On Account of Not Enough Hours in a Day.

I spent the whole day co-oping at W's school today, and I have no time fer nothin', but here's this cute little picture of a recent snow day anyway. S looks cute, but don't be fooled. He bites. A little. He's biting me right this minute. Still, could you stay mad at that face? Especially when when he gets all philosophical like that?

Oh yeah, that scarf the second thing I knit in my adult knitting career (after my brief stint as an ambitious but easily distracted knitting eight year old). I used Lamb's Pride Bulky and size 15 needles and was very poor at weaving in ends. I loved it at the time, although now just about everything about it makes me cringe. I've given away all the scarves I've knit since, so I think maybe I should make one for myself again. Something lacy and lovely and soft.

On Bag Ladies.

At first, as I sit down at the computer, there seems not much about which to post. So I'm presenting a photograph of the Japanese Tourist scarf exchange ladies at the SLC S'n'B Anniversary earlier this month. Don't they all look fabulous? And touristy? It's enough to make a non-participant very jealous. Enough to make even a non-participant into a participant of the next exchange, a Bag Lady swap. (Although we can often be quite unladylike down at the ol' Jitterbug on Tuesday nights). I'm making a bag for Heather and I'm sweating a little. I'm having a tough time deciding on which bag to make; luckily Heather is pretty easy-going. As far as I know, the only preference she expressed was, "Nothing red".
And I was mistaken when I said I had nothing to report. I ripped out the first Interweave cabled baby sock I had worked in the beautiful watery green Artyarn, divided the ball into two balls, and cast on two socks today at Highland Perk. I had turned the short-row heel of the frogged sock last week, so at least I know I can handle it (that was a big event, turning that heel, working on it until 1:30 in the morning while Nephi snored next to me). It was fun to sit in the cozy room with Margene, Susan, Eliza, and a new fellow named David who works late on Tuesday nights and can't join us at the Jitterbug. He was working on his first sock and making a brave go of it. I've done lots of other knitting lately too, working on hats for kids and friends, and a pair basic ribbed socks for me (I am now knitting all socks two-at-a-time to combat sockitis). It's a tired refrain I often say to myself: so much to knit, so little time. I recently made a list of all the projects on my needles strewn about the house, all the projects for which I've bought the yarn and are waiting to be cast on, all the projects in my head that I want to knit as soon as I can finish what I've got going.Those were some long lists--I discovered that I had at least eleven projects cast on, not including some UFOs at the bottom of the stash. I think I need to practice my ability to focus. I love knitting, but sometimes it makes me a little crazy. Hopefully in a good way. (And Susan, I said 400 grams of EG Kauni, right? Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!)

On Hippos.

I've been remiss in not posting about this sooner. I wanted to send a big thank you to blempgorf for all the big Hippo goodness. I heart Hippo SO MUCH. One of Hippo's nostrils got pulled off by a local three year old, but it's been glued back on and still looks great. Keeping Hippo company on the long trip were a Gummy Tarantula and two squares of Ghiradelli chocolate (dark chocolate--we acknowledge no other kind). I hear there were originally twenty-four squares of chocolate and a few gummy anteaters in the box, but a Hippo has to eat, you know? 

On "On a Thimble".

I didn't really define what I meant by "Cool Mormon" in "On a Thimble", and I got a comment calling me out on this, so I'll clarify. I'm not using that term to designate a Mormon who swears or tells dirty jokes or watches R-rated movies, although I can see how someone could think that was what I was saying. I'm talking about Mormons who aren't threatened by my apostate status, who aren't afraid to let their children play with mine because mine don't go to their church, who don't judge me and others based on the fact that I'm no longer One of Them. All these things have happened. I used to live in a ward in Provo where boys in the ward passed the sacrament the day after they had severely beaten my sister's friends at Provo High for being "punk lesbians" (one girl was hugging another at a dance because she was crying). And their parents KNEW about it. The boys were almost congratulated for what they did. That's the attitude I'm used to being around. Now I'm ranting. The point I was trying to make was that all preconceived notions about people need to be constantly questioned. I was being as judgemental as those who judged me, and I realized that. The Cool Mormons were the ones who didn't care what church I went to. These people only cared about having a good conversation over dinner. And they were okay with my husband drinking a beer even though his name is Nephi. All this surprised me and challenged my expectations. There are all kinds of people in every church and organization and I know this. It's just that past experiences speak loudly to the present and color one's judgement for better or worse. I'm done ranting now. Thanks for listening. 

On Tagging.

We had a Snow Day on Sunday. The whole family played in the front yard. Not tons of snow, but enough. Camille was devastated the next morning to discover that her tiny snow castle had blown away.

I got tagged by... now I can't remember who tagged me. Was it you? In any case, I was really excited because I've never been tagged before. Oh wait--I just remembered. It was Michaele who tagged me. Thanks. If you don't want to read the meme, Dear Reader, there's another new post below this one.

4 Jobs You Have Had in Your Life
1. Law library copy bitch for my dad's law firm(I thought I wanted to be an attorney up until that point)
2. Assistant manager at Einstein Bros. Bagels
3. Six months planning medical conferences for ISTA in Paris and Corona Island (nepotism has been good to me)
4. Assistant Librarian, Salt Lake City Public Library, Level 2 Fiction and Avenues branch

4 Movies You Could Watch Over and Over
1. The Razor's Edge
2. The Year of Living Dangerously
3. Labyrinth
4. Troi Couleurs: Bleu, Rouge (two movies, one trilogy)

4 Places You Have Lived
1. Fremont, California
2. Davis, California
3. Provo, Utah
4. Salt Lake City, Utah

4 TV Shows You Love to Watch
1. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (online, no cable)
2. The Office (British version)
3. Dave Chapelle's Show (on DVD)
4. Black Adder

4 Places You Have Been on Vacation
1. London, England
2. Paris and surrounds
3. Nelson, British Columbia
4. Baja California, Mexico

4 Websites You Visit Daily (when I have the time to get online, dammit)
1. Gmail
2. The Onion A.V. Club (I read Savage Love religiously)
3. Slashdot
4. Bob the Angry Flower (again, weekly)

4 of Your Favorite Foods
1. Cheese of all kinds, the stinkier the better (to a point--I got stunk out of a flat in Paris by some particularly pungent stuff that nearly broke my resolve to try every cheese I came across)
2. Dark chocolate
3. Garlic (you may have noticed if you've sat next to me at S'n'B)
4. Fresh fruit ("Fruit, Pansy, I need fruit!"*)

4 Places You Would Rather Be Right Now
1. Miracle Hotsprings in Hagerman, Idaho with The Neefer
2. Corona Arch (my spiritual homeland, BLM land outside of Moab)
3. Manhattan with Blue
4. Alone in bed with my knitting

*A bar of soap to the person who can identify the movie. 

On a Thimble.

It's a thimble with the Salt Lake Temple on it(or is that really the original badboy Nauvoo?). This is my only displayed piece of Mormondom, aside from my childhood Book of Mormon and a few Spanish books of scripture on a bottom bookshelf in the livingroom. How strange the turns of a life. What once defined me is now, to the naked eye, reduced to kitsch. Almost. The last time I went to a Sacrament meeting (my neice got blessed last summer), Walker-boy loudly asked why they were giving out snacks in the middle of church, and why everyone only got one tiny little piece of bread and a thimble-full of water. The month before when he watched his cousin getting baptised, he asked what why there was a swimming pool in church and why Hunter was going swimming in it fully clothed in a white suit. I swear I tried to fully prepare the kid. It's so odd to see it all through his eyes, or the eyes of any "outsider". On the other hand, I've had several experiences with Cool Mormons in the last couple of weeks, Mormons who defied my own preconcieved ideas about them and made me rethink my own judgementalism. Last night at dinner in Provo with my brother and his wife and four of their ward neighbors, I thought I was going to have to restrain my usual ribald humor. They surprised me. The guy sitting across from me told more dirty jokes than I'd heard in a long time, and the guy sitting to my left wrote his last paper before graduation (at BYU) on why R-rated movies should be considered acceptable viewing for good, upstanding members of the church. He turned the paper in to his LDS religion professor. And then, of course, there's always Teri, who puts up with a lot and keeps coming back for more. 

On Having Frogged It.

Yup, I frogged it. As I'm always telling my mom, "Do Not Fear the Frog. Embrace the Frog." Even if the damn thing is knit with Frizz, or some other weird feathery thing. In this photograph, you see me reacting to the big ball of mess that resulted from frogging two and a half inches. Not that big a deal, as I later discovered. It was quickly rewound into a ball and I re-knit the bind-off. Now I just need to figure out how to connect the beginning and end of the I-cord edge and make a tassel. I've never made my own tassel before, surprising as that may seem to certain of my readers. What Kat has learned today: it's not such a big deal to frog anymore. It's all about the process anyway, right Margene? Right. 

On Felting or Frogging.

After some ridiculous roadblocks (I left the hat in the theater after watching Brokeback Mountain, I left the hat in Provo over Christmas weekend, I lost the hat somewhere around the house for a week, and all this after frogging the first few inches in black about six times because I was indecisive), I finally finished my SIL Rebecca's hat. And it is at least two inches too long. Rargh. So do I felt it, or do I frog it? Because right now it's a hazard to whomever wears it. Unless that person is looking for a really good way to block out light yet still look stylish while asleep. By the way, I used Susan's Be Brave Don't Swatch pattern with the flat-top alternative and I-cord bind-off. And I love how it looks aside from the length. 

On Winning Soap.

Hey you, you Soap Winner. If your name is Lauren, Michaele, Elizagrrl, or The Frog, email me your mailing address (or see me at Stitch'n'Bitch which is no longer called Stitch'n'Bitch on Tuesday) at Katherine[dot]Allred[at]gmail[dot]com. And your soap you shall have. Everyone else: if I know you personally, I'll give you a bar for your birthday (so you can clean your birthday suit). And if you ask, I can post the recipe too (it's my very own). But you should probably have at least minimal soap crafting experience before trying it. Lye is serious stuff. It will fuck you up if given half a chance (which I once did, despite supposed safety precautions). Just saying, is all. Just saying.

On Soaping.

I've been knitting a lot, but I don't have any recent photos, so look at this stuff. I made soap on Monday for the family. I take care of my family in a million different ways, but somehow the feeling I get from making soap for them is the biggest in terms of feeling like actually providing and caring for them. I love mixing the lye with the oils and watching the tracing process, the slow saponification that turns the fats into perfect soap. It's a lavender-lemongrass driven, super-fatted piece of bathing heaven. The kids have insanely sensitive skin, and this soap doesn't give them rashes--in fact, it helps heal their rashes. I use a cold-process oven-curing system that produces a wonderful bar with a pretty quick turnaround. Anyone want to try some? First four to leave a comment get a bar for their very own selves. All vegetable, super-fatted, lavender-scented soap with shea and cocoa butters to really push it into luxury territory. I thought about setting up a soap-selling business a few years ago, but I really prefer to make small batches just for family and friends. Get yourself some.