Why I am a bad holiday knitter

Posted on December 9, 2009 by HappyGoth

I am a really horrible holiday knitter. I’ve been reading other people’s blogs in shame, because they’re making such great progress with their knitted things. Claudia just finished a sweater. The Yarn Harlot just finished some socks and a scarf and another project (I forget what, but I think I’m mentally blocking so that I feel less fiber shame). Baobh has done several things as well.

Me? Well, I have some yarn for a hat and some plans for scarves, but I haven’t even bought supplies for those yet. And then there’s this pair of socks I planned on giving to someone last year, which will be gifted this year, because they don’t know the difference, right? And then there’s that other project that was for Christmas two years ago.

I completely suck at this. Now, to be fair, I’ve been working on lots of other projects that are non knitting-related, so I haven’t been idle, but how in the world to you other people manage? Am I just unnaturally busy all the time, or perhaps lazier (I doubt it is that last thing)?

So the next thing to do is buy yarn and make a checklist, so that I can keep myself to task. Go forth, self, and knit! (And maybe you’ll finish those projects by February.)

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[SCA] Another recap

Posted on December 8, 2009 by HappyGoth

Yeah, I know I never got around to Thanksgiving. Well, suffice to say there was sari shopping and we found a chaat place local to my in-laws and then we didn’t do a lot because folks got sick.

Anyhoo.

Magna Faire went swimmingly. We saw all the hipsters in Villa Rica on the way up (who knew Krystal was such a hip place?), then stayed up far too late Friday night and were all sort of weird the next day (by we, I mean Robbing Peter, Lea, and Serefina). I mean, I assume we were all weird. I was a jerk and kept wandering off from the table I was supposed to be watching, only realizing that I did this much later (like, yesterday around 9am).

I entered my book. I entered it in both contests, in fact. And then I sat way off to the side until the judges were done with it (which took an hour and a half), because the urge to eavesdrop was fierce and painful. And then Adella and I judged our Fine Arts category, and then there were some dance and poetry performances (which ended in Lea being Dance Champion and Lorenzo being Poet Laureate) and then Adella and I ate a lot of cookies at the apprentice’s meeting. And all along I really wanted to take a nap, so I attempted it but suddenly a bottom bunk became available, so I moved all my stuff.

Just before court, I got my scores, and they weren’t half bad! The judges caught all the stuff I explained I needed improvement on, and gave me a lot of things I can work on for the future, both from a project standpoint and also from the documentation side of things. I have learned as well that I need to work on making a more flashy thing next time, as to acquire more largesse (nobody told me about the largesse!).

I am really excited for the next go-round. I have been researching books and have located some more extant examples that I think I can make work. I also sourced some leather that’s a good $25 cheaper than the stuff Talas sells (not the same quality, I imagine, but still good and just fine for learning; it’s still goat hide, and therefore acceptable).

So. In summary, for Midwinter, we’ve got (1) a book, round 2 (2) chaupar and (3) there is no three, but three for Kingdom A&S will be block-printing, if I can swing it.

I have a lot to do before February.

[And then last night I got the wild idea to make pulao, into which I put figs in place of golden raisins, and not only was it easy but it was also really delicious, and I have lots left over. Pulao!]

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Okay. So.

Posted on December 7, 2009 by HappyGoth

I am really sleepy today, but then I made pulao and while it didn’t help with the sleepy, it did get me inspired to see what other things I could make. And then I found the Vah Chef. And this video:

This is my new favorite YouTube thing.

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Sneak peek

Posted on December 3, 2009 by HappyGoth

I am entering my very first A&S project at Magna Faire this weekend. I am nervous. To temper this a bit, here is a sneak peek of the project:

It’s so smooth! I only rebound it 4 times.

From the top, looking at the endband. It actually turned out pretty nicely.

And lastly, a somewhat grainy photo of the inside of the cover. It bubbled a teeny bit, but again, I rebound it four times and I’m going to be satisfied with this one.

The CG is looking over my documentation (thanks, CG!) and we’ll see what the folks this weekend think of it.

Whew.

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Thanksgiving recap, part the first

Posted on December 1, 2009 by HappyGoth

So. Thanksgiving weekend.

We have this tradition (of sorts) that involves us seeing parents on alternate holidays – we see mine on Christmas and the husband’s on Thanksgiving, and then we’ll switch for the next year. This year we went to Baltimore for turkey day and although it was a short trip, it was a pleasant one. I am very fond of his family.

We flew, because driving up there from the ATL is only worth it if you stay a week. As it was, we had Wednesday to Sunday, and I planned on catching up with a friend who was in town to see her family on Wednesday, so that day was out for driving. Mostly I hate flying. I used to like it, back when you didn’t have to disrobe to get on a plane, and you were pretty sure your checked luggage would get to you on time, and you could carry on a pretty decent amount of stuff without paying for it, as long as it wasn’t too heavy. Remember that time? When Delta offered peanuts OR cookies OR pretzels? That was a good time.

This time I had to remove my jacket and earrings and bracelets and belt and shoes before going through the little metal detector. This time the bag I have always been able to carry on cost me $20 to check, although I was informed that if I did it online, I could save $5 (big deal). So I gave the lady my $20 and my bag and as a result going through security was a little better (but not at all, because i still had to remove my belt).

But that’s not part of the holiday, so I won’t dwell on it. The bag made it to Baltimore like it should have, and we went on home, after eating dinner at the Honeybee Diner in Glen Burnie, and going to a Walgreen’s in Glen Burnie, which was full of the weirdest people ever (the Walgreen’s, not Glen Burnie in general, though it is pretty weird).

I’m still peeved about the $20, though. I blogged on LJ from the airplane since Delta gave me free wifi to do so, only I completely squandered my chance, and only blogged about blogging. I am just that lame.

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Back at it.

Posted on November 30, 2009 by HappyGoth

I know. I was a bad blogger, but I have a personal policy of not blogging on vacation. I spend most of my time on the computer, so I really  like that I didn’t even check my email every day over the holiday.

I did, however, intend to post this list, and didn’t. So I’m extending Thanksgiving a little.

This weekend was a blur and I’ll recap later. For now, I think it’ll do me good to talk about what I’m thankful for, since it’s that one tradition my family has that I really really like (well, that and my mom’s cheese sauce):

1. My husband. If I had nothing else in the world but still had him, I’d be okay. He’s absolutely the best thing in the entire universe, and I am not exaggerating.

2. My mom. I don’t like to think about what it will be like when she’s not around any more. I am thankful for each and every day I have with her (even if she is 800 miles away).

3. The time I had with Tigger. This is the younger of the two kitties we had growing up. He’s 17 or so, and I heard last night that he might not make it much longer. He’s pretty ancient, for a cat. I’m so grateful that I was able to enjoy him when he was lively and healthy. He was a good cat.

4. My own two kitties. They are young and healthy, and loving and wonderful. Thank goodness for non-neurotic felines.

5. A job. I have one, and that’s awesome. I hope to keep it as long as possible.

6. A good education. As much as it hasn’t really paid for itself, it’s still a good thing to have and something that many people haven’t had access to. So I am happy to have had it, student loans notwithstanding.

7. America. I am really pessimistic about this country right now, but honestly, it’s a great place to be. I am a woman and I can do what I want, when I want. I have a job (or three). I am the primary breadwinner. My husband is okay with that (I think). I can vote, I married who I wanted to marry. I enjoy a high standard of living, as much as I whine about it. I have had an excellent education and good food my whole life. This place is great.

8. Rockin’ friends. I live far away from my actual family, so the family I’ve adopted is awesome. Thanks to the CG & husband, Jennie and boy and Lea & husband for being wonderful local “family” and for Marmadyth and Baobh for being those far away “family” members. (And for all you I didn’t call out by name, I am thankful for you as well; I just didn’t want this post to become any more of a list than it is. You guys are numerous and awesome.)

9. The 35 or so regular readers of this blog. It used to bother me that I didn’t have more, but I have come to be really thankful that there are 35 people out there who find me interesting enough that they keep visiting (I have no idea why, but I’m not going to spend too much time obsessing over that).

So that’s pretty much it. I had a lot to be thankful for this year, and much of it is small stuff that I have been learning to appreciate more.

Tomorrow I’ll tell all about the trip to Baltimore. There are some good stories there.

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Book aaargh

Posted on November 24, 2009 by HappyGoth

Is what I’ve been having lately. I’ve been working on a book for Magna Faire, and have borked it up twice already. We’ll see if the third time is the charm. So in lieu of sharing my grump with you any more, here’s more Muppets:

Yay! This is two of my favorite things, all at once. The only way for it to be better would be for Freddie Mercury to jump forward in time and join in himself.

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I can has nap?

Posted on November 19, 2009 by HappyGoth

I want one.

I don’t have anything worth showing off, other than wearing the green sari to a work party (I felt elegant all day), and since I can’t find photos of that I guess I don’t have it to show off, either.

That is not to say that I haven’t been busy. Work has been kicking my butt lately, so I’m in go-home-and-collapse mode. I fear I’m forgetting what little Hindi I’ve learned, since I haven’t been able to practice for the past few days, and will be unlikely to get much chance until the holidays (when my practice time will be questionable, at best).

But I have a big lump of fabric in my dining room, and that lump attests to a joint creative effort between Lea and myself, which will ultimately yield something like this:

Only in red silk. I think I’m going to try to replicate the stripey pants, though.

We built it from a kind of Mongolian coat, which has similar construction (plus some modification) and a similar shape. We’ve made this garment a lot more fitted and there will be a gathered skirt all the way  around, instead of only at the gores. The sleeves are also going to be a lot more fitted than the model coat. This means that the underarms are poofier than I’d like, but the lady in the miniature appears to have poofy underarms, and I’d really like to have more than 30 degrees of movement in my arms.

So far, I have a bunch of cotton rectangles, and I’m a little closer to getting the fit I want. I will not be done in time for Castle Wars, so I’m doing the Persian thing for that. I should be done by 12th Night, though, and will subsequently have cool-weather garb for most of the winter. I also have to do an underthing, which probably didn’t exist for the original outfit, but which will help with warmth-retention. I will most likely make several of these and do some in cotton for the not-so-cool-but-still-not-warm seasons. My current garb is rather impractical for a Georgia winter, I have come to discover.

Oh! And also, there is this really excellent thing I found, which motivates me a little more to do my chaupar/pachisi board that I’ve been planning:

Indian by Design – Doshi Levien

The absolute best part of this is the chaupar charpoys. They have pockets for the game pieces. With a little ingenuity and some experimentation, I think I can come up with a reasonable facsimile for field-side seating. I would buy one of these, but I don’t have $1500 (I would have one right now if I did, though).

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I do too much.

Posted on November 16, 2009 by HappyGoth

Georgia Fall by Jim Liestman.

(I got all excited seeing this photo, because I haven’t seen color like this in Georgia yet this year and then I noticed it was taken in 2008. I did see one yellow tree, though.)

 

Weekend recap, if you care (which you may not, but I’m telling you anyway):

Friday I had plans to do interesting things. Instead, we stayed home and I watched Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi again (I love that movie, even if it is cheesy; “accha accha accha…”). I didn’t get any sewing done.

Saturday we met Jennie, her beau, Gina and Gina’s husband at Kennesaw mountain and took advantage of the remainder of the fall foliage. This year has been so wet and warm that the trees aren’t as lovely as I remember. Georgia seems to be doing a rolling fall, so some trees are bare and others are green, with a few brilliant yellow gems in between. Afterward we had barbecue, completely cancelling out any sort of health benefit that came from hiking. I ate some pork rinds and felt decadent. The husband had a ringing thing that evening so I got a ride from Jennie, and got locked out of my house, so I hung out with Jennie’s beau for a while on the back porch, which was awesome. He’s a really cool guy (from Miami, parents from the Dominican Republic, well-read, and a huge geek). So then later we met up with them to go see Boondock Saints 2, which was funny but not quite as good as the first film. Oh, well. I did no sewing.

Sunday I read the entirety of a Sookie Stackhouse book. Then, we stopped by Raneez and I picked up my choli, which was lovely, and I was happy to remember that North Indian wedding bangles (haathi daant) are called “chura,” which earned me a high-five from Ranee. We left there to grab some takeout and watch a truly atrocious movie with the CG, in which a ridiculously wealthy Rajasthani family does nothing but be happy for three solid hours. We have decided that it is the polar opposite of Kabhie Khushi Kahbie Gham. I need to watch K3G now, so that I can balance the universe. Once again, I did no sewing.

Additionally, I discovered that all the shoes in the wardrobe are moldy. How in the world did that happen? I feel there is an angry call to my landlord in the future, to let him know that the moisture is indeed a problem, and the stain in the hall is not from the Killz. (I feel a little like Alexander and his terrible, horrible, no good very bad day)

Tonight is making mac and cheese for the Thanksgiving party at work, to which I will probably wear the green sari. The giver of the sari has expressed interest in meeting me and forming a friendship, so perhaps I will have an Indian friend, after all (I have one pen-pal type friend on LiveMocha, so I feel this is progress)! We shall see if the Thanksgiving schedule permits this.

I will most likely do no sewing today, either. But I have progressed to numbers and plurals in my language learning, and I am feeling more confident with my speaking skills, so I’m not too broken up about it. There’s always tomorrow, right?

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So that I don’t forget later

Posted on November 12, 2009 by HappyGoth

Bollywood posters made into tote bags!

They’re pretty cheap, too.

And as I’m in the midst of working out a difficult Mughal-era garment reconstruction, I have nothing else to share today.

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