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Take a look at this -



That is Myrtle on scrap yarn. I had to take it off the needles because it can't go any further without the sleeves. I've started the first sleeve and am about 2 1/2 inches into it. As soon as I had the body off the needles I wrapped it around my torso. It doesn't seem wide enough. When I look at the swatches and remind myself about the button band it seems fine. I am really pushing my faith right now though. I washed and blocked my swatches, so I should trust the process (and the math!) but I'm really missing Francis right now. I really liked trying things on along the way. I didn't mind waiting during Aleita because blocking wasn't going to make nearly as much difference. I just need to be more confident with my lace. I'm working on it.

lost at a distance

From Drop Box

I have been thinking a lot about the influence proximity has on friendship. I have friends in Florida and Arkansas. I have family in Chicago and Seattle. My heart is spread out all over the country and is fuller for it. I've never worried about distances between me and the people I care about. With unlimited minutes and texting, twitter, facebook, and emails, I've never felt disconnected. I worried more about my relationships being asynchronous than long-distance. I have finally hit a chasm that technology can  not carry me over even though it was the internet that led me here.

My friend died. She had been battling cystic fibrosis and her fight ended yesterday after a hard weekend. She was my guild leader, and even though I stopped playing WoW almost 2 years ago, I never stopped 'hanging out' with her. We sent each other text messages and emails and persistently ignored the gap between NYC and LA.

Now she is gone, and I feel that there is no one on the other side of my devices. My phone and my laptop use to act as a portal between us, but now they are a barrier to all of the emotions I am having and the actions I want to take. I can't hug her husband and tell him how sorry I am. I can't meet her family and explain how much she meant to me. I've heard about the ceremonies and memorials that people have had online for internet friends who have been lost. I've never doubted their value, but now I am questioning their success. I don't feel like it would be enough. I have been able to share my excitement and laughter with her without any trouble online, but now I want to be supportive, and I want to be consoled, and this medium that was a conduit for my happy emotions is hollow and cold now. I cannot create the comfort that I want by typing, and that frustrates me. I want to say, "I'm here for you," and "Please, let me help" but my location makes my words hollow and my involvement impossible at best and inconveniencing at worst.

Since I can't do anything that my heart wants to do right now, I am trying to find a new way, a virtual way, to say good bye and mourn. Hubby has set up a donation page to give money to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in memory of Piper: We'll Miss You Piper. What he said is beautiful, and it has made me cry most of the day. I haven't begun to be able to articulate any of those things. Hopefully when I do, I will be as elegant as he was.

What George Likes About Spring

CBeebies Spring "George" from Matthias Hoegg on Vimeo.

Via LikeCool

I had a sad day today. I lost a friend so I don't feel much like writing. Hopefully this will bring a bit of cheer for you am me both.

"You've got that 'Dum De Dum Dum'"

Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate. I hope your bunny was better at sharing that this one.



Though he couldn't have been better at hiding.

FO: Seattle Shawl

I finally decided that I was not having enough fun knitting my Seattle so I bound off. Technically I think this means I have a FO, but I don't feel very satisfied with it. I blocked it this week and it finished drying yesterday. It was cloudy and raining today, but I took it out for pictures anyway. Really, it seemed appropriate.

The finished shawl is about 40 inches across the long edge and less than 20 inches down to the tip. It is not really as large as I would want it to be. I'm not surprised though because I didn't even finish my ball of Noro. The saddest part of this story is that despite the dreary weather and the chill in the air, I didn't wear my new scarf(lette) when i went out to take photos. I gave this a nice long bath, but it didn't really soften up at all.  I don't like wearing it on my neck. I don't know what I'll do with it for now.  Maybe I'll dig out a teddy bear that needs some accessorizing.

Follow Friday: Epbot

From Epbot

From About Page:
Hiya. I'm Jen. You might know me from my other blog, Cake Wrecks.

In the past I've been a Jungle Cruise skipper, a cash office accountant, a children's book inventory expediter, a house painter, and a clown - not necessarily in that order. Today I'm a blogger, which is kind of like "clown" and "expediter" mashed together. And from the beginning, I've always been a geek.

Epbot is where I share the things I like, the things that make me laugh, and the things that I'm working on. If it's sci-fi, steampunk, clever, crafty, or cute, I probably love it.

I also quote The Princess Bride and Ghostbusters a lot. Sorry.

Hope you like it.

- Jen

I talked about my love for Jen and her Cake Wrecks team. Epbot is where Jen unwinds and shares all of her non-cakey interests. Cake Wrecks led me to believe that Jen is an entertaining humorist. Epbot has be convinced that she is my long lost BFF. She matches my Disney fandom and general geekery. I my (completely not creepy at all) fantasy world we'd be be neighbors. I'd teach her to knit, and she's lend me steampunk books and we would have regular squee fests playing games and watching movies. Sadly my (completely not creepy at all) fantasy world doesn't exist, I just lurk on her blog and pretend that everything she writes is something she is sharing specially for me (which admittedly does seem a little creepy...) Go check out her blog. You will quickly be able to tell if her interests match up with yours and if they do, you'll likely wish she was your best friend too.

Twitter Bonus: @cakewrecks

Bert and Ernie's Great Adventures

Did you know that Bert and Ernie are living it up in claymation? I had heard, but I haven't gotten to see any of their new adventures. Here is a short peek at their new shenanigans and how it all happens.


Via Muppet Musings

Queued: Honeycomb Vest

From Knitty

Sarah Castor's vest pattern is available on Knitty. I am drawn to this vest for the same reason that Sarah originally created the pattern. I like the idea of knitting things that I can wear in the office. Since knitting my second Aleita, however, I've been putting off knitting another vest. Despite this dropping down on my needed garment priority list, it still stays pretty high in my queue. I look at it every time I am thinking about buying yarn. 5 to 6 skeins of yarn is pretty tempting compared to the 8 to 12 projects in my queue. I think I want a nice brick red color. I also think I want to make it in some nice cozy wool. Aleita is knit in cotton, so this would be a completely different garment if I knit it in wool. Maybe this fall, when my Myrtle is done, I'll make this a WIP.

The ABCs of Me

Here is a list of random information about me that came right from Allyson. Enjoy and let me know if you do your own ABCs.

A. Age: 24 again for the 9th time (27 for you traditionalists)

B. Bed size: King which makes finding a Brooklyn apartment ridiculously difficult

C. Chore you hate: Cleaning the underside of the toilet

D. Dogs: Of course. Hubby just doesn't know we're getting one yet.

E. Essential start to your day: Shower- I'm not really awake until that happens.

F. Favorite color: Green usually a dark hunter green.

G. Gold or silver: Sliver without a doubt.

H. Height: 5’6

I. Instruments you play: At one time I could play Hot Cross Buns on the flute and I could play Amazing Grace on the Recorder. Now I'm more into air guitar.

J. Job title: Grant Specialist

K. Kids: I'm still borrowing others'

L. Live: Brooklyn

M. Mood: Currently Purring :)

N. Nicknames: The closest I've was was in high school when I was Dougherty, but that wasn't much of a nickname. Maybe I should go get one of those.

O. Overnight hospital stays: I've heard I was a sick baby, but I've been good since I've been toddling.

P. Pet peeve: Bad PR

Q. Quote from a movie: Anybody want a peanut?

R. Right or left handed: Right.

S. Siblings: My little bro Cody who has buffed up a bit bigger than me in the army.

T. Time you wake up: Quarter to 5:00 when I run and quarter to 6:00 when I don't. (I have to write it as quarter to because I'm still coping with the idea of waking up at a time that begins with a 4)

U. Underwear: daily

V. Vegetables you dislike: Beets - I've never been able to eat them.

W. What makes you run late: Hubby

X. X-Rays you’ve had: Teeth for my braces

Y. Yummy food you make: Soups

Z. Zoo – favorite animal: Giraffes! and Red Pandas too

Secret Knitting

I am so close to being finished with the secret knitting. I am hoping to be able to tell you all about it next month. I'm so excited!

Pingu and the Knitting Machine

I am having more fun than any reasonable adult should playing games with friends tonight. Through the magic of technology, I am able to post this anyway. I'm certain my night is full of zombies, munchkins, dice and drinks, but I have something special for you too.



via Knitting Confidential: Cute overload

Ok, so maybe that wasn't as exciting as a zombie apocalypse. You'll just have to come over and play games with me next time ;). (It was pretty cute though.)

Follow Friday: The Art of Elsa Chang

From Elsa Chang

From Profile:
Recently graduated from Art Center College of Design in Illustration. Currently working for Disney Publishing.

I seem to be on a streak with the art blogs. I just really like to look at pretty pictures. Elsa Chang's work is no exception. I was drawn in by her Wicked Series, but I am smitten with this giraffe. (A giraffe by a Disney artist, that was probably predictable.) What about you? Do you have any favorite artists?

Superman Classic

I really like the behind the scenes peek at this short superman story.



via GeekDad

Queued: Monterey Sea Otter

From Cara Key

I have another toy pattern in my queue. This one is unique because I am determined to make not one but two Monterey Sea Otters for me. Generally, I make toys to give away. I currently don't have much need for toys, but I won't be sharing these.

The last Cara Key pattern that I made was fantastic. I made Alfonso the Monkey and I cannot gush enough. The pattern was fantastic and the outcome was adorable. I really had a hard time parting with it. The sad part of this story though is that to date (and I check back every month or so) Cara and I are the only ones who have posted pictures of this cute cute CUTE monkey. I want other people to make this pattern. I want to see more Alfonso and all of the adorable versions that are just waiting to be made. Make this toy! Don't wait! You will love him as I did.

But back to the otters. I am making two of these. Why two? Because I am going to knit myself up this sweetness.

Sariah Joins the Dark Side

With the internet's incredible speed, you have probably already seen this video, but I've watched it at least 4 times already this morning. It has made my day so I am going to share it anyway. Besides, you know you want to see it again. If you haven't seen it, enjoy.



It takes a very brave girl to join the dark side in the middle of a Jedi academy. I'm sure Vader is happy since we all know Darth Maul isn't going to last very long.

And Now Something Completely Different - 2KCBWDAY5

From Drop Box

This is an experimental blogging day to try and push your creativity in blogging to the same level that you perhaps push your creativity in the items you create.

You may have noticed that I skipped Day 5. It wasn't a neglectful skip, in fact, I've been working pretty hard for Day 5. The art in the header and footer of my blog is by Kurt Halsey. I love it, but it is not mine. I didn't make it or buy it, so I've always felt a little bad having there. Ever since I started blogging regularly, I've been thinking of changing that art to something that I have a little more claim to. I decided to do some doodling and try to make something of my own.

From Drop Box

From Drop Box

From Drop Box

I didn't get very far into the doodles before I realized that I don't really have a very good way of making my drawings digital or working with them once they get there. I found some software for my new laptop and I tried working on the one idea that seemed the easiest for my photoshop skills.

From Drop Box

I wanted to include a kitty in some way, but I didn't have the confidence for that. I like the skyline because I love my city. You may notice that I did a bit of a mash up and added my favorite building from Chicago into the mix too. Unfortunately, I didn't finish this the first night I started working on it. I didn't finish with it on the second night either so I saved my picture and closed my program. As it turns out, you cannot close and save items to open them later if you haven't paid for the full software. Discovering this was extremely frustrating for me and so my little art project has been abandoned. It was fun to play with for a while though.

I'm still considering changing up the look of my blog, but I haven't found much that says Currently Purring like my current set up. Well, except for this:

From icanhascheezburger

Follow Friday: Drawn to Run

From Flee

From About Me:
My name is Flee. I'm an illustrator and runner - and this is the place where my worlds collide. Here you'll find all the running cartoons you've always known you've never wanted.

Flee hasn't posted in awhile, but I want to share her blog anyway.  I love the content so much when she does share that I stick around just in case.  On Drawn to Run, Flee combines her fantastic illustration skills with her running passion. I found her blog very inspiring when I was starting to run last year. I share her love for Disney even if I haven't been converted to birthday shoes. If you would like to check out more of Flee's art you can browse her website and grab a great picture of Belle rocking the running gear from her Zazzle store.

Myrtle Grows

Have you forgotten about Myrtle? Did you think that I have? Well, she did get neglected while I worked on Mixed Motives, but she hasn't been abandoned. In fact, I've made some good progress.

I've accomplished even more since this picture was taken. Right now I am one pattern repeat away from beginning the arm shaping.

At knitting group last night we talked about modifying sweaters for better fit. I'm a true believer in adjusting for your size, but I haven't dared to make any edits to this pattern. It is my first full size lace sweater, so I'm going to be smitten even if I look like I'm wearing a potato sack.

Beyond that, I'm sticking to the pattern because of Snowden. I've decided that she and I think just a little bit differently. As I go through this project, I see things in the pattern that I think that I would have done differently. I am certain that she has a method, it just doesn't always match up to my madness. For example, I generally prefer to knit from charts. This pattern changes the number of stitches from row to row, and she doesn't mark the changes on the chart in the same way that I would. (I say, "I would," like I've written a chart, I should probably say, "I prefer.") I've had to use the written instructions instead. I don't mind, but I think that the reason I don't mind is because she's done so well with the pattern. Even though it isn't what I would prefer, it is written so clearly and is so understandable that it gives me faith. Snowden, I'm gonna trust you on this one.

Were Are They Now Continued 2KCBWDAY4

I already covered Day 4, but now I have pictures!

From Rikki

Look at that cutie with his bunny and... coffee cup...

From Rikki

Something is brewing in that noggin...

From Rikki

There it is. it is a novice mistake of a professional magician. They are not supposed to share their tricks, but clearly Sam here hides the bunny in his travel mug before pulling it out of a hat. It is pretty brilliant. No one has ever search my mug for rabbits.

From Eskimimi Knits

FO: Bo Brite

I am happy to report that I finished my scarf last Wednesday at knit night.


Since I already posted some good close up pictures, I wanted to try and get one of the full twelve feet 98.5 inches! I took it out to the park this weekend and found this lovely statue of the Marquis De Lafayette. I think it adds some pizazz to his outfit. I am sorry about the poor picture.  We forgot the camera so I had to use my cell phone.  It could be worse though. I could be in the staging area rather than behind the lens.

Secret Knitting is Back!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Knitting Time - 2KCBWDAY7

From Drop Box

Our knitting and crochet time -- Write about your typical crafting time. When it is that you are likely to craft – alone or in more social environments, when watching TV or whilst taking bus journeys. What items do you like to surround yourself with whilst you twirl your hook like a majorette’s baton or work those needles like a skilled set of samurai swords. Do you always have snacks to hand, or are you a strictly ‘no crumbs near my yarn!’ kind of knitter.

I do most of my knitting during two different times. As I ride the subway:

From Drop Box

and while I relax at home:


It is pretty clear what is consistent about these two. That's my Hubby. On the train, he sits next to me sometimes he reads, sometimes he plays Angry Birds, other times we just talk. At home we usually have the television on for the end of night. I sit next to him and he wraps my arm around me while I knit. I make decisions about my knitting based on this set up. I only knit with circular needles and never knit with straight needles because they poke into the couch pillows and make our cuddling impossible. I've never finished a project that I can't do while I watch TV, because I don't spend any of my knitting time with out distractions.

For today's post, I decided to ask Hubby what my knitting was like for him.


With this view, Hubby pretty much taught himself to knit. Every so often he'll ask me a question like, "Did you just knit those to together?" or, "Are you undoing those knit stitches?" He pretends he doesn't but I think he knows just as much about knitting as I do. He's grown to enjoy the sound of my metal needles clicking against each other. He notices and gets excited when I'm close to finishing.

I couldn't be happier with my knitting time. I am filled with relaxation from my knitting zen, and I am filled with love from my Hubby.

Find out why other people cherish their crafting time. 

Something to Aspire to - 2KCBWDAY6

From Eskimimi Knits

Something to Aspire to - Is there a pattern or skill that you don’t yet feel ready to tackle but which you hope to (or think you can only dream of) tackling in the future, near or distant? Is there a skill or project that makes your mind boggle at the sheer time, dedication and mastery of the craft? Maybe the skill or pattern is one that you don’t even personally want to make but can stand back and admire those that do. Maybe it is something you think you will never be bothered to actually make but can admire the result of those that have.

For today's post, I have already seen several people talk about how simple knitting is and that if you know how to knit and purl, you know it all. Of course I agree, but I think that should take away all of the intimidation and not the aspiration. I taught myself to knit watching Amy's videos on Knitting Help. I am confident that between the knitting support group I've collected on the internet, and YouTube, I'll never have trouble learning something new. Getting comfortable with something new is something entirely different. I like to feel comfortable before I take on the projects that I've set my heart on. As I mentioned on Day 2, I've practiced a lot of color work, but I'm not comfortable enough to take on some of the sweaters that I want to make.

The next skill I need to get comfortable with is double knitting.  There is an adorable hat that I want to have for next winter. For it to be a reality, I have a lot of work to do. First I have to learn double knitting. I've never seen, read about, or looked into it before. Fortunately Amy has a video! Next I need to practice. I've found some double knit pot holders on ravelry that will make great practice pieces. Once I'm comfortable its on to my hat. I'm taking this goal pretty seriously, I've already picked up the yarn. Now, I'm just waiting on me.

If you are interested in learning to double knit here are some of the cute patterns that I saw. (click on the picture to open the Ravelry link.)

From Trisha Mitburg

From Chilana

From Susi Sunshine

From Elizabeth Evans

From Phazelia

Follow Friday: Drawn From My Father's Adventures

From Drawn From My Father's Adventures

From About This Blog:
I have always loved my father's stories, the grim ones from boarding school during the war, the exciting ones from being the son of a spy, the exotic and bizarre and beautiful ones from traveling to unpronounceable places long before there were guide books. I have always seen these stories as pictures and I thought it was high time I coaxed them in writing from the source and drew them.

While I was going to college in Arkansas, I co-taught an ethnography course with a very good friend. I don't quite remember how I initially got involved with it, but I know that it gave me a new appreciation for listening to and making note of the stories that our loved ones have to share. Drawn From My Father's Adventures has Simon Blackall's fantastic stories and his daughter Sophie adds her art to take them a step further. I always enjoy what I find here.

Follow Friday: Dr Chop Suey Knits

This post should have been last Friday, but I lost track of time in a Zombie Apocalypse. All of the prep for Blog Week has been keeping my writing efforts pretty busy so I am just now catching up.

From Dr Chop Suey

From Header
A blog about a research technician who is addicted to yarn and knitting, oh yeah, and is still trying to figure out what she wants to be when she grows up.

I spend all day working with researchers and trying to help them get the funding they need to keep their labs running. You'd think at the end of the day I'd need a break, but I admit, I have a soft spot in my heart for them. The knitting and the science geekery were enough to get me to get me to check out Dr Chop Suey. The adorable bunny pictures keep me hooked.