Monday, June 30, 2008

Christmas Knitting in July

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Father Socks

This year I've decided to knit Christmas gifts for my family. I'm still trying to decide what to knit for some members of my family but for my Dad I already knew what he was getting - Log Cabin Socks from Handknit Holidays.

I'm almost done with the first sock and will be cruising along on the second sock shortly. I'm working to be prepared this year. I hope it works out.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Meme Meme Meme

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Favorites

1. Tough Girl, 2. offset wraplan, 3. FO: Fad Classic, 4. asparagus, 5. Black-Kitten, 6. Kiss that Frog Mittens - palm side, 7. Untitled, 8. navajo, 9. I D E O T, 10. Untitled, 11. Untitled, 12. the look of love, 13. kickin' it on white, 14. Untitled, 15. Day 309 - And you thought my skills were only of the photography variety..., 16. obviously, I can use this towel only when baking., 17. Taller in many other ways, 18. Untitled, 19. Taxi, 20. FO: Embossed Cocoa Kiss Socks, 21. FO: Central Park Hoodie, 22. mittens of avoidance, 23. ashley, 24. Untitled, 25. a window of opportunity?, 26. The catch came much later but he did´nt mind, 27. Horizontals: Trash, 28. 9.365, 29. Long Sleeved Scabbard, 30. Untitled, 31. Untitled, 32. Angry Ostrich, 33. 36, 34. february lady sweater [365.256], 35. Swisher, 36. 10 cent Action sampler

I've been seeing this meme make the rounds and now I want to do it too!

1) What was I doing 10 years ago?

In June of 1998, I was working my first Public Relations job at the Westin Seattle and living on Phinney Ridge next to the Zoo with my best friend.

2) What are 5 things on my to-do list for today?

1. Update my company's gift registry
2. Post to the blog
3. Finish my TKGA swatches
4. Run
5. Make a wedding program for a special someone's mom.

3) Snacks I enjoy:

Ice cream, cookies, toast, Tositdo's Lime Chips

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire (in no particular order):

Quit, Knit until my fingers bled, buy a house, buy an apartment in Paris, buy an apartment in London, start a yoga studio but have someone else run it, open a book store/yarn shop, travel the world, buy all the photography equipment in the world.

5) Places I have lived:

St. Paul, Minnesota
Denver, Colorado
San Antonio, Texas
Bothell, Washington
Kirkland, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Pullman, Washington
Yellowstone National Park

6) Jobs I have had:

Print Shop Clerk
Babysitter
Dog Watcher
Housesitter
Reporter
Cafeteria Worker
Cocktail Waitress
Funeral Home Receptionist
Waitress
Reservation Clerk
Public Relations Manager
Public Relations Assistant
Media Relations Coordinator
Marketing Coordinator
Monday, June 16, 2008

Friendship Knitting

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Ryan Squares

One of my friends is going through a hard time and she has given so much of herself in the past that it only seems right that in this time of hardship, that we give back to her. There was a call out for 8-inch squares and I answered that call by knitting up three little beauties. I'm so excited to give these to the blanket organizer that I have to keep myself from e-mailing her with updates. I think I may like knitting squares.

Square for Ryan
Sunday, June 15, 2008

Weekend Wonders

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CWD: Still Indirect

This is my favorite photo from the weekend. A weekend filled with sunshine, delightful company and relaxation.

On Saturday, Scott and I stopped by a restaurant called, "Persimmon" where we had delightful sandwiches in the most colorful restaurant. We then proceeded to walk to the bus but ran into one of Scott's co-workers along the way. He has one of the coolest houses, one that I've stared at for years! We then headed to Greenlake to walk Mr. Zubin since his owners are out of town for the weekend. I told Scott that I couldn't imagine being a car on such a day so we walked and bused it. Later that night we attended a wonderful dinner party at my Fremont Friend's house.

Today, Meg and I took a BAT ride to the Ballard Market and then to University Village. We did a few errands and had a wonderful bike ride in the sunshine. I then spent the rest of the day inside knitting and catching up on life. I may possibly be ready for work tomorrow but I think if it is as beautiful tomorrow as it is today, I will be hard pressed to focus on anything but the sun shining outside.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008

You Call This Summer?

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Tree Branch Stuck in My Wiper Blades

It's been a rainy June so far for Seattle. It is wet and grey that I can feel depression creeping in due to so much rain. The weather has even begun to keep me from being outside.

Last night I was going to walk to PurlyGirls for knitting until the wind and rain kept me away. I decided to just drive the 1.5 miles from my house to knitting. I know this is stupid. It's 1.5 miles and while there is one hill involved, it is a very nice walk. But it is a horrible walk in the rain and wind. So I decide to drive and as I pull up in front of the Blue Star Cafe, the sun appears. I did not find that funny. Of course my decision was re-inforced as I drove home in a wind storm with garbage cans blowing across the street.

This morning I came out to my car and saw branches all over the road. I quickly got into the car and drove up to Hwy 99 where I saw that I had a tree branch stuck in my wiperblades. I ended up driving the 8 miles to work with this tree branch on my windshield. Ughhh!

And to think on the East Coast, they are suffering from 100 degree weather. It just doesn't seem that any of us are catching a break.
Sunday, June 08, 2008

Baking with Nigella

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I used to bake bagels all the time and then I just fell out of the habit. So this weekend, I put on my apron and set to work, making bagels. I use a recipe from Nigella Lawson's "How to be a Domestic Goddess" which you know makes me feel like a Domestic Goddess sometimes.

Just a warning though, this recipe is time consuming. It is not difficult but waiting for the dough to rise and cook does take some time. It is completely worth it though when you take that first bite of bagel!

Cookbook

Ingredients

* 7 cups white flour, plus more as necessary for kneading
* 1 tablespoon of salt
* 1 package of rapid yeast
* 2 tablespoons of sugar
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus more for greasing
* 2 1/4 cup warm water, plus more as needed
* 2 tablespoon of malt

Directions

Bagel Dough

1. Combine the flour, salt and yeast together in a large bowl. Add the sugar and the oil to the water in another bowl. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquid, mixing to a dough with a spatula or wooden spoon.

Bagel Dough being Kneeded

2. Knead the dough either by hand or with dough hook, trying to add more flour if you can, dough is better drier than wetter, the dough will be stiff and hard work, even with the dough hook it takes 10 minutes.

Allow to Raise

3. Form the dough into a ball and put it into an oiled bowl, turning once to coat all around, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave it to rise for 1 hour. It should be well risen, and when you poke it with your finger, the impression should remain.

Punching the Bagel Dough

4. Punch the dough down and then give a good knead and divide into 3 pieces. Using your hands, roll each piece into a rope then cut each rope into 5 pieces. Roll each piece between the palms of your hands into a ball and then roll into another rope, curling to form ring. Seal the ends by overlapping.

Rolling out Bagel Dough

5. Put on a large pan of water to boil, when it boils add the malt.

6. Sit the bagels on the baking sheets cover with tea towels and leave for 20 minutes to rise. Preheat oven to 500F.

Bagels for Raising

7. When the water begins to boil, drop a couple of bagels at a time into the boiling water and boil for 1 minute turning them once. I use tongs for this but I know Nigella prefers using a few spatulas.

Bagels Boiling

8. After you poach the bagels, put them put them back onto the oiled baking sheets, well spaced and then bake for 10-15 minutes until they’re shiny and golden brown.

Bagels Baking

These bagels freeze quite nicely too! Allow to cool and place in freezer bags before placing in the freezer.

Baked Bagel

As you can see my Bagels turned out to be more in the shape of a C than an O. To fix this in the future, I need to really pinch the two ends together. Having a helper in the kitchen who can do this for you, really helps out!

Finished Bagel

My home tasting board gave these a thumbs up! I think Scott may have had about 4 of these for breakfast today which may be why he wasn't hungry for lunch.
Friday, June 06, 2008

Eye Candy Friday

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Beach Fence

My last Hawaii photos were uploaded earlier this week and so now I sit by the rainy window waiting for summer to arrive. I know it will! I KNOW IT!
Monday, June 02, 2008

BAT Tripping

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Day 165 Outake

Claudia has recently begun sporting the BAT/KAT project. The project as decribed by Claudia is the, "Bicycling as Transportation/Knitters Alternatively Transporting Project. The goal of which is to substitute at least one bicycling/walking/alternatively transporting trip for one car trip every week."

This week, Meg told me she was riding her bike to University Village which is about 5 miles from our homes (Meg and I live super close to each other which is super nice for such close knitting friends). I told her that I wanted to go along. It was fantastic! We met at the bridge and rode along the Burke-Gilman trail to the shopping center. Along the way we stopped at a bike shop so Meg could get a new bike seat. It's important to have a good bike seat when you are working to love your bike.

Then we did our shopping, crammed our purchases into our backpacks and biked home. The ride took about the same amount of time as driving through traffic and looking for parking. Bike parking is much easier to find! This week I'm going to look for more BAT trips. Someday, one day I'm even going to ride my bike to Purlygirls.

Day 165 (165/366): Biking with Meg
 
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