scenes from a life

1. SO. I have grand jury duty. Not just regular jury duty. GRAND jury duty. And do you know how they differ? By about ten weeks! I have to go to the courthouse one day a week for the next 8 weeks! I am actually lucky--it can be up to 11 weeks, but because of the holidays, I'm on an 8 week panel. We have the awesome responsibility of indicting people for their crimes so they can face a trial (or not). We decide if there is enough evidence to go forward. I'm kind of looking forward to the experience, and getting to get out of work one day a week is nice, but it's not like I'll be sitting around at home in my jammies knitting.





2. Speaking of knitting... Because I had to go last Friday to get picked for Grand Jury Duty (GJD), I bought myself the Verena magazine that I've been eyeing for a while. I am not really sure how I feel about this magazine. I bought the first one because it was the first issue and I wanted to see what it was like, and I liked that one. The magazine has a lot of patterns for the money. I think in this issue there were over fifty. However, the models are even more over-styled than in Vogue Knitting. It is hard to see the garments the way they would be if I were going to wear them myself.

But I figured I deserved a treat for having to go to court. Of course, that was before I knew I'd have to go once a week until JANUARY. And when I thought I might somehow get out of it. I wasn't picked until the last panel was picked. Also, there are 23 people on a panel and I was like #20 of the last panel. So I almost made it.

Anyway, there is way more here than I could ever knit, but like the last issue, there are a few stand-out designs. The two argyles seem like versions of the same pattern, which is great. My favorite is the plaid jacket. That is just so awesome. It would take me a million years to actually make it, but I do love thinking about it. The red sweater coat thingie reminds me of the Tilted Duster, except the connection is in the middle rather than the neckline. I was just looking at finished tilted dusters today on Ravelry thinking how weird it was to knit a sweater that didn't close at all in the front, leaving the chest open. Plus, I don't really like things flapping around in the front, and this design solves that problem. However, I don't really see myself doing this much ribbing. What a boring knit!

So, in the end, I think this is a mag to get for the inspiration, like the wacky European cousin of VK.

3. Knitting update:



I'm actually at the armhole shaping on the front of Spanky's pullover. If I keep going at this pace, I'll be blocking the thing at the end of the week and seaming together next weekend! YIPPEE. I'm so excited to see if it actually turns out like I think it will. I'm modeling it on one of her sweaters (picked out by her, so there's no blaming me if the fit is off), and right now, it looks like the whole thing is going to work out to the right dimensions. I just hope it all works out. I'm anxious. Plus, it is a whoooole lot of stockinette. I'm ready to put it to bed already.



4. This weekend I did a little baking. It was part of getting back into the swing of things after my trips. I'm just now starting to feel normal again. I tried to go back to the gym last week, but that didn't work so well. I'm going to try again, lest you think with this offering that I've gone the exact opposite direction. These are cream puffs with Nutella whipped cream filling, and they are SO GOOD. And SO BAD. But so good too. I'm very pleased with myself that they worked out. Some knitters quilt as their second craft. Mine's baking. I love to cook. Unfortunately, Spanky's a picky eater, making it hard to try anything spicy or somehow too 'different', but she is the ultimate fan of baking. Anyway, this recipe is from a special edition mag called Holiday Baking that I got at a Joann's in SLC (also bought out of some need for a reward, but more on that later on).



5. We had a zipcar today and took it over to Linens & Things for their going out of business sale. During one of our moves, Spanky made me get rid of the shitty stereo I'd had since college and only kept around to play my records on. For about five years now, I've been carting my crate of records from one apartment to the other, wondering if I'll ever be able to hear them again. Enter my new Crossley. I'm not a connoisseur of music, so the poor speakers don't really bother me all that much. It not only plays records, but also cds and CASSETTES! This is exciting, because back in 1994, Spanky was a DJ at a college radio station, and her awesome step-grandpa recorded all her radio shows, even though she was on from 12:30 to 5:30 am. Isn't that wonderful? So now we have all these awesome recordings and we can actually hear the sweet little Spanky's voice on the radio. Plus, she's playing things like the SugarCubes and Sebadoh and L7 and the Pixies. Quality music.