Lazy, lazy, lazy.

I have just spent a completely unproductive, relaxing weekend at my Mom & Dad's house in Idaho. Not everyone can say that they have relaxing weekends at their parent's house. I, on the other hand, have a toddler who likes his Grandpa more than he likes me:



This means said toddler does not want to have a thing to do with me or anyone else besides Grandpa the whole time we are in Idaho. This equates to lots of time to knit, read, make cards, waste time. Today I was a complete, lazy slug. I stayed in my jammies until noon. Ah, I love it!

Knitting news, in which Kimi explains that she is not a complete waste of skin: While at my Mom's, I finished a hat and more than half of my Oregon Tote, which is coming along nicely, I think, except for that I'm second guessing my contrast color. Do you think light orange goes ok with red? I'm so color challenged. For that matter, I am also double pointed knitting challenged. I had read it was like "wrestling with an octopus," but jeez, I had no idea! After ripping out the whole thing several times (my tension was so tight that it would have looked like I had some kind of growth coming out of my head) I got the hang of it, I guess. The other thing I did not really enjoy: trying to figure out how to pick up stitches from a cast on edge. I really hope I did not completely screw it up. I guess I'll find out when it's all said and done. One way or another, I'm going to have to get someone more experienced than I to show me how to do this. Hopefully I will be able to go to SnB this week and can have someone help me not be dumb.

Unfortunately, I have not had time to take pictures, so the hat and half finished bag will have to wait. I have no idea what to work on next.

And, on a side note, tonight was the Oscars, and I was able to keep my track record of only missing one out of the major six categories (Clint Eastwood for Best Director...I predicted Scorsese). Ryan laughs at me that I even care about getting them right, since I don't particularly care about movies. What can I say, it's an odd obsession.

Just for fun: The checkbook cover I made this weekend. So cutesy, but I love it anyway:

Neglected Hobbies

On occassion, I actually do something besides knit. Card Art:



Now maybe instead of knitting, card art, and blogging, I should clean my house.

Because I just took a test and really don't want to talk about it, 10 things making me happy today:

1. I have new Demeter Cinnamon Buns Perfume from Anthropologie that I got for half off. (If I had a fortune, everything I own would come from Anthropologie.)
2. I weigh 2 pounds less than I did a week ago.
3. I'm getting new scrapbook supplies in the mail today.
4. My house is clean.
5. I have enough bright red yarn to make the Oregon Tote.
6. Ben's Cookies---Triple Chocolate. Yummmmmmm. (so much for those 2 pounds)
7. Ryan forgot his satellite radio so I get to listen to it all day.
8. There is sun in Cache Valley today. (We should throw a party.)
9. I get to go visit my mom tomorrow.
10. My piano is in tune (for the first time in MONTHS!) and I can finally get back to work on "Un Sospiro."

Because I'm still holding out for Chicago: The Windy City FO

Well, the good news and the bad news:

Good news: Ryan got accepted to BYU law.

Bad news: Ryan got accepted to BYU law.

While I would be somewhat relieved to stay close to our families and would love to live in Salt Lake (I would rather have my eyelashes pulled out one by one than live in Provo...this is another topic...moving on...), I would also be extremely disappointed to not move somewhere fun (i.e. different, new, far away). Luckily, we are still waiting on 18 other schools. 19 if you count Northwestern, where Ryan is on the waiting list. I am still holding out for Chicago.

So, I present the Windy City scarf, which I finished on Saturday. The picture isn't the greatest, but you get the idea. Just in case you can't tell from the picture, this scarf has a hole in it. I'm learning new things every day.



Anyone who is familiar with the Stitch n' Bitch book may wonder why I am finishing the projects in order. This is because I have decision-making issues. For lack of knowing what to do next, I just do whatever comes next in the book. So my next WIP will be, of course, the Alien Illusion scarf, which I intended to start over the weekend, but then discovered I had bought the wrong yarn. This is the sucky part about living in Logan....no great yarn stores.

Hope everyone had a fabulous long weekend.

Musings on El Che.

A conversation with my Uncle, a die-hard Pennsylvania conservative, circa September 2004:

Uncle: Your mom tells me you're writing your senior research paper on Che Guevara.

Kimi: That's right.

Uncle: Of all of the things you could study, why Che Guevara?

Kimi: Because I need to focus my paper on some aspect of Latin American foreign policy, because he's a fascinating character to me, and because my mother-in-law worked for the Barrientos regime and can give me a lot of interesting information that might not be in the books. (FYI, for those who may not know, Barrientos was the president over the Bolivian army who tracked Che down in Bolivia and executed him.)

Uncle: Well, you know who Che Guevara really was, right?

Kimi: Tell me uncle, who?

Uncle: He was just a spoiled, rich creep.

And so ended the first simplified description of Che Guevara that I've heard over the past six months. I love this uncle and I'm always amused by his cynicism. A later conversation:

Uncle: Did you hear that Robert Redford produced a movie about Che?

Kimi: Yep. I heard it was excellent. I'm dying to see it.

Uncle: You mean you're actually going to watch that communist crap?

Kimi: Absolutely.

And I did. Last night. The movie is called the Motorcycle Diaries.



I would recommend it to anyone even slightly interested in Latin America, Cold War politics, Che Guevara, or traveling in general. Now before anyone starts accusing me of being a red, let me say that I am not, as my uncle believes me to be, a die-hard Che fan (though it's certainly easy to understand how he and so many other South Americans came to hate the U.S. during the Cold War, I hate to admit). I don't believe him to be a Rebel-God, and I'll be the first to say that the man hardly lives up to the legend. However, I don't believe him to be the communist devil, either. As with most intriguing historical characters, you have to take the good with the bad. And I was happy to see a movie that, in my opinion, celebrated the true goodness of Che. In the legends of Che, both good and bad, the motorcycle journey through South America that formed his idealism is often mentioned only as an anecdote. You don't hear in foreign policy analysis that he gave up the last of his own medication to bring peace to a dying women, that while hungry and ill he gave his last $15 to a poor family who he believed to be worse off than he was, or that he was one of the few souls willing to bring kindness to a leper colony. You don't get to see "nice" Che.

To me, the real tragedy of Guevara's life was not his capture and execution, but the fact that somewhere along the line he lost his humanity. Here was a guy who in his youth was good, kindhearted, honest and only wanted to help others. At the end of his life, the only answer was coldblooded, violent revolution, and anyone who got in the way was to be viewed as an enemy to the cause and then executed.

Even more than the movie, I love this book, by Patrick Symmes:



The reason I so enjoyed Chasing Che is because it paints such an interesting picture of Latin America, and it's one of the least-biased books on Che I have found. Plus, it's an easy read. Back to the subject, it's writer asks the same question I have: When did people become the means and not the end? When did the revolution itself become more important than the people it was supposed to help? The whole time I watched this movie, I just kept thinking how unfortunate it was that a person with such great potential, humanity and kindess could turn into such a "creep."

Well, I'm sure the true die-hard Che fans would argue with my interpretation of his life, but in my opinion hatefulness is never the answer. Take it or leave it.

And by the way, my only issue with the film was the statement that the CIA had a hand in his death. I know the CIA has had their hand in a good number of skeevy deals, but this was definitely not one of them. Here's where my Bolivian-by-marriage nationalistic sentiment will shine through: Those Bolivians are no dummies, and even though they may have had some U.S. army training, it's important to note that there was not a single U.S. shot fired in the execution of Guevara (in fact, the CIA thought the execution was "stupid" because it would make Che a martyr, which it did. Even my favorite commy professor agrees. ). Don't ever mess with a Bolivian. Those guys are tough.

Well, that's enough Bolivian foreign policy for one day, right? Have a great Saturday.

Scialle Rustica

On Tuesday before SnB I went yarn shopping at Black Sheep in SLC. I have an odd fascination with winding my yarn into center-pull balls (which is lame, because once I wind them, they're always too tight to pull from the center). I guess it reminds me of kittens, which I have begged for since I married Ryan but will never have because of his allergies. But who needs a kitten when you have one of these:



The black and the green will become an alien scarf for my brother (who got back together with Fluffy yesterday, by the way. Some break-up, huh?), and the purple yarn will go into the stash for later. My next WIP is the Windy City Scarf, which I'm making out of yarn (drum roll please) called Peace Fleece! I am going to call this yarn "rustic," which really just means it will probably be really itchy. But I couldn't resist because of the name and the gorgeous color combinations. Apparently the company helps with post-Cold War European development and helps historic enemies cooperate and prosper through trade, though I don't really know the details. One way or another, I can say I have a scarf made of Peace Fleece and can tell my liberal friends at USU that in my own small way I too am socially conscious and making an effort to contribute to global development.



Also, I did not have time to post this Wednesday, but Shanda's muppet scarf is completed (right on time too, because she has been very sick and is in need of a pick-me-up and this oughtta do it). If you are wondering why I have muppets on the brain, here are two reasons:



Yes, I live in a land of Elmo and Cheerios, and I love it.

A Poli Sci Tale

Once upon a time there was student called *Pretty Girl in Kimi's political science class. Pretty Girl was friends with *Vile Violet, who shall appear in later tales. Though Pretty Girl seemed like a not-so-nice person, Kimi decided to give her the benefit of the doubt, as pretty girls are often unfairly judged.

This changed one cold Wednesday evening when Kimi overheard Pretty Girl making not-so-nice comments to Vile Violet in the bathroom about several other students in the class, who had just given a well-spoken and well-researched (in Kimi's opinion) presentation on the political motivations of James Madison. "We are prettier and smarter than everyone in this class. How can they possibly appear intelligent or well-spoken compared to us? We are so much better than everyone, and our presentation will make them all look as stupid as they are" was the basic theme of Pretty Girl's not-so-nice comments.

Kimi pondered the not-so-niceness of what she had just heard on the way back to class. "Pretty girl must not be as intelligent as she thinks she is if she is making such comments in a public bathroom where other students may be lurking." Kimi reminded herself that she would graduate in May and would no longer be subjected to such lameness and breathed a sigh of relief.

Kimi's suspicions of said girl's not-so-niceness had just been confirmed, but one question still remained: Was she not-so-nice AND not-so-smart? Kimi looked at the floor to discover that Pretty Girl's pink Steve Madden platforms were ON THE WRONG FEET!

The moral of the story: If you're going to be snotty, you ought to make sure you have the brain cells to back it up.

The end.

*This story is based on true events. Names have been changed to protect the not-so-nice.

El Romantico Desesperado

So, here's the story. My brother Logan has been dating this girl. We will call her Fluffy, since that is what my family calls her. I don't know how she came to be known as Fluffy, as she does not have fluffy hair or any such thing. Anyway, Fluffy broke up with Logan on Sunday, the day before Valentine's Day. Here's the thing: he was crushed, but I don't know if he was crushed because he had just been dumped, or because he had just spent $60 on groceries to cook Fluffy a romantic Valentine's fettuccine dinner. (A Ben Folds Five Song comes to mind: "Give me my money back, I want my money back, you @#*&!") Well, I can't heal a broken heart, but I can cook fettuccine alfredo. So, doing the only thing I could think of to help, I bought all his groceries from him and cooked Fluffy's romantic dinner for Ryan. It was suggested that I should not cook my valentine a tainted dinner, but I just figured our love could redeem the break-up fetuccine. All I have to say is that Fluffy should have waited a week or so. Fluffy missed out. Her loss:



And yes, even the candles and the flowers were his idea. Oh, my poor sad, cute, hopelessly romantic brother... He is available now, you know.

Here is Logan's Fettuccine Alfredo recipe, which wasn't half bad:

12 oz. uncooked Fettucine
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Cook pasta and drain. In small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat; stir in cheese. Add cream. Blend well. Cook just until boiling and remove from heat. Stir in parsley. Toss hot pasta with sauce.

Shanda's muppet scarf is halfway finished. I will have to bring it to SnB tonight. Even though I never thought I would become a fan of hairy yarn, I have to admit I think I'm going to have to make one for myself.

Redneck Woman

It's official. I am a white trash mom. After getting back into Logan last night at 1:00 a.m., I woke this morning to discover during the breakfast scramble that there was no milk in the house. So, as my child sat happily eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in his diaper, I poured him a sippycup full of Tang. I suppose it is a step up from Kool-Aid (barely). The evidence of my white-trashyness:



However, I will be redeemed as soon as anyone sees me in project #4, this completely lovely "Ribbed-For-Her-Pleasure" Scarf, knit in Brown Sheep Co's Lamb's Pride Bulky 80% wool 20% mohair scarf, which I finished yesterday. On the other hand, it sheds; if I leave the house without it, they'll probably just think I live with a big hairy dog that I don't clean up after. White trashyness everywhere. Oh well. Give me a big "hell, yeah".



The next WIP (I really need to figure out how to do those WIP progress bars I keep seeing everywhere!) is for my sister Shanda, which she will love because she's 13, and 13-year-olds always love weird things. It is called the "Coney Island Fireworks" scarf, but after knitting about a foot in this funny eyelash yarn, all I can think about is muppets.



And after that I'm going to make something for my sad little brother, who just got dumped by a girl who he was considering proposing to. More details on that sordid story later. I am not yet at liberty to divulge, not that anyone probably wants to hear about it anyway. Do you think he'd like an alien scarf? I'm also debating something Harry Potterish, as I just found this great site.

Since I will be all alone today having a big anti-Valentine's party with baby Matthew while Ryan is at school, I figure I will have lots of time to get some things done. Happy Heart Day!

Cabin Fever

Every time I set foot out of my apartment all I can think about is that I wish we lived in Chicago. Or even Austin. Or anywhere civilized. It's not that I can't handle the cold, though four months of snow with two more to go can certainly leave a girl somewhat depressed. And it's not that I don't love the small country charm of Logan. But how can there be so little to do in a town, even a small one?

Last night we spent two hours trying to come up with something to do. Since winter started, we have seen every movie (both on video and in the theater) that we care to see, so movies were out. There were no sports events going on. As I was to the point of settling for a night in, Ryan started getting engrossed in "Oh my darling Clementine" on TV. This was not a matter of boredom or desperation, he just honestly likes those old lame cowboy shows. I, on the other hand, was bored but not that desperate. "I'll go get my coat. Let's see if we can find a restaurant we haven't tried out yet."

The amazing thing is, though Logan's got some decent dining options, we have hit EVERY SINGLE RESTAURANT IN TOWN over the last six months! I was dying for French food, or at least something different and unusual. We went to Quiznos and ate salad with fake blue cheese.

Next, the typical Friday night date: BORDERS. Here's how the conversation usually goes:

"What do you want to do now?"

"I don't know, what's still open?"

"Borders and WalMart."

And so we always end up at Borders. I have to laugh because every time we go to Borders, we always run into at least 4 or 5 people we know. We're not socialites. We don't know that many people! Apparently we are not the only citizens of Logan short on entertainment options.

Yesterday Lance Armstrong was on Oprah, which made me want to be out on my bike SO bad. I want to live in a city that is pedestrian-friendly, where you can take a stroller without worring about getting hit by some jacked-up truck or plowing it through a drift that hasn't been shovelled. And once I go out walking, I want there to be somewhere to walk TO! An aquarium, a museum, a coffeeshop with poetry readings, ANYTHING!

If anything can provide temporary relief for cabin fever, it's chocolate. (I'm such a foodie, you know?) Here is yesterday's to-die-for form of self-medication (gracias a Martha Stewart Living). These are called truffle cakes, but I prefer to think of them as Death by Chocolate. I do not even want to know how many calories are in these. Try some out. You can thank me later:

DEATH BY CHOCOLATE



5 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus more for muffin tin
1 Tbs. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
14 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (please do not even THINK about using ghetto-cheap chocolate for this!)
2 Tbs. sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp. salt

1. Preheat oven to 375. Butter 6-cup muffin tin and dust with flour.
2. Melt chocolate, butter, 1 Tbs. sugar in medium heatproof bowl over pan of simmering water; whisk occasionally until smooth. Remove from heat and let cool 3 to 5 minutes. Process eggs and remaining sugar in food processor until pale and doubled in volume, about 2 minutes. Sift flour and salt into egg mixture; pulse to combine. Add chocolate mixture 1/4 cup at a time; pulse each addition until combined, about 10 times. (Batter will be thick.)
3. Spoon mixture into prepared muffin tin, filling cups three-quarters full; swirl tops with back of spoon. Bake until tops are springy to the touch, about 18 to 20 minutes. Immediately turn out onto wire racks; reinvert, and let cool.

P.S. These are best chilled or at room temperature. Don't worry that they're doughy. That's how they're supposed to be.

And just to prove I've been making good use of my cooped-up-in-the-house time, here's knitting project number 3, the kitschy kerchief, which I started and finished yesterday. I know it's simple, but I'm still trying to learn the basics. I think I made it a little too big. Would a felted kerchief be stupid? One way or another, it will be great to have after yoga class.

The End of Shopping.

A thought from Ryan on knitting:

"You know, Kimi, now that you know how to sew AND knit, you could probably just MAKE all our clothes, and there's no reason to ever go to a mall again."

BWAHAHAHA. Don't I have a funny husband?

This is me. 

"Kimi, you should get a blog."

That's what I keep hearing. I only recently discovered this whole blogging thing and have dabbled with the idea of getting one. The apprehension comes from not really knowing what to blog about. I don't think I could possibly limit myself to just blogging about photography, or knitting, or food, or any of the other things I so dearly love. Miriam, a knitting buddy I recently met who I already adore, says to just blog about random anything. So, welcome to my random anything blog.

Last night Miriam and I went to the Salt Lake City Stitch n' Bitch. This was my second week. I was happy to have someone to drive up with, and even though I don't know Miriam all that well yet and have no idea what she thinks of me, I can honestly say I had fun the whole hour and half drive up and back from SLC. Miriam tells me she is a weird girl and a bad member of her religion but I find her to be an extremely kind, thoughtful and normal (in her own fun, zany way, of course) person. I hope we will be friends.

Stitch n' Bitch is a hoot. They pride themselves on being "witty, opinionated feminists." I have met some charming funny ladies, though I always fear if they discover my conservative ways I will be booted out. I have studied political science at USU for the last 4 years, so I'm no dummy. Even though I have liberal professors who I dearly love and conservative ones who I really can't stand, I have my reasons for my right-wingness. However, I am horribly shy and never well-spoken. And I think that an outspoken liberal could probably eat me alive. Hopefully I will not be booted though. Thus far they seem like a friendly enough bunch.

Here is the thing about blogging. I am going to have to make a rule that I can't do it until my house is clean. And my homework is done. And my toddler is fed. As I was chatting about blogs with Ayla, Jessica and Kate last night, I predicted that if I got one, my toddler would starve, my husband would leave, I would flunk out of school (in my last semester, I might add), and at the end of it all I would have left would be a blog. Ayla's response was "But maybe you might get a following!" I had to laugh at that. With that said, I'm off to clean my house, and finish my homework, and feed my toddler.

The end.

Kimi