Pello Review We went to Pello in East Sydney for the Snook's birthday dinner last night. I'd booked us in early for 7pm so we'd have plenty of time to do the degustation. In fact, we were the first ones there! (The place started to fill up soon though.) After enjoying some fine G&T's, we moved on to the food. There were seven courses in all (plus the amuse bouche and the "pre-dessert"), each with its own matching wine. The highlight of the night for me was the herb crusted snapper; that may well be the best piece of fish I've ever eaten. I also really liked the pork belly and the terrine. I appreciated the way that both the dishes and the wine increased in complexity with each new course. The wait staff were excellent, and they were great about answering all our questions. (Me: "What's 'sauce matelote'?" Him: "I'm glad you asked; that's the best part! It's made from smoked eel...") I'm a little disappointed that they didn't do anything special for the Snook's birthday, since they did make a note of it when I made the reservation. But it was still a lovely evening out, and the meal was a good mix of "trying kinda weird new things" and "enjoying good versions of stuff I already like." The only downside was all that wine. The server told us that they were only 90ml glasses, but I'm pretty sure they were more generous than that with the pours. Times that by seven courses, and we practically had a whole bottle each. Ooof, my achin' head...
I just have to add that I'm really proud of myself and how far I've come with my food phobias. I ate everything on that menu - salmon roe, mushrooms, raw kingfish, everything - without holding my nose or being childish. Instead I made a concerted effort to really taste stuff, and to figure out - if I didn't care for something - WHY I didn't like it. I'm sure that's nothing for some of you, but for this former picky-eater, it's a really big change.
Jezebel keeps linking to pictures of Pacey. I just thought I'd let you know.
[1]
One of my very oldest blog buddies, Brigita, has just had a baby! Congratulations, B! There's a new little purple weasel in the world... Monday, July 30, 2007
Book Recommendations: Since I did some extra work for the Gleewarts train trip last weekend, I now have a nice gift voucher courtesy of the folks at Gleebooks. I don't know what to spend it on. Suggestions? Other than Harry Potter, my most recent book purchases have all been non-fiction or comic books. Which books have really been floating your boat lately? Stuff I know I like: fantasy or sci-fi that tells a real, engaging story (like Atwood, King, or Dick), biographies (both historical and recent), annotated classics, humorous essays (a la Steingarten or Bryson), really good short stories (a la Saki or Dahl). Stuff I don't think I like: chicklit, William Gibson-type sci-fi, Pratchett (sorry, love), angsty autobiographies of people with horrible childhoods who go on Oprah, thrillers and spy books. That said, I'll give anything a try. So come on, help me make a shopping list! Sunday, July 29, 2007
[2]
Today's Knitting Shop Outrage: I just got a call from out in the shop.
Co-worker Who Shall Remain Nameless: You know the Vero Tweed, colour #55? The one with the purple in it? Would you call that colour gay? Me: What? CWSRN: Gay. Is it a gay colour? Me: EXCUSE ME? CWSRN: I've got a customer on the phone. She's been after that colour for a while, but she just showed it to her son and she thinks it's too gay for him. Would you say that? Me: (spluttering) I'd never say anything like that! Colours are just colours. Newsreaders wear pink shirts and that doesn't mean they're gay. She's an idiot. CWSRN: Well, what should I tell her? Me: "Get stuffed."
[1]
The BBC website held a contest asking people to tell the entire story of the first six Harry Potter books in under a hundred words. Here are the top 6 entries. My personal favorite is #4, which I shall repeat here because it makes me giggle:
"Harry and his posse gots ta eliminate gangsta V-Man and his evil yet sexeh followers lest they destroy the world.
V-Man has already got Harry's posse members shot down (family, godfather, Dumble-D), and it's a-time for revenge!
Harry and crew has got to cruise 'round the hood to find V-Man's treasures to destroy, and only then can they take him on and blast his ass! Pow!
Hermione and Ron want to hook-up, but feel that Harry's hollah is more important at the moment, which is way cool, but Harry ain't bovvered, because he knows that luuurve will get him through."
V-man and his "evil yet sexeh" followers. How can you not vote for that?
[1]
Knitting Cupcakes. Those are crazy, almost spookily good. I'm in awe. (Link courtesy of Miss Fee and her sock victim...) Saturday, July 28, 2007
The Snook has encoded the clip of me on the news from last night (and you can see Bex and Lara too!), and then we got all fancy using this embedded flash player. Let me know if you have any trouble viewing it!
I love the guy in the snowflake sweater and I want to be his best friend. But man, I sound like the Biggest. Knitting Nerd. Ever. There I am waxing rhapsodic about the joys of "donating time" when I didn't even finish the square I was working on. Sheesh.
[2]
Magic and free will I'm listening the Deathly Hallows audiobook with the Snook, and tonight something struck me. (No spoiler! Don't worry... although if you haven't finished it yet, you're really pushing it!) So anyway, I was thinking about the Imperio curse, and how it's pretty much one of top three worst crimes you can commit in the wizarding world, right? Taking away someone's free will ranks right up there with murder and torture. Compare that to the Star Wars universe, where Jedi seem to apply their mind trick to the weak-minded whenever they feel like it. Obi-Wan even uses it on random people he meets (like the deathstick merchant on Coruscant) to force his own morals on them. Shouldn't we find that more repugnant? In the movie it's played for a laugh, and I guess it's supposed to be okay because we trust the Jedi to be good guys. But hey, you know, that really sucked of him. Hmm, maybe I've discovered another of the contributing factors to the Jedi's downfall. Their attitude towards "muggles" seems a lot more cavalier than wizards' of Harry's world. Friday, July 27, 2007
[5]
Oh man. This list of "sissy, post-grunge, mid-90's poseurs" just breaks my heart. Why? Because it looks like my Top Rated playlist in iTunes. Those are ALL the songs from when I was in high school! See, this is why I don't listen to much modern music anymore. My tastes just aren't fashionable enough. (Okay, okay. I'll admit I do cringe a little when "The Freshmen" comes on.)
[7]
It's a gathering of knitbloggers...
From left to right, that's Bex, Lara, Anna, Miss Fee, and me. We had a lovely time knitting squares, and I even got interviewed for the evening news tonight. (I've set it to record.)
Faceball. I'm sure we have an inflatable beach ball around here somewhere...
Moblog:702 ABC Knit-In It's me and Bex, proudly representing the non-blue-hairs! Miss Fee and Lara are with us too. Shame on all you slackasses still in bed!
Golden Snitch Knitting Needles. Awww, those are so cute! I'd make myself a pair, except for the fact that I rarely use straight needles anymore. (Link courtesy of Bex.) Wednesday, July 25, 2007
[4]
I'll admit that when I read the headline "Magician injured in sword trick," my first thought was of Gob Bluth. And now I have "The Final Countdown" stuck in my head... Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Uses of Beeswax. For some reason I just found that interesting.
[2]
Hey Jenny: I'm interested to hear what my "cousin-in-law" Dave has to say about this poker-playing robot. I almost think it's a flawed experiment to begin with, because the whole point of being a good poker player (as I understand it) is to read your opponent. The cards you get shouldn't matter at all. But a computer just can't (as far as I know) interpret the millions of subtle bits of body language that humans are capable of. And conversely, there's no way for the human to get a read on his opponent's game other than by the card's he's shown. It just seems like more of a stunt than anything.
The Knitty surprises are up! I like this Emerald Seas tank a lot, and I just may have to make this grocery bag. They're getting added to my Ravelry queue! Monday, July 23, 2007
Deathly Hallows Discussion Okay, you've had a couple days to read. It's time to discuss. However, I've modified the front page of w-g so that you won't get inadvertently spoiled by the "recent comments" over there on the right. If you want to find out what happens, you're going to have to click on this link. [more...] Sunday, July 22, 2007
Congratulations, Ant and Kara! Of course, the Harry Potter launch was not the only event of global significance taking place this weekend. My brother Anthony got married to his girlfriend Kara Saturday back in Indiana. (That's right, ladies; Anthony Howard is off the market! Commence weeping.) Neither myself nor my sister was able to swing another visit so soon after the last one, which kinda sucked. I would have liked to have been there. I haven't managed to get Ant on the phone yet - they left immediately for their honeymoon - but by all accounts it was a beautiful day and a lovely ceremony. My sister's written a great letter to him on her site including some photos of us all when we were younger.
[1]
More photos: LOVE this one Amy took of the Snook on the train. Oh, and this one of me and the Snook before boarding. And for some reason, I suspect a lot of you are going to find this one really funny. Saturday, July 21, 2007
Just a couple photos from today's "Gleewarts" trip:
First is Mundungus, showing off some of his wares. He had jewelry and "Muggle artifacts" on this side (there's even a fork in there), and he had objects of great "Dark" power on the other. Next is me, after having my face painted not long after departure. I CANNOT RESIST face painters. I love it. Plus, it's a pretty impressive phoenix to have painted on a moving train, don't you think? Lastly, Gryffindor Rob looks on as Slytherin Amy practices her Parselmouth with a black-headed python. *shudder*
[5]
...And I'm DONE. Took me about six hours or so, all up. It's just getting on midnight in America, I think, so I'll give you guys a day or two to catch up before we start discussing plot. (That means NO PLOT DISCUSSIONS YET. My sister can't be trusted with spoilers!) [more...]
[4]
Don't worry, Sis; it's not much of a spoiler. I just finished Chapter 23. [more...]
[2]
It's 4 a.m. Up and at 'em! Friday, July 20, 2007
[1]
World's Fastest Hufflepuff Scarf That's FOUR DAYS from start to finish, folks! I used Heirloom Easy Care 12ply in yellow (four balls) and black (one ball).
Pattern: Cast on 20 stitches in yellow on 6.50mm needles, and knit like a fiend. After 50 rows (25 garter stitch ridges), switch to black for 6 rows (carrying yellow up the side). Back to yellow for 4 rows. Back to black for 6 rows. Then back to yellow for another 50. Repeat til you can't go no more!
I still haven't decided whether to fringe it. I don't have much yarn left!
Hooray! My Secret Pal finally received my last package, and it looks like the socks fit! Thanks to Kim for being such an easy person to spoil. :) Thursday, July 19, 2007
[1]
According to an email from Minerva, there appear to be a few seats left for the Gleewarts Express this weekend... and even some in our carriage! Let me know if you want the details.
Moblog:First, we bleach. The Great Pinkification begins! Stay tuned for the Tonks transformation...
[5]
Max's Socks Hooray! I've been counting down the minutes til Max got home from his trip and found the birthday package I sent him. I've been reading Max's site for nearly seven years now, from way back when he still had the old "Mr. Plow" domain. (I think this is the first official w-g mention.) Though we've never met in person, I've come to think of him as a really good friend. He's always been super supportive of my schemes and ideas, and he's introduced me to some great dance music. So I decided it was time to thank him! I sent off a secret e-mail to TheRealTimShady and luckily he was a fan of the idea. With his help (surreptitiously getting someone's shoe size from overseas isn't easy!), I cracked open Knitting Vintage Socks and whipped up a pair of "Gentleman's Socks with Lozenge Pattern." I used two balls of Sirdar Town & Country (with very little left over). Then I packed them into a box with a packet of Tim Tams and a selection of weird Australian candy bars. Unfortunately I was a bit off with my timing; the box made it to Atlanta before Max's birthday, but he'd already left on a trip to New Mexico! So I had to keep mum about it til he got home. (Which - ask the Snook - isn't easy. I'm terrible about surprises.) Today brought the happy news that Max is home, he got the package, and the socks fit him perfectly. So hooray! Happy belated birthday, Max. Wednesday, July 18, 2007
[4]
Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire knitting revenue is so delightful...
CRAP! Looks like I'm going to have to be extra vigilant about Harry Potter spoilers for the rest of the week. What jerks to try and ruin everyone else's fun. Tuesday, July 17, 2007
[2]
Fellow MeFite and Raveler vanessarama tipped me off about Natty Yarns, a small Australian online yarn retailer that carries - drum roll, please - sock blockers! And they're so adorable. They have a sheep on them! I might have to order some. Would any of you like to combine orders and save shipping with me?
[4]
Tempting Fate Last night as I got into bed, I told the Snook that even though I haven't been rigorous with my diet or exercise lately, I've been feeling really happy and comfortable with my body for the past few weeks. I've just been in a good mood.*
Today, a woman just pointedly looked at my belly and congratulated me. *sigh*
* I think a lot of it has to do with the weather. We've had a string of non-rainy days and that just lifts my mood so much. I think I have a touch of Seasonal Affective Disorder. Monday, July 16, 2007
How FREAKING COOL is this? Fake Steve links to this YouTube video of a toddler playing with an iPhone. That little girl has got it figured out in two seconds. Me, I'm trying to navigate this piece of crap with a tiny nubbin that doesn't even register presses half the time, and she's sittin' there listening to Coldplay and swiping through her photo albums. Sheesh.
[2]
Huh. Some technie nerds mentioned Ravelry and the initial comment response was pretty disparaging. Luckily some awesome knitters showed up to put them in their place!
The SMH has in interview with Daniel Radcliffe in which he mentions Rupert Grint's ice cream van: "I told him you've got to get it all stocked up by the time we're all on Harry Potter 6, so he can drive us in and give us ice-creams every morning." Suddenly my own commute seems so boring! Sunday, July 15, 2007
[10]
Is anyone sensing a theme this week? Somebody made a lime green felted bowler as part of a Cornelius Fudge costume. AWESOME. In related news, the Snook and I hit The Costume Shop yesterday to finalize our outfits for this weekend. I found an awesome bikerish jacket that I think is going to be perfect for Tonks. (While the movie did not sway me towards purple hair, it definitely inspired me to take her in a more punkish direction.) The Snook also got a few Mundungus effects. Which reminds me: Do any of you Sydneysiders have any really gaudy costume jewelry you could loan us for the day? We're looking for both "royal jewel" type stuff and also "evil goth" stuff. Please let me know if you can help us out!
Incendio! So far I'm 35% of the way through the Order of the Phoenix videogame. Sadly, I've also run into two bugs so far. The first was when I was unable to get out of the Marauder's Map screen. After two minutes of fruitlessly pushing buttons, the Snook had to look online and verify that it was impossible. After a restart, the game (and Map) worked perfectly. The other bug was during the task where you're supposed to help Colin Creevy get his camera down off the roof. There's a set way you're supposed to go about it, but I somehow managed to get up on the roof from a different direction. Without thinking, I used a "depulso" charm to push the camera down to the ground. When I got down there, I found I was unable to pick it up and give it to Colin. All I could do was "accio" it around the place. Eventually I had to turn to the Internet again to discover my mistake. If you come at the camera from the proper side, Hermione yells out for you to use "wingardium leviosa" to levitate it down from them. I ended up having to quit and restart the task over. Bad task design, Electronic Arts! Other than that, I'm having a lot of fun running around Hogwarts and lighting things on fire. ("Incendio" is my favorite spell.) I also like that as you discover new things, you unlock prizes in the Room of Rewards. These prizes basically turn out to be little documentary snippets about the making of the game, most of which involve interviews with the movie cast (since so many of them provided voices for the game). I'm just working up my nerve now to head to the Owlery and make out with Cho...
[1]
According to this article, you're statistically safer living in a "dangerous" neighborhood close to work than you are living in a "safe" suburb where you have to commute. (Violent crime being much, much rarer than car accidents.) Hmmm, maybe Redfern isn't looking so bad!
[3]
Yay! Those of you patiently waiting for your Ravelry invite can now check your position on the list...
[14]
More than meets the eye... From the front, it's just a normal grey jumper with a patch of stripes. But from the side... suddenly you're an autonomous robot life form from Cybertron! (More photos available on Flickr and Ravelry.)
I'm proud to report that this is the first jumper that Snookums actually requested and helped design. Somehow he saw some shadow knitting and asked whether it would be possible to knit the Autobots logo onto the front of a jumper. I pondered this. Most examples of shadow knitting are scarves where you're looking at the design from the bottom up (like in the Dark Mark Illusion Scarf). The Snook didn't like the idea of having to do a back-bend for people to see the image, though. So then I toyed with the idea of knitting his jumper sideways from cuff-to-cuff... but that tends to make for a rather shapeless garment, and not something that looks very good on a guy. That left knitting the logo sideways and then rotating it ninety-degrees before incorporating it into the jumper. So that's what I did. (Read past the jump for a link to download my chart.)
The pattern I settled on was Elizabeth Zimmerman's "Seamless Hybrid" from Knitting Without Tears, mostly because I'd never done saddle shoulders before. I was also greatly inspired by Brooklyn Tweed's gorgeous version. (I nicked his idea for doing contrasting hems.) The yarn is Filatura di Crosa Zara in #1469 (Dark Grey) and #1494 (Light Grey). I used about 12 of the main colour and 2 of the contrast. I experimented with different ways of "mounting" the shadow knitting, and ultimately what worked best was just sewing it in as I went along. (Which meant that I was knitting back and forth and leaving a "window" for the patch, so there was definitely purling involved.)
Okay, so the final verdict. I guess I'd give this about a 9 out of 10 rating. The shadow knitting worked great, and the Zara is a dream to knit with. (It also feels incredibly soft to wear, which is very important for the Snook, who finds most wool prickly.) I'm just not 100% happy with the fit of the shoulders, though. My gauge was off from Elizabeth's sample so I had to scale it up a little bit, and I'm just not sure her percentages for the saddles work as well this way. I think once it has a wash and a press it'll look better though. (That'll also help with the way the patch slightly pulls in a bit.) The Snook is happy and he has a new jumper to wear with a few weeks of winter left, so that's all that matters! [more...]
Remember the little jumper I made for Penn? It finally arrived at my sister's today and she's posted some great pictures of him wearing it. Oh, and he said his first word. It was "Mama." (It's a wonder I can even type with all this cluckiness coursing through my veins...) Thursday, July 12, 2007
Frick on a stick! I am spitting mad. I was just surfing through Kevin's site when I saw a mention of a trailer for The Dark is Rising. What? You mean the series of books I read as a kid, the ones about the Light and the Dark and King Arthur and all the old British myths? The same series that had Simon, Jane, and Barney searching for the Holy Grail and meeting the Greenwitch, while Will read the book of Grammarye and set Herne the Hunter on the trail of the agents of the Dark? The books I loved so much that when, during our, like, second date, the Snook mentioned that he'd read and loved them too, I made a mental note that he could be "The One"? That series? Well, I had to see this. FOLKS, IT SUCKS. Those two minutes suck up one side and down the other. The Snook and I stood before my computer in stupefied disbelief. Who the hell are these people? Where's Merriman? Who's that kid "travelling through time" with Will? Why is Will a snotty teenager? Why is Doctor friggin' Who playing the Black Rider? And why the hell would you set a series that is about friggin' KING ARTHUR IN GODDAMN AMERICA?
As the Wikipedia entry sadly notes: "The film is in no way loyal to the original book." Understatement. Of. The. Year.
I went out at lunch and got myself a present. Snookums predicts I'll be suffering a serious case of "Wii shoulder" from all the swish-and-flicking come Monday.
[3]
Jenny just sent me a link to this month's Details magazine, which features Daniel Radcliffe on the cover and an interview and photoshoot inside. EWW EWW EWW. Not a fan of the chin fluff. Nor the leather vest. *shudder*
As the Order of the Phoenix file out of the Room of Requirement, Harry steels himself to go kiss Cho. Ginny shoots him a pained look.
EVERY FEMALE IN THE AUDIENCE: Awwwwwww! Snookums: *eye roll* Girls.
My Official OOTP One-Word Review: PHWOAR! (That's a thumbs-up, in other words.) Read on for my scattered thoughts. [more...] Wednesday, July 11, 2007
[1]
Hmm. It seems I'm not the only one who finds Flickr darn near unusably slow most of the time. :(
[4]
What the hell is this? It seems to be a trailer for an untitled movie from J.J. Abrams, the Lost and Alias guy. It's stunning. It's weird to see a preview for something without a title. Tuesday, July 10, 2007
I've started an "Australian Knitters" group on Ravelry. I sent out invites to everybody I could see on the location map, but let me know if I missed you. (Actually you don't need an invitation to join; you can just sign up on the new Groups page.)
[6]
In what universe is this hair colour "bubble-gum pink"? THAT IS PURPLE. I am not dyeing my hair purple. The movie people can suck it. Monday, July 9, 2007
[3]
Is anybody else having trouble with Ravelry tonight? I can't get to it at all.
Five minutes later: Of course, as soon as I post that, it's up again. Sunday, July 8, 2007
Up and Down This weekend was all about long periods of quiet knitting time punctuated by brief episodes of crazy social outings. I worked on the Snook's jumper all day Friday (basically finished the sleeves) before heading out that night for Miss Fee's birthday dinner. What fun! Bubbly and lamb shanks and cake and happy children and the Sock Victim. Saturday morning I was back on the couch for the all important Joining of the Sleeves and Body. In the afternoon, we were summoned by Powdered Toast Man to Paddy Maguire's for beer and conversation. (How nice is it to go to a pub and not end up reeking of smoke? FRICKIN' EXCELLENT.) We were soon joined by Amy and Rob, who whisked us off to Newtown for some Mexican food. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a table at either Chocolate Dog or Newtown's Cocina. (Since when do you have to make a reservation at a restaurant on South King Street? That's RIDICULOUS.) We ended up at the swankified Bank, slurping Thai food in the dark out the back and making plans for the Harry Potter trip in two weeks...
Which brings me to this morning. Here I am, sitting at work while hundreds of fans cheer as the sneak preview of Order of the Phoenix begins six blocks away. *sniff* Bastards. Thursday, July 5, 2007
When I knit on the couch next to the Snook, I often poke him with my knitting needle just for kicks. It appears there is a historical precedent. (Found via this AskMefi question.)
[10]
Could you pass the US Citizenship test? I'm pretty pleased with my 90%. The only ones I missed were the naturalization form (which doesn't apply to me) and the one about voting Amendments. (It's been awhile since my high school Civics class.) Still, I guess I'm still qualified to call myself a Yank. (Link courtesy of Bex, who is only 55% potential American.)
[1]
Kathleen called me up yesterday to offer me two tickets to this Sunday's SNEAK PREVIEW of the new Harry Potter movie.
I'm working Sunday. I've asked everyone who could possibly cover for me and they've all got other plans already.
ANGUISH. I'll just have to see it three days later with the rest of the plebes, I guess.
UPDATE: A ray of hope has appeared. It may still be possible.
UPDATE: Dashed. The tickets are already gone. Oh well.
This guy won a contest and got to live out his "Disney Dream Job" for a weekend: butler at the Haunted Mansion. Sweet! I probably would've gone for Princess or Parade Performer myself (especially since those Parade Performers are dressed up like they're in High School Musical, WHICH. WOULD. ROCK.).
Current Music Obsessions: "I Hear the Bells" by Mike Doughty and "I Know I Know I Know" by Tegan and Sara, both from the Veronica Mars Soundtrack (which is - no shit - the first album I've bought in, like, three years). I have had those two songs on repeat for four days now. IN LOVE WITH THEM.
What I wouldn't give to have a Kwik-E-Mart nearby!
[6]
Knitting Swag I've been meaning to post these for a few days, but I kept missing the sun. (And everybody knows it's best to photograph yarn in natural light, right?) So on the left is my final package from my No-Longer-Secret Pal, and on the right is my haul from this weekend's Craft Show.
The purple and white balls are a slubby Japanese yarn that is probably destined to become a scarf. The hot pink cotton is Manos del Uruguay Stria, and I have no idea what I'm going to do with it other than stare at it and pet it. My Pal suggested I used the black wool to make this felt hat, and I think I will! I've never done felting before. She also sent me an AWESOME Hello Kitty thermos cup and a tape measure, a box of lovely incense, some Clover DPNs, and two Japanese craft books (including one devoted entirely to sock animals). Thanks, Chooiwah!
I was pretty restrained at the Craft Show, I think. I restricted myself to sock wool and Knitting on the Road, a book of sock patterns from Nancy Bush. I've had Conwy and Whitby queued up on Ravelry for a while, so it'll be nice to get started on them. The big skeins of yarn are Colinette Jitterbug, which I think everybody bought. I've already got too much variegated stuff, so I went for the solids: Velvet Olive, Velvet Damask, and Velvet Plum. The two smaller balls are Lang Jawoll Cotton Superwash, which I'd been interested to try since each ball comes with a small skein of reinforcing thread (for heels and toes) tucked inside. I've got a lot of knitting to do!
[4]
Huh. I'm an ailurophile. I did not know that. Monday, July 2, 2007
World's Fastest Hufflepuff Scarf
Max's Socks
More than meets the eye...
