> Recent Entries
> Archive
> Friends
> User Info
> My Website
> previous 20 entries

June 22nd, 2009

(Leave a comment)

June 20th, 2009

10:50 pm - Y hello thar god of irony! I'm just going to cut and paste this from Yahoo! news in case they've removed the blurp that had me cracking up this afternoon: "British government spells end of 'i before e' rule. LONDON – It's a spelling mantra that generations of schoolchildren have learned — "i before e, except after c." But new British government guidance tells teachers not to pass on the rule to students, because there are too many exceptions. The "Support For Spelling" document, which is being sent to thousands of primary schools, says the rule "is not worth teaching" because it doesn't account for words like 'sufficient,' 'veil' and 'their.' Jack Bovill of the Spelling Society, which advocates simplified spelling, said Saturday he agreed with the decision. But supporters say the ditty has value because it is one of the few language rules that most people remember. (This version CORRECTS spelling of Bovill, sted Bovell, in graf 4.)" All of this about changing spelling rules--and WHAM! Right at the bottom of the page. Current Mood: amused

(Leave a comment)

June 17th, 2009

08:46 pm - At least there is this (ganked from distractogirl If there is one person or more on your friends list who makes your world a better place just because they exist and who you would not have met (in real life or not) without the internet, then post this same sentence in your journal.

(Leave a comment)

June 9th, 2009

(6 comments | Leave a comment)

June 6th, 2009

06:04 pm - How not to take a trip around the world (but be gone just as long) So I bid her, "Do come in and I'll open up a tin if you'll tell me 'bout your trip around the world." --Mike Nesmith, "Never Tell A Woman Yes" Well, I'm still working on catching up with everything you lot have been up to lately. Good grief, you folks have been busy! I suppose, though, this would be the time to explain what I've been up to for the past fifteen months or so. ( Too long, far too long ) Current Mood: contemplative Tags: limbo

(14 comments | Leave a comment)

June 3rd, 2009

(2 comments | Leave a comment)

May 30th, 2009

01:37 pm - Pomp and circumstance I am feeling damned old today, folks. Last night Kelsie, my niece, the Geographic Center of the Universe, graduated from high school. I've been on the verge of tears for approximately 19 hours. Is it possible to choke on sheer pride? I think I might. Kelsie had to work awfully hard in school to get grades that were good enough for college (she takes after her mom, and while I love Renee--well, she admits I'm the smarter sister!). She did it though, and you know what she's going to study? Fashion design. The little girl who wanted to be her crazy Aunt Alyce when she was little has grown up into a beautiful, confident young woman who might just make a future collaborator for that same aunt. She's finally found a decent guy (my sister set them up!), and my gut tells me he might be the guy she marries. They make a sickeningly cute couple; totally perfect for each other. My only complaint is that I didn't get any decent pictures. They split the seniors into two lines for the grand entrance, and wouldn't you just know it? I waited patiently, camera in hand, at the bottom of the wrong fricking staircase! I couldn't even get any decent shots from the balcony. (Hey, the kid has talked me onto Ferris wheels; what difference is a balcony where my niece is concerned?) OTOH, I managed to avoid any Awkward Moments with a classmate of Kelsie's who has a gargantuan crush on me. That was a definite plus. So, I'm going to try to put my "professional face" back on and save the misty eyes for later. Oh, and a quick message to my IRC comrades--better vacuum off my chair. Monday night at the latest! Current Mood: indescribable

(3 comments | Leave a comment)

December 20th, 2008

03:12 pm - In case my life doesn't slow down before then.... Happy Yule. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Happy Kwanzaa. And just in case, Happy New Year. *thud* Current Mood: exhausted

(5 comments | Leave a comment)

November 15th, 2008

02:29 pm - I *work* with these lunatics!! Apparently some of you have already heard about this. A group of my colleagues at the library are heading for the National Book Truck Drill Team championship. I never even knew this existed until recently. They tried to get me to join the team, but 1. I haven't had time and 2. they practiced at an obscene hour of the morning. Don't think so. I'm not that coordinated before sunrise! Anyway, here are the results. The first team is from Madison. The second team--my coworkers Meg, Gretchen, Penny, Mari Jo, and the tall scrawny guy is the Annoying Being himself. WARNING: PUT DOWN ALL BEVERAGES BEFORE PROCEEDING! These weirdos right here are the reason I have stayed at the library for nearly eight years, gods love 'em. Current Mood: amused Current Music: "Born to Be Wild" Tags: work, wtf

(2 comments | Leave a comment)

November 8th, 2008

03:56 pm - Soggy Saturday Still riding the Obama high. Actually, it hasn't quite sunk in yet. (I spent the past couple of months volunteering with the campaign whenever I had free time, so this is a serious case of wow.) I spent most of the day doing bookkeeping for the yarn shop. Excel still makes me twitchy, but I managed to get through it in one piece. And regarding the Midwest's current weather--WTF??? And even though I know it's the right time of year, why does it always come as a *surprise?* Current Mood: mellow

(5 comments | Leave a comment)

November 2nd, 2008

(5 comments | Leave a comment)

November 1st, 2008

12:07 pm - OMFG *blush* http://www.saukcountyhistory.org:80/hauntedhalloweenwalk.html That would be me making the hair wreath. (Yes, that's real hair. No, I am never doing that again! The re-enacting was a blast, but not the working-with-hair. Too damn slippery. Methinks I'll stick with sheep hair.) Also, cross your fingers. I have heard I'm in wireless range, so am picking up the adaptor once I get paid for a contract. Oh, and spraining one's foot twice in a week's time hurts like hell. Just sayin'. Current Mood: uncomfortable

(6 comments | Leave a comment)

October 17th, 2008

05:48 pm - Random grumbling There's a pajama party at Ms. Vicky's tonight--which led to Alyce walking down the main street downtown in pajamas. Gods do I feel like a dork. And for the record, I don't ever intend to go to a "male revue" again. *snore* There was only one hot guy, and well--if I wanted my leg humped, I'd get a beagle. Current Mood: grumpy

(11 comments | Leave a comment)

September 28th, 2008

04:06 pm - Ooof We moved the entire yarn shop yesterday. I am sore and tired in places I didn't know existed. Was totally worth it though. The new place is off-the-scale adorable. I'm going to go collapse again now. Current Mood: exhausted

(5 comments | Leave a comment)

September 20th, 2008

03:16 pm - "My Granny Was A Flapper" Hat Okay folks, here it is! The first-ever pattern in my line Exclusively for Ms Vicky's by Applestar Creations. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time; you'd think it was opening night at the Met. Skill level: beginner/intermediate Materials needed: Crochet hook size H Cascade 220 Paints #9921, approx. 100 yards (color A) Cascade Dolce #957, 30 yards (color B) With Color A Ch 4, join with sl st to form ring. Rnd 1: Ch 3, 12 dc in ring, join with sl st at top of beg ch 3 (13 st). Rnd 2: Ch 3, dc in same st as joining, 2 dc in each dc around, join in top of beg ch 3. Rnd 3: Ch 3, *2 dc in next dc, dc in next dc, repeat from * around, 2 dc in last dc, join in top of beg ch 3. Rnd 4: Ch 3, dc in next dc, *2 dc in next dc, dc in each of next 2 dc, repeat from * around, 2 dc in last dc, join at top of beg ch 3. Rnd 5-6: Ch 3, increase 13 dc evenly around, join with sl st to top of ch 3. Rnd 7: Ch 3, dc in back loop of each dc around, join with sl st to top of ch 3. Rnd 8-10: Work even in both loops. At end of Rnd 10, fasten off. Rnd 11: Join color B with sc. Sc in each dc around, join with sl st. Rnd 12-14: Work even in sc. At end of Rnd 14, fasten off. Rnd 15: Join color A, ch 3. Dc in each sc around, join with sl st to top of beg ch 3. Rnd 16: Ch 3, working in front loop only increase 13 dc evenly around. Join in top of ch 3. Rnd 17-20: Ch 3, working in both loops increase 13 dc evenly around. Join in top of ch 3. At end of Rnd 20, fasten off. Weave in ends. (And for the record, yes my grandmother actually was a flapper. Who do you think inspired the hat?) Current Location: Ms. Vicky's Current Mood: excited Current Music: "No More Tears", David Nevue

(8 comments | Leave a comment)

September 4th, 2008

04:40 pm - Drip, drip, drip.... It's been raining here all day. The library was unusually busy for a Thorsday, but here at the yarn shop it's downright sleepy. Seems like the only customers have been the ones with impossible questions (I suck at casting on, I don't know any tatters offhand, and no I cannot pull fourteen balls of Cascade Fixation out of my ass). SO, am getting a lot of stitching done on my new design. Since it's also for the shop, I really need to clear with Vicky how much I can say about this stuff. Argh. She's asking for at least three more displays plus patterns for winter classes! *boggles* I'm gonna be a busy lil' hooker! Current Location: Ms. Vicky's Current Mood: contemplative Current Music: "I Thought About You"

(14 comments | Leave a comment)

August 30th, 2008

01:47 pm - Update time! Well oof, I've been offline for what, six months or so? Way too long. However, those have been six of the busiest months of my life. In the time I've been offline, I've: --Moved. --Resigned my position at Jockey. --Taken someone to court. --Landed my dream job (without even trying!). --Switched to Linux. There are a few other things, but those are still in the "brewing" stages. The new apartment is wonderful, and my cousin and I are managing not to strangle each other. Jockey simply became more hassle than it was worth, and I'm making enough just at the library that I didn't need it anymore. As for the court thing...the bitch got off on a technicality because I was not properly informed of certain things. Yeah, am thinking of filing a complaint. I am now the Crocheter-in-Residence, house designer, and web guru for Ms. Vicky's Yarn Cafe, aka my Local Yarn Shop. That's actually where I am right now; Vicky said I could hang out online because she didn't expect it to be busy. Yeah right! It took me until quarter to two just to finish washing the mugs from the morning coffee klatch. Loving the job though. She likes a lot of my ideas for getting her store more web exposure, and she's having me design several displays and a whole line of patterns for her. I also maintain her blog, The Rennaissance Stitcher. She wants to start a crochet-only one and a knitting-only one, but I surely can't do the knitting blog! We're also talking about a podcast, so one of my favorite people in the world *waves at him* offered to help. And yes, I have a working computer again. I haven't used Linux since Red Hat though, so I'm getting reacquainted with it and making sure everything's functional before I try to get Doc_Harper online. I really really don't want to have to deal with that idiot repairman again! I will say, though, that the graphics/web design work I'm doing for a couple of people is really helping on the "getting reacquainted" end of things. And in conclusion, GODS I miss LJ! Current Location: Ms. Vicky's Current Mood: hot Current Music: "Where the Stars and Moon Play"

(27 comments | Leave a comment)

June 1st, 2008

12:45 am - One door closes.... It's officially moving day darlings! It's 12:45 a.m. here, but C.W. and I aren't really planning on sleeping tonight. We still have a lot to do before the truck gets here in the morning. Thank gods we can stretch most of it out over the rest of the month, but the furniture has to be moved tomorrow. My library colleague Penny has for years lived by the motto that changes in life should not be mourned because they open the way to new adventures. Well...here's to new adventures! Be back soon (I hope). Current Mood: busy

(4 comments | Leave a comment)

May 30th, 2008

12:03 pm - I *headdesk* hate *headdesk* stupid *headdesk* people! I cannot WAIT for Sunday. C.W.'s soon-to-be ex is driving me totally batshit. He's always surfing to sites that have a lot of built-in infections (y'all can probably guess what kind), and then I get stuck cleaning up the mess. You should hear him rant about THAT. Vague threats about how his stuff had better work, throwing a fit because the anti-virus I installed did exactly what it should and posted an alert, blaming me and my "messing around" for software incompatibility...ARGH!!! He tends to blame other people when he doesn't understand something, and as you probably noticed he understands completely jack about computers. Another day and a half. That's all I have to worry about. *le sigh* Current Mood: pissed off

(12 comments | Leave a comment)

May 22nd, 2008

10:22 pm - Ahhh, relief! I am OUT of there! I'm posting this from C.W.'s current apartment while I do some troubleshooting on her computer. There are no words for how good it feels to be typing on a real keyboard again. We don't actually move into the new apartment until June 1st, but I woke up this morning to a nasty surprise: no electricity. It turns out they'd screwed up the date when I was supposed to be disconnected. Some of you may remember that I have had nothing but trouble with the power company for some time now. I don't know what inbred moron is handling my account, but I should have sensed trouble when they screwed up putting the account in my name in the first place. Anyway, rather than dink around getting reconnected for ten days, I called my cousin and asked if the birds and I could crash at her place until we moved. She said, "I'll pick you up after work!" It's going to be a long week probably; her soon-to-be-ex and I don't get along. At least I'm out of that dump, though. I should have my 'puter back online in the first week or so of June. Is it sad that I want to hug the internet right about now? Current Location: My cousin's living room Current Mood: relieved Current Music: 'Ace of Cakes'

(5 comments | Leave a comment)