Purl Side of the Moon

They Say There's Gold but I'm Looking for Thrills

I'm exhausted and have to finish up a report for work...but I'll leave you with this question...

What happens when you get all THESE (Fidget Ann ,Pixie Stikz, Amy, Chelsea, Erin, Holly, Isel, Jenna, Kelly Lara, Liz, Lolly, Paula, Rossana, Sarah) bloggers together and ask them to cull their stash and bring it in one place for a swap with other yarn hungry knitters?

The answer and the photographic evidence will be revealed tomorrow!

Hope you all had a great weekend and all you Olympic Knitters had a coveted spot on the podium last night!

A Gunner's Dream

I don't have much to talk about tonight.  I had a very long weekend of cleaning and attending my first flyball tournament.  The tournament was a blast and I learned so much.  I helped out the team and rooted them on. Learned how to take times and played ball shagger.  (Shagging is when you collect balls after the dogs drop them from racing.)  Basically, I worked for the dogs!

I know I said I was going to take pictures, but I forgot my camera one day and on the other, I was so busy and having fun with my team, I just kept forgetting to take pics. I did take a couple of some of the dogs on our team, but this one is one of my favorites.  Meet Tempe...one of future super flyball dogs to be:

Isn't she adorable. I tell you...it is really, really hard being around so many dogs.  I kept looking at all the different breeds and wanting them.  I've been wanting a second dog for so long now, but this is really testing me.  Some of my team mates said they give me 6 months.  Heh, we'll see...I'm not sure if the queen bee could handle having another brother or sister.

Torino is growing, albeit, slowly.  Here's were we are right now:

Of course, it's not so easy to knit when you have a this sleeping in your armpit:

Well based on all our talk last week...I figure this would amuse you guys as much as it did me.  I was doing some serious cackling over THIS . (Just hit play in the picture.) I had to watch it more than once!  And for further entertainment I leave you with this:

If They Try to Break Down

Do you ever have one of those WTF days?  You know, like how you just seem to be two steps behind in almost everything you do all day.  Like start off the morning by dribbling coffee down the front of you shirt.  Manage to be late to work.  Be late to meetings.  Forget things.  Step in dog shit.  Have to rip out several rows of your knitting because you were obviously too busy watching snowboard cross. Have your needles do this:

Fricken bamboos.  That's another story.  See, this is my first time knitting a sweater in bamboo.  Am I happy about having to do so?  Hell know. The only thing I can handle knitting on bamboo is socks on bamboo DPNs.  Bamboo slows me down and also seems to take more effort. Plus I really hate the connection of the bamboo and cable.  I love my slick, fast addi turbo's.  Practically seamless on the connection.  Love em.  So why am I knitting on bamboos?  Because every damn knit store in the area has decided that Addi Turbos in size 3 & 4  with a cable length of 32" have no purpose in the knitting world; No one knits large sweaters in round with DK weight yarn.  I had to laugh, one of the stores reply for their lack of proper needle stocking by sayin "Well, usually people use Denise needle kits for that length."  Yes, because if you want to knit normal sweaters, you should only be using plastic needles.  To top of the shit O'meter on their part, Denise needles don't go down that small a needle size. In order to start Torino, I had to knit with bamboos.  I'm a woman with little patience for waiting on mailorder.  The Gods are paying me back.

But you know what...That's OK.  Because what I received when I came home from work was all worth it.  I came home to find a surprise and very generous package from Chappy & Deb!  They thought I could use some cheering up...And that it did!  How can this not cheer anyone up!

I mean WOWSERS!  Deb and Chappy, thank you SO much!  Not only was this so very thoughtful, but it's golden!  Number one, my biggest regret about MSW last year was that I didn't get any Brooks Farms.  Number two, the color is out of this world.  Third, I am already addicted to the Dogwalker Hand Cream.  It's like silk going on your hands and makes you constantly stick your fingers in your face so you can keep getting wiffs of how yummy it smells.  Thanks again!!!!

Ms. Marley wants ya'll to know that she is officially a "flyball dog in training" for her new team the, Flyball Invaders a/k/a FBI.  She is one happy dog right now.  Not only is she having a blast, but she's picking up the training very well.  I don't think I've ever seen her this happy about doing something. She's already a major show off.  Mom is having a pretty good time too. We get to go to her first flyball tournament this Saturday to root on the rest of the team.  It should be an experience and I'll be sure to get some pics.

Now every dog that plays flyball needs a good motivation toy during training.  And Lord knows we have found one.  Want to make your dog go ape shit nuts and pay 100% attention to you and ignore a huge pack of barking, running dogs that are going nuts all around you?  Then get yourself one of these babies:

It's a tug toy that is made with real fur and is a miracle drug for crazy Jack Russell Terriers.  Now don't get all freaky on me about the fur...it is actually made out of recycled fur coats.  No little critters were killed for this toy...although it was killed for some vain human. At least it is being recycled and used for some other furry creature.  Hmmmm...now I know what to do with all those squirrels Marley catches!  Just kidding...well at least about me using them...the killed squirrels...er, not my favorite thing to find in my yard.

How can something so cute and sweet:

Be the Charles Manson of the dog world?

Have a great weekend guys!

You Gotta be Trusted by the People That You Lie To

Hey you all!  Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your kind words and support.  You guys are incredible, wise and and provided me much comfort. It is very appreciated. 

Now...How was V-day for ya'll? I hope your husbands, boyfriends, wives and gals showered you with lovely flowers, chocolates or whatever you like on the big red heart day. By the way, for next year, if you aren't exactly sure what to do for V-day, Jodie over at Knit & Plenty has a great suggestion! How funny is that...and hey, who has to wait until next V-day to knit that!

So is everyone busy knitting away and watching the Olympics?  Torino has been started here.  I guess you might want proof...What, you don't believe me? 

 

Now, the Olympics. Let's get on with the dirt.

Oh Bode...come on man, I'm rooting for you...hang in there...Maybe a bong hit will help you to stop making those mistakes. Ski on Dude.

Michelle Kwan...I'm sorry, she's a fantastic skater and fricken adorable...and yes, it sucks that she's never got the goods at the Olympics...But I'm sorry, I just feel she didn't deserve to be there in the first place. 

Women's snowboarding ROCKS! Like, so cool, like awesome, like you know.

Carrot Top = Tomato Head. 

New skating scoring...I'm on the thumbs down side of the fence.  I think it leads to boring skating and I miss the creativity.

Lindsey, you must be made of rubber...How in the hell did that woman not split right up the middle on that fall.  O*U*C*H! There's no way that woman would be able to carry a baby in the womb after that split...it would just fall right out!

As long as I'm being snarky...Vice President Cheney...Enough said.  Nothing is more alarming than getting an email alert before it hits the press with a subject line saying: Vice President Cheney Shoots a Man.

On geeky exciting things for me...Today I had the great pleasure of having lunch with one of the most distinguished Senators of all time...and as of Noon today, he will be the longest sitting Member of Congress ever...Sen. Robert C. Byrd. (Byrd was first elected to Congress in 1958.) Now I don't always agree with Byrd's stand on legislative issues, but I admire and respect the man tremendously. He is a true Statesman, a gentleman, and the Senate's best parliamentarian ever.  He is the epitome of how a gentleman in Congress is supposed to be...true to the rules of Congress and the Constitution, and a representative of his constituents, not his party.  Unfortunately, in today's Congress, the partisanship rarely affords great men like this anymore.  My favorite thing he said today was that the most important vote that he ever cast, was not to expand the President's power to do a pre-emptive strike on Iraq, by voting no on the Iraqi resolution. He explained, that he made his decision based on the Constitution, (As he pulled his leather bound copy out of his jacket inner sleeve.) The Constitution states that it is Congress that decides whether the US goes to war.  The Representatives of the people and their states as a whole...not one man.  Just as Sen. Byrd has the utmost respect and awe for the Constitution; so do I. It is an amazing and perfect document that has withheld the test of time and is still so relevant.

If you know anything about Sen. Byrd, you know how much he loves the Constitution and how and why it was created.  He is on a mission to bring back the education of it and the regular reading of it to remind us of how important it is. So, in honor of this great man's wise knowledge, I too ask, take the time and read the document that created and holds this government and society together...The Constitution of the United States of America.

The Path You Tread

I knew a weekend can do some wonders...and I had a great one. Thank you so much for all the well wishes. I sometimes am amazed at the thoughtfulness of others, I'm so thankful that those people are my readers.  My head is above water and it's getting a lot easier to tread. To explain some...I was just having a very stressful week at work with a lot of deadlines and a lot of new things to learn and deliver on top of the deadlines. I was working all day and late.  On top of it...I just felt like my home life was getting out of control. Piles of laundry, my house being a construction zone, not enough time to spend with my husband and dog, bills not paid because I was so busy and kept forgetting about them, errands not being run...blah, blah, blah...and then to top it off, I found out my "real" father has been diagnosed with stage two lung cancer and is dyeing*. Yeah, I just kinda of tossed that one in there.  I even contemplated not saying it. But after all the support you guys sent, I kinda felt obligated to tell you. After all, we are all friends, even if some of you, I haven't met face to face.

Now, there is another factor in all this, see, my "real" dad isn't really the nicest of people and certainly isn't the best of fathers, and we have had quite a horrible relationship for over half my life.  When my parents divorced, he basically abandoned us and ran off halfway across the country and got remarried.  He then took on his new family, and never made much of an effort to take care of the one he had.  There is a whole lot of other crap that can be said, but the quick story is, all of our attempts of reconciliation of our problems have never been fruitful.  Mainly, he doesn't want the responsibility of being a father, and we haven't spoken in the past 7 years.

So now, he's dyeing.  I have felt like he's been dead for the past seven years.  Of course I'm sad, after all he is my Dad and my memories of him in my childhood are nothing but good.  I wish he was healthy and living a happy life. I dealt with all the pain and resentment a long time ago.  And as selfish as it may sound, I don't want to go back to relive it, once again, after several times being put through it by him. At this point, I have decided that I will not see him.  My decision is a tough one, but the right one for me. My only guilt is for my brother, who still sorta has a relationship with him, and will have to be dealing with this on his own.  I'm torn...but so far, I'm sticking with my decision. I know, I sound like cold-hearted bitch...but really, there is a lot to this story.

OK...off this subject...

Remember I said my house is a construction zone...It is.  My wonderful and very talented husband is putting in a built in book case in our basement.  Then we are going to finish remodeling the rest of the basement after it is completed.  This isn't just a little bookcase. It is taking up an entire wall.  So much so that I can't get a complete picture of it.  Though the remodeling won't take much since it is already a finished basement,  but since our house is so small, any disruption of crap piled up in the house, only means it has to be shifted into currently lived in space. 

But here's a picture before and what he's done so far:

So just more paint and cabinet doors...and then all my books and crap will have a home!

Also, especially for Kris, this is what I woke up to this morning...

Marley wasn't too happy that her view outside the fence was obstructed:

After just waking up, cold, wet snow wasn't exactly what she considered fun,  she was quick to come back in after one quick trip to the gate, a pee, and back:

I swear, tomorrow's post will be much happier!

*Added later: Oh my goodness Beth, you have me laughing so hard right now...First it's I forget the "e" now I've been typing "dyeing" so much I can't type it the other way!  Good for you catching that!!!!  Dead wool and a father that dyes!  :)

I feel like I'm Drowning

WEEK * OF *  HELL!

Sorry guys...Things are just not going my way this week.  And on top of it, I have some "real life" issues that cropped up this week as well. Sucky ones...Ones that I don't wish on anyone.

Please forgive my lack of response to blogging, emails (And phone calls to some of you). I just can't deal with it all right now.  And frankly, none of it makes for good blogging. Nothing good...Nothing fibery...Lot's of sleepless nights...Not enough time...a lot of bitching...And some stuff that is just too serious to put out there. 

Hopefully, some cheerful Olympics ceremonies, a gallon of wine and a weekend will cure it all.  Torino will be started tonight, but I haven't even had a chance to start a swatch.  So that is on the agenda.

Oh, and Beth...Marley started her training for flyball and she is loving it. She did awesome!

Hope to get back into things by Monday.  All you Olympic Knitters...Have a great time starting your challenges... I think I'm the only one that didn't join Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics! But Lord knows Torino will be its own mountain to climb for me.

Her Golden Hair

On the road again,

I just can't wait to get on that road again...

Yep, Jaywalker, round two.  Frog tits, I can't believe that I had to rip out about 2/3rds of a whole sock.  Why did I think my foot was magically going to fit the behemoth size that was coming off those needles.  Hmmm...My normal sock is 60 cast on stitches...and all of a sudden 76 cast on stitches was going to fit?

I gave Marley the night off:

Instead, Piper is playing Jaywalker model:

She doesn't seem too happy with the job, does she? As Rebekah pointed out, my blog word cloud from the last post didn't have Piper mentioned in it since she isn't mentioned enough here at Purl Side. Awwww...Well we must change that....Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper, Piper. 

Well, there's been nothing new other than work and starting Jaywalker...Oh and this...(I can't believe I am actually going to show you this...)

Hmmm...Absolutely horrid picture...and no, I'm not drunk or high (although I had a couple of glasses of wine at Knit Happens several hours before this pic).  I just can't manage to take a picture with flash, without my eyes closing!  Out of all the pictures, this one is the closest I could get to them being open. Although we were getting a pretty good laugh out of it.  So off the fact that I looked like I've smoked half of Jamaica...focus on the hair...or lack there of it!

Now most of you know that there aren't too many pictures of me here on my blog (Now you know why!) and some of you don't see me in person...But this is what my hair looked like before after the last hair cut.  Of course in that picture, it was right after the hair dressers, so rarely did it look that good again.  (And has grown much longer since then.) I've always had short hair since I've graduated from college. Then about three years ago, I started growing it out for my wedding.  From then on, the man in my life wanted me to keep it long (Of course).  Bleh, I was never thrilled with it long; But it was nice to always put it up in a ponytail.

So Monday, I went and had it all chopped off. Actually, the hair dresser didn't want to cut it as short as I did. We compromised.  What, compromised...Why the hell did I do that?  Especially why did I do that and then shell out fricken $80?  Compromise with a hairdresser!?!  I think I should get a discount for a compromise! Maybe it was shock of finally getting the hair hacked off...Or maybe it was that I thought this wonderful guy, with all his knowledge of chic hair, with his job in one of the most expensive salons downtown, knew something better about my hair than I did. Maybe I thought my classic blunt bob was too 80's looking after he said asymetrical cuts are out.   Hrrmmph. I could have got this same cut at Hair Cuttery for $15, and no compromise. And this was his vision of something "new" and chic???  Looks like my normal short haircut grown out. Ah well.  It's a done deal and I'm happy.  I still would like it shorter.  But for now...No more getting my hair caught in my purse strap when I put it on my shoulder.  No more pulling it out of my coat every time I put it on. No more being strangled in my sleep. And best off, no more massive shedding of long hairs on everything I own.

Ah, and tomorrow is Friday...it couldn't come sooner.