It's gone, it's gone!

The expander is gone! It's like Christmas in July. I haven't felt the top of my mouth in a year, and it's finally back again. Swallowing feel strange, because I'm not used to food touching that part of my mouth, but I can sure as hell get used to it. No more caramel getting wedged up there! No more discovering food in the roof of my mouth hours later (I know that's TMI, but bear with me)! No more brushing the top of my mouth! I am a happy girl.

In knitting news, I am officially sick of the shawl, and I'm only halfway done. I don't want to work with the lace wieght anymore on bigger-than-called-for needles, and I don't want to have to keep knitting the same lace pattern over and over again! It's incredibly boring. I started some Monkey socks to take the edge off, but I found out that turning the lace pattern upside down doesn't work (to do them toe up...my favorite way of making socks)and I'm going have to frog. Now I'm thinking of making Breeze from the current Knitty in some Hempathy, but I'm not sure Hempathy will work as sock yarn. Who knows until I try?
Why, oh why, did I every agree to knit that shawl!

Henman lost. (You should have heard me screaming at the TV), but Roddick is moving his way up so I'm content right now (sort of.)

Wimbeldon watching

Can't blog...must watch Wimbeldon. Henman must win!

What kind of finger am I?

You Are the Thumb

You're unique and flexible. And you defy any category. Mentally strong and agile, you do things your own way. And you do them well. You are a natural leader... but also truly a loner. You inspire many but connect with few. You get along well with: The Middle Finger Stay away from: The Pinky

What Finger Are You?

Schoooool's out for summer!

And how do I celebrate getting out of school last Thursday? I babysit. But I don't think I could've been any happier on my last day of school. Of course I was sad (I don't deal well with change-I once cried for hours when my mom moved our couch from one end of the room to the other when I was little), but I also felt like I was starting something new as well, like a fresh start. I didn't have a great year, and I'm looking forward to having a better one next year.

On a knitting note, I am still working on my mom's shawl (and have about 40 or so more inches to go!). Who knew lace could get boring? I'm actually dreading working on it, but I make myself pick it up everyday. I have a deadline and my mom reminds me of that every chance she gets. Just gotta keep knitting. *sigh*

I have also been doing charity knitting as well, which is why my mom's shawl didn't get many inches added to it over the last two weeks. The Oddball blanket has been sent off (with a couple of skeins of yarn inside) and I have also received the Oddball Earthtone Shawl. I'm all done with my three inches, but now I just have to (find) and knit it back onto the original needles. Whoops!

The cereal every knitter should eat

Shreddies!

"We gotta win!"

"Ok, so we gotta get psyched for Field Day today. This is no fun and games here. We gotta win!" That was my favorite pep talk of the day from one of my fellow classmates as we began our second and last field day of middle school. Although team spirit seemed to be higher in the sixth grade, us seventh graders still got out our war paint and taunting comments we had been saving up from the year before (and yes, I was one of the people with black streaks if you're wondering). At first, our odds didn't seem too good...we didn't have that many "athletic" players on our team. But as field day went on, we started tto think that we weren't doing that bad after all. I ended up placing in four out of my five events (first in 50m, third in 100m, second in 400m relay, and second in Pony Express). The running was the best out of all the events. Whenever I go to run a race, I get nervous and my legs start to feel jumpy, which helps me to get ahead even if I don't get a good start. That being said, I'm not a distance runner; it involves too much thinking about what I'm actually doing. When I sprint, in about fifteen or so seconds it's all over, no thinking involved there.

We ended up placing third overall, which was higher than all of us had expected. Way to go Mr. Miller's homeroom! Woohoo!

And of course, how can I go a post without some knitting? I just finished my section of the Oddball Blanket and am getting ready to mail it to the next Oddballer; I'm just waiting on the address from Shandeh on KH. I ended up running out of the blue Cascade 220 I was using, so I was grateful to last Oddballer who sent me her leftover purple 220. I worked the last inch in double seed stitch. I'm off to Michael's (my LYS isn't open...don't look at me that way!) so I can pick up some goodies for the next Oddballer. Now I'm just waiting for Oddball #1 to come!


Suki decided to join in on the action...don't worry, I got all the hair off. Tape roller thingies are common at my house. : )

Last week of school! Only three more days. The school year has gone so fast.

The Oddball #3!

I am a part of an AMAZING forum at Knittinghelp.com (the site should be on my sidebar <---). Through this, I have received countles items from other kind knitters through swaps. I';m also part of a charity blanket (we call it the "Oddball"..shouldn't take long to figure out why : ). It starts out in North Carolina by Sandy aka Shandeh, then gets sent around to other members to be knit. Each person should knit three inches. There are also Oddball Shawls going around as well. I'm partici[ating on 2 out of the 5 (!) Oddball blankets and one of the shawls. How lucky am I!

This is the third Oddball blanket, made out of wool. I used some leftover Cascade 220 in something like "sky blue", but I have just run out and am an inch short. But luckily, my Oddballer sent me her leftover yarn! It's a really pretty purple.

My fellow Oddballer was so generous. I even got two skeins of Mmmmalabrigo, which my yarn store doesn't carry. It's so incredibly soft, as all the knitters have claimed! I have to send it off next Tuesday,

Today I also took a trip to Ellis Island with my school. To tell you the truth, no matter how badly I didn't want it to be, it was sort of boring. Ok, it was a lot boring. We arrived late and had to wait fgor forever to board the ferry, though once we got on it was pretty fun. But because we were so late, we also missed a movie we were going to see, and I was actually pretty disapointed because I would have learned a lot more than I did. Instead, we were split into groups and went to tour a museum that we circled twice before going to sit outside, bored (this is where I got my sunburn). We then got back on the ferry and arrived to school after the day had actually ended, which is a little annoying, since I normally take the bus home and my dad had to wait for my brother to get home before he could come pick me up. The only highlight was when I got to take some pretty amazing pictures of the statue of liberty. My dad lent me his camera (which is a rare occurance, because I broke his last one!) so I could get some good shots. He and I love taking pictures.

We stopped at Liberty Island, but didn't have time to get off. We ended up circling the Statue of Liberty though, and I was able to get pictures from all different angles. Seeing the Statue of Liberty made me feel almost connected to the immigrants who came here, however corny that may be.

Only 7 more days of school left! I can't believe the school year has gone this fast.

Chocolate (the animal)

It was a beautiful day outside, and we though Chocolate (it was my brother's idea to name him that, not mine) deserved some fresh air and a chance to gain a little weight. He is our own personal little lawnmower.
Looking for more to eat, because there's nothing left where he was before.
He didn't like me taking the pictures too much.
Notice something on him? On his nose, perhaps?
He likes my brother a lot more than he likes me.
Hope everyone had a great weekend! Now it's back to school. Only three more weeks to go!

What I've been doing all day

My back hurt, my arms were sore, and I was covered in paint.

Yes, I have been painting the fence for a little profit. But what teenager doesn't need a little money?

I have to tell you, it felt really nice to take a warm shower when I was all done. It was refreshing and it took most of the paint off (though I do still have some in my hair).

And what did I buy with my money, you ask?
An iPod nano! I bought it all with my own money, most of it from babysitting (they really do pay me well there). I've uploaded my songs already(all 160 of them...I got the 2GB), and it has a really great sound. I have a feeling that it's going to get used!

I also started a shawl for my mom. While I orginally planned on making a Kiri, I realized that I couldn't figure out how I should change it from triangle-shaped to a rectangle and that all I was making was a bunch of holes when I used to lace repeat. So I ripped that out and started with another lace pattern. Unfortunately, that was when the TV was on and I was paying more attention to the TV that I was to the lace. Rip, rip, rip. Feeling discouraged, I was looking through an old issue of VK (spring/summer '05, to be exact) and stumbled upon a stitch that I like more than the last one. Here's what I have going so far, and I'm really pleased with it. I also got lucky on the yarn color and it matches the dress it's supposed to match perfectly.

So that's all for today. I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend!

Karma with the help of a radio

Neighbors can be a great thing, they really can. We have wonderful neighbors to the back of us that are almost like family to me. I babysit for their little toddler, they pay me well, and I love spending time there.

On the other hand, there are our neighbors to the left of us. I don't even know their names, actually; I just know them as loud and annoying. They seemed alright when they moved in, just occasional "hi" worthy sort of people.

Then the hot tub parties began. Our neighbors invited friends who brought radios and beer to spend the night outside. There was always loud music and loud voices and I could usually make out snippets of conversation or a song on the radio, both sometimes innapropriate.

It was 1 AM on a Friday night last December that I finally lost it. I was having a sleepover with my friend and couldn't fall asleep because of the loud music and voices. So I talked to my mom, I talked to my dad, and then came to the conclusion that they couldn't do anything about it. Deciding to take matters into my own hands, I stormed back up to my room, opened the window, and with the loudest voice I could muster, yelled "SHUT! UP!". They stopped talking after that, and I was finally able to go to sleep.

They haven't said a word to us since.

Fast forward to the summertime and the man over there has decided he likes to do his business outside. And believe me, he's as loud as he was with his friends in those hot tub parties. So my mom and I wanted to have a little fun after we were sick of hearing him. We grabbed our friend the radio and his companion the volume dial tagged along. Up and up and up the sound went, until we could no longer hear our neighbor. My mother and I laughed and kept the radio on for the rest of the night.

Sometimes, it doesn't hurt to help karma along a little.

My yarn arrived!

This arrived from Sarah's Yarns today! Woohoo! And it was so fast, I just ordered it on Monday! It is Jaggerspun Zephyr in Sage that is going to become a Kiri Shawl for my mom though not in a triangle, she just wants one long rectangle. I have to figure out how to double strand it though, because it is just in one cone with only one strand in sight. My deadline is a month. We'll see if I can get it done.

In other news, my knee, which has been bothering me since track club has started, does not tolerate running very well. I can't even lean on it it hurts so badly. But the thing that seems weird is that I've had TWO MOTRIN today (one at 12, another at 3) and it still hurts. I'm begging my mom to take me to the doctor, because I have a track meet next Thrusday, and then track is over. It is so frustrating.

I deserve to be ignored (but I have pics)

I deserve to be ignored. I really do. Because I have gone almost three weeks without a post. You don't have to read if you don't want to, just click the little "x" at the top of the screen. But if you're forgiving, you'll continue reading.

Thank you. : )

Here is what I've received from my secret yarner ("mugs") from KH:The yarn is from irishbabyknits.com. I love it! The color is the greatest and it is sooo soft. I can't wait until it gets cold enough that I can try it out. She also made the stitch markers herself and put them in a little lipstick case. I'm so happy with what she gave me!

I also received some books from KnitPicks and 2 40" cables for MLing. The books are more exciting to look at though. I think I like Favorite Socks the most. There are tons of patterns I want to make in there, and they all look like they're going to fit my narrow feet. I like Fitted Knits and Domiknitrix equally the same. I am currently obsessed with top-down raglans right now, so Fitted Knits feeds that addiction. The only problem is that I would have to increase less because most of the bust sizes are too big for me. Easily doable though. Domiknitrix has lots of instructions from casting on to I-cords, which I didn't expect when I ordered the book. There are some patterns I want to knit nonetheless, but I think it will be more of an instructional book that a pattern book for me (I also like the smell of the book, but that isn't something I've admitted to friends and family because I fear they'll label me as insane).

Here is a WIP, what I have started from the yarn that took THREE WEEKS to arrive from Wisconsin (I think! I can't remember the state. I know it began with a W). It was from hellokitty165 on KH. She even said that she'd give me the money back for it after while because it was taking so long to arrive.

It's a, you guessed it, top-down raglan. I based it off of this month's surprise from Knitty, but I changed the gauge and don't plan on increasing as much as it says to in the pattern because of my 30" bust.

I also finished a pair of socks from leftover yarn from my V-Neck Sweater, but they are too small. I went up a size from what it said to use and cast on the amount for the child size. I just keep thinking to myself that I should have gone up another needles size. Darn. Here's a WIP pic as I haven't gotten any pics of them as a FO.

They are really a little bit darker, but you get the idea. There is a mistake on the left on because I accidentily knit another row than I was supposed to when I got the yarn all tangled up. Don't ask me how these thing happen, they just do.

Also, I get bragging rights because my uncle and aunt brought over a Viper! My dad got tons of pics of my cousin and I in the car, and I thought I'd just put them in (really, I wanted some bragging rights). Here they are!

My cousin and I goofing off. My dad called us gangstas. We told him that we were in the hood.

My cousin wasn't too happy when I told her I wanted to try. It took a little convincing (well, a little shoving didn't hurt either).

My cousin and I have very active imaginations. She thinks she's a fish, and I am pretending I'm a midget spy. Laugh all you want, but we're the ones having more fun.

Finally, one last normal pic, just to redeem whatever dignity we have left.

Last but not least, I also made a new friend. Her name was Twiggy. She arrived on the collar of my dad, and left on a leaf an hour later.

I think my dignity is gone.

I'll be back sooner next time, I promise!

FO

Igonore the arm, I had no idea why I put it there, but it shows off the shape of the sweater well.
My mom says I look like my grandmother, all posey-posey.
Suki doesn't like my shirt; maybe it's the smell (it was blocking, so it was damp). If the pic looks dark, just look at the screen on an angle, or scroll up. Whichever way works for you.
Lying with my sock yarn that I have yet to use.

I just finished this yesterday. I ended up changing the gauge, got rid of the garter stitch edges, joined in the round to make a v-neck, and added waist shaping. I crocheted slip stitch on the edge of the v-neck to make it lie flat, which it did after blocking, only one side is tighter than the other. I used 2 skeins of Cottonease, only dipping into the 3rd for the ribbing, which means it cost around $10 to make. My mother can't believe that I spent that little, and is thinking of not taking me shopping so I can just make my own clothes from now on for cheaper. I said I'll think about it.

I have also cast on for Pomatomus two at a time on ML, but the k2tog tbl's are driving me crazy, as well as hurting my hands. I think I'm going to have to buy a tiny crochet hook to help me, but I'm worried that they don't make them that small. I'll have to see, otherwise I have to frog.

A happy day, a WIP, and a FO

Sorry I haven't felt like writing much...I've sort of been in a slump. I did have a wonderful day on Friday though, because it included a) a massage at a day spa, including back, scalp, and neck. I smelled like lavender the whole day; b) more yarn, including sock yarn and some yarn for my mother's top and; c) I bought some awesome knitting books.

Sounds like a great day, right? So here's a pic to prove it:

The small dark blue sock yarn is Wildfoote from Brown Sheep Company. The red stuff is Rowan Linen Print for my mom's top for Mother's Day (I'll let you know when I cast on...). The other sock yarn is called OnLine, but I'm thinking about returning it because I don't really want a "faux fair-isle" type of thing. The books I got were Rowan Beach Cool, with my mom's pattern and a few others she wants me to make her (I"ll let you know when I cast on for those as well) and Twinkle's Big City Knits. I really like a lot of her patterns, even though they are for "heroin chic" girls. I am on the tad thin side anyway. I'm thinking about reworking them for a smaller gauge though for spring and summer, since chunky knits are usually heavy. The best part of it all? My mom bought everything! Yes, it was a big suck up day here in Sarah world.

Here is also what I have been working on for a while. It's based off Glampyre's boobholder. I adapted it to my gauge and size though, and once I got to where I wanted the v-neck to end, I joined in the round. Looks like the only way I'm going to make something that fits is to invent it myself. I've gotten three inches farther along than in the pictures, and am now ready for ribbing. Then I'll only have the sleeves to do, and I don't plan on adding much length, so it should be done soon. I can't wait. It'll be my first wearable item!

Sorry the pics weren't great, I had to take them myself. You can see my dog and the edge of my clarinet in the background which I haven't played for ages.

I also recently attended a bridal shower for my third cousin...I think (she's the daughter of my dad's cousin, to make it more confusing). That was on Sunday. I had never met half the people there before, but they all seemed to know who I was. I had never met Kelli (for whom the party was being thrown) before, at least I didn't remember her because she says she remembered me being shorter. I made her a bag from Last Minute Knitted Gifts, and it actually was a quick knit, as I started it on Thursday and finished on Saturday. The only modifications that I made were to knit it on Magic Loop and to line it. Otherwise it's the same.

My mom was holding it up for this pic, she wanted to make it look "fancy". We went over to my grandma's house so she could sew in the lining that I had picked out (my mom wanted flowers, but I said no). The ties are also from my grandma. Wasn't she nice?

The bag, in total, cost about $5 or $6, because the fabric was about a dollar and I used some cheap Simply Soft. And I don't think it looks half bad.

I also took tons of spring photos, but I think I'll save that for another post (probably later today).

Just a regular old day...with some SPIRIT thrown in!!!

Today is the end of Spirit Week at my school. Why they chose a three day week? I have some suggestions, but they're not important enough to worth mentioning. But the cherry on top of the Spirit Cake is that our grade won. And all we had to do was wear some wigs, some maroon, and some team t-shirts and we were good to go. As easy as that. And what did we get to play then, with the whole school watching? Deal or No Deal.

It was totally reconstructed, except school style. Our school counselor was Howie Mandel (or whatever his name is, I don't care enough to know) with a bald cap on, the teachers were the girls with the "brief cases", which were actually manila folders, a dealer was down in the office on a walkie talkie, and the prizes were up on a computer screen that showed up on the wall. Everyone (and I mean EVERYONE, you should have heard the booing when we lost it) wanted to win the grade dance that was offered as the second greatest prize (the greatest prize was winning a movie in the auditorium). But what did we win? Five extra minutes of lunch. Whoop-de-freakin'-do. And that was the offer from the dealer. Ifthe boy playing hadn't taken that, we would have gotten an apple or a cookie for every person in the whole grade. The other grades were cheering, and we wanted to wring their necks since we were in a bad mood and were all upset at what we'd "won". On the other hand, I was talking (ok, ok, complaining) to the vice prinicipal, and he said he might be able to talk to the prinicipal to at least get us something more that we could celebrate with. Good ol' Dr. Bell.

In other knitting news I finished the lace dish cloth, though I messed up and lost a stitch at one point (probably one of those tricky yarn-overs) and the pattern got out of order. It looks ok to a knitter, but to a non-knitter, you won't notice. Trust me, I asked my mom, and all she said was "What mistake?". I began an entrelac dishcloth, but that didn't work out so well (the side edge started to go sideways and then everything else crashed from there, literally) and was quickly frogged. Then I decided to cast on for the Spiral Rib Bag, but I "misread" the pattern and didn't read the part that said "cast on with waste yarn", which means that I should have used a provisional cast on. And the provisional cast on is what I've been doing (correction, attempting) for the last half-hour before I gave up and decided to do it in the morning. I'll let you know how it goes.

Now I have tomorrow and Friday I get to veg out with no school as well as the weekend. Knitting, here I come!

47+2=49

I've got another one, courtesy of Limey from the KH forum:
48. I've encouraged a Limey knitter to knit in the round and put her straights in storage for the time being.

And another:
49. I like encouraging a Limey knitter to do things, especially since she listens.

The week from hell (or at least limbo)

I know, I know, I haven't been around very often. And I am truly, very sorry. But I have an excuse, and a good one too! My dog didn't eat my computer, and aliens didn't hold me hostage. I was sick with something. What I was sick with? I don't know. But I was sick, let me tell you.

It started off last Sunday, when I was babysitting and started to feel sniffly and very tired. I was sure that it was a cold, though I told the people that I had allergies because that's what they assumed (my eyes were red too). But I knew it wasn't a cold, I could feel it. I can just tell about these things. But I came home, told my mom I felt horrible, and she thought it was allergies too. She gave me a Clarinex and slet me skip dinner. Surprise, surprise, the Clarinex didn't help, and still felt bad, though I managed to eat a lot of Townhouse crackers and two bowls of pasta.

The next day was Monday, and I was grateful that we didn't have school because I felt horrible and I have already missed a lot of days. I went to school the next day though, but I missed Thursday and Friday because of lack of sleep and nausea and a hacking cough. I felt better later afternoon Friday, and invited my friend over to watch Little Miss Sunshine (great movie by the way, but is pretty innapropriate). We ate more pasta and bread and then made plans to go to Close Knit, a yarn store nearby, the next day.

Saturday I felt much better, and was able to go to Close Knit without feeling like I was going to puke. The weather might have helped me feel better as well, because it was a nice sunny day and we were outside for at least half an hour. I got some yarn for my mom's Mother's Day top that she was eyeing since I got needles for ML. We went to the mall and then back to her house. I was planning on sleeping over her house, but couldn't fall asleep and finally left at 1 AM in a frustrated heap. Sunday was horrible, I felt nauseous all day. I ate almost nothing but Saltines and was worried I wasn't going to make it to school the next day.

But, of course, I couldn't get to bed Sunday night. I ended up falling asleep at 1 AM after some Benadryl and a stint at the computer. Monday I made it to school, but was faced with the horror of missing work, disecting frogs, and a test I didn't know about. Yeah, I know, fun day huh?

Last night, I couldn't get to bed again. Not being able to fall asleep is very frustrating. You lie there, thinking about going to sleep with your eyes open and why you can't go to sleep and when will I fall alseep. My mother angrily gave me another Benadryl ("I told you not to come in my room! Why didn't you just stay outside! You're invading my privacy!") at 12 AM. I didn't stay in bed for much longer, and finally decided to camp out at the computer again and wait until my eyelids got heavy. They started to droop around 1:30 AM, and I fell asleep about 15 minutes later. So there's my excuse for not writing. Is that good enough? I told you it wasn't your standard "Dog ate your computer" excuse.

I also started a top down raglan based on http://www.glampyre.com's Boobholder using some cheap Cottonease from Michaels. I'm loving the stuff, though the cotton part of it tends to split a lot and doesn't have a lot of give. The color is a little bit deeper than in the picture, but you get the idea. I'm sick of knitting the stockinette already, but I still have a good ten inches to go. *Sigh* the hardships of knitting.

I recently put my sweater on hold (gladly) to knit dishcloths for my dad's second cousin's wedding shower (I have no idea how she is related to me, but I'll just call her a bride). At first I decided to do http://knitty.com/ISSUEsummer04/PATTpetitchou.html Petit Chou, but I put it off and put it off and finally decided that dishcloths were good enough anyway. I've started one using the English Lace Pattern from Loop-D-Loop's Cashmere Lace Blouse, and I like how it's coming out so far. I only wish I could memorize the pattern though, instead of having to look at it every other row. Maybe memorizing comes with skill

The Lily&Cream is for more dishclothes. I picked this up at Michael's last night, but my dad and I took forever picking out the colors because we didn't know what would go in her kitchen. I really think I should have taken along my mom for that. The Simply Soft is for a Spiral Rib bag from One Skein. I might not have time to get that done though, because the wedding shower is on Sunday. Maybe if I knit fast enough...

One more bonus pic: It's the yarn for my mom's tank. The color is brighter though, but I had to take the picture without the flash because no one wants to see ugly neon orange.

Where, oh where did the sunshine go? Where, oh where can it be?

That is exactly what I'm singing in my head right now as I look out the window to see a swimming pool in my neighbor's yard. When will the rain stop?! I know the old saying "April showers bring May flowers", but this is ridiculous. It has been raining for two straight days, and school was even canceled today because of flooding. Of course that means more knitting time, but I have been feeling headache-y and sniffly since yesterday. After waking up I feel even worse and I also have a very dry mouth because I can't breath through my nose. I have to tell everyone, I have not been a happy camper these past two days.

On another note, I finally finished my Magic Loop socks! I didn't have time to get a picture though, because I was so behind on time trying to finish them. My mom had to wrap them for me while I was upstairs changing out of my pajamas and into something decent (my Sesame Street t-shirt). I ran all the way over there (almost forgetting an umbrella, which was the stupidest thing I've done in a while), gave my "employer" the socks, and ran upstairs to go say hi to the little boy. He opened them, but didn't seem too happy. All that for nothing! My god, I was shaking trying to finish my socks, ran all the way over here, and he doesn't even like them. I was disapointed, but when I got home my mom said that she though it was odd to be making a pair of socks for her, but once she tried them on she wasn't able to take them off. She said it would be the same thing when he tried his on as well. That made me feel a little better, though I was horribly sniffly around that time and nothing cheered me up too much.

But one thing that cheers me up is that my Options arrived! I was so happy seeing them in the mail that I tore open the box without scissors. I immedietly organized everything into little packets with the cable size/needle size written on the front. I'm planning on trying them out today on another pair of Magic Loop socks for me this time with some Cascade Fixation. Wish me luck!

My Creative Streak

I have this English teacher, see. And she assigned us to find 15 of our favorite poems. "Ok, easy enough," I said to myself and I gathered 15 poems from books and the Internet and brought them in. Then she announced to use that we were going to be writing poems based off of the ones we gathered and that they were due in two weeks. All the mouths in the class literally dropped.

Those two weeks went quickly and the deadline approached: Friday the 30th. After reviewing our poems, the teacher gave us until over the break to bring in the 15 poems which I was especially grateful for because I only had three handed in at the time. But like any obsessive knitter would, I knitted the whole week and didn't bother to write any poems. Enter my panic Sunday night. I realized I had to write a good 11 poems for me to get an A for this project and began frantically gathering new (*cough**cough* shorter *cough**cough*) poems for me to write up, because I had chosen some hard poems and knew I couldn't get the ones I had chosen originally done on time. I found a few good short poems, and managed to write some decent crap (I don't write well under pressure; the mood has to strike me) that hopefully she will accept.

But by the time I had stayed up as late as I could, I only had 11 poems. So I set my alarm for 15 minutes earlier (6:00 instead of 6:15), planning to finish at least 3 more poems and that maybe I could write one in homeroom. Unfortunately, it didn't work that way. I woke up, took a shower, got dressed, got some breakfast, and then sat staring at the computer for five minutes before getting up the mojo to write something. I wrote some stuff and then began to cry because it was even worse than the crap I had written last night. And I couldn't even get it to match up with the rhyme schemes of the other poems on top of that. I went on KH and skipped 2nd period (complaining of a stomachache) which is my English period and everything was fine. I knew I would have to face my English teacher eventually though, so I went to see her after school to hand her my 11 poems. She took one look at me and said "Come to me 1st period so we can look over them then". I can't tell you how happy I was. I didn't even tell her I didn't have the 15 poems, I just nodded and walked away before she used her awesome English teacher powers to realize that I didn't do my homework (teachers are like that, you know). So here, in all there glory, are my favorite poems that I've written.

The Sun Outside
The sky sits snugly in my window
Bright yellow, deep blue and clouds so white
The sun gives off a bright, burning glow
That I adore so often, although
I find I have learned to dread the night.

I sit by my window every day
And cherish watching the waning sun
Flits across sky as if to play
With my eyes and the clouds as its prey
Glad for the games it’s finally won.

Time passes and moments quickly fly
Out of my window and to night
Where the moon appears and rises high.
I lost chance to say good-bye
To my friend the sun and all its light.

Until day arrives, I disappear
To fill my mind with thoughts of the sun
While sleep surrounds me the sky grows clear
As the moon goes down and time grows near
For the dawn to come and light to shine.
Based on “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost



A War Not Over
What happens when we start a war?

Loved ones are gone
And sometimes they don’t come home
Battles are won or lost
We move on
What happens when guns are shot?
The soldiers we knew are dead.
They are brave, we are not

Who will stop the war?
You and you alone.

If not you, then who?
Based on “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes

Baby Bird
Baby bird lies in my garden
Its breathing slows, almost stops
Wings are twisted at its side
In the flowerbed it’s caught.

A walk outside leads me to it
As tears roll down my face
I slide my hands underneath it
To beat its losing race.

I lay it on my pillow
And pat its small wings down
It lets out a tiny cry
So grateful to be found.

I remember that spring day
When the baby bird did die
Its tiny last cry haunts me
Though I know I did try.

Based on “I Have Not Told My Garden Yet” by Emily Dickinson

A Joyous Greeting
The waves eat up the sands
With foamy fingered hands
As light dances down with glee
The clouds you can only see
But the sea has a gentle croon
That calls up to the moon
“Shine on us!” the sea sings
A joyous greeting.
Based on “Nothing Gold Can Stay” by Robert Frost

What Hope Needs
Hope grows like a fire big and bright
Starting out as a spark with no light
It seems there is nothing there at the time
But wait long enough and soon you will find
That the spark is growing at rapid pace
Although the blowing wind is trying to chase
Away the light that the spark is casting
It doesn’t work; light is everlasting
It continues to grow until it is massive fire
Proving that to have hope, you need desire.
Based off “Life” by Sir Walter Raleigh

An Old Man’s Last Memory
I see a man standing with lantern in hand
Light is cast on his feet as he walks toward the tall lighthouse
Only he knows what has happened where he stands
All those joyous years ago when all his loved ones where here

He has shaken and cried to the beat of hearts
Of people close to him. He has laughed with old buddies that
He hadn’t seen in years, because of depart
His life is on this beach, where he comes to see one last time

He heads toward the lighthouse and opens the door
Looking around at what was once his before he grew older
He walks inside and greets the walls before he
Says a teary good-bye to his last living memory.
Based off “I Hear An Army” by James Joyce

Brother
My brother never leaves
He never leaves me, but I admit
I have not earned his trust at all
He is kind when I’m mean
And even kinder when I’m not
I don’t deserve it
We are family and will be
Through the hardships that
Continue to test us, brother.
By Sarah Lewis, based on “Kin” by Carl Sandburg

One Kind Soul
Only one kind soul is needed
To make a young person smile
And while only for a while
A new friend is quickly yielded
Based on “The World’s Need” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Here is also an update on my socks. I have gotten considerably farther due to some car knitting.

I forgot to wish everyone a happy Easter in my sugar coma. So here it is:

Happy Easter everybody!

I better get some nice thighs soon (and some socks)

In my language, that means I went hiking yesterday with my dad and brother (and dog) at Ramapo Reservation. It was cold, but beautiful once we reached the top. Besides, I had on a few layers and my hand knit arm warmers and hat with me. I was prepared, don't you fretting mothers worry.

Every time I go up there, I feel like I'm staring down at a tiny piece of the earth from space, or I'm at the top of the world staring down. You get this amazing feeling of hope and happiness and life, all rolled into one. I just love going up there, even if it is a long way up. The view never ceases to amaze me. After we got down from the mountain, it was around 4:30, so we went and ate an early dinner/late lunch sort of thing at KFC (warm, mashed potatoey goodness). I love their mashed potatoes, no matter how fattening. I need some fat.

I also started a pair of socks for the father of the little boy I babysit. He's turning 51 (I think), and I decided to make him a last minute pair of socks. Yes, I used Red Heart Supersaver, for all you yarn snobs out there, but I dare ya to sue me. It was cheap, and it was the only manly color I had with me. Besides, they're washable, and what father of a two year old doesn't like washable? A crazy one, I tell you.
I'm using http://www.cometosilver.com/socks/SockClass_Intro.htmsilver.com/socks/SockClass_Intro.htm, Silver's Sock Class. This tute is awesome, but I tried at least five times the night before and kept losing stitches and adding stitches, and I just couldn't get it (I blame it on the lack of sleep and food, considering it was 11:00 and I hadn't had dinner). I went to sleep, knowing it would click in morning and it did. I started with grey Woolease though, but I switched to Red Heart because it doesn't split as much. So far, I'm loving these socks because I always have a bad case of SSS (Second Sock Syndrome, for all you non-knitter's out there, may God have mercy on your souls), so two at a time socks always get my seal of approval. I am using Addi Turbos that cost me three hours of babysitting (which comes up to $21!), but they are definitely worth it. They are the perfect needles. They never snag on the yarn, and no matter how small the stitch, I can always get it on to the needle no problem because the needles are so slippery. Now I'm leaning towards a set of KnitPicks Options, because everyone at KH said they were great. I'm torn between a set of Denises though, because they offer more needle sizes and are cheaper. I will probably end up getting the Options though, because they had then nickel-plated needle like the Addis. Anyone who disagrees with me now, speak now or forever hold your peace.

Here are some more pics from Ramapo. I hope you enjoy!