Cozy Clapotis Christmas

Rewind a few days and you’ll see an entry where I had big plans, and boldly announced them for all to see. Of the eleven and a half things (including things 1 a and 1 b), I successfully crossed all of them off except 4, 7 and 8. I also visited with a friend who dropped by with a gift (I gave her the fudge), and exchanged gifts with L.

Notable among those listed was my ridiculous goal of finishing Mum’s clapotis that day. Hilarious. I didn’t have a chance to even pick it up until I got to Mum’s, and I showed it to her that night so I could work on it openly while at home.* She was thrilled, and that really thrilled me.

It was a busy but somehow relaxed holiday weekend, with lots of down time with Mum. We visited and knit together for many, many (many) hours, and then the universe decided to dump a load of snow, sleet and ick on us. That added a day to my visit, and just enough time to shovel (yess!) and finish the clapotis. I dropped the last stitches around 9:45 Tuesday evening, and Mum took it to bed with her.

The next morning, I found it curled up on her pillow and took it out for a little photo shoot. Her cat asserted himself and pointed out in his own special way that this clapotis belongs to Mum now.

Does this make my butt look fat?

I think she made a mistake...rigggghhhhtttt there.

My Clapotis lessons...

All in all, the Manos worked well. It was a bit of a drag picking some of the stitches out -- especially when I just wanted to be DONE already -- but I would use it again in a heartbeat.

I used 5.5 mm straight needles that were a little flexible. Next time, I'll definitely use a pair of circular needles.

Also, next time, I'll leave myself a bit of time to gently block the thing. The corners curled a bit, and needed a bit of re-shaping, but I was out of time. Mum might looking after that herself.

Finally, I learned that I can finish big projects in a short-ish amount of time. With a little help from Mother Nature, of course. :)

*Honestly, at that point, I wasn’t sure I’d finish before heading home on Tuesday.

Fini

More tomorrow.

To Do

With five hours to go before I head for the bus home, here's what I have to do:

1. Pack.

Errr....scratch that....

1 a. Laundry.

1 b. Pack.

2. Dishes.

3. Tidy Up.

4. Knit half a clapotis.

5. Wrap more presents.

6. Have a little more Christmas time with my L.

7. Write a real entry here, with photos.

8. Write another entry over at rta.

9. Oh, and absolutely, do not freak out.

10. And I should probably also shower and eat...

:)

11. And make a batch of fudge. I forgot about that.

Sweet Success

This platter multiplied by eight =
an evening of good company and good deeds, and (hopefully)
a little peace of mind for several mums

Panique

Once upon a time, a girl worked calmly on her clapotis and smiled smugly as herself as she admired her progress. Christmas was weeks away and all would be well. Time flew, and things came up, and suddenly it was the Sunday before the Man in the Red Suit's Arrival and she still had half a clapotis (more or less) to go. And then there was a list. A list of activities, projects and presents a mile long and much, too much, to do. Nevertheless, a photo essay.

5 Minute Fudge a la canKNITian

One of two pots formerly full of melty goodness.

"Good" view of the cupboard after making a
double batch of Christmas fudge.

"Original" canKNITian fudge --
chocolate, toffee and almond.

canKNITian fudge le deux:
chocolate mint with crushed candies on top

Tonight effort, perhaps the piece de resistance --
marble fudge with Christmas m&m's

Fudge. Fini.

Clapotis. Abandonnee.

Something Happy

Before I go crawl in with my book, I have to tell you something.

As a rule, I read books before seeing the movie. If I watch the movie without having read the novel it's based on, I don't usually go back and read the book. The only time I've done that successfully was when I watched Oscar & Lucinda and then read the book.

Three or four years ago a book was recommended to me and I bought it. Then I took it back. It just wasn't time. Sometimes, that's the way it is. Everything about the book says "Yes. I will love this." And then I don't. It doesn't grab me quite the way I thought it would.

A month or so ago, I started seeing ads for the movie based on the novel and I thought "Maybe now." I tried to put it out of my mind, thinking I'd just see the movie and be done with it. Then, suddenly, the thought got louder and changed from "maybe now" to "NOW. NOW. NOW." I'm still not sure what the lesson for me is, but I am deeply, madly, passionately in love with Memoirs of a Geisha. The sociologist in me (that's my academic background) loves the details about the society at large and within the smaller community of the geisha house Chiyo/Sayuri lives in. The romantic in me loves the story, characters and sweep of the story. And the editorial nerd in me hasn't been offended by any typos or other problems yet either, so that's a bonus too.

Off to bed now to read about geisha and sleep, sleep, sleep.

Bonne nuit.

Picking up the pieces

Clapotis update:

I've spent the last several minutes trying to get a picture of the clapotis. I finally picked it up again last night, cut the snarl off, and today got to work on it again. Between an afternoon break and a bit of time watching the Gilmore Girls before going out this evening, I put 14 rows on. I feel good about my progress, but don't want to say anything more. I don't want to jinx it.

IT update:

Honestly, where has the time gone??? There is ony one weekend left until Christmas and I have no time! No time! No time!!! I have two free evenings left between now and the 22nd, and am booked to the gills otherwise. When am I supposed to shop? Kniiiiiit? Cook? Yikes!!!

Everything else, including my mental health, update:

Looking back at Sunday's meme (does it count if I forget to "tag" somebody?), I can see how far off-centre I was feeling that night. There are a few key things that I should mention that will help clarify a few things. I'm not sure if it will help, but I should explain a bit, I think.

First, about the Six Things I'm Afraid Of:

#s 1, 3 and 4 have all come into sharp focus during the past few months. I have lost four friends/relatives since August. First, my grandfather's cousin died following an illness in August. Then my friend LH was killed in a motor vehicle accident the next week. Then, the day after my 29th birthday, my 30 year old cousin killed himself. Finally, last month, my 96 year old great aunt was riding in the passenger seat of her friend's car when they were hit by a truck. Suffering incredible injuries, she died three weeks later. SO. My longstanding fear of freak accidents has been aggravated, to say the least, and my own mortality and potential have been on my mind. In each case, I hadn't seen enough of them. I hadn't seen either my cousinr nor my great aunt in years. I hadn't seen my grandfather's cousin, who was really like an unofficial great aunt, since last Christmas, and my friend LH in more than a year. So there's some guilt around that. I could say more, but I won't for now. [I may take this entry down in a day or two depending on how I feel.]

And about the fat thing. Well, like I say, I've been feeling bad. When I feel bad, I eat. And eating because I feel bad makes me feel bad. There are other things that help, but food is always the default. Knitting helps a lot, though, and the clapotis has really been helping in that regard. I'm glad I picked it back up.

All in all, I'm doing okay. I'm just a little aggravated and don't want to be a downer. Sunday night was kind of a bad night and I didn't realize how much of it had leaked out here until today.

More clapotis progress soon! Thanks for reading and thinking of me.

Dimanche de fromage

I'm rising to the cheesy challenge and posting my own response to the following meme. I didn't mention it below, but I'm a champion procrastinator. I'm currently avoiding the last tangles of yarn and cleaning my room, folding laundry and going to bed.

TEN random things you might not know about me.
1: I didn’t learn to drive until I was 26.
2: I almost always put up my Mum’s Christmas tree
3: I prefer chips to chocolate
4: I have *at least* a million freckles
5: I’m allergic to cats and, apparently, angora
6: I coloured my hair for the first time ever this summer
7: I’m the oldest of three girls
8: I hate doing dishes
9: I’ve lived alone for five years and love it
10: I’m a sucker for Nora Ephron movies

NINE places I’ve visited
1: Banff, AB
2: Gananoque, ON
3: Toronto, ON
4: Boston, MA
5: Middle Musquodoboit, NS
6: Newfoundland
7: Prince Edward Island
8: Montreal, PQ
9: Meat Cove, NS

EIGHT ways to win my heart
1: Make me laugh
2: Give more than you take
3: Say my name right the first time
4: Introduce yourself with a warm handshake
5: Encourage my craziness
6: Peel me off the floor when I need it
7: Love kids
8. Smirk at smart jokes, laugh at fart jokes

SEVEN things I want to do before I die
1: Visit Australia
2: Have children
3: Give birth to at least one of them
4: Write a book (and have it published)
5: Visit Vimy Ridge
6: Learn a third language
7: Have a healthy emergency fund (Hell, I’d settle for money in the bank the day before pay day)

SIX things I’m afraid of
1: Death
2: Fire
3: Being hit by a car / in a car accident
4: Losing my loved ones
5: Being this fat (or fatter) for the rest of my life*
6: Failing

FIVE things I don't like
1: Being anxious all the time
2: Arrogance
3: Wearing socks
4: Bananas
5: Not having “enough” money

FOUR ways to turn me off
1: Criticize me without being open to criticism yourself
2: Tell me about you (your day, your life) without asking about me (mine)
3: Salt your food before tasting it
4: Look down your nose at me. I love that.

THREE Things I do everyday
1: Wear my watch
2: Hit the snooze button
3: Worry about money

TWO things that make me happy
1: Puppies
2: Kate Harper and Will Bailey are finally going on a date!

ONE thing on my mind right now
1: Cleaning my room and going to bed. Probably not in that order.

* It's all relative, but I'm feeling pretty terrible these days.

Snarly

I tempted the knitting gods and all I got was this nasty snarl.


Gah! A little more about the fiasco here.

Shhh - IT is hitting the fan

I thought I was immune. I have two "sensible" projects planned for Christmas and everything was going fine. Then, suddenly, distraction. IT.

A certain little cow baby is being christened next weekend and I think I need to finish the sweater.

And a sister's friend needs cheering up and handknit mitts were recommended (and perhaps promised on my behalf).

Add to that a bit of a crisis of confidence following a conversation with my L who thinks that knitting is only for retired people or grammies, and IT is in full swing.

Luckily, tonight is poker night and I've got lots of time tonight and tomorrw for knitting. And, apparently, chip eating and television watching.

* * *

Speaking of television, ER just keeps getting better and better. After last week's episode, I scrapped my original letter and wrote following:


Dear Santa,

This year I would reeeeeaaaaally like to have Maura Tierney's job for one day (see, for example, this and this). Hell (sorry! heck!), I'd settle for fifteen minutes.

Love,
Canknitian

Slow and steady wins the race

Good news:

In spite of my natural, almost overwhelmingly fickle nature, I continue to work on Mum's clapotis.

See?


The remote and I have made a lot of progress, and spent last evening and this one hanging out in my lawnchair in the middle of the living room*, watching TV (waiting for My Name is Earl) and trying not to eat our weight in fudge.


* Why? Because I had a little get together at my place on Sunday and opened up my chair in case there were extra guests. The chair wasn't needed, but knitting in it ROCKS. The sturdy yet flexible arms provide just the right about of support and coziness. I've decided that I need to find a perfect, permanent (non-folding) chair to take its place sometime soon. Otherwise, it'll look like Camper City in here all year round!