Knit Run, Purl Run

Geeks, songs and the ABC Gum Pole

Posted on August 29, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

The past 2 weeks have been my best weeks all year long, yay! Sometimes I get frustrated when I think back – hitting 12 miles per week is not much of an accomplishment when I look back to where I was 2 years ago. 12 miles was a lighter long run for me, accomplished one day a week. My biggest challenge for myself these days is not letting myself get discouraged at how long it is taking to get my running legs back. Down that path lies further injury & getting benched for yet another long stretch! I cannot allow myself to get frustrated enough that I start pushing it too hard & cause the injury to come back yet again!

Now that I’m getting close to running every day, I’ll be able to start aiming for 3 mile runs each day instead of 2. That is my next goal!

Knitting

I knit up another shopping bag last week. I do love the Ilene bag, I must admit. This one will go into my gift box to wait until a certain person’s birthday. ;) In the meantime, I’m making solid progress on my Milky Way Scarf, yay! I just weighed the remaining ball of yarn and I am now over halfway done. It’s taking longer to knit than a pair of socks would, but mostly because I kept working on the bag instead. I’d really like to finish it up already because I’m itching to start the next sock design in my head!!

Geeks, songs and the ABC Gum Pole

So one of my favorite things to listen to during a run is that radio show that Tennant & Tate did, as I’ve mentioned before. Listening to it again this morning sparked a couple thoughts I wanted to blog about. At one point, David Tennant remarked that he was a Doctor Who geek, which always makes me smile because that’s a well documented fact, of course. But he made a point of stating that he was using geek as a positive term, which is, of course, how I view geek, too. Being a major geek myself, of course. Anyway, that led me to ponder how other people think they are geeks.

Me, I am a…

Doctor Who geek
Harry Potter geek
Running geek
Knitting geek
Reading geek
Comic Book geek (though not so much lately)
Computer geek

Yeah. Hence the “major” geek. I admit it – I’m quite proud to, as a matter of fact! So much so that this blog post was a huge, huge hit with me – it pretty much sums it all up quite nicely:

How to Meet and Woo a Nerdy Girl

Recently, I’ve noticed a lot of folks coming to The Park Bench after Googling “how do I meet a nerdy girl?” Hopefully, this is not the manifestation of some creepy new human trafficking trend but instead is the result of more people wanting to find and date the nerdy woman of their dreams. With that in mind, I offer the following tips…

The second thought while listening to the show was about the songs played. It got my mind wandering down another path. I’ve got a few sets of different songs that I love to run to, lift weights to or even play during a hard Tae Bo workout. For fun, I decided to list my top 10 one word song titles. Here we go…

Henrietta by The Fratellis
Basketcase by Green Day
Ruby by Kaiser Chiefs
Sistamamalover by Lenny Kravitz
Stronger by Kanye West
Slowburner by The Proclaimers
Chip by The Real McKenzies
Run by Snow Patrol
Conquest by The White Stripes
Lollipop by Li’l Wayne

C’mon ~ list some of YOUR favorite one word song titles! I challenge you! :P

Lastly… one of my knitting group friends mentioned the other day that she was waiting on an update on the ABC Gum Pole. I normally run before the sun comes up, so I haven’t been able to get an update on it’s status until today. I got a late start on my run today, so I am happy to report that I do have an update for it! As some of you may or may not know, this past week was the start of the new school year here on Tuesday. The ABC Gum Pole has now had 11 fresh pieces of gum added to it since then. The most predominant color being yellow, followed by blue. Just a piece or two that was pink, actually. LOL

Today’s Ravelry Search

So as much as I love the variety of geek patterns on Ravelry, it’s been a bit too recent that I showcased some of them. So today’s search was on a different related bit. he he he Enjoy! As always, click the picture to go to the pattern page on Ravelry & remember, none of these are mine.

* Some serious bobble work there!

* Perfect for a dishcloth OR as a blanket square!

* Pretty little baby blanket!

* What a cute beginner's hat!

Fantastic crocheted rug!

LOVE this idea!

Such a pretty wrap!

* Alphamitts - I love the name!!

* GORGEOUS! I've definitely faved this one, it's outstanding!

Stunning. What more needs to be said?

* WOW! Very pretty!

Bananas in pajamas!!! w00t!

Adorable baby sweater!

* Free pattern

Happy Saturday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Geek, Harry Potter, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 4 Comments

Rest days – grrrr!

Posted on August 19, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

So far, have had an excellent week in the running obsession! Decided to start getting back my “long run” on Sundays, so I got in a 4 miler. Not the sort of long run I used to do, but everyone has to start somewhere, right?! I had a lovely experience of a fellow runner giving me a sideways 5 as he passed me for the second time. It’s always great to get encouragement from other folks out there on the trail. That is the one bonus of running on the trail rather than on the roads, I reckon. Anyway, I made really good time on my 4 miler – much better than I expected to, actually. YAY! It wasn’t intentional, it just happened.

I was listening to a recording of David Tennant & Catherine Tate taking over Jonathan Ross’ radio show from April of this year, maybe that helped contribute to my lack of concentration on the pace?! LOL Anyway, I know that I must have looked a bit strange because I was laughing so hard during parts of it. I posted this one online earlier this week, but I lost it on this song…

The other bit that sets me to laughing out loud is the recording of Chain Reaction, in which Catherine Tate interviews David Tennant. Hysterically funny! I was also happy to hear that a certain someone shares my opinion of Star Wars. The funny part is even though it’s just an audio recording, you can so easily “see” the expressions on his face when you hear him in this. If you’re familiar with him, that is. LOL

Rest days – grrrr!

So after 4 on Sunday, I ran both Monday and Tuesday, yay! This morning, however, I woke to a shin that was complaining to me a bit. Not shouting at me, thankfully, but complaining enough that I knew I’d best take a rest day today. *sigh* I’m back to the point of hating rest days at least! LOL I did get in my pushups at least. ;)

I came home to 3 DVDs from Netflix waiting in the mailbox. All 3 are older Doctor Who DVDs – I’m trying to catch up on all the old episodes that I missed over the years. That’s going to take some doing, I have to admit! It was difficult as a kid to find reruns on PBS of Doctor Who – it was pretty sketchy when it would be on. I eventually gave up over time. :)

Knitting

So I’m making slow but sure progress on my Milky Way scarf. I absolutely LOVE how the colors are pooling in this! It’s just gorgeous!!!

Well, first we have the usual Great Dane camera hog shot, of course:

And here we have a shot at how the colors are pooling – awesome, isn’t it?!

Today’s Ravelry Search

So, next week is back to school for the manlets here. I’ve got some online friends that have kids already back to school & many more going after mine go. I have mixed feelings about it this year, as the manlets are both now officially in high school (sob). :)

Here are some selections from today’s search – click the pics to get to the pattern page & remember, none of these are mine!

* It's a simple sock, but the picture was too gorgeous to pass up! :D

* Ok, so these are more back to college, but still! LOL

LOOK! A pattern just for my fellow Rubberneckers! Nice bus, bitch!

* Awesome! Though I doubt I'll be making one of these for the manlets - their school colors are orange & green. Gah!

* Ok, not school related, but I couldn't pass up Zelda!!

* Wonderful laptop sleeve! I love it!

Cute crochet vest!

* Ooooh, my neighbor's daughter could use this - a rifle cozy! For COLOR GUARD, people! LOL :)

OMG, too cute! One of my fave color combinations (and yes, it was before my renewed Doctor love).

These socks are adorable! :)

I almost wish I'd had girls. Not. But the skirt is fantastic!

Hee hee, charm school mitts! :)

*OMB! A pencil scarf! COOL!

Lab rat: I'm honestly not sure how I feel about this - fascinated? horrified? impressed as hell? loving it?

* Snerk. Snort. Giggle. Splutter. Bwaaaahhhaaa-hhhhaaa-hhhaa!!

Just in case you want your kid to start the sucking up extra early. ;)

I know, I know - not school related! But seriously, how stunning is this doily?!

* A crocheted backpack! Cool idea, I love it!

* Free pattern

Happy Wednesday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Back to School, David Tennant, Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Great Danes, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 2 Comments

The Desk Tells All!

Posted on August 14, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

I’ve been back on a good roll this week after last weekend’s complete no show on the roads for my feet. I confess that I did not run this morning – but I had a good reason! I woke to stiff shins. Yeah, I am SO not going to push that. Ya’ll remember my epic battle with the tendinitis from hell. No way am I going there again!! I’ll run tomorrow morning ~ the shins feel pretty good now. I did manage to shave some time off the last run yesterday – quite a bit, in fact. Fastest run in months, which made me happy. Nothing like where I was at, of course, but still! It’s an improvement – I’ll take it!!

Knitting

I finished up 2 shopping bags & a couple dishcloths in the past week for Dad’s Kiwanis Club. I’ve got another shopping bag OTN at the moment for a good friend – her birthday was this week & I completely forgot all about it, absent minded geek that I am. Yeesh!

I’ve got the yarn all dyed up for the next sock design… all I need to do next is knit up some gauge swatches to work out a new stitch pattern for it. I know the look I’ve got in mind, I just have to play around with it. Oh! And I already have a visual in my head of the pattern that will follow this one! YAY! I just have to sort out in my head how to go about knitting up the idea. I think it’s going to be fab if I can make it work. I’m *loving* this new series idea! I’m trying to be patient – I would love to design, knit & write up every pattern in the series & have them all available at the same time. But knowing me, I won’t be patient enough for that. LOL

The Desk Tells All!

Before I move on to the desk bit, I must give a tiny bit of backstory first for one bit. So… I’ve had the same haircut now for 4 years or so now. I love it! It’s a pixie cut – as seen in the photo to the right, which suits me well enough, I think. Well, ever since my coworkers found out that I have renewed my Doctor Who addiction, they have been teasing me mercilessly about my hair, which has given me all sorts of WTF moments. I’ve heard the range from getting called Time Lord and The Doctor to “oh, so now we’re wearing our hair like David Tennant?!”… it’s really been quite funny. Hellooo!?! Same haircut I’ve had for 4 years now, this is nothing new…!

So on Ravelry today, one of my fellow Rubberneckers posted pics of her office. Then another posted pics of HER office (which I am seriously jealous of). So I’m not at work & my work cubicle is terribly boring at the moment anyway… but I took a gander at my desk here at home (which counts as my office since I do work from home 2 days out of the week!) and decided to have some fun with it. I snapped a shot – here you go, my life summed up a little just by my desk alone!

What do we have here?

The ever present glass of Diet Dr. Pepper, of course!
The infamous Blackberry. Used to be the bane of my existence, but not any more now that others are texting instead of calling me.
Not only do I have Time Lord hair, but yes… I have geek glasses that I only use for reading or when I want to look smart/geeky – just like the Fifth & Tenth Doctors. *eye roll*
Severus Snape. Need I say more? LOL
My collection of Doctor Who books. Ermm, the rest of the collection is in PDF format on the computer & encompasses all of the Eighth Doctor stories & quite a few older ones.
Running gear, of course! That’s my HRM along with my arm band & iPod.
Current knitting project
The home computer with new wallpaper
My collection of knitting needles, crochet hooks, scissors, stitch markers. A Mean Girls’ Yarn Club band, my fancy schmancy ball winder (an empty M&M mini container) and one of my drop spindles.
The work computer. Must setup second monitor for that. One of my favorite shots for the wallpaper. :)

Today’s Ravelry Search

In light of my complete & utter geekness, I give you some awesome selections from today’s search! Remember that the pictures will take you straight to the pattern page on Ravelry & that none of these are mine!

* Cute! Ok, I know what this is all about, but in my defense, I have NEVER played. Directly.

* OMG! I am SO going to make this for gifts this year!!

* I love it!

* Ok, I'm giggling over these. Too bad we just don't need mittens in Florida, I have a friend that would love these!

* Yeah, I've included this pattern before, but it would be criminal to leave it out of these search results!!

* I don't play WoW myself - I had to look this one up to see where the inspiration came from!

I just might have "Squeeed" when I saw this one. Yoda has been one of my favorites since I first saw him!

* LOL! Cthulhu dice bag! Love it!

* Binary Scarf! Awesome!

Icosahedron! Awesomesauce!

* A tribble! It's a TRIBBLE!!!

* Seriously? Pass the piggies?! Too cute for words!

* Giggle It's a hobbit! I love it!

* Adorable - the designer came up with it for her gaming husband! :)

* Free pattern

Happy Friday/Saturday, all! LOL

Posted in Running | Tagged David Tennant, Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Geek, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 6 Comments

ROFL, no kidding?!

Posted on August 11, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

I took several days off from running, sad to say. I’ve had a multitude of reasons for it, but all of them valid! I swear! :) I am back to it again, though. Still keeping the mileage low, focusing on expanding the number of days. Once I get back to steady daily runs, I’ll be able to start lengthening the mileage again.

This morning’s run was pretty much uneventful. Got out the door a bit later than I meant to, I fell back asleep while I was star gazing out my window. LOL

I’m nearly done listening to The Resurrection Casket during my morning runs, so I’ll have to decide what audiobook to listen to next. I’ve read that David Tennant is going to be recording another one, which has me really excited. I’ve got all 4 Doctor Who audiobooks that he’s done so far & I completely love listening to them during my runs. :D

Knitting

So my father asked me to knit him a shopping bag for his Kiwanis Club last Thursday. Apparently they are going to a convention or meeting where they used to sell handmade items. They use the proceeds for their various projects around the community. They’ve lost a number of their crafting members though, so haven’t been able to participate in the past couple of years. So I’ve been focused on knitting up a couple things for that. I’ve completed 2 shopping bags for him now – using the Ilene pattern, which is completely my favorite shopping bag pattern! It is perfect & I cannot recommend it enough. Anyway, I knit up 2 of them so far. It used to take me a week to finish one, but my knitting has finally gotten faster now, yay!! I can get an entire bag done in one day, if I knit all day. w00t!

I’m also working on the Milky Way Scarf with the sooper sekret mean girls’ yarn. It is SO gorgeous & knitting up wonderfully! I am loving it so much, the yarn is so soft & the colors are stunning. :) I’ll be able to post pictures of it in progress this coming weekend. Yay!

ROFL, no kidding?!

Today’s entry in The Runner’s Book of Daily Inspiration is all about how incredibly hot it is in August. The whole page is filled by descriptions of how hot it is. Not one word about running until the final sentence: “There’s only one answer: run very early in the morning.” ROFL! No kidding, really? It just totally set me to giggling this morning. ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search

Why not search for August since we are in the midst of it? Surprising just how many results there are for that! Here are some – click the picture to go right to the Ravelry pattern page.

* Cool scarf - I can think of a few color combinations that would totally work for the manlets...!

* Very cute socks from the folks at Knit Picks!

This is such a cute baby blanket, I love it!

* Awesome - this square is from a 2009 afghan project - fantastic!!

* Simple, clean, but sexy! I love this dress!

Wowza! From August's Crochet World magazine

* Ya'll know by now how much I love doilies! LOL

LOVE! I seriously love this one!

WOW! I love the vintage patterns - this one is from 1949.

WOW! I love vintage patterns - this one is from 1949.

* Hmmm, I think I might just have to queue this one, it's perfect for me! :D

SO cute! Would be worth digging up a copy of the magazine.

Gorgeous. Just... gorgeous!!

I wish the full on shot of this one wasn't all blurry - it is wonderful!!

LOL! I saw this in the latest Crochet Today! issue - too funny!

* Free pattern

Happy Tuesday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged David Tennant, Free Patterns, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 2 Comments

Indecision and burning ideas

Posted on August 9, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

So after having been so fantastic at getting out for the past 3 weeks, building up my mileage slowly but surely, I have screwed up the past 2 days. In my defense, I really have good reasons ~ nasty lightening storms + truly foul hot temps + migraines brought on by not enough sleep. It’s probably just as well, I really did need to take a break. I know better than to push too hard too fast – and I was pushing it a wee bit. I’ll do better this week, I swear!!

Today’s entry in ‘The Runner’s Book of Daily Inspiration’ talks about running on the beach. How fantastic it is to run on the beach, running in bare feet. Yes, that is true. As long as you are running on beaches that aren’t too populated! My beaches are usually packed. I attempted running on the beach a couple years ago ~ I normally run at 5am or so. Not such a good idea to run on the beach at that time of the day – I tripped over one too many beach toys left in the sand that could not be seen in the dark! Probably a very good thing that I was not running barefoot that day. LOL

Knitting

So I finished up the youngest manlet’s GD Rib socks. They turned out terrific, I’m really pleased with them! They knit up SO fast, too. :) I called them GD Rib because the first sock was started on the day before the Green Day concert & finished the day of the concert. The second sock was done within two days of the concert. Plus the colors are perfect. LOL My picture sucks, but at least the colors are just about right here – you can’t see the ribbing too well. Ah well!

OTN now is a scarf/stole. It’s a rather wide scarf that I’ll be able to use as a scarf or a stole, I think. Blocking will tell me for sure, but it definitely looks wide enough to act in either capacity. The patttern is just lovely, it’s the Milky Way Scarf. Even better is the stunning yarn I am using, the latest installment of the Mean Girls Club. I can’t post pictures of it yet – though being a “mean girl”, I should totally break the rules & do it anyway. he he he

Indecision & burning ideas

So when I first got this gorgeous yarn, I waffled SO much on what it was going to become. I cast on & frogged so many different ideas, it wasn’t even funny. I tried socks. Then I tried a shawl. Back to socks. Then a scarf. And I finally found this pattern. SO frustrating!! All the while I was struggling with THAT, I was also battling the urge to move, move, MOVE on the latest ideas burning my brain for new sock patterns.

I’m dyeing the yarn for the first pattern. I need one more skein, I ran out of sock yarn base. The plan for these new patterns is to include instructions on how to dye your own sock yarn to get just the right colors. This new set of patterns are definitely dependent upon the colors of the sock yarns. :) I don’t want anyone left struggling to find the right yarn, so I really want to provide dyeing instructions with the patterns. I’m also focusing on using just Kool-Aid and/or Wilton’s for the dyes – that way, just about anyone will be able to create the colorway they need. Not everyone can get access to/afford acid dyes – not everyone wants to use them – not everyone has the time or the knowledge to use them! It’s a challenge, trying to get just the right shades with Kool-Aid, but so far, I’ve been successful. ;)

I haven’t felt this *need* to put together a pattern this strongly since Severus. Severus was a fever burning in my brain… and this pattern is quickly becoming the same. LOL! I’m hoping the others I have mulling around in my head will keep knocking me about – I would really love to design a whole set that “goes together”. We shall see!

Today’s Ravelry Search

Some patterns from today’s search – click the photo to go directly to the pattern page on Ravelry!

Very cute crocheted tank!

I totally LOVE these socks! Gorgeous!

Great idea for an American football fan!

Adorable hat! From a terrific book, Knitting for Peace!

* Look! Just for my RR friends... a Scarf with Flounces! he he he

What a cute idea for a cosmetics bag! I love it!

* I'm sorry, but if this guy doesn't put a smile on your face, yer a grumpy-guss! :P

OMB... too freaking adorable for words!

* HEY! It's designed by Mel! Cute baby hat, Mel! ;)

* I like this little top, it looks really quick & easy to knit. :)

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

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

Green Day Rocks!

Posted on August 4, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

Skipped my run today as I’m operating on very little sleep! More on that later, but suffice to say, it’s only a matter of hours before the migraine from lack of sleep hits. It’s ok, though, as I got in a heavy duty workout last night anyway.

So, yesterday’s run… took my set path for a 2 miler – running to the manlets’ school & back. Just outside of the fenced in field of the middle school, there are power poles. I noted yesterday that while the number of ABC gum poles is still sitting at 2, there were still fresh deposits on them. Fascinating, seeing how it is summer & I’m thinking most kids stay far, far away from school. And they have no need to get rid of their gum before hitting school, either, so why continue the tradition? LOL

Also noted on the run: confirmation that Leonardo does, in fact, create piles in my backyard on par with a fully grown horse. Someone apparently had ridden their horse next to the school as well… and actually, I think the pile left behind might have actually been a little bit smaller than Leonardo’s usual contribution. At least running past them was far more pleasant breathing-wise than Leonardo’s would have been. he he he

Knitting

I shocked myself on Sunday by nearly finishing one entire sock for the youngest. I cast on & knit away while watching movies & Doctor Who… and realized that I was all but done with it when I got ready for bed! I hadn’t even started on it early in the morning or anything. Maybe my knitting is finally picking up speed?? That would be fantastic – I wish I could knit as fast as I can crochet, that would be out of this world! :) Anyway, the manlet tried on the sock last night and totally, totally LOVES it! It fit him perfectly, which was a relief. Size 11 shoes on a 14 year old… thank heavens both the manlets prefer “no-show” socks! I used a twist rib stitch for them along with Cascade Sassy Stripes – inexpensive yarn, but superwash wool with nylon – it feels on par with Regia or Opal, so I think the socks will be long wearing. The colorway is *perfect* for the youngest manlet – black, bright red, gray & burgundy stripes!

Green Day Rocks!

Some of you may remember how excited I was to have gotten Green Day tix several months ago? The youngest manlet has been a die-hard Green Day fan since he was 9. When I found out that they were coming here in concert, I knew it was THE perfect gift for his 15th birthday. I had tried so hard to keep it secret, but the very second he heard about the concert, he begged so much that I caved. I had to ‘fess up & tell him I’d already gotten the tickets.

The concert was last night. His first concert ever – how perfect that it was his one ultimate favorite band! I think he now has a new goal in life – find a way to go to every single concert they put on during their next concert tour. ROFL! They were, hands down, fantastic. Absolutely one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to. Totally wore myself out with jumping, dancing, cheering, clapping & concert-waving. Worked up a serious sweat, I’ll tell you that! I can’t remember any other concert I’ve gone to that I danced that much at.

I haven’t got any pictures to share, sadly… no cameras were all0wed inside. I spotted quite a few once the concert was underway, though – people managed to find a way to smuggle them in anyway! Which had both of us thinking about this scene from Doctor Who (the last 20 seconds of this video)… ROFL!

The manlet had his camera phone with him, but he’s such a good kid – he refused to use it! I kept trying to get him to give it to me so I could at least take pictures of him at his first concert, but he was not having it. Brat. :D

Today’s Ravelry Search

So what else would I search for today?! LOL Each picture is linked to the Ravelry pattern page, as always.

* Such a cute vest! I love it!

* Cute cowl! Not that I have any need for one in Florida, but it's still cute!

Oooh, I love this little sweater! :)

Simple. Cute. Love it! ;)

* I love the snow shot!! :)

* I like these socks, nice pattern!

OMG - how cute are these?!

Adorable. Just, adorable!

* Fishtail Lace Scarf - very nice!

* Rock Star Scarf! Too perfect! ;)

* I think I've posted this one before, but it's totally worth repeating! ;)

* Free pattern

Happy Tuesday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Green Day, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 15 Comments

Adventures in dyeing

Posted on August 2, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

I have done rather well the past couple of weeks, I think. Despite staying up too late most nights, I have finally been able to get up early enough most days to get out & run before work! w00t! I have been pushing it a little hard, though… I know that I’m not supposed to increase my distance by more than 10% each week, but honestly, I think I’m ok. In spite of feeling like I could run longer, I have restricted my runs to only 2 miles, concentrating on getting the number of runs back to where I want them first. Once I hit the point where I have daily 2 mile runs, then I can begin adding more miles to runs here & there. It’s really hard to be patient in the meantime, though! LOL! I’ve managed to add one day per week over the past couple of weeks – I’m up to running 4 days a week now. I really want to leap right into it & just run 2 miles every day, but I am forcing myself to go slow. No sense in putting myself right back to where I was last year with the tendinitis – it takes too damn long to recover from that!

So I keep telling myself. But man, is it ever HARD to be running so little & so slow…!

Knitting

So the oldest manlet demanded that I knit him a pair of socks last week. He was quite clear on what he wanted, too. They had to be hot pink & blue. I just finished up the socks this morning, yay! I just knit them rather plain, as the colors pretty much would cause any fun pattern to be lost. I’m pleased with how they turned out, anyway!

I”m not sure what I’m going to tackle next OTN. I’m still terribly bored with the lace leaf shawl, so it will likely be a pair of socks for the youngest manlet. Or another pair for me since they are on vacation with their father the next 3 weeks…!

Doctor Who

I also finished up my shawl. I had dyed up sock yarn & knit it into a shawl with some leftover chocolate brown sock yarn. I called it my “Watching Doctor Who” shawl, as it was my knitting project during a Doctor Who marathon.

Well… not that I’m done with the marathon yet – since I’ve gotten so hooked on it, I’m watching the entire series over again. This go round is the 3rd time. And I just might have watched some of the favorite episodes more than that. Like “The Empty Child”, “Blink”, “The Girl in the Fireplace”, “Utopia”, “The Next Doctor”, “Silence in the Library”, “The Unicorn & the Wasp”… ROFL!

Interestingly enough, all the episodes written by Steven Moffat are among my favorites. So in spite of the heartbreaking loss of Ten, I have really high hopes for the next Doctor Who series since he’s the new man at the helm. I’m sure that the new Doctor is wonderfully talented & brilliant, but I honestly think no one will be able to surpass David Tennant in the role. :)

Adventures in dyeing

The oldest manlet demanded the pink & blue socks after he watched me experimenting with dyeing yarn. I’ve been on a roll recently & dyed up several skeins of yarn using Kool-Aid & Wilton’s. I’ve had SO much fun with it, too! Check it out – see how busy I’ve been? ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search

So in light of all the Kool-Aid dyeing I’ve been doing, here are some things from today’s search! As always, click the photo to go right to the Ravelry pattern page.

* Cute little baby hat!

Kool-Aid Socks, cute!

* Oh, I just love this bag, it's awesome! :D

* What an adorable little vest!

* A terrific pattern for showing off handdyed yarns!

* Burning rings of fire! Now that's an earworm I don't mind so much. LOL

* Kool hat! This hat was knit with yarn all dyed with Kool-Aid - awesome colors, eh?!

* I like this one, simple & clean but not boring at all!

* OMG, what an adorable skirt for a little girl! Almost wish my nieces were still that little!

* Pretty stole - I bet it knits up really fast, too!

This pretty shawl almost looks like crochet, don't you think? :)

* CUTE! Crocheted puff beret.

Matching hat & scarf!

* Crocheted fingerless mitts! Love 'em!

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Dyeing, Knitting, Kool-Aid, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 7 Comments

New running inspiration & scrap yarn ideas!

Posted on July 23, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

So yesterday I had just enough time to squeeze in a short run before work & off I went. Just 2 miles, but it was still fantastic to kick start my day with a run again. I am getting ready to head out the door again this morning for another short run. I had forgotten how great I feel when I can manage a workout in before work. Welll…. not really forgotten mentally, but more like physically forgotten. I think that will probably only make sense to other morning exercisers. ROFL! But there you have it.

Knitting

I finished my Posey socks the other day. Much to my dissmay, I realized that I made a mistake on the 2nd sock – and it ended up being even bigger than I wanted. So I plan to wash them in hopes that they will actually shrink/felt a little bit so that i can w them. As it is now, even the manlets would not wear them (as if they would anyway, they arent’ exactly “manly”). *sigh* Not every project turns out the way we want – a lesson that I really havdn’t learned in knitting until now.

I’ve been knitting on a simple shawl with the leftover brown and some sock yarn that I dyed myself with Wilton’s. It’s a pink/cream/periwinkle colorway. It’s turned out to look really nice with the brown actually. Kind of looks like neopolitan ice cream. ;)

New inspiration for running

So someone had posted a link to this site, PaperbackSwap a week ago or so on Twitter or Facebook. I signed up for it, as I have plenty of books I can swap for more reading materials! LOL Anyway, the very first book I grabbed was The Runner’s Book of Daily Inspiration. It arrived the other day, a wonderfully thick hardback book chock full of inspiring thoughts, quotes & ideas. I wanted something that would give me a little boost in getting my feet on the pavement every day and this little book was JUST the ticket I needed! I highly recommend it!

Today’s entry does give some food for thought, but to my thinking, more towards debate & discussion than inspiration. The basic idea of it goes like this: “You can get whatever you want, whatever your age, as long as you define your desires narrowly.” In other words, do not desire to win the New York Marathon, but desire to run it and finish instead. I can see that point. In all reality, the chances of me winning *any* marathon are next to nothing. But what about that outstanding & inspiring thought that “you can achieve ANYTHING you set your mind to”? Can you be anything you really want? Can you do anything that you really want to do?

See? More an entry for debate/discussion than inspiration! LOL

Today’s Ravelry Search

Today’s search is all due to my virtual BFF Anett. She has just started spinning recently and now has a small amount of handspun yarn to play with (YAY!). She pointedly remarked to me that ‘someone ought to look for ideas and post them on a blog’ for project ideas for small amounts of yarn. he he he Love you, Anett! ;)

Click a picture to go directly to the pattern page on Ravelry. Today’s patterns are all free, by the way – I had so many search results that I narrowed it a bit further. :)

A wee cute flower! Perfect for embellishing other projects.

Here's a little crocheted flower, too!

Cool bracelets, I love 'em!

Christmas in July! LOL It's never too early to knit up some of these for the holidays.

Baby Gnomes!! How incredibly cute are they?! LOVE them!

iPod armband, another take (I've knit Runner's Companion before)!

Ok, Im not a fan of fun fur, but the idea here is to knit a purse/bag from scrap yarns - worth looking into, for sure! ;)

Ok, I'm not a fan of fun fur, but the idea here is to crochet a purse/bag from scrap yarns - worth looking into, for sure! ;)

Necklace! This pattern is cool - it could be just enough warmth to be a bit of a neck warmer too. ;)

Crocheted headband, fast to work up & cute too!

This is a cool idea - a cuff that works for your wrist as well as for your cup of coffee! ;)

Cute little turtle!!

Lovely little wristlet, really very pretty. :)

Teapot cozy! Very nice. :)

Cashmere cuff - another take on a neck warmer - very nice!

Very cute! I couldn't resist including this one, I haven't seen it before now.

I love these - this pattern catches my eye every time I see it! :)

What a cute hat!!

Speedy cabled beret... it looks so cute!

Handspun scarf! You could knit until you run out of yarn easily with this one.

Cute knit bag!

Whew – there were tons more pages that I could have included… I think I’ll do this sort of listing again soon! We all have bits of yarn leftover & it’s nice to have fresh ideas for those scraps. :)

Happy Thursday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Free Patterns, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 2 Comments

HBP & Doctor Who

Posted on July 20, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running
So yeah, I’m still working on building myself back up. I’m slower than hell and don’t get very far, but there you have it. During my 4 miler last week, I ran into a gentleman walking a dog that stopped me to chat. He was very nice & just needed to talk, I think. His long time canine companion had died 3 weeks earlier from cancer, so he was telling me all about him. I know that he was hurting & wanting to talk, but he was very sweet & complimentary about me getting out there running.

I had planned to run today again, but at the moment, it looks like we will be socked in most of the day with thunderstorms. Hopefully there will be a break at some point during the day when I can sneak in a run!

Knitting
I finally got moving on knitting up the stunning yarn that is the first installment of the Mean Girls Club. The colorway is wonderful!! I tried many different things with it & finally settled on Posey socks. They are really fun & different to knit! :) The one downside is that there really isn’t a way to do any shaping on the leg & mine are a bit too big. I’m not sure that knitting them with size 0 would have fixed that either… perhaps making the squares just a couple stitches less would be just the ticket. I might knit the pattern again & try that. Other than being too big, the socks are GORGEOUS!! :)

I’ve also spent a bit of time experimenting with dyeing yarn this past week. I’ve gotten several skeins dyed for various projects now & put in an order for more bare sock yarn. I really love it & might make the final leap towards using real dyes at some point. So far, I have found that I LOVE the Kool-Aid dyeing & Wilton’s takes a bit of playing with, but I’ve really liked that too.

HBP & Doctor Who
So I did go see HP & the Half-Blood Prince last week with the manlets & the IRL BFF. Sadly, I found myself cataloging the various missing scenes, so I missed out on quite a bit as far as enjoying the movie version goes. I am going again this week so that I can just sit & relax while watching it to see what I really think. I do know for a fact that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince just did NOT have enough of the Half-Blood Prince!! ;)

So I’ve made it through all the new Doctor Who episodes a couple times now. Totally, completely & irrevocably addicted now. I am purposely avoiding all photos/videos of the guy that is going to be the 11th Doctor. I don’t want to have my opinion influenced by speculating what sort of Doctor he’s going to be!

At the moment, I just cannot fathom anyone replacing David Tennant, as he is the BEST Doctor of all. I’ve heard it said that your first Doctor is your favorite, but I can say that does not apply to me at all. My first Doctor is my 5th favorite, actually. LOL My list goes like this (most favorite to least): 10, 5, 9, 8, 4, 3, 7, 6. I haven’t seen 1 or 2 yet, so I don’t know where they fall on the list. I’ve also only seen one episode each of 7 & 6, so the tail of my list will shift a bit. I’m pretty confident that the first 5 will not be changing, though. ;)

I cannot tell you how often I’ve been asked “any relation?” over the year or two as Mr. Tennant has become more & more popular. It has been a new experience for me, actually. Not terribly surprising though, as Tennant is certainly not a common name. Now that I’ve done a bit of reading, I can officially say “No, no relation at all”. ;)

Today’s Ravelry Search
So, what to search for today? Hmm, how about this? As always, clicking a photo will take you to the pattern page.

Elegance Socks - very pretty!

* Lovely little crochet shell!

* Elegant drinking scarf! Very nice. :)

Wow, this blanket is awesome! :)

So pretty, these socks!

* I love to see dainty, delicate & feminine crochet wraps/shawls! :)

* I really wish the pictures were bigger, this is a terrific set!!

Definitely a shawl that can be classified as elegant! :)

I love this top! I really, really do.

*Free pattern

Happy Monday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged David Tennant, Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Half Blood Prince, Knitting, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 2 Comments

Feeling at loose ends

Posted on July 5, 2009 by H3Dakota

Running

The weather has been slightly better for running this past week since we’ve had tons of thunderstorms. The t-storms aren’t so good for running, but if you time a run in between them, then it’s fantastic! The temps are perfect for running, you might get a wee bit of gentle raindrops to help cool you down & usually the breeze is wonderful. I’ve been able to sneak in a few short runs the past week – running at 11am, even! Hope to sneak in another short one today, but it’s going to very busy, trying to get ready for camping!

Knitting

Whew! Ok, I’ve gotten several small projects out of the way for the HPKCHC July classes. YAY! I’ve done a bookmark, a couple amigurumi, a set of coasters, a scarf & a pair of wrist warmers. I have Astronomy and Herbology left yet – I know what I’m making for both of those, will be tackling them in the next few days.

I got SO bored with the Blue Jeans Lace Leaf Shawl. It’s a really easy pattern, quick to memorize, but then becomes nearly mindless to knit. I’ve still got 4 weeks left to finish it, of course. I know I’ll finish it – but the original plan was to knit until I run out of yarn. As big as it is already on the first skein, I’m thinking it might be finished when I’m done with this skein! There’s no way I’ll make it through all 3 skeins – plus that would give me a shawl that would be humongous even for Hagrid! LOL

Feeling at loose ends

So we have all become addicted to Doctor Who… and feeling a bit impatient now that we’re stuck waiting for new shows. I’ve found several books on eBay for real cheap, so that will help a bit. Only one has arrived so far, though, so I’m trying to save that for the camping trip. In the meantime, I’m feeling a bit lost without having something more substantial to feed the renewed addiction. he he he

In the course of taking photos of the projects for HPKCHC, I found that my Chocolate Swirl Allamanda had a few blooms with raindrops sitting on the petals. And before I knew it, I was snapping shots of them… something I’ve seen my father do all my life! He’s always taking photos of flowers, trees, animals, birds… all the bounty in nature. But one thing has always remained constant – up close shots of flowers. After I saw how nice the shots turned out, I emailed one to him & told him he was wearing off on me. LOL

Today’s Ravelry Search

This one is for you, MiniPurlz. ;) Knock yourself out, pancake-less one (I can call you that again now that you’ve made up that batch I sent you!). Oh yeah – HERE – an awesomely sweet drawing for you. ;) It is so fantastic that people have been nicking it for their own purposes, so the artist had to watermark it. A serious shame, that is.

As always, click a picture to view the pattern page, as none of these are mine.

* Naturally, the first item simply has to be THE scarf! ;)

* iPod cozy! I just might have to make this one. ;)

* There are several shots of this one Id love to use, but I had to use the one that had the coat! :D

* There are several shots of the Tenth Doctor I'd love to use, but I had to use the one that had the coat! :D

* Of course, the Doctor must also have his sonic screwdriver! ;)

* The Ninth Doctor!

* Naturally, we have to have Rose as well! Some of the FOs for this pattern were modified by knitters to create Donna & Martha too. Yay!

* Jelly babies!

* I know that every knitter paused this episode just to examine Rose's fingerless gloves! I definitely did!

* The Fifth Doctor beanie! Cool! Though it does look a bit more like a shamrock than celery...

* Ooooh, I'm gonna have to make me a Dalek for a desk toy. Definitely!

* A Tardis!!! Yeah, gotta make one of these, too.

* Dalek socks! Stranded sock = challenging to knit, but worth it! ;)

* Rose's Boomtown scarf!

* Another version of Rose's Boomtown scarf! :)

* This is a really cute amigurimi fat baby. It's not anything other than that. Srsly! (see note @ bottom)

* Ok, the pattern is a collection of vegetables, but c'mon - how can any Doctor Who fan resist the celery?!

* And here we have a crochet version! Yay!

* w00t! A crochet Dalek! Another YAY!

* Adipose in filet crochet! Cute! :D

* K-9 too!

* WOW, someone has been very busy! Ood!

* ROFL - I am such a geek, I LOVE the name of this pattern - EXFOLIATE! *snickering*

* Tam of Rassilon - love! I just might have to try my hand at this one...

I had to include a picture of this one, though you cannot get the pattern anymore. The designer became somewhat famous over the whole debacle - but suffice to say, she's done a super job with all her now unavailable Doctor Who patterns!

* Free pattern

Happy Sunday, all!

Posted in Running | Tagged Doctor Who, Free Patterns, Knitting, Photography, Running, Today's Ravelry Search | 3 Comments

Knit Run, Purl Run

Geeks, songs and the ABC Gum Pole

How to Meet and Woo a Nerdy Girl

Rest days – grrrr!

The Desk Tells All!

ROFL, no kidding?!

Indecision and burning ideas

Green Day Rocks!

Adventures in dyeing

New running inspiration & scrap yarn ideas!

HBP & Doctor Who

Feeling at loose ends

Email Subscription

Whatcha looking for?

Free Patterns

Currently Reading

Archives

Blog Stats

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Like it? Please Share it! :)

Email Subscription

Whatcha looking for?

Free Patterns

Currently Reading

Archives

Blog Stats