IMPORTANT NEWS BULLETIN:  Knitter’s Hunk starts on Monday! See that link for details etc. Now spend the weekend deciding which men you want to enter. Hmm, a whole weekend looking at pictures of hunks… How we suffer for our knitting!

And in other breaking news:

Well, we survived Carmagedon and lived to tell the tale. I’m sure there are t-shirts out there somewhere. In fact, if you’ll excuse me for a moment… Yup. T-shirts.

In fact, the main idea on minds of Angelinos seemed to be “How can I profit from the freeway closure?” This is the kind of hard-hitting reporting that I love. I love the “Caltrans Orange” cotton candy too. A whole website was devoted to all the local deals for the closure weekend.

“Patriotism swells in the heart of the American bear.”

Meanwhile, the Sith Master and I amused ourselves with thinking of clips from movies about the non-existent panic. Coming soon to a blog near you… Feel free to contribute in the comments.

And of course, we saw the “Harry Potter” movie.

All I will say for now – in case y’all haven’t seen it yet –  is:  Awesome! It was a great and exciting movie, and a fitting wrap-up for the series. A definite must-see.

This weekend, we’re going to see “Captain America.”

Of course, since I live in Orange County, I’m not in as much trouble as Laurie. But still, I’m planning on adding thirty minutes to any travel time this weekend.

Around here there can be an epic traffic jam just because it’s misting, y’all. I’m just so grateful that it’s not a class weekend, so I don’t have to go anywhere near LA.

Of course, there is one thing that absolutely has to happen this weekend:  The Sith Master and I will definitely be seeing the climatic Harry Potter movie.

Probably at the earliest show on Saturday.

The Fair opens this weekend too. I might go to look at my photo, hanging in the competition. Shiny! The judging won’t be for a week or two.

Plus there will be pig racing. 

A fair without pig racing is like a day without sunshine…

And in other digressions…

Saw this post on handeyecrafts… followed her link – to a blog all about bookshelves, more interesting than you might think, y’all…

… to the creator’s tutorial for the mini bookshelf quilt.

Great quilt! I love the idea of using the text from fabric selvage as the book titles. You could also use words from fabric (folding the edges under, so it looks tidy). Or embroider your titles if you are good at that or have a sewing machine that does that. Or you could leave off the titles, of course.

Wouldn’t it be a cute baby quilt? Or a book or photo album cover – with thin or no batting. Or hey – a book bag!

I’m thinking this might be just the thing for some of my epic stash of word fabric.

It would also make a terrific big quilt for Gorgeous and Available Engineer Brother. If his decor was a meal, it would be “books with a large side of books, and for dessert, books” – so this would fit right in. He’s back in Texas now, working on his dissertation and looking for work. Anyone need a fabulous engineer?

But before any bookshelf quilts get made, I promised the Sith Master a new quilt. Maybe soon I will have the room dug out enough to start cutting fabric…

But I digress…

Our visit to Hogwarts is the important thing this weekend…

Where there’s only one car, and it flies…

Lyda here.

My room is a complete shambles.

And, no, Anna-Liza, I don’t mean my usual “oh, I need to get some filing done and straighten the books” that usually gets me crazy -  and which for most people would not even be considered “messy.

No. It’s a disaster.

There are teetering piles of papers, books, and assorted school debris all over every available flat surface.  Mixed into the piles are old family photos, a huge unwieldy family tree, art supplies, drawings, clippings… all of them related to one school project or another.  The desk – one corner of which serves as my nightstand – is covered with pens, pencils, markers, post-its, and – on the corner that serves as my nightstand – an ever-more precarious pile of Terry Pratchett paperbacks. The table is piled with binders, notebooks, and more papers – and a salt shaker, fabric napkins, and chopsticks, since I eat here too.

There are towels on the back of the chair. There is a pile of discarded papers on the floor next to the trash can (the trash can itself being full).  I haven’t seen my sewing machine in months (I know it’s in the room somewhere). The bed has been in a permanent state of unmade since before finals started two months ago.

And there is a thick blanket of dust everywhere. I’m sure it has been seven or eight months since I dusted and maybe longer since I vaccuumed.

As Bette Davis would say, “What a dump.”

This morning, there was a knock on my door and the two exchange students were there, wondering about hooking up to the innernets and needing some code that was mysteriouslyhidden in the wires and such on the desk.

And I was embarassed to let them into the room.

Thankfully, the fabric and yarn is all neatly organized and stashed in the closet, safe from dust and possible coveting by the Danes. At least I have  my priorities straight.

So, this weekend I’ll be trying to restore some order to the chaos. And possibly finding the floor.

When the going gets tough, the tough… go on the innernets.

To find out  what the mess means about me.  Hmm. Funny, they don’t mention “stressed out grad student” as one of the reasons for the mess…

Okay. Time to get to it.

As soon as I finish this quiz:  What’s Your Cleaning Style?

It turns out that I’m an “easy breezy cleaner” at this point in my life.

I know. I would usually land solidly in the “crazy cleaning obsession” category, but I’ve just been too busy with school and I’ve learned to let the cleaning slide a bit.

See? Grad school has been good for me.

But I digress…

So, apparently while I was immersed in school, y’all were living your lives. I’m trying to catch up on your blogs, but I’m not done yet. I am caught up with a few. Still working on the rest.

Laurie went to Florida, where she climbed a lighthouse - as always, Crazy Aunt Purl inspires me to step beyond my comfort zone. She was also amazed that they drive on the beaches there.

When I moved to California, I was amazed that they don’t drive on the beaches here. I was also astounded that 2 feet of sand and 10 feet of sidewalk was called a beach. Also, apparently someone put ice cubes in the Pacific Ocean. I was used to Padre Island National Seashore, where the Gulf waters are sometimes as warm as bath water, and the sand stretches about thirty feet from the ocean to the edge of the dunes. And yes, we drove on the beach.

But I digress.

Marin has been playing with monsters. So. Jealous.

Cassandra is making what seems to me like huge progress by taking small bites. Good reminder to us all.

Well, to me at least. In the past I tended to overschedule my days and nights. I am learning to take small steps instead.

Part of my plan for the next month or so is to clean my space so I can get back to quilting (still a fiber blog!). Wednesday night I cleaned the bathroom (just in time to share it with the foreign exchange students, who arrived late that night to stay for a month at Chez Disney). Tonight I am or may not sort a small pile of school stuff.

Oh, digressing again… Some things never change.

Franklin has of course been knitting up a storm of beautiful lace. And Delores and Harry attended the recent Royal Wedding. Only one of them by invitation.

Over at handeyecrafts, there has been awarding of saints – including the Saint of Pigs, which is too perfect for Marin. And remember, y’all, nominations for this year’s Knitter’s Hunk are coming up. Hey, that counts as more fiber news, right?

My candidates have not won yet. But I’m not bitter… Maybe this year…

Meanwhile, on Facebook, Knitting Sprite posted a link to this article about why Ravelry is better than Facebook . As if y’all didn’t know that already.

Oh, another fiber reference! Sneaky!

Yes, I’m back, and so is Random Weirdness Wednesday!

Y’all can breathe again.

I finished my finals, attended my last long weekend class, and – this morning, gang – completed my Masters Comprehensive Exam. Assuming I passed that last one, all I have to do is attend the August practicum (which goes on for a week), and then walk across that stage and get my diploma!

I can almost taste the Masters in Spiritual Psychology now.

And it tastes like Panda Express…

Wait, that was my lunch…

But, all that aside, let’s get to the important stuff:  Random Weirdness Wednesday!

1.) This little piggy went to market, and this little piggie got all wrinkly in the pool… Stole this from someone on Facebook, and I would credit them if I had a clue who it was. I also like the name of the page:  ”The Body Odd.”

Notice how I got the piggies in early?

I know what y’all like.

b.)  Speaking of piggies, the Orange County Fair opens on July 15th. One of the features of the website is the live Pig Cam.

cucumber.)  One of the features of the actual Fair will be MY photo of tree bark, which will be on display with the other entries in the amateur photography competition.

No foolin’.

I don’t know about y’all, but that seems pretty weird to me.

Next year, maybe I’ll actually enter a quilt.

Or then again, I might enter the table decoration contest. Y’all know I love that one.

duck.) What is the perfect Mother’s Day present?

My son gave it to me this year.

My very own copy of “Shaun of the Dead.”

Who loves his mum?

“You’ve got red on you.”

I woke up to Sir Elton singing, “Candle in the Wind” (the original version to Marilyn).

Okay. A little sad for the first thing in the morning, but okay.

Took a shower, came back into the bedroom. The radio was playing “Piano Man”.

Got dressed, got into car, turned on engine, the radio (set on a different station) was just finishing playing “Honky Cat”.

Then they played “Daniel.”

Hmm.

Nothing against the song, but again, a bit sad for the mood I was in.

Switched stations.

New station was playing “The Bitch is Back.”

Wondering if it was his birthday or something…

Got to work, worked, went to lunch.

When I turned on the car, the radio was playing “Candle in the Wind” – the newer version to Princess Di.

O…kay…

Switched to the oldies station. What were they playing?

“Don’t Go Breakin’ My Heart.”

Swear to God.

After a hard day of work, I got in the car to go home. Just as I merged into the traffic jam we call a freeway, the radio station announced a triple play – three songs by the same artist.

Guess who?

Yup.

.

.

Y’all will understand why I hit “play” on a Beatles CD instead.

.

.

Oh hi. I’m back.

This particular music-centric post is in response to a Facebook note from a friend and the “Desert Island Discs” BBC radio show premise – if you were stranded on the proverbial desert island, had what you needed for survival and a way to listen to your choices, what eight pieces of music would you want to have with you, plus which one book and one luxury item. (The original was “gramophone records”).

If I chose albums, the list would be different, but it appears as if the tradition is to choose single pieces. Also, if I thought about this again a month from now, or even a week, my list would be at least a bit different, but here goes:

“Busy Being Blue” – k.d. lang

“Love Lies” – S. J. Tucker

“Small Change” – Tom Waits

“Pablo Picasso” – David Bowie

“In These Shoes?” - Kirsty MacColl

“Rattlebone” – Robbie Robertson

“Panic in Detroit” – David Bowie

“Coventry Carol” – Mediaeval Baebes

It’s a lot harder for me to narrow it down to just one book, but this one stands much rereading – Lamb: the Gospel According to Biff, Christ’s Childhood Pal by Christopher Moore.

Luxury item? I liked my friend’s idea of a solar powered iPad loaded with books. Also, Rita Dove’s choice of a ballroom with robotic dance instructor sounds appealing. Then again, P.D. James went the ascetic route, and asked only for pencils and paper.

For me, a fully furnished and supplied, solar powered craft room. Then again, if by “luxury item” they mean something more realistic, a large trunk full of knitting supplies and equipment, including graph paper and colored pencils, would do.

So, what’s on your list?

Anna-Liza here. I am not sure that “spring” means much of anything to Lyda anymore, other than the name of the town where I went to high school, since she lives in SoCal. Here in Colorado, spring means a lot.

Sunny days in the 60s alternating with snow.

Wind. Crocus blossoms and, eventually, daffodils. Pollen. Wind. Trees budding out. Crabapples blooming. Wind. Pollen.

Also, hay fever. Spring and fall are both allergy seasons for me, but the shock of spring allergies after a winter of a non-itchy face makes it seem worse. Yes, I have things I can take for the symptoms, but on the worst days nothing relieves them entirely. It’s better, but I’m still Teary, Itchy, Stuffy and Sneezy. And Grumpy. And I wish Doc could come up with something to keep me from wanting to scratch my face off that doesn’t make me Sleepy or Goofy. Yeah, I know that last one’s not a dwarf. Don’t care.

Yesterday it was windy and cool, today it’s snowing. And Darlin’ K is off at Ski Jam 7: Beats on the Steeps for a day of snowboarding and music. Me? I am thinking about tacos for dinner and wondering if takeout Mexican for lunch would be too much. And will I have time for knitting if I spend all day on the internet? Probably not much, so I guess I’d better go get something done! I’m working on Sea Tangles, and I want to have it finished to wear when the weather finally gets warm!

And, oh, my goodness, I haz teh startitis Bad. Really, really bad. Oh yes.

First, I’ve been working on the Melody Shawl by The Pearly Queen for about oh, eight months now? And I’ve got one inch – that is ONE inch – to go before binding off, but it’s long rows of stockinette and I’m bored with it. I’m still making progress because it’s great for knit night – I can talk all I want and still get work done on it. The next one or two ought to finish it, bar the blocking.

And I’ve got some summer knitting for the Rocky Mountain Spring days that are too warm for a lapful of wool: Sea Tangles, from Knitty.com, in Textiles a Mano’s Fina, a handpainted pure silk laceweight in a mostly-turquoise-with-a-bit-of-lavender colorway.

I won’t even go into the list of sock patterns/sock yarns that are trying to get my attention right now. Sheesh.

And then I started a drop stitch scarf out of a lovely, floaty mohair-and-sparkle yarn called  Mélange from Knit One Crochet Too – great to stick in my purse for takealong knitting, and yet …

 Saroyan has been calling me. One person in my knitting group has made one for a gift and plans to do another for herself, and at least two other people besides me have it queued. Liz Abinante does lovely patterns. I’ve made two Traveling Woman shawlettes, one for me and one as a gift, and most of us in the (Mostly) Harmless Knitters have made at least one or are working on one.

And then Knitting Sprite and I went to Fancy Tiger and I had to go look at the Malabrigo. Not a good idea for a person trying to knit stash and resist yarn temptation, but I did it anyway. Of course, I found the delicious Hummingbird colorway, two skeins left in the same dye lot – worsted weight – just what I need for Saroyan. How delicious? Take a look!

Yum.

I can’t stand it, I’m casting on Saroyan NAO!

You may have noticed I haven’t been around much. It all started as the usual crazy-busy life-stuff getting in the way of blogging time, and I knew I’d get back to it as soon as things settled down, maybe after the holidays … but then something happened.

The son of my friend killed himself.

I’ve known Dana for 13 years or more, and Cameron since he was three. I consider her an “inner circle” friend, someone I may not see for a year or more, but is still loved, is still close, and who matters very much to me. The same goes for her kids. I hadn’t seen Cameron in a bit over a year, when he was suddenly tall and deep-voiced and all teenagery. I’d seen Dana just a few weeks before it happened, when she told me she was worried about him.

I hoped it was just teenage angst and would get better soon, then I didn’t really think about it. Until we heard.

Dana and Cameron’s story isn’t really what I’m writing about here, though. I can be there for Dana and her family, offer my help, be ears to listen and arms to hold. I can’t tell their story. What I need to tell, just now,  is mine.

I mentioned before that Cameron was three when I met his mom. Even though I didn’t know him well, I’d known him for most of his life. He was there, playing with my kids, grinning his freqently gap-toothed grin. He was one of those kids who just makes you smile.

I have been grieving since we heard the news, and I have spent a fair amount of time pretending not to grieve, or at least trying not to inflict my grief on those around me. I realized recently that I don’t feel I have the right to grieve.

He wasn’t my kid. He wasn’t someone I saw every day. He barely knew me.

Yet, I do grieve for him. He was sweet, funny, understanding, and tried to make a positive difference in this world. There aren’t enough people like him, and now we’ve lost one more. The fact that he was part of Dana’s life reassured me, even at times when I was worried about her, that she’d be okay – she had Cameron. (I know that sounds odd, but if you knew him, you get it).

The thing that hurts me most, I think, is to realize how deep his pain had to be for him to decide on that step. To realize that, for all that he was so ready to reach out to others, to cheer them up, to offer a fresh perspective, he didn’t feel able to reach out for the same kind of help for himself.

It’s not likely that there’s a thing I could have done to change what happened, but I can’t help wondering, what if there was? Even though I know there really wasn’t. I just wasn’t a big enough part of his life – and I don’t know that I could have changed that, either.

There’s the fear that any parent will feel – if a great kid like Cameron could be driven to this, why not my kid? Why not anyone? Why do we, as a society, tell our kids that asking for help is weakness, failure? What the hell is wrong with us?

And there’s the lost opportunity – I liked him, I thought there would be time to get to know him better, and there isn’t.

But mostly, when Dana posts a photo, or a song on the radio makes me think of him, my heart hurts, my throat tightens, and the tears come. There’s no why or how or what, it’s just simple grief. A boy I knew and liked found this world so painful he decided there was only one way out. And he’s gone. That’s reason enough for tears.