Why Do They Make It So Hard?

Ok, I suppose I do understand, on the most simple and basic of levels, the "why" behind the 4-page application process, the home visit, the neutral territory visit between the dog and family, the requirements for obedience training, the whole nine yards.  BUT, shelters often wonder why people would choose to spend $800 and up on a puppy or dog they find on Kijiji rather than adopt some poor creature who, through no fault of their own, needs a home.  We live in a modest sized townhouse.  We have a fenced-in yard.  We live a fairly active (often outdoors) lifestyle.  And yet I have to admit that the idea of all the various things that we have to do in order to apply for the puppy that my husbeast and I have taken a liking to is rather daunting.  I mean, my family and friends will be contacted to see what type of people we are, there will be background checks into both of our lives, there will be a surprise visit later in life *if* we are successful in adopting...and on and on and on.

Yes, we like the little guy that we want.  Yes, we know the cost for adoption as well as the cost for the obedience training.  Yes, we know that he is a puppy and will need training.  We are prepared to accept all that comes with a dog.  And we would prefer to do it in a manner that helps the wonderful people who foster and try to save as many animals as possible from "kill shelters".  But I am on the fence about if I really want to open my life up as much as I am being asked to to complete strangers who will then judge whether they believe we are fit to have an animal (especially given that, if they deny us the adoption, does that mean that they actually feel that we are worse for an animal than a shelter that would eventually kill them?).

I suppose I will have to think on it a little longer.  I mean, we have waited this long to find someone who would be a good fit for our family...if the little guy we like is adopted  before we make any decision, such is the way of life.  What is meant to be will be.

ttfn

Yarn Yarn Everywhere

Well, I am happy to say that a few days in to my Pinterest driven motivation, and I am still going strong.  I am on the last change of needles for the socks...looking good for me actually getting a pair done.  WEEE!!!  And, the obsession doesn't particularly seem to be held at knitting.  I have been stalking eBay for discounted yarn.  I have found (and bought/bid on) a few different skeins of yarn with specific projects in mind (and one I admit that I just really liked the colours).

I find it rather odd, however, that the two main projects that I am working on (there is a third that I am working on...an afghan that is based on a stitch that my nanny (my grandma) showed me when she was down here visiting...but I know that that is going to be one of those "oh look, I finished it on December 24...just in time for Christmas" things), they are both kinda at that numb stage.  I know the patterns that they both follow.  I am aware of where and when to expect increases and how said increases are worked.  So I am finding myself getting much further on them then I realize in my sleep-deprived, I have a teething 4 month old zoning out.  I look down and it is suddenly one of those "oh, i am on the last repeat of the first leaf pattern" moments.  I like this, really I do.  But without the instant gratification found in bulky yarn projects, it is kinda ticking me off.  I mean, I am further than I realized...further than I thought...but I still have all this to do still?  Really?  How is that fair???

Oh well...such is the life and times of an overly tired, often hormonal and cranky, mother of three with attention issues.  :S

I have also run out of shows to watch.  I hate that.  Totally unrelated to anything else in this post, I know, but it is true.  I fell in love with Terra Nova, only to find out that the first season was also the last and only.  :(  Boo Fox.  And now I am on the last episode of Primeval.  My Doctor is all up to date.  I need more sci-fi shows that are interesting and watchable!  Bah!

Sometimes I am a Little Slow

So, we all say it.  "This year, I am going to keep up a little more with my blogging."  But, inevitably, life gets in the way.  :S  Go figure...I want to share the comings and goings of my world with others, only to have said comings and goings get in the way of my telling anyone about them.  Yep, that sounds about right.

Anywho, I currently have one sleeping child and one who is, for the moment, content to play in her chair, chewing happily away on her fingers and, from what I can ascertain, trying to figure out why the fingers that are below are not so easy to get in her mouth.  I am sure that she will eventually get them, but for the moment, the 5 point harness is keeping her strapped in position and providing a nice diversion.  I will take the break where I can get it.

For the last little while, I haven't been on a finishing kick in any way, shape or form.  I have worked on a helluva lot of different things, and in all different areas of "artsy fartsy" stuff, but nothing that I have been all "look at me, I did that".  HOWEVER, that having been said, I have discovered that my friend's addiction to Pinterest has led to my addiction in actually wanting to start AND finish items.  It is kinda neat the feeling you get when you start and finish something in a relatively logical sort of time frame.  I mean, I have had things that sat around for months and months (some of them to the point where I could no longer recall where I was in the pattern, even after looking at it row by row and eventually ended up frogging...I guess you could say that the drive to complete said pattern just left).  But, as I said, a friend of mine recently has become a Pinterest junkie...which has led to her finding some awesome hand made items on Pinterest and tagging me..."can you make this?"  It is almost like it is a challenge.  I don't know...can I?  Can I do this in a relatively short time frame, since the item she has tagged me in is a summer item, and it is currently summer time?  Hmmm...lemme see.

And off I go.  This has, in the last week and a bit, led to this:

Even I am impressed with myself.  I am actually much further along on the socks than that.  The picture above was taken yesterday.  Now, I am up over the knee on the thigh high buggers.  Of course, the real challenge will be how long it will take for me to do the other one.  At the moment, I am planning on casting on the other one this evening, since the needles that start these socks off is a size 2.

Well, that is really all that is going on at the moment...I am loving Pinterest, but purely because of what it does to other people...which in turn motivates me.

I currently have an ant playing on my thigh under my pants, so on that note, I am going to sign off and go squeal like a girl until it is gone.

ttfn

kb

CIBC Run for the Cure

Yeah, okay, so it has been a very long hiatus. But in my defence, I have been busy as all get out. We are finally settled here (mostly), and we are now a family of 5 (eek!).

However, more importantly, to those of you who read regularly, and for those who don't and just somehow stumbled upon my blog, please support an excellent cause.

On September 30, 2012, I will be participating in the CIBC Run for the Cure. Every donation helps. 
CIBC Run for the Cure Donation Page

Cheers!

Really? Already?

I can't believe that we are at the middle of July already. Where the hell did time go? Seriously? I mean, I clearly remember talking to my daddy in February and discussing when he was coming to visit. And voila! They will be here this weekend. What. The. Heck.

I recently finished a pair of abso-adorable ballet sockies for my sitter's soon to be little girl nugget. :) They were super fun and easy to do. Will post pics as soon as I have the camera up and running. Hopefully that will be very very soon (as in tomorrow??).

Anywho, hope all is well with everyone.

ttfn,
me

And voila!

EWell, it is done. I discovered this morning when I wet it, the blue bleeds. My fingertips are a wonderful shade...lol.

Anywho, it is my boss' birthday this weekend coming up, so I will likely take it in tomorrow. With the upcoming long weekend, you can never really predict when purple will be around.

enjoy!

Fate is just an Energetic Child with a Short Attention Span

Today I headed out on the town (a work related assignment to be sure) with one of my boss ladies. Nothing special, but at this moment in time, anything that is outside of the areas that I already know is exciting. It still makes me happy. These are thing little things that make me feel like a local. So when others say “oh, you know where place xyz is” I can say “oh yeah, I’ve been down that way”.

So in my journey, I discovered that it was wholly unnecessary for me to be there, but I did find a mall. One that one day, when I have a little money, I would love to go and see again. For the moment, a quick stop at the drugstore there will have to suffice.

I am about 14 inches into the shawl now. It is coming along really nicely. I forgot just how much I like the feel of bamboo. It is infinitely soft and glorious to the touch. And I realize that I don’t need it until july, but I would rather have it done sooner than later. And the fact of the matter is that I just really like this yarn.

Plus my other boss lady’s birthday is in August. So 4 weeks after this one is given, I have something else due. I know, logically, that they aren’t “due” per se, but the fact of the matter is that I like making things for people. It gives a birthday gift that extra oomph. (I say that knowing full well that I HATE making this for people when I feel I have to, or they feel I should. Go get your own talent!)

And every time that you see a person wearing something that you lovingly and/or painstakingly spent hours creating, there is a simple and pure beauty to that that cannot be described.

In other news, I just recently finished reading A Nameless Witch. Awesome read. With some really intelligent and humourous quotes (such as the title of this post).

And my super squee of the day: The Neil Gaiman written Doctor Who was the one that played this weekend past. I haven't seen it yet, but I have it PVR'd...wOOt!! So excited for that.

Anywho, is that magical time of the day when my bed starts calling for me.

ttfn
k.

It's a Shawl Kinda Day

Well, I guess it is more turning into a shawl sort of week.


I finished this puppy a few weeks back (I took the lace pattern from a shirt that I had done once before, and just altered it enough to make it flow nicely). It was boring, and black, and acrylic, but I am fairly pleased with the end product.

I would have preferred a nicer yarn to work with, but I didn’t really have a choice. The girl this was for is allergic to many materials, and specifically asked that I make it in acrylic. And she doesn’t do colour. At all. So it was black, blue or white. All of which are colours I like and wear a lot…but they are not the most exciting colours in the universe.

Sadly, with this acrylic, the pattern doesn't show overly well:



Anywho, I am thinking this has started my current love of lace. It is fun to do, and I love watching the patterns appear out of a hole. Beauty from chaos. One of my favourite things ever!

I have since started on this (which is to one day be a shawl for one of my bosses). She inadvertently picked it out herself. She is a bit of a fashionista, and so when I was looking at various patterns to do for her, I figured, hey, what the heck...sent her several and asked her opinion. She knows that I have family coming out to visit me in July, so believes it is a birthday gift for one of them. :)

I am sure that she has some inkling this might be for her, but really, who is going to be crass enough to ask someone if they are making something for them? She is a classy and refined kinda gal, so I can't imagine that she would ever think to ask me outright.

The yarn for it is from Yarntopia Treasures (Bacon, I love eBay). It is a 100% bamboo yarn, so has a wonderfully soft and silky feel. It's just in its baby stages (I did it originally on size 3.25, as called for, and found it to be a little too small for my liking. There wasn't the drape and hand that I knew this pattern and yarn could do.

So anywho, here she is so far:



The yarn is called "he loves me not"...which is a really nice blend of red, pink, blue and purple, and all the multitude of shades in between.

I thought that I would try to bring some colour to her wardrobe. Like many professional women, she has fallen into the "black and gray and all the shades in between" style.

Anyway, that is all that is going on for the moment. Will update when my life becomes more exciting, or I start making progress on the Tongue of Fire and want to show it off. hehe

ttfn
k

Zybannaculus?

Well, today was my first day on Zyban. At the moment, I am okay. I have set my quit date (May 27th). I have been warned about the side effects of bad dreams and all that jazz, but I’m still willing. It is time, I think. Stress is still there, but hopefully I can keep it to a minimum which I think will help me in being successful. This is the first time that I am choosing to quit. Last time, it was because I was stuck in the hospital, with stress up the wazoo. With more and more stress added daily. And soooooo much uncertainty.

So I am hoping that this time, I can do it. I realize that we just finished a very cold and crusty winter, which would have, in theory, been the ideal time for me to quit…but I didn’t think about that. There was too much going on. Too much to be done. Too much doing.

Wish me luck.

ttfn
k.

He's How Old???

Well, in honour of the first hot love of my life turning 50, I dedicate this post to Ken.


He was always such a suave guy...easily making the transition from business casual to beach ready to stalker hot:


And yet sadly, he was stuck up on that plastic bitch. He even went so far as plugs (I tried to shield him from the truth of how they looked, but I think the running and screaming *might* have tipped him off):


But alas...for every blue, effeminate ascot (I am guessing this is where my love of knitting started), I was there to make him cool again. In my childhood world of make believe, back when I still had an imagination all my own, he was the super coolest of the cool. Once, he was a paratrooper flying in to some foreign land I once heard of called USSR (take that reading program!!! I remember...) where he fought monkeys and boulders to free barbie's little sister (why was I bought the little sister for a present, but not the barbie 'vette like I wanted???? Lest you wonder why she was kidnapped by the evil monkeys and boulders). Many times he was a mountain climber who befell some horrible accident (note: I was called for lunch) only to struggle his way back up the mountain (note: dresser) to safety with only one arm and one leg (note: we had a very bad dog). But he did it.

So here's to you, Ken. I've said it before, and I will say it again, stop going for her. She is a narcissistic bitch with multiple personality disorder and severe feet issues. Find someone better. You deserve it.

ttfn
k

OMG, OMG, OMG

Happiness:

Suranne Jones will play a character called Idris in an episode written by bestselling sci-fi and fantasy author Neil Gaiman. She plays someone who is beautiful and who bites “and who might just turn out to be an old acquaintance with a new face”.

Gaiman has teased on the internet that he’d taken up a “…plot point from an old episode called ‘The War Games‘. The episode begins “in void-space, with something – or someone – we have not seen since The War Games and a knock on the TARDIS door.”

The TARDIS breaks down on an alien junkyard world. “Although Idris is preparing for death as the story begins, she doesn’t actually die. By the time the Doctor and friends meet her she’s gone mad and ends up biting the Time Lord …”. Who is she? Romana? A Human Tardis, the Rani? Idris sounds a bit like Tardis.

The last story of the Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) was called 'War Games' and it featured SIDRATs. 'SIDRAT' were proto-TARDIS’ (Space and Inter-Dimensional Robot All-purpose Transporter) that were used by the War Lords to abduct human soldiers from history to take part in the war games. So perhaps SIDRAT’s make a return in his episode.

Neil Gaiman has said his episode was originally titled The House of Nothing. Filming was in August 2010. Suranne Jones has previously appeared on the Doctor Who spinoff The Sarah Jane Adventures as an evil incarnation of the Mona Lisa.

Yes, it appears that Neil Gaiman has written an episode of the Doctor. Oh how this makes my little wee heart swell with happiness. :)

P.S. I have finished one of the two socks for my first pay it forward. I rock. Woot!!

ttfn
k.

It's Not Like You Are Going to Wear It!?!

Well, I am pleased to say that I am rockin' it out as far as knitting is concerned. So far this year (a measley 20 days in) I have completed my tunic (such an awesome thing and I have already worn it to work a few times), a baby blanket (will post pictures soon), and 2 hats. I am also planning out an "I just had surgery and this is my ruby slipper" sock for my dear sweet Frannie. :)

AND, I am over half way through Season 2 of Merlin. Love it! Good thing I am not a die hard Authurian or I am sure I would hate it...but as it is, young Merlin is totally up there with bacon.

But now for my happiest thing. I am getting my deep freezer this weekend!!! Yes, I am that much of a geek that I am super excited about that. I just hate that there are often times these great sales on roasts and other such frozen animal bits, and I can't really "stock up" because we only have the little freezer on the top of our fridge. So I am stuck with only grabbing one or two, and lamenting the fact that I could have gotten 8 or 9 for about $20. And that is soon to be no more.

I love kijiji for the simple fact that you can find some things on there that you wouldn't have ever thought about. I mean, a chest freezer just didn't really occur to me before. I don't know why. We have friends out here with them. But it just didn't occur to me. And then one day, we were at Canadian Tire (there was a coffee maker tragedy in our house...all better now, but it was a rough and scary couple of days), and I saw the little mini freezers (about 3 cubic feet). But good lord...$200. So the one that I found is less than half that price, and 3 times the size. Wee!! And when I was telling the husbeast about the dimensions of it, one of his comments was "but it only comes up to just about my thigh". Um, seriously? Are you planning on wearing the damn thing?

Anywho, I am getting my freezer. Then I am going to start shopping around at the local butchers for the best meat for price deal. :p

Wee!!!

ttfn
k.

And then there was one...

The last few months have been a little rough. Some days harder than others, but on a whole, not exactly the easiest things to get through. And yes, I have been through harder. But it is hard to keep that perspective when you are going through something that, at the time, feels like the hardest thing on earth.

But things are getting better now. Lighter.

There are still hard patches, and I don't imagine life is all rainbows and sunshine and unicorns. But it's getting there.

And that, my dears, is life.

On the knitting front, hella busy. There's been sweaters and sockies and blankies and toys. So very many things. And I can't seem to locate where the pictures have all gone at the moment. But, this is my coffee tunic, finished just last week:


And I have already worn it. I love this. It was a relatively easy knit (especially given that I worked Christmas Eve day with nothing to do but sit around knitting), and it looks awesome.

I am currently working on a blanket for my boss's soon to be nephew. Just a simple basketweave pattern. Nothing earth shattering. And such a quick knit.

And I am participating in something a friend of mine posted (I can't really say "started" since she didn't...but she was the starter for this year for me)...Pay it forward 2011. I have my 5 people who I am going to make something handmade for...and once the blanket is done, I will start on that.

I am super in love with my new bosses. They are very cool and down to earth people. They keep me busy, which I love, without being crazy insane busy...and are appreciative of all that I do. Don't get me wrong...I am not someone who needs praise for every little thing that I do (especially when it is called my job), but I love that they acknowledge when I have busted ass for them...or when I have done something that is outside of the realm of my "job description". :)

Well kiddies, I am off to watch the rest of the Merlin marathon and knit for a bit (the little guy is down for a nap, so this is prime knitting time). Hope everyone finds their own measure of peace this year.

ttfn
k.

Christmas knitting already?

Yeah, I guess it is that time already. So yes, I have started.

But I have been more concerned with getting some hats done. Both my little ones need new ones, and the boybot needed a new one for work. Plain black. Boring as sin, but at least it was quick to whip up. Just adding the hair to a mohawk hat. And a button to a new, plus size aviator hat for the great big little man. Also trying to sneak in a sweater dess for yours truly.

Might have to put that one off for a bit, but I keep trying to squeeze it in.

Well, that's all that's going on.

Ttfn
K
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

And we are back, folks!

So, the move went well...but the computer died on the trip. And quite frankly, we had other things to put our money towards. Sorry, not that I don't adore my fans, but we just couldn't afford a new computer on the heals of a cross country move.

But, I did end up doing something I never thought I would do in my lifetime. I BUILT MY OWN COMPUTER. Yeah, i am kinda impressed with myself. I built it. And it works (touch wood). And it is good and happy and quiet and pretty and lights up in red and blue. :D And it is an energy saver/green machine/thingy.

And in the interim, I have done a heck of a lot of knitting.

I finished a few sweaters, have started on the 5th one (this one for a child like creature), and I have even started on some of my christmas knitting. WOOOHOOO!

Well, it is late here, and I have had such an adventuresome day...I am going to get heading. I will update with pictures once I have them all downloaded on to the computer (there is a hell of a lot of them over the course of the last few months...lol).

ttfn
k.

My Shiny New Kobo

After packing several boxes of books (and donating several more boxes to the library), I sucked it up today and got a Kobo eReader. Not that I need to be fancy. Or that I liked spending money. Especially in the inevitable face of our move. But as a parting gift, I had several friends gift me with cards from Chapters. All tolled, I ended up with $125 in gift cards. So that put the cost of the device at $43. AND, since it has the ability to support ePUB files, and I can easily convert the thousand and one lit files that I never have time for into ePUB files, it seemed like a good investment.

And so far, I am loving it.

Plus, it is something nice and small that I can make a knitting project for myself for...to tide me over until I have all my knitting utensils back at hand.

Bah...I hate moving.

ttfn
k.

Today My Hair Looks Marvelous!

Not really, it does!

And while I do rock like Christmas in July, I am not just being conceited.

The reason why my hair looks so divine today? Because I am chopping it all off. My hair is pretty sick and twisted. It spends the majority of it's time being all angry and large and in the way...so I usually just tie it back and try to minimize the shame it is attempting to foist upon me. Eventually, I realize that no matter how much I try to bribe it with fancy haircare products and tempting offers of oil treatments and leave in conditioners, it just ain't going to work with me.

So yesterday I called my hair guy. We have an appointment for 6:30 tonight. He's taking away the dead, the decietful, the angry largeness, and replacing it with a manageable, loving, healthy 'do that will accentuate my stunning features and bring a loving light to my eyes.

And what does my hair do? It decides that it will try to buy itself more time. I wake up this morning and it is all pretty pretty. The curls look wonderful instead of frizzy and sleep deprived. It is doing exactly what I want. It isn't subverting the clips meant to hold it back from stabbing me in the eyes repeatedly. In fact, it is staying away from the general face area without any outside help at all. You see, it knows. It knows that it's time can be counted in hours. It is trying to stop the inevitable. It is making me feel sexy and all RAWR-y. Go get 'em, Tiger, is what it is secretly whispering in my ear.

And if I bought into it's lies? I would wake up tomorrow looking like a q-tip.

Sometimes, I hate the double-life leading hair I have.

ttfn
k.

How I Am Teaching My Daughter To Challenge The Way Society Thinks

So Princess asked what's for dinner tonight. It's hot and I'm lazy and I have an appointment at 730, so pizza it is. Our conversation went like this:

Me: pizza (pronounced p-ee-za).
Princess: mommy, it's pizza (pronounced p-eet-za)
Me: but there's no "t" in pizza.
Princess: :/ (at this point she just wandered away)

Yes, I am teaching her early on that it's ok to challenge things.
~the gang
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

Things I Think When No One Else Is Watching

Lately, many of my strange and crazy thoughts have been given free reign. Unfortunately, the BoyBot and I have not been seeing much of each other lately due to work schedules and being so damn busy with organizing our move...so there is no one to reign in the twister of insanity which swirls inside my head, planting little ideas like poor little cowsies in an Illinois field (this is what I imagine the aftermath of a twister involves).

Like today. Today's big concern: My Not So Public Public Bathroom.

I cannot use a public bathroom unless there is an absolute emergency which would result in me having to change my pants when no pants are around to change in to. So, in light of the fact that I burn up 8 hours of every day in my florescent cubical of happiness, I have convinced myself that the potties here are NOT public. I mean, I need to have a security card with my picture (duly taken well after the "3" count so I look like I am in perpetual pain) to get on to the floor and get to them. I don't even need a security card to use the one at home. Pfff...if that doesn't say "Private Bathroom", I just don't know what does.

Yet this illusion of privacy sometimes back fires. There are times when I have been in there taking care of my business (I have heard that this is a much less offensive way of saying "piddling" - KB, now with 20% less offense) and there are some horrible noises coming from a stall nearby. Now I know, on a very basic level, that these are not things that can necessarily be controlled. And if it weren't for these bodily functions, we would likely explode (which would be much ickier). But I can't help feeling somewhat embarassed for that individual.

And then, of course, when I run into them at the sink (oh please, oh please...cuz if they don't go to the sink, they obviously didn't bother reading the sign about the proper way to wash your hands), I just can't bear to look them in the eye. I look at my hands, intensely paying attention to washing in between each finger, making sure every crease and groove is sparkling in hand washing glory. I check out my own reflection, making sure I am not trailing toilet paper or the sticky tabs on feminine napkins which have somehow missed the giant target that is the bin taking up 1/3 of retail space in the stall. I duck my head and run out, hoping they don't follow. And I feel this shame on their part for the rest of the day.

And then, of course, I go home and tell my children it is all a natural part of life and "if ya gotta go, ya gotta go".

But I swear I'm not a hypocrite.

This is what happens to my mind when I have 7 days of work left, and no BoyBot to calm me down. :(

ttfn
kb

Not Much To Report

Life has been so busy lately with doctor's appointments and follow ups (Riley is doing great, as far as his 12 month neonatal appointment), packing and culling, organizing and, well, more organizing. It's been a busy last few weeks. :S

But, I am sure that that will all be over with soon. (7 days left of work!!! WOOOHOOO!!!)

I have just barely started using my Halloween-y yarn. I am not yet sure if I want to make a pair of sockies or a much more visible pair of wrist warmers. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

So, in light of the fact that I don't have much to write, I leave you with:

BACON WRAPPED CHICKEN. Is there nothing that bacon can't do? (I do not mean to abuse the delicate sensibilities of any non-bacon/pork/piggy eating creatures with explicit visions of chicken being violated in such a manner, but I love bacon...it is great and good and so yummy. Besides, I think the chicken likes it.)