Hello, hello!

Oh my god, so much has happened since my last post! Where do I even begin.... Oh, right:

I GRADUATED!

And I wasn't content with that. I also got a new job and a new apartment, both in new neighborhoods. And you know what a new apartment (with a wood floor!) means?

Say hello to my little friend.

So everything's been coming up Marlena, AND THEN!

I got my first full-length story published! This story isn't online, though you can buy a copy of the (very good) magazine here. I also had another flash piece picked up.

AND THAT DOES NOT EVEN INCLUDE THE KNITTING, PEOPLE!

So let's talk about that. I finished that baby sweater I was working on and it turned out so cute I could hardly stand it.

Pretty cute, right? Wait'll you see who gets to wear it:

Not the cutest picture of me, but I'm banking on little Mia here to steal the spotlight. To review, this is the Eyelet Baby Cardigan by Looking Glass Knits. I used Berroco Comfort fingering weight for the ease of care and because of that beautiful, perfect lilac color. I looked at other purples and kept coming back to that one. I was a little hesitant to knit with a purely synthetic yarn but let me tell you, I loved every minute of it! It's soft, springy, and holds eyelets beautifully. I would not hesitate to pick this yarn up again.

Obviously with all of the graduating and new job getting and moving etc., it was awhile until I cast on my next project. While shopping my stash, I came across some Nezinscot Farm yarn I picked up a hundred Fryeburg Fairs ago. I believe the fiber is corriedale, no idea what the colorway might have been named. This yarn was amazing to knit! So squishy! And I didn't even block my mittens when they were done because I loooooove that sheepy smell!

Oh yeah... I dyed my hair red too.

Baaaaaabies!

Okay so first of all, whoa! Really? My last post was February 28? I know this semester was crazy, but jeez. Secondly, I finished something!

I made a Baby Surprise Jacket (my third!) for my friend Ang's new baby Irie Rose. The thing about a BSJ is that you need two skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport (in this case, colorway "Bittersweet"), and you end up with a ton leftover. What to do?

Make booties! These are Saartje's Booties (rav link), which I've also made before, but come on! Look at them! So cute.
I've been dying to use this colorway ever since the first time I saw it, but could never find a way to use it. Irie's parents though are the perfect people for this bright, cheerful hue. And I loved knitting with it!
After I finally sewed on the final button, I tried my hand at crochet and yeah... still terrible. I have a friend who crochets so I'm hoping she can help me out some. This same friend I "taught" to knit, taught in quotations because it felt more like reminding a master of something they once did. I'm sure she's going to be a good teacher. WAY better than the crappy books/online tutorials I've tried. I don't know why I just can't get the hang of crochet, but even my little braid of single crochet (?) never looks right. Sigh. A the end of the program, please let me have a completed short story collection worthy of publication and the gift of crochet. I just want a gd blanket. Is that so much to ask?!
In other bloggy news, I've started a new blog for my writing endeavors. I'm hoping it'll help me land freelancing jobs. Turns out, I really like writing columns and book reviews! Check it out here!

Come Together....

Check it out! Big Black Blob is becoming sweater-shaped!

With two weeks left to go, I am on the first round of decreases for the yoke. I was feeling a little nervous about finishing this in time, but now I feel downright confident. Much of this progress is thanks to a long afternoon I spent with Amy, knitting away. Also, one of the (myriad) benefits of having knitting friends: when I realized that I had not only forgotten stitch holders but also forgot the copy of IK with the pattern in it, Amy had those things at the ready. Whew!

The end of the semester is approaching. I have a final story due in my lit class where I have to write in the style of an author we've read this semester. In a fit of delusion, I chose Flannery O'Connor. The story's down, but I just don't love it. I'll be glad to turn it in so I can stop fiddling with it. In my workshop I have to make a chapbook using six stories from the term, with a cover, synopsis, bio and quotes about the author. Truth? I've not even started it yet. I just got book supplies today! The stories are all finished though. I just need to come up with the cover stuff. (She says, as though it'll be done in twenty minutes.)

Last week I had to turn in another project in my short-short workshop. We had to write nanofictions (stories of fewer than 100 words) and present them in an Artist's Book. An Artist's Book is a one of a kind, handmade book, though the word "book" is used loosely here. Some books do follow standard conventions of a cover with pages, but others (like mine) present the stories in a unique way. Want to see mine?




Stay tuned for a completed Cobblestone! Maybe I'll even be able to get a picture of my brother wearing it. (Don't hold your breath though.)

Hey, guess what?!

I went back to New York!

I went to my first Writer's Conference, put on by Slice Magazine. I took workshops in character development, dialogue and revision, and watched a panel on the importance of literary magazines. I had a great time! Even though I've heard again and again about all of those subjects, it's always helpful to hear about them again. See, the thing is, every time I learn about, say, character development, I'm able to relate it to a new piece I'm working on. In this case, one of the exercises we did gave me a great new opening to a story that I liked, but whose opening was lacking. My favorite part was probably the panel, because it was so nice to hear about people who had submitted their work upwards of one hundred times only to go on to have a bestseller. I just recently started submitted my work, and actually just got my first rejection from that round! (For the record: first rejection ever was from Fiction magazine about ten years ago, this latest was from The Atlantic. What can I say? I start at the top!) I don't exactly feel pressure to publish before I graduate, but it would be pretty great.



In addition to the conference, I spent time with my friend Erin who stayed with me. She's very familiar with New York, so it was great to see her favorite places. We did a lot of walking around and exploring. This trip more than ever made me want to move to the city. I can so totally see myself living there! Fingers crossed that I find an amazing publishing job right after graduation!

Work has slowed on Cobblestone. I'm almost to the arms now, but as it turns out both of my classes this semester are very challenging. My literature class has NINE books assigned, and my writing workshop requires one or two new stories every week. They're short-shorts (250-1000 words), but still! It takes time to come up with an idea, and then to see if it will work. We are given specific prompts (this week is to write a three page story that chains through four points of view), which adds to the challenge. Here's hoping I finish by Christmas!

Whew!

Why, hello there! So, I'm pretty sure I mentioned in my last post that I'm taking a summer class. While my professor is definitely laid back, the structure of the class schedule makes it so it's a little crazy. Generally in workshops, we're required to turn in three stories over the course of the semester. Since a semester is about three months long, with breaks, that works out to about a story a month. Additionally, professors typically assign due dates for everyone's work. I had one professor who had everyone turn in stories on the same day, and another who worked out a schedule on the first day of class by having us draw numbers. The professor I have now prefers not to assign stories, which means, as I suspected, we now have 13 stories to workshop in the last 4 sessions. Ouch! The entire class is only 6 weeks anyway, so we were sure to be pinched, but I'm really looking forward to finishing this class! I love the professor and I'd love a chance to take a workshop with him during a full semester. Anyway, this explains some of my absence and the fact that my vest still isn't done!

In non-school news, I've been doing yoga!

I bought a Living Social deal for classes and fell in love. For most Sundays this month, I've been doing this thing put on by a yoga shop in town with a friend from work. We run two miles then do yoga outside in the park. Every week is a different teacher, which is cool because I get to try them out. I'm superpsyched about tomorrow, because the yoga teacher is my favorite! I've even gotten into running! I mapped out a route using MapMyRun and have been running most mornings or evenings, depending on whether I'm working.

I missed one Sunday of yoga to go to a wedding back home:



This is my favorite picture from the wedding. I worked with the bride at the old folks' home. She was working in the activities department, and it is the perfect job for her. I promise, you will never meet a nicer girl. The wedding was beautiful! Her husband's band did a couple of acoustic songs (the groom is a drummer and played the bongos), the groom's dad sang a song during the ceremony, and some other friends of their also performed. The DJ was terrific! Plenty of '90's hiphop! Awwwwwww yeah!




The wedding was on Peaks Island in Maine. The day was super hot, but just beautiful. It was so wonderful to spend the day with some of my dearest girlfriends for such a joyous occasion. Sigh.

Some linky goodness!
My Drunk Kitchen on YouTube is one of the funniest things I have ever seen.
Likewise, this video had me rolling, and then I got sucked into the vortex of this kid's YouTube channel.
I'm reading Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates. I really liked the movie, and after reading a collection of Yates' short stories last fall, I really wanted to check out the book. It's wonderful. Really great. I'll write more when I'm finished.

I'm soclose to finishing my vest! I'm predicting some FO shots on my next post! (And won't it be funny if my next post is like three months from now, ha ha)!

As Promised...

Progress!

While this vest isn't moving along as quickly as I'd hoped, it's nice to see a recognizable garment forming rather than an endless ribbed tube.

Ribbed tube aside, this has actually been a fun little project. Particularly the top which has a sweet waffle stitch pattern that is so textural but also so simple.




All I really have left now are the straps and finishing! Too bad Boston has reached a sweltering 90 degrees and the idea of putting wool anywhere on my body gives me hives. This may be a job for my dress form when it's finished.

In other news, I had a birthday since last we talked.



My sister came to see me and we went to the North End for dinner, drinks and cupcakes. All were delicious! That drink in front of me is some grape martini thing they serve at Cantina Italiana that I can't get enough of. Then we moved on to Assaggio for dinner where I had some of the best gnocchi of my life. And how could we end the night anywhere else but Mike's for dessert? I usually don't stray far from the cannoli case (the Florentine Cannoli in particular gets me every time), but since it was my birthday, a known cake holiday, I had the most amazing, extravagant chocolate cupcake with peanut butter frosting ever. Seriously. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. For once I'm glad I don't live in the North End!

Tonight is the first night of my summer class. I'm nervous! Isn't that silly? It's my third semester, technically, and I'm still all jittery.

As promised...

As I said in my last post, spring would surely arrive just as I finished my mittens. Well, there's my evidence of spring...



...and here are my mittens! Boston has been frustratingly cold lately, so maybe I'll still get a chance to wear them (not that I want to, but you know, silver linings). Quick recap: these are the Herringbone Mittens with(out) Poms from Eliphantom Knits. I used gray and navy Cascade 220, and I would guess I didn't even use a half ball of each color. I was using partial balls to begin with, and I still have quite a bit left over. I finished these a couple of weeks ago, but still... they took an inordinate amount of time to complete by the calendar, but I'd say the total work was only a few hours. My relationship with time is off-kilter though now. "Just a few mintutes" now translates into at least fifteen, and if I say "fifteen minutes," chances are I really mean thirty. I'm still adjusting to city life.

In other news, my semester is complete, as of last night! I had a really great, productive semester, where I learned so much. Both of my professors were not only knowledgeable, but also passionate and enthusiastic and interested in helping their students succeed after their programs are complete. I got a lot of great advice from both of them regarding making a living at what I want to do. So now I've got almost two entire months off before I start a summer class. I've spent most of today thinking about all of the things I'd like to do. Would it be foolish to start a sweater?

The Surest Way to Spring

Clearly this semester has been challenging! I love both of my classes. My workshop classmates are all so good at critiquing, and I love the format of the class. This will be the workshop against which all others will be measured. My other class is a magazine publishing class, which is what I want to do when I'm done with school. We're making a magazine as a class, which is fun. This is the first time I've had a group project where I've actually enjoyed working with everyone else in my group! I don't think I'm alone in my distaste for group work, but these girls in my group are all very organized and prepared. Love it!

Anyway, about that title. I'm convinced that the surest way to spring is to finish a project that is winter specific. Enter: mittens.

This picture is... aged. I've since finished this mitten and actually started mitten #2! Shocking, I know. I'm itching to make a sweater but at the rate it takes me to finish an accessory, I'm afraid I wouldn't finish it until I'm 47. These are the Herringbone Mittens with Poms by Eliphantom Knits. Mine are without poms. The poms are undeniably adorable, but totally impractical. I'm sure I'd rip one off within a week. The yarn is Cascade 220 in navy and gray. I'm a big fan of gray lately (especially these Gray Chucks I keep seeing everywhere), and I had this leftover navy laying around, et voila! You can thank me later if the second I cast off the second mitten the east coast is swept with temperate weather.

Wow... Really?

Has it really been nearly a month since my last update?! Time sure has flown by, and here I am at the very end of my first semester of graduate school. Tomorrow is my last class, and I have a couple of things to finish for that, but I thought I'd come over and give a shout. And show off my latest FO! But first, some quick catch-up.
Thanksgiving happened, and so did an 11th birthday.

That cake is 100% vegan, and the most delicious chocolate cake I have ever made or eaten. The frosting was amazing too, but the cake! It's accidentally vegan, no egg replacers, no soy. It's a recipe called Wacky Cake, and there are versions all over the Internet. The recipe was created during WWII rationing, when home cooks had to get creative. Try it!

Speaking of food, we had a pretty delicious Thanksgiving breakfast of Vegan Pumpkin French Toast. The kids ate every bite with singular focus, something that never happens.




I squeezed in a visit to Purl Diva for a chat and some stash enhancement.




And Christmas draws nearer and nearer.




I'm making a hat for my brother. Partly because he's always complaining that I've never knit anything for him, and partly to see just how serious is his wool sensitivity. He wants a Cobblestone Pullover, but no way am I embarking on that project without testing out possibilities first. I think Mission Falls 1824 might be the way to go. We shall see.




And I finished something! I somehow managed to pull off a sock in between trips home, fifteen page papers, reading two short story collections, and critiques. No wonder they took a month to finish!




I used J. Knits Superwash Me in Florida. I really like this yarn! It's comfortable to knit, doesn't get too twisty. It's also very comfortable to wear. I haven't taken the socks off since I took these pictures this morning. I used the Hourglass Eyelet Socks pattern by Cindy Putnam. This pattern was formerly available on the defunct MagKnits site, and is now available for download on Ravelry. It was a nice, fun, easy pattern. The stitch pattern is easily memorized, and they go quickly (when you're not a first year grad student). I chose to use this pattern with this yarn because I was concerned about pooling, but I didn't need to be! Check out the soles, no pooling here! I don't regret my choice, but it would be sorta nice to have a pair of plain jane socks in this bright, cheery color, don't you think?




Whew! So that's what happens when you have to play catch up! After tomorrow, I'll have a blissful month reprieve from homework before the Spring semester starts. Let's see how many projects I can churn out during that time!

Blech

The weather here has been mostly gray, windy, cold and wet. Sometimes it feels like it's rained every day since I got here, which I know isn't true. I suspect I just notice it more since I walk everywhere now. Still, on days when the view out of the window looks like this:

It's awfully nice to knit away on a project that looks like this:



I knew I was onto something when I chose this color! I have to give the dyers at J. Knits props, as this yarn has not been pooling at all. Even on the bottom of the foot, there are gradual stripes coming off of the heel turn, but no unsightly blotches. The colors in general blend together quite nicely. I think I could have even done a stockinette sock in this yarn. Of course, this is sock #1. We'll see if sock #2 cooperates in the same way.

I've been working myself silly for school, trying to get ahead in both of my classes. Next weekend I'll be in Austin, TX to visit a friend (and finally meet my goddaughter), and then two weeks later is Thanksgiving. When I have the opportunity to spend time with friends and family, I hate to have work looming over my head. After Thanksgiving, there are only about three weeks left in the semester, and then a beauteous month stretches before me. Seems like a good time to knock out a sweater. Question is, which one?