So, as it turns out, I maybe shouldn’t be allowed to use the internet unsupervised. Especially when it’s a holiday, and I’m feeling joyous and ambitious.

Because then, you see, I do some very crazy things.

Things like signing up to knit 12 sweaters in 2010. This is, mind you, in addition to my plan to knit 8 pairs of socks for myself, and work on supplying all of my CAYA Coven brothers and sisters with socks. (This will take longer than a year. But I do plan to make progress.) Oh, plus baby gifts for the expected CAYA sprouts. And holiday presents for next year, since I skipped that this year (though at least one of the sweaters will do double-duty here).

Did I mention I have a full time job, and have also resolved to get my writing portfolio done and start sending things out?

It’s posible I’ve forgotten that I do need to, you know, sleep.

Oops?

In honor of the holidays, I thought I’d repost the text of one of my favorite holiday pieces ever, courtesy of the Newseum. The letter was originally published in New York’s Sun in 1897. Happy Holidays!

DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, ‘If you see it in THE SUN it’s so.’ Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?

“VIRGINIA O’HANLON.
115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET.”

VIRGINIA, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except [what] they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You may tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives, and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

Thanks to Subway Knitter for this one! It cracked me up.

Today is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year. The day that the old Sun dies, and the new Sun is reborn. The day the young, shining Oak King battles and defeats the Holly King at the height of his power. The day the wheel turns once more, from darkness to light.

We had our big Yule celebration on Saturday, and it was great fun. I was full of joy, positively giddy! Which isn’t really like me.

Photo courtesy of Brenda, who is blogless.

Today is the kind of day that makes me want to hibernate, stay in and spend my time puttering around, but I can’t. Instead, I woke up early, lit candles in the early darkness and am singing up the sun as it rises. Later, when I get home, I’ll late my Yule candles and and plug in the lights on my tree and enjoy the lessening darkness.

Amazingly enough, I have yet another finished object to share! There may have been much cursing and gnashing of teeth, but I finished my Yule socks! In time for Yule, even!

The pattern is the Spiral Coriolis from Cat Bordhi’s New Pathways in Sock Knitting. The yarn is Noro Silk Garden Sock. After making the pair, I definitely have a better feel for how the patterns in this book are structured and work; I still don’t understand *why* they work but I think at some point I’m just going to have to let that one go.

The socks are lovely and cozy; they make me want to curl up in front of a cozy fire drinking hot cocoa while it snows outside. Never mind that I don’t have snow or a fireplace, or anyone to curl up in front of it with. I can dream, can’t I? (Or at least make some cocoa.)

I also made more cupcakes.

Yesterday’s cupcake adventure was hauled to my office via BART and MUNI–and frankly, I wasn’t entirely sure the cupcakes were going to make that whole trip without getting stolen by ravenous commuters–and promptly devoured. (And, I hope, enjoyed.) Today’s batch is meant for CAYA’s Amazon Yule; I don’t usually bake for Friday circles, but in a rare fit of not being involved in planning anything at all, I actually have time to stop by my apartment and pick up baked goods before I go.

For this batch, I made more lemony gingerbread. These seem to be clear winners; they went the fastest at work, much to my surprise. I would have pegged the peppermint mocha as the front runners.

I also made maple cupcakes with maple frosting. The cupcake recipe is from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, but sans sugared walnuts. I meant to do those, but wound up going to The Sacred Well and chatting with Iris and Molly instead of having time to make the walnuts. Oops? The frosting is adapted from a maple buttercream I found online, since I couldn’t find powdered soy milk to make the frosting from the book.

Pretty good for a Friday, right?

I think I’m developing a dangerous trend of upping my game every time I bake cupcakes. I broke out the patstry bag and star tip this time, and I think these may be my prettiest cupcakes yet.

The icing is all swirly, and I even added cute garnishes.

Did I mention I was frosting these at 7 am, before work? Becuase I was. That explains why they aren’t all quite perfect.

It’s the holidays, so I made Peppermint Mocha. The cake is from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, and it’s the mocha modification to their standard chocolate cucpake. The frosting is the Vegan Cream Cheese frosting, but with half the vanilla added, and the difference made up with peppermint extract.

I also made Lemony Gingerbread cupcakes, also from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World. I used the lemony cream cheese frosting option; I have to say that I think I prefer cream cheese frostings that don’t use half butter or margarine both for taste and color (I had to tint both of these because I didn’t like the off-white tint.) The garnish is crystallized ginger.

Still…I think these might just be my prettiest cupcakes yet.

First thing–I love, love, LOVE this shawl! It turned out so well. It was pretty amazing. I blocked it out on a Sunday, and by Monday morning, it was totally dry.

The pattern is Ishbel by Ysolda, and I used Knit Picks Shimmer in Happy Dance (now discontinued). The color makes me think of Stargazer Lillies, hence the name.

I made the large size with lace weight, and I like the size it turned out. The pattern was wonderful, and I could definitely see making this again, maybe with sock yarn and the smaller size.

My attempt at an artistic shawl-in-action photo. Yeah, it’s not great. How do people get such good pictures of their finished objects? I feel like I’m always doing the same things–is it just because I don’t have a significant other or roomate to help take photos? Or have y’all trained your cats to use a camera?  Maybe I should try to bribe a photographer….

What else has been going on with the knitting and crafting front? Remember my Mabon yarn? Well, it’s finally turning into something.

A basic, simple basketweave scarf. It’s a great project to pick up when I’m feeling like I need a break from paying attention, and it shows off the color of the yarn wonderfully. Plus, I think a basket texture is a very harvest-y feel.

I’ve also got some secret projects happening. So, this is all I can show you…but there is lots of cackling and secret crafting happening behind the scenes!

Thora asked if could show a picture of the lace stockings I’m knitting. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything embeddable, but I you can see the original photos on this blog.

I didn’t like the look of them in white, so I’m doing a dark red. I can’t imagine white stockings would look good on me..or anyone really. It calls to mind go-go dancers or something. I’m not a fan.

But yes. I’m making progress, however small. Admittedly, they aren’t my main focus by a long shot. I do want to have them finished, but I’ve also got so many other things to knit! Gifts and socks and baby gifts (yes, more baby gifts) and there’s so many projects I want to make!

Someone needs to invent a 28 hour day. Please?

It’s been a very sock-y week here on the blog, I realize now, so it only seems fitting to wind up with a finished pair of socks. These are my Samhain socks–admittedly, they’re rather late, but still finished and ready for the upcoming year. I get the feeling it’s going to be a rather watery, Cup-y year for me so I might as well embrace it with the Queen of Cups on my feet!

And the obligatory modeled shot. Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of your own feet?

The yarn is Malabrigo sock in violet, and the pattern is Queen of Cups from Knitty. My row gauge was off slightly, so they were a bit shorter than intended. But I don’t always like super tall socks, so I like them. And, it’s one more square for the blanket!