Purls and Pugs

I heart Summer

Forget NY (sorry to anyone that lives there, but I really gotta be strong on this one!), I heart Chicago, too! There is just so much going on that I just don't know how to pick!

This weekend started on Thursday this week. My friend Jenn and I went to a Lymphoma and Lukemia Society Bachelor Auction at the Bar Louis in Naperville. Originally, we went just  to check it out, but it was a lot of fun. Neither of us walked away with any guys, but we met some really nice people, had a couple drinks, and tons of laughs! Here we are showing off our "Raffle Tickets". This was a fun concept--they sold playing cards and then ripped off a corner of them as the ticket. We had both the Queen of Hearts and the Ace of Hearts. I would say those should be good luck for a bachelor auction!

Friday I had some appointments that I had to take care of in the city, so I jumped on the train. I even knit on the train! I decided that if I had a commute where I could take the train, I would have way more knitting done than I do now. It's dedicated knitting time! Look at what a little time gets me-- two inches done on the first Pismo Hat! I just gotta keep that momentum going...

Friday night I relaxed on the patio at Potter's Place in Naperville with a margarita, and then migrated to Jimmy's for a Summer Shandy (mmm...can't go wrong there!). For dinner I visited my first Japanese Steak Restaurant called Kiku. The food was fantastic and the chef was entertaining. I recommend the scallops...mmmm....Then it was off to the Roundhouse to see Hairbangers Ball, and 80's tribute hair band. They were pretty good, and got me thinking about back in the day...yeah, I was around in the 80s!! I even remember LPs...

Saturday I got up and went to the Taste with Jenn! We stuffed ourselves on yummy food (here I am with some gelato), and then walked to the Oak Street Beach. The worst part was that the sun was shining the entire time we were walking, but once we got the beach, it was nothing but clouds. Then is started to rain, so we called it a day. I did think about seeing Mike and Joe again that night, but I was wiped out!

Sunday I actually worked all day so that I can play Monday night at the Sox game!

I heart Chicago in the Summer!

Life Goals

Last night I decided to make it a mild night, so I rented The Bucket List and knit on the first Pismo hat. This is about how far I got last night. Not very far. Again, another reason to not like sock yarn...progress is sloooow. I'm a project knitter, folks, so I want it done now!

I decided to use 2 circulars to begin so that I don't have to switch later when I start decreasing. Why am I so worried about decreasing when I know that's not gonna happen for a while? Wishful thinking? Maybe...

I think I liked The Bucket List, though. I had a different idea in my head of what it was going to be about. But I think I liked how it was done rather than what I thought was going to happen.

I actually think that having a list like that is a good idea. I have one (in my head--I should write it down), my Summer BFF has 101 things on his....I heard once that people who write down life goals tend to accomplish them more than people who don't. Maybe we should all get to writing down some of those things we want to do before we "kick the bucket". And we never know when that's going to be, so get cracking at crossing things off too!

I just can't get into socks

I have tons of sock yarn. I really like it, too...all the colors, the variegation, and it's cheap for a whole project! But, you know what, I just really can't get into knitting socks. I've tried. I really have, but I get bored. Maybe it's that whole second sock thing...I don't know...something.

Anyway, a couple years ago I knit a bunch of my guy friends London Beanies for Christmas, and they loved them! I now have several new bald friends that use hats all the time in the winter (it gets cold!), so I thought I could use up some of my sock yarn and get some Christmas gifty stuff done. Obviously, the London Beanie would not be optimal for this type of yarn, but Marnie's Pismo Hat Pattern is! And I have some manly sock yarn (Regia 4-ply in 2025-Blue Mouline purchased in Germany) that I can use for this purpose.

Here is the swatch I am working on for the Pismo, and I think I am liking the colors. I figured that if I started knitting now, in June, that I might be able to crank out two hats with teeny tiny 1x1 ribbing. Maybe? I have good intentions at least...

Yoda Time

So, to distract you all from the fact that I have not knit a stitch at all in the last week, I'm going to show off Yoda pictures. I decided to take Friday off so that I could, well, do anything I damn well wanted. It was a beautiful week, and it was so hard to stay inside and work, so I rewarded myself for actually staying strong by not going to work on Friday.

Yoda and I took advantage of the great weather on Friday by playing in the yard. Here she is all happy from running around and chasing me. How cute is she? Yoda has been enjoying this wonderfully mild summer so far.

Saturday, Yoda went to the spa. I had my graduation party, so she needed to be in tip-top shape. She came home and we put on her pretty new pink bandanna. She was all set for the party...She wasn't ready for the number of people I had at my house, though.

She was a good girl and was able to be off the leash in the backyard (no fence at my house). She was social with everyone, except my cousin's new dog. They didn't get a long quite so well, but Yoda did very well with my friend's two year old niece. At the end of the day, Yoda was all partied out! Doesn't she look exhausted...she looks about how I felt by 10pm.

Just call me a rockstar...

Yeah. Where does the weekend go?! I'm just going to chalk it up to a rockstar weekend, again. It's amazing how having fun is such a time suck. I just can't figure out how I managed to use up the entire weekend!

Anyway, Friday a bunch of us went to The Foundry celebrate someone's un-birthday (she wasn't ready to  admit that she's 39...I can understand that). I brought along my Foundry Mug Club mug and drank up as much Lienie's Summer Shandy as I could ($4.50 a mug!!!!) get my hands on. As you can tell, we started to get a little silly...Here I am with a little 'tip'...And here's another with my friend Sharen, our sober driver. There was a band at the Foundry that I thought was terrible. I won't even mention who they are because I feel bad saying they were that bad. In fact, when we were leaving, the door guys said they will probably never be back. Ouch!

Saturday, I got up early after my crazy night at 6:30 and actually got stuff done. That boring stuff like laundry and cleaning that needed to be done. Yoda and I went on a walk, and the yard boy cut the grass.  See, I can be productive. I even went to play with Lillie while my sister is in Alaska. We played basketball, and when I left, she was spent. See, I can do good and be productive with my time....but don't get too excited, yet, because that's where it all ends.

I went over to swim and get some sun at my new BFF's apartment. He even played Cabana Boy and brought me margaritas. What's not to love about a Saturday like that?! We stayed outside in the pool for several hours, and when we thought we were 'baked' enough, we ordered a pizza and took a nap. I love naps...

Around 10:30 we headed to the city to Joe's on Weed to see the band Mike and Joe. They were awesome. Totally made up for the crappy band  the night before. The BFF and I discussed how all the cover bands do some of the same songs, and who does what better. There were some that Modern Day Romeos did better and some that Mike and Joe did that were exceptional...then Dot Dot Dot has a personality all their own. They all  have a reason to see them all. But not the band from Friday...makes me shutter thinking about it.

After Joe's, we hit Crobar. I'm not sure what was in the air, but girls kept falling all over the place! Maybe it wasn't the air, but the floor...who knows...I, thankfully, didn't hit the floor. I would have been a little disappointed in myself. What rockstar really bites it at the club? I decided to take break at a table just so I didn't have an unfortunate accident.

On the way home, there was a T-Bell run. What's a night out without some crappy food? The people in the car in front of us at the drive-through were sooooo drunk. Hilarious, too. They ordered about $30 in food...really. How is that possible?! Do they even know what they ordered? We had a discussion with the cashier at window #1 about how the police should forget sitting outside of bars and sit outside of T-Bell. They would get way more DUIs that way.

Needless to say, Sunday was pretty tough for me. But I managed to get up and go to lunch with my mom and dad for Daddy's Day. We went to lunch at Wildfire. I had some macadamia nut encrusted halibut...mmmm....you have no idea how yummy it is! I stuffed myself and still had leftovers to take home...and took a nap on the way back to my parent's house!

Just call me a rockstar. Seriously.

Sale!!

Ok, so I've noticed that   my craft room has gotten out of hand. In addition to me being a reformed pack rat, I feel the need to get rid of some things. That's great for all you knitters out there! I've setup a De-Stashing Page. Please visit and purchase stuff! I'll be adding more stuff here and there, so please check back often.

You can access the sale page by going to the De-Stashing link on the left bar. I'll even remind you all to check it out once in a while.

Happy Shopping!!!

Ironic...

Yesterday we had some charity events to help supplement the golf outing. We had a "Pay for Jeans" Day and a Fay's BBQ (they don't have a website!!). For the BBQ, we had to help with the meat, the assembly of the meals, etc. here I am playing with meat! This is ironic since I don't really like meat at all. I'll occasionally eat some chicken, but that's not an all the time thing.

Here I am on the assembly line serving...meat. Really. I guess they figure I would not be inclined to lick it or eat it while standing around. And believe me, I would not do either of those things.

I was complimented on my new tank numerous times yesterday. I had so many coworkers say they love it and want one for themselves. Of course, I dogged that whole "oh, I'll make one for you" thing...I tend to smile coyly and shrug. It works like a charm!

Seriously

Who misses Grey's Anatomy already? 'Cause I do. Seriously.

Anyway, here you go...the completed Drop Stitch Tank! Whoo Hoo! I think it's just in time for some HOT and HUMID summer weather. I was told (after I made a too large Puffed Sleeve Feminine Cardigan) that everything seems to run big in the Fitted Knits book, so I made the smallest size I could. I also went down to a size 6 needle just to make sure I wasn't swimming in fabric.

I really like it. I could wear it to work with a cami under it (there is no way uber-conservative work would allow such a thing without a cami!). Or on a casual night out...

Pattern: Fitted Knits Drop-Stitch Tank
Yarn: Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece - Perry's Primrose (signature color!)
Needles: Addi Turbo sizes 6 & 4
Notes: I made the smallest size and went down a needle size to get a nice fitting garment.

Edited later to add: Here I am modeling it at work. I decided to try it out since we had a "pay for Jeans/Casual Day" to raise money for the charity.

Tomorrow, I promise

I promise I'll show my finished Drop-stitch Tank! Yes, I did complete it, but I didn't get a chance to block/wash it, so no pics just yet. It's a winner, though.

So this weekend a friend and I went up to Lake Geneva, WI on Saturday to check it out. I had not been there before, so it was fun to check out the town. It's so cute!! I would compare it to downtown Naperville with a lake. Similar, but a little different...and it's where cheese is made! The weather was pleasant, but very windy! Most of my pictures are kind of cloudy, but it was better there than here...When I got back to Illinois, I watched coverage of a tornado south of where I live.

So, of course I picked up some cheese on my way out of Wisconsin! I had never had smoked mozzarella before, and I have to say that it's yummy! I also picked up some smoked Gouda...mmmm....How can you go wrong with cheese?! Especially when it's purchased at a place called the Brat Stop!

Fridays are the best!

Observation: When I had no time to even breath, I was able to accomplish much more than when I seemingly have all the time in the world.

Yes, this means that I have not finished the one last seam on the drop-stitch tank. I KNOW! How hard can it be to seam up one side and pick up a couple stitches to do the neck treatment? Apparently, it's that hard. Perhaps I will sit down tonight and finish it...no promises, but it could happen.

Here is a picture of the "MBA Ladies" at graduation. There is one girl there who you've never seen before, and we call her "Ashley Simpson". Don't you see the resemblance? Another girl, "Rachel Ray", is missing from the picture...I went to school with a bunch of celebrities!

This picture was taken by the MBA coordinator while we were waiting to be lined up and marshalled out. She made sure we were the best dressed graduates by fixing our hoods (and some people needed A LOT of help...), ironing our gowns, and making sure we looked respectable. Really. It seems the more education you have, the more helpless you become!!

Enjoy the weekend!

Just a little wedding

I bet you thought I was going to show you a completed Drop-stitch Tank. Fooled you!!! I had no time last night to work on it. I spent just about every spare minute working on Charity Golf Outing stuff, so I got home LATE last night. Then, My yard boy and his mom were unable to come over to cut the grass, so I did it myself. Yeah, I now LOATH my yard. I am thinking more and more about moving to an apartment in the city....It could happen...

So, no knitting last night. I was lucky I paid my bills because I was so worn out. (I think part of it was that I still wasn't caught up on sleep from the weekend...shh...don't tell...I don't want my Rockstar Status revoked) But I did want to share some good news on the work front. One of my coworkers, who is from Bulgaria, went home for two weeks and got married! She just did a civil service there, but her immediate coworkers made sure she still felt like a bride.

Her desk was draped in tulle. They even made her a veil our of a (clean) coffee filter and the tulle! Doesn't she look like a beautiful bride?!

Action packed, again...

Any weekend that is gorgeous, has live music, beer, sun, friends, knitting, and Sex and the City is a winner!

Friday I went up to Schaumburg to see Modern Day Romeos, a cover band. They were very good...funny, too! I would say that a lot of their songs sounded amazingly like the real ones...it would be hard to tell them apart from some of the original artists. Which is really cool since they do a HUGE range of songs. They are a bit different than Dot Dot Dot that I saw back in March, so it's hard to say which band is better. So, I guess you better just go see them both!

Saturday was AMAZING weather, so I laid out in my yard. I'm still kind of regretting doing that since I am quite red still. But I know it will turn to brown very soon...and then I'll be a bronzed goddess (ha!). After frying myself I went to a graduation party for one of my friends and had some awesome home brewed beer and food. This girl's husband makes a Honeyweissen that rivals Leinenkugle's! Here I am showing off my pink face!

Sunday was KIB or Knit in Bar day. Robin organized a little get together at Ballydoyle's in Downers Grove. She posted it on Ravelry for anyone in the area that wanted to come. Everyone that didn't come totally missed out! Here is our little group enjoying the day, beer, knitting, and good company. I worked on the Drop Stitch Tank, and ended up almost finishing it. Here it is needing to be sewn up one side and the neck treatment needing to be done. I might have a new sweater by the weekend! That's always a good thing...

And the crowning glory of the weekend--Sex and the City Movie. I saw it with my sister last night, and I thought it was really good. The clothes were awesome (I wish I had tons of money to wear some of those things), and I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants! There were some really funny parts. I recommend going to see it...I think it would be ok for guys to see, too. There were quite a few men in the theater laughing just as hard as the women.