it's about time

that i posted again, lol
This is a picture of the prototype of the stocking pattern i submitted to the crochet calendar for 2007. this is posted per the request of the recipient, Lisa, because somebody happened to mention the 2006 calendar, and i said i hadn't bought it yet, but that i wouldn't have to buy the 2007. they flipped, lol, and Lisa asked i post the pic again. i told her after i got the costumes done. well, liam's is almost done (just attaching the yards of cheesecloth you saw earlier), and sean isn't going (although his is done as well, lol). sean, if he behaves well, will get to wear his costume as he's handing out treats (we do all kinds of stuff at this OTC house, lol)

This is the pic that i promised jon i would post, because he was lamenting the lack of fall color in colorado, except for some vine in his parents' backyard. well, here it is, my mammoth burning bush. yes, those are the eaves just above it. i figure this thing is 8 feet tall, and maybe 15 feet around. it was smaller when i bought the house, but now i know why they tied it up, it spreads like mad! it is gorgeous though, and in the summer it has this lovely dark green foliage, with triangular stems. very pretty. i have pruned this thing rather viciously, and it still florishes!


This crappy picture is the hat i'm making from the manos SaunShine gave me in my last package from her. you can barely see the cables crossing in the picture under the knitting, as well as the cables crossing in the hat itself. if you squint (please do!) this is quite lovely, and was supposed to be my entrant into the hat contest at SoP, but with the halloween gig, and sean's contrempts, and the frogging 8 times (i'm not kidding!), it was not meant to be. so i'm going to either enter the yellow elf hat i made the boys with handspun yarn, or my black and rainbow chenille elf hat that i made extra big to fit over my hair clips. i'll let you know what i decide tomorrow night (after i've entered it, lol).

the costume contest at work should be interesting tomorrow. i'm wearing sean's costume, with elf ears. ought to be fun.

you might be a redneck if you have to roll up your sleeve and look at your arm to spell your wife's name (booooooooooooooooooooooooo!)
. . . you own a pair of cutoffs made from double-knit pants (shudder, gag).

Pattern of the Day: 10/28: Queen Anne's Lace Scarf. This is very pretty, but kinda boring visually.
10/29-30: Jacks Stitch. this looks fun. it's lots of yarn overs & k2tog's, in 4 rows, then 4 rows stocking. very fun, and they suggest it for a child's cardigan or pullover.

What i'm reading:
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon (sorry, lanea, i still love it, lol)
The Wolves of Calla by Stephen King
Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down by sherrilyn kenyon (and 2 others, but i'm too lazy to get up and look)
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (booktape in house, almost done, lol)
Phantom Menace By Terry Brooks (booktape in the car, this is Star Wars, episode 1)

now i'm off to play with cheesecloth again!

Have a Happy and SAFE Halloween!

one more

and i'm off to bed.

i bought jeans for mark online at langstons, and i'm very pleased. he wears a hard-to-find size (34x38) and they are very expensive at that. i bought these for 34.95 USD, plus free shipping over $100 (i bought 3 pair). they got here today, and they still have price tags on them from the store (they have a brick & mortar store in oklahoma as well). the tags say $55! that would not be including sales tax! i'm extremely tickled! i may never shop in a B&M for mark again. as tall and thin as he is, it's hard to find stuff to fit him properly, but if i can find deals like this online, i'm all for it!

now to knitting. i have been knitting a tiny bit. i finished the baby booties & hat to go with the sweater. now i need to do a blanket (but that will wait a bit). however, i'm thoroughly pissed off at my Manos. i'm trying to make an original creation hat for SoP's hat contest which the cut off date for is MONDAY! and the fucking thing has been frogged 8 times. i kid you not, 8 times. i keep getting something screwed up. i'm seriously tempted to go find liam's handspun elf hat, and turn that in. just because i made it 2 years ago doesn't mean i didn't make it, and i did spin the yarn myself as well. it's a thought.

catch ya on the flip side, i need sleep after today.

quickie

this is a quickie post, due to the fact that i realized i havent' posted since last weekend (thursday?) and i need to say that i'm ok, i just got wrapped up in halloween costumes, sigh. of course, one will not be worn by the intended recipient. sean blew it today, and did not get the required points at school to earn trick or treating, so he is staying home with me this year. heart break all around, this is liam's last year, and mark was really looking forward to taking both boys out.

you might be a redneck if you know of at least 6 different ways to bend the bill of a baseball cap (hey steph, this means you're a redneck!)
. . . the sweetest music you've ever heard was the sound of a pack of dogs running through a swamp at midnight.
. . . you have a hook inyour shower to hang your hat on.
. . . you buy your cough medicine at the liquor store.
. . .your yard has more than 10 ceramic figurines.

Pattern of the Day: (10/21-10/23) Blue Ocean Tunic. The name of this comes from the yarn, but it's not a no-brainer! very simple, but pretty tunic. this wouldn't be bad for charity purposes.
10-24: Wineglass Lace Bookmark. This is done in such a way, that it really does look like wineglasses. i like it, and it's a simple intro into lace knitting (which i will try to get into some day)
10-25: Turtleneck Turtle Top. this is one of those things you wear under another shirt, but all it does is cover your neck and part of your shoulders. does anybody remember what the heck those things are called? (my day was bad, and my brain is fried into nonexistence.)
10-26/10-27: Entrelac Afghan. now this is NOT the full afghan done in entrelac in one piece(whew!). it's done in panels, with knitted borders. looks cool though!

Have a nice day!

halloween is 11 days away

and i' so screwed. i'm still working on sean's tunic, haven't even looked at his cape, and i've still got liam's, mark's and mine to do. i may have to send out a sewing sos, and go visit mark's mom saturday afternoon. two sewing machines (and operators) are better than one, that's for sure. so i'm sitting here pinning sleeve facings. sigh.

since i can't pin while i am reading blogs, this is what i did. this is the manos that saunshine sent me when i was her secret pal. this stuff is yummy. of course, it's much purpler in real life. i'll be using this to make my hat for the contest at SoP (if i can get it done in time, the contest ends oct 31, so i'll have to take it october 30th (can't cut into trick or treat time!)). wish me luck. i've got too many projects due by the end of hte month, sigh.

These delectable little lovelies are my downfall. thank god i've only got one tin ful. what are they, you ask?

These are katydids, aka turtles. creamy cararmel, cruchy pecans, and luscious creamy milk chocolate. mmmmmmmmmm. i didn't know they were called turtles until i was an adult. my grandmother in wyoming used to have tins of candy all the time, and these were one of them. the other was a "pillow" candy that was crunchy on the outside, and creamy peanut butter in the middle. butterfingers, eat your heart out.

i went to sit & knit, and had a most enjoyable time, for the brief time i was there. i knit 4 rows of the baby afghan (and that heart pattern is not easy to do when your'e trying to chat). i did do it though. erin and alcariel brought in their hats (a "blossom" style feltie and a "hatmione " (the hat hermione wears in PoA)). much beauteousness going on. a new lady came in, and becky introduced us all. after that, i looked at her, and said "i feel like i should stand up and say "hi, my name is minnie, and i'm a yarnoholic." good fun, even if too brief.

sean had a horrendous day at school, so we had a "talk." (mark and i talked, sean listened). needless to say, mark and i are highly peeved. his teacher even wrote a note saying "what else can i do? got any ideas?" he just won't see reason. any of you have ideas?

You might be a redneck ifyou own a lava lamp more than 5 feet tall.

Pattern of the Day: Kalinka Kosy Scarf. This comes close to non-pattern, but the yarn looks fluffy and fun (even if it's novelty), and the pattern does have some interest. a thought, but with cheaper yarn, please.

Waht i'm reading:

A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon.

Night Pleasures by Sherrilyn Kenyon (again, a fantastic author)

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (book tape in car)

Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (book tape in house)

Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings. and yes, deb, silk is cool, lol.

Have a nice day!

bestill my beating heart

i'm not sure what i feel right now, but stephanie just dropped a bombshell, and the boys (liam in particular) are upset. she's moving out. however, she is going someplace safe, at least (no, she's not moving in with her dad, i would not consider that safe). her friend shae is moving in with her mom in missouri (she stayed here because she had a scholarship, but life has become intolerable here, so she's abandoning the scholarship, and moving back in with her mom, and finishing school there), and steph is going with her. apparently they are going to rent out the basement. when steph had been living with her dad (forced to by the state, btw!) there had been talk of her moving in with shae & her family so she could go back to blair to school for her senior year, but the state refused to pay foster care when she was living with her father without them having to pay a dime. heaven forbid it might actually be BETTER for the child to live where she's happy, but, hey, what do i know?

wow. on one hand TWO DOWN, TWO TO GO! on the other hand, we were finally starting to pull a few of the pieces together, from the damaged caused by my ex. sigh. time to let go. she will be 20 in january. she does claim that the plan is to work for now, and then transfer to Northwest Missori State NEXT fall. if she goes back to school at this point, i will consider it a minor miracle.

however, she's leaving some of her stuff. at least it will come back here when/if she goes to school, because there will be no room in the dorms. i'm thinking i'll leave her room alone for a while, and if things look good down there, i'll let liam move down there, and put her stuff out in the main basement.

that has been the plan. the boys' room is small (about 10x10 with bunk beds, 2 dressers, a set of shelves , and 3 doors & a window (the doors take up wall space we can't use), and the boys are growing way too fast. i was looking at liam today while he was talking to mark, and realized the little shit isn't so little any more. he's taller than me, and the only reason i outweigh him is because i'm out of shape. oh my. and his upper lip is getting fuzzy, and i can hear his voice deepening. He's only 13! and just barely (his birthday was late august, if you will recall). ok, it's official, i'm getting old.

back to steph. i'm a little worried, but not like if she was moving down there on her own. i know holly (shae's mom) will make sure she's ok. holly loves her like a second daughter. but still. it's at least 2 or 3 hours away. and liam's crushed. liam hates change. and he misses his sister alot as it is right now (granted, they are half brother & sister, but they were raised as full siblings, and treat each other as such). this is definitely one to work on in therapy. wow.


I did get a little knitting done today. i've gotten 2 rows on teh baby afghan, and a little started on a hat to go with the sweater i posted this morning.

i went to touche, the yarn store that is one block from my therapist's, and bought stuff for my not so secret pal. hope you like it, mamaloo, i'm gonna try to pack it up tonight and mail it in the morning. i hope air mail to canada isn't too expensive, lol.

I also bought more of that lovely green goodness i bought in august for A4A. i figure i can make a hat & a skinny scarf for steph for christmas, since she'd commented that she liked the color. a green christmas indeed. and she did say she'd be home for christmas.


You might be a redneck if you dress to impress no one.
. . . you've ever thrown up in a squad car.
. . . the grocery store manager has to ask yor husband to quit harassing the lobsters. (ew?)

Pattern of the Day: (10-17 & 18) Fruit Patterns. This is for the Jewish festival of Sukkot. They are cute, and i may even find a use for this pattern some day. maybe i'll make knitted fruit to put in a bowl on my table? (like to see someone bite into that, lol! talk about fiber in your diet!)

10-19 Bulky Drop Stitch Vest. cute but it's been done before. ever see the vest on a knitting magazine cover a few years back (almost 3 years ago, i believe) that was done with colinette point 5. sigh.

have a nice day

pics and not much else

sunset monday night. aren't those colors gorrgeous?

This is the motif that i'm working in the blanket. in this pic i'm about half way through the chart. i've had a few problems, but nothing major.


This is the full view of the blanket. i'd better hurry, eh? (shower is nov 6!)


This is the sweater i've made as a part of a buddy project for AC4C. the colors are close to a print that Bobbie from AC4C is using for sleepers. granted hers is on a white background, but, ya know!

more later

have a good day

take THAT!

finally, the proof that comfort can come before "fashion." thanks to erica for that bit of enlightenment.

also thanks to erica for this. monkey spank indeed, lol!

speaking of thanking erica, we can thank her for the following meme (i love these things, they make great blog fodder when you've got nothing to talk about)

THREE THINGS I DON’T UNDERSTAND:
1. Why some people feel the need to run everyone else's lives. leave me be.
2. How a child who is obviously intelligent can fail classes.
3. Trigonometry (actually, i don't understand religious terrorists. i suppose this one stems back to #1)

THREE THINGS ON MY DESK:
1. A trophy Sean got (don't ask me what for i can't recall and he's not home to ask)
2. 3 different types of lotion
3. Both my calendars.

THREE THINGS I’M DOING RIGHT NOW:
1. Blogging
2. Knitting (imagine that)
3. Writhing in pain (actually, it's much better, lol)

THREE THINGS I WANT TO DO BEFORE I DIE:
1. Have my stinky brother back.
2. Live in Scotland for a month.
3. Live to see my great-great-great grandchildren

THREE THINGS I CAN DO:
1. Come up with a meal out of ANYTHING. (that depression cooking my mother did taught me oodles)
2. Give my all to everything i do.
3. Give any fiber-related craft a shot ( i CAN embroider, cross stitch, etc, i just don't like doing them, so i don't)

THREE WAYS TO DESCRIBE MY PERSONALITY:
1.Fun loving
2.Caring
3.Compassionate

THREE THINGS I CAN’T DO:
1. Do a half-assed job.
2. Delegate what i consider my duty. i will take my mother and my children to their respective dr appointments, dentist appointment, etc, and not shove it off on someone else.
3. Draw a 6 with my right hand and turn my foot clockwise (try it, it's nigh on impossible!)

THREE THINGS I THINK YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO:
1. your inner voice that says "are you sure you should do that?" it's right 95% of the time.
2. Johnny Cash's later stuff. "Hurt" and "Personal Jesus" are amazing.
3. The sweet sound of your child (or if you don't have any, a niece or nephew) reciting something near and dear (for me, it's the pledge of allegience)

THREE THINGS I DON’T THINK YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO EVER:
1. Any song that talks about dissing ho's, or beating women, or killing people cuz you don't like the looks of them.
2. A man(or woman) who tells you "i won't do it again, it was an accident, you made me mad."
3. The excuses a 13-year old makes for not finishing his homework.

THREE THINGS YOU SAY:
1. I had a brain fart.
2. I love you, honey.
3. Get real.

THREE THINGS YOU’D LIKE TO LEARN:
1. To play bass guitar.
2. Ballroom dancing
3. To sculpt.

THREE BEVERAGES YOU DRINK REGULARLY:
1. Water
2. Milk
3. Ice Tea

THREE SHOWS YOU WATCHED WHEN YOU WERE A KID:
1. The Muppet Show
2. The A-Team
3. Starsky & Hutch

THREE THINGS YOU WISH PEOPLE WOULD LEARN TO DO:

1. Realize the world does NOT revolve around them.
2. Give something of themselves at least once a month (and not just money. there's something gratifying about the charity knitting i do. it's a part of me)
3. Smile more.

Ok, i'm not going to tag anyone (i know, most of ya hate memes, anyway) but please, feel free to hock it.

i fall to pieces (think patsy cline)

That, if you look closely, is a fingernail broken to the quick. sigh. the fingernails on both my index fingers curve when they grow out (anybody know why?) and tend to break if i'm not careful. i was being nice, as a coworker in the mailroom had forgotten her phone on her desk, and it kept trying to ring. now, we aren't supposed to have our phones on at all, so i was being altruistic, and hit the button to turn the ringer off, as her phone is very similar to mine. needless to say, she was sitting to my left, and the fingernail cracked way too far down.

You'll notice the rest of my nails are relatively long and pretty (who'da thunk that would ever happen with me?!?) . so yes, i'm a bit perturbed by this, particularly since the same thing had happend on my right hand 3 weeks ago, and that nail is still growing out. thank god i'm able to catch these before the damage is too great. they're tender, but no blood.

and yes, that's sapphires in my engagement ring. my first two engagement rings were diamonds, and neither set were of my choosing. the first set was my then mother-in-law's, and i found out after 7 years of marriage to the momma's boy, that the ring was actually on loan! i was to give it back! WHAT! that man never did know me well. i would have gone without, rather than taken a ring that i couldn't keep, sigh.

the second set was diamond as well, but yellow gold on top of that. yet again another case of a man who never truly knew me. you'll notice that not only is this sapphires, it's white gold. he asked first, lol. he may have not known me as well as he would have possibly liked, but he knew to ask. this one is definitely a keeper
This is what i've been working on this weekend. yes, it's big. but he's happy with it, and i intend on hemming it shorter so that it's not quite so long on him. i'm unable to work on it tonight though, because apparently the back ache mark had last week is catching. i got out of the car, after we had visited his parents today, and almost coudln't walk into the house. i ended up sleeping for about 2 hours at his house, while he and sean played downstairs.

Mark is very pleased with sean's progress, musically. Sean has had 4 lessons, and mark believes he is really getting it. and the choice to be downstairs as long as they were was sean's, not mark's. mark is impressed with sean's concentration on this. this is something that sean wants, and badly at that. it started out as him wanting to play with dad, as it was a connection, and it's turned into something on its own for him. he loves it. and i will do what i can to help. seriously. do you have any idea how much a left-handed electric guitar costs? but it's amazing to listen to him. he's actually getting it! and while he's not perfect (makes me wince, lol), i can hear the music. mark is teaching him an original his group (centerfuze) does, and i can hear it. wow. if he ever gets to the level that kevin (the guitarist who is teaching him) plays in that song, he will truly be an excellent player.

Liam has been lying again. Friday night i got an email from his math teacher stating that he'd been given a list of make up work due by tuesday for the quarter. he'd told mark he didn't have any homework. so, we asked him why he didn't tell us. he said "because i thought i could get away with it." WTF! i'm in email contact with most of his teachers, and the administrator, at least 3 to 4 times a week, and he knows it. wow. i know he's not stupid, so it has to be sheer bloody-mindedness. needless to say, he's had to devote his entire weekend to homework, as he had over 20 assignments to catch up on.

You might be a redneck if your favorite pet is edible.
. . . your first bra was a Wonderbra (i knew a girl once who we said that her living bra had commited suicide, does that count?)

Pattern of the Day: Clouds. This scarf is fascinating, and amazingly simple from the looks of it. for lack of a better term, it's thrummed. however, the thrums are mohair locks, left to dangle, and look fluffy and curly. it's actually cute, but i'd never wear it.

Pattern of the Weekend: Surprise Mittens. I like these, but they're made with sock yarn. i like my mittens thick, and warm, and i can't imagine sock yarn would do it for me ( i have arthritis in my hands, and warmth is an issue.)

What I'm reading:
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (booktape in the house)
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie (booktape in the car)
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon
The Woves of the Calla by Stephen King (this is book 5 of the dark tower series, i was way behind on these, apparently)

and i finished a book that was absolutely amazing, as romance novels go. It was Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon. This is one outside the regular realm of romance. The premise is a man is cursed to live in a book, until summoned by a woman who says his name 3 times on a full moon, and is to be her love slave for the month, until the next full moon. this time, the woman does it unbelieving, and then sets about to free him. this woman writes well. i started this book at 1230 last night (this morning?) and finished it at 10 this morning. a very fast, fascinating read. if you like romance, you gotta go check it out (warning, it is semi-graphic, for those who don't care for that sort of thing (VBEG))

have a nice dya

light & dark

This is the 5 hour baby sweater i've been talking about. the colors are actually pretty accurate! i decided to use the "scene" setting on my camera, and by jove, i've got more accurate colors! the blue isn't quite so robin's egg, but the rest is about right! amazing. the reason why it's looking a bit wonky is because i was working on this at sit & knit (more about that later, lol) and didn't have a spare pair of needles with me, so i just left the stitches on the needle and worked the sleeve. almost like short-rowing, but no involvement with the other sections, lol. this is redheart from my stash (honest mark, i'm really trying not to buy more yarn!) and i like it! for some reason, this pattern is coming out easier than the regular 5 hour baby sweater (this is the boys' version). i don't know why.

And here is the gorgeous roving that erin got me on her trip to minneapolis. i think she got this at creative fibers in edina, but check my comments from the post where i mentioned it earlier. once again, scene setting on my camera, and this is relatively accurate. it's about 7 1/2 ounces. i'm thinking i don't want to ply it on itself, for fear of muddying the colors, but the offwhite i have won't work either. i'm thinking i need grey. now to find grey fiber. hmmmm. anybody got any sources? this stuff is amazingly soft, so i want a close match.


This was a major laugh on a night when i needed it. Fillyjonk had it on her blog, and threatened to do it if it weren't for the fact that she's teaching that night. this would have come in handy last year with liam and his toxic waste costume.

Go oggle Franklin's new sweater. amazing that this is his first! wish i were going to rheinbeck to see it. and all the bloggers that will be there as well. i wish we had a S&W festival here, but the few sheep raised are meat sheep, sigh, and their wool isn't too hot for anything but rugs. sigh.

I did get to go to sit & knit tonight, and met a few new people, and oggled some gorgeous stuff. there's a lady there named meeka (a total guess on the spelling) that crochets the most gorgeous stuff! she'd made a moebius wrap with the twist being just chains. hard to describe, but erin knows what i mean, she saw it. it was stunning. and she's like meh, no biggie. wow! she had made a lace ponchette, and it was too small for her, so she gave it to another girl there, who was a little smaller (very petite thing, i'm jealous) because she didn't want it to go to waste. goodness. apparently she regularly gives her stuff away.

i had to leave early though, because sean had another bad day. i was so frustrated this morning with his lack of speed with getting dressed that i started crying. mark was furious over that one. i always plan to leave the house around 10 after, and we left at 21 after. liam and i were both this close to being late. i had signed up for a little overtime, and almost didnt' make it. sigh. sean did apologize to me tonight about making me cry, but while he may mean it now, what about later? he keeps saying, i'll do better, i'll behave, but then the next day, he's just as bad. i have a feeling it's got to do with the discussions he and mark have been having. while this stuff needs to come out, i'm expecting the behaviors to not be better for a bit. mark thought maybe he should back off, but i told him, this is going to happen no matter what, and if sean is ready now, for god's sake don't stop! sean has opened up more in the last few weeks than he has in the last 4 years. i'm not going to discuss what happened here, but if you can get ahold of a copy of Cheaper than Therapy, you'll learn more there.

goodness. it's been 4 years since my life went to hell in a handbasket. now i wax philosophical. sometimes i wonder if i really learned anything in the last 4 years, and then again, i'm told i'm different. not the same woman. 4 years ago, i would have called myself a girl. not now. i suppose i'm growing up whether i want to or not.

i saw my ex-husband yesterday. while i knew it was going to happen, and was braced for it, it was still a shock to see him. i think i looked at him for a total of 2 seconds, and never looked at him again the entire time. i saw no changes. a little thinner, and a little greyer, but nothing else. and the attitude i heard yesterday confirmed it. some of us grow and change, and some don't.

thank god mark was there with me. it made everything so much easier. i knew he had my back. to have someone you know will back you, no matter what, but is willing to tell you when you're fucking up, and love you heart and soul, none the less, that is truly priceless. i'm so glad he came into our lives.

You might be a redneck if our local grocery store also has a few pool tables. (sounds familiar!)

Pattern of the Day: Rib warmer. this is a vest, done completely in garter stitch. i may make up a few for the november project, depending on my knitting progress for christmas prezzies.

and yes erin, the cd's rock. i love listening to gaelic singers.

Have a nice day

anonymous comments

i do apologize, but i can no longer allow anonymous comments. i have received information that someone who does not have my and my family's best interests at heart has been reading my blog, and as this is a bit ticklish, i can no longer allow those kinds of comments. please accept my apologies, those of you who prefer to comment that way. the ones i care about have my email address, and can email their comments to me if they wish.

however, i will not change my blog in any other way. if this person takes vicarious pleasure from reading about my and my family's daily doings, that's fine. i don't care. if i did, i wouldn't post, now would i?

nuts to you.

i had today off for certain duties, and dealt with them accordingly.

i did go to walmart as well, and did buy batteries, but i have to recharge them, so no pics yet, sigh. i spent way too much money. however, i am now the proud owner of some interesting cd's, and i'll listen to them later. right now i'm listening to a book tape, so :P. one of them is highland christmas (god, i love bagpipes) and the other was Celtic Wonder. yes, they were those hokey cd's that you hear playing in any megamart store. and you know what? i've bought these before, and often the music is quite good!

i didn't get much knitting done today, as i didn't take it with me, but i did get a little done. i'm up to row 22 on the 5 hour baby sweater.

and mark took the rest of the day off. granted, we didn't get to spend the whole time together (he hates walmart with a passion, and can only be convinced to go very early on saturday or sunday morning, lol), but it was nice to nuggle on the couch for the little bit of time we had.

sean has been talking alot to mark, and more stuff is coming out. hopefully, if enough of this is discussed, his behavior will improve. i'm concerned that he is headed down a path that isn't good for him.

You might be a redneck if the owner of a restaurant had to ask you to "please move away from the salad bar before you start eating."

Pattern of the Day: Portland hat. ummmm, ok. it's made with novelty yarn. nuff said.

What I'm Reading:
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (book tape in the house)
Sittaford House by Agatha Christie (book tape in the car)
Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings. i've read these before, almost 20 years ago, and had forgotten how they had gone. it's interesting, but since it's a paperback, i can't read it while knitting, so it's strictly bedtime reading, so i only get a few pages read before "my eyes slam shut" as michelle has said before, lol.
A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon. This is typical outlander style, andi love it. however, it's my knitting reading, so it's been relegated to weekends for now, since i've got so many projects going that need full attention.

Have a nice Day!

i don't understand

why would you do your homework, only to NOT turn it in, and get crappy grades, especially when you have proven you know the work? that's the case with Liam and half his classes. in math in particular (he's getting a D) the teacher says his quiz grades average to an 89%. that is emminently acceptable. she said that it shows he knows what he's doing. however, he's missing 8 assignments, and has only turned in 6 of 23 warm ups (they do quick math at the beginning of the class). hence the D. and he has math homework every day. and we ride him on it. is this his idea of rebellion? all it's earning him is no video games or tv, and us being that much harder on him. i just don't get it. i didn't do this in jr high.

sean has come up with more stuff his BF did to him, so mark had to report it to CPS at the behest of the therapist. it's one more nail in that SOB's coffin tomorrow.

i started the 5 hour baby boy sweater last night, and got quite a ways with it tonight, only to have to frog the whole bloody thing. i missed counts some where, so when i got to dividing for fronts, sleeves and back, the count was way off. sigh. so now i'm back to row 5. no pics yet, i'm thinking i 'm going to buy (yet another ) pack of rechargeable batteries tomorrow, and hide these. sigh.

i had a migraine all day, and didn't start feeling better until i talked to mark on my afternoon break. hmmm. he really is my sunshine. i thank god for him.

You might be a redneck if the uninvited guests at your family reunion were the SWAT team.
. . . your septic tank is the subject of a petition.

Pattern of the Day: 10-10 Chill Chasers Scarf. there ya go, the sensible bit to this combo. i still dont' see where the wrap fits in, lol.

10-11: Dayna Raglan T-Neck Pullover. i like this. it's oversized, and apparently made with one HUGE skein of dayna which is 78% mohair, 13 % wool, and 9% nylon. i could do this!

oh and btw, since i didn't blog yesterday, happy thanksgiving to all the canadians out there!

and rose's husband passed away on saturday, and there are rumors running around that cheryl's son passed away friday night. he never got the hat. :*(
Have a nice day!

what a girl wants

i got this from my secret pal's blog (yeah, i blew it early, god curse blogger and their habit of assuming you want to comment under your own user name, sigh).

you type "YOUR NAME needs" into google, and see what comes up. apparently, i need a lot of strange stuff. let's see.

Minnie needs a seating system with a scapular height back

Minnie needs some convincing so Mary says they'll use the money to purchase newequipment for the hospital.

minnieneeds to direct her attention to paige (this was on the keanu gossip page (drool))

First of all Minnie needs to get Bit&* slapped (wow! i'm sorry!)

It also appears that Minnie needs to shave her legs before her next performanceas we see small hair folicles on them (no fair, who's looking that close!)

Minnie's needs are more often met with drugs, sex predicated on distorted powergames, rape, and neglect (?!?!?!?!?)

Jeanette had a curious set of circumlocutions, which she used instead of thesimple and vulgar terms which served Minnie's needs

"Minnie" needs more exposure......she should be in magazines, newspapers, talkshows, on t-shirts and baseball caps! (hear hear!!!)

minnieneeds to diet (ok, who's been looking at my scale!)

I think Jan is right, Minnie needs a brotheror sister hint hint By the way, I didn't realize Minnie had a full tail...


ok, that's enough of that. whew, who knew!

oops

i owe erin
an apology. i forgot to mention the most delicious roving she got me for a prezzie from minneapolis. i apologize, i don't recall where she got it, but it's gorgeous, with streaks of green and purple. and so soft! i can't wait to spin it up (however, i've got all my bobbins full, sigh).

still no piccies, i am battery-less. sigh. little rat child. he claims there was only one battery in the camera, but there are batteries scattered all over the place, sigh.

i'm having some trouble with the hearts in the baby afghan i'm making. i'm going to go back and read the chart, and then see where i screwed up (if it's not a case of errata), and fix the whole row. blech. it has been progressing quite prettily until now.

speaking of the baby afghan, i ended up speaking with the giftee today. sean has her phone number memorized (she made him memorize it just in case while he was there (he hasn't lived there in a year, and he still remembers the number, now why can't he remember ours? he has mark's memorized too, and i have to watch that he doesn't swipe the phone when he's angry with me, and not call mark at all odd hours)), and while i thought he was calling mark, he knocked on the bedroom door at 8:15 this morning and said "someone wants to speak to you." it was karen! she was surprised as well. she is doing well, except she has bronchitis (she gets too run down when she's pregnant, and she's due in 8 weeks (ack, i'd better hustle!)). she has two foster children right now, one of which started kindergarten at 4! her birthday was last week, and she turned 5.

i really think nebraska needs to rethink their law about when a child can start school. sean was barely able to handle it, with a birthday of august 8, while liam was not able to handle it, and ended up repeating first grade. that was the best thing i could have ever done for him (i say i, and not we, because the ex bucked me all the way on it. i prevailed), because it gave him a chance for some maturity, and went from being the youngest in his class to the oldest. he will still only be 18 when he graduates.

if he gets his act back together. he lied to mark and told him that he'd filled out his daily planner, when he hadn't.

what happened to my sweet little boy that would do everything he was told, with a smile on his face and a "yes, mommy, i love you"? this thirteen year old demon is horrible, and tempermental, and sneaky. he snuck a controller out of my room AGAIN, and this time had to dig for it! so the playstation is at mark's, as well as all the video games, AND the gaming books. sean will be allowed to play over there IF he behaves, but liam is being sequestered in the upstairs until we see his grades improve. and his behavior. he ended up in his room all day because he took off when i told him he could ride his bike, and went somewhere he KNEW he wasn't allowed to go (i wouldn't have found out if the neighborkids hadn't told me), and was gone for hours. then he screamed at me, so he lost sweets for today and tomorrow, and refused to stay in his room, so he lost reading at marks. there wasn't much else to to take! is 13 too old to put in the corner?

i am a bad girl. i've given up on the "diet" thing. i've been doing it for 3 weeks, and i havne't lost a single pound. i'm going to try to fit more excercise in my day, and see if that helps. of course, it doens't help that No Frills had milky way dark fun size bars on sale for $2.25 a bag. sigh.

we aren't even going to discuss steph, i need to keep my blood pressure down.

Have a nice Day!

i would but . . .

i would post piccies, but i have a few problems. yes, blondie did have my camera. she took it with her last night to take pictures at haunted houses (she adores this time of year for that alone), and then ended up not taking any. i do have my camera back, but sean was on a battery quest as his guitar teacher gave him a cd player to listen to cd's (he has listening homework) and i told him he'd have to buy his own batteries (the kid has more cash than i do at the moment!). so, instead of patiently waiting for me to go buy some (tomorrow, i'm in for the night) he steals mine out of my camera! and i can only find one. sigh.

oops, brb, i just spilled goldens & cherries all over my jeubpard.

whew, that could have been disasterous! have you ever had goldens & cherries? it's a product made by sunmaid, and it's golden raisins (which are not as sweet as regular ones) and dried cherries. very tasty, and addicting.

i did knit today. i am on row 9 of the chart for the hearts for my first row of hearts on the baby afghan. i went to hobby lobby today (to buy halloween costume stuff, honest!) and hunted for apink that would go well with the pink i'm using for the afghan, to use for the sweater, as teh sweater pattern is baby weight, and the pink i'm using for the afghan is worsted weight. i got out of there with one skein of baby weight pink, a skein of bernat camo, a bunch of purple mums (flowers were half off, if i had known that, iwould have sat down and made a list, as i'm starting wedding flowers!) a scary sounds cd (i have a 3 cd player, and i figured i could just play all 3 cds in a row without repeating all night!), and a gravevine wreath i'm using to make a gandalf staff for mark.

speaking of costumes, i did take my pattern and measure it against sean (i'm using the xs for him, teh small for liam, and the xl for mark, with subtractions for sean and additions for mark, lol). and i got all the paper cut out. now i gotta pin, cut and sew. sigh. at least it's some progress.

my brother (the non-stinky one) sent me an email to call, because he and his wife are coming for thanksgiving! granted they are flying in late wednesday night, and leaving early saturday (i can't get out of work friday wah!) but he will be here! cool! the last thanksgiving they were here did not turn out too well, sigh. sherrill and mark went at it (she thought it was too soon after my ex for me to be "dating" and found a note i had written him calling him my husband (we were engaged even then (2 years ago!)) and that was all she wrote. sherrill is very opinionated, and mark decided he'd had enough, and went downstairs and played, before he said something he'd regret.) of course, bob took her side, and i took mark's, and thanksgiving turned to shit. they stayed home with my mom and bought one of those turkey dinners in a box, and we went to mark's parents, and nobody was happy. however, she did call and apologize for her behavior (she said she called her sister for advice, and her sister said "you did that in HIS house?"). so we did get together before they went back, but it was still rough. however, there's been time & distance in there, and i think (and hope) everybody has mellowed out. thanksgiving will be at my house, so ig et to cook again (joy). thanksgiving is not my favorite holiday. it's a lot of work, and headache, and i'm always exhausted and crabby by the time we eat. not fun. at least this year i'll have 2, maybe 3 ovens to utilize (i think i'll throw some stuff in my mom's oven, and have them bring it when they come). mark lives 5 minutes from here, so that will be a piece of cake.

and he's a magnificent cook. i lucked out. not only did i find a man who can cook, he can cook almost (hey, i cna't give him that much credit) as well as i do, and loves to do it. i still do over 50% of the cooking, but sometimes we cook together (that's ALWAYS fun), and sometimes he fills in, and does it himself. especially on man night (he and the boys do fun stuff while i go to knit night).

What i'm reading:
Lord John & the Private Matter by Diana Gabaldon (book tape in the car)
Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (book tape in the house)
A Breath of Snow & Ashes by Diana Gabaldon (gee, looks like i'm addicted, eh? i got the book tapes before my book arrived, as i was hankering for some Diana)
Girls in Pants: The Third Summer by Ann Brashares. i'm reading this now, even though i just got it today, because it's on the "list" and i'll have to take it back in 3 weeks.

You might be a redneck if your car and its motor are more than 10 feet apart.

Pattern of the Weekend: Chill Chasers Eyelet Pattern Wrap. this is the 4th piece of the set, and somehow it doens't quite go. hat, mittens, ear muffs and . . . wrap? i would think scarf, but eh, what do i know. it is a pretty pattern, and one i may use.

Have a nice day!

i'm such a flake

and here's the place to prove it. wanna see what i did?

see isn't it so pretty? this website is kinda fun, and a great time waster. gee erin, i bet you could do this for hours! and no itty bitty pieces of paper to pick up!

what got me started was cutting out pattern pieces for the boys' costumes (all 3 of them, lol!) mark is insisting on a semi-authentic gandalf staff, sigh, so i've been thinking. i finally figured it out. if you watched the movies at all, you'd notice that gandalf's staff when he is the grey is a stick fresh from the tree. so i'm going to buy a 6 ft closet pole, and hot glue grapevine to it. sound good? i'll spray paint the whole thing, and call it done.

Here's the other flake i made. this one is edgy.

and who knew that a cat would have so much fun with pattern paper? i've been giving him the left over bits so he'll leave the main parts alone, and he's having a ball! sorry, no pics, i don't know where my camera went (i have a feeling it's with a certain redhead with the nick of "blondie" sigh.)

I did finish the hat at 1130 last night. i had to frog the thing 4 times because i wasn't happy with how it was coming out, but i finally finished it. neither of my friends were at work today, but i found out one is working tomorrow, so i left the hat there with the other mc, and he put a note on it.

i found out they're taking up a collection at work for her and her son. i'm glad they're doing it, and i'm going to pitch in a few bucks, but there's another woman there, losing her husband by inches (literally, he's been moving toward the end for months (he has liver cancer)). she has actually left work to take care of him as well, but no one has stepped forward to help her. when he dies, she may actually lose her house! i'm going to talk to the supervisor, and see if we can take one up for her as well. the last time she was at work, it was all she could do to not cry everytime she got off the phone. i cannot imagine how she feels. she told me she met her husband when she was 10 & he was 12. they dated all through high school, and married right out of it. wow. a soul mate. there seems to be a lot of death and dying around here lately.

On a lighter note, i sat next to a gentleman who distinctly reminds me of santa claus. he has a white beard, white hair (granted his is half way down his back), and a jelly belly. we chatted all day long. he said his long term goal is to save enough money up to move to amsterdam and buy a hashish bar, and sell fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies all day long. too funny. i told him my bahama/bar slash yarnstore/coffee house idea, and he thought that was pretty good too. now if only i could coordinate the two? i've been daydreaming,t he powerball jackpot is over $200M. nobody else buy a ticket, i've already got the winning one! i hope.

You might be a redneck if stealing roadsigns is a family outing.

. . . nobody else will touch your favorite cap.

Pattern of the Day:

10-6: Chill Chaser Mittens. these are to go with the hat. very nice.

10-7: Chill Chaser EAr Muffs. i'm sensing a theme here?

Have a nice day!

oops

i just realized i forgot to do my calendars last night (gee, i think i have a legitimate excuse), so here's wednesdays. you'll get today's tonight.

You might be a redneck if you've ever accidentally injured one of your relatives with a flying toenail.

Pattern of the Day: Chill Chasers Hat. This is cute. it's a broken rib & stocking stitch hat. i like! of course the pattern calls for Brown Sheep Handspun, so ya gotta love that! love using brown sheep, if only because it's in nebraska. cool beans.

Have a nice day!

we interrupt your regularly scheduled blog . . .

because i have suspended all projects due to having discovered a Mission. one of my coworkers has a son, who is 25, who has non-lymphoma hodgkins disease. last week, she had asked me if i would crochet a nebraska hat for him, since he'd lost so much hair from the chemo, and refused to shave it. she said she'd buy the yarn, and get back to me. i hadn't seen her since. i found out today that he's been sent home, and told he has 2 weeks left. two other coworkers are going to cook up a bunch of stuff friday night, and take it to her house saturday. i've decided to go ahead and make the hat. on my own. this isn't fair. he's so young! he has a baby! it's not right. (yes, i'm crying). so i'm doing this to say "i wish i could do more, i wish i could help more." she's a wonderful woman, and does not deserve to watch her child go by inches. he and his girlfriend (the baby's mother) are getting married tomorrow. what should be a happy occasion is going to be so bittersweet. if i have time, i'm going to make a hat for the baby as well.

it's not fair.

I HAVE CRACK!

This, mes amies, is crack. Kidsilk crack to be exact! and this picture is actually pretty accurate, colorwise. this came from my secret pal, all the way from the UK! i opened the bag and said, oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck, i've got CRACK!!!!!! I'VE GOT CRACK!!!!!!!!. this is so awesome! and of course a tasty werther's toffee (gone) and a mint in some foreign language. i'm thinking it's german, but since i dont' encounter german much, your guess is as good as mine. it said "addi" on one side and "sube grube (with the funny double dots over the u's, i dont' know how to do it on my keyboard, lol) on the other side. i know it's mint of some sort, because i opened it up to check it out. i will save it for later.

the book on the left is the Belgariad part 1! woohoo, now i can start reading them (yeah, right, i'm swamped with books, lol) and i got my holiday edition of Easy Knitting. woohoo. more reading! (help me, i'm drowning in a sea of books and mags!).

anybody got some good suggestions for what to do with 3 balls of CRACK? how much does birch take? anybody out there know? i'm so in love!

Sean had a lousy morning, but a great day at school. the only points he lost were the last two periods of the day, and he claims it was because he was so antsy and wanted to get home to show us his good point card (the teacher awards points for good behavior/work turned in throughout the day). i'd say 160 out of 180 is purty damn good.

and of course, i found out today that i need to hire an attorney for a hearing that is happening in EIGHT days. sigh. i may see if i can file for an extension.

You might be a redneck if you sent out birth announcements for your new puppies.

Pattern of the Day: Lola Ribbed Socks. yummy. of course the big deal with these is the yarn (hence the name of the pattern) they are superwash merino. oh slobber. i may have to go sock yarn hunting.

Have a nice day

i've got my happy pants on!

This came in the mail today! i'm so happy! of course, wouldn't you know, the first two bits were excerpts on the website, so they're nothing really new. i'm not very far into it right now, but i have a bit of a quandry. i've got 9 library books ahead of it! ah well, i can take 2 back, because i realized last night that i've not read book 5 of the series (it's the dark tower series), so i can't read 6 & 7. so theyr'e going back while i put 5 on hold. sigh. but isn't it purty?

This is the first of my ordered paperbackswap.com books. i've ordered the first 5 of the Belgariad by David Eddings. i'd read them before, but figured this would be a good way to rotate some of my dud paperbacks out of my library, and get some good stuff in. unfortunately, this is book #2! wah! ah well, i've got plenty to read for now.

Sean decided to be a nut tonight. this is the first time he's been allowed to watch tv at home during the week since school started! mark wasn't feeling well, so we came home and had dinner. Sean was watching FHV, and they said "these next clips are best watched standing on a piece of furniture like this!" and then proceeded to show a bunch of wipeout surf shots. so you know what sean had to do, lol!

And this is as close as you are getting to knitting content tonight. this yarn will go for a set to match a bumblebee/strawberry fabric one of the ladies from AC4C has to make sleepers. you wouldn't think they'd go together, those two yarns, but the pink and orange in the variegated blend to make the coral look nice.

i had to frog my baby blanket. i did my math wrong, and i needed an additional 10 stitches. sigh. i've got 2 rows knit again, but i was so tired last night, i had to quit. i'll spend a little time tonight on it, but not much. and yes jessie, i meant you, lol.

You might be a redneck if part of your parole states that you are not allowed to own sheep (try and explain that to a tween and a teen! i just told them it was inappropriate, and let it go at that).

Have a nice day!

the gods must be crazy

or maybe it's me. i've started ANOTHER project. the boys' former fostermom is pregnant, with a little girl, and she's due in december, on her birthday no less. so i've endeavored to make her a blanket, sweater, hat and booties. since we all know i've become a past master at speed sweaters, i thought i'd better start the blanket first. it's from a pattern i had laying around that i've adapted the main motif from (yes, jessie, that one). i'll use the pattern for the sweater, and then figure out hat & booties to go with. it will be darling. it will be cute. it will be PINK. I hate pink, lol. the things i do for a good friend. anyway, here's the pic:

you can vaguely see that this is seed stitch. the border will be 10 rows of seed stitch, and 10 stitches on each side. i like it that way.

And this is the sweater i finished during the football game yesterday that NEBRASKA WON! gee, i don't love my team. i started this sweater friday night, and it went quick. i am a bit disappointed in teh yarn, though. it's redheart, and they've given a "price increase" by reducing how much comes in a skein. it's still $2.17, but now you get 5 oz on the multicolors instead of 6. and the yarn felt funny too. we'll have to see how this washes up.

The party went well. the food was yummy (there was way too much, so we made everybody take home their own food (we had too much as it was, and much ended up in the freezer)), the company was good, the game was tight (double OT, nebraska's never done that), and the ribbing was gentle when iowa state finally lost. in case y'all don't know, mark is a nebraska hater. watches the games in the hopes they'll lose. his alma mater is iowa state, so there's a big rivalry in the house. poor sean can't make up his mind, lol. does he root for mom's team, or dad's? we told him we didn't care, as long as it was a good game, fairly played. i think he rooted for iowa state. i'm not sure, because he sat inside and watched the big tv, and i sat outside and watched the tv in the garage. it was a beautiful day. warm enough to be comfortable, and cloudy enough to keep from being too hot.

of course, ihad to run my fanny off! mark stayed home and cleaned yesterday morning, while i ran errand after errand after errand, all before the game started. i went to the post office, and the library, and walmart, and no frills, and back to my house for my knitting/crocheting, and then found out the local radio shack was closed (i'd been sent for coax cable so they could run the bedroom tv out to the garage), and had to run to the downtown one. i think i burned half a tank of gas! whew. i was ready to crash when i finally came back with the coax.

The final menu was featherbones, smoked, with cookie's bbq (my fav!), smoked chicken, nacho/pork dip, potato salad, pasta salad, deviled eggs, 3 different kinds of chips, cake, and cream cheese mexican dip. there were 13 people there, and 4 of them were 15 and younger. those boys can EAT! my god. i don't think any of them quit eating all afternoon! and there were still leftovers, lol.

a good time was had by all!

now to plan the next big shindig: THE WEDDING. film at 11.

Have a nice day!

amazing!

ooooooooo an early post! well, early for me. i've been up for 3 hours, reading, vegging, and now rounding up the troops. the boys are showering (not together, lol!) and i'm washing liam's nebraska shirt so he can wear it this afternoon. sean is wearing his iowa state shirt. this should be an interesting afternoon, lol.

mark says the ribs are simmering nicely, and he's just put 3 chickens in the smoker. i'm drooling.
This is the buffalo that my friend PatQ from AC4C bought and asked me to spin. this is actually only about 25% buffalo, and the rest is wool and mohair, but that's ok, that will make it interesting to spin!

This is the raw buffalo fiber. i think it's been washed, but it's got a lot of vegetable matter in it, and i think it needs to be carded. if anybody has any advice about this, considering i don't have any carders, and really don't want to invest in some just for this, please holler!

This is the tag that came with the blend. see! 55% brown wool, 25% buffalo down, and 20 % angora. wow. and pat even said i could keep some, she just wanted enough for a hat!

For those of you craving sweater progress, here ya go. the picture i posted last night was taken 4 days ago. this was taken last night. it's really hard to see the cables in this pic, but they do show relatively well in natural light.

This is the best shot i culd get of the cables. it's actually not too bad, they do stand out a bit more than that. this is going to be so yummy and warm when it's done!


I normally respond to comments on the commenter's blog, but there were two i just have to address. lynne, you are terrible! (;)). and Amie, thanks for sharing your 13 year old story. liam is not learning disabled, however, he's been tested til he's blue (one small benefit to the foster care system) he's just lazy. and he admitted it last night. sigh. as for your GB's ex, you might want to have your stepson officially tested outside the school, and then hand her the results. sometimes paper glaring you in the face can really make you see reality. if not, it makes a good case in court. if you're interested in gaining custody, ya know. just sayin'.

Ok, well, i'm off to shop like a madwoman for the party, as soon as liam gets his hiney out of the shower.

You might be a redneck if you've ever named a child for a good dog (rover?).

Pattern of the Day: Cozy Hooded Jacket. this looks like a fun, quick knit, but it's only for a size 38" chest! would be tight on me, too small for steph. about the only one it would fit is liam! sigh.

have a nice day!

blogger strikes again

ok, gang, this is getting annoying. last night, i went to post a comment on someone else's blog, and it said blogger would be down for maintenance from 430 to 530 pacific time. that's 730 my time when they SHOULD have been done. HAH! it was still down when i went to bed at 11. liars.





oh happy dance! i have pics again! these are the "special" hats i made for a4a. the apple green ad dark green both have double cables, whilst the other one is a single cable, but done in 2 colo(u)rs. (that u is for you canadians, so you can understand my post).
This hat has white stripes in my own handspun, as well as the variegated green. i hate wasting yarn, and this seemed a good choice to use up my handspun without having to dye it. i was told tiny bits of light colors were ok.
This is my sweater. yeah, looks kinda boring right now, doesn't it. that's ok, i've got better pictures for later. and i'll even post a pic of the pattern, if you ask sweetly. the pooling started with the 3rd ball of yarn, not the first two. go figure. and i'm guessing on where the balls started and stopped as i tied knots (gasp!) (drum her from the knitting corps!), and every frigging ball had a knot in it. sigh.

This is 27 squares that are going to Lisa "Queen of Squares" who joines these things to make blankets for various projects for AC4C. this month's project is Caring for Canadians, so i'm doing mostly squares. i did do a few bootie/hat combos, but i'll let lisa deal with canadian customs, lol. i will give her postage money though.
This is the last hat/bootie set i finished for C4C. these plus the others and the squares are in the dryer as we speak. i tend to ship all the month's stuff on the first day of the following month. i've got the envelopes addressed, and eagerly awaiting the trip to the PO.

Sigh. Liam did it again. he's been having nightmares, and talking alot in his sleep lately, and having an upset stomach, and i thought it had something to do with his BF getting out of prison earlier this month. well, the other shoe dropped today. i got his report card. one A, one B, one C, one D & THREE F's. all the f's said missing assignments. sigh. he's been lying to us. "got any homework?" "nope." "how's school?" "fine." "what did you do today?" "the usual." well that's coming to a screeching halt. i am going to email each of his teacher's he's failing, and find out what assignments were missing (no, he gets no chance to make them up, i just want to know for GP), and when. and yes, the D counts as failing as far as i'm concerned. if he doesn't know math well enough to get better than 75% of it right, we' ve got issues. sigh. also, he will be bringing all his work home, done or not. i wanna see it. i want proof it's been done. andi will email his teachers daily to make sure he's turned his assignments in. sigh. i thought we'd solved this last year at the end of the school year, but apparently, it's not so. god, i hate teenagers. (actually, i love liam to pieces, but his attitude since school started has distinctly gone down hill. he's definitley 13).

dont' ask about work, same shit, different day, sigh.

Tomorrow is teh big football party. Iowa State (mark's alma mater) plays Nebraska (gee, who do you think i'm gonna root for?) and it's televised. mark and his old roommate have had a party for this game every year, and we are continuing the tradition. granted, brad doesn't live there any more, but he had it at his house last year, so it's our turn. mark was smoking featherbones when i left, and had the intention of pouring a gallon of Cookie's BBQ sauce (my absolute fav!) all over them, and putting them in the electric roaster to simmer all night. god, i'm drooling. Then he's gonna smoke 6 chickens in the morning, and i'm baking brownies, and green bean casserole. Everybody else is bringing food too, so we ought to be bulging by the tiem the game is over. i'm even thinking about buying some special edition Eddy's Husker Craze ice cream, just to irritate the Iowa State fans in the house. of course, mark is nervous as hell, and refuses to discuss anything plan wise until the party is over. sigh. and rehearsal has been moved to sunday, so the weekend is shot.

You might be a redneck if you ahve to mow around a refrigerator and a bed frame.
. . . you taught your three-year-old to give Jeff Gordon "the finger." (good man!)

Pattern of hte Day (9/29): Kathy's Mittens. these are done on DPNs, but look amazingly simple, and are connected by I-cord. and come in a huge number of sizes! yeehaw!
9-30: Twillish stitch. this looks like it has potential, i'm just having trouble with one itty bitty thing. there's an abbreviations that says "yrn." wtf is that? email me, and i'll give you more specifics, i don't want to violate copywright here.

What i'm reading:
Lord John and the Private Matter, by Diana Gabaldon (i'm waiting for my copy of Breath, so i'm making do with this. it's good, but i miss Claire) (listening in the car)
Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie (listening to in the house)
Angel Fire EAst by Terry Brooks.

i finished Straken, by terry brooks, which was the final book in the High Druid of Shannara series, and frankly, the ending was highly disappointing. it was massive action 30 pages from the end, and then the bad lady is dead, and all her cohorts, and the boy gets the girl because the aunt makes a sacrifice, and meh. it's over. what crap. you can do better than that terry. i'm disappointed.

and here's a fun meme for ya! this is from mary

Pick up the book that is closest to where you're sitting right now.
1. What are the book's title and author? "
Castle Roogna by Piers Anthony

2. Turn to page 127. Locate the third paragraph, first sentence. Type that sentence here:
"So at night - it was hard to tell the time of day down here, but Jumper had an excellent sense of time - they set about sneaking out."

3. Does the sentence make sense out of context?
sort of, this is aXanth book, so a lot of the book stands on its own.

4. Seeing it sitting here by itself, out of the book, is it funny? Sad? Strange? Does it make you want to explore its source?
it's ok, it's one of those "things that make you go hmmm."

5. Are you currently reading this book?
Nope. i had it sitting next to the computer desk because i'd listed it on Paperbackswap.com.

ok, go ahead, every body, you do it! leave me a comment with your blog if you do, andi 'll come visit (i'm always looking for excuses to read blogs, lol).

Have a nice day!