I want to lie shipwrecked and comatose, drinking fresh mango juice....

...However, I'll be home attempting to conquer the Sisyphean mound of unfolded laundry. Also, trying to get caught up on marking, since progress reports are due next week. And I want to have the holiday on Wednesday to just play. Plus, I took the day off yesterday to hang out with Sis & co. yesterday. It was a particularly sunny, lovely day in White Rock, where we spent the afternoon. We started with lunch:

That there, my friends, is the one piece fish & chips. With fresh coleslaw (yum!). What's missing is a pic of our appy - deep-fried slices of dill pickle. Oh.My.Bob! Very, very tasty.

Then, of course, we had to go walk it off on the beach:

(Note to self: while the idea of wading in the waves is all very refreshing....salt water on freshly-shaved legs stings. Something I seem to forget from year to year.)

We topped the afternoon off with a trip to Casa Gelato. I had the white chocolate cherry. It was very tasty. Sitting outside on the benches...a bird pooped on my shoulder. This was my sympathetic sister's response:

It was at least 5 minutes before she stopped laughing enough to catch her breath. Yes, very amusing.

It's a good think she didn't know I'd already stepped in seagull poo at the beach.

Sign of the times

This may not look like much. To the casual observer, it might just like a bit of delicious chocolate mousse cake, taken at a questionable angle with a cell phone camera. And that observer might be right.

But she would be missing the bigger picture.

That, my friends, is a picture of something special. A symbol of sweet, sweet victory. A lunch time treat in honour of a personal celebration. (And you just know I'm going to tell you, right?)

This morning, I paid off the last bit of one of my student loans. A month early, even. Yes, I still have 2 outstanding, but that's not the point. There is hope, there is an end in sight! It may be a few years down the road yet, but it will happen! Woot! And Wa-hoo!

I'm celebrating with Strongbow and bacon sandwiches. I know, I know, it's a little over the top. That's me, all about the extravagance! (But, in equally-exciting news, I saved the sleeve - managed to frog & re-knit the 15 offending rows, rather than starting from scratch. And it's Friday. No wonder I'm feeling a little giddy!)

Post-solstice post

Summer has arrived, and in true Vancouver style, is much colder and wetter than our hot, sunny spring was. Not really complaining, as it makes more time for knitting. And working my way through the last season (7) of Buffy. Mr.Q has a gig tonight, and I'm hoping he leaves early enough for me to finish the last 3 episodes before bed.

Some knitting progress has been made, notably a new pair of socks:


These are the Diamond Lace Socks from Vogue Knitting's "Ultimate Sock Book" - knit up in the Smooshy colourway "In Vino Veritas." And from the ridiculous amount of time it took me to finish them, I might as well have been in my cups for most of it. Once finished, they sat around in my knitting bag for another 2 weeks before I got around to washing them. But now that they're washed, they're deliciously soft. I love the way Smooshy knits up...and even more, the way it feels on my feets. Smoosh smoosh smoosh!

Here's one on my foot, courtesy of beentsy:



I've also been making decent progress on my Tempest cardigan. I've got the back and two front panels finished, and I'd got a good chunk of one of the sleeves done...when I realized I had totally frakked up the increases. It's in time out for the moment, while I decide whether I want to try to frog it (the yarn's a bitch to rip back) or just start over (which makes me want to drink that vino, in veritas!) Here's one of the front bits:


Obviously, I'm going with solid instead of striped. The true colour is a bit deeper...but note those sweet tweedy bits. They're what makes it hell to frog...but are going to make button-shopping oodles of fun!

And that's about all for the mo'. I have to go change the litter box now. Apparently it wasn't quite pristine enough for Bagheera's liking, so he decided to have a pee in the dirty laundry basket. All the while looking Mr.Q right in the eye.

Think he's trying to tell us something?

We're naked, and the world's still OK!

Knit in Public Day was a great success, I must say. I woke up feeling a bit grumpy, and not at all like dealing with the transit adventure it would take to get to Kits Beach, so I was planning to bail. But Mr.Q and yarnpiggy's combined efforts changed my mind a little. (I think Mr.Q just didn't want a grumpy me around while he & the landlord tried to figure out the washing machine situation. Go figure!) I decided I would go just for a little while. An hour, two tops. I packed a picnic lunch (sort of...more like a collection of assorted easily-carried odds and ends. Including a bottle of "juice" made from that blueberry liqueur I picked up awhile back...), put sunscreen on my face, and headed out the door.

Transit, for a change, was relatively painless. When I got to the beach, the knitters were ranged on the grass behind the bus stop. A couple were keeping an eye out for me, to make sure I got off at the right stop, and I was greeted with an enthusiastic cheer. Which made me feel good about going - and confused the heck out of the couple that got off the bus behind me. Heheheheh.

The weather was perfect - sunny, but with a nice, briny breeze from the water to take the edge off the heat. There were regulars from the Yarn Wranglers, a few friends I don't see often, and many new knitters to meet and compare projects with. The composition of the group was pretty fluid, as people came and went throughout the day. At one point, I think there were about 25 of us in a big circle in the park. Needless to say, my "one or two hours, tops" got pitched out the window. I was there for about 5 hours, and have sunburned toes to show for it. (I did remember to get the back of my ears with the sunscreen, though!)

A few pics from the day:

Plae, with her Dream in Colour larval sweater (I so covet her yarn!) (And her tattoos!):

Megknitficent, who will be at SS09 with me (we're in the same Cat Bordhi class on the Thursday....woot!) Here, you will see she is not working on her wedding veil, but some fancy-pants two-at-a-time toe-ups with Magic Loop:

A general shot of the park with Adrielle's sock-in-progress, later in the day, when we finally moved into the shade:

The best part was that we were hardly the most unusual sight at the beach. There was a busker juggling fire. There were 3 women in wedding dresses wandering the beach together, promoting a movie (The Proposal, I think). There were the film school students doing choreographed show tunes on the grass, with much verve and vigour. (I think they were promoting a fundraising event). There were the three teenage boys walking down the path, rapping with each other, completely unselfconsciously.

And last, but certainly not least, there was the Naked Bike Ride. Which was entertaining enough when they rode past us on the road, but rather more surprising when they entered the park and rode down the path right behind the bench we were sitting on. I was glad to see that many of them had padded their bike seats with thick towels. There was a great variety of costumes, masks, and body paint - they looked like they were having a great time. And they had some great slogans that they were hooting out - or had painted on - "Less gass, more ass!" and "Don't feed the meter, just show your Peter!". One young woman simply rode by, calling "We're naked and the world's still OK!" Which I thought was fantastic. My fave, though - and I didn't get a pic, I'm hoping to lift one from yarnpiggy later - was the woman with her back painted: "NOW can you see me?"

I love this city.

And after that, there was no way a bunch of knitters looked odd or out of place! We joked about doing a Naked Knit in Public Day next year...maybe while working on afghans? Lots of time to plan...

Represent!

Happy World Wide Knit in Public Day!

Lalalalalala

Quick update while I stall getting ready for work...I finished a pair of socks, but have done something weird to the settings on my camera, so I can't take a picture till I figure it out. Our washer has decided that all the water does not need to stay in the machine, so there was a trip to the laundromat last night, and Mr.Noodles for supper. I felt like I was in university again. (Almost. There was one point there where I was too poor for the laundromat, so I washed my clothes by hand in the tub!) So. We're waiting on word from the repair guy.

Also, our computer/internet is being weird. It might be the computer, it might be the phone line...trying to get a straight answer out of Telus is an adventure in and of itself. I'm pretty sure the problem is on their end, but I've finally gotten around to backing my files up, just in case. Something I've been meaning to do for awhile. All my photos, lesson plans...knitting patterns! I realized I've probably got $100 worth of downloaded patterns now - do not want to lose those!

Hopefully none of the above (or the fact that there desperately needs to be a serious attack with a vacuum on the apartment) (or the weather) will interfere with tomorrow's Knit In Public plans at Kits Beach. And I hope we sort it all out by tomorrow, anyway, coz it's the deadline for earlybird tix for the Vancouver Folk Festival and I want to go!

Hooookay. 'Nuff stalling. I have to finish putting a quiz together for my grammar class this morning...subject & object pronouns, anyone? Good times!

I'm a big kid now!

Saw this chalked on the sidewalk downtown a couple weeks ago, near the Art Gallery:


I noticed it on a Monday...a good omen at the beginning of the week! And good advertising for the Art Gallery...

There's an exhibit of "The Golden Age of Dutch Art" currently showing. I wanted to go see it, but admission is pretty pricy. The gallery does have a couple of "pay what you can" nights, but they're usually crazy-busy. Not so conducive to enjoying art. I decided to bite the bullet yesterday, as we finish a bit early on Fridays, and treat myself to an afternoon at the art gallery (in the air conditioning!)

(In fact, I decided to go whole-hog and buy a one-year membership. For the cost of 3.5 regular visits, I can go whenever I want. And go to the opening schmoozes. And it's only a few blocks from work. I feel all growed-up, and so cool now! Should I start wearing a beret?)

It was amazing. So much light and vibrancy, captured with paint and egg whites. Too much to absorb all at once...I need to go back! Probably more than once. I am so glad I got the membership, coz I think I'll be spending a few afternoons there over the summer. And that's just on the first floor! This might become a Friday habit.

The chalk drawing is still there, much faded, but still clear. It makes me happy whenever I walk by.

(Completely unrelated...I can't possibly be the only local who find the initials for the Vancouver Art Gallery amusing...can I?)

Because I'm not already crazy enough....

I am baking cupcakes in the middle of an unseasonable heatwave.

Don't ask. Please.

Instead, I shall cool down with fond remembrances of ice cream cake, in honour of my newly-four-year-old niece. Who, I'm sure, is delighted that she doesn't have to wait to not be three anymore. And what's better for a 4-year-old than a Dora the Explorer ice cream cake?

Why, decapitating Dora, of course!



(Oh, come on! As if you never thought of it! I mean, I'm nowhere near a TV most days, let alone kids...and even I want to say "Swiper! No swiping!" when I'm using my debit card.)

A final image from my holiday, of Baby Sis & I (only now my hair's even shorter, and red!)


(Nah, we don't look at all related, do we?!)

(PS...Just finished reading Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. What a classic! I think the best part is the "Reading Group Questions" at the back. Inspired!)