February 18, 2010

Well, I'm not sure I'm every going to finish Ulysses by James Joyce. This book is a really tough read and the first one that I've had to renew at the library. It's due back on the 23rd and I don't think I'm going to finish it by then. I'm slightly less then half way through. It's going to need a 2nd renew. This is the toughest book I think I've ever read and I rarely meet a book that I don't like in one way or another. It's just a tough read.

The formatting is weird, there's no quotation marks and the sentences are very choppy and hard to read. 90% of the time I'm not sure who's talking and this far (except for some not so nice comments about the queen of England) I'm not at all sure why this book was banned. From what I understand from my cube neighbor at work, apparently the main character, Mr. Bloom, has an affair but thus far, I've only read one mention of the mysterious lady and her letter that she wrote to Mr. Bloom. It seems like all Bloom does is walk around town and drink in pubs.

At this point I'm just hoping to finish this book soon! Hubbs keeps suggesting that I give up and move on to the next book, the final book. But I'm not sure I can except defeat. I really want to finish even though I don't really like the book or understand it. I decided that after this list is done I'm going to read the top 10 post apocalyptic books. It's a great list that includes Planet of the Apes, I am Legend & The Postman. I loved these movies and I'm sure the books will be even better, they usually are.

February 17, 2010

Today's Victory brought to you by Weight Loss!

Several times last year I tried to get back on the band wagon with my weight loss. There were many attempts and many failures. But as of the first of the year, I was back on track and have been doing great. I'm down about 5 pounds so far, with less then 10 to go. But that's not today's victory. Today's victory is that my white blouse no longer gaps in between my boobs anymore! It stays closed!!! I'm so excited!!!

(Sorry for the bad pic) See the arrow? No gap!!! So excited! And I noticed that my skirt wasn't as tight today as it was a few weeks ago. Hubbs and I have committed to walking the dogs 4 days a week for 45 min's each time. This is our first week and its scheduled to start raining on Friday so we're trying to get it all in before the rain. Next month I'm going to challenge myself to 1,000 minuets of fitness for the month of March. I hope I can do it!

February 14, 2010

Finished Object!


Pattern: Summer Lovin' Socks by Knittingnonstop
Yarn: Knit Picks Essential Kettle Dyed in Gold
Needles: US 1.5
Started: 02/04/10
Finished: 02/12/10
Mods: One additional repeat on the leg to make the socks longer.
I knit these up with with some of my birthday yarn and my new needles that Hubbs gave me. It was a very fun pattern that really helped bring me out of my grey winter sky's funk. I'm so ready for spring!
I also finished up my Central Park Hoodie only to discover that the sleeves, while a perfect length are too small. They are so tight that I just don't think I could wear it comfortably. I'm afraid that it might cut off the circulation to my hands. I'm going to take the sleeves back off and then rip them out. I have one extra skein of yarn left so I think that I can make them again one size larger and reattach them. I've never had to do anything like this before so it's going to be a learning experience.
My Thermal is on hold for the moment. I finished the body of the sweater but I decided that I didn't want to deal with using double points that have very rounded ends to knit the sleeves. I ordered a set of 8" Harmony Double Points from Knit Picks last night. Soon as they come I'll be back on the Thermal.
In the mean time I'm going to work on ripping out the sleeves for the Central Park Hoodie and trying to Finish the Tuxedo Vest. It's blocked and just needs to have the cowl neck tacked in place and it should be ready to wear...fingers crossed that there is nothing wrong with it. lol.

February 6, 2010

And now the rest of the apple.Check out the size of this thing! It's huge!

When Hubbs got home, I got him to cut it open for me.

Look at all that apple, caramel, nuts and chocolate! Yumm!



This thing was heaven! So yummy! Thanks Mom, Dad and Baby Sister!

February 5, 2010

So a mysterious box arrived on my door step this afternoon from my Dad and Mom#2. My birthday is coming up so it wasn't totally unexpected since they always do something super special for me. For them and for me, far away never means far from our hearts. They're such amazing parents.

So back to the box! Williams-Sonoma?! What could it be?! They have such awesome stuff!


Apples? Interesting.

So I open the box and there's another box inside with an apple on it. I still have no idea what it could possibly be.


Big Caramel Apple?!


It's defiantly an apple. A huge apple with chocolate!

An apple with caramel, chocolate and nuts!
This thing is amazing! It's almost the size of my head. I'm just waiting for Hubbs to get home to cut it! Can't wait to have a slice! It looks so yummy!

I have the best husband! My birthday is coming up on Tuesday and he knew that I've been dying for a set of the Knit Picks Harmony double pointed needles. The set is 2.00mm through 3.25mm. Each one has 6 needles per size and are 6 inches long. And he got me 4 skeins of sock yarn! I was so excited yesterday when it arrived. He's the best!

So naturally I had to cast on for a sock last night. I love the gold color that he got me. Yesterday was so grey here and my day at work was terrible so I had to choose the happiest color. I cast on using a pattern called "Summer Lovin Socks" by Knittingnonstop. It's a lacy pattern that it going to be really fun. So far I've finished the cuff and one repeat of the leg pattern. These needles are a joy to knit with. The sharp points make it so easy to pick up a dropped stitch or pick out stitches when I make a mistake (which happens often).

My thermal is coming along too. I'm almost ready to do a three needle bind off on the left front and back. Once that is done, I'm ready to move to the right side and then on to the sleeves. I can't wait to finish this project and start on something new. It's not that I don't love it, because I do. I just can't wait to wear this sweater. It's so cute and the color is perfect for me. Anything blue makes my eyes turn very blue. My mom picked a great yarn and a great color for me. Can't wait to wear it!