fingers and toes

Fickle

2007-06-06T01:11:00.000-07:00

I've moved again:
http://fingersandtoes.wordpress.com/

Reset your blog aggregator of choice, and if Matt would be so kind as to change my livejournal syndication...?

Updates and photos across at the new blog! And I promise more to come!

the city that never sleeps...

2007-05-26T03:03:00.001-07:00

all I can say is it gets light pretty early in the morning...

the big questions of the universe...

2007-05-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

Should I go to Paris next week? Or the week after? Quelle dilemma!

New York summer fashion report

2007-05-22T20:49:00.000-07:00

1. Dresses! Still big.

2. Wide leg jeans are BACK! Which means that the ones I bought the last time and still wear constantly are fashionable once more. But even if they weren't, I'd still wear them!

Sorry for the cop out post.... I will try and do a proper post later!

Plans...

2007-04-30T13:57:00.000-07:00

I've given up on getting my laptop modem to work properly so I've borrowed my parents' computer to write this. I can't wait until I'm in New York and London and can have broadband back again! Because I'm in the country right now broadband is not available (unless by incredibly expensive satellite - the set up costs are enormous and ongoing costs about $70 per month or something...) and dialup is very slow since we are miles from the nearest telephone exchange. It feels so primitive!

Well I have been having a fairly relaxing time since I finished work, and have been pottering around organising my stuff, catching up with people and crossing the odd thing off my to-do list. Not long to go now and I'm really looking forward to it now. I'm terrified, but also very very READY.

I'm in two different dance troupes performing for the last time on Thursday and Saturday, so if you want to see me let me know and I'll give you the details.

I have been doing a lot of knitting! Which reminds me, I really should take photos before I give stuff away. I have done three hats, a pair of slipper/bed socks (!!! I know! I knit a whole PAIR of socks! and on 4mm needles they only took a day), and started on Thermal from Knitty. There is no way I'm going to eliminate my stash before I leave, but oh well.

I will try to update later with pictures!

ps also CAN'T WAIT for spring! Although the autumn colours here are incredible it is starting to get very cold...

Sizzle 2!

2007-04-14T04:15:00.000-07:00

Made from Naturally Me, a New Zealand-made 80% merino, 20% cashmere blend. Don't you wish you could feel this? At $NZ14.95 per ball I think it's a bit cheaper than other similar blends available. It's made up of lots of individual plys quite tightly spun, but eminently soft. The end result is a little fuzzy so I'm not sure if it would be good for cables. If you didn't want to spend a lot of money (Sizzle took 6 balls, so it cost $90) it would make an excellent hat yarn. I thoroughly recommend it.

The second time knitting Sizzle did take me a bit longer, but I think that was more due to other things in my life. The pattern was still as enjoyable and fast (if you don't count all the time I wasn't knitting) to knit. And with the clever shaping, Sizzle fits perfectly. So if you haven't knit it yet, go on over to Knit and Tonic and get yourself the pattern! I am eagerly awaiting Wendy's book.... I also have plans to knit Le Slouch before I leave.

I made the second size this time because I made it to wear over a shirt as you can see in the photo. It's snuggly warm and soft, fits like a dream and I'm very happy with it!

Oh, and I finished it in time to wear it on my last day at work.

Wednesday-itis

2007-04-10T20:48:00.000-07:00

hehe, I shouldn't really complain about having to come back to work on a Wednesday, should I?

The weekend was fantastic, thank you Wellington for saving up some sun for me and making me want to come back there. I really did dance until I dropped and it was great. I even made it on to national television! (I'm about halfway through, in the background - I wouldn't have even known except a workmate spotted me. It's fun watching the video though as there are so many familiar faces!)

I have almost finished my second Sizzle, so stay tuned for pictures. After that I have a hat to knit for a certain dance partner of mine, and then I will be trying very hard to use up some random stash yarn. I finish work on Friday so that means more knitting time for me! Oh, and trip planning. Oh yeah.

Show me some cool knitting - what is the best knitted thing you guys have seen lately?

Easter eggs are WRONG

2007-04-04T20:11:00.000-07:00

Perhaps a controversial attitude to take at this time of year, but...

My office tends to go Easter egg crazy. This morning I got to work and there were four tiny little eggs on my desk, then a chocolate bunny appeared, then a bag full of eggs, and just as I was typing this someone came in and offered me some rocky road-type confection.

Anyway, it's getting to that peckish time of the afternoon and I was feeling like a little chocolate. So I unwrapped and bit into one of the little eggs I got this morning. I just about choked. It tasted like a combination of chalk and wax, with no detectable chocolate content. Luckily I had some emergency chocolate in my desk, so I spat out the inedible muck and quickly administered an antidote ("emergency chocolate" is anything above 55% cocoa mass, preferably 70% or more or in today's case - thank goodness - Lindt 85%. It must be kept in desk drawers in case of situations such as this, or for when clients yell at me)

But it got me thinking - why is it that Easter eggs are so foul compared with normal chocolate? Why do the chocolate companies think they can cheat us at this time of year by selling us stuff with minimal chocolate content? Why doesn't New Zealand have laws about what you can call chocolate, for that matter! (I know Europe does, and they have laws about what you can call yoghurt and cheese that wouldn't go amiss here either) Mind you, if something merely says "Easter egg" on the wrapper I guess it isn't making any assertions as to its ingredients.

But honestly! I still have a drawer full of so-called "chocolate" from last Easter that I haven't eaten. What am I meant to do with this year's haul?

Phoenix Bess

2007-04-03T17:19:00.000-07:00

This girl has been linked all over the place lately and featured in Vogue Knitting, but in case you missed the buzz, go visit her site!

I must admit, I'm rather jealous of her! A talented knitter and dancer, and gorgeous to boot, with her own successful company, all at the age of 14. She makes me feel rather inadequate.

That aside, there are a few of her patterns I'd really like to knit. Stuff like Drama Queen, the Queen Anne's Lace tunic, the Pirouette Socks, and Flower Petal Arm Warmers.

Checking in

2007-04-01T14:14:00.000-07:00

Just to let you all know I'm still alive! (ok, and to prod Eclair a little).

Plans are progessing - unfortunately I have to move out of my flat this weekend, but since I have to be in Wellington this weekend I am actually moving out tomorrow and taking the afternoon off work. I am now finishing work a couple of weeks earlier than planned, too, so I'll be finishing at the end of next week. That gives me a bit more time to sort things out, and the first week my mum will be on holiday so we can spend some time together.

This weekend I am heading up to Wellington on Thursday night for the NZ Pacific Salsa Congress. One of the dance troupes I am in is performing so that will be exciting. I'm also going to be doing heaps of workshops and partying into the night! I'm still in Welly on Monday so will hopefully catch up with some friends then. Then back Monday night. On Tuesday (which is Lawyers Day so I have the day off) I'm going to go and stay with one of the teachers from Mum's school, who has a spare room, so I can stay in Christchurch. Mum and Dad just live too far away and their internet's crap - not good when I am trying to organise stuff for my trip!

So as you can imagine, life has been a bit hectic and stressful! I finally picked up my knitting again a couple of weeks ago, which definitely helped with the stress. But I made a mistake and had to rip back heaps, so I've hardly made any progress. Hopefully I will have some time soon.

Knitting content!

2007-03-07T15:16:00.000-08:00

No, I haven't been doing much knitting lately. I would really like to get through some of the stash before I leave, but then I may not even be able to take the things I knit with me, and that would be sad.

Knits I am definitely taking:
Cabled Hoodie
Sizzle (x2 if I ever finish the new one I am knitting!)
Hourglass pullover
Zhivago cardigan

I get the most wear out of the Zhivago cardi and the cabled hoodie so I will definitely take them - I will probably wear the hoodie on the plane! The Zhivago cardi as a spring cardigan will also be quite useful after touchdown, but I may put the Hourglass into a suitcase for my parents to bring over later in the year, along with maybe my newsboy hat and a scarf or two.

I'll be leaving the Lace Leaf Pullover behind - it was a fun knit but it's boxy and just doesn't look any good on me. Maybe I can find it a new wearer before I leave. There are another couple of sweaters I think I'll leave behind too.. I should also do something about my stash - sell or give away anything I don't want to knit before I leave.

Of course, all this not being able to knit has not stopped me from dreaming about what I WANT to be knitting. I've added these to my "future knits" set on Flickr. I really want to knit myself a blanket, so I may make that a long-term project. Also, the Dollar and a Half cardigan that everyone's keen on from the latest IK, Thermal from Knitty and since I won't be having a winter for a while I'm still very keen to knit Rusted Root. I may also be able to knit Le Slouch before I leave... Then when winter hits I'd like to knit something warm and snuggly like Flicca, Josephine, or Starsky. (pics of everything are on flickr, I haven't bothered to link all of them).

oooh!

2007-02-28T12:55:00.001-08:00

I just realised - one of the cool things about moving to the northern hemisphere is I'll get knitting magazines in season!

Not much knitting happening here at the moment - it's all dancing, all the time! And some trip planning. Some.

Travel plans

2007-02-20T15:07:00.000-08:00

Christchurch-Auckland Saturday May 12 at 14:50

Auckland-LA Saturday 12 May 17:55 (arriving at 10:45 - I love time travel!)

LA - NY Saturday 12 May 13:15 arriving at 21:45

2 weeks in NY!
I was also thinking of taking a side trip to Washington. Taina - you go all the time - how much does the bus cost, how long does it take and where's a good (cheap) place to stay? Rebecca, same questions!

NY - London Saturday 26 May arriving Sunday 27 May at 06:25

Hellooooo London!

(no return ticket)

Also, my shiny red passport arrived yesterday!

2007-02-11T18:59:00.000-08:00

So, Eclair asked if I was going away with work, or if I was running away with a dishy Welshman. The answer is neither (sadly, in the case of the dishy Welshman). I am going on my own, and I'm not sure what I'm going to do after I get there. I have three months to figure that out!

Actually, I think what I might do is some legal temporary or contract work, although I think I'm also going to apply for the Buckingham Palace job that Rebecca had last year - the pay's crap but is looks like fun! Long-term I'm thinking of working for some kind of NGO or IGO, or GO in fact, or maybe even some further study.

Question for those of you who have moved to the other side of the world: how much STUFF did you take? I can't really decide what to take with me and what to leave. I think I'm just going to end up taking clothes and my laptop. But then I think about my knitting books, cook books, 400 thread count sheets... how do you decide?

2007-02-09T12:25:00.000-08:00

Ignore the awful photograph! I still had a bit of a tummy on me from Christmas and upon reflection, waist-length is not the most flattering style. The tiara was not part of my outfit, it was actually part of the flower arrangement on the table, and it was getting on a bit in the evening...

Long time no blog

2007-02-08T17:59:00.000-08:00

The wedding was about a month ago now and I did finish the cardigan in time, and I do have pictures, I just haven't uploaded them yet - I'll get it done in the weekend, promise!

Who would like to come and see me dance? I'm performing on the 24th in the North Quad of the Arts Centre, in something called the Latin Dance Festival. Tickets are $10 but if you get in quick I might be able to get you one for $5! The girls troupe I'm in will be debuting our new costumes, I'm also in a rueda troupe and my students are performing too. Needless to say, that's why I haven't blogged in a while. Three dance troupes is a bit much, let me tell you! I'm constantly tired and my back is aching.

Enough of the complaining and on to the important news! I'm moving to the UK in May! Er, more details on that as I come up with them!

Secret admirer!

2007-01-18T14:02:00.000-08:00

Or not!

The staffroom at work is right next to my office. At morning tea this morning, one of the secretaries spotted a small bunch of flowers on a ledge outside my window, and one of the other secretaries ran out and grabbed it. Then debate raged over whether I have a secret admirer or whether someone just left them there by mistake (there's a car park outside my window).

The funny thing is, I was reading my book and completely oblivious to the whole thing! It's a pretty pathetic bunch of flowers and still had the price tag on it so if it was a secret admirer I don't really want to know!

I am wondering if I should shut my privacy blinds though!

Back in the good books!

2007-01-17T01:43:00.000-08:00

Excuse the pun. Amazon's response:

Thank you for writing to Amazon.com.

I have confirmed that we mistakenly charged you for the above order
in the amount of $13.46 and have requested a refund of $13.46 to
your credit card. Please accept my sincere apology that this
occurred. As a representative of Amazon.com, I want to assure you
that we value our customers' trust above all else--it's the
foundation on which our company was built. Please know that we'll
continue working hard to ensure that you receive accurate service,
and to minimize the chances of anything like this occurring again.

Thisrefund should go through within the next 2 to 3 business days
and will appear as a credit on your next credit card billing
statement.

You may view completed refunds by clicking the "Your Account" link
at the top of our web site, then clicking "Go!" next to "open
andrecently shipped orders." Completed refunds will appear at
thebottom of an individual order's summary page.

I hope that you will continue to consider Amazon.com for your future
online shopping needs.

Bad Amazon!

2007-01-16T14:50:00.000-08:00

I posted earlier about how happy I was with Amazon's service.

Not so much now.

See, back then a cd ordered from Amazon was stolen from my mailbox before I got home. Not quite knowing what I could do about this, I emailed Amazon to let them know. They said they would refund me and re-order the item. Brilliant! They also said that as the cost of return shipping was prohibitive I did not need to return the item. Well, as I never had the item returning it would have been impossible anyway, so all good.

Today I received an email stating that as I had not returned it, they had charged my credit card for it. If I did return it they would refund this amount.

WTF? I have sent an email to them enclosing a copy of the original email they sent me. Stay tuned for the result. I would really love to keep shopping with Amazon...

Hurrah!

2006-12-22T11:37:00.000-08:00

After a very hectic day (week, really) at work I am now on holiday! A couple of clients have my cellphone number but sometimes that's what you've got to do to get out of the office...

Anyway, I promised photos and now I have time to post them. First up, knitting progress:

Yes, I have actually made some! Now I am in Sleeve Hell. Usually I knit a front, then a sleeve, then a front, then a sleeve, but I completely forgot on this occasion.

Anyway, now I have 3 weeks to knit 1 1/2 sleeves, block, sew, find buttons and then wear it to my friend's wedding! Totally doable. I'll probably finish the knitting in the next couple of days as now I don't have anything to do (and the weather's crap).

In fact, the weather's so crap I feel like I should be knitting wool, so look out for the second Baudelaire too. If I manage to dig up the pattern and needles from wherever I've stashed them since the move and take it all on holiday with me.

Here are the promised pictures from the flat Christmas Dinner:

Because I have no shame!

2006-12-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

oh, and I just switched to Blogger beta. Sorry for flooding your friends lists/bloglines/etc, I'm sure it won't happen again!

Someone please remind me to post some pictures tonight!

2006-12-19T20:04:00.000-08:00

Anyway, maybe it's because the year is drawing to a close, and I'm leaving this place to go on holiday for three! whole! weeks!

Ahem. As I was about to say, I really love working where I do. I work in a building right in the centre of Christchurch, in Cathedral Square, the city's focal point. But even though I'm in the middle of a (fairly) sizeable city, much of the time it feels like a village. You see the same people every day in the building, you know them by name, and whether you get a burger or a souvlaki or a bagel for lunch the person behind the counter will always smile and pass the time of day with you. If you want to eat your lunch outside on the grass you can always find someone you know to eat with. If you want to have lunch with the Mayor or various other local identities the best place to people-watch is right across the road at the aforementioned bagel place.

If you want to see a real Wizard or get shouted at by fire and brimstone Christians I know a nice shady spot to sit and listen. You can also see the Town Crier making his daily rounds and ringing his bell.

There's always something interesting going on outside the window, from bands playing to market days, to Buddha's birthday (celebrated on the Cathedral steps!), the Festival of Flowers and Romance, the Armistice Day Parade, the giant Christmas tree, and countless other festivals and occasions (I don't actually know what they all are, I just see them out the window).

Y'know, it may not be Stars Hollow, but it's not half bad here.

Thanks!

2006-12-12T15:11:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the Christmas decoration ideas, people! It's coming together. Nicole, I'd love some yarny goodness on the tree and I'd really like to do some mini sweater decorations, mittens, that sort of thing BUT most of my yarn is wool and two of my flatmates are vegan. We're getting there though - the lights are up, I bought a few decorations and one of my flatmates had a few candy canes that are now on the tree, along with some Christmas crackers.

We had our flat Christmas dinner last night, which went rather well. Pictures to come! I made a "turkey" that was really quite scary in its turkey-ness.

Here's a question for you all: Soft drinks rot your teeth. Fluoride stops your teeth from rotting. They're thinking of putting fluoride in the water system again to stop the teeth rotting from the soft drinks. Lots of people are opposed to this because they don't like fluoride.

Would it be a stupid idea to put the fluoride in the soft drinks? Has anyone even suggested this? Your thoughts please.

Decoration ideas please!

2006-12-10T13:00:00.000-08:00

I'm putting a Christmas tree up this year, but Mum has had my tree the last couple of years and she's lost ALL of my decorations except for the lights. I don't want to spend much money or time really, but my Christmas tree can't go naked! Has anyone got any quick & cheap decoration ideas?

Ah, IRD, how I love you

2006-12-07T15:23:00.000-08:00

Verification of Identity
Please enter a verification of identity phrase. You will need to use this phrase if you forget your password and need to use our online "Forgotten Password" utility. Choose something that you can remember easily, but that other people won't guess. This word or phrase must not exceed a total of 32 characters and can contain a mix of letters and numbers. For example 'Aunt Lorna86'.

So, you mean, if I forget my password, all I have to do is remember another password and everything will be ok!

la la la

2006-12-05T19:49:00.000-08:00

I'm at work and I want to go home. Of course, the sooner I actually get my A into G and do some work, the sooner I get to go home, but you know how it goes.

So you get a bullet-point procrastination post:

Amazon: have already established that they are awesome, but it bears repeating.
Clients: sigh.
Dance teaching: is over for the year. I have been paid, but unfortunately not nearly enough. The whole point of me doing this particular paid teaching gig was to earn enough money to pay my taxes. Unfortunately I've been underpaid and also they got my tax code wrong so the whole exercise would have actually resulted in me having to pay even *more* taxes. Have resolved to quit work as then I won't have to pay tax.
Must stop whining though as a couple of phone calls later and I was assured the problem will be fixed.
IRD: (tax department) a real human answered the phone! Unless they've made startling advances in voice recognition and artificial intelligence technology. They didn't put me on hold or anything.
This really is a money-themed post. Ex-flatmate still hasn't paid my bond back, the estimate has changed from last weekend (ie 1 1/2 weeks ago) to yesterday, to today, and now I am assured I will have my money (or whatever is left over after she thinks up heaps of excuses to keep it) on Friday. Is it any coincidence that Friday is the day after payday? I'm sure it's not - she can't possibly have spent money that was never hers to spend. Have been getting rather hard-line with her though - which is so easy to do when sticking up for other people but much harder to do when it's myself. Easier when I don't give a stuff about preserving the relationship though.
In good money news, I get my Christmas bonus tomorrow.
By the time I get home, the latest episode of Gilmore Girls should have downloaded. This is something to look forward to.
Must also take picture of Christmas party dress for you all to advise on accessories.

I love Amazon

2006-12-05T10:14:00.000-08:00

They are refunding me and sending me another CD!

Now I just really hope it's that particular package that went missing.... my flatmate said it was quite small, and the other packages I'm waiting for are a book + CD, and another very small package that is coming by courier so shouldn't be in my mailbox.

Hopefully both packages will arrive today, so if it turns out I am wrong I will (hopefully) have time to tell them before they ship stuff!

But yeah, go Amazon!

2006-12-05T02:09:00.000-08:00

Today a package was stolen out of my mailbox.

Maybe I don't like living on the east side after all :(

Because Marcel can't use Google Image Search...

2006-12-04T10:26:00.000-08:00

This is she:

A great role model for young ladies, don't you think?

Stuff that makes me angry

2006-12-03T17:22:00.000-08:00

This just sent to the manager of Lippy: (so, don't correct me on anything because I already sent it!)

To: The General Manager

Dear Sir/Madam (probably Sir, I'm sure. The company is owned by men)

A friend and I were shopping in your Riccarton store the other day, and we were both incredibly shocked to see an A4 size photo of Nicole Richie on a changing room door. The target market for your stores is teenage girls and women in their early 20s. Many girls in that age range do not have a very positive body image, and a store changing room is already a very emotionally loaded place. Placing such a photograph in your changing rooms gives these girls an unrealistic and unhealthy ideal to strive towards, as well as reinforcing all of the pressure and insecurity towards their bodies that the media already encourages.

I also imagine that it cannot possibly help you to sell clothes - surely pictures that make girls feel good about themselves are far more likely to encourage them to buy your products?

Is it your store policy to have pictures like that in changing rooms? If so it needs to be changed urgently. A chain of stores such as yours has a responsibility towards its customers not to reinforce ideals of beauty that must be unattainable and very unhealthy for young, developing women to strive towards.

Regards,

(me)

I very much hope they write back. Or my next letter is going to the local paper.

In other ragey-ness, ex-flatmate has not paid my bond back yet. Cow. If I don't get it back soon she's getting a shitty letter from the firm though. The bonus of working in a law firm, especially one as close-knit as mine, is we definitely stick up for each other here!

Another reason to eat chocolate

2006-11-30T14:10:00.000-08:00

Researchers in Germany recently found that women who drank an antioxidant-rich brand of hot cocoa for three months developed smoother, better-hydrated skin that was less vulnerable to sunburn.

Worth investigating further, I think! A couple of weeks ago I bought some very high-quality Dutch cocoa and I have been experimenting a bit. You just use cocoa, sugar and hot water. I am still trying to figure out the best proportions, but this will vary depending on the cocoa and sugar you use, anyway. I find that the texture improves if you let it stand a while too.

Summer!

2006-11-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

Happy first day of summer everyone!
I think we may have a white Christmas yet....

(I have this theory that New Zealand has been drifting closer and closer to Antarctica. That would explain the icebergs, and the 4 degree wind chill!)

Yay, seeing Hilaire tonight!

1 Baudelaire...

2006-11-25T21:32:00.000-08:00

In my new flat, with my new shiny broadband internet! Will do a proper update soon.

2006-11-21T21:23:00.000-08:00

also, I'm having these urges to make a big Amazon order... but weirdly I can't think of any knitting books I'm really coveting. Any ideas?

Well.

2006-11-21T21:06:00.000-08:00

Life has had its ups and downs lately. I think I'll feel a lot better after I move this weekend. My last moving experience was about as stressful as you can imagine, and moving's supposed to be the third most stressful thing after death of a loved one and a breakup, and oh I've had one of those too. It wasn't a bad one as far as breakups go, but a breakup's a breakup, right?

Internet at home is almost nonexistent thanks to a fault with my modem. It works if I unscrew my case, unscrew my modem, take it out, put it back in, and screw everything back together again. Then I can use it for about half an hour (if I'm lucky) until the whole thing conks out again. Not really worth it. Hooray for having broadband in my new flat! Hopefully we will set up a wireless network so I can use my laptop in my room.

I'm also very much looking forward to gardening again. I hope the weather's good on Sunday!

Knitting has pretty much ground to a halt. I started knitting Dad's socks but haven't made much progress. The shop only had metal needles in the size I needed and they really make my hands and wrists hurt. Maybe I should just abandon them and buy him something for Christmas. He's actually one of the easiest to buy for too - you just get him music or a biography. Maybe I should push on with the cardigan as I do want to wear it to my friend's wedding in January.

Work is work. Accelerating rapidly towards Christmas - clients who have been thinking about getting things done all year suddenly call and want everything done at once!

Dancing is great. The university classes I teach are over for the year, and there are only two weeks left of my night school classes - tonight and next week. Numbers have dropped in the night school classes thanks to torrential rain the week before last (and if they skip one class they don't tend to come back..) but the ones who are left are really enjoying it. They're all going to come out dancing one night next week! I really need to figure out what I'm going to teach them tonight....

Also, I'm in a dance troupe and our first performance is next week! The practices have really become the highlight of my week. It's a great group and we all leave buzzing. Incredibly good for fitness too - I am the incredible shrinking woman at the moment and my abs are probably better than they were when I was 18 and didn't need to make an effort!

So, no pictures sorry because whenever I try to upload them I get booted off the internet. But I did manage to put some up on Flickr I think so head over there if you like.

2006-11-14T15:10:00.000-08:00

So my weekly schedule at the moment looks something like this:

Monday: Dance practice
Tuesday: Me time (only negotiable if I can swap it with another night)
Wednesday: Teaching
Thursday: Dancing at the Hog (also dance class if I can be bothered)
Friday: Out dancing or something else if there's anything more interesting happening
Saturday: Dance practice and up until recently teacher training (thankgodthat'sover)
Sunday: REST!

Only last week I missed out on the me time on Tuesday because I was busy looking at flats. Then on Saturday I had my work bonding day, which was stressful and had been stressing me out for half of the week but I can't be bothered going into why right now.

So: no me time and only half a weekend. Combine that with various other stress factors like people getting grumpy at me for things that are not my fault, moving house, my computer not working properly, ex boyfriend being a dick, plans for this weekend not working out, not being able to find my bag of cds for my class tonight and worrying that I threw it out in a rather manic clean-up I had after work on Saturday, and of course work (kinda goes without saying) I guess it's no wonder I'm feeling a bit strung out.

I did finish a Baudelaire sock though. Although I'm not comfortable enough with sock knitting yet for that to be a relaxing exercise. And of course there's still a whole 'nother sock to go...

Someone tell me to pull myself together!

Oh, and by the way, Mainland Banner lost badly! But my other horse, It's Ella, came in third. Maybe I ought to get that Lotto ticket after all.

Luck!

2006-11-13T14:36:00.000-08:00

Last week I won the office sweep for the Melbourne Cup. With $2 of my winnings I bought an instant kiwi (scratchie) ticket and won on that too, then bought another and won on that too (small prizes but good all the same!).

Now I just drew the favourite in the New Zealand Cup office sweep! If I win this I am definitely buying a Lotto ticket. C'mon Mainland Banner! You won last year so I know you can do it!

eta: my horoscope's also been telling me lucky money stars are on the way for weeks! I wish Crazy Aunt Purl had done horoscopes this month. Maybe she could have thrown some light on the love life as well because the other horoscope I read has been very strange on that. More or less accurate, but strange...

Oh well, me 'n Antonio are still good! (apart from that one small problem...)

The new flat

2006-11-09T13:00:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this here at all. In two weeks' time I will be moving flats. I've experienced the whole inner city apartment thing now, the pool, the gym, my car being vandalised multiple times, the neighbours' parties, etc etc etc. The whole flat dynamic was not really going all that well either. My flatmate was very much in charge and I guess that's fair enough if she wants to run it that way, but that's not how I want to live. Maybe she can find other flatmates who don't mind that at all, but I want to live in a place that feels like MY home again. And what with summer coming, I want to have a garden again! And some outdoor space.

I have found all that and more. Hilaire, you remember the day you moved in and we stayed up really late talking, and that was the point that we knew we were going to be great flatmates and friends? Well that's how I feel about the new flat and I haven't felt like that in ages! The new flatmates are as excited as I am.

There's Ian, a 27 year-old musician (not drums! he plays in a string quartet. how cultured!), Emily, a 22 year-old youth social worker who runs outdoor programs and also dances, and Mikkeline, a nearly 24 year-old flight attendant who is very cheerful and cool, albeit not home very often as she's on the international circuit. They're all either vegetarian or vegan.

They have a little vegetable garden and plans to expand (oh, I can help there!), a study where everyone's computers are hooked up to broadband (with plans to get wireless), HUGE living spaces, a lovely kitchen with gas cooking and yes I am in LOVE. The bedroom is smaller than my current room but there's plenty of storage etc in other parts of the house so I'll fit in fine!

It's in Dallington, which is one of the eastern suburbs, making it a part of town that I'm not overly familiar with as I'm a snobby west-side girl, but it's actually quite lovely. Tree-lined streets, middle class, seems to be a high propotion of owner occupancy as the houses and gardens all look well cared for. And it's not too far from town. Plus the rent's heaps cheaper!

Socks?

2006-11-06T14:09:00.000-08:00

I started posting this this morning but then my flatmate disconnected me from the internet.

Does anyone know of a pattern for left and right socks? You know, shaped differently for left and right feet? My Dad's best friend has a lot of money and only wears left and right socks. I thought it would be nice if Dad had some custom made left and right socks, just to one-up him a bit! (since I can't afford a Porsche which is what he's asked for for Christmas - his friend has two).

2006-11-03T10:14:00.000-08:00

See, I do still knit! That's the back of Martha, the hard part is over.

If you're wondering why I was up insanely early this morning, it's because my stomach woke me up. I ate fish and chips at work last night and now I feel very ill. I promise I will be a good vegetarian from now on! Rabbit food is looking pretty good right now.

The knitting needle jinx

2006-11-03T08:43:00.000-08:00

I'm knitting Martha on 3mm needles. The only 3mm needles I had in my collection were metal, and I didn't think my wrists could handle knitting a whole cardigan on 3mm metal needles, so I went out and bought some plastic ones.

Then I took my knitting to Wellington, and managed to leave one of the needles there. The weather turned wintery so I abandoned Martha for a few days and finished the heels of the Baudelaire socks instead. After the weather warmed up again I went out one lunch time and bought a new pair of 3mm needles. Not wanting to carry them back to work only to carry them back to my car again, I left them in my car. MISTAKE.

It's only spring too - it's not as though it's all that warm!!

Public Service Announcement

2006-11-02T19:35:00.000-08:00

Me and Antonio are back together.

For anyone who doesn't know, Antonio was my dance partner, until I dumped him. Which was a stupid move, since Antonio is perfect. He never, EVER steps on my feet, he's suave, sexy, an incredible dancer, tall, dark, handsome, 3 inches taller than me, and oh DID I MENTION those abs? He is the perfect gentleman and gives great compliments, and is ever so polite to all of my friends. And he has the sexy latino accent!

Of course, he is also a wonderful lover. And gives fantastic massages for those tired dancer's limbs. Although he never gets tired himself!

I don't mind it when he dances with other girls since he always comes back to me (especially when we're dancing Rueda!). He's perfect in almost every way.

Almost every way. There's only one small problem with Antonio, which is the reason I dumped him in the first place. We had our first fight ever. I told him to "get real" and "be a man" and he said I was being "completely unrealistic" and "living in a dream world". We never really did sort things out but I'm willing to give it another go regardless. It may not work out.

But for now, me and Antonio are happy.

No, no...

2006-11-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

THIS Luke!

Wills

2006-11-01T13:05:00.000-08:00

I think the most important job a lawyer can do is to write someone's will.

I used to think free wills were a good thing, because it is very important that people have wills so as a service to society we should include wills with other work we do for clients. However, I have come to think that giving free wills makes the actual value of them seem less to both the client and the lawyer. It is an extremely important document and what we do end up charging for them compared to its actual value is still pretty low, when you think about it.

One of the scariest things I do in my job is to draft wills that I know are going to be used, and probably some time soon. I am working on one will in particular that is not only going to be used in New Zealand, but will probably see the inside of courtrooms all over the place since the guy has assets everywhere. That many judges looking at my work freaks me out. Not to mention the whole people dying thing (don't worry, I don't say this stuff to the widows. Other, more compassionate members of this firm deal with the actual estates!).

It's times like this that I keep in mind a mantra a very good lawyer told me once:

At least we're not doctors.

At least we're not doctors.

At least we're not doctors....

2006-10-28T11:31:00.000-07:00

I want a Luke...

Happy Diwali everyone!

2006-10-22T15:46:00.000-07:00

I've been lucky enough to go to the Diwali celebrations in Auckland and Wellington this year! I don't think anything's going on in Christchurch but if anyone knows of anything do let me know. Louise, you will also be pleased to know I managed to score a copy of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham! I've been watching it all morning and sobbing my heart out....

Here are some random photos from my travels, I didn't take many sadly:

Also, I'm single again... while it was quite nice being with someone again, it was also kind of weird. I think I need to spend more time on my own. I guess with the right person it wouldn't feel weird, either. I kind of do worry that the longer I'm single for, I'll get too stuck in my ways to fit in with anyone! But time will tell.

Look!

2006-10-22T03:55:00.000-07:00

Wendy said very nice things about my Sizzle.

I do wish the picture didn't make me look so pasty though! Oh wait, I AM pasty... (who woulda thought it's actually spring here?)

2006-10-18T23:33:00.000-07:00

I finished Sizzle a couple of weeks ago and I love it!

I've also started knitting Martha:

I've got loads more pics to post but blogger is being a bit of a pain at the moment. Going to Wellington tomorrow, will post when I get back!

mello yello

2006-10-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

tastes like childhood!

Doesn't take much to make me happy :)

I know I promised pictures a couple of posts ago.... I'll put some up eventually. Probably after I confess to A that I have a knitblog and then after he gets weirded out and dumps me and then we get back together because his unhealthy obsession with cricket cancels out my unhealthy obsession with knitting I shall get him to take some photos. Which will be way better than me trying to take them myself and therefore worth the wait.

(Do you know lawyers aren't supposed to use the word "therefore" any more? Apparently it's a made up word and doesn't mean anything!)

Dear Starbucks

2006-10-09T20:39:00.000-07:00

Dear Starbucks,

I tried to like you. I tried to put aside all I learned during the course of my Political Science degree about how you forced world coffee prices down and about how poor Columbian coffee farmers have had to turn to drugs to supplement their incomes. I tried to focus instead on how well you apparently treat your employees here in New Zealand. I will admit that you do have cosy chairs, and I did try not to be so snobbish about your other clientele. I tried to understand why your prices are so inflated and your ambience so manufactured compared to other more local coffee institutions. I know that my boyfriend really enjoys drinking at your outlets and, although I am an independent, free-thinking woman, yes I did try to like you for his sake.

I understand that many people like being able to go into a shop anywhere in the world and being assured of getting the same thing every time. I understand that, so do I.

However, I am unfamiliar with your menu, so when I ask for a trim milk hazelnut hot chocolate and it comes with not only hazelnut syrup but also vanilla syrup and mocha syrup, which apparently come as standard with all of your hot chocolates (and would be horrible enough by themselves but far worse with the addition of hazelnut!) I'm sure you can understand my distress at being given what is by far the worst hot chocolate I have ever had. Also, what was the weird oily-looking stuff floating on top?

Sorry Starbucks, but this simple girl prefers to walk into her local coffee place and ask for a trim milk hazelnut hot chocolate, or perhaps an iced chocolate even, and get exactly that!

Regards,
Sarah

p.s. I know what a cappucino is (it's what you drink with breakfast in Italy) but what the heck is a Frappucino anyway?

p.p.s. I'm drinking tea now!

p.p.p.s WHY DO PEOPLE LIKE YOU?

Two things

2006-10-06T03:01:00.000-07:00

1. My Fall IK arrived today! The envelope was franked on August 15. Go go economy post!

2. Stay tuned people..... my next post will have pictures! And perhaps multiple FOs! Shock horror, has Sarah remembered that this is primarily a knitting blog?

2006-10-05T16:28:00.000-07:00

I finished Sizzle at morning tea time and now I'm wearing it! That means Martha is up next... just as soon as I get some beads!

Summeralong!

2006-10-02T13:17:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! We've only got 2 members so far - come and join the Summeralong!
http://summeralong.blogspot.com/

Email/comment me for an invite.

Life is not worth living

2006-09-27T14:14:00.000-07:00

Johnny Depp is getting married!

legal life...

2006-09-26T19:23:00.000-07:00

Christchurch is a very small town when it comes to lawyers. 400,000 people live in the city, but you can fit the names of all of the lawyers here onto one sheet of A4 paper (the first time I saw my name on that piece of paper was pretty cool). Everyone knows each other, everyone knows which associate is sleeping with which partner at which firm (the rules of professional conduct prevent me from saying more on that one, but it's a juicy story), and the strange thing about being part of a "profession" is that you can have a huge argument with someone on the phone or face them in court one day, and go out drinking with them the next.

I still find it weird to have people I know on the other end of a dispute or negotiation though. Often these people have been teachers or mentors in the past, on the one hand you want to be nice to them but on the other you want to be as professional as possible to impress them and let them know their teaching hasn't gone to waste! It is definitely a strange world I live in...

What does "profession" mean to you? In my law school ethics class (a compulsory course, you will be pleased to learn) we discussed this and decided that essential elements of a profession are:
1. Independent/self-governing
2. Fiduciary relationship with clients
3. Code of ethics
4. Specialised knowledge/training (this sort of leads to the fiduciary relationship as clients have to put trust in you to know what you are doing)

I count lawyers, doctors, dentists, accountants, surveyors, and engineers as "professionals". Some people would widen that a lot further, to include teachers, nurses, etc etc. What do you think?

ETA: I wish you anonymous commenters would identify yourselves! Also, I promise a reply to anyone who leaves their email address.

Waiting...

2006-09-24T14:40:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday it will be six weeks since the Fall 2006 IK was mailed to me. Should I be worried that it hasn't arrived yet?

I also have a parcel missing, from the Craftster tea swap. I suspect the people at Customs have been drinking some very nice tea lately...

I do apologise for the lack of meaningful updates. The usual reasons - too busy having a life. Lots and lots of dancing (yesterday I learned the Charleston! plus demo practices, teaching, latin american, the list goes on), dance parties, work, movies, and, er, a little bit of romance (yes, that's all I'm saying for now!)

Sizzle has been ripped a couple of times but is now coming along well, when I have time to knit it anyway. I've almost finished the back. Will try to post pictures soon!

Down with socks!

2006-09-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry, I tried. Maybe if the weather was still cold, but now that it's warm and my yarn has arrived, there's only one thing I want to knit:

Sizzle! So poor Baudelaire is languishing somewhat. I don't even have second sock syndrome, I have first sock syndrome!

I'll probably finish them next winter, but I must admit I'm not a convert to sock knitting. At least I tried it, right? Even weatherpixie agrees: it's just not sock knitting weather. (and that's at 7am! It's going to be a great day!)

It's Spring, and life is good!

Freaky Tuesday!

2006-09-11T20:30:00.000-07:00

Am I the *only* person who didn't hear or feel the explosion?

My mum called a few minutes ago to say "are you ok?" Apparently there was some huge explosion that shook her whole school, so that everyone ran outside to see what it was (or what the kids had been up to!). Then Dad called and he'd felt and heard it over the other side of town too. Unfortunately my building is earthquake-proof and double-glazed, and I was in the toilet at the time anyway. No one here felt it!

Anyway, for a second I was like "Christchurch? They wouldn't..... would they?" I know, silly huh? What a thing to happen on the anniversary of September 11 though!

(turns out it's probably space junk, but emergency services have been sent to investigate)

Knitty is up!

2006-09-11T11:01:00.000-07:00

And it's a goodie!

MY YARN ARRIVED!

2006-09-11T04:27:00.000-07:00

O happy day. Summer knitting may commence!

(one of the needles came out of Baudelaire in my bag. I'll try and finish the socks, but don't hold your breath).

Bah!

2006-09-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

I got a jury summons!

I know this sounds dumb but I always wanted to be on a jury. Now I'm crushed.

Ah, Monday

2006-09-10T14:12:00.000-07:00

I've been here half an hour and I don't think I've really done any work yet...

The show went well - it was only a two night run, which is always good. On Saturday there was a lot of drinking in the wings, which suprisingly made for a much better show. Friday's show ran smoothly but on Saturday the energy levels were higher, everyone who sang sang better, everyone who played played better etc etc. I'd had three glasses of wine by our last skit, which everyone said was the best one (maybe because they'd also had three glasses of wine by that stage). But actually I think it's because I was a lot more relaxed for it, I just really nailed the timing and delivery. It was fun being back on stage and everyone's keen to make it an annual event now.

I had a picnic on Saturday but unfortunately the weather failed us and it was miserably cold! We had one blanket under us and one blanket over us! That, the show and two dance practices kept me busy all day Saturday. Andrew saw our demo (which he mainly choreographed) for the first time since coming home from a month away. I was really nervous as I'd been in charge while he was away. But he loved it! I'm very relieved.

Sunday was brunch with the girls, trying (and giving up) to find a free tennis court somewhere in the city with Rose, and dinner with a friend.

When will my life ever slow down? Will I ever get to eat a meal at home again? Will I ever get home before 10pm? Will my summer yarn and Fall IK ever turn up? Stay tuned!

quiet = busy

2006-09-06T17:53:00.000-07:00

I've been quiet of late. I seem to recall formulating a drunken post on Friday but must have thought better of it and closed the window. Either that, or failed to find the "publish post" button!

Work has been very busy as the legal exec on my team is away, so much of her work has been falling to me. I've also had to leave at 5:30 every day which has been tough - usually if I have lots of work, I can just stay until it is done. But this week I have been rehearsing for "La Muse" - a show that a bunch of us lawyers are putting on tomorrow and on Saturday in the Christ's College Theatre. I would tell you to come along, but it costs $25. So go and see The Writer's Quest for More than a Middle instead. Be quick - it finishes tomorrow!

I finished my mini-Clapotis. Photos after I block it and weave the ends in. Oh how I loathed knitting that thing - why is it such a favourite among knit bloggers? I found it incredibly tedious, but that said it was a good choice for the yarn I used.

Now I'm doing a few snatches of the Baudelaire socks when I can (usually late at night, so I have to tink back in the morning when I realise my mistakes) and desperately waiting for my summer yarn to arrive. As well as my Fall IK, which still isn't here and probably won't arrive until it really is autumn!

2006-08-29T03:25:00.000-07:00

check out my firm's new website

I'm not on it yet, but will be in the next draft. Prize to the first to find the Easter egg(s)! And feedback please once you have found it. There's a bit of debate in the firm about whether to leave it in.

Sarah's first socks!

2006-08-29T03:10:00.000-07:00

Look! I made socks! Ok, they're in the 3 month size and destined to live on Nico's little feet as soon as they're not quite as little as they currently are (he's 8 weeks, but moving into 3 month clothes already). They're from the Debbie Bliss Baby Knits for Beginners book, which is a pattern written for two needles but I adapted it to knit them on 4. Quite ambitious for a first sock attempt, I thought! Although having knit booties before it was too much of a stretch. They took about 3-4 hours on Sunday afternoon.

I do apologise, I took these photos very late at night and I was half asleep.... I was watching Flashdance when I knit this baby sweater. That should explain a few things!

I took some photos!

2006-08-29T02:15:00.000-07:00

This is, in order, what I see on my way to work in the mornings. I have the best walk to work!

2006-08-24T14:32:00.000-07:00

http://summeralong.blogspot.com

Comment or email me to join!
I'll try and get the blog properly up and running over the weekend.

A glimpse into the future

2006-08-22T16:21:00.000-07:00

With lace leaf finished, what am I knitting next, you ask!

Firstly, I'm knitting a little baby sweater out of the leftover cashmerino (I ordered more than I thought I would need just in case, knowing that I could knit something for little Nico with the leftovers!). I'm using the boatneck sweater pattern from Debbie Bliss' Baby Knits for Beginners, so it should be easy and fast! I actually already knit half of one of these in some wooly wool, but decided it might be a bit scratchy for baby.

I'm also determined to finish my Clapotis, currently languishing under my bed. Sorry to all of the Clapotis devotees, I'm just not enjoying this one!

After that I will delve into my stash to knit Glampyre's Bulky Mini and then - gasp - my first pair of socks! I'm thinking Baudelaire, just to jump in the deep end!

Hopefully I can get all of that done before the warm weather really hits and then it'll be summer knits from here til eternity! I'm thinking of starting a summer knitalong for those of us in the southern hemisphere - anyone keen?

Check out my project queue/inspiration list on flickr.

Lace leaf vital stats

2006-08-20T19:54:00.001-07:00

Pattern: Lace leaf pullover, from Loop d Loop, by Teva Durham.

Yarn: Debbie Bliss cashmerino aran in Moss, double stranded, 11 balls. I find it incredibly soft and squooshy, and luckily even though it's double stranded it's not too horribly warm - must be the acrylic content. I think it will probably pill lots though - we shall see. Also, because it's so smooth, it's very hard to keep those ends woven in!

Time taken to knit: 1 1/2 weeks - that's a sweater record!

Pattern mods: None, although to get gauge I needed 10mm needles (the pattern calls for 9mm).

Comments: I enjoyed knitting this and the finished product will probably get lots of use as a "mooching around" type sweater. Being a "boxy" type design it doesn't actually fit me that well as I am your classic hourglass shape. It looks ok from the front (although has a tendency to bunch above my bust) but is very very roomy in the back. As I said, mooching!

More photos to come after I get home!

winter weekend

2006-08-20T01:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, I went to Castle Hill:

Where I modelled the now Unsecret Sweater:

Blogger has resized it so it's gone all pixellated and yuck, you can see the large version over on Flickr. But anyway, as you can see it's the Lace Leaf Sweater from Loop d Loop!

I found some snow:

And once again failed to get a decent picture of Hourglass!! That sweater is so camera-shy, I swear!

Leafy Green!

2006-08-18T14:42:00.000-07:00

I am wearing the Secret Sweater. Technically it is still winter, but yesterday blossom trees everywhere burst into life! So today I am going somewhere where it is still winter. In fact, I am going somewhere where it is always winter! While there I shall take photos and post them on my return tomorrow. So you all have one last chance to guess what it is before I get back.

As for the other sweater I am going to complete before the end of winter, I will try to complete it in the wintery place! Bonus points for guessing where I am going :)

I actually feel like setting myself a real challenge here - how about three completed sweaters? I'm thinking of picking up an abandoned sweater and finishing it too...

HaHA!

2006-08-16T19:09:00.000-07:00

Keri came into my office today and saw the Secret Sweater, but didn't register it at the time, and now she can't remember what it looks like! All will be revealed in a short time however, I am about half a sleeve away from finishing.

Speaking of Keri, I said goodbye to her today and on Sunday she is off to Wellington and then probably Auckland and I will miss her very much. Love you babe!

Prego!

2006-08-16T02:25:00.000-07:00

Dinner was delicious and now I am very full! I had pizza bread, pasta, gelato, and to drink a glass of Montepulciano and a long black (I've started drinking coffee again - I have no idea how I lasted so long in the legal world without it). And yes, I did catch my mother trying to negotiate my dowry with the owner. He has three sons and was quite disappointed that mum only has one daughter. I honestly don't know how she does it. An Indian amma's got nothing on my mother.

Krn, no, thank goodness, she has not discovered eBay! And we like to keep it that way. My Dad is the online auction nut of the family - for example, he recently bought four pairs of binoculars. Why I'm not quite sure, he still had only two eyes the last time I checked!

One sleeve to go on the Secret Sweater! Are you all on the edges of your seats? It was so easy I've set myself another challenge: one MORE sweater by the end of winter!

Picture post

2006-08-15T03:13:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I posted any pictures. Here are a few from my two recent dance trips to Hanmer.

Me and Andrew - I love my hair in this one!

Another action shot - yes that is a frozen pond and I am doing a double spin!

The meddling mother

2006-08-15T02:39:00.000-07:00

Mum: So I have to take some things to your brother tomorrow, and I was wondering whether you wanted to go for a bite to eat after work

Me: Sure

Mum: Is there somewhere nearby we could eat? (note: I work smack bang in the centre of town, there are about 20 restaurants in a one-block radius)

Me: How about Portofino? We can look at the hot Italian waiters!

Mum: Good idea! I can ask one of them to marry you!

Me: Brilliant! He could get residency!

Dear faithful readers

2006-08-13T16:58:00.000-07:00

A gentle reminder that if you comment on the livejournal syndication of this blog, I only read the comments there every 2 weeks or so. If you want me to actually read your comment or reply, do so here where the comments are emailed to me! It would also be good to have them all in one place.

What a day!

2006-08-13T03:17:00.000-07:00

So I came home from four hours straight of dancing, and my flatmate (the blonde one - I think that's how I'll differentiate my flatmates as they both have the same initials, however one has blonde hair, one dark brown, and I have red hair. And we're all stunningly beautiful and intelligent and funny, and often walk around the apartment in our underwear - that last bit was for the benefit of the two guys who read my blog - hi Matt and Marcel! Oh and Marcel, if you read back a few posts you will find out who my good buddies Rory and Lorelai are)

Anyway, The Blonde walks in and says "oh my God, so I was in the bathroom before and when I came out I closed the door quite hard and then I hear this little click behind me and I thought 'oh, you're SHITTING me!' now the door's locked and we can't get into the bathroom! I've texted The Brunette to call the property manager but I haven't heard back!" And then she disappeared off to her boyfriend's, where there is a shower.

Now, this is not what The Redhead wanted to hear after four hours of dancing, let me tell you. There was a little hole in the lock and I tried poking a chopstick in it, and then a bent paperclip, and a pair of nail scissors. I attempted to unscrew the door handle/lock mechanism with the screwdriver attachment ofmy cordless drill (I stuck that in there just so's you don't think I'm a completely hopeless female with no tools to call my own). After about 30 seconds I gave up and called my brother - "help, can you come over, the bathroom door's locked and I can't get in and I can't go to the toilet or shower or brush my teeth and I smell and all my makeup's in there, please??" Very Modern Woman of me, I know. And very whiny, but after two days of salsa dancing I'm all out of perky.

Anyway, a quick wrist flick with a screwdriver and he had the door open. Hooray for brothers. He also gave me a sexy, sexy little jeweller's screwdriver should the problem ever occur again!

The Secret Knitting continues apace. I would have the body finished, but for some ill-advised late-night knitting and the complete absence of any counting skills on my part. Rrrrrip!

And then

2006-08-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

there are little things that happen to just make your day!

I just got this email from my boss:

The partners would like to offer everyone the chance to see one of the excellent films in the Film Festival during work time and paid for by the firm.

ROCK!

I sort of mentioned to one of the partners yesterday that I really wanted to go to a film, but given my schedule and complete lack of money I wouldn't be able to. And why don't we just all go during work time instead?

Sometimes, I love my job.

Also, turns out Laurie aka Crazy Aunt Purl read my post yesterday - the woman has eyes everywhere, I swear!

Oh and Nicole, you are wrong, due to budgetary constraints I am using mainly stash yarn for the current project (although I was a couple of balls short so had to buy a little more), and I don't think there's any way I could finish Starsky before the end of winter anyway! There's a clue - what do I have in my stash? - and here's another: it's not a project I've mentioned on this blog before.

Things that do not make my day - let me relate the hilarious conversation I had with my mother the other day (paraphrased):

Mum: So how would you like to go out with a 27 year old surf lifesaver?
Me: Surf lifesaver?
Mum: He does a bit of that but I don't think he has a regular job or anything. He's the son of one of my colleagues, she was telling me about him the other day. He still lives with her and she really wants him to move out, but he doesn't seem to want to.
Me: Gee Mum, he sounds like such a catch! When can I meet him?

Sun!

2006-08-08T15:13:00.008-07:00

I can see the vague outline of the sun through the clouds - there's even a bit of natural light coming into my office! It's amazing what a little bit of Vit D can do.

It has been raining for three days, nonstop. I live up in a gable and when it rains it's very loud on the roof and on the skylight right above my head and I don't sleep very well. I get those weird dreams that seem really real and when you wake up you can't figure out if they really happened or not. And I get grumpy because of the lack of sleep and the lack of sun.

One good thing about winter, however, is that winter means sweaters! I'm going to set myself a challenge - I have until the end of winter to knit one more sweater. I'm pondering keeping it a secret, so there may not be any pictures up for about three weeks! I cast on last night, and tonight I'm going to go and get out season 2 of the Gilmore Girls (um, I watched the entire season 1 over the weekend) and spend the evening knitting and watching.

Sometimes it's hard being all alone, especially when work's tough and home is not really home but a shoebox that you share with two other people and their habits and quirks and boyfriends. But at least I have Lorelai and Rory to keep me company!

Still alive!

2006-08-07T16:12:00.000-07:00

It's been one of those weeks. Work has been pretty tough, yesterday was a very long day and I was very tired by the time I had to go and teach a class. My poor students were treated to "quirky Sarah" which is just me being myself, really, but I try to tone it down for things like work, and teaching, and oh yes blog posts.

I wonder how I actually come across to people on this thing - hopefully intelligent, probably serious, and maybe even a little dull. When I and my nearest and dearest all know that I am crazier than Crazy Aunt Purl. Shh, don't tell.

I have also realised that when I started this thing I said I would write about dancing, but I haven't done much of that, mainly because I'm usually out doing it instead! My schedule goes something like:
Monday: usually teaching salsa
Tuesday: salsa rueda
Wednesday: was jive/chacha but now I get Wednesdays off!
Thursday: teaching two salsa classes
Friday: dancing in town
Saturday: two dance practices
Sunday: day off!

But this week is going more like:
Sunday: gym
Monday: teaching
Tuesday: bunk rueda
Wednesday: knitting!
Thursday: teaching, then dancing out in town
Friday: junior practitioners dinner and dance (where I get to look *pretty*!)
Saturday: Dance from 10:30 am to about oh midnight
Sunday: Dance from midnight til whenever, sleep a little, dance all day

I need a holiday.

Two things before I finish this post:

1. I see none of you have commented on Hourglass. That's fine because it's a crappy picture. If we ever get any daylight around here I'll post a better one, and then you'd better comment! I'm also going to sew some tape around the neckline I think, it should sit a bit flatter and also stop slipping off my shoulders.

2. Ask me a question, and I will give you a crazy answer!

Hourglass!

2006-08-02T02:20:00.000-07:00

Recipes wanted!

2006-08-01T19:06:00.000-07:00

Americans, help me out here! I'm after your best brownie and cookie recipes. For the brownies, I'm after something VERY chocolatey, and it has to be nice and crunchy on the outside and moist and gooey on the inside. Cookies have to be nice and chewy. I'd like a chocolate chip cookie and maybe a peanut butter cookie recipe too.

Oh, and this should go without saying but I have to be able to make them from scratch, none of this packet mix crap! ;)

I've never been much of a baker but I'd really like to have a few really WOW recipes up my sleeve.

First sweater shocker!

2006-07-31T02:11:00.000-07:00

After Aurora revealed her first sweater, I thought I'd show you mine:

It's terrible, even excepting my tired eyes! Mind you, it is cozy to wear around the house over my pjs! I knit it while studying for my fourth year exams at uni, from one very big ball of Patons Caressa, using the pattern on the ball band. I guess it's not actually my first sweater - that would be the one I knit for Teddy Pongo when I was 7 - but it's my first human sweater!

Now, here's the challenge: I dare the rest of you to show photos of your first sweaters!

And speaking of Aurora, her magazines arrived today! I cannot believe she sent the Fall 04 IK, I've been wanting it for aaaaages. And I don't have any of the other magazines either. Woohoo!
There's tons in the Fall 04 IK that I want to knit, and some in the other magazines too. Thanks Aurora!

still obsessed...

2006-07-28T15:09:00.000-07:00

with Gilmore girls knitting!

Here are the two tops that I really want: (I don't think you can ever have too many cream cable knits). Rory's cardigan in particular is so cute - it has a pointed hood at the back with wee pompoms hanging off it!

2006-07-24T00:40:00.000-07:00

I was a bit naughty and bought a Zakka book from eBay and a couple of magazines from Elizabeth - the Rebecca Soft Kid special and Rebecca 29. Both of the magazines have so many things I want to make! Most of them are quite summery so stay tuned for some of them in the coming months...

In Hourglass Sweater news, we have a sleeve:

2006-07-22T23:03:00.000-07:00

Watching Gilmore Girls always makes me jealous about all of the beautiful knits they're always wearing! Anyone want to write me a pattern?

blah!

2006-07-16T16:10:00.000-07:00

I am sick of dealing with phone companies, driver licensing agencies, etc etc. Well, mainly just those two.

It's just that I deal with bureaucracy every day in my job, on behalf of other people, that when it comes to my own time and dealing with my own stuff, I just DON'T WANT TO. Enough already!!

Future knits

2006-07-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

I think I found something to do with my green Cashmerino:It's the Dolman Updated, a free pattern on the Interweave website. Nice and casual, but interesting construction. It's done in four pieces - left front and half sleeve, right front and half sleeve, and the same on the back - and then sewn up with the inside out seams you can see in the picture. I rather like it. After my success with the Cabled Hoodie (which I almost never take off) I'm all about the warm wooly sweaters!

HOWEVER I am also really looking forward to spring. There are a lot of quick, summery knits I want to make. Here's the latest:

It's Wendy's latest pattern, Sizzle. It's made in a silk blend available at kpixie, so it may be the excuse I need to put in a big order with the girls there! Especially as their latest email says that they will soon be stocking Japanese craft magazines - oooooooh!

(confession time: I won a Zakka book on eBay the other day.... naughty Sarah! I've managed not to buy any yarn for a while, apart from some I bought to make booties with a few weeks back. Books on the other hand.... I've also bought Debbie Bliss's Baby Knits quite recently, but lent it to a coworker right after I bought it as it actually works as a great learn to knit book. She's working her way through the book, cover to cover, and is currently making the garter stitch blanket)

Soooo many other things I want to knit, but they can wait for another post!

flickr

2006-07-14T18:23:00.000-07:00

I've been gradually shifting over from photobucket to flickr. I just love all of the different features flickr has. Let me know if you have an account and I'll add you as a contact!

I went to the doctor on Wednesday and got some antibiotics (yes, I had bronchitis) and am FINALLY feeling somewhere near normal again. Still very tired though and still coughing a bit. I have taken advantage of all of the evenings in and done some knitting. Observe:

This is two and a bit balls into the Hourglass Sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. Hoorah for mindless stocking stitch! I don't think I was up for much else.

The yarn is an 80% alpaca 20% merino blend from Rare Yarns. It's natural coloured and quite greasy to the touch. Its soft, yet so earthy. I think the colour is called "humus" which suits it so well. Here's a macro shot:

You can see the fuzzy texture and all of the different colours in the yarn - there's red, black and brown in there. Yum!

Sick

2006-07-07T00:56:00.000-07:00

So I have congested sinuses and a chest infection. After a really bad coughing fit in the middle of a client meeting, I caved and went downstairs to the chemist and begged them for medicine.

BAD MISTAKE.

Next time I have a cold (which will probably be in about 5 years' time - that seems to be the frequency with which I get colds) I will:
- Take time off work
- NOT take pseudoephedrine.

Turns out I get nasty side effects. Had a horrible dizzy spell and panic attack at work and made a complete idiot of myself!

2006-07-07T00:44:00.000-07:00

Fridays

2006-06-30T00:07:00.000-07:00

It's been a tough week. Not work-wise, as I haven't had too much on. I've had some really interesting work come in actually, from one of the partners I haven't really worked for before. I've managed to impress her so hopefully it will keep coming. Although, I have been a little low-motivation at work lately. Hopefully the new and interesting work will change that.

What I find really hard though is finishing work every night at 6, or after most nights, and then having to go out again. Usually I have at least one night at home a week, but this week I haven't had any. I've been very very tired. Also, cold.

Last night I got home from teaching a dance class and it was raining. I thought "great! I won't have to defrost my car tomorrow morning!" I was right. However, I got to my car this morning and one of the windows had been smashed in. Glass everywhere. What with the tiredness and general malaise, I just about had a meltdown. Thankfully Mum came to the rescue and we took it to the glass place and then Mum dropped me off at work, only 1 1/2 hours late... Thankfully they had a window in stock, so then I had to leave work early to pick it up. I came back intending to do more work (my billable units are at an all time low today!) but ended up drinking instead. I've had 1 1/2 glasses of wine and feel SO drunk.

They did a fantastic job on the car though. There's not a trace of glass left, hurrah! I'm very relieved and feeling better.

ALSO I met a friend for lunch today and sat OUTSIDE and it wasn't too cold and the sun even came out for a few seconds to recharge our batteries.

AND I am going away this weekend! It was doubtful for a while because the house we booked had frozen water pipes, but now we've secured another house so it's all on.

"We" is me and a couple of guys from my salsa class. There will also be 6 other people in the house who I don't know! The house is in Hanmer Springs, a little mountain resort with great thermal pools, and there will also be salsa dancers from around the South Island congregating there this weekend. Much dancing will be done! As well as relaxing, playing in the snow, hot pooling, etc etc.

Now, I must run and meet the same friend for dinner! It's nice having someone who likes the same food as me! And who is easily persuaded!

Project queue

2006-06-26T16:20:00.000-07:00

I have finished the vest, although it turned out a little shorter than expected so I'm tossing up picking up stitches around the bottom and making the ribbing a bit longer. No photo sorry as my camera's out of batteries, and I haven't seen my charger since I last moved!

The elephant is progressing nicely and I'll probably finish tonight or tomorrow. For once the book didn't lie - it's a nice, quick project, possibly even shorter than the 6-8 hours the book says. It's taken about 3 so far I think and I've done the arms, legs and body. Head, trunk, ears and kerchief to go!

I also did another pair of baby booties in the weekend. Sadly there will be no photo as I've given them away already. Gosh I've been a knitting factory lately!

So the question is, what do I do now? I have a mini-Clapotis that I've done about a third of, so I should do some more of that, but I think I need another project on the go to mix it up a little. I'm going to work with what I've got here, which is:

10 balls of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino in a lovely green colour. I was thinking maybe the Fad Classic vest, but that would only use about half of the yarn, so maybe I should do something bigger? Any ideas? Or maybe I should do the vest and swap the leftovers... I already got the yarn in a swap!
8 balls of Rare Yarns Coccoon (alpaca/merino) in a natural dark brown (no dye!). This is slated for the Hourglass sweater from Last Minute Knitted Gifts (which is turning out to be my most-used book so far). This was given to my mother to knit but I've now confiscated it back after several months with no progress! I would like to get it done this winter.
Two balls of a nice blue, heathered sock yarn which was going to be the Erte Cloche but I've gone off that project now. Dare I say, I might actually be considering knitting socks with it! This is your chance, dear readers, to convert me into a sock knitter! I've never seen the attraction before but right now my feet are cold - recommend me a good pattern and we'll see from there.... (something with lace or cables would be nice I think)

That's not the extent of the stash but I'll review the rest after I've gotten those three items out of the way - by then it should be time to think about spring knitting!

Lazy Sunday

2006-06-24T14:17:00.000-07:00

I managed to get the phone cord on my laptop to reach up the stairs, so I'm lying in bed right now! In fact, who needs wireless? I can actually take my laptop anywhere in my apartment because the cord is 10m long and my apartment is small!

I'm watching Pukana on TV, it's a rather silly Maori childrens program, but I'm hoping that eventually I'll learn the language by osmosis or something. Actually I'm just waiting for my guilty Sunday pleasure, the Home and Away omnibus, to come on.

I'm also trying to finish my vest because I told Cetigrrl I would do a knitalong of the elephant toy from Last Minute Knitted Gifts with her. I am already behind, and I really want to start!

I stuffed up the cables on my vest a bit... if I was going to do it again I would do a practice version first before starting on the expensive yarn! Oh well, hopefully it will look ok when I'm done. I've nearly finished the back and then I just need to do the neck and arm bands.

Photos this afternoon, maybe!

sneaky post from work

2006-06-20T22:05:00.000-07:00

I just had to open a new packet of paperclips. Now, I don't know about you, but if paperclips had just been invented and I had the money to invest in that kind of thing, I would have passed up on paperclips. The things are re-usable! Theoretically, once the world reached paperclip saturation point, there would be no demand for new paperclips. When I send paperclips out into the world, I expect to get an equal number of paperclips back. I call it the Theory of the Worldwide Chain of Paperclips.

Yet here I am, opening a new packet of paperclips. Somewhere down the chain someone is throwing paperclips out, I tell you! And my Theory has been completely debunked. I feel let down.

Now that I have your trust, here is my investment tip of the day: vegetables! Now that you can put them in a car to make it go vroooom, the prices are going way up! Soon we won't be able to eat, but at least we'll still have motorised transport.

babies = cute knitting

2006-06-18T00:22:00.000-07:00

Our first work baby (ie baby due to someone at work) is due today (maybe he's been born already - let's hope so!) so I took one ball of the "cashmere luxury yarn" Girl Gone Mod sent me and whipped up this little hat and bootie set. It's wonderfully soft and everyone knows how much I like green! I hope it suits the baby and I really hope it all fits. I love baby clothes, they're so quick.

This little guy's going to be well kitted out - he is already the recipient of the denim pants from Last Minute Knitted Gifts. I wanted to knit something that would fit right after he was born though. The pants will be great when it's a bit warmer outside.

The weather's still horrendous - no wonder he hasn't been so keen to come out so far! I went out to Mum and Dad's on Friday night and this was their lawn, five days after it snowed. And it's due to snow again tonight.

As for other knitting, I think I mentioned the vest I started in the merino/cashmere blend. I'm still in love with the yarn, it's behaving beautifully and even though I'm completely winging it, the vest's not turning out too badly. In hindsight I think I would probably choose a cheaper yarn for any future ad-libbing, but we'll just see how it turns out. No photo, it just looks like a black blob currently and therefore wouldn't photograph very well at all! I'm up to about the waist. I've been doing some shaping as I go, so I think I'll knit straight for a few rows and then start increasing for the bust. And I think I've worked out what I'm doing with the neckline, so yay!

dinners continued...

2006-06-13T17:19:00.000-07:00

Monday dinner: Chili & corn soup
Tuesday lunch: Would have been leftover soup but I cheated and ate it for morning tea. Went out for lunch with the girls (so I broke the rules but it was important!).
Tuesday dinner: Stirfried oyster mushrooms, tofu (from frozen - makes the texture quite interesting), snow peas and various other veggies in (homemade) black bean sauce on brown rice
Wednesday lunch: leftovers from Tuesday dinner!

Not doing toooo badly so far!

Snow!

2006-06-11T16:08:00.000-07:00

It was snowing heaps this morning - I looked like the abominable snow-woman by the time I got to work!

Here's the depressing part though - since this morning the wind chill has dropped to -6 degrees C. TOO FREAKING COLD to snow!!

Argh, now it's -9!!!!!!! Looking sleety out there though so maybe it'll start up again.

Did I mention I WALKED to work? What are the chances of me managing to get a taxi because I sure as heck aren't walking home!

Yummiest dinner ever!

2006-06-11T03:11:00.000-07:00

So after Friday's excesses (if you don't know, then you're the only person in the world I didn't send a drunken email to) I am determined to start treating myself well again! I spent $60 at the supermarket today on fruit, vegetables, tofu, feta cheese and berry juice (the kind that's good for you, with no added sugar etc). The goal is to eat it all by the end of the week, which means NO EATING OUT! I will cook every night and take leftovers for lunch every day.

Tonight's masterpiece of healthy eating is this:

Green tea noodles with snow peas and agedashi tofu. And I made it! It's not from a restaurant! Doesn't it look authentic? Ish, I know the Japanese are waaaay better than me when it comes to presentation. It tasted soooooo good. There's more for lunch tomorrow and some tofu in the fridge for snacking on at some stage.

ETA: to hold me to my pact, I think I'll try and post piccies of my dinner every night this week!

Cabled hoodie

2006-06-10T23:28:00.000-07:00

You've seen my first FO, now for my latest: the Cabled Hoodie from the Paton's Street Smart booklet. The Must-Have Cardigan from the booklet was the thing to knit on the internet there for a while, but I never really understood the obsession with it myself.

You can even see a little bit of my apartment in the background, for those of you who have been dying to see what it looks like!

And yes, my bottom IS that small. Not a trick of photography AT ALL.

Ahem. Back to the hoodie. I love it! I know this sounds weird coming from a knitter, but I've never had a big woolie jumper before. It is so unbelievably warm. I'm not used to being so warm, it's weird!

Stats: yarn = Patons Classic Wool (100% merino) in cream, 7 balls
Pattern size = small (would have been a medium, but the pattern has a lot of ease and I wanted to compensate for that)
Pattern changes - I did a tubular cast-on for the ribbing, which I'm very happy with. Apart from that no changes. The sleeves turned out a little short though - I can't roll the cuffs back, and I don't by any means have ape arms! I like them rolled down though.