Day 25: Schrodinger's mailbox

I bought both seasons one and two of the Venture Bros. from Amazon recently, and in a rare bout of fiscal conservatism, I opted for the free shipping option. I got an email update telling me that it left their warehouse on June 25th and was due at my house on June 28th. June 28th has come and gone, and yet my DVD player remains venture-less. The real kicker here is that it has shipped from Munster IN, which is a mere hour and half away from where I live. My boss has recently discovered the Venture Bros. and he is arguably more eager for their arrival than I am; so much so, that I imagine he would have given me the afternoon off work to drive to Munster to fetch them. At least there are awesome new episodes online…

Day 24: Hole habits die hard

I am making a mock cable cloth, which I started last night. It's a very pretty pattern, although using variegated cotton seems to be masking the cabling texture to a certain extent. Nonetheless, I think it will look fine when it is completed, and, as it is designed to catch a baby's throw-up, I'm thinking the visibility of the pattern may not be the user's main concern! My main gripe is that, having tried in a triumph of vain to avoid unwanted holes from appearing in another project, I am apparently incapable of using yarn-overs to make gaps where they are meant to be, and so have gone to a lot of psso-ing trouble to make something that is indistinguishable from a mindless junket through k2p2-land. The cotton I am using is slightly too bulky for the needle size I am using, but the main issue is that a combination of yarn-overs and cotton now evokes a Pavlovian-like compulsion in me to hide holes. I noticed the problem after the first pattern set was complete and did the yarn-overs in the other direction for the second set. Instead of pulling it all out, I am just going to do the final set the same way that I did the first. I have an unflappable faith in the ability of symmetry to emulate intention...

Day 23: I'm done with Fake-in-Knit!

Finally! I finished the faux cable socks I started in May, and I love them. They took as long as they did to complete, because they got bumped in favor of other projects: Faith's terrible gift and my new Addi Turbo sweater. The actual man-hours involved were minimal. The pattern was fun to follow, and I didn't even look at it for the second sock because it was so easy to remember. The colour isn't as garish as the photo makes it look; I pseudo-coloured it to make the cable texture more visible!

Day 22: You win again, Pauli!

I pre-adoptively named my cat Buttons, as in "as cute as a...". Thank goodness he is in fact cute, because smart he ain't! I have funneled my Big Ben-sized maternal clock soundings into my ownership of Buttons, and accordingly have become the overly proud parent. However, witnessing him be outsmarted by inanimate objects has put to rest my hopes for his intellect.
This is one of Buttons' finer moments, where he spent the better part of an evening attempting to catch a moth on the other side of the window. A few times he lunged head-first into the pane of glass; other times he tried to scale it. Both approaches ended up with him falling down the back of the couch. This went on for about two hours before I distracted him with Fancy Feast. If nothing else, he's persistent!

Day 21: Hi, My name's Liz and I'm a knitting addict...

I love Wednesdays. I get a break from thesis writing, experiments, and the ever expanding piles of laundry, and I head off for some well earned therapy masquerading as a knitting circle. We have a great group of girls, and I love getting to call each of them my friends. I have agreed to give up all diversions, so that I can focus on getting graduated, but I think keeping my appointment with my woolly support group keeps my productivity, and more importantly, my sanity, as well maintained as possible. For various reasons, a few people were absent this evening, but there's always someone to talk to. Definitely the highlight of my week!

(L-R): Sandy, Kayleigh, Kristine, Mary, Carly.

Day 20: We're only on number two, no need to worry just yet!

My boss had the audacity to tell me that the frogs I am forced to work with are clean, nice and harmless. I beg to differ. I had to inject six of my banes yesterday. As far as their cleanliness is concerned, they are slimy and stinky, and when you handle them, you too become slimy and stinky. They are also inexplicably armed with claws; a brain fart on the part of the spaghetti monster, I guess. So not only are you covered in ex-Xenopus ooze, but you now have open wounds, into which the detritus is now flowing... As Carly would say, Blech! Also, my definition of nice does not cover things that claw me. And as for their being harmless, I am not convinced. I see that look in their eyes. They're up to something. Take a look for yourself. Oh, and that particulate matter floating around in the water. Yup, that's their excrement and shed skin. I have to reach into that to get them. And they eat it!! So, it could well be 2nd generation poop..... Q.E.D!!!

Day 19: OH..... Rainbows!

I went to see Sex and the City with Carly last night, which I loved by the way. When we came out of the cinema, there was an amazing rainbow stretching the whole way across the sky to the east, and an amazing golden sunset to the west. I had never before seen a compete rainbow before, never mind one that vivid in colour. We both agreed that it was photo-worthy, as did a number of other people in the parking lot, an luckily Carly had her camera with her. It faded within minutes of us leaving the cinema so we were really lucky to see it. I realise that it's merely because refraction is wavelength dependent, but I still find rainbows as magical and awe inspiring as I did when I was a young child.