I really want a fish.

I've wanted to get a beta fish for as long as I can remember, but I always talk myself out of it. We do have two cats after all. I suspect Simon might enjoying fishing if given the opportunity.

That's Dudley up there in the photo. He belongs to my niece, Cassidy, and he visited his Grandma and Pa's house for Thanksgiving. He hung out by a photo of my mom's irises on a high shelf in the old butler's pantry at my parents' house to avoid being knocked over by the somewhat hyper chocolate lab, Katrina. (Who, for the record, knocked my dad over when we arrived for Thanksgiving Eve dinner. Luckily he fell onto her bed so his landing was cushioned. I'm mad at her though. She's been knocking my parents over a lot lately and it worries me. They're in good shape, but they're not spring chickens anymore.) I think he liked the view. On Thanksgiving morning, I got up on chair to look at him and take some photos. He freaked me out by staring at me and making his eyes bulge out. The Polaroid shutter scared him. Sorry Dudley! The whole staring at me thing threw me off, but eventually I determined that no one had fed him so he was probably trying to communicate his need to eat. Not so different from the cats.

My other niece, Caroline, also has a beta fish, but she left him at home. After traveling with her from Las Cruces, I guess he didn't feel up for the drive to Santa Fe. His name is Patrick. I have never met him. Apparently he is half the size of Dudley.

Anyway, I figure if my nieces can keep fish alive, I can too. I just need to figure out a good spot for the fish bowl. I've already got some names picked out. Heath or Mewelde.

I'll keep you posted.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I got my hair cut a few weeks ago.

Not that you can really tell here, but I had my stylist take off 3 or 4 inches. My head was just feeling too heavy. I was super tempted to go back to a pixie cut, but I decided that might be too drastic. But maybe next time. Much as I love wearing braids, I am getting kind of tired of having long hair.

Yesterday was not as productive as I had hoped. I got sidetracked helping my parents with some stuff and it took much longer than I expected. (Not complaining, just saying.) Felting also took forever and was completely stressful. Knitting is so relaxing, but the felting part makes me crazy. Things never quite come out how I expect and usually it all ends up being fine, but when things are still wet, it's hard to tell and I have a tendency to get upset and think I have ruined everything. I use the same type of yarn most of the time and it still blows my mind how differently the same patterns turn out. I guess maybe it has something to do with the dyes in the yarn. I try to felt things in batches because I hate wasting water for one bag or a couple of flowers. It's also uses up our electricity, running the washing machine for so long. But when I do a bunch of things at a time, it's hard to keep an eye on the clock and sometimes that leads to the overfelting of things. Because I'll be wringing out and shaping one piece and totally forget that I was supposed to stop the machine after 3 minutes. So. Maybe I have to be more wasteful to make the whole process run more smoothly.

Today I think I am just going to knit. Will is going to be cooking for a good part of the day so I figure I might as well put off the cleaning until tomorrow. So it should be a relatively stress free day! Yay!

Football and stuff.

One good thing came out of yesterday. No, two. The Bengals lost to the Raiders. This brought much glee and shouting to the house after sitting around with long faces because the Steelers lost to the Chiefs. Quite the embarrassing loss. But misery loves company and now instead of feeling disgusted with the Steelers, I can make fun of the Bengals. I'll take what I can get. And I really, really hope that Ben's head is okay. That one does not need anymore concussions in his life.

The other good thing is that I knit 4 baby hats while watching all the football games. That's getting some work done.

Today begins some of the prep for Thanksgiving and all of the excitement. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday as it is the one holiday that I get to see both my siblings and their families. (Although this year we will be missing Leja, my oldest niece.) There is always much laughter and the kids are endlessly entertaining. I can't wait.

But first, there is much work to be done. Today after I run, I have errands to get done, some felting to bust out, laundry and other chores around the house, and maybe one more baby hat. I guess it doesn't sound like much, but trust me, it's going to consume most of the day. Felting always ends up taking way longer than I expect. The three bags I have to felt today are special orders and I am a bit nervous about how they are going to turn out!

Anyway, I gotta run now. Got a phone call that put me behind schedule.

Sunrise at the beach.

flickr faves

1. when light leaks, 2. Untitled, 3. Mystery film, 4. Untitled, 5. Untitled, 6. 00065, 7. Untitled, 8. mamiya try-out, 9. Easley, 10. Untitled, 11. striae, 12. peechee, 13. Nora, 14. Hollywood, 15. comet, 16. Untitled, 17. Untitled, 18. Untitled, 19. three overhead, 20. Untitled

Created with fds flickr toys.

As seen on Craftzine.

I absolutely love this typewriter key jewelry at The Weekend Store.

Eight years since the day we met.

And it's still so much fun! It's hard to pick a few favorites out of the 470 pictures I have in my Flickr set, but here's a random selection. Really every photo that I have of Will makes me smile. He truly is the best!



Created with fds flickr toys.

Read some old offline

archives from 2001 and good lord, I can't believe how often I used to write about sex.

I also babble incessantly in a very different way than I babble now. It was all rock shows and love and good friends and rock stars and love and boys and whoa. My life is so quiet these days, it's hard to imagine the "I went out the past four nights" life that I used to have. But ahhhh, such funny and good memories.

Here's an excerpt from November 14, 2001:

well, i can't get into blogger right now so i am writing this in an email to myself and i'll try to post it later. as if you need to know that little detail. this just must be A Tired And Late Week for me, because i am tired and late again this morning, and last night i did not drink mas cerveza and i put my booty in bed at the usual time. (get your mind out of the gutter - not that kind of booty - although, that would be a nice treat - i am just talking about the booty that i sit on every day, all day, at work etc. and perhaps your mind was not even in the gutter. i know mine was. yesterday, when i was riding home from work, i had a very eight-year old boy/beavis & butthead moment. i've been needing air in my tires for a couple of days and so i finally stopped on the way home. as i was riding up the hill, i was singing a little bike riding song about how happy my tires were to be filled w/ air and as i was doing this, i hear 'squeak squeak' and i think, 'oh, well i guess i need to lube my chain as well.' then i laughed. heh. i said lube. my chain. heh. lube my chain. i need to lube my chain. i probably shouldn't be sharing these things w/ you, should i?) but i still slept through my alarm. maybe i am just worn out from the past two weekends of partying like a rock star. i can't be too worn out though, because if you are keeping track of things, you know that this weekend is Another Big Weekend 'round here. friday night the johnsons big band is playing at the gallery and saturday is the Big Show at gooskis, starring crazee & heaven from brooklyn, the human brains, and the fabulous dirty faces. and the jBB are playing again on sunday. three nights straight of some of my favorite Rock Stars. what a lucky girl i am! thank god next week is a short week and i'll have four days to catch up on my sleep. speaking of - i can hardly believe that next week is thanksgiving! where the hell did this year go? it's been kind of a crappy year for me - well, not crappy, but hard - but i don't feel ready for it to be over. although i don't really know what 'being ready' for a year to end really means. don't have much of a choice in the matter, do i? nope.

oh shit, guess who is sitting here babbling so much that it is now way past my shower time. uh yeah, that would be me. again. i zoned out big time on my run again. i left the house and then all of the sudden i was halfway through my run, thinking, 'how did i get here? am i running?' and as i became conscious of the fact that yes, i was running, i immediately became very sleepy and wanted to dive into a big pile of leaves, curl up into a ball and take a nap. mmmm....naps. and right now all i want to do is crawl back between my cozy flannel sheets and curl up w/ rocky, all nice and warm and sleepy w/ sweet thoughts drifting through my mind. but alas, i must shower and go to work. if i'm lucky, the day will fly by again and before i know it, i'll be taking the damn spanish test that has been hanging over my head for two weeks now. and then it will be thursday. i like thursdays.
posted @ 9:07 AM link to this

Little did I know what that Crazee and Heaven show would bring to my life!

Yesterday was an all-around

depressing day for football. The Steelers looked so bad and lost an important division game. AND Troy got hurt again. Although as Lamar Woodley said, "The season didn't end today...There's a lot of football left to be played." It ain't over until it's over, but nonetheless, a depressing game. My brother's Broncos lost, dad's Cowboys lost. Thankfully the Colts pulled it out at the end of the game and beat the Patriots. One bright spot to the football weekend.

We went to Bernalillo on Saturday to watch my nephews play soccer. That was fun even though we about froze to death. But between soccer and football, I didn't get any work done over the weekend which I feel a bit guilty about. I have A LOT to get done this weekend and on this Monday morning, it feels overwhelming.

One thing at a time, right?

Mondays are my chore day and I rarely look forward to the vacuuming and mopping that needs to be done. But both are on the agenda for today. Also the watering of indoor plants and laundry. Then, work.

But first, a nice run in the cold and sunshine.

Beach finds.

Wednesday.

Errands before lunch.

Sewing flower pins after lunch.

And then we both felt like getting out of the house. (Errands don't count.)

So we had a few beers at Marble Tap Room, then dinner at Cowgirl.

We should have come home for dinner. Cowgirl didn't make us sick as usual, but it just wasn't satisfying. It's so close to us, I wish we enjoyed it more.

And then home in time for Criminal Minds. Gavin Rossdale guest starred and the show opened with him doing a cover of "Love Will Tear Us Apart."

The beers and the dinner out kept me awake for quite some time last night. After sleeping better for a few weeks, I haven't been sleeping all that well again. AGAIN. Fall asleep fine but wake up at 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning and just lay there, awake. I don't like it. Even if the kitties are snuggling with me.

I wish sleep would be my friend.

Hi.

I haven't been feeling particularly bloggerly lately. Part of me wants to forget about this site and part of me wants to keep it going.

So.

I am going to try to write a bit daily again. Or every other day.

My days are all so much alike, sometimes I don't have anything to say at all. Basically, I get up and spend some time online, run, knit, eat lunch, and then knit some more. I usually take a break at four and then sometimes after dinner I knit some more.

It's not boring to me, but it's boring to write about.

I'm exhausted today. Monday Night Football will do that to me. Will made tempeh chili again and it was delicious. I had mine over Fritos. The game was stressful and exciting and WE WON! Now I am already stressed about Sunday's game which is kind of The Game of The Season at this point. It's a must win if we want any chance of taking our division.

Anyway. Football.

Today I felted for a good two hours and it was frustrating. Nothing ever comes out quite right and it makes me feel like throwing in the towel. Then things dry and it all seems better. But man, felting is tough for a perfectionist like me. It is just so unpredictable. Even using the same yarn, over and over, things do not come out the same. It drives me nuts. Some yarn of the same type that I always use, felts for crap and I have no idea why. It's not that I want things to come out identical, I just wish that things felted more consistently. Like that last batch of flowers came out beautifully and then this one didn't. For no apparent reason. I also probably shouldn't felt when I am overly exhausted.

Then I sat down and started sewing together the flower pins. Fun, fun.

And now, I am taking that break.

Fall 'Roid Week, Day Five

Check out the entire Fall 'Roid Week pool here!



1. ascent, 2. London, November 4th, 2009, 3. Untitled, 4. Cobwebbed Cross, 5. Untitled, 6. Roid Week Day 5, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. youcantunafish, 10. strange shadow, 11. Untitled, 12. Untitled, 13. Untitled, 14. when we remember to be lit from within, 15. gulls, 16. Untitled, 17. Untitled, 18. lost world, 19. fly., 20. it all went horribly surreal..., 21. cure, 22. Polaroid Week, 23. 836 ways, 24. Nodding Artichoke, 25. the atlantic, 26. ride, 27. Untitled, 28. Newsstand

Created with fds flickr toys.

Fall 'Roid Week, Day Four

1. Untitled, 2. Louisbourg Lighthouse, 3. I hate flowers, 4. wonderland, 5. Untitled, 6. flowers / bank, 7. burning words # 1, 8. Untitled, 9. circuitry of the wolf., 10. chandelier, 11. I Wish You Were Real, 12. me and freddie, 13. Succulents, 14. Untitled, 15. Untitled, 16. Untitled, 17. easier said than done., 18. just because something isn't what you intended doesn't mean it's a mistake, 19. Backyard, 20. and light, 21. Super Colorpack Sunset, 22. Mildenhall Woods - 'Roid Week Day 4, 23. Forest Spirits, 24. 27th!, 25. Reading in bed, 26. lone, 27. overgrown, 28. roadtrip outtake, 29. Empty, 30. Untitled, 31. Untitled, 32. Virgin of Guadalupe, 33. Yellow Kitchen

Created with fds flickr toys.

Fall 'Roid Week, Day Three

1. Fern and Orchid, 2. The Traveller, 3. polaroid week #3: this was me..., 4. Straight a Head, 5. London, November 2nd, 2009, 6. Untitled, 7. Roid Week Day 3, 8. white sky and shadows, 9. Untitled, 10. They toil not, neither do they spin, 11. edge of light, 12. the mister's polaroid, 13. Untitled, 14. Maura, 15. Bloom, 16. El encantador del caballo., 17. vast expanse, 18. Lilly, 19. El encantador del caballo., 20. Untitled



1. London, November 2nd, 2009, 2. lollipop, 3. Raaawr, 4. Water's edge, 5. catcher of dust, 6. autumnsongs: 9 - great lines, 7. Shenzi, 8. acorns and oak leaves, 9. hillside, 10. wild, 11. spy, 12. l'aurore, 13. Untitled, 14. Untitled, 15. .9537, 16. Untitled

Created with fds flickr toys.

Fall 'Roid Week, Day Two

1. 365: 11/2/09, 2. tripping the light, 3. dissys, 4. Putt Putt, 5. area_51, 6. Untitled, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. [15/52] fdt - in a bed of leaves, 10. this is home, 11. Golden leaves and a tiny greyhound paw, 12. Untitled, 13. Untitled, 14. goodbye, summer, 15. slow growth, 16. trees + trees, 17. -, 18. On The River, 19. cloud and olive leaves, 20. Yallingup



1. Untitled, 2. sometimes they whisper, 3. It started feeling like October, I got stranded on the road..., 4. ., 5. Fall Roid 003, 6. Untitled, 7. Downtown TZ, 8. cats eye, 9. Hanging upside down from the fence railing offers a new perspective, 10. wading, 11. poppy pola, 12. Untitled, 13. infinity pool, 14. Untitled, 15. pedestal, 16. Untitled, 17. watching a Polaroid developing, 18. library butterfly

Created with fds flickr toys.

Fall 'Roid Week, Day One

1. 31 weeks, 2. An indelible mark, 3. Sussex, July 23rd, 2009, 4. Untitled, 5. Little Pumpkin, 6. fire burst, 7. Untitled, 8. felted bowls, 9. if you are a dreamer, start out like a sailor, 10. Thinning mist on our walk, 11. Untitled, 12. Llyn Ogwen, 13. sunset at our beach , 14. happy roid week!, 15. Ducks on Lake Bled, 16. Tania (with beer), 17. two worlds, 18. His master's voice, 19. california coast, 20. reverie, 21. Polaroid 28, 22. Untitled, 23. Untitled, 24. lapin, 25. Untitled, 26. meltinggg, 27. Leaves over the path, 28. Tower of Babel, 29. misty morning, 30. Untitled, 31. Night Blur, 32. Untitled

Created with fds flickr toys.