Category Archives: life

back.

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Weekend highlights from the iPhone: First, Boh claimed a small rug near the fireplace as his own. (This became prime real estate when a fire was actually burning in the fireplace, which occurred at least twice during the holiday weekend.)

Yes, Dad, I’ll have a martini with my transcription, thankyouverymuch.

Proof that bathroom mirror photos can be way more glamorous. (Note the poinsettia in the shower.) I found this awesome 100% wool sweater of cable-y goodness in my childhood closet (which is now mostly filled with my mom’s stuff). I think I asked for this for Christmas about ten years ago, and Santa delivered. And within a few years, somehow, it seemed out of style. To be fair, I moved to Southeast Asia and then to the desert, where a super-dense sweater might not be the first thing to reach for. And I didn’t yet knit. Anyway, I’m so happy to have found it. I pulled it on this morning over whatever I was wearing as I worked, and I love it. I imagine this will be a go-to sweater for taking Boh out as the mornings get colder.

Time to unpack and then enjoy the leftovers I brought home with me!

thankful.

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For so much, but these days, especially for this dog. This has been a weird semester for me: I’m not teaching, and I’ve been traveling a lot, which means I’ve spent a lot of time alone, working (or trying to work). Trying to both get my research done and make sure Boh is happy while I’m away has been a bit of a scheduling challenge, but I wouldn’t change my decision to add him to my family 4 and a half years ago for anything. His routine — and companionship — have been incredibly important for me, especially these past few months. And since this is probably the month of his birth, and he’s turning five this year, I’m taking a moment to be thankful for his wrinkly face and his place in my life.

There are so many people friendships moments words that I’m thankful for this Thanksgiving. I’m so lucky to have so many reminders in my life — of what’s good and true, of what’s worth fighting for. And in focusing on Boh in this post, I don’t mean to downplay those at all.

But this year, this fall in particular, I’m appreciative of what it means and how it feels to have the company of a sweet dog during a mostly solitary semester.

Boh and I are headed to my parents’ house tomorrow morning, and we’re taking along the hap blanket — so stay tuned for more actual knitting! (The wedding, by the way, was lovely. A chance to laugh and reconnect with dear friends, and even to get some quality hang-out time with the groom, who easily makes it onto my list of all-time favorite people.)

Happy Thanksgiving to those of you celebrating this week, and safe travels.

heels and a hap.

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Crazy, right? I tend to always vote for sensible over sexy in the shoe department, but I’m attending wedding #4 (of 8 this year) next weekend, and I realized that I do not have non-summery shoes suitable for black-tie-optional affairs. (And, you know, teaching. I’m teaching a course I designed this spring, and I figure that being the “instructor of record” might warrant tall shoes. It could also be that I am missing M., a friend currently traveling the back roads of the deep South for research. She wears tall shoes.)

Anyway, I ordered two pairs, and decided to keep them both. Here’s the first pair. I actually wore these to the coffee shop earlier this week to “practice.” No wipe-outs. And I feel awesome in these shoes. (Years ago I would have shied away from shoes like this, both for practical — a broken toe from my rugby days — and political — as affirming certain cultural ideas about prettiness/beauty — reasons. The toe has healed, though, and while my politics are perhaps more radical and feminist than ever, they’re also more nuanced.)

So, I love them. And while they aren’t the most comfortable shoes I own (hello, flip-flops), they’re for me, and nobody else, and I think they’ll give me that extra boost of confidence I’m realizing I need to attend so many weddings this year by myself.

Speaking of which, also on the wedding to-do list was to decide on a gift. Ages ago I thought I’d knit a pinwheel blanket, which seems to be my go-to wedding gift knit, but when the time came to cast on (okay, really the time should have come a few weeks ago), I just wasn’t feeling inspired. I really like the idea of giving a lap blanket because it is cozy (perhaps cozy enough for two — and certainly cozy enough for two newlyweds) and not super gender-specific. This next wedding is the wedding of one of my best guy friends from college, so I want to knit something that feels like it is for him (though I also really like the woman he is marrying, and think they are a great fit).

After a lot of digging around ravelry, I settled on the Hap Blanket, by Ysolda Teague. I’m using two greens — a greyish green heather, and a deeper olive/army green for the contrast color, both in Cascade 220. I’m following some super thoughtful mods I located on a few projects: provisional cast-on, and revised numbers for worsted weight yarn. I don’t think I’ll have this done in time for the wedding, but I’ll bring it to knit on the plane, and then I can send it to the bride and groom shortly afterwards. (They’re getting married not where they live, so I feel like sending it to them at home is best.)

I love squishy garter stitch. So cozy and warm and home-y. Other things that fit this description?

Garlicky chard and toast. Also, this guy:

Yep. I love this dog. Boh and I are going to settle in for an evening of knitting on the couch. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

more booty.

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Apologies for the blog silence — I headed home for that baby shower (taking an unfinished booty with me), and then took a brief trip to see my grandmother out of state, and then got back here on Tuesday morning to work on a grant application. Whew! Finished that yesterday, and blogging is at the top of today’s non-work to-do list.

Here’s an iPhone shot of the second booty, just before kitchenering, and then the pair, just before wrapping. My cousin seemed to really like them at the shower — let’s hope the baby does, too! I haven’t done any knitting since finishing these on Saturday morning, maybe because I don’t have any knitting that is both portable and free of charts or counting. I should probably fix that by casting on for something new for me, like socks, though I certainly have lots more baby and wedding gifts to knit over the next several months.

None of these are recent FOs, but here’s the pile of handknits I sent to Occupy Wall Street last week. The weather is getting cold, and these handknits can be more useful there than here in my basket o’ warm things. (Side note: I should really consider knitting myself another hat with a pompom.)

And here’s a shot of the lake. The fall color has been absolutely stunning this year, but even so, the transition to winter is sort of exciting because of the way my view is changing. Now that the leaves have mostly fallen, I can see the lake even from my perch on the couch in the family room.

On blog posts and traffic: I noticed that a lot of people (500+) visited my blog last week when I posted about the first booty. Perhaps they were expecting something else? I’ll let you know if the same thing happens today…

shake it out.*

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A slow start today, folks. Yesterday I managed to get some serious revision done on the prospectus. (The trick? A five o’clock latte. I think I’m starting to resign myself to the fact that I need an afternoon change of scenery and a fancy espresso drink to get shit done and feel good doing it.) Boh looks like he could use a latte, and it isn’t even noon.

I’m making slow, steady progress on that BSJ I started a few weeks ago. I love this shade of green — so bright, so happy.

Here’s the side view of that sweet pout. Looks like somebody needs to give Florence and the Machine’s new album a listen. Seriously. I downloaded it yesterday, and it got me through a whole sink of dishes. There’s something about Florence Welch’s particular brand of big and epic that I love. (*”Shake It Out” is the second track on Ceremonials.)

fall.

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I meant to post these earlier in the week, when they were still an accurate representation of fall here at the lake house. It is colder now — we’ve had a first dusting of snow, all the plants are now on the porch to avoid frost, and I’m back to wearing my uggs as my around-the-house shoes. There’s a sweater on the chair next to my bed, so I can slip on a cozy, warm layer as soon as I’m out from under the covers. I even trapped a mouse (using a jar and my bench scraper) and let him go at the edge of the yard.

Oh, and I made this amazing cauliflower earlier in the week, maybe the same day I snapped all these pictures of the dock and the yard. I think you should drop everything and make some at your house. Seriously — a friend on Facebook said this recipe changed her decades-long dislike of cauliflower. If that isn’t a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is. (And I didn’t even add the yogurt sauce or the pomegranate seeds.)

And then there’s this guy. Silly, silly dog. I think he’s pretty happy that I’ve declared November a research-trip-free month. I’m hoping to get into a rhythm, finally, of everything: writing, knitting, cooking, walking with Boh. I think we’re both creatures of habit, and I’m ready to settle into a balanced routine.

Happy weekend!

“i was thinking that night about elvis…”

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Came home to this. Sat in the second row. And after the show, basked in the glow of it all with a dear friend and a little tumbler of whiskey. Realized that I’ve listened to Gillian and David consistently for all of my post-college life. Their music accompanied me to the other side of the world and back, to the desert and back, and it is often playing on my porch. If you can see them on this tour, do it.

[Blog post title is the opening line of “Elvis Presley Blues.”]

 

 

beginning again.

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Long-time readers will recognize this yarn as the Dream in Color Smooshy that I intended to turn into a Baby Surprise Jacket in February of 2009 for my advisor’s youngest son. I did a less than perfect job of lining up the increases, though, so when it was super close to being finished, I ripped it out, put the yarn on a shelf somewhere, and knit a Baby Sophisticate out of Mission Falls 1824. (It was adorable, and the right idea, as the baby in question was a big baby, and I’m not sure the BSJ would have fit him for very long.) Anyway, lots more babies are on the way in my circle of friends, so over the weekend I found the Dream in Color Smooshy, along with Elizabeth Zimmerman’s brilliant BSJ recipe, and cast on. Right now this fits into a sock project bag, so I’m bringing it with me on my research trip.

And this? Well, it isn’t quite a beginning, but I had to share this picture of an enormous plate of dumplings enjoyed by candlelight on the porch. My cousin and her husband were here for a few days last week. They are in the midst of an epic year of traveling, and in a few weeks, they’ll wrap up the North American segment of their adventures and head to the other side of the world. They’re going to spend three months in Southeast Asia, so we made dumplings. (I’m hoping they’ll visit my favorite dumpling shop in Vientiane, Lao PDR.) I’m so excited for them.

Speaking of traveling, time for me to stop blogging and get back to packing for this week’s research trip. More soon!

the ninety-nine percent.

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I know you don’t come here for the politics, but bear with me. I’m not in NYC, but today I participated in a virtual march together with #occupywallstreet and a whole host of organizations supporting the folks down at Liberty Square. For more, try here, here, and here.

My sign?

I am 29. Grad student. No debt, but minimal savings. My parents paid for college — I won’t be able to do the same for my children someday. I’m not sure that there will be a job for me when I earn my PhD. I know that in many ways, I am lucky. But I am the 99%.

That college education? The most important gift I imagine I will ever receive. It made it possible for me to make choices about my life that had nothing to do with paying back loans. The future? As an academic, very scary. We’re practically tripping over articles and books about the crisis of the American university. I am well aware that the world I am preparing for is changing rapidly. The increasing adjunctification and corporatization of the university have me seriously concerned about what lies ahead. Despite these worries, I know I’m lucky. I grew up comfortably, with access to good healthcare and educational opportunities. (I’m also an adopted kid. Lucky.)

In a system that does not prioritize the needs of the majority of its people, I am lucky. We have serious inequity and injustice. Here. At home. And I appreciate those standing up, in New York and across the country, to advocate for the 99%. #occupywallstreet.

Now, did you want to see another picture of that sock?

I spun this CMF superwash merino in Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds a long time ago, and it has just been sitting, waiting, in my handspun stash. Last night, slowly recovering from the stomach bug, I wound it up and cast on another unfancy sock: 64 st, size 1 dpns. I’m hoping I’ll have enough yarn for a full pair! (My notes say I have 325 yards. I divided the yarn into 2 balls, roughly, and I’m weighing it as I go to get a sense for when I should turn the heel. The answer is soon.)

Today’s breakfast. A good sign. I am feeling much better!

FO: a pair of unfancy socks.

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I’ve finished a pair of socks, and it happens to be socktober. (How did I manage that?) I might like these so much that I’m going to cast on another equally unfancy sock or two. These are 64 st socks with 2×2 rib at the cuff, knit from the cuff down. I loosely followed the Knitmore Girls Vanilla Sock pattern after abandoning the Gentleman’s Fancy Sock I began with.)

Honestly, I wish I hadn’t finished knitting sock #2 quite so soon. See, I’ve spent my morning dealing with an unpleasant stomach bug, and all I’ve been able to do thus far today is sit quietly and knit. (No coffee, even!) I just ate some oatmeal, and so far, it seems to be staying right where I want it. (TMI?) I’m hoping to swap knitting for writing this afternoon — but I guess if working is impossible, knitting is the next best thing. And now I’ve got a new pair of socks!

Also, a new pair of glasses. What do you think? (Can this rooster pull off this look?)

Boh doesn’t seem to mind the new frames — so long as he can stay curled up on the couch. I’m happy to let him handle that part of today’s to-do list!