The problem with loving to cook is that it messes up the kitchen and I must clean again before I can cook again. Though, to be honest, I’ve been so uninspired lately I don’t even feel like cooking but everything needs to be cleaned and put away and so that and laundry, those are my tasks. Then maybe some dinner.
The problem with crocheting is that the yarn cost so very much. Certainly, you can buy cheap yarn, but…eeeuw, you can tell. I’m starting a crochet class tomorrow, not that I need much in the way of instruction but I absolutely need to start getting out of the house in the winter. I get so insular in the dark of winter and it makes me crazy. SO i figure I’ll take this class, it’s something I know I’m pretty good at so I don’t have to worry about feeling stupid or discouraged and it’s not really a class anyway, more of a get together of old lady crocheters giving advice. I like the old lady aspect of it all, just low key and comfortable.
The problem with giving the dog toys that he loves it that he shows his love for the toys by tearing them open and pulling the guts out. I’m hardly one to tell my dog how to play with his toys, they’re his and he can do as he pleases with them. Sadly, he doesn’t really understand the concept of cleaning up after himself. Aw well, if that’s the worst downside of it all, then I’m not doing too bad.
Actually, there’s Maddie’s face, that’s gonna be an issue. The cuts are mostly superficial and they’ll heal in time. I spent some time on the phone with the vet and we tried to figure out if this was an issue that can be handled with more obedience training, or does she need a behaviorist or do we just not introduce her to situations that we know are going to set her off? It’s a tough call. Anyone who spends 2 minutes with Maddie knows she is the sweetest little dog in the world, I know she would follow me into hell if I had to go (ghengis, not so much, he’d stand at the edge of hell and watch me go then go find a stinky dinosaur). She’s loyal and sweet and protective, but she’s also a thug and she’s going to get seriously hurt someday.
So, I’ve got dishes to do and chicken to cook up and laundry to fold. Exciting? oh yeah.
Monthly Archives: January 2006
the inevitable bloodbath
As we know, Maddie has some thuggish tendencies when we go to the dog park. Usually we can distract her enough to get her out of these situations and usually most dogs don’t want to fight.
Tonight Maddie finally got her ass kicked, she’s got probably 7 or 8 little bloody cuts on her face, including a puncture that goes through her ear. I cleaned her off and put ointment on everything and lectured her, “see, this is what happens when you provoke dogs to fight. This is not how I want to spend my sunday evening, cleaning your wounds. Do you think I like doing this?” and so on.
She was incredibly calm the whole time. I think she just liked the attention. The worst part of this whole ordeal is Ghengis saw Maddie fighting this dog and had to jump in. Ghengis is not a big dog and certainly not a fighter at all. While unhurt, he got his ass kicked and squealed like a little girl. I don’t want Ghengis fighting just because he sees Maddie doing it.
So, instead of enrolling Ghengis in obedience classes this month, I guess Maddie will be going. Ghengis is just a jovial jackass, but Maddie is actually going to get hurt.
Let’s see…in other news
David came home last night and there was much rejoicing and celebration!
I made rosemary garlic foccacia in the bread machine and then cinnamon rolls for breakfast. I had hoped to also make some pumpkin bread but I’m not sure if I’ll get that in tonight.
I finished one crochet motif and I am working on another now, then I’ll work on the scarf.
I lost the cord to my camera so the process of downloading pics to my machine has me pulling the card from my camera and sticking it in his and downloading from there. I guess i need to get a card reader or a new cord or something. I should probably get the cord so I can still print directly from the camera. I hate when I lose things like this. I haven’t seen anything suspect in the dog’s poop so I’m at a loss.
And with that, I will bid you a good night.
grumble grumble
I have been working on a crochet motif for a week now (a motif is kinda like a doily, but made of yarn, not thread and usually combined with other motifs for a blanket or sewn onto things as decoration). Thing is, as I work on this thing my stictches become cleaner and my tension tighter and the individual petals or spokes of this thing (a lazy wheel motif) become smaller.
I have ripped this thing out and re-started it 4 times now. Part of me wants to move on to my next project (a scarf) but part of me wants to get this right. I’m not a perfectionist by any stretch of the imagination, I often find little mistakes in my work and keep them there as I think they make the piece more personal.
But I want to be able to do this right. Maintaining consistent tension in a piece is really important, especially if I decide to make a sweater for someone.
The other frustration is that i make things all the time and i always forget to take pictures of what I made. I produced a bunch of scarves for christmas and gave them all away before I thought to take pictures. Dammit. Hell, I was going through a pattern book and saw a pattern for a baby blanket that i made once and for the life of me i could not remember who I gave it to. So, if you ever received a seafoam or minty green ripple pattern baby blanket from me, let me know.
The curse
Betsy came over for tea yesterday afternoon (it has to be said that I run the most civilized office on campus, I totally have people over for tea and butter cookies) and we were talking about knitting and crocheting. I was saying that I am signing up for a crochet class because I want to make a sweater for David but I don’t think I can do it alone.
She got a weird look on her face and said, “don’t you know about the curse?”. What curse? what are we talking about? It seems that once you knit a sweater for your boyfriend you will break up. Crap. Is it different with crocheting? Probably not! I don’t want to break up with the chobo, he’s a good fella.
Generally, I’m not superstitious but I understand the psychology behind some superstitions. I will have to ponder my plan to make a sweater for him.
In other news, he is in Iowa and quickly making his way back. wooo.
I Ran
Yeah, I’ve totally been running, not in any sort of athletic way or anything. I totally look like a weeble wobbling down the sidewalk, but it’s running. A little.
If you know me, you know how absurd that is, but lately, whenever I take the dogs for a walk we start running and we end up running all over. I look like a total dork, but there you hae it. The doctor told me to increase my calcium, I did it. She told me to get my heart rate up, done. She told me to eat healthier and quit smoking and try not to worry so much…eh, working on it.
BUT! My dad gave me the Burt’s Bees Healthy Treatment Facial Care Kit and I think I’m gonna go take care of my face. It will be relaxing.
Last night I went to the store to pick up stuff for dinner and I got some pork chops and some chicken. The plan was to make the chicken last night with the mol� and then tonight have pork chops and pumpkin risotto with sauteed spinach.
Except we ate the pork chops last night and the chicken left me entirely uninspired. Meh. What to do? I ended up cooking up some rotini, sauteed the chicken, added the pumpkin, half and half and some spices. Okay, but not great.
Maybe I’ll be more inspired later.
Okay, I’m off to repair the skin around my eyes and refresh my spirit.
ps… I’ve never been quite so bored with a book as I am with Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. I keep expecting something to HAPPEN and my coworker assured me that at 1/3 of the way through, that’s pretty much the entire book. Shit. I have to finish reading it because 1. i have this pathological issue where I cannot stop reading a book until it’s done and 2. I have nothing else to read. I bought it at the Memphis airport because I’d finished my other book and I didn’t feel like reading the other books I brought.
and, if you have my copies of Snow Crash, Diamond Age, Prodigal Summer or Cryptonomicon please tell me. I can’t find them. If you have my Calphalon Everyday pan, i’d like that back too. And my soul, if you see that let me know.