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July 28, 2004
Arrrrgh!
On a day when my body itself was experiencing technical difficulties (a terrible sore throat), my web host was as well. I don't think these two things were connected, but it's hard to be certain....
In any case, if you tried to come here Tuesday and were turned away by the internet, that's why. All better now!
In Yarnivore store news: I have a business checking account, and I have an insurance broker who is working on getting liability insurance for 325 Gold Street -- as soon as he's done, I can go pick up the keys! And then the Church of Craft and Yarnivore will have a home!
Also, soon there will be a splash page up at the URL www.yarnivore.com, with a link to this blog. Don't panic, just click on the link, and all the bloggy goodness will be here, waiting for you.
Aren't you dying to start seeing swatches and store samples? I know I am!
Posted by Rose at 12:53 AM | Comments (3)
July 26, 2004
New York Foundation for the Arts
NYFA is doing a survey of NYC craft makers and artisans and folks who are trying to earn money with their crafting. The goal is to see what more the foundation could be doing to support such makers. If any of you fit into this category, or if you even think you might, please go fill out the survey!
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Moral of the following anecdote: always bring your knitting!
I spent 6 hours at St. Vincent's ER Friday evening, making sure that the horrible headache I've been having was a benign (though annoying) situation, and not some aneurysm waiting to blow (eeeeek -- one of the things in the world I find most scary). I try to keep my mild hypochondria in check, but various things about the headache were making me freak. [NB: Everything's fine (yay!), though I am following up with a neurologist in the morning, just to make extra certain.]
However, the thing that sucked most about this lengthy wait was that I did NOT have my knitting! I don't know why/how I left without it in the morning. Reading wasn't very comfortable, due to the headache, but I could have managed some easy knitting, if I'd had it with me. This was extremely frustrating to me, and made the time seem like that much more of a waste. Grrr! So, as I said before, the moral of this story, knitters?
Always Bring Your Knitting!
Posted by Rose at 11:05 PM | Comments (1)
July 22, 2004
Misheard knitting reference
I was so pleased yesterday to hear the following lyric in a Ben Folds Five song, "Kate", off of Whenever and Ever:
"She never gets wet, she just smiles and knits a rainbow"
Sadly, when I looked up the lyric to confirm it, I discovered that I had misheard. The line is "smiles and it's a rainbow".
I like my line better!
===
It seems that exercise is becoming a habit with me -- this may be my first good habit! Yesterday I was bouncing off the walls all afternoon, very nearly literally bouncing off the walls, in fact. Suddenly I said to myself, "Self, you ought to go to the gym and work off some of this energy."
Then I said, "WTF? Who said such an ass-crazy thing?" But then I realized it was an absolutely good idea, as the extra energy was not the good kind, but the frazzled kind. So I did it, and it was great. A swell workout, and very calming.
Posted by Rose at 04:34 PM | Comments (1)
July 21, 2004
Wheeeeeee!
Callie loved the space, and I still loved the space, and we signed a lease memo and gave the landlord half of the up-front money.
My stomach is full of the peskiest butterflies -- it's hard to even come up with a comparable feeling.
This is it! The space! Oh, man!
Here's a look at it, the 2nd floor of 325 Gold Street, in Brooklyn.
Anyone want to invest in a yarn store?
Posted by Rose at 04:04 PM | Comments (7)
I know it's hard to knit with your fingers crossed
But please, could you keep your fingers crossed?
I looked at a space yesterday morning, and this might be the one! I'm as nervous as a girl bringing someone home to meet the family, as I am bringing Callie by to see it this morning.
I really like it! I hope she likes it! It might be our new crafty home!
!!! (in case you felt there weren't enough bangs up above.)
Posted by Rose at 07:53 AM | Comments (2)
July 19, 2004
What's up with the downpours?
Here in Brooklyn, it's been raining and raining and raining! I feel like an idiot for not having a proper garden (even a container garden) planted, because this is prime growing weather: warm and wet. If I had some cherry tomatoes and some basil outside -- they'd be breaking growth records, I'm sure.
The other problem with the rain is that I find it less exciting to knit when it's humid. The yarn feels grabby in my fingers, and it's hard for me to get a good rhythm going.
I wouldn't be fussing about this in public, except that I just checked the weather forecast for the week, and after having had days of daily thunderstorms, now the rest of the week through Friday shows possible daily thunderstorms as well. Blegh!
Posted by Rose at 08:47 AM
July 15, 2004
Why We Knit
So, I was looking around the web for song lyrics that mention knitting (I feel certain that I know some that I just can't call to mind), and I found an oldish blog entry on frizzylogic, a blog I've seen linked on several of the blogs I read. The title of the entry was "Knitting, poetry and genital inferiority", so of course I had to click on it! I loved the part about Anna Freud knitting as she psychoanalyzed patients.
I was vexed, however, to read (upon clicking through to Silas Wesley's article, Why Anna Knitted) that good old Sigmund felt that Anna knitted, "to hide her genital inferiority". Zowie.
I found Wesley's piece interesting, though I can't vouch for his theories about "mind-awareness", since I didn't read any of his other writing. The main point in this article that caught my attention was his observation that if Sigmund Freud wondered why his daughter knitted, well, he could just have asked her.
Imagine that! And imagine if contemporary journalists could learn the same lesson! Instead of speculating that we knit "because it's hip" or "to be like/to not be like grandma" or "to challenge the dominant paradigm", reporters writing articles about the "new yoga" just asked knitters, "Why do you knit?"
That would be most excellent. Since that might take a while, perhaps I'll turn my thoughts towards designing something to look like the kuba cloth picture I also found on that frizzylogic entry -- the strong diagonals sure do look like Fair Isle to me!
Posted by Rose at 10:13 PM | Comments (2)
July 14, 2004
Live like the revolution has already happened!
Since I know folks in the ballroom dance community at MIT, I wasn't surprised to read in the New York Times today that the organizers of an MIT dance allowed two men to dance together at a competition level. Yay! I loved reading that the two men have been choreographing experimental dances where they take turns leading, based on what moves each of them is most skilled at. I hope they get to continue to compete.
And of course the Senate voted against the proposed constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. While I'm not at all sure they did so for the "right" reasons, I'll take what we can get.
Coming home on the train with my husband tonight I saw a middle-aged male couple looking happy and comfortable and affectionate, and I couldn't help but think that maybe things will get better in the near future. A day when we can be married, and they can be married, and anyone can share a kiss on the train with their sweetie -- that doesn't seem like too much to ask for, does it?
Posted by Rose at 11:58 PM | Comments (2)
July 13, 2004
Salad suggestioned
[Post title is from a sign I loved in the Cosmic Diner downstairs from my office]
Hi to anyone who's here from ChicKnits! I love all of you!
You might like to see the sweater I knitted up from Bonne Marie's Ribby Cardigan pattern. Here it is, in my archives.
In other Bonne Marie-written pattern-related news, I think the yarn I'm swatching from Chester Farms will be perfect for the Ribby Shell that she's just finished the pattern for. The yarn is their wool/cotton/silk blend, in a DK weight. It feels fabulous, and knits up on size 6 needles.
When is this Yarnivore store going to be open, you ask? Well, I'm working hard on it! I need a location, preferably in downtown Brooklyn, and I need a little more money, and then the knit-partying may commence. My plan is to get this going before the Big Fall Knitting Season starts.
The plan is to share space with the ultra-cool Church of Craft, led by Callie Janoff. So we are looking for a space that will meet all of our needs. It should be funky, and wonderful, and have a slop sink, and windows. It should be zoned for retail, but can be above the first floor. If anyone helps find us a space, that person will be my new favorite person in the whole world except my husband and my cats (and I can also perhaps work out a Friend-of-Yarnivore discount for you, too!).
PS -- For my puzzle pals: Francis has written up a nice summary of What We Did in Boston. Makes the NPL sound like the National Pleasure-Seeking League, it does.
PPS -- Having not seen Spiderman 2 yet, I'm at a loss at to why there is a picture of Spiderman on my Dr Pepper can -- can anyone explain?
Posted by Rose at 02:11 PM | Comments (3)
July 12, 2004
Home again, home again, jiggety jig
Am I ever glad to be back home! I had a fantabulous NPL convention, but nine days away from my darling cats and my very ownest computer and everything else that's swell about Brooklyn was a bit much.
Went to the gym today after too much of a hiatus (although I did walk quite a lot in the natural course of things while we were away). Two miles on the treadmill and some random upper-body weight work.
Yarn from Chester Farms showed up while I was gone -- I am really looking forward to working up some shop samples out of their lovely stuff. The owner of the company, Francis Chester, lived in Brooklyn once upon a time! Now he's raising sheep in Virginia and he's tickled to know his yarn will be in the best of the boroughs.
Posted by Rose at 11:54 PM | Comments (1)
July 09, 2004
Hub of the Universe
I'm in Boston this week for the National Puzzlers' League convention -- and having a wonderful time. Not much knitting is going on, unfortunately, but lots of hanging out and catching up with old friends and making new ones.
Real estate searching recommences next week. Ideas from all and sundry are welcome!
Posted by Rose at 05:48 PM | Comments (2)