Here you need-ohs, Mickey.

So, Saturday night I had the distinct pleasure of babysitting my beautiful niece, Caroline, while everybody else went to Halloween Horror Nights. I've been working on some Christmas decorations for the craft show in Oveido that Mom and Jenni entered. One of them is a miniature stocking ornament, which was sitting on a table in the living room Saturday night when they dropped Caroline off. Caroline and I were getting ready to go to the duck pond -- "you sit right here while Micky goes and changes her clothes" -- and when I came out of the bedroom, Caroline walked over to me saying, "Here you need-ohs, Mickey. And you yawn," as she holds up one hand with five needles, and one hand with a clump of yarn and a stocking-in-progress, from which she had yanked all of the working needles. "Thank you, Baby," I said and just stood there and looked at the damage.
Fortunately, as previously stated, it was a miniature stocking, and I was knitting it at a very tight gauge, so the stitches were very easy to pick up. But still, I'm sure you'll agree, it's never fun to see all of your needles outside of their respective wips.

Check back soon for some pictures of that and many other finished ornaments.

And the hits just keep on comin'...

So, the wedding was nice. Real pretty, a lot of fun. I don't have any pictures yet but when I do, I'll post some.

On Tuesday, while I was on my way back to NC, I apparently fell asleep at the wheel and wrecked my car somewhere along I-95 in Georgia, near mile-marker 13 or 15, I think.

I remember feeling tired and thinking I needed to get off at the next exit. After that, the next thing I can remember is I opened my eyes and had started going into the center lane a little, so I quickly steered to the left. Between rain, brand new tires, and loose steering, I swerved too far, so I steered back to the right to correct it, then I thought, "Oh no, I'm loosing control of my car." and that's the last thing I remember until I woke up and there was a woman outside my window telling me not to move, that the paramedics were on their way.

I was going to share pictures of my car and of my beautiful face -- a nice Halloween costume, too bad it's three weeks early -- but I can't find my camera. I hope it didn't get left in the car when we left it at the wrecker place. I'm sure we didn't.. we'd have noticed if it was left in there.

Anyway, Mom took pictures the other day when we picked it up, so I have a few of the car, but none of me yet.

I also had wanted to take a few pictures of the sock I've been working on.. I'm just doing Ann Budd's basic sock, but with a short row heel. Hopefully my camera will turn up soon and I can share that with you guys. This poor Magic Stripes yarn in Cowboy Stripe.. I really like it a lot, but I have started it in about thirteen different proejcts and ripped it out over and over and over again. Hopefully this will be the project that sticks.

Anyway.. for now, I leave you with some pictures of the wreckage..

Fall Into Autumn Topic of the Week and an Update.

So, this week we've been asked to post about whether we change our yarn or our projects as the weather changes.
I've been crocheting for years, but I really only made scarves and hats, and it was only recently that I was introduced to anything other than Red Heart or Caron's Simply Soft or anything else you can get at Wal-Mart. I would say I probably crocheted more in the fall/winter than during the summer. I probably only crocheted during the summer if there was a baby due who I was crocheting a blanket for or something.
As for knitting, I've only been doing it for a few months. It will probably be pretty similar to my crocheting style, though. It's getting into fall and I've just finished a pair of mittens and am working on a hat for Caroline. I've had a request to make hats for everyone back home. Dishcloths and socks will be year-round endeavors, but other projects, and colors, will be more dependent on the time of the year, I think..

In other news...
My car is on the fritz. I get paid tomorrow, and I'm seriously afraid all my money's gonna be going into my car. But at least I'll have some peace of mind afterwards, and won't have to keep worrying about it.
I haven't seen Karen since Sunday afternoon. I hate this stupid job and the stupid hours I have to work. I hate that Yvette deems it necessary to make everyone of my shifts be closing shifts. I've GOT to get away from there!
After church Sunday, Karen and I went to this lunch for the Young Adult Fellowship group. I had a wonderful time, and I'd love to start doing things with them regularly. I need fellowship with people my age. They have a Bible Study on Wednesday nights. It's at the same time as Knit Night, which stinks, but I really need to be a part of a Bible Study. I guess I'll try it out, at least. Growing in my relationship with the Lord is more important than knitting, but I really enjoy these women at Knit Night. I guess we'll just have to see where the Lord takes me.

Karen and I have no water. Sunday after church we noticed there was a lot of water on the ground, as though someone had washed their car or something.. Then she called me while was at work and said it was like a river out there. Apparently a water main had busted, and they had to turn our water off. I saw when I got home last night that she had run the water to let the muddy water run out, so I figured the water was back on, but.. none of the faucets work.. Now, the water that runs to the ice maker.. that works. We have muddy ice, but we can't take showers...
I have tonight off, and Karen and I are going to watch The Office together tonight! I can't wait to finish the rest of Season 3!!

And in knitting news....

I made some mittens for Caroline to match her socks, and I've just started working on a hat. For all three, I've used the Ann Budd's Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns, but have also altered them each to whatever suits my fancy. The pattern for mittens in the book makes mittens that are pointy and I thought they looked silly, so when I started decreasing, I did a sock toe decrease, decreasing on every row, until I had about sixteen stitches, then I did a three needle bind off. I think they're MUCH cuter, and I love 'em! My Stinker will look so cute in them!

I ripped out the perpetual blanket and started it again using less black and white in between colors.

I'm making a MD Ballband in White and Pink Lemonade.

I'm researching patterns for my Fall Into Autumn dishcloth partner. I can't wait to get started! Seems like she and I have a lot of the same tastes in colors and whatnot, so it'll be easy to decide what to make, but probably not so easy to part with it! :-)

Fall into Autumn Dishcloth Exchange Survey

1. Do you knit or crochet? How long have you been doing it?
I do both. I really mostly knit, I do very little crochet anymore. But, I've been crocheting about.... oh, 10 years or so.. and knitting only a couple of months.
2. Have you made dischloths before? Do you use them yourself, give them as gifts, or both?
I've made many a dishcloth. :-) I usually make them for myself but I've made a few for family members.
3. What's your favorite cotton to make cloths from? What cotton would you like to try that you haven't before ?
I usually use Sugar n Cream or Peaches n Creme. It comes in soooo many colors, which I love! I've made a few washcloths for my niece in TyDy.. That's all I've really ever used. I'd love to try anything new.
4. If you knit, do you prefer circular or straight needles? For all, do you prefer wooden, metal, or plastic needles?
I almost always use circulars, and always metal when I'm working with cotton.
5. What are your favorite colors? Any colors you don't like much?
Mmmm.. I looooove colors!! Orange and purple are my two favorite colors. I love deep, rich tones, not pastels. And I'm really not a fan of gold. I like a mixture of colors, variegation as opposed to solids.
6. What do you like best about Autumn?
The weather cools down, the colors are beautiful. All my favorite holidays come in the fall.
7. Pies: Pumpkin? Apple? Pecan? All of em? or No Thanks!
Mmmmm, pumpkin! I love pumpkin pie, pumpkin pudding, pumpkin cookies.. It's just my favorite flavor.
8. When you were a kid, were you the one who couldn't wait to get started with school , or the one who overslept on the 1st day?
I always loved summer, but back-to-school is really an exciting time of the year. I LOVE stationary and office supplies, so I always loved when it was time to start shopping for notebooks and folders and pens and etc.
9. Do you celebrate Halloween? (The real key here guys is especially knowing if you have an aversion to the holiday or little goodies/decorations associated with it, given the timeframe of the swap)
I LOVE Halloween!!
10. If you had to choose just 3 edible 'goodies' to eat for a full year, what 3 would you choose?
I'm not gonna say I don't have a sweet tooth, but I can't really think of any snacks I love. I love to drink. I'm constantly drinking. I love root beer, and I love Kool Aid, specifically Watermelon Cherry. Umm, I do like a lot of the Keebler cookies, like Fudge Stripes and chocolate-covered grahams. And gummies, like Gummy Bears or those Haribo gummy soda candies, and I love those gummies shaped like cherries.. yummmm. Oh, Oh!! And I LOVE candy corn, and those candy pupmkins that they have around Halloween!!!
11. Do you have any pets? Kids? Husbands who seem like kids? ;)
None. Just a roomate, who is pretty much the same person as me....
12. If you were to describe a particular yarn that shares traits of your personality, what would it be and why?
Probably Red Heart acrylic.. lol I'm a simple girl.. No thrills and frills. I'm not cheap, though.. And I don't squeak.
13. Do you use your cloths mostly for dishcloths, or as facecloths?
I've never made a facecloth.. at least not for myself. I made some washcloths for my neice, but no facecloths. I probably wouldn't use one, I'm a simple girl, like I said, and I don't need all that. I do use my dishcloths all the time.
14. Favorite Fall Holiday: Halloween or Thanksgiving and why? (Feel free to share another fall memory if you do not celebrate either of these holidays)
I love 'em both, but I'll have go to with Thanksgiving. I love all my family's T-day traditions. I have wonderful memories of spending time with my cousins and extended family.
15. Do you have any allergies or aversions your pal should know about?
Nope.

A historic day...

A year ago today, I woke up in a hospital bed. I couldn't move any of the muscles in my face, I had a fever of 104, and I had developed double vision due to paralysis of my optic nerve.
My plans to move to North Carolina were put on hold. I soon after lost my job.
I went on to stay in the hospital two more weeks. I underwent more tests and exams than I ever knew existed, and I was tested for diseases I'd never even heard of... This is what I heard: "Inconclusive.. inconclusive.. indeterminate.. inconclusive."
It's one year later, and everything has changed, yet nothing has changed... Sometimes I feel like I'm still that sick, weak little girl in that hospital bed. Sometimes I feel like an independent hero who's overcome the odds to lead a full life.
Most times I just don't know what I feel....

Memes for Everyone!

Karen tagged me for a meme, so here goes...

Four jobs I have had:
1. Food Lion/Kash n Karry -- 4 years here altogether, some in NC, some in FL. Mostly worked as a cashier. For the last 6 months I've been working in the office, doing accounting, bookeeping, etc.
2. WCU Math Lab -- I tutored ppl who couldn't get it. And sometimes I pretended to tutor people who knew it better than me (ian).
3. Johnny Rockets -- I was a host the summer I was at SBP. Branch was my "cohost." It was so much fun to hang out with him!
4. SunTrust -- I was a teller there for three months until I got sick and got the boot.

Four places I have lived:
1. Georgia - LaGrange. I was born there and lived there till I was like 3.
2. Virginia - Pearisburg. I was mostly raised there.. lived there till I was 15. I would like to make it back there eventually, and raise a family there.
3. North Carolina. - Lincolnton. I finished high school there.
- Cullowhee. I went to college at Western Carolina University.
- Winston Salem. I moved here recently to live with Karen.
4. Florida - Ocala. My family moved here after I finished hs, and I'ved lived there intermittently ever since.

Four Favorite Foods:
1. Spaghetti with ranch dressing.
2. Sushi!!
3. Anything Chinese.
4. BBQ Chicken Hot Pockets.

Four places I would rather be:
1. Ocala, Fl. -- I miss my stinker, Caroline, and all the rest of my family.
2. Pearisburg, Va. -- I REALLY want to go up there and visit everyone soon.
3. LaGrange, Ga. -- This is probably my favorite place in the world. I love my extended family.
4. Cullowhee, NC. -- Everyone just moved back and is starting school, and I really want to visit some people.

Alright, all done.. I'm supposed to tag someone, but the only people that read this blog have already done this meme. :-)

I love socks!

Long time no see, eh? Hopefully after I get my computer functioning properly and whatnot, I'll be able to get online more often and update better. This should be a good post because I'm in Florida and am able to take my time on the computer, I can connect my camera.. etc.

So, I made my very first pair of socks last week! Karen asked if I had planned on making anything for Caroline's birthday, and I thought it'd be a perfect time to learn to make socks.

We had a little birthday party for her tonight at my brother's house. Like any 2-year-old would, she opened a package that had socks in it and moved right on to the next one. The next one happened to be Jenni's sister's gift -- also clothing. Caroline pulled everything out of the box and tossed it on the floor behind her, looking for a toy. When she didn't find one, she moved right along.. again. Fortunately for my ego (and what could easily be the end of my sock-making career), Caroline later became enamored with the socks. They fit, first off!! Or at least, they were close to fitting. They were only a little bit big and slouchy around the instep, but she'll grow into them. And anytime she walked into the living room and saw someone else holding them, she'd rip them out of their hands and say, "Mine!"

Isn't it funny that, in true aunt fashion, Jenni's sister and I were the only ones who gave her that heinous gift of *gasp* clothing! All the grandparents and friends and uncles got her toys or fun learning devices. But, the aunts.. clothes. Now I just need to grab her cheeks and say, "My how you've grown!" and I'll fit the mold to a tee.

Anywho.. here's a picture of the socks on her. My camera takes forever to take a picture, so she's already moving in this picture, but I'll bring Mom's camera in here and post a good picture I got when I get the chance.

They're done in Lion's Brand Magic Stripes in Bright Spring Pattern. It was on clearance at AC Moore, and for my first sock project, I certainly wasn't going to splurge. I used Ann Bud's Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns as a bit of a starting point, and it's just in stockinette with about a 3/4 inch ribbing at the top. I do believe my first pair of socks was a success..

Let's see.. what else?

I finished my felted bag. I'll post pictures when I get back to NC.

Karen found me some Pink Lemonade! It's so cute! I started knitting a dishcloth in stockinette with it, but I'm gonna frog it and do a more entertaining pattern.

I'm also making the Woozy Cloth from smariek's blog in a purple and yellow kitchen cotton.. I forgot the name of that colorway.

Karen and I dyed yarn last week! We used the Kool-Aid method, and I think it made the color so rich. That is where there was color.. I wasn't as thorough with mine as I should have been, and there's a good bit of white still. I think I'll start either a pair of socks or the Fetching wrist warmers sometime next week.

Last but not least, I'm working on the Simple Shrug from the ballband of Caron's Simply Soft Shadows in Mardi Gray. It's a fun pattern, though I think it'll look dumb on me, so it'll need to be a gift. I had a good 7 inches or so done on it, then I decided to frog it and redo it in the round.

Oh, and then there's always the perpetual blanket.. :-)

AND, the most exciting news of all........ Karen and I got an apartment! We signed a lease on Wednesday, and I'll start moving all my jank in next week! I'll post some pictures when we get all moved in!

There I go again, leaving you hanging.. :-) It's been almost a month since I posted, and all my two readers are surely desparate to know what's new.. lol

As far as FOs, we have..
-Two bibs for Bella Grace (which need to go in the mail pronto). One from Peaches n Creme Potpourri, and the other from Peaches n Creme Fiesta Ombre (my favorite!)
-The Fat Bottom Bag from The Happy Hooker. It was originally a crochet pattern, but I did it in knit -- a VERY simple conversion. It's done in a blue and brown variegated from TLC.
-Four washcloths for Caroline -- A ballband brick pattern in Fiesta Ombre and yellow, one in seed stich (my favorite stitch) in Sugar n Cream's Over the Rainbow, and two in TyDy, I forget the color.
-Three dishcloths for me, or someone I choose to gift them to. One in Fiesta Ombre, one in Sugar n Cream Somerset, and one in Peaches n Creme in Gumdrop.

Off the needles but not ready for public yet is The Chip Bag by Stitch Poet. It's done in a cream colored Wool Ease and is lined in this so cute black fabric with some red and white accents. I just need to finish stitching it up.

On the needles...
-Another Chip Bag in Laines du Nord Cleo in this grey-green color.. it's gorgeous and is going to go wonderfully with the mauve colored handles and mauve colored lining I've picked out for it.
-Another purse I'm making up as I go along. It's in Patons Classic Merino Wool in Regency. I can't wait to felt it! I can't decide if I'm going to just make a plain rectangle-shape purse then cut it after it's felted, or just knit it into shape before I felt it. I have a very specific shape in mind, but it's hard to explain. You'll see it when it's done.

I think that's it, as far as progress I've made since I last posted. Photos will come soon.. keep checking!
BTW.. Can you tell I'm obsessed with cotton yarn and dishcloths/washcloths? I'm on the prowl for Peaches n Creme in Pink Lemonade. Lemme know if you ever see any.

Wow.. It's been over a month since I've posted.
And what a long, eventful month it has been.
This will certainly not be all-inclusive; in fact, it will be quite short.
But, let's see...
So, I've moved to Winston-Salem.
I'm working at Food Lion, but am getting ready to start job-hunting.
I've fallen in love with knitting -- so much so that my crochet hooks and certainly my scrapbooking materials are feeling awfully neglected.
Soon, I'll post a few photos and more detailed information about my life.
For now, this is it.
I just couldn't believe how long it'd been since I'd posted, and I wanted to affirm that I was not one of those blog-owners who starts a blog, posts 3-5 times, then never visits the website again.
That's all for now.
More to come....

I need to pack...

I'm moving in 5 days, and I'm SO not ready. Between work, all the times I'm gonna go out with friends and family, and sleep, there will be little time left for packing. I'm gonna lose a lot of sleep this week. And, as I say this, I'm sitting here thinking, "I could easily be packing right now instead of blogging about packing, and that would make my life a lot simpler." But, of course, here I sit.

So, let's make this quick..
Started working on a new project the other day.. a bib for Jamie and Frances's little baby, Bella. I'm making it out of Peaches & Creme in Potpourri. Just a dc in rows.. making the pattern up as I go. I'll stitch some velcro to the ends for a closure, and I THINK it'll come out pretty stinkin' cute.

I'm revamping this old sweater thingy my Grammy made me into a set of scarves for my cousins. I'm doing this for the Van Gogh's Closet CAL on the C'Ville website. I wanted to do the gradations in the order that they were on the sweater, but I don't like it when there are two contrasting colors being stitched together. So, I'll rearrange the colors to kind of go along with the color spectrum before I start again. I was thinking of making this my first knitted project, but I think taking on the task of knitting two strands at a time is much too daunting for this beginniner.

Speaking of which.... I think I've got knitting down. I'm not real good at it, but I can do it. My hands get jumpled and confused, but I'll get that down pat soon. As you can tell from the photo, there's a stitch that's a little messed up, but that's ok. This piece is no longer in existence. I frogged it and started using the yarn (which, btw, is Peaches & Creme in Fiesta Ombre) to knit another bib for Bella. I didn't love the way the last one turned out, but I'll be doing this one a little different, and I think I'll like it a lot more.

For now, I shall clean.

Happy Memorial Day!

So, I had a pretty good weekend..
Probably would have been better if I hadn't had my heart broke but that was a minor detail...

I visited with my grandparents and aunt and uncle on Friday, then went to SC on Saturday for Christina and Evan's wedding. It was beautiful.. real simple and nice. It was SO good to see everybody, but a little overwhelming. I had a good time with all the people I love SO much. There was quite an abrupt, heartbreaking ending for me, but on the whole, it was a very pleasant experience.

Saturday night I went back to LaGrange, then on Sunday at church, MawMaw told me I should stay another day. So, Sonya, Jeremy and I spent the day at Callaway Gardens. It was beautiful.

This morning, I left to come home and spent the afternoon cooking and cleaning, then this evening we had some guests come over to celebrate Memorial Day. It was just what Memorial Day is supposed to be.. hamburgers and hot dogs, campfire, s'mores, bubbles, horseshoes..aaaaand fireworks. Maybe the fireworks weren't such a good idea. Ben almost killed us three times, and the evening ended on a pretty sour note when some guy from across the way came and asked us to stop and a few tempers were raised pretty high. But, it was fun.


Now, onto my most recent project..
I'm making a collection of boxes for my desk (when I get a desk) when I move to Winston Salem. I worked up the first one when I was in the car and/or lounging around in LaGrange this weekend. I went to join the edges, but it just looked awful when I joined it with slst's on the inside. I think I'll just sew up the edges on the outside. Next time, I'll make the bottom, and then just one more piece to be all the sides, instead of a bottom and four sides. Next, I'm going to start working on a round one in a different color.

And my next project I'll start on is gong to be a bib for Jamie and Francis' newest little one, Bella. I cross-stitched a bib for Lucy. I'm going to crochet one for Bella. I need to get started on it. She is beautiful, btw. They both are.
Anybody know of a good bib pattern?

So, I just got finished watching the season finales of Housewives and Brothers and Sisters. I have to say that out of all the finales this year, the only one I was impressed with was Brothers and Sisters.

Grey's sucked. The neverending saga of the Meredith-Derrick will they or won't they is getting to be about all I can take. I was really sad that Rebecca went back to her husband, but if Alex hadn't been so dense, maybe she wouldn't have.

I haven't watched CSI yet. It's on the DVR. Maybe I'll watch it before I go to work tomorrow.

Housewives was alright. I was intrigued by Bree's pregnancy. Or lack thereof. I honestly thought she'd slept with somebody not long before marrying Orsen and was carrying a love child of some sort. And it's my dream to see Gabby and Carlos back together. Speaking of which.. Carlos is SO sexy! And I was finally starting to like Edie. Do you think she really dies? I haven't heard anything about her leaving the show... ??

Brothers and Sisters was good, but it's always good. I love the messages that show ALWAYS sends about grace, perseverance, treasuring the little things, and living life to its fullest extent.

And, don't even get me started on Gilmore Girls. What happened there? First off, I'm waiting and waiting for the very last line, because I'd heard that the writer had had it planned for years.. But in the end they just trail off and are chatting about her new job in the diner. I liked the full circle thing, that they are back at Luke's, and Luke and Lorelai are back together (Thank God!) but I was waiting for that big finale. I did like when Lorelai was trying to loan Rory her sweater, and Rory said, "You've given me everything I need." Maybe THAT was the last line I'd heard about, but it wasn't actually the last line.

Anyway... I just wanted to share my thoughts on the finales. Any thoughts, friends?

A few WIPs and a FO

Or I guess that'd be WsIP.

Anywho.. So, here I am feeling like I'm in the middle of umpteen projects; I decide to post about them and take pictures of them.. and there are only two. Two to take photos of, at least. One is a crochet hook carrying case that I only have one row completed on, and I decided it wasn't enough to take a photo of yet.

I am currently working on a scarf and a hat that I'm making from an old sweater. Ah, I counted these as one WIP b/c I took only one photo, but it is actually two. Three, if you count unraveling the sweater and making balls of yarn from it. I count unraveling the sweater and making balls of yarn from it, so this is three projects in one. Anyway, it's this sweater I've had for several years, and when I first started unraveling it, my thinking on it was "I live in Florida, I don't need this big, bulky sweater." Well, that has changed, seeing as I'm moving to North Carolina, but the sweater was still bulky and ugly, and it needed to be revamped. It is currently survived in the form of a scarf I made for Karen's bday gift, and a scarf and hat I'm making for myself. Karen, I'll make you a hat to match, too! :-) Some people may think it looks sloppy, but I think it looks organic and... hobo chic. ;-)

Then there's my perpetual blanket. I've been taking waste yarn and crocheting a blanket with it, along with some black and white yarn. Just Red Heart simple yarn, nothing special or extravagant. I call it my prepetual blanket, because it won't be done for a very long time. Not until I've finished enough projects to have enough scrap yarn to have a complete full size blanket, including the black and white, which is just filler. May sound goofy or OCD, but the pattern is as follows. 100 ch black 100 ch white for first row, then waste yarn #1 until it's used up in dc, 100 dc black, waste yarn #2 dc, 100 dc white, etc. etc.

Finally, a FO. Again, with the revamping old items.. I took an old pair of mittens that my great grammy made me years and years and years ago, and I unraveled them. I like mittens and everything, but I don't really wear them, AND these were much too small. I made a hat out of them. Of course, there wasn't enough yarn to make a whole hat, so finished it out with a cute coordinating yarn. Then, I made a cute little flower (my first flower ever!) from the same yarn and added it as an accent on the hat. It turned out really cute, I think.

Well, I guess that's it for now. I could bore you with some more things I"m getting ready to work on, but you've suffered long enough.

Until next time....

Parting is such sweet sorrow...

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mommies out there.

So, I've been packing lately, preparing to move in with Karen in Winston Salem. *Sidenote: I'm so excited to be moving in with Karen. She's going to teach me how to knit, because I've not had the patience to teach myself. I'm so excited to have a yarn buddy! And, I'm so looking forward to living with a sister I'll be accountable to, who'll push me to do what's best for me. Anyway... I'm not moving for about a month, but I'm such a procrastinator... I'm starting early this time, and maybe by June 9th I'll actually be ready to move. Anyway, it's been heartbreaking putting all my craft things into boxes. So far I've only had the heart to tape up the box with my cross-stitch stuff in it. And, my cake decorating stuff is packed away, but not quite taped yet. All my scrapbooking stuff is still out; I've put my yarn and crochet things into a box, but I haven't been able to close it up. I probably won't actually tape it up until the day I move. :-) And then I'll probably cut right into it the night I get there. :-)


I'm not a conventional yarn user. Last night, I spent an hour or two cutting up plastic bags, denim jeans, and old videotapes, and making them into their respective "yarn" balls. I plan to use the bags to make little boxes and such for my desktop. The jeans will probably be turned into a purse. I haven't decided what the videotape will be. I thought coasters, but would water ruin them? What are your thoughts? Hmm.. I could use the bags for coasters, too.
Next, I'm going to look for my old audio tapes and turn them into yarn. I mean, seriously, who watches VHS anymore, and who even owns a tape deck? Not me.

I can't wait to make my t-shirt quilt from all my Western shirts, because I'm going to take the scraps and make "yarn" out of it and make matching pillowcases or something!


Photos coming soon!

Good Reads..

I guess maybe I can also use this blog spot to share what I'm reading lately.
Who doesn't love to read?
Well, I guess lots of people hate to read actually, but I don't.

This weekend I had to do a lot of driving. I LOVE to listen to audiobooks in the car, so when I left Winston-Salem to come back home, I stopped at Edward McKay to find a lil' somethin'. I picked up Eat Love Pray: A Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia by Elizabeth Gilbert. I'd seen it at the grocery store I worked at numerous times and always thought about picking it up. But then I'd think about how little time I have to read, how many other books I have who's bindings are waiting to be broken, and I just never made my way to the counter with it.
This book is actually quite unbelieveable. I wouldn't say I agree with much of what she says, but I enjoy it immensely. It is a collection of essays about her search for "everything." From good food to internal peace to pleasure to God, she spends two years of her life simply searching. My favorite line so far: "Congratulations to meet you," she says to God when she finally feels like she experiences Him for the first time.

Another book I'm working on (this one I'm actually reading and not listening to) is Searching for God Knows What by Donald Miller. One of my favorite books is one of his, it's called Blue Like Jazz. This one is written in a similar fashion. It's also a collection of essays about his life experiences. He writes as though he's having a personal, one-on-one conversation with the reader. I've learned so much about how to live my life from this man. He is wise and simple, and I love it. My favorite line: "That is when I realized the most terrible thing I'd ever realized: Santa doesn't wash his hands after he uses the bathroom."

In the beginning...

In the beginning, there was blog.
No, that's not how it goes.
Anyhow, here it is.
I've gotten hooked on knitters' blogs, and although I, myself, do not yet knit (though I plan to learn soon), I do crochet and papercraft, as well as tons of other types of crafts as well, and I wanted a place to, if not share my projects and ideas with others, document my progress on them for myself.
Thus, I become a blogger.
More to come...