more books

I just finished:

Going Out by Scarlett Thomas - This book was alright. Certainly a little bit strange that's all.

Home Land : A Novel by Sam Lipsyte - This book was a strange view of the world by a slacker writing to his high school newsletter. At first I didn't like it, but it eventually got to me.

In other news; I love cute Canadian teenagers, but hate bitchy UWS women who think I am cutting them in line at the grocery.

Growl

So is it lunchtime yet? I am so hungry, even though I had an apple and a nectarine. I got a fancy honey crisp apple and I really don't see what all the fuss is about. It tasted like an apple, not very special, just apple.

I have also been getting hungry right before I go to bed at night, but then I am not hungry in the morning. I think my stomach is playing evil tricks on me.

Rip rip rip

So I started ripping the sweater apart. I thought I could just reknit straight from the pieces themselves, but that is turning out to be too crimpy looking. Basically it's not laying flat when I do that. So this morning I started ripping out and putting the yarn into skeins on the back of a chair so I can wet it and dry it again so it will relax and knit flat again. I will definitely not finish it for Rhinebeck. No way. Oh well, it might have been too warm to wear anyway.

I have been really sleepy lately which I think might be in part to two things; not enough iron and not enough water. I have been craving burgers lately which I think probably means I need red meat and iron, since I think I have a tendency to be a bit iron deficient anyway. I am always cold and pale which people seem to think means I need iron. And the water, I am forgetting to drink it at work, so I think that helps the afternoon sleepyness I seem to get. I will try to drink more water today and tomorrow I maybe will go get a burger, though it may be a turkey one, as I am scared of not knowing where my ground beef comes from. I'm a little neurotic like that.

Ennui?

I think I just have general malaise, as I keep getting really tired in the afternoon, though I managed to get about no sleep Sunday night as I was woken up by the garbage truck and then the awful alarm that makes me want to smash things.

I had no internet this weekend, my computer doesn't really like my wireless card, so the connection can be rather finnicky. I hope it works again, as I want to download more podcasts to listen to at the gym, while travelling and at work.

I haven't finished putting together the too big sweater, but so far from the one side that is done it doesn't look good. I think the raglan seam is too long. Perhaps I'll finish seaming it tonight and then I can rip it back to the raglan seam once I figure how to shorten it. I have to work faster cause it's getting cold. I think I like to procrastinate too much and I keep wanting to work on my lacy shrug from knitty, it is much more fun and it is going so fast. I don't know if I'll like it when it's done, but so far it's going so fast that I just want to push on through.

books books books

In an effort to keep track of books that I read and to figure out exactly how many I do read in a month or a year here is what I have finished this month.

How to Breathe Underwater Julie Orringer - I liked this collection of short stories a lot, which really means something because usually I can't read short stories at all. I hope she has a novel soon.
Here is New York E. B. White - Short essay about New York, with a strange passage at the end about howw easy it would be for planes to attack and destroy NY.
Let It Rain Coffee Angie Cruz - A New York immigant story about a family who comes from the Dominican Republic.
Rococo Adriana Trigiani - I have read books by this author that I like better. I was bothered all the way through the book by the fact that I thought the narrator was gay. He was a decorator, liked fine clothes, art, music, and in one passage said he didn't really like having sex with women. But he never came out. I know I am stereotyping this character, but it really just bothered me.
To the Nines Janet Evanovich - I needed a fluffy book and I love the fluffy little mysteries by this author. Not really literature, but perfect weekend in bed reading.
You Don't Have to Live Here Natasha Radojčić-Kane - I just finished this book and I can't really decide what I think of it so far. It was about a muslim girl from Eastern Europe and the crazy life she lead before she settled down.

I really was oh so tired

I was so tired when I got home last night I laid down on the bed and fell asleep until quarter to eight. I did not mean to do that, but it felt good. I felt a little woozy when I woke up, but it was good for me all the same. I am always surprised when I end up napping, as I have never been much of a napper. I'll fall asleep in a car, but usually not in the middle of the day in my house where there are things to do.

In other things, I have been thinking about dyeing my hair again. And I am indecisive about whether to go dark brown/black or back to a reddish/mahogony brown. The reddish is my old standby, but I have always wanted to try dark, dark hair. The second question is what sort of dye should I invest in? Do I go back to my old friend henna, or should I try one of those commercial type dyes with the wierd smell?

Now that I added titles I can't think of any

I am very sleepy this afternoon from the lack of sleep last night (I think I had a bad dream, but have no memory of it whatsoever) and from the allegry meds I took. I think I will dash home tonight to lay down and be sleepy in my bed and not at my desk. Yesterday it was my eyes and today it is the allegry medication. So not a good week for feeling healthy.

I have blocked 4 of the 5 pieces of the too-big sweater and perhaps will finish seaming one half of it tonight. This will hopefully help me see if it fits or if I have to rip the whole thing apart. Maybe the reblocking fixed it, I mean a girl can dream, right?

Yesterday at lunch I ran down to the farmer's market to get some white peaches. I paid with a twenty, only to get twenty-six back in change. Because I am so honest I went back to the lady and told her she gave me too much. I gave her back one of the tens and told her to give me a one. She just looked at me like she had no idea what was going on, but she gave me the one. I guess I should have taken the extra ten and ran, but I would have felt horrible taking money from a farmstand. Anyway as I was leaving there were cameras and lots of middle aged women. As I got closer I saw that they all had nametags that said Martha Stewart and their town. It looks like they were taping a segment for her new talk show that will air today. And no, I didn't see the Martha, I looked really hard. If I had seen her I would have asked what she thought of West Virginia.

The weekend is over now. Please let us all forget that Saurday and Sunday actually happened. Carry on.

Sigh. There was a bit too much drinking Wednesday night and the stomach is acting up again. It's strange because it is like being hungry, but if I eat more than normal even though I still feel hungry I am full and then will feel sick around bedtime.

I'm not so thrilled to begin this weekend. I would rather stay home and just be lazy, maybe go see "the Baxter" with Sarah, but instead there is travelling. I am sick of the travelling. I want my bed, my own hours and my apartment.

I had a lovely yoga class last night. I really liked the teacher even though I thought she looked a little wacky and her choice in music was kind of strange. The class started with classic U2, but then drifted toward one of my least favorite John Mayer songs and the Goo goo dolls, yuck. And some woman walked into the class 40 minutes late. Why would someone do that? Especially when there is a sign on the door that says not to. Besides, what benefit do you get from the last 20 minutes of a class anyway. You're not warmed up so you could tear a muscle and then the rest of the class is just laying on the floor with your eyes closed. I do that at home by myself every night, it's called sleeping. Ok, rant over.

Anyway this teacher will probably be teaching the class regularly, so hopefully her music taste will change, but overall her teaching the class will be good for my tummy, bottom, arms, etc.

I think I figured out how to fix the too big sweater. I blocked it too big, so I took it apart and wet one of the pieces. Because of the ribbing it shrunk right back to it's preblocked shape. Hopefully this will work for all the pieces so I don't have to knit the entire thing. That would suck.

I am so very tired this morning. It's the allergy meds I swear; I only woke up once during the night last night. Only once.

I finished seaming the sweater last night only to find that it is a giant sweater. I swear I checked my gauge and blocked it to instructions, but it is huge. The body is about 3-4 inches too big and the raglan seams droop 3 inches below my arm. The sleeves are horrible and bulky. So back to the drawing board, I will first try to re-block to make it shrink, if that doesn't work I will have to re-make it in a smaller size, though I might rework the raglan seams so they are not so long.

This weekend has been very solitary and chill. I still need to do the laundry, but overall I have crossed out many things on my to-do list. Maybe it's just avoiding what happened 1 year ago and 4 years ago, if it is then fine. I want to deal with it on my own time, thank you.

Last weekend was really too much fun and it looks like girls will go and pet sheep and spend a buttload of money on yarn in a few weeks. So fun girly times will be had.

Other than that stuff, I am finally close to finishing my ribby cardi in time for cool autumn weather that we'll have in a few weeks. I am finishing blocking and then I just need to do the collar and decide how the damn thing will fasten, snaps or buttons. I am leaning toward buttons. Also I have been watch "Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle" too much. I can't stop. I've been thinking about all the flirting that's been going on, first the boy who never called and last weekend the brother of a friend of mine with the arm touching. I am a big fan of the arm touching, that's what daily show boy did when I met him. I wish there was more arm touching and that the arm touching let to more touching. I need more touching.

I am still on the fence about whether to do anyting about he who didn't call. Maybe I'll get Gina's take on it later tonight.

For now to finish my purse, go to the gym and do the damn laundry.

I was all quiet last week pondering life and in many ways just trying to slug through. This weekend the skies opened up and I saw a bit of what I can be if I really try and what can be if I let go and let it happen. So here I am letting go. There will be more dancing and giggling and happy thoughts. Thank God for the girls that help me find this, I just wish they were closer.