i'm yarn torn

so, no, the nz blanket is not done. but, it's 1.5 squares away from being done. and no, the baby blanket i started for a girlfriend is not done either, but it's an easy project (garter stitch all the way), so it's easy to pick up whilst watching the mariners.

but, i've bought this pattern and am anxious to get started. it'll be my first sweater, and i want to not only love the yarn but love the final product. the sad thing, though, is that i just got back from a visit to two LYSs and didn't find any yarn (in my price range) that fit the bill perfectly. karabella aurora 8 was the closest, but i'm not 100% sold. which tells me to keep searching.

the pattern calls for a worsted weight wool blend, something like alpaca/merino/silk. i didn't really see any that i loved. so i moved on to consider di.ve teseo which comes in pretty colors, but i'm afraid it's too heavy (wool/microfiber). the yarn i really want to use is cascade pima silk, which i adore after using it for toots's baby blanket. but the knitting lady assured me that it was not the right choice because, being cotton and silk, it will be heavy and drapey.

gak. what to do? yarn suggestions are appreciated.

off to work on one of two blankets.....

laying down a tasty beat

the guy next door is holding a garage sale today. apparently it's not been going very well, because he's now pulled out a stand up bongo drum, and is pounding on it with two wooden mallets. is this similar to a rain dance? is he attempting to conjure up garage sale goers, trinket trackers and junk gypsies?

alas, i fear his garage sale entertainment is not working. i think he should get that mariachi band back.

history, i suppose...

in may, our ISP was having a sale on domains, and i proposed to mickey that we should buy "asteriskforbarry.com". i didn't know what i'd do with it, and plus, we also debated about whether it was fair to single out barry over all the others who admit juicing. in the end, we didn't buy it, and i'm fine with the decision.

i don't support barry bonds if he juiced. i don't really even like him as a player. he's never really done it for me, and lately he seems so bitter and arrogant that i can't stand to look at his surly mug.

oddly enough, though, despite this, a little tiny part of me, at this moment, feels a tiny bit of sympathy for barry bonds and the treatment he gets, not only from the press, but also from mlb upper management. while i haven't seen selig's statement on tonight's accomplishment, i did read with disgust the milquetoast response barry got from selig on 755. selig could have been a bit more congratulatory, or at least more polite. mickey's theory is that selig's response means that mlb knows something that the rest of us don't know. i am not sure what i think of that theory, but can see his logic there.

nevertheless, today history was made, like it or not. i just sure wish that i felt like celebrating it. i just can't find it my bleeding baseball heart to do so.

867-5309

mickey observantly informed me that today at 5:30:9 was the jenny second.

8/6/07 5:30:9

get it?

photo magiq

i finally got around yesterday to uploading our vancouver pix to flickr, so enjoy. what a great trip that was.

speaking of photos, i love the magic of digital photography. it's so fast, so economical, and over the years has allowed me instant gratification for photo viewing after a vacation. i'm not willing to invest in a professional grade digital camera, though, so normally my photos look quite good, but not jaw-droppingly amazing.

we took exactly one roll of film on our vacation to paris and london this year, and just today i had those pix developed. i'm kicking myself now for not taking more film, because the pictures were astounding. the clarity and detail mickey captured with them was gorgeous. there is one photo of big ben that made me feel like i was standing in front of it again.

while i don't think i'll give up digital, i'm definitely ready to recommit to film. i know i'll end up carrying around two cameras, but after looking at this set, it's totally worth it.

business time

we watched this several weeks ago and forgot how funny it was until our friend neffry reminded us of it on wednesday. i've watched it four times since then...and will probably watch it four more times this weekend.

sweet, sweet mariner lovin'

as if wednesday's game wasn't awesome enough, tonight's victory over the bo-sox capped off a fun week to watch baseball as a mariners fan. i'm telling you -- 2 of 3 from the angels, and maintaining position at 1 out of the wild card. now, if we can hold up against daisuke tomorrow.... oh, to be in seattle this weekend....

oh, and one more square of the NZ blanket done. two more to go. i can't find the ball of yarn for the last square. guess i'll deal with that when i get to that point. which will probably be in probably another 4 months. frick.

update: just read this post by a rabid reds fan, and though i don't share a passion for this particular team, i do consider myself a devout follower of the church of baseball she references. plus, it's the most enjoyable writing i've read in a long while. huzzah!

an added bonus

...to buying the iphone is that -- oh joy of joys -- it came with SNL's "dick in a box" video preloaded. i could watch that thing daily. mickey was not impressed. i'm going to interpret statement to "go listen to that somewhere else" as a sign that he's jealous. it probably has nothing to do with the fact that i've told him 50 new things about the iphone tonight.

tonight's accomplishment: learning to set up my email account on the device. now i can send AND receive. not sure this gives me iphone geek status, but i'm pleased with myself. i am woman, hear me download!

two best things today

fresh blueberry cobbler and a li'l thing called an iphone.

sixth sense

all day i had a weird feeling. i thought it was because we were startled awake at 5AM by the deafening sound of our upstairs smoke alarms. it took us nearly 10 minutes to get them to shut off, and for the next four hours i had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. it wasn't the best day at work -- nothing major happened, but it just didn't feel right.

later tonight mickey got a call from his brother. today his parents had to put their old dog, capone, to sleep. i can only imagine what they're feeling. it's better this way -- he was failing quickly and this week they knew it was inevitable. that still doesn't make it easy to say goodbye to a furry friend.

suitcase to suitcase

am swapping suitcase for backpack. we had the best -- absolute best -- time in vancouver with dave and angie. photos forthcoming, but suffice to say i can't imagine a more relaxing and enjoyable time. each day, lazy mornings with coffee turned into busy days of walking 'round vancouver sightseeing, then late nights laughing and chatting. we kayaked through english bay, did the canada day thing on granville island and on the waterfront for fireworks, did some light shopping (both angie and i got fancy new canada day shoes, and hers definitely turned heads), and visited whistler for a day for some hiking and happy hour beers. perfection. it was so wonderful to travel with two people who are on the same wavelength as mickey and me. we're already planning our next trip together -- can't wait!

but back to the backpack. home for two days, and off again, this time camping somewhere in washington with mickey's friend keith and his new wife. as i think about it, how odd that we're seeing two former classmates of mickey's in one week, neither of whom live in portland.

massive laundry pile increasing, and it's potentially one million degrees in the house. no better time to get out of town, i think.

oh, and happy spamiversary to mickey. eight years of wedded bliss. i adore you.

happy canada day!

greetings from vancouver, where we're celebrating the country's 140th birthday. hurrah! we are annoying our canadian friend with all our trivial canadian trivia. "did you know that phil hartman is canadian?" "hey, we love timbits, don't you?" and so forth. today we intend to join the city's celebrations, and when asking our friend angie what a traditional canada day celebration involves, she said, "beer." we are set.

photos later, including of a gorgeous sunset view from our 20th floor hotel, and my new shoes.

what bandwagon?

really, really want an iphone.

really.

best baseball sunday ever

hurrah, the mariners won the cinci series (and i was there to enjoy sunday's live)! at times i was unsure who seattle fans were rooting for more heartily: griffey or the home team. i think the mariners edged griffey out, but it was touch and go, especially after junior hit his second homer of sunday's game, farther than i've ever seen anyone hit a ball in safeco park. it nearly hit the "hit it here" cafe sign, which is typically an aspiration, not an actuality.

note to self: pay the extra $ to sit in terrace club seats more often

and then, the beavers won the CWS! what more could go right with this world, except perhaps finishing this freaking nz blanket. 2.2 squares to go.... it's taking all the strength of my being to not buy new yarn for another project. and did i mention i have to sew seams together still? i'm blocking that part out of my mind.

speaking of knitting, a friend emailed me this uber knitting project the other day. after viewing this, i have no grounds to complain about the nz blanket.

in four days we're headed north to my favorite country where we will meet mickey's friends, the clarinetists, for five days in my favorite city on earth, vancouver bc. rumor has it we're going to try to kayak and do some hikes. i'm excited about walking around stanley park (maybe a picknick and some knitting in the sun...) and to shopping, even though the dollar is so weak now against the loonie and toonie (thanks GW). i'm trying desperately to stay focused on work, which is very busy this week, but i find little thoughts of the gorgeous modern skyline and bright blue harbor creep in my mind at inopportune times. focus, focus focus....

honor

good for you, jason. thank you for restoring my faith in the good guys of baseball.

reading for pleasure

i've not had a lot of time recently to read for pleasure. i think the book "mostly true" from my previous post was the first thing i've read in months, not counting my cooking light magazine, and the occasional article in vanity fair. one of these articles recently caught my attention, and it led me to make a book purchase i feel like i need to hide from public.

yes, yours truly, a true blue liberal, bought "the reagan diaries." in hard back. and, starting today, i'm not ashamed to say it in public: i'm loving every page so far.

i've spent the better part of my politically partisan life despising reagan, with few concrete reasons why, except that i believed he was the poster child for the red party, he racked up billions in deficit, and he was a hollow actor/camera cow, scripted to the n-th degree, idolized by all the politicos i loathe.

however, in a mere 25 pages of his 696 page abridged diary, i've gained a newfound respect for reagan, the man, his marriage to nancy, the international turmoil he dealt with daily. and i'm learning some helpful history lessons about the 80s, a time when i was too young to care what was happening around me (except when the oliver north trials pre-empted my afternoon teevee shows).

i don't think this enlightenment makes me a republican, but i do think it makes me an adult.

in other reading, i am thrilled that my corner borders bookstore carries donna hay magazine. she's somewhat of an australian martha stewart, though modernly hip and sophisticated. the food and decorating tips in the magazine are stunningly gorgeous, and at every page turn, i was dreaming of the meals i could concoct. the only downside is that, due to the opposite seasons in the southern hemisphere, all the recipes are for autumn foods -- butternut squash, baked pies, soups and stews, and heavenly heavy desserts. what a treat it will be to pull this issue out in october!

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two loves

friday night we met up with an old coworker of mickey's from the dot-com days. he's married now with a kidbot who is super fun. the occasion for our reunion was baseball -- mariners vs padres, at their house, because...wait for it: they're bigger baseball fans than perhaps moi. she's the heart and soul behind a mariners fan site that was picked up by the seattle newspaper. their kidbot's middle name is ichiro, and at two years old, he knows names of several players. way cool.

it was fun to get together for a night and chat about all things baseball, with people who genuinely love it. from random stats ("how many ways to get out in a game?") to history, to cheers and jeers for our beloved team (several jeers directed at a "tall cool drink of ugly," her nickname for one said mariner, who'll remain nameless, but points to anyone who can guess).

lining their bookcases were "summerland," "brothers K," and other modern baseball classics. the one i saw missing was "mostly true," by molly o'neill, sister to paul o'neill of yankees fame. received for my bday and just cracked this week, it combines two of my three favorite hobbies, food and baseball, in a touching, amusing and genuine memoir from the only daughter in the o'neill clan. those who don't like baseball won't probably love the book, but coming from a somewhat rabid baseball household, the book resonated with me.

this morning i just finished the book, and the last few pages brought tears to my eyes, for a number of reasons. certainly the end of the book was sentimental as it recounted the 2001 world series, during which o'neill's father passed away and brother paul retired from baseball after winning game 5.

mostly, though, it was one of those books that, upon its conclusion, you feel a sense of loss and emptiness, as though you've said goodbye to a dear friend forever.

it's the same, but different

for the long holiday, mickey and i are visiting my ma at her new house in wyoming. this thing is beautiful. what i love most is that the big, red kitchen, where currently my ma is slaving away over a pot of green chili sauce to smother some burritos. those who know me know my obsession with green chili. stay tuned for the review.

the house is located about six miles outside of town, and last night we sat on the deck watching the sun set over the sandy, scrubby buttes. it was so quiet. i forgot what it's like to be outside the city, because it's been more than a year since we were in a rural setting. i also forgot how many stars appear when there's no city lights to compete.

this morning on my walk on the country road, i saw a field that was full of dead refrigerators and other appliances. i'm going to try to sneak into the field later to take a photo, but i'm a little afraid that if i do, i'll get shot. we're talking about wyoming, after all.

tippy or tipsy?

i had the great fortune of spending this weekend with our friend john from georgia. we met him a couple years ago through toots, and have since then had a blast when he comes through portland for conferences or other activities. what was supposed to be an afternoon of hang-out time turned into nearly two full days of QT. highlights, in photo:

day at the beach with four environmental scientists...
and did i mention i suck at biology?

mickey and john at the chinese garden

bonsai

while at the chinese garden we escaped the pouring rain at the tea house. note to self: next time, don't order tippy south cloud (a tea), because it has such a ridiculous name that none of us could shut up about it for the next 4 hours. iterations included: tippy south park, tippy south paw...on and on. one would think the tea was alcoholic for how idiotic we were about the name, but no, none of us was drunk.

it was such an unexpectedly terrific weekend, and despite the rain, we had an amazing day. back to work tomorrow....

final note: one more square done on the new zealand blanket. hallelujia. 3 more to go.......