October 11, 2004
Wherein I Consider a Lobotomy...
Thanks to my ever-vigilant blog hostess, the problem with the comments seems to be fixed. Hats off to ye, Sheila! (Oh, and don't miss today's entry on her blog. Get a load a' that beautiful sweater!)
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Do you know what it feels like to be afraid of your own brain? Until this weekend, I never realized how much useless claptrap I had rattling around up there. (Warning: mega Da Vinci Code spoilers up ahead.) On Friday, I started reading this book, which is touted as the ultimate fictional mystery wrapped up in obscure religious symbolism. For your part, you, the reader, are supposed to be clueless about said obscure religious symbolism so the author can astonish you with his carefully timed and placed revelations—but his efforts were thoroughly wasted on me. Knew from the get-go the dead guy was posed as Vetruvian man, that the code numbers were in the Fibonacci sequence (thanks to knitting, oddly enough; see? ), that the code word was going to be “Sofia,” knew all about the Templars and Rosicrucians and the rose as an ancient religious symbol, blahblahblahblah. And why is this a problem? Because all that fluff isn’t balanced with anything practical. Can’t test the oil level in my own car; can't change a tire; can’t reset a blown fuse; can’t set the time on my VCR; am intimidated by the thought of changing a light bulb; can’t cook...but, by golly, I know all about enigmatic and cabalistic secret religious societies! Maybe my next book should be more along these lines. Or maybe this. Now those would be mysteries worth reading!
While I was busy questioning the usefulness of my personal knowledge base, the Mysterious K was up to her magic tricks again. With a wave of her magic wand (otherwise known as her circular saw, table saw, router, palm sander, compound miter saw, and nail gun), she converted this:
Into this:
Pretty, no? Imagine beadboard inset into the square areas, forest green paint for the box part, and a honey-colored stain for the yet-to-be-constructed lid. Can’t wait to see it finished! In the meantime, I feel oddly compelled to knit something to store in the box.
Knitting Knews
On Sunday, at the knitting get-together at the Fiber Gallery, we had a Guest of Honor: Confirmed Bachelor Brian! What fun it was to have someone of the male persuasion join us! He was crocheting edges around afghan squares knit by an elderly friend of his for Project Linus. But hanging on the chair behind him was proof of his true abilities, an aran sweater which is what he chose to knit as his first knitting project. None of this garter swatch, stockinette swatch, dishcloth, scarf, shawl, then sweater growth process for him, no, sirree! And he modeled for us an eye-searingly bright-red felted Sherlock Holmesian hat knit and felted for him by his mother. And, because he is a confirmed bachelor and can't help himself, the red of the hat matched the red of his glasses and his sneakers.
Next meeting, Sunday, November 14, 2-4pm. And, tonight, Ferals!
Here, a photo of the Faina scarf, second repeat almost completed:
Hmmm. You knew all that stuff in DaVinci Code already? Wow. I knew you were an intelligent woman...but, wow. No wonder you kick knitting butt.
;)
Lisa....who knew none of that stuff in the book...
Posted by: Lisa in Oregon on October 11, 2004 11:21 AMWell, Lisa, I have sort of an unfair advantage in that I'm interested in that sort of stuff. Studied theology in college, even though I didn't major in it, and have read books here and there about the subject. Also, I coincidentally just finished reading the book "Foucault's Pendulum" which is a similar story about a mystery solved through analyzing and understanding ancient Christian societies. I'm sure this stuff is a yawner to most folks but has interested me since I was a kid. But, you see, I am in awe of the fact that you are raising four kids, so let's call it even. Oh, and I promise, if you ever make it up here, we'll talk about knitting, not Rosicrucians or the Opus Dei or the Priory of Sion!
Posted by: Ryan on October 11, 2004 11:31 AMAh, yes. I call it East Coast Overeducation. Wait a sec...you went to Oberlin, no? Well, whatever. I got the same disease. I once hooked a wonderful girlfriend in a Russian Literature lecture class when she saw me repeatedly ignore the lecture and finish the NYT crossword in pen.
I can explain the evolution and distinctions between the Svatantrika and Prasangika Madhyamika views of the relative and ultimate truth of all phenomena, and I can genuinely mourn Jacques Derrida's passing. But watch me *really* puff up with pride when I screw my eyeglasses back together! Oy vey.
Posted by: Cuzzin Tom on October 11, 2004 11:38 AMAh, Cuzz. You. Me. Kindred Spirits. I knew I'd be hearing from you today.
My latest puff-up-the-chest accomplishment was learning how to brown meat. I now know: Heat up pan, *then* put in oil, heat up oil, *then* put in meat. Listen for loud sizzle. Every time I get a good sizzle, I have to call TMK and tell her. She understands. She calls me whenever she has successful small talk with someone and doesn't feel like a total doof.
Posted by: Ryan on October 11, 2004 11:46 AMsince the fibonacci sequence were brought up.
http://www.magknits.com/chilly04/patterns/fib.htm
Posted by: anj on October 11, 2004 11:58 AMBrowning meat is a talent, Ryan. And a necessary part of the whole roasting/braising thing. Mmmmm... why do I suddenly feel like turning on the oven?
Posted by: Nathania on October 11, 2004 12:33 PMScarf is lookin' great! I was pretty disappointed in the Da Vinci Code myself, not because I knew as much as you do, but it just seemed shallow-- all plot and no character. I enjoyed much more Umberto Eco's _The Name of the Rose_, which I'll bet you've read!
Posted by: Sheila on October 11, 2004 01:16 PMYeah, been there done that. My nearly-PhD in ancient Near Eastern languages in no way prepared me for life on earth--my pride in recently solving the problem of a continual toilet leak was, well, one might charitably call it out of proportion.
That Faina--what a thing of beauty!
Posted by: Janine on October 11, 2004 01:35 PMSince you and Cuzzin Tom have both mentioned it to me separately, Sheila, I sense a copy of "The Name of the Rose" in my future. I'll wait for my next Friends of the Library sale and snag a copy for 50 cents, methinks!
Janine, apparently you are a kindred spirit with me 'n' Cuzzin Tom.
Posted by: Ryan on October 11, 2004 01:37 PMWell, now. Is it possible I'm a half-assed amalgamation of all of the above? I do know my way around the kitchen; that is undisputed. I am better than my husband at repairing things, but that ain't sayin' much. And I know SOME of that book-readin' sh*t. I'm rather annoying about decoding and predicting the ending of books from the git-go, too. and I bet I could change a tire iffen I had to. But that woodworking? No way. And I'm in total awe.
Posted by: Norma on October 11, 2004 02:50 PMI read 'Foucault's Pendulum' and found that it got weirder and weirder as it went along until by the end I wasn't sure whether it was happening or not. But it was brilliant on how a conspiracy theory feeds itself. I loved 'Name of the Rose' except I (gasp) skipped some of the theological nattering. But the puzzle was way cool.
Um, excuse me for interrupting the literature conversation but is TMK making A CEDAR CHEST??? How wonderful! Yes you must fill it up right away so she can make a bigger one!
Posted by: CarolineF on October 12, 2004 05:55 AMNope, not a cedar chest, CarolineF, just a plain old ordinary wood chest. But she is considering lining it with cedar, although last I heard the cedar stuff cost a lot of shekels.
Posted by: Ryan on October 12, 2004 08:46 AMTMK,
You are gifted.
Wow....Faina is truly a thing o beauty.....but then i have always been a sucker for geometrical patterning(hence the obsession with knitting lace that i won't even use....it's just pretty!!)
I heartilly agreee with the the consensus, read "The Name Of the Rose".
As to the theory whoring....( what we call it in my dept.) As a student....surrounded by Grad students....I understand. My shining moment of the year was when i adjusted a bike seat without assistance....adjustable wrenches baffled me, but somehow i did it.