Fancy that

Today was much better.

I'm not as sick as I was yesterday (intense nyquil doses perhaps? Or it might have been the lack of anything that I did yesterday and all the rest.)

So if you haven't noticed, there's a fancy-schmancy lil banner up top! Made just for yall in "Paint" (because my Photoshop is on the fritz).

Tomorrow I'm retaking the SAT and I'm hopefully going to do much better this time. Not that last time was awful (1110 or something) but this time I want at least a 1200. AT LEAST. Come on, I can coerce that out of the College Board.) So I'm going to bed down to get more sleep than I did last time. Because honestly, Brandy and I went to bed at about 1:45 that night. We were in bed at about 11, but, come on guys. Girls talk. You can't expect anything less.

Here's hoping.

(send me luck and caffeinated thoughts, please.)

Change is sometimes inevitable.

Okay, so I changed my blog's title.

I figured that it was time for a change (and a byline to go with that change) because I realized that when I came up with the title "Blank Parchment" I was sitting there going... "Uh... erhm... unh... That sounds good!" and since blogging was such a new concept to me (hence 'blank') I figured it works. But know what? It doesn't work now. Since this is like my 144th post or something, it's not so blank.

So thus, my blog is now "Just One of Those Days". I mean, we all have them. Good days, bad days, up days, down days, (sideways days?), and those days that are just unimportant to your overall existance.

I realized while I was snuggled up in my bed that as much as I love to write, I can't seem to find the right motivation to. And then I realized: Wait a minute. I write every day. I write to you I write about my day, about my experiences, and I create an image that makes up me, makes up my mind, that gives me a soap box (short as it is), and that gives me a chance to unload a day's happenings.

I realize that life isn't going to get less complicated, but it'll change.

Yaaay I feel like shit!

Actually, that's kind of how I feel right now.

I have a cold thing. I don't even know what it is, but my nose is stuffy and my mind is fuzzy. Plus, (tee hee) I took NyQuil this morning... so everything is about 10x more funny than it should be.

So I'm just sitting here in desktop giggling at the most dumb stuff. But then I'll get really depressed and sick-feeling the next moment.

An actual conversation earlier this morning:

Me: "I feel like shit, I don't want to be here and I want to go home."
Kevin (who sit's next to me in my desktop class) "Wow Stef. Don't hold back your feelings. Tell us how you really feel."

Tee hee hee.

I get to go home in half an hour. Then I'm going to crawl under my covers and sleep for the rest of today.

Yay.

Heaven... ahh...

So I have just put heaven on my FEET.

I went on a bit of a shopping trip to target (and michael's!) for some stuff for a dance performance... and just because I felt like I wanted to spend money on something other than yarn and coffee. And I was perusing the shoes for some flats that are part of our costume when I saw them... (Angels did, indeed chorus)

Now, they look soft in the picture...

They are SOFTER in real life.

Ahhh... And they were $4!!!!!!

My life is complete.

So... yeah...

I have nothing real to say. (In that case, I guess everything I say should be fake if you take that phrase literally.)

I had another lazy day. Brandy slept over at my house, and we (well, I) spent time looking at knitting patterns. She, stubborn as she is, picked up a crochet hook and started to learn how to crochet out of my Stitch N' Bitch Crochet book (voulez vous crochet avec moi?). Needless to say, I am a little jealous because she just took to that hook like a duck to water. Of course, it gives me every reason to now start calling her a hooker. (ha ha ha).

I read another book this afternoon, then went downstairs and had some of my mom's delicious turkey soup. I could live off of that stuff. The only annoying thing about it is that it has whole peppercorns in it, which gives it flavor but is annoying when you pick it up in the rest of your soup and bite it. They become a little hot when you bite 'em.

Then I watched tv for four hours (two of them were a movie) and now I'm blogging.

So you see, it's been overall a good day. A good book, a good movie, and then some good soup.

You know what I realized? I have a lot to say, but not a lot of patience when I'm writing/blogging about it to say it. Becuase I have a million mph brain and about a 60 wpm typing skill.

1,000,000 mph /3600 wph = 277.78 mw/h

Fast, but not fast enough.

Brr... the sequel!

Okay, so I just emerged from my bed and it's six pm. Yay!

This morning I marched in a parade to collect toys for kids who don't have parents/can't afford them for christmas. And I had a grand 'ole time. Granted, it was freezing. Weather.com (which I tend to check religiously when winter comes around. "Will it freeze today? Awwwww... No. Again.") said "45 degrees. Feels like 37."

Um. BRR.

I was outside from about 10 until noon. And I was all bundled up. I wore tights underneath my jeans. And long socks. And about six shirts. And a hat. And a sweatshirt. AND THEN a rain coat. (And gloves.) And even through all of that, when I crawled into my bed at about half past noon it took me three hours to defrost.

I was reading a book. And by that point, I was completely engrossed in the book that I figured, what the hell, just stay in bed until you finish the book.

And I just did. I love when books end because the ending usually gives me the warm fuzzies inside. I think I might go downstairs and warm up some dinner and then start reading another book.

Maybe I'll even turn the fire on!!!

Dare to dream

Brrr

It's COLD.

OH MY GOSH it's actually COLD.

I actually think it's hilarious, because yesterday I was wearing shorts and today... BAM. Long sleeves and hats and scarves. Saturday I'm marching in a parade and I'm going to be miserable because it's going to be cold AND rainy.

Other than the fact that it's cold AND thanksgiving, I haven't got much to say.

So... happy turkey day.

Unstoppable

That is me: Unstoppable.

Perhaps a smidge obsessive, too... on the side, of course.

I really do think that knitting is obsessive. It's also ridiculously, and probably at an illegal level, rewarding. Just the fact that you can see something growing right before your eyes is probably the most gratifying part of my life at this point. Of course, I'm only 18 and have yet to see anything really that important.

Anyway, I finished those fingerless mittens/armwarmers that I think I might have mentioned sometime in the last week or so. I made one in 1 day and the other took me two because (God forbid) I, you know, work during school.

Current project: A little bag for one of the girls I babysat over the summer. And then the next one for the other girl. They shouldn't take long, considering that I altered the design of the bag that they saw and loved and asked oh-so-sweetly for their own so that it is slightly wider, longer and this time on circular needles... so no pesky purl stitch this time! I don't like those purl stitches...

Thus, are my fingerless mittens:

I have entitled them LONG STRIPEY FINGERLESS MITTENS :)



I got the idea of rotating ribbing from the socks that the yarn harlot made, and so the ribbing on the long mittens rotates as well.



Here's the pattern I pieced together from a bunch of other sources... but I guess you could say that it's my own creation. :)



CO 30 st onto size 4 DPN. Divide the stitches over 3 needles.

A. work 6 rows in K1P1 in 1 color

B. Switch to the other color and work P1K1.

Rep A and B until you have 8 stripes (4 of each color)

C. Knit 3 rows in Color 1.

Increases:

-k1, inc 1, k2, inc 1, k to end of row; work 1 row even

-k1, inc 1, k4, inc 1, k to end of row; SWITCH COLORS, work 1 row even

-k1, inc 1, k6, inc 1, k to end of row; work 1 row even

-k1, inc 1, k8, inc 1, k to end of row; work 1 row even

-Place 11 st onto st holder, inc 1

-Work 2 more rows in color 2

-Switch to color 1, k6 rows

-Switch to color 2, begin ribbing K1P1, 5 rows.

-BO.



Thumb:

-Remove the st from st holder and divide over 2 needles

-Pick up 5 stitches from around the thumb

-Work 2 rows in stockinette st

-K1P1 ribbing for 3 rows, BO.


Weave in ends and cut all strings, wear your lovely fingerless mittens with pride!

Another moment!!

Wow, I seem to be having a lot of "Damn I'm Good" moments this year. Good? Why yes, it's very good.

The Damn I'm Good moment of the day: I watched myself in Honk! (the DVD) and: Hey! I can sing! I can act! How these are revelations to me, I have no idea... but they are. Very much.

I SO want to splice up the dvd and post things on Youtube so yall can see me. (I'm awesome) And I wish I had the friggen pictures so I could show you. But more the first one than the second one.

I dunno, I have no homework tonight so I'm just enjoying myself. I've watched 3 hours of tv and I've eaten a wonderful dinner, and generally, I'm in a very happy mood.

<3

Yay.

It has come to my attention

That I am a geek.

Of course I cam. We geeks have taken over the world, whether you like it or not. We're made of awesome, and we way outnumber all of you non-geeks.

Bwah ha ha.

Reasons why I am a geek (today):
#1 - I made an armwarmer/fingerless mitten today during school (tomorrow I will make the second one)
#2 - I told about 25 random people that I made my hat all by me onesy.
#3 - I bought The Knitters Bible today in B&N and I was more excited about it than the actual book I bought for free reading over thanksgiving.
#4 - I wrote the best Shakespeare parody sonnet while I was cooking dinner
#5 - I spent about 2 hours experimenting with lace (knitting) patterns.
#6 - I practically skipped all day I was so happy (just one of those days, ya know?)

Okay so those are all of the reasons I am a geek (today).

Wanna see my shakespeare parody? Of course you do.

Sonnet XVIIIa

Shall I compare thee to an old, dead guy?
Thou art more famous and more writer-y,
Than any other man that ever died,
And any other man that I do see.
The ground that holds thy old and rotting bones,
Does seem to glow, a little more than should,
And o'er thy sacred head, the aura pwns.
Did ever stand a man so old and good?
If you escape the clammy hands of death,
And rise again to use that writers gift,
The people standing near would hold their breath
Because your rotting corpse the people sniffed.
And always at the end of the last lines,
A volta that can never seem to rhyme.

Gettin knitty with it

I call it, the Mushroom Flower hat. (if you look hard, you can see the bitty flower on the right side of the pic)

And it's my birthday present to me!!!

My patterny thing:

CO 88 st (I got 4 st/inch on size 10 circ needles. Of course, figure out what you need)

Work the length of your hand (from heel of hand to tip of middle finger) in K2P2 ribbing.

Decrease: (very loosely from my memory. Basically, decrease however you like.)

K2 P2 K2 P2 K2tog (repeat until end of row)

Work 1 row even

K2 P2 K2 P2tog (repeat until end of row)

Work 1 row even

K2 P2 K2 tog (repeat until end of row)

Work 2 row even

K2 K2tog (work until end of row)

Work 1 row even

K2tog all around

Work 1 row even

K2tog all around

Cut string and thread through all of your stitches (I think at the end of this I had less than 10 stitches.)

Flower:

CO 48 st

K1 BO 8 (continue until you have 7 stitches on the right needle. This is the actual pattern, I just altered it to make a bigger flower.

Sew flower onto hat, and look pretty. If the flower is small enough, you can roll the brim up and pretend the flower isn't there (and it comes right back when you want it.)

Hmm... what's this? A BIRTHDAY!?

Guess what today is!!!

Your queen of awesome is officially 18! (I have the Miss America sash to prove it.)

So here's my story thus far: (No, not my life story, my birthday weekend story of course.)

I went shopping yesterday for party stuff at a big Party City. Mom met me there and when we were loading my car with the stuff, she said "Hmm. Your tire looks a bit low. Oh look, there's a nail in your tire." So we drove over to costco and she dropped me off and I sat there for two and a half hours while they determined that no they could not fix the tire and they replaced the tire. So me, being me, walked over to Michael's and bought some yarn (ON SALEEEE) and some circular needles and started knitting a hat. For myself. Not for anyone else (Take that, friends and family. Something for ME. NOT FOR YOU.)

It's almost done... ish. So i'll finish that and then post a picture for yall.

And after the tire escapade, I went home and decorated my house for my partayyy. And thus follow the pictures of my lovely party!!

My friends gave me a crown, wand, and a sash that says "Bitch"... I nearly died laughing.
And then, of course, Alycia gets cake all over me!
Brandy and me. <3
The gals...
...The morning after. ;) Hmm... what do we do with all of those balloons?

Grab the sword and start poppin of course!!!
The day is young, yet. I'll have more pictures later probably.

A distinct pattern

Okay, so my chemistry teacher sophomore year was this awesome guy named Mr. Leech. He was great; a good teacher AND hilarious. He was also in this band...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-4HzZXvwWA (he's the blonde who is on guitar... Yeah. All four people in the audience are probably students from my school, har har har...)

So we have this new chemistry teacher, who ins't my teacher because I'm in physics this year, but wanna know what's weird?

HE WAS IN A BAND TOO.

(Who also has a convenient video on Youtube...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHIXhfCUyBo

This one is undoubtedly much easier on the ears. He cut his hair though, so he's not as pretty as before, though very cute.

I think there is a conspiracy going on at our school to only hire musically inclined chemistry teachers.

Hmm, it fits.

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New favorite

I have a new favorite (not shakespearean... I do have my allegiances to him too) sonnet:

Since there's no help, come let us kiss and part;
Nay, I have done, you get no more of me,
And I am glad, yea glad with all my heart
That thus so cleanly I can free;
Shake hands forever, cancel all our vows,
And when we meet at any time again,
Be it not seen in either of our brows
That we one jot of former love retain.
Now at the last gasp of Love's latest breath,
When, his pulse failing, Passion speechless lies,
When Faith is kneeling by his bed of death,
And Innocence is closing up his eyes,
Now if thou wouldst, when all have given him over,
From death to life thou mightst him yet recover.

Michael Drayton

I love it.

A little farther than I thought

Okay, so I've been thinking of taking some knitting classes (You know. The ones with actual people who teach) and perhaps shaping up on some of the things I've kind of, well, made up as I went along.

I knew that I wouldn't go for the beginners lessons. (Pssh. Knit stitch, purl stitch, cast on, bind off, increase, decrease. I pssh in your face.)

I thought perhaps intermediate lessons would be nice.

I actually think that I should do this. Because I know all the (well, most of the) basics. Do I need to point out the number of scarves I've made? Let's review:

12 scarves (1 of which is on the needles) From L-R, a story of scarves: Amber and cream stripey, Hot Tamale scarf (and in the front is the Candy-cane feathery, who is in progress), then there's Tigery-velvety scarf, Springy scarf, Dirty green scarf, Green and cream stripey, South Carolina scarf, Scarf #1, Teal feathery, Scarf #2, purpley feathery.

Scarf #1 I knit when I was about 13. Scarf #2 I finished when I was 15. Notice a gap? Ya.

(I can see 7 gifts coming out of that pile, by the way). South Carolina scarf is the newest one (between Scarf #1 and green and cream stripey scarf.) I finished it today during Philosophy. Yay!

So clearly, I have no lack of talent on the beginners front. But I itch, I long to take on harder projects. Hence, mittens. Check out these mittens I finished tonight.

They have Z's in them! They're for a friend of mine, whose name is Zuleikha (Or Zoo, for short...) And I'm her secret santa. So, I made her some mittens. Even though we don't need them in Texas, if I darn well want to knit some mittens for a friend, I darn well will.

Anyway, the Z's were kind of hard, but once I got them going they were easy. That's called Fair Isle knitting, I think, and I have CONQUERED IT.

Next: Lace. Perhaps. Maybe. Okay, not for a bit.

But before that... more christmas scarves. -sigh-

Nothing much to report, troops

It's sunday evening, and I'm done with my homework.

No, seriously. I actually did all of my homework.

Stop looking at me like that!!

I did a lot of it this afternoon and some just now... and now I have nothing to do. Except knit. Which I have three now going on, so I have no shortage of it. (Two scarves and a mitten at the moment.) The mitten should look cool. It'll be white, red, and purple stripey. I'll post a picture of it. Depending on how they turn out, I will give them away.)

Sixteen of us are doing "Secret Santa" things at school, and I'm going to make my gal mittens. Perhaps these mittens? I have no patience for another scarf. I'm really, really sick of scarves (which is why I have two going right now. When I get sick of one I can go to the other. And then there are those little mini mittens, which I've decided are a knitter's Quick Fix. Why yes, I am comparing mittens to drugs, do you have a problem with that?)

I went shopping with my mom this evening. It was surprisingly pleasant because she mostly wanted to buy things for herself, so she left me alone to choose clothes and stuff. Usuall she insists on criticising the clothes I choose (it's too low cut, those pants don't fit you, etc., etc.) I love my mom, but shopping with her is something I usually avoid. Mostly because she makes me feel fat, and I'd rather mope about that on my own, thankyouverymuch. (Pointed out an ADORABLE purse that I reallyreallyreally want for my birthday though. Winkhintcough.)

Anyway, I was trying to find the cute purse that I love, but the website isn't working. Perhaps I'll show yall some other time.

Stash expansion

Okay, so I didn't exactly need to do it... but I kind of spent $40 on yarn today.

All of which I will use in the near future, I swear.

Okay, most of it I will use in the near future.

But look, I finished another scarf!

Here are the newest additions to my stash. Aren't they pretty? I can see two pairs of mittens and a hat, and a scarf and a half coming out of this stash. One of them is a Ravenclaw scarf (the blue and the bronze, aren't they pretty?)

And the half a scarf I already have the other color for (the white fluffy looking one). I just can't wait to finish my current scarf to start working on my other projects...

Mini Mittens!

Okay guys, it's time to get knitty with it.

Here's what I'm doing as little christmas presents for my people.

Mini Mittens!

They're so easy. And they take about an hour to do... maybe less.

I've been using this pattern, but instead of doing K2P2 for the ribbing, I do K1P1 (because honestly, if every needle doesn't start with a K, I won't do it right. It just doesn't compute. So, K1P1 it is. I've also only been using size 2 needles with a babyweight yarn, (Baby Bee, Sweet Delight "naked" color.) and I like this yarn because it's not a whitewashed white, but more of a creamy one. And it has this nice little shiny string wound through, so it has some shine to it. The effect of the shiny bit creates a frosty look with the mitten, (Perfect for, oh, christmas. Duh.) I've done 4 so far (I'm estimating that I'll need 12 or so) and I haven't tired of them yet (knock on wood) so ya.

I think that when I finish them, I'm going to wind some green or red ribbon through the end of the cuff, so that it can be a little bitty ornament.

Another music list

So I was listening to one of our local morning shows the other morning, and they were listning their iTunes top 25 songs most played... so I thought I might have a peek at my own list.

(#, Song title, Artist, play count, .......just so you know)
25. Break Apart Her Heart (Good Charlotte, 76)
24. Victims of Love (Good Charlotte, 76)
23. All Black (Good Charlotte, 77)
22. The Mating Game (Bittersweet, 80)
21. Dance Floor Anthem (Good Charlotte, 81)
20. Dancing (Elisa, 81)
19. Broken Hearts Parade (Good Charlotte, 82)
18. Y Yo Sigo Aqui (Paulina Rubio, 83
17. The River (Good Charlotte, 83)
16. Misery (Good Charlotte, 83)
15. It's Not Over (Chris Daughtry, 83)
14. Listen to Jesus, Jimmy (Reefer Madness Soundtrack, 85)
13. Good Morning Revival (Good Charlotte, 85) <- I swear, that's the last one...
12. Welcome to the Black Parade (My Chemical Romance, 92)
11. Prelude 12/21 (AFI, 92)
10. Red Flag (Billy Talent, 94)
9. Nothing to Lose (Billy Talent, 95)
8. Not Ready to Make Nice (Dixie Chicks, 96)
7. Build God, Then We Talk (Panic! At the Disco, 98)
6. Lying is the Most Fun A Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off (Panic! At the Disco, 101)
5. River Below (Billy Talent, 101)
4. Pins and Needles (Billy Talent, 102)
3. Limon y Sal (Julieta Venegas, 110)
2. Face DOwn (The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, 118)
1. This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race (Fall Out Boy, 147)

So there you have it, my top 25 most played. I think a lot of them I just had on repeat (like the good charlotte ones are all part of a CD I must have had on a loop. Not to say that I don't like/am embarassed by the songs, it just surprised me. :)

Anyway, I have to do homework...

Hey lookit!!

lookit, guys! They're mittens!

I'm just going to be blogging randomly while I'm taking my SAT course.

Right now I'm working on my new christmas project, which is to make little itty bitty mittens as ornaments for my family and stuff. They're so cute! I have some yarn and I'm working on my third mitten as we speak. Well, sort of.

This class is interesting, but at the same time dull. We're doing long passages tonight... which aren't my favorite. But well, what can you do?

I'm on christmas scarf 5/7. Triumph is almost upon me!!

Hrm... Whoda thunk...

Okay, so I'm taking this SAT prep course for the december test.

But it's not just any prep course, it's the I-get-to-sit-in-front-of-my-computer-(like-I-usually-do)-and-for-once-be-productive prep course. With live interaction and a real teacher on the other end, via webcam.

It's actually pretty good, too.

So, me being me, I started knitting a mitten.

How much of a mitten can you produce while learning Critical Reading test-taking tips?

Incidentally, this much.

Thought of the cutest little christmas gifts. I'll show yall later.

Mission Successful

Ah blogger.

I just woke up.

(It's 4:30 pm).

Now I have to rush out of the house.

Just letting yall know.

MI: Update

Blogger, this is coming from the event itself.

It is 0339 on 11/03/07 and I am thoroughly exhausted, though completely filled with sugar. To the brim. Fanta, it seems, is the key to staying awake. 

This is Stefanie, out... for now.

Mission Impossible

Blogger, I am about to embark on a dangerous and possibly impossible mission:

Being a leader at a middle school lock in.

How long? From 2200 on 11/02/07 until 0800 until 11/03/07. Why? Attempted suicide? This girl does not know.

My equipment:

4 Starbucks Doubleshot Espressos
Pink striped knee socks
My scarf I'm knitting
My teddy bear.

Men, I will update you when I can.