barnes & nobles.

tonight, my old high school had a barnes and nobles night. basically that means that from five to ten pm people who purchase items and ask for a slip from the school, part of their purchase goes to the school library. good fun. there is even a time when some comedians and poets preform in an open mic type forum. only a few showed up to preform. a sad thing. but quite an audience for that type of event (it must also be said that we preformed in the children's section also).

i preformed two pieces. red lion: a poem in sonnet form (abab cdcd efef gg rhyme and iambic pentameter) that won first place in my college's poetry contest (which i'll get paid $50 for, first time being paid for my writing). its a tribute to the times i spent at a particular diner with my wonderful, fun-loving friends. main street follies: a short story. about a page to a page and a half. a little "scene" of my boyfriend and i at our spot in a particular park. a tribute, let us say, to our odd, yet long lasting, relationship.

though i wish i preformed better (time to practice and not such a small audience), i think i did better than i did at my college's open mic night. though i had more options to read. here, i only brought two. main street follies was a little "radical" for the children's section and for the teachers, being that my boyfriend was sitting right in the corner. and they all know who he is. i had to edit out some "sexual" items. like when he says that it's too cold outside and my bed would be warm. or when i explain how his lips caressed my numb lips. also, i cursed in the "scene" and that had to be edited out. "Cindy's a Bitch." you'd have to read the story to understand. but overall, i think it went well.

i ran around to find the knitting section and look at their books. a pretty good amount. i'm not sure if i like border's selection better or not though. there is this one book i've been eyeing and i'd really like, though it cost $33 and i wasn't willing to spend that kind of money at the moment. i'll wait for christmas.

i still have to finish my holiday shopping. there are still some people that i don't know what to get them. i'm figuring next week i'll go to the mall when i get out of class and just look around and find somethings for these certain people.

back to knitting. i picked up my gloves again. those hobo gloves. and started working on them before i left for the barnes and nobles thing. i have two fingers done. i started working on the middle finger but i didn't know how many stitches to pick up 'cause i left the pattern at home (i'm using part of a pattern from Weekend Knitting by Melanie Falick). i was looking at the book at barnes and nobles but they didn't have it. this shocked me greatly! this is a very amazing book (wonderful and useful patterns, pretty pictures and random other tidbits)! so in turn, i began to resume work on my leg warmers. it is now about a foot long, i'd like to make it about one and a half to two feet long so that they cover up to my knee and maybe even sag a bit. i'm hoping to get the pair done by the end of finals week. hopefully. otherwise i haven't touched any of my other projects.

(i swear, i'll post pictures of my works in progress soon. once i get un-lazy.)

this week will be quite busy for me. i'm kind of scared. today was a student government meeting along with the barnes and nobles thing. tomorrow i have a dinner to attend at six o'clock in the evening. before hand i have to pick up my boyfriend's cell phone, visit an old teacher (maybe) and get my payment for the scarf. luckily, my first class (psychology) was cancelled (8-9:20am) so instead of waking up at 5:30am, i can wake up at 7:30 or 8 am. this makes me pleased. then friday i have another dinner to attend at the president's house (president of the college) from around six to nine pm. saturday, i'm heading off the a football game and hopefully this weekend i'll get time with my boyfriend. but it depends on our homework, my exams and his college prep.

i'm sure i have more to talk about. but i am starting to crash. (drinking chai late at night, like coffee, is a bad idea!)

thank you for reading and your comments.

enjoy your tonight and tomorrow.

welcome.

hello all! i'm the girl with the bamboo sticks, nice to meet you! quickly, i will just explain why i opened this blog and what i will write about for those interested.

1. i am using this blog as a "knitting journal." every knitter needs a place where they can look at their work and comment on it. what went wrong, how lovely it is, the amount of my blood and tears, was it worth it. also, i would like to keep the reader (whoever you are) informed of my progress on my projects.

2. i am using this blog as a "reading journal." i've always wanted a place to discuss books and give my opinions (good or bad) on a particular book i am reading. i read a lot over the summer but unfortunately, school has slowed down my reading, so this section may not be so often used.

3. i am using this blog to keep up with people. i used to have a livejournal back in the day when it was popular. i found writing those little blerbs about whatever was fun. and funny to look back on. so, i'd like to start that up again. inform friends of my where abouts in life, college, my sporadic work schedule and things of that nature.

hopefully, you will all find this entertaining enough to read and to comment. so let me begin.

currently, i am working on several knitting projects that have been occupying my free time:

1. i was working on a dark green scarf (nothing fancy) in garter stitch for a friend. its work. an extra $20 will pay for half a tank for a week. i have finished this scarf and am planning to give it to the buyer (and receive my payment) later this week.

2. i am using the same type of yarn, gauge and pattern for another scarf that my mother has been hinting at for me to make her. "that's such a lovely scarf," she'd say. "you know, i'd love to have a scarf like that. such a beautiful color, so soft." i finally asked if she wanted one and her reply was the following: "really? yeah!"

3. i am using wool-ease yarn in charcoal to make myself a pair of leg warmers using a k1,p1 ribbing. i found a variation of this pattern out of a book at border's when i was searching the knitting section. i did not buy the book but i liked the ribbing style. i've made several pairs of leg warmers (for myself and friends) using several pattern types but they never stayed up on the calf properly. using this chunky knit on size 11 dpn, the ribbing is very elastic. my hopes are high! though, i'm only on the beginning.

4. in all honesty, i have yet to start this following project, but i've gotten on the materials and i'm hoping i can get it done by the end of January. a high school teacher of mine (back in the day) is preparing to have his first child (the daughter he swore he'd never have). he was really great to me and i still keep in touch with him. I found a pattern in the book Knit2Together by Mel Clark and Tracey Ullman called "daphne's baby cape." it is the most adorable thing every and i figured he and his wife would use it a fair amount. has the usefulness of a blanket and coat! i'm planning on starting no later than after finals week.

5. i've been working on these gloves forever. and i really want to finish them already, my hands are freezing and the other gloves i have are torn. this is my first pair of gloves, but they are fingerless gloves (which i like to call hobo gloves). i've worked different patterns for fingerless gloves but never on dpn and i've worked mittens but i was scared to do each little finger. well, i got my nerve up and it's not as hard as i anticipated it would be. i made one, but the ring finger (or middle, can't remember) was much bigger than the rest, in all honesty i don't know if that's supposed to happen. i tore it apart and began another. this time it looks better but i have to start the fingers. i'm hoping to sit down soon and finish at least the left hand.

i would bring more of these projects into school with me and work on them during my breaks and when classes are cancelled, but most are too bulk or need the pattern (and the patterns are in books). so i normally just bring the leg warmers for they are small and easy to carry. though that doesn't stop people from calling me a dork or asking me if i was raised my my grandmother. why can't a young student knit? craziness!

that is all. thank you.