Sunny Days

I'm feeling pretty nice at the moment. Time to go out for used books, tea, and more yarn. Perhaps I'll even find a cute boy to flirt with.

Summertime 2011: Finished and Blocking!

Currents

I don't remember where I found it, but I came across this handy little list to help bloggers when they're not sure what to blog about. So, here goes:
 
Listening - The Avett Brothers "The Ballad of Love and Hate"
Knitting - The ruffled edge of my Summertime 2011 Shawl

Eating - Leftover grilled vegetable panini from Elysee Bakery
Drinking - Persian black tea (with cardamom!) in my large, Maid of the Mist mug from Niagara Falls last summer.
Wearing - My favorite brown tank-top with white lace edging and a pair of brown slacks.

Feeling - Conflicted and blocked. I know that really good things are on the horizon but I'm having difficulty motivating myself to seek them out. I think going for a run will help.
Weather - 69 degrees and cloudy. Perfect 'sitting-in-a-cafe-drinking-tea-and-reading-all-day' weather.

Wanting - To fast-forward about 3 months to when I have a job and a semblance of normalcy.
Needing - To stop procrastinating and actually starting the process of finding a job.
Thinking -  About how the aches in my body are from paralyzing fear and stress... that once I get up and start moving, everything will feel better and easier.
Reading - Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What it Means for Modern Relationships by Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jetha and Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card.
Enjoying - The fact that I've filled half the pages of my second "Fluke" book journal.

Wondering - Whether it's too soon to order another "Fluke" book.

More FOs and Some Snapshots of My Life

I have been knitting up a storm lately but I've been awful at blogging about it.

First, I knit this bag out of some Lion's Brand Homespun I had bought during my first year of law school while on a day trip into NYC with a friend. I bought about 10 skeins worth of this yarn (my first large yarn purchase), intending to knit a patchwork blanket with the stuff but quickly discovered that I hated working with the material.

 So, it followed me to CA and was going to get donated to the UCC when I decided to try making a purse out of it.


It turned out so well that my mom (pictured to the left), sister, and best friend, Sarah, all want one just like it!

Well, they each want slightly different modifications... but, you get the picture.

Isn't my mother beautiful, by the way?

I also knit an adorable Grande Cloche hat that I cannot wait to wear this winter (if the weather ever decides to get cold enough for it here in southern California), with about half the skein of yarn leftover.

I'm thinking about knitting Toorie, by Carina Spencer with the remaining yarn.

I certainly love flappers!

Finally, I've been working on my very own Summer Flies shawl by Donna Griffin, in beautiful Malabrigo Sock Yarn, colorway "Aguas." The color is much bluer in person. I will make sure to take pictures once I'm done and have blocked it.

I knit one last year with some yarn I bought at the Genessee Country Village in upstate New York but gave it away to my friend, Meg, for Christmas.

I wanted to choose a pattern that would really accentuate the slight color variations of this yarn but kept either finding patterns that were waaaaaaay too simple or waaaaaaaaaaay too complicated/convoluted. So, I went with a tried and true classic. I can't wait to wear this!

I've also been doing my best to socialize more!

For example:



Santa Monica Pier with Anirban -->

<-- LACMA with Sarah and Anirban.

The El Rey Theater with Sarah to see Rooney --> 

<-- And Big Boy earlier tonight with a bunch of friends after Karaoke at Sardos. I'm pictured with Karlo. =) 

Goals for 2011

Towards the end of December, I came up with a list of goals I wanted to accomplish by the end of 2011. I hadn't looked at it since creating it, until this morning. On it, I had...

Finish writing in my first fluke book. 

Meet people, generally.

Develop a group of friends in LA.

Live in the same city as the person I am dating (engaged to?).

Incorporate exercise into my lifestyle, in whatever form(s).

Read two books a month (for fun!).

Get a grown-up job.

Read my "12 Books in 12 Months."

Pass the CA Bar Exam.

Volunteer in the legal field.

Volunteer in a non-legal field.

Design something of my own.

Take one craft course each 2-3 months.

Get pedicures every 2-3 months.

Learn to cook more vegetarian meals.

Finish Level 1 of Rosetta Stone French.

Learn Spanish!!!

Strengthen my Farsi reading and writing skills.

Learn to can and preserve food.

Do at least 1 "cultural" activity per month (i.e. museums).

Take a roadtrip to Portland.

Go to Yosemite National Park.

Visit San Diego.

Check out different movie theaters in LA - preferably historic/cook ones.

Continue to blog.

Go to 3 craft fairs/shows, i.e. Renegade.

Open an Etsy shop?

Finish/make a quilt.

Crotchet a granny square blanket.

See a great band, live.

My progress so far...

1. Finish writing in my first fluke book.

• Done! I finished it on February 16, 2011. I started my second one on February 26th.

2. Meet people, generally.

• I've been working on this once since Nick and I broke up in late February. I've gone to karaoke, house parties, bars, bbqs, movie nights, breakfast clubs, and book club meetups. I'm doing new things all the time!

3. Develop a group of friends in LA.

• I definitely have a bunch of really good individual friends. Still trying to find a 'group' to join, though.

4. Live in the same city as the person I am dating (engaged to?).

• This goal became significantly easier to reach at the end of February. Hmm, wonder why...

5. Incorporate exercise into my lifestyle, in whatever form(s).
6. Read two books a month (for fun!).

--> I'm a tiny bit behind but thus far I've read:

• Freedom 
• High Fidelity
• Hunger Game Trilogy
• Something Borrowed
• World War Z
• The Paris Wife
• Breakfast at Tiffany's
• The Girl in Hyacinth Blue

--> I'm just about done reading:

• Interpreter of Maladies (short stories)
• Secret Lives of People in Love (short stories)

--> I'm currently reading:

• The Engines of God
• Team of Rivals

7. Get a grown-up job.
8. Read my "12 Books in 12 Months."
9. Pass the CA Bar Exam.

• Took the exam again in February 2011.
• Find out that I passed the exam on May 13, 2011!
  

10. Volunteer in the legal field.
11. Volunteer in a non-legal field.
12. Design something of my own.
13. Take one craft course each 2-3 months.
14. Get pedicures every 2-3 months.

• I went with my mom last weekend to get one. My feet were awfully blistered and calloused from my flats and wedges!

15. Learn to cook more vegetarian meals.

• Since I'm no longer dating a vegetarian, this goal isn't as important as it used to be. That said, I have been baking up a storm lately with delicacies such as apple tarte tatin, apple tart, strawberry cake, red velvet cupcakes, and cake pops!
  

16. Finish Level 1 of Rosetta Stone French.
17. Learn Spanish!!!
18. Strengthen my Farsi reading and writing skills.
19. Learn to can and preserve food.
20. Do at least 1 "cultural" activity per month (i.e. museums).

• I'm super behind on this one, though I did go to the Hammer Museum a few weeks ago.
• I plan to go to the Huntington Museum and Gardens next week!

21. Take a road trip to Portland.
22. Go to Yosemite National Park.
23. Visit San Diego.

• Went to PB for Memorial Day weekend with Sarah!

24. Check out different movie theaters in LA - preferably historic/cook ones.
25. Continue to blog.

• Not as frequently as I like, but I'm still at it!

26. Go to 3 craft fairs/shows, i.e. Renegade.
27. Open an Etsy shop?

• Not going to happen. I have little time and little interest. 

28. Finish/make a quilt.
29. Crotchet a granny square blanket.
30. See a great band, live.

Although I haven't had this list in front of me, I'm glad to say that 6 months into this new year (when the hell did that happen?!) I've actually done a number of these. I'm going to spend the rest of the year trying to do more. I doubt I'll do all of it, but I think I could do quite a number more.

Day 105: Blocking

I'm rushing to finish errands and chores before I drive home to my parents' house for the weekend. 

I soaked my Brand New Day Shawl yesterday afternoon and night and finally set it to block this morning!

I would have done so yesterday but I ended up spending the day with a friend from law school. He picked me up in the morning and then we drove to Santa Barbara for the day. Though cloudy, it was perfect walking-around-and-window-shopping weather. Sadly, I did not take any photos of State Street or the Pier. Mike did manage to snap a few shots when we stopped along the PCH on our drive back!

 We spotted dolphins (about 7 of them?), just swimming along. Less than 50 feet away from us.

I have to admit. I kinda love my life right now.

(Those are seashells and rocks in my hand, btw.)

Day 104: Waiting to be Blocked: Brand New Day Shawl

I finished the Brand New Day Shawl I started back in mid-May, immediately after Snow White's Breakup Shawlette. 

It's currently soaking in the sink, waiting to be blocked when I get home from a drive/lunch date with an old friend from law school. It's pretty gloomy here, weather-wise, so I'll wait until a sunny day to take pictures of it and the rest of the shawls I've knit for myself. 

I know that today is not the day for it, but I can't wait until I can spend hours at the beach doing this:

Yay for summer free from studying for the bar exam!