the yarNerd!

ok, last set, i swear now!
from my NEW local friend who i'll be meeting tomorrow (so excited!) rebecca,
1. After reading on your blog that you never had a "date", what would be your dream date?? Time, place, activites, what you are wearing...I want to hear everything!
ok if i went true 'dream date' it would involve an irish sunset, and a caribbean sunrise... so we're going to go SLIGHTLY more realistic on this one... heh.
wearing: a white silk honeymoon tank from knitty, my favorite flowered 'flirty' skirt, strappy little shoes, with perfect 'messy' hair.
him: tailored pants, well loved shoes, and just-the-right-shirt (that's different for each guy, of course).
the date: he picks me up in the early afternoon in his classic mustang/rockin' truck/other cool vehicle (just none of that sporty shit, if your stereo can make your 'bling' rattle, um... no), and we drive out to the blue point brewery for one of their beer-tasting events. (wine tasting is more fun in a group anyway. i like me a beer drinkin' man!) then, it's on to greenport. this serves a few purposes. we can talk and get to know eachother (or more likely, share music cause that's what car rides are for) on the ride out, and there's this beautiful restaurant that looks out onto their harbor. it's also a perfect town for walking around after dinner. after that... i dont know! maybe a movie? i dont really have 'experience' with this sort of thing so i'm not sure how it goes, hah. am i supposed to then invite him over for some coffee or something? hehe.
2. As a young mom myself I am wondering why you want to join the ranks of "the young mother"?? Is there anything you think you would miss out on by having kids in your early 20s?
i've never been a party-girl to begin with... the whole doing drugs and experimenting thing just never appealed to me. if anything, i'd miss being able to just go out to the bar with my friends whenever i felt like... but that's definatly something i'd be willing to give up. and from what i've seen with a few friends of mine who have kids, it's not like their LIVES ended... heh. my friend tania has an incredible support network, and her friends take turn babysitting so she and her man can get out on dates, or go bowling every now and then so they dont go crazy.
frankly, i've always been the one taking my cousin's kids from them so they can have an uninterrupted dinner... or dissapearing with my little brother for hours so my mom could have a break. she used to tease that if she wasnt nursing him, she'd NEVER have seen him! he was MY kid ;) when my cousin had her second daughter 2 months early, i moved into her house for almost a month to take care of her, the baby, and her 3 year old so her husband could continue to work and they wouldn't go bankrupt. when my 'friend' lauren (used to be a friend before she went all drug-addict, and dissapeared to live with a guy in a van in boston) needed to go to rehab, i took her 4 month old son for 2 weeks (before his grandparents decided to adopt him, he's a very well loved child). in fact, when she had her second child earlier this year and it became obvious that she wasn't going to clean up any time soon, i came THISCLOSE to adopting her. this is something i've just always sort of felt... sure there are things i'd 'miss', but nothing i couldn't do without. and i want to have a BUNCH of kids, so i've gotta start early! i dont want to be one of those 60 year old moms with middle-school kids, i always felt bad for those kids... hah. is there anything YOU can think of that i'd miss out on by having kids in my early 20's?
3. Do you find you are compatible with people your own age? Do you get along better with people who are older or younger??? WHy do you think that is the case?
frankly, i get along with people who are older AND younger, but almost never those the same age as me. my two best friends are 18 and 29, and i'm 22. even as a little kid, i was the one that grownups loved because i was so well spoken. i've always felt older than i am, and i identify a little bit more with the sort of 'roll your eyes at today's youth' mind-set than the 'party all night' set. mind you, i can party with the best! but... then i have to rest up for like 2 days afterwards, hah. i'm very selective about my younger friends, but they're all of the 'older than their years' sort, old souls if you will. i think the best part of hanging out with kids 18-20 is... you HAVE to find other fun things to do, you cant just cop out and go chill at the bar. so my friend michelle and i will get dressed up and walk around downtown wearing fairy wings, or spend all day trolling thrift stores and pet shops for fun. my 16 year old friend matt and i go swing dancing on tuesday nights with his mom and her boyfriend! so i've sort of got the best of both worlds... just keep me away from those other 22 year olds... hah.
4. Oreos or chips ahoy?? why?
oreos! i'm a twisted girl, i like to twist off the tops, and stack 'em up. if you play your cards right, you can create an OCTUPPLE (sp?) stuffed oreo. just think about it, you know you want to ;)
5. Have you ever met someone on line and forged a solid friendship thats lasts even today?
many people, actually! my ex boyfriend, of four years ago... we met online, dated briefly, broke up BADLY... (ask me in person, it's an interesting story!) but after 3 months of radio silence, we became friendly again... and to this day he's one of my best friends. i'm relatively fearless when it comes to meeting people from the internet in person... i'm always careful about meeting them in safe places, but really... who ISNT online these days? i think it's just about as safe as going out with some guy who picked you up at a bar... play it safe, use your common sense... and it can really pay off! i can list off about 15 people i consider good friends that i originally met online.

boy i really went essay style on some of those questions... hah. frankly, i COULD say much more... maybe that's why i like going to therapy so much, an hour of talking about ME! but i figure, you asked... so you MUST want to know, right? ;)

i want to go on a date.

it should be one of those occasions where you're expected to dress up, but not TOO much. a 'little black dress' kind of night. with just the right hand-knit wrap over it ;) of course. where i get picked up at 7 and taken out to dinner, a restaurant with low lights and candles on the table. where he'd hold doors for me.

would you believe i've never had a DATE.

every man i've ever 'dated', it never ever started like that. ok, i know thats normal. but... i dunno, i just feel like i've somehow missed out on something. Asshat (thank you nipper, i'll call him that forever-more) was supposed to take me on a 'date' once... however, i had to drive out to riverhead to meet him at his place, and when i got there he asked if i minded if Kevin came along, cause he was kind of bored and looking for something to do. so the three of us went to fridays... and i perched on one of those tall chairs in my skirt and heels and FISHNET stockings. now, i could've said no, he was genuinely asking if it would bother me if kevin came to dinner... but i felt bad for kevin as he had just had a rediculous nuclear-fall-out kind of fight with his parents and was driving around with nowhere to go. so i'm not blaming anyone here... just... even though i've tried a couple of times with people i was already dating, i've never had one of those DATES.

it's been exactly a month since the complete 18-wheeler-out-of-nowhere blindsiding. and no, i'm not over him... but i'm over IT. if that makes sense. i'm willing, and ready, to date again. hell, i'm not only willing, i'm eager! but, how exactly does one accomplish that? hah. turn on the 'vacancies' sign at the end of my driveway? (oh dear, but that does paint an interesting picture...)

here's the thing. i always, always wanted to be the young mom. i always pictured myself as the smart, educated woman who fell in love, got married young, and started a family. hell, that's part of why i chose a career like massage therapy. i can still be a working woman without leaving my children with someone else to raise (some day). it's part of why my other goal in life is to eventually become a midwife, too. it's all part of the plan... hah. only problem is... well, i cant really make the family stuff happen on my own... heh.

i read about all you lovely ladies, and your DH's, and sons, and daughters, and the freshly pregnant ones ripening with spring out there... (congrats!!!) and i cant help but be jealous. but jealous in a happy kind of way, like... it's something i have to look forward to some day.

on that note, that brings me to the contest i'll be starting this weekend. rebecca, you already know what i'm talking about ;) the rest of you, check back soon to find out!

i believe this is the last set of questions for me to answer... if i've requested any others and forgotten about them, please forgive me!

alice, these were a welcome distraction. thank you!
1. Tell me at least three of the nicknames that go with Alice that people have come up with for you over your life? (alas alas its all ass alass and ally ally bowling ally were two of mine)
due to a typo years back, one of my best friends has always called me Lice. attractive, right? another friend called me al-ass, guess which sylable the emphasis was on! the third? i dont actually have a lot of alice-related nicknames, or any nicknames for that matter. but if i recall correctly there was some al-ish-kinda-sorta name calling for a while, mocking me for never being able to make up my mind, hah.
2. You design your own knitwear and patterns; some knitters are most comfortable with knitting from a pattern with the recommended yarn. What you think gives you the courage to design and create what you want?
even when i work from patterns, i can never seem to use the recommended yarn, gague, or... pretty much anything! i have a large chest, and after my first two ill-fitting garments, i realized i HAD to get more brave if i was going to knit things i could actually wear. i've always been an artist at heart, too... and i love the idea of visualizing something, and WATCHING it come forth from my fingers as i knit it. i design by the 'flying by the seat of your pants' method, then... if it works, i can go back later on and say 'yeah, that was all intentional!'
3. Ok – now for knitting- where do you get most of your yarn and why? What is it about the shop (on or off line) you like best?
for a while most of my yarn was coming from rediculous ebay purchases... which is how my stash has expanded to the un-managable size it's at right now. these days, though... i do all of my shopping at the knitting cove. my LYS is only 4 blocks away from me! it's a small place, and they dont have the greatest selection... but they're LOVELY people, they all know me by name, and are more than happy to special order anything for me that they dont already carry.
4. Besides conversations on the train – do you knit with others? If you do – when and how did it start? If not – why not?
up until two months ago, i was actually the only knitter that i knew in real life! through my ex boyfriend, though, i discovered stitch witches, the group that meets at the coffee house near his place. (look, something good DID come from him! hah.) and just by hanging out at the coffee house with friends and knitting, many people have come forward and told me they were knitters, or wanted to learn... some even had projects in their car, and brought them in to join me at open mic on fridays! and, just DAYS ago, i found out there's another group of local knitters that meets on thursday... i'm going to go this week for the first time!! i'm so excited to finally have other people to knit with :)
5. How do you deal with those people that sneer at knitting when you are knitting in public?
frankly, i've only had that happen TWICE. and i do a lot of public knitting, believe me. i had one of those uber-scary feminist crazies come up to me downtown once, and just walk up to me and say 'do you realize how much you're setting back the womens movement by debasing yourself like that?' i replied by basically smiling at her and wishing her a good day... it's just not worth a fight! hah. the other time, a little-old-lady type on the train leaned over and said 'oh, dearie, you're doing it wrong!' i was knitting socks with the magic loop technique, and she started telling me that a sock should never look like that, and the needles were ALL wrong for the yarn, and... blah blah. at the time, i had only been knitting a few months, but i knew well enough to know i was doing just fine. so i just kind of pretended my music was too loud on my headphones and i hadn't heard her... heh.

i'll re-post the rules, just for a refresher.
Here are the rules for this Blog-a-thon:
I'll offer to interview the next how many ever people to respond to this post that will follow these rules:
1. Leave me a comment saying "interview me."
2. I will respond by asking you five questions here. They will be different questions than the ones above.
3. You will update YOUR blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

now! it's my turn to ask a few lucky readers some questions!!

for Bev,
1. how are those 'mental health' flowers you bought mid-march? do you have a particularly green thumb? any tips for those of us who can kill a cactus at 20 paces?
2. if money were no object, and you could spend one week anywhere in the world doing anything, what would it be?
3. lets say you just won $1,000,000 in a contest. however, the rules state that you must donate 1/2 of the winnings to charity before you can keep the rest as your own. what charity do you send the $ to?
4. biology asside, what cross-breed of fiber producing animals would create your IDEAL fiber to work with?
5. when commenting on my break up, you suggested the sex and the city solution (fuck buddy!) to moving on. have you, at any time in your life, employed this strategy? :)

for Rebecca,
1. the pope passed away today, as you noted in today's entry. what, in your opinion, is the best thing he did for the catholic church in his time as pope?
2. what are your top three cartoons? i'm a huge tune-fan myself :)
3. how did you meet your DH? i'm always interested in hearing about how madly-in-love relationships first started!
4. you mentioned vermont a few times, so i'll assume you've been there. what's your favorite area of vermont to spend time in?
5. do you live anywhere near port jefferson?? i'm willing to travel, wanna do lunch?

for Jaimi,
1. you have an adagio link on your main page so i'm going to go out on a limb and assume you like tea... what's your favorite variety/flavor?
2. what's the next project on your to-do list that you could actually see yourself wearing, not just knitting for the process?
3. how did you learn to knit? have you always had an interest in crafty stuff?
4. how in the WORLD did you end up in a field such as yours? what lead you to that specific focus?
5. money's not an object, space is not an object. what yarn do you IMMEDIATLY stock up on, just incase there's a sudden halt on production?

thanks! i look forward to reading answers!!

i'm going to break this evening's posting up into two parts. this section is answering OTHER people's questions... the next one will be asking my own questions of a couple of poor victi... err volunteers!

from tina,
1. You're stuck on an island...what three things would you want to have with you..?and not something to get off the imaginary island
a magical ipod, with every song EVER on it... and an unlimited battery supply. company... i like my alone time but i gotta have SOMEONE cool there to share the fun parts with. a life-time supply of Dr Pepper. self explanitory ;)
2. You mentioned things on your blog were soap-opera-ish. Have you watched soap operas?...do you have a favorite one or a thought on them?
i havent, actually. i've caught bits and pieces when staying home sick with my mom (back when i lived at home and all) but i've never really been a 'watcher'. i tend more towards the teen-soaps. you know, the action/adventure/drama types, buffy, angel, charmed, etc... heh.
3. Do you have any pets?
as seen on the previous 'filler' post, i have a fantastic kitty named rowan. she's weird, and has a moustache. she's currently staying at my parents house, which sucks cause i really miss her. but she has the company of the other three cats who live there; theeslar (fat-slar), lily (the queen bitch), and jenkins (roundie, the cute one). so at least i know she's not lonely :)

i know you didnt ask this, but i'll tell it anyway. i got rowan... because our Lab, daisy, used to sleep in my room. i am a creature of habbit, and got VERY used to having her there, and was very not-happy whenever she couldnt be there for some reason. two summers ago, we found out daisy was on her way out. after years of minor health problems (she was an abused shelter dog) her past had finally caught up with her, and in a major way. i was a wreck... and... 3 days before daisy was to either be operated on or put down (depending on the size of the tumor) my mom ran into the most darling little kitten ever in a box on the counter at our local Petco. she brought her home for me, and i had a few more days with daisy while getting used to the Little One... and she's been my salvation ever since. ok, that's all. heh.
4. Do you watch tv? Have a favorite channel/show?
my tv only KNOWS three channels, hah. cartoon network, disney and nickelodeon. i may be 22, but my remote doesnt have to know that!! i'm all about adult swim, lizzie maguire, fairly odd parents, drake and josh... etc.
5. What kind of yarn would be your "dream yarn"? it doesn't have to exist.
are you familiar with the feeling of a Lab's ear? or a beagle's? THAT. i want a yarn that feels like THAT when knitted up, without harming any puppies in the making... hah. a close second? magical yarn that you can knit up at a large gague (easier on my hands) then somehow magically shrink into small-gague projects such as socks and gloves.

from colette:
1. You are a massage therapist - what made you decide to do this? Why did you pick the Swedish Institute in NYC i/o going to the school on the Island?
frankly, the science-angle of it was what originally got me STARTED. all of the biology and anatomical sciences that i love without the CALCULUS of northeastern's biology program? ok by me! but the more i got into it i realized, i've been 'that girl' giving backrubs to all of my friends all of my life... and it makes me feel good. and now, i can make MONEY doing that? ok! i picked swedish because MY massage therapist (who i've been seeing since '99, and is now my boss!) very 'subtly' suggested it. she wouldnt 'outright' tell me to go there, but she made it very clear she'd be VERY HAPPY if i chose that school... essentially implying that i'd be guaranteed a job. heh. oh, and after visiting both campuses i just FELT better at swedish. oh, and! i'd rather spend time on the train than in the car in LI traffic ANY day of the week... i read a lot of good books and took a lot of great naps on those trainrides :)
2. If you could complete any project in any fiber using any technique - what would you choose?
the ultimate would be cleaning, spinning, designing, knitting and FINISHING my own aran sweater with genuine irish wool. preferably from my own sheep, raised off the coast of galway ;)
3. Do you prefer to knit for yourself or others? - If for others - why?
i wish i could say for others ;) but... i love knitting SMALL things for others. it makes them happy, and if given to the right person makes ME very happy to see my knitted items going to a good home. however, i much prefer knitting more time-consuming projects for myself. i dont like the 'mystery' of whether or not something will fit someone i dont have on hand to measure any time day or night. i havent quite mastered the art of making things ... fit. hah.
4. What was the most extravagant thing you ever bought/did for feed your fiber addiction?
i bought a BAG of noro kochoran yarn. a BAG. i still dont even know what i'm going to do with it yet... but that was most certainly out of my budget at the time... hell, at ANY time. but it was the last bag of a color that was being discontinued and that i was particularly enamored of. you would've done the same, right??
5. Lastly, I know some people like to watch TV or even read while they knit - I can't do that - it is too distracting, I like to listen to music. If you could make up the best playlist to knit to ever - what would be on it?
holy cow that's a tough one. it would have to be... energetic but not like 'get up and dance' cause i'd never get any knitting done!! i'm just going to throw some bands out there, i really cant recall proper song titles. Squeeze, Elvis Costello, Nick Lowe, the Killers, Coheed and Cambria, Beck, Deftones, Nine Inch Nails, the Doors... it's gotta have a good beat my needles can follow :)

from nipper:
1. I'll ask you the question I always get and never have an answer for... What's your next haircolor?
if it were a perfect world, it would be a vibrant pink, with overlaying orange streaks along my part. (hm... seems like something you'd appreciate... heh.) in the real world, though, i've learned not to PLAN with my hair. i want a nice solid tone? i get accidental-streaks. i want big chunky pieces of color? i get subtle highlights... so i'm gonna throw some bleach on my hair for a while... toss on some pink and purple on random spots... and see what happens!
2. What the deal with Dr. Pepper? Are you planning on picking up Defective Yeti's new title for such drinks?
oddly enough i'd never even HEARD of tycola (that was it, right?) before!! i'll probably stick to the good old 'official title' though... i'm a purist at heart... mr pibb is ok, but i'll keep on requesting my first choice, Dr. Pepper!
3. In February you made a post about how you wanted to be a "cool and interesting blogger." How's that coming? Thanks for listing me there, btw, I was shocked.
it's going pretty badly! i... havent been able to post pics yet, my posting is sporatic at best, and the most interesting thing in my life lately was getting dumped! one thing i've done better, though, i've greatly improved on my goal to comment more often on other blogger's pages. you got your listing there because, well... i genuinely find your blog interesting!
4. How's the finger? And how did you knit with a broken finger? I find it hard enough to knit when my fingernails are too long.
the finger still looks like crap! but i suppose that's a result of the nasty-ness still growing out. it's amazing shades of brown and purple... heh. on knitting with a broken finger... i only broke the tip, so i suppose it would've been worse if the break was farther down. i managed to create some sort of technique where i knit with my left middle finger hanging out in the air, and used my ring finger to push stitches forward to the point. that took... plenty of practice! and, if you recall, i could ONLY do K stitches with that technique.
5. What have you decided to do with the red wool you were going to use for Asshat's band's Team Zissou hats?
as of yet, still nothing. someone made an offer to take it off of my hands... but my email ATE the offer soon after, so i have no way of contacting said person again. i was thinking of knitting some really huge, gay doily and GLUING IT with gorilla glue to the hood of his truck... or maybe i'll just keep knitting the zissou hats, i've had a couple of offers from other friends who would be interested in purchasing them. why, do you have any better ideas? :) (btw, i absolutely love the use of 'asshat' in the context of... hats! clever, clever.)