January One -- CIT KAL
December 30, 2005
Crossed In Translation 3 - Blog Information
The blog is up!
Head on over for official sign up information! Thank you!
Posted by Cara at 12:12 PM
November 28, 2005
Crossed In Translation 2 - Questions Answered!
Hey Everybody! Yeah you - the ones from the AranKnit group on Yahoo and the people coming over from the KnittyBlog and anyone else who's interested in making this fantastic sweater.
Here are some details for you about the KAL:
The Crossed In Translation KnitAlong doesn't technically start until JANUARY 1. It's a birthday present of sorts to MOI. (Get it? The name of the blog. My birthday. Ahh. The newbies!) I will be setting up a separate blog for the KAL. It doesn't have a URL yet. (I'm busy, okay?) It's been suggested by a few people that maybe I would set up a Yahoo group - I'm not going that way. Basically, I don't like the Yahoo group thing. I find them hard to navigate and annoying and if I don't get the eight million emails a day I forget to go over there and check things and the emails are annoying so I never check. But with a blog everyone can subscribe to the RSS feed and then you can be updated the way you are with all your other blogs and everyone can post pictures and questions and it'll just be one big love fest.
So that's how it's going to work. I figure Jan 1 is safe because by that time everyone will have gotten their books and the holidays will be over and we'll be settling in for a nice boring winter with a wonderful project. YAY!
Hope that answers a lot of the questions. I will try to get the blog up as soon as possible, but I'm not promising anything until January 1. Thanks so much! I'm excited about all the interest and I know that we'll all make the most fabulous sweaters!
Posted by Cara at 05:06 PM | Comments (17)
Thundercrack!
baby's back.
This time she'll tell me how she really feels.
This post will have something for everyone! Consider it Random Wednesday. Only it's Monday.
As I mentioned on Friday, Thanksgiving went really well. The food was great, company better and it all went off without incident. Except for the fact that my sister got a cold Wednesday night and felt miserable all day Thursday, it couldn't have gone better. My contribution (besides watching the kids off and on all day to keep them out of their mom's hair and vaccuuming) was a salad. I modeled it after my favorite salad of all time from Gigino's in NYC. It's the Peperina salad and I made it with mixed baby lettuces, shaved pear, shaved parmesan, pecans (I thought they used pecans, but I guess they use walnuts) and pomegranate seeds sprinkled with white balsamic vinegar. I was really pleased with how it came out and everyone seemed to enjoy it.
I've got no pictures of the kids because I didn't take my camera with me. I know. Blasphemy. But I'm sick of taking pictures and I'd just download them to the computer and they would sit there. Besides this was a break from photography work and it worked because yesterday I got A LOT of work done and I'm feeling like I'm back on track. At least a little bit. But I got a lot of cuddle time with the kids and they got their new bunk beds which was a trip in and of itself. My nephew ended up sleeping on the bottom bunk and my niece slept with me on the floor. The baby is big as can be - if I could only show you his monster thighs - but he's so much fun! He giggles nonstop and just smiles so sweet and he's such a cuddler. This is definitely one of my favorite ages. They're still babies, but they can engage you in that wide eyed wonderful way. All you have to do is smile and his whole face lights up. I miss them.
I hit the mail jackpot on Friday. Georgie was particularly impressed. I always call him to find out about the mail when I'm away and his standard reply is junk junk and more junk. This time HE called ME. There were lots of lovely thank you cards from all those boxes I sent out the other day - so sweet! An email is plenty, but a card? In the mail? For me? I was really touched. Thank YOU! Vicki's card was my favorite - check out this knitted thank you:
I tried to find the card on the artist's website, but it wasn't there. Hey Vicki! Where'd you get the card? It's SO LaPierre!
But what really impressed Georgie was the package from Hong Kong. I got my Crossed In Translation book! Yay! The book is really beautiful - think Rowan meets the House of the Rising Sun. And the freaking pattern is TWO pages. Lucky for us, knitalongers, there's barely any words to go along with the pattern. It's all charts and schematics. We should be able to figure this out no problem, right? G-Love thinks I've completely lost it. He may be right.
Oh and rest assured, seeing the sweater in it's native language has only made me love it more.
She slips, she slides, she slops, she bops, she bumps, she grinds
Now if only I could stop making socks:
Kaci - this pictures for you! Mwah!
I finished one...
and started another!
For all you Jaywalkers out there, I'm planning on doing an FAQ for this Friday's update. So if you have questions - let me know in the comments, or in an email. And don't forget you can always email me or Kathy (who, by the way, is an inspiration to me! First Jaywalker, and now Grumpecue! Kathy, you're killing me!) Basically everyone seems to have similar issues, so we'll address them this week. Namely gauge and the bar increases (yes - the holes are supposed to be there! It's a design thing! ;-) ) But if you've got other questions, let me know.
My heart's wood, she's a carpenter
She's an angel in the night, what she does is alright
As much as I love my socks, I'm sort of getting frustrated with myself. It's like I can't knit ANYTHING else. I think about all these projects I want to knit - mittens, finish my gloves, work on the Prairie Blanket. I just can't seem to concentrate. I'm trying to go with the flow like Margene says, but I'm antsy. And this doesn't just relate to my knitting either - when's the last time I read a book? Can someone tell me please? How pathetic is that?
We're not going to even discuss the fact that I just got off the phone with the embryo people - I was late on my payment to keep those totsicles frozen. When's that shrink appointment again?
Dance with me, partner, dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner, all night
If you've got the DVD, make sure you watch the supplemental material on documentary disc. I can't stop watching Thundercrack. Over and over and over again. It's simply stunning. DO IT! WATCH IT NOW! You can thank me later.
Posted by Cara at 10:16 AM | Comments (18)
November 23, 2005
Crossed In Translation
nitsuto ni koishite shimada toshiyuki no se ta butsuku dentou nitsuto no atarashii densetsu
Apparently that's what I ordered and it's winging it's way to me from Japan as we speak. These words appeared in the item slot. I hope it's this book, but you never know. Sometimes things get Crossed In Translation! (Oh my god that was bad. I'm very tired. Up late again turning a heel.)
Lest some people (hi Kay!) think we don't have enough KAL information going on around here, I'm switching gears to talk about this sweater. Have you seen the AMAZING work Mary is doing? She's already tested at least five yarns for this project - she's even written up a swatch chart for us all to use! Here's the collection of entries Mary's put together on swatching for this sweater. The information she's collecting for us is invaluable and I'm so glad to see she's having a great time doing it! (And I'm always so envious of her beautiful, beautiful photographs.)
In knitting news, I turned the heel on the Hard Rock sock twice. I don't want to talk about it, thanks. All is good now, I think, and given that I'm traveling today, on a train, on the most traveled route in the WORLD, I should have plenty of knitting time. I'm going down to my sister's - she's hosting T-Day this year. G and I aren't really big on the prescribed holidays. (Like I need Valentine's Day to show my love how I feel?!) In the fifteen years we've been together, maybe we've been to five Thanksgivings as a couple? I go to my family - he goes to his. It works best for us. Besides, I try to be thankful all year round for everyone and everything. At least I try to say thank you as often as I can. I think that's really important. Especially with the people you truly love and are close to - why is it so important to thank perfect strangers, but not your husband who tries so hard every day to give you a good life? So I thank George all the time. Every day. No matter how small the gesture. And he thanks me. It goes a LONG way toward feeling appreciated and valued. Thank you! It's not just for doorholders any more!
Anyway, so the holiday. I'm happy to see the kids, as always, and of course, I want to help my sister as much as I can, but I'm not one for big family stuff. Especially these days. My family has gone through some major upheavals in the last couple of years and while I LOVE hanging with my sisters and brother - all it takes is one big family thing to shine the spotlight on all that has changed. Not so fun. I'll just concentrate on the kids and my sock.
There will be a Jaywalker KAL update on Friday. Basically because I've already written it! If I don't post tomorrow, have a wonderful Thanksgiving. And, since maybe I don't tell you enough - thanks for reading. There are eight million blogs out there, and I know you have a choice. I really appreciate your attention.
Don't eat too much! (But turn up the music!)
Posted by Cara at 08:44 AM | Comments (15)