Mmmmmm, socky...

It's hot in the Monkey House, so I've been making socks lately. They do not sit on one's lap, making one all hotter and stickier, so they are perfect July knitting. You've seen the bottom sock before, but the yarn for the top sock was dyed by Big Geek Beth. Isn't it fun?


This summer is all about making knee socks for myself to wear under my boots. Those Hue ones are cute, and you can sometimes find 'em fer cheap, but my feet get COLD in the winter.

I'm casting on my first Jaywalker with Sunshine Yarns 'Beach Day.' I really love the colors.


I know I'm probably doing something really stupid, but does anyone have any advice about the ribbing at the top of the socks? It's way too tight - on both of the completed socks - and the last thing I need to do is lose my legs to hypothermia and cut-off circulation this winter. I've just done a simple purlwise bind-off so far.

Beth and I went to a party last night at her friend Josie's place - Josie is an awesome crocheter and just got a book deal! It's scheduled to be released in March and is called In the Loop. You can see her designs at Weird Mirror in the meantime. The Spiderweb Skirt is making me seriously consider picking up the hook again.

A couple of posts ago, lots of (okay, two) people asked about the labels in my handbags. I ordered them from Heirloom Labels in NJ a year or two ago. They only have a few canned designs, but they are less expensive than some other companies that I've considered. I really like the end result and, if I recall correctly, they came pretty quickly. Also, Moe? I mail order the Amy Butler fabric for best selection and most efficient use of my time. I think I got those pieces from Crafty Planet last year.

Other recent highlights:

* We got the Tom Waits tickets (Please don't be too jealous, Jaichan - maybe he'll need to pick up some money from someone in Canada someday)!

* Because I am still Rock Star-less, I am still quite grumpy. Also, it's going to be eleventeen million degrees here for the next few days so I bought an AC from Home Depot that I could actually afford AND carry. I installed it and everything, but now we're in lock-down mode and Teak and Barley just keep sitting too close to and snapping at each other.

* I still have no job. I get super-pissed after a decent interview and I find that people want to pay me little more than what I was making 8 years and 1, almost 2, degrees ago. I keep applying for things that look interesting but I no longer get excited about it. Why can't HR people see that I ROCK?!

* I still have no dissertation, but I'm working on that.

* The raspberries in the back yard are ripening. Here's a snap of our first harvest:


* It's only 4:00 and Barley thinks it's time to eat. It IS NOT TIME YET!


* Thank you SO MUCH for all your recent comments on my work - they make me blush a little.

* I'm still catching up on all y'all's lives. Maybe it will happen this week, maybe it won't. Rest assured it will... someday.