shiny happy people

I could tell you all that I was sitting at Mr Stitchy with a look of absolute horror on my face until 2.30pm of the day of my party. I could tell you about the painful incident with the drape and its needing to be re-basted. I could complain that despite booking the table for the huge undertaking of a floor length panelled satin frock, I was in the middle of the noisiest afternoon ever and struggled to concentrate.

Instead I will show you these:

You see that smug look on my face? Now you understand it :).

The party was great! I had quite a few people pike at the last minute, but thanks to Irene and Liz (who somehow managed to escape my roaming camera-man) everything fell into place! I felt like such a disasterous hostess being pushed out of the kitchen while my friends threaded skewers!

In the interests of not boring you all with tedious descriptions of what probably happens every saturday night everywhere in the world, here are a few descriptive photos.

Here is Jamal, ToD and I having a good ol' giggle. I wish i could remember what the joke was because it looks like a good one (something about pirates no doubt ;p)


The group shot is (clockwise from left to right, and to the best of my abilities) Nick, Jordy, Kate, Flick, Penny, Ruth, Matt and Matt (again!).



And here is Othlon and Jeff having a cuddle on my lounge - Ah, young love! Othlon is quite the hat-swiper, every time i saw her she was wearing a new one :). Othlon, jeff is lovely by the way. and you have obviously swash-buckled him into submission (ah, such a quick learner for one so young).

I had one or two more, but sadly blogger is being rather uncooperative. I shall try again later.

Thanks so much to Irene and Liz (again)! Seriously, you guys saved my life :) :) :) you are both worth your weight in sock yarn! tell me what i can do to repay the massive favour!
Thanks to Kate for the lovely bracelet and earrings (and the card that made me AND my mum cry... aawwww)
Thanks to Jamal for the calendar (knitting :p) and the gorgeous cross stitch kit (im so tempted to start it and i have like am million things on the needles! aarg temptation!)
Thanks to Iso for the cups and saucers (so so so pretty)
Thanks to Othlon and Jejune for the seriously cute thread cutter.
Thanks to Kerry for the lovely card (seriously, did i miss the day at school where they tell you how to write heartwrenching sentiments??? how did i miss this?)
And of course, a great big slap on the wrist to each of you for blatantly ignoring the "dont bring me presents, i get too embarrased" bit on the invite :p

So, not quite 21 yet.. it's Friday the 3rd and counting. Kind of intimidating actually. people keep telling me their outlook changed entirely and they starting making plans for the future. As we all know, my plans for the future are basically: 1. knit more, 2. buy more yarn, 3. finish uni + become a non-crap teacher hopefully and 4. not die in my sleep.

Can't i just stay 20 forever?

finishing touch

Hurrah! the ankle socks of doom are completed and currently warming my toes. I had quite alot of fun with them, but juggling three balls is complicated (ask anyone :p).
Excuse the odd angles of the photos (the one of both my feet looks like i dont have any ankles at all) but taking photos of your own feet is a complicated business. and clearly i have outed myself for leaving my jewellery on the lounge again...
Also, i know i said i would post a pattern, but really its very simple. Just choose your favourite sock pattern but cast on the amount of stitches called for after the leg decreases. My stripes go 7 rounds, 2, 3, 5, 4, 6, and the three colours stay in the same order the whole way. I jiggered it so i would get the ribbing in A, the heel in B and the toe in C. The stripes would probably look much better if i'd used white instead of one of the blues, but i do like the way the pink creeps up on you.

So, having had one triumph, i quickly cast on some of the yarn i dyed after christmas (those of you wondering how the dress is going, see the point about being a procrastinator in the previous post). I was inspired to choose the red and yellow because Cathy's looked so good. I was a tad worried it would pool, but im getting definite stripes with two rows of red one row of yellow at the back and two rows of yellow one row of red at the front. quite alot like tiger stripes in fact :)
(Taphophile, if you find your tiger yarn pooling frog it and i'll bring you a new ball on thursday. i dyed that stuff on the so 1/4 of a metre is each colour, but i'm going to try some 1/2 metre lots. Your poor ankle might end up orange on one side and black on the other :p).

And my parents and brother are home, very grateful for hydrated garden and still alive animals. As a thankyou for the early morning cash-call my parents brought me some 4ply wool from Bendigo Woollen Mill (did i mention they called from Bendigo? mhuah ha ha ha ha ha haaa). So now i can try out lots more sock dye methods. The big balls are 200g and the other ones are probably 25g (apparently they were on sale and i have clearly trained the olds well. actually, they very subtley asked what ply and colour would be of the most use to me, but they remembered, which is a big part of the Happy Spider Yarn Gatherer Training Program TM).

And, having had money returned to my account, i bought the books i wanted on Amazon.com last night. The Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook, The Whole Craft of Spinning, Alterknits and Spin It. Yes ladies, when they arrive they will all taken a voyage to SnB to get fondled and drooled over. Tis a birthday present to myself as many of my friends and the entirety of my family said "we are -not- getting you anything knitting related!" and anyway, the sock book at least is a MUST have for me. go look inside and say it isnt so!

i think that might be the gist of it. a certain someone has yet to ok a photo of their artistic genius (and did i mention the socks i made him for christmas were a starring part of his costume??? i NEED to put a pic up boyo!) so as yet not even any satanic glares are present. and a little message for everyone enhancing my heart attack the other day? let me just say "he ain't heavy, he's my brother". ok?

anywho, i'm off to try to negotiate how im going to do hair and make-up (my boss who use to do make-up artistry gave me advice about false eyelashes and now i'm scared.) pertinent readers will be saying "yes but do you have anything to wear with your make-up and hair? and i say to you, the bodice - she is completed. It looks hot. the skirt is mostly completed (there was a slight disagreement with the tension on Mr Stitchy - resulting in us both becoming too tense ha ha - and so i have set it aside for now). Tonight or tomorrow evening i will stick the whole thing together and have a heart attack because it makes me look like a pregnant hippo (if you expect the worst you are always prepared and often get a pleasant suprise).

Anyone who hasnt RSVPd i hope you appreciate you are giving me the heebie-jeebies and that i am assuming you dont expect there to be any fluid refreshment for you. jus' sayin'. (you know you're supposed to RSVP if you're not coming too, right? is this a huge societal flaw or what?)

Stoke me a clipper, i'll be back for christmas.

5 things

I've been tagged by laura.y!
this is very exciting as I've only ever done the "whoever wants to can do this one" variety.

***Ground Rules: The first player of this "game" starts with the topic "5 weird habits of yours" and people who get tagged need to write a blog entry about their 5 quirky habits as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose the next 5 people to be tagged and list their names.***

1. I havent really eaten bread since age six. It gives me headaches. This pretty much extends to most pasta (gnocchi is fine), pizza, and those icky muffins they sell in places like McDoodads. In recent years several of my cousins have been diagnosed as having celiacs disease, so everyone is trying to make me go have a blood test. But I maintain that if i make it myself it's fine so it must be a preservative that sets me off (I am also absolutely terrified of needles, but that's another story and not at all 'quirky' just SANE). This does however make it difficult for me to take a packed lunch anywhere, and on the odd occasion that I -do- eat a sandwich or burger I am completely unable to do it elegantly. It's like I'm missing the software.

2. I only need to hear a song about twice to know it off by heart (this depends of course on the level of diction used by the singer) and I am totally unconscious of the fact that I sing along to every song I know. In any situation. At work. In the car. In shops. Watching movies. I lose more friends this way :p sound familiar BFG?

3. I am the worlds best procrastinator. I'm the type who can churn out a pair off socks, half a sweater and read 12 (unrelated but heavy) novels in the week a big essay is due. Considering I seem to still do ok at uni I put this down to a perfected technique.

4. I talk to myself. Frequently. And answer back. In fact, the most common self-talk you might overhear at Chez Spider is usually in relation to how insane it really -is- to talk to yourself (I can sure argue myself into the ground!)

5. I am a closet Romantic. I read bazillions of romance novels and sob through chick flicks. In the outside world I openly mock icky displays of romance and affection... but only because I'm secretly jealous. There is a line though: flowers from the garden is romantic, personal ads on Valentines Day addressed to 'snookywooky' and 'cuddlebum' should be outlawed. Eck. The quickest way to my heart is to eat my cooking and offer to rub my back. And say my knitting is cool of course.

Ok, I tag.... Othlon, Jejune, Taphophile, Cathy and Twisted Gabriel. Only if you want, i know you girls have important knitting related stuff to post about >_<

Also just wanted to share a little tale with you all. When I was six years old there was a girl living in the house next door to my grandmothers. I used to go there every day after school and we became Best Friends. We stayed thick as thieves til we were about 16, and then suddenly boys and different schools and different outlooks got in the way. I have seen her probably five times in the last 5 years. Today I called her mother and got her mobile number and phoned her. It was absolutely terrifying but I'm so glad I did because she's still my Sammy. And I have missed her like crazy. So, she's coming to my 21st and we're going to make a real effort to get to know each other again. There are some things that are too good to be left to die. I'm so glad I worked up the guts!!

A Bientot!

rambles and brambles

In case I hadn't previously mentioned it (which I hadn't), I live with my parents and my 17 year old brother. This has it's moments as everyone can well imagine. There are alot of things that need to get done pretty much daily in a house, and particularly in one with a dog and some chickens and a garden that likes hydration.

So, things become interesting when my parents go away. For a weekend I can usually handle because even when my brother inevitably skips out on me, BFG will come over on saturday night and I will have someone to walk the dog with me and make life a tad less scary.

My parents left on thursday. My brother did also. My parents will be home on Tuesday, ditto the stinky one. I won't say I'm doing the work of four people plus my job, but I'm at least doing the work of two. And I am fully aware that my parents do alot for us all, but I honestly believe I do my fair share, and there's a good reason why there is a division of housework. I'm only human!

On thursday morning my mother called me (10 minutes before my alarm would've woken me anyway) to tell me they hadnt left any money in their savings account and could I please transfer whatever I had over for them? This was frustrating because I had planned to buy myself some books on amazon on Friday night (sort of birthday present to myself). I didnt really mind, but it set of a bizarre chain of events whereby i cant remember anything. Phone numbers, my account number, peoples names... it's really getting sort of awkward. Something about that wakeup call... eck

And the dress. Don't ask. I have to wear it in less than a week and it looks like this so far. It doesnt help that it's so hot during the day I can't bring myself to turn on the iron (a problem if you want to sew complicated panelly bits out of light-weight satin) and then if I try to sew at night I'm garaunteed to make stupid mistakes (like sew bits on backwards) and spend the next four hours fixing them. Naturally I cannot post a picture if I do get it finished, or my photos of my 21st will be unsuprising. But I will keep you all posted. Worst case scenario: I'll be Sailor Moon again, even if BFG did outlaw the skirt for being too short.



The wrap for BFGs SIL is progressing very slowly indeed. It's partly the heat (and the 42,000 things I have to do everyday now that 4 has become 1) but I do recall the back being slow on the last one I made so I'm sure once I finish this piece everything will run more smoothly.



Have picked up ankle socks again so, in accordance with the rules, I can hopefully cast on the blue patonyle socks this week. I'm thinking a toe-up pattern so i dont have any leftovers :) hope im smart enough to figure it out!

as luck would have it I found myself in spotlight today and found some (more!) patonyle and totem at 75% off... you may notice (those of you with keen eyes and untrusting natures) that i have also purchased another set of 2.25mm dpns... this is not in anticipation of rule breaking. promise. I just got fed up last time I had both sets going and couldnt have started another pair of socks even if I had followed the rules and finished something else... oh shooosh all of you. I am only human. And Irene? you can keep the 3.75mm dpns, I got another set (you need something to stick in the front bit of your needle case right?).

Well, I'm off to reorganise the fridge because I made fruit salad and can't fit it in. I would also dearly like to solve the mystery of why there are frozen rissoles in the same bag as my dogs frozen kangaroo mince, but that might be too much for one night. It's almost cooler now. Oh what am I saying?? it's 11pm and my house is 28 degrees C! I'd like to try to get the bodice of my dress spoken for but I suspect my mistakes would be too great (and its scary if you stay up too late when there's noone else in the house!)

I would just like to add that ToDs play was truly brilliant and there is no doubt in my mind that he is an comedic genius. (I forgot to tell you my new theory ToD! All the great comedians are depressive right? Rowan Atkinson, Billy Connolly, Oscar Wilde etc etc. You cannot really understand what is funny without understanding what isn't. An extension of the "without a concept of pain there is no experience of pleasure" argument.) Play was SO funny, I had to see it twice and it was not solely the truly adoreable children acting in it that was a drawcard (yes, the blue fair is totally gorgeous and I want to marry her). And I have many photos in varying stages of fuzziness so if anyone would like copies email me. And ToD? you MUST choose one I can stick up here :p if you do not choose i will choose for you (satanic glare it is!)

be of good cheer :)

the new rules

ok people. i have made a few decisions and need to tell you all so you keep on me and tell me off when i dont stick to them. We could look at these a new years resolutions. we probably should. But i'm just going to call them the rules, because i never follow resolutions (except the "take more baths", "paint toenails occasionally" variety).

The Rules (with new subclauses) :

1. Thou shalt not cast on another project until one is completed (this makes the limit of projects.. er... 8?) SUBCLAUSE: Ideally this shall consist of no more than 5 major items (jumpers and shawls) and no fewer than 2 minor items. This was there is an item for every situation.
2. If thou finisheth a pair of socks, thou shalt not cast on a sweater. An accessory down is an opening for another accessory. Shawls/big scarves (such as clapotis) count as sweaters.
3. A project is not finished until it is a) seamed up, b) ends woven in and c) blocked if it needs it. If you seam it cruddily, seam it again. so there. SUBCLAUSE: If something needs frogging, it counts as current as long as it is on the needles. You must deal with something one way or another before you can start something new. Otherwise everyone perishes in the avalanche of bad decisions.
4. When knitting a sweater, each piece does not count as an item down. Thou may say "when i finish this sleave, i'll knit those socks again" but no new item may be started.
5. Thou may reserve yarn (and purchase it) in a waiting list for new projects. No swatching until a previous item is finished. SUBCLAUSE: referring to bag of yarn as 'my new sweater' is a tad crazy.
6. Spinning shalt not take the place of knitting, and thou shalt discover a way of sitting that doesnt freeze thou shoulder. (thou shalt lose the fear of knitting handspun, but only once something is finished). SUBCLAUSE: this is not an excuse to stop spinning.

My socks and scarf do not count because i had far too many things on the go and am now knitting a zhivago wrap jacket (like my golden oats one) for BFG's sister in law Sophie. I like the yarn and the colour but need to behave or i'll end up shelving it because i wont get to wear it at the end (and having knit it once before, there is no mystery left. Anyone who just wondered if i ever intend to get married, bite your tongue! i can flirt with the odd pair of socks if i like!!!)

ToD, shutup about the random use of thou and you. and for the last time, my room does not smell like yarn!!!!!! (also, break a leg, your play will be brilliant)

so please, keep an eye on me. and i'll try to be good and keep accurate records of what im knitting in my side-bar (there are quite a few undisclosed currently).

thanking you in advance

the wicked Ms Spider

yarncrossing

ok, so i have been a wee bit lazy about posting. i have, however, been busy!

Scarf of pea soup. the colour (as everyone secretly thought) has grown on me, and now i like it. I am so transperant!




Voila! needle case for irene (a the rate she's going it was desperately needed) before anyone asks, yes she likes pink.

I also (finally) finished my patonyle socks. Wonderful what a day of watching Red Dwarf 7 will do for your sock drawer!

And then SnB yesterday... ah my friends, memories are made of this! we have a full blown yarn swap happening! I gave jordan some bright red powder puff, and was rewarded with blue patonyle!!!!! hurrah!!! i was so excited you could have knocked me over and i would've bounced straight back up again.

I also swapped Taphophile (very unevenly) a ball of tiger stripe sock yarn for 9 balls of Katia!!! very very excited. of course, the projects are hazy but its so nice i feel enriched for having it near me.

She also managed to offload on me this batch of amazingly colourful yarn. Just to give some perspective, the big ball is bigger than my head.... im not sure what it is but i know many young children and am a sucker for variegation... Taph tried hard to send me home with my own weight in red Ack-rylic as well but i saw through her scheme! (im onto you woman!!) good contrast my foot! :p



And as luck would have it there is selected colours of cleckheaton studio 8 ply mohair 50% off at spotlight... no, really. i did need it. honestly! (oh you people have no faith!)

SnB was really really really fun, i havent smiled so much since, oh, the last one? Othlon loved the handspun, irene loved the needle case and a grand time was had by all! and in a joyful and appropriate turn of events, the next one is the day before my 21st birthday (best gift EVER!). For pictures of the yarn festivities, visit irene here! i had too many bags of yarn with me to carry a camera as well, lucky someone was organised!

And on that totally materialistic note, c'est tout!

something you should know

Ok, so I'm really REALLY bad about suprises. I preemptively give them away, and i get so excited when they are actualised that i cant contain myself.

So, if you like suprises Othlon, look away IMMEDIATELY

Presenting 'Checkmate', handspun a la spider with black alpaca plyed on white alpaca. A total joy to spin and absolutely my favourite thing as yet. I may have to spin some more for myself :) though why did noone mention how hard it is to card alpaca when the hairs are so long?? But my neighbour gave me stacks of every colour she had with the promise of more when she ran out, so i aint gonna argue with free wool. and it's beautiful too! dirty but great colours and soooo soft :) stay tuned for caramel, peach and chocolate :p

Are we proud? (this is pre-bath so the white should get even whiter).

ooh im so happy happy happy i LOVE presents :) :) :) hee hee hee hee hee!

and the ayes have it

You will all (well mostly) be pleased to know that my subscription renewal notice is now in the recycling. i feel rather bad and twingy about it but i suspect that deep down it's just because it's the only thing i receive regularly a la australia post. i keep reminding myself i have a sub to creative knitting (not the best but a long shot off the worst too), and if i pull my finger out and look into subscribing to a couple of other knit mags then i will be covered (either that or i just makes sure i've always got some yarn/fibre ordered :p).

For those of you who doubt my spinning skills (everytime i say that i have a mental image of a couple of whirling dervishes), i proudly present Funky Town. the Happy Spider Creative Naming Department (TM) has chosen this due to a) random and quite fun colour and tone changes and b) the somewhat faded but still present reek of goat. i have no eye deer what it can be. i had planned a beanie for goat-feeding/farm wear, but as one cannot remove guard hairs properly without some sort of fan system (or hair-magnet... would someone kindly invent one?) this skein is rather hairy. i got about 70 metres and it's betweem an 8 and 10 ply (that is to say, in places its 8ply and in other places its thicker. leave me alone, i'm a beginner). i have enough cashmere left for another two skeins this size methinks, so anyone with brilliant ideas about handspun evolution, please sing out.

i havent posted for a few days and already there is a build up of words that are currently shooting out like steam from the milk frothy valve on a coffee machine (hey i said words, not technical terms).




have nearly finished first patonyle sock. well, to be strictly honest, i did finish it and then decided it was too short so frogged back the toe decreases (this is one pair not being donated elsewhere). i love love love the yarn, the red stripes are SO exciting. i was hoping to end up with one on the toe, but have one on the heel instead. will deliberately mismatch second one and hope for the best.




and this my friends is Pea Soup (complete with dog dish). i had so much fun starting irene's ribbed for her pleasure scarf that i got myself to lincraft for stash reimbursement. sadly, lincraft personel are clearly on some pretty good drugs, because my choice was a mixe of these colours: ***, these: *** or this concoction. i went with the Pea Soup green because i figure i can overdye it with a slightly less putrescent green. Was going to dye in the skein but found the lure of new yarn too great.



my neighbour is home again, and i'm going to trundle next door today to investigate purchase of alpaca wool. she says she has black, white, dark grey and chocolate brown at the moment (her mother in law lives on their farm and breeds alpaca but does not spin! so her 20 x 20 foot caravan is groaning with wool!!!! hello!!!). we were discussing the merits of each and now i'm wondering if she would consider breaking up the batch! She has a big black garbage bag containing each entire fleece... and she spins all one colour plyed against itself so she will probably not want to break up the batch (jo-next-door spins but does not knit and her MIL knits but does not spin. there is logic in the world). i want some of everything. well to be strictly honest i want all of everything but am happy to make do.
benefits of black: very forgiving and darn pretty. lots of things can be done with yarn.
benefits of white: can be dyed, spun or unspun. again, very versatile and looks pretty plyed with other colours.
benefits of grey: i like it, and its a nice natural colour.
benefits of brown: really really rich colour... yummmmmm

since spinning Funky Town i've realised how nice plying one colour against another is. and theres a little demon knitter i know who is always mentioning chess-board type yarns AND needs to develop some stash, STAT. so this person clearly needs a skein of black plyed candy-cane style with white. and i can also think of a few people who deserve handspun and will not mock my beginner mistakes but will love the yarn with the depth it deserves. and will surely be brave enough to knit with it!! ( i figure this is the next stage, developing enough courage to pick up sticks). i am of course too scared to knit anything i have spun so far, but considering how much alpaca my neighbour has access to, i think i can relax and spin and then just deal with the inevitable stash explosion as it happens.

today is going to be dedicated to the sewing machine (mostly). i need a few more UFO bags, to escape the current "projects everywhere" issue, and irene needs a bag for her stuff too. and she needs a needle roll since i scavenged a whole bunch of needles for her. and a little purse for notions. i also bought the pattern for the dress i want to make for my 21st. i am completely in love with it and have been for a few years but realised recently that short of getting married in it, there isnt going to be an occasion that suits it. so have decided that it counts as outrageous and will wear on the 28th. dont have the satin yet, but am going to go for a dark bluey-green petrol colour. and hopefully my hairdresser can show me how to put my hair in an authentic set. it's going to be so much FUN!

anyway, one must depart and try to get oneself organised because apparently irene is going to come and visit me as well today! hurrah! the more the merrier at chez spider!

til we knit again!

PS all hail irene, who has finished her first scarf ever! in 10 days people!!!!

vogueing

Well. Just a short question. I know what you are all going to say anyway, but i think i just want some reassurance.
I subscribe to Vogue Australia. It is an excellent magazine, with lots and lots and lots of clothes in it (excellent if you sew for yourself and need ideas. not excellent if you like to buy what you see, because a belt is approximately $42,000.50 or P.O.A. which stands for "Run! While you still can!"). Has no articles about diets and very few about celebrities. Well, there are articles about celebrity houses, but not about whether Jessica Simpson is pregnant to Alf (as if she wouldnt eat a cat!).
I really havent read it properly for 6 months. I look at the pictures (heck, thats what magazines are FOR).
A years subscription costs about $83. Compared to $95.40 i would pay if i bought every month in the newsagent.
I got my subscription renewal letter yesterday.

Vote A if you think Spidey should renew her subscription
Vote B if you think $83 is a good amount to take to a yarn store.

i shall decide on the morrow. Please give your two-cents worth. :)

chew faster!

ok, another list. i like lists.

1. Voodoo wrist warmers - finito! i used a prized single ball of totem in the most gorgeous grouping of denimy blues... drool worthy! i only made them 5 inches to the thumb hole because i was worried it wouldnt go far enough but now i wish i had done the ufll 7 inches because i have yarn leftover.




2. must finish patonyle socks. love the yarn, want to marry it.








3. finish clapotis. love yarn also.







4. finish chardonnay. i dont care how annoyed i am with it, this is getting ridiculous! i dont hate ribbing that much.

5. finish Moana hand bag or frog it and find something else for it to be. Also, rip back and dont do the cable rows so close together. Anyone else noticing a theme with the colours (ie. check out the patonyle again)? i have some bamboo ring handles and some leftover fabric from the hello sailor blouse for lining (again with these colours!). (there's a picture of Hello Sailor in side bar)

6. do the second one of these stripey ankles socks. AND write pattern out to share.











7. pull the guard hairs out of cashmere dad found under the house, card it and get it ready to spin. Yep, check them out. how can something so hard and sort of crusty surround such soft fleece. Very Annoying Indeed. how many pieces of vegetable matter can you find?

Things i have learnt today :-

1. Goat smells alot more than i remembered.
2. When my dad and i used to sit up late at night processing fleece when i was a kid... it was child labour. not the enchanting excuse for a late night i remember. (in a very freudian manner it is probably this biannual exposure to fibre that led to my curent addiction. just like when you have a very crummy relationship with your dad when you're a child you then seek a father figure in your partners. right?)
3. Goats can have dandruff.
4. my yarn will have causuarina in it and i must learn to deal with this.
5. No, really. goats smell.
6. they even smell when the fleece has been sitting in baggies for 10 years in a basement. maybe its like marinating.

finally popped the other pics up (why does blogger only seem to be having a bad day when i really really want to use 32 photos? ah, sweet mystery of life)

wish me luck y'all (no it still sounds stupid when i say it)

2006 - Year of the Yarn

things that have happened in the last 4 days:

1. BFG came home from Jindabyne with my bobbins (everyone kindly overlook the fact that i wanted the bobbins to come home more than i wanted him to, he's dealt with it). The very friendly lady at the cooma shop is obviously a clever cookie, because my little bag of bobbins had two editions of 'The Wheel' and two different types of catalogues in it. And. It was tied at the top with roving. Yes, she obviously took stock of my voice on the telephone and realised i was an addict. Magenta Corriedale... enough to actually spin a few metres. And i can buy this stuff for $12.50 a kilo in any colour i want! (see, i told you she was clever). i am SO hooked. Attention Attention, i am obviously an idiot or high or something because it is $12.50 for 250g!! no idea how i managed to do this as the first time i read it i got it right. my only solution is that i somehow dreamt otherwise then believed it... SORRY!!!!!

2. The new year occured. The first thing i did this year was be soundly kissed by BFG. He assures me next year will start the same way.

3. it has been hot. TOO HOT TO KNIT! yesterday was better and today i will knit even if it kills me (such an addict).

4. The antique shop i work at had its front windows smashed in, and so i get one more day of holiday. i am obviously a deeply depraved and horrible person, because i did a little dance after my boss called me. even though it will cost him $8,500. i really do feel like a terrible person... but im still thrilled to have the day off.

5. i came home from my weekend at the coast to find a mysterious christmas gift. I open the card and its from Jo, an old friend whom i really havent spoken to in ages. not so much a falling out as a falling out of contact. So we are going to go have lunch this week. But the gift, people! obviously we are destined to be friends forever, because she gave me this book. it looks second hand (i hope so) and it is so beautiful you could die. Seriously. You want this book. nyer nyer nyer.

6. My parents have left me at home with the stinky one. He is suprisingly chirpy (i put this down to the GF, absolutely sweetest person in the world and i have no idea how he tricked her into going out with him). They left us with no food and about 300ml of milk. i have taken this in my stride. (Related note - pork chops are not cheap!)

7. Jamal turned 22 yesterday, Happy Birthday Jamal!

8. i sent out first round of invitations to my 21st. if i've missed you, nag me ok?

9. Beatlewear went over 1000 hits! (this is of course somewhat skewed because i only added it few weeks ago and the blogs been around for yonks, but its still nice to see it there)

All going well i will be able to blog a tad more today, i want to put up picks of the 30,000 things i'm working on right now. pretty much so i keep track of them, i tripped over clapotis the other day.