Interestingness 2012

Here they are...the 24 most interesting/popular photos in my Flickr photostream.

I have to say, they are pretty much the same photos as last year. I guess that is a hint to me that I need get busy and upload new photos more often. Even though the change may not be all that much, it is still interesting to me to see what has changed and what has stayed the same.

See that 3rd photo? The one with the dancing Chucks? That used to be number one. It took YEARS before it moved down. Now I just have to wait a few more years before my cake photo (currently the most "interesting") does the same.

Wordless Wednesday: The blue-eyed kitty edition

It's all about the saroyan

Another final exam has come and gone. Only one more class to go.

But for now, the time to study is over. Well, at least for the next 10 days.

It's all about the Saroyan now. It's a present for my Mom and I hope to finish it in time for Mother's day. That gives me 10 days to knit faster than I have ever knit.

I think I am about half-way finished. Well, let's just say....I hope I am half-way finished.

taxes. are. done.

 

 

Tonight I finished filling out our tax return. I know, not very timely of me, but they aren't due until tomorrow and I did need to buy printer ink in order to print them out. Oh, and stamps. I needed to buy stamps.

taxes smaxes

Can you guess what I'm doing tonight?

Yes, that's right, the time has come to do my taxes.

I'm even doing them early this year, 6 days BEFORE they are due. Hey, that's actually pretty good for me.

Well....that is if I can actually get them done. I have had more errors than ever with my tax program this year. Not the actual tax part but the being able to actually use the software part.

It is a bit frustrating since I decided to work on the taxes instead of working on my online course, which by the way, only has 19 days left until the final exam.

Seriously, I have no idea how I am going to get all of this done. So here I am doing the next best thing, blogging about how I am not getting anything done. Isn't that what everybody else does?

still alive

I'm still here.

I have been busy trying to finish up my current online class. And just like last time, panic is starting to set in.

I have 28 days left until I take my final and in the midst of all this studying, I also need to get my taxes done.

You know what else is alive? 

My new plant.

Yep, that's right folks! It's been 6 weeks and I have yet to replant/transfer it to a larger pot and still the plant lives. This is a personal record for me.

I found out from a friend that the plant is some sort of Nautilocalyx sp and if this is true then flowers may be in its future. I really really hope there are flowers in its future.

 

fo·li·age

fo·li·age

noun /ˈfōl(ē)ij/ 

Plant leaves, collectively

• - healthy green foliage

I bought a new plant and I have no idea what kind it is. Do you?

Wordless Wednesday: Happy Pi(e) Day

Wordless Wednesday: looking thru the golden glass

Socks revisited

While in the midst of my Saroyan pity party, I decided to face ignore the problem and start a brand new yarny project.

Or shall I say, REstart a brand new yarny project called knitting socks.

Apparently, I can knit a tube like nobody's business. I have made it to the heel flap and I am looking forward to the hard parts. I really hope I can make it past the hard parts.

As for my pity party....I think it may be near its end.

My original plan was to ignore the problem, hoping that the yarn would miraculously join on its own. But, I decided to look at it again and I actually think I may have it this time. Unfortunately that leaves me with a whole new problem, which project do I work on now?

Not a joiner

It looks like knitting on the Saroyan has stopped. 

You see, I came across a knot. I have spent over a week trying to join together the yarn so that I could continue knitting. So far nothing works.

Malabrigo Silky Merino is a single ply yarn so I am unable to use a braided join.

I tried a Russian join but could not get it to secure. It just slips apart. This yarn is like taking a cotton ball, pulling it apart, and then trying to stick a needle through the middle. Add in a bit of silk and you have quite a slippery combination. There really isn't a "center" in this yarn.

Knotting the yarn will be my next try but I am not too confident that it will work. Plus, there is the whole idea of having a knot right in the middle of my knitting.

I have never been so disappointed in a project before. Actually, I am not so much disappointed in the actual project but more disappointed in myself.  Mom's birthday is tomorrow and there is no way this will be done by then.

I can't be the only one that has had trouble with this yarn. People use it every day and I know the Russian join has worked great for them. I have watched every video and read every online tutorial I could find and I still cannot complete what is considered a simple join with this particular yarn.

So here I am.....whining. Big time!

I hope that as soon as I post this complaint, I will magically come up with a join that will work with this yarn. Keep your fingers crossed for me, okay?

I started something...

I know the plan is to FINISH things, but I just couldn't resist starting on a new yarny project. 

I have wanted to knit Saroyan for quite awhile. I figured since I bought myself some super awesome knitting needles, I needed to work on a super awesome pattern using super awesome yarn. Let me tell you, this pattern really is super awesome. I had no idea that I could make something as pretty as a leaf with just a simple decrease/increase stitch. I get giddy each time I see a new leaf form.

This one will be going to my Mom for her birthday, hopefully I can FINISH it in time.

working on it

One of the many projects on my list of things to FINISH, is the editing and uploading of the last of the photos from my Project 365:2010, daily photo project. I'm only 15-months or so behind. Better late than never, right?

So...that's the plan. Only 95 photos to go.

one little word

I am not a person that makes New Year's resolutions, but I do like the idea of choosing one word that I can focus on through out the year. I have chosen a word in the past and this year I have done it again.

I guess, in a way, you could call it a resolution.

The word I chose for 2012 is FINISH!

That means....

FINISH what I have already started.
FINISH anything new that I start.

FINISH projects. 

FINISH my classes. 

FINISH this post.

2011: A year in scrapbooking

I only managed to scrap one page and make one card in 2011. That's really not even enough to bother writing a post about, but since it has been YEARS since I have scrapped a page (and this blog did start out as a scrapping blog after all) I figured I needed to write a post about it. If not only to remind myself that I did indeed scrap one page (and one card, I can't forget about the card) but also to complete my trio of year in review posts.

Here's to hoping that 2012 has a lot more scrappiness in it.

Three Generations layout

Feel Better card

2011: A year in yarn

I worked on a lot of different yarny projects in 2011, but by the end of the year, I only managed to completely finish three. For me, that is actually pretty good. What makes it even better is that a couple of my completed projects were large ones.

Spumoni {ripple}

Chunky Knit Beanie 

Brownie {ripple}

2011: A year in photos

As predicted, it really is hard to post a year in photos post when you don't really take any pictures during the year. This is the first year that I didn't participate in a daily photo project and it shows. I went from taking a photo a day to almost none for the year.

But, that's okay. We didn't really do anything to take pictures of. This past year found us mostly at home. With me taking non-stop classes, there really wasn't much we could do. So, we watched a lot of Netflix and I did a lot of studying.

January

The beginning of January was a sad one. A mass shooting is not what one wants to have happen in their hometown.

February

The in-laws sent me flowers for my birthday. A very nice surprise.

March

Teeny tiny green leaves started to grow on our tree (So happy we didn't kill it) and we finally found a painting for our wall, that we both loved.

April

Lots and lots of studying (with only 5-weeks to finish up a 15-week course).  And the only photo I took the entire month, was this one, of my cat.

May

The husband made yummy meals and creatures have been exploring the backyard.

June

My parents celebrated 50-years of marriage.

July

The husband's brother came for a visit.

 

August

I scrapped for the first time since 2009 and the backyard was invaded.

September

Skies were stormy and I started work on a yarny Christmas present.

October

Unseasonably warm days (some in the 90's) and I did a lot of shredding. Paper clutter, be gone!

November

We celebrated Thanksgiving with family and then had one of our very own.

December

Christmas was very low key this year, and at the end of the month, the year ended on a lazy note.