Bleggggghhhh. I want to die.

I have a fever of 102 and don't feel like doing anything, including writing a blog of more than one sentence, so the Texas report will have to wait until tomorrow. Have a nice day.

Just when I thought every last spontaneous urge had been squashed....

Wednesday, 6:00 p.m.: Ryan asks, "So, what do you think about moving to Texas?"

Kimi responds, "I don't really know. I've never been anywhere but the Houston airport. Maybe we should go see it."

Ryan asks, "Yeah maybe......when should we go?"

Kimi responds, "I dunno....how about today?"

7:00 p.m. Baby Monkey is dropped off with his grandma, and Kimi and Ryan set off on a grand adventure.

Monday, 9:30 p.m.: Kimi and Ryan return from grand adventure. Full details tomorrow. I am exhausted.

I hate her because she lives in Paris.

This blog REALLY makes me want to move to France. It is holding a strange power over me.

Toothpick Knitting for the Non-Toothpick

Here is one problem with visiting my mom in Idaho: Chocolate. Everywhere. Now why, you would ask, would I consider chocolate a problem? That is just the problem. I don't consider it at all. I just eat it. And eat it. And eat it. I have no willpower. Is it possible to be addicted to chocolate? I mean literally? I've been wondering. Anyway, because of this, plus the fact that I sit around the whole time I'm up there, I feel like a hippo. It's not so much that I have instantly become fatter (though it's not outside the realm of possibility). I just feel fatter. And yuckier. Somehow, despite the presence of disgusting amounts of chocolate and other yummy garbage for the hips, my mom somehow manages to stay the size of a toothpick. Uggh, it makes me sick. This means I'm going to have to start over on my get-healthy plan, which is pretty much what I do every Monday, but then it only lasts until Thursday.

In the latest knitting news, I finally picked a knitting project: A springy sweater (like the season, not like springy sproingy) called Lucky out of Stitch n' Bitch Nation. Maybe I am losing my mind because it is knit in clover lace pattern on size 2 needles with this skimpy little baby yarn (and keep in mind that I am not a seasoned pro and that this is only my 10th project), but I like it anyway. I just couldn't bear to think about chunky winter clothing any longer. I hope I don't hate it when it's finished, and I hope I won't be too fat by then to wear it. Due to the "toothpick knitting," as the salesperson at the Pocatello yarn store described what I have planned, you won't be seeing knitting news or pictures from me for a LONG time (except for a picture of a Yoga Mat bag, which just needs stitched together). After a weekend of knitting, I have 5 inches of sleeve done. Go me.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend.

I'm sure there is some mom out there who can appreciate this.

Yesterday, upon finishing my blog, I turned around to find this:



Mr. Matthew, in the bedroom, with Black Pigment Ink.

The Crammin'

I am chubby and borderline diabetic and really need to do something about it for reasons of both fashion/vanity and health. So, today is the beginning of Self Challenge Week 1. My sister and I both decided we would try it again this year. Week one involves 3 days of cardio (which I already did today!), 2 days of strength training, and eating 90% healthy food. so of course, yesterday had to involve lots of junk food (the crammin' before the famine, as my sister called it). Part of the farewell to bad food involved this recipe (I'm sure this will do wonders for the blood sugar!):

Gateau Breton



Glaze:
1 tsp. egg yolk, from your 6 (see below)
1 Tbs. water

Cake:
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. sugar
1 cup plus 2 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut into cubes
6 large egg yolks
10-inch springform pan, buttered well

Preheat oven to 375. Mix glaze and set aside.
Put flour into bowl of free standing mixer, stir in sugar, add butter and egg yolks. Blend with dough-hook attachment intil dough is smooth and golden. Scoop dough into pan and smooth top with floured hand (dough will be sticky). Brush cake with glaze and mark a lattice design on top with prongs of fork. Bake for 15 minutes, turn oven down to 350, and bake for another 25 minutes until top is golden and cake is firm to the touch. Cool completely before serving. Serves 8-10.

It has become one of my favorites because it is super-simple to cook. It is also a lot more subtle than a lot of sweets. Not so gooey and sugary. And I can have it with tea and pretend to be English classy.

Just for your info, the recipe is from this cookbook, which I had to have not just because of my baking obsession, but also because of the great name:



Enjoy.

Oregon Tote FO

Well, it's true. Felting will hide all of your screw-ups. Here is the finished Oregon Tote, (in Brown Sheep Bulky LP Spice and Sunwashed Gold, or something like that, to answer Shannon's question) which I am happy about because I now have something besides a grocery bag to pack projects in. It's shorter and fatter than the sample I saw at Black Sheep, for some reason, but it will serve its purpose.



And also, because I never bothered to post the pic, the Sparkle Hat, with no sparkles, because I'd feel silly wearing anything with sparkles. Matthew is a cuter model than I am, but the hat is mine.



My mom has just informed me that the ballet wrap will indeed make me look fat. This has inspired me to do 2 things:

1. Self Challenge 2005 (I swear I start this every year.)
2. Pick a different project (indecision, indecision...)

And to answer yesterday's question, the book nearest my computer is How Democratic is the American Constitution, by Robert A. Dahl, which I am reading because I have to. I am taking a democracy theory class from Federal Judge Ted Stewart, which is interesting, but would be a lot more fun if I knew more about political theory and less about foreign policy.

Book Meme

Just a funny little addition for the day, passed along by a friend:

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your journal along with these instructions.
5. Don't search around and look for the "coolest" book you can find. Do what's actually next to you.

"But two questions immediately arise. First, is political equality a realistic goal? Second, is it really a desirable goal?"

And yes, this is actually a book I am reading. Can anyone guess what it is or why I'm reading it?

Nice Knitters

I have discovered one nice thing about blogging about knitting. There are always wonderful helpful souls like Susan and Margene around to help you out, answer your probably-silly beginner's questions, and help you feel at ease about whatever mistakes you may have made. Thank you, experienced knitter/bloggers. Today is Margene's one year blog-o-versary, so pop on over and wish her a Happy Blogday.

The lovely group of Utah knitters/bloggers makes me wish I could go to SnB more often. (It's a 1 1/2 hour drive for me). I have missed two weeks in a row, which makes me sad because they are a fun bunch.

The Oregon Tote is almost finished. I just bound off one row of knit cord and have 2 more to go, plus the straps. In an attempt to break away from my pattern of finishing projects in book-order due to indecision, I think my next project will be the ballet wrap on the cover of Interweave Knits, which I really hope will not make me look fat. Am I getting in over my head? Maybe. Sweaters intimidate me, but I figure I can always frog it if it ends up in disaster.