July 12, 2004
Beepbeepbeep!
I don’t own a cell phone. Never have, never will. Or at least that's what I decided when I thought—silly me—cell phones were for making phone calls. Lately I’ve noticed that cell phones are becoming So Much More. When Big Sister and Brother-in-Law were visiting, whenever they needed to know the time, rather than look at their watches (trop passé), they would whip out their cell phones, flip ‘em open like a Star Trek communicator (does everyone hear the StarTrekian beepbeepbeep in their heads every time they do that, or is it just me?), check the time, flip ‘em closed and put them back in their pockets. So James Bond; so suave. And this weekend, when The Mysterious K needed to set the timer for grilling some chicken, rather than use one of the numerous timers in the kitchen, she whipped out her cell phone, flipped it open like Star Trek communicator (beepbeepbeep), tried to set the alarm, failed (new and confusing phone; what can I say?), flipped it shut, and crammed it back in her pocket. People use the phones to send messages, take photos, tell time, set alarms, play games, maintain addresses... What’s next, and how long will it take me to feel like such a lame-o that I’ll have to get one?
Of course, perhaps I’m just reacting to the new Too-Cool-For-Words TMK. Between her new haircut from her new stylist (who replaces the one who literally made her look as if her hair had been cut with a bowl on her head (if you're a Red Dwarfer, think Duane Dibbley)), her new sunglasses, her new rimless regular glasses, and a phone that she can flip open like a Star Trek communicator (beepbeepbeep), she’s gotten just too spiffy for us plebeians.
Knitting Knews
From this:
To this:
You are looking at, obviously, just part of the pillow’s surface. It has a steek in the back that I’ll cut later to give me the full width of the pillow. Oddly enough, it’s the steek that’s been giving me the most trouble. In fact, it has become the Area 51 of my knitting. Things mysteriously come and go. Stitches that I thought were there in one round are missing in the next. Colors that I thought were there turn out not to be. The checkerboard pattern that I so carefully try to maintain disappears then reappears later with no explanation. The rest of the pillow, theoretically the “hard” part—not a stitch out of place; the steek, theoretically the simple part—completely out of control. Could be worse, I suppose; could be the other way around...
Now the problem is that I've run out of blue. Sheila, if you're coming to Ferals tonight, could ya' bring one skein of whatever blue it was I bought at the Soiree? (Thought I had the ball band with me, but nope. Have the ball band for all the other colors, of course...)
Gardening Gazette
Not much news on the gardening front but I wanted to share this photo taken from under a 10’ sunflower in the dye garden:
umm, some of us (and we know who we are- we're the ones whose vcr perpetually flashed 12:00 and who never managed to actually tape the program we thought we had scheduled) are so uncool, so unhip, and so technically challenged that we know the phone revolution is going to leave us far far behind- as the new phones take over, we'll be the ones reverting back to smoke signals!!
makes you wonder how i do on/off at the computer doesn't it??
the whole steek concept remains frightening to me- your pillow looks lovely-
stay happy-
Posted by: barb in texas on July 12, 2004 11:08 AMBarb, for me, I always eventually jump on the technology bandwagon (kinda hafta since I make my living as a webmaster) but I do it looooong after The Cool Object of the Moment has lost its coolness. Took me forever to get an answering machine; took me forever to get a home computer (and I never upgraded from the 286 I did get); never would have gotten a VCR except I won one in a promotion; still don't have a DVD player; only have a cordless phone because TMK gave me one for a present. Still, I like being this way. It's cheaper, for one thing, and it also prevents me from buying whatever, whenever just because it's cool. The ultimate secret? Make sure you have a partner who can't resist the cool stuff. That way you can have your cake and eat it, too.
BTW, when we unhip ones do revert to smoke signals, you can "call" me anytime!
Posted by: Ryan on July 12, 2004 11:21 AMHad to laugh at the cell phone stuff...it's too true. I just got one...oh, three months or so ago. Did I get it because it was cool? Uh no. Did I get it so my children can reach me in an emergency? Nope. Need it for work? No. To keep in touch with family and friends? Nah. So my sweetie can always find me? Naw...she trusts me.
I got it to improve my credit rating. It was the easiest form of credit available to me as I work on rebuilding my credit after divorce so I can eventually buy a stupid house. I have a 3000 minute a month program. Guess how many minutes I have ever used max? 600. 99% of those minutes were my children calling to ask for this, that, or the other thing, wondering where I was, when i would be home, and oh, by the way, did I get them anything????????? ARgh. Is the improved credit rating worth it, I ask you???
COOL sunflower picture!! :) L
Posted by: Lisa in Oregon on July 12, 2004 11:37 AMCredit! That's a completely new reason I had never thought of, Lisa. I say, build your credit, buy a house, put the kids in it, and you and your hon stay where you are. Oh, wait, that wouldn't work, because they'd STILL pester you with calls, maybe even more!
Glad you like the sunflower photo. It's actually kind of creepy to realize you are standing UNDER a flower. You normally think of flowers as being small, delicate objects, maybe one, two or three feet tall, but not these hummers. I could stand under one of those all day and not get a hint of sunburn!
Posted by: Ryan on July 12, 2004 11:49 AMYour pillow pattern is gorgeous!
Posted by: Lynn on July 12, 2004 11:51 AMWe frequently joke about buying a duplex....the children in one half, and Em and I in the other. Probably too close however....! Can you tell it's summer? The middle of summer, no less.
Posted by: Lisa in Oregon on July 12, 2004 11:59 AMWOW! great pillow ya got going there.. and what we can't see (read: steek) we don't need to know about :)
but that pic of Cat from the Red Dwarf series... ahh! my fave show. I love to have a toaster who would offer me baps and crumpets. Plus I love Cryton and smeg. If only my PBS station would play them again. smegging smegheads. :)
Posted by: anj on July 12, 2004 01:59 PMFerals is tonight????!!! I will try to make it as I have missed the last 2! Although I probably won't get there till late, late, late (8:00 or so). I especially want to see the pillow in person, Ryan. Looks swell. I have been very bad on my fair isle--haven't even LOOKED at it--doing several other things in the meantime. Vacation got in the way...
I'm with you on the cell phones--I'll never get one!!!!!! Mary
Posted by: Mary on July 12, 2004 02:06 PMAnj, I'm starting to think you have too much in common with TMK and me for it to be real!!
Mary, yes, Ferals is tonight. I had a long chat with LindaK last night and she promised me you'd be there. Okay, maybe didn't promise, maybe she didn't even strongly hint--but we did talk about your being there. Please, please, please drop by? I, at least, will still be there at eight--that is if we haven't all been drummed out by the rowdy crowd that comes to see "Magic Monday" on the stage!
Posted by: Ryan on July 12, 2004 02:16 PMOnce again you slay me with garden envy, Ryan. Mmmm, seems like a nice place to take a nap, in the shade of the giant sunflower.
Posted by: Nathania on July 12, 2004 03:15 PMThe pillow is lovely and the sunflower is way cool.
As for the cell phone thing..well...I'm a geek. I do browser tech support and dh and I build computers for fun. My cell phone slides open and makes the swoosh sound of the original Star Trek doors. I am geek, here me wimper. hehe
Hope everyone has a great day!!
Posted by: Stalker Angie on July 12, 2004 03:40 PMHonest to God, I was on the phone cancelling one of our cell phone contracts when I pulled up your blog! I was telling the very nice customer service person that we simply did not need three cell phones. Nope, not at all thank you very much. She was not convinced, but had to bend to my will. What do people find to talk about all the time? I like to save things up for when I get together with folks, have something new to bring to the party. Besides, I admit: I never really figured out how to use the darn thing.
TMK with a new hairdo? This I'd like to see! I know, photograph her with a Bush mask, letting the hair and glasses show.
And the pillow--looking good!!! Show us a photo of the steek--I can't begin to guess what might be going wrong EXCEPT for the dreaded "I forgot that knitting in the round forms a spiral effect". IF you are speckling your steeks, AND assuming an odd number of steek stitches, and let's say you began the round in the middle of the steek and the stitch next to your "knitting up" edge stitch is the background color, when you finish the round and start the steek, your first steek stitch has to be the CC (contrasting color) to make things meet up correctly in the center. Clear as mud, right. Sigh. Never mind. Looks great and who sees the steek when all is said and done anyway.
Posted by: Janine on July 12, 2004 04:40 PMBelieve it or not, Janine, I 100% understood your description of the spiraling effect because a couple of weeks ago I had had an "aha!" moment in which I understood the first-stitch-and-last-stitch paradox.
The confusion comes from (a)the loose stitches made by the short, loose-hanging ends of yarn I make when I switch colors (because I haven't tried any splice joins because I have some questions for you re that), (b) from trying to figure out whether I switch colors in the middle of the steek or at the beginning or at the end--and doing it differently every single time in my confusion--and (c) from the rounds that are just one color which, off course, throw the whole checkerboard thing completely off. I repeat: Who knew the steek would be the hard part?
Posted by: Ryan on July 12, 2004 04:58 PMYou don't want smoke signals, you want a nice plump pigeon to fly your messages around! Much cleaner than a messy fire every time.
Love the pillow, where did you find the chart for the swirly bit? I'm trying to pluck up courage to do a two colour swatch.
Posted by: Ali on July 13, 2004 07:24 AMAli, the pattern is (sort of) from Co Spinhoven's Celtic Charted Designs. I say "sort of" because I added the little waves between the big curlicues so I didn't have to strand as far. I don't remember what page this particular design was on but the book is broken into different sections, including one for more swirly or curlicue-type designs, and it's in there.
Posted by: Ryan on July 13, 2004 09:24 AMIn a fit of back-to-a-simpler-time nostalgia (like I was alive before they had watches!), I threw away my watch. It freed me from constant checking of the time, getting stressed, etc. But now, when I need to know what time it is and I'm out of the house, I have to look at the car's clock or at my cellphone. Hmmmmm........so much for that simpler time, eh?
The pillow's gorgeous.
Posted by: Diana on July 14, 2004 05:38 AMryan- well just consider us (sue and me) your dopplegangers over here on the eastern seaboard.
Posted by: anj on July 14, 2004 08:14 AM