Eye Candy Friday

Ribbit!

Supergirl's Guide to Decluttering

I was watching Oprah last night and she was talking about hoarders which got me thinking about ALL the stuff I have which isn't at a hoarding level but seriously is too much. Due to my move, I have been decluttering lately and I laughingly told a friend that I was going to market my technique. It's a stressful one but it works! I swear!



Supergirl's 10 Step Guide to Decluttering*

Step 1: Lose your job
Step 2: Look for work for months
Step 3: Finally agree to move back into your parent's house and move most of your belongings into storage
Step 4: Start housesitting a lot and find a job
Step 5: Meet boy and begin dating him
Step 6: Agree to move in with boy who lives in a ONE BEDROOM CONDO
Step 7: Begin emptying out your storage after 4 years.
Step 8: Yell that you have too much CRAP (A LOT)



Step 9: Donate or sell most of your crap
Step 10: Move belongings in with boy and live happily along.

I'm currently stuck between Steps 8 & 9 but I can see Step 10 coming along shortly. It's actually quite freeing to be getting rid of so much stuff. I still have way more than the boy thinks is necessary but I've gotten rid of so much so I feel pretty darn good.

*This is a MULTI-YEAR project that may take 3 or more years to accomplish.

March Goals Check-In

One of my March Goals was to clean out my closet which is also one of my 101 in 1001 goals.

I feel a bit like I'm cheating on this one but I have cleaned out my closet since I'm moving. The new closet is being carefully sorted and assembled to prevent the pile-up of the last closet. I look forward to being able to reach into my new closet without having things fall on me.

Most of my other goals have fallen by the wayside since I started the moving process. Moving just takes up so much of your time and when you are also de-cluttering like me, it takes up a lot of time. I keep telling myself that it will all be great in a few weeks and that I just need to have patience.

Here is a status report on my March goals:

1. Read all unread Bill Bryson books (The Palace Under the Alps and Over 200 Other Unusual, Unspoiled, and Infrequently Visited Spots in 16 European Countries, Down Under, The Mother Tongue: English and How it Got That Way, Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States, Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words)-- Moving this to finishing by May 31st.

2. Complete the Master Hand Knitting, Level 1 program -- I've been working on this goal and I hope to mail in my packet on April 15th.

3. Knit two socks at once on two circular needles -- Yea, this will have to wait. I have a great book on how to do it but I just need some time to dedicate to it first.

4. Make an emergency preparedness kit for my car -- Another item that will need to wait but I will have it done by May 1st.

5. Knit a sweater for me! Finish the Central Park Hoodie -- New Deadline - May 16th

6. Finish the Clapotis and mail it off for the Knitter Project -- DONE!

7. Eat 5 Fruits & Veggies every day for 30 days -- I've been tracking this and doing well most of the time. I have 6 days left in the 30 days.

8. Track my food every day for 30 days -- I've been tracking this and doing well most of the time. I have 6 days left in the 30 days.

9. Take a Pilates class -- On Hold for now

Yashica!

Ever since I saw a Flickr Friend using his Yashica 124G, I've been wanting one but people pay way too much money for them on Ebay. I finally got a great one at a sweet price on Ebay and I couldn't be more excited. The Flickr Friend, he has said he's show me the ropes.

Interesting note about the Yashica is that the first SLR I used was a Yashica 35mm. My Dad still has it. He just needs to get batteries and we'll be back in business.

Eye Candy Friday

The mayor has declared open season on the city's potholes and promised to fill them within 48 hours. I reported this one on Monday and it is now Friday. I'm sad to report that it is still a pothole.

More information here.

The Tale of the Washing Machine and a Very Bad Thing

Sunday night after putting together the dresser, I decided to finish up the laundry. I like the start the week off with clean laundry and a tidy house. The tidy house bit will wait a bit until I'm done moving but the clean laundry seemed like an easy task to tackle.



So I grabbed my clothing off the floor and stuffed them into the washing machine. Somehow along the way, my Original Clapotis ended up in the wash. It did not survive its soapy trip very well and is now much felted.



So I ordered the exact same yarn in the exact same color to make a new one and I'm trying to remember that the Original Clap did see four great years of wearing. I'm just sad because it should have seen 20 great years of wearing if I hadn't been so careless. Grrrr!

Seattlest

I'm on Seattlest today with a photo that I am seriously in love with.



And yes, he saw me taking the picture and held his pose just that much longer for me. Thank you Irish Elvis!

Celebrating in Green

On Saturday I met up with the Seattle Flickrittes for the St. Paddy's Parade. This year it didn't rain and the day was extra special since it was the day that Scott and I first met last year.

I staked out a place on the curb and took out my telephoto lens and began snapping photos as the parade made its way down 4th Avenue. My favorite photo from the bunch is this one:



I love that she looks like she smelled something very unpleasant! I keep laughing whenever I look at this photo.

And in knitting news, I've started another Clapotis in Smooshy Sock Yarn (Colorway: Happy Forest). I am loving this year and I think a thinner Clapotis will be really nice. Also I might be addicted to this pattern.



Tomorrow: What happens when you don't pay attention to what is going into the washer.

Volunteer Dishclothes

Larissa asked if people could knit some dishclothes up for her current art project and I quickly jumped on board!



Today I mailed it off to join the rest of the dishclothes.

El Fin de Clap

On Saturday night, I wove in my last end and finished the Clapotis for the Knitter Project. I loved knitting my Clapotis again and already have plans to knit yet another one that I can have and wear sooner since this one will be heading out to Philadelphia later today.



I have a fair amount of yarn left so I'll need to figure out what to knit with that in my everlasting attempt to decrease my yarn stash.



I do so love the Clapotis and participating in the Knitter Project was fun! I like that I can look back at my tags to see what I was doing. I watch way more television than I thought!

Eye Candy Friday

My breakfast today was simply delicious on this simply wonderful Friday. My company has gone to half day Fridays which means the office closes at 1 p.m. and I get to frolick all afternoon! I can't wait.

Taking Pictures

While I've been obsessively knitting for The Knitter Project, I've also been keeping up on my photography and my daily 365 photos of moi!

Last night while Scott was complaining of boredom (see this is why I knit, I'm never bored!), I assigned him the task of coming up with a cool shot for my 365, which he did.

He suggested that I get behind his silver blinds and shot the flash to reflect off my eyes. I worked on my expression and hiding the remote trigger. For some reason, I kept my trigger in about 25 of the 27 shots I took. Then I processed my photo and proudly posted it onto Flickr.

I think our collaboration turned out quite good!



Private Eyes are watching you.

March Goals

I like the idea of having monthly goals and putting them out there for the world to see. I have a few left over from last month and they will be at the top of my list this month along with a few additional goals. Number 7 & 8 will be at the top of my list as I've fallen off the weight loss track and really need to get back on that track.

1. Read all unread Bill Bryson books (The Palace Under the Alps and Over 200 Other Unusual, Unspoiled, and Infrequently Visited Spots in 16 European Countries, Down Under, The Mother Tongue: English and How it Got That Way, Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States, Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words)

2. Complete the Master Hand Knitting, Level 1 program

3. Knit two socks at once on two circular needles

4. Make an emergency preparedness kit for my car

5. Knit a sweater for me! Finish the Central Park Hoodie

6. Finish the Clapotis and mail it off for the Knitter Project

7. Eat 5 Fruits & Veggies every day for 30 days

8. Track my food every day for 30 days

9. Take a Pilates class

10. Clean out my closet

Eye Candy Friday

Scott and I took a drive up to Chuckanut Drive where I took this polaroid shot. This may be one of my most favorite polaroid shots.

Deadlines Mean Nothing!

As March 1st looms in the very near distance, I thought I'd provide an update on my January goals.



I've been diligently working on my 101 in 1001 list .

1. Read all unread Bill Bryson books (The Palace Under the Alps and Over 200 Other Unusual, Unspoiled, and Infrequently Visited Spots in 16 European Countries, Down Under, The Mother Tongue: English and How it Got That Way, Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States, Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words) -- I am waiting for most of these books from the library so I will miss the March 1st deadline on this one. My new deadline is April 15th.

2. Complete the Master Hand Knitting, Level 1 program --I am nearing completition on this goal but again, I have a new deadline of April 15th.

3. Knit two socks at once on two circular needles -- I am going to tackle this one once I've completed the Master Hand Knitting, Level 1 program.

4. Make an emergency preparedness kit for my car -- I think next weekend will be my weekend to update the kit.

5. Floss every day for a month - Done!

6. Recycle my old cell phone Done!

7. Replace all regular batteries in my house with rechargeable batteries Done and you can check it out here!

8. Document an entire day with photos Done and you can check it out here!

9. Do my taxes in 2008 DONE!

10. Buy a surge protector for the computer that shuts off energy when the computer is asleep. Done and you can check it out here!

11. Buy Life.doc and use it Done and you can check it out here!

12. Knit a sweater for me! -- I'm still working on the Central Park Hoodie but that has had to take a back seat until I am done with the Knitter Project.

13. Do 100 crunches at once Done and you can check it out here!

Whew! Out of my 13 goals, I've accomplished 8 of them which leaves me with 5 more to complete. Not all will be done by Saturday but I'm going to try to knock a few more off the list!

Penelope Inspiration

Over the weekend, I saw the movie Penelope starring Christina Ricci. It was a fantastic story but I quickly became obsessed with Penelope's clothing, mainly her coat but also her fantastic scarf.



Now I want to know where I can get the pattern for the scarf or by this fantastic coat. I must have them even if I have to figure out how to create them.



Aren't they just lovely?

Weekend Explorations and Knitting

Whew! I think I need a rest from my delightful weekend. It was sunny here in Seattle which meant it would be criminal to be inside. CRIMINAL!



Saturday morning I met up with some friends to see, "Penelope" which was super cute! Afterwards I walked over to the Seattle Olympic Sculpture Park where I met up with Scott for photos. After a few hours of roaming around, we headed to the Cupcake Royale for treats and caffine before swinging by Golden Gardens to soak up more sun.



While at Golden Gardens, I also worked on my "Splash" photo for the upcoming Seattle Flickr Brews & Views competition. I love contests!



Sunday morning was a 6 mile run which I mistakenly thought would be easy but was hard, hard, hard. I slugged through it. Cheered at the halfway point and yipped with joy at the end before eating bagels with Julie. We so needed them!

Scott and I had talked about driving up to Chuckanut Drive if Sunday proved sunny and when it did, we packed up the car and headed up North. I knit on my Clapotis along the way and made some good progress.



I used the glove box to hold my pattern and crowed about my genius to Scott.



We stopped at an Oyster Farm where Scott showed me the lighthouse made out of oyster shells. It was quite wee and a delightful spot for my 365 self portrait of the day.



We hiked around the beach at the state park and drove through Fairhaven which is an interesting little city. We then headed back to Seattle and made it in time to watch the Oscars. Scott was excited that the Coen Brothers won for "No Country for Old Men" but I'm sticking to my principles about that movie. I hated it and do not understand why people love it so much! I do however think that the guy who won played the Psycho Killer completely deserved his Oscar. He was so good!

It was a good weekend. I love weekends like this one. I really do.

Eye Candy Friday

I checked on a friend's dog this week and so I headed over to her house bright and early to let him out. Unfortunately he wasn't too hot on my visit so early in the mroning so instead of the delightful romp I envisioned, I was outside alone while the dog snoozed inside. I took the opportunity to try out my Land Polaroid again. This time I was able to get a clear picture by laying the camera on the deck railing and not moving. I guess this won't be a hand-held Polaroid since this camera needs a long exposure time. I love this creepy garage which I found out is actually her neighbors and not hers. Darn it! I really wanted to poke around this place.

The Knitter Project

Elizabeth of Gee You Knit is hard at work on her senior thesis and I've been hard at work on my piece of it.

The Knitter Project's "aim of is to create autobiographical portraits of knitters. Each knitter will knit an item for this project and tag it as the project moves along. The tags will be your journal during this project—every time you pick up your knitting you will write a short entry and add it onto your work. When the piece is finished, the tags will not only indicate start-and-stop points, but will also be a record of the life "between the stitches."



I'm making a Clapotis since I loved knitting it the first time but I'm dreadfully behind on my Clapotis and so I've been frantically knitting since the projects are due in Philadelphia on March 30th. I have a new deadline! MUST....KNIT....FASTER!

101 in 1001 Updates!

Two more 101's knocked off my 101 in 1001 list!

31. Floss every day for a month


One of my goals for my 101 in 1001 is to floss my teeth everyday for a month in a futile attempt to make me floss more often. I started flossing everyday on January 20th and now on February 20th, I hve flossed officially for 30 days. I may even keep this up!

31. Floss every day for a month

41. Start recycling my food scraps with either a compost pile or in yard rubbish recycle bin.



Scott's place offers Yard Waste Recycling which includes food scraps and since I'm spending most of my time there, I've set up a little composting bin which I'll empty weekly into the Yard Waste Recycling bin. Easy Peasy!

41. Start recycling my food scraps with either a compost pile or in yard rubbish recycle bin.