Me-me-me Meme!

The Meme of Four! Oh no!

Tagged by drinker/thinker, so here I go.....

Four Jobs I've Had:

1.) Produce Clerk
2.) Coffee Shop Gal
3.) Ticket Sales Representative
4.) Financial Aid Officer

Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over:

1.) This is Spinal Tap
2.) State and Main
3.) Labyrinth
4.) The Blues Brothers

Four Places I've Lived:

1.) Elizabethtown, PA
2.) Brattleboro, VT
3.) Rockland, ME
4.) CRANston, RI

Four TV Shows I Love:

1.) Good Eats
2.) House
3.) Law and Order: Criminal Intent
4.) Numb3rs

Four Places I Have Vacationed:

1.) Montreal, Canada
2.) Outer Banks, NC
3.) Jellystone Park
4.) Seattle, WA

Four of My Favorite Dishes:

1.) Beer-Brined Chicken
2.) Clam/Fish Chowder
3.) Spanakopita
4.) Salmon and Avocado Maki

Four Sites I Visit Daily:

1.) Planet Dan
2.) Yarn Harlot
3.) Achewood
4.) Google

Four Place I Would Rather Be Right Now:

1.) In Bed
2.) Knitting on the couch
3.) At the movies
4.) Touring the British Isles

Four People I Am Tagging:

Yeah, right. Sure. I'll tag Tori and Dan. Twice each.

BOOOOOOOO. Boo.

It appears I am having photo-blogging difficulties. I won't be able to correct it until tonight, boo. What a drag.

Speaking of drags, I had just put a big blog of hand lotion on my hands when the phone rang. There is just no way to NOT make a giant mess of things when that happens.

On the plus side, I did get to go to the yarn outlet this weekend, and I picked up 10 skeins of Sirdar Snuggly DK in Kaleidoscope, #329, for only $24, which is pretty spectacular, as it usually retails anywhere from $3.69-$4.99 a ball.

So now, of course, I am looking for a quick, not too boring baby blanket, and I think I'll have enough left for matching hat and booties, and probably even a small sweater.

I am SO not allowed to do that until I have finished all my other projects, though, and I really want to have them all done before I go into the Olympics. I consider the ridiculous schedule that I have now to be training.

More Finished Objects!

Yes, I know, another finished objects blog, but I really did finish a lot of objects!

This is the baby sweater I made for our friends Dawn and Ian, and their new baby Elijah. It's the Baby's First Tattoo from Stitch 'n' Bitch Nation, and I used the swallow motif because Dawn has two large swallows on her back, so I thought that they could match.

 
 

This is a close up of the duplicate stitch detail. Yes, I know I made a mistake. I tried to fix it after the fact, but it was making it look worse, so I decided to leave well enough alone. Also, the collar was not my proudest moment, but then, hey, it was my first baby sweater. The yarn was soft and wholly impractical, but it's their first baby and I wanted it to be special. I used Debbie Bliss baby cashmerino, and it was so wonderful to use that even on size 3 needles it knit up rather quickly.



I made a few things for my brother and his roommates, David and Brandon. Eric got these half-mitts from Weekend Knitting:



And then I sent them 3 scarves - instead of assigning them I told them to fight amongst themselves.

This one was made with red/black Patons Divine and some french white mohair from the stash, donated by my friend Matt's mom, Big Nance. This scarf took forever, and the crappy picture does NOT do it justice.




I made another out of a discontinued color of lion brand Homespun, as I had a ton of mill ends kicking around that I picked up at A.C. Moore.



Wow, also a really crappy picture. hmm.

Last, but not least, a bi color scarf made from some extremely soft Bernat Solo, one half in blue, one half in black.




I did all three of these in about a week, and was heartily sick of scarves after that. In fact, Allen's Christmas scarf still isn't finished.

And I won't get to it this weekend, either, because I have to make another one of these in pink for a co-workers daughter.



This one went off to my mom. I really liked how it came out. It's from the first Stitch 'n' Bitch book, and is the first hat I ever made.

I just remembered that I am actually facing forward in this picture - Allen requested that I pose like Cousin Itt. But you totally can't tell.

For Tara, who gets this purple Bernat Galaxy scarf...




...and also for Allen's mum Katherine, I made the Hello Lopi tote. Tara's is the purple that has been partially felted and Katherine's is green, and shown here before it's first of three trips through the wash.



These were both done with Reynold's lopi. I made another in Denim Heather for a Secret Santa gift at work, but I added Trendsetter Eyelash to the handles to give it an icicle effect. It came out really beautifully, which of course means I don't have a picture of it.

And just so this isn't completely about knitting, here's Matt and Aku taking a snooze together....



I just know Anne will love that one.

I can hear Allen snoring from the bedroom, so I guess I should go to bed. Oh, he's turned off the light, which means he's given up on me entirely and I will have to stumble to bed in the dark. My own fault!

Waiting For Spring

Here's something for everyone who's sick of my yarn-blather. Here's my poor cat Loki, wishing it was warm so mom would open the damn window already. He looks so wistful in this picture, when in reality he's probably just taking a break before kicking the crap out of one of the other cats again. Click for a larger image.  

Buttons, Buttons, More Buttons!

Besides the fabulous Knitting Olympics button I have managed to add to my blog, here are some others I am contemplating adding.

It seems that there are many knitters who don't wish to participate without acknowledging which nation they hail from. There are still other knitters (Drunken Pirates included) that feel that declaring their nationality isn't enough - they must also declare which vice will be supporting them.

To that end, and in case anyone wants to add one to their blog (HA! As if I have KNITTERS actually reading this thing!) here are some other buttons, all via Yarn Harlot comments.

The Classic! 

Go Team USA! 

Essential! 

Cheese, Gromit! 

I Am A Great Big HTML Pleeb

I have no idea how to post buttons onto my blog without stealing someone else's server space. I admit it. Mostly because I am generally blogging from work, and so am either a.) afraid or b.) unable to download software that might actually be useful.

But here is a "knifty" button image for you anyway -


Thanks to Imbrium! 

EDIT: Oh, my god. I am an idiot. I figured it out. Jesus. Note the Pirate button on my sidebar. Also note that I didn't remove the above portion of this post and act like I am a button-posting know-it-all. Because I am not. I am totally faking it.

Thank you, Liz, for the code you sent me the other day, even though it took me this long to actually figure it all out.

The Knitting Olympics

While banging around on Craftster the other day, I came upon a thread about the "Knitting Olympics". It seems the Yarn Harlot, Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (she of the fantastic lace, sock, and other god-I-wish-I-could-do-that work) has decided that just because her knitting isn't technically a Olympics sanctioned sport, doesn't mean she can't get involved.

Thus the Knitting Olympics are born! I am signing up to be an "athlete" myself. The rules are that you can't start knitting (not even casting on!) until the torch is lit, and your project has to be completely done by the end of the closing ceremony.

Lizzy and I have decided to do a knit-along of Anouk, so I have decided that that will be my project. We weren't wild about the colors, so we're doing it in green, blue, and yellow.

Now I just have to finish this baby blanket before then -



I'm doing it in 7 colors instead of 5. I'm crazy like that. I'll post a picture when it's all done.

Basically, the knitting schedule is as follows for the next few weeks:

Finish baby blanket, if time allows, also make baby mittens and matching hat.

At same time, knit boucle' scarf and hat for co-worker.

Finish these projects by Feb 16th, so can knit Anouk like crazy person.

It's good to have goals.

The Dim Sum Experience

That sounds like the name of a progressive rock band. But it isn't, at least, not one that I know of.

Instead, it is meant to refer to the fact that I had dim sum for the first time this weekend.

We went to Boston to meet up with Lizzy, Ethan, and Reid for the dim sum-ness. Allen and Reid had been playing phone tag for about 2 weeks, so it was nice to get the two of them together finally. Reid is moving to Wisconsin in either May or September (he hasn't decided yet) for at least a couple of years, so we're trying to spend time with him while we still can. Dim sum was the perfect excuse, especially since Reid actually speaks Chinese.

I highly recommend bringing a Chinese-speaker with you, if you can, to your first dim sum experience. The folks who push around the carts full of bamboo steamers really, REALLY want you to try everything, and it's easy to get overwhelmed. It's easier to deliver a firm No Thank You in the server's actual language.

The food was fabulous, if a little shrimp heavy - "hey, let's get that, that looks good, what's in it, oh - shrimp". I must have had 48 cups of tea. There were a few stand-outs for me -

One of Lizzy's faves, and a definite must-try is the Char Siu Bao, or steamed pork buns.



You wouldn't know it from the picture, but the center of the bun is filled with delicious barbequed pork.

I also really enjoyed the Shu Mai, which are another type of pork dumpling, w/chinese cabbage.



And the Ha Gau, one of the many shrimp dishes we sampled.



This shrimp rice noodle dish was the first thing I tried, actually, and it was good but difficult to eat with chopsticks, though they cut some of the larger food so you can share more easily.



I did manage to share one of these with Allen after mutilating it with my chopsticks, I'm not sure what they are but it was some kind of steamed beef meatball w/ scallions, I'm pretty sure. It wasn't the best looking thing we tried, but was still very, very good.



There were some sweet foods, too. There were the "donuts", a deep fried sweet roll with a ton of granulated sugar on them, and then the fried sesame balls, which I think out of everything were my favorite.



We assumed they were filled with red bean paste, but everything I've read about them online says "lotus seed paste", which makes me worry that I might forget all my friends and family, but then again, it's been more than 24 hours, and I still remember everything. Besides, would it really be all that bad if I forgot about my family? Ha! Just kidding! A-Hem.

(I'm sure no one really wants to read the whole poem, but it's really fantastic. If you were willing to sit through TROY, goddamn it, then read the frickin' poem.)

I think we're going to try to surprise my brother Ivan with a dim sum trip this weekend, depending on money, time, and other issues which may or may not be lotus related.

Christmas Packages and Other Things That Are Late

Christ on a cracker, it's been a long ass time since I blogged. I have long since alienated my readership, I am sure. The holidays are a stressful time, and I made it more so by deciding to make a lot of my gifts this year. Also, there was a decided lack of eggnog that I found quite distressing.

Just to prove that I have been actually doing something with my time, I wanted to show you folks some of the things I banged out (with LOVE, dammit!) for the ChrismaHanuKwanzamass celebrations this year.



This is a hat I made for my friend Matt, just a simple roll brim hat made with a "thick and thin" yarn, Araucania Magallanes, in colorway #302.

I also knit a lovely blue with brown trim rib-knit hat for my dad in Cascade 220, which he is modeling in the next pictures:





I discovered that while I love the finished product, I hate doing a project with too much ribbing because it takes flippin' forEVAR. I had to do it extra long, too, because my dad wanted an earflap hat, but I didn't want to make one (too much finicky measuring!) so I settled on an extra long hat that he could double up over his ears, as it gets frickin' cold in Maine. In fact, the day after I gave it to him we got hit with a snow storm and got stuck there an extra day.

I also made the white scarf he's wearing in this picture, I know it doesn't go with the hat but it's what he wanted!



I made the scarf out of one skein of Cascade Magnum, and I thought it was going to be too short, but then I had the brilliant idea of actually BLOCKING the damn thing (imagine that!) and it was quite long indeed.

And here is the attempt at the Booga Bag as photographed in the Sea Dog in Topsham, ME, after a LOT of Katamari Damacy.



And as modeled by Allen and Emma, but not Tori (who the bag was for but who declined to be photographed with it).





I think it came out pretty well - I used Noro Kureyon in colorway 157. I love the gorgeous, ridiculously beautiful striping of this yarn, though it's not the softest wool, and it doesn't felt nearly as well as Cascade.

Here's Allen again, modeling a hat I made for my friend Tara (and is being mailed tomorrow because I am a terrible person) MONTHS ago, in fact, I think it was the first thing I made from a skein of Noro yarn. It's Silk Garden, the Rainbow colorway.



OK, that's all I can post right now because Blogger photos is very cantankerous this evening. I will put up some more pictures tomorrow!

You've Seen Stuff On My Cat.......

...now see stuff on my wishlist!

Just in case. 'Cause, you know. Christmas is coming.

And I really, really like used stuff. Because then I know it works.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like.......

I have to start shopping! Crap!

I have actually already started my Christmas shopping, but I still feel WOEFULLY behind. It turns out I can't knit 16 items a day, which I guess I didn't realize before, according to my yarn stash, anyway.

I guess I'll be baking a lot of cookies, and buying a lot of candy!

Speaking of candy....Tori's folks own Rockport Chocolates, a FABULOUS candy store, and I highly recommend any of their products, which are all reasonably priced and so good that I want to cry.

In fact, now I am crying. Sobbing into my keyboard. Because the chocolate covered ginger is so amazing, and I don't have any.

Life is hard.

Seriously, all the truffles are silky smooth, and the almond butter crunch is something that my whole family always fought over.

There are several different assortments, (nuts, cremes, jellies, etc) in both milk and dark chocolates. They will also put together baskets or specialty orders. SO, go buy some. If not for your family or loved ones, then for me. Because I am all out.

Wedding Addendum

Tori, you're absolutely right, I didn't post about your wedding. I was waiting for pictures, and now I have some! Not the ones I took, of course, but the ones your HUSBAND'S (weird!) father took!

I have been to several weddings this year, but this was the one I was most looking forward too. Tori and Dan got married in the Old German Church in Waldoboro, Maine, which was a beautiful place (if somewhat adamant that you not write on the walls) and very charming. By "charming" I mean that it had an outhouse. The rain held off until most people got into the church, which was good, but after that was pretty much unmerciless. The ceremony started 30 minutes late because there was an accident on Rte 1, but eventually things started, and once they did they went off without a hitch. The readers (I was one) were pretty nervous in our little box at the front of the room, but we all got through our pieces without great embarrassment to self.

The ceremony was traditional and perfect for the couple, not too flowery, and not super religious so it didn't feel exclusive. The officiant did say, as she did at rehearsal, that Tori asked us all there that day to be witnesses (not Dan and Tori) which prompted Jim (a reader) to whisper "Just Tori", causing the readers to stifle various nervous giggles, but I wouldn't have noticed if Jim hadn't mentioned it. The couple didn't write their own vows, thankfully. There's a reason someone is supposed to prompt you, folks. It's because you're either going to be a.) too shaky to be understood b.) too quiet to be understood or c.) so sappy that we wish you weren't understood. The bride put it best herself when she proclaimed that she would NOT be saying something along the lines of "Oh, Dan, you're so great, and I love you my big warm blanket of man," a quote which Allen still hasn't stopped repeating.

The reception was at the Rockland Elks Lodge, which was very surreal (for me, anyway) as I had my high school prom there, and I'm pretty sure at least one of my uncles gets hammered there on a regular basis.

The reception hall was dominated by not one, not two, but THREE chocolate fountains, into which guests dipped all matter of sweets, and then went and sat at their tables unable to move. It was so funny watching people try not to rush the chocolate the second it came on, and then for the rest of the evening you could catch people at various tables just STARING at it, like it prehistoric man staring into the flame, or, perhaps, like wedding guests in a food coma.

The event was the first time Tori, Emma, David and I were all together in years, and it was reassuring to see that everyone fell back into our old patterns. Dave used the disposible camera on the table to take pictures of odd things in the room (have you developed those yet, Tori?), Emma's eye almost swelled shut for no reason, she fell over because her dress was too long, then knocked a drink out of my hand and down the front of her dress, Dave claimed it was bound to happen and now she had gotten it out of the way so she could relax, Tori kept disappearing to smoke, I got loud and took to many pictures, and made fun of Emma too much. (Not nice!) Most importantly, we laughed and danced and talked about how beautiful the bride looked, and how handsome the groom, and harrassed them with endless photos and hugs.

(Also we made fun of the dj, who voluntarily called himself DJ Marky Mark.)

Tori's going to read this, and will mostly likely accuse me of something or other, but I have to say that she was absolutely stunning in her wedding gown, and that together with the HUGE smile she had on her face all night made everyone who looked at her say "Doesn't she look beautiful?"

I think everyone there had a great time because we were all 100% behind this relationship. And because Dan's Uncle Dick looks JUST LIKE Tim Curry. Seriously! It's crazy!

Honestly, though, I don't know of any two people more suited to one another, who are both such worthwhile people, and who deserve so much happiness.

I love you guys! Tons!

I'd Love to See Pixelated-Godfather....

No, I really, really wouldn't. But you should check out this pixelated version of Star Wars. You really, really should.

Trinity Brewhouse Effect

Here is a picture (taken by Zak) of Kendra and Zak's kitten that Zak took in order to make a submission to www.stuffonmycat.com.

The kitten's name is Trinity, which is actually short for Trinity Brewhouse Effect, which is the name given to a phenomenon that many of you may have experienced. The Trinity Brewhouse Effect generally occurs within groups of 3 or more, though it can happen with 2, and I suppose with 1, but only if you have serious alcohol issues.

The Trinity Brewhouse Effect occurs when it's time to go, which means you have to finish up your beers. There is always one person who has nearly a full beer left in these situations, which means that someone else invariably is going to get another beer, you know, to drink while their friend is finishing his beer. But then someone else finishes their beer, and, after hanging out for a while, sees that HE has time for another beer, and so on, and so on, until everyone has had about 2-3 more beers than they meant to.

This also works with pitchers.

To get back on topic, this is a great cat that I had the pleasure of hanging out with for a week, and here she is with stuff on her. Albeit, a small amount of stuff. But stuff nonetheless.

Ridiculously Cute

I know, I know I owe you all a wedding post. I left you hanging there. But I just had to post this because it's so damn cute and I WANT THEM. But they are not for sale, alas.

Cutest incarnation of rock band EVAR!
The crafter who created these is likely the most amazing person who has ever existed.

Four Hours and a Wedding

I anticipate getting about 4 hours of sleep tonight, as I still have laundry in the dryer and have not yet packed and we're supposed to be in Maine by 9am so I can say hi to my dad before he goes to work.

Then I have to go shopping because I have NOTHING to wear to the wedding (Did I even MENTION Tori and Dan's wedding??) that qualifies as WARM in any way shape or form. And I'm pretty sure I don't have any shoes, but that just means that I'm screwed because I could never find those in Maine anyway.

Basically, I will not be around all weekend. As per usual. So, I just wanted to take this time to tell all of my friends, ALL of whom I have been neglecting HORRIBLY lately, that I am so, so sorry. I owe you all long, explanatory phone calls, and visits, and cookies, and hugs, and whatever else you ask for me to be in your good graces.

I love you all, I am not mad at anyone, I am just scheduled up to my eyeballs. Apparently, I am trying to prove once and for all that I cannot be in two places at the same time.

I need a doppelganger. Actually, no. According to dictionary.com, I would be looking for a ghostly copy of myself. I was thinking that a doppelganger was more of a look-a-like type. You know, someone who looked like me, but wasn't me, so potentially everything she attempted wouldn't be a total disaster.

Anyway. It's past 11pm, and I'm pretty sure I'm shrinking something as we speak, so I will talk to you all later.

Postcards From Near the Edge (Almost)

A while ago, Lizzy sent me a link to this postcard, knowing how much I love all things Mythbuster-related. Ever since, I've been meaning to post something about Jon's amazing postcards. I have read each one of them, and wish that I was cool enough to get one in the mail.

And for those of you who are sick of all my blathering on about cats, read Jon's dogblog. It is teh funny.

Stuff On My Cat

Jesus God. My cats would put up with this nonsense for about five nanoseconds. Actually, Loki is currently on anti-anxiety drugs (I'm jealous) and I could probably torture him for a minute or two.

One of my favorites is this picture on the left here, but there are some seriously seranged photos on this website. I also love the kitty in the pot on the stove.

What do you guys think?

CIRCUS MAXIMUS

I haven't had a chance to say much lately - not because I don't have much to say, but because there has been so much going on and I don't even know where to start. Also, I wasn't sure if I wanted this blog to occasionally turn into a full-on Angela disclosure type of thing.

I've finally decided that this is acting like writer's block, because it's really keeping me from writing at all. So, those of you who aren't interested in gory family details, please read one of the excellent webcomics I have linked to on the left.

For the rest of you - my Circus Family has EXPLODED over the past week!

Where to even begin!

During the latter half of our week in Seattle, I got a phone call from Eric that I handed off to Allen because a.) I didn't feel good and b.) I was trying to take a nap. I could hear Eric yelling on the other end of the phone...it didn't sound good. When Allen filled me in, I felt like calling my friends, telling them to sell my house, and then asking them to sell the proceeds so I could begin my new life in the Pacific Northwest.

Turns out Eric went to go visit Ivan (the other, younger brother) at work, where Ivan chose to tell Eric that he had slept with his (Eric's) ex-girlfriend, the one that Eric had been trying to get back together with for the past two months. Eric kicked Ivan's ass, then went straight to my house, where he proceeded to tell my Mom that he left Ivan on the ground, and that the cops had just showed up.

Mom took this about as well as could be expected, which means not very well. She was of course more worried about Ivan than Eric, because Eric was standing in front of her (probably foaming at the mouth) and Ivan, as far as she knew, was laying in a crummy alley on Thayer Street. Eric could not understand her point of view, and let her know that in no uncertain terms what he thought of Ivan and anyone who would even think of defending him, and threatened further violence upon his person should he run into him. Then he took off.

Mom was extremely worked up and called all of my friends (hey guys!) to rally round. She worked herself into such a tizzy that they had to take her to a clinic the next day, where a doctor told her that her heart rate was so high that she could have had a stroke. She gave Mom 3 different prescriptions, including one for an eye infection she had developed (apparently the minute we left), one for her blood pressure, and one for anxiety. She was afraid to take that one, so my friend Matt took one to show her that it was ok.

(!!!!!!!)

For the record, I do not approve of my mother ignoring the advice of a medical professional, and instead choosing to use my close friend as a guinea pig. Just so's you know.

Also, the day after we returned (Sunday) Mom took and extra couple of pills and slept so deeply that she didn't hear either myself or Allen come to the door for 24 hours. I thought she was pissed off and ignoring me - she was drugged out of her mind. I guess the pill anxiety wore off.

Meanwhile, Ivan claimed to be ok, but no one could see him because he had very long hours over the next few days (Read: My face doesn't look so hot and I want to heal up a bit before you see me). He did check in with me to let me know that he was able to finish his shift that night, though he kept getting dizzy and falling over, and was unable to use one arm. Of course, he didn't go to the hospital, because everyone in my family (including myself to some extent) has some "I'm fine, my eyeballs are only bleeding a little" gene. "Doctors, Schmoctors!" we always say. How any of us have reached breeding age is beyond me.

What made things even more excited is that Eric, who had been on the island of Nantucket all summer, now needed a place to stay for a couple of days (with his two kooky roommates, David and Brandon) while he sorted through all of his belongings (which were living in our basement) and chose which things to bring with him on his cross-country move to California. San Francisco specifically. To become Rock Stars.

The problem lay in the fact that the entire time Eric was in town, my Mom lived in mortal fear that he would go after Ivan. Of course, once Eric had cooled down, we all knew he would do nothing of the sort, and he even said as much, but Mom spent each day a miserable, twitchy mess anyway. And Eric kept dragging his stay out - first he was only staying Wednesday night, then Thursday, and then oh, I guess Friday too! They finally left Sunday morning, finally bringing to an end the tearful hand-wringing. And the "why don't you care about your brother?" comments. She was angry with me for being too nice to Eric, since she couldn't understand his actions and thought that I was condoning them.

For the record - I told Eric that I found his actions to be terrible, I could understand his anger, and Hell, I would have taken a swing at the kid, too, but he shouldn't have hurt him so badly, or told his mother such horrible things. Also, Ivan and the girl in question did the deed after she and Eric broke up, but before he tried to get back together with her.

When I see Ivan, I will first make sure he's ok, then I will tell him that he is a pecker-head.

And my dad was calling a million times a day, because if I don't answer the phone he keeps calling, and calling, and calling until I break down and answer the phone, resigning myself to an hour long phone conversation, during which time Mom will try to communicate with me no less than 5 times (Exaggerated whisper: "Is that Dad?") unless I hide in my room.

Allen is really pushing to begin the "Go Back To Maine" campaign on Mom - I'm not sure what to think right now. But I do know that I am jealous of Eric's cross-country move.

So, I'm Back and Stuff.

Tra la. Back from vaca! We had a most righteous time, to borrow a phrase. Pioneer Square, where Seattle was originally built, is a pretty cool place. As a history nerd, I found the underground tour to be fascinating. Seattle was the original Sin City, was built on sawdust and corruption, and general human stupidity. It kind of felt like being at home.

Pike Place Market was definitely all it was cracked up to be. We spent one afternoon running around and collecting the ingredients for a lovely fondue. It was so good, we blew up the fondue pot. Don't ask, I don't remember anything from Physics 101 anymore.

We shopped around, I bought some yarn, we visited the Fremont Troll. That's an actual VW Bug that he's holding.

We went to this sushi place called Blue C that has sushi on a conveyor belt. VERY DANGEROUS. So easy to eat so much sushi! But tasty! And it actually came to about $22 per person, so not so bad.

Also of mega-note to us geeks is the Science Fiction Museum, located under the Space Needle. The museum is part of the personal collection of Paul Allen, of Microsoft fame, and consists of props and first edition hardbound and paperback Sci/Fi novels. There were some excellent videos, and some great interactive displays as well. The best part was the way the museum showed how writers of Science Fiction have predicted many of the serious problems our society is facing today, and how much of Science Fiction serves as a warning against destroying the environment. It was heartening to see the genre taken so seriously. We ended the day by watching Buckaroo Bonzai, though, so I guess we were all done with that whole serious thing.

Anyway, I would like to say that it's good to be back, but - it's not. I will give you an update on Circus Family later on. Right now I am swamped at work. And depressed that House isn't back on until FREAKING NOVEMBER. Stupid Fox!