Lost In Space

just not so communicative

*sigh of resignation over the weather* *trying to avoid looking at the jungle which used to be a garden*  *thinking of buying some gardening equipment*

Number of items of furniture chewed by Chompi = 3.  

 

Not a great deal to add about the waterfest that was our summer holiday - everything continued much in the same vein although with the addition of gales.  Chompi Island was periodically part of the stream.  We left the waterlogged campsite on the Wednesday and decamped to Mum's (good old mum).  Oscar got some cousin time in with Adam - which involved quite a lot of silliness and the odd game of golf and tennis.   Took a trip out to Buckfast Abbey and fell in love with their produce shop.  Very pleased with the soap and wine which I bought - yet to try the marmalade .  Other than that just generally relaxed and enjoyed the sea air and seaside icecreams.  The chompster enjoyed his walks along the beach and along the cliffs on rabbit hill. 

 

Been a short week this week - I say this almost as an excuse for having done very little *time ran out guv* - and we've now had the last bank holiday of the summer. 

 

Oscar turns 14 tomorrow so it will probably be the only day between now and Christmas that he willingly gets up early.  Yet to discover how he wants to spend his day :P 

 

 

 

Well I am - we are - starting the second half of our summer holiday.  Been camping for the last week on Dartmoor and my oh my it's been WET.  This weekend we drove to mum's to dry out a little and do some washing, see the sea etc but prior to yesterday I had spent the entire week in wellies.  How glad was I that I had wellies to wear.  Anyhow back to the tent today - if it has not blown away.......

I did do somthing else while I've been away.

 

I took a two-day workshop and LEARNED TO SPIN.  Well learned to spin in the most basic sense of course.  I am guessing it will take years of practice to become competent and I am still lacking the wheel.  However  I thoroughly enjoyed my two days in Bovey Tracey sitting in the most beautiful little yarn shop testing my co-ordination to its limits.   We were lucky to have a small class - two other lovely ladies one of whom re-educated me on my charity shopping habits - and a great teacher who, fortunately, was not without a sense of humour and was very patient with us.  Somehow I found it incredibly easy to get in a tangle.  How this is possible when you've not yet managed to make the stuff to tangle properly escapes me.  But I did it lol.

 

I spent the evenings with Mum and John and a pint on the seafront - what better at the end of a day?  Weather was absolutely glorious.  The whole thing was just perfect.

 

Anyhow I came away from there on a high, clutching my three skeins of handspun which I have yet to decide what to do with other than treasure and stroke.  Got such a great sense of achievement simply by going and trying something new - should do it more often.  Everyone should .

 

 

\][/a>

Oh this is funny......

 

I was sitting here flicking randomly through the sockapalooza finished sock links and looking down at my current project (waving lace socks) and thinking rut-roh I think I am going to end up with another pair of these and probably also in green.

 

But what actually happened was way, way better.  Take a look at this blog entry http://chrysanthemum.typepad.com/chrysanthemum/2007/08/d-is-for-done.html

 

I love the socks, they fit like a dream, the pattern is great and yep, the ones I was sent are knitted so well and just to my taste. 

 

In a rush, still got to find my driving licence or we may actually be hitchhiking round Sweden

 

Have a great two weeks.

 

 

Hey!!  I've been so busy and working soooooo hard :P  barely time to blog.

 

Besides which I've been knitting my socks off to finish Sockapalooza.  These Vennland socks (pattern from The Anticraft) were knitted with SWTC Tofutsies, I hope my partner likes them.  Been having a good look at all the other finished socks and well, I would be happy with any of them.

 

This Friday is my last day of work before our holiday in Sweden.  Be back a couple of weeks after with some photos and travellers tales.

 

Take care.

 

 

uh oh

 

along with 999 other folks I've signed up for this mega sock swap.  thats a lot of socks being posted on August 2nd, I hope post offices are on standby

 

 

 

Friend went into premature labour last week and I hadn't even cast on her baby blanket.  A couple of days later, courtesy of the knitting machine, I have the middle (plain) section done.  Now just need to master the lace on it for a border and bob's your uncle.  Fantastic thing, I am so impressed.

 

Unseasonably hot, good only for beer drinking.

Well what a month March was.  I am absolutely knackered.  Yep I'm a lightweight.  But WOOOOOT!  only 3 more days of early mornings and I get to start work at a proper time like anyone else.  Those 5 am alarm calls were killing me after almost 3 years.  I really, really needed the time off.  Will, of course, be impoverished but my yarn store and bookshelves floweth over and the sun doth shine so I don't see any problem there.  You can eat wool and paper right??

 

So, I think the busyness was mainly work related - can't think that I did that much else except drink a bit of wine:  umm went to knitting guild meeting, went to EQ Guild meeting (code for piss up) and met some lovely people, got booted out of the house for Hannah's 18th and yes, she did clear up the house nicely, no complaints from the neighbours etc etc, had pancakes in bed on Mothering Sunday courtesy of Osc, and then, last week, celebrated 20 YES TWENTY years with Dave  awwwwwwww.  Well, actually, in my small life that's quite a lot for a month

 

Watched a ton of films again this month, I think a lot of TCM lol since we cancelled Sky Movies a couple of weeks ago.  But also seen the Last King of Scotland (watchable uggghh except for a particularly gruesome scene, but I don't rate it that highly).  Still waiting to watch Pan's Labyrinth but even more importantly 300 which I would dearly love to go and see at the IMAX.  Sadly, tickets cost an arm and a leg, plus the train fare and the inevitable eats/drinks so it may be out of the window.

 

Suddenly on a reading spurt with Feersum Endjinn having got past my stumbling block of the first narration by Bascule.  Luckily there are more..... although last I read he was in a tricky spot.  Good read so far.  I need to crack on with the reading since I'm now working spending quite a few hours a week in a bookshop and already have a library of must reads listed in my head without the aforementioned overflowing bookcases.

 

And now we're already in April.  Since its now BST and we have some lighter evenings we're off on our first camping trip of the year this weekend.  Don't know yet where we're going - possibly Exmoor again (I do love it there) but maybe somewhere a little closer to home - Kent or somewhere.  Only requirement is that the site allows campfires.  It's chancing it a bit considering the mad shifts in weather which we've experienced lately but anyhow today I was having a little siesta in the garden and feeling quite optimistic.  The last time we went camping at Easter I had to go out and buy a duvet disguised as a coat AND sleep in it in my sleeping bag.  The kids too slept fully clothed (and with extra layers).  I intend to go prepared for such freezing conditions again and began to knit myself a pair of wool/angora socks, beautifully thick and warm.  Unfortunately said socks have been spotted by Dave who seems to think they are his by right.  At the end of the day it will come down to how much wool I have left when I come to the feet......

 

OOOOHHHHHH and I forgot to mention I was given, by Mum who acquired it through some generous person, a KNITTING MACHINE.  Well, I got so far as to open the case and then spent half an hour trying to close it again so it was off to the net to find some instructions.  These are essential lol.  Looking forward to setting it up and giving it a whirl when work eases off next week.

 

Dad has been diagnosed with Parkinsons, which I think we had all guessed at really.  Poor Dad.  He's got some meds so I hope that helps his shakes a bit especially since he seems more concerned about troubling other people with his jitters - silly billy.  I hope it doesn't affect his painting too much although the Dr. seemed to think that it wouldn't get too much worse.  Beginning to look at my brother's hand tremors in a different light now eek but hope above all that they are down to his MASSIVE coffee consumption.

 

D'oh i'm shaking here also but due to the fact that the sun has long gone down and I am sitting right next to the open garden door.  Off to get a wooly.  Cya later!

 

 

Towards the end of last year I participated in a Hot Sox Swap and got a wonderful gift from Nancy in Missouri (see previous blog post) .  Well this month I finally got round to knitting up the kit she sent me.  Actually, I started in February and finished in a blind panic of a marathon knitting session just this afternoon.  I always was like that with deadlines (ask my family about my dissertation lol). 

 

So I present to you my Central Air socks.  Pattern by Blue Moon Fiber Arts, yarn by Wildfoote in colourway SY - 600 Symphony and knitted on 2mm dpns.  As I've stated on my SAM3 post, everything about knitting this pair of socks was pleasing and the finished product has a great look and feel to it.  Certainly I will use this yarn again - it gives a nice dense fabric with good stitch definition and feels great.  Sorry about the picture, I was so anxious to post before the deadline that I didn't block or iron the socks nor even arrange them nicely on the scanner.  You will just have to believe me that they are as good as I say lol.

 

Ahh there's nothing like the feeling of a finished project.......  *leans back and smiles*

OK well we have 2 hours left until the actual day but we've been counting down for months, then weeks and finally its in HOURS....  but really, where did all the time go?

 

For 18 years Hannah we've continued to be amazed, incredulous, dumfounded sometimes and entertained by you.  You are off the wall,  leftfield (or is that left side of the moon?) loving and unique and you make us feel happy, loved and PROUD (always).  WOW and that's just the first 18....

 

Little SLIDESHOW for ya :)

 

Happy Birthday Darling

 

xxxxxxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I received this in an email from the Soil Association and thought it worthwhile sharing:

 

Urgent GM action - email your MEP by 14 March

A new proposal to encourage genetically modified (GM) crops in Europe is being considered by the European Parliament. MEPs are voting on motion (2006/2059 INI) <http://www.icppc.pl/gmo/635387en.pdf> , submitted by Finnish MEP Kyösti Virrankoski, on March 14. If this motion is approved by the European Parliament, it will open the flood gates for a GMO invasion of European food and farming. In an earlier vote, 22 MEPs voted for it, 15 rejected it and 6 abstained. The motion looks to us as if it could have been written by Monsanto! See for yourself...

The MEPs believe that "...the use of biotechnology and genetic engineering should be developed in order to facilitate more sustainable farming practices, better food, increased yield and higher-quality and more diverse products with less use of nitrates and other fertilisers and less use of water".

Contrary to scientific evidence, they claim that "...developments in biotechnology have the potential to yield many benefits for agriculture, such as increased yields, reduced use of herbicides and pesticides, less fossil fuel use and reduced soil erosion".

And the icing on the cake, "...the precautionary principle cannot be used as an excuse to delay the process [of approving new GMOs]".

Take action!

Eighty per cent of Europeans have declared that they do not want GM food - are you one of them? If you disagree with these proposals then contact your MEP by 14 March and tell them, in your own words, why. You can find out who your MEP is and their contact details here <

http://www.writetothem.com> .

  

GM potatoes - more evidence emerges

As GM potato trials loom over the English countryside this month, more scientific research has come to light about their health risks. Eight years after being conducted, a secret feeding study of Monsanto GM potatoes was finally published last month which showed that the potatoes caused 'considerable damage to the organs of the rats in the study'. Dr Irina Ermakova of the Russian Academy of Science said that the GM potatoes were ‘toxic’ to lab rats and ‘cannot be used in the nourishment of people’. Only three animal feeding studies on GM potatoes have been carried out - and they all show negative health effects. Even so, official scientists are still in denial about the emerging scientific evidence on harm and uncertainty of GM crops. You can read more about this research and the GM potato trials at soilassociation.org/gmpotatoes <

http://www.soilassociation.org/gmpotatoes>

 

Did a brief tour of HMV on Saturday looking for inspiration, have tons of music but wanted something new.  Ended up buying a couple of CDs from their bargains - an old Ben Harper and some Ray Charles (after watching the film...) but both failed to satisfy because I've been waiting waiting waiting for this:

 

Been so long without any new music to speak of but WOOHOOO here I sit listening to Grinderman.

 

Fantastic

 

Go buy it

:D

 

 

 

Oh lol if you buy Amazon's perfect partner Neon Bible - Arcade Fire do not do not make my mistake and listen to it after Grinderman.  It sounds just a little tame in comparison   heh did i say just a little??? really???

 

Well, I had a jimmy day on Saturday and stayed on the sofa knitting, TV.  Who could ask for a better weekend?  I did eventually take so much ribbing for watching Rosemary and Thyme though (and I can quite see why but honestly its good to knit along to) that I felt obliged to turn the TV over to Top Gear and then the Rugby.  Provided just enough of a pause to do a bit of washing and eventually get dressed.  Anyway the boys went off to do their things whatever that it and I settled into some film viewing.  Enjoyed Ray and then Walk the Line although I had to rush to listen to some real Johnny Cash after it ended.  As for Ray Charles, I've never really known that much about him and the film was a bit of an eye/ear opener.  Felt pretty much filmed out after this and spent Sunday watching other murder mystery type waffle until Gods and Monsters in the evening.  Couldn't help but think how there are few actors such as Ian McKellan nowadays but maybe I'm just getting older. 

 

Now its Monday again

 

Anyhow, look what I achieved.... (first picture)    its my latest sock off the needles.  Yes, it is a sock, NOT a deckchair, rather bizarre I know but I just have to finish the second one.  For sure I'm not gonna see many other folks wearing some the same.  More on the pattern etc when I've finished.

 

For anyone wondering what happened to the Vintage Sock January Challenge it's one of the few pairs of socks that I've actually given up on completely.  They've been unwound and the wool re-stashed.  I'm sure its a super pattern if you knit as its intended (indeed I've seen pictures of some great pairs of these) but I made the ribbing as stated and made the leg a little shorter to accommodate Dave's tastes and it looked like a stunted little runt.  Bah! 

 

Hannah is still gently reminding me that I have her bag yet to finish (slip of a thing from Knitty.com) .....  and her hat (Chullo also from Knitty) ......... and then, there's the Entrelac socks from the latest Interweave Knits.  As I type, the wool is winging it's way to me.

 

And - I think this about wraps it up - I've made progress with the Central Air sock project gifted to me by Nancy.

 

Ah yes, and the baby socks and cot blanket for Seree - heh time is running out on that one.

 

Guess I should get off this chair to which I seem perma-glued and get on with some knitting. 

WOOT!! Finally I finished my Green Goblin Socks.  YAY.  Who knows for how long I have been knitting them....  I've certainly lost track.

 

I got the pattern from an old Hayfield knitting book "Feet First".  And, uhh, they look much nicer in the book.  I think the wool (Rowan DK something or other in Goblin Green) was rather too thin and yeah, I failed to check gauge.  I think I will, at some stage..... , knit this pattern with a thicker wool to show off the pattern more.  It shouldn't be quite so lacey.

 

That said, they're comfy enough and I'm rather more satisfied with these than the Allegra ones.

 

So, here you go........

So here are my Allegra socks.  Had my computer not been down these would have been my final entry for sock of the month 2 since I finished them in January.  Ooh I actually started them in January too - they were a quick knit.  And I think that's the only positive I can say about them.   The pattern for a start resulted in a pair of what I consider to be ill-fitting socks.  The top is way too wide and they are altogether an odd shape.  The lack of elasticity in the wool does nothing to enhance the pattern.  I have to say I loved knitting with this wool.  The colours are so very vibrant it was like continually gazing through a kaleidoscope (once again the scanner does not do this aspect justice).  BUT NO WAY, imo is this a sock yarn.  Yes, yes, you can knit a sock with whatever you choose but for me I prefer my socks to be wearable, comfortable and durable.  This pair was scanned after just one half-day of wear and you can see how they have already felted, obliterating the patterning.  The wool is allegedly superwash but I dread to think how they would look after a round in a washing machine even on its gentlest setting.  It seems to be popular to knit socks with 100% wool but after this I would be very cautious about attempting more.

 

So yes, sorry Robin, great yarn, nice stitch pattern but absolutely a bad match of everything.  Disappointed.

Well I wanted to update my knitting stuff but somehow it seems my scanner disappeared when the new PC arrived.  Have to sort it out over the weekend.

 

In the meantime, just a small catch up.  Been trying to get out and about a little bit more and so far so good.  Finally got round to visiting Polly and Kath in their new home (actually, not so new now), went along to a Knitting and Crochet Guild meeting and despite being apprehensive due to so many new people I actually had a good time :).  Last Friday, for the first time in ages the four of us went out for an Indian.  We all had a great evening although eek! I hadn't realised the price had risen quite as much LOL I really doooooo need to get out more see.  I've watched hundreds of films (gotta do something whilst the PC was broken) ranging from the entertainingly ridiculous uhhh Doom springs to mind and some silly film about Marco Polo doing battle with dragons - Its historically correct dontcha know LOL to (i think Reign of Fire still remains tops on dragon films anyhooo) to the more satisfying Little Miss Sunshine, Lord of War and Unleashed and yes, double indemnity and Rebecca each for the 10000th time.  Also went out to dinner at Steve and Tina's, yummy meal and too much to drink.  They're back off out to India soon and I felt so glad that, for once, we have our summer holiday sorted in advance.  Instead of camping we have organised a fortnight in Sweden in a cabin by a lake.  I anticipate much lazing in rowing boats, fishing and knitting.  Have a few months to look up yarn stores :).

 

Oops got 2 mins to get to work - brb.  OK I'm back now ;)  Gah that restaurant is sooooooo darned hot and the rather formidable Portuguese woman who works there and always moans about the weather and men was moaning about how cold it was.  Rather neatly, she married the two of her famous gripes today coming out with the phrase that neither the English weather or men could be trusted.  And no, I didn't feel at all guilty about having lowered the three thermostats from 25, 25 and 30!!!! degrees down to something a little more work-friendly.

 

Well this week is half-term here which means one less job for me and generally a more relaxing time.  I don't mind that extra job since the money from it is paying for our Swedish jaunt but wow it's nice not to have to go each evening.  Been lots more time for knitting and uhh yep sleeping (another hobby) so hardly action-packed but immensely enjoyable.  Had my nephew for a sleepover one day and honestly, the amount the two boys laughed was great.  They are both 12 and both so darned SILLY!!!!!  They found an advertisment on the front page of our local paper for a business that sells door handles and laughed and laughed for ages (they probably still chuckle about it) when they read the special valentines day message on it "Because we love you, check out our knobs".  I must admit I too found it and their sniggers funny until I realised with some degree of horror that in just a couple of years they may well be trying out this line on some unsuspecting girls.  Luckily, imo Bracknell girls are well equipped to take care of themselves and hopefully would give them short shrift.  Nevertheless, scary.

 

Romance however is not totally dead - it came to me beautifully packaged and tasting delicious.  Sadly, the rest of the family agree..... 

 

 

This is real - and it could affect you, your friends or family members.

If you are 16 or over and haven't yet got a ten-year adult passport, then you should apply for one BEFORE THE BEGINNING OF APRIL 2007. And if you have a friend or family member in this position then let them know, quick!

This is why:

On March 26th this year, the Identity and Passport Service (did you even know they'd changed the name?) opens some new offices as part of the build up to the ID card scheme that the government wants to introduce. By the end of the year there will be 69 of these interrogation centres, and people applying for their first adult passport from April 2007 will the guinea-pigs for a process the government is calling "Authentication by Interview".

There's NOTHING in it for you - though the government is currently spending lots of taxpayers money trying to tell young people there is.

All the information collected will be kept on file for ever. It will certainly end up more expensive than the £66 passports currently cost, too, since you'll have to pay for officials to gather a dossier on you and the perform an "intrusive interview" as part of the price - as well as losing a day of your life to visit an interrogation centre.

If you want to know more about how things will work once the system is in place, please scroll down.

If you care about your freedoms, and not having government officials poking around in your private life - or your friends' and family's - then please apply for your first adult passport BEFORE THE BEGINNING OF APRIL 2007, and pass this message on.

You could save yourself or someone close to you a lot of trouble.
--

How ID interrogations will work:

When you apply for a passport you will be asked to give lots of information about yourself: official numbers, addresses for the last few years, your educational institutions, that sort of thing. And you'll sign to declare that it's the truth.

That information will be used to look up everything that can be found out about you on all the government and private sector databases they can lay their hands on: school records, social services, police, credit checking, perhaps family details... to build a single dossier on you containing personal information. "Data-rape", some people call it.

First a few people, then every new applicant, will be called in to their nearest interrogation centre. There you will be fingerprinted and photographed (once they have installed the equipment), and put through an "intrusive interview" - the government's own words - to check that you can give answers about private details of your life that agree with the official ones. If you can, you'll get your passport. If not... it is not clear, but trying to get a passport under 'false pretenses' - if the computer says "no" - could be quite serious. If nothing else, it will mean delay and more intrusion.

In fact, the government has already estimated that 1 in 4 people who apply under this new procedure will have to cancel their trip because they don't get their passport in time.

The government's plan is that all passports will be issued like this eventually. But you can take simple action now to keep off the database for ten years. And ALL opposition parties have now promised to abolish the ID scheme - so if you escape for 10 years, you may escape for ever.

If you haven't got one already, get yourself a full ten-year passport now. As long as you apply before many interrogation centres are open, and the system is fully operational, your chances of avoiding data-rape are good. And by doing so you help to stop the same thing happening to everyone else by telling Tony Blair and his bullying government to "Take a hike".

For more information on the progress of passport procedures, check out http://www.renewforfreedom.org - the Identity and Passport Service website currently tells you very little.

Get a passport NOW. And tell your friends, if you think their private lives should be their own.

Last seen working 5 mins before Dave was seen hoovering the insides of it.  Oddly enough it hasn't worked since then (almost 2 weeks ago).  Attempts to repair it came to nothing and we've had to order a new one.  Still, it's freed up time for knitting being without my usual distractions and I've finished a pair of socks which I'm wearing today (lovely and warm and snuggly ) :  Allegro from Red Bird Knits dec07.  Not gonna try putting my feet on the scanner so a pic next time after they've been washed. 

 

Hopefully back up and out there by the weekend. 

 

Have fun folks

I decided to do a bit of a reshuffle regarding my various jobs - get rid of some I don't like, get some better paying ones etc etc with the aim of being richer in free time and hopefully maybe money too.  Heh its the first that's most important after the bills have been paid.  Until I get to grips with what jobs I actually have and what money I will have coming in though its a hectic month while I work all that I can until its sorted.  So anyway... I started a new (well, additional...) job today.  Got scrubbed and cleaned and turned up, was told actually there wasn't much to do today - went home.  All within 5 mins.  It's just the best!!! LOL

 

Does mean that a day which otherwise would have been a little chaotic has now been far less so and I've even had a chance for a nap and to cast on my Lozenge socks for the January Vintage Sock challenge.  Its really been the first day in a while that I've had a block of quiet time to sit and knit - everyone else back at work/school/college today.  By the time the day is out I hope to have the first sock looking like a sock rather than a bit of knotty string ;).

 

Dad managed to escape from hospital yesterday afternoon and is now safely back at his flat enjoying his personal space and privacy.  I'll be keeping an eye on him - lol is a fine balance to try and do that without driving him nuts and I'm very conscious that its easy to slip over from concern to treating someone like a child.  I think I'm negotiating the thin line ok though and hopefully things will get easier as his health improves and he himself feels a little more confident.  He's still arguing with the diagnosis from his doctor - what can you do?  LOL and who am I to give a third opinion???

 

Oops and Dave is back at work and its my turn to cook tea.  Asparagus pies hmmm.  Best I hop to it.

 

*waves bye*