Finished Projects!

I finally finished the mystery afghan - now officially a wedding gift. The pattern is Bernat's Lace and Cable Afghan. I'm pleased with the finished product, but it took a lot longer than I anticipated and I came to regret starting it in the first place. The last couple of months I was referring to it as the "Wretched Afghan," and had to force myself to work on it. But it's finished, and now I can move on to other projects. I've got a nice long list going!

Whenever I needed a break from the Wretched Afghan, I knit a few rows on this little guy:


Sheldon the Turtle - isn't he cute? I couldn't resist, and it was a surprisingly quick knit. He's now at work, making my office more cheerful.

I've already got a couple new projects going - a beautiful pair of cabled gloves and a pretty wool cardigan, both for me. I also have plans in the works for a beret-style hat with some dark green sparkly yarn I got on sale a while back, a recycled silk bag, and some sort of Steelers scarf of my own design, which is yet to be fully imagined.

I'm so excited to be knitting some fun new projects!

Steelers 20, Bengals 23

Arrgghh. It's all my fault.

I watched this game with a bunch of friends, including my friend Train Brain, who is a Redskins fan. The Steelers were safely in the lead when I made one sassy comment about the ignominy of the Skins being the team that finally lost to the 0-19 Detroit Lions. Shortly thereafter, things went downhill quickly. Karma felt the need to dole out a bit of punishment.

So if you're wondering why the Steelers lost today, it wasn't the pick-six that Ben threw, or the TD pass that Limas Sweed dropped, or the field goal that Jeff Reed missed. It was me and my big mouth, as I was informed by all my friends who were present. I'm sorry, Steeler Nation. I promise to keep my big mouth shut next week against the Chargers.

The Lost Symbol - Initial Thoughts

Don't worry - no spoilers. I wouldn't do that.

I tore through The Lost Symbol as quickly as I did Angels and Demons and The DaVinci Code...about 2-3 days. I'm a bit ambivalent about it. Obviously the speed at which I devoured the book is a good indication that I found it pretty enticing...and yet, somehow it left me a little cold. I loved the Washington DC setting and the expected historical tie-ins throughout the plot. However, I found some of the science aspects to be a little too new-agey and esoteric to suit my taste, and I saw the twist at the end coming a mile away, so the ending kind of fizzled out for me personally. Still an enjoyable read overall, and I'm sure anyone who enjoyed Dan Brown's previous novels will find The Lost Symbol to be squarely in the same ballpark. My copy is currently making the rounds of my friends and family. Perhaps when it's back in my possession I'll give it a re-read and see if it sits better the second time around.

Steelers 14, Bears 17

Bummer. Overall, I thought the Steelers seemed okay, not great. Ben and Santonio Holmes looked solid on offense. Tyrone Carter did an okay job filling in at safety, but he's clearly not the defensive force that Troy Polamalu is - the sooner Troy's back, the better. The rushing game was still not up to Steelers standards. Still, they played well enough to win, if the normally rock-solid Jeff Reed hadn't inexplicably missed a pair of field goals. Rats. I hope for better things next week at Cincinnati.

Still, there were a couple of very satisfying wins that I really enjoyed watching during Week 2. The scrappy Jets took down the venerated Tom Brady and the New England Patriots (sorry Dad), and the Giants spoiled the Cowboys' home opener at the gauche theme park that Jerry Jones calls a stadium. So there was still something to smile about on Sunday!

A Toothbrush Is Not A Toy

Sophie, you have approximately one million cat toys scattered around the house. There is no need to jump up on the bathroom sink and play with my toothbrush.

Because this is what will happen:

In Memoriam

The Beretta
1994 - 2009

Yes, it's true. The faithful Beretta is gone. Although I still really wasn't putting much money into it, it had just become too unreliable.

I will miss you, Beretta.

I will miss the manual crank windows that were perpetually frozen shut from December to March.
I will miss the way I never had to look at the speedometer because I knew how fast I was going by how much the car was shaking.
I will miss the ABS warning light that came on at random for no discernible reason.
I will miss the seat belt light that was always on, regardless of whether or not the seat belt was buckled.
I will miss the morning jump starts whenever the overnight temperature dipped into single digits.
I will miss the annual A/C system recharges at the beginning of every summer.
I will miss the dangling gas tank door with the rusty hinge.
Most of all, I will miss the thrilling sense of anticipation every time I turned the ignition key...are you going to start?!?

Trade in value of the Beretta? $100.

It is a huge loss. The Beretta was with me for 15 years. But we grieve, and we move on. I now have this sweet little ride:

I've wanted a Beetle FOREVER. I love it!

Steelers 13, Titans 10

Well, it was a bit of a shaky start. The running game was nonexistent, Troy Polamalu went out with a knee injury, and my jaw dropped when Hines Ward fumbled the ball when all he had to do was take a knee and let Jeff Reed make the winning field goal.

But Big Ben put together a winning drive in overtime, and a win's a win. I'll take it!

Next week - at Chicago, where I hope the Steelers defense beats up on that whiny brat Jay Cutler.

Funny Moment from the Djoker

I have not been much of a Novak Djokovic fan since he made some rather toolish comments about Andy Roddick after beating him in the quarterfinals at the US Open last year. I've been hating on him ever since.

But his post match interview after winning his 4th round match the other night went a long way towards redeeming him in my eyes. He's gracious and funny, and talks John McEnroe into coming down on the court from the commentator's booth to hit a few.

Novak does his John McEnroe imitation while he's waiting, and Johnny Mac returns the favor when he gets on court.



My favorite moments:

6:56 Cliff Drysdale: "Oh, I hope he gets one in."
7:33 Darren Cahill: "That racquet looks about 200 years old."

Classic stuff!