Right now, the only thing keeping me together is the promise of an Etsy shopping spree this weekend.  (Yeah, I’m breaking my yarn diet and rewarding myself for surviving.)

So…anyone have suggestions for awesome sock yarn or lace yarn on Et sy? I’m already looking at some adorable stitch markers, but I figure I need some nice, pettable yarn too.

So, send your favorite Etsy sellers my way!

Tarot Card of the Day: Ace of Wands

Dear Lord, what is in the water this week?!? Is there some freak astrological occurence I haven’t heard about that’s made the whole world go crazy? WTF, people, WTF?!

Tarot Card of the Day: Wheel of Fortune

I haven’t been knitting too much the past few days. It’s been kind of weird, actually. Normally, I’m a pretty fidgety person, and have to be doing something when I’m sitting around watching TV, or I’ll get bored or fall asleep. There are a few exceptions–some shows require enough of my attention (Lost, Battlestar Galactica, episodes of the X-Files that I haven’t seen in a while) that I don’t grab anything complicated–but generally, I’m knitting. All the time. Constantly.

And the past few days…I haven’t been. It’s not that I haven’t wanted to, but I haven’t felt the need to, like I’m going to spin off into distraction if I don’t have something to ground me. It’s very strange. Focus is not something I’m good at, but suddenly it’s a lot easier. I guess maybe Tom Cruise was on to something, because the only thing I’ve changed is to start taking vitamins. I’ve been taking iron and B-complex supplements, and I’ve also tried to work in thyroid support herbs but I keep forgetting to take those.  It’s really astonishing. I noticed a big jump in my ability to focus when I cut out dairy, but in retrospect I think that was more about the lack of paralyzing anxiety than it was about actual focus. It’s amazing how much more clearly you think when you’re not going over a list of all the things you did wrong in your life/every time you’ve been embarrassed (ever)/reasons why you suck every waking minute of your life.

But this? This is unreal. Last night, I was watching Gilmore Girls, and I just…watched. No yarn.  No book. No sketchbook.  This morning, I decided to do some studying before work, and managed to get through some math problems without getting distracted, frustrated, or mixing up all the numbers.  It’s kind of bizarre, actually. I’m sure I’ll pick up a lot of the twitchy behaviors, just out of habit, not to mention the fact that I do enjoy knitting and watching TV, plus it’s an efficient use of time. But it is nice to know that I can manage to watch a movie without annoying everyone around me with my fidgeting.

The only downside is the decrease in my knitting productivity. I must motivate myself to keep working on things so they actually get finished!
Tarot Card of the Day: The Emperor

I spent a good chunk of this weekend cuddled up with a GRE review book and discovered that I? Have forgotten every bit of non-knitting math that I ever learned.

This does not make me happy.

I’ll learn it again, of course. Most of it isn’t a matter of not understanding, just forgetting. Let’s face it, I think the last time I dealt with prime numbers was…I don’t know. Fifth grade? That’s a long time ago, and I’m not sure how I should remember it after all this time.

The thing is, I pretty much use math in knitting. And that’s different. There are no fractions, for one, and a lot more fudging with things. It also involves a lot of ripping back and wondering when you lost the ability to count to seven. (Hint, it probably was around the time you a) turned on a DVD and got on the phone while knitting, or b) when you set the sweater down for a week or c) the cat sat on it and knocked half the stitches of the needle which required either repair or ripping back of large yet unspecified areas of knitting.)

Oddly enough, this has not discouraged me, but made me even more determined to kick math’s ass. You hear that, math? I’m not backing down.

Tarot Card of the Day: Death

I’ve had a few thoughts lately about going back to school. Not now, and probably not even in the super near future, since it would require doing a lot of things like a) deciding exactly what I’d study, b) studying for and taking the GRE, and c) getting accepted. Haha. Ha.

Anyway. I’m toying with the idea of social psychology, specifically looking at how people relate online, and how online communities develop and interact. It doesn’t seem like these are things that have been studied extensively yet, and I feel like there’s a lot of good data and case studies out there that haven’t been collected and examined in any systematic way.

There are problems, though. School costs money, especially the types of schools I want to go to. Yes, someday I WILL make it to the Ivies. There’s also the fact that most of the programs are Ph.D programs. Which is cool, because I’ve always wanted to get a Ph.D, but also kind of scary and intimidating. What do you even do with that kind of education?

Also, there’s the fact that I really love what I do. I was the type that a lot of people thought would love college and go right into grad school, but I didn’t. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to major in when I started, and I really should have taken some time off before I went. I also hadn’t sorted out my health issues and that was a major distraction–the last few semesters, after I had gotten everything under control, really opened my  mind to how awesome school could be when you weren’t feeling ill, unable to concentrate, or dealing with massive anxiety.  So I would like to go back and experience that, but a the same time, I found that I really enjoy working.

It’s a lot to think about, and I’m not really sure where all of this is heading.  If nothing else,  I might swing by the bookstore and grab a GRE study guide.  It’ll inspire me or scare me, one of the two!!

Tarot Card of the Day: The Fool

Hi, my name is Quirkyknitgirl and I am a TV Junkie.

Yes, it’s true. I will never be one of those people who turns up their nose and claims that they don’t even own a TV, and probably sit there listening to opera while reading classic literature and discussing current affairs. (For the record, I suspect 99% of the people who claim this are lying. )

I love TV. I especially love dramas. I don’t really get why it’s got such a bad rap. Sure, there are a few shows that we could all live without (New York Goes to Hollywood? Anyone?) but really, it all comes back to storytelling. There’s nothing I love more than a good story, and TV has one definite advantage over books (Well, more if you count things like Shemar Moore’s biceps. And I do.) and that’s the fact that I can knit and watch all at the same time.

So, it’s with a lot of geeky joy that I check out the Fall TV schedule and figure out which shows are on when, and what I’ll be watching. And since I’m such a geek, I figured I’d share with you.

Monday
Big Bang Theory (CBS, 8pm): Honestly, not my favorite show but Monday is shaping up to be a pretty boring alas. It’s cute, though, and I think it was improving last season.
How I Met Your Mother (CBS, 8:30pm): Alyson Hannigan. Neal Patrick Harris. Need I say more?
CSI: Miami (CBS, 10 pm): Yes, it’s horrible and cheesy and David Caruso couldn’t act his way out of a paper bag. But I love it (and by it I mean Emily Proctor and Adam Rodriguez) anyway.

Tuesday
NCIS (CBS, 8 pm): I love this show so much it’s unhealthy. Great cast, great chemistry, and who doesn’t love a perky Goth lab tech?
House (Fox, 8 pm): I’ll DVR this one…love Hugh Laurie and his snarky goodness, but last season felt flat without the Cottages. So far, the new batch hasn’t grown on me.
Fringe (Fox, 9pm): It’s JJ Abrams, it reminds me of the X-Files, and it’s got FBI agents. What more do I ever need?
The Mentalist (CBS, 9 pm): Another DVR contender. Seems like a more serious version of Psych, but it seems worth checking out.
Without a Trace (CBS, 10pm): I’m a latecomer to this one, but I’ve been watching reruns all summer and I’m hooked. Great stories, awesome cast. Oh, and FBI agents.

Wednesday
Bones (Fox, 8 pm): Love this show!! Booth and Brennan have some of the best banter and chemistry since Mulder and Scully.
Criminal Minds (CBS, 9 pm): Not sure about some of the new additions to the cast, but again, FBI Agents. And Shemar Moore’s biceps. And an awesomely geeky, knitting, quirky techie girl. What’s not to love?

Thursday
Grey’s Anatomy (ABC, 9 pm): Yeah, it got lame and cheesy, but I’m still hooked. At least I always find some new music when I watch.
Eleventh Hour (CBS, 10 pm): Not sure about this one, but anything described as X-Filesish is at least worth checking out.

Friday
Numb3rs (CBS, 10 pm): The cases are lame, but the family dynamic in this show is probably the most realistic I’ve seen on TV.

Saturday
There is absolutely nothing on. I guess this means I’m supposed to have a life…or catch up on whatever I recorded.

Sunday
Cold Case (CBS, 9 pm): Another show with a kick-ass soundtrack just about every week.
The Unit (CBS, 10 pm): You know what comes in second to FBI agents? Military dudes. Yeah, yeah, mock all you want. You know I’m right.

Honestly, I’m a bit underwhelmed. There are some things I’m looking forward to mid-season (Dollhouse, Lost) and some non-network shows (Battlestar Galactica, Caprica) but I feel like a lot of there’s not that much new and compelling. Hopefully that’s just fallout from the writer’s strike and things get better, or I’m going to have to start stocking up on DVDs of all my favorites and make my own season.

Tarot Card of the Day: The Moon

Not to be a complete one-note blog here, but I’m having trouble coming up with much to say. I’m just feeling really burnt out, on everything. It’s not that I don’t want to knit, but when I go home, I just wind up not…mostly I’ve been sitting on the couch with the cats, watching bad TV. Last night, I couldn’t even muster up the motivation to put on a DVD!

It’s not depression–I don’t have that tired, constantly sleeping thing going on. I have energy, or at least as much as normal. I just don’t care. Really, seriously don’t care–does it matter? Really? Any of it?

Before anyone freaks, I don’t mean that in a suicidal way. More in a, why not just say screw it and move to God-knows-where and, I don’t know, do nothing. Or something completely random and impractical. Why not? Would it really make that much difference?

It’s just one of those times when nothing seems to work out right, and nothing seems to make any damn difference at all. Even with knitting–I want to knit, but I don’t have the yarn for anything I want to make and I’ve put myself on a yarn diet until I knit up the yarn I DO have. Not to mention, I’m still missing part of my ball winder so anything that has to be wound is out, and I also have holiday presents that I need to be knitting.

I’ve thought about trying to get away, just for a day. Maybe go to the Redwoods or one of the beaches that are an easy drive from here, but honestly? It’s not something I feel comfortable doing by myself. Crazy, right? I pick up and move my sorry ass across the country but I won’t go to the beach?

Thing is, I’m not really what you’d call a nature person. It’s not my element, and I don’t feel comfortable going hiking or anything like that alone. I’m prone to getting lost, and there’s also the whole wild animal element. Not to mention crazy psychos. (Yes, I have just been reading about the Trailside killer, because that TOTALLY helps.) So I’d like to go, but I don’t really feel like I know anyone here well enough to ask them to go with me….and it’s not like I’m athletic, so I’d probably just slow them down anyhow. Who wants to go hiking with someone who can’t keep up?

Anyway, it’s not a big deal and I’m sure I’ll snap myself out of it eventually, but until then I apologize profusely for the boring blog fodder.

Tarot Card of the Day: Strength

I’ll admit–I usually have what most people would call lazy weekends. I tend to stick around at home, watching some TV, knitting, playing online, cooking. It might not be super-exciting, but I’m an introvert at heart, and need that alone time to recharge my batteries and guarantee that I’m not a raging maniac during the week.

But this weekend? I was really lazy. I barely even knit!! Partly due to the fact that I had a headache that ranged from mild to pounding most of the week–I think I seriously need to look into getting a new mattress, because it definitely comes from sleeping in the wrong position–and because I just didn’t feel like doing much.

I did take the time to watch some horrifically bad action movies–Stealth, Walking Tall (you KNOW anything that stars The Rock is not high quality film) and Con Air–which are so awful I can’t help but love them. I also watched Pride and Prejudice (the Kiera Knightly one) and I have to say I enjoy the movie far more than the book. While I’ve gotten past the urge to throw the book across the room the way I did in high school (it was a feminist rage, very dramatic) it still doesn’t grab me.  There’s something about the style, the prose seems too sparse, that I just can’t get into the way I can with other books.

The movie, though was pretty good, and I enjoyed it. Admittedly, Kiera Knightly played no small role in that, but it was sweet, and appealed to the (very deeply) hidden romantic side of me.  So of course, I got all girly, and I really hate that. Alas, no Mr. Darcy (Or Ms. Darcy) is going to appear and be endearingly stubborn and yet sweetly romantic, so I’m working to disabuse myself of that notion as quickly as possible. Advice would be greatly appreciated.

Tarot Card of the Day: The Devil

I haven’t got much knitting to talk about (read: I forgot to take pictures again) so instead I’m going to talk about bacon mints.

Yes, bacon mints.

Now, I am generally a fan of bacon. I believe that most things in life are improved by the addition of some bacon–I haven’t tried bacon chocolate or bacon ice cream yet, but I’m willing to bet they would embody some sort of bacon-y deliciousness. (I know, it sounds crazy, but I’m totally imagining, like, maple syrup ice cream with bits of bacon. Like breakfast, only yummier!)

So when one of my co-workers sent around an email saying that he had bacon mints at his desk, how could I not try?

Um..yeah. Photographic proof of my reaction can be found on his blog, with a more detailed version of events, but blech. More than anything the mints just tasted burnt, though the aftertaste was significantly more bacon-y. Still…not a winner, so I guess there’s at least one thing bacon doesn’t go with after all.

Tarot Card of the Day: The Magician