the brown wall

waiting for Irene

2011-08-27T21:58:00.000-05:00

After a few days of warnings, and a frenzied (and over rushed) trip to get groceries yesterday, we holed up today to wait for the hurricane. Irene is supposed to hit New York hard and parts of the city have been evacuated. Our apartment is on higher ground, so today was just about waiting for the storm to hit.

And it was just a rainy day. I imagine we will be stuck inside all day tomorrow, but somehow we were in Hunker Down Mode, and so stayed inside for most of today too.

Yesterday, a book I ordered came, just in time for the storm:

Awesome book. It has tons of projects for kids Eamon's age. While Eamon was playing in the other room with Christopher, I whipped up some play dough. (we didn't have any white flour, so it had specks of whole wheat in it. Oh well.)

And later, when Eamon tired of that (which was pretty soon, actually), I pulled out some tempera and liquid starch and we did a little finger painting.

Probably predictably, he was very interested in the pouring of the paint onto the paper, and kept wanting me to add more. Also, he wasn't so into getting the paint on his hands. He really wanted them to stay clean. So I gave him a brush, which he really liked using.

We went for a walk (it had stopped raining), saw some emergency vehicles and an evacuation center (both around the corner) and when we came back he wanted to do more painting. All in all, he made 3 pictures. Each of them took probably less than 2 minutes, but it is satisfying to see him trying these things out and enjoying them.

a monthly feature

2011-08-16T21:04:00.000-05:00

It is a cliche, but Eamon changes daily. Everything about him shifts. I blink and it is all different. His hair color (brown to blonde to maybe going brown again). His vocabulary and intonation (apparently any day now he will begin to speak in actual words). And toys and books.

We have hand me downs from both Christopher's sister's kids and Christopher's cousin's kids, and we have received gifts on top of that. We have a lot of stuff. Toys oozing out of boxes, books falling off of shelves. Somehow it never seems like enough; Eamon tires quickly of Toy A and suddenly he will only play with Toy M. I put things away and rotate them, which seems to keep things somewhat interesting, but it is always a game of catch up.

For a little while now I have been thinking that it might be interesting to record Eamon's favorite books and toys on the blog every month. Since he just celebrated his 18 month birthday, I thought I'd start now and try to post around this time every month. Hopefully this won't become a chore, but will show an evolution of a child's interests. (Full disclosure: I have linked to amazon.com and they will give me money if you buy a product I link to. That is not the #1 reason I am linking there, but I thought I should be up front about that. My reason for writing this is that I think it will be interesting, not because amazon will pay me. And I hope I present it that way, too.)

So, first off:

Books.

Eamon loves books. We are big fans of the Priddy books - they have fantastic pictures of objects and animals and children and they are really great for little people who are learning words. We have a ton of these books.

But since I am focussing on the absolute favorite RIGHT NOW, I would choose Tremendous Tractors.

Eamon has been obsessed with tractors (and lawn mowers) since he got to ride on my dad's tractor (and mower) in Maine.

He still wears his headphones to the playground in memory of the mower.

Yes, this is a picture from June when we were in Maine, but you can see how he loves his headphones.

This book, which I bought recently on, ahem, amazon, is the perfect book for a toddler who loves tractors. There is a rabbit, a chicken (I think it's a chicken) and a mouse who show just how tractors are used. They mow. They plow. They seed. They even haul around some pumpkins. The pictures are beautifully drawn and there are other things to look at too, like the trees next to the field they are mowing. Eamon is particularly interested in showing me the door handle on the tractor on each page.

Eamon is also very interested in photo albums right now. My iPad has a bunch of photos (mostly of him) and some videos, and we also have a few hard copy photo albums, and one of his favorite things is to look at them. It is fun (though I admit it is getting tiring) to show him each family member and himself when he was a baby. He is clearly storing up who all of these people are and learning names. He also points at tiny things you wouldn't notice, like the out of focus, obscured dog in the background, and does the dog sign. Oh, to know what he is thinking!

Toys

To accompany his tractor book, Eamon has a tractor toy.

Amazon is telling me that this is a flashlight, which I honestly think is a bit of a stretch. We got it as a hand me down from Christopher's cousin's kids. If you squeeze the red part, the hood pops up, it makes a revving noise and a light goes on. If you let go of the handle, it closes and the light goes off.

Things Eamon likes about this: he has mastered squeezing the handle, which took some learning. The noise is fun (and not too loud for Mom to be annoyed by it). And it looks a little like a tractor. It also rolls easily, which is a bonus. He likes to roll things these days. I'm not sure he's noticed that there is a flashlight component to the toy, which is fine with me.

Construction vehicles are a close second to the tractors, and we end up watching a lot of YouTube videos such as this:

little monkeys

2011-07-22T12:42:00.004-05:00

I have a friend who has been very, very generous to me. She is a close friend, and she always seems to come up with the perfect present for various occasions - our wedding, Eamon's birth, various birthdays of mine and now, Eamon's. I am less generous, mostly because she is the type of person who seems to have everything, and she also is very clear that (usually, anyway) she doesn't want a gift. Plus (I'll say it) money is a bit tight around here.

Last week, my friend had a baby. And, well, that's as good an excuse as any to knit something amazing for my friend.

A blanket seemed like the most useful gift, something that could be wrapped around the baby in the stroller or car seat, something that would be useful for a few years. I made a blanket for Eamon when I was pregnant (which sadly was lost) and I found the small 2'x2' size more useful than I had imagined. I poked around looking at various patterns, and finally settled on the Sleepy Monkey Blanket (twist collective link). It is an incredible pattern, one that requires a lot of patience and looks impressive. I felt like making something a little more modern would be fun, and something my friend's husband would also appreciate.

I cast on in March, using Berroco Vintage, an amazing superwash wool/acrylic blend. My mother made a sweater for Eamon with it, and it has weathered the washing and wear very well. It also comes in wonderful colors.

The color panels went rather quickly, perhaps because they were fun and varied. They were finished and washed in May, and I presented them at my friend's baby shower as a preview as to what was coming. She and her husband seemed excited about the blanket. There was talk of hanging it on the wall.

I made it my mission to finish the blanket while we were in Maine in June. Unfortunately, the border of this blanket is a little more tiresome to knit. Someone on Ravelry said it was "fiddly," and she was right. It is fiddly. I think if I ever knit this blanket again, I would make the border simpler and a lot more user friendly. I did manage to finish it though, while watching episodes of the amazing Danish miniseries Forbydelsen (yes! knitting with subtitles!).

I washed it and it was sent off.

I do feel rather proud of this blanket. I finished it on time. I like how it looks and I think the colors work well together. It is probably a little warm for a baby, but maybe it would be useful for tummy time or on a chilly fall day in the stroller.

you can take the child to the country...

2011-06-25T18:58:00.002-05:00

You would think that with nearly 4 weeks in a remote place with few plans, one would get a lot of blogging done. Or more than usual, at least. But you would also have to factor in supervising a 16 month old, the endless preparation of meals and washing of dishes (oh, for a dishwasher!), the diaper changes and laundry. Somehow the day just slips by.

It has been really nice to relax into a more laid back lifestyle. Eamon has adjusted well to living in the country, and I will miss having a yard. More than once we have found ourselves doing the dishes and watching him play happily outside. We can't do that in Brooklyn.

Other things that Eamon likes about Maine:

The riding lawnmower. Here he is with my father.

Power tools.

My father's tractor.
Yes, you can see that he is turning into quite a little BOY.

Accessories.

Of course, Eamon will have plenty of opportunities to accessorize after we return to New York, but doubt he will find many pairs of ear muffs. He loves wearing hearing protection, which makes me proud. (I am a stickler for working with safety equipment.)

Animals.

Our neighbors have chickens, pigs and ducklings. And this morning a snapping turtle came right up to our porch, looking for a place to lay her eggs. In Brooklyn, we see pigeons, rats and squirrels. And lots of dogs.

I guess I should say that there are things that we miss about New York. Easy access to everything, for one. We miss having a playground, library and museum across the street, the multitudes of neighbors and other families that we bump into where ever we go, and a grocery store around the corner. There is a social quality to living in Brooklyn that I miss, an ease in making impromptu plans and common issues that I discuss with other parents (like, what is the deal with pre-school admissions???!)

It is hard to let go and think about going back though. It seems like we have been here forever...

the beginning of summer

2011-06-08T21:43:00.001-05:00

We have retreated to Maine. It really does feel like we have abandoned New York and everything that was going on (or not going on) down there. We arrived very late on Saturday night, with a 2 door compact car stuffed with our gear for 3 weeks, Eamon and the cat, who was remarkably cheery considering the long car ride. Being a Saturday and a time when summer travel hasn't really begun, there was no traffic either: a huge bonus.

The month stretches ahead, with possibilities of things to accomplish: a baby blanket in progress for a friend, novels I'd like to read, plus games and activities to do with Eamon. So far I did a bit of knitting in the car, and Eamon has played with the hose and some plastic pails, which was pretty exciting for him.

We are still getting into a groove... Let's hope the days are full and productive!

Knitting!

2011-05-26T20:19:00.003-05:00

Oh my. I thought that by now I was going to be blogging more, but now that Eamon is walking I seem to have even less time. Sigh.

In January I started working for my cousin part time, and I once again have a commute. Having a commute was one reason I started knitting in earnest to begin with, and now I have that time again. Not a lot, but it is something. And I am knitting.

I recently participated in a Mother's Day swap with a group of other mothers on Ravelry. We were to make one accessory type thing for our partner, and also include something yarny and yummy. I was waylaid in starting - to be honest, I got really obsessed with a baby blanket that I am making for a friend, and then I got very busy with a project I was doing in Philadelphia.

I ended up making my partner a scarf. It is lacy and thin; she had said that she liked skinny scarves so this was an excuse to make one.

Pattern: Susan Scarf by Kristen Hanley
Yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine, 1 skein

Amazingly, and maybe this is because I now have a child, I never managed to memorize this pattern, even though it was pretty simple. I like how it looks though.

And here's hoping that I get on here and blog more.

a milestone

2011-04-10T20:01:00.004-05:00

Every day Eamon does something new and interesting: filling containers instead of just emptying them, adding a new sound to his babble, picking out what clothes he wants to wear (that was a surprise) or handing out leaves to the other babies at the playground. They are small advances, but through them we see a person emerging, which is very exciting.

With each new activity, an old one - something I thought he'd do forever -vanishes. And so does my memory of it. Did he ever really wiggle his little fists like other newborns? Was there a time when he couldn't turn over, or lift up his head? Remember when I thought he would never crawl, and when we were in awe of another baby who could pull himself up to stand?

Parenthood does go very quickly, and the memories fade quickly because there is no time to sit down and think about them. You are always living in the present.

Enter the video camera. I have been taking videos - a few minutes each week - since Eamon was born. It is VERY strange to watch the videos, to see Eamon slowly evolve from little worm to someone more upright, someone with a clear opinion who is able to demonstrate many of his needs.

Today I figured out how to download the video onto my computer. I know, I know. Eamon is nearly 14 months old. You would think a grandparent would have wanted to see him in action before now. I learned how to download the video, because I feel like the grandparents deserve to share us in celebrating this milestone:

Walking!

Yeah, this isn't the greatest video, but you can't be choosy about the light and whatnot when you are filming something on the spur of the moment. Also, our floorboards sound sort of like a pig's snort. nice.

To be honest, he did not take his first steps today. He took a few hesitant steps on March 22, and has bridged small distances daily since then. But after a few weeks of trying to carry large objects while crawling, he gave in and saw the advantages to going a little bit further on his two feet.

an heirloom

2011-03-15T18:42:00.004-05:00

Every month or two, my mother appears with some age appropriate object for Eamon. The object generally comes from a trunk, and it sometimes looks familiar to me. Some of the objects have a story, though vague.

A sweater knit by my grandmother - or was it my great-grandmother? - for my mother's younger sister.

Booties knit by my grandmother - for whom?? - using yarn mixed with raw wool from her sheep.

Though I am a believer in using hand me downs, and heirlooms in general, there is something anxiety producing about putting a newborn in a tiny sweater that is over 60 years old. Yeah, Eamon never wore it. And I think he might have worn those wacky, sheepy booties maybe once.

When my parents came up for Eamon's birthday, they brought another heirloom, though one slightly newer. Here it is when it was brand new, 35 years ago.

Yeah, that is me.

A few other kids have used this rocking horse since my father made it for me all those years ago. When I had it, it was painted a solid orange color. Since then it has been repainted and had a real horsehair tail attached.

Eamon loves it. He can't get on it by himself yet, but he stands next to it and grunts excitedly until we put him on. And then he rocks, so proud of himself. And tonight, when we were reading a book that had a picture of a horse, he turned and pointed at the rocking horse. (he is a genius! Let me tell you!)

Please excuse the mess!

This an heirloom I am not afraid of breaking; this is an heirloom for using.

what's next

2011-03-01T22:36:00.005-05:00

I have been thinking a bit about this blog recently. This started as a place to chat about our renovations, and my knitting, and for me to muse about my thoughts on this or that. Though some of it is very personal, and all of it is based on my life, I have tried to keep a distance from the details.

I'm realizing that what I want to write about now is Eamon. Not really just about him, but about my thoughts on life and parenthood, and how his existence is changing my priorities and shifting my focus. I'd like to write about choices we've made, or things we are contemplating. I guess I want to make this more of a parenting blog. One of many, I know. Though before this was one of many knitting blogs, so I'm not sure what the difference is.

I'll still post about my knitting and my crafts and things that interest me, but I'll probably write more posts like that one about legwarmers, or the one about cloth diapers. And maybe there will be more to read, too!

a year later

2011-02-13T21:46:00.005-05:00

Eamon was born a year ago today.

At just about this time last year, I was settling in and trying to get some sleep, the first in about 36 hours. Though the maternity floor was quiet and I was exhausted, it was not easy to fall asleep. There next to me, in a clear plastic bassinet, lay a little baby with dark eyes. I couldn't stop looking at him, and I felt like he was watching me. He didn't seem tired, just curious about where he was and what was going on.

Meeting your child is such an abstract and huge and wondrous thing; it is hard to describe. I also imagine it is completely different for each parent, and for each parent's child.

I had long wondered what my child would be like: his coloring, his features, his personality. I think one of the first things I thought after his birth was, "Holy s**t! I am going to know this person for the rest of my life!" (Or that is the hope anyway.) And combined with all of that was, "I am going to raise this little thing. I am going to nurture him. I am going to know him very, very well. And love him. But I don't even know who he is!"

And so that first night I couldn't stop watching him, his little face in the darkness, as he watched me. Eventually I (guiltily) sent him to the nursery for a few hours just so I could relax and get some rest.

A year later I know him better, but each day brings something new. I am amazed at how much he has changed in a year. From a wiggly little being he has become a small boy. He makes sounds, some of which could be words ("da," "dag," "dat," "duk."), and he understands some of what we say. He can crawl quickly, and pulls himself to stand. His personality has begun to emerge, and I see an observant and friendly (though slightly shy) child with a sense of humor and an interest in everything around him.My life today barely resembles the life I had on February 12, 2010, and it took awhile to reconcile that, to rearrange my expectations. Having a baby immediately immerses you in everything Baby - feeding it, changing diapers, getting it to sleep, trying to sneak some naps for oneself, wondering when you will cook again, let alone take a shower or go back to work. I ended up being laid off shortly after Eamon was born, and so the past year has meant being more of a full-time mom than I expected to be. I was assured that I would get my life (and body) back after about a year, and that was true; slowly things have shifted to a place where I feel more in control. Once again I am designing for theater and I feel energized by my knitting and crafts. Eamon's naps are such that I can do some work during them now, and we are both more comfortable spending time apart.

Where does this bring me? It has been a transformative year, a year full of learning and letting go of expectations. And as we move into a second year with a child, I hope to move forward, both with embracing parenthood and balancing a career. (Or balancing parenthood and embracing a career?)

Eamon's wardrobe

2011-01-24T21:40:00.007-05:00

Last winter, when I was pregnant and wondering what I could make for my little baby, I made some legwarmers. I think I had sworn not to knit anything for a newborn, sinceI had been told that it wouldn't get much wear. Which was mostly true, though he did wear the alpaca chullo I made him (and never photographed well).

The legwarmers are another story.

Hm. Let me step back for a minute.

I realize some of you might wonder about a boy wearing legwarmers. One doesn't usually think "boy" when discussing legwarmers. Which is fine. Not all boys need to wear them. Personally, I like to dress Eamon in clothes that are a little less gender specific, though since girls seem to always wear pink these days, I don't think he gets mistaken for a girl very often.

But he wears tights. Regularly. We have at least 5 pairs of tights, and dress him in them as often as possible. I like them because they don't ride up and expose his calf (often a problem, since he has long legs). They also don't require socks, which tend to slide down and fall off. And they look cute. Another bonus is that they layer well under legwarmers and/or snow pants when we go out. (note to American clothing designers: please make more baby boy or gender neutral tights! The ones we have are either from H&M or from my friend who lives in Germany.)
So last winter- pre-tights love - i made a pair of leg warmers for Eamon. I used some left over purple Queensland Collection Kathmandu DK and made a simple ribbed tube. This year, with all of the snow and such, they have been pretty handy. Eamon wears them (over his tights' of course!) when i have him in the baby carrier, or in the stroller without his snow pants. They are warm, they are soft. Hopefully they will be worn next year too, as i imagine he will mostly grow up and not so much out.

reflecting on New Years past

2011-01-01T21:04:00.006-05:00

Happy New Year!

Last night we had our first New Year's Eve as parents. We went to an early evening, kid-friendly party and were home by 7:30. Eamon was asleep by 8 (an hour later than usual) and Christopher and I cooked some mushroom-barley soup while waiting for midnight. It was chill, stress-free, calm.

It gave me time to think about New Years' past, and how each one is reflective of my life as it was at that point.

High school: watching a friend get drunk at her parents' New Year's party and being frightened that she would die because she had a headache. (clearly the drug education class we took in 8th grade made its mark on me.)
College year abroad: wandering the Champs Elysee with my French-American friend, drinking wine and wishing all who passed us a happy New Year. Such a happy memory.

Sometime after college: spending New Year's Day happily alone, wandering Soho and taking a yoga class.

While dating Christopher: after having Austrian fare in Park Slope, we wandered into Prospect Park in time for the fireworks at midnight. The glory of being in a dark, cold park surrounded by tons of families all enjoying the display.

Last year: exhausted from the pregnancy, I begged to leave the party we were at (and had been at for many hours), we were home by 11:30.

I've never been a fan of New Year's Eve, or its bashes. The event never seems to live up to the hype, the feeling that you should be having a GREAT TIME! For me it has never as exhilarating as it is supposed to feel. So being home and having a comforting meal with Christopher? It feels right for where we are right now, even if it doesn't seem exciting or fantastic. And Eamon slept from 8pm to 6:30am, which felt great, even if I didn't go to sleep until 12:30.

Happy new year to you all! I hope to blog more in 2011!

we voted!

2010-11-02T13:36:00.003-05:00

did you?

return of knitting mojo

2010-10-07T20:58:00.003-05:00

I have been knitting seriously since about 2002, when I finished grad school and my mother mailed me her extra knitting needles. I was living near Downtown Yarns and I passed the store window at least once a week on my way here and there. I needed a hat, so I made one. And then I made another. And I started making them for all of my friends and relatives. And then I discovered patterns, and knitting books. And Knitty.com. And then there were knitting blogs and more patterns, and there just seemed to be inspiration everywhere. And then there was Ravelry and I just went crazy knitting and knitting and knitting.

And then I got pregnant. Which was a great thing. It was something we really wanted, and I had anticipated making tons of baby things, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I was tired, grumpy, anxious. I made a blanket and some hats, but the whole thing was really half-hearted. I really had to force myself to make those things.

The lack of creative interest continued to some extent after Eamon was born. I sort of figured I had grown out of knitting, that the baby was taking my energy and that I had just entered a new chapter of my life, but BEHOLD! That is not true! It is back! Suddenly I can't stop making things, or think about making things. I'm having fun again with my hands.

I had a meeting recently with a theater director, a woman I met about a year ago who has a baby 5 months older than Eamon. She and I are working on a project together, and I mentioned my lack of creative mojo. Or rather, I mentioned that I was feeling much more motivated to create than I had in a long time. And she said that she had a theory that this was related to hormones, and to babies starting solids and therefore nursing less. And since my body is less about providing for the baby, it is allowing me to start thinking about things that are non-baby. If that makes any sense.

All of this brings me to a few things I knitted in August, as the mojo was returning.

First of all: the Norweigan Sweet Baby Cap by Gro.

A very popular pattern on Ravelry and something I have been wanting to make for a very long time. I finally started it when we were in Maine in late July. I am determined to use just stash yarn (still) and so I used some Knit Picks Palette that I've had lying around. The lavender is Koigu.

This was a great pattern. Unfortunately I made it too small and it doesn't fit Eamon. I can't remember what I did, but I will try to make it again in a larger gauge yarn.

Second: Stay on Baby Booties by Knitgirl's Mother.

Another great pattern, easy and quick. I used some more of the Palette since I thought it would be nice if these matched. Again, they were too small for Eamon. He thought it was great fun to try them on though, and after I took them off he put one of them back near his foot. I think he was trying to put it back on, but he doesn't know how.

I ended up giving both of these to a friend at her baby shower. I'm sure she can use them this winter, and hopefully she doesn't have issues with wool and babies.

In any case, I hope to have more to share with you all again soon. The main issue is getting onto the computer and finding the mental space to blog, hopefully more than once a month. Stay tuned.

knitting for future falls

2010-09-08T12:01:00.004-05:00

September is here, and hopefully soon the weather will begin to cool. The northeast US had a very warm summer, the hottest on record, and it was not so fun to be stuck inside with a baby. We took him for walks here and there, but for the most part we kept him indoors.

For the longest time I thought I'd knit up a ton of baby things once I got pregnant, but in reality I didn't have much energy or wish to knit. There were so many other things to wrap my head around. I made him a blanket, some hats, a pair of mittens, and a sweater. (Yes, now I feel like I have a lot to catch up with! What will he wear this winter??)

I knit this sweater last summer, thinking of cool summer nights (ha!) and the fall, when the baby would need something light to keep the chill off.

I finished knitting it in late December and I remember being in awe that the tiny baby inside me would fit into such a huge sweater someday.

Well, it fits now. He's big, a lot bigger than he was, but he's still a baby.

I took these pictures about a month ago, when we were in Maine, and it was cool enough for a sweater. Now the temperatures are up again, but I think it will be worn at least a few more times this fall. Let's hope it cools off again soon.

Pattern: Sheep Yoke Cardigan, designed by Jennifer Little (Ravel it!)
Yarn: An assortment of cotton Knit Picks yarn from my stash
Started: July 28, 2009
Finished: December 28, 2009

food

2010-08-13T20:15:00.004-05:00

My, how time flies!!

Eamon is 6 months old today. SIX MONTHS. He has now been here with us for half a year. It seems both an eternity and a flash. It's hard to imagine a life without him.

Food: we eat it every day. But Eamon had only ever had milk (and aside from two occasions, he'd only ever had breast milk). A baby's digestive system can only handle so much at the beginning (plus there are all those theories about avoiding food allergies).

I have been thinking hard about starting him on solids for a while now, but since we were on vacation until yesterday I put all food plans on hold. Today being our first full day back (as well as Eamon's 6 month birthday) we decided to seize the day and give him a special birthday treat. (that would be food)

After consulting many sources and deciding that there are many right ways to do this, I decided to start Eamon with a little rice cereal. It's simple, and you mix it with breast milk (or formula) so it tastes familiar. Rice cereal seemed safe. Besides, it's all about teaching them how to eat at this point.

In case you can't tell, Eamon likes rice cereal.

Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to understand why he has to eat from a spoon when nursing is more efficient. (we had to take a break from feeding him so he could nurse.) Also, he doesn't like the high chair.

Hopefully he'll get used to all of that...

Edited Saturday, August 14 to fix the photo link.

5 months

2010-07-16T21:02:00.004-05:00

I've now been a mother for a little over five months.

It went so quickly. They aren't lying when they say that children grow up so fast. At Eamon's 4 month appointment in June, he had doubled his birth weight and grown 6 inches. Imagine growing 6 inches in 4 months! That's just insane!

Every week, every day is different. Suddenly he'll add a new habit (like nosediving into my chest when he's hungry) and he acts like he has been doing it forever. This week Eamon is working very hard to learn to sit up, and he seems to be in the midst of cutting his first tooth. He is also obsessed with standing up, with support, of course.

Unfortunately, my attention span has been a casualty of parenthood (though hopefully a temporary one). This means that I am no longer able to mull over what sort of blog post I want to write in advance. (I do mull, I just forget my idea within about 30 seconds of thinking of it.) Also, about 90% of what I think about is related to Eamon, and I feel like I don't want this blog to turn into a "look how cute my baby is" blog. (Though I do think some readers might not mind that. Hi mom.)

So... I guess I'll just keep going. This blog has never been about much in particular anyway. And maybe I'll just try blogging a little more often, it just might have a little less substance.

flower child

2010-06-17T20:04:00.003-05:00

The knitting has slowed around here, but it hasn't quite stopped.After Eamon was born, I managed to cast on and knit this little hat, made entirely of scrap or stash yarn. I ran out of the dark orange yarn, and luckily had some pale orange yarn that I could use for the inside brim instead.The pattern is a formula, and you plug in a circumference and make the hat accordingly. I was a little afraid that Eamon's head would grow more quickly than I would knit, but it fits him perfectly. I'm very pleased, even if Eamon does look like a flower when he wears it. Pattern: Sunshine and Lollipops, by Alison Reeve
Yarn: Berocco Pure Pima (pale orange and blue) and Classic Elite Yarns Provence (dark orange)

a case for cloth

2010-05-19T20:23:00.010-05:00

This post is part of the Real Diaper Facts carnival hosted by Real Diaper Events, the official blog of the Real Diaper Association, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to cloth diaper education. Participants were asked to write about diaper lies and real diaper facts. See the list at the bottom of this post to read the rest of the carnival entries.

A little known fact, something I feel somewhat sheepish about, is that we are using cloth diapers with Eamon.

It's funny that I am so hesitant to tell people when it's something I believe in strongly and have hoped to do since I was in high school. I guess I think that people will think that I'm weird or crunchy or that cloth diapers are unsanitary or something. When I do mention cloth, I see a wave of something (judgment? shock? sympathy?) wash over the face of whoever I am talking to, and so I've more or less kept mum.

The thing is, my silence doesn't really help change people's stereotypes about cloth diapers.

I recently heard about a backlash against the cloth diaper industry, and the Real Diaper Association has asked cloth diapering mamas (and papas, I suppose) to write about various lies and truths concerning cloth. Therefore I am dedicating a blog post to the cause.

Look, this is me wearing a cloth diaper back in 1975.
That's how far back my dedication to cloth goes!

Lie: Cloth diapers leak.
Truth: We had more leaks when Eamon was wearing disposables.
The cloth diapers we are using are incredibly absorbent. Some of them have microfiber inserts, while other inserts are made of hemp (!) or bamboo, which are also incredibly absorbent. The only leaks we've had when using cloth diapers were at night, and it turned out the diapers (which are adjustable sized) were on the wrong setting. Once I changed the size to medium, the leaks went away.
Oh, and no poo-splosions so far. Eamon poops about once every 3 days now, and there is quite a lot of it on that third day. None of it has leaked.

Lie: Cloth diapers make the room smell.
Truth: Not so far, in my experience. We wash them every 3-4 days and the room smells as good (or bad) as any other room in our apartment.

Lie: Cloth diapers are a hassle.
Truth: I guess it depends on your tolerance.
The diapers we are using are called pockets, meaning that they include the waterproof layer with a pocket where you insert whatever you want that is absorbent. Once it is stuffed, you put it on the same way you would a disposable diaper. When you take it off, you pull the insert out of a pocket in the back and put them all in the laundry bag together. And when you do laundry you just dump the contents of the bag into the washer and wash it twice. Easy peasy. (This may be slightly more complicated when Eamon starts eating solid foods and his poop becomes more poopy.)
The main hassle is that you have to wash them at all, but we are able to do laundry about twice a week.

Lie: I've seen those new cloth diapers, and they are expensive.
Truth: They do look expensive. Each diaper is about $17, and you need about 2 dozen of them. But if you look at the costs of disposables, it's nothing. Our diapers were a gift, but they cost about $400 to buy. The laundry is $6/week. If Eamon wears diapers for 2 years, that's $312/year x 2 years + $400 (cost of diapers) = $1024.
If you were to use the same number of disposables per week (60) and each one cost 25 cents each, you would spend $800 per year or $1600 for 2 years.
We will also be able to use the diapers for another child (if we have one) and have a pretty decent resale value.

Eamon models one of his newfangled diapers.

Lie: Babies who wear cloth cry more.
Truth: Eamon doesn't cry more or less when he's in a cloth or disposable diaper.
The diapers he wears have a layer of microfleece between him and the microfiber, and it helps him feel dry. Some diapers certainly don't have the fleece (when I was a baby I didn't have fleece in my diapers!) and I think babies just get used to it. Plus, you should change them when they are wet anyway!

Lie: Babies in cloth get more diaper rash.
Truth: Eamon's only bout of diaper rash was when he was in disposables, but apparently cloth and disposable diapered babies experience about the same amount of diaper rash. According to the Real Diaper Association, diaper rash was unheard of before rubber or plastic pants were introduced in the 1940s. So blame the rash on the lack of air circulation.

Lie: Cloth diapers are bulky.
Truth: While they are a bit bulkier than disposable diapers, Eamon still fits into the same clothes. Really, it's not that big a difference.

So there you have it. I'm sure there are other misconceptions about cloth. Feel free to ask questions, and maybe I can write another post dedicated to cloth diapers.

(I'm having trouble with the code I'm supposed to paste in here. While it's pasted in, nothing appears. boo.)

Edited to add: the code is there, in html, but it won't show up and blogger keeps adding extra code to the code. :(

gratitude

2010-04-24T16:22:00.000-05:00

Rachel is one of my oldest and closest friends, and she has been extremely generous to me through the years. In January, she hosted my baby shower, and to thank her I suggested that I make her a beret. She chose the Snapdragon pattern by Ysolda Teague, and some yummy orange alpaca that I found at La Casita, a newish yarn shop in the Carroll Gardens section of Brooklyn.I started the beret in early February, and raced to finish it before the baby came. I lost that race, but amazingly was able to finish it when Eamon was a few weeks old. (I was so sleep deprived that I actually don't remember finishing it, but I don't think there were any glaring errors...)It then took me nearly two months to block it.Oh well, the weather is warmer and poor Rachel will have to wait till next fall to wear it! In the meantime she will have to settle for posing for pictures with Eamon...

sometimes it's hard to blog

2010-03-23T21:36:00.003-05:00

and it's not for lack of time.

It's more for lack of ability to get to the computer, or to type with more than one hand, or to remove small bodies from my lap.Motherhood is going well! Eamon is a friendly little man, super sweet and mellow. He seems to change daily. It's really fun to see him unfold and grow.

I have a few knitting projects to share, and I promise I won't wait another whole month until I do...

the nursery

2010-02-25T17:00:00.002-05:00

When my parents brought us all home from the hospital last week, my father took a panorama of the nursery, with our new little family. We can't remember how to post panoramas on the blog, so you'll have to click here.

(We're a little distorted; you'll have to squint and be understanding.)

birthdays

2010-02-18T16:48:00.004-05:00

My birthday was on Tuesday.

There are certain things I've always thought would be fun to do on my birthday, given its time of year. Like, go to New Orleans for Mardi Gras. Or have a snow day (this was something I really longed for as a child).

This year my birthday was on Mardi Gras, and it snowed. But I didn't care. Nothing really mattered, actually, because I got an early birthday present:

Please meet Eamon Fletcher Wall. Born February 13 at 1:51pm.

7lbs 11 oz and 22 inches long.

Christopher has promised to write up the birth story, which I hope to share when it's ready. In the meantime we are at home, getting to know little Eamon, resting and recovering.

imagining Smudge

2010-02-10T12:59:00.003-05:00

My due date is rapidly approaching, and I have a feeling that it will come and go without Smudge's arrival. He can come any time in February, and today is only the 10th, so I should learn to be patient.

While we wait - and fine tune the nursery - I find myself insanely curious about what he looks like. I think the one guarantee is that he will have fair skin, since Christopher and I both have an abundance of British genes. But Christopher was a tow head (as was my father), while I had brown hair and my mother was born with jet black hair. And Christopher's beard is red and I have three red-headed cousins. Of course, he could look like anyone - his parents or grandparents, various relatives. There's just no way to predict that.

This is newborn Christopher with his hunky grandfather.
Check out those enormous baby feet!

Recently we realized that we are each imagining Smudge as being a tiny version of ourselves. Christopher was talking about his blond son; I know that he will have dark hair.

Here I am at about 3 days old.

I mentioned this to my midwife, who laughed and said that she can tell me what the baby will look like: an old man. Which is true. Looking at these images of ourselves as newborns, it's clear our appearance changed quite a lot pretty quickly. I wouldn't match either of these babies with photos of us just a few months later.

But still, it would be nice to meet (and see) Smudge!

counting down...

2010-01-30T19:55:00.003-05:00

Today at my prenatal yoga class I was the most pregnant person there. I think I was at least a month farther along than anyone else, it was that crazy. It made me feel, well, very pregnant.

If you are wondering what my shirt says, it says "No Longer Empty."
It was a gift from my cousin.

We have a long list of things to do before Smudge comes, though none of those things are that urgent. We have a car seat. And a place for him to sleep. And diapers. That's all set. We do need to cook some food that we can eat later, and we should finish packing the bag for the hospital. But that's really icing on the cake.

One thing on my list has been to finish knitting projects that have been languishing. If you look at my Ravelry project page, you'll see a few things that are 95% done. They're lacking buttons or just need to be cast off. Funny how I can spend 100+ hours knitting a shawl and then not have the patience to cast it off. (Even worse is that it's 2/3 cast off; I just need to do the last 300 or so stitches.)

I did finish one of those projects recently, though: my Vinterblomster Mittens. You may remember that I started these - and knit a mitten and a half - in November and December 2008. I then ran out of yarn, was graciously donated more from Hilary, and finished everything but a thumb in January 2009. And then they sat in my knitting basket, longing for a thumb. The problem was that the afterthought thumb in the pattern was placed too low for my hand. I corrected this in the second mitten, but had already finished the first mitten. It required surgery.A few weeks ago I pulled it out and cut a spot for my new thumb, attached my yarn and knit. And I finished the thumb within a few days, all on my commute on the subway.I love them! The inside is super soft, lined with Koigu floats. They're pretty warm too, though not warm enough for the 19 degree temperatures we've had this weekend. Maybe I can wear them next week.

nesting

2010-01-24T21:04:00.003-05:00

The nursery is slowly coming together. You could say that one side of the room is done. The other 3/4 of the room... well, maybe next weekend.Christopher's friend Derek came over yesterday and did various handy tasks for us, like install some lights over the changing pad and hang our baby hammock. We've gotten a lot of flak from our families about the hammock, but we remain confident that it will work for us and for Smudge. It's got a really great swaying and bouncing thing going on, and we hear that babies sleep really well in them.

I have so many things to share, but I seem to be rather passive with my camera recently, so until it's photographed in some decent daylight, the blogging will have to wait. In other news, as of today I am 37 weeks pregnant, which means that the baby is ready. He isn't due for 3 more weeks, but really he could come at any time. wow.

warm baby knits

2010-01-04T21:09:00.004-05:00

Have I mentioned that my midwife is a knitter too?

"Of course she's a knitter!" Christopher told me, " she's a midwife!" This is the same logic that has me convinced that everyone who is pregnant is also a knitter. Which makes no sense.

Anyway, at one of my appointments a few weeks ago, my midwife asked me what I had knit for Smudge. (She doesn't know that he's called Smudge though. She called him "the baby.") The woman ahead of me had just left with her newborn, and the baby had been bundled in hand knits made and sent from its Irish grandmother.

I felt sad that I hadn't made anything very warm for Smudge. Part of me thinks it's silly to make something for a newborn, when he's bound to outgrow it pretty quickly. But there's also something about a hand knit that connotes love and thought for the child, and I would like Smudge to have the warmth that my wool can give him.

Right about the same time, Mary Jane asked me to test knit her Cabled Chullo, suggesting that I make it in a lighter yarn so Smudge could wear it. I agreed happily, and pulled out some Sublime Angora Merino from my stash and started knitting. Perfect!

(hopefully Smudge will look good in mouse brown)

And when that was done, I had some left over yarn, and made a pair of newborn mitts for him too. The mitts aren't quite the same size, but they will keep him warm. When Christopher saw these, he asked me why I thought his son would be lacking opposable thumbs.

I used a pattern by Louisa Harding, from Natural Knits for Babies and Moms, and I added little cables to each so they'd match the hat. I may still add some sort of string or i-cord to connect them, but I'm not sure yet. Smudge may be warm yet!

Counting down the weeks! Less than 6 weeks until my due date! Yikes!!

the end of a decade

2010-01-02T11:29:00.003-05:00

I kind of hate end-of-year summations. In fact, when the New York Times ran their "decade in pictures" feature at the end of December, I skipped it. I just don't like the sentimentality of it. I don't like how those things make me feel, or how they are supposed to make me feel.

Seeing them, and hearing people reflecting on the decade on the radio, did make me think back to my own life in the past decade, however.

In the fall of 1999, I was just finishing my first semester of graduate school. It was a new beginning for me. And now, here at the beginning of 2010, I am expecting my first child, another new beginning.

Some things have stayed the same in the past 10 years: I am still in New York. I still work in theater. I don't feel that much older, and I still take myself and my work as seriously as I did as a grad student.But some things are different: I have a home as opposed to a perch. I sleep on a mattress with a bed frame and not a loft bed a few feet from the ceiling. I am married. I have a cat (though Dinah has been with me since the spring of 2000, so she only just missed sharing the beginning of the decade with me). I lost some innocence by living through 9/11 and its aftermath, and I lost more when Christopher was attacked last year.

I am curious what the next decade will bring. Of course, the first milestone is very clearly in front of me: motherhood. I know that having a child will change my life irrevocably, but I also hope that I won't be giving up the other things that are important to me, namely my relationship to Christopher and my interest/need to create and work.

I hope you all have a wonderful new decade, and of course a happy new year!

Christmas is over

2009-12-27T17:44:00.004-05:00

and Christopher and I are happily back in Brooklyn. The older we get the less we seem to like leaving home.

This holiday was no exception. On Thursday, after wading through the last minute shoppers in midtown and waiting an hour for a bus that never came, I erupted into tears when I realized the reserved tickets I'd bought were for us to go from Philadelphia to New York, not the other way around. 4 hours and a train ride later we had arrived and met the newest additions to the Brown household.
They made it all worth it. 12 weeks old and so happy to curl up on your lap, or shoulder or baby bump!! Dinah would be so mad if we brought them back here, but it sure was tempting...

I'm now 33 weeks into this pregnancy. The baby will be considered term in 3 weeks, though he won't be expected for another 4 weeks after that, and he could happily take his time and make us wait until late February to make his appearance. That's a 6 week window. Crazy.

In any case, we have 3 weeks to try to get everything as ready as we can, and it will be a lot of work to get from here to there. We need a bureau. We need a crib (or a baby hammock, which is what we hope to use). We need to move around a lot of furniture, and we need to bring a lot of things we've been given - both new and used - here from Philadelphia. Never mind the piles of books to get through, on breastfeeding and baby care. Yes, I know, it all works out in the end, and we probably won't remember the details of those books anyway. But still, there's a lot to learn before Smudge arrives.

help.

on being pregnant

2009-12-20T17:09:00.003-05:00

At the prenatal yoga class that I sometimes go to there is a part of the class where we go around and say something about our pregnancies. It is suggested that we say when we are due, where we are delivering, and if we have any complaints or observations. Yesterday in class my observation was that suddenly I feel very conscious of there being a little person inside me, something I think I've been feeling for a few weeks now.This might seem like a silly observation, but it's pretty hard to wrap one's head around the fact that there is a baby (a little person!) growing in there, someone who will come out and cry and nurse and grow and become an adult some day. Which is funny, because it happens all the time and everyone you meet was once inside their mother. But it's still pretty hard to comprehend.

After class I chatted with a woman from my birthing class who also happened to be there. We stared at a group of parents and babies in the yoga studio lobby (a reunion of a birthing class that had met there months earlier) and tried to understand that in about 5 months we would also be holding babies that age, and eating snacks at our own birth class reunion. My classmate admitted that she still couldn't match the baby that was coming with the movements in her belly, that the whole thing was still really abstract to her.

It feels fairly presumptuous to say that I know Smudge, but I am very aware of his general position in my belly, and can more or less feel and see his foot when he sticks it into my right side. He's been in this position - head down, butt on one side of my belly button and feet on the other - for about a month. I'm hoping that he stays that way for the next 8 or so weeks until be comes, even though his foot is rather uncomfortable. I find myself massaging it, gently willing him to pull it back in so I'm more comfortable, and he complies. Christopher likes to joke that Smudge isn't even born yet and we already don't get along. And I am just so in awe that there is a foot (two, hopefully, plus some legs and the rest of a baby) inside me.

Now that Christopher has finished his semester, we feel that Smudge's arrival is imminent. He's not due for another 8 weeks, but we have been warned to be ready for him in 4 weeks. And that's really soon. We still don't have much for him - just clothes, a stroller, a breast pump, a ton of blankets and quilts. At least he'll be fed and warm if he gets here early! In any case, the next few weeks will be about gathering what we still need, and making the apartment ready for a baby. I'm impatient to start, but also anxious about the transition we're about to make. There's no turning back!

Santacon in the 'hood

2009-12-12T19:13:00.004-05:00

So, NYC has this annual Santa pub crawl called Santacon. It's been going on for years, and it's pretty unforgettable if you bump into the Santas on their crawl (imagine getting onto a subway car full of people in Santa outfits). I can only imagine what children think when they see the (often drunk) Santas bumming around town and being rowdy, but as an adult I think it's pretty funny.

This morning at about 11:30, I heard some loud caroling from the street and peered out the window. This is what I saw:I grabbed my camera and went down to the sidewalk. There were Santas everywhere. All genders, all shapes and sizes, in any variation of a Santa outfit imaginable, all walking towards the Brooklyn Museum steps. Some of them were handing out candy canes or presents to children. I asked two of them where they were going, and was told, "I have no idea!!!"

Two overwhelmed little girls were standing with their father on the steps next to me and got all sorts of goodies from the Santas. Their father was a little nervous about letting them open the presents they'd been handed, however. At one point a group of Santas asked the girls if they wanted "a picture with Santa," and then had me take a group photo of the two timid girls with about 5 Santas. (out of respect for the children's privacy, I'm not publishing the photo here.) It was like Halloween in reverse. (Maybe I'd like Christmas more if it were more like Halloween??)Do you think that guy on the left is an angel, or a character from Star Wars?

thanksgivinging

2009-11-29T17:15:00.003-05:00

We got back yesterday from a few low key days in Philadelphia, where we visited our families and celebrated the holiday.

Thanksgiving itself was at my parents', and we had a mellow dinner with them and 3 house guest-friends. I keep wondering why it was more relaxed than usual. Maybe I was too exhausted to care about entertaining, or cooking? or maybe spending a holiday with people who carry no baggage is easier? I don't know. In any case, it was very pleasant and easy. More like a house party than a holiday.

In knitting news, I have two things to share! (can you believe it??)

One: a scarf that I started for my father last spring. This was originally intended for Father's Day, but I shifted gears (and went on a knitting break during my first trimester) so my dad got the scarf for his birthday instead.The pattern is the Braided Cable Scarf, by Miriam L. Felton. It's very simple and easy to remember once you do a few repeats. Yarn is Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride worsted in Sable, 2 skeins.

Two: Coraline!! Done. Not the greatest photos, but I'm super happy with it. In order to make it work for my pregnant belly, I made the body a size larger than I normally would, but left the sleeves alone. Somehow it all worked out stitch count-wise, don't ask me how. I also added a button band, since I know that I'll want to button this up.
My mother picked up the buttons at a great button store in Philadelphia and I sewed 3 of them on while I was there. Somehow Mom managed to understand the exact color without having a yarn swatch to match. I guess that's the benefit of having a mother who is also an artist.

me: it's the color of a very dark red delicious apple.
her: like shade XXX in the Benjamin Moore book?
(We both own Benjamin Moore paint swatch books, so maybe we cheated a little. But she was right on with the shade.)I've only sewn on 3 buttons on so far, and I'm in no rush to sew on the other ones. True to my midwife's predictions (and she and I actually discussed this in reference to my Coraline, which I was knitting while waiting for my glucose test a few weeks back) my body temperature is going up and I have no wish to button the sweater over my belly. I guess this is the benefit of being in one's third trimester during the cold months!

oh yes! Details: pattern: Coraline, by Ysolda Teague. yarn: Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light, in redwood mix.

two more hats!

2009-11-21T11:12:00.003-05:00

It looks like Smudge will at least have a warm head next winter! I've made two more hats, both in the 6-9 month size. Hats seem to be a perfect project because they are good for using up odd ends of yarn, which I've sworn to do this year. On the other hand, this pledge prevents me from making anything very large (like a sweater or little pants). I think I might also want to get some superwash wool if I were to make pants.

Somehow I've got to find a balance...

First up, another of Woolly Wormhead's Wee Woolly Toppers, this time Tubey.
I used up the rest of my purple Berroco Comfort, which is a bonus. Unfortunately, I also ran out of it. I think it's supposed to be another inch or two high, but it looks to me like it will fit. Anyway, great (and super simple) pattern. Quick too.

Next hat: Erika Knight's Pixie Hat, from her book Knitting for Two. I made one of these last winter for another baby, and thought it was adorable. This one is less amazing, I think because of my yarn choices.
Again, I was using up ends of yarns, this time some light blue Baby Cashmerino and a tiny ball of leftover Luxe Silk from Woodstock Wool Company (great store, if you ever go to Woodstock, NY). This hat was meant to be a gift, but once I realized it would require a bit of care I decided that the recipient wouldn't want it.

I also think it's dull. Maybe some stitching would help? Or a pom pom? I'm a bit flummoxed.

Next up? I don't know. I feel like I have a bunch of projects that need just minor finishing (and that I should do). I also think that maybe Smudge should have a good wool sweater for next winter. Or at least some baby mittens. Or booties. Or something to set him apart from the non-wool clad babies.

a house divided

2009-11-07T10:01:00.003-05:00

Do any of you follow baseball?

Well, the World Series is finally over. I say "finally" because it has been a rough week in the Brown Wall household.

You may remember last year:That's me and my dad at Game 5 of the World Series. Notice how we are rooting for the Phillies?

Here is Christopher. Notice how he's wearing a Yankees hat?

For those of you who don't follow these important events, this fall the Yankees played the Phillies in the World Series.

After 6 games, guess who won? Christopher and I have a very supportive relationship, and all summer we have been rooting for each other's teams. But we both draw the line when it comes to rooting against our own team, which made for some very tense World Series watching in our household. Cheering was banned. Being excited seemed mean, as was making comments about a play. One person's victory meant the other person's defeat. Watching the game in more or less alone and silence was not much fun, and so we were both relieved when the Series was over, even though it meant that my team had lost. At least they put up a good fight.

Yesterday I accompanied Christopher to the Yankees ticker tape parade on Lower Broadway. It started at 11, and we got there around 10:45. Not the best timing, and we ended up with this view: That's a big clump of ticker tape (aka shredded recycling) falling from the sky above that girl's shoulder.

It was disappointing, and later Christopher reminded me that it was a "lifelong dream" of his to watch the Yankees celebrate a World Series victory with a ticker tape parade at the Canyon of Heroes. He even had written this into an essay of his, and now he was sad to have not seen a single Yankee at the parade. Oops. Sorry. At least his team won...

supermarket performance

2009-10-22T13:17:00.002-05:00

Have any of you heard of Improv Everywhere? This NY based group has fun with creating performance (and art) in unusual and unexpected places. I've yet to witness them in person, but here is their latest piece/stunt, which they performed in a Queens supermarket.

I think it's rather brilliant.

first hat

2009-10-20T18:46:00.003-05:00

I have recently received quite a lot of baby clothes, hand me downs from my sister-in-law and an old friend who both have very little boys. It's been fun to sort through the itty little shirts and socks and imagine Smudge wearing them. What an abstract concept!! It's so hard to imagine that I will actually have a baby that fits into a little sleeper. whew!

I've been trying to find gaps in what I've received, and so far I haven't been methodical enough to figure out what we do have and what we need, but I have decided that we need a newborn winter hat. Even if Smudge wears it for only a day, he will wear it. I'm thinking it might work well for his trip home, and is shocked by his first cold winter temperatures on the way to the car.After much agony over which pattern to choose, Christopher took things in hand and decided that Smudge needs the whole collection of Wee Woolly Toppers from Woolly Wormhead. I hadn't really imagined spending money for the patterns when there are so many great free patterns, but I think he was right. They are all adorable hats, and I can make them in different sizes, and they also would make great gifts. I also like some of the hats are knit in aran weight yarn, while others are in DK. Lots of variety. Anyway.

I made the Buzzbee with some leftover Berocco Comfort from the blanket I made for my nephew last summer. I love this yarn. Love love love it (even though it's synthetic) It washes so well, and it comes in fabulous colors. I have a lot of it, so Smudge will be getting quite a few garments in Comfort. Pattern: Buzzbee, by Woolly Wormhead
Yarn: Berocco Comfort
Needles: #7
Started: October 17
Finished October 18

nothing to show

2009-10-11T19:50:00.002-05:00

except my belly. I think I can say that I now officially look pregnant. I've been offered seats on the subway now twice, and while fabric shopping yesterday the saleswoman was very excited about my bump. Funny how things like that can affect total strangers.

We also learned this week that Smudge is a boy!

This news was somehow shocking and overwhelming to us, but I think learning that it was a girl might have had the same effect. Becoming parents at all is really rather insane. Why would anyone in their right mind want to do such a thing?

I've been frantically working on a Coraline cardigan, which I started on September 11. I am making the body a little larger to accommodate my belly, and I intend to also add a button band so I can actually close it against the cold. It's knit up from the bottom to the arm pits, then sleeves to armpits and then the whole thing is joined to do a smocking yoke.

I'm just at the point where it should all get joined, and I am waiting for a good moment to sit down and make sure the right stitches go to the right places. I don't trust myself to do that on the subway, where the rest of the sweater has been knit so far. So stay tuned for that, and hopefully some photos too.

impending parenthood

2009-10-05T07:16:00.005-05:00

Today is a big day for us. Today is our anatomy scan. Or rather, Smudge's anatomy scan. We'll find out whether Smudge's organs are developing correctly, and also possibly learn its gender.

This scan will make Smudge more real for us, and the reality of Smudge is a little daunting. We have about 4 months until its arrival, and we really have no idea how our lives will change post-baby. If Smudge is colicky, we may just retreat into our home and become zombies. If Smudge is a chill little one, things might not be so extreme.

mom and me, circa 1976

I spent a few hours on Friday with a friend of mine, another set designer, who recently became a mother. Her career is a bit more established than mine, and I was curious to see what she had to say about parenthood. There was a lot to talk about, but it was all reassuring. The best thing she said was that the sleep deprivation was no worse than what we'd experienced in grad school, except that with parenthood no one was judging and yelling at you daily. Which I find extremely reassuring! (though I was 10 years younger when I was a grad student... still, it was manageable.)

On Saturday I went to a family alumni function that the design department of my grad school was hosting. I saw a few people I knew, all with babies. They too said that the sleep deprivation was comparable, though one new father said that of course there were no vacations during which to catch up on sleep. One woman said that she'd mastered typing while nursing, and the general consensus is that it is acceptable to bring your (well-behaved) child to meetings. Babies are welcome in the theater community. Which makes some sense. Theater is really just a grown up version of children's play.

I had been worrying about all of this, the balancing of career and baby/child, and I thought that one of them would take a hit. Or that I'd have to take 6 months off and then return to design begrudgingly. But seeing these other designers dive gleefully back in, a month or two after their child's birth, is reassuring.

Yes, they are still working part-time, but they are working! me too! me too!!

If you find yourself in Philadelphia

2009-09-27T10:23:00.003-05:00

you might want to check out a photography exhibit that my dad - Will Brown - is part of at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

Common Ground: Eight Philadelphia Photographers in the 1960s and 1970s.

The show is up until January 31, 2010. My father has (I think) 22 photographs in the show, all showing buildings and a few people in South Philadelphia, where we lived when I was born.

It's pretty exciting for him. Though he's made photography a career, he pursued the commercial side of it, and the good stuff (ie what's in the show) is mostly work he did because it interested him.

I'm super proud.

Follow your dreams.

Something for Smudge

2009-09-18T13:36:00.003-05:00

You may have noticed that I haven't knit much, or that I haven't really bothered sharing what I've knit recently. (There is both a coat and a sweater that need modeling, but I'm not sure the coat will fit me anymore.)

I really lost my knitting mojo during the first trimester, both because I was tired and also because I was afraid of jinxing the pregnancy. I kept asking Christopher if it was alright that I was queuing baby sweaters, or if it was alright if I cast something on yet. He wasn't really sure why I didn't just knit, but I'm glad that I waited.

In August, when we were in Maine, I cast on for a baby blanket. Much agony was involved in deciding on this blanket, and this yarn. It turns out that we are receiving many baby blankets as gifts and as hand me downs - my mother has a few from when I was a baby, Christopher has his, we've been gifted one already (which I will blog about later) and promised yet another. Plus Christopher's sister is giving us all of their old receiving blankets and what not.

What was missing from this list (though perhaps there's something in my mother's collection) is a wool baby blanket. Smudge is due in February, and I hope to be at least somewhat mobile with the baby, even when it's tiny. We don't own a car, so that means that Smudge will need some bundling, and I think a small wool blanket would be useful.

Which brings me to a pretty impractical yarn choice, one I think that Elizabeth Zimmerman would be proud of. I chose some Icelandic fingering weight yarn that I bought last year at Rhinebeck. It's itchy, it sheds, it's not machine washable.I told Mary Jane about my crazy wool baby blanket when I was in Maine. She assured me that you can let spit up dry and just pick it off! I like her attitude! (And I appreciate her enabling!)

Even worse, I chose a lace pattern, which will require blocking if it needs to be washed. But I thought the yarn and pattern would work well together, and when I bought the yarn I thought it would be a good wooly blanket. (I had another skein of white, which would have been great in stripes or colorwork, but I became obsessed with this pattern and only one color would work.) I knit it mostly on the subway, and I was surprised how quickly it went. Last night I cast off, soaked it and blocked it (with Christopher's help). It measures about 27" square, which is a little on the small side, but I think it will be useful.Pattern: Alpaca Baby Shawl by Marie Grace Smith
Yarn: Tongue River Farm Sock Yarn
Needles: #5, various lengths

The pattern was very easy to memorize, and since it's knit from the center out, there is almost nothing to weave in. I just knit till I was nearly out of yarn, then did a few rows of garter stitch and cast off. The yarn really bloomed and softened when I washed it, which I had hoped for.

I hope that Smudge likes it!

(I can't wait to start something else! There's so much to be made!)

Labor Day weekend

2009-09-06T17:49:00.004-05:00

I feel like we have been bracing all summer for this weekend. For most people in this country (and even this city and borough) Labor Day is about the end of summer, BBQs and a day off.But in this neighborhood, it's about the West Indian Day Parade, which is tomorrow.

The police set up barricades along our street this morning, and by mid-afternoon the vendors had already started arriving. And cooking. And selling their food.

I think the food is the best part of this parade, especially in this take out starved neighborhood. Tomorrow I'll be able to go out and buy roti and curried goat and fried fish and lassi. And it will all be just a few steps from our front door, and completely delicious.Christopher and I went on a walk this afternoon, knowing that tomorrow we'll be basically trapped indoors. Which is alright. We have a lot of work to do in here. The main issue will be the noise. It's a very loud parade (think flat bed trucks with 12' speakers covering the back, blasting as loud as possible.)

And the fun starts tonight with J'Ouvert, the kick off steel drum dance party down at Grand Army Plaza. That goes from 2am-10am (no, that is not a typo), and those going to the parade (ie the steel drum bands) like to play on their way there, as they walk down our street. At 4am.

We are prepared, and have ear plugs. I hope we can sleep through the night!

In other news, I am wearing maternity pants for the first time today. They are a little loose, but so comfortable. Smudge seems to have gone through a growth spurt this week, making everything I own a little tight.
I think I need to go shopping.

clutter

2009-09-01T15:24:00.003-05:00

Thank you all for your wonderful wishes! It is so warming to hear your enthusiasm, and I look forward to sharing the next 6 (and more!) months with you as Smudge and I grow!

-

This summer, along with battling eye ailments and morning sickness, we have taken on our apartment. You may remember the leaks in our windows... well, the building took its time fixing the leaks, and repairing the windows. After about 6 weeks of never knowing when a construction worker would knock on our door, the windows were done. The whole thing was a struggle, and involved me spending lots of time on the phone with the building manager, the super and my neighbors while at Haystack.

Since the apartment was already in chaos, we decided to have the floors in two rooms redone while we were in Maine. This involved moving all of our bedroom and office furniture (and art supplies and papers and files and filing cabinets) into the living room before we left. Which was alright.

We returned home to a fabulous new floor, with lots of expert patching that we hadn't expected, even in rooms that weren't supposed to be touched. Our floor guy just couldn't help himself. LOVE HIM.This is a spot where the boards had been patched before, but they all went vertically. Though the floor guy and I looked at this in our walk through, I didn't actually think he'd replace the boards and try to match the walnut border.

In any case, the past two weeks have been all about putting the furniture back.

What was the bedroom will become the baby's room, though for now Christopher will use it as a work space. This is the temporary office. We thought a single bed might be useful in the baby's room, since Christopher is such a light sleeper.

And what was the office will be/is our bedroom.

Sounds simple, except for all of the office and art supplies that we used to have a place for. While we organize our bedroom and the baby's room, the living room holds my filing cabinet (in pieces), drafting table (in pieces) and books.It's overwhelming. It's slow going. I am tempted to throw it all away.

a secret

2009-08-22T14:45:00.005-05:00

I have to confess that I've been keeping something from you.

Please meet Smudge.
Smudge has been with us, in one form or another, since early June. It complicated my eye situation, but did not cause it. And now Smudge is growing like crazy, and looking somewhat human. This scan was taken about 3 weeks ago. I'm sure it looks much different now... oh, they grow up so fast!

We expect to Smudge to join us, and hopefully get a more traditional name, sometime in mid-February. In the meantime, I'm eating lots of spicy carbs, growing out of my wardrobe, and taking naps (though my energy seems to be returning).This is me last week, showing off my new baby belly. I know, it's really hard to see. But you'll have to trust me that it is different than before.

I hope that this blog won't turn into the Smudge blog, but I might share something here and there about how it's going, if you don't mind.

true vacation

2009-08-16T20:21:00.005-05:00

We went to Maine again. That's how long it's been! We went to Maine and had a lovely week doing just about nothing. I took naps. Christopher did some writing. I read a little. Christopher wrote some more. We made pasta from scratch. I started a blanket. It wasn't enough time. I feel terrible saying that, since this was the fifth week I've taken off this summer, but it was the first of those weeks that I really felt able to relax. Italy was good until my eye fell apart. And my trip to Haystack was overshadowed by bad weather and my cold. Next summer we are thinking that a month might in Maine be nice. Maybe we can sublet our apartment, and not worry about the lack of income, and we can settle in and just be.

quilting

2009-07-22T20:28:00.004-05:00

I feel like apologizing every time I blog, because it is so long between posts. I am sorry. I am a little checked out these days, and I'm finding it hard to come up with witty and interesting posts. But I do want to share my quilting with you before it is so far in the past that it is obsolete.

So. I have always wanted to quilt. In high school, I made a few quilt squares by hand with some of my mother's scrap fabric. I like how quilts often have histories and contain objects of the past. And I love the patterns you can make with fabric, and how practical they are. So when my mother invited me to join her at Session 3 of Haystack this summer, I was immediately attracted to the Quilting as Art class. It's an interesting choice, really, since what I love about quilts is their tradition, and the point of this class is to break tradition.

We started the class by doing a bunch of creative exercises with color and line. Part of this involved us each picking an image or object that we found interesting and playing with it. My image was a dress. I placed in on my square in different ways and played with applying dress images onto different fabrics. I was also interested in exploring quilting lines and how one can draw with texture just using stitches.Throughout the two weeks, my dress evolved, until at one point I decided to make many squares using just details of the dress image, and to piece them together into a small quilt. (Unfortunately I don't seem to have a lot of photos of this process, which surprises me, frankly)

I drew out 9 details of the dress, which I thought could translate into 9 squares. I made cardboard templates and cut them out, and then I cut out fabric and made 9 squares. Except that I didn't like how all of them went together, and then I thought that 9 looked sort of measly, so I made 3 more squares. And I rearranged them and made more, and I dyed some red and yellow fabric that I thought might look good with my green and blue theme. Basically, I guess you could say that I approached it like a piece of art. But that's probably typical for this sort of thing, right?I also learned how to sew angles, which was pretty fun.

Once I had decided on my squares and sewed them together, I had to figure out a border.These are just a few of my options. I decided to go with green, with a thin brown border around that. But it's still not done.

When I realized that I wouldn't have enough time, I took a few of my cast off squares and made a mini quilt. You might also call it a rectangular pot holder, or a mini-placemat. it's really not much of anything, except an exercise. I took these two squares and made them into a quilt, so I would learn how to sew a binding on, and how to quilt it, and all of that, while I still had quilting colleagues to ask advice of. Of course, I didn't photograph this piece, and I left it in Maine...

Here is how my quilt looks now, along with some of the fabric I dyed for it. Yeah, I didn't finish it. And I left it at my parents' place in Maine, since I figure I'll finish it when I go back up there in August. But it's a start. I still have to figure out where to put my quilting lines, and then finish that border.

I feel like I have a dialog with my little quilt, and the fabric that reminds me of water and the sky at the same time. It will tell me where to put those lines.

I don't know how many more quilts I'll make. Frankly, they aren't so portable, and I find them much less tactile than knitting. But we'll see. I do have a lot of fabric that needs to be used...

Home from Haystack

2009-07-15T18:00:00.004-05:00

It has been awhile! And so much has happened.

First things first, my eye, and only because it is good news. I do not need surgery because my eye is healing itself. I may have some long term scarring, but honestly I barely notice anything now and I will be happy if this is how I see for the rest of my life. Phew.

I actually didn't realize until yesterday (when I got this news) how much my eye issues have been weighing on me down since it all started in early June. Yesterday I emerged from the hospital a happier person, smiling and squinting at the sunlight, so thrilled that it would be alright. I find this interesting, because I don't feel like I've been dwelling on it very much, but I guess it's just been there, dragging me down.

So. What I've been up to, though I think I'll give this to you in installments.

Week One.
At the end of June I went to Maine with my mother. She taught a drawing class at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, and I was her guest, and a student in a Quilting as Art class. I had never done any quilting, though I could do some basic sewing, so the whole thing was really new to me. After some initial design exercises, we learned about Shibori dyeing. (Maybe it's just me, but I thought that Shibori was just for knitting!)In any case, Shibori is a little like tie-dyeing (you might say that tie-dyeing is a form of Shibori) but bigger and better. We tried different techniques, including wrapping, stitching, folding, clamping, rolling our fabric to create resists. And if it came out badly (as mine sometimes did), you just refolded it in some other way and overdyed it. Nothing lost.We had a whole dyeing room at Haystack, with lots of big pots and tall tables for dyeing on, and there was a whole set of primary colored dyes for us to mix and experiment with.The unfortunate part of our first week was the weather, which basically looked like this the whole time. Fog. And more fog. (These pictures were not all taken on the same day.) That's the ocean out there, with lots of islands and a mountain. We didn't see it until the second week.And it was really very cold and rainy too. I can usually handle this sort of weather, but we didn't have any heat in the studio or the cabins, and I didn't bring the right clothing for cold weather, and I was miserable.

And I got sick. But that's week two, in which I also tried to make a quilt!

lack of distractions

2009-06-24T12:47:00.004-05:00

Sometimes it seems like life just takes over and there's no time for the fun stuff. I mean, on a normal day (meaning most days before June) I had things to fill in the gaps, things that I did to entertain myself and take the edge off the problems in my life. Like knit. Or spin. Or go to see a play. But since we got back from Italy it's been all about unfun things, like going to the eye doctor again. Or getting a second opinion. Or moving all of our furniture so the contractors can work on our windows. It's so full of this stuff that I don't even miss knitting. That's how bad it is.

Our windows. I have mentioned on various occasions that they leak. Well, the leaks were supposedly fixed on more than one occasion over the past 6 months. June has been rainy and it seemed to have been fixed, so we gave the go ahead for our building to bring someone in to replace the rotten sills in our living room and bedroom.Christopher and I moved the furniture away from the problem windows, so it wouldn't get dust and grime on it. Most of the side tables and laundry baskets, the TV, our mattress all were moved into other rooms.

We were told it would take 2 days to rip out and replace the window frames.Thursday was a rainy day, and soon after the first frame had been torn off, water started pouring in from above. The contractor finished his destruction, cleaned up and left. There is no point in him putting new sills on until the leak is located. That was almost a week ago.Today, at last, the management company informed us that they finally got a hold of the people who had originally "fixed" the leak. Hopefully they'll come soon to "fix" the current leaks. I have little faith, since they have been here numerous times and still haven't fixed anything.

And in the meantime, since we are dealing with 3 windows that are oozing dust and mildew, we are living out of boxes and sleeping on our mattress on our floor. So depressing. I'm going away tomorrow, and then Christopher will be left to deal with this situation. I hope he doesn't have to suffer too much longer.

In eye news, I got a second opinion. The general consensus is that I should wait and observe it for about a month, and then possibly have surgery. I can't get a straight answer from the doctor's office about what the surgery entails, and I am hoping that they decide it's not necessary. But I won't know that until I get back in mid-July.

In more positive news, I am heading to Maine for two weeks for a quilting workshop. I'm super psyched to get away, though I feel bad about leaving Christopher with the mess of our apartment.

enough moping

2009-06-09T15:35:00.004-05:00

I think it's important to remember that we had a good time in Italy, before we realized that we would have to leave early.

Proof:This is my friend Carlotta. I met her back when she was a senior in high school, and I was a college student studying in Florence. I lived with Carlotta's aunt and uncle (her zii- I love how in Italian you can just group aunts and uncles together into one word.) She and I took 19th century ballroom dancing classes together back then, which was really fun.

As you can see, Carlotta is pregnant. Her baby boy is due sometime in June. The exact date seems to be debated, at least by her. I think officially it's due around the middle of June, but Carlotta is sure that she will go into labor when the moon is full. I asked her to explain this logic but just could not grasp the moon-due date theory.

A month or two before we went to Italy, I consulted Carlotta about what she would like for her baby, if I were to knit something, and she said she'd like a little cotton cardigan for the summer, something the baby could wear every day. She gave me a lot of color choices: caffé macchiato, sage or sky blue. Or of course she also liked red and orange. It was a little hard for me to narrow it down until I found a big ball of orange cotton in my stash, and felt like it would work perfectly.Of course I didn't have enough orange for the whole sweater, so I had to buy a contrasting color for the cuffs, buttonband and collar. I really stressed over what would match, and only found a paler orange when I went to Stitch Therapy.
I think it works well, in any case. And Carlotta was estatic when I gave it to her. I should have gotten a photo of her holding it over her belly, which she did more than once. It's so nice to make something for someone who really appreciates and treasures it. I can't wait to see a photo of the baby in his new sweater, or his golf. (yes, that's really what they call cardigans in Italy.) I guess in this case it's a golfino, since it's a little cardigan. (What a great language!)Pattern: Offset Wraplan by Sara Morris (Ravelry link)
Yarn: Classic Elite Yarns Provence and Berroco Pure Pima
Needles: #6 US
Buttons: from a great button store I found with my mom in Philadelphia

I should give an eye update, since many of you wrote such kind notes. The long and the short of it is that the doctor wants to wait and see. There is some sort of bleeding in the back of my eye, almost like a bruise, and it can clear itself up apparently, though it might take a few months. Of course, it may also get worse. It's all about watching it.

Working on the computer is problematic, as is reading, though I am going to try going back to work tomorrow. I just need a sense of normalcy and routine. The doctor thought that my brain will probably adjust to having this smudge on my vision and compensate for it somehow. We shall see.

an early return

2009-06-04T05:17:00.003-05:00

As you might have gathered, I speak a little Italian. It's become rusty over the past 13 years, so being in Italy meant stumbling around a bit, trying to find the right words and verb tenses. I managed to add a few things to my vocabulary, however:

pronto soccorso: emergency room
oculista: ophthalmologist
gocce: eye drops
dilatare: to dilate
miopia: near sightedness
distacco post vitreo: vitreous detatchment
degenerazione maculare senile: age-related macular degeneration

Nothing is ever simple for the Brown-Walls, and within a few days of arriving in Italy, we found ourselves rushing to the ocular emergency room in Florence, accompanied by an Italian friend, Moreno.
The main issue was, and still is, that I have a spot of distorted vision near the center of my left eye. It is stuck there, making it difficult for me to read and do anything that requires me to focus close up, such as reading. Writing and proofreading this blog post is rather frustrating. (Interestingly, knitting seems to be no problem.)

The doctor there, a very matter of fact woman working in a dark and sparse room reminiscent of a third world country, made me throw away my contact lens (which was in fact disposable, but was supposed to last me another month), dilated my eyes and told me that I had a vitreous detachment. Which I know that I have. I'm used to little things floating around in my vision. This spot seemed different, but since she told me that it was no big deal (even though I was now wandering around with just one contact lens) we continued with our vacation.

Luckily, I brought my glassses. On Sunday, we went to the Accademia, where the David is housed. My doubts about the original diagnosis, along with the fact that looking at the David required a lot of effort, made me think that we should get another opinion. Sunday night we went to our friends' beach house on the Tuscan coast, and on Monday morning Carlotta's husband Francesco took me to their local emergency room.

This time the doctor asked me more questions, and had me look at a graph. After dilating my eye and examining it, he told me that I had macular degeneration and that I needed more tests and probable immediate surgery. He advised that we cut our trip short and deal with this back in New York.

Which is what we've done. It's highly unusual for someone my age to develop macular degeneration, though I do seem to have the symptoms. I'll see a specialist in a few hours, and hopefully have some better (and more positive) answers.

We are so sad to have missed the last leg of our trip, which would have included several days in Venice and short trips to small towns in northern Italy to see architecture and art. I can only hope that we can return sometime soon, to pick up where we left off...

Escape

2009-05-24T19:33:00.001-05:00

View of Florence, originally uploaded by GOC53.

So... we got off a plane this morning, and found ourselves here.

Not that it's a surprise. We've been planning this trip since March.

So far it's been a whirlwind of connecting flights, stuffing ourselves with delicious food and dining with old friends. I spent my college junior year here (13 years ago, Madonna!) living with a Florentine family, who we're staying with.

Sort of. It's complicated. Basically my host family's duplex was in a building with 5 other apartments, all of which were occupied by extended family. This week we're sleeping in one of these apartments, which is vacant, allowing us the freedom to come and go but also will let us visit with everyone. (I am good friends with my host family's niece Carlotta, and by extension her parents and sisters and, well, you see how it goes. This is Italy, after all.)

It's good to be back, and I was planning to blog about our trip. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera card reader, or a cable, so I can't download any pictures yet. We'll see. I'm not sure it's worth writing about this or than if there's no visual... (for now I am borrowing from Flickr.)

hand me downs

2009-05-20T10:45:00.003-05:00

When we were in Philadelphia for Mother's Day, my mother pulled out a bag for me to go through. More clothes from her recently deceased friend (this is the third group of clothes I've been offered from her). For the most part this is a fun discovery, especially as this friend had great style, traveled a lot, never threw anything away, and wore the same size as me in the 1970s and early 80s.

Check out this vintage Marimekko dress.My mom has already cut and started to hem it to knee length; I have to finish the rest of it myself. I can't believe how well it fits me, and I just have to find the right occasion to wear it. An art opening would be appropriate, don't you think? Not that I go to many of those... or it would be perfect if I were to give some sort of presentation. (If only most of my work didn't involve me working alone in my studio or in a dark theater where no one sees me!)

Here is the other dress.Yes, you might notice that it resembles (er...perhaps it is) a traditional Bavarian outfit, though it's missing the apron piece. It also fits me well, and minus the blouse (which in true costume fashion only goes to my midriff and would be good for nothing besides this dress) the bodice of the dress is too loose to wear sleeveless. My mom and I considered altering it so it's more fitted, but it's got a ton of lining and shaping that makes it difficult. Which is too bad. It will have to be a fall or winter dress, paired with a sweater underneath or something.

What I love about hand-me-downs, and as the youngest grandchild on both sides of my family, I've been getting them forever, is that you never know what you are going to get. It's like Christmas, without the stress of having to like or keep something. And in this case, it's a challenge for me to wear something different. Which is a good thing, I think.

mitts for mom

2009-05-14T15:13:00.003-05:00

A few months ago, when my mom was visiting, she put on the Fetching Mitts that I'd made her for Christmas back in 2007. They were ragged, pilly, stretched out. She didn't seem to care - she mostly wears them while she's painting in her studio - but I was embarrassed by how they'd worn. Honestly I thought that Mission Falls 1824 was better than that. It should have held up better in nearly two years of wear. Seriously.

So when I was deciding what to make mom for Mother's Day, a new set of mitts were the obvious choice. I have sworn to use stash yarn this year (unless absolutely necessary), and was happy to find two skeins of Elsbeth Lavold Classic AL in my collection. It was perfect for the Rib-and-Cable Mitts (Ravelry Link) pattern from Interweave Knits from Spring 2006. I used some left over Brown Sheep Handpaint Originals from my stash for the borders, and when that ran out I subbed in some brick-colored Donegal tweed, also left over from an old project. (amazingly the colors blend together well, and you can't really tell unless you look closely).Mom seemed really surprised and pleased by the mitts. I really hope they wear better than the Fetchings did. Hopefully the Classic AL is a better yarn...

Notes! I made the hand about an inch longer than specified, since I like to keep my knuckles warm. Hopefully mom does too!

running (for a cure)

2009-05-13T11:39:00.000-05:00

I think I mentioned a few months back that I'd started running. It all began in mid-February, when 3 people asked in one week if I was a runner, and then my friend Joanna (who was then visiting from Seattle) asked me if I wanted to run with her before I went to work. She and I ran for about a mile in the park, and it was completely glorious to be outside for an extended period in the winter. Joanna also talked about her recent conversion to running, and I was struck with the inspiration to start training on my own.

I think I should mention that I've tried running before, but without success. In middle school we had to run a timed mile every year, and it was something I dreaded for months ahead of time. In high school I actually quit playing lacrosse because I hated running so much, and in college I used to jog with a friend of mine, but we never went more than a mile. Even more recently I have run sporadically in the park, but again never went farther than about a mile.

This time, I downloaded some Couch-to-5k podcasts. The program involves running 3 times a week over the course of 9 weeks, and eases you into running in a very manageable way. About half way through my program, I realized that I'd reach the goal (5k) around the time my cousins run their annual Race for the Cure 5k in Philadelphia, which is held yearly on Mother's Day. They invited me to join them, and my runs began to take on a purpose.

Needless to say, last week was week 9 of my training and the race was on Sunday morning. Last Monday I ran my first 3 miles at the gym (the rain kept me indoors) and on Thursday afternoon I ran what I thought was about 3 miles in the park. And on Sunday morning, after a nervous night's sleep, I found myself here:

That's me waving to my cousins across the crowd.

My cousins are Real Runners, meaning that they do things like train for marathons, and one of them has a treadmill in her garage. In the period leading up to the race, they kept telling me that I'd find the race to be a piece of cake, that it was only 5 kilometers. Well, they were right. The worst part was probably the first third of the race, when I couldn't stop coughing (I think I had a bug in my throat or something) and then I got a stitch in my right side. My cousin's husband (also a marathon runner, who was running with us) advised me to reach my right hand over my shoulder and to lean back a little. The stitch went away almost immediately, and the rest was downhill (well, not literally, but it felt much easier). We finished the race in about 32 minutes.

Christopher, who didn't sleep the night before due to my nervous tossing and turning, dragged himself down and took some photos of me at the finish line. He's a good sport.I shouldn't forget to mention the fact that we were running in order to raise money for Breast Cancer. I raised $140 from donations. There were roughly 35,000 people participating in the run/walk, and I found being in that crowd rather sobering. Many people (including my cousins and I) were running in memory of a loved one, and some had signs celebrating their mom or sister or whatnot. Perhaps I was feeling overwhelmed by the race and early hour anyway, but while Christopher and I were wandering around trying to find my cousins I must have cried 3 or 4 times reading people's signs. Once I found my cousins, they advised me to stop reading people's signs, since they were so upsetting. Good idea.Anyway, I did it! and it wasn't such a big deal. Strangely, now that I've reached my goal, I don't feel like running anymore. I know that this is a mistake, that I should keep going, even if it's just to maintain my distance, but it's hard to get out there and run!

spring is here!

2009-05-03T10:10:00.005-05:00

We spent about an hour yesterday at the Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom) Festival at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. We live more or less across the street from the Garden, and have a membership, which meant we were able to avoid the huge lines.

This was the line at just one of the many entrances.

It was supposed to rain all day, but it was actually very sunny and comfortable.I don't know a lot about the festival, or about Japanese culture really, but it was fun to just walk around and see whatever was going on. People (of all races, though also of a certain generation) were in costumes. And not just kimonos. It was a little like Halloween or something.I had a lot of fun playing with my camera and taking pictures of people and of the plants. Everything seemed to be in bloom. And other people were taking pictures too. By the time we reach April (or May!) we're all ready to spend some time outside and in the sun. Of course today it is raining. Maybe I have to actually finish the furniture moving project I started a month ago...

I promise to update soon with some new knitting projects. The problem is that I'm in a button rut. Anyone know where to get some large, affordable (but pretty) orange buttons? I went to M&J and didn't find what I was looking for. And I can't get over how expensive they are-- how can can I justify spending more than the yarn cost on buttons?

musical memories

2009-04-25T09:41:00.006-05:00

So, a little background.

Back in 1995, when I was a college student, I spent a summer interning at Glimmerglass Opera. I was on the stage crew, along with 6 other interns. Glimmerglass is a professional summer company that runs in rep, meaning that every day they do a different opera. The summer I was there we did 4 operas, all appealing to very different tastes: Don Giovanni (Mozart), Paul Bunyan (obscure 20th century Britten), Yeomen of the Guard (Gilbert & Sullivan) and Tamerlano (Baroque/Handel).

This experience was huge: it confirmed that I wanted to spent my life doing theater. Everything there was exciting, new and big.

And I also formed a very important friendship with Joanna (aka Jojo, though at the beginning of the summer she was still Joanna). She and I were the only women in a group of rowdy and somewhat lewd college boys. (To be fair, there were some women on the crew, but they were not interns and therefore had more responsibility than us.) Neither of us were particularly rowdy. Joanna had recently moved to the US, having transferred from a French university the year before. She had listened to all of the operas before she got there that summer, and during the operas she would let out a little sigh or coo every once in a while, when the music was particularly good.

She was also rather outgoing, and became friendly with some of Tamerlano cast. I remember us having breakfast with one of them at a coffee shop in downtown Cooperstown, and another time the soprano invited the crew (through Joanna, of course) to the house where she was staying for brunch.

Since we both were staying at the same residence, had similar work hours, and had only one car between us, we frequently went to work together or came home for lunch together or went grocery shopping together. Basically, we were inseparable.

The operas. In the case of this blog post, there is only one opera worth discussing: Tamerlano. I don't think I was at all familiar with Baroque opera before that summer, but I was blown away by it. So soft and lilting, so unexpectedly beautiful. As a crew member on Tamerlano, I spent the duration of the opera behind a very tall gold folding screen with 2 other crew members. At certain musical cues (once each act, I think), we moved the screen. Otherwise, we played cards or napped. On stage. I am serious.

There were two musical parts that we would wake up for and listen to intently. One was David Daniels' aria. The other was the show finale. I've found a YouTube clip of some other singers singing the finale and strangely they are wearing the same costumes as our production. (Looking at the credits, it has the same director, Jonathan Miller)It's not very long, and it is beautiful. Listen!

That fall, I went to study in Italy. My college had a very intensive, immersive junior year abroad program in Florence, where I studied art history and Italian language. It was very hard, especially going from Glimmerglass (where had I finally found people who loved the same things as I did) to a country where I barely spoke the language and didn't know anyone. How I got through that year is another post (and I did get through it, and loved it), but I have to stick to my story. Joanna (who had by then been nicknamed Jojo) sent me a ton of letters. Along with being a great friend, she knew about culture shock and she knew Europe; she understood what I was going through. And she sent me things, tapes of music she'd gotten out of the library: Purcell (Dido and Aeneas) and Bach (St Matthew Passion), to be exact. And I listened to them on my walkman, laying in on my bed writing letters or walking the Sede for class. The music was so surprisingly different from Handel (unfortunately I have little music education and have no way to discuss this. I can just tell you that is very modern to me.)

Years passed, and I stopped listening to my cassette tapes. I met Christopher, and was surprised when one day he put on the St Matthew Passion. Apparently when he was in a chorus in DC they sang it, and he loved it. He plays it regularly, and I always think of all of these things when he does.

A few weeks ago he sent me an email while I was at work. A staged version of the St Matthew Passion is being done at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and he wanted to get tickets. He had been listening to the director, Jonathan Miller, on the radio and it sounded really exciting. Jonathan Miller! The same guy who directed Tamerlano! St Matthew Passion! Needless to say, we got tickets to see it, and went last night.

It was beautiful. I guess the piece is usually performed as a choral work, very staid. Miller made it a little more dramatic, separating the two choruses and orchestras so that they each faced each other in a loose sort of circle, leaving the center open as a performing space and for the conductor. Musicians would enter the stage for solos as well, and everyone was in street clothes.

I found a YouTube clip of an older version of the production, and it just doesn't do it justice because I think the spacing is so important. I suppose you can hear the music though. It's interesting to me how connected I feel to this music. Listening to it last night brought back so many memories of different times in my life. Times that are pretty far in the past...

a second panorama

2009-04-22T12:03:00.008-05:00

I think we (ie my father) have solved the problem of how to post the panorama on a blog. Here is a view of the street I grew up on, and where my parents still live.
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I recommend viewing this very large. Just click on the X at the bottom of the image.

I have been tempted to change the layout of this blog for a while; I have found the column rather narrow and the colors overwhelming. Please let me know how you like this simpler layout.

blankets for Afghans

2009-04-20T21:28:00.005-05:00

I've mentioned before that I sometimes knit things for Afghans for Afghans. Their latest drive, which started early this year, is for baby items. I usually send a mass email with the appeal to my knitting group, and then collect a few hats and mittens. This time when I sent the information, Tony (the group organizer) smartly thought we should make and sew together blanket squares.

Tony keeps giving me credit for organizing this, but in reality he wrote up a bunch of blanket square patterns and has taught group members how to make them, plus he collected the squares and has kept them at his apartment. It only seemed fair that I host a piecing party, the first of which was on Saturday.
It turned out that Tony had to go to a party with his girlfriend that day, so he brought the squares over before everyone arrived.
The squares were of varying sizes, so we lay out one blanket of small squares and anther of large ones and had a tall stack of mixed sized squares left over.
Our piecing group was small (just 3 of us!), but we had fun chatting and sewing everything together. When Lizz and Lisa left, there was one blanket that still needed a final center seam; the second blanket was only partially sewn.

On Sunday morning I finished the seam and sewed in all of the ends, completing our first blanket. Voila!I really love the combination of squares, and the number of different styles it incorporates. I am also really taken with the crocheted ones. I wish I knew how to crochet!

The second blanket is now in strips (I couldn't resist it). It's really tempting to finish it too, but I'm being encouraged to wait so it's more of a group effort. Now to have another piecing party...

mitts for spring

2009-04-17T13:31:00.004-05:00

This spring seems to have taken a long time to come. Actually, I think that I always expect spring to come earlier than it does. By the time April rolls around, I think there should be daffodils and warm sunny weather, but there never is. This year seemed especially rainy and cold, especially on days when I planned to be outside running. (I'm still running! But that's another post.)

A few weeks ago, when Lisa came over I showed her the yarns I'd spun. She really loved some merino I spun sometime last year, some hand painted stuff that I got at Downtown Yarns when I first started spinning. (I can't remember the brand, unfortunately. Though maybe you can recognize and identify the tag.) This is how it looked unspun.And this is it spun, last May.Lisa thought I should make some mitts. I don't usually take other people's advice to heart, but I cast on for a pair of mitts within a week. And I improvised the pattern as I went.
They fit perfectly, and I've been getting quite a lot of use out of them for the past month or so.

Unfortunately, I can't seem to photograph them very well.

They are squishy and soft and so cozy, and wearing them makes me smile. I made these. I spun the yarn and made up the pattern and knit them. And they fit me. They warm me.

self cure

2009-04-11T09:02:00.004-05:00

We've been slowly working on our apartment. I bought myself a new computer desk on Craigslist, and on Tuesday I put it together and cleared a space for it in the den. The reasoning behind this was to get the taxes done, and though it took a while, yes, I made some progress on that too. The rest of the room is still in progress, so it's not worth showing just yet. Hopefully this weekend we'll finish moving everything around and I can begin to settle into my new work space. I have hopes of artistic inspiration once the clutter has been removed.

The economy has been really getting me down recently. The play I recently designed closed, and I have just one more project coming up. I don't blame myself for this lack of work. In fact, everyone I know is slowing down and reevaluating what they'll do next. Last Saturday I had a meeting for my new project, and afterwards I hung out a little with the sound designer, who I have worked with twice before and am thrilled to be working with again. We were in Williamsburg and he followed me up to The Yarn Tree, where I bought some bamboo roving.

Broadway seems to be doing very well, and I'm not sure why. It's the little shows that are suffering, the ones dependent on funders for donations in order to survive. Non profits. This sound designer said that 6 companies that he worked with last year have now folded or lost their spaces, and are no longer producing. He also said that he did something like 25 projects last year, a mixture of assisting and designing, and now he only has a handful coming up. 2 projects that I thought I'd be doing were either postponed or downsized, pushing me out. We both found this terrifying.

The upswing of this, what seems to be in the air these days in the arts community, is that this might be a time for us to try something new. This sound designer was talking about how he'd always wanted to compose music, and now he has the time. I've wanted to try illustration (yes, and quilting and other fibery things).

Or perhaps we'll see unusual collaborations. Once we take the money aspect out of a theater project (ie someone hires you to do their project, and then they sell tickets) perhaps things can be a little more democratic and more interesting. "WPA" seems to be on everybody's tongue. I am not sure that the US government is about to give money for theater development this time around (though it would be wonderful if it did). But perhaps slow times call for self-motivation.

the furniture dance (part 1)

2009-04-05T09:07:00.003-05:00

You may remember a few weeks back, when I'd decided to to the Apartment Therapy Cure. Curers (curees?) can opt between the Deep Therapy or One Room cure, and instructions are found both in the official Apartment Therapy Cure book and on the site, where there's currently an 8 week Cure-Along taking place.

I borrowed the book from Terra this week, and skimmed through it fairly quickly. There are some really interesting ideas, and a lot about just slowing down and decluttering. I could use some serious decluttering; the advice about cooking at home is a little less necessary, seeing as I do that regularly anyway. But the book is really about how to love and use your home, and not just inhabit it.

We have plans to refinish the floors in our bedroom and office sometime in the next few months, so it seemed silly to cure those rooms. I quickly decided to focus on our "den," which has become less of a den and more of an office/fiber space for me. My thought is to make it mine, since I use the room more than Christopher does, and it seems to be taken over with my knitting anyway.

Quick history:

May 2007We once had a sofa in here, and it made more sense as a den. I would set up here and watch TV and knit, or maybe we'd watch an episode of Six Feet Under together. (this was before our Netflix subscription.)This is the view looking the other direction. Clearly this was right after the room was set up; there still aren't any books on the shelves.

In the following two years, we have moved the sofa to the living room, where it creates a very nice L with our other sofa, and the cat has claimed this room for herself. It's also become a bit of a dumping ground when we're cleaning up, since it's conveniently located right next to our living room. We've also gotten a nicer TV, which means that we're more likely to watch things (ie Netflix movies) together. Unfortunately, all there is to sit on is the office chair and that white armchair, which is now covered in cat hair.
If you are still reading this, you might see what I'm talking about. Time to throw stuff away.

This room is also mostly about my knitting and my computer, so it would make sense to move my desk and drafting table in from the office, where it's mostly in the dark. Plus Christopher flees every time I try to work in there. I see no point in sharing the work space with him if he's unable to work with me in the room.

Other than putting the old stuff on the curb, I have declared that the TV has to be moved out. Our den is no longer good for watching TV, but the living room is.
So TV and TV cabinet will go into living room, in a space currently occupied by a cabinet housing our linens. This cabinet will be moved into our bedroom. Once this happens there will be little access to the secretary, so it will also be moved. At the moment we want to put it where this mirror is (across the room) though I'm sorry to see the mirror leave the living room, and that corner might start to feel heavy.
On the other hand, it might be a nice little desk/bill paying space, and could work nicely.

There is more planned, but this is the first part of our renewal. I also need to think about how my new work space will function and how to organize it without overfilling it with stuff (which I have a lot of).

a new feature

2009-03-31T09:54:00.007-05:00

My father, a photographer, has been making panorama photographs. In the past few weeks, he's sent me links to 4 new ones, and I thought it might be interesting to post one on this blog every week.

(I still haven't figured out how to post the actual panorama to my blog -it's run by Flash, which apparently Blogger won't support- but if you click this link you will go to the panorama associated with this image.)

This is my parents' roof, after a big storm on Sunday. Because a panorama is basically a bunch of still photographs stitched together, my father was able to put himself in the photo, along with my mom. The structure to the left of my mother is their solar hot water heater. And behind her is Eastern State Penitentiary. When I was a child I thought that the penitentiary was actually a castle, and I had fantasies about one day living there. (A child can dream.)

baby knitting

2009-03-29T15:20:00.003-05:00

I seem to be on to the next round of Everyone I Know is Pregnant. One friend had a baby in February, Christopher's cousin's wife had a baby in early March, and my best friend from high school had a baby last week. Tonight I am going to a baby shower for someone else whose baby is due May 1. And there's another due in mid-June. But that's far away, for now at least!

So! Baby knitting!

The February baby, Cliff, lives in LA. Since a wool hat doesn't really make sense, I made him a Fuzzy Mitten Lamb (Ravelry link) with some leftover acrylic and superwash yarn. I think it's cute (even though somewhat lopsided), but I still haven't gotten it in the mail. hm. I don't think Cliff minds.

Henry, the newest Wall baby, was sent a hat and bib. I rather love the hat, knit with left over Dream in Color Classy, and an edge of some scrap Knit Picks Swish DK. The pattern is Erika Knight's Pixie Hat, a pattern from a book I've had for several years. (I find there aren't a ton of worsted weight baby hat patterns, which can be a problem when you're knitting something last minute.) Anyway, this was a winner and I'll definitely make it again.

And the last baby, the shower baby. (you may notice I'm skipping Charlie, born last week. Well, I don't have anything for him yet. I'll see when I'm invited to visit and then whip up another hat, probably). This was a toughie, since I went to grad school with this mom-to-be, and she's someone with amazing and very stylish taste. I know there will be some fashion designer and crafty types at the shower, so it really had to be more than just a knit baby hat. I made a version of the Berroco Cisco hat, but without ears, since I think this mom would appreciate a little funk.Another great pattern, in my opinion. It's like an updated bonnet of sorts, with some attitude and definite cuteness. I'm supplementing the little hat with a pair of organic baby socks and a tube of Weleda diaper cream (which I've been told is the best).

I'm frantically baking cookies, since I just noticed that all of the guests are requested to bring desserts to the shower. Christopher seems concerned about how much I'm stressing over all of this, and how competitive I seem to have become. Yeah, well, you can't be the one with the lame gift, and the competition will be indeed fierce.

What should I wear??

disappearing act

2009-03-23T22:26:00.003-05:00

wow. I've been AWOL again, haven't I?

sigh. What can I say?

I opened my latest show last night, a gay adaptation of Hedda Gabler entitled Henri Gabler. It's an interesting concept, and the set was fun to design and put together. Really it's fairly simple: a green floor, and a wall of 4" plastic refrigeration strips hung a few feet from the back wall. The strips create some really great reflections, and the floor glows. Very cool.I'm beginning to emerge and restart my other life (the non-designer part). It's always so disappointing to go back to work after doing my theater thing intensely for a chunk of time. I always use this period to notice everything that's wrong with my life: the lack of storage space in our bedroom, the dust bunnies under the dining table, the clutter on and around my desk. The room where I have my computer and my knitting stuff has become a dump of sorts, and it's no good.

I clicked over to Apartment Therapy this morning and discovered that they're doing their Cure once again. I think it might be good incentive to clean up and organize at least one of our rooms. Terra has agreed to loan me their Cure book, so I'll begin next week, a week or two late but whatever. At least I'm trying to do something about the clutter. And maybe once that's gone the rest of my life will feel more organized too.

it's that time again

2009-03-13T13:53:00.005-05:00

My parents are renting their house in Maine by the week in the summer. It's cheap. It's simple. It's a great base for exploring, and a nice spot for just hanging out.Check out the site.

what size am I, anyway?

2009-03-11T12:42:00.005-05:00

I have written before about my Metropole, but I know it's been a few months. Long story short, I'm knitting myself a coat from the new Mason-Dixon book. It never would have occurred to me to do such a thing, except that I tried on the sample coat at the book signing last fall, and it was amazing. I've been plugging away ever since.

It's actually fairly quick to knit. The yarn is bulky (I'm using some Cascade 109 Tweed that I got from Webs) and the stitch is fairly easy to knit mindlessly. My biggest issue seems to be size. Since it's bulky, subtle gauge differences change the garment enormously. I've done quite a bit of knitting, measuring, washing and blocking what's been knit, and then ripping it back. The main problem may be that I'm convinced that I will fit into a size small, since that is what I tried on. Whatever I knit continues to be too small for me. huh.In any case, I'm moving ahead, and started the first sleeve over the weekend. One fun thing about this coat is that there are contrasting stripes on the cuffs and collar. I tried 3 different color combinations before I settled on this one. I am ending up with some orange handspun (from Hope Spinnery roving), Cascade 109 Tweed in a charcoal gray color and some Lamb's Pride that I'm recycling from a half-finished hat.

Last night at my knitting group I thought I'd tempt fate and make the sleeves an inch longer than specified before I started increasing. (I have longer arms than most, since I'm tall.) The sleeve was 13" when I went home, and I was frustrated at how it was just too small to fit around my arm. Maybe I could stretch it and make it fit?? This morning I wised up, realizing that I don't want a skin tight winter coat, and tore back to where I was supposed to start increasing. Sometimes I'm too big for my britches, or too big for my coat in this case. Perhaps following the pattern (and realizing what my measurements are) would be a good idea in the future...

working for myself

2009-03-06T15:18:00.004-05:00

You probably realize this by now, but I'm slightly obsessed with this economy. I'm sure it will bring a lot of trouble to my life, as I know it's already wrecking havoc on others. Theater work (at my level) seems to be drying up as the funding disappears, and I'm left hoping that every show I'm connected to won't be postponed, downsized, or just really small to begin with (my experience so far this year), and that I do in fact have a future in this business.

I realize that not everyone is experiencing the economy in this way. I went out with some Broadway and Off-Broadway set designers a few weeks ago, and they are very busy. Of course, one of them was doing a show that was way below her level, something a young up and coming designer (like me!) should be working on. But I guess that's life: In a downturn, people take what they can get, and those who are less established get pushed slightly backward on the food chain. (Thank goodness I'm not just finishing grad school or college this year.)

The economy is the Topic Of Discussion in most of the circles I'm in. A few months ago I had lunch with a writer-friend and her composer-husband, and they declared that we should all be seeing this slow period as a time to enrich oneself. Like, with your extra time from being unemployed, learn something you've always wanted to learn, a skill that will get you a better job when the market picks up again. Like, another language, or a software system. I suggested that I could learn to quilt, which they thought was hilarious. I guess they didn't realize I was serious.

With their advice in mind, and my disgruntlement at today's latest you-almost-had-this-design-gig-but-it-no-longer-exists, I've decided to see this as an opportunity to broaden my horizons. I will send out letters, I'll get to know the theater community better and network more. And I'll do some things for my mental health too. Like learn to quilt. And run. And spin yarn. And spend more time with friends.

Last week I started the Couch to 5K program. For those of you who don't know it, it's a running program that gets a non-runner to run. In 9 weeks you should be able to run 5K, or about 3 miles. It starts with a walking warm up, and then intervals of walking and running. I've downloaded a weekly podcast, which instructs me when to start to run or walk, and as of today I've finished week 2. So far, with the exception of Tuesday (the day after the snowstorm, when I went to the gym) I have done all of my running in Prospect Park, which is so gorgeous and just down the street. I have no regrets so far, and am really enjoying being outside (near trees) and getting into shape.

On Saturday Lisa came over, and we spent a few hours spinning together. Unfortunately, we both forgot to take photos before it got dark. But it was inspiring in the way I imagine a running partner to be, both of us there treadling away. I finally finished spinning the half pound of turquoise roving I got from Persimmon Tree Farm at Rhinebeck last fall. (I've actually been spinning it since last fall. Very slowly. Really.) I now have 322 yards from it, and a DK weight, which is a first. I am thinking of making a scarf, something warm but elegant for next fall, to go with my knitted coat. I realized recently that I haven't made much with my handspun, which is kind of ridiculous.

As for quilting... no progress yet (other than my sachet from months ago) but I am 90% sure I'm going to take a course entitled "the Art Quilt" this summer up in Maine. Two intense weeks of quilting, with no internet or cell phone reception. Sounds heavenly, right?

why I love living where I do

2009-03-02T21:02:00.002-05:00

well, if you have to live in New York, that is...

new starts

2009-03-01T12:25:00.003-05:00

I have been neglecting the blog this week. My excuse is that I don't have anything great to post. I do have a shawl/lace scarf to share, but I don't have any good photos. And I've started running, but again no photos.

What I do have is this, which I took yesterday. The economy has been on my mind. I talk about it with everyone I meet, even complete strangers. We're all strategizing on what we're going to do when the rug is pulled out from under us, what will be our backup plan. I've been trying to rack up hours at my day job, but it is completely miserable and I really have to drag myself there every day.

My backup plan is photography. There must be some way to make this work, whether through stock photos, photographing theatrical productions (my original plan) or just portraits of local people. In the meantime, I'm trying to master my new camera, learn Aperture and refresh my dormant photography skills.

What's your back up plan?

Rest in Peace, dear Blaze

2009-02-23T14:26:00.005-05:00

My parents' cat, who joined their household in about 2005, passed away today. She was a very loving, friendly and rather cheery cat, one who loved being in the center of things and near her human companions. She survived an nasty accident in August 2006 which left her paralyzed in her back half for several months. She regained the ability to walk, but did not have great control of her back legs and so would careen around my parents' house, enthusiastically knocking into furniture and flinging herself onto the sofa next to you in order to be pet.

Last week she seemed to be ailing, and was diagnosed with Feline Leukemia on Wednesday. She deteriorated rapidly and was put to sleep about an hour ago.

It's hard to describe, but she was very much a part of the family. My cousin Alex just called me, very upset and nearly in tears at knowing that Blaze was gone. And my mother summed it up in an email, "She was just the most wonderful pet we ever had. We feel like there will never be another one we could love so much."

Goodbye, dear Blaze.

legacy

2009-02-22T15:49:00.005-05:00

About two weeks ago, on a Tuesday, I had lunch with my cousin Jane. We're not actually first cousins, though we are around the same age. Her father is my grandmother's much younger half-brother, so technically Jane is my second half-cousin, once removed. How about that? Jane and I recently reconnected on Facebook, and we decided to have lunch.She brought with her a bag with three plates in them. The plates had belonged to my mother's great Aunt Helena, a powerful woman who played quite a strong presence in my mother's life before I was born. I never met her, but my other cousin Nell is named after her, and her name is still spoken with reverence by everyone in my mother's family. Having something that belonged to her is an honor, even if it's a single plate (I am to divide the set among myself and my female cousins).

On the same day, coincidentally, I received an email from one of Anne's friends, asking me what size shoes I wore. Apparently my feet are too small to wear some of Anne's shoes, but some blouses and a skirt are being held aside for me.

These gifts, these small reminders of these women, made me very thoughtful that day. My grandmother had been a doctor, attending medical school in the early 1940s, when my father was still small. This day of receiving reminded me of something that was said to me at her funeral, an offhand comment from another relative, that her footsteps were a lot to fill but that I was lucky to have such a role model in my life.

Many role models, really. I am so lucky.

my husband is a chef

2009-02-17T09:41:00.003-05:00

Christopher never ceases to amaze me. When we met nearly 6 years ago, he lived in a little studio apartment and ate mostly cereal and pizza. And coffee. When we moved in together, our biggest hurdle was agreeing on whether we would eat together nightly, and how big those meals would be. (me: it should have a vegetable and be nutritious and it should include quality time. Him: why do you need to make a big deal of this?)

Yesterday was my birthday. We didn't have much of a celebration, but Christopher asked me to pick up some ingredients when I stopped at the Coop on my way home. Sour cream, unsweetened chocolate and heavy cream. yum.

While I worked on my spinning in the afternoon (what better way to spend one's birthday?) Christopher was very busy in the kitchen. He emerged with this: Actually there were about 20 of them.

We went out for dinner, and when we got back I distributed cupcakes to some of our neighbors. Then we found some candles and had a little celebration. They were delicious.

it's time for bed

2009-02-15T23:32:00.004-05:00

but I thought I should report on our Valentine's Day.

We're not big Valentiner's here, though Christopher insists that I make a big deal of it. "Big Deal" to him is me asking, "what should we do for Valentine's Day?" about 2 days before the actual date. He suggested that we make dinner, and so we did.

The menu was:

French Onion Soup with Gruyere (photo is before baking them)
Lamb Chops with a Rosemary and Red Wine Reduction Sauce

Sauteed Spinach (this was scrapped)

Chocolate Souffle (ala NY Times) and Vanilla Ice Cream (store bought)The soup was the best, though we forgot to get bread for it. Next time. The chocolate souffles came out well but had very little flavor. Definitely not repeating them. And the lamb chops were very fatty. Again, not to be repeated (though the meat was very tasty. There was just like one bite though.)

One of my oldest friends, Joanna, stayed with us this week. She was in town from Seattle with a dance group that was having their New York premiere. Joanna and I were interns together back when we were in college. We barely see each other or talk much now, so having so much time together over the course of a week was fun, full of reminiscing and catching up.

She brought with her a scarf that I made back when I'd picked up knitting again, probably around 2002 or 2003. I had thought she didn't like it, so it was surprising to see her wearing it. It is actually nicer than I remember it too.

socks!

2009-02-13T16:10:00.003-05:00

need I say more?

resolution and Alpine

2009-02-09T08:49:00.006-05:00

I started this shrug back in October, when I went to Cape Cod. I picked it up for two reasons: I had just gone to a wedding and hadn't had any pretty little sweater to keep my shoulders warm, and I needed something to knit while in Cape Cod. I finished most of it while I was there - it was so fast to make - and I put it down for a while when I got back. I've been trying to finish old projects, a few nights in January was all I needed to finish the sleeve, seam it and knit the neckline.My mother has a huge button collection, and she sent me photos of the large ones. I picked this one and she mailed it off. It is perfect, I think.
I wore it yesterday for the first time, in our 58 degree weather. My main complaint was that my stomach wasn't very warm. I'm also not so thrilled about how it hangs with only one button (anyone else frustrated by these sweaters with one or no buttons?). It isn't so fitted. On the other hand, I think it will be very useful in the spring, when it's too warm to wear a full sweater. And it would probably also work well with a dress, which is why I made this to begin with.

Pattern: Alpine, by Berroco Design Studio
Yarn: Berroco Cuzco (I actually used the yarn called for in the pattern, can you believe it?), 4 skeins
Needles: US size 8 & 10
Dates: Started October 5 - Finished January 20
Mods: Added a buttonhole

In other news, I think I'm going to start with Coraline, since I have the yarn. And maybe in the summer or fall I can make the Old Penny Cardigan. Thanks for your advice on that!!

evaluations

2009-02-07T18:40:00.000-05:00

I'll have to have a big photo shoot very soon, what with the elusive shrug and those striped socks. If I'm productive in the next few days, you may even see those Vinterblomster mittens on my hands. Of course, the temperature will have to go back below freezing if I want any motivation.

With a little more time at home this week, I've picked up my Metropole coat again. It is a project that I've just been wishing would disappear, but, yeah, it's still in my knitting basket. On Tuesday I emailed Ann and Kay, and they were (of course) sympathetic about the fact that I thought it was going to be too small. They had a bunch of suggestions, and I decided that I should just keep going, making the fronts a little bigger, especially around the hips. (Hopefully I won't regret this and end up with something misshapen and too small.) And then I picked it up and knit another 5" while watching an episode of Law and Order on Tuesday night. It's so fun knitting something in bulky yarn on size 11 needles!!

I also made myself a slouchy hat with some Mountain Colors Twizzle that I got on sale from Stitch Therapy a few years back. The hat is Jane Richmond's Jane. The yarn doesn't really show off the little cable design that goes up it, but I like it anyway. And I love the yarn: silky and drapey, soft and warm. I have another skein of it in an orangey brown color, as well as a partial skein of this dark color left. What to use it for?

Next up: I want a sweater. A big, wooly, cabley sweater. Something tweedy and warm. This is what I want to make,which is a problem for my no-new-yarn, knitting from the stash resolution. I don't have yarn to make it, though I do have yarn to make a Coraline sweater. But that's lighter weight, and it's not tweedy or heavy or very practical in the very cold temperatures we've had recently. (Please do not point out that it will most likely be warmer by the time my sweater is done. One can hope.) So, to put in an order to Beaverslide? or buckle down and finish the coat? or start a Coraline?? (Life is hard, let me tell you.)

Lego NY

2009-02-05T23:01:00.006-05:00

Has anyone seen the Lego cartoon-- I'm not sure what to call it-- from Monday's NY Times? I unfortunately can't paste the whole thing in here (though I'll steal a section). It's worth a look, even if you're not so familiar with New York City. Just click that link up above.

On a sadder note, a homeless man was run over by a train at our subway station yesterday morning. I managed to get there just as they were bringing the body up from the tracks. It was not a pretty sight. In fact, there was a little too much to see, in my opinion. I had to find another way to work, and was haunted all day by the vision of men carrying the body, and of how quickly this life had been lost.

Interestingly, the chatter on my neighborhood forum is all about which homeless person this could have been, since there are only two of them around here and everyone knows them since they live in the stations. There's the schizophrenic shirtless Haitian man who throws rocks and yells in French (watch out for him), or there's a woman, who I've never seen. Neither of these people has been seen recently (perhaps it's the cold) and so my neighbors wonder if it could have been someone else. I guess this is what you try to do when you can't make sense of a death...

I promise I'll take some photos of knitting this weekend. Stay tuned for a more fibery post!

stretching

2009-01-31T18:09:00.003-05:00

Thank you all for your advice on the socks! You were all very enthusiastic about me finishing them, and I intend to do that as soon as I have time to sit down and do a sewn cast off. And I have to rip out the cast off on my first sock and sew it too. Right now it's too tight and I don't like how it binds around my leg.

I have been working on my show. I guess I might've said that, but in any case, the show has opened, and I am emerging. This play was a lot of work due to its low budget. The producer and I did most of the construction and painting, and we both put in some very long hours last week. Look at what you can do with some old Ikea Billy shelves laid on their sides!
I'm glad it's over, but I only got a handful of photos for my portfolio, which is too bad.

I spent part of today spinning a little, for the first time in weeks, and sewing on some buttons. I promise to have some finished shots of my Alpine shrug soon. Maybe I can wear it tomorrow for our Super Bowl party.

While working this week I cast on and knit another cabled baby bib, since I know 6 people who are pregnant and due in the next 6 months. I must have reached that age, because I'm sure that 7 months from now, I'll still know 6 people who are pregnant. The bib is for no one in particular yet, I'm just stocking up. I'm a little concerned about the button being a choking hazard. Any advice from those of you with kids?

confusion

2009-01-27T08:44:00.003-05:00

I have been really busy. In fact, I am still really busy. And tired. I have forgotten what it feels like to be deprived of sleep. I almost put the milk away on the cereal shelf this morning.

This will all be over by Thursday, though the big push is today, to paint my set and dress it fully. It is coming together nicely, and I'm thankful to have a career that involves creating imaginary worlds. All day long. It's like playing with a dollhouse with your friends, but all grown up.

I am not sure what to do about these socks. I loved the first one, but I am really disappointed with the color repeats on the second one. I am tempted to rip it out to the first green and gray repeat (right after the heel), cut the yarn to prevent the second green repeat, and do it over. I could have prevented this by reskeining 1/2 of the yarn, so I could knit the same direction (and not from either end), thus preventing mirrored repeats.What do you all think? Christopher says that I have a lot of projects that I want to start (how does he know??) and that I should just finish the socks and move on. I'm less sure.

looking ahead

2009-01-21T15:21:00.002-05:00

I stayed home yesterday to watch the inauguration and work on a grant application. I also finished my Alpine shrug while watching the speech. It's currently soaking (it needs major blocking), so I have just this one photo of it, a little preview. Anyway, the inauguration. I can't remember having watched one before, though I remember the excitement of Clinton being inaugurated when I was in high school. The whole ceremony reminded me of a wedding, strangely. The introductions, the processions, the chatter about what people were wearing. Even lines were flubbed.
I actually thought that something would change at noon yesterday, but when I looked outside, it was the same. I say this because on election night at 11pm, my street was filled with cheers and gunshots, and though somewhat frightening, it was also very exciting. There weren't any cheers yesterday, just some woman walking down the median.

I found this photo on Facebook. It was taken by a friend of a friend, and seeing it made me rather emotional. He said that I can post it here, so here you go. I hope the love lasts. I'm afraid that our expectations are too high, that we can only be disappointed...

winter

2009-01-18T11:39:00.004-05:00

I've been a bad blogger recently. Clearly posting a YouTube video is a cop out, if that's the only post of the week.

I honestly don't have much to report. I've been slowly working my way through projects, though nothing is done enough to show. My mittens need one more thumb, my second sock needs a heel and ankle, and my Alpine shrug (which I may not have even mentioned, it's been so low priority) has been picked up again and I'm seaming it together. The shrug is one of those projects that nearly knits itself, the yarn is so thick and the garment itself is so small. Besides seaming, I just have to do the neckline, find and sew on a button and I'll be done.

I've been social. Last week I spent an afternoon walking around the Brooklyn Botanical Garden with someone I've been wanting to know better, the wife of a guy I went to high school with. It was a beautiful afternoon, the last semi-warm day of the week, and it was also really nice to be out. I didn't take very many photos, but I did get this:
Yeah, it's a great blue heron, in BROOKLYN. Who would've thought?

It's also been cold. Dinah has a new favorite spot, in her new cat bed right by the radiator. I don't blame her; I've been plotting what knitted thing would keep me warmest, and how I can make it as quickly as possible. Something big. A sweater? Or maybe I should pick up that coat again...

medieval tech support

2009-01-13T12:20:00.002-05:00

I stumbled across this on Facebook today. I know I've seen it before, but I think it's still funny.

yarn karma

2009-01-09T09:06:00.003-05:00

After an unsuccessful posting in the Ravelry ISO forum, I tracked down a knitter who had a partial skein of Koigu, and I sent her a message pleading with her to part with her yarn. She was happy to, saying that she didn't like having parts of skeins hanging around. Yesterday a fat envelope came in the mail from California. It contained 1/4 a skein of lavender Koigu, which will be plenty to finish my mittens. The yarn matches perfectly (which I was only slightly worried about, since I didn't know the color number and Koigu has like 10 lavenders or something).

I've also finished my first Noro sock. I love it, though I find the bind off a little tight and will probably redo it. And it's scratchy. But I love looking at it, and I am hopeful that it will soften when I wash it. I told Christopher that I don't think the second sock will have the same color repeats, which confounded him. He thinks socks need to match. (This coming from a man who has 20+ pairs of the same white socks, so he doesn't have to mix and match.)

In my last bit of yarn karma, on Wednesday someone on Ravelry contacted me about some pink Skye Tweed I had in my stash. I had bought it on sale from Webs at least a year ago, and though I loved the color I had no plans for it. This knitter had run out of yarn for a sweater she is knitting, and was desperate for my 2 skeins, since it has been discontinued. It really felt like I was being asked to repay my good yarn fortune, and so I mailed her the yarn yesterday.

Moral of the blog post: pay it forward!

little needles

2009-01-05T09:38:00.004-05:00

For some reason, perhaps to counter the albatross of my abandoned Metropole Coat, I have been knitting on little needles. Back in November I started a pair of Vinterblomster mittens for myself, but I didn't like the color scheme and it took me a few weeks to remedy that and really get into it. It's become my subway knitting lately, and I love it. Except that it seems I'm now out of lavender yarn.I know where I can get it, that's not really the problem. The issue is that I have so much yarn that I can make just about anything I wish, and there's no excuse for buying more. Thus these mittens are knit from stash yarn. (never mind that I don't need more than a quarter of a skein of lavender -probably less- and I don't want to spend $13+ just for a few yards of yarn)

So that's on hold while I bother various people on Ravelry who I see have exactly what I need. Someone out there must have the end of a skein of lavender Koigu, right?

In the meantime, I've started a sock. It's on little needles too. Actually, I had to buy another set of #1 needles since the first set is being used for the mittens. (I'm sure there's some sort of logic in the fact that I refuse to buy yarn but that I'll buy an extra set of needles. They were on sale.)Like the mittens, the sock is totally addictive. I seem to really like how color patterns unfold, and Noro sock yarn does not disappoint. These are a little more mindless, and I'm amazed at how quickly it is coming; I started it on New Year's Day. Aren't socks supposed to take forever? Or maybe it's the second sock that takes a long time?
Anyway, I'm smitten.

Edited at 12:21pm: I have located lavender Koigu!! A wonderful woman named Hilary is saving my mittens and sending me 1/3 skein of her left over yarn! Oh, I am so happy!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T18:01:00.004-05:00

We had a good end to 2008-- brunch with Christopher's aunt and uncle and cousins, an afternoon at the Coop doing a hurried make up shift, and friends for dinner and wine. Overall the day was friendly and open, with hope and good feelings for the future. This is a can of champagne that I received at my bridal shower more than 2 years ago. I broke it out last night for the celebration. It was rather gross but fun to drink.

Yesterday the Coop closed early, and therefore was mobbed. I watched as a friend of mine who works there kept her temper in check. I tried to assure her that people would be more considerate once the holiday season was over.

Why I like the Coop: I witnessed a shopper drop a jar of something (applesauce?). He immediately found a broom and swept it to the side, and then got a mop and "wet floor" sign and cleaned up the mess.

Why Christopher hates the Coop: A woman told me that she doesn't understand why the Coop stocks pork, when "pigs are our pets and friends."

We've been laying low today, swearing we'd do some organizing, cleaning and purging. It's slow going, and it's much more interesting to start a new knitting project or listen to the radio while lazing on the sofa. We're starting to make some progress. Slowly. Surely.

Have a good year!

speculaas

2008-12-28T11:15:00.004-05:00

We are back from our holiday travels, and we are breathing a sigh and starting to relax. I am not a big fan of the holidays, to be honest. Too many people to see, too many expectations, and not enough time for regrouping and relaxing.

There were a few highlights to our trip, however. Isaac tried on his mouse mittens and then ran into the other room to show them off. Alden immediately ate (or tried to eat) his new bib.

And I made cookies with my mother.

The cookies were inspired by Meg's post on speculaas, since my parents have a speculaa mold and I am always game for making something out of the ordinary. Meg recommended lots of flour to keep the dough from sticking in the mold, and I emailed my mother a recipe I'd found online before we headed to Philadelphia. My mom made the dough and it was ready in the fridge for whenever inspiration struck. Which was right before Christmas dinner. Check out the awesome new vest that my mom knitted for me with Jacob's Sheep wool from the Hope Spinnery.

I rolled out the dough, and we pulled of pieces of it to press into the floured molds. Meg was right- lots of flour was the trick- and we quickly got the hang of it. Here's the hitch though: the recipe was wrong. I mean, the cookies were delicious, but I should have read it a little closer, or followed the link from Meg's blog to her favorite recipe. Our recipe contained eggs, which meant that they expanded and lost their shape when they baked. Which meant that pressing them into a mold was a waste of time. Oh well, maybe next year...

a very happy

2008-12-25T16:04:00.003-05:00

A very happy holiday to you!
We've just returned from the morning at Christopher's family's house, and are going to rest a bit before my parents return from visiting with their friends and we do a second round of holiday celebrating with them. Phew! Does anyone else wish they could just hunker up and be alone for the holidays? How about a desert island? Just kidding (sort of).

Cute baby-eating-knit-bib pictures forthcoming. (I still haven't made the French press cozy, but maybe I can whip it up while Christopher naps. it's quick, right??)

we're off

2008-12-24T09:17:00.003-05:00

Last night we managed to put away some of the tools and return some of our kitchen items to their places, which cleared the way for a little Christmas decorating. We didn't get a tree this year; I am still smarting from an offhand comment last year referring to our tree and involving the words "Charlie Brown."

(For those of you who aren't familiar with buying Christmas trees in a city, you should understand that trees must be imported from New England, which means that they tend to be rather expensive. We can't just go cut one down. Around here they go for around $10 a foot, and since we don't have children and aren't here for Christmas itself, buying a 5' tree for $50 is a real extravagance.)
Anyway, Christopher picked up a wreath on Monday, and last night we put up some lights, wrapped presents, listened to sappy Christmas music and ate popcorn. I'm feeling a little more in the spirit, though I am unsure how we ended up with just one measly present for Christopher's stepfather (actually, I do know how that happened-- he only requested one thing, and we have no idea what else he would like. Socks? A paperweight?)When Christopher gets up, we'll open the presents we got for each other (he's getting new t-shirts from me, not so exciting unfortunately) and then we'll pack and head off to Philadelphia for a few days of family time. I still have some gift knitting to do, a pair of mouse/cat mittens for our nephew, who is 4. (the pattern is for a mouse but I thought I'd do a cat instead.) The body of the mittens are done, but they still need to be made into an animal. I knit on an ear to see what it looked like, but I think I need to go bigger.

I am also considering whipping up a French press cozy for Christopher, since I'm feeling so bad about giving him mostly t-shirts this year. The main question is, how can I make the cozy when I'll be with him non-stop from now until Christmas morning??

the pre-holiday weekend

2008-12-21T17:18:00.004-05:00

I have something to admit: We haven't done any holiday preparation. In fact, we've only really thought about Christmas shopping; very little has been purchased. We have no tree, and only a decoration here or there.

This weekend was going to remedy that. I was going to bake Christmas cookies, and get a tree and put up lights. We were going to take control of our Christmas lists. None of that has happened.

Instead, we worked on our kitchen.

This is not necessarily a bad thing. We started renovating it almost 2 years ago, and though we've come a long way, we still had a lot still to do. Here is what it looked like when we moved in:We replaced the cabinets and tore out the soffit as soon as we could. The rest of the work- tiling, replacing the appliances and painting- has taken longer. You may remember that my father tiled one side of the kitchen a few months back.

Here is what we did this weekend:

Christopher sanded. I primed the area across from the fridge with special magnetic paint. 3 coats.Christopher primed the areas where the soffit had been.I tiled the other side of the kitchen (above the sink) & Christopher painted the kitchen. (there aren't any action shots of me tiling; you'll just have to notice that this is now tile where there was not.)He's actually still painting it, but I'm done with the tiling (for now, it still needs grout). I should move on to writing Christmas cards. Or to reading a play that I've just agreed to work on. But I'm up for a break, and I'd still like to make those cookies...

ongoing

2008-12-19T09:20:00.003-05:00

Thank you all for your support with the Metropole. I guess I wasn't clear; I'd already washed and blocked what I'd knitted, and those were the measurements I'd gotten. I think I'm going to knit a larger size, as suggested by Lisa. If I go up yet another needle size, I'll end up with a coat that doesn't do much to keep out the wind. I also hope I can use the gauge information that I now know in order to make the appropriate adjustments when knitting the next size up. Oh, it will be hard to motivate on this yet again.

I've basically given up on gift knitting. I still have plans to make some very cute mittens for my other nephew, but I haven't found the right yarn yet. (I actually haven't looked, but I know my local yarn store doesn't have what I want, so again this requires motivation.)

The real reason that I've not started on these mittens (which I know will be very fast to knit), is because I've started some new mittens for myself (Vinterblomster mittens by Heidi Mork), and I'm totally addicted to them. (Some people love knitting socks; I love knitting mittens.) I'm just about done the first one, and I've sworn that when that is done I'll make the Christmas mittens.

Our leaky windows are being fixed! Some contractors arrived yesterday and set up some scaffolding, and I woke up this morning to banging. They apparently have to take off some of the brick above the problem windows. I'm a little nervous that they'll break something, but for now I've just closed the curtains and let them do their thing. I wonder what will happen when the snowstorm hits this afternoon. I can't imagine they'll work through it...

Sundayness

2008-12-14T15:11:00.003-05:00

I've been having issues motivating recently. Both this weekend and the last one have been washes in terms of getting things done. Real things, I mean. Knitting doesn't count. On the list have been Christmas shopping, Christmas cards, house cleaning (mopping would be nice), and general maintenance. So far this weekend, I've hemmed curtains and hung a shade in our den. That took maybe an hour. (I left the sewing machine out with the idea that I'll do some more fun sewing projects, but somehow I think that mopping might be more important.)

Christopher and I took a very pleasant walk to the hardware store today, where we got paint for our kitchen. This is the last room in our apartment to paint, and it will be a relief to have the years of food oil streaks painted over (is that TMI?). I also need to finish tiling the back splash, but that might take more motivation than I've got a the moment.

Anyway, my reason for blogging today: the coat that I'm knitting, Metropole, still has the wrong gauge. I seem to be knitting it at a tighter gauge than I knit swatches. I need 3.5 stitches per inch, which translates to 7 stitches to 2" or 14 stitches for 4". I'm getting 14.5 stitches for 4". Minimal, right? Well, it's supposed to be 23" wide at the bottom, and it's 21.5".
The waist should be 17", but it's 16". Either I have to frog and reknit it again, or I need to make the front really big, or... I'll have a coat that is too small for me. It does knit up fairly quickly, but man, I'd like to move out of the washing and measuring stage. Ideas?

Chinese water torture

2008-12-13T11:56:00.002-05:00

Our windows leak, but we mostly see evidence of it only when there is a real soaking rain. The rains on Wednesday and Thursday were hard enough to seep through and stain the shade in our bedroom, and it dripped enough that we put out bowls to catch the water on Thursday night. The dripping sounds weren't so bad, or maybe I was just really tired. I remember sleeping terribly the first time this happened. Maybe it's just peace of mind; on Monday our Board approved repairs to our lintels. This may be the last rain storm that we experience in our bedroom.

I have been really non-committal about knitting Christmas presents this year, but my sister-in-law sent an email yesterday with their Christmas wishes, and on the list was a bib for her almost 6 month old baby, Alden. I set to work immediately, grabbing some yarn I've had forever. I'm not really sure what it is or where it came from; perhaps it's Debbie Bliss Cotton DK? In any case, it worked perfectly. The bib pattern was so quick and fun; I clearly need to make bibs for all the babies I know.

Pattern: Modern Cable Baby Bib by Gibsongirl
Yarn: I think it's Debbie Bliss Cotton DK in stone
Needles: #8

a new toy

2008-12-10T09:48:00.004-05:00

I have been thinking about alternate ways to make a living. Not that I want to quit designing, but I'd love to quit my day job. I'm not yet ready to announce my new money making scheme (and everyone seems to have one these days), but it involves photography. And that means that I need a better camera. An SLR.

I've always had cameras, and I used a 35mm SLR (my trusty, vintage, no batteries required Nikon F) from high school until I made the break into digital in about 1999. And that also meant moving to a point and shoot camera, which was alright. If you haven't noticed, many point and shoot digital cameras offer many manual settings. In 2003 I upgraded to a Canon Powershot S50 (another point and shoot), and that's what I've used until now.

Last night, I opened the box to my new Canon Rebel Xsi. It's beautiful: light, quick, a huge screen on the back. Even more interesting is that it makes really dull shots look good. Hopefully this won't make me into a lazy photographer.

I started reading the manual last night, and there's a lot to learn about those buttons on the back. What does the one with an asterisk do?

It's all good. A Christmas present for myself.

a warmer neck

2008-12-04T09:39:00.003-05:00

I don't know about the rest of you, but my neck gets cold. In fact, if there's a little cold air on my neck in the winter, it really gets me down. I need a big scarf in the winter, something that seals all the cracks, something toasty that I can wrap around my shoulders too, to keep any stray wind from getting me.

But I am not a big scarf knitter. The endless rows of the same thing over and over really bores me. It was a miracle that my father received that brioche scarf from me last Christmas. He must realize that I really love him. For myself... well, I've turned to cowls, but they aren't so snug. They don't keep the air out quite as well. Has anyone noticed this?

I've been searching for the perfect cowl pattern, something snug and warm. This is hard, because a cowl has so go over your head and therefore has to be wider. Many cowl patterns seem to be all about the drape, which looks great but doesn't do much to warm, in my opinion.

Then I saw Pam Allen's Ariosa Cowl in the most recent Twist Collective. It looked nearly perfect, except that I would rather use stash yarn and I had nothing in the required weight. Plus it doesn't quite cover one's shoulders.

And so I designed my own. Using stash yarn.
Can you believe it? I'm very pleased with how it turned out. An extra bonus is that the yarn is so light and airy and soft that it is warm without being heavy, and the brioche stitch allows for quite a lot of stretch going over one's head. It also seems to breathe fairly well; I didn't need to take it off once I got on the subway yesterday. I think I'll be wearing this quite a lot this winter. Specs:
pattern: my own. Should I name it?
yarn: 1 skein each of Blue Sky Alpacas, Alpaca Silk (50% alpaca/50% silk)
Colors 122 and 129 (bought on sale last summer at The Yarn Tree)
needle: #6 circular

new projects

2008-12-03T09:01:00.003-05:00

When I went to the Mason-Dixon book signing at the BPL back in October, they had all of the samples from the book, and I tried on the Metropole coat. I'd never considered knitting a coat before, but this one fit me perfectly, and I'm not so satisfied with how warm my current coat is or how it looks. So I bought various colors of Cascade 109 (which is on clearance at Webs), swatched and washed the swatch, and the ordered more, in the color that I chose.

Those of you who don't knit might think it's funny that I decided to knit myself a coat. It is ambitious, but the pattern calls for a bulky yarn and chunky needles, so in theory this could be easily achieved. It's basically like a big sweater, really. (Sort of how a wedding is just a big party.)Problem is, getting 4 stitches per inch isn't the same as getting 3.5 stitches per inch. You can't really fudge that, and somehow I imagined that I could. I'm not really sure why I was surprised that halfway up the back of the coat I noticed that it was going to be way too small. I washed and blocked my knitting, and yes, it's still way too small. I've got to frog it and start over. It's very sad.

In other news, when I went through all my fabric on Sunday I came across this: I think it must have come in a bag of material that Terra gave me a few years ago. In any case, I like it a lot and there's enough of it to recover the old ottoman that came from my grandfather's house. It's a very similar green to what we painted the walls in our den, which could be good or bad. I'm going to go ahead with it anyway. I just need to learn a little about piping, and brush up on my upholstery skills. (I've done it before, but only for something that's used on a stage and therefore only had to look good from 30 feet away.) Any pointers?

a new hobby?

2008-12-01T14:06:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I was feeling a little more perky (though not enough to brave the rain) so while Christopher did the laundry and corrected his students' essays, I hemmed some curtains and made chicken noodle soup.

Once the sewing machine was out, I decided to pull out all of my fabric - bags of scraps and random things I've bought or inherited over the years - and took stock. There's quite a lot, and some of it is really interesting and inspiring. I also pulled out my Denyse Schmidt Quilts book, which Derek and Terra gave me for my birthday. I've been longing to make a foray into quilting, but have been terrified by the amount of skill that seemed necessary. There is a simple sachet project in the book, and I decided to try it. Recently I've noticed that our sweaters have grown little holes and I know it's time to take some action against what is probably a small moth infestation. It could quickly get out of hand, especially with so much yarn around. Though greater action is needed, some sachets filled with lavender might help keep them at bay.

I chose some tan linen and some fabric that I designed back in 1994, when I had a silk screening apprenticeship at the Fabric Workshop and Museum. My finished object is a little bigger than it needs to be, and I didn't have as much lavender as I thought I did, but I think it will work.
My sachet was quickly done. It was a lot easier than I'd imagined, and SO FAST. I realize that I'm comparing sewing to knitting the equivalent object, but still. Fast. Christopher rolled his eyes when he saw my excitement. I'm not sure what I'll make next, but I think that a small quilt is on the horizon...

a quiet weekend

2008-11-30T10:47:00.005-05:00

Since returning to Brooklyn on Friday night I've come down with a nasty cold. Sore throat, sneezing, coughing, congestion. I walked down to Park Slope yesterday to get some groceries, and the trip really wiped me out. I don't think I'll be going out today, especially since it seems to be sleeting or something.

I spent most of yesterday on the sofa in the living room, wrapped in a blanket with Dinah and reading The Golden Compass. I'd been wanting to read it, and when we stopped into my parents' local used bookstore on Friday morning I bought a copy. I finished it last night. It was alright, a little more complex and interesting than Harry Potter, but still not great literature. Still, I'll see if I can track down the next book at the library. I'd like to know what happens next.

Christopher once again made dinner last night. I decided that we should have some leftover pasta with broccoli that I'd made on Monday night, and stuck the whole bowl in the microwave. Christopher came in and took over, saying that he'd rather heat it up in a pan with garlic and oil. And then he added the leftover tomato sauce he'd made on Friday night. It was delicious. I asked him if he's actually a chef and has just been hiding his skills from me for the past 5 and a half years. (I swear, all I've ever heard him say is that good food is not worth the effort of cooking it. But hello, he just chose to cut up garlic and saute it, which I think takes more effort than microwaving it.)

I was in bed and reading by 11 last night, and was disturbed by some loud banging in the hallway. It sounded like someone was trying to knock down a door, and I padded out in my PJs to see what was going on. (I wasn't alone, there were many heads peering down the stairwell to see where the noise was coming from.) It turned out that the super was trying to break down a door on the 4th floor. The residents weren't home, and a torrent of water was pouring into the lobby downstairs. It looked like the people below them (on the 3rd and 2nd floors) also weren't home. There was a small crowd watching the super, and another crowd watching the waterfall. can you see there's an inch or two of water on the floor? And that there is more streaming off the ceiling fixture?

I'm not sure how it resolved itself, but the water was turned off for a few hours, and a firetruck sat outside for a while too. I can only imagine what those folks will find when they get home. There was another flood in the building a month or two ago, and these same apartments lost the ceilings in their bathrooms. Oh, I'm glad I live on the top floor!

home again

2008-11-28T19:12:00.004-05:00

Oh, we are back! I can't wait to sleep in our very firm queen sized bed tonight; the sag and smallness of the double bed at my parents' does not agree with my back! (sorry Mom!)

Tuesday night my father showed us his bounty-- many textiles bought in India. Many of the fabrics are meant as Christmas gifts, but before he went my mother and I somehow convinced him to buy yardage and what he brought us is gorgeous. I am moving closer and closer to doing some sort of quilting, though there's yardage enough of these prints for a dress or skirt, and should probably think carefully about whether I'll make a quilt. He also bought many beautiful scarves and several quilts, most of which I didn't photograph.

Our Thanksgiving was fairly uneventful. My mother, Christopher and I cooked for most of the day on Thursday. My father watched the first part of Game 5 of the World Series, which he'd TiVoed but not yet watched. Christopher's family came at around 4, and we had dinner on the table at exactly 5, which was actually quite amazing. (Amazing in that 5 o'clock was the goal, and we met it.) The food was pretty good, the company fine and the night not too long. The house actually warmed up quite a bit with the oven and various wood fires that my father got going once he arrived. (Apparently hooking up all the vents was just too big a project and was not done by the end of the day on Wednesday.) It was comfortable and no one complained. The pies were delicious.
Today we had a very friendly visit with my Brown cousins, and then we hopped a bus back to New York. Christopher is actually currently making pasta sauce, since he doesn't like the vodka sauce I bought. I'm trying not to get too excited about this, but those who know him should know to be impressed. This is a man who subsisted on pizza, yogurt and breakfast cereal before we moved in together, and who actually made a fuss when I suggested that we would share meals nightly as a married couple. This man is now making pasta sauce, without a recipe and while I blog in the other room. I'm trying not to be too hopeful that this is a sign of our future together, but man, it would be nice!

coldness

2008-11-25T16:26:00.005-05:00

I've left New York for the holiday, taking the bus to Philadelphia this morning with a promise to go through my old closet and throw things away so my parents could have a little less clutter.

I got here ready to do some major closet cleaning, but it wasn't so clear what I was supposed to sort through, and my mom was at work, so I spent a few hours rereading letters I'd received from friends when I was in college. What's most interesting about these letters is that they were written right on the cusp of email-- one friend tells me that she has a new account that she's sharing with a friend-- and there are no letters from friends who did have email. There are also some really sweet and funny notes from my grandfather, who had just turned 90 and was designing and building a secretary for me. It's nice to remember that he was so sharp and witty; he was so frail and grumpy his final few years. (He lived to be 99 and a half, if you're wondering.)

I'm currently waiting for my mother to get home from teaching. Christopher is coming tonight and my dad is also flying in from his vacation to India (yeah, I know). My father is a major DIYer, and sometime this summer he disconnected the heat vents in order to do some maintenance (perhaps he was going to install an AC unit?), and never bothered to reconnect them. It wasn't so bad throughout the fall, but the last few weeks --weeks when Dad was in balmy India-- my mother has been freezing here. The house is very drafty and has 14' ceilings, so it's also not so easy to just cuddle up with a space heater. Hopefully this will be solved before Thursday, but in the meantime I'm cold. It's almost paralyzing. I am baking some sweet potatoes in hopes that the kitchen will warm up a few degrees, and I have on my hat and a heavy wool sweater and a blanket wrapped around my shoulders. I wish I had my fingerless gloves...

(photo added 11/28)

my first knitted design

2008-11-22T20:29:00.004-05:00

This summer I got a hankering for a knitted t-shirt. Not the Hanes type, more the skater type, wool with short sleeves worn over something with longer sleeves. I already had a pink sweater tee, a vintage thing bought at a thrift store, which I liked to wear under a cardigan on really cold days.

The problem was that I couldn't find the right pattern. I had decided to use one of the giant balls of yarn that I got in Denmark (and of course there wasn't that much of it) and I also wanted it to look slightly feminine and fashionable. Nothing was out there for the weight of yarn, yardage and style of my sweater. And so I decided to design one myself. The yarn was a DK or worsted (though listed as fingering in Ravelry), and I made a swatch of various lace designs from Barbara Walker, hoping the yarn would tell me what to do. There were weird color gradations in the swatch that I hadn't anticipated, and when I washed it it softened and bloomed considerably. I decided on a top down pattern, so I could try it on while I knit, and an all over lace design.

When I wound the yarn on Tony's winder, I discovered that I had about half the yardage that I thought I did (the label only told me the weight), which meant that I needed something else to fill out my sweater, since I didn't want a cropped T. This led me on a bit of a search, and I finally settled on some naturally dyed yarn from the Hope Spinnery, which I bought back when I visited the shop in August. And then I cast on and knit.

It actually wasn't so hard to knit, once I'd figured out my measurements and what direction I was going in. I added short rows on the back and on the sleeves to make the whole thing sit a little more comfortably. At one point I thought I'd run out of yarn mid-torso and have an overly wide lavender band at the bottom, but that didn't happen. I also added a partial trellis and pear pattern down the side, to both add a little extra interest and to hide where the two sides meet up. Overall, I'm very happy with the result. I realize that the yarn is a little funky, but oh well. I like it, and it reminds me of my trips to Denmark and Maine, and that makes me happy. (I was actually with my friend Laura when I bought both, and so the sweater reminds me of her, too.)

I'm already getting a lot of use out of it. It's exactly what I wanted.

Jarrett

2008-11-16T22:05:00.004-05:00

It's done. Christopher's sweater, I mean.
This is more than a feat than you might think. I started this sweater back in May of last year (yes, '07) and actually finished knitting it by the end of last summer. When I'd pieced it together and had Christopher try it on, it was clear that the sweater was a disaster. It was enormous, and the sleeves didn't fit into the armholes.
My solution? I tore out the collar and cut a chunk out of the back. And then I redesigned and reknit the sleeves. It was painful. The first sleeve cap didn't fit into the armhole and so I had to redesign and reknit the sleeve cap again. Which I did, but then I lost my mojo and couldn't bring myself to tear out the first sleeve cap. And then I forgot what I'd done to make it fit.

This fall, with a little encouragement from my mother, and continued questioning from Christopher, I reknit the second sleeve cap and sewed it on. Done. Today for the first time it was cool enough for Christopher to wear it, and I took some photos while we were at the Botanical Garden. It still isn't a great fit, but it's better than it was. And I am actually prouder of it than of most of the other things I've made. There's a lot of love in that garment.

Pattern: Jarrett by Kim Hargreaves, from Rowan Vintage Knits
Yarn: Ultra Alpaca, knit on #7 needles