Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Peering out of the Mayhem into the light of June

Seems that things are starting to clear, and normalcy may set in, but life is certainly much quieter and less stressful. Thank you for holding on, I seem to generally find the month of Mayhem just to be such a doozie, and never for any real raisin (reference Phillip J. Frye and attack of the Brains here please).
So without any further interruptions I give you the log cabin squares:








In their current state they are all sewn together but most likely not in this order. I'm reusing the Cascade ecowool that just wasn't a Hemlock as a border between all the squares (to make it bigger) and around the outside. Keep in mind that the majority of this Noro silk garden was left over bits and balls from all the mitletts I made for the past 2 years. Plus a full skein or two. I really have no idea how much Noro is in this, but I can attest to it's warmth and softness. And I should have enough balls (not scraps) saved to make my own blanket, as this one is still destined for the FIL. It's more of a family blanket but it is being made with him in mind. Don't you just love Noro and it's self striping yummy~ness.

This weekend is my greek gypsy friend (Kyriokos') 30th birthday. We're driving up to Davis to make it to his BBQ and I believe I'll be delivering a bottle of the St. George Absinthe to the young man. He insists that Absinthe does nothing to him, aside from the last time when on a tiny Island called Quajaline (SP?) he and a bunch of fools finished a Chech bottle and thought it would be a great idea to catch the baby sharks out in the reef. Thankfully nothing foul came of it for anyone, but it certainly sounds like something he himself would even suggest. Remind me to tell you of the time we borrowed the little row boat and went out to a barge in the bay, late at night, drunkenly.

After that comes the first Faire of the season, Valhalla. I can't wait. It's my favorite Faire, and who knows maybe they're still be snow on the ground, as I have it on good word that it was snowing up that way this last weekend.
Well the morning alarm is going off, I suppose I should go and put the kettle on for tea, and make us some breakfast.
Til then, cheers.
Oh and what do you call a husbeast that has shorn all of it's facial fur off??? No really. I suppose Love Bug will do until there's something respectable on his face again. And yes I did take picts they're still in the camera though.
Anon and thanks for waiting.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

Nearing the end of Mayhem

How about a few little pictures in the meantime! Finally.
Well, let's just hold off on those log cabin shots, the pict uploader is being a booger. Yeah... ok.
So instead, here we have a few of the latest mini toppers, this is the burnt crimson mini mini topper, with a pink and black silk band, ace of spade button on top of an iridescent button. An alternate view can be seen in the side bar.
Recently I met up with the young man who started all this back last Halloween downtown, the one with the mohawk, well I'm still waiting to exchange him hat for painting, and seems like we're still on for that. This next pict is the backside of the hat I initially made for him. Unfortunately it's a bit top (hhah) heavy, so I'm going to be constructing a mini mini topper, but maybe a little different for him here in the next week or so. This one came out a little 1940's German like, but it's fun set off with silk and bead ribbon as a band, and a little dead phicous (sp?) from my house tree. Heh, I say get it where you can. Lastly but not least of all is one of my fav's from the latest batch of mini mini toppers. This fabric was an impulse purchase for $1 from a local thrift store when I was working on a knitted wall for the Devil on All Sides. I feel as it just screams Rom, or hobo, or carpet bagger, what ever you may call someone on the outskirts of society dabbling in a little of the what not. It's super fun to wear and gives just the most striking of profiles. I've been wearing it without the peacock feather but with the little bit of twig that protrudes 8 inches through the air hidden behind the feather in this pict. The mushrooms hail from Small Stump etsy, I refuse to link to their yummy goodness lest all my lovely cotton mushrooms are stolen from out from under me... lied, they're all gone, now my little mushies are all that more precious. I must go weep now. Never mind, I lurv google. Well then, off I must be, it's getting late.
Welcome back to a glorious Monday, presumably since it's still Sunday as I write.

Monday, May 12, 2008

Still Mayhem

Yeah Mayhem really is a sleeper month, but lo who cares, onto other things...
here we go. (like how I just avoided all the crap I don't care to discuss, woohoo)
As always it's lovely having company, and even lovelier when they leave. We tootled around with my old gypsy friend Kyriokos before he left yet once again for some part of Louisiana. He was fresh off the boat from Trinidad before then. What a job. Fixing submarines and doing all this weird building stuff. The guy is literally a God among mechanics. Nothing too daunting for him. But I shouldn't praise him too much, or he'll get a fat head. We did show him around the little Island we work on, and then went out for a lovely German dinner. Mmm meatloaf and yummy calamari. And if it weren't for his impeccable driving skills the old Honda would still be stuck in that parking lot in a space too small, and a vehicle too close behind it. But I figured if anyone he could get the Honda out of there, so it didn't really matter if it was a crappy space or not. I also intrigued the young man (turning 30 at the end of the month!) about the budding concept of Steampunk. See he's been a bit out of it sense he hasn't been to the Burn in a few years, and well I just keep going to all these strange events, so it's not that alien to me. We discussed all the possible vehicles of transportation that could be powered by steam, and how dangerous that would ultimately be. Then he and the husbeast stayed up until 6 am debating theology (rather loudly might I add) and drinking bottles of beer, while I awoke every now and again and gave them dirty looks through our Norin curtain that hangs in our hallway.
In between hostessing I also knit on the log cabin blanket, I must say it's just lovely. All the colors going this way and that. The squares are all attached now, and there is a 8 row garter stitch holding them in piece. Last night I cast on for the first of the outer border, which shall be twice as wide as the inner borders. I'm really thrilled to see it coming together over all these months. I must prod the husbeast to give me access to the problematic iphoto. I need to show picts of this thing.
Not much else for now, but it is Monday, so go and enjoy all that it entails.
cheers.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

What a lovely paperclip you have there.

It's purple and a circular spiral. And from someone else. I think I'll get some of these for the office, they're just fantastically lovely.
But really you didn't come here to hear about my fascination with a purple spiraled paperclip. Nor the wonderful song on the radio, "I want to be just like you...hoo..." there's horns and a bit of flamenco guitar, and just a lively beat. Ah yes that was refreshing.
So something really odd just happened, it's 11 am and my cell phone rang, I answered it and it was Jaboli. Someone I was acquainted with while separated with the husbeast before he was my husbeast, so this was like 3 years ago? I met him at NorCal Renn Faire in Hollister. He was working the pirates ale booth. Nice guy that turned out was married and had a kid and was still willing to make new "friends". An aspect in his personality, let's just say I was not pleased with. Well any how I believe he has me mixed up with someone else because he wanted to hang out and play music. Those of you who know me may remember that of course I'll pick up an instrument without shame, but honestly I really shouldn't. See, I'm tone deaf! Yes the truth is out. I can't keep beat and I make things up just to amuse myself. Which is rather scary because I have my wonderful concertina, and some bongos. And once at camp (heheh~not real camp) we were really drunk and it was New Years and my friend and I had to pee real bad, and I had a toy accordion, and I took it into the echoey bathroom, and well it was really amusing, to me. I didn't have the heart to tell him that I was married and thought his behavior terrible, shocking, and just weird. Needless to say he still wanted to hang out even though I don't think he remembers me, and just found my number in his cell phone. Some people are just strange, and I am strange but he's just stranger than me.
Enough of that dribble.
In case any one was wondering, the ravages of Mayhem are quieting, perhaps mulling, but they are behaving much better, thank you for your patience once again.
After talking to my gypsy friend, Kyri (the oil rigger/fighter pilot mechanic/blimp mechanic~pilot/small airplane mechanic/windmill engineer/submarine mechanic/submarine administrator who travels all over the world), I convinced him tonight would be a better evening for him to come out, so tonight he'll be heading downtown w/ the husbeast and I to my knitting night at the local pub. Yeah for beer. And then tomorrow I entertain, and Saturday hmmm I don't know. I'm sure we'll figure something out, we can't be that old, boring, and married, can we...?
Oh well.
Last night I dragged the husbeast over to Oakland for some necessities from Article Pract. I love that LYS. It's so rad and the ladies are very nice, and they always have crap that I don't need, but must have. Like my new little Lantern Moon tape measure in the shape of a leaf w/ some little lady bugs on it. Also on the prosh side, were a bunch of red buttons w/ little brown checks on them. I think there's 12. That's enough for a lovely button up, or tons of mini top hats, or or or or. The reason I really had to go down there was for some really long size 8 addi turbo needles, I picked up a 47" lace weight needle that should do well for making the larger portions of the blanket. And finally after so many years of wanting one, I grabbed a clover felting tool.
My new handy dandy little clover needle felting tool has aided me in my endeavor to make my little mini bowler hat, but I'm not sure about the construction yet. It's still a bit off, but I didn't finish it either, so in my best means I shall suspend judgement until then.
As for this weekend, we have no real plans, but soon my lovelies, there will be Valhalla and camping, and much Renaissance Fairing.
Anon til then.

Monday, May 5, 2008

Shaking Fists and Inter computal hugses for Mayhem

This last week and the weekend have been busy, not exactly in a good way. The month of Mayhem is certainly upon us, and I for one am feeling a bit of the brunt of it's forceful ways. My heart goes out to my bff, lots of tears and saying good byes today for her wonderful father.

It's just been one of those sad, depressing weeks. I believe I have even tormented the husbeast with my unwifely behavior of moping and doing nothingness. Even the littlest things like missing the Maker Faire this weekend put me in a rather foul mood. Don't get me wrong, we drove by but there were just so many vehicles that we were daunted and didn't go in. Sad sad socially angst person's that we are.
Then there's the old roomy's dog we've watched for the week, well she had surgery to get rid of her female parts. He comes back from the desert Sat, and Sun calls to see if she should be oozing from her sutchers. She hadn't popped a stitch but she is certainly fighting a mighty horrid infection now. And she is back in my care as I can much easier watch her in the office, then he can by leaving her at his house.
But here's looking forward to the future, and at least Wednesday my old gypsy friend Kyriokos (aka Kyri~ the only person I know with his own theme song) will be visiting our household. No idea which room would be best to put him in as of yet, but at least there's a blow up mattress with his name on it now.
Perhaps his visit will perk my nature up.
You know what though honestly I want to work the Maker Faire, and yes I am still peeved that we didn't go in. But that was my decision. You should have seen the lines, and it was 12. So sad, or should I say lame. The harlot was there, I was wearing a little mini mini plaid top hat. And both the husbeast and I were touchy. But that's just how it is sometimes, nothing will ever be perfect, and really that is okay by me.

Speaking of perfection I am currently working on and frogging and reworking the means by which all the squares of the log cabin are being pieced together. It's slow and methodical when not being a thorn. I also must go and grab some new needles that are long enough for the rest of the blanket tomorrow.
On the hat front well I studied how to do different types of felting and believe I shall needle felt the poor little form of the bowler hat. Now onto the tools which shall be picked up tomorrow likewise w/ the needles.
Quickly before I infect anyone w/ my unbecoming nature, certainly to be blamed on the natural aspects of Mayhem, I bid you ado and soon, iphoto will be my fiend, um friend.
cheers.