Holiday Wishes

Presents have been opened. What was left of the feast had been divided into take-home baggies for all the guests and we gladly took our share. After a whirlwind day of non-stop eating and gifts since 10am this morning, we're now nice and warm in our jammies and spending some quality time with our poor kitty - who was left alone all day. Of course, Monte doesn't mind. He still greeted us at the door and meowed and rolled on his back to welcome us home.

Though the last hour of the day draws closer, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

What to do next?

So, I looked at my stash of unfinished projects and would you believe it? I only have one! The doggie sweater I started earlier in the year. I really don't like how it's coming out, so I may just rip the whole thing and start over. I've learned better techniques in the time I last touched the sweater. I think I will start over.

I like having the option of several projects going on at once, so I've started a new baby sweater. This one will also be for Gavin - but for his 1st birthday in March. I don't have to rush through this one. It's from a Japanese pattern book that I first saw on Cosmopolitan Purls. Check out her blog. She is soooo talented. I love her work. And she is so nice! She totally offered me help when I had questions about the pattern. THANK YOU! It was a while ago when I got the book, but I always remember nice people.

What I'm interested in from the book is a cute striped sweater. My friend K in Japan helped me find the book and sent it to me. I had a friend from work help me translate a few details for the instructions on the pattern. Good thing there are 'blueprints' for the patterns that I can figure out.

Speaking of my friend K, she has two boys in Japan. I only wish I knew how to knit when they were babies. They're bigger now - and as they're in Japan, I have no clue how big they really are now. I wasn't able to knit them cute baby blankets and sweaters. At this point, I'd rather just buy them toys and other goodies. Babies don't care what they get (I mean, honestly), but young boys, they want the fun stuff. And I aim to please. :) This auntie isn't going to get boring clothes and socks for them.

Marathon Knitting for Christmas

This week I finished not only the baby sweater, but this little guy as well...



Apparently the mascot for the Oakland A's baseball team is an elephant. I don't know these things. Since I only know how to do stuffed elephants, I made this one for my friend at work. I am a SF Giants fan, thank you very much. I'm proud of this one though. I had no clue how to make a mini baseball cap. I found a small hat pattern and 'tweaked' it. Then I added on the bill to the cap. At first it looked like a mallard duck head, so I scaled the bill back a little and squared it off. It looks good (even if I do say so myself). I just may have to make a Giants one for myself. I've thought about selling these, but they're time consuming. I've only taken the random request from coworkers, but I didn't charge them for it. I just wanted to knit and practice - but just don't want to keep any of it when I'm done.

I'm 99% finished with the baby sweater! I just need the buttons. It's the argyle sweater from Debbie Bliss' Special Knits.



It definitely has some flaws, but I tried. The sleeve thing totally flustered me, but I got through it. They both came out the same size (whew!) and I was able to sew hem onto the body without any issues. It looks cute. The pictures in the book are completely useless, so I had to depend on finding pictures posted on the web by other folks who have made this. It looks REALLY cute in pink. Hmmm... I do know some baby girls who would look really adorable in this too.

Of course, I used the pattern size for a 9 - 12 month old, and the thing looks like it would fit a 2 year old. Ah well, better too big now, than too small.

Picking up stitches

It's official. I absolutely, positively, without a doubt HATE picking up stitches. I don't know if I hate that more than sewing seams together, but it's up there. I was so determined to get that baby sweater done today, and I spent most of it trying to pick up a total of 78 stitches. Unbelievable. And that's just the collar! I managed to finish that without pulling all the hair off my head. Now I have to work on the two button bands. ARGH!!!

This should be interesting because I have never done a button band before. One side will be straight rib stitch - so if I can pick up all the stitches, then it's easy from there. The other side, I have to do the button holes. We'll see what happens.

OH - and thanks to Kuky for easing my mind about that those knots in my yarn. I guess I did just get unlucky and end up with two skeins with knots in them. Sigh...

I've stopped knitting for the evening. I was watching Most Haunted while working on the sweater when I had a very insistent kitty demanding some lap time. Yarn and cats don't mix. Well, not when you're trying to knit. When you want some entertainment, there's nothing quite a cat and a ball of yarn. Clear a big space though, because both will be all over the place.

What the?!

So, I'm having a marathon knitting week. I need to finish the baby sweater for my friend's baby in time to ship it to her. I'm on the second sleeve and then I have to work on the button band (and I know I'm going to be slow at picking up stitches).

I'm knitting along, getting towards the end of my third ball of yarn and I see a little knot. ??? I mean, literally, the yarn ended and was tied onto another piece of yarn. Since this was at the end of the ball, it was OK. But I thought it was a bit odd.

I've since started on my fourth ball of yarn, and this is what I find.



Another knot! Are you kidding me??? I don't know what to think. I admit, I'm too cheap to go out and spend $7 on nice yarn when I can get it from Ebay for about $3 a ball. This was Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino. I don't believe the person I bought these from tried to cheat me or anything though. The yarn looked new. It wasn't rewound or anything - if it was, they did a fantastic job. Each ball had nice, crisp labels on them. I just don't understand.

Is this normal? I've never seen this on the cheap yarn I buy from other craft stores. Why on the nicer yarn? I'm confused, and disappointed really.

Melted for The Melting Pot

Last night, our friends gathered for our annual Christmas feast. This year we chose The Melting Pot. It's an all fondue style restaurant I had seen them rave over on The Girls Next Door. Let me tell you, it's not cheap, but it was sooooo good. I definitely want to go back there.

They have a four course dinner that consists of a cheese fondue (you get some fruits, veggies and bread to dip), then a salad, then an entree 'set' (chicken, filet mignion, port, shrimp...) with a broth based fondue to cook your food (kind like Chinese hot pot, but with little skewers instead of little basket ladles), and then a chocolate fondue complete with fruits, brownies, cheesecake... oh my gosh!

There are several varieties of the fondue itself you can choose too. My favorite (but I forgot what it's called) is the one that comes with the Big Night menu. It had two kinds of cheese, white wine, roasted garlic, shallots, and dates. Oh and a spritz of white truffle oil. They prepare all the fondues on the table - so I remembered this one. YUM! So, it's not just a simple bowl of melted cheese on your table. It's gooood stuff.

It's definitely fun for a group, but I think my hubby and I would be able to handle it on our own too. Hee hee...

Keeping busy

I can't believe it's December already. I've been frantically knitting away, trying to finish a baby sweater for Christmas. I've done the body and now I'm working on the first sleeve.

Check it out!







Originally, I was making a baby blanket that had multicolored patches with polka dots and strips. Very cute and very ambitious... and so frustrating. I got through about 8 inches of it, and then realized that it took me about 30 minutes to knit 1 row, and then another 10 or 15 minutes to untangle all the little bobbins of yarn. Even though I started earlier this year, I would never get it finished in time.

From a knitting book I received as a birthday gift, I found this cute argyle sweater pattern. It's going to be a present to my college roommate's baby, Gavin. It will be his first Christmas.

Glorious vacation days...

It's almost the end of the year. At work, this means it's time to check how many vacation hours you have left, and if you're lucky, how many vacation hours you can carry over to use in the next year.

Well, this year, due to all the projects I've been working on, I discovered that I took exactly two vacation days. TWO!!! I admit, I do get every other Friday off because I work 9 hour days - so each week still adds up to a 40 hour work week for me. But I've missed several of those Fridays off because of work. I've done a lot of OT this year too.

So, I have vacation days I have to take or I lose them - because you can only carry over a certain amount of hours. Plus I have those extra days from the Fridays and weekends I ended up working. My goodness.

I'm not complaining, but it's much easier planning a vacation in advance rather than just throwing in days whenever I can take off within the last 4 weeks of the year. But I'll suffer though the last minute scheduling... the sleeping in totally makes up for it. Heh, heh!

Happy Thanksgiving

Pies and yams will be cooked and baked tonight, so I won't have time to update my blog then.

Wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! May the feasting begin!

I give thanks for my family and my lifelong friends (who are also my family).

I also want to take a moment for my friend M, who's mother passed away recently. I hope she finds comfort with her family during this coming holiday season, and that she knows how much her friends love her.

Confused

OK, I don't know what is going on. My blog looks like it's old self on my PC, but now that I'm looking at it on my laptop - it's just nothing but a flat pink all over. I'm getting very annoyed.

All that work this morning... where is it???

Update - I logged into my personal page on Comcast, and once I did that, my backgrounds came up on the blog. That's so wrong - and I never had to do that before. That's ridiculous I have to be logged in elsewhere in order for my blog to look right. I have to play with this some more.

Look what I did today!

It's not perfect, but I'm working on it. My blog is looking pretty much like its old self again - but with a new funkier background. I like to live on the wild side, what can I say?

Turns out that Comcast did some renovations to their Personal Pages - so my pictures, while still being hosted, had a different site name. Hence, the blah white blog for the last month.

I'm still trying to figure out what changes I can make to make this blog more 'me now', as opposed to 'me' back a few years ago. I love the background - so I want to work around that.

As a parting thought - this is what I see when I look out my window now.



It's from a building that is on the next block. I just noticed it about a week ago, and now that's all I see when I look out the window. Great. I wonder how long it was there before I noticed it? The main question is... What the heck is it???

A different shade of pink

I found a pink background that I like. If you look at the areas next to the title bar, it's now a light pink scattered square design. I love that. I'm trying to make that the main background, instead of that dark rose color. Try as I might, I'm not having luck finding exactly what part of the code controls that background. I'm thinking it just might be a straight color command. I'll have to figure it out.

I hate this. I had it all the way I liked it, and now I'm basically starting over. I was using the Comcast personal page as a graphics host for my blog images - but for some reason the connection is not being made. The personal page is still there. So are my hosted images. Frustrating.

Think pink

Well, I couldn't figure out what happened with my blog. It was still coming out white. Kind of boring. I'm too impatient, so I just picked this template from the preset ones from Blogger.

It's really pink. I love pink - but this may be wee much. I'll fix it when I have time.

Weird night

It didn't feel that cold while I was walking from the Muni station to work, but there it was... I could see my breath. Puffs of mist coming from my nose as I hustled it to the doors of the high rise.

So, I just have to say (total change of subject here) that I am so proud of my hubby! He's been a bowler for years, and last night he bowled a perfect game of 300! Whoo hoo! He gets a free ring to commemorate the occasion. I'm so proud of him! I only wish I was there to see it.

Another change of subject - I'm totally into the Most Haunted series now. It's all so cheesy, but when you get into it and the room is quiet - the noises they hear really get to me. Last night, I discovered that they have snippets of episodes on Comcast OnDemand. It's free, so why not?
Hubby was bowling, and he doesn't like the show - so I settled onto the couch to get scared for a couple of hours.

Well, what we've been experiencing lately is that at random times, only when watching OnDemand, the cable box resets itself. It's so annoying!!! With that said, I was watching an episode of Most Haunted that was really 'intense' and suddenly, the picture went out - but I could still hear them talking. Then the power to the cable box completely cut off. Then came back on, but no picture. Then cut off again, and then came back on again. Then I had to wait for the all the channels to reload.

Of course, under normal television viewing, it would have just been a huge annoyance. But while watching Most Haunted? Of course it was the ghost in the machine that was messing with me. After a minute of freaking out that my TV was possessed, I calmed down. Turned off the TV and decided that Most Haunted would have to wait until my hubby came home.

So, I went on the computer. I love computer games and I had downloaded several of them from Real Arcade (love them!). So I was playing for about an hour and suddenly the power to the computer just shut off. Totally went dead. There was panic, confusion, frustration, feeling majorly annoyed, and then finally panic again.

The first panic, of course, was because my computer must now be possessed by a ghost who's messing with me. After getting over that, it was the usual feelings anyone may feel when their computer bombs while you're in the middle of something. Then the panic came back when I the realization that my hard drive may have completely crashed and I lost everything. AAACCCKKK!!!

When my hubby came home, it was such a relief because I knew the ghost in the TV couldn't get me anymore, and it would just be the cable box if the picture when out again. He also calmed me down about the PC. The fact that the power just shut down probably meant that the power supply blew. Not the hard drive. If the hard drive crashed, it wouldn't power down the machine. The fans would still be going. WHEW!!!

What a dramatic night. Ghosts and goblins everywhere - and Halloween was over already. Geez!

What happened to my blog?

How very odd. I just noticed that when I log into my blog on my laptop, all my background images are gone. The background is just plain white. But when I pull up my blog on my PC, everything is still there. How am I supposed to fix that?!?

Anyway, I watched the repeat of the last hour of the Most Haunted Live at the Winchester Mystery House. It was very entertaining. Real or not, the floating, tilting, spining table was an attention grabber. Even my hubby had to come out and watch it with me a couple of times. Was it real? Can't tell. And if it was fake, how did they do that???

So while it wasn't as dramatic as something being thrown across the room, I was satisfied. I know I will never do the midnight flashlight tour, so this is as close as I'll get to being in that house in the dark. Creepy!

I don't know if I would go back to that house now. Knowing the rooms where things happened before my eyes (albeit it was on TV). .. Eek! I know my imagination would be running rampant. Even if a window were open, the cold breeze obviously wouldn't be from the outside. It would have to be a ghost. Yep - and there I would be on the security cameras - running out of there. Shoving everyone out of my way. HAHAHA!

What the?!

I'm a huge fan of the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. Last night, there was a Most Haunted Live special - 7 hours straight at the house. Wonderful! I set my recorder and looked forward to, what I hoped would be, a ghost filled TV experience.

So, this morning, because of work, I was up by 6:30am. Because I have my BlackBerry, I didn't have to sit at my computer waiting for emails all day. I turned on the TV and started the ghost hunt.

Luckily, I had watched a couple hours of the program last night already, so I was able to forward through a big part of it, and through all the annoying 'host' commentary.

I don't know if any of it was true or staged, but it's a hoot thinking that a place I've been to could possibly have all this ghostly activity happening. Through all the tapping, bumps, and wailing, I was so looking forward to the midnight seance.

With only one hour left in the show - which would have been at midnight had I watched it live, the show suddenly cut off and went to an infomercial about hunting knives. WHAT?!

A quick search on the Travel Channel site and I found out that most of us on the West Coast lost our final hour of the show. Frustrating. I searched the TV guide to see if the show would replay any time between now and Halloween - and luckily, the last two hours of the show will be shown again tonight. Whew! So, once again, I've set my recorder.

The show really was fascinating. As much as I love visiting that house, I would NEVER do the flashlight tour. You couldn't pay me to go in there at night. Whether it really is haunted or not, I'll just enjoy the fantasy that it could be on TV.

I'm "on call" for just another hour and 45 mins. Counting down the minutes on my Saturday. Sigh...

You can count on me

My dad forwarded an email to me this afternoon. It was a letter that I wish I had never read - because it was just so sad to me. But I wish I could give this letter to everyone who is thinking about giving their pets away to a shelter thinking that they'll find a new home.

I'd post the letter, but just thinking about it makes me upset. I call it a letter, but it's more like a short story.

In brief, the story is told from the point of view of a dog to his owner. The dog recalls being his master's best friend through the years. Through the dating, the marriage, and the children. Then at one point, the family was moving away because of his master's job. Instead of taking the dog with them, he is brought to the local shelter - assuming that a loving family will adopt him.

The story becomes heart breaking when the dog tells of how excited he would be every day when someone walked by his cage - hoping that it would be his owner coming to get him. Patiently he waits - every day. But his owner never comes.

Then one day, and I'm sure you can pretty much guess why this upsets me so much, the dog taken to be put to sleep. And as his heart slows the dog thinks about how much he loves his owner and that he will continue to wait for him to come back.

As a pet owner, and with several dogs and cats in the family, it is just so hard for me to comprehend how people can just leave their pets behind. I know this happens. Monte was left behind by a neighborhood family, and was luckily welcomed into our home. I'm sure there are reasons peopel do this - and at the time, I'm sure the people thinks it's justified. But I can't help but think, Monte is my baby. Even though he's not my own flesh and blood - he's not just a cat to me. He's my adopted child. As silly as it sounds, that's just the way it is.

When I got home tonight, I went straight to Monte and just held him and cried. I took comfort in his purring. He didn't mind the wet spots that my tears made in his fur.

I made a promise to him that he would never be left behind - ever. I'd rather max out every credit card I have, sell my car, hock my furniture. I would never separate us. When the awful day comes someday when we do have to say goodbye, and as much as I know I don't want to, my hubby and I will hold him in our arms until his last breath - because we both know Monte does not like to be away from us. I will do this for him. Then we will bring him home after he's cremated - and he'll go with whichever of us goes first. But I pray none of this will happen for many more years.

Morbid, I know. I know I'm very emotional right now. You girls can understand. I wish I never read that story. Right now, I'm just enjoying the warmth from the soft, black, furry pillow that is sleeping on my foot.

My baby Monte in one of his brattier moments...

Lazy Saturday

I'm still getting over my cold. The worst of it is over, but I'm still coughing and my nose is always stuffy. To top it all off, my hubby is sick now too. Sorry babe!!!

It's going to be a crazy end to the year. I can't believe it's October already. What happened to the rest of 2007?!? Work is super busy, but I'm sucking it up because I'm thisclose to landing the promotion I've been working towards all year. We've got a long awaited wedding to attend next weekend. I have to plan a birthday dinner for my good friend next week, and a dinner with the family for my mom's birthday. Then in November, there's another wedding. Christmas shopping also begins then (yes, I shop BEFORE December), so I have to get my list ready.

I just ordered our tickets for the new Cirque du Soleil show, Kooza, for when it comes to SF. I can't wait. But that's not until December.

We're also planning to use up our timeshare week for a trip to Los Angeles. We've been to LA many times, but usually only for a long weekend and it's usually spent entirely with friends - hanging out with them and catching up. This trip will be different. I want to go to Disneyland to see their Christmas decorations (never done that), I want to see the La Brea Tar Pits (don't know why, but I do), I HAVE to see Wicked... and the silliest thing of all. I want to find that beautiful house from Father of the Bride. It was one of my favorite movies and I just absolutely love that house. I've always said that if I had the money, I would just hand over a copy of that video to our architect and say, "Build me this house."

So, lots of fun things to look forward to. I just need to get over this cold so I can enjoy my regular days again.

NyQuil is my best friend

Ok, not so much. I'm still waking up at night coughing. I've been suffering from this cold since Thursday - and only today have I not been hacking my lungs out.

So many things have been going on at work. I think my body just finally told me to slow down. And what better way to do it than to make it physically impossible to breathe through my nose, and to totally lose my voice from coughing so much? Seriously, frogs sound much better than I do right now.

What sucks about the timing of all this? Our company hosts a flu shot clinic one day every year. And I have to get my flu shot. The one year I didn't get it, I was out with the flu for almost three weeks.

Wouldn't you know it? The flu shot day is this Thursday. I can't get the shot while I'm sick. ARGH!!! So, instead of the groovy $5 I would normally pay, I'll have to take time off and probably go find some other clinic to get the shot for $25. Frustrating.

So, this was nothing more than a venting blog today. Sorry folks. I haven't done much in knitting or anything crafty lately. The new TV season has started, so we've just been couch potatoes every night the last week.

We did manage to get in a few movies though. Stranger Than Fiction and Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby. Both were actually pretty funny. I really liked Stranger Than Fiction though, which surprises me because I'm not a huge Will Ferrell fan. That one I would recommend.

We will never forget... 9/11/01

I've typed, deleted, typed, deleted - and nothing I write seems right tonight.

Today is a day to remember.
To cry if you want to.
To appreciate.
To say a prayer for those we've lost.
To say a prayer for those who have lost.
A cheer to the heros.
A cheer to our country.

In whatever way you feel like, I hope you take a moment to remember our past - and look forward to our future.