Birthday Meme

No, I have not fallen into the abyss. Just into finals week. I'll be back this weekend.

Nartian tagged me for the birthday meme.

The Birthday Meme rules are to go to Wikipedia and type in your birthday month and day only. Then post 3 events, 2 births and one holiday that occurred on your birthday, then tag 5 friends.

My Birthday is September 7- So here's the goods....

3 events:
1251 BC - A solar eclipse on this date might mark the birth of legendary Heracles at Thebes, Greece.

Hercules! Hercules!!!!!

1979 - The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) makes its debut.

They knew what this 2 year old would like!

1997 - The first test flight of the F-22 Raptor takes place

I was 1/2 naked on a window sill yelling, "I'm 20!!!!" Ahhhh... the good old days when I'd show my belly.


2 births:
1949 - Gloria Gaynor, American singer- She will survive!
1963 - Eazy-E, American rapper (d. 1995)- Easy E, What up? Am I mellow?

1 holiday:
Brazil - Independence day (from Portugal, 1822).

I'm tagging, if you are so inclined:

Peaknit
Trish
Carrie
Camille
Valerie

Yummy in My Tummy

I'm enjoying the second to last Friday I have free. Next month I have to go back to a 5 day school week. Sad.

So I woke up early without an alarm and made myself a delicious breakfast.



Fat free Greek yogurt, granola, and a little honey. A woman in my nursing school is also setting up a granola business. This is her product. So delicious! Lots of nuts and flax seeds. It was the perfect start to a day that will be full of school work.

Hope you're having a happy Friday. And there's lots of good yarn left in the destash..... I'm just saying...

Destash Extravaganza!!!!

There's still lots of good stuff left!!!!

OK- here's the deal. I need to raise a little money to fund some recent school related purchases. So some of my beloved yarn has to go...

I'll accept Paypal or personal check. If you pay by check, I'll hold the yarn until the check clears.

$2 per skein for shipping. First come, first served.

All skeins come from a non-smoking house with 2 kitties. But I keep the yarn in plastic bags and tubs away from them.

If you'd like something, email me at naberens [at] yahoo [dot] com. I'll send paypal invoices from that address.

Got it? Good! Now on to the fun part....



Tilli Tomas Rockstar- Moroccan Blue- 1 skein- Retail $40, Sale $35- I have 2 skeins but I only wanted to sell 1. If you have a project that requires 2 I'd be willing to part with the second for $70 total.




Cherry Tree Hill- Supersock Solid- Cherry- 1 skein- Retail $21, Sale $18





Online Supersocke 100- Indian- 1 skein- Retail $11.75, Sale $9





Twisted Sister VooDoo- Lapis- 2 skeins- Retail $39.90, Sale $35





Trendsetter Blossom- Aqua- 3 skeins- Retail $37.50, Sale $30





Filatura Di Crosa Hopla- Yellows- 3 skeins- Retail $31.50, Sale $25





Classic Elite Premiere- 1 skein- Retail $6.50, Sale $5




Rowan Classic Yarn Cashsoft DK- Peach- 2 skeins- Retail $15.90, Sale $12




Art Yarns Supermerino- 130 Petal- 2 skeins- 1 wound- Retail $18, Sale $16- SOLD!





Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock- Latte- 2 skeins- Retail $21, Sale $19- SOLD!




Yarn Pirate- Merino/Tencel- Frost- 1 skein- Retail $25, Sale $23- SOLD!




Sundara Sock Yarn- Bird of Paradise- 1 skein- Retail $22, Sale $20- SOLD!




Yarn Pirate- Citron- 1 skein- Retail $26, Sale $24- SOLD!




Yarntini Sock- Pomtini- 1 skein- Retail $23, Sale $21- SOLD!




Art Yarns Supermerino- 127 Spring- 2 skeins- 1 wound- Retail $18, Sale $16- SOLD!




Fleece Artist Sock Yarn- Cranberry- 1 skein- Retail $19, Sale $17- SOLD!



Hello Yarn- Hand Dyed Socks- 1 skein- Retail $22, Sale $20- SOLD!



Trekking XXL- 48 Blues- 1 skein- Retail $6.50, Sale $5- SOLD!




Sunshine Sock Yarn- Fresh- 1 skein- Retail $23, Sale $21- SOLD!




Schaefer Anne- Sizzle- 1 skein- Retail $25, Sale $23- SOLD!


Let me know if you have ?'s or anything. Happy Shopping!!

Goals Update- Week 23

Boring title but I hope a good post.

Today is a lovely day. The sun is shining but it's not too hot. A nice breeze is blowing. It's a great day for laundry and studying. And as wonderful as this day has become it started out a little rough. We live across the street and down a bit from Camp Parks- an Army (I think) training center. Usually it's no big deal. But this weekend is helicopter training. So early this morning I thought we were under some kind of attack. Choppers have been flying around all morning. Milo kitty was pretty nervous as well. And she started doing the scaredy meowing thing. Then, a jerk off who lives up the road really likes to rev his bike up and down the access road. This happens all the time. It's funny because it's not a place where people are walking around looking. He's just doing it for the hell of waking me up every weekend morning. I have fantasies of throwing eggs at him or even shooting him with a BB gun. I would never do these things but it's fun to think about. Other than the noise pollution, it's been a lovely morning.

Hey look! Actual knitting content!!!



These were supposed to be done in May. And only 1 is done by June 17. Remember, there are no strict knitting deadlines. They are plain vanilla socks with a short row heel and 2x2 ribbing on the cuff. The Vesper yarn in Astro is fun to knit and really reminds me of the Yarntini base yarn. This is also the first sock I've done as ML. Maybe the second one will be done by November!

In other knitting news, Valerie wrote about great knitting book deals on amazon. So I popped over there to snap up a cheap book. I got Knit 2 Together for $5.50! And since I can't resist free shipping, I picked up Lace Style and Eat, Pray, Love (as recommended by Peaknit). There's not a lot I want to knit out of Knit 2 Together. Maybe the doctor's bag. Lace Style, on the other hand, has 2 definite knits- Lily of the Valley Shawl and Katherine Hepburn Cardigan. Oh the plans I'm making for time I don't have....

If you haven't picked up Eat, Pray, Love yet, go order it now! I'll wait. OK- as a disclaimer- I'm not a self help book kind of girl. And this book, although somewhat in that vein, is really about self discovery through 3 different cultures- Italy, India, and Indonesia. So many things written in it are really resonating with me. Mostly, I'm drawn to the idea of living a more thoughtful and deliberate life. Elizabeth Gilbert writes about her path. She doesn't recommend, coerce, or try to convince the reader that she's right. She merely says this is what she did. I'm tearing through it and I know I'll read it again. I may even send copies to friends. My mom would have loved this book. Thanks so much to Peaknit for pointing me toward it. I haven't had a book touch me this way in awhile.



My little garden- Rosemary on the left. Thyme on the right. I show you this picture because I have a notorious black thumb when it comes to plants. I kill everything. And shockingly, these two are not only still alive after 4 weeks but growing. I'm stoked!

We have a little 4'x6' patio balcony thing since we're in a 3rd floor apartment. It gets a lot of light and a lot of spider webs. We haven't really tried to make it nice out there since, no matter how many times I sweep or scrub, it's still dirty. I was watering the plants a week or two ago and the kitties escaped and promptly rolled around on the concrete. And now, every time I head out there, they are right on my heels for their daily roll.



Eva



Milo- What's up with the tongue???

Aren't they cute? Of course they come back inside covered in dust and cobwebs. But they LOVE it. So who am I to deny them?

Goals-
1. Thin for Thirty- I have a plan. It's shipping as we speak. So far, I'm still over January's weight by 4 lbs. That's much better than the 11 lbs. I was over my starting point a couple of weeks ago. I want to be back at starting weight by the end of June. Then 10 lbs each in July and August. That should get me about 10 lbs. from my goal by my birthday. I can live with that. As long as I'm at goal by Christmas.

2. Knit from the Stash- I joined the YP club. And I scored some Vesper yarn on ebay. (Don't worry, I didn't over pay.) So an equivalent $ amount of yarn has to go. The destash will happen on Monday evening. I'm pulling it all together today. There's going to be some good stuff.

My feud with the USPS continues. The Palm Pilot was supposed to be delivered yesterday and it wasn't. And when I checked the tracking site last night, it said a note was left but I have no such note. UGH!!!! I really wanted to play with it today. And now it'll be held hostage until Tuesday since I won't get home from school in time to go to the post office tomorrow. They make me crazy. Oh well. This is the world teaching me patience yet again.



I leave you with a picture of me and my Dad at Blarney Castle last December. (Ignore my crazy hair, it was windy.) Happy Father's Day, Dad!!! I love you.

Moments of Weakness and Moments of Strength

I was so proud of myself earlier this week when I resisted the Yarn Pirate additions to The Loopy Ewe. They had an exclusive colorway called Loopy Groupy that was pink and green and gorgeous. And I hesitated just long enough for it to be sold out. Phew! I dodged a bullet.

But today, there was news that was too exciting to ignore. The Yarn Pirate Booty Club. 3 months, $80. That's a deal by any sock club standards. I clicked the link and voila! I'm in. If you hurry, maybe you can be too.

Unfortunately, this and the recent Palm Pilot purchase have necessitated a destash sale. I'm currently mulling over which of my beauties I can part with. All in all, I need to raise about $300. So get ready, it'll be coming in the next couple of days.

Going Green

So back in February I finished the Green Quilt Top. And I set it aside for other projects. (I can't believe it's been since February but Flickr's dates don't lie.)

I finally got around to deciding how I wanted to do the back. And once that decision was made, finishing the whole thing went lickety split!



Green Quilt (with a curious Eva kitty)
Pattern: Flock of Triangles from Denyse Schmidt Quilts
Fabric: I got a 1/2 yard bundle from Purl before I even knew how to sew. That's the front. Then, I realized I needed a back and ordered that from Hancock's of Paducah.



I took the easy way out on the back. But I think it balances the busy front pretty well.



Instead of machine quilting this blanket, I tied it with 100% wool yarn. I like how it looked until I washed it. You guessed it! My cute little ties felted. Now they look like little wool nipples. I still think it's cute but it was cuter before. Trust me.



Here's the semi-artsy shot of the front and back.

I did some things wrong with this project. The batting shifted when I washed it. So it's a little lumpy. The ties felted. And it's not quite square. But as the weather gets nicer, this crib sized* blanket will be a perfect study/picnic blanket.

*There are no announcements to be made. I simply made a crib sized piece because that's all the fabric I had and didn't want to commit to more of a project than I was ready for. After all, it's the first sewing project I started when I got my machine.

Go Fish!

I'm usually not one to run right out and try a recipe. But when I saw Giada make this on Sunday I thought, "I can do that." And it's delicious!



Roasted Cod with Lima Beans Seriously, so freakin easy. I added a little lemon juice instead of the wine. And some red pepper flakes for a little kick. And since you cook it in foil, no clean up! I know, I know. You hate lima beans. These are great. Trust me!

Goals Update- Week 22

Yesterday I took a day off from studying and went to the baseball game for my friends' engagement party. Giant's vs. A's on a perfect afternoon. Can't get much better than that. The A's won 6-0. I got a little sun and drank a beer or two. It was a very good time.

Congratulations to Heather and James! See you at the wedding in August!

1. Knit from the stash- I finally did some knitting on the train to the ball game yesterday. It's been slow, slow progress around here. But no more yarn has been purchased. I even withstood a Yarn Pirate update.

2. Thin for Thirty- A little more progress. 2 pounds or so. Almost back to my January starting weight. I'm a little frustrated but I just gotta keep on keeping on. Reading and making flashcards aren't as good exercise as I thought they would be. HAHA!!!

I guess that's about it. I'm a little boring at the moment. Sorry about that.

I Won!

I won a Palm TX on ebay for about $100 less than retail. YAY!!!! There are a lot of extras included too. Cheap is the name of the game for the want list. Thank goodness I only won 1. For awhile I thought I'd have 2. Which probably wouldn't have been a big deal but still... The fewer hassles the better.

I'm not doing too well on holding off on my wants. Oh well. The yarn money has quickly turned into school money.

Unfortunately, the insurance company called today. The car's totaled. It's so weird to me because it's totally driveable. But the repairs are close to the value of the car. So now I'm car shopping too. Sigh. We were hoping to get through this year before buying new (used) cars. But the traffic gods were not on my side. And to add just another wrinkle, the man who hit me apparently gave me somewhat bad information and we may not be able to collect from his insurance. Perfect.

Anyone have a reliable used car they want to unload for around $4,500????? Craigslist and AutoTrader, here I come.

Things I'm Loving Right Now

1. My new printer. $49.99 at Best Buy. Although I'm not loving the $31.99 cord that I needed to connect it to my computer. Whatever.



Pretty sharp, huh? But being the dumbass I am, I forgot to buy paper. That's kind of how things go around here sometimes.

2. Paperbackswap.com- I found this on Peaknit's blog. I've already shipped 2 books and I have 1 on the way. YAY! It's like a virtual library and all you have to do is ship the book. I ordered The Memory Keeper's Daughter. I'll get around to reading said book in 2009.

3. No classes tomorrow. YAY! Super big catch up day.

4. I found a carpool this week in my class. So now I only have to do the drive twice a week and I always have someone to gab with. Much better for my psyche.

5. I'm drinking a glass of sake from a mug. Classy is my middle name.

6. I'm currently the high bidder on 2 Palm TX's on ebay. At about $110 less than new, I'll be a happy camper. And if I end up with both, someone from my class will buy it from me. You might see the Handspring box in the bookcase by the printer. I forgot all about my old PDA. I tried to sync it today to the software I need and unfortunately, they aren't compatible. That would have been so awesome.

7. The people who comment on this blog. You guys don't even know how much your encouragement and good wishes mean to me. I got so many good suggestions on printers and ebay and pants. It really does mean the world to me. And even though we've never met, I'm glad we're friends.

I Want

My Want List is growing and growing. Why does this always happen when I have the least amount of money???

So here's the list...

To go see Yarn Harlot in Petaluma tomorrow night. Unfortunately, it's about an hour and a half drive and I'm swamped with school work. Maybe next time she's in Cali it'll be closer or I won't be as busy.

A Palm TX- Apparently this is the new, hot nursing gear. You can load in drug guides, medical dictionaries and lots of other cool stuff. Plus, my school is all wired for WiFi. So I could blog in class! Just kidding... sort of. $300

A Printer. Yeah- this copy card in the library thing is getting a little old. I don't have a printer because I usually just emailed stuff to myself at work to print out. Around $100, maybe less.

Pants that fit. Sigh.... $50? for a couple pair?

A new dresser. I just haven't had time to get to this. Even though my old one has been broken for more than a year. $189

That totals around $650. Nope. Can't have it all. The printer might become a need pretty soon. And I can live without the dresser..... I just have to figure out how to work the Palm into my budget.

This will be especially tricky since the insurance company might call my car a total loss. I have a 1997 Honda Civic with 143,000 miles on it. It runs great. I never have any problems. Unfortunately, the damage from the accident was a little more extensive that I thought. One of my quarter panels is dented. Don't ask me what that means but it's bad. And no matter how well the car runs, it's old and has a lot of miles. That means it might cost more to fix it than the car is worth. I'd really prefer to just charge the other guy's insurance but we'll see. I was all panicked about it yesterday. And I dreaded telling Brian when he got home. He just looked at me and said, "So the worst thing that happens is we have to buy another car. Don't worry about it." He said it like it was no biggie. Seriously, he ALWAYS comes through for me when I'm freaking. Love that man. Hopefully the insurance company decides I can keep my car. But I'm not hopeful.

1 Down

Phew! The first test wasn't so bad. I think after the professor kicks out a couple of bad questions, I'll be in the A range. First test is always the weirdest and hardest. It's just hard to know what to expect. Now I know more of what I really need to know and when I'm just spinning my wheels.

Some of you asked if I'll be able to resist the Yarn Pirate Sock Club. The answer is no. And I'm giving myself that one out. Also, you can place special orders for certain colors here.

The other great yarn that showed up this weekend was the Sunshine Yarn Club's May shipment.



The yarn is called Colorful and it certainly is! So pretty!! Dani even threw in some dpn's so I could get going right away. Unfortunately for me, there are too many WIP's and too little knitting time at the moment. I'll get around to it some day.

Goals Update- Week 21

This is going to be a quick goals update. There's not a ton to tell. And I have an exam tomorrow to study for. I love the accelerated pace of my program but what that means is we have an exam every week. I'm actually looking forward to this 1st test so I know what to expect.

1. Thin for Thirty- I lost 3 pounds this week. YAY!!!! Funny what not sitting in a cubicle and eating gummi bears all day will do for you. I'm still above my January starting weight but at least I'm headed in the right direction. It also helps that I don't have any spare money to buy lunch. Yogurt and carrots are doing the trick.

2. Knit from the stash- In fact, I'm not knitting much at all. I made a little progress on the striped socks last night. Mostly, I'm trying to find the balance between studying and free time.

Although I haven't bought yarn this week, a little did show up. Here's my special order from Yarn Pirate.



Citron



Apple



Sweet Magnolia

Gorgeous, right? I just checked my YP stash and I have 16 skeins. Obsessed much???