This in kinda cool

Down at the Government Center in downtown Boston, there is a Starbucks, with this above its door...



I love it, but I don't get it, I can only assume that this kettle was here long before the Starbucks, 1. because Starbucks is not that cool, and 2. I saw this sign off to the left and slightly hidden that suggests that this is a relic from Boston's history.

Gi-tar Hero

(it must be pronounced with a southern flavour, it make it that much better.)

Anyway, Will went out in Tuesday, right when the EB Games store opened to obtain Guitar Hero and two guitars. And the fun just keeps on coming.





This is us rocking out with our cocks out (really, what does that mean?) can you see I have a little bit of the devil in my eyes, I must be playing some of that rock-n-roll all of the kids are listening to.

I have one beef with this game, did they HAVE to put Freebird on the playlist? Really... I hate that song, one might say I hate it with a white hot hate, and that's like a lot!

Sunshine yarnaholic

As an aside. I met Dani of Sunshine Yarns, she and Lucy at Minds Eye are my primary dealers in my sock addiction. It just costs less than crack and doesn't make you ugly.

I'm a very shy person, and anyone who knows, me knows this. I always make bad first impressions, and metting Dani was no different, I was like "it's nice to meet you, I love your yarn" *weak smile slowly creeping onto my face*.

It was like meeting a celebrity. She really does dye some of the most beautiful sock yarns ever. Her last posting was of the Harry Potter flavor, I was only able to come away with her new "Phoenix" colour. (I had Hedwig and all of the dragons, now I'm kicking myself for not getting the "Dark Forest") it was yummy. But trying to get her Griffindor was much like trying to get... I have no analogy, but it was like trying to get something that is very hard to get.

So thank you Dani for meeting up with me. It was great, even if I am pretty lame.

Canyon socks DONE!

Okay, they've been done for about 2 weeks, but I'm really lazy on weekends.





My first socks with cables, this deserved a mango lassi. Next I tink I'll try a magic loop sock.

PATTERN: Cable Rib Socks from Interweave Knits Favorite Socks 25 Timeless Designs
BY: Erica Alexander
FIBER: hand died sock yarn from Minds Eye Yarn in "Canyon" I renamed it officially.

I think Miss Bronte feels left out

I'm been lavishing attention on Akira and leaving Mis B. out, I know she reads this blog while I'm at work and has remarked that I do not talk about her enough. What can I say, she's a cat, what do cats do? they lick themselves and occasionally do something of interest, like fall into the toilet (I hate when she does that). Miss Bronte, this is for you.



It was her glamour shot, cost me an arm and a leg at the mall, and she wouldn't even sit still... bitch.

My Dog, House MD

A little while ago our dog Akira hurt his leg, we can only suspect that it was during a 3am chasing of the kitty that he did this. He is fine by the way, nothing torn or costin us several thousand dollars to fix. But I think now he pulls out the gimpy limp to get attention when the big baby who is pampered 24/7 feels he needs just a little more attention than normal. Since this doesn't have video, here is an artist's rendition of how he walks.



Pretty sad huh? For a while I was afraid he was going to become hooked on Vicodin and have a sour disposition, but he would make for great TV viewing every Tuesday.

A face to melt your heart

Or at least the snow here in Boston.

Antelope Canyon Socks

7th sock? I lost count, whatever... the thing I love about this sock, is not the pattern (which is great) but the yarn. Knit up it looks like Antelope Canyon in Arizona.



Side by side comparison.

PATTERN: Cable Rib Socks from Interweave Knits Favorite Socks 25 Timeless Designs
BY: Erica Alexander
FIBER: hand died sock yarn from Minds Eye Yarn in "Red/B&rown/Pumpkin" but she seriously needs to rename it.

Hedwig

This one took me forever, again because I am so damn lazy.



PATTERN: Waving Lace socks from Interweave Knits Favorite Socks 25 Timeless Designs
BY: Evelyn A. Clark
FIBER: hand died sock yarn from Sunshine yarns in "Hedwig" from the Harry Potter series.

Hungarian Horntail Part 2

FINISHED! finished this at 2.30am a few weeks back and due to the fact that I am so damn lazy I never took a picture or posted, no one reads this damn blog anyway.



Detail, still with a lot of dog and cat hair, hey they live here so why not wear them too.



PATTERN: Eagle's Flight
BY: Megan Humphrey
FIBER: hand died sock yarn from Sunshine yarns in "Hungarian Horntail" One of the four Harry Potter Dragon colourways she created inspired from the fourth book in the HP series.

Dear Diary, today in gym class...

Do you ever get those flashbacks of elementary school when you're driving or sitting on the toilet? Of course you do, we all do. I dealt with my fair share of bullying from my peers, but oddly enough I had to deal with it from my teachers as well. Strange as that my be, I was just a kid who was not liked. But I stood up for myself once, and this is that story, it's just kinda lame.

But my flashback came to me while I was remembering a commercial, I don't know what it was about, candy or something, but a man was dressed up like a tin robot. And I get to thinking, the robot is the coolest dance move and I have never been able to really get the mechanics of it down. The herky jerky robotic movements of the arms, head, and legs were beyond my comprehension. And then I remember elementary school gym class where we learned the important cardiovascular benefits of the "Electric Slide" and "Square Dancing" but somewhere in between these very important party moves and trying to earn some kind of Presidential merit badge by doing 5 pull ups and running a mile without puking, we had to do the robot.

Maybe if I had a lesson or two before throwing me into the arena I could have really shown my gym teacher that I wasn't the loser she told me I was, doesn't mean that I can work the robot with the best of them. I knew I could do the robot, what could be so hard about it right? Well in true gym teacher fashion (code here for something-only-a-mega-bitch-would-do) she gets us all to form a line along the edge of some nasty blue plastic mat and one by one we were to walk like a robot along this cheap runway in front of everyone!

Fuck the robot!

My turn comes up and I'm at the edge of the mat, about to parade my poor excuse for a robot in front of all the kids who egged my parents house and make a complete ass out of myself. "Fuck it" I think, and I just walked calmly and cooly down the mat, as a normal person.

"Taylor! you didn't walk like a robot, the exercise is to walk like a robot" I'm sure this was followed by some lame threat like I won't get a star for today or some bullshit like that.

"I did," I said

The woman started getting angry with me, you could see the look in her eyes, you know the look only gym teachers have. Crazy, and pissed about teaching a bunch of kids how to dodge a big plastic red balls and dance in a square formation.

"That was not a robot, you just walked down the mat, I told you to walk like a robot!"

By that point I didn't care anymore, when my 3rd grade teacher wasn't singling me out as demon spawn, my music teacher was blaming me for the disruptions the boys made (now how fair is that?), my gym teacher was making me walk like a god damn robot.

So I sighed, and shrugged and said "I'm just really advanced."

and walked to the end of the line.

Just for giggles

I don't think I need to make a comment as this pretty much speak for themselves.

Hungarian horntail

Next sock in progress using the Eagle's Flight pattern by Megan Humphrey using hand died sock yarn from Sunshine yarns in "Hungarian Horntail" One of the four Harry Potter Dragon colourways she created inspired from the fourth book in the HP series.



The lace pattern will be visible when it is on my foot.

Rivulets

So I designed this sock, only to find that there is a pattern for it at Sock Bug. Well, it may have already been created, but the pattern was originally from my head before I found that bit out.



In a hand died sock yarn from Minds Eye Yarn in "Evening Sky"

Taos

my 3rd sock. Ta da.



The Jaywalkers by Grumperina. from MagKnits. In a hand died sock yarn from Sunshine yarns in "Taos"



Detail, plus some dog hair.

Jaywalkers

My second pair of completed socks. The Jaywalkers by Grumperina. from MagKnits. In a hand died sock yarn from Minds Eye Yarn in "Silver Sage"

Cat in a Box

This is Bronte redeeming herself. When she is not breaking glassware, she is doing her immitation of warm rising bread dough. She's a hit at parties.

My first sock

I spent my X-mas holiday in Maine and forgot my camera, but I made my very first sock. Now I have to make the other one.



This is called Monkey by Cookie A. from Knitty which is a webzine for knitters. They publish 4 times a year with a new season of totally free patterns to knit.

This was probably a rather daring first sock pattern to try, but it worked out well. Now I am walking around with one sock I love it too much to wait to wear both.

King Richard's Faire

I haven't posted in whet seems to be years, and granted we went to the Ren Faire in October and I'm only getting around to posting the images now, but I'm posting right?

Now neither one of us is into the whole Ren. Faire thing and the lasts time and the only time I went to one was as a Sophomore in High School. But there I had a friend working there this year and what friend would I be if I didn't go and see her in Ren. garb right? You never really know a person until you see then in a cloak that's what I always say.



Will entering the Faire (you have to spell it with an "E" because people in cloaks will hunt you down and "Hazah" you to death)



My Friend's husband who is a portrait artist set up a nice little booth to get patrons. It's his fault the family had to be exposed to chain mail.



My friend Anne of... and her daughter Michaela or Dr. Quinn Medicine woman. Apparently she was so into the Faire, that when it ended she was heart broken. I just hope she gets over it before High School.


Now for some random photos with no comments.









Our knight lost by the way.

Fall is in New England and I've already lugged out the coats, scarves and hats. And even though it is bouncing between 55 and 75 degrees, I feel it is necessary to put all of my wooly things on.

We drove up to Concord New Hampshire to catch dinner with William's family who spent a few weeks Visiting our friendly neighbors to the North and Vermont. AHHH, fall in New England is a sigh too behold, the leaves and the crisp air, it was a beautiful drive up through Mass. to New Hampshire, but around the 3rd hour of straight bumper to bumper traffic caused by everyone else who was looking at orange foliage, I can honestly say that the beauty of fall got real old real fast.