Knittin' Knerds

We will attempt to do this next time we're together (thanks, Hal.) Or at least make some coasters. Seriously! I, just wanna knit and purl all day, and crochet e-ver-y night. The real weavers in my life are Aunt Helene (currently working on the cable-knit sweater from Inis Mor for me), Ms. Cynthia, who I have a lovely skinny red scarf that I wear all the time from (and a lovely memory of knitting in Vegas while her mom played bingo in the background,) Jessa Metcalf Goldstein who caught my eye while knitting a navy-and-gray scarf for her then-boyfriend Jacob, Nona, who crocheted probably a hundred of wonderfully-colored blankets for friends, family, and neighbors (she had so many she kept the yarn and the finished products in clean garbage bins in her basement,) Ms. Svea Wentzler who crocheted a perfect black cap that I comandeered senior year MoHo and unfortunately has lost since then (I don't think I'll ever find another as-perfect winter cap,) and Ms. Ashley Ann Mellott, who knit me a heavy scarf that's like a blanket for x-mas '07 and that I'm so, so happy and warm to wear. These ladies are like ancient Greeks!

Glitter and Doom

I'm in love with this man/his music.  Live concert from Atlanta here via NPR, from last summer's tour.  He called the tour "Glitter and Doom" and the lower part of the US, where he was, "PEHDTSCKJMBA"  It's an acronym for all the cities he went through.

Tom Waits' voice sounds to me like it could jump out of a speaker and attack you, or sneak up on you from behind your barstool and yell in your ear.  Then you hear songs like "Jersey Girl" (which Bruce Springsteen covered later on) and it's like: marry me. Write songs with shalalala for me forever.

And his press conference for "Glitter and Doom." Watch 'til the end.

Bobbie Burns

My dad always quotes one of his quatrains, and I have it on a coffee mug from him that I love:

My love is like a red, red rose
that's newly sprung in June.
My love is like a melody,
that's sweetly sung in tune.

Great article from The Independent on his stoic Scottishness. Gotta love.

There's Hope!

"The Pulitzer Prize-winning writer [Updike] suffered from psoriasis and had connected it to his abilities as a writer. In Self Consciousness, he links his "skin's embarrassing overproduction" to his creativity.^[6]"

via Parade

Apparently 2008 was a "particularly exciting year for people living with psoriasis."  Who knew?

RIP John Updike (1932-2009)

It's kind of bizarre that John Updike wont be producing new fiction anymore.  I always loved his writing in that it was gritty, unafraid. The Rabbit series is read in most middle schools here in the states and his other works in the New Yorker (short stories, essays) et. al. on a consistent basis. I remember reading Rabbit, Run in 5th grade with Mrs. Tianello and being blown away by the frank portrayal of an unhappy couple: he was a faded high school basketball star (sad, sad bar scenes) and she was slightly "higher-class" with a drinking problem. He wrote with a chilling, subtle realism while at the same time getting to the heart of the important universal themes (sex, sexism, the plight of the common man) in a frank, sometimes brash manner. He was a Pulitzer Prize-winner, and is an inspiration (though I never warmed to the portrayal of  the wife in Rabbit, Run.)

Here's an interview he did about the Rabbit series in '95, in two parts, and an obit. from the Washington Post.

"passive-aggressive (and just plain aggressive) notes"

love this blog, kind of like found or best of craigslist in a way. & who hasn't left a few of these in their lifetime thus far.  i got one from trash while living with her in chicago about eating some of her left-over pizza and left an equally aggressive apology note (if you could've called it that) in response. in the end all was resolved, but i kind of wish i still had those particular bitchy missives.  i keep every letter i ever receive as it's a joy and revealing to look back on 'em every once in a great while.

Cinci. Love

three sheets 2 the wind - dedicated to craftmanship and quality screen-printing on always handmade textiles.  so proud. grazi, hal.

Ol' Blokus

"Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa"

As a young girl 
Louis Vuitton 
With your mother 
On a sandy lawn 

As a sophomore 
With reggaeton 
And the linens 
You're sitting on 

Is your bed made? 
Is your sweater on? 
Do you want to 
Like you know I do 

But this feels so unnatural 
Peter Gabriel too 

Can you stay up 
To see the dawn 
In the colors 
Of Benetton? 

Is your bed made 
Is your sweater on 
Do you want to 
Like you know I do 

But this feels so unnatural 
Peter Gabriel too 

Is your bed made 
Is your sweater on 
Do you want to 
Like you know I do

: "Sweet Jane" by Cowboy Junkies.

uggggggggggggggg.