Today, the Vernal Equinox, needs mentioning for two Very Important Reasons. First, it is my little sister's birthday. I won't tell you how old she is, coz she's probably still strong enough to wind me with a sucker-punch to the gut. Not that, you know, we ever did that kind of thing to each other. And I bet she can run faster than me. So instead, here are some birthday flowers for her:
Second, it's the First Day of Spring! Which means it's time for all manner of springish things - birds building nests, plants having sex in public, gardeners planning their fall harvests, people everywhere dusting off their bikes & lawnmowers, and enjoying that sassy feeling of the sun making the sap (ahem!) run a little faster. But more importantly, it's time for this:
Mwah hah hah hah hah!
I swear to Bob, people would be less offended & shocked if I told them I was barbequeing fat juicy babies.
Usually when I'm knitting on the bus, people leave me alone. I almost always get someone standing right over me, no matter where I'm sitting, even if they're the only person standing on the bus. But they also leave me alone. (In fact, a friend has a theory that they pick me on purpose, coz I look so busy they won't have to engage with me. Makes sense.)
Anyway, yesterday was not a day where I was left alone. And it was kind of entertaining. On the way downtown, a middle-aged Japanese lady came up to me just before she got off the bus. "Are you knitting a sock?" she asked, and gushed all over my knitting. (Tidal Wave - it's an easy pattern, but it looks pretty, and I'm using a Sweet Georgia yarn - Riptide colourway, if you're interested - so I don't have to do much to these socks to make them sexy!) It was a cheery little interlude, and left me smiling.
At the next stop, a big, burly guy got on the bus. (Public transit is...interesting...at the best of times, and I take it through an area that is definitely not upper-crust!) Most of the "interesting" characters that take the bus through this part of town are harmless, but colourful. Never a dull moment! Anyway, Big Burly Guy gets on, sees me knitting, and from the front of the bus announces: "It's CROW-shay!"
"Knitting, actually," I answered.
"Well I call it CROW-shay," he replied.
"Totally different things," I said, and he sat down & proceeded to ignore me for the rest of the ride.
Half-way downtown, and I've already had more bus action regarding the knitting than I get in a week. It was good for a grin; I got off the bus and went about my day.
But going home, it happens again. I'm taking a course that I need for work (ridiculous bit of hoop-jumping, but whatever) and so I'm not leaving downtown till after 7:30. At which time, the bus is more crowded - and slower! - than I'm used to. And I'm tired & just want to get home. I pull out my sock & start knitting to pass the time. You know, as knitters do.
About 5 minutes later, a woman across the aisle asks where I got my stitch marker. I'm confused - stitch marker? Is this Muggle-speak for needles? Needle holder? What? She repeats her question, pointing at my sock. I turn it over, and lo - there is indeed a green stitch marker at the heel which I had long forgotten about. "Oh! My stitch marker! I think it's from Michaels," I said.
"Are you knitting a sock?" she asked, and proceeded to tell me that she has just taken up knitting. She's taking a class at Baaad Anna's, the LYS in my neighbourhood. We have a nice little chat about knitting, and when the person next to me got off the bus, she came over to have a closer look at my sock. She hadn't heard of Ravelry (gasp!) so I gave her the website address (I'm such an enabler!). We introduced ourselves, and I got off the bus feeling like I had Done the Good Work of welcoming a new member to the flock.
Waiting to cross the street, there was another woman who had just got off the bus with me. I caught her stealing somewhat furtive glances at me, but I didn't think much of it - it's probably what I would do if I was in her shoes, standing next to the Only Person Who'd Been Talking on the Bus. The light changes, and we start to cross.
Halfway across the street, she looks back and asks, kind of shyly, "Did you knit your hat, too?"
"Why yes, yes I did."
"I really like it," she said.
"Thanks! Have a great night!" and we went our separate ways.
So the party's finally over...I was tempted to go downtown yesterday afternoon to check out the street-party after the hockey game...But came to my senses in good time! I really don't like crowds, so it probably wouldn't have been the best idea! (Especially when word came that Translink had cancelled all the buses into and out of downtown because of the crowds. I don't think it was a planned cancellation, either - more of a "Holy shit! We weren't expecting this!" kind of situation.)
Also, it would have kind of felt like cheating, since I didn't actually watch the game. I wanted to (not because I've become a secret hockey fan, but I figure I can watch 2 hockey games every 4 years - when our women's and men's teams make it to the gold medal game. I have that much Canadian pride!) Anyway, I couldn't watch the game because we don't have a TV. This shouldn't have been an issue - I had planned to watch the live stream instead. But our computer is really getting old & cranky, and when I tried to watch the webcast, it kept overheating and shutting down. So that plan went out the window.
Instead, I got to follow an interesting and highly-entertaining commentary of the game via friends' Twitter and Ravelry posts. And let me tell you, that was probably way more fun!
Unlike many, many other knitters yesterday, I was not scrambling to get my Ravelympics (or Knitting Olympics) project finished. I gave that up as a lost cause early yesterday morning, when I ripped back the sleeve-joining that I had spent several painstaking hours knitting the night before. Something is whacked, and I need help to figure it out. So I put the Viking Sweater of Doom away, and pulled out some socks-in-progress. (Which felt very, very tiny! And soft!)
Before I packed up the VSoD, though, I had Mr.Q try on the sleeves & check the length of the body thus far. He's tickled with the sweater, and promises to wear it with pride, however badly I arse up the sleeve-join. (Me, if the upper body ends up looking like something knit by penguins on LSD, I'd rather he wasn't wearing it for all the world to see, but I appreciate his support. I'll just have to find a way to fend off those penguins.)
A pic of the beastie thus far...the body (hopefully) won't be quite as long on him as it looks, when it's finished. (And in the interest of full disclosure, I had most of the body already knit - the sleeves were my Ravelympic accomplishment. Not as much as I'd hoped for, but certainly enough to feel like a "personal best.")
So I suddenly find myself in possession of a pair of the coveted red Vancouver 2010 Olympic mittens. I'm not sure how I feel about that, really. On the one hand, I feel a little weird having a piece of Official Olympic Merchandise. On the other hand, the way I got the mitts - is pretty cool.
Every 3 months or so, the school has a bit of a competition between classes. It's an event that takes place over the course of a week, and usually involves some kind of presentation: a speech contest, a summer-themed "infomercial" and so on. Given the timing of this month's first contest, an Olympic theme seemed appropriate. Each class participated in a variety of "events" - a potato race (like an egg-in-spoon race, but less messy!), a scooter relay, shooting at a hockey net, a creative version of the national anthem (my class chose to do a multi-cultural dance exhibit, of sorts, which involved a lanky Taiwanese guy trying to Samba - it was pretty awesome!) and a toilet paper sculpture. (If I remember to take a picture, I'll show you - they did a great job!)
Anyway, my class - on their own merits entirely, just a lot of cheering from me - won first place. Which is usually money towards a dinner out for the winning class, but this time, the prize was a pair of the souvenir mittens for each student. And one for the teacher. So I will wear them, in all their acrylic glory, with great pride!
As far as the actual Games go, I'm glad they're almost done. It hasn't been as chaotic as initially feared, but most people here are starting to feel pretty worn out. (And I'm not expecting to sleep tonight, either, as the post-hockey revelry seems to find its way up to our neighbourhood, even though we're pretty distant from the arena. After Canada beat Russia on Wednesday, there were sporadic fireworks till about 3:00 a.m. Happy happy day.)
We were thinking of maybe trying to check out one of the free concerts tomorrow night, but we'll play that one by ear. The crowds downtown...could be a little nuts. We did take advantage of last weekend's fine weather, though, to take in a few of the Olympic sights. Mostly, we just looked at the line-ups for different pavilions, and kept on walking! But we did get down to the Cauldron with my knitting:
This is not the greatest shot of us & the cauldron (since it's totally missing the cauldron!), but I love the grin on Mr.Q's face:
And some of the street-art installations downtown:
A whole whack of pin traders had set up on collapsible tables in the middle of it all, and were showing off their pins to each other & passers-by; it was pretty fun to watch! We also browsed through the aboriginal business & artisan market, which was amazing - there were some absolutely stunning carvings, paintings, pieces of jewelry, etc.
Not a ton of Olympic-y activity, but it was enough for us. It's been neat watching all the tourists and atheletes downtown for the last couple weeks. Wearing a flag-cape seems to be the new fashion trend. But holy busy streets, Batman! My sleepy little small-town-city looks more like the streets of New York or something! It will be good to get back to normal next week.
But I will miss some of the fun advertising and displays. Like this one, in a lingerie/adult shop downtown:
In case you can't read it, the bottom of the window reads: "...and they beat off some stiff competition!"
You could be excused for thinking I mean these games:
Watching the torch come by work was cooler than I expected. Mostly because of the very enthusiastic response from the international students. And really, that's a pretty neat experience to have when you're living abroad! It was interesting to be part of that. (Though I do suspect that some of their enthusiasm was also for not being in grammar class...)
I will confess to watching - and even enjoying - the opening ceremonies. Yes, there was cheesiness. And Nelly Furtado's outfit looked uncomfortably like my prom dress. Also, I'm not quite sure what sparkly Bear-Zilla was all about...that was a little strange. (Yes, I get the Spirit Bear thing - but I know I'm not the only person who saw it coming up out of the floor and thought of Godzilla rising out of the ocean.)
However, I was willing to suspend my cynicism and enjoy the spectacle, right about the time I realized that the huge circle between the welcoming poles was a drum. And then all those dancers started coming out, and it just got way cool.
I loved that there was a spontaneous standing ovation for the Georgian athletes. I loved that there was a punk fiddler and a slam poet. I loved that Julie Payette was a flag-bearer, that Rick Hansen was part of the flame-lighting. I thought the stage-design was awesome, for the most part, and may have squee-ed when, at one point, the set looked like a giant Emily Carr painting.
And k.d. lang singing "Hallelujah" in bare feet...was just about enough to make me consider switching teams. I melted.
(But - what the heck was with Gretzky riding in the back of the truck like that? I mean, dude! Were you not just in the stadium with Rick Hansen? How do you think he ended up in that wheelchair?!)
Anyway, as the 2010 Winter Games open, it's kind of amusing that it looks like this on the streets of the host city:
Welcome to the Vancouver Winter Olympics, ladies and gents! Being the one city in Canada that doesn't get winter! Doh! Still, it looks pretty cool around here, and we will go out and enjoy some of the free events, check out some of the pavilions and such. (As one of the anti-Olympics protest organizers said - we are paying for it, we might as well enjoy what we can!)
(Which organizers are not to be confused with the hooligans smashing shit up downtown yesterday. Tres uncool! But that's a rant for another day.)
Olympics aside, however, Friday also marked the start of the Real Winter Games: the 2010 Ravelympics. In which I am, of course, competing! See this?
Hasn't been touched in a year. Time to do something about it! There may also be a bit of frogging in the near future, on several half-finished socks that are never going get finished. Sitting on the couch Friday night, glass of mead close by & some maple tarts waiting for dessert...it was pretty awesome when I picked up my needles to start, and realized that there were literally thousands of knitters doing the same thing at that very same moment.
I've caught the edge of a nasty bug making the rounds at work (how is it that schools & germs just never change, regardless of students' age?) Anyhoo, I seem to have missed the worst of it, but only coz I decided to stay home and sleep in today. Yesterday was mostly a total loss, except for the amusement my students (rightfully) had at my expense - I was more than a little out of it!
So I had a good long sleep, woke up quite late this morning, and am feeling almost human again. Which is good - coz starting next week, the rest of the month stands a good chance of being pretty chaotic, with lots of germ-sharing on over-crowded public transit, so I'm really glad I had the sense to stay home and not tough it out. I think my immune system (and my brain) are going to need all the help they can get for the next few weeks!
Am just thinking of having another wee lie-down, but first thought I'd take advantage of being the only computer-user at home, & post a bit of knitting content. Haven't seen much of that lately, have we! There are reasons, my pretties. One - I've been very busy plowing through some UFOs, trying to clear my plate for the Ravelympics; and two - a couple of the subsequent FOs had to be kept Top Sooper-Secret, until they made their way to their recipients. One FO has found its new home, so I can show you it:
Fingerless mitts for Baby Sis, after much nagging on her part. Pattern (which I have cleverly named "Git Yer Paws Off My Mitts!") largely of my own devising, with a little help for the thumb gussets. Yarn: STR superwash, in their Luckycolourway. They knit up a lot faster than I expected, and I'm quite tickled with the end result.
Next up, a pair of socks from some of my SS09 stash:
A basic 2x2 spiral rib; I tried an Eye of Partridge heel for the first time, and fell in love! I also managed to consistently use Cat Bordhi's "Slim & Trim SSKs" for the decreases, and I'm absolutely a convert. The yarn is "Wisteria" from Miss Babs - gorgeous colours, and it washes up wonderfully. Also, I've ordered from her a couple times since Sock Summit, and she gives fantastic customer service!
(The pic is somewhat crap, but if you look closely, you can see that I've cleverly reversed the direction of the rotating rib...Which took at lot more concentration than I should probably admit!)
Last, but not least, I have cast on a new pair of socks in this:
Sweet Georgia's "tough love sock" in her tres-sexy "Riptide" colourway. (I sort of had a little accident a couple weeks ago, when I saw the new stock at TBF. Oops!) I'm turning it into a pair of Tidal Wave socks, which seemed appropriate given the name of the colourway. I'm modifying the pattern a wee bit - the Eye of Partridge heel again, and the Slim & Trim SSks (Seriously, go google it & use it if you don't already. A bit finicky till you get the hang of it, but it looks sooo good!) Also, I'm carrying the pattern down the foot. Just coz I like how the yarn knits up...I can really feel the nylon in it, and it's a wee bit splitty, but I have faith that it will wash well, and wear even better.
And that, Gentle Readers, is about all I've got for you today. It's definitely feeling like it's nap-time again!
Today, of course, is Groundhog's Day. According to both Canada's own Shubenacadie Sam, and his better-known neighbour to the south, Punxsutawney Phil, we're in for another 6 weeks of winter. Here on the Wet Coast, that's not such a big deal, as we've just had the warmest January on record, and snowdrops & crocuses have already been blooming for a week or more. Though I do feel for the rest of the continent, where winter's been a little crankier than usual.
In honour of Groundhog's Day - which also happens to be the Feast of Brigid, the patron saint of poetry - and better yet, my Mom's birthday (Happy Birthday Mom!), I'm starting my day with this: the 5th Annual Cyberspace Poetry Slam for Brigid. And since Mom likes cats, and our not-so-wee diva kitty is named for Brigid, I thought I'd share a cat about poems, by one of my favourite poets.
The Cat and the Moon (William Butler Yeats)
The cat went here and there and the moon spun round like a top and the nearest kin of the moon, the creeping cat, looked up. Black Minnaloushe stared at the moon for, wander and wail as he would, the pure cold light in the sky troubled his animal blood.
Minnaloushe runs in the grass, lifting his delicate fee. Do you dance, Minnaloushe, do you dance? When two close kindred meet, what better than call a dance? Maybe the moon may learn, tired of that courtly fashion, a new dance turn.
Second, it's the First Day of Spring! Which means it's time for all manner of springish things - birds building nests, plants having sex in public, gardeners planning their fall harvests, people everywhere dusting off their bikes & lawnmowers, and enjoying that sassy feeling of the sun making the sap (ahem!) run a little faster. But more importantly, it's time for this:
Mwah hah hah hah hah!
