A close knit family

You may recognize the birthday bébé I made for my sister in October. Last week, I made a matching bébé for my brother-in-law. Aren't they a cute couple?

The unexpected thing was that when I gave my brother his birthday totem at Thanksgiving, my dad—my ever practical, unsentimental, craft-averse dad—loved the bébés. I almost dropped my needles in surprise.

It's going to be a busy four weeks until Christmas!

Maybe you look good in it, who knows

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This Friday is Buy Nothing Day!

While some folks are crowding into malls for the busiest shopping day of the year, you could be celebrating Buy Nothing Day by taking a bike ride, walking on the beach, sitting on the couch eating leftovers, or indulging in hours and hours of knitting.

Longest Scarf Ever

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In honor of finally binding off the Queen Mom's first, and very ambitious, knitting project. Imagine matching socks!

Area 51 Knitting

Today is Bill's birthday. No one should take more blame for my creativity than Bill. Sure, genetics played a role (the Queen Mom is very creative). Still, Bill was the first significant adult in my life who took having fun so seriously. He had been hang-gliding and hot-air-ballooning. He had had an Afghan, perhaps the world's most impractical dog. I fell immediately in love with him. Luckily, so did my mom, and he became my stepdad. Having him in my life has been a tremendous gift.

Bill had his own sign-making business, grown from his talent and creativity. With my mom's covering the practical side, the business thrived. Bill's signs can be found all over San Diego.

Bill understands that it is often worth doing something just for the fun of it. There doesn't need to be A Reason. For example, Bill loves the idea of aliens and the whole Area 51 scene. The family cars have Bill's professional, authentic-looking "Official Area 51 Chase Vehicle" stickers on the windshield. So, for his birthday, I wanted to knit him a little Alien Bébé.

My inspiration was the little green man kind of alien. I wanted feet with two long toes in front, and one in back, tiny little arms, and a disproportionally large head. Something Marvin the Martian-esque.

Okay. So much for my plans. My "alien" failed completely as an alien. In fact, the results were so far from what I wanted, I almost frogged the pieces. Instead, I decided to try felting the parts, then reassembled it with the arms and legs switched. Add eyelashes and a little chenille skirt and voila! Goodbye alien, hello Frog Princess!



So, I have no alien to give Bill for his birthday. I'm going to keep the Frog Princess, and try again for the little green man. If anyone understands the risks of the creative process, it's Bill, so I know he'll forgive me.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Bill!

Thursday is HAT CLASS! day

I finished my first hat from the "My First Hat" class!


Unfortunately, I hated it.

The color, which had seemed so beautiful when it was yarn, seemed way too bright on my head. The rolled edge looked kinda goofy on me. It looks better on a spaghetti squash. Luckily, it looks really cute on Princess Whackamole.

Which means I still needed to knit MY first hat. I bought some new, darker yarn. I saw a hat I liked over at the Yarn Harlot site, one that used cables. I decided to leap in to make my first hat with my first cables. Much different than the Yarn Harlot's, since I didn't use bulky yarn, but I love this hat. I especially like the way all the cables come together at the top. Looks great with buzzed hair, or at least better on me than it looks on a squash. That's my new standard, and here's my new hat:


H/T to the Squash in a Bottle Modeling Agency

Mwaaaa ha ha

Veteran's Day

We had an early Veteran's Day at the Peace Salon, an event staged by artist Genevieve Erin O'Brien. When I look in the mirror now, I feel a strong connection to my brother, a veteran of the war Iraq. While he was there, several men in his group were in a tank that drove over a land mine. One of them was paralyzed. Even though the explosion happened over a year ago, another of the guys just had to have his legs amputated. There are so many injuries—physical and emotional—that take years to show up. Things that don't show up in the statistics. My former brother-in-law has had seizures ever since Desert Storm. He lost his job as a result, and has never been stable since then. Yet statistics would show that he came back without injury. Not true. So many guys join the reserves for the incredible deals they get for housing and college, without fully appreciating what they have to lose.

In other Veteran's Day news, I was at the DMV on Thursday, renewing my license (yep, I'll have hair in my picture). While I was there, a young guy was applying for a Purple Heart license plate. Once he completed the paperwork, the clerk asked him for $17. He hadn't realized he had to pay for it—I guess he thought he already had. He walked away without completing the transaction. It should have been free. Or rather, the State of California should recognize how much he's already spent.

$17? That's just pathetic. California, give Purple Heart veterans a free license plate. They've earned it.

Hair Peace or hare brained?

So, I'm thinking about HAT CLASS! when this e-mail arrives:

Peace Salon

A durational performance by artist Genevieve Erin O'Brien

Interdisciplinary Artist Genevieve Erin O'Brien will be doing a durational performance downtown Santa Barbara in honor of Veteran's Day. In her one-woman show The Monk Who Licked me, which will be presented Nov. 8th at the UCSB Multicultural Center, Erin shaves her head as a response to the war in Iraq and other forms of oppression.

In an effort to extend this gesture to the public, on Friday November 9th from 10 am - 3pm, Erin invites peace activists to have their hair shaved off by the artist as sign of their commitment to the anti-war movement. The performance will take place on Free Speech corner on the steps of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

This bold statement is a reminder that everyday when we look in the mirror that we cannot afford to be complacent, that we are part of a larger system. This personal transformation that participants will experience is a testament to our pledge for peace that we embrace in all aspects of our life, to release ourselves from attachment. It is this very attachment that drives this war, attachment to convenience, to our oil-dependent cars, to our lattes, and to our daily life.

This visual signifier is also meant to be a reminder to the American public that we are a country engaged in war, as well as a physical marker to extend our solidarity with the soldiers serving in Iraq and our determination to bring them home.

There's no reason for me not to try a buzz cut now, other than the potentially hideous results. On the plus side:

Simplicity: Lately, simplicity is my buzzword (so to speak). Less stuff, fewer activities, a willingness to let stuff go. Can't get much simpler than a buzz cut. Am I right, guys?

Spirituality: The buzz cut appeals to my inner Buddhist. When I was in Escondido this weekend, I saw some monks from Deer Park, and felt encouraged. The times I've been on retreat at Deer Park were times I felt centered and focused. Maybe if I look more like a Buddhist nun, I'll feel more like a Buddhist nun.

Solidarity: Erin's reasons for the Peace Salon resonate with me.

Novelty: Seems like it might be fun to try a buzz cut once in my life. I might even like it.

Knitting: Less hair = more hats!

And besides, it always grows back, right? Should I do it?

Or you might get stuck with a crappy hat

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Hat knitting class starts in three days!