I had a whole night off on Monday and I really needed to find something to wear for a couple of the shows this weekend, so I called up my new BFF/SP10 Rochelle and she kindly put her plans on pause to come out with me for some retail therapy at the mall with the mostest, Yorkdale. Our SP10 hostess Robyn has reunited soul-twins cosmically separated at birth. Rochelle and I had a fabulous girls night out (okay, it was more like late afternoon and evening) - shopping, talking, dining, talking,... talking... talking. It was just what I needed.
Today I actually have a whole day off. So of course instead of being in bed where I belong, I was up at the crack of dawn - too excited about having a whole day off to actually rest and take care of myself before the whirlwind of performances that starts tomorrow. I'll be doing some laundry and some packing this morning (unlike a long weekend holiday, a diva weekend requires carting around a lot more than you can possibly imagine). Then I am going out for some R&R: a facial and mini-massage (using an old gift certificate I found among my tax receipts). After that I'll be meeting Rochelle and Robyn downtown for some fibre sustenance and bit of dinner.
Robyn's in town this weekend for the TTC knit-a-long. Rochelle is going too, as are many fabulous GTA kniterristas. I so wish I could be there, but I'll be out of town, performing morning, noon and night, and unfortunately I still haven't figured out how to be in two places at once. But I will definitely work in some KIP-ing while I am gone. I have to represent for International Knit in Public Day, when the world knitting community brings our yarn and sticks out of our homes and LYSs, and ventures into the wide world in droves, to share and celebrate our craft and to freak out the muggles just a bit. It’s fun to KIP - I do it all the time on my own, but I'd love to try it as a team sport. Sigh. Think of me while you're out there, KIP-ers.
Pssst... if you're looking for me in the next few days, I'll be here.
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Saturday, June 02, 2007
"Aus der Kriegsschule des Lebens -from Götzen-Dämmerung (Twilight of the Idols), 1895, by Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900), a parody of Wagner's Götterdämmerung.
Was mich nicht umbringt, macht mich staerker."
(Out of the Warschool of life [I learned]-
What does not kill me, makes me stronger.)
It’s interesting how when you decide you’ve finally learned a big life lesson, the universe then sends you a series of tests in the form of similar situations, some of them obvious and some disguised, just to make sure that you really REALLY got it.
Yeah.
Thanks so much.
I’d appreciate it more if I weren’t so F#&*-ing exhausted.
Just one more week.
...
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Names withheld for reasons which will become obvious.
Warning: TMI post follows.
I am attempting to take good care of myself. The universe is fiercely testing my resolve, but I am determined to persevere. I am a true Leo, born on the first day of August and in the Chinese year of the Dragon (among the last post-WW2 baby-boomers), so I have reserves of tenacity it has yet to plumb. Bring it, baby!
I went to my GP earlier this week reporting symptoms I mentioned before: vertigo with incipient headache, and some weird edema in my ankles and lower legs. My BP is a little high (138/90) but lower than the two previous readings (all three together showed as descending). However, that is the likely culprit for both the severe edema in my lower legs and the vertiginous migraines. I saw a neurologist and since May 20 I've been taking 400mg Riboflavin daily, which has almost totally wiped out the chronic recurrent migraines and vertigo I had for the previous 4 weeks (and it worked miraculously fast, too). But a couple of days ago the vertigo and headaches returned and they are hovering. And the edema is coincident with a very faint recurrent chest flutter and a pinching sensation left of centre (which of course was flying under the radar during my afternoon exam - only occuring in the am and evg, and hence not audible under the stethoscope. How does it know?).
Given my symptoms and my family tree of genealogical medical histories playing the top ten tunes on the obesity-related hit parade, including numerous cardio-vascular diseases and assorted cancers, they are wisely booking me for a cardiac ultrasound, an exercise/stress test and a 24-hour halter monitor (I think I will request 48-hours).
It all seems a bit of an ironic cosmic jest. I've had surprisingly good health so far. I have spent 42 years on this earth, most of them rather sedentary except for two periods of physical fitness in 1992-96 and 2000-02. I am lucky that despite my tendency to zaftig Rubenesque proportions I hadn't yet developed any of the associated life-threatening complications. But at 40+ I am clearly at a chronological crossroads and as you know I started earnestly doing something about it.
I spent the past several months improving my fitness in advance of summer training for the September 60km walk for PMH (the Weekend to End Breast Cancer). I embarked on this journey from what is probably best described as enlightened self-interest: I have pretty good reasons both to want to build a healthier lifestyle into habitual behaviour for the rest of my life, and to raise awareness and funding to support people battling breast cancer and the research to end it. Also, fear of pain is a powerful motivator and since this endurance test is not the sort of thing for which you can "cram" right beforehand, it made me get out and move regularly since the New Year. I am at the point where 8-10 miles walking or biking are totally doable. Now I need to build in the get-out-and-do-the-same-the-very-next-day stamina. Instead I am under orders to stay off my feet as much as possible until the swelling and blood pressure return to normal.
My symptoms are really only partly of physiological derivation, largely exacerbated by the cumulative stress of recent months. The reactive fallout from personal choices I made in recent weeks was a blow that left me a bit shell-shocked and I am certain it triggered my current physical condition.
I have to withdraw from an intolerable family member in order to protect myself. This person is a holocaust survivor who functions at a very high level on the surface, but effectively conceals a borderline personality disorder characterized by unpredictable private outbursts of enormous rage, verbal and physical abuse. God knows they have very good reasons to be the way they are and are coping remarkably well, given formative years spent under horrifying conditions. I have tremendous compassion and empathy, but after a lifetime of attempts to appease their engulfing neediness, mollify their defensiveness and still achieve anything resembling balance in my own life, I finally realized last month that I just cannot do it.
Now I am dealing with a bizarre mirror situation while preparing for the upcoming arts festival. The material and artists are good, but despite my best efforts I've had escalating confrontations with an artistic director who refuses to accept that as artists we have a right to decide and state what we are and are not willing to do (and then she, of course, has choices w.r.t. how she responds to that information as well). For months now she has refused to hear the word “no” whenever my soprano colleague or I say it; instead she has temper tantrums and then starts to cry!
This person is a truly brilliant poet & composer. Unfortunately she is very disorganized, wasting vast amounts of time being chronically late, scattered, overextended and unprepared, and by repeatedly digressing into her own personal issues in the middle of rehearsals. She is also utterly wrapped up in her personal victim ideation and complains about her vision not being respected, wheedling and using emotional manipulation to get her way, while dismissing our input and concerns.
Also, we have become aware that she tries to play us off against each other. She has actually commented that she cannot fathom our lack of competition and she really seems to resent our mutual support. I’ve been informed by my comrade in this insanity that (among other things) the A.D. actually told her that SHE is giving ME some terrific opportunity (like I need her to build my career?). That's a very interesting notion, since but for a visa snafu 4 years ago with the goodfellas at US immigration flexing their new-found muscles and delaying my application (it's still pending, BTW... LOL), I would have been performing with Des Moines Metro Opera, and as a result might by now be regularly engaged with Chicago Lyric Opera, Houston Grand, et al... Quite frankly, versatile dramatic mezzos don't grow on trees. Okay, then.
... And meanwhile she is regularly bad-mouthing the other soloist to me! Both of us are being told by everyone we know in the biz to get the hell out. We’ve decided to be professional, support each other and just stick it out for this festival, (so as to not let down all the other participants).
So right now I'm just hanging in there for another 10 days and thanking God for my husband/soul-mate/best-friend/biggest-fan, my good friends and colleagues, my excellent therapist, and the ever-growing light at the end of this tunnel. And when I feel ready to do more than seriously contemplate felony homicide: I knit instead. One stitch, two stitches... very zen.
Despite the behind-the-scenes personality issues, the festival (June 8-10) is shaping up to be a fabulous weekend of chamber music, theatre, poetry, folk music and activities on the south shore of Lake Simcoe near Jackson’s Point. Then I will have another completely different concert June 23 with several talented operatic colleagues.
Summer will be slower, but I am planning major household organization & minor repairs, I have a new knitting-pattern design commissioned due mid-summer, and I will have lots of new music to learn and make performance-ready for 3 very different gigs in the fall: a kitshy cabaret-and-popera fundraiser gala for Hospice Thornhill, two concerts (I am also producing these) for Holocaust Education Week, and a preliminary concert of a new piece that’s being written (just for me!) about the visionary Canadian artist and writer Emily Carr.
And hopefully, with my health and the weather cooperating, I'll be increasing my training for September and Weekend to End Breast Cancer.
I am attempting to take good care of myself. The universe is fiercely testing my resolve, but I am determined to persevere. I am a true Leo, born on the first day of August and in the Chinese year of the Dragon (among the last post-WW2 baby-boomers), so I have reserves of tenacity it has yet to plumb. Bring it, baby!
I went to my GP earlier this week reporting symptoms I mentioned before: vertigo with incipient headache, and some weird edema in my ankles and lower legs. My BP is a little high (138/90) but lower than the two previous readings (all three together showed as descending). However, that is the likely culprit for both the severe edema in my lower legs and the vertiginous migraines. I saw a neurologist and since May 20 I've been taking 400mg Riboflavin daily, which has almost totally wiped out the chronic recurrent migraines and vertigo I had for the previous 4 weeks (and it worked miraculously fast, too). But a couple of days ago the vertigo and headaches returned and they are hovering. And the edema is coincident with a very faint recurrent chest flutter and a pinching sensation left of centre (which of course was flying under the radar during my afternoon exam - only occuring in the am and evg, and hence not audible under the stethoscope. How does it know?).
Given my symptoms and my family tree of genealogical medical histories playing the top ten tunes on the obesity-related hit parade, including numerous cardio-vascular diseases and assorted cancers, they are wisely booking me for a cardiac ultrasound, an exercise/stress test and a 24-hour halter monitor (I think I will request 48-hours).
It all seems a bit of an ironic cosmic jest. I've had surprisingly good health so far. I have spent 42 years on this earth, most of them rather sedentary except for two periods of physical fitness in 1992-96 and 2000-02. I am lucky that despite my tendency to zaftig Rubenesque proportions I hadn't yet developed any of the associated life-threatening complications. But at 40+ I am clearly at a chronological crossroads and as you know I started earnestly doing something about it.
I spent the past several months improving my fitness in advance of summer training for the September 60km walk for PMH (the Weekend to End Breast Cancer). I embarked on this journey from what is probably best described as enlightened self-interest: I have pretty good reasons both to want to build a healthier lifestyle into habitual behaviour for the rest of my life, and to raise awareness and funding to support people battling breast cancer and the research to end it. Also, fear of pain is a powerful motivator and since this endurance test is not the sort of thing for which you can "cram" right beforehand, it made me get out and move regularly since the New Year. I am at the point where 8-10 miles walking or biking are totally doable. Now I need to build in the get-out-and-do-the-same-the-very-next-day stamina. Instead I am under orders to stay off my feet as much as possible until the swelling and blood pressure return to normal.
My symptoms are really only partly of physiological derivation, largely exacerbated by the cumulative stress of recent months. The reactive fallout from personal choices I made in recent weeks was a blow that left me a bit shell-shocked and I am certain it triggered my current physical condition.
I have to withdraw from an intolerable family member in order to protect myself. This person is a holocaust survivor who functions at a very high level on the surface, but effectively conceals a borderline personality disorder characterized by unpredictable private outbursts of enormous rage, verbal and physical abuse. God knows they have very good reasons to be the way they are and are coping remarkably well, given formative years spent under horrifying conditions. I have tremendous compassion and empathy, but after a lifetime of attempts to appease their engulfing neediness, mollify their defensiveness and still achieve anything resembling balance in my own life, I finally realized last month that I just cannot do it.
Now I am dealing with a bizarre mirror situation while preparing for the upcoming arts festival. The material and artists are good, but despite my best efforts I've had escalating confrontations with an artistic director who refuses to accept that as artists we have a right to decide and state what we are and are not willing to do (and then she, of course, has choices w.r.t. how she responds to that information as well). For months now she has refused to hear the word “no” whenever my soprano colleague or I say it; instead she has temper tantrums and then starts to cry!
This person is a truly brilliant poet & composer. Unfortunately she is very disorganized, wasting vast amounts of time being chronically late, scattered, overextended and unprepared, and by repeatedly digressing into her own personal issues in the middle of rehearsals. She is also utterly wrapped up in her personal victim ideation and complains about her vision not being respected, wheedling and using emotional manipulation to get her way, while dismissing our input and concerns.
Also, we have become aware that she tries to play us off against each other. She has actually commented that she cannot fathom our lack of competition and she really seems to resent our mutual support. I’ve been informed by my comrade in this insanity that (among other things) the A.D. actually told her that SHE is giving ME some terrific opportunity (like I need her to build my career?). That's a very interesting notion, since but for a visa snafu 4 years ago with the goodfellas at US immigration flexing their new-found muscles and delaying my application (it's still pending, BTW... LOL), I would have been performing with Des Moines Metro Opera, and as a result might by now be regularly engaged with Chicago Lyric Opera, Houston Grand, et al... Quite frankly, versatile dramatic mezzos don't grow on trees. Okay, then.
... And meanwhile she is regularly bad-mouthing the other soloist to me! Both of us are being told by everyone we know in the biz to get the hell out. We’ve decided to be professional, support each other and just stick it out for this festival, (so as to not let down all the other participants).
So right now I'm just hanging in there for another 10 days and thanking God for my husband/soul-mate/best-friend/biggest-fan, my good friends and colleagues, my excellent therapist, and the ever-growing light at the end of this tunnel. And when I feel ready to do more than seriously contemplate felony homicide: I knit instead. One stitch, two stitches... very zen.
Despite the behind-the-scenes personality issues, the festival (June 8-10) is shaping up to be a fabulous weekend of chamber music, theatre, poetry, folk music and activities on the south shore of Lake Simcoe near Jackson’s Point. Then I will have another completely different concert June 23 with several talented operatic colleagues.
Summer will be slower, but I am planning major household organization & minor repairs, I have a new knitting-pattern design commissioned due mid-summer, and I will have lots of new music to learn and make performance-ready for 3 very different gigs in the fall: a kitshy cabaret-and-popera fundraiser gala for Hospice Thornhill, two concerts (I am also producing these) for Holocaust Education Week, and a preliminary concert of a new piece that’s being written (just for me!) about the visionary Canadian artist and writer Emily Carr.
And hopefully, with my health and the weather cooperating, I'll be increasing my training for September and Weekend to End Breast Cancer.
Monday, May 28, 2007
Friday, May 25, 2007
This was an absolutely terrific day.
I had one whole day off from responsibility - no work, no rehearsals, no errands, no laundry. I had good food, good company, good knitting, and met charming people.
DH and I started our day with a sleep-in and a snuggle, and then we trotted over to the fabulous Thai restaurant for their incredibly delicious Friday lunch buffet. Exquisite - as always. And the company was great too! I am so lucky - I am married to my best friend and soulmate and after nearly 24 years together we are still madly in love, still find each other very interesting, enjoy great conversation at length, and laugh together a lot. (And his kisses still make me weak in the knees!)
In the afternoon I finally got to meet my sister-of-the-soul Rochelle in person: She's my Not-so-Secret-anymore Pal and it is a match made in heaven (Thank you, Robyn!). Rochelle and I have so much in common it is like we were separated at birth. And she has spoiled me thoroughly and absolutely beyond any hope of redemption. Warning to any future SPs: Rochelle and Laura before her have set the bar very very high. I consider myself a fairly lavish gifter, but I must humbly admit that I have been completely outclassed. The next few days are going to be crazy for me, but after the weekend I will post a detailed pictorial of the stupendous bounty with which Rochelle most recently blessed me (today).
Rochelle came over to my place to pick me up, then we wandered down to Knitomatic where we got to hang out with the fabulous Haley for a while and play with the fibre - Rochelle acquired several skeins of lovely butter-coloured lace weight Misti Alpaca and some purplicious Fleece Artist silk-wool sliver/roving, while I succumbed to the charms of one skein of Handmaiden Silken in a stunning indigo/royal/ocean/blueberry colourway and some Cherry Tree Hill Silk & Merino DK in an exquisite multi-pastel palette (yes, I said pastel - stop snickering, I can branch out a bit for spring).
After this small snack of fibre sustenance, we hit the road again to attend the Yarn Harlot's Canadian book-launch. Folks, if you've read Stephanie's blog or any of her books and articles, you already know this is one very smart and funny lady. But I have to tell you - you ain't seen or heard nuthin' until you have heard her speak in person. She shines the light on the foibles of knitters and the foolhardiness of muggles with an artless wit and a subtle natural command of irony - and in the process she takes no prisoners.
There were hundreds of knitters (to the awe and amazement of staff at Chapters/Indigo - GTA knitters represented!) and we were all helpless at her feet, laughing and cheering uncontrollably as she skewered the muggle media, and business community for their inability to see past their preconceived prejudices about knitters, and she occasionally hoist us on our own petards, albeit ever-so-gently and lovingly, all witnessed by the rather overwhelmed and dare I say sheepishly bewildered bookstore staff.
There is a rumour floating about the ether that it could not possibly have been the real Stephanie Pearl-McPhee as the lady both (a) was wearing a skirt and (b) had actually shaved her legs. However, rest assured that we do have genuine identity verification: three different samples of her signature from the book-signing were collected, the chain of evidence was scrupulously maintained, the handwriting compared to previous examples and they all passed the most suspicious scrutiny. You can't be too careful.
I regret that I have no pictures for you, but Rochelle took several and I will happily link to her blog and to postings that others are sure to make in the next several days, so that anyone who missed this event can enjoy it vicariously.
This whole day was the perfect mini-vacation from the current eddies of insanity whirling around me. Renewed and refreshed, MezzoDiva now returns to her previously scheduled programming.
The next few days I will probably be MIA from the blog as I am busy rehearsing for the upcoming Blue Bridge Festival, June 8-10 with Ardeleana: I have 6 different concerts in 3 days and a play which is practically a 30-minute monologue, so right now I am just hanging on to the raft as we hit the rapids.
I had one whole day off from responsibility - no work, no rehearsals, no errands, no laundry. I had good food, good company, good knitting, and met charming people.
DH and I started our day with a sleep-in and a snuggle, and then we trotted over to the fabulous Thai restaurant for their incredibly delicious Friday lunch buffet. Exquisite - as always. And the company was great too! I am so lucky - I am married to my best friend and soulmate and after nearly 24 years together we are still madly in love, still find each other very interesting, enjoy great conversation at length, and laugh together a lot. (And his kisses still make me weak in the knees!)
In the afternoon I finally got to meet my sister-of-the-soul Rochelle in person: She's my Not-so-Secret-anymore Pal and it is a match made in heaven (Thank you, Robyn!). Rochelle and I have so much in common it is like we were separated at birth. And she has spoiled me thoroughly and absolutely beyond any hope of redemption. Warning to any future SPs: Rochelle and Laura before her have set the bar very very high. I consider myself a fairly lavish gifter, but I must humbly admit that I have been completely outclassed. The next few days are going to be crazy for me, but after the weekend I will post a detailed pictorial of the stupendous bounty with which Rochelle most recently blessed me (today).
Rochelle came over to my place to pick me up, then we wandered down to Knitomatic where we got to hang out with the fabulous Haley for a while and play with the fibre - Rochelle acquired several skeins of lovely butter-coloured lace weight Misti Alpaca and some purplicious Fleece Artist silk-wool sliver/roving, while I succumbed to the charms of one skein of Handmaiden Silken in a stunning indigo/royal/ocean/blueberry colourway and some Cherry Tree Hill Silk & Merino DK in an exquisite multi-pastel palette (yes, I said pastel - stop snickering, I can branch out a bit for spring).
After this small snack of fibre sustenance, we hit the road again to attend the Yarn Harlot's Canadian book-launch. Folks, if you've read Stephanie's blog or any of her books and articles, you already know this is one very smart and funny lady. But I have to tell you - you ain't seen or heard nuthin' until you have heard her speak in person. She shines the light on the foibles of knitters and the foolhardiness of muggles with an artless wit and a subtle natural command of irony - and in the process she takes no prisoners.
There were hundreds of knitters (to the awe and amazement of staff at Chapters/Indigo - GTA knitters represented!) and we were all helpless at her feet, laughing and cheering uncontrollably as she skewered the muggle media, and business community for their inability to see past their preconceived prejudices about knitters, and she occasionally hoist us on our own petards, albeit ever-so-gently and lovingly, all witnessed by the rather overwhelmed and dare I say sheepishly bewildered bookstore staff.
There is a rumour floating about the ether that it could not possibly have been the real Stephanie Pearl-McPhee as the lady both (a) was wearing a skirt and (b) had actually shaved her legs. However, rest assured that we do have genuine identity verification: three different samples of her signature from the book-signing were collected, the chain of evidence was scrupulously maintained, the handwriting compared to previous examples and they all passed the most suspicious scrutiny. You can't be too careful.
I regret that I have no pictures for you, but Rochelle took several and I will happily link to her blog and to postings that others are sure to make in the next several days, so that anyone who missed this event can enjoy it vicariously.
This whole day was the perfect mini-vacation from the current eddies of insanity whirling around me. Renewed and refreshed, MezzoDiva now returns to her previously scheduled programming.
The next few days I will probably be MIA from the blog as I am busy rehearsing for the upcoming Blue Bridge Festival, June 8-10 with Ardeleana: I have 6 different concerts in 3 days and a play which is practically a 30-minute monologue, so right now I am just hanging on to the raft as we hit the rapids.
Friday, May 18, 2007
Wanted:
High-fibre spring-fling, a clothes-encounter of the summery kind.
KnittyAmy recently posted about the frustration of fickle fluctuations in personal size, especially when it comes to making your own hand-knitted garments. Like the many commenters on her blog, I’ve wanted to get this issue out into the open for a long time. It’s quite a dilemma. We crave the satisfaction of a beautiful top or sweater or whatever well-fitted personally crafted item lovingly made by our own hands for ourselves. But what do you do when the only certain thing about the size you will be when the cherished item is finally a FO is that you cannot be certain?
From a desire to improve my own health and fitness and to simultaneously do some good in the world, I recently committed to walking 60km in 2 days next September in the 2007 Toronto Weekend to end Breast Cancer. It’s good to have a medium-long range goal to keep me motivated about ongoing regular physical activity, and a feat of endurance like those 60km is a pretty good one: there is no way to cram training for that kind of thing into the last couple of weeks, so I have to haul my ass off the sofa on a frequent basis starting now (or rather a couple of months ago), and this activity has been documented here semi-regularly since the winter.
I will NEVER be a sylph. It is just not in my biological destiny to become "skinny" or "thin" or "slender" or "slim"... I will probably always be somewhere in what is referred to as the plus-sizes. But even without dieting per se, as I keep adding more physical activity to my life, unless the basic laws of biology and physics change, there will be some kind of significant changes in my personal shape and size.
Well I really hate the idea of knitting up something that I love and then having to rip it out and start over, or even worse, having a steeked garment and being unable to rip it out and salvage the yarn for another size or another project. So lately I’ve been knitting several different socks, some arm-warmers, headwarmers, and a couple of scarves while the sweaters, tops, and other body-fitting garment projects were placed on temporary hiatus pending the results of my current fitness-&-health endeavours.
But it’s spring/summer-time, warm and pretty spring time, when a knitter’s thoughts turn to lovely soft cotton, silk and bamboo, in bright colours, pretty pastels or gentle neutrals, for cute little tops, tanks and Tshirts. I feel such a great urge to make up something cute and warm-weathery to wear ASAP. But wait – how can I know what size to make? How can I make it as adjustable as possible? Alas, I am bereft!
Please chime in with your thoughts. And stay tuned. This one will definitely be continued…
BTW: that's Rubens' painting of the Three Graces up there. They don't seem very concerned about their measurments. Neither should we, unless health concerns enter the picture. Put it another way: a waist is a terrible thing to mind.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Here's another contest post for SP10, Robyn's group - contest#5.Q: blog about what you do while knitting. Is there a unique way you like to cuddle up with your yarn and needles? Do you watch TV?... listen to the radio? A podcast? Do you drink tea? Coffee? Wine? Do you have to wear slippers? Do you have to have peace & quiet? Do you have a fave spot?
My most usual knitting spot is on the bus. Since I am vehicularly challenged (I do not drive) my primary form of transportation is Toronto's public transit system, also known as the TTC or "the better way". In the good weather, I often substitute my bike for the purpose of getting around, but I haven't yet figured out a way to bike in traffic and knit at the same time and stay alive, so I save the knitting for when someone else is doing the driving.
I am not a bus snob and so I bestow my knitting presence equally on my fellow transit riders on the subway and streetcars.
While engaged in my transit knitting activities, I am usually entertained by the sharp staccato strains of multiple mobile-phone enthusiasts, who are all apparently compelled to relate to their listeners (and to everyone in a three-mile radius) the entire vast compendium of minutiae that comprise their existence in one conversational encounter at audibly threatening decibel levels. Their strange music is often accompanied by a persistent obligato of contrapuntal shrieks and hollars from packs of adolescents apparently driven to outdo one another in both volume and excessively crude hilarity. These delightful diversions inevitably leave me contemplating the judicious application of sharp and pointy objects to the perpetrators, but thus far I have refrained from such antisocial behaviour.
I will knit sitting down or standing up, usually on a circular needle to avoid the otherwise inevitable precarious chasing of the aforementioned sharp pointy objects down to the other end of the moving vehicle. I generally choose to knit socks while in transit, but not exclusively. As long as the project is of a manageable size, it's fair game for transit knitting.
I have on occasion attempted to juggle both my knitting and a coffee-flavoured beverage, though only while seated, and due to a less than appealing experience, I don't do this anymore. Well, not much, anyway.
Nine times out of ten, while knitting in transit I am approached by someone who is curious and intrigued by what I am doing. Often the commentary consists of something wistful along the lines of: "Wow... I knit a scarf once, but I could NEVER do that!". In my self-appointed role as the transit commission's knitting-in-public good-will-ambassador, I gently explain that it's all really the same two stitches, knirt and/or purl, and the skills obtained in knitting said scarf are very easily transferrable to the making of more interesting projects, with only some patience and the aid of a good book or a willing mentor (easily to be found at any LYS and SnB gathering).
Often I am approached to give an impromptu lesson in some simple technique right there on the bus, as on the occasion when the grandmotherly lady swathed in a voluminous burka and seated just to my left had been a knitter some years before but had somehow forgotten how to cast off and therefore had a great pile of almost finished items languishing in a closet. I demonstrated a simple cast-off, slowly and carefully taking her step-by-step through the actions, while her daughter, seated across from us with her own young progeny, provided a simultaneous translation of my instructions, as the older lady spoke no English and sadly my facility with Arabic is rather weak.
Friday, May 11, 2007
Colour me Happy!
So I finally schlepped myself down to Romni Wools to pick-up my umbrella which has been waiting there for almost six weeks. I accidentally left it the last time I was there (for the training-walk/yarn-crawl on April 1st!) because I was tired and distracted by the pretty soft and shiny fluffy things and because I left there carrying significantly more than I had when I came in (I'm sure you can fill in the blanks). So with my senses overwhelmed (Romni is an experience that always leaves me reeling. SO much yarn, so many textures and colours all in one place), my hands extremely full and my body tired... it was pretty easy to forget on the way out that I had an umbrella with me when I came in.
Well, I have always said that things happen for a reason. I may not know what that reason is at the time, but there is surely some kind of purpose to all the seemingly accidental incidents in my life. As a favourite fortune cookie says: Life must be lived forward, but can only be understood backwards.
So while in Romni I decided to casually peruse their ginormous bookshelves, just for a pleasant diversion.
Really, I was just browsing...
Until I saw this:
Let me tell you that my inadvertent classically-trained scream scared the living daylights out of everyone in the store.
When I finally recovered enough composure to slap myself silly for not even thinking to look there in the first place (you wouldn't believe the contortions I have been going through in vain attempts to obtain this book), I apologized to the sales staff, the patrons, and everyone in a four-block radius. Then I calmly sauntered over to the cash register to claim my prize.
Gotcha!
So I finally schlepped myself down to Romni Wools to pick-up my umbrella which has been waiting there for almost six weeks. I accidentally left it the last time I was there (for the training-walk/yarn-crawl on April 1st!) because I was tired and distracted by the pretty soft and shiny fluffy things and because I left there carrying significantly more than I had when I came in (I'm sure you can fill in the blanks). So with my senses overwhelmed (Romni is an experience that always leaves me reeling. SO much yarn, so many textures and colours all in one place), my hands extremely full and my body tired... it was pretty easy to forget on the way out that I had an umbrella with me when I came in.
Well, I have always said that things happen for a reason. I may not know what that reason is at the time, but there is surely some kind of purpose to all the seemingly accidental incidents in my life. As a favourite fortune cookie says: Life must be lived forward, but can only be understood backwards.
So while in Romni I decided to casually peruse their ginormous bookshelves, just for a pleasant diversion.
Really, I was just browsing...
Until I saw this:
Let me tell you that my inadvertent classically-trained scream scared the living daylights out of everyone in the store.
When I finally recovered enough composure to slap myself silly for not even thinking to look there in the first place (you wouldn't believe the contortions I have been going through in vain attempts to obtain this book), I apologized to the sales staff, the patrons, and everyone in a four-block radius. Then I calmly sauntered over to the cash register to claim my prize.
Gotcha!
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Saturday, May 05, 2007
I'm overwhelmed with goodness!
As a true diva and a quintessential Leo also born in the year of the dragon (the ultimate acquisitive creature), you have to know I LOVE presents, particularly of the hedonistic variety. So my eyes have been popping around here at the goodies I've been getting from my SP10 Secret Pal.
Life and circumstances have conspired to delay the photo opportunity that would show off (albeit inadequately) my loot and her generosity. So this post is rather late in the making, and all I can offer is a humble mea culpa (though rest assured I have been profuse in my thanks via email).
Without further ado, I give you here the full pictorial essay of the bounty I have received from the sly "Unicorn94" -aka- my SP:
Package number one began with this cushy chenille. It will make a lovely scarf or headwarmer and mitts set for next winter.
I confess that at first the yarn snob in me was uncertain about it, but if I'm truly honest I have to admit to a residual childlike glee for all the novelty yarns that exploded on the knit scene in recent years and seem to have vanished just as quickly. The diva/dragon/magpie in me still loves all this flashy and fun stuff.
This pretty pink stationary with a naughty black lace ribbon has a serious Victorian aesthetic, in my opinion.
In this era of email and mobile phone I rarely get to write a personal note, but with this on my desk I am going to have to find more frequent excuses to practise a more genteel and ladylike form of communication.
Yummy coconut body-butter from the Body Shop! I'm a sucker for tropical scents and this delicious stuff smells almost good enough to eat.
But no need to consume the cosmetics. My pal has that covered too:
Okay. Can we just say here that if Lady Godiva had access to this chocolate decadence being sold in her name she would probably never have gone riding starkers with only her hair to protect her modesty. And in case you are so deluded as to think that box has anything in it, the contents are long LONG gone (though I shared them with DH because watching him enjoy edible treats is almost as good as sex).
I just had to share my good fortune and show off all these goodies so I called the DH over to show him too... then I saw the chocolate Matzos!
I laughed so hard I nearly plotzed. See this package arrived just in time for Passover and let's just say that if you have to eat matzo for a week, it better be covered in chocolate.
More recently I opened a package from Cafe Press containing this and my morning coffee came snorting out my nose! (sorry for the image - I have no sense of propriety)
It's a terrific mammoth coffee mug with the perfect logo! Of course, you realize now I'm going to have to shop for a whole set of knit-themed coffee-ware!
Shortly thereafter, package number two arrived on my doorstep containing yet more indulgence:
I've been very curious about this Austermann Step yarn infused with skin soothing aloe. I wonder if it will really make my hands feel good while knitting or help keep my feet soft... It's so pretty anyway that I can't wait to knit it all up!
My afore-posted craving for the patterns of Anna Zilboorg was not missed. My pal sent me this fabulous book of hat designs! Love, Love LOVE this!!! After pouring over this cornucopia of colourful patterns, I think I may use it even more than the coveted sock books.
My inner sex kitten purred when she saw this chic little box containing a vial of perfume and a pretty crystal pendant on a black ribbon.
I am going to wait until I unmask my pal to put photos of the two of us together in this lovely hinged multi-picture frame.
Because she also sent me the most beautiful hand-knit shawl in a deep blood red colour. I wish I had a good picture of it for you here, but none of the pictures of the shawl came out and I want to show it in all its glory. I will have to take it outside and spread it out in the sunlight to try and capture its beauty.(Dear SP - in the interim, if you have any good pictures of the shawl, please send them to me so I can properly flaunt it for all to see).
And after all of that, this beautiful card and the message inside actually made me weep.
Her warmth and sensitivity shine through all her communication and the thoughtfulness and care that has gone into these gifts only serve to reinforce that she is a lovely person and I will treasure getting to know her. I know this is the start of a lifelong friendship!
Thank you!
As a true diva and a quintessential Leo also born in the year of the dragon (the ultimate acquisitive creature), you have to know I LOVE presents, particularly of the hedonistic variety. So my eyes have been popping around here at the goodies I've been getting from my SP10 Secret Pal.
Life and circumstances have conspired to delay the photo opportunity that would show off (albeit inadequately) my loot and her generosity. So this post is rather late in the making, and all I can offer is a humble mea culpa (though rest assured I have been profuse in my thanks via email).
Without further ado, I give you here the full pictorial essay of the bounty I have received from the sly "Unicorn94" -aka- my SP:
Package number one began with this cushy chenille. It will make a lovely scarf or headwarmer and mitts set for next winter.
I confess that at first the yarn snob in me was uncertain about it, but if I'm truly honest I have to admit to a residual childlike glee for all the novelty yarns that exploded on the knit scene in recent years and seem to have vanished just as quickly. The diva/dragon/magpie in me still loves all this flashy and fun stuff.This pretty pink stationary with a naughty black lace ribbon has a serious Victorian aesthetic, in my opinion.
In this era of email and mobile phone I rarely get to write a personal note, but with this on my desk I am going to have to find more frequent excuses to practise a more genteel and ladylike form of communication.Yummy coconut body-butter from the Body Shop! I'm a sucker for tropical scents and this delicious stuff smells almost good enough to eat.
But no need to consume the cosmetics. My pal has that covered too:
Okay. Can we just say here that if Lady Godiva had access to this chocolate decadence being sold in her name she would probably never have gone riding starkers with only her hair to protect her modesty. And in case you are so deluded as to think that box has anything in it, the contents are long LONG gone (though I shared them with DH because watching him enjoy edible treats is almost as good as sex).I just had to share my good fortune and show off all these goodies so I called the DH over to show him too... then I saw the chocolate Matzos!
I laughed so hard I nearly plotzed. See this package arrived just in time for Passover and let's just say that if you have to eat matzo for a week, it better be covered in chocolate.More recently I opened a package from Cafe Press containing this and my morning coffee came snorting out my nose! (sorry for the image - I have no sense of propriety)
It's a terrific mammoth coffee mug with the perfect logo! Of course, you realize now I'm going to have to shop for a whole set of knit-themed coffee-ware! Shortly thereafter, package number two arrived on my doorstep containing yet more indulgence:
I've been very curious about this Austermann Step yarn infused with skin soothing aloe. I wonder if it will really make my hands feel good while knitting or help keep my feet soft... It's so pretty anyway that I can't wait to knit it all up!
My afore-posted craving for the patterns of Anna Zilboorg was not missed. My pal sent me this fabulous book of hat designs! Love, Love LOVE this!!! After pouring over this cornucopia of colourful patterns, I think I may use it even more than the coveted sock books.
My inner sex kitten purred when she saw this chic little box containing a vial of perfume and a pretty crystal pendant on a black ribbon.
I am going to wait until I unmask my pal to put photos of the two of us together in this lovely hinged multi-picture frame.
Because she also sent me the most beautiful hand-knit shawl in a deep blood red colour. I wish I had a good picture of it for you here, but none of the pictures of the shawl came out and I want to show it in all its glory. I will have to take it outside and spread it out in the sunlight to try and capture its beauty.
And after all of that, this beautiful card and the message inside actually made me weep.
Her warmth and sensitivity shine through all her communication and the thoughtfulness and care that has gone into these gifts only serve to reinforce that she is a lovely person and I will treasure getting to know her. I know this is the start of a lifelong friendship!
Thank you!
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Runagogo! April 2007 in review:
25.5 miles walked. 0 miles biked.
Whew! Has it actually been a whole month since we talked about this?
I have good news and bad news. First the good news: I am finally over the first 100 miles hump!!!
The bad news is that my mileage was lower in April (25.5 miles) than it was in March (30.5 miles). I just didn't get out as often, but I did pull off one great longer walk (6.3 miles) at the beginning of the month and that was encouraging, since in September I'll need to be able to do some 37.5 miles in 2 days.
I have to admit I really fell off the training wagon in April. I found it very hard to make myself go out and move. Except for a couple of days it was so soggy and cold and dark around here that I just became rather hibernatory and cocooned in the house as much as possible.
Add to that the huge emotional fallout when my rage-a-holic b.p.d. mother, who had been behaving much too reasonably and rationally (I knew it was too good to be true), just couldn't contain herself any longer and dumped a s---load of her baggage on me, at the same time an artistic director was having her panicked nervous fits in my direction, and then a couple of days later I had a huge blowout with my husband (who stepped on the very last nerve I had left and unfortunately I over-reacted).
Also, I was (and am still) digging through three years of receipts. I got behind in the winter of 2004-05 and then for the last few years I just shoved all our bills and receipts in a box, so now I have to sort it all out. It looks like a giant confetti maker threw up in my kitchen and living room. I still need to finish this and get my act together again with the recordkeeping on a day-to-day basis so that next time it’s not such a huge effort.
So all in all, last month was a tough one for me. I was shell-shocked and recovering my balance in the aftermath of three separate episodes of huge emotional upheaval while busy with some intense rehearsals. It's no wonder my immune system was letting me know it was not happy and it's a good thing I listened to my body, but I spent more than one of the precious few gorgeous days in bed fighting off a nasty little bug. I’m better now thanks to lots of sleep, ginger tea, vitamin C, and that Cold/FX stuff.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Another quickie post for SP10 Robyn's group - contest#4.
This stuff is Casablanca Grand Cable from Stahlsche Wolle, 68% cotton 32% acrylic worsted weight. It is at least 20 years old - the ball band says "made in West Germany". I bought tons of these at Simpsons (a store now long nonexistent) for 79 cents a skein (regularly $1.59). At the same time I picked up great quantities of this stuff in black, ecru, navy blue (what's left after the tragic garbage shute incident) and a burnt orange, but not nearly as much as I got of this saturated fuschia colour.
I probably have about 40 skeins of this fuschia stuff, some of them intact as these 4 are, much of it previously knitted (in the late 80's) and worn and washed and then dissassembled into balls and cakes which I pull out every year about this time and dabble with for a couple of months, promising to (finally) make something with it. As a matter of fact here's my current attempt, sneaking into the picture above.
There's also lots of Anny Blatt wool - worsted weight ("No. 4") in Royal Blue, Tomato Red, Deep Purple and Teal Green, as well as some in a slightly chunkier weight ("No. 6") in a Ballerina Pink - all from that same shopping trip, my first ever stash-building expedition. If I can dig that stuff out, I'll show it to you later.
What can I say - it was the 80's and my tastes ran to hot colours worn with black. And you know what - I still like them!
Q: What is the oldest yarn in your stash? Show us a picture, tell us when you bought it and why you bought it. Was there an intended project or did it just call your name and you wanted to own it just to pet?...
This stuff is Casablanca Grand Cable from Stahlsche Wolle, 68% cotton 32% acrylic worsted weight. It is at least 20 years old - the ball band says "made in West Germany". I bought tons of these at Simpsons (a store now long nonexistent) for 79 cents a skein (regularly $1.59). At the same time I picked up great quantities of this stuff in black, ecru, navy blue (what's left after the tragic garbage shute incident) and a burnt orange, but not nearly as much as I got of this saturated fuschia colour.
I probably have about 40 skeins of this fuschia stuff, some of them intact as these 4 are, much of it previously knitted (in the late 80's) and worn and washed and then dissassembled into balls and cakes which I pull out every year about this time and dabble with for a couple of months, promising to (finally) make something with it. As a matter of fact here's my current attempt, sneaking into the picture above.
There's also lots of Anny Blatt wool - worsted weight ("No. 4") in Royal Blue, Tomato Red, Deep Purple and Teal Green, as well as some in a slightly chunkier weight ("No. 6") in a Ballerina Pink - all from that same shopping trip, my first ever stash-building expedition. If I can dig that stuff out, I'll show it to you later.
What can I say - it was the 80's and my tastes ran to hot colours worn with black. And you know what - I still like them!
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Yvette left me a comment on my previous post:
Another good reference resource for anyone getting started with two colour stranded knitting is Fair Isle Knitting. There you will find lots of wonderful links to numerous sites offering everything from instructional videos, books and kits to really fabulous free on-line tutorials, and to phenomenal works of eye-candy in this style of craft-art.
Stranded knitting? I'm not familiar with that termStranded knitting is the general term for the method used in traditional Norwegian and Fair Isle styles (and other intricate colourwork patterns)where two colours (or more) are used in a single row of knittting. Techknitter just started a series of tutorials on this subject with a terrific introduction. This type of work is called stranded because the non-working strand is carried along as you knit with the other and neatly woven into the wrong side of the fabric as it is being constructed.
Another good reference resource for anyone getting started with two colour stranded knitting is Fair Isle Knitting. There you will find lots of wonderful links to numerous sites offering everything from instructional videos, books and kits to really fabulous free on-line tutorials, and to phenomenal works of eye-candy in this style of craft-art.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Fancy Feet and Lacy Longings
As I am utterly and completely addicted to socks and captivated by my new fascination with stranded knitting, I am eager (ahem… understatement) to get my hands on Anna Zilboorg’s sock patterns. Unfortunately, my library has none of her sock books.
Socks for Sandals and Clogs is not hard to find, but what I really want is a copy of either Fancy Feet: Traditional Knitting Patterns of Turkey or Simply Socks: 45 traditional Turkish patterns to knit. The second is really just a reprint of the first, so either will do. In a perfect world, I hope to find someone who inadvertently got both of these books and then realized they are just different editions of the same. Otherwise, I may have to camp on AZ’s doorstep and beg for a reprint.
Meanwhile I am trying to distract myself with other projects – tricky as only accessories are on my to-do list for the present. I’m temporarily avoiding knitting actual garments of a fitted nature for a few months while I train for the 2-day 60-km Weekend to End Breast Cancer. As I’m on an exercise and health kick, it seems foolish to put all the work into making a sweater that will be too big (I hope) in a couple of months.
Hmmm… perhaps some kind of dangerously delectable lace will keep my mind off it for a while. I’m reasonably adept at lace patterning in garments, but I have yet to venture into the labyrinthine intricacy of a true lace-weight knitted shawl. Am I brave (foolish?) enough to attempt some Hyrna Herborgorgeousness, or should I stick with something simpler first?
Well, I finally broke down and ordered the Three-cornered and Long Shawls from Schoolhouse Press. This is a reprint of the near-legendary Icelandic shawl book by Sigridur Halldórsdóttir with instructions and charts for 27 lovely lace shawls and scarves knitted with Icelandic Laceweight or Unspun Icelandic wools and comes with a handy English translation for all the patterns by Marilyn van Keppel. I just wish there was also a translation of the probably fascinating history and shawl-lace knitting lore in the front section of the book.
Mesmerized by all the knitting books offered at Schoolhouse, I simply couldn’t resist getting Poems of Color — Wendy Keele’s beautiful book on the Bohus tradition. And then Cheryl Oberle’s Folk Vests just hopped into my online cart of its own accord. I was also drooling over Donna Druchunas’ Arctic Lace, but I might be able to resist that a while more (or did I order that one too? oh, dear – now it’s all a blur).
As I am utterly and completely addicted to socks and captivated by my new fascination with stranded knitting, I am eager (ahem… understatement) to get my hands on Anna Zilboorg’s sock patterns. Unfortunately, my library has none of her sock books. Socks for Sandals and Clogs is not hard to find, but what I really want is a copy of either Fancy Feet: Traditional Knitting Patterns of Turkey or Simply Socks: 45 traditional Turkish patterns to knit. The second is really just a reprint of the first, so either will do. In a perfect world, I hope to find someone who inadvertently got both of these books and then realized they are just different editions of the same. Otherwise, I may have to camp on AZ’s doorstep and beg for a reprint.
Meanwhile I am trying to distract myself with other projects – tricky as only accessories are on my to-do list for the present. I’m temporarily avoiding knitting actual garments of a fitted nature for a few months while I train for the 2-day 60-km Weekend to End Breast Cancer. As I’m on an exercise and health kick, it seems foolish to put all the work into making a sweater that will be too big (I hope) in a couple of months.
Hmmm… perhaps some kind of dangerously delectable lace will keep my mind off it for a while. I’m reasonably adept at lace patterning in garments, but I have yet to venture into the labyrinthine intricacy of a true lace-weight knitted shawl. Am I brave (foolish?) enough to attempt some Hyrna Herborgorgeousness, or should I stick with something simpler first?
Well, I finally broke down and ordered the Three-cornered and Long Shawls from Schoolhouse Press. This is a reprint of the near-legendary Icelandic shawl book by Sigridur Halldórsdóttir with instructions and charts for 27 lovely lace shawls and scarves knitted with Icelandic Laceweight or Unspun Icelandic wools and comes with a handy English translation for all the patterns by Marilyn van Keppel. I just wish there was also a translation of the probably fascinating history and shawl-lace knitting lore in the front section of the book.
Mesmerized by all the knitting books offered at Schoolhouse, I simply couldn’t resist getting Poems of Color — Wendy Keele’s beautiful book on the Bohus tradition. And then Cheryl Oberle’s Folk Vests just hopped into my online cart of its own accord. I was also drooling over Donna Druchunas’ Arctic Lace, but I might be able to resist that a while more (or did I order that one too? oh, dear – now it’s all a blur).
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Someone posted a comment on my blog entry from last November where I announced my decision to walk 60km in two days next September in support of the Princess Margaret Hospital and the campaign to End Breast Cancer. The commenter's remarks regarding some pervasive myths about Breast Cancer contain valuable information, so I decided to post them for all to see (because though I am flattered, let's face it: he/she is probably the only one reading as far back as November 2006 in my blog, and even if someone did go digging in my archives, I can't see them going into the comments too!)
Meanwhile, I recently received this from the organizers of The Weekend:
And remember, you can always sponsor me here or just click on the button at the right near the top of my sidebar the right.
It's really not too early to sponsor me, and the sooner you make your donation, the sooner the funds become available to the Princess Margaret Hospital foundation for use in crucial research and valuable support endeavours.
Any and all donations are welcome and appreciated. However, if it is within your means, please consider making a donation of $100 or $200 or more. As you know, people are more likely to make a larger contribution if they see that other folks have done so already, so your generosity will be contagious! And you'll get a nifty tax receipt to use next year around this time (something I'm sure we are all painfully aware of right about now!).
Anonymous said... Breast Cancer symptoms:
Common Breast Cancer Myths
The first myth pertaining to this disease is that it only affects women.
Second myth that is associated with this disease is that if one has found a lump during an examination, it is cancer.
Third is that it is solely hereditary
The next myth associated with breast cancer is downright ridiculous. Would you believe, that in this day and age, some individuals still think that breast cancer is contagious?
Conversely, some individuals foolishly believe that breast size determines whether or not one gets cancer.
Finally, another myth that is associated with this disease is that it only affects older people. This is not so. Although the chance of getting breast cancer increases with age, women as young as 18 have been diagnosed with the disease.
You can find a number of helpful informative articles on Breast Cancer symptoms at breast-cancer1.com
Meanwhile, I recently received this from the organizers of The Weekend:
Only 200 spots left!
Your friends and family have probably heard you talking about The Weekend to End Breast Cancer® benefiting Princess Margaret Hospital for some time and they’ve been waiting to decide whether to join you in this amazing adventure.
If you have friends that are interested in registering for The Weekend, forward them this email and let them know that the time to sign up is NOW because there are only 200 spots left!. Very soon, it will be too late for them to join us at this unforgettable weekend. Thanks to the incredible response we’ve received from caring women and men like you, registration for the 2007 Weekend is closing imminently.
Encourage your friends to join us today! They can select here to register, or call us at (416)815-WALK(9255).
Sincerely,
The Weekend to End Breast Cancer
Benefiting Princess Margaret Hospital
And remember, you can always sponsor me here or just click on the button at the right near the top of my sidebar the right.
It's really not too early to sponsor me, and the sooner you make your donation, the sooner the funds become available to the Princess Margaret Hospital foundation for use in crucial research and valuable support endeavours.
Any and all donations are welcome and appreciated. However, if it is within your means, please consider making a donation of $100 or $200 or more. As you know, people are more likely to make a larger contribution if they see that other folks have done so already, so your generosity will be contagious! And you'll get a nifty tax receipt to use next year around this time (something I'm sure we are all painfully aware of right about now!).
Friday, April 20, 2007
Fair-isle follies
I have been practicing my “other-handed” (ie: English style) knitting with the aim of applying it to some two-handed fair-isle, and I have discovered some interesting discrepancies in my gauge: Both ways are even in and of themselves, but I seem to knit obviously more loosely in my usual continental style than I do in the English way. This means it can affect the pattern prominence in a two-colour pattern. Apparently, in two-colour knitting it makes a difference which colour is carried below (if both are on the same hand) or in the right hand (if using the two-handed method). Either way, that strand will be (if only infinitesimally) farther from the work and a slightly greater amount of that yarn is used in making the stitches, and thus that colour appears to be the dominant one, and in general it’s advisable for that to be the pattern colour…
Meanwhile I’m drooling over library copies of Anna Zilboorg’s 45 Fine & Fanciful Hats and Magnificent Mittens and reading her “Knitting for Anarchists” (love it! love it! love it!). AZ encourages knitters to understand what we are doing instead of just blindly or blithely following instructions for techniques or patterns. She takes her readers step by step from the very first elementary principles about how stitches are formed through some of the most sophisticated techniques. As someone who needs to know why something works the way it does, I find this approach fabulous. Show me the underlying principles, be it a mathematical theorem, a logical proof, a musical form, or a knitting pattern, and I'm off to the races.
This is actually one of my personal peeves: there's something missing from the way we teach math and similar subjects. I was lucky. I could usually see the reason behind the formulas and knowing why they worked made applying them much easier, even (or especially) when deriving theorems from first principles. I was a math tutor in high school. I actually skipped grade 11 math. Well sort of. Instead of taking the class, I was teaching the material, tutoring a girl in grade 12 who had failed it the previous year. We just showed up for tests. And she not only passed, she got an A. Because we took the time to see what's behind the math and explain WHY the methods worked or WHY the theorems made sense.
Later, in university I was very tempted for a while to stay in academic circles specifically in order to teach in early undergrad classes in math and logic in this way. But music is a tempting mistress. When I found myself dropping a later undergrad physics course almost two thirds of the way through because it was interfering with rehearsals for a musical production, I had to acknowlege that without safe and effective human cloning techniques I just had to make a choice and the choice was performing. That was a tough one and to this day I remain an armchair scientist with my nose pressed up against the glass of the halls of academe. But there's no escaping or avoiding the performing addiction. It knows where I live. I can run but I can't hide. Believe me. I tried. And I am finally happily building the eclectic career and life I want.
I have been practicing my “other-handed” (ie: English style) knitting with the aim of applying it to some two-handed fair-isle, and I have discovered some interesting discrepancies in my gauge: Both ways are even in and of themselves, but I seem to knit obviously more loosely in my usual continental style than I do in the English way. This means it can affect the pattern prominence in a two-colour pattern. Apparently, in two-colour knitting it makes a difference which colour is carried below (if both are on the same hand) or in the right hand (if using the two-handed method). Either way, that strand will be (if only infinitesimally) farther from the work and a slightly greater amount of that yarn is used in making the stitches, and thus that colour appears to be the dominant one, and in general it’s advisable for that to be the pattern colour…
Meanwhile I’m drooling over library copies of Anna Zilboorg’s 45 Fine & Fanciful Hats and Magnificent Mittens and reading her “Knitting for Anarchists” (love it! love it! love it!). AZ encourages knitters to understand what we are doing instead of just blindly or blithely following instructions for techniques or patterns. She takes her readers step by step from the very first elementary principles about how stitches are formed through some of the most sophisticated techniques. As someone who needs to know why something works the way it does, I find this approach fabulous. Show me the underlying principles, be it a mathematical theorem, a logical proof, a musical form, or a knitting pattern, and I'm off to the races.
This is actually one of my personal peeves: there's something missing from the way we teach math and similar subjects. I was lucky. I could usually see the reason behind the formulas and knowing why they worked made applying them much easier, even (or especially) when deriving theorems from first principles. I was a math tutor in high school. I actually skipped grade 11 math. Well sort of. Instead of taking the class, I was teaching the material, tutoring a girl in grade 12 who had failed it the previous year. We just showed up for tests. And she not only passed, she got an A. Because we took the time to see what's behind the math and explain WHY the methods worked or WHY the theorems made sense.
Later, in university I was very tempted for a while to stay in academic circles specifically in order to teach in early undergrad classes in math and logic in this way. But music is a tempting mistress. When I found myself dropping a later undergrad physics course almost two thirds of the way through because it was interfering with rehearsals for a musical production, I had to acknowlege that without safe and effective human cloning techniques I just had to make a choice and the choice was performing. That was a tough one and to this day I remain an armchair scientist with my nose pressed up against the glass of the halls of academe. But there's no escaping or avoiding the performing addiction. It knows where I live. I can run but I can't hide. Believe me. I tried. And I am finally happily building the eclectic career and life I want.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Quick post for SP10 - contest#3 for Robyn's group.
You really should have seen the look on my face earlier though, right after I finished the toe. I wanted to strut around the streets, chest puffed out like Tom Hanks in Castaway, bellowing: "I HAVE MADEfire A SOCK!" (Fire... meh. Socks will keep your feet warm and wool is even flame retardant so you won't singe your tootsies.)
Number one socks were simple stockinette made according to Wendy's Generic Toe-up Sock Pattern with Koigu KPPPM P115.
I have no pix of the finished socks but they were gifted to my mother and I can tell she loves them because she keeps them tucked in her usual chair in her home office to keep her feet cozy when she's at the computer or taking a nap or watching TV.
As for my most hated WTF was I thinking project - that goes far back in the mists of time to my first sweater knitting attempt (in the late '80s) and I don't have a picture of it, though if I dig through my old knitting mags perhaps I'll find the pattern to show you. The lovely navy blue cotton that I had knit into a sweater fit for Quasimodo became the scapegoat for my frustrated early and naïve gaugeless efforts. I had a full on tantrum during which I wantonly tossed the finished sweater down the apartment garbage shute. My inability to forgive it (or myself) complpetely turned me off knitting for over a dozen years.
But I'm feeling MUCH better now.
Please ignore the twitch.
Post a picture to your blog showing me either your fave pattern ever knitted by you - or your most hated project that once you finished it - you absolutely wondered "Why the heck did I knit this".Here's my absolutely fave knit and the start of a long addiction: my very first sock ever! That's me last summer at Knitomatic just after I was taught by Haley (also the photographer). I'm the one with the squint and the idiotic grin on my face (Meaghan's behind me wearing her nifty quick shrug).
You really should have seen the look on my face earlier though, right after I finished the toe. I wanted to strut around the streets, chest puffed out like Tom Hanks in Castaway, bellowing: "I HAVE MADE
Number one socks were simple stockinette made according to Wendy's Generic Toe-up Sock Pattern with Koigu KPPPM P115.
I have no pix of the finished socks but they were gifted to my mother and I can tell she loves them because she keeps them tucked in her usual chair in her home office to keep her feet cozy when she's at the computer or taking a nap or watching TV.
As for my most hated WTF was I thinking project - that goes far back in the mists of time to my first sweater knitting attempt (in the late '80s) and I don't have a picture of it, though if I dig through my old knitting mags perhaps I'll find the pattern to show you. The lovely navy blue cotton that I had knit into a sweater fit for Quasimodo became the scapegoat for my frustrated early and naïve gaugeless efforts. I had a full on tantrum during which I wantonly tossed the finished sweater down the apartment garbage shute. My inability to forgive it (or myself) complpetely turned me off knitting for over a dozen years.
But I'm feeling MUCH better now.
Please ignore the twitch.
Friday, April 13, 2007
"Gone, gone, gone, she been gone so long,
she been gone gone gone so long..."
Chilliwack - "My Girl"(1981)
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she been gone gone gone so long..."
Chilliwack - "My Girl"(1981)
Please stand by. We are experiencing technical difficulties.
We will resume our regularly scheduled posting shortly.
Monday, April 02, 2007
Runagogo! Round 1 Wrap-up.Week thirteen: [25/3/07-31/3/07]
6.5 miles walke; 7.0 miles biked.
01/4/07 - Week 14, Round 2 begins with: 10k (6.3 miles) in one day!
NO this is not an April Fool's gag. That's my longest one-day walk ever since high school and it beats some of my weekly totals from the winter! I walked and walked and walked.
Yesterday a couple of local creative crafters and I went on our own self-directed training-walk/yarn-crawl. We started by forifying ourselves with brunch at a cute little LYS/cafe, then hauled ourselves and two 8-9 year olds (one boy, one girl, both knitters/crocheters!) on a 5 mile trek through downtown Toronto in search of stringy sustenance for the hands and soul.
Each leg of the journey was between 1-2 miles, then we paused to knit, browse, chat and shop, then we took off for the next purveyor of fibre goodness. I will post later this week about a couple of delicious yarn acquisitions I accidentally made on the way. They just followed me home. Really.
All in all I had a wonderful time. Having no children of my own (that’s if you don’t count the DH), I had a ball living vicariously through other people’s kids. When it was all done, and including the trip to our starting point and the trip home, I had put 5.15 miles under my feet through the day.
Then I came home and despite the blisters and sore feet, I dragged the DH out for another 1.15 mile in the middle of the night. So all told it comes to 6.3 miles which is just over 10 kilometres!
Wow. I am beginning to believe that come September I actually will be able to walk 60 kilometres in two days after all.
I finally had my bike tuned, picked it up last week and so far I’ve already biked 10 miles! I love my bike! I love to ride! It’s so empowering to pedal around the city and get where I need to go under my own steam. Literally. And it burns the best fuel possible - me! But - Owww! I forgot how many hills we have in this town. I live in a freakin’ roller-coaster! Aaaargh…. Well, as I build up the strength and stamina to tackle them, I'll be building the stamina to walk longer distances.
Thanks in large part to RUNAGOGO I have walked 74.80 miles (120 km) since the new year and I am ready to begin training for this event in earnest. That's not quite the hoped for 100 miles by April 1st, but still a very significant total for me, since I started from nearly five years of full-stop sedentary sloth. I should have the rest of my first 100 miles done by the end of next week, and I decided that I will not start counting mileage towards round 2 until after these first 100 are done.
So here I say "Thanks" to Rachael, Scout, Adam and Stephen for organizing this brilliant move-your-a##-along, and "Thanks" to everyone for the daily motivation I get reading your posts and comments. I am looking forward to pushing my personal limits in round 2 - perhaps I will start running. And this time I WILL earn that cool medal!
Friday, March 30, 2007
Making Breast Cancer Historyin only 180,000 Steps!
The Weekend to End Breast Cancer:
Toronto - September 8 & 9, 2007
Walking 60 Kilometres in 2 Days
It may seem a long way off, but for me September is peeking around the corner.
I am a classical/theatre/jazz vocalist & actor, an obsessed fibre artist, unrepentant sock-knitting addict, and a chronically verbose blogger. A zaftig woman of surprisingly good health so far, I have spent 40-something years on this earth, most of them sedentary except for a brief period of physical fitness from 2000-02.
If you know me, you know what a tremendous undertaking this is for me. You may not know that in my family tree of genealogical medical histories you'll find the top ten tunes on the obesity-related hit parade, including assorted cardio-pulmonary diseases and cancer. My paternal grandmother was not a lot older than I am now when she developed breast cancer and underwent radical bi-lateral mastectomies. A dozen years later, she developed ovarian/uterine cancer which ultimately metastasized aggressively and took her life.
I am lucky that despite my tendency to Rubenesque proportions I haven't developed any life-threatening complications. But at 40+ I am at a chronological crossroads. So I am undertaking this journey from what is possibly best described as enlightened self-interest: I have some pretty good reasons both to want to build a healthier lifestyle into habitual behaviour for the rest of my life, and to raise awareness and funding to support people battling breast cancer and the research to end it.
I’ve already started preparing and training to walk 60 kilometres in two days (for those of you who think in imperial measure, that’s about 37.25 miles). Fear is a pretty powerful motivator and I am not ashamed to admit that I am truly scared. I am not worried about the first day - motivation and camaraderie will prevail...
I am REALLY afraid of waking up on the second day and trying to cajole my rebellious body to go back out there and do it again!
But that’s nothing compared to what hundreds of thousands of women face every year. Remember: one in every nine Canadian women will be diagnosed with breast cancer - maybe even someone special in your life. And increasing numbers of men are being diagnosed with this disease as well.
I am walking to show my solidarity and support with these men and women, to help raise awareness and to raise money to support the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation, an international leader in the fight against cancer and the largest institution in Canada devoted to cancer treatment, innovative research, and education programs. These funds raised will be used for ground-breaking research, moving us one step closer to a future without breast cancer.
Each walker must raise at least $2,000 for the cause, but I have set my personal fundraising goal at $5,000. With your help, I can meet and even exceed it. The money we raise makes a real difference in the fight to end breast cancer and to bring breast cancer education, care and research to those that need it most. Thanks to the help of people like you, we are making major headway with research initiatives, gene technologies, the availability of Herceptin, and in finding chemotherapies that are less toxic...not to mention hundreds of other break throughs!
I am posting this in the hope that you will help kick-start my fundraising endeavours for this vital cause by sponsoring me now. As you know, people are more likely to contribute if they see that someone else has done so already. Any and all donations are welcome and appreciated. However, if it is within your means, please consider making a donation of $100 or $200 or more.
Click here to sponsor me or to use the printable form to mail in your cheque donation. (SORRY, we cannot accept cash) so that together we can help to end this heart-breaking disease for good!
Please feel free to contact me via email or comments regarding this event or anything at all. Thank you for all your support on my journey and your contribution to this cause.
Wishing you and your loved ones all good health, happiness and prosperity.
MezzoDiva the Operatic Knitaholic
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