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"Little" black dress

This is it. It is done. And gentle reader; I managed to keep my head gear on for the entire event. That has never happened. I suppose I shouldn't use the term 'little' as there is roughly 5.5 yards of linen in the beast. The elbow looks very wonky in this picture but it really isn't that bad. I think I was standing funny. It was quite comfortable and I did catch a few admiring glances. Melisant pegged the hem length perfectly. I could even climb up and down the bleachers with little or no problem. It was long enough to puddle very prettily when I knealt, but I could stride confidently (surging bat like forward? why yes I think I shall!) when necessary. Plus, nobody stepped on the back that was awesome. Simone actually congratulated me on achieving the look-- which made my whole freaking day. I can only aspire to her greatness. I discovered despite my most sincere attempts to keep the fabric grain all straight, this gown pulls off the right shoulder a little. I suppose period undergarments are a must with this particular cote.


THIS BLOG IS FINISHED. THE END.

oooh I think i wet them!

OH! Awesome! doood!! SWEET!!-- look at the detail! I can't wait to get these in my army! The trio can be my newest recruits. No sooner do i decide it is unseemly for a grown woman to keep an army of action figures and swear I won't buy any more then these lil beauties fall into my lap. Hermione is PERFECT. groan---I NEEED THEM! Mom pleeeeese.

YpsiKnits= NO Karaoke!

OH thank the goddess! *relief* I haven't gone to bitchandcoffee in weeks, but Brookie said they were going to Karaoke afterwards--and I HAD to go and I was all like ..ummm no. But she talked me into it. I do love the social interaction. But I am a horrible knitter and generally advance my skills in other areas. (Like smutty inuendos!) But I dragged my fat ass of the couch and went out last night and had a lovely time. NOBODY made me sing... what a relief! I mean seriously I can hardly carry a tune in a bucket. It was nice to sip my chai latte and get an inch or so up on the old Ravenclaw scarf. OH! The PENIS! We meet at a coffeeshop named Bombadil's (duh I think ya'll kinda knew that). Peter the owner (not my Pete) is all about local artists and so there is a constantly changing art display. There is an oil portrait in this revolving decor (For Sale: Pets or Meat) of a rather well endowed dude. He's got NO booty; but he is hung like the proverbial horse. It was 'hung' right by our squashy couch and we couldn't help but admire it. Too bad it is bigger than the TV cabinet. I need a bigger house.

Izzy's Indy T-shirts

Daughter is quite pleased with her recent wardrobe additions.
we actually had the Squirrel Squad one for a while, but just got the OTTERS tee at the Meet last night. Ms. Thang got 4th in her first real event ever. That was actually a little traumatic at the beginning. Izzy's relay partner was really late thus Iz was kinda flippin out. Real tears. It was heart wrenching. She has this massive Hufflepuff thing goin on.
Zoli needs to learn how to do flip turns or whatever they are called because he was in a rather exciting race for third place (the kid in first was SOOO far ahead of everybody else it was pretty amazing, then the boy in 2nd-- then the herd--and Z was really doing well until they all flip turned to go back and he stopped touched the wall and then pushed off. ): So they got like six inches on him. Not bad for our first official Otter's event.

Both kids had fun. I worked a shift in the concession stand and we boogied home for our LOST marathon which was quite satisfying all in all.

so cold

I am so looking forward to the LOST festivities tonight. I will enjoy looking at pretty people on the beach. I am not having fun in the cold. It is, at least, sunny today. So, I put my shades on to walk Bree. Don't want wrinkles now do we? I am like a mummy. Bundled into my scarf, sunglasses, hat--basically no exposed flesh. My breath actually fogged up the shades and then froze! It was far worse than spraying the windshield with solvent and watching it freeze as you drive down the road. My ears and toes are still numb. I would make a horrible Yuki-onna.

There is this ancient Japanese myth about a Snow goddess. In some of the stories she is just a ghost who has frozen to death in the snow and cold. In other versions she is an evil entity, like C.S. Lewis' Snow Queen. Remember the bitch from Narnia?(Gods! Tilda Swinton is HOT!) Similarly, this Yuki-onna is also always beautiful and serene, but she too, is often quite deadly to stupid humans. In fact she is often a vampire and seldom has candy involved. (Damn I could get down with Ms. Swinton and some gooey sweets!) Small glitch with Lewis here, but, the easy compare/contrast parallel continues when you consider how Edmund initially hooked up with the IcyOne. You see darling reader-- Yuki-onna will also reveal herself to humans who find themselves trapped/lost in snowstorms. She's also got her icy breath that she uses to freezedry wayward travelers. Hmmm, another comparison point. Other legends say that Yuki-onna purposefully leads her victims astray so they wander around aimlessly until they die of exposure. She will often manifest herself physically as snow or wind. She then invades people's homes, blowing in the wall with an icy blast of swirling snow, to kill the whole family while they sleep. Doesn't everybody check the door before they go to bed?

Does the European story of Jack Frost ever actually kill anybody?

hmmm...I wonder if Lewis studied Japanese mythologies--ya 'spose?(insert sarcasm) I am not implying any plagiarism on Lewis' part, but I did just see a new book discussing the influences many great authors have had. The Little Book of Plagiarism by Richard A. Posner. It was in the NYT Sunday BookReview. *LOVE IT*

So. I suppose I am thinking a lot about snatching others words. oh--let's say Shakespeare and his sources (in particular in ref to my HV!) If one has internalized a text so thoroughly that you have adopted it as your own--it is plagairism or regurgiation? If you chew properly is it bad? What about the 'net? (Did anyone hear about Dame Alys and the punkin pie? I'll bet ya'll don't hang out on the cooks list so much but Dame Alys is apparently a LOT older than we all thought! *giggle*) Proper references young ones! MLA all the way!

Young Snape

fanart by ambient black (found on TLC.com)

this is the character in my head---

Mysterious Marooned Marathon

Here's the plan. TOMORROW!!!!!!Hopefully by six pm Petey will be home. Pete changes his clothes. 6:45 pineapple pizza arrives. 7pm we start reviewing last few epis of Season 2/3. 9pm everyone ensconced with pillows, popcorn, blankies and beverages. If you aren't interested in watching don't show up. If you are-- call me today so I can order enough pizza. Kids in theory have school in the morning so all guests should depart by 11:30. IF we *know* they don't all bets are off. This is the only invitation that will be issued. Serious Losties only need apply. Loud children will be fed to the turtle. Sea Anemone sushi, Ranch dressing and papayas welcome.

PS
If the kids don't have school on Weds (please god... it is just COLD) we will start without Pete..say about 2ish.

Sunday dinner

Matt was home Sunday. We made home-made pasta for the lasagane. Matt coached and kept the pints filled with Guinness. Matty was on the coaches' stool because it was his machine and I had never used it. I always go old school and just make a pile in the middle of the counter, and roll it out by hand. But we decided to play with the power tools, so the kitchen aid did the mixing and we got very nice, very uniform results with Matt's shiny toy. Petey held down the machine and I cranked. It was a good system.

Six eggs, four cups of flour. We had a layer of spinach. A layer of ground beef sautéed with onions and garlic, of course-- salt & cracked black pepper. A layer of Ricotta and topped with mozzarella. Used about 3/4 of a quart of tomato sauce with oregano, garlic, basil and thyme. It was awesome. In fact I had a really hard time just having a "reasonably sized" portion. (About 3"x3") Pete and Matt nearly wiped out the pan within two helpings. Isabel, of course, found it too spicy. Zoli and Evan barely looked up from their games long enough to smell it!

baby it's cold outside

Please allow Jarvis and Pete to demonstrate how fucking cold it is outside.

That clock thing DH is holding is pretty awesome. An elfbrand gift from his dear old Da, it claims to be "atomic"--giggle-- but it does have a remote sensor thingy that is out in the yard so we can check the actual temp w/out going outside! oooh how very hi tech. Of course we could peek at the weather channel, or WEMU is always on in the kitchen (they do the weather at the top of the hour) and in about seven seconds I can check on the 'puter. But it is a silly toy and Pete likes it. It does have the phases of the moon on it...

Still Joyce's B-day

If you won't read Ulysess (shame on you if you haven't yet) at least rent the Coen brothers film. O Brother Where art Thou? It's lovely. "Gopher, Evert?"

Writing in English is the most ingenious torture ever devised for sins committed in previous lives.
—James Joyce

My fave story about James Joyce; (I only have two and neither of them actually includes him.) is the one with Pete and Eric and the Guinness Fleagh. (say FLA for those of you who are Gaelic impaired) The three of us (this is back when we didn't so much as fart without one another) were attending this splendid festival of all things Irish. We had WAAAY too much Guinness and it was very hot. It was so hot (easily +90F) that the event was giving away free water. Huge galvenized steel troughs filled with bottled water and mostly melted ice. Some random guy picked me up and "threw" me in one of these bathtub sized buckets. WHY? because I asked him to!! There was NO shade anywhere, so hot-- the only thing hotter was all the live music/bands. (NOTE: This anecdote sometimes masquerades as the Van Morrison Orgasm story but that is a diff thing entirely.) This event was a rocking good time. Swing dancing drunk with pretty strangers. Ask me about the hooker on the fence sometime.

ANY WAY--James Joyce..right--
This day was very sunny, white hot bright. I think I lost my sunglasses. My alcoholic memory fades but it was hot-- and steamy-- and very drunk and the guys have toddled off (as they were wont to do) and I spy a tent. A big white canvas thing.

It was creating an oasis of deep lush shade. Dark and inviting. The grass was not trampled down by thousands of feet. The grass was heavy and soft, like a meadow. and what was it that I heard? Not the crazed and amplified jig of another folk band, not the dulcet tones of Elvis Costello, no this was calmer...a deep baritone of spine caressing manliness. This person was not singing--he was reading...FROM ULYSSES!!. I sank down on the green grass. In my blurred vision I could see a long lean black Irish dude, gorgeous, he stood on a little stage--he held THE BOOK. and he read. The sing song patter of Joyce's nonlinear ramblings connected viscerally with my disjointed and heat addled brain. So cooool-- I drifted off on this sea of happiness. The beautiful accent wrapping around my dreamy little head. I glanced around the darkened audience--singles and couples, less than 50 people total. I was in heaven. Poor silly boys if only they knew--ah...magically Eric placed my feet across his lap, Petey resting my head against his thigh. Pete handed me a full cold pint, we listened as Leopold stumbled along to his funeral--his journey a mirror of duplicitous fiction so beautiful and raw.

HP & the Deathly Hallows

It seems that early this morning-- Seattle time-- the whole wide world finally learned the official publication date for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows; JKR announced it on her page. (see the link to the right). It is 12:01 AM on Saturday, July 21, 2007. sweet. I have pre ordered my adult UK cover, but I think I'll just pick up the American edition after breakfast that morning. Unless, the kids want to go to one of the bookstore gigs. And a mere eight days after the movie release! (Gonna need a new counter downer-er) Man--Phoenix Rising is gonna be nuts. and TLC is totally bogged down.

Meatwad gets the hunnys yeah

This morning in the FREEP Petey pointed out the story about the faux bombs. in Boston. Now granted I was still pre-coffee so when he asked had I heard about the bombs in Boston I was a little startled. But it seems that the mysterious blinking boxes were only a promotional prank for a cartoon. It appears they have been on display in numerous other cities and that Boston overreacted a bit. Part of me can hear the indignation of the Bostonians, but really it is a funny cartoon and a great prank. Honestly, what can you expect from a show that presents a whole cow, injected with jalepeno cheese, dipped in beer batter and deep fried? This is not a place to go for intellectual stimulation.

I am suddenly reminded ("self" I said to myself) of Bill Gates' and Jon Stewart's recent conversation about the future interactive capabilities of TV/computers. What are some examples of this new technology Gates offered?: educational shows will have quizzes at the end, or that the viewer can participate in game shows. Neato--especially from the Mommy POV, yet Stewart raised the point that perhaps sometimes we (Fat Lazy Americans that we are) just want to sit and be entertained. (amen brother) My girl QueensexxyGretch just pointed out (and this supports Stewart's idea) that after staring at a computer screen all day at work-- the last thing she wants to do is come home and make a myspace page. Enough with the blinky screen. I can understand that. Ya'll know I adore a well bound volume. But... I do like the idea of hanging out with Shake and watching dog shows.--Fo drizzle!

odd little discs

The mail came yesterday. ( I know darling reader, it does that) But I was just so happy to see those distinctive red envelopes. The last two discs of the Samurai Champloo series. My beloved anime; by director-san Watanabe of Cowboy Bebop fame.I had discovered the series last year when in fits of insomnia-- I would cruise the late night programming on Cartoon Network. I randomly chose Champloo over "Ghost in the Shell" and was immediately hooked. At first I was a little lost because the episodes were not presented in the order they were intended but I soon figured out where I was and gave up on Adult Swim and headed straight to netflix. I had been parsing the discs out carefully to prolong the buzz. I finally broke down, rearranged the queue and got the last two back to back. Christ am I glad I did. I was disappointed to find out A.) each disc only had like two or three epis--not like the earlier discs which held six to eight episodes. and B.) The shows themselves were getting shorter by the second. I feel unfinished. There wasn't enough. I am so engaged with these characters that I am actually kinda pissed off. Lame Ending. Parting at the crossroads..how freaking cliche! So much potential, so much beautiful art, original art. Fantastic dialogue. So tempting and lush, how could he just stop?? I think of other artists who yanked the rug out from under their audience, in a different genre (actual comics) we currently are victims of Bill Amend/Foxtrot, but also Bill Watterson, who drew Calvin & Hobbes the greatest cartoon of ALL time--yes even better than Charlie Brown (sorry Timmy) and and to a lesser extent because he was actually kinda run out of the studio on a rail--John Kricfalsui. These guys all commit the cardinal sin of engaging the reader and then just crapping out. To quote Otto from a Fish Called Wanda
"DIS a POIN ted!"




What Samurai Champloo Character Are You?


Hosted by theOtaku.com: Anime. Done right.

Oh Danny boy--

Well our little hero has grown up. The lower shot is from the current run of Equus, in which he stars--yes THAT play--wow. The little photo I have enclosed here--->

















is from a very funny (if you are into a lovely salad of David Bowie, Orlando Bloom and Harry Potter tossed with Roseanne and sprinkled with a big dose of sarcasm) British sitcom called EXTRAS. It is running on HBO.
I was at first a little embarrassed to admit that I signed up for HBO just so I could see their three minute OoP trailer. (See the counter in the next column over--the big numbers with Snape? yeah that lil filmy) But now I have found ROME which I adore and EXTRAS right after. Sunday night is quite a bit more festive!

On the britcom Mr. Radcliffe was busy trying to get his 17 year old ass laid, and doing a pretty crappy job of it, but he did get to wave a condom around Dame Diana Riggs' ( start humming the Avengers theme song) stately 'do.

Poor Barbaro

pretty horsie.

Just for me

thorn (þ) and eth (ð)

I love saying bilabial fricatives.

The end. (part one)

It is finished.

Saturday at Mistress Melisant's garb work day I finished the bomb. Honor asked me why I called this project "the bomb" and I explained that it had blown up both figuratively and very nearly literally at least three times. It seems like nearly two years ago--I flew out to the cities (That is how we Northshielders refer to MSP) and got a crash course in how to look at patterns, and my sewing machine. I heard the words that my soon to be laureled Mairgreid SAID. I even took notes.

But that did not stop me from completely ignoring her sage advice and piecing together a black linen gown in (this is the sick part..) in the most 'efficient' way. I also thought I would be clever by just not adding the bottom add on part of the skirt pattern because I am short, seamed (get it SEAMed) fruitless to purposefully add on something I was going to have to hem off in a week. hmm..not so much.

When the first incarnation of this supposed cotehardie was finished It swirled very nicely. I slipped it over my head to find that one sleeve was centered nicely between my boobs and the other was under my left arm pit. I learned about fabric grain the HARD way. I then bought more of the same linen (thank you Trisha!) and started going to Melanie's work shops at EMU. Laid out new bits and cut them out and pinned them in and sewed them up. That all sounds very easy but the fact of the matter is no sooner would I get confident that I knew what I was supposed to do and move forward w/out Melisant hovering-- then I would screw up and have to pull it out and do it again. Serging the bits made no sense to me until I had to adjust the armpits. Then the tangle of pube-like threads from un-serged pieces was frustrating enough that they about made me cry.

Finally it is a wearable garment. It has some wonky moments and a few extra puckers here and there, but these are the best sleeves I have ever done. I am quite pleased with the beaded sash. The buttons are still staring at me. BUT! Technically the reason for this blog is caput.

Remember back when I started this blog? Well, on Valday. I will have somebody take pics and that will be the end.

Freakin Horse pills

God I hate taking drugs. I feel like a geezer. I should get one of those little plastic boxes with the SMTWTFS printed on the lids. I have a horrible gag reflex and despite years of ortho novum I still really hate taking pills. I can dry swallow the little peckers, but dude I am really wishing I could get the big ones--I dunno--chewable, yeah like friendly drugs. It is still like two months (oh crap-CRAP. i just looked at the calendar 2 months and two days--crap--how depressing) till I am officially 40.
As another obvious reminder of my aging-- I am supposed to take a handful of horsepills every morning but I am so bad at it.

Then when the weather doesn't co-operate and my knees get stuck. sigh.

Watched the crappy* movie "Stick It", back a bit-- but all it really did was point out quite glaringly that I am NOT a letter winning 89lb gymnast anymore. I am old and creaky and fat and I have to take these damn pills.
I don't like like it, nope not one little bit..
Somebody shoot me.



*that's my secret word for today CRAP --now everybody scream Pee Wee style)