Sunday, September 22, 2013

World on Fire

Lately, I've been having kind of a hard time.  I'm not sure if I could even pin point as to why. Just little things that set off those feelings.  The feelings of worthlessness and like I don't matter to anyone, including myself.  As though I'm spiraling out of control.  I know that it's temporary.  All things are.  And that this too shall pass, but sometimes, in the moment, it gets awfully hard to remember it.

Things that have been helping me:
World on Fire by Max Collins (Gorgeous song, sad, but happy all at once)
Books (all of them)

Currently Watching: Fringe
Currently Reading: Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

Thursday, June 07, 2012

#CoulsonLives #FuryLies Scarf How to!

Here is how to make your very own #CoulsonLives #FuryLies scarf.

Supplies:
2 Skeins Berroco Comfort in Main Color
1 Skein Berroco Comfort in the color you want your letters
1 set size 8 (5mm) straight needles (circulars will do)
Stitch Markers (which are totally optional and I did not use, but if you're new to knitting might help)

*I found it useful to wind about 1/3 of the color for your letters into a separate ball so that you can work one set of letters out of each

Here are my supplies.  I bought extra yarn because I wasn't sure how much I would need.  I ended up using about a skein and a half of the black and not even one skein of the white.




So, next.  Casting on.  I cast 35 stitches (picture on the left) with the black and then did 7 rows in seed stitch.  That's knit, purl, knit, purl all the way across.  You do that 7 times (picture below).  Don't worry about which side is the right side at this point.



Once you've completed your 7 rows on seed stitch you're going to keep going in seed stitch for the first and last 5 stitches of every row.  This means the first 5 stitches will always be knit, purl, knit, purl, knit.  It doesn't matter if you're on the right side or the wrong side, it will always be that.  After I finished the first 7 rows I did 2 rows with the seed stitch border and stockinette stitch (knit on the right side, purl on the wrong side) just to establish myself.
Now the real fun starts.  THE LETTERS.
I used these letters and modified them slightly so that they were all 7 spaces across and 12 letters high.  Except the 'I'.  The 'I' is only 6 letters across. I took a picture of them in excel on the right, but it's kind of hard to tell.  Hopefully the link works as a good guide line. How annoying.  So, about halfway through your scarf will look something like...
Not really halfway through.  I worked the lettering up one way and then down the other way.  Once you're through you will have to block it out.  And you might want to sew some kind of fabric on the back, in order to cover up all the messy color work portions.


And now some blocking photos for your edification:

THE SCARF soaking in the sink.  Left it for about 20 minutes

Pinned out in the laundry room.  









 I soaked it in the sink for about 20 minutes.  Then rolled it up in a towel (I only barely wrung it out).  Then I stomped on the towel.
I used t-pins to pin it to some foam board to dry completely flat.  Always good to remember to attach washing directions for any of your knitting creations that you are sending far and away from you.  I like to make my own labels.
Detail shot!
You'll notice that I didn't include any hash tags for #CoulsonLives and #FuryLies.  I couldn't think of a good way to make a hash tag that would look like it matched the font.  If you can more power to you.  Feel free to add to this pattern to your little hearts content.  Also if you do make a scarf, e-mail me a pic :)  I would love to see other people's interpretation of it.   If you're an agent in deep cover, you could make the pattern in colors that are only a few shades different, or make it all in the same color and purl the patterns for the letters instead of making them a different color.  I think that might look cool.

After that weave in your ends.  If you're any good at sewing you can sew on some fabric to the back to cover up all your color work.  And that's it!

Good luck agents!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Do it with a Rockstar

Okay.  To get myself back into Blogging...since I've been kind of out of it for a while, I am going to do a 30 day challenge thing.

Day One: Write some basic things about yourself

Basic things.  My hair is blonde (naturally).  My eyes are green, but can look blue in certain lights combined with certain colors.  I live with my parents and I need to lose about 65lbs (which is better than the 165lbs I had to lose 4 years ago).  I have a cat named Mab.  She's 5 years old.  I love reading, writing, playing ukulele and guitar.  I work at the local hospital.  I'm a scheduler there, and while the work is kind of monotonous and boring, I do like most of the people.  I would love to work for a comic book company one day, and am keeping my eyes open for positions that could move me towards that (I am looking at you Marvel).  I have never had a boyfriend.  I am still a virgin.  I don't currently have a favorite author (I used to, but I don't want to talk about it).  I'm 5'6".

That's pretty much all the basics that I can think of.  Good start thought I think.  YAY!

Wednesday, May 02, 2012

Put your back in, baby, put you back into it

I found the set list online:

Situation Infatuation
Promise
Amphetamines
BFGF
Think Twice
Leech
Nightmare
Lost & Found
Here’s to the Night
At Least We’re Dreaming
Pick Up the Pieces
Victoria
Tongue Tied
On the Roof Again
Inside Out
Open Road Song
Anytime
Superhero Girl
Clearly there were a couple songs that I forgot or got mixed up (one that I called the wrong thing, oops)

B.F.G.F.

I've had this song stuck in my head for hours now...I honestly believe it's the reason I haven't gone to sleep yet.

To recap...I have had an awesome couple of weeks.  I don't know how else to put it.  I met my favorite band since I was 12, and the red-headed bass player that started my well-publicized obsession with red-heads.  I went to Hawai'i (Maui to be specific).  Though the plane ride home was a little horrific (red eye, with complementary crying one year old, that kid had some stamina, let me tell you).  I've donated $100 to go to an Amanda Palmer house party happening sometime next year, where me and 49 people I have likely never met before will be treated to a private performance from Amanda and the GTO.  I get to see the Avengers at midnight on Thursday.  And there are so many other things that I am just massively looking forward to.

Quick recap of my Eve 6 concert so that I don't forget anything (I know, I'm horribly remiss in writing this up almost two weeks later, I have probably already forgotten some tiny detail that will bother me):

I got there almost late.  I was supposed to get there at 5:15pm for the soundcheck and meet and greet with the band, but was late due to the insane traffic in Seattle.  I was almost crying because it was 5:21pm when I finally pulled up in front of El Corazon.  But luck was with me, and I hadn't missed much except for the merch guy talking a little bit.  Phew, crisis averted.  I got my pass and stood in the rain for a little bit before we all went inside.  Eve 6 was up on the stage, they said hello to all of us VIP-ers.  Probably between 20 and 25 in all.  They played Rescue Me from Horrorscope and a new one from Speak in Code called Everything.  They sounded awesome as usual for their awesome selves.  Then we all got in a line and waited to go and meet them, have a little chat, get things signed and get a picture.  I wish two things: that I had taken advantage of the merch table, and that I had brought a better camera.  I was much too twitterpated to think of any of this at the time.  I chatted with the people around me in line, and the member of the crew who was nice enough to be taking pictures.  We talked about the 14 hour drive they had made from Salt Lake City that day.  I got to meet them.  Tony immediately stepped forward and introduced himself, and shook my hand, and then I shook Max (who shakes with his left hand, awkward) and Jon.  Max asked if I wanted my VIP badge signed and I said yes.  Tony asked if I had ever seen them before (I imagine that most people had said no, because it seemed like everyone there was younger than me and didn't know the old stuff to well)  He was surprised when I told him I had, when they were in town with Goldfinger and Good Charlotte.   Max had poofy hair at that point.  Tony remembered and commented that they had worn daisy dukes on stage, I said that Max had a cold, we laughed.  Tony promised they would be fully clothed and in full health this time around.  Then we posed for a picture and I was on my way.  I had about an hour before doors opened for the actual show.  Nate called and we met up and found some dinner, though really I was way to nervous to eat hardly anything. I ate like 3 bites of a salad and a piece or two of cheesy bread.

The show itself had 3 opening bands before Eve 6 came on.  Tony D'angelo was the first one, they were pretty good.  Kind of rap and singing combo group.  Girl drummer, that was really unique.  The second band was called Namesake, they were kind of huge.  Lots of cute guitar/bass players though.  That was nice.  The third band, and probably the most polished, was The Audition.  The lead singer seemed like he definitely already had a few drinks in him.  They were really high energy and got the crowd going.  Then, Eve 6.  They opened with Situation Infatuation which was really good.  The people I was standing around were pretty awesome.  On one side of me was a tiny red-head girl and two of her guy friends (there was another friend with them, but she kept going out to the car to smoke a bowl and never coming back), they were nice.  On the other side of me was a woman who said she was old enough to be my mother, but did not look like it, her boyfriend/husband, her daughter and a couple of her friends. I couldn't say what order the other songs happened in, so I'm just going to make a list:


  • Situation Infatuation
  • Victoria
  • Here's to the Night
  • On the Roof Again
  • Promise
  • Amphetamines
  • Nightmare
  • Inside Out
  • Open Road Song
  • 1000 Faces
  • Leech
  • At Least We're Dreaming
  • Think Twice
  • Pick up the Pieces
  • B.F.G.F. (I am pretty sure they played this one)
  • Lost & Found
I'm pretty sure that's it.  It was great.  Max and I had a moment during Pick up the Pieces because I was one of the few people in the audience who knew most of the words (because it had been a song he did on his own, but he changed a bit of it).  The stage conversation was great as always.  Just a few snippets.

Max: Sweetpea, Sweetpea, is this bass made of real gold?  I want you to look me in the eye and tell me this bass is made of real gold!
Jon: I would look you in the eye, Max, but there's pole between us.  However, I guarentee that bass is made of real gold.
Tony: Shut up.

Max: I thought this song (referring to Pick up the Pieces) was about someone else.  Then I thought about it for while and it turns out that it was about me all along.

Max: We wrote this song while we were sitting in a room at the highschool after having to much soda and sugar, and Sweetpea thought it would be a good idea to have a song that everyone could bounce up and down to.  And Tony and I, well, we thought that was a really good idea.  But I don't just want you all to bounce up and down, I'll count it off, 1 2 3 4, and then you jump.  You don't want to be the only one jumping up and down do you?  So only jump when I count to 4.

That's all the really memorable conversation I can recall.  The blonde chick in front of me stepped on my toe with her insanely giant shoes.  That hurt like a son of a bitch.  The mosh pit knocked me over, but the nice people next to me helped me back up, and then the woman who said she was old enough to be my mother sent her husband/boyfriend over to guard me (and the two little people next to me) from the mosh pit.  That was very nice of her.  I took a lot of pictures for them before and after the show.

I think that recounts pretty much the whole experience.  At least enough to make me relive it through a blog post. :)

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

I promise not to try not to fuck with your mind

My new job has been good thus far. It's interesting seeing it from a little bit of a different perspective. Sometimes you look at a month for a floor and you just go..."Well, that sucks" and then you try and move people around enough that everything sucks just about equally. I still don't have absolutely complete access to Kronos, so that's kind of annoying since my boss forgot to do anything before he left.

Having some vacation issues since my boss apparently completely missed my last vacation request. I'm hoping that they didn't accidentally approve anyone who requested after me. Because technically there's should be pulled and mine should be put in. Ugh. Messiness. But I'd push the issue. I hate that.

I'm dying a little from working days right now. They kill me completely. I just want to sleep all of the time. Really aggravating when it's finally nice out.

I really think that's all my brain can handle right now...blegh

Sunday, May 08, 2011

Because the Origami

Just went and saw Thor all by my lonesome. Which is always kind of sad because I always want to make comments to people when I see movies and when you're by yourself there's not really anyone to comment too. But the movie was great! Plus there were lots of attractive good looking men in it. Always makes my day. The guy who played Loki looks awfully familiar (also he's worked with Branaugh before, which doesn't surprise me, sometimes actors become favorites of directors and get used a lot). Also he'll be back in the next one along with everyone else! YAY! And it had Stellan Skarsgard in it. Not my favorite Skarsgard, and that would have made it so much funnier if Alex Skarsgard had gotten the part of Thor. I would have spent the whole movie laughing. Which probably would have made it not as good of a movie. I did see it in 3-D which kind of leaves me with a headache now. Also the Avengers movie can not get here soon enough. I can't believe I have to wait an entire year for it. UGH. I'll just have to survive on all the other amazing movies coming out in between. Like Priest, and Pirates of the Caribbean 4, and Captain America, and X-Men: First Class, and Sherlock Holmes 2...and hopefully some more Sherlock tv series.

Now I want to write this Loki story that has been floating around in the back of my head for a while. Almost 4 years now I think. I should probably just start working on it. But I have to find all of my Ragnorak research. and then try to remember how I was spinning it. Oh fun. Off I go interwebs. Have a lovely night.

Saturday, May 07, 2011

It's how my friend history here made me

Still trying to get better at the emblogginning. Slowly doing so I think.

Today is my last day as a staffing clerk. At least for a while. The nice thing is that I will have every Saturday off and ever other Friday/Sunday. The other thing that I'm kind of ambivalent about is working 9a-5p. While it's nice that I will get off at 1730 every evening it's kind of gross to have to be here at 0900 every morning. Not as bad as 0700 which I will unfortunately be doing 5 days a week for the next two weeks. Kind of going to suck. I've already warned people not to talk to me probably for at least 2 hours. Also Katie and I are probably going to be bored by day 3 if not sooner.

Weightloss wise I am still losing but very slowly. I have been really bad about food for the last two weeks. I need to get back to more veggies and fruit and things like that. Or at least refried beans. Ugh. Low cal soups and stuff are good too. It's just kind of expensive to buy all that stuff for myself so I just end up eating what's around. And I want to be good about it and then I'm just not. I need a better tracking system. No, I just need to set a time of the day aside at the end of it were I sit down and write everything I've eaten for the day down onto a sheet of paper. That would be the best solution to that I think.

Well, at least a bit of a plan anyway. I'm thinking about getting a gym membership as well when I move onto 9-5's because I think it will be easier to go either before or after work. I'll have to trial it and see how it goes. Or at least get a better work out regimen going. Maybe I should be like Neil Gaiman and listen to Bleak House whilst exercising. Or any other audiobook. That should keep me distracted enough to maybe not notice that I'm exercising.

I'll trial some things and see if they work better than things I've tried before.

Later Interwebs.