Gmail problem solved

despite google's blithe assurances that i would never need to delete messages from my gmail account, i have in fact, had to do just that. i get a lot of mail. a lot of mail with attachments. for months i've been hovering at just a few bytes away from having an entirely full gmail account. today my problem was solved. w00t!

Zwinky!

Scrapblog is amazing!

My friend Darren told me I should check out Scrapblog the other night. I did, and let me tell you -- this is some cool technology!

In about 30 minutes, I made a page that looks it is right out of a scrapbook. A good scrapbook, mind you! I uploaded photos, chose a background, stickers, text, shapes, all without reading a single Help file. People who aren't as heavy into graphic applications as I am might need a little assistance, but it's a fairly intuitive application. It wasn't troublefree, however. I had some trouble signing up for an account, and there are some glitches around the profile editing area. Nonetheless, this takes things to a whole different level if you have photos you want to share in more than a photo gallery way.

It's not easy being green

I Have a Theme Song?

I've never thought of myself as an AC/DC kind of girl, but apparently I was oh, so wrong.

Your Theme Song is Back in Black by AC/DC

"Back in black, I hit the sack, I've been too long, I'm glad to be back" Things sometimes get really crazy for you, and sometimes you have to get away from all the chaos. But each time you stage your comeback, it's even better than the last!

Mystery Present

Last week a box arrived from Pick Up Sticks, addressed to me. Other boxes have arrived in the past few days. Some I'm supposed to open and hide from certain people, some I'm not. I'm erring on the side of not opening anything, even if it is addressed to me -- it's no fun to know everything under the tree on Christmas morning and believe me, I speak from experience there.

I did as Travis to open it, however, as I pretty much knew it wasn't for me. Pick Up Sticks is a (new?) Canadian online yarn store, and he hasn't been doing any knitting. No gift card or note inside.

So it's a mystery present. I'm looking forward to seeing what it is on Christmas Day, but I do wonder who it's from. If you sent me a gift from Pick Up Sticks, speak up!

Making More Socks

Last night I finished the first of (hopefully) two socks in the Jaywalker pattern. It looks great, despite my crummy photo quality here.

Knitted with Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in colorway Vera on 2.5mm needles
Pattern is Jaywalker by Grumperina

I really enjoy knitting this pattern. The diagonals are really satisfying to generate and the resultign sock looks very tailored, despite the messiness of the striping caused by the yarn. I had a little difficulty with the color pooling in a way I didn't like, and I think I'd prefer even know that the foot of the sock was more striped than it turned out, but overall, i'm really happy with this sock!

Drowning in Books

It's my own fault, but I'm ddrowning in books. Travis and I have a vacation planned that starts May 18, and a couple of weeks ago I found these great lists of books that deserve to be rediscovered and books that deserve public attention. I promptly went over to the Vancouver Public Library Web site and started making requests.

The Vancouver Public Library system is extremely active. The branch libaries are pretty small, and if you want to read something, you generally have to request it. There is generally a wait of some kind for your book to show up, so imagine my surprise when the library informed me that 12 of the books I had on my request list were ready for me to pick up. A thirteenth arrived while I was checking out the first 12, and of course I still had a couple at home I wasn't done with yet. I was rich! Rich, I tell you! And stupid. What did I think was going to happen when I requested a bunch of books off lists that indicate they aren't exactly flying off the shelves? Of course they were all going to show up in a hurry!

And then I realized I had a deadline -- I can't really take these books on vacation with me. They come due right in the middle of our trip, and if someone else requests them, they'll be seriously overdue by the time I get them back. So for the past week, I've dropped my other hobbies (why do they all have to be so time-consuming?) and settled down to read. It's been a terrific week! I've conquered:

Almost French: Love and A New Life in Paris, by Sarah Turnbull

Florence of Arabia: A Novel, by Christopher Buckley

The Rector's Daughter, by F.M. Mayor

Shiksa Goddess: Or, How I Spent My Forties, by Wendy Wasserstein

Under the Bridge: The True Story of the Murder of Reena Virk, by Rebecca Godfrey