Azura's Vices

So Much to Read, So Little Time

2011-06-27T20:34:00.005-04:00

Upon the discovery of an amazing discount bookstore (worth the drive to St Catherines!), I find myself with a stack of new books to read. Glancing across my bookshelves, I caught sight of several other titles I hadn't read yet. So, grabbing my trusty pen and pad, I made a list (I *heart* lists) of all the fiction books I've bought, but haven't read yet.

I'm pleased that the list isn't as long as I feared.

Here they are, in no order:

"The Dragon and the Unicorn" by A.A. Attansio
"Mistress of Rome" by Kate Quinn
"The Rosetti Letter" by Christi Phillips
"The Tsarina's Daughter" by Carolly Erickson
"Rampant" by Diana Peterfreund

"The Lady Elizabeth" by Alison Weir
"Namaah's Kiss" by Jacqueline Carey (I have to read the rest of the series first!)
"The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana" by Umberto Eco (I went through an Umberto Eco phase that died out before I read this one)
"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" by Stieg Larsson (I may never read this one)
"Quiver" by Holly Luhning

"The Replacements" by Brenna Yovanoff
"Sidekicks" by Jack D Ferraiolo
"Not Suitable for Family Viewing" by Vicki Grant (an autographed copy, from OLA - this also won the Red Maple award for 2011!)
"Between Two Ends" by David Ward
"Dawn" by Octavia E Butler

"Shabanu" and "Haveli" by Suzanne Fisher Staples
"The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
"I, Claudius" by Robert Graves
"The War of the Worlds" by H.G. Wells
"Wizard's First Rule" by Terry Goodkind

"Eye of the Dragon" by Stephen King
"Kushiel's Avatar" by Jacqueline Carey
"The Good Fairies of New York" by Martin Millar

The conclusion of this list? I have to stop buying books :)
Also, what should I read next?

Well Travelled Cat

2011-01-07T14:43:00.006-05:00

I am moving, yet again.
I hate packing.

So far, my front hall closet and the majority of my bookcases are packed up in boxes. I wish this was all of my stuff, but alas, I have plenty more. I've already kicked a box full of books so many times that I thought my toe was broken. It wasn't.

As I blog (instead of pack - I'm developing an aversion of cardboard), I'm thinking of all the places I've lived. Or, more specifically, all the places my poor cat Hermes has lived.

He was born in Hamilton.
Moved to live with me in London (in two apartments).
There was a summer or two in Brampton, I'm sure.
Moved with me to Gatineau for a few months.
Back to London.
Back to Ottawa.
Back to Brampton.
Two apartments in Toronto.
And now, Brantford.

This isn't counting the numerous trips to our family cottage for weekends and summer vacations. Or the trips to stay with Aunt Heather and Uncle Mike while I've been away.

It's nice that he's very stoic about the whole situation. True, it's a royal pain in the ass to get him into his carrier, but once he's in there, he's pretty much resigned to his fate. He'll not make a sound as I haul his fat self down to my car, shove him in the back seat, and proceed to drive with him for several hours. Once, on the way to Ottawa, I forgot he was even there until he meowed to remind me!

If only Hamlet were the same ...

201st post ... 6 months later

2011-01-04T08:40:00.005-05:00

I am a bad, bad blogger.

So it seems like I haven't actually posted anything since July. Not that nothing has happened. In fact, loads of things have happened! I just forgot to blog about it ;)

I think the most important thing to happen since July 2010 (or in 2010 at all) was the birth of my niece. She's absolutely adorable, and I finally have someone to knit baby things for :) So far, she's been the recipient of 4 pairs of booties, 2 hats, and a sweater. I'm in the process of knitting a baby cape for her too!

The second awesomest thing that happened in 2010 was my trip to Egypt. That was November, and I can't believe that it was 3 months ago. Time certainly flies.

And my big big news for 2011 (so far) is my move to Brantford, where I will start a shiny new job! That's my current stress factor right now. I hate moving.

So, happy 2011 everyone who reads this, and I'll try not to wait 6 more months before I blog again!

200th Post!!!

2010-07-20T13:55:00.005-04:00

Using the excuse that I'm a Youth Services Librarian, and that I have to read it for my job, I managed to snag a copy of the Twilight series novella "The Short Second Life of Breen Tanner".

Now, since I'm not a Twi-hard (I only read the books once, which was enough, and I've hated both the movies I've seen), I couldn't remember who Bree Tanner was. Thank goodness for Wikipedia.

So far, I like this book much better than the other four Twilight books. First of all, it's short. Second of all, it's not whiny. Third of all, no Bella or Edward or mopey teenage angsty love triangles. And in spite of what Stepehenie Meyer did to vampires, it's very interesting to read from the vampire's point of view - especially a "newborn" vampire, who doesn't necessarily know what it is to be a vampire.

I'm not bad mouthing the original Twilight books - I found them highly entertaining to read, but not exactly what I would consider great literature. Some of the leaps of plot taken made me wonder if the story would reach the other side, or plummet into the gaping chasm below. Still, it was exactly what I expected from fluff-reading.

Busy Month of May

2010-05-18T12:57:00.004-04:00

Wow. I've been neglecting the ol' blog again. I tend to do this from time to time, when my life gets exceedingly busy.

So, let's review, starting with knitting projects. A few posts ago (whoa - way back in February!), I was talking about all the beautiful things I've been knitting. Here's a status update:

1. Simone - flare sleeved cowl sweater
Hmm ... haven't touched this one in months. But I did get a good chunk of it done before getting side tracked. Hopefully I'll finish it this summer!

2. Proposition - entrelac gloves
After various attempts at getting gauge, this project is temporarily frogged. I will work on it again though! I still love it!

3. Lady Eleanor - entrelac stole
Ooo ... I'm *this close* to finishing it. It's huge and unweildy now, so it's tough for me to work on it. But it will be done! And (hopefully) soon!

4. Clapotis - rite of passage
Yeah. Not happening. Not yet, anyway.

5. Patchwork Trio Afghan - for Mom
So I got all the yarn for this one, figured out how to do the squares, gave a bunch of balls to my Mom so she could do her part ... and then my sister gave us some terrific news.

So, what have I been knitting, if all these projects seem to be paused? Well, based on my sister's terrific news, I've been a little bit baby crazy. So 99% of my knitting projects have been baby booties and I have plans for other baby things. Once this is done (and the kid is born), I'll get back to my regularly scheduled knitting.

That's my knitting update. Other than that, I've been seeing a new awesome guy and we've been hanging around together a lot. There's Dee's rapidly approaching wedding, which resulted in a fantastic bachelorette party ... first trip of the year to Wonderland with Corinna ... and a bunch of other great stuff that's been keeping me busy. So yeah. That explains the lack of updates, but I'll try to do better!

Brooding

2010-04-14T19:28:00.001-04:00

Alone she sat,
Alone she thought,
Of happier times
She used to know ...

Annual Classic - DONE!

2010-03-26T11:57:00.003-04:00

I did it. And I did it early this year.

I've read my classic novel for 2010. This year's selection was "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and Through The Looking-Glass"

I really enjoyed these two short books, and I was impressed how much of it was actually included in the Disney "Alice In Wonderland". (I suppose that's because the Disney movie was made before everything had to be censored to avoid damaging the fragile minds of children).

Anyway...

I loved the weird Wonderland-logic and all the play on words. I loved the poetry and nonsensical songs, and I loved reading the notes in the back to see how Carroll incorporated snippets from Alice's life into his story. I can only imagine how delighted Alice must have been.

I also discovered a song in "Alice's Adventures In Wonderland" that I learned in choir when I was in grade 1 or 2. I could only recall the first verse, so I was pleasantly surprised to see it in the book I was reading!

So, I give the movie ten stars, and the books ten stars (out of five, of course), and highly recommend them both.

And since I finished my classic so early this year (and since I kinda cheated and picked a really short one), maybe I'll read another ... but after I work through my current growing list of fiction!

Next on my list: a book inspired by Wonderland called "The Looking Glass Wars"

Annual Classic

2010-03-03T20:01:00.005-05:00

Every year, I try to read a classic novel. Last year was "The Count of Monte Cristo" (which I'm still impressed I finished) and this year is proving to be a toss up. Here are my choices:

"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass" by Lewis Carroll

Yes, there's movie hype, but I've been wanting to read this one for a while. I've seen the Disney-fied version of the story, and I'm dying to see the new Tim Burton version, but I'd also like to know the original. I remember as a child watching a live action version of "Through the Looking Glass" that scared the pants off me! My best friend and I would make a pillow fort, get big bowls of strawberry ice cream, and watch the dragon scene.

"Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austin

I have been very resistant to Jane Austin my whole life. I've never seen the movie versions, I've never read the written versions, and honestly I'm not 100% sure what they're about. And since I can't remember why I detest Jane Austin so much, perhaps I'll give this one a go this year. I've heard good things, and it would pave the way for this :

"The Hunchback of Notre Dame" by Victor Hugo

This has been sitting on my shelf for a while, waiting to be read. At first, I thought this would be my classic of 2010, but I've been reading a lot of Victor Hugo and Alexandre Dumas, so I thought perhaps I'd branch into a different author this year. This is another classic where I've seen the Disney-fied version and would like to know the true one!

So those are my choices. What do you think? What should I read?

Home Decor!

2010-02-21T12:52:00.005-05:00

Apparently one of the side effects to growing up and watching a lot of decorating shows on basic cable, is the urge to decorate your own apartment. Sadly, it's getting to the point where I wish I lived in a two bedroom so I could keep going. I have to remind myself not to pile too much stuff on the walls, or else instead of nicely decorated, it'll look crazy-person cluttered.

Please stop me if my apartment starts to look crazy-person cluttered.

The bathroom is still a work-in-progress, but I did end up finding an awesome way to store my shampoo bottles and such. All this needs now is a larger rubber ducky for the top shelf :)

I'm super happy with how my bedroom turned out. I just bought new curtains today, so once I get the black-out blind up, I'll add them and then my bedroom will be just about done (well, except the two new dressers I want... and the shelf from Ikea... and bamboo for my vase...)

Years ago, my sister went to France and brought me back six beautiful prints of my favourite tapestry series (what? Don't you have a favourite tapestry series?) called La Dame A La Licorne. Anyway, now they're finally framed and hanging on my wall (excuse the flash glare)

And they have a friend!

This little owl is actually a book end, but I could only find one (he was on sale) and when I put him on my shelf, I couldn't see his cute owly self, so instead I hung him on my wall!

And finally, today's decorating question: What do you prefer, leaf or rectangle?

And this isn't all my decorating creations! These are just the pictures I could take without having to clean up my messy apartment ;)

Man, I feel growned up!

Rant

2010-02-13T22:17:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure if you've heard or not, but Amazon.ca has changed their delivery service to UPS.

I'm sure this is great if you're a stay-at-home hermit, who doesn't sleep, shower, or generally leave the house, but if you're a regular person who, oh I don't know, goes to work, it means you'll never get your package.

Here's how ordering from Amazon used to work:
1. Place your order
2. Wait a few days
3. Receive a notice that Canada Post could not deliver your package
4. Pick up your package the next day from your closest post office

Here's how it works now:
1. Place your order
2. Wait a few days
3. Get a message on your phone at 3:00pm saying UPS tried (and failed) to deliver your package because you were at work. Wait a day.
4. Get a message on your phone at 4:00pm saying that UPS tried again (and failed again) to deliver your package because you were at work.
5. Seriously contemplate staying home from work so you get your damned package. Decide a paycheck is worth more in the long run than books.
6. Get a message on your phone at 4:00pm saying that UPS tried again (and failed again) to deliver your package because you were at work. This is their final attempt.
7. Phone UPS to find out where the hell your package is. Get put on hold for 30 minutes. You can't even enjoy the bad music because you're interrupted every 10 seconds with "Your call is important to us" although clearly it isn't or else someone would have answered you by now.
8. Have a 30 second conversation with a human on where the depot is. You have 5 days to pick up your package.
9. Wait for a day off (that's a weekday if you're lucky) to drive the 40 minutes across town to the depot to pick up your package.
10. Wait in line for 30 minutes.
11. Finally give your tracking number to a person, who vanishes into the back.
12. Wait another 15 minutes for the person to reemerge with your package.
13. Drive the 40 minute back home with your package.

Hooray! Amazon has made it so much easier for you to get your mail! Thanks, Amazon!

I'm switching to Chapters/Indigo. At least I'll only have to drive 5 minutes to the Shopper's Drug Mart to get my package with them!

(Incidentally, you can have UPS drop off your package at your nearest UPS store ... for a monthly fee. Seriously)

Knitting - On The Needles

2010-02-06T19:10:00.007-05:00

So it appears as if I have a rather severe case of start-itis, meaning that there are a bunch of projects that I want to start and complete.

(note: photos are not the things I'm making ... well, they are, but their not the exact ones I'm making. Meaning I'm stealing the photos from other places to show you what the heck I'm talking about)

1. Simone - flare sleeved cowl sweater

My first attempt at a me-size sweater. I'm working on a boring part right now, just straight knitting the back for a good long time. Still, I'm stupidly proud that I'm making a sweater, so I can still make myself knit the boring parts.

2. Proposition - entrelac gloves

Another first - my first entrelac attempt. Ok, so far I've only done the 10 rows of ribbing at the bottom but I plan on knitting more tonight and possible doing the entrelac part tomorrow. I'm excited to try this out. Entrelac is, I think, one of the most beautiful designs you can do with yarn. And keeping that in mind, once I finish the gloves, I'll try this:

3. Lady Eleanor - entrelac stole

Pictures of this made out of Noro Taiyo (which is what I'll be using) made me squee out loud. Good thing I was at home! I'm absolutely dying to wrap this around me, so I'm hoping that the entrelac gloves won't be the end of me and entrelac ;)

4. Clapotis - rite of passage

Since nearly all my knitterly friends have either made (or are making) a Clapotis, I feel like it's a rite of passage for knitters to make one. A kind of fiber bar mitzvah (or bat mitzvah, I suppose). So once I find the elusive last skein of Noro Taiyo that I need to have enough to make a full size Clapotis, I will undertake this rite of passage myself!

And yes, I do have a gorgeous Clapotis that I adore, made by the wonderful Heather, but I feel like I should make my own to prove to the world that I Am A Knitter :)

5. Patchwork Trio Afghan - for Mom

couldn't find a picture of the actual afghan...

Finally, the last project I want to tackle, is this afghan for Mom. She said she would knit part of it, so it'll be a joint venture. I just need to wait for the 26 balls of yarn I ordered to come in. This is going to take me a loooong time to make.

Well, it looks like I'm going to be busy for quite a while. Who's up for a Stitch 'n Bitch?

Mourning

2010-02-03T21:31:00.002-05:00

You are dead to me
A stone cold corpse
Beneath the earth

Your honeyed words
So sweet in their insincerity
Do not reach me now
Buried beneath 30 feet of dirt
60 layers of silence

Yet here I stand at your grave
In mourning for a statue
Breathtaking but selfish
Those actions meaning more
Than honeyed words could convey

I was the worm that now
Crawls through your flesh.
I was to you a trifle
You were to me my heart

I mourn as the worms
Pick at your skin.
I struggle to restore to my life
Through the void you left.

I wish the grave were empty
Although I placed you there
With my own two hands

Stripping you of your life as you did me

I live and you remain dead

Uh oh...

2010-01-30T08:40:00.001-05:00

The Magicians

2010-01-28T19:22:00.007-05:00

Were you one of those kids who, after reading The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe went around testing every cupboard and closet in your house for a secret portal to Narnia? Or were you one of those kids who tried to learn magic tricks because it was as close to magic as you could get?

I was one of those kids, and so was Quentin. The difference between the two of us, though, is that Quentin found his magic portal to the world of Brakebills college.

I suspect Lev Grossman was one of those kids too.

The book reads like an adult Harry Potter or a distopian Narnia. The characters in this book, upon discovering magic, do not suddenly find that their problems are over, but rather that their problems intensify. Quentin believes that once he finds his way to the land of Fillory (the book's version of Narnia), the emptiness in his life will be over and learning magic is just a stepping stone.

It's a great read, definitely an adult fantasy novel, but many of the themes would be appreciated by non-fantasy readers as well. Pick it up and give it a try, especially if you've ever gone searching for Narnia yourself!

Avatar

2010-01-18T15:02:00.002-05:00

Now, I know that everyone in the free world has seen this Avatar:

Don't get me wrong - it was an amazing movie. Beautiful scenery, awesome special effects, etc. Kind of a Pocahontas-meet-Dances-With-Wolves-meet-Ferngully, only more blue.

The Avatar that I'm especially looking forward to is this one:

Which is a live-action movie version of this:

Which is one of the best non-anime cartoons I have *ever* seen (and I watch a lot of cartoons)!

So even though The Last Airbender (I guess they couldn't call it by the full title the show has, which is Avatar: The Last Airbender) is a live-action movie directed by M. Night Shamalan (or however you spell it), and I know it can't compare the the sheer awesomeness of the cartoon, I still can't wait to see it!

*movie squee*!

Rough start to 2010

2010-01-07T11:40:00.005-05:00

So, thanks to the magic of Facebook, it isn't a secret that the guy I've been seeing and I broke up. It happened Jan 2nd (after he didn't spend New Years with me) and I've been kind of reeling ever since.

But, thanks to the wonderful support of my amazing friends, I'm getting by. But I'm not going to turn this blog into a sob story ... I just wanted to highlight two amazing books that are really helping me out now.

Have you seen the movie, "He's Just Not That Into You"? Did you know it started out as a book?

Anyway, the book is not like the movie (which was also very good). It's a great way for you to clue in whether or not the guy you're seeing is actually into you. Believe me, it was an eye opener. I was sure my guy was drifting away, but I didn't think that he had fallen out of love for me until I read this book and realized that he wasn't into me anymore. It was sad, but reading it has helped me come to grips with his feelings.

So, one you've realized he's not that into you, you can read this:

Same author, but this time he's writing with his wife. Ways to cope with your break up, and stories by other people on how they reacted very badly to their break ups to help you out. Great advice, and if you feel yourself slipping into the "maybe I'll just call him to see if he's suffering like me" phase, they have steps you can take to ensure that you don't.

Currently, I'm in the "Don't See Him Or Talk To Him For Sixty Days" phase. After that, sometime in early March, I'll see if I still miss him or even care.

(And if you're thinking "What if he reads this public blog?", well, I don't really care if he does. And also, I don't think he will. If he's not into me anymore, why would he go out of his way to read my blog?)

There's one more book by the same author of the previous books, which I can't seem to find in Canada or the U.S. but I would really like to own:
I've only seen in on the UK version of Amazon. It was published 2007, so it's not that old. I'll have to see if I can get this somewhere. Thank goodness for the magic of the internet!

As for me, I'm doing ok. But if you're concerned, drop me a line or invite me out someplace!

End of a Decade

2009-12-31T08:55:00.009-05:00

Well, I haven't really posted here in a long time... lots of stuff going on in my life that I didn't really want to share with the internet, and the stuff that I could share was kind of boring ;) So here's my annual year-in-review post.

2009 was certainly a year of ups and downs. Lots of trials, not just for me, but for a lot of my loved ones. Lots of firsts. Lots of joy. Lots of sadness. I grew up an awful lot this year, learned about myself, and am resolving for 2010 to take it a bit easier on myself.

2009

January

Skiing with friends at Blue Mountain
(got a new ski outfit for the occasion!)

February

My awesome 29th birthday
(shopping, pool, pizza, good friends ... who could ask for more?)

March

Trip to Montreal with Dee!

April

Medieval Times!

Weekend at the cottage
(putting Mark to work)

May

Science Centre!

June

Book singing with Neil Gaiman :D

July

Ah, the cottage in the summer...

August

Canada's Wonderland with Corinna!

Zoo!
(The banana plant tried to kill me)

Michael's birthday
(yes, we got him a remote controlled Dalek)

Stitch 'n Pitch 2009!

Annual cottage vacation
(with a visit to the Haliburton Highlands museum)

September

Bedroom Redecoration Project
(still not complete... gotta buy new furniture)

Choosing Halloween costumes
(this was *so much fun*)

October

Nuit Blanche

Pumpkin carving with Heather and Mike D

Halloween cruise!
(*so much fun*)

November

Bowmanville adventure
(went for a job interview, Alex tagged along, had fun exploring!)

Hamlet steals my knitted goth bee

December

Saw the King Tut exhibit at the AGO
(awesome!)

Baked gingerbread cookies with Corinna

Christmas!

Bloggin' at the cottage!

2009-09-02T13:21:00.007-04:00

I love vacations. I'm having an awesome fantabulous time here. It soooooo relaxing I don't want to leave! I'm sitting outside, on the deck, in the sun, typing away on Ophelia (my netbook - I have a thing for Hamlet inspired names right now) and watching the annual chipmunk eat peanuts from Corinna's hand.

The chipmunk just ran across my keyboard! He was so light he didn't even push any keys! And all because Corinna ate his peanuts ;)

Ok, back to my vacation. The first weekend was kinda rainy, but during the brief non-rainy parts, I went out and took some pictures:

Playing with the colours... everything is black and white except for the blue of the hummingbird feeder

Then the weather got a bit better... and I got a bit bored with reading, knitting, and FFXII so I played with the timer on my camera:

Trying to look all thoughtful...

Look at that beautiful sky!

Then Corinna came up and we went to the Scuplture Garden and Haliburton Highlands Museum. We were trying to get all edumacated while we were up here, relaxing :)

Not a statue - a real deer! So pretty!

And finally, for this post anyway, this year's chipmunk that Corinna has named "Alvin"

Latest Good Book

2009-08-17T20:12:00.003-04:00

Again, I've been neglecting my poor blog. But I come to you with another must-read book:

Graceling, by Kristin Cashore. I'm a little less than halfway through this book, but I was hooked after the first page.

The world in which this book is set has people who are born with a Grace - an ability that makes them better at some things than other people. Some are Graced with cooking, with swimming, with talking backwards, or any number of things. For Katsa, neice of King Randa, she is Graced with killing... and it isn't a Grace she particularly likes.

Most Graced people live as outcasts, useful for their talent but otherwise shunned. Katsa's Grace makes her the King's dog, and she's sent out on any number of horrible assignments by his order. It's not until Katsa meets the mysterious Po that she decides to take her life into her own hands...

And that's as far as I am in the book so far. It's a fabulous read, very engaging, full of likeable characters. I highly recommend it to fantasy lovers :)

Sims 3

2009-07-14T18:40:00.005-04:00

Okay, since I'm enjoying Sims 3 so much (ooo... new and shiny!), I thought I'd share a few screencaps. The two main characters are Desdemona Lotus (who has a twin sister named Ophelia) and Dennis Duckworth (who is insane) :D

Now I didn't start taking pictures until after they'd finished dating and Desdemona abandons her sister and moves in with Dennis. Then, he decides to take her to a secluded beach at sunset.

And Dennis proposes to Desdemona! (Oh, the graphics on this game are amazing!)

*Awwww*

I just took this picture because Dennis came home from work after a "failed experiment" :)

Dennis and Desdemona take a cab to their wedding :)

Desdemona talks to Ophelia, who is kinda bitter that her sister is getting married and she's not :)

Dennis and Desdemona exchange rings :)

*applause* as the bride and groom smooch (gods I *love* the graphics!)

Then something weird happened... one of the wedding guests up and died at the wedding! Talk about a buzz kill!

And not long after getting married, Desdemona finds herself expecting (the maternity pjs are much nicer in this game than Sims 2)

Aaaah! The baby is coming! In this game, your Sim can go to the hospital to deliver :)

And since Dennis was eating, Desdemona goes to the hospital on her bike :D

And baby Daniel is born! *applause* ... ... I wanted a girl :(

So there's a brief glimpse at Sims 3 :)

Distracted by Life

2009-07-08T09:22:00.004-04:00

I've really, really been neglecting the ol' blog. Apologies to anyone out there who still reads this. Without getting into any details, let's just say my life has been a roller coaster ride the past few months with too many ups and downs.

Let's see... what I have I been working on?

Well, I've been knitting a gorgeous shawl out of the Noro Chirimen that Heather picked up for me at the Yarn Frolic (which I couldn't attend because, alas, I was working). Originally I was going to use it to make a sweater, but I really need a shawl for the summer (work is overly air conditioned) and the colours are so lovely!

And like usual, I don't have a picture of it. Sorry :(

The other thing occupying my time?

I've only had it for a few days, but it's oodles of fun :D

I also finished reading "The Count of Monte Cristo" (I'm stupidly proud of this - it's 1243 pages with really small type!) and I recommend it to anyone who has the time to read it.

Also, everyone should read "The Mystery of Grace" by Charles de Lint. I read it not knowing at all what it was about, and enjoyed it more that way. It's a fabulous read, supremely well written, and difficult to put down. Trust me, go read it :)

That's about it for my update. Once I figure out how to take pictures in Sims 3, I'll show you some of the wacky things you can do in the new game.

And once I get someone to take pictures of me in my recent knitting accomplishments, I'll post them too!

An Evening With Neil Gaiman

2009-06-12T09:14:00.004-04:00

Here's the picture edition of going to see "An Evening With Neil Gaiman"
(told you I'd eventually get the photos off my camera!)

I really liked the poster

Blurry Neil Gaiman with the moderator
(no flashes allowed, hence the blurriness... sorry)

Another blurry Neil Gaiman
(well, the same one, actually, but this is a different photo)

Signing my copy of "The Graveyard Book"
(which everyone should read!)

On the subway home, with my signed book
(*squee!*)

I had such a fun time with Dee and Pete (except when they scared the bejeezus out of me at the Tim Horton's, but an apology came in the shape of a cookie, so I can't complain) and meeting Neil Gaiman was awesome! Such a good night :)

Things to come...

2009-06-09T17:49:00.001-04:00

I saw Neil Gaiman last night, with Dee and Pete.... and he signed my copy of "The Graveyard Book"

!!!

It was very exciting and a fantastic night. Pictures to come. I promise. I have a vacation coming up and I want to photograph a lot of knitting and yarn, and take some pictures off my camera and blog about them.

The most wonderful time of the spring...

2009-05-24T08:38:00.004-04:00

It's Anime North day today :D

A few hiccups with this year's guest list, but I'm still going and looking forward to it! Pictures will inevitably follow.

I've been a bad blogger, so here's a quick catch up on what's going on in my life, hobby-wise.

Knitting:
Gave up on the baby sweater and am now knitting an orange and blue panda for baby Simon (who I think was just born - stay tuned for official confirmation)

Also, I got the Taiyo to finish the sweater I've been trying to finish for over a year now. Yay!

Gloves are 100% finished, and I have started on the matching beret, only to put it aside to finish the panda.

Movies:
GO SEE STAR TREK! It was *awesome* even if you never followed the original series. If you know the bare minimum (i.e. who Kirk is and who Spok is) you should be fine. Plus, the guy who plays Kirk is pretty damned hot.

see?

Next on the movie agenda: The X-Men Origins Wolverine movie. I'm really only looking forward to Ryan Renolds, and I heard his roll is very small, so I'm preparing myself for disappointment.

In Other News...
I have a 6 day vacation coming up in June, and since I think I'll be spending the majority of those days by myself, I wanted to buy a small, cheap laptop for word processing so I can work on one of my novels while I'm up there. Tuesday's mission: go to Best Buy and check out the laptops.

But for today, I'm off to ANIME NORTH! :D

Blogger's New Groove

2009-04-28T09:04:00.002-04:00

I really gotta get back into the blogging grove, methinks. Here's a bit of an update:

1. I tried to get pictures of me wearing my now-complete shrug, but it rained and was cold so I didn't want to go outside wearing it. Now I have to wait for another weekend where I have a photographer (since it's hard for me to take a good picture of myself wearing it)

2. Both of my gloves are finished! Hooray! I love knitting gloves :) Now I need to buy/borrow a tapestry needle (I lost mine) to sew in the stray bits. Annoying how my gloves are finished just as the temperature starts getting into the 20s :(

3. Gonna start working on the beret to match the gloves :D

4. Finally finally FINALLY got the right Taiyo to finish the little sweater I was making last summer. I ran out of yarn :( Now I have enough to make the sleeves a little longer! Hooray!

5. Heather (my yarn enabler) found me another type of Noro that I can wear called Chirimon. Reminds me of a Pokemon name :) Need one more skein and some matching colours to make a sweater!

6. The baby sweater I was going to make for Andrea A has fallen by the wayside. Rule #1 of making knitted presents for people: Don't tell them what you're making until you're done! I hope Andrea A is not disappointed :(

So I'm a day late..

2009-04-13T08:17:00.003-04:00

Happy Easter!

(at some point, I'll do another real post, I promise.)

Glove Love!

2009-03-29T15:36:00.005-04:00

It's been a while since I've posted, and in that time I've managed to finish two things. One was my shrug (picture to follow when I get someone to take a picture of me wearing it), and the other was a glove!

The story of the glove begins on a train to Montreal...

Itty bitty thumb hat!

(incidentally, this is probably my most well documented knitting project *ever*)

By the end of the first train ride, I had an interesting knitting needles/yarn/fingers sculpture

While staying at Dee's aunt and uncle's place, I managed to knit a tiny bit more...

*quack*

On the train ride back to Toronto, I got all the fingers done!

Then started to work on the hand of the glove...

By the end of the train ride, I had enough of knitting... and staying awake

But I perservered and kept knitting, and today I finished the glove! *applause*

One down, one to go. And then (if I have enough yarn), a matching beret! *squee!*

Happy Birthday To Me...

2009-02-28T08:53:00.003-05:00

After a fun day yesterday of pre-birthday celebrations, today is my actual 29th birthday!

What pre-birthday celebrations, you ask? Well, Heather and I went to get our hair cut and styled all prettily. Heather is totally rockin' her rocker-chic look! I look the same as I always do, just more styled ;)

So after the beautification, we decided on some pre-shopping (since today is the actual shopping day) and I ended up with nice brown heels (on sale!), a beautiful pink suede jacket (on sale!) and a nice bar shirt (not on sale), all of which (except the heels) will be displayed at today's festivities!

Then I picked up my sister (who made me a cake!) and we drove to Brampton for my birthday dinner with my family. We ate at an Italian restaurant that had such HUGE portions that my leftovers looked like take-out. Seriously, I barely dented the massive quantities of spaghetti! So now I don't have to cook until probably Wednesday :D

TODAY...

Well, I'll let you know about today tomorrow, once I have some fabulous photos to share. Needless to say, I am UBER EXCITED about today (and not just because of the shopping) :D

The Friday Night Knitting Club

2009-02-16T09:23:00.004-05:00

By all rights, I shouldn't have even read this book. It's definitely not the kind of book I usually pick up. I tend to avoid the adult reality type books, preferring to enjoy my escapism with books about fantasy and vampires.

But, the book is about knitting (which I enjoy) and I had just finished reading a fantasy book about politics and assassins ("The Way of the Shadows" by Brent Weeks - very good!), so I figured what the heck.

I was blown away by the readability of this book. Maybe I'm getting soft in my old age, but I found all the characters to be extremely likeable. Their lives were beautifully displayed and each one was a unique and interesting person. The main character, Georgia, reminded me of the type of person I wanted to be. It was funny, heart warming, moving, and cathartic.

Whether you knit or not, you should read this book... okay, maybe not so much for guys, but everyone else should.

Guys, go pick up "The Way of the Shadows" instead. ;)

Busy fingers

2009-02-04T08:18:00.003-05:00

I'm working away on Thorpe (the hat from the previous post) and I'm down to the ridgey part at the bottom.

I was hoping to have this hat done by Saturday so I can wear it skiing. Somehow, I doubt that will happen though :) I have to figure out how to crochet before it's done... and make ears. This hat is screaming for some ears.

Stay tuned for more hat updates!

(oh, and happy February!)

Neglecting the ol' blog

2009-01-30T12:16:00.006-05:00

I have stuff to blog about, really, I just don't have any pictures. I am a lazy photographer in this digital age. I mean, I don't even have to leave my apartment anymore! Still, excuses, excuses :)

What have I been knitting?

Let's see ... I'm almost done a shrug. I think it's called the Retro Redux Shrug from Lace Style. Dee had knit one up and I borrowed it when we saw Avenue Q (the theatre was *cold*) and loved how it fit, so I decided to make one for myself.

someone else's shrug
see previous comment about too lazy to take my own pictures

What else? Well, one of my co-workers is pregnant, so I'm working on a surprise project for her (I don't know if she reads this blog or not) and a not-so surprise present which will hopefully end up looking like this:

The pattern is for free here

Only mine will be a solid colour (orangey) with dark dark blue trim.

I'm also going to start on my very own ski hat ... with ear flap and probably ears :) It'll be dark brown with a pale blue trim to match my new ski jacket. The pattern is called Thorpe (Rav link) and it looks like this:

Still gotta do a gauge swatch for this one. I doubt the hat will be done by my next ski trip in early February. Oh well :)

This concludes the blog post about what I've been up to, knitting-wise.

Winter Blahs

2009-01-15T08:58:00.003-05:00

As I was reading my blogs this morning, noticing that a lot of people have updated recently, I realized I hadn't written anything in 2009 yet!

This is due to the fact that 1) Nothing terribly exciting has happened so far in 2009, and 2) I have serious case of the winter blahs and didn't want to depress anyone with a mopey post.

I have, however, managed to go skiing in 2009, so here are some pictures. We were at Blue Mountain on Jan 10th. I bought a new ski outfit (no more purple and green for me!) and had a blast!

I no longer look like a purple plum while skiing

Mark, part way down Tranquility

View from the hill

Random skiiers picture

Year In Review

2008-12-31T08:23:00.010-05:00

(Very photo heavy - just wait for them all to load please!)

2008

January

Trip to the ROM to see the new dino exhibit

February

Visit to my cottage, where the heat was not working (*brr!*)

Skiing at the cottage!

And, of course, my birthday! (28 on the 28th!)

March

My karaoke birthday party!!

April

Sock Scavenger Hunt!

Trip to London to visit friends
(Sam too, but I promised not to post pictures of her eating ice cream)

May

Hamlet explores the great outdoors

Anime North!

June

Moving (the last move for a long time... I hope)

July

Canada's Wonderland!

Yarn Crawl!!

August

2nd Annual Stitch 'n Pitch

Librarians In Stratford!!

My well-deserved-and-very-much-appreciated summer vacation at the cottage :)

September

Thornhill Village Festival (with biting baby llama)

Gaining enlightenment with Dee

October

In search of braaaaains at Nuit Blanche

Display of books (the librarian's favourite) at Nuit Blanche

November

Saul's wedding and my Ottawa Adventure Weekend

December

Christmas!

12 hour Boxing Day Rock Band 2 marathon
(Unicorn Pants Rules The World!!)

And that was my 2008. I hope 2009 is just as much fun!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-24T14:42:00.004-05:00

Seeing as how it's Christmas Eve and I'll (hopefully) be too busy to blog tomorrow...

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

and

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009!

Seven Pounds

2008-12-20T08:37:00.003-05:00

Since I was snowed in at the mall yesterday (darn), Corinna and I decided to see a movie once we had done the majority of our shopping.

(Honestly, people thought I was nuts for driving to Mississauga in a snow storm, but it was the best Christmas shopping day ever. There was barely anyone in the stores, no lines or fights, and I can think of much worse places to be trapped than at Square One. So the drive there and back was a bit harrowing. We all need a little excitement in our lives!)

*ahem* Anyway, we went and saw the new Will Smith movie "Seven Pounds"

Neither of us had any idea what this movie was about, but since Will Smith is ~~so hot~~ such a good actor (and there was nothing else playing) we decided to check it out.

It was... dramatic. Kinda boring at times. Will Smith was good (as he always is) but I found myself wondering what the plot was at times, and whether we had gone on some huge random tangent for a good chunk of the film. Rosario Dawson was very good (and I usually don't like her in stuff... unless I have her confused with someone else. She was the chick on Lost, right?), and I liked the big Great Dane named Duke. He looked like a cow :)

I would recommend renting this one... or wait until the library buys it and get it for free. The end wasn't bad but it was very abrupt, and by the time the explained why this guy was the way he was, the audience had already figured it out from the vague flash backs.

So a resounding "meh" for Seven Pounds. If you must see a movie before Christmas, go see Bolt. It was SO CUTE!!

tap tap Is this thing on?

2008-12-16T08:37:00.004-05:00

Well, lots has happened since the last time I blogged. Unfortunately, not a lot is interesting... or blogable.

I got my Christmas shopping done... only to tell my family about it and discover that they had already bought some of the stuff I did. So with only a few short days before Christmas (and all my free time booked up), I have to get back to the mall.

I had a really fun Friday evening with some friends, eating sushi and going to see "Bolt". The movie was a lot better than I thought it would be. Very very funny and cute, and engaging. I loved the fanboy hamster!

I've been doing a lot of knitting on my shrug ... but I haven't taken any photos. Nor have I taken the photos from my Ottawa adventure off my camera yet. I swear it's on my to-do list.

Anyway, my family tree is decorated, we celebrated my dad's birthday, and today my sister is giving her phD (PhD? PHd?) thesis defense. Then we're going out for dinner. Good luck Amanda!

See? Lots going on, not terribly interesting. I am looking forward to new years, though.

Partay at the ROM! Woo!

Lack of an Update

2008-12-08T09:09:00.002-05:00

Well... I don't really have anything to blog about.

A friend of mine has recently rekindled my interest in the novel I've been writing since 2005... so if you want to read it, just go to my website. The story is called Spirit Saga.

(If you do read it, please email me your thoughts good or bad. I can take criticism as long as it's constructive)

Almost Christmas! Gotta get my last two gifts... ugh.

Have a random LOLcat.

Twilight

2008-11-27T09:15:00.004-05:00

I went and saw the Twilight movie last night. After hearing some horrible reviews, I didn't think it was that bad. Certainly, I prefer the book and the glossed over parts and skipped part, but all in all it was good.

A few things bugged me, though.

1. Edward (can you believe I can't find a decent picture??)
Really, not my vision of Edward. I know in the book he comes off as creepy and stalkerish, but by reading it from Bella's point of view, it was kind of sweet. In the movie, it was just creepy and stalkerish. Made worse by the face that the actor who played Edward *looked* SUPER CREEPY for the entire film. Honestly, I was waiting for Bella to get all weirded out, especially with the random mood swings from sullen "we shouldn't be together" to angry "I am a monster!" to jumpy "we're dating! whee!" and back again.

2. Special Effects

The production company must have got a good deal on spinning cameras because I was feeling the motion sickness at certain points. Really, lots of spinning. And pointless scenes of Edward and Bella lying around and leaping through trees. Okay. We get it. Edward can scale huge trees. We don't need to watch it for 5 minutes. They could have spent more time with the fleeing-the-evil-vampires part and less time with spinning cameras and jumping up trees.
(And really, what's Edward thinking? Take the clutzy girl up the tallest tree in the world?)

Things I thought were done well:

1. The Cullens

Edward aside (okay and maybe Esme too), I really liked the casting for the rest of the Cullens. Jasper was little bug-eyed the entire film (he looked like he had recently been electrocuted), but Carlisle and Emmett and Alice were awesome!

2. Jacob Black (and other minor cast members)

Such a cutie! In the first two books, I'm totally on Team Jacob.
Charlie and Billy were done very well too. I felt so bad for Charlie the whole movie. Bella was broody and kind of annoying, but Charlie did a good job of being the awkards what-the-hell-do-I-do-with-this-kid type of Dad.

3. The Bad Vamps

James was scary! Laurent was cool! Victoria was, well, crazy :) Very very well done. I wish they had been in more of the movie...

In conclusion: If you liked the book as a good read and not much more, you'll probably like the movie. If you loved the book bordering on obsession, you probably won't.

Psst...

2008-11-21T08:14:00.003-05:00

Hey, Doctor Who fans...

Jealous?

Okay, how about Discworld fans...

Lookee what I have!

Who wants to have a movie night? :D

One Year!

2008-11-20T12:39:00.001-05:00

It's my one-year anniversary since I started at the gym :)

Honestly I'm amazed I made it that long! So here's a look back at me about a year ago (I think):

And me now-ish (with the lovely Dee):

:D

Remember

2008-11-11T08:30:00.002-05:00

Last night I had the strangest dream
I ever dreamed before
I dreamed the world
Had all agreed to put an end to war

I dreamed I saw a mighty room
Filled with women and men
And the papers they were signing said
They'd never fight again

And when the papers were all signed
And a million copies made
They all joined hands and they bowed their heads
And grateful prayers were prayed

And the people in the streets below
Were dancing 'round and 'round
And swords and guns and uniforms
Were scattered on the ground

Morning Giggle

2008-11-08T08:47:00.003-05:00

I do so love it when I get jokes. This is from the hilarious webcomic The Non-Adventures of Wonderella.

Clicking the image may make it bigger ... yup, it does. I just checked. Or you can go to the Wonderella website and read all her crazy non-adventures!!

In Which I Talk About My Hair

2008-11-07T18:26:00.005-05:00

"We brought you some shampoo"
"Because we couldn't find any real poo."
~ Hawkeye and BJ in M*A*S*H

I've always had really dry hair. Every time I got to get my hair cut, the stylist always tells me that I need to moisturize my hair and I always tell them that I do but nothing works.

Well, ladies and germs, I found something that works ... so far.

I've only used this shampoo and conditioner twice, but so far I adore it. I love how thick it is, I love how soft and frizz-free my hair is, and I LOVE the smell. I wish my hair was longer so I could smell it more.

What is this miracle shampoo, you ask? After extensive internet research (i.e. a Google search for moisturizing shampoo), I found what most people-who-post-about-hair agree is the best shampoo:

The Body Shop Honey Moisturizing Shampoo and Conditioner. Not cheap, but worth it.

So, dear readers, if you have problems with dry hair, and want to smell like bee vomit, then this is the shampoo for you!

A promise to all of you

2008-11-05T08:14:00.002-05:00

I promise, no matter how many manga series' I read, or how many comic books I enjoy, or how many movies I watch, I will never want to do this.

Admiring is one thing, but I still know the difference between fantasy and reality... most of the time.

(Oh, BTW, there's a good knitting-related comic over at QC today.)

NaNoWriMo Update

2008-11-04T08:44:00.001-05:00

The second post is at my NaNoWriMo blog, for all those who are interested :)

Not much else to report in other news... enjoy the story!

What I did with my extra hour

2008-11-02T07:58:00.004-05:00

Okay, the beginning of "Rex" is now posted ... only 675 words though.

Please take a look at it here.

I think I should make a title image for it out of this picture, just because it suits the theme of boxing/Greek tragedy redo (I know it's actually Minoan. Sheesh)

I'm eager to hear what you readers think of this story. It's my first non-fantasy in a very long time :D

NaNoWriMo - Day 1

2008-11-01T15:55:00.001-04:00

Eek! It's the first day of NaNoWriMo and I don't have any time to write anything for my story :(

Maybe I'll jot some things down this evening, when I get home from the symphony (yes, I'm off to the symphony with my family).

This isn't a very good start... I'll have to try and write twice as much tomorrow... before I head off shopping with Dee and Corinna all day... hmmm.

Hope you're still interested in the story! Does anyone know if blogger does text cuts like Livejournal?

EDIT: So instead of posting here, I'll put the actual NaNoWriMo story on this blog and just link when I have a new bit update. That should keep this journal clean and let people ignore my writing if they want.

If you *do* read it though, please comment. If I don't think anyone is bothering to read the story, then I won't bother to post it (although I will continue to write it).

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

2008-10-31T08:26:00.002-04:00

Long awaited pictures

2008-10-24T20:50:00.004-04:00

I finally got the photos of Nuit Blanche off my camera, so here are the highlights:

Aaah! Zombies!

Pete as a zombie (it was hard to get a clear shot, what with all the lurching)

I felt bad for the statue-kid, so the gang decided to help out

Dee peeking into the wall of books (my favourite exhibit!)

Ryerson duckies!

Big duckie at Ryerson

Sam the Record Man sign, lit up for the last time *teardrop*

.... I don't understand modern art. I really don't.

Nearly a month late, but hope you enjoy the pics!

I carried a watermelon?!

2008-10-24T08:36:00.003-04:00

On October 21st, my sister and I went to see the Dirty Dancing musical. I didn't particularly want to see it, but my sister did and I got a 60% off deal so I figured "what the heck?"

It was by no means a "serious" (or High) musical like Les Mis, but it was a lot of fun and entertaining. Not a whole lot of singing by the on-stage people, mostly recorded songs from the soundtrack. They did a really good job of recreating the movie (or what I remember of the movie from the last time I saw it *years* ago)

There was a lot of dancing, most of it dirty, and I found the person who was playing Baby to be pretty annoying (but, if I recall correctly, that's the character). The guy who played Johnny was *hot* (and shirtless for a few scenes) which made up for Baby :D

The things I disliked most about the movie (namely Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey) were not in the musical, so I liked it better than the movie almost right away.

So, if you want a fun, light, entertaining, and very dance-heavy musical, go see this. But I wouldn't have gone if the tickets were full price.

Sheer Freakin' GENIUS!

2008-10-17T08:36:00.003-04:00

Check this out.

Some brilliant soul knit themselves a David Tennant!!

(picture yoinked from the Yarn Harlot's blog)

I want one.

NaNoWriMo

2008-10-14T22:00:00.005-04:00

Okay, I know I already posted today, but I've been thinking about this all day and decided to write about it anyway.

You all know that November is both NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month). Last year I did one blog post a day for the entire month of November, so this year I thought I'd try my hand at the novel writing.

The goal is 50,000 words by the end of the month. That's a little under 2000 words a day. I doubt I can do that, but I will try to complete a rough draft of my latest idea. This is the part where you, blog readers, get to decide what to read.

Would you like to read my daily writing, in the hopes of maybe having a completed story by the end? Or would you like me to keep up my haphazard random posts that may or may not be daily?

Before you decide, here's my idea for NaNoWriMo:

Former boxing champion Oliver "Rex" Kingsley is living a good life. He became world boxing champion at the tender age of 20, and for the past ten years has been retired from the sport, preferring to be with his wife Diana and their three kids. However, his golden life takes a turn for the worst when he's diagnosed with a fatal disease and his only salvation lies in a kidney transplant with a blood relative. Trouble is, he's adopted. Oliver needs to track down his mysterious past to save his life, but soon discovers some secrets are better left forgotten.

So, what say you guys? NaNoWriMo or regular posts?

Stealin' posts for my blog

2008-10-14T13:12:00.003-04:00

I just read a good review of Breaking Dawn (the final book in the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer). It's pretty much exactly how I feel about the book, so rather than litter the internet with the same thing twice, just go read it here.

Pictures from Nuit Blanche will be posted when I stop being so damned lazy and get the photos off my camera. I can't help it if every time I see my computer I automatically load up the Sims! I wonder if that's a sign I need help ;)

In knitting news, there's been a sudden baby boom among people I know (okay, only 2, but that's lots for me!) so I'm working on a surprise present for one friend, and thinking of a surprise present for the other. I also need more Taiyo to finish my sweater, and yarn to start a new sweater... Yarn crawl, anyone??

Ha!

2008-10-04T08:20:00.003-04:00

If you read the Yarn Harlot's blog, you'll know all about the verb she invented back when she took a picture of Greg Kinnear without his knowledge.

Well, the verb is now official, picked up by all sorts of people, including the New York Times:

kinnear v.

To take a candid photograph surreptitiously, especially by holding the camera low and out of the line of sight. Coined in August by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee of the Yarn Harlot blog when she attempted to take a photograph during an encounter with the actor Greg Kinnear at an airport.

Neat, huh? I used the new verb a while back, last September, when I kinneared the Yarn Harlot at the Stitch n' Pitch :)

This Saturday...

2008-10-03T08:16:00.002-04:00

I wonder if I should wear white? ;)

All This Post is Missing are Pictures

2008-09-23T08:48:00.003-04:00

I had an awesome weekend this past weekend. I was out and about for both days, starting with seeing "Tropic Thunder" on Friday (just for Robert Downey Jr). It wasn't bad... I'd recommend waiting for the DVD if you want to see it. Or better still, taking it out of the library (for free).

Saturday I wandered around the Thornhill Festival, bought food (mmm... roasted yams), bugged some of my co-workers who were there representing the library... then hopped on the subway and went downtown to meet up with Dee and Pete, who were in town to see Blue Man Group.

Sunday I went to Wonderland to celebrate Corinna's birthday. We met up with Ian and Emily and Emily's sister Allison for a bit, then after all the fun roller coasters we went out for sushi.

It was lots of fun. I also got a bit of knitting done on my re-started scarf. Of course, every time I sit down to knit Hamlet tries to eat my yarn. I had to build a pillow barracade, which he took as a challenge and ended up attacking from a different direction. *sigh*

Oh, and last night I saw the TV show "The Mentalist". Originally, I thought this concept was pretty stupid, just like CSI and Law & Order, but I watched it and it's pretty good. (It helps that Simon Baker is pretty hot) ;)

Next post will have pictures of the aforementioned activities... except the TV show. You can Google that yourselves!

Not-Sims update

2008-09-15T08:45:00.002-04:00

I was reading through my blog the other day and came across a few pictures of this alpaca scarf I was knitting last year. I know I never finished it, so I dug around my apartment until I found it. Apparently I had screwed up the pattern somewhere (and I couldn't remember what the pattern was), so I pulled it all out, found the pattern online, and started again. No pictures yet, but Hamlet has a taste for alpaca (almost as strong as his taste for lamb) so I have to keep the scarf in a box. Good thing kittens don't have thumbs!

And now, a random alpaca picture:

Sims Update

2008-09-13T10:50:00.002-04:00

Because I know you're all eager to know how my sims are doing ;)

Well, the fugly kids grew up to be not-so fugly... which is a relief. I was going to give Caris (the girl) a nose-job for her birthday!

Pictures will follow when I take a few!

Edited to add photos:

Caris as a teen (no longer duck-looking)

Her twin Edwin as a teen

Big brother Malcolm as a teen

So I guess they didn't turn out that badly after all...

Update

2008-09-11T08:50:00.006-04:00

Not much to report, actually. It's just been a while since I updated...

Well, today being Sept 11th, I could comment on the 9/11 memorials that are airing on TV right now. Do you remember where you were when the planes crashed? I was getting ready for class, watching Regis & Kelly (which I no longer watch, after coming to my senses and realizing how annoying they both are). Scary stuff.

On a happier note (or at least, less sad note), I'm once again obsessed with The Sims. It comes and goes in waves and I seem to be sucked under right now. The new Apartment Life expansion pack may have had something to do with that. Anyway, my favourite couple had 3 kids and they all ended up being pretty damned ugly...

Aida Banks (mother; normal looking)

Eoin Banks (father; big ears but otherwise normal)

Children (L to R): Caris, her twin Edwin, big brother Malcolm

Okay the photo isn't that great (I'll take better ones and post them), but Caris has a very long nose and no jaw so she kind of looks like a duck. Edwin has a broad jaw and turned up nose so he looks like a slack-jawed skull. Malcolm is the most normal looking, but his face is pancake flat and his chin rivals Jay Leno.

I was hoping my favourite couple would have pretty kids... instead of a duck, a skull, and Jay Leno. *pout*

Edited to add better photos of the children:

Malcolm, the eldest (and most normal looking)

The twins, Caris and Edwin

P.S. Hermes has received a clean bill of health from the vet. Thanks to everyone who sent their well wishes! I'm very happy my kitty is healthy!

Crazy Times

2008-09-05T08:47:00.002-04:00

I returned from my wonderful cottage vacation on Monday and have had a tough time readjusting to city life (especially the noise and lights)

Then last night, I got a pretty big scare.

I got home from work and found a puddle of blood by the front door. Obviously, it wasn't mine (I would notice if I bled that much onto the floor) so I went to check on my cats. Hamlet was jumpy and purry like always, but Hermes was acting more standoff-ish than usual. So I called the 24-hour vet clinic, inspected Hermes for blood stains (found none) and brought my kitty to the vet.

After a 2 hour wait (we're getting close to midnight now) I got in to see the vet. Hermes' internal organs were fine, temperature was normal, no blood stains, good teeth and mouth... so no explanation for the blood at all. I paid the bill and went home, exhausted.

When I got home (about midnight-thirty) and let Hermes out of his carrier, I found a few pieces of bloody poop in the back of his carrier. This morning, I found another bloodstain near the litter box.

Maybe Hermes is just stressed from the loud jackhammering that's been going on. Or maybe he ate something that didn't agree with him... He's acting normal, eating and drinking well, and doesn't appear to be in any pain. I'm confused.

The Internet is for WHAT?!?

2008-08-17T22:06:00.005-04:00

Today I saw the musical "Avenue Q" with Dee and Pete.

It was terrific. Fantastic. Amazing. I honestly can't think of the right word to describe it. It's essentially a grown-up version of Sesame Street. There are humans, and human-puppets, and monster-puppets all living together on Avenue Q. With songs like "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist", "If You Were Gay", "Schadenfreude", "There's A World Outside Your Apartment", and of course "The Internet Is For Porn" you can only imagine the type of performance you're going to get.

I especially loved the Bad Idea Bears who would come out and convince the characters to do things that were really bad ideas (like play drinking games with Long Island ice tea the night before Kate Monster's career making opportunity). They were adorable!

So yeah. If you get the chance to see this musical, do it. If not, well, at least download the soundtrack. The music is catch and the lyrics will make you laugh out loud (warning: you may not want to listen to the music in a public place. You will start to giggle like a crazy person, and passers-by will wonder about your sanity)

Now I just have to get "The Internet is for Porn" out of my head before I start singing it at work...

Adventures in Toronto

2008-08-08T09:13:00.008-04:00

*Warning: This will be a picture heavy post (because I'm lazy and just took lots of these pictures off my camera now)*

Back in July (I think it was in July - that was a busy month and most of it is a blur), Dee came to Toronto to visit. So, of course, Heather and I took her on a yarn crawl.

While walking, we passed an old building that I adore. If I ever in my life get a chance to build a building, it's going to look like this:

Here we are having fun at Romni Wool...

The red ball of yarn was sooooooooooooooooooo soft...

Heather thinks I'm nuts

My Noro! Mine!

And after dropping Dee off, Heather and I strolled about for a bit and spotted two moose. Remember those moose statues that were scattered around Toronto? Well, we found two

On someone's balcony.

Then in August (August 5th to be exact) was the 2nd Annual Stitch N Pitch! We had quite the crowd come this year - Nancy, Heather, Mike, me, Richard, Jane, and Dave ... and I bought a ticket for Sarah, but unfortunately she had to rescue her boyfriend in Pickering and missed the game :(

Take me out to the ball game...

Heather and Nancy

Modeling my nearly completed Noro sweater... I love Taiyo!

Me and Jane (and Jane's mitten)

Me and Richard (who actually came to watch the game... go figure)

Oh, and for the record, the Jays won against the Oakland A's 4-3 at the bottom of the ninth. Way to wait until the very last minute!

Dark Knight

2008-07-28T08:27:00.002-04:00

So I finally got to go see the new Batman movie

Heath Ledger as the Joker was just *creepy*, but they did an amazing job. I found the film to be quite long (those movie theatre seats can be pretty uncomfortable after a while) but the movie did a good job of holding my attention.

Here are a few points I had about the movie:

- The hoarse voice that Christian Bale used as Batman made me wonder if the Dark Knight was getting over a really bad cold or something. I was half expecting him to start hacking up a lung mid-speech.

- Maggie Gyllenhal (I probably really messed up on that spelling) was MUCH better than Katie Holmes ... which I'm sure everyone agrees.

- I love Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman!!

There were a few other things that bothered me, but they would be spoilers, so in case someone hasn't seen it, I won't write anything down. You'll know it when you watch it.

And...

This weekend I went to Wonderland again! I love roller coasters. So much fun! I sat at the very very front of Behemoth again (this time, my heart didn't stop for quite as long). Good times. I'd go again in August, but all my free time is pretty much spoken for, so if anyone wants to go in September, let me know ;)

Exciting Day

2008-07-23T09:06:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was a pretty exciting day for me ... well, not the entire day, but from about 6:30pm to around 8:45pm (if you want to be precise)

Why was yesterday so exciting? Because the Yarn Harlot came to my library for an author talk!

Now, if you're not a knitter, you're going to wonder what's wrong with my sanity that I would get so excited about meeting an author of humorous knitting books. Well, the fact that she's an author is enough for me since I'm still holding onto that dream that one day I'll see one of my books in print (every year my New Years resolution is to send some writing to a publisher... hard to believe that I achieved the much more difficult loose-weight resolution before the send-something-to-a-publisher one!)

But the real reason I was excited to meet her in person was because I read her blog every day and she's a truly hilarious writer. I've heard her speak before, and she's a gifted public speaker (even if she denies it). And I've seen pictures of the things she can knit, and it's honestly inspirational. And in person, she's all those things too.

And now, I can brag to my knitting friends that I had a 30 minute conversation with the Yarn Harlot. That's probably enough to make them jealous ;)

After the talk (which was very successful as far as author talks at my library go), I went out for hot chocolate with Heather & Mike. It honestly felt like I hadn't seen them in ages, so I was glad they decided to stick around for a bit. We went to a kosher Second Cup (kosher in that sense, meaning really expensive cupcakes)!

So far, it's been a busy but good week. Two more days of work to go!

Forget Fabreeze...

2008-07-17T07:15:00.001-04:00

I find this amusing, and more than a little bit intriguing...

That "in the library" smell

Birthdays and Knitters

2008-07-16T08:16:00.005-04:00

First of all, a very happy 5th birthday to my cat, Hermes

From this...

to this!

Secondly, I have no idea how many people other than my friends read my blog, but if you do and you're a knitter, and you live in the Toronto area, come to the Bathurst Clark library on July 22nd to see the Yarn Harlot! She's a fantastic public speaker (and encourages knitting while she's talking!)

What I've Been Up To: The Knitting Edition

2008-07-06T07:55:00.005-04:00

I haven't updated in a while, so I thought I'd bring everyone up to speed on what I'm knitting.

I got a good chunk of knitting done at the cottage at the end of June (which was very nice) and I've been trying to knit a little every night, but life can be pretty busy sometimes. It helps that I'm head-over-heels in love with Noro Taiyo and want to buy more.

So, I'm still plugging away at the Montego Bay Scarf (Ravelry link) made from the sock yarn Heather and I won for doing the scavenger hunt back on April Fools Day.

Yes, it's still not very long, but you try saying "no" to Noro

The colours of this yarn are beautiful!

I finished putting together my little Lamby, but sadly he is lacking eyes. He also has a bit of a club foot but I love him anyway. Not bad for my first attempt at a stuffed animal, I think. Dee, Heather, when we go sight seeing in Toronto (which I'm assuming will include stops at yarn stores), I should buy this little guy some button eyes.

My poor blind little lamb

And the current love-of-my-knitting-life, is the Capelet I'm making with the Noro Taiyo (*heart*) ... (Ravelry link). If you look at the Ravelry link, I'm planning on making the sleeves and body of my capelet a touch longer so that it doesn't look like I'm wearing a baby sweater ;)

What I've got so far... I live for the colour change!

Close up! My family was wondering why there were so many holes in this, and didn't believe me when I said it was intentional.

So there's my knitting update. I would also like to take this opportunity to point out that I went to Canada's Wonderland on Canada Day and rode the Behemoth... AT THE VERY VERY FRONT!

I think my heart stopped for a few seconds. It was AWESOME :D

2008-07-01T09:33:00.000-04:00

HAPPY CANADA DAY!!

My (Affordable) Dream Vacation

2008-06-27T07:38:00.002-04:00

I've got just about a week off from work at the end of August and I've been thinking about what I would like to do. Originally, I was going to do a road trip to Ottawa to visit my friends down there.

Now I'm thinking of spending the week at the cottage (with my cats), doing as little as possible.

I figure I bring some tv-on-dvd, my playstation and games, knitting, and lots of books, and I'll be as happy as ... well, a stressed-out-librarian-on-a-well-deserved-vacation :)

Ah, relaxation... sounds like a dream :)

Opinions wanted

2008-06-18T10:27:00.005-04:00

I'm looking to buy a stainless steel water bottle, so I can use that instead of buying tons and tons of plastic water bottles ...

Anyone know a good make? I found a cute SIGG one that I like (it has a Geisha picture on it! Pretty!) but it's $23.99 + shipping
Is that too much for a water bottle? I want one that's easy to drink from, doesn't smell after you use it, and isn't too heavy. Pretty pictures are also nice.

So what do you guys think? Yes to the pretty-but-expensive bottle? Or do you know of any other good brands that I can get?

Opinions greatly appreciated, pleaseandthankyou!

June 22 Update! I ended up going to Planet Organic and buying a Klean Kanteen. It doesn't have a pretty geisha picture on it, though but I suppose that can be fixed with a sticker :)

"The Happening"

2008-06-13T21:42:00.001-04:00

Sent to my by a friend, and therefore I am compelled to share:

A movie review of "The Happening", by Christopher Orr

"This film is so bad that I feel compelled to make a spoiler-laden list of its most laughably terrible parts rather than review it."

Well worth the read!

Twilight

2008-06-12T22:22:00.003-04:00

So I finally got my hands on the must-read teen book of the year. I thought that I wouldn't like it. First of all, it's a romance. But not just any romance. A vampire romance. Seems a little too cheesy for me, but it's my job to know what all the cool kids are reading, so I bought a copy (the waiting list at the library would take me all year to read, and by then the hype would be over)

I'm about 280 pages into this 498 page book - and I'm hooked. Honestly, this book is very difficult to put down. It's very well written, in my humble opinion, and I can see with crystal clarity why all the teen girls want to read it. Very vivid descriptions, a good balance of mystery and action and (of course) romance.

I won't go into plot details. There's really no point. If you've heard of this book, you know what it's about. If you haven't heard of it, well, you should give it a try.

Dee, I think you'll like it. You can borrow it from me when you visit, if you like.

Wow. I'm gushing about a teen romance. I think I'm getting sappy in my old age.

Picture to share

2008-06-05T09:30:00.004-04:00

If anyone out there is a fan of I Can Has Cheezburger, there's also a similar site called Fail Blog... whose name is pretty self explanatory.

Anyway....

This picture came to me through an LJ community I'm on, and it made me laugh so I thought I'd share:

Okay, technology clearly isn't on my side today. I swear that picture should be bigger... anyway, just click here instead.

Indiana Jones and the Disappointing Plot

2008-06-03T08:44:00.003-04:00

I'm starting out by saying that I didn't dislike the new Indiana Jones movie - in fact, I found the whole thing quite enjoyable. And it's been quite a few years since I've seen the original trilogy, and I know that Indie tends to go after mythical "historical" objects, but the whole crystal skull thing went a few giant leaps too far, in my opinion.

(I don't want to say too much in case I spoil the ending for anyone who wants to see it. And I suggest you do go see it. If not for the plot, then at least for Cate Blanchett and cutie-pie Shia LaBoeuf)

The rest of this post will be written in white, so if you want to see it, you'll have to highlight the text. That way I won't be spoiling anything...

Okay, so I imagine a production meeting between Steven Spielberg (SS) and George Lucas (GL) went something like this:

GL: I don't get it. Why didn't anyone like the Star Wars prequels? They were *so much* better than the originals. I have money now, for one.
SS: I miss doing ET. Why aren't we remaking ET? That movie was awesome.
GL: The fans must have been missing something... something crucial...
SS: I mean, everyone loves aliens, right? Especially aliens that somehow benefit mankind. Who doesn't want to be bettered by aliens?
GL: I got it! Harrison Ford! That's why no one liked Star Wars. No Han Solo!
SS: Han Solo? Is that way? You don't think it had anything to do with Jar Jar, or the horrible writing, or...
GL: NO! They just missed Han. We should totally bring Harrison Ford back for a movie. Like another Indiana Jones movie or something.
SS: Isn't he old now?
GL: Not if we drive a dumptruck full of money to his house. He'd sign on for sure!
SS: But the people who watch the movie aren't dumb. They'll know Indie is *old*
GL: We'll set it in the 1950s... and just so people don't forget it, we'll stick every single 1950s cultural reference we can possibly think of in the movie every 5 seconds, so if the audience even starts to wonder why Indie is old now, something will jump out and scream IT'S THE 1950s! HE'S AGED LIKE A NORMAL PERSON!
SS: Okay...
GL: And since he was in Star Wars, we'll throw in some aliens.
SS: Like ET?
GL: ... sure. Beneficial aliens. I mean, why wouldn't Indie be finding aliens in THE 1950s?
SS: Not very historical... or archaeological. I mean, sure the Holy Grail and the Arc of the Covenant and whatever he was looking for in the second movie probably didn't actually exist, but are people going to believe that South American culture is based off of aliens with crystal heads?
GL: They'll believe anything we tell them, as long as we play the theme music A LOT and have long action scene.
SS: We might as well have Indie looking for Atlantis.
GL: All in good time Steve. All in good time.

Because I don't have enough on the go...

2008-05-29T08:47:00.003-04:00

I'm still plugging away at the Montego Bay scarf (which is really pretty even if I keep making small mistakes that shift the pattern around a touch. That's what makes it an original!) and I finished my Easter lamb (minus the button eyes), so I'm looking for a new quick and easy project to start on.

I was thinking of making another pair of fingerless gloves, since I have the Fleece Artist Merino sock yarn that is pretty much the same as the yarn I used to make my first pair of gauntlets... they are currently in the form of a large sock which will be reverted into its more yarnular form.

But it's summer. The weather is going to be hot and gorgeous. I don't want to make mittens or hats or heavy winter things that will remind me of the cold that is sure to come.

Anyone have suggestions? I'm open to anything as long as its easy and something I would wear/use :D

And it doesn't have to be using the Fleece Artist. There are plenty of other yarns in my stash to use... like the Noro Taiyo that currently does not have a project but is screaming to be used.
(I do so love Noro)

p.s. would someone like to make my little naked lamb a sweater? or a vest? ;)

Anime North LOOT!

2008-05-27T08:44:00.004-04:00

Anime North was awesome. The weather was gorgeous, and the cosplayers were out in full swing! I didn't take as many pictures as last year, but here are a few die hard fans:

Balthier and two Vieras from FFXII
(too bad I didn't get their boots. They were awesome)

L to R: Mokona, Tomoyo, Fai, Sakura, and (I assume) Syaoran
all from Tsubasa Resevoir Chronicles

Fai D. Flowright and Sakura, from Tsubasa Resevoir Chronicle
(I *love* that staff!)

SQUIRTLE!
(the guy in this costume must have been *dying*)

And I even found two Sailor Moon cosplayers: Moon and Mars

Then, there was the stash.

Mokona, two volumes of Tactics, four volumes of R.O.D., NANA soundtrack,
Slayers season one and two, and a knitting t-shirt!

Close up of my new manga *squee*

The t-shirt (a little small, but still awesome)

White and Black Mokona, together at last :)

With that giant black Mokona, I would like to cosplay as Yuuko from xxxHolic. Any sewers out there willing to make me a dress (since I can't sew)?

Walking the Labyrinth

2008-05-25T08:46:00.002-04:00

Okay, so there's going to be another post before the Anime North loot.

I just saw this on my Facebook and decided to try and help promote it a bit. A friend of mine, Peter Cavell, is performing in both the Ottawa and Toronto Fringe festivals this year. I saw his performance in London last year, and it was spectacular.

Check out the preview:

And visit his site www.petercavell.com for more details! Go see it!

That time of year again

2008-05-25T08:41:00.003-04:00

Today is Anime North day :D

Yes, that wonderful time of year when the largest anime convention in Canada rolls into Toronto, and thousands of people gather (most in costume) to buy anime, watch new releases, talk about anime, and pose for pictures (if you're in costume)

I'm prepared to spend large sums of money ;) This year, my victims... er, companions are Joe and Michael. Should be fun!!

Next post: Anime North loot!

*squee!*

It's been about a week....

2008-05-13T08:37:00.004-04:00

It's been about a week since I last posted here, so I figured I should write something.

Unfortunately, not much has been going on.

Sure, I've been doing the usual going-to-work and being-shed-on-by-cats, but nothing really exciting has happened to me lately.

Let's see.... how about some updates on what I've been working on?

After cleaning out my bookshelf and getting rid of a lot of old books, I've decided to reread David Eddings' Belgariad series. Oh the memories. Reading these old books makes me smile because it reminds me of the style in which I used to write. I would mimic various authors in an attempt to find my own voice, and I definitely went through a David Eddings phase.

I'm still writing, but I found an old story on my hard drive that I hadn't touched in a while, reread it, and decided to start working on it again. It's based off an old D&D character I created, and then found too tricky to play. She's much easier to write, since I can control the other characters too ;)

Spirit Saga is on a temporary hiatus while I work out some details.... namely, should I kill this one character? It's an agonizing decision.

Knitting... well, Heather showed me how to do seams (which are really neat) so I'm stitching together my Easter lamb. The stupid yarn makes it really tricky, so only the head is attached to the body. And in the picture of the lamb, the body looks oval, but my lamb seems to have more of a triangular line-backer body. Weird.

I'm also knitting the Montego Bay scarf (is that what it's called? I'm too lazy to look it up), which is progressing nicely. I made a mistake, knit that mistake for a few inches, then made another mistake that corrected the original mistake and now I'm back on the pattern. Still looks good, though :)

But I haven't had a lot of time for my hobbies since I'm still trying to find a place to live. Gotta have one by the end of June or else I'm homeless... wish me luck!

Books part II

2008-05-06T08:17:00.003-04:00

Here's what's left. I'll trade books for cardboard boxes!

BOOKS:

FICTION PAPERBACKS
- The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- The Scions of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- Faerie Tale by Raymond E. Feist
- The Losers by David Eddings
- Kings by George V. Henderson (this was an author-published book I bought because I felt sorry for the guy sitting in front of Coles with a stack of books. It's signed, but honestly the story itself is pretty crappy)
- The Redemption of Althalus by David & Leigh Eddings
- Talon of the Silver Hawk by Raymond E. Feist (conclave of shadows book 1)
- King of Foxes by Raymond E. Feist (conclave of shadows book 2)
- Shadow of a Dark Queen by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 1)
- Rise of a Merchant Prince by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 2)
- Rage of a Demon King by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 3)
- Shards of a Broken Crown by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 4)
- Krondor the Betrayal by Raymond E. Feist (riftwar legacy book 1)
- Krondor the Assassins by Raymond E. Feist (riftwar legacy book 2)
- The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
- Shadow Moon by George Lucas and Chris Claremont (sequel to the movie "Willow")
- The Diamond Throne by David Eddings (elenium book 1)
- The Ruby Knight by David Eddings (elenium book 2)
- The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings (elenium book 3)
- Domes of Fire by David Eddings (tamuli book 1)
- The Shining Ones by David Eddings (tamuli book 2)
- The Hidden City by David Eddings (tamuli book 3)
- The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams (memory, sorrow and thorn book 1)
- Stone of Farewell by Tad Williams (memory, sorrow and thorn book 2)
- Guenevere, Queen of the Summer Country by Rosalind Miles
- Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
- The Root Cellar by Janet Lunn
- Merlin by Stephen R. Lawhead
- Harlequin by Bernard Cornwell (library discard but in good condition)
- Clothar the Frank by Jack Whyte
- Whistler by Roger Taylor

FICTION HARDCOVER
- Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace by Terry Brooks
- Krondor Tears of the Gods by Raymond E. Feist
- Shadow Dawn by Chris Claremont & George Lucas
- The First Man in Rome by Colleen McCullough

NON-FICTION AND LITERATURE
- "Manga Mania: Fantasy Worlds" by Christopher Hart
- Two Spanish Picaresque Novels: Lazarillo de Tormes & The Swindler
- Goethe Faust Part One (Penguin Classic 1958)
- "Yoshimasa and the Silver Pavilion" by Donald Keene
- "The Castle of Otranto" by Horace Walpole
- "Le Morte d'Arthur" by Sir Thomas Malory (volume 1)
- "Mega Manga" by Keith Sparrow
- Women and Gender in Early Modern Europe by Merry E. Wiesner (2nd edition)
- The Woman and the Lyre: Women Writers in Classical Greece and Rome
- Women's Life in Greece and Rome

Something to read?

2008-05-04T15:13:00.003-04:00

If anyone is interested, I've just posted a new chapter of my novel at my website:

The novel is called "Spirit Saga" and it's the longest thing I've ever written (so far).

If you decide to read it, don't let the length put you off. The chapters are (mostly) very short. I'd love to hear what people think!

Be sure to check out the rest of my site too!

I am Ironman

2008-05-03T11:32:00.004-04:00

Yesterday was the premiere of the movie "Ironman"... and I was able to twist my friends' rubber arms and convince them to go :)

It. Was. AWESOME.

I know pretty much nothing about Ironman from the comics, but this movie had a coherent plot, lots of fun explosions, humor (lots of great funny parts not spoiled by the ads), and most importantly GOOD ACTING.

Robert Downey Jr, for all his substance abuse, is a fantastic actor. Everything I've seen him in, I've enjoyed. Like Johnny Depp. He's good at every roll he plays.

Anyway, I was so thrilled by a good Marvel comic movie that I decided to take a look at other Marvel movies and see how they compared to Ironman:

List of Marvel Comics made into movies
(what did we do before wikipedia?)

Blade (1998) - I saw this and remember thinking it was okay. 'Course, I was a teenager at the time.

X-Men (2000) - What happened in this one again? I enjoyed the first X-Men movie. It was the sequels that ruined it for me.

Blade II (2002) - Didn't see it. Didn't think enough of the first one to bother.

Spider-Man (2002) - I have a deep love for Spider-Man, in all his incarnations, which sometimes borders on obsession. My friends can vouch for this. So, I'm biased when I say that this was (at the time) the best Marvel movie I had ever seen. *LOVE* Spider-Man!

Daredevil (2003) - In spite of Ben Affleck being cute (but he's no Spider-Man), this movie did nothing for me... except promote Evanescence, which is now one of my favourite bands.

X2 (2003) - I loved Nightcrawler. Other than that, meh.

Hulk (2003) - I think Marvel is pretending this never existed, and I don't blame them. I do find it hard to believe they didn't learn from their mistakes, and another Hulk movie is in the works.

The Punisher (2004) - Didn't see it... no wait, I think I did. That's how memorable it was.

Spider-Man II (2004) - It's only my deep devotion to you, Spider-Man, that makes me continue to watch your increasingly bad movies. Doc Ock was amazing. That subway scene nearly made me snort pop out of my nose.

Blade Trinity (2004) - I *almost* saw this because Ryan Renolds is in it, but in the end, even that wasn't enough to convince me to see Wesley Snipes as a rogue vampire... for the third time.

Elektra (2005) - Huh? Didn't she die? Why is she back? No, really. This movie was so bad, it would have been better to leave her dead.

Fantastic Four (2005) - Wasn't there a scene with Jessica Alba in either her underoos or nothing, standing on a bridge? I'm pretty sure this whole movie was made *just* for that scene.

X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) - This movie was so bad, it made me sputter with outrage while I was watching it. What have you done to my beloved (but not quite as beloved as Spider-Man) X-Men??

Ghost Rider (2007) - Okay, I find Nicholas Cage to be really drippy, but this movie wasn't that bad... especially compared to the previous 7 Marvel releases.

Spider-Man 3 (2007) - Yeah, not even my profound love of Spider-Man could make me see the good parts of this film. Sandman was a good bad guy... I like Topher Grace... bad ass Peter Parker looked like he joined Good Charlotte. It was terrible. I was sad for days.

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007) - I haven't seen this one. I like the Silver Surfer's story, but I somehow doubt this movie will do it justice, since every other movie seemed to be so terrible. Maybe I was still hurting from the deep betrayal I felt over Spider-Man 3.

Ironman (2008) - HALLELUJAH! MY FAITH IN MARVEL IS RESTORED!

at least until...

*sigh*

Books!

2008-04-26T08:30:00.006-04:00

I'm moving. That means I'm going to try to get rid of some stuff. For those of you who know me, you'll know how difficult that is for me :)

Anyway, here's a list of books that I've decided I can part with. If anyone wants any of them, tell me your best offer. Please note that if you don't live within pick-up distance, you'll have to pay for postage. I'm moving, so money is going to be tight for a while :)

Unwanted books will probably be dropped off at Goodwill or somewhere, along with the rest of the stuff I no longer want but can't sell / give away.

P.S. All books are used, unless otherwise said. They're all in one piece, though. I try to take good care of my books.

BOOKS:

FICTION PAPERBACKS
- The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- The Scions of Shannara by Terry Brooks
- Faerie Tale by Raymond E. Feist
- The Losers by David Eddings
- Kings by George V. Henderson (this was an author-published book I bought because I felt sorry for the guy sitting in front of Coles with a stack of books. It's signed, but honestly the story itself is pretty crappy)
- The Redemption of Althalus by David & Leigh Eddings
- Talon of the Silver Hawk by Raymond E. Feist (conclave of shadows book 1)
- King of Foxes by Raymond E. Feist (conclave of shadows book 2)
- Shadow of a Dark Queen by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 1)
- Rise of a Merchant Prince by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 2)
- Rage of a Demon King by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 3)
- Shards of a Broken Crown by Raymond E. Feist (serpentwar saga book 4)
- Krondor the Betrayal by Raymond E. Feist (riftwar legacy book 1)
- Krondor the Assassins by Raymond E. Feist (riftwar legacy book 2)
- Forging the Darksword by Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman (darksword book 1)
- Doom of the Darksword Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman (darksword book 2)
- Triumph of the Darksword Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman (darksword book 3)
- Legacy of the Darksword Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman (darksword book 4)
- Darksword Adventures: The Complete Guide to Venturing in the Enchanged Realm of Thimhallan by Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman
- The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
- Shadow Moon by George Lucas and Chris Claremont (sequel to the movie "Willow")
- The Diamond Throne by David Eddings (elenium book 1)
- The Ruby Knight by David Eddings (elenium book 2)
- The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings (elenium book 3)
- Domes of Fire by David Eddings (tamuli book 1)
- The Shining Ones by David Eddings (tamuli book 2)
- The Hidden City by David Eddings (tamuli book 3)
- The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams (memory, sorrow and thorn book 1)
- Stone of Farewell by Tad Williams (memory, sorrow and thorn book 2)
- Guenevere, Queen of the Summer Country by Rosalind Miles
- The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
- Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
- The Root Cellar by Janet Lunn
- Stargate by Pauline Gedge
- Merlin by Stephen R. Lawhead
- Harlequin by Bernard Cornwell (library discard but in good condition)
- Clothar the Frank by Jack Whyte
- Whistler by Roger Taylor

FICTION HARDCOVER
- Star Wars Episode I The Phantom Menace by Terry Brooks
- Krondor Tears of the Gods by Raymond E. Feist
- Shadow Dawn by Chris Claremont & George Lucas
- The Elder Gods by David & Leigh Eddings
- The First Man in Rome by Colleen McCullough

NON-FICTION AND LITERATURE
- "Manga Mania: Fantasy Worlds" by Christopher Hart
- Two Spanish Picaresque Novels: Lazarillo de Tormes & The Swindler
- Goethe Faust Part One (Penguin Classic 1958)
- "Yoshimasa and the Silver Pavilion" by Donald Keene
- History of Rome (published 1884)
- Castglione "The Book of the Courtier"
- "The Castle of Otranto" by Horace Walpole
- Japan: A Country Study
- Classical Gods and Heroes: Myths as Told by the Ancient Authors
- Atlas of Classical Portraits (1898)
- "Jesus" by Michael Grant
- Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius (1919)
- "Le Morte d'Arthur" by Sir Thomas Malory (volume 1)
- "Mega Manga" by Keith Sparrow
- Horace Odes - books 1-3 (1953; in Latin)
- Women and Gender in Early Modern Europe by Merry E. Wiesner (2nd edition)
- Italy in the Age of the Renaissance 1380-1530
- The Woman and the Lyre: Women Writers in Classical Greece and Rome
- Women on the Edge: Four Plays by Euripides
- Seneca: The Tragedies Volume II
- Women's Life in Greece and Rome
- Studies in Etymology by Charles W Dunmore

Okay, give me your best offers!

Trying to think of a post

2008-04-22T08:38:00.005-04:00

Let's see... something must have happened during the past week for me to blog about...

I visited London on Friday/Saturday, just to make sure that Dee and Sam were still talking to me ;) It was lots of fun - I miss that city! It made me long for my university days when almost all my friends were in one place. Ah, nostalgia.

Hamlet helps me pack in the most unhelpful way possible

While in London, Dee and I looked at lots of pretty dresses (which, unfortunately, I can't show you) and did some knitting (which, fortunately, I can show you!)

I'm pleased to say that with Dee's help, I finished my gauntlets! Right in time for summer.... d'oh! We got Sam, did some shopping, ate some yummy ice cream... it was lots of fun! (Don't worry Sam, I won't post the picture of you eating ice cream) ;)

We were each knitting from one end of the ball, like Lady and the Tramp - only with yarn
(and no dogs)

The finished gauntlets

And I started making a lacy scarf, using a pattern Dee found for me.

It's the Montego Bay Scarf, and I'm using the sock yarn Heather and I won during the sock scavenger hunt (since I dislike knitting socks). I'm debating whether or not to scrap the Toronto sock (the one that's in all the scavenger hunt pictures) and either start over or give up. I haven't decided yet.

Huh. Apparently I did have some things to post about :)

Gah!

2008-04-16T07:17:00.003-04:00

It's my 6 day stretch at work. Nothing is going right this week.
I'm in need of a chuckle, so I present to you some of my favourite LOL pictures from I Can Has Cheezburger:

I'm off to London on Friday (yipee!) where I will hopefull have some zany adventure about which I can post next week. Until then, I've just got to get through today and tomorrow...

Amusing

2008-04-08T21:19:00.003-04:00

This came through the Graphic Novel listserv I'm on...

Power Corrupts

Enjoy :)

(Okay, I admit it. I try to do this too with the YA manga that ends up on my desk. But if there's someone waiting, I usually send it to them first... unless it's something I'm *dying* to read... or unless the waiting list is too long)

Easter Lamb

2008-04-06T14:12:00.004-04:00

On the Easter long weekend, I cast on for my first stuffed animal.

If you're on Ravelry, you can click here to take a look at what the finished product is supposed to look like. If you're not on Ravelry, you're going to have to wait until I post pictures of my lamb.

So anyway, I now find myself with a bag of lamb bits... does anyone know how to do seams?

Also, Heather, can I use the rest of your bag of stuffing?

(I had to take that shot *really* fast
Apparently Hamlet has developed a taste for lamb)

Eventually my Easter lamb will be a cute little lamb of spring... and not assorted limbs.

A few pictures

2008-04-03T12:48:00.005-04:00

Well, it's been an exciting week for me. Tuesday was the super fun sock scavenger hunt, Wednesday I was a judge for Battle of the Books, and today I'm home sick.

Fortunately, I've only lost my voice (and gain some terrific sneezes) which prevents me from working but doesn't keep me in bed all day (although I have already had a nap)

So, I'm going to post the few pictures I took from the Sock Scavenger Hunt. Pretty much all the pictures are on Heather's camera, but I'll get them from her as soon as I can!

(Warning: this post will be picture heavy!)

This is a gargoyle on the *very* top of Casa Loma

Heather outside the Prince's Gate - it was very windy!

A self portrait of me (windy, windy day)

Hee... Heather told me not to put up the picture of her with beer...
One of them was mine.
(sorry Heather)

Mike enjoys the Yarn Harlot's new book

8 hours of mostly walking around Toronto, but it was worth it!
Heather and I won some pretty yarn!
(mine is on the left, Heather's is on the right)

VICTORY!

A final shot with the socks, and my friend Nancy

Phew! So those are my pictures. I'm going to make myself some soup...

Scavenger Hunt and Book Launch

2008-04-02T07:14:00.003-04:00

Oh my, was yesterday ever an eventful day!

I'll post details later with pictures (once I get them from Heather), but the long and short of it is this:

I used my lieu day at work to spend the day running around Toronto doing a sock scavenger hunt from the Yarn Harlot, to celebrate her book launch. Essentially, there was a list of places and things to take pictures of while holding a sock-in-progress.

Heather and I started around 10am, and finished about 6:15pm (with only one and a half breaks!)

We went from Casa Loma, to Ontario Place, to the CN Tower / Rogers Centre / Steamwhistle Brewery / Union Station, to the St Lawrence Market, and back up to the ROM with a detour in China Town, pausing a dozen times on the way.

Oh, the blisters on my feet! And now, I'm off to the gym. I hope my trainer has pity on me.

And, of course, yesterday was a blustery blustery day, and while the wind wasn't so bad in the early afteroon, by 5pm it was *frigid* and we were *exhausted* and *cranky*.

But it was totally worth it. We won 4th prize - sock yarn.

(Oh yeah. The book launch itself was awesome. I love reading the Yarn Harlot, but hearing her speak in person was fantastic. She's a truly funny lady. I can't wait to have her at the library!)

Pictures later - maybe even later this morning!!

Earth Hour

2008-03-30T12:57:00.002-04:00

Yesterday, March 29th from 8pm to 9pm was Earth Hour. Everyone who wanted to participate was supposed to turn off their lights for one hour to save electricity and promote awareness of climate change and such.

The WWF site has some great before and after pictures of Toronto during the hour.

Fortunately for me, I was at a birthday party for a friend and was able to participate with a bunch of people instead of sitting alone in a dark apartment for an hour (note to self: buy a flashlight or candles or something).

We ended up playing a really fun game (yes, I found a game fun, believe it or not) so our Earth Hour looked something like this:

My thrilling life

2008-03-29T08:46:00.003-04:00

Probably my greatest accomplishment this week has been completing Final Fantasy XII (always nice to have goals, isn't it?)

This game was gorgeous. The scenery was stunning and I often found myself panning the camera around just to take in the architecture of wherever I happen to be (except in caves. I hate caves. But even the caves were pretty)

Anyway, I believe I started this game 2 years ago... so it's been a while. I love long RPGs like this because I invest a minimal amount of money for a long period of entertainment. And I go through phases of playing and not playing.

So anyway, I went from these beautiful graphics

Back to Final Fantasy IX (for the PS1)

I beat FFIX a while ago but always loved it. I find that people are in two camps about this game. Either they loved IX and hated IIX, or vice versa. It's rare to find some one who loved both. (I hated IIX and gave it away. I wanted to kill Rinoa, who was one of the playable characters)

Anyway... FFIX has the best music, in my opinion, and I love the little black mage Vivi. I hope it doesn't take me 2 year to finish this game again (especially since it's much shorter than XII)

And, in other news, I did a lot of knitting over Easter, but not the sleeves of the sweater Dee and I are doing together. Instead I started to work on lamb parts to make myself an Easter lamb! I don't have any pictures of the guy yet (either together or in pieces) but since I don't know how to do seams, someone will have to help me out!

chuckle

2008-03-18T08:44:00.001-04:00

Saw this on Neil Gaiman's blog and had to share:

Novelists Strike Fails To Affect Nation Whatsoever

Glad I'm not the only one

2008-03-13T20:46:00.003-04:00

This is the best summation of the Sophie Kinsella's Shopoholic series that I've ever read:

"For those who haven't read it, Confessions of a Shopaholic is the first in a series of increasingly annoying books about a pretty darn irritatingly stupid girl for whom things seem to work out beautifully despite the fact that she never learns her damn lesson in a lasting way."

Bless those ladies at Go Fug Yourself. Nice to know I'm not alone, and that I'm in good company.

Follow the feathers

2008-03-11T20:53:00.004-04:00

One of the three manga series' that I buy regularly is Reservoir Tsubasa Chronicles.

I originally started watching the anime before the manga was released in the west, and fell in love with it. I'm a fan of other CLAMP shows, and they had an ingenious idea with this series.

The main characters are alternate version of Sakura and Syaoran from Cardcaptor Sakura. The plot involves them traveling through different dimensions to find pieces of Sakura's heart/soul which are hidden in the form of very magically powerful feathers. The ingenious part is that every world they go to is populated by different characters from CLAMP manga!

(Because of this show, I've purchased and read all of RG Veda, and rekindled my love of X)

The manga also crosses paths with xxxHolic, which encourages readers to buy both mangas (which I do...)

Tsubasa is much darker than Cardcaptor Sakura, especially towards the later volumes, which makes it more appealing to older audiences while younger readers can first enjoy the bubblegum sweetness of Cardcaptor Sakura and still come to know the characters. Like I said earlier, it also exposes readers to characters from other CLAMP titles, which in turn encourages them to read those series'.

The real heart-wrencher for me was that in order to gain the power to travel to different worlds, Syaoran had to give up his relationship with Sakura, whom he loves. When she regains a feather and her memories come flooding back, she never remembers her childhood with Syaoran. Later volumes has the tragedy shift slightly, but I won't spoil it for anyone :)

Gen's damned fine yam fries

2008-03-02T18:44:00.003-05:00

Recipe for Yam Fries (made from several recipes I found online, using the least amount of ingredients and some substitutions for what I had in my cupboards)

Ingredients:
2 huge honkin' yams (I had no idea yams were that big)
PAM
olive oil
rock hard brown sugar

1. Peel the huge yams, taking care *not* to drop one of them in the sink full of soaking dishes from previous meals
2. Rinse the soap off the yams after dropping them in the sink anyway
3. Cut the yams in half
4. Rinse the dirt from the floor off the yams after they go skidding out of control while you're trying to chop them in half (remember - these are HUGE yams)
5. Cut them so they vaguely resemble fries... very vaguely
6. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
7. Spray 2 cookie sheets with PAM
8. Lay the cut yam fries on the cookie sheets so they're not touching. Rinse off the ones you drop on the floor while doing this. Abandon the ones the kitten gets and hope that yams agree with kitten digestive systems.
9. Lightly coat the yam fries with olive oil
10. Swear profusely when the olive oil comes out much faster than you though. Mop up the excess with paper towel
11. Using the butt of your sharp knife (to keep the dishes to a minimum) try to pound the brown sugar back into granular form. Lightly coat the yam fries with sugar.
12. Lightly coat them with sugar again... can't have too much sugar!
13. Put the cookie sheets in the oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, take them out, flip them, and put them back in for another 10 minutes. Try not to drop them when the heat from the oven fogs up your glasses
14. Eat up! Just try not to eat them all at once. Remember how *huge* those yams were before you cut them and control yourself
15. Save the leftovers for lunch tomorrow... mmmm....

28 on the 28th

2008-02-28T08:05:00.001-05:00

Silent Library

2008-02-22T10:01:00.002-05:00

Japanese game shows are messed up.

and more than a little bit dangerous.

(the point is they're in a library and so they can't make noise as these horribly things are being done to them)

Family Day sans family

2008-02-18T23:04:00.004-05:00

I happily indulged myself this first Family Day with some well deserved (and well needed) R&R...

well, that was my original plan. Then I got working on my website and a few hours later realized I was hungry and half the day was gone. Oops!

Still, I managed to get my Spirit Saga story it's own web page, and I'm pretty proud of it. It's now easier to read the chapters in order! Hooray!

Anyway, the art I got was from a delightful site called JonathonArt.Com (where I steal a lot of art for website and background and such)

There are five pieces of art that I find absolutely breathtaking (maybe because most of the art on his page I consider old, and these five pieces are new and gorgeous)

So, make sure you take a look at Earth, Water, Air, Fire, and Quintessence.

Okay, off to bed. Enjoy the pretty pretty pictures!

I don't get it.

2008-02-18T10:10:00.002-05:00

Does anyone else find this ridiculous?

It's the exact same cereal turned sideways! How is this new?

It frightens me to think that somewhere someone is thinking "Wow. Diamond Shreddies. That's pure genius!"

Spring now, please?

2008-02-13T08:22:00.005-05:00

The past two weeks have been horrible and stressful. I had hoped the worst was over, but no.

Monday I whacked my head pretty hard on something and ended up with a huge headache (duh). Yesterday, I also managed to burn my arm with the iron (see why I don't iron?) while enjoying day two of the headache. I was on desk all day at work, and while nothing horrible happened (unlike last week) being on desk all day with a major headache was not fun. I wanted to go home so badly I could cry.

So then, the end of the day came. Hooray! But it was another snowstorm. I drove my colleague to the subway station as I always do when we work the same shift, but was unable to get out of the station in the direction I wanted to go. So instead of left, I had to to turn right.

(captions: at subway "stuck for 20 minutes";
along Finch "no longer thinking straight";
at Bathurst/Finch "if I was thinking straight, I would have turned right")

To make a long and painful story short, it took me 2 hours to get home last night. I left work at 5:00, and walked in my door at 7:00. I live 20 minutes from work, and about 5 minutes from the subway where I dropped off my colleague.

I wanted to go home so badly I did cry. And if I didn't have such a busy day at work ahead of me, I'd call in sick.

And yes, I still have a headache.

Azura's Vices

So Much to Read, So Little Time

Well Travelled Cat

201st post ... 6 months later

200th Post!!!

Busy Month of May

Brooding

Annual Classic - DONE!

Annual Classic

Home Decor!

Rant

Knitting - On The Needles

Mourning

Uh oh...

The Magicians

Avatar

Rough start to 2010

End of a Decade

Bloggin' at the cottage!

Latest Good Book

Sims 3

Distracted by Life

An Evening With Neil Gaiman

Things to come...

The most wonderful time of the spring...

Blogger's New Groove

So I'm a day late..

Glove Love!

Happy Birthday To Me...

The Friday Night Knitting Club

Busy fingers

Neglecting the ol' blog

Winter Blahs

Year In Review

Merry Christmas!

Seven Pounds

*tap tap* Is this thing on?

Lack of an Update

Twilight

Psst...

One Year!

Remember

Morning Giggle

In Which I Talk About My Hair

A promise to all of you

NaNoWriMo Update

What I did with my extra hour

NaNoWriMo - Day 1

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

Long awaited pictures

I carried a watermelon?!

Sheer Freakin' GENIUS!

NaNoWriMo

Stealin' posts for my blog

Ha!

This Saturday...

All This Post is Missing are Pictures

Not-Sims update

Sims Update

Update

Crazy Times

The Internet is for WHAT?!?

Adventures in Toronto

Dark Knight

Exciting Day

Forget Fabreeze...

Birthdays and Knitters

What I've Been Up To: The Knitting Edition

My (Affordable) Dream Vacation

Opinions wanted

"The Happening"

Twilight

Picture to share

Indiana Jones and the Disappointing Plot

Because I don't have enough on the go...

Anime North LOOT!

Walking the Labyrinth

That time of year again

It's been about a week....

Books part II

tap tap Is this thing on?

chuckle