Reading List

I've accumulated a list of things I want to read/haven't finished that I am determined to keep track of. So, here it is.

'X' means finished
'/' means started or in process of reading
[ ] Blind Sight by Peter Watts
[/] Equal Rites by Terry Prachett (audio)
[/] Neuromancer by William Gibson
[ ] Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman
[/] Hitchhiker's Guide by Douglas Adams
[/] God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
[ ] Good Omens by Terry Prachett & Neil Gaiman
[ ] Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
[ ] House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
[ ] Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
[ ] Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
[ ] Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut
[X] Bagombo Snuff Box by Kurt Vonnegut
[ ] Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk
[ ] On the Road by Jack Kerouac
[ ] Fear and Loathing by Hunter S. Thompson
[ ] Howl by Alan Ginsberg
[/] Gogol, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter
[/] Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
[X] Slow River by Nicola Griffith


I actually just finished a graphic novel a friend of mine brought back from Toronto, Koko Be Good, by Jen Wang. I really enjoyed it, and the art was wonderfully expressive.

THE scarf

I learned very quickly last semester that when it comes to knitting, if it's not specifically for someone then I have no motivation to complete it. I tried to make myself a nice warm thick scarf and I ended up losing interest, forcing myself to finish up the rest of the skein my roommate had abandoned. So, bearing that in mind, and taking into account the recent fantastic season of Doctor Who, I've started making... the doctor's scarf.

Either as a graduation/birthday present for the boy, or (if we part ways, hoping not) it'll be a nice and extremely satisfying Christmas gift for myself. The bragging rights are so enticing.
I lucked out on finding The Doctor Who Scarf which had all of my measurements, even skein suggestions available to me! Last week I poked my nose in a knits store near my mother's with my roomie, not really knowing what to expect price range but eager to compare brands. Well, Cascade is expensive, near 10$ a skein. Also the dye lot numbers didn't match up. I gave up after a while when I realized it didn't matter if I had the exact same color, it was still going to be 'a' Doctor Who scarf. The store owner ended up asking if I needed assistance, and what project I had in mind. Turns out, as she exasperatedly exclaimed, she had not only made the Doctor Who season 12 scarf, but the season 16 as well for her nephew. She suggested the Plymouth, and picked out all of the colors she used.

I'm using size 7 needles on a circular (was the only size 7's my roomie and I had), and I'm maybe 50ish rows into it, so not terribly far. I'll post a picture when it's more impressive of a mile mark. It's just a basic slip knit stitch which I'm comfortable enough to do without looking.

I'd like it to be a surprise for him, however after a while I'm sure he'll recognize what it is I'm working on, especially once I start switching more colors and it starts being... 5 feet long... He really enjoyed the scarf I made him this past winter, I wish I could remember what kind of skein it was but it was just a pattern I found at Walmart that I really liked. It was actually my first piece, purled. When I taught myself to knit I had actually ended up teaching myself to purl, so when I looked to practice other techniques the concept of purling confused me. I know the difference now though :).

First Post: A resolution

Sorry, I guess that's how all blogs start. "I need extra motivation to do 'such and such' so I'll make a post on the internet about it to feed my drive to accomplish the task or habit in question and to pleadingly make me feel guilty when I don't measure up to my goals.


Well, this is no different. I hope to with this blog be able to further enthuse my motivation and to help catalog my new crafty or culinary endeavors. I've been dabbling in a plethora of different activities and skills I've always wanted to hone or take up and I'd love to have a place to, selfishly, showcase my work, (however unimpressive or pathetic it may be).
-Just a little bit of background: I'm an undergrad student at the University of Houston (currently studying English with a potential concentration in Creative Writing). I love socks, rodents, and Star Trek.
... That's pretty much all you need to know.

Another source of motivation for all of this is the possibility that I will be moving out into a house with a good friend and my boyfriend. I guess it's a similar feeling to what an expecting mother would call 'nesting'. I've been knitting, sewing, and cooking for my mother and I a lot as of late, (well, not a lot, but I've definitely picked up an interest to pursue as such!). 


So yes, that's me.