I am still sick, but at least I'm out of bed now. Having said that, I've been coughing so much I've lost my voice completely. I'd say "Enjoy it while it lasts, folks," but I can still type. Ha. Anyway, I'm open for tips on how to get my voice back quickly; I'll probably need it when I work the AC/DC show at the Erwin Center on Friday.
Anyway, yesterday I ran a few errands, which I probably shouldn't have done, but I was up and wanted to do something. I needed to buy cough medicine anyway, so while I was out, I purchased a new calendar (it had the prettiest pictures). I also bought a 15/16 6-point combination wrench and a 15/16 deep well ratchet to use at work. We use them when building truss on stage, and the roadies usually only provide about three or four of each, so I figured it'd be handy to have my own. Not sure if I'll ever need them, but they're nice to have.
Anyway, I've been sorting my yarn stash lately, and I developed patterns for a Milky Way hat and some arm warmers. Note that I'm still working on the hat and haven't begun the arm warmers yet, so the patterns are subject to modification, plus there of course aren't pictures posted yet.
November 5—Donate blood, y'all.
Today marked a horrific shooting in Fort Hood, just an hour north of where I live. Fortunately, no one I know was injured, but at least a dozen people died, and another thirty were hospitalized. Right now the most important, most obvious way to help is to donate blood. I'm not eligible myself since I don't weigh enough, so I'm asking everyone reading this who is eligible to donate. The Scott & White Blood Center in Temple urgently needs blood. This is a list of places where you can donate blood to support Fort Hood victims.
I'm off to bed now since I have work at the Erwin Center tomorrow, which ought to be interesting since I'm still quite hoarse. Of course, my voice has always been rather throaty, so maybe no one will notice. (Who am I kidding; I'm totally unintelligible. I coughed until I gagged this morning. Blech.) Anyway, as soon as I get home tomorrow night, I'm going to research how else I can help the Fort Hood victims.
November 13—Happy Friday the 13th.
I worked the AC/DC show at the Erwin Center on Friday, which did not go well for me since I was coughing up a lung and made a terrible first impression on a coworker, who seemed to take an instant dislike to me. Crap. At least my roadie was nice. Then, on Tuesday, I worked the Jay Z show, which also went well apart from my coughing. I presented one of my favorite coworkers with a Compo hat (knitted in loden instead of sage since I was trying to match his green eyes). Another coworker and I discussed Doctor Who since he has a Doctor Who scarf—I think I finally found a recipient for a knitted Dalek. I'm working on it now; it should be done soon. It gave me an idea for a mitten pattern; I'll post it eventually provided the BBC doesn't threaten to sue me. I'm also still working on the Milky Way hat, plus I've finished the lace-up arm warmers. In an attempt to reduce my yarn stash, I'm planning a few knitted scarves. Most of them aren't original patterns, though, so I won't be able to post them.
In not relevant but awesome news, I was running some errands the other day and found this:
It's called a Lauren lace-up thong. I've no idea why it's named after me, but nonetheless, it has my name on it. Thusly I bought three.
November 30—What I've been up to, not that y'all care since there's no real update involved.
I've been busy with quite a few projects lately, most of which are not related to the website. I worked a load out at the Long Center, a show at the Cedar Park Center (which is conveniently located down the street from my house), a show at the Paramount, and on Friday I'm working the KISS show at the Erwin Center.
I've reorganized my house a bit lately. I purchased a few seagrass baskets to store my overflowing yarn stash, and I bought an ammo box (the same kind roadies use to store 15/16 nuts and bolts) to store my double pointed knitting needles and miscellaneous knitting tools. My dad gave me a small box that looks kind of like a miniature road case, which I'm now using to store my rarely-used paints. Then I bought half a dozen three-by-three inch wire baskets from The Container Store and spray painted them red. They're for the little shelves inside the two miniature red phone booths that house my tea, and they're adorable.
Speaking of shopping, I've also recently purchased a few more practical items. I bought a discounted duvet set since my old duvet cover was black, which I found too morbid to offset its practicality (my two black cats sleep on the bed with me; a black duvet cover seemed a good idea at the time). My new one is green, which looks much better. I also bought a trashy red bikini, which I do not anticipate using in November, but swimsuits are cheaper off season, and I was sick to death of the ugly one piece hanging in my closet. I also replaced my torturous black high heels with a pair of four-inch stilettos that will most likely prove just as painful, but they look damn good.
Anyway, I've not been able to knit for myself much lately because I've been busy with commissioned projects. I made a knitted Dalek as a gift for a coworker, and another coworker asked me to make a Christmas stocking for his daughter—pattern available here; no pix yet. I also had requests for a cat ears hat for a guy who works in the mall (to give to his girlfriend) and a Klein bottle hat and Moebius scarf for a nuclear physicist I talked to briefly online. Some time in the new year I'll get around to finishing the blanket, sweater, hat, and scarf for myself that I currently have on the needles. Then I can get around to working on that entrelac scarf I've been meaning to make. I plan to post a brief tutorial on entrelac, at least entrelac in the round since it's almost impossible to find those online for free. Seriously, who charges for knitting techniques? That stuff belongs in the public domain. Besides, why would anyone charge for a technique that's available for free on other sites anyway? That's idiotic, and I'm more than happy to help undermine said idiocy. Anyway, I've updated the code in the knitting section, but everything still looks the same. Oh, yes, and the fag hat pattern got linked from this blog, though I suspect the blogger perhaps missed the point.
