treat to get to see them in real life (instead of over Skype) and in their lovely home.

I was happy to get back to this guy.

And to my porch.

And to our favorite weekend spot by the creek. Yesterday I brought a book and a blanket, and Boh and I enjoyed having the place to ourselves for the morning.

And then he came home and napped away the afternoon. A pretty perfect Sunday. (I almost got out my wheel yesterday. Stay tuned, I’m sure I’m going to do some knitting or spinning soon…)

…and approved.

Posted on April 29, 2015 by barefootrooster

That means I’ve done everything I need to do to receive the degree at the end of next month. One more conference next week, but this is the homestretch of a lot of things.

Got notice about final approval this morning. Want to see how we spent our day? (I mean, after a bunch of work and teaching-related emails, which I did not photo-document.)

I took a blanket out to a natural area owned by my university. Boh licked all the different kinds of grass, and then basked, like this, in the sun. I started a book.

And then I finished it on the porch, after stopping for my first soft-serve ice cream cone of the season.

I made multiple trips to the library this evening to return books, because I’ll need to clear out my account before graduation. (But I did make a big pdf of everything I had checked out so I can go back to some of this stuff when it is time to begin the process of revising the dissertation into a book manuscript.)

And then we did a little more lounging while listening to the new Mandolin Orange album, streaming here. (To be released next week.) I still have teaching work to do, but I’ll prep for tomorrow’s afternoon class in the morning. Knitting soon, I promise!

filed (!) and…

Posted on April 28, 2015 by barefootrooster

Boh and I basically sat on the couch like this all weekend, formatting my dissertation.

I made up new rules for myself, like when you’re working on an enormous bibliography, it is okay to eat avocado, sriracha, and cheese broiled on toast for dinner. (I think it’s a great rule.)

Even though it is supposed to be spring, we had a bit of a relapse…

Boh shared my enthusiasm for the shift in weather. See?

But yesterday, I filed my dissertation. (Well, I hit the button to submit it, and I’m still waiting to hear if I managed to screw up the formatting.) But I also did something else, something I’ve been daydreaming about for years. I got my dissertation tattoo, a downy woodpecker, beautifully drawn for me by a woman who owns my favorite coffee shop and works at the tattoo parlor in the back.

(Ignore that bruise; it’s from a blood draw earlier this week.) I knew I wanted a bird, but I picked this bird, specifically, because there’s a female downy woodpecker who regularly comes pretty close to the house when I’m writing on the porch. This bird is about a lot of things: she’s connected to my research, but also to the home I’ve built here, to these last seven years of graduate school, and also to the movement (migration?) ahead of me. Isn’t she beautiful?

april (almost there).

Posted on April 6, 2015 by barefootrooster

Hi, friends. Boh had a rough week. Those of you who’ve been here awhile can probably tell that this face is not Boh’s regular sad face.

He did not feel good on Wednesday, and was having trouble getting up onto the couch. He tried to jump up into the car and missed, which broke my heart. So we went to the vet.

And after lots of bloodwork to rule out the scary stuff, the diagnosis was that he tweaked something in his back. Armed with pain meds and orders to not jump, play, or take walks for a week, we headed back home.

And the weather turned into pretty good hunkering weather. The fog sat low over the lake, which made the yard look eerie.

Eerie but lovely.

And look! Spring might be here soon. The daffodils are trying, anyway.

Somebody’s feeling a little better. Good enough to make that super quizzical face at the huge pile of paper on my lap. (That’s a draft of my DISSERTATION, you guys!)

And here’s a roasted beet salad I made the other night. Farm beets, homemade dressing, and bread I picked up at opening day of our farmers’ market.

Beer to help with the grading. (I’ll confess, I picked this half because I miss the West, and half because of the sheep. Beer for knitters?)

Still sleepy, but he’s definitely feeling better. The sun is shining today, and I’m so ready for Boh to finish his meds so we can get back to all of our favorite spots. Happy spring, friends. (And maybe there will be some knitting soon? I’ve got a blanket to finish, and I did recently offer to make someone a hat…)

march?

Posted on March 23, 2015 by barefootrooster

Yep. It’s March. Almost April, in fact. Here’s a string of photos that pretty much captures what we’ve been up to since my last post:

Quite the winter. Lots of shoveling, and several stunning sunsets.

For my birthday, two of my favorite people gave me a mug that they made with (among other things) Boh’s face on it. I adore it.

Boh has been napping…hard.

And I’ve been working.

A lot.

Also, it was my birthday, and a dear friend baked me a cake!

And Boh napped some more.

A student who is taking a class in the greenhouses on campus brought me tulips.

Fog sitting low.

More dog sweetness. Happy spring, folks.

the new year.

Posted on January 15, 2014 by barefootrooster

This is what getting ready for a conference looks like, especially as I’m still working to put together appropriate academic “costumes” for myself.

The conference I attended just after New Year’s was back in DC, which meant plenty of time to see dear friends. And admire bike racks outside coffee shops.

No trip to DC is complete for me without Teaism. Its proximity to the museum I was working at last winter helped solidify it as the place for comfort food: really good chai, restorative spicy chicken noodle soup, amazing salty oat cookies. The polar vortex extended my DC trip, which mostly meant I ate more of all of the things at Teaism.

I’ve been borrowing this sweatshirt for more than a decade. How crazy/wonderful is that? (Just when I’m visiting and cold.)

A beautiful latte at the Tryst inside the Phillips Collection.

And my lovely workspace inside Champ and N.’s fantastic apartment.

The hat for P. wasn’t quite right (he tried it on in DC) so I ripped back and reknit it.

I think it turned out even prettier the second time around, and I’m hoping it fits perfectly. I’m in between knitting projects right now — I need to find something simple and soothing to balance everything else going on in this week before the semester begins. So much to do!

happily, predictably…

Posted on November 10, 2013 by barefootrooster

The cold weather has returned, and with it, a little bit of knitting mojo. Wrapped in my Mara shawl and with my Terra on my lap, I finally finished my Snowbird cardigan. All that remained was an inch of one pocket, sewing the pocket linings, and weaving in the ends. It took a couple of hours (and several podcasts), but I did it. Here’s a pre-blocking shot:

(Forgive my bleary eyes and pjs.)

And here it is, blocking on the dining room table. The sleeves fit perfectly, but the body is a bit loose. Shouldn’t matter too much because it is an open cardigan, but depending on how it fits when it is dry, I might (gasp) toss it in the dryer to snug it up a bit. Stay tuned.

It felt so good to be knitting that I even managed a couple of repeats on my Bristol hat. (Funny how that happens when the deadlines feel overwhelming. I’ve got a conference paper, a talk, a job application, and some dissertation chapters that need finishing on my plate right now…)

Want to see what else has been going on around here this week?

No idea what’s going on in this picture. (And please, disregard the newsprint filled with dissertation-related list-making on the wall behind him.)

Last bare-legged day of the season, I’m guessing. (These boots are in terrible shape, but I can’t bring myself to retire them…)

An impromptu dinner party on Monday night, complete with butternut squash galette.

Glorious sunlight on the good walk we’ve been aiming to take at least once a week.

Boh, not at all interested in the epic waterfall behind him.

One of us will not be mistaken for a deer.

Tuckered out. I woke up yesterday to find Boh with his head on the pillow next to me. Silly, silly dog.

One more bit of silliness: sharks surround Manhattan. Just a little bit of Friday night fun with sharks from M’s sharknado Halloween costume…

Hope you’re all well. I still haven’t found a solution to my Feedly problem, and it feels so strange to be blogging while I feel so behind on all of your adventures. Forgive me. And happy knitting!

porch writing.

Posted on October 20, 2012 by barefootrooster

If you have to write a dissertation, I recommend doing it this way. Seriously.

Working from the porch means you get to watch the sunset.

This morning, I fried two eggs, added a little bit of green chile, and took it out to the porch.

It was a little chilly, so I pulled on my first handknit sweater. (This is how I know it is really fall.)

Fall (okay, and playtime with my neighbor’s dog) makes Boh sleepy. (I wish you could hear the snoring.) Another sign of fall?

Roasted tomatoes.

Roasted tomatoes on homemade pizza. With gorgonzola.

Also, scalloped tomatoes with croutons. I love this recipe. In conclusion, I love fall. (In case you can’t tell, it feels really good to set aside grading and fellowship applications, even if only for a couple of days, and get back to my project. I need to remember this, and aim for a bit more balance in my work-life.)

one side seamed.

Posted on October 4, 2012 by barefootrooster

Apologies for the weird lighting. I’m just so excited about how the left pocket looks that I can’t wait for a sunny day to show it to you. Up close, my seaming isn’t perfect, but this looks much better than I anticipated it might.(I’m not super confident about my seaming skills.)

It took all of last night’s presidential debate (and two glasses of wine) to weave in all of the ends and seam one of the pockets. I decided not to push my luck by attempting the second so late in the evening. Seaming one pocket really helps me to see how much I like this sweater! If I can make enough progress on a fellowship application today, maybe I’ll let myself seam the second pocket.

And here’s a shot of my family room, ready for Tuesday night’s reading group. We had a great turnout, and I ended up needing to grab a few more chairs from the dining room. I love that I have enough space to take a turn at hosting. Most of the time it’s just me and Boh here, and it is always nice to fill this room with friends.

Stay tuned for finished Kerrera pictures soon!

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