So, I’ve been seeing everyone’s posts about Rhinebeck in the blogosphere, and can I just say how jealous I am?

I keep saying I’ll get to Rhinebeck, but somehow I never make it. It’s not even that expensive–I have relatives in upstate NY that I could stay with, so I wouldn’t even have to pay for a hotel (I think they’re close enough to stay with, anyway, I’m not exactly sure where Rhinebeck is in relation to, well, anything.) and it’s not that far.

But, once again, I am here, doing homework and working instead of fondling fiber and staring at sheep and famous bloggers.

I’ve been trying to rationalize it. I’m broke, I don’t have a job lined up for after graduation, and I have enough yarn for 3 people.

Seriously. It’s obscene, the amount of yarn I own.

Next year? I’m totally going to Rhinebeck.

So this is a non-knitting post. Because there has been very little knitting.

Mostly, there has been the three Ps: procrastinating, panicking, and (senior) project.

Not to mention, more job applications than I want to think about it (memo to intelligence community: Please hire me) and my non-school classes, currently just spanish, but arabic starts this week. I’m ridiculously excited for it.

Side note: It’s very weird to switch dialects when learning a language. My elementary school had a program where you took spanish classes from kindergarten through fifth grade. Our teachers were Senora Martinez and Senora Martinez–they were sisters-in-law and although I don’t believe either were actually from there, they had learned spanish in Mexico. I also took one year of spanish in 6th grade, but my teacher was creepy (Really creepy, I’m actually pretty sure he was a pedophile) so I quit.

Anyway, I’m taking spanish again, through Global Languages at GWU (which is a GREAT program, with free and low cost language classes taught by native speakers, and everyone should check it out) and the girl who’s teaching the class is (I think) from Spain, and so some of the pronunciations are different. The big thing is pronouncing a soft c. I’d always pronounced as somewhere between and s and a z, but she sort of lisps it, so it sounds like a cross between a th and a z. I’m getting used to it, but it’s definitely hard at first.

Ok. Language note over.

The purpose of this post, actually, was how dismayed I was at this past week’s Criminal Minds! I taped it, because it’s on against Lost, and so I was watching it yesterday as I procrastinated and sewed together lots of catnip cigars for the various cats in my life.

I couldn’t believe the ending–Elle! How could you?–and I was very sad to find out that Lola Glaudini is indeed leaving the show. Elle and JJ are, predictably, my favorite characters and it will be so sad to have no more Elle.

I don’t know anything about the actress replacing her, I do know that Portia di Rossi and Jamie Luner were considered for the role. I’m sad Portia turned it down, but glad Luner didn’t get it–I didn’t like her at all on Profiler, but that could just be because the show fell apart without Ally Walker. I mean, pretty much the entire show was based on Sam and Jack stalking her, since the Profiling was about as unrealistic as it gets (and yet was one of the things that got me started reading about actual profiling).

Anyhow, apparently Paget Brewster is taking the role. I haven’t seen her in anything–and I’m actually wondering if that info is correct. I figured they were setting up the Detective from this last ep to take the spot–I don’t remember who played her, but it wasn’t Paget Brewster. So maybe I’m wrong? Anyone know?

Now that I’ve bored you all with that, I’m off to knitting group, where actual knitting will commence, and then I can come back and do more senior project work. Bah.

Ok, no knitting content, because real life ate me.

BUT..I do have a teeny, tiny favor to ask you, my blog readers.

Vote for Fred and Padma!

WJLA is having a contest for cute pets–and I could win a trip to Seattle!

So please, vote, and tell your friends to vote too!

Crazy Aunt Purl posted this and because I’m bored, and forgot to take pictures of my knitting, I am too!

Four jobs I’ve had:

* Student (ok, technically not a job…but there sure is a lot of work!)
* Knitting Instructor
* Editor
* Intern at CNN

Four movies I can watch over and over:

* Harry Potter (any of them)
* Silence of the Lambs
* The American President
* Jurassic Park

Four places I have lived:

* Asheville, NC
* Washington, DC
* Arlington, VA
* New York City, NY (ok, so it was only for a couple of months…what can I say, I haven’t moved much)

Four television shows I love to watch:

* CSI (all of them, but especially the original. Because Jorja Fox? Is the world’s most perfect woman and I will watch any and everything she does. Also, Miami because Calleigh Duquense kicks ass!)
* NCIS (because if Sara Sidle is my favorite TV character, Ziva David is a close second. So close she’s maybe even tied)
* Grey’s Anatomy
* Criminal Minds

Four places I have been on vacation:

* San Francisco, CA (my first solo vacation!)
* Nassau, Bahamas (on a cruise….mmmm, cruise)
* Ocracoke Island, NC
* Roswell, NM (as part of a month long cross-country drive with my mother, from NC to CA and back)

Four of my favorite dishes:

* Roast chicken. Luckily, it’s also one of the things I can cook.
* Pasta
* Burgers. Preferably with bacon. And fries.
* Gyros

Four websites I visit daily:

* www.livejournal.com because otherwise, I wouldn’t know what my friends are doing
* Facebook. Becaus I’m in college.
* crazyauntpurl.com because knitting blogs rock
* yarnagogo, again, because knitting blogs rock

Four places I would rather be right now:

* Hanging out in a coffee shop, knitting and drinking coffee
* On a beach. Any beach.
* Hanging out with my friends, watching horror movies (because it’s almost Halloween!) and drinking and dressing my cat up in a costume and filming him for You Tube…
* In bed. Asleep would be good. Asleep with someone else woud be better.

Four bloggers I am tagging:

* You.
* And you.
* And you, too!
* All ya’ll are so tagged it is not even funny. But hey, it’s better than that one chain mail where you have to send a dollar to five people on the list.

I realized that I forgot to post this announcement before. Bad blogger, no cookie.

So, here is the official blog announcement about OUTKnit, the DC Metro area’s GLBT (and friends!) knitting and crochet group.

We meet every Sunday at Murky Coffee in Arlington, from 1-4. Don’t let the VA location scare you–it’s just 2 blocks from the Clarendon Metro stop, and there’s plenty of parking if you prefer to drive.

It’s a really friendly group of people, and since I’ve been asked, no you don’t have to be gay to join. Allies are encouraged to come as well.

If you want more information, why don’t you check out our Yahoo group?


Click to join outknit

Since I’ve been asked, I’ll talk a little bit about why I started this group.

The first reason is because people asked for it–once they found out I was a knitter, I had several people ask me if I knew of any gay knitting groups. The DC Radical Faeries do have a knitting circle, but it meets at people’s houses and I know that I (and a lot of other people) wouldn’t really feel comfortable just e-mailing someone you don’t know and then heading off to their place.

I also think it’s important. A lot of the knitting groups I’ve been to have been dominated by a more conservative group of people. As I’m sure most of you know, stitch’n'bitch discussions can turn rather….interesting. A lot of times I ended up not speaking up, because I wasn’t sure how comfortable anyone would be with a lesbian in their midst. I wanted a knitting group where people wouldn’t have to worry about that.

So, if you’re in the DC/VA/MD area and you’d like to check us out, come on by! There are some awesome knitters and amazing coffee–what’s not to love?

In honor of Socktoberfest, I decided to do some stash enhancement. I got some Gloss from Knitpicks, in Serengeti, Pumpkin, and Cocoa.

It’s amazingly soft and delicious to work with. I also decided to check out the Knitpicks DPNs. I like them. They’re very sharp, which is nice. Even if I do end up with sore thumbs and fingers.

I cast on for the Snowflake Socks from Magknits with the Serengeti.

My first attempt:

On US3 needles. It was looking a bit too loose, though, and the lace wasn’t stretching enough, so I frogged it and cast on again using US2s.

I also cast on for some basic socks for my Dad’s Christmas present. I’m using Lana Grossa in a grey stripe colorway. On US1s. It’s very very tiny and fine.

It’s also kind of boring–gloomy colors, plain pattern. But my Dad wouldn’t wear bright colors or fussy socks, so there ya go.

Off to knit while watching the Sunglasses of Justice (CSI: Miami).

It’s fall, so it’s time for all sorts of yummy knitting.

For the Fall Cables KAL, I started Boogie. I didn’t have any bulky yarn in my stash, and I’m trying very hard to be good, so I’m using 2 strands of Lion Brand Wool-Ease held together, on US 10.5 needles.

Here’s the front so far:

It’s a really quick knit. I finished the back (I have no pictures, it’s plain stockinette and gray, very boring) in 2 days. Two days with a lot of knitting, but still!

I doubt it will take me much longer to finish, which is good–sweater vests will probably remain in style just long enough for the fashion world to blink, and I want a chance to wear mine before they go geeky again.

It’s also Socktoberfest, so I’m knitting away on my socks. I finished the 2nd half of my plain vanilla sock class socks.

They’re not very fall looking–but they will look great on Valentine’s Day:

They were knit using Moda Dea Sassy Stripes in the Crush colorway, on US3 needles. I didn’t follow a pattern really, just the basic sock formula. And since I don’t pay any attention to what part of the colorway I start on, they’re fraternal twins.

I think it adds character.

There is much more knitting goodness to come.

Happy knitting!

I was planning on posting lots of pictures, including my sock in progress and the yummy roast chicken I made for dinner last night, but my palm (with camera!) won’t hotsync all of a sudden, so…not so much.

I really need to break down and buy a digital camera at some point.

So instead of pictures I give you–Lolly’s Socktoberfest Questions!

When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?

I started making socks on a whim about a year ago. I’d always wanted to make them, but my Nanna, who taught me to knit, insisted they were too hard. I started with Fuzzy Feet, then finally took the plunge and made a single sock from an online pattern. Mostly, I just looked stuff up online and occassionally asked someone at my LYS for help.

What was your first pair? How have they “held up” over time?

My first complete pair were gifts, for my aunt. I gave her 2 pairs, and I assume they’ve held up ok.

What would you have done differently?

I would have made the first pair for me! Honestly, though, I would have picked a different yarn. I made the first pair out of Lion Brand Microspun, to be slipper socks in horrendously bright colors (they were christened the Jimmy Buffett Socks) which splits a lot. I would have chosen a better yarn.

What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?

I haven’t tried that many different yarns. I like Knitpicks sock yarn, and I made a really cool pair of fuzzy warm sleep/slipper socks for my Mom out of Moda Dea Dream.

Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?

DPNS all the way! I can’t imagine crocheting socks (crochet often confuses me) and I hate Magic Loop. As for 2 circs….I can’t imagine the odds of me finding 2 circs in the same size with nothing on them. Probably about the same as Isreal and Palestine all of a sudden deciding this feud is awful silly and, hey, let’s forget about the whole thing and have some tea instead.

Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)

I’ve always done a heel flap. If I ever run across a pattern with a short-row heel, I’ll let you know what I think.

How many pairs have you made?

Let’s see…2 for my aunt, 1 for my Mom, 1 pair for myself, and I’m halfway done with another pair. And I have very lofty goals for Socktoberfest!

Happy Knitting!