Category Archives: life

friday again.

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Oops. I snapped lots of blog-worthy photos this week, but didn’t find the time to actually upload or post. Maybe this whole pictures-from-last-week thing is my default blogging rhythm this semester? Anyway, here’s what I’ve got:

Egg, avocado, sriracha, and cheese on toast.

Beans, greens, and reading. (This was a super delicious, energy-boosting meal heavily modified from a recipe in one of Heidi’s Super Natural  cookbooks — I swapped kale for dandelion greens, and butter beans for chickpeas.)

Coffee and oatmeal with bananas, peanut butter, and agave syrup. Breakfast of champions.

Some sock knitting, almost to the heel flap. (And a sleeping pup.)

Sunset on the lake. Stunning. Daylight savings meant that I got home early enough to snap this photo.

Striped baby hat number 2. This one went to my cousin’s daughter, on the occasion of her baptism this weekend. I hope it fits!

The first bloom in my yard. I moved here in May, so I’m still discovering what’s in the yard. Hooray for spring flowers! (Anybody know what this is?)

Sushi. A lot of it. A group of my favorite grad-school friends have been getting together to watch The Bachelor and offer some analysis — which is fascinating and a lot of fun because it is so different from what we work on. And since weekends are filled with work, it feels super indulgent to set aside some time on Monday night for something like this. The sushi was to celebrate the finale. (And we were definitely ready for it to be over!)

My sweet dog, sunbathing on the porch. Which is totally what I feel like doing. Yesterday the weather was glorious, and I was able to enjoy the sunshine on my way to the post office, and then as I did all of the errands I’ve been putting off for a couple of weeks. I mailed my last grant application of the season, and today marks the start of spring break — which doesn’t mean I’m taking a break, exactly, but means I get to shift my focus from my teaching to my writing, and that I get to focus on one thing instead of seven. Or something. I’m planning to take it easy this morning, and then get some writing done this afternoon. Hooray — and happy Friday to you.

FO: snow drops and snap peas shawl.

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I did a lot of knitting last week (and Boh did a lot of sleeping). We spent a good deal of time in this position on the couch, and we finished the shawl with plenty of time for blocking and packing.

Here it is, almost done.

Blocking on the dining room table. (So nice to have a table that is big enough for a substantially-sized shawl.) Speaking of, I ended up knitting a size in between the medium and large sizes — I did one less overall repeat, just to make sure that I wouldn’t be rushing, and I’m really happy with the sizing. I do need to work on my blocking skills — I’m not so good with the long flexible wires for blocking a shawl into a perfect half-circle, as you can sort of tell. There are a couple of scalloped edges, but I aimed to make them symmetrical so that it wouldn’t look sloppy.

This lace pattern is gorgeous — and not too difficult to execute, which was perfect for this project and the timeline I was working with. I knit this on size 7 needles, using Shibui Sock in the Pagoda colorway. Right after I cast on, I panicked about not having enough yarn (I had about 600 yards) and so I ordered another few skeins, which was a great idea. For a size a bit smaller than the large, I used almost half of a fourth skein. And now there’s plenty of yarn for something fun for me — tall socks? My very own shawl?

Here’s a crappy mirror shot of me wearing the shawl, for scale more than anything.

And here it is, Snow Drops and Snap Peas, all folded up and ready to be packed and then gifted to the bride.

And here’s a glimpse of my maid of honor bouquet — so lovely. I don’t have any pictures of the wedding to share, but my head is filled with wonderful images of my dearest friend, radiant and happy, marrying her partner. The weekend was filled with celebration, and I’m so thrilled to have been able to be part of it. There’s something really special about getting to participate in your best friend’s wedding, and it meant a whole lot to me to get to support her in all the small ways (bouquet-holding, dress-bustling) and to get to write a toast for M. and her husband(!). I’m still on a bit of a high from the whole thing, even as I’ve been struggling to jump back into the pile of things that must get done.

Off to campus!

pictures from last week.

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I did it again: I uploaded and formatted photos last week with the intention to post. And then I didn’t. So I’m doing it now. (What’s sort of fun about this is that I can’t remember what I took pictures of last week, so this will be a bit of a surprise for me, too.)

Oooh! I finished a sock — the first of the pair I’m knitting out of Plucky Knitter yarn in the touch of mink colorway. This sock is on the snug side, but I’m hoping it will loosen up a bit with wear.

Knits in action: my first eternity scarf. Still holding my coffee mug. I’m guessing this is from Monday or Wednesday, which are my early-to-campus mornings.

Research! I’ve been really good these last two weeks about blocking off several 3-hour chunks of time to look at the materials I gathered on all of my late summer and early fall research trips. I really need to start writing soon, as I’m giving a paper in April. I’ve been telling myself that I have to begin this when I get back from the wedding I’m in this weekend.

It’s official. I’m obsessed with the carrot-miso soup Deb posted about earlier this winter, except instead of drizzling it with toasted sesame oil, I’ve been lacing mine with sriracha. So good. Why have you not made some of this yet?

Boh lounging in the sunshine on the porch. Is it really February?

Inspired by Boh, I spent some time working on the porch.

I managed to snap a picture of the train going by. Can you see it?

Thursday morning omelette: spinach and cheddar, drizzled with sriracha. Yum.

I love these wrinkles.

Procrasti-knitting? I finished the first sock and cast on the second, instead of just buckling down and finishing the wedding shawl. I can tell you this now because the shawl is currently soaking, and soon will be blocking on the dining room table. Time to go pin it out. Stay tuned for more photos!

snow drops, snap peas, sh*t together.

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Apologies, friends, for my utter lack of posting. Surprisingly, it has nothing to do with a lack of knitting. I give you exhibit A:

This is the Snow Drops and Snap Peas Shawl, by Kirsten Kapur. I’m knitting it out of Shibui Sock in the Pagoda colorway, and I absolutely love the way it is coming along — which is a good thing, because I absolutely love the person it is for: my best friend. She’s getting married in a few weeks, and I’m her maid of honor. She picked the yarn and the pattern, and I think they look fantastic together. The only question is whether to make the medium or the large, and I’m hoping to be on top of this enough (hence the last part of this post’s title) to go big. The pattern is written for a sport-weight yarn, and while Pagoda is closer to fingering weight, it has a bit more heft and sproing (technical terms) than a lot of sock yarn. I’m knitting this on 7s, and I’m into the 6th repeat (of 10, if I am able to knit the large). Basically, if I spend an hour or so on this every day for the next ten days, I should still have a cushion for dealing with a super long bind off and any mishaps along the way. And then it needs to be blocked and color-set with vinegar during the soak. It would be the opposite of awesome if this bled onto M’s stunning gown.

I know I said exhibit A like there would be other examples of my knitting, but really, this is it. (There is other knitting — including gifts for other dear and recently married friends — but this shawl has a firm deadline. It isn’t a wedding shawl if I don’t finish it in time for the wedding!) I’ve finally got a dress and a pair of tall shoes, I’ve begun making notes for my toast, and now I just need to finish knitting the shawl.

I do have a couple more pictures for you, though:

Latte art and a pile of grading from earlier in the week.

And some serious Boh-snuggling. (Ooh, and the flats I bought myself for my birthday.) Happy knitting!

quotidian.

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These days, I’m up well before the sun, and now that the semester is in full swing, there’s less time for lazy mornings. (For me, anyway.)

Morning oatmeal. I’ve been eating mine with a splash of milk, some agave syrup, and a spoonful of crunchy peanut butter.

Agnes. Perfect for weekend work.

A Bon Jovi pencil. Necessary for writing comments on student papers.

Rutabaga and turnip soup, with New Mexico chile powder.

Boh behind my desk chair, keeping me company.

Pasta with green olives, garlic, and crushed tomatoes.

Resting (Boh) and knitting (me) on the couch. Knitting pictures soon! (I just want to let something I put in the mail yesterday get to where it is going.)

shake some action.

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First of all, “Shake Some Action” by the Flamin’ Groovies is the first track on my not-yet-finished 2012 mix. I heard it on an NPR All Songs Considered podcast about opening tracks on albums this morning (though the episode was from June 2010). I’m glad I didn’t get to this until today, because there’s something about this song that is spot-on for me right now.

I’m doing end-of-the-year things today. I made my 2012 list for the fridge (above), and I finally got around to pulling all of the books off of all of the shelves and grouping them by theme — you know, so the books I need for work are in the office. When I unpacked, the goal was just to get everything out of boxes and onto shelves. And then I never got around to organizing them. Now that my books are spread out across several rooms, I need to be able to find them. Also, the water damage of earlier this fall has been fixed, which means I am finally ready to fully re-inhabit my office. I hung my DIY-ed frame cork board (which has been leaning against the wall in the guest room for 7 months) and cleaned up the piles. I’m so happy with this space.

I even tried to snap a self-portrait. Here’s the best one:

Last night I had a hard time falling asleep. I ended up getting out of bed, chopping off several handfuls of my hair, and taking a shower. Now I feel a bit more ready for the new year. (I think I’ve told you about this before, right? That I tend to cut my hair when I am feeling stressed, and that it helps? There’s so much I can’t control in the world, but my hair? I can fix that. My curls hide a multitude of sins/errors, making it possible for me to literally cut off hunks without too much worry. I don’t recommend this if you don’t have hair with similarly awesome camouflaging qualities…)

I also found some time to knit on my touch of mink socks. I love them. (Next time I’ll snap a picture while there’s still a bit of daylight. This shot doesn’t do the yarn justice.)

Tonight, Boh and I are off to hang out with dear friends of the human and animal variety. We’re planning to enjoy dessert, bourbon, and board games. I’m not sure we’ll make it to midnight, but I trust that the new year will arrive, even if I’m not awake to ring it in. Here’s to 2012 — I’m sure ready for a new year.

christmas week.

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This is the first year in several years (really, the first since I picked up knitting again as an adult) that I didn’t knit any Christmas or Hanukkah presents. I didn’t necessarily plan it that way; it just turned out that this year I’m doing a lot of knitting for weddings instead. And somehow, despite bringing home the hap blanket and the socks I started a few weeks ago, I didn’t knit a stitch while I was at my parents’ house for Christmas. I did eat, however, and that’s mostly what I’ve got pictures of.

Every year my dad bakes Czechoslovakian hoska bread. And it is delicious.

Boh, laying in front of the beautiful tree at my parents’ house on Christmas Eve. Both of my parents wrap the prettiest presents I’ve ever seen. (I did not inherit this gift.)

A little bit of work in between Christmas celebrations. Mom and Dad napped; I made a pot of coffee and finished a book. (And it didn’t feel strange. Apparently this is how we roll. Or something.)

And then there was bear meat. This was a gift from my friends J. and E., the sweet folks who got married in the North Carolina mountains this fall. I brought it home so my parents could help me decide what to do with it — and help me eat it. Chili was prepared, and I was sent home with a hearty container’s worth for my freezer. (And it was delicious.)

I can’t believe it is already the end of the December! Here’s hoping your holidays have been filled with family, friends, love, and the warmth of handknits.

sweetness.

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Boh keeps me company while I read.

A glimpse of a favorite handknit and tea with milk and sugar.

Coltrane, ready for bed. (Seriously. Apparently if he doesn’t get tucked in, he waits at the bedroom door. Also, note the paw under the pillow. I love this dog.)

More soon. (With knitting?)

picking up.

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Well for one, stitches. (Time to start knitting the edging!)

Also, work. I’ve managed to get a decent amount of reading done since Thanksgiving, which is good. (I’m not counting today…)

And myself, too. I bought some holiday booze this week — a small indulgence, a reminder that fancy things can be just for me. You know, like extra olives and good gin while cooking dinner. I’m trying to remember to be good to myself. (B. left a year ago today. And what a year it has been — my exams, moving to the lake house, writing the dissertation prospectus, all this research travel. I think I get an extra gin-soaked olive or two for all of that.)

Picking up….? I’ve got nothing for this one. Boh looks pretty happy with the pace of things around here. Can you believe it will soon be December? Stay tuned for more pictures of the hap blanket edging. And give yourself a treat. You deserve it.