Knit Run, Purl Run

Holiday Halfathon – FINISHED!

Posted on December 13, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running – Holiday Halfathon – FINISHED!

So I’ve been bad, as you all know, and not following my training plan. It definitely made a HUGE difference in my half marathon today – it was the slowest I’ve ever run, I think. LOL! It also didn’t help that I’ve been running in my Vibrams for the past month… right from the start, my feet felt really heavy & odd. By the end of the race, my toes were on fire! Hours later, my feet are still hurting more than anything else.

BUT… I finished it! 3 hours. Pathetic! But I finally got the one medal I’ve wanted to get for years! And yes, I wore funky holiday socks over my regular running socks, as you can see. ;)

There were several folks along the way that helped me out. First, my friend Monica volunteered & was at a couple water stations as I went by – she was awesome, cheering me on! Right around mile 2 or so, I looked up to see Larry – the infamous ‘flip-flop man’ – he was running the race even though he shouldn’t have been running. Just goes to show, runners sometimes throw common sense out the window in order to feed our addiction. :D I just ran with him for a couple of minutes, then dropped my pace back down.

Around mile 5 I ran into a wonderful person, Meredith. I had some bad stomach cramping right then, so dropped out for a bit, but got going again shortly. I caught up to Meredith just past mile 7 – right at my normal turn off point to go home! It was so tempting to just go the one block to home instead of continuing! Meredith & I ran/walked together for the next 4 miles – it was fantastic! I had wanted to give up, but chatting with Meredith really helped me to keep going. A good part of our chat? Me explaining Doctor Who. I’m sure that comes as a huge surprise to anyone that knows me. ROFL! Hey, she asked if I watch a TV show & was shocked when I said I don’t watch TV. Well, except for Doctor Who, of course. So she asked what Doctor Who was… what could I do?! ;)

Just as I turned into the park for the final stretch, there was my Dad, waiting for me with his Dane Rocky. I stopped so Monica could snap a shot of us, then off I went again. Just about 12.5 miles into it, who finds me but my fellow running blogger, J! He ran me in the rest of the way & gave me the extra boost I needed (even though I whined & walked a good part) to get it done. It was awesome to finally meet him – we’ve blog-chatted for years now! LOL I had Monica snap a shot of us, but she hasn’t downloaded them yet. You’re off the hook, J! LOL

Knitting

I’ve been knitting & crocheting like crazy the past week, of course. I’ve finished several holiday gifts – I have just a couple more things to finish & I’ll be done with my sister & her family’s gifts. I’ve still got the manlets to knit for, as well as my Dad. Still not too many ideas on what I’m going to make him yet, but I haven’t given up just yet! :) Again – suggestions are always appreciated! He’s a man that LOVES to cook, so I’m thinking cooking related gifts will be best.

I’m working on accessories for my nieces and their American Girl dolls. I just finished a matching set of shawls for one twin and am now working to finish a hat/scarf set for the other twin. It’s been fun, making little sized things to match bigger sizes for the girls! :) I also finished the gifts for the BIL, but won’t mention them here in case some family members actually do read my blog. I don’t think they do, but ya just never know! ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search

Some fun for today’s search! Remember, none of these patterns are mine – click each picture to go directly to the Ravelry pattern page!

* What a cute idea for the Nike + iPod folks! Awesome!

Part of an entire booklet of patterns, these are FANTASTIC!!

Quickie cowl - pretty!

You seriously cannot beat Alan Dart's designs - they are wonderful!

Different sort of run meant, of course, but cute nonetheless!

* A hat from another knitting, running blogger! :)

Running diamonds - lovely!

* Sock-it-to-me gloves - nice!

* A terrific little headband - I love it! I must make some of these.

*Cute sock!

* ROFL - have I mentioned how much I love this one before? ;)

* Long lace vest - very pretty!

* I really, really love these!

* Adorable!! Snow Bear hat! I love it.

* A different take on the iPod armband- I like it!

* GORGEOUS! Just fantastic.

* Pretty eyeglass case, I like it!

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 7 Comments

Project 365

Posted on December 7, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

So yeah… still haven’t stuck to my original training plan. But it’s all good! The Holiday Halfathon is this coming Sunday. I know I can finish, that’s not a problem. I just hate that it’s going to be SO slow! LOL As they say, though…

DFL > DNF > DNS

Right? My fellow runners know what that means. I’m shooting to do a wee bit better than DFL anyway. ;)

I’ve been running quite a bit in the Vibrams. I have days when my legs are really, really sore – in places they’ve never been sore before! After running quite a few times, I think I could do a bit better with the next size bigger. Just to give my toes a bit more room. I’m cursed with long fingers, long toes, long arms & long legs for being so freaking short… so my toes feel a bit webby in the size I’ve got.

Knitting

I’ve been working like crazy on various projects the past few weeks. Getting ready for the holidays & all that. Since I’ve linked my blog & it’s rather public, I’m not going to be showing off any projects as I don’t want anyone’s surprises to be ruined. :D

I’m working on finishing up a few projects for my nieces – they are very much into the whole American Girls doll thing lately. So they are getting matching items – a project for their dolls and a matching project for them to wear as well. :)

Project 365

So some of my fellow Rubberneckers decided to join up into a group to participate in Project 365 … it sounded like a blast & a challenge, so I joined along with them! In essence, you snap one photo a day for an entire year – photos of events in your life or maybe just challenging photos trying new things with your photography skills. I’ve linked to my photo set on the sidebar, but here are some of my shots so far…

Vibrams in the Office

A Typical Evening

Twisted Vines

Christmas Lights, Tossed

Today’s Ravelry Search

So, here are some patterns I found when I made an appropriate search… as always, these patterns are not mine – click the picture to go to the Ravelry pattern page.

Lace Photo Mats - lovely!

*Ocean Photo Frame - this pattern would be perfect for a beach scene!

*Fantastic idea for those that live in cold weather! Love it!

*Whoa! Seriously gorgeous!!

*XOXO Cable Hat - wonderful!

*One can never go wrong with The King!

*Oh, wonderful! Rune Alphabet - I love it!

*Fantastic! A felted camera bag.

Cute gift idea for a photographer! :)

A lovely crochet version of a felted cozy! :)

*Free pattern

Happy Monday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Free Patterns, Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon, Knitting, Project 365, Running | Comments Off

12 Working Days until Vacation!

Posted on November 30, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

I was bad. I did not do my long run yesterday. In my defense, I did have one of my really bad headaches! I am still struggling with accepting my slow speeds, too. I find myself dragging my feet getting out the door because I know my run is going to go SO slow. It’s frustrating, not picking up the pace much. I know first hand that it takes some time before the pace starts making improvements, but it is still so frustrating to be THIS slow. LOL

I have shaved off about a minute per mile in my pace – I really should be very happy about that! But it is really, really difficult to be happy about it when I was hitting an 8mm pace when I was struck with the shin injury. That is SO much faster than I’m running these days.

Ah well – a really slow pace is still better than no pace & sitting on the couch, right?? :D

Knitting

I’ve been super busy still in this area. Getting ready for the hols & all, of course. I’ve finished up something like 8 projects in the past couple of weeks. Both knitting & crocheting, of course. Still, I’ve got so much left to do! Yikes!

My biggest hurdle right now is sorting out what to make Dad. He just got a good sized afghan for Father’s Day, so he doesn’t need another one. He also got a hat & slippers last year… and he doesn’t wear socks! We live in Florida, so he rarely wears sweaters I’m at a bit of a loss for ideas, I”m afraid. If anyone has suggestions, please, please – comment!!

12 Working Days until Vacation!

I’ve got quite a bit of vacation time coming up, which I’m really looking forward to ~ I need to recharge the batteries big time! Loads of running, knitting, crocheting & reading is on my agenda for the time off. Yeah, yeah, ok… and yes, loads of Doctor Who watching! I must admit that I am rather glad the manlets will be at their father’s house when the final David Tennant special is shown. I already know I’ll cry & I’d rather not do that in front of them. They already laugh at me & my Doctor Who love as it is. ROFL!

Originally I’d hoped to get away to visit my friend in Hungary… unfortunately, life got in the way & things became too expensive, so the travel nestegg was wiped out & the trip canceled. One day, I am totally going to get out there, though!

Well, I’ve got to manage a trip to Hungary (to see Anett), one to Australia (to see Bill & Brigette), and one to England (to see Kate & Charl) & Scotland (just because I’ve obsessed over it since I was little!). Not sure how long it’s going to take me to get all of my visits done, but I’m determined to get them done one day! ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search

Tried a search for ideas for Dad, but it didn’t turn out so well. So let’s go with something else today! Remember, these patterns are not mine & are all on Ravelry, just click the picture to go to the pattern page.

*Snowfall Mittens - very pretty!

From the Winter issue of Interweave Knits - I love colorwork like this! :)

* The pattern is in German, but it's just so pretty! :)

* You all know how I love thread crochet! :)

Such a pretty shawl! It could make a wonderful tablecloth for the holidays as well.

From the latest Twist Collective - isn't it adorable?! :)

*Oh wow. These are GORGEOUS! :) I don't normally knit other sock patterns, but I think I'll make an exception for this one!

* Baby Starghan - I really love this one! :)

* Cute!! I really like this one.

*I've made this pattern! This pic is actually mine - I LOVE this pattern!

*Free pattern

Happy Monday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Free Patterns, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 7 Comments

Bad blogger, bad!

Posted on November 27, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

Whew, wow. Where to begin? LOL First, I have not been able to stick to my training plan. I’m not terribly worried about, though. I’m still running whenever I possibly can. I can still get 12 mile long runs done. Slowly, but I can do ’em! I’m balancing my runs with short runs in my new Vibrams with longer runs in my beat up Aasics.

Ah – running in Vibrams = a whole new perspective on what muscles you use to run! :D For those of you that don’t know about them, they are designed to protect the feet while still giving the flexibility of running in bare feet. I find that the next day after running in them, my legs/ankles/feet are sore in places that normally don’t hurt after running. :) Did you know that the typical foot has 26 bones, 33 joints & 20 muscles?! WOW! he he he

There is a whole subset of the running community dedicated to running barefoot, if you haven’t already discovered them. Running Barefoot is a good resource for anyone interested in more info, though they are pretty emphatic about running completely barefoot there. Those of us that live in more urban areas really can’t run too many places barefoot – I know I come across broken glass all the time in my runs every day. That’s why my Vibrams are a perfect solution for me! :)

Here – these are my Vibrams!

I’ve gotten my weekly mileage up to around 30 miles, though this past week I had to take off. I’ve been battling a cold for a week & it’s really caused a hit in my running. :) Better now than the week of my half marathon, yes??

OH! I nearly forgot! For those of you that have been reading my blog for a bit, you know all about the ABC gum pole. Well, I took my mobile with me on one of my weekend runs & snapped a shot of it for you. Just in case you thought I was making it up! LOL Excuse the dark pic, it was a stormy run that day… ;)

Knitting

Wowza, have I been busy in this area!! :) I finished Narcissa just before SAFF, yay! It turned out really lovely – I really love Shelby’s colorways! Also finished – a lovely lacy scarf for myself (I fell in love with the colors!). I crocheted 2 shawls for my favorite niecies – the Crocus Bud shawl. The pattern is really simple but wow, does it ever crochet up & block out gorgeous!! Take a look….

I did one in blue for my niece Olivia & one in purple for her twin Devin. I adore my niecies! :) I really hope they like them.

I also crocheted a doily for my friend Monica’s sister. They were very sweet & invited me over for Thanksgiving lunch since the manlets were at their father’s house for most of the day. I used the Exceptional pattern from ‘Extra-Special Doilies’ by Leisure Arts. All the doily patterns in that booklet are gorgeous! I didn’t have enough of the color of crochet thread to do the full doily, but I was happy with how it turned out nonetheless.

I had given my BFF a knit grocery bag – yet another Ilene bag, of course – for her birthday. She loved it so much, she asked me to make one for her daughter as well, so I got that done too. I have another holiday one OTN – have I mentioned how much I adore this pattern?? LOL!

I have Lucius OTN as well. I had planned a gorgeous cable pattern for him – what else would be appropriate for Lucius Malfoy?! But, the cables were just getting overpowered by this gorgeous colorway, unfortunately. Then Leonardo grabbed the sock off my dresser & played with it, chomping my wooden sock needles. I had to frog the sock! Luckily, the yarn didn’t break, amazingly enough. But since I had to frog it, I redid the plan & I’m pretty satisfied with the new plan. I’ve made good progress on that too.

It’s the busy season, what can I say?! :D

Bad Blogger, Bad!

I know… I know. I’ve been really, really bad about blogging of late. My apologies! I promise to do better. It may be the crazy season, but I have every intention of sticking to blogging. I really do enjoy it & sometimes, you just have to make the time to do what you really enjoy!

I’ve also been overindulging in my Doctor Who addiction of late. Brought on by the seriously fantastic episode, Waters of Mars, of course. David Tennant really knocked it out of the park in this episode ~ he never fails to amaze me, but this episode is really fantastic. I was both horrified by and heartbroken for the Doctor, yet at the same time, I completely understood why he did what he did. It really takes talent – both by the actor and by the writer – to bring such conflicting emotions out in the audience. I am have really mixed emotions about the final 2 specials starring my all time favorite Doctor – I am both really eager to see them, but completely dreading losing MY Doctor. LOL In fairness to Matt Smith – I recently saw a couple movies that he had a role in and I honestly think he will be just fine as the Doctor. I just highly suspect that he’s not going to be MY Doctor. :)

I did get quite the chuckle out of the Children in Need teaser. Good Queen Bess & her nickname, indeed. Though that is a story I would dearly love to read in a book some day. ;) And I totally LOL’d over the “locked it like a car” bit. he he he

Today’s Ravelry Search

So… the mad season is upon us! Let’s see what fun things we can find…

* Oh, now these are just adorable!

* Cute crochet mice!! :)

* Berroco has now published a set of mini sweater ornament patterns 3 years in a row - aren't they FANTASTIC?!

* Cute afghan from Patons!

* Crocheted wreath - cute! :)

* I really do love thread crochet! :)

* I really do need to make a steering wheel cover regardless, but this one is cute!

* I have some serious love for this popcorn garland!!

* These would make really cute ornaments for a tree, don't you think?

* I love tawashi anyway, but this is so cute for a holiday gift!

* Elf sock! SO cute.

* Free pattern.

Happy Friday, all! ;)

Posted in Running | Tagged Barefoot Running, David Tennant, Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search, Waters of Mars | 8 Comments

Whirlwind of Activity

Posted on October 11, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

Wow, where to begin?! LOL

My 2 miler on Thursday was a bit of a disaster. I had hit the mile marker and had just turned back when I saw a cyclist coming up on me fast. He had a headlamp on his bike, I was wearing white AND had my steady red light attached to my shoulder. There was no way he did not see me. There wasn’t anyone coming up along side me, so he had plenty of room to go around me. He wasn’t budging. So I darted over to the walker path. See, the trail has spots where it splits the “walker” path off from the main trail. The problem with the walker path is that it isn’t very well maintained~ there are many, many places where tree roots have torn up the trail and these spots haven’t been repaired (we’re talking for years). When I run in the dark (which it is at my normal running time of 5am), I stick to the main part of the trail because of the damage. I cannot see these bad spots so I cannot hop over them like I can when it is light out. So… you guessed it – I hit one of these root eruptions & down I went…

The culprit, as captured on my long run today.

The culprit - hard to see, but it sticks up about 6 inches from the trail - as captured on my long run today...

... and the resulting damage to the knee!

I’ve officially begun my training plan for the Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon. I already messed up the first week, but I think I can recover. I’ve reinstated my Sunday morning long run, yay! Last Sunday I went for 8 miles, running a couple of them down the beach. I got out the door late, so it was rough going. The temps have been back to the 90’s ~ with the heat index, we are looking at over 100º! Insane. Anyway – last weekend was an 8 miler, today was a 9 miler. Let’s just say I got a late start and was running with a heat index of 105º – you can imagine how awful the run was from just that much. A “bit” of walking was definitely involved. It was a very slow 9 miles, but I am actually ok with that. I am at the point of focusing on the distance, not the speed! As I know full well, trying to concentrate on both distance and speed is the short path to injury. So I”m sticking to worrying about the distance ~ 2010 will be the time to start looking more at my speed, I think.

Knitting

I started a pair of socks for myself while I waited on some new yarns to arrive. These socks are just fun socks dyed with Kool-Aid in bright colors that aren’t normally my thing. But I love how the yarn turned out & I’m really liking how the socks are knitting up…

Not the best shot, but I had to use this one because of the adorable camera hog in the background. LOL

Then I realized what time of the year we are heading into… and figured I’d better start working on holiday gifts during the times the manlets are away! So I cast on a 2nd project – which is unheard of for me most of the time! LOL

Simple manlet socks

Naturally, then the yarn I was waiting for arrived! LOL So I broke all records for myself & now have 3 socks OTN. These are for ShelbyB, an awesome indie dyer that specializes in Harry Potter colorways. Let me tell you, she has some absolutely gorgeous colorways!! I was very honored when she asked me to design sock patterns for her colorways – I am so excited about them!! Take a look – aren’t they fantastic?! YUM!

Narcissa Malfoy

Lucius Malfoy

Lord Voldemort

Chocolate Frogs!

Whirlwind of Activity

So I had an absolutely FANTASTIC time with my friends from across the pond last week. We went to the beach, walked down Indian Shores, collected sea shells & tried to capture Great Blue Herons on camera. One in particular wouldn’t cooperate, he kept grooming himself every time we’d go to take his picture. LOL Then we went to Panera Bread to meet up with my knitting group, where everyone got to meet Kate & Charl. I even convinced the elusive Sayyida to come out & join us for the fun. Charl doesn’t knit, but I think she still had a good time. :) On Friday we went out to dinner with the manlets, who finally got to meet Kate & Charl. We ate at their favorite place, Village Inn (LOL). The oldest surprised me by being more outgoing than he usually is & was actually rather chatty for once. The youngest did not surprise me at all & was his usual painfully shy self. When we got back home, Charl totally made the oldest’s year by asking if he would like to take their rental out for a quick spin. They had gotten upgraded and were driving a brand new Charger – a car that he drools over all the time. I can honestly say that I have never seen his face light up THAT much. He was shaking, he was so excited to take it around the block. :) After that, I drove us down to Georgie’s Alibi, the bar where I’d gone to my first drag show. We met up with some of my friends from work & hung out for a bit. Sadly, no drag show, but the guys did get more of a show than we bargained for in the form of hired dancers. One was quite a bit more … exhibitionist than he should have been.

I was really sad to see Kate & Charl leave, but I know after 3 weeks away from home, they were more than ready to get home. :)

The next day, I had the Race for the Cure with my knitting friend Monica. Unfortunately, all the walkers didn’t listen to the announcements asking them to start at the back, so Monica & I were quickly separated as we tried to zig zag around them. I ran ahead once I lost her, but once I finished the race, I went back and found her so we could finish it together. She literally just started running again less than a month before the race and she ran the entire thing without walking one time! I was SO proud of her, she did fantastic! Not to mention the fact that she looked utterly adorable with her pink outfit & matching pink flower in her hair. :D

And lastly, the oldest manlet came down sick with the flu this past week. His temp hit 102ºF for a very short time on the 2nd night, otherwise, his temp stayed to a low grade fever. He had all the usual symptoms, but the body aches hit him really hard. He stayed in bed or on the couch for 2 days straight and didn’t even ask to watch TV or play video games. That tells you how sick the poor guy was! I don’t know if it was the swine flu or just plain regular flu – I understand that swine flu is much the same as the regular flu, but with a high fever. Since he only hit 102ºF for about an hour the one time, I think he had the regular flu. :)

Needless to say, all this activity has put a real crimp in my Doctor Who watching!! However, I have managed to get in reading a Doctor Who book as well as listening to 3 of the Doctor Who audiobooks. All 3 were read by someone other than David Tennant. It just wasn’t the same, I must say. One was read by Freema Agyeman called Wetworld. I enjoyed it & she wasn’t bad as the narrator. Then I tried to listen to Forever Autumn read by Will Thorpe. He was good until he attempted American accents. Sadly, since the story takes place in the U.S., he attempted it frequently. It became too much and I just couldn’t finish it. I’d have been happier if he had just read it without trying for different accents/voices. The best one took me by surprise – The Forever Trap read by Catherine Tate. I wasn’t sure how I was going to like it – I love Catherine Tate, even though she’s not my favorite companion. But that book is what kept me company on my long run today and she did a fantastic job of it! Really terrific – take a listen if you get the chance. David Tennant is, hands down, my favorite, of course… and I can’t wait to get my hands on ‘The Day of the Troll’, which was just released in the U.K. this past week.

Today’s Ravelry Search

So, in honor of my friends from across the pond, check out some of these patterns from today’s search! As always, click the picture to go to the Ravelry page for the pattern.

The absolutely stunning Rose of England - I am so going to make this one day!!

* England football jumper!

The 'London Calling' sweater/jumper from Stitch & Bitch Nation

* I am seriously beginning to think there is a dishcloth for EVERYTHING. ;)

* What a terrific baby hat! I love it!

* Naturally, a soccer, er, football had to be included, right?? :D

* Ok, this one was in the results because of the suggested yarn, but it just reminds me of the 4th Doctor's scarf too much not to include it. LOL

* English Garden Felted Carpetbag - what an interesting project!!

I would love to see this tea cozy actually on a pot to see how it fits! Cute idea.

* An English driving cap, lovely!

Oooh, it's the English Garden Mile-A-Minute afghan! I've made this one, it's fantastic! :)

LOVE! I love these mittens.

Pretty argyle styled crochet blanket!

* King's Cross socks!

* English lace - gorgeous!

Prince of Wales vest - this one HAD to be included. :)

Giggle... I have a love/hate thing with this hat. I love it, but I would never wear it myself. :)

* English Garden shrug - it's a lovely crocheted one!

* Can't have this sort of search without something from Doctor Who! So I decided to stick to the classic & most well known item. ;)

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Audiobooks, David Tennant, Doctor Who, Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 9 Comments

What a fantastic weekend!

Posted on September 27, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

Woo Hoo! I posted my best week yet last week, getting in a total of 18 miles. Plus, with today’s short run, I have officially run 7 days in a row now. I’m really starting to feel like I’m getting my running legs back. At this rate, I do believe that I will be able to do the Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon in December without any trouble. YAY! I am so looking forward to it – I’ve been wanting that particular medal for a very long time. :D

In other running news, don’t forget that I’m running the Race for the Cure 5k next weekend! I’m running with a good friend that has newly returned to running, so we are not looking to break any PRs – we are going to get in a good run while hopefully getting some donations to help fight breast cancer. Breast cancer did not take my mom’s life directly, but it did have a profound effect on her life and ultimately did have a bit do with her death in the end, in my opinion. So the Race for the Cure is one that I love to run whenever I can. If you’d like to help out, you can do so here – you can donate with credit card OR with Pay Pal. :)

Knitting

I finished up the shrug that I was knitting for my office on Friday night. I absolutely LOVE it! It really turned out terrific, I think. The pattern is simple & easy to understand – I love it because there is no seaming involved, you knit it in the round. I definitely prefer that. :) The back turned out to be even prettier than I expected, too.

I cast on for another pair of socks, but I think I might back burner those. I’m thinking I might knit up another pair for one of the manlets instead. They love hand knit socks, so maybe I’ll start knitting up socks while they are at their father’s house – the holidays will be here before we know it!

What a fantastic weekend!

Normally I spend weekends on my own cleaning, running, knitting & watching movies or Doctor Who. They are really relaxing & I definitely need this alone time to recharge my batteries. This weekend, I ended up having a more social weekend than I normally do, though – and I loved it! :)

Saturday I started off with a good long 6 mile run followed by a 1 mile walk. Then I headed to a knitting friend’s house where we snacked, gabbed, knit & spun for much of the day. From there, one of my knitting friends & I went out for dinner to the Pierogi Grill where we had pierogies for dinner – NOM! We shared a platter of potato & cheese and saurkraut & mushroom pierogies and for dessert, we had cherry pierogies. My favorites were definitely the potato & cheese, though. Then we headed down to St. Pete Beach, where we watched the sunset & a terrific belly dancing show on the beach. We missed out on a bit of the dancing as we ended up having a really good, in depth conversation.

Last night my friends from across the pond arrived in town, so I chatted a bit with them online, making arrangements for breakfast this morning. I took them to one of the best breakfast places in this area – Skyway Jack’s. We timed it well & only had to wait 5-10 minutes for a table. We (I) were talking so much as we left, I totally forgot to snap pics of them with the giant chicken statue thing!! Darn it! LOL After Jack’s, we popped over to my place so they could meet the much talked about Leonardo. We sat & visited for awhile, but I had to get them back to their hotel so they could get ready for the Blink 182 concert tonight. Jealous (eleventy)! :) It was so fantastic to finally meet in person a couple of online friends that I’ve talked to for so long now. I’m so looking forward to knit night & happy hour with them. :)

Today’s Ravelry Search

So speaking of holidays, one of my favorites is just around the corner!! Sid – you’re going to love this set! ;)

Now is a good time to get ready for it, so here are some ideas – as always, click the pics to get to the Ravelry pattern page.

OMB, these are SO cute! Pattern comes with directions for wrist warmers, leg warmers & a neck warmer.

I have some serious love for the designer that created this tarantula! AWESOME!

LOVE! I completely LOVE these!

* Cute little ghost! :)

* Candy Corn mittens! Candy Corn! Awesome.

* Fantastic. Just... fantastic socks!!

* ::giggling:: This is too cute! I love it!

Cool looking "Vintage Inspired Spider Scarf"!

* Awesome, it's a fellow Rubbernecker's pattern! I love coming across my online friends' designs unexpectedly. :D

Have I mentioned how much I love candy corn? No? How about how much I love candy corn inspired patterns? LOL

* Seriously cute beret.

Finger puppets! I adore the wizard.

WOW! Words cannot describe how much I love this mask. Incredible!

* I still love these socks. Always will!

* Frakensocks! Ingenius!! SO going into my faves.

* This one's for you, Mel! ;)

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Free Patterns, Gulf Beaches Holiday Halfathon, Knitting, Running, Skyway Jack's, Today's Ravelry Search | 8 Comments

Silly Puppy!

Posted on September 24, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

This week has been filled with distractions, I’m afraid. The manlets & I are still trying to work out a morning routine that works for all 3 of us – one that gets us out the door early enough that they are not late to school & I’m not late to work. It’s taking a bit of time, but we’re getting there! The biggest problem I have is getting my feet on the road early enough so I make it back in time to wake them. When I’m on my own, I can get back home by 6:20 and still have plenty of time to get ready for work. But with them around, I must return home by 5:45 to get the first one moving.

I wake up plenty early enough – 4:30 just about every morning. My biggest problem is that I check in with my various websites as I sip my morning cup of coffee. I’ve been getting distracted by doing that & before I know it, it’s 5:20 and I barely have enough time for a 2 mile run! Yeesh. This morning I managed to pull myself away early enough that I got in 3 miles anyway. Next week, I’ll be getting in more 3-5 mile runs, at least.

The happy news is that September has been my best running month all year long, w00t! Not only is my pace finally improving, but I’ve already gotten more miles under my belt than last month – and I still have 6 days of running left! Yay!

Knitting

I’ve been working on a shrug to keep in the office. I do have my little sock yarn shawl in the office, but it just doesn’t quite work for keeping me warm. The downside of living in Florida – they keep it very cold at my office! Anyway, I’m knitting up a pattern that seems to be rather obscure and I don’t know why – it’s lovely!! It’s Eve’s Mistake Lace Shrug – very cute! There’s only one picture of it on the pattern page right now, but trust me, it’s very cute!! I’ve modified it just a tiny bit, making it long sleeve & 2×2 ribbing rather than plain stockinette. Otherwise, I’ve followed the pattern & I just love it!! I hope to have it done by the weekend & will get pics posted of it then. :)

Silly Puppy!

So being a dog person, I love all the silly things that they do. They can be so gosh darn cute & funny. Getting all playful, going into play stance, their entire butt wagging along with their tail… jumping up & rolling around in the grass. All adorable in your average sized dog. But seriously hysterical in a 200 pound Great Dane!! I’ve yet to catch Leonardo in play stance, but I managed to catch him rolling around in the grass the other day…

Today’s Ravelry Search

So today’s search is one that my friend Barknknit should enjoy!

Cute knitted puppy!!

Amigurumi - you all know by now how much I love these, but how cute is this one?!?! :D

* Awwww, sleepy puppy!!

* OMB!! If only the manlet wasn't too old to wear this, I would so make it for him! LOL

* Mittens with puppies! CUTE!

As an earworm, it makes a really cute doggie sweater! Not that I would make one for Leonardo, of course. I'd be at that forever! LOL

Cute afghan!

This was a pattern I simply could not resist - I had to have it!! SO cute!

* I should totally make one of these for Princess - my Dad's girlfriend's Chihuahua. Who rules the roost over Dad's Dane Rocky (160 pounds), of course!

I love, love, LOVE Barbara Prime's patterns! They are all fantastic! This one is a terrific way to use up yarn scraps - fantastic, aren't they???

* Oh, I so have several friends that will LOVE this one!! Arrrgg, matey!

OMB - serious cute overload here!!

Scary steeking involved, but gorgeous!

* ROFL! The name of this one is "My Dog is Spoiled"!! I love it!

ROFL! Naturally, I had to include the hot dog amigurumi! ;)

* I know, I already have one pirate coat here, but how on Earth could I resist this picture?!?!

* Free Pattern

Happy Thursday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Great Danes, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 7 Comments

Who? Hoo? Owls abound!

Posted on September 18, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

I’ve been doing pretty good at extending my runs this week. I’ve officially moved from 2-4 mile runs to 3-6 mile runs. Yay! Still slower than molasses, though. Distance first, then speed, right? So I keep telling myself, anyway. I was too tired to run this morning, though – I haven’t been getting quite enough sleep recently. Enough sleep is vital!

I’m hoping the temps start dropping soon – should happen here in a few weeks, I think. Usually it’s October/November before we start dropping to the upper 70’s/lower 80’s for the high. *sigh*

Oh – exciting news! I’m running the Susan Komen Race for the Cure 5k in October with a friend of mine! I’m really looking forward to it! I’ve run it before & have every intention of continuing to run them. My mom was lucky, she survived breast cancer – but she went through hell in order to do so. I would love to help find a cure so no one else has to go through what she did. For those of you that can, my donation page can be found here.

Knitting

I’m awaiting the arrival of a package ~ once it arrives, I’ll be quite busy working on several new sock projects. In the meantime, I’m working on a quick shrug to keep on hand in the office – one with long sleeves. I’ve got a shawl I keep there, but it just doesn’t cut it for keeping me warm! This one is inexpensive & quick to knit. It’s all I need since I’ll be keeping it there in the office. :)

Who? Hoo? Owls abound!

So at knit night this week, one of my knitting friends had started an adorable baby vest for her equally adorable son. She’s making it for Thanksgiving & it has owls on it – just too cute! So in the course of discussing it, we talked about another owl sweater that she could make for herself so they’d be matching. :) I love the wide variety of owl patterns out there – too cute!!

I’m getting caught up on the classic Doctor Who still. This is going to take some time because I missed so much of it as a kid. On today’s plate, I have episodes with the 4th & 7th Doctors. My first episodes with Leela. I’m not sure yet what I think, I haven’t watched enough yet.

Oh, another bit of joy the past week that is “Who” related. Well, sort of Who related, anyway! It is well known David Tennant completely loves The Proclaimers – and who can blame him?! He’s got excellent taste in music from what I’ve read so far. he he he Anyway, I now have the new Proclaimers cd, w00t! Not so new, of course, it’s been out on the other side of the pond for a couple of months. It was finally made available here in the U.S. last week. It is fantastic! My favorite is still ‘Sunshine on Leith’, of course – that is an awful hard one to top! But there are several tracks on this new one that I really like. :)

Today’s Ravelry Search

LOL – what else would I search for today?! ;) Click the pictures to go right to the pattern page on Ravelry, as always.

: * Owlings – cute!

: I think I’ve highlighted this one before, but how cute is it?! ;)

: SO cute!! I’m not sure how easy it would be to find the pattern, though.

: * This was the sweater we were talking about – it is fantastic! ;)

: * This is the baby owl vest my friend is knitting – how adorable!!

: * Owl mask! Awesome!

: * SO cute! I love amigurumi!

: Oh!! Knit versions! And only $3.50 – this designer has fantastic toy patterns, DO check her out!!

: A crocheted owl sweater – I love it! :)

: * Fantastic colorwork!

: * I adore this pattern. Adore it!! :)

: * Look Natalie – someone else loves seed stitch! :) It looks terrific, doesn’t it?!

: Horned owl! So many great amigurumi patterns, it’s hard to choose just a few! :)

: Wow!

: A fellow Rubbernecker’s pattern – I’ve shown it here before, but it is so stunning, it deserves repeated attention!!

Posted in Running | Tagged David Tennant, Doctor Who, Knitting, Owls, Proclaimers, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 4 Comments

Ten & Recovery

Posted on September 13, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

So August was my best month running so far this year, yay! I still only hit 41 miles though. *sigh* Still, I have to remember that it is a slow progression I’m after – I must avoid getting injured again!!

Ran 6 for my long run today. I got my feet on the road a bit later than I wanted to, though, so it was rough going. Running in September in Florida is just horrible when the sun is in the sky – it really is so much better to run before or after sunrise!! Hopefully in another month or so, it will start cooling down more. Then it will be my favorite time to run! :)

So I just recently was made aware of an absolutely phenomenal effort underway as I type. Eddie Izzard is running through Great Britain – he has completed 40 marathons since late July! He is running for charity, collecting donations online for Comic Relief. When he started out, he had 5 weeks of training under his belt. Amazing! You can follow his progress through his blog or twitter. And if you can, please donate a bit!

Knitting

Finished up my latest pair of socks today, yay! I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of more yarns that I’m going to be designing patterns for… I am SO excited about this new endeavor! :) It’s putting a delay on my other planned projects, but I’m ok with that.

I also want to knit up a shrug to keep at the office. I have a shawl there now, but it honestly doesn’t quite work for keeping me a bit warmer. I need something to cover my arms fully – I’m thinking about a couple different patterns to try!

Ten & Recovery

So, without further ado, I give you the latest sock pattern – Ten! I could not resist designing Doctor Who socks any longer, I’m afraid. These socks became much like my first design – something that nagged at me until I got them all finished! :)

I dyed bare sock yarn for this pattern and included my notes on the flavors of Kool-Aid to use in order to get these colors, too. It’s a cuff down pattern with heel flap.

Next subject… allow me to preface this bit. I am not an emotional movie/TV/commercial watcher. I know people that cry over Publix or telephone commercials. That is so not me. I’ve cried over very few movies. One doesn’t count because I was pregnant at the time – eliminating that one, I had cried over 3 movies until this weekend. Truly, Madly, Deeply gets me shedding a few tears when I watch it. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button admittedly got me a bit misty eyed at the end. Seven Pounds… well, I honestly sobbed my eyes out over that one.

I finally got my hands on a copy of Recovery. It’s a TV film about a family trying to cope with the after effects of the father getting hit by a truck. He ends up in a coma, pulls out of it – but suffers from brain injury. Some of the best acting I have ever seen, in a nutshell. The story is incredible and completely realistic – it is not a movie for those wanting a happy Hollywood ending. This one is reality, not sugar coated happy-happy. It is a movie that will stick with you for days. Yes, I cried watching it. I cried a lot. So much so that I had to go back and re-watch parts of it that I’d missed because I was crying. Other parts I just had to re-watch because the acting was just so incredible. If you ever get a chance to see this one, DO!

Today’s Ravelry Search

So in my search for shrug patterns, I came across some really terrific patterns – check ’em out! Remember, click the picture to go right to the pattern page.

* SO cute! Not what I'm looking for, but cute!

* Ooh, nice!!

* I really like this one, too!

* I adore this one! It's been in my favorites for a long time now. :)

* This pattern is definitely one I am thinking about! I love it!

* I like this one, too...! :)

* Another crochet shrug - nice!

* I really like the wide sleeves on this one.

* Another one that I've had in my favorites for some time!

* Very cute crochet version!

* This pattern has a definite advantage to it, I'd say. ;)

* This pattern has a definite advantage to it, don't you think?! ;)

* Free Pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 10 Comments

Geeks at drag shows & hanging with friends

Posted on August 31, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

Today is the last day of August, which has been my best month so far this year – I chalked up a whole 41 miles this month. *headdesk* Must.Be.Patient. I did get in a 3 mile run this morning before work, which felt fantastic. Still slow as hell, but 3 miles run is way better than having spent that time sitting on my butt, right?! LOL

A bit of sad news on the running front… last week, I had to take my car to the mechanic. His shop is exactly 2 miles from my house if I run the Trail. So I drove the car there and ran home that morning. When he had it ready for me to pick up, I ran back to the shop & drove it home. On the run back to the shop, I came across Larry (the famous “flip-flop man”), who was walking the Trail. I slowed up & walked with him for a bit, getting caught up. The sad news is that he cannot run anymore. If you all remember, he is the one that ran every day, rain or shine. A light day of running for him was a 20 mile run. Long runs were in the 50 mile range. He is still very active, though, spending 8 hours a day walking the Trail instead of running. I feel rather sad that he cannot run anymore, he is an icon in this area!!

Knitting

Made really good progress on my scarf, yay!! I figure I’ve got about 5 more repeats of the pattern to go, then I’ll be done with the knitting. It’s going to be so long, I’ll have to block it in sections, I think. Hopefully, I’ll have it finished up in another day or two, w00t!! Then I’ll be playing around with stitches, trying to come up with just the right stitch for my next design. SO looking forward to that!!

Geeks at drag shows & hanging with friends

So I have a couple guy friends at work that I just adore. They keep me laughing day in & day out. We work together really well, I think, plus we truly are friends. That always helps working relationships, of course. But I really think we’d stay friends if any one of us went on to work somewhere else. Anyway, last week ended in a rough way – I had a very frustrating day on Friday. So much so, that I had remarked to one of my friends that I wanted to go to Happy Hour with them when they went. Well, I don’t drink, so in all fairness, he thought I was just joking around. He went, took a pic of his drink & posted it on Facebook with a caption “This one’s for Angela”. The rat! LOL After commenting about it & emailing back & forth, I ended up joining my friends at their favorite bar on Saturday night. I had SO much fun!! It’s one of the local gay bars here – they were having an anniversary party, so had a drag show. My first one ever! :) We met another friend there, so it was 3 guys and me (the straight girl) sitting at the table. At several points in the night, all 4 of us were sitting there with our phones out, texting, FB’ing and tweeting. We had to look too funny, 4 geeks texting each other at the table. ROFL!

Sunday afternoon was spent at my knitting friend’s house, Manda. We sat around gabbing, knitting, spinning & having a terrific time. I had a headache still from the day before, so I had to bug out a bit early & missed the dyeing fun, drat it. But I had a great time while I was there! Manda was scouring Ravelry, looking for shawl patterns. We were talking about one in particular, but it got me thinking… I realized I haven’t done search for shawls on ‘Today’s Ravelry Search’, so here we go! ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search

As always, click a picture to go to the Ravelry pattern page! Today, these are all free patterns!