The 2009 Furnace War has finally become serious, since a couple weeks ago when the MD winter decided to stop being completely wimpy. I’m nowhere near having to break the ice in the toilet (I doubt that could actually happen south of the Mason/Dixon), but I’m to the point that I find myself implementing careful … More Strategies

I am sorry to report that our microwave of many years has finally bitten the dust. I had put in a bag of popcorn for lunch one day, listening for pops. The microwave is so old that cooking is timed by educated guesstimates rather than following directions on packages, and popcorn is best timed by … More The Passing of an Appliance

I’m pretty sure my mother would never knit in church. As a kid, I was pretty free to do as I liked during mass, as long as it was quiet. When I was too little to understand what was going on, mom apparently didn’t think that making me sit still in a pew for a … More Controversy!

I can’t get to FarmVille. I’m sitting here at work and I can’t get to my farm. All I get is the sad-looking cow. I’m sitting here, knowing full well that my coffee and pepper plants are withering as I type, and there’s nothing I can do about it. It’s driving me batty. What will … More Thoughts from Yesterday

Last night, I was ready to end my knitting career. Last night, I was ready to impale myself on my needles. Last night was one of those nights that all of us knitters have, when we forget all the reasons that we try to change the world with string and sticks and seriously consider garrotting … More One of those days

We’ve all survived Halloween now, with its pumpkin carving contests, orange Christmas lights, and stories on NPR about having weird things done to your body so you can freak out your friends posthumously. If you, for some masochistic reason, decided to go to a shopping mall today, you surely heard the first strains of Christmas … More Christmas – Knitter to Knitter

Through a bizarre mix of circumstances, I haven’t knit for three days. I hate even typing that. My time at the shop has been consumed by adding twist to my recycled yarn; this translates to a lot of time at the spinning wheel. My time at home has been consumed by ripping out sweaters to … More When I Don’t Knit

The gauntlet, that is. It’s fall. There’s no denying it. I’ve started wearing sweaters all the time, our winter coats have seen a little sunlight, and Jared & I are watching the weather forecast carefully to know when to bring our finally-producing tomato plants indoors. What clinched it for me was when the parking-lot-view from … More Throwing Down

Lil’ Brownie got a special treat this weekend: It was the knitting of choice for the Renaissance Festival in Annapolis, MD. This week (as it always seems to be when we go) was Oktoberfest, with the usual (extra) emphasis on beer and Germany. He was treated to all the usual sights. The wrapping of the may-pole … More Socktoberfest