moviesign - deathly hallows (movie spoilers ahoy)

Well.

It's Saturday night, I'm flipping back and forth between the football Tigers playing Iowa State and the Blues/Devils game (Mizzou is leading, Blues are tied). The house smells like oregano and butter (the cloverleaf roll experiment/dry run for Thanksgiving was a success).  The pup is hunting squirrels in her sleep (her nose is twitching something fierce).

I'm recovering from 8 hours of sleep in the last 2 days.

Paula and I went to the midnight show of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One after dinner on Thursday, and I have to say, for the most part, I was impressed. More on that in a few.

The crowd at the Regal was fairly young and loud - I was surprised that there were so many older teens there, as it was a November Thursday, with school in session. Lots of costumes.  I saw a gal dressed in gold with wings on her head (she was a Snitch), many many Gryffindors, witches, wizards, and a guy in a dress.  I'm not sure if he was dressed as Fleur-as-Harry, or if he lost a bet, but he was a SCARY woman. LOL! Whoever dressed him had him in red (!!) heels, and after the third or fourth time he came and went (he was in the row behind us), the shoes were off. I think Paula was traumatized.

We actually got to sit for about 2 hours in the theatre before the movie, and they didn't start the 'in-betweens' until 11:30.  At first we were all happy to have something to look at, except they ran the same 'quizzes' about 10 times.  We were shouting out the answers to the questions as the pages were displayed.  Yeah, we were a little impatient. THEN previews.  TRON was first, everyone thought that was cool...but every preview afterwards was greeted with grumbles, and by the time we got to the Yogi Bear preview, there were chants of "Harry, Harry, Harry" rumbling through the theatre. Again, impatient!

I won't go into details about the movie - I'm sure that there are enough blow-by-blow reviews out there to satisfy everyone.  I will give my highlights, tho ;D LOTS of skipping around here.

• I missed Dudley saying thank you to Harry.
• "I was afraid you'd lost your way..." made me go 'ooooh...nice double meaning!'
• Where the hell did Harry get the mirror??
• The cupboard under the stairs made me tear up.
• Hermione with Harry's eyebrows.  *diez*
• Thought Harry was going to keel over ... Oh, Ginny! lol
• Could Ron be any more smitten?
• YOU HAVE ONE HOUR! (to fix my office)
• Churchyard. *weeps*
• Snake. *jumps* Good god, Bathilda was perfectly creepy.
• Harry Potter, newest member of the polar bear club
• Harry and Hermione look a little...blue....and....nekkid....
• THEY LEFT OUT MY FAVORITE LINES.  WAH!!!
• Ron is such a suck-up lol
• The DH story art was cool
• *sob*

The chase from the Snatchers made me almost queasy, since the camera was all over the freaking place.  It was really hard to follow what we were supposed to follow.  I'd imagine it was one heck of a job to edit. Hey, Academy! Award for Editing needs a nomination...I nominate DH1!!

I should also say that many of my notes were used for the PFW podcast review and were written down the SECOND time I saw the movie on Friday.  Yes, I saw it twice in 14 hours. Yes, I did that for HBP too. yes, I'm a fan!  lol The Snatcher scene wasn't as bad the second time, as I sat further back in the theatre and center instead of closer and to the right. I can't imagine trying to watch that from the front rows. Ugh.

Speaking of the podcast, I have no idea when the review will be up, but when it is you can download it via iTunes (search PotterFicWeekly in Podcasts) or off the PFW site, which I think is linked on the right.

My favorite section of dialogue from THE ENTIRE BOOK was left out. It was the part after Ron has destroyed the Horcrux in the locket (yes, the audience cheered at both showings) and before they go back to Hermione. To quote JKR:

"After you left," he said in a low voice, grateful for the fact that Ron's face was hidden, "she cried for a week. Probably longer, only she didn't want me to see. There were loads of nights when we never even spoke to each other. With you gone..."

He could not finish; it was now that Ron was here again that Harry fully realized how much his absence had cost them.

"She's like my sister," he went on. "I love her like a sister and I reckon that she feels the same way about me. It's always been like that. I thought you knew."

Ron did not respond, but turned his face away from Harry and wiped his nose noisily on his sleeve. Harry got to his feet again and walked to where Ron's enormous rucksack lay yards away, discarded as Ron had run toward the pool to save Harry from drowning. He hoisted it onto his own back and walked back to Ron, who clambered to his feet as Harry approached, eyes bloodshot but otherwise composed.

"I'm sorry," he said in a thick voice. "I'm sorry I left. I know I was a -- a --"

He looked around at the darkness, as if hoping a bad enough word would swoop down upon him and claim him.

"You've sort of made up for it tonight," said Harry. "Getting the sword. Finishing off the Horcrux. Saving my life."

I listen to the audiobooks and Jim Dale reading the US version of this scene is one of my all-time favorite parts.  I was put out that it wasn't included when so much of other dialogue was lifted directly from the book. It's so heartfelt from Harry. :(

If you have read the books, or have seen all of the movies (and yes, this one is not a stand-alone; you need to see ALL of them), go see this one.  I may go see it in the HD or IMAX (is there a difference?) the first weekend of December. No 3D this time - not that I mind, since I don't like 3D anyway.

I've been working on Christmas presents - I've made two Rodekool brioche lace scarves and am about 2/3 into a third one.  I *may* make one more before I work on fingerless mitts.  I didn't get the Ravenclaw shrug finished before the movie due to the fact that I should have stopped what I was working on a week before I did.  Meh.  It needs to have the sleeves seamed and the body ribbing knitted, and it's done.  Almost 6 feet of stockinette!  I did one entire half from Saturday to Wednesday and grafted the two sleeves together. 110 stitches of mid-back grafting. Ugh... I do like the Patons wool.  Nice stitch definition, pretty drape, and good even fabric.

Mizzou is leading 14-0 with 3 minutes left in the game, and the Blues are tied up 2-2 at the start of the third period, and I think I'm out of gas. I may also be out of parentheses.

Have a nice Thanksgiving, US peoples!

Cheers!

a little catchup

Hi all!

Yeah, I know, long time to write.  I figured I was just doing my regular boring stuff, but there are little spots here and there I'll pass on.

The biggest one was that D and NE!Sue came to visit last weekend, and we shopped and ate and walked and drank ;)  We went to IHOP (of course) Thursday night. Then Loopy Ewe, Hodak's (I love their fried chicken), Knitorious, 2 malls in search of a handbag, and Mike Duffy's in Kirkwood.  And that was just Friday!

Saturday was Oktoberfest in Hermann. We went to the Brush and Palette Club show - it's very sad, but it seems to be getting smaller every year.  I'm guessing it's a recession thing, but there were a lot fewer vendors than I ever remember seeing.  We drove up to Stone Hill, and had the Plate - bratwurst (hold the sauerkraut on mine), German potato salad, and chunky applesauce - and bought some wine.

I got the latest line of Stone Hill's semi-sweet called "Jacquesse" - yes, it's pronounced "jackass" and has a donkey on the bottle! LOL!!  The white is on the sweet side of semi, the red is a nicely bodied fruity semi, and the 'berry' (rosé) tastes like weird combination of kiwi-strawberry and raspberry.  It's the sweetest of the three, I think.  I'll let you know after I drink more of it *g*

We wrapped up Hermann at the FestHalle which is part of the Dierbergs family-owned Hermannhof Winery.  We started going to the Festhalle a few years ago, and it's great for music, beer, wine, and music! Did I mention the music? There was a 40th birthday party going on right in the middle of the Halle - everyone was having a great time, and I think it's really nice to be able to bring in your own food (and in this case, decorations) to celebrate with a group.  We had wonderful weather all weekend, and great company.  :)  It's almost an annual event for us to get together!

More mundane stuff - my father's been helping me fix things around the condo and we're working thru the list.  This is what happens when you live in a 45 year old place - things break!  I now have 2 working sinks again!  w00t!  Next up: the dripdripdripdripping kitchen faucet. Then the outside light, the baseboard heaters, the bathtub faucet....and the deforestation of my courtyard. heh heh heh

I've been working on a vocal project to record my voice for use as a synthesized voice.  The project is called ModelTalker and it is a speech synthesis system for 'banking' your voice.  It was primarily developed for people who are losing the ability to speak due to ALS or other illnesses, but I'm on the other end of the spectrum - I'm a "beta" for the program, and am offering my voice to be synthesized for others to use.  Kind of like donating my voice so that someone who has already lost theirs can speak.  My benefit is that I will receive a SAPI5 version of me for my own use.  It's been interesting, and frustrating at times, as it's still in beta, but I'm about 2/3 of the way through the 1600 phrases needed for recording.  My problems have been more allergy and sinus related than anything - I have to record in almost complete silence, and have a clear nose!!  I despise allergy season.

If you know someone who has a great voice and is willing to spend some time to help others, direct them to that linked site, please.  The software is available up to and including Windows 7 64-bit.

33 days to Deathly Hallows #1.  I.  Can't. Wait.  *bounce bounce*  Warner Bros. announced last weekend that the movie will NOT be ready for a 3D IMAX release which, in my opinion, is just fine.  I can't see in 3D anyway, and from what I've heard, the conversion method makes things shaky and blurry.  I'd rather have it in HD, please!  Besides, Dan Radcliffe doesn't like 3D either, so there! The trailer in the post below has been changed very slightly to reflect the 2D only release.  I would LOVE the one-sheets. I may have to go hunt for I just found two at AllPosters - Trio in Trees and Hogwarts in Flames - and Leaky has the close-ups of the trio (plus Dobby) and the villains.  I want the Harry one, and the Greyback one freaks me the hell out.

I have a metric ton of yarn to review. I've gotten to the point that I don't know where to start, but man, I need to organize.  The latest is (another) BSJ, and I found a very pretty short scarf that I want to make for a few people - it's called "Rodekool" and is available as a Knitty pattern. Now I'm interested in the Brioche stitch! help....me.....

Anyway, not much else going on. The Lily-pup is as crazy as ever, and now weighs in at 15.2 pounds.  YAY! The Cards didn't make the playoffs, and the $%*&^$ Reds did, but were swept by Philly.  I'd've liked to have seen the Rays go to the WS, but they're out too.  I'm not going to say who I'm rooting for else I jinx them, but let's just say they don't rhyme with Spanky's or My Aunts. Ahem.

More later.  Gotta organize the Yarn!Stash!Monster first.

Cheers!!

phoebe is phamous

Hi all!

Here's a site I've been visiting for a few weeks: Phoebe, an Allens Hummingbird Nest and here's a TV interview!

(EDIT:  Okay, there WAS an interview, but it's been removed. It was Joe and his wife talking about the PhoebeCam and the great images we'd been seeing over the last few months.)

Way cool.

The Amazon links appear to be working okay in the Books Read list (check it out on the right sidebar) and I've applied for Audible affiliation, so we'll see where it goes from them.

Nothing much new - I got a PM from a Twitter friend this morning that she was expecting!  Wow!  Congrats!! I don't know if I can say anything, so I won't mention who it was by name on here, but congrats anyway! w00t!

Cheers!  :)

finally! yarn, baseball, and the countdown

I'm watching the baseball game - I think the guys have come back from where ever they were, as it's 11-1 mid 7th, we're up on Detroit! w00t!

We have 28 day, 2 hours, and 35 minutes to HBP. 4 weeks. Double w00t!!

I have yarn! *cue gasps* Yes, I actually took pictures of them, too.

The haul over the last 6 weeks:

• 1 100g ball Yarn Bee "Walk Away Sock Yarn" (70% superwash wool, 23% polyamide, 7% PBT) in colorway Pettitoes (black, charcoal, steel grey, light grey)
• 1 100g hank FireLizard Studios "Joy" (80% superwash merino, 20% nylon) in colorway Stargazing (deep gold, navy, indigo, amethyst, rust) #2
• 1 100g hank FireLizard Studios "Joy" (80% superwash merino, 20% nylon) in colorway Love (deep gold, rust, burgundy, amethyst, brick red) #2
• 2 50g balls Premier Yarns "Serenity Sock Weight" (50% superwash merino, 25% bamboo, 25% nylon) in colorway Aquamarine (indigo blue, sky blue, fern green, olive, leaf green, white)
• 1 4oz ball Baby Bee "Sweet Delight Pomp" (54% acrylic, 36% polyamide, 10% rayon) in colorway Crayons (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, teal, amethyst)
• 1 4oz hank Dragonfly Fibers "Sea Sock" (70% superwash merino, 30% sea cell) in colorway Flaming Lips (lipstick red, hot pink, medium red)
• 1 100g hank Dyeabolical "Sporty! Sport Weight" (100% superwash merino) in colorway Firefly (black, bright red, orange, sunshine yellow)

Phew.

Another chapter of After the End is up on the RSS feed, for those of you who are listening to it. Make sure you 'restore all items', as one part of Chapter 27 was backdated.

That's all I'm gonna post about right now - been feeling rather ill all day, and need to do some stuff over on PFW. Oh! I've been installed as Head of Ravenclaw House over on the PFW forum! I'm a tad surprised and very flattered by the appointment. :)

Cheers!

a mini-catchup

Okay, so this really isn't a blog post...I'm a bit behind on posting, and have been (seemingly) all over the place in the last month. Sorry about that.

Hallows & Horcruxes II/Gathering of Awesome was ...well, awesome! Bought CDs, jumped around like I was 10, sang at the top of my lungs with a roomful of people doing the same thing, hung out with PFW peoples, awesome. Really, I have pictures, and links, and all sorts of other stuff to share about the trip. I've also managed to get at least one Ministry of Magic song totally trapped in my head. Sigh.

I also have a bunch of yarn to photograph, add to stash on Rav, and review here from a bunch of places including Yarn Barn of Lawrence.

A few more promos have been released for HBP, and I managed to see the trailer (#3, I think) for the new Star Trek. Oh Em Gee.

Speaking of rendering me speechless (*g*), I have just in the past hour or so finished Backward With Purpose by the evil Ella, aka deadwoodpecker. Oh my freaking Merlin. If you have a spare...oh, I don't know, few days, go read the fic. It's linked in the Books Read 2009 sidebar. PFW reviewed this fic, and it's sequel The Book of Albus, on upcoming episodes. I haven't started BoA yet, but plan to do so ASAP. This is the same author who wrote Yellow Submarine (which I have apparently forgotten to add to the Books Read list *fixes that*) and has at least three or four other irons in the fire. She's on LJ and on ff.net. Go read her stuff. I'm not kidding.

I got to record a PFW! Go me! I'm a guest host on the second Season 3 PFW ep. We reviewed the last half of Harry Potter and the Power of Truth by CreativeQuill. Yes, it's linked on the sidebar. ;) No word yet as to when the release date is....probably May or so. You can hear me on Peoncast starting with the season opener, too! We've been having a great time with the one-shots and short chaptered fics.

Oh! and you can also hear me narrating a story for Spellcast. I think the podcast with the reading will be released in the next week or so.

I'll be driving (on Saturday) into the winter storm that is apparently going to be zooming through Kansas City this weekend...D and NE!Sue are having a mini-meetup, so I'm going for an overnight. It looks like I'm not going to get snowed on until at least Boonesville, and it shouldn't be too bad. I hope.

Last but certainly not least, please keep my OR!Sue (aka Sueatducksfoot) from PFW in your thoughts...her grandfather passed away on Friday, and she's in California this weekend for the funeral. It's been a difficult week for them.

Phew. This wasn't going to be this long.

Cheers!

PS: BASEBALL IN 12 DAYS!!!!!!!! w00t!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the post without a title

I'm tired, I'm cranky, and I'm not taking it any more!

Okay, so, I'm just tired. And I have yarn.

• 1 100g hank Dome Hill Yarns "Supersock" (80% superwash, 20% nylon) in colorway Blueberry (pale to medium sky blue). This is a local hand-dyed yarn out of Warrensburg, Missouri! It's a lovely, smooshy yarn. Check out her shop!
• 1 4oz hank Dream in Color "Smooshy" (100% superfine merino superwash) in colorway In Vino Veritas (dark red, wine, deep purples). "In wine [there is the] truth." Yum.
• 1 100g hank Mountain Colors Yarns "Bearfoot" (60% superwash, 25% mohair, 15% nylon) in colorway Mystic Lake (indigo, blue, wine, purple, orange-gold, forest green, pine) #2.
• 2 50g hanks Mirasol Yarn Collection "Hacho" (100% hand dyed wool) in colorway #308 (dark blue, wine, burgundy, forest green, olive, lime, gold, yellow, orange). It's very colorful!!

I didn't get to see Chi on Monday (you are supposed to cook the meatballs all the way through, roommate-of-Teh-Chi), so instead I went to True Blue Fiber Friends in Columbia where I met Bex (*waves!*) and bought the above yarns. Plu was very very good in the car, even with the high winds pushing me all over the road and the windshield wipers going. The yarn shop is easy to get to, and she has local-dyed yarns and artwork for sale there, too.

Not much else going on - Charter is in the news this week (no, they aren't closing, I promise), and my car needs to go BACK to the shop again for electrical something. I managed to blow out 4 fuses in 2 days, and still have no dashboard or running lights. The GPS and the radio are fine! Meh.

Pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training tomorrow *happydances!!!!* and filming for Deathly Hallows starts...next week, I think! Only 153 days to go for HBP. Sigh.

I'm listening to The Temptation of the Night Jasmine by Lauren Willig. Audible *finally* got Crimson Rose - only took a year. I already bought the CDs, though, darnit. It's pretty good, but I think the Eloise/Colin storyline is going to kill me for its length. It's like reading a romance novel that has 3 chapters published every year!

Almost almost almost finished with the Ron socks. I'm ribbing. Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, I know it's early, but I'm pooped.

Cheers!

yet another vid

It seems all I do these days is post vids...not much else going on, I'm NOT buying yarn, and Christmas is stressing everyone out.

I did do a few one-shot recordings that are now up on my main site - check out the SpellCast readings and the Deathday Auction one-shot.

Raesive sent me this (she's a Mac person):



They reminded me of Cylons, as well....

Cheers!

okay, so maybe i am a fangrrl

*rolls eyes at self*

I'm hoping that the E! interview will embed properly...I still have not watched Dan on Inside the Actors Studio, but I hope to on Tuesday night.



Isn't he cute? hehehe! I'm such a perv. Sigh. AND! I am right!!! I've said that the reason that WB moved HBP to next year was because they didn't have a blockbuster for next summer due to the writers' strike, and now Dan says he thinks that too! Vindication!! *pokes WB for good measure*

Also on the video front, someone (Robert from Spellcast, I think) sent me a link for a "Disney Sarah Palin Parody" which was quite amusing.

I know, I still haven't reviewed my yarn. Time now!

• 1 4oz skein Red Heart "Strata" (100% acrylic) in colorway Crayon (white, red, yellow, green, blue/white dot)
• 1 2oz skein Yarn Bee "I Love This Yarn Sport Weight" (100% acrylic) in colorway Green Camo Multi (chocolate brown, forest green, olive, black, tan, white)
• 1 3.5 oz ball Yarn Bee "Elvish" (100% polyester) in colorway Clove (rust, orange, red) Phoenix colors.
• 2 50g balls Red Heart "Heart & Sole with Aloe" (70% superwash wool, 30% nylon) in colorway Toasted Almond (medium brown, dark brown, charcoal, black, cream, tan, grey, navy)
• 2 50g balls Patons "Kroy Socks Stripes" (75% machine washable wool, 25% nylon) in colorway Burnished Sierra Stripes (orange, brown, grey, rust, black, gold)
• 1 5oz Red Heart "Super Saver Fleck" (96% acrylic, 4% other fibers) in colorway Aran Fleck (cream with brown, black, rust, and dark green donagal fleck). I'm using this one to teach someone how to knit - I'm making a scarf, and my SIL has been eyeballing it. Christmas present!

I haven't taken shots of these yet - I may not at all, since most of them are online. I'll think about it.

Lots of recording to do - I was auctioned off for the Deathday party on PFW, and Bob, the "Squirrel King" won me. I'll be reading a one-shot by Viridian. We're also working on the Christmas ep of PFW, and I've got at least three things in the works for that. I'm in the middle of recording Chapter 14 of Harry Potter and the Battle of Wills (we're reviewing Chapter 16 right now! eep) and I still need to edit Chapter 26 of After the End. I'm working on them, I promise! I've been getting distracted by a couple of very good fanfics - I'm following several WIPs, and one has reached the 100K stage, so it made it on the "Books Read" list. It's called Easier To Be, and it's by hgfan1111. It should be finished shortly. Mature themes, so it's not for the under-17 group.

We had a good day yesterday - Ash and I went to Nephew #2's hockey game (they lost), then to Happy Joe's Pizza (yum!), LadyBug Beads, B&N, and then Michael's. Ash got most of her Christmas shopping wrapped up, and I get to wrap them. LOL!

Okay, that's enough for now.

Cheers!

yarn and quiche and hp

It's been a wicked crazy 2 weeks. First, the yarn.

• 1 100g hank Fire Lizard Studios "Lizard Sock" (75% superwash wool, 25% nylon) in colorway Autumn Woods (dark leaf to forest green, dark gold to burgundy, plum) and #2
• 1 100g hank Fire Lizard Studios "Lizard Sock" (75% superwash wool, 25% nylon) in colorway Julia (bronze-gold, burgundy-berry)
• 1 4oz hank St. Paul's Catholic School by Cherry Tree Hill "Supersock DK Select" (100% superwash merino) in colorway Garfield (black, yellow, cream, orange)
• 2 50g balls Patons "Kroy Socks Jacquards" (75% washable wool, 25% nylon) in colorway Denim Jacquard (sky blue, dark blue, grey, white, charcoal/white check)

Most of those were from DBNY, and sold out very very quickly. The Julia color of the Fire Lizard made me laugh - it's Gryffindor colors. Perfect for PFW Julia!

Today is Day #1 of 5 days off in a row, and the only thing I've done is wash the dishes. Lazy! I'm recovering from last week. I think I took more calls on Friday than I have for the week prior. From what I understand, the DMCA tickets are just going to get worse. Don't share copyrighted files, peeps!

I've started sorting the laundry, so where is the pooch lying? On top of the clothes on the floor of course. *rolls eyes*

I'm making the sausage & salsa quiche into minis for an appetizer on Thanksgiving. I made them as a test case last week, froze them, and then defrosted them in the frig. They were great! I couldn't find the mini shells in the store, so I made the crust myself. First time for me making crust, first time for making anything in the mini pans, total experiment. Mike @ work liked the crust (flour, butter, cream cheese) - he said it reminded him of potpie crusts. I'm so glad it worked!! I can't wait to see what the family thinks.

PotterCast had a review of the new trailer (which is totally totally made of awesome) and posted it on their site. It's a little hard to hear in places, but it was way cool. Too bad the movie couldn't have been out this weekend (*pokesWB really hard*) but I supposed I'll live. The Deathday part on PFW was a lot of fun!! I was auctioned off to Bob, The Squirrel King for an audiobook commission!

The bad news of the week was L-of-the-scarf in Colorado got laid off on Friday. 20 years at the same place, and she's out. I always figured her boss for a crackhead, and this proved it.

Well, on that sad note, I'm off. Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving weekend!!

wollmeise, fanfic, and equus

Whoops, been a few days here. Look! it's not 1 AM!

Let's see. I got my Wollmeise (!!), worked a lot, slept a little, and edited audio. Yeah, that about sum up my week!

Let's start with the goodies:

• 1 150g hank of Wollmeise "Sock" (100% superwash wool) in colorway Wilder Mohn (poppy red and pinks). The photo does not do it justice - the red is a deep, rich, almost lipstick red (think Elmo!) and I can't wait to knit it. Figuring out the pattern will be the tricky part!

That, dear readers, was the only yarn I've purchased lately. I've been good! (and now that I've said that, I'll probably buy more tomorrow.)

I've been working on the the BSJ for Jen - on the buttonhole band now. She's due in February, so I have lots and lots of time. The Giggles Ombre is BRIGHT! Woof. Lots of orange and green. I think I might put duckie buttons on it. Hmmm.

Gave Tam the Shadows shrug I finished about 2 years ago - finally got around to weaving in all the ends and washing it. The weather was cool for the first time in a long time yesterday, and so it was appropriate!

I've been reading fanfic (surprise!) and ran across one called the After the Flaw Sequence. It's by an guy named Kanedax, and the main list is on his LiveJournal here. I like it - it was on the 61 fic nomination list (!!) for PFW, and I hadn't read it, so I checked it out. It's a fill in for Deathly Hallows between the end of Chapter 36 and the Epilogue. Read it!

Speaking of fic noms - I know that there are like, tons of people who want to review the next Dangerverse book, but please. There are a lot of other stories out there that aren't Dangerverse, and we've already DONE the first story. Can we move on? *sigh*

I also discovered (thank you, Wayne and NotACat) that Yellow Submarine was also on ff.net and SIYE as Here Comes The Sun, and has more parts posted in those two locations than on LJ. Another good one, but contains implied sexual violence.

Equus opened last night on Broadway - this was the preview, official opening is on the 25th - and Leaky had a review posted in the comments of the announcement this morning. I thought it was interesting to read that the on-stage seating is actually 11 FEET above the stage, so as to get out of the actors' line of sight. Very cool. I'm still glad I got orchestra seating, though. One of the guys here at work still wants me to take a vid cam. *rolls eyes* As if.

I finally made myself sit down and edit more of AtE - the next 2.3 chapters are posted. I'm going to attempt to edit Ch 25 pt 2 today, but I'm not sure how far I'll get. It's one of those monster parts (54+ minutes raw) and so that should take a couple of hours. Posted length for AtE is 24:43:09!! I passed the 24 hour mark! W00t!

I need to record Ch 10 of Battle of Wills, too. Chapters 1-8 of that are here, and I'm waiting for Scott to finish editing Ch 9, since we're already reviewing it.

Nothing else going on - D and I have our plane tickets, and I'm now starting to figure out things to pack. We're not checking any bags, but I have liquid meds that I need to take with me, so I'll have to figure out how to re-package and label them. I can't take anything more than 3 fluid oz in carry-on luggage, and the bottle is a 16 oz. Maybe I'll call Walgreens and see what they have to say - it's a prescription, after all.

Back to work...Cheers!

ramblings, bsj, gold, and fangrrling

Just some rambling.

I'm doing another BSJ for an unofficial entry into the Ravelympics! I did finish the knitting on the first one - it's a little bigger than I thought it was going to be, so the Ravelympic one is on smaller needles. Some pics, hosted on Flickr:

(the amoeba)

(front)

(back)

Teh Drunken Sue likes the colorway - I forgot to get buttons yesterday, so that's on the list for tomorrow's errands.

I've been reading a few works-in-progress that are noteworthy - one is twisting my brain into ribbons, and the other is a fairly realistic post-war fanfic:

• Phantom Limb by rbackwards2 is at 13 chapters and just over 71K words. It's a very interesting story, but you really have to read it - and I mean every word - without distraction. You will not stay in the story if you are interrupted. Trust me.
• The second one is Shut and Be A Bud Again by MinistryMalcontent and is at only 6 chapters, but nearly 90K words. The author's synopsis is "Voldemort is gone, but the aftereffects of the War linger. Harry, Ginny, Ron and Hermione all must deal with the toll, and confront the consequences of their actions. Only one thing is certain: things will never be the way they were before." It's really good.

Alli and I are sort of watching the Olympics together - it is really hard to talk to someone about what I'm seeing when she sees it 3 hours later. Gaaah! The best thing IMHO so far? This. The US Mens Swimming Team won GOLD in the 4x100 free relay on Monday - new world record (broke the old one by 4 seconds!!) and beat France for the medal by .08 seconds. It was amazing. The French team was trash-talking - and they got pwned. Wow. (Edit: Here's the link for the NBC site - they have the relay video up!

The only big thing I did this week was that I went on my tech ridealong - Tim was great, it was 98F, we only went on three calls. First one was a failed telephone install (fixed, talked to the subscriber about home networking, got all their computers online), second one was a flapping modem (residential and business installers apparently messed each other up a bit), and the third was a bad underground drop. It was a very interesting day, I talked to the subscribers about their services and how to keep themselves online. I was wiped by the time we got back, but it was a lot of fun.

Scott, Dan and I are still working on the audio of Battle of Wills. The guys have been busy, so I have had several parts in a row. Lots to go! We're finished with 7 of the 51 parts. 3:46:34 done so far, and that's only 7 parts. Woof. No progress on AtE - I've been slacking off a bit. Time to get back into it!

PK and Ash are back from WI - Ash starts high school tomorrow (ack!). I hadn't seen PK for about 2 weeks so me and the pooch went over and visited. She and I caught up - she still hasn't seen the trailer yet - and while we were talking about the upcoming trip to NY (mainly when she was teasing me about fangrrling), I realized something.

I like Dan Radcliffe, but I don't fangrrl him. I fangrrl Harry.

PK said the same thing about Sarah Michelle Geller and Buffy. I think that's why I am uncomfortable visiting Dan's site, but don't have any qualms at all reading the fanfic sites and the HP sites that WB and Scholastic have up. That actually makes me feel better - I don't feel so much like a perv. LOL!

Well, I think that's all for me. It's really the middle of the night now, and I need sleep!

Cheers!

teaser thoughts and other mutterings

No yarn! Gee, I must be slipping.

Yet another short, yet steamy fic: Still Life of Summer from the catchmysnitch comm on LJ. Yum.

The post-trailer bliss is still very much in evident - you can load the main page at Leaky now, but many of the teaser-related pages and Melissa's blog are still not loading, or take a very long time. I have yet to read the first half of her report about the TLC set visit in January.

Some of my thoughts on the teaser:

• Not a lot of Harry. We see gazing-at-memory-vials!Harry, bobbing-for-memories!Harry, running!Harry, and saving-Ron!Harry. That's it.
• As PS on PFW put it, "Tom: The Movie"! Hero's going to be a wonderful young Tom Riddle. OMG, is he creepy.
• I want to know why Harry isn't lurking in the background of the memory shots like he did in Goblet.
• The walls in the orphanage reminded me of the Department of Mysteries. Black black brick.
• The field scene. Harry running, Ginny apparently standing in shallow water and being disarmed - while wearing a dressing gown (?!) - and the GROWL! OMG. Fenrir Greyback. Has to be the attack on the Burrow. Why was she out there?? As someone on LJ said: if that was Harry running to her rescue, my lil shippy heart's gonna just 'splode.
• It's Gandalf!Dumbledore whipping up a firestorm! I'm surprised we see Dumbly putting the ring on, though. That was in DH, not HBP.
• "I can speak to snakes, too...they find me...whisper things..." *shivers*
• Loved the two lines of dialogue at the end: (Harry) "Did you know, sir...then?" (Dumbledore) "Did I know that I had just met the most dangerous dark wizard of all time? [beat] No."

Sigh.

One of my motorcycle people (Mike! :( ) was in an accident a few days ago - apparently he called PK when he got out of the hospital (!!) to tell her. Some jerk cut him off and then slammed on the brakes. Thankfully, he's not too badly injured and there were eyewitnesses, so his insurance should cover it. He was fairly drugged up when he talked to PK, since he broke the orbital bone around his left eye - he was wearing a halfie - and either his left wrist or forearm or both - she wasn't quite sure. Don't know how badly damaged his ride is, but that bike is a cruiser - not one of those you see flying down the highway at 100 mph - so I hope it's not too bad. He told her that he looks like an alien, since his face is all swollen. *hugs him*

I'm still working on the Challot cover - I'm knitting the middle part as a solid blank and will use Swiss darning on the blessing after I re-graph it.

I'll be staying home this weekend...it's gonna be 98F on Sunday (ugh) and PK's still in Wisconsin, soooo I think there will be more recording on Battle of Wills. The author joined the forum! Yay!! Or I may go see The Mummy in the afternoon to stay cool. Besides, I want to see the teaser on the BIG screen! W00t!

Alli's going to read this um...later today, but I want to say 'Good Luck!' again. Heee.

I just saw an ad for Feasting on Waves on the Food Network - that was what Alton had just wrapped up before he went on the Feasting on Asphalt: The River Run book tour in April, and right before I got to see him. He was all tanned! Something to look forward to watching in September.

Why do I seem to always be posting at 1AM? *scratches head*

Cheers!

taking a deep breath

Just a short post today...a little HP news and some yarn to talk about.

From Hobby Lobby (I was looking for the Sock-Ease in Red Hots but they didn't have it....grr):

• 2 50g balls Patons "Stretch Sock" (41% cotton, 39% wool, 13% nylon, 7% elastic) in colorway Olive (green, dark green, rust, burgundy, orange, yellow gold)
• 2 50g balls Patons "Kroy Sock" (75% washable wool, 25% nylon) in colorway Mulberry Stripes (pale pink, hot pink, chocolate brown, country blue, black/white dot). This is a self-striping yarn, and is brighter in person that it is in the picture. It sorta reminded me of a Ginny color. Something she would wear. Dunno.
• 1 5oz ball Yarn Bee "Boucle Traditions" (90% acrylic, 10% polyester) in colorway Naturals (black, grey, brown, tan, white) for a scarf. I can't seem to find a pic for this, so I'll be linking one in a later post.

I have frogged the entire middle section of the Challah cloth. I ran the braid out to the end of the ball I was knitting it off of, and have re-started the center part. I think this time I'm going to stitch the blessing on it with duplicate stitch.

How weird is it that I'm watching Good Eats - Alton is making a standing lamb roast using a bundt pan to cook the roast - and for some reason all I can think of is the fact that that pan won't be kosher now...?

I found a few HP fics that I thought should be recommended, even though they're nowhere near the 50K mark that I have in the "Books Read 2008" sidebar. The first one is called Solving the Clues, and is very clever. The second one is probably the first post-DH fic written (it was posted in the early evening of July 21, 2007) and is called Interlude. There's one particular paragraph that totally choked me up. Choked Harry up, too. See if you can find it.

I've decided that the next 'gotta start' project is going to be a Baby Surprise Jacket (thank you, Sue) made out of "Sweet Delight Baby" in the Ladybug colorway. Now I just need to unearth some US7s - I know there are some around here somewhere.

In HP news, please note that I am calm, cool, and collected.

*waits a beat*

*cue jumping up and down*

The HBP trailer is going to be released TODAY! Squee! According to several places (including the Teaser Trailer site and Leaky), AOL will be streaming the trailer on Tuesday, July 29.

Now I just have to remember to breathe.

The author of Harry Potter and The Battle of Wills (Jocelyn) has graciously given permission for Scott, Dan and I to record her fanfic and post it for download. If you're interested, you can download the work-in-progress (the fic is done, the recording is not) at my site, and come chat with the rest of us in the Reading Group on PFW!

Lisa, you've been gone forever. Comic-Con is over, there was much squeeing and (more) jumping up and down (not by me so much) and people are now recovering. I'll be happy when you're back online with us in chat! I've missed ya.

Okay. I think I need to go to bed....soonish.

EDIT: I forgot, I wanted to add this to the post from today:

The 'alt text' is "I'd like to see more damage assessments for hurricanes hitting New York and flooding Manhattan -- something like the 1938 Long Island Express, but aimed a bit more to the west. It's just a matter of time." *diez* I loved the TRON reference, too....

Cheers!

omg, no yarn this time

No, I haven't taken leave of my senses. I just didn't buy any yarn this weekend. I didn't say I wasn't gonna talk about knitting, though.

I am working on Julia's Challot cloth - I discovered a major problem in looking at finished projects in Ravelry: The blessing is misspelled. On the third line! Aaaaaaaargh. I think I'll just rip and re-do the entire middle section. Sigh. I'd finished the pointed lace edging, and I'm currently doing the braid. I think it looks cool - the braid is an alternating cable, and really looks like it's three segments braided together. Re-doing the middle section's gonna set me back a bit, though - I was hoping to have this finished by the end of the month, but I don't think that's going to happen.

I have about 10-15 more rows of Seeker's Sleeve #2 before binding off for the armpit. I've been seriously looking at how to make this pattern into a seamless raglan, but it's going to be a challenge with all those different stitch patterns. I really need to sit down and chart it, so I can see what I'm doing, but I need to find the activation key for my software. It's in a box in the office closet, I think. I hope! I don't want to have to purchase the software again.

Comfort Sock #2 is on hold with me working on the Challot cloth. It's my carry-around project at the moment, and since I haven't had time to do anything while I'm out and about (busy busy at work), I haven't touched it. It'll get there.

Jim doing fine, as far as I know.

Happy Birthday to Dan Radcliffe - 19 years old today. I am still amazed that it's been an entire year since Deathly Hallows hit the bookshelves, and a year today that I went and saw Order of the Phoenix in the theatre. I talked to Alli a little about it last night - I called her about 10:30 my time and blubbered with her on the phone about Remus and Tonks and Fred and Dobby and Hedwig. A whole year. Wow.

Work is continuing on the recording of Battle of Wills, but I haven't heard from the author yet. :(

I think that's all for me for right now - got another meeting to go to, and you know me - I'm boring!

Oh, one last thing - if you get a chance, go watch this video. It looks like a lot of fun!!

Cheers!

i was attacked, i swear...

Never go to a craft store and 'accidentally' walk past the clearance rack. I went to Hobby Lobby to see if they'd received any "Sock-Ease" (they had!) and walked out with 16 - SIXTEEN - balls of yarn. Most of it was a buck or so each, but still! Oh, and Hobby Lobby sellers? Two things. Firstly, if you're going to send a new sock yarn to a store, make sure you send enough of each color to MAKE A PAIR OF SOCKS. The new Red Heart "Heart and Sole" yarn is only 50g, and they sent one of about 6 different colors to the store. *rolls eyes* I mean, come on. Luckily, the LB yarn is 100g, which is enough for a pair of socks. Secondly, if you are going to carry sock yarn, you also need to carry the needles for it. The smallest circ or DPNs they carry? US4. Hellooooo....

I can see that I'm going to have to take pics of the Yarn Bee yarns - there are very few shots of it online (according to Google). I'll post the haul here, and when I get the pics taken I'll update the links.

• 1 100g ball Lion Brand yarn "Sock-Ease" (75% wool/25% nylon, finished with aloe vera) in colorway Toffee (brown, olive, orange, yellow)
• 1 4oz ball Baby Bee "Sweet Delight Baby" (60% acrylic/40% polymide) in colorway Giggles Ombre (yellow, pink, orange, green)
• 4 4oz balls Baby Bee "Sweet Delight Baby" (60% acrylic/40% polymide) in colorway Ladybug Ombre (light red, sky blue, very light pink, charcoal)
• 2 4oz balls Baby Bee "Sweet Delight Baby" (60% acrylic/40% polymide) in colorway Baby Camo (tan, light to forest green, brown)
• 1 3.5oz ball Yarn Bee "Featherwisp" (100% nylon) in colorway Tempting (blue, rust, olive green, yellow)
• 1 3.5oz ball Yarn Bee "Airy" (100% nylon) in colorway Royal (bright amethyst)
• 1 3.5oz ball Yarn Bee "Paradox" (49% acrylic, 40% nylon, 9% polyester, 2% spandex) in colorway Wild Night (black core with rainbow twist, hot pink eyelash)
• 5 3oz balls Yarn Bee "Intrigue" (57% polymide, 43% Lurex glitter) in 5 different colors: Bunny (blush pink), True Love (dark red), Rouge (lipstick red), Blushing (blush bronze), and Midnight (deep blue)
• 1 4oz hank Scarlet Fleece "Totally Tubular x2" (80% merino, 20% nylon) in colorway Painted Desert (rust to deep black-brown, dusty blue-grey to deep teal, dusty pinks) from Loopy.
• 1 100g hank of Spindle City Yarns "SCY" (75% superwash, 25% nylon) in colorway Copper Pot (verdigris green to olive, sky blue to deep blue, red rust to medium burgundy), also from Loopy. Yummy yarn.

My Loopy Ewe Order #3 present was a mini red sock kit! It's so cute. I may have to make that this weekend. I have another hank of yarn, but it's a surprise. *waves to Teh Sue*

Jim is doing fine as far as I know - he still doesn't want visitors, and Mom hasn't called me (I specifically told her to if she needed anything, like to be kidnapped or something), so I'm clueless on the recovery front.

I picked up and worked on Seeker a bit yesterday - I'm past the increases on sleeve #2, so I have about 4 inches of 'straight' knitting in pattern before the armpit and raglan decreases.

I'm catching up on my podcasts again - I got behind while listening to the Born In series - and sooo want to send Violet a hank of the fibraNATURA yarn that I found at Kirkwood Knittery in the Seattle Skies colorway. She's nutz about the PNW. Who else would buy ROCKS from there??

Latest rumor about the HBP trailer is that it might might might be attached to the newest Mummy movie. *sigh* At this point, I don't care. I just want to seeeee.

There's a new promo pic - this one is from EW, and looks like it's the Felix Felicis potion. :) The covers for the calendar and sticker books are out too (here, here and here). The same pose that was used for the Opal Yarn poster is on the cover of the calendar - and I STILL don't think it looks like Dan. It just doesn't. *shrug* I can't put my finger on it. The first link for the sticker books doesn't look like him, either. The second and the third ones are him, though. They all look.....I dunno. Photoshopped.

Scott (the Hufflepuff King), Dan (the Pwncast of Wrock guy/aspiring broadcaster dude) and me (*cough*) are collaborating on a new audiobook. The PFW Reading Group is discussing Jocelyn's Harry Potter and the Battle of Wills and Scott had the brilliant idea to record it. We're still waiting for actual posting permissions from the author (hope that Hotmail account still works!) and we'll be trading off the chapters. 51 in all, which will break down to 17 for each of us.

I desperately need to edit and upload the next chapter or three of AtE, too.

The American League beat the National Leage on Tuesday in the longest All-Star Game on record: 4 hours and 50 minutes. 15 innings. the NL lost, and someone needs to nominate Uggla (from FL) as the Least Valuable Player. 3 errors. THREE! Meh.

I think I've wound down now - it's going to be very hot this weekend, so I'll either be staying inside where it's cool, or I'll be out for a drive. I'm thinking the former, as the A/C in the car is kaput.

Cheers!!

twinkle twinkle little sock

Another drive-by post. No, you're not delirious.

Loopy has the Spirit Trail Fiberworks yarn up on her site! I am eyeing this one, and this one, and maybe this one. Or this one. *sigh* Decisions, decisions. The yarn looks pricey, but take a look at the yardage. It's for 437yards, 5.3oz. 5.3!! Wow.

I think I missed the Wollmeise, though. Alas. I think I'm going to have to be a Groupie and get the Sneak-Ups to snag one of those.

I am making yet another pair of Twinkles, with the Comfort yarn this time. I've already ripped and restarted since yesterday, and they look pretty good! Here's a close up (more at my Flickr)

I think I like the yarn! It sorta looks like a cotton, (it's a little splitty like cotton can be) but feels like...I'm not sure. Almost silky smooth.

We finally finally FINALLY got more photos for HBP! About frickin' time! The articles are on Leaky (most with pics), and are:

• Empire Magazine cover and article
• Julie Walters returning as Molly in DH
• USAToday's "First Look" with pics and a great article (*squee!*)
• First look of Jim Broadbent as Slughorn
• More from Empire
• Luna's 'Spectacles'
• HBP Video Game trailer (!!)
• Official high-res pics (thanks, WB)

According to the USAToday article, there was a 'near miss' snog - that's new! I think two of the guys I sit close to at work are hinting at wanting to go to the midnight showing in November (yes, I know, it's 140 days away. Deal!), and Scott want me to smuggle him to NYC in my suitcase - or at least take a video camera with me. I don't think so!!!!! I have noooo wish to get tossed out of the theatre.

I've been commissioned to read a WIP in the Dangerverse. Ought to be interesting! I may have a few more on the 'to-do' pile as well.

Okay, that's enough of a drive-by from me. Have a safe and fun 4th of July holiday if you live in the US!

Cheers!

loopy-ness and broadway-bound

Wow, look, another post! I'm coming back. Sorta.

Took the plunge last night and bought the tickets for Equus!! There was a change in casting - an addition. Kate Mulgrew! w00t! We're going to the Oct 10th show - that's Friday night at 8. I managed to get Right Orchestra, 9 rows from the stage. I'm excited! D has already seen this play (with Leonard Nimoy!) so she's excited for me. ;) Pricey tickets, tho. It's going to take me 4 weeks to have the tickets in hand due to high demand. Wonder why? heee

I stopped at Loopy on the way into work this morning - and now I understand the craziness over Wollmeise. OMG. *fans self* I want this one, and this one and this one. And maybe this one too. She had them THERE, but not for sale. *cries* Maybe someday I'll manage to grab some.

She also had Spirit Trail Fiberworks yarn - oh, yummy colors! Alas, these were also in the 'not for sale' group, but soon!

I did manage to behave and only got a little yarn:

• 1 4oz hank of Cherry Tree Hill "Summer Sock" (30% merino wool/35% cotton/35% acrylic) in colorway Granite (stone grey) to use with the blue of the same type that I bought from DBNY. The Silver Dollar that I got with the blue is just too dark, and I think this lighter grey will work better.
• 1 100g hank of The Alpaca Yarn Company "Paca-Peds" (20% alpaca, 65% superwash wool, 15% nylon) in colorway Grapevine (deep green, clay, deep burgundy-purple, black). Yum. One of my co-workers just came by and tried to take off with it so he could pet it all afternoon! The colors on the Loopy site aren't as saturated as they are in hand.

See? I was good. Only 2 pairs...

The End of Term Ball is rolling this weekend, so no other yarn shopping for me. I need to edit more of AtE anyway, and so I'll be doing that.

Spiralling Coriolis Sock #2 is coming along - I'm up to the beginning of the band, and will be working on that while editing, I think. Haven't worked on it except at lunch the past few days.

Speaking of lunch, I'm off. Cheers!

still alive, I am

Hello, I have not gotten lost. As Teh Sue has pointed out to me once a month, I have not posted since the end of March. Been in a bit of a blue funk, and still am, to an extent.

I'm not really going to go into details, but I do want to say I know I've let several people down by not doing what I was supposed to be doing, and that I've rather been hiding from that and from just about everyone in the process. A dearly departed friend of mine would have told me that I'd barricaded myself in my nice little closet, and that it was time to come back out and deal with the real world. Please bear with me over the next little bit while I do so.

I've been visiting the dentist just about every week for the past month or so - I had to have a tooth pulled, and was informed that if I didn't get my gum issue under control, I'd have no teeth in very short order. I just completed the fourth (and final) scaling yesterday, and will be back in about 3 weeks for what is being called a 'periodontal' (no clue) and a polishing. If the gums look better - and right now, they look better than they have in over a year - I'll be taken off the antibiotic and the fillings will begin. Yay. Thank the good lord (and Charter) for great dental insurance.

I've also been buying comfort yarn:

• 1 100g ball of Berroco "Sox" (75% superwash wool/25% nylon) in colorway #1472 Leeds (rust, burgundy, orange, charcoal, white) self-striping sock yarn.
• 1 100g hank Sunshine Yarns "Twist" (100% superwash Merino) in colorway Accio Firebolt! (chocolate brown, ash grey, black, white, lemon yellow).
• 1 130g ball of Universal Yarns "fibranatura Yummy" (100% superwash wool) in colorway #41359 Seattle Skies (sky blue, ash grey, deep purple). I swear, I had no idea what the name of this color was until just now - and those who know me know I love Seattle!
• 1 100g ball of South West Trading Company (SWTC) "TOFUtsies" (50% superwash wool, 25% Soysilk, 22.5% cotton, 2.5% Chitin) in colorway #854 Four Leaf TOEver (leaf greens to white). These, I think, may be Nagini socks.
• 1 100g call of Berroco "Comfort Sox" (50% superfine nylon/50% superfine acrylic) in colorway Stewart Island (muted pine green, rust, orange, burgundy)
• 1 50g hank of Artyarns "Ultramerino4" (100% handpainted merino) in colorway #136 (very pale yellow, yellow, orange, rust, burgundy, brown, dark lilac). This was an orphan ball, so this will be a pair of anklets. I got it from Chris' Needle Craft in west St. Louis County.
• 2 100g balls of Plymouth Yarn Co. "Sockotta" (cotton/SW wool/nylon) in colorway #803 (red) for some Cardinals socks.
• 1 100g ball of Plymouth Yarn Co. "Sockotta" (cotton/SW wool/nylon) in colorway #30 Country Garden (blue, green, yellow, pink, orange).
• 1 4oz hank of Cherry Tree Hill "Summer Sock" (30% merino wool/35% cotton/35% acrylic) in colorway Silver Dollar (charcoal grey). Will be used with the next hank for striped socks in Ravenclaw colors.
• 1 4 oz hank of Cherry Tree Hill "Summer Sock" (see above) in colorway Little Boy Blue (royal blue).

Speaking of "Nagini" socks, the widower of the designer of these socks (Monkey Toes) has very graciously allowed upload of the patterns for her socks onto Ravelry.

I've been working on a pair of Monkeys (Cookie A's pattern) with the Gypsy Girls Creations yarn. I really like the yarn - very sturdy. I frogged it three times before I got a sock that I liked and that would fit! I first tried the Nagini pattern with the yarn - couldn't see the scale effect (needs to be a semi-solid or a solid yarn). Then I tried another one, but by the time I got to the end of the ribbing had decided to do Monkeys instead.

Cast on with US3s (pattern calls for US2s), knit down and turned the heel. Tried leg on for size. Sock = narrow leg. Me = fat leg. Rrrip. Cast on with US5s, and now they fit. I'm just to the heel flap on the second sock. I modified the heel to the eye of partridge stitch, which I rather like with this yarn. For some reason I can't seem to insert a pic, so I'll see if I can edit this from home and insert it there. There are shots of the yarn, Sock #1 before frogging, and Sock #1 Redux posted in my projects page on Ravelry.

I did go to the Stitch 'N Pitch here the end of May - sat next to Susan (eeeek! she took pics of me!) who apparently now thinks I know everything about the Cardinals. Useless Info! I'm tellin' ya, I'm full of it. We had a good time - great weather and Yes, we did win the game. I hope we get as lucky next year!

More of After the End has been posted on my site and is available there or by subscription via podcatcher - link on the right sidebar.

I'm working on organizing the trip to NY in October to see Dan Radcliffe in Equus on Broadway. It's looking like it'll be the second or third weekend of October, and we're aiming for the Friday matinee. That will give us all day Saturday to see some of NYC, since I've never been there before. Dan and Richard Griffiths presented the Tony for Best Play on Sunday, and it was amusing! You can see it here, and a short red carpet interview with Dan is here.

I think I'm done for now.

Cheers!

happy easter

Busy week...plus a brush with what may have been the flu.

A few yarn arrivals first:

• 2 50g hanks of 100% superwash merino of Stone Barn Fibers' "Gypsy Girl Creations" in colorway Goblin (leaf green, grass green, black, lilac to amethyst)
• 1 100g hank of 100% superwash merino of Sunshine Yarns "Twist" in colorway Horcrux (yellow/gold, rust, black, blue, deep emerald green, grey to charcoal) A very Harry color!

I finally finished the knitting on the House Pouch for my spoilee - it's blocking now. It's a little bigger than I thought it was going to be, which is very good. Mine is next! I'm not overly thrilled with fair isle, because I'm afraid I don't 'float' very well. Practice makes perfect.

I've been working on PK's Twinkle Toes using the Fleece Artist yarn she picked out. I may have enough for a pair of crew socks! I'll have to check the weight when I'm finished with the pair.

No progress on the Big Blue - except a new name. It's now Seeker!

Oh the HP front, the fandom is still squeeing about the announcement last week about a 2 part DH. Theories are flying around about where they will split it...lots of opinions. There was an article that Adri on PFW translated for us from Spanish that covered a visit to the set - there was an excerpt that was posted quoting Dan and the fact that the movie appears to revolve around Harry and his ships. ;-) The H/G shipper in me is, as I posted on the forum earlier, dancing around the room with jazz hands! Squeee! Dan says that this movie has a lot more comedy in it than the others - ought to be interesting to see, since we also have a major character death at the end of it.

PotterCast talks about last week's news on Ep #143: Of Two Minds - linked on the sidebar.

My second squee is that Alton Brown is coming to St. Louis on April 27! Yay!! He'll be at a book signing at the Ethical Society in Clayton at 4PM. The link here shows his schedule, but it has the wrong address for the venue here - it's supposed to be 9001 Clayton Rd. Anyway, I think D and I will be standing in line - at least, I will be. The book tour is for his new book, Feasting on Asphalt: The River Run. *g* I'll bet he has to take a detour through Alton, Illinois! Mwhahaha! We all pronounce the town across the river like "AWLton" instead of how AB pronounces his name (ALton), and we'll have to see what he says to that.

Squee #3 is that the Stitch 'N Pitch date has been set for May 28, which is a Wednesday. It had originally been set for April 28, but that changed three days ago. I'm dragging PK along, and I think I'll take a vacation day for it. We're playing Houston! The link for SNP is on the sidebar - there are a lot of dates set, and I'm sure it will be as popular as it was last year. I'm glad that it's earlier in the season - here's hoping that it won't be 96F again.

Well, I think that's all for me. There are a few pics of PK's Twinkles on the Flickr group and the Ravelry site...oh! The HW now have a group on Ravelry, so if you're a SJHW, and you don't have your name on the list for Ravelry yet, get thee to the website! If you're not a SJHW, you should still go. ;-) I created the group so we can have a place to yak about our projects and yarn.

Chapter 17 of AtE is uploaded on the site - subscribe to the feed for the page on the right side. You can use any podcatcher or iTunes. :)

Cheers!!

dh announcement and squeeeeeeeing

Yes, it's been a few days, and Yes, I've been swamped at work. I am trying to not think about the 1600 letters - 7 reams worth - that are sitting on my desk, waiting my folding hands tomorrow. Ugh.

::fanfare::

My hyper news this week (besides my new audiobook website) is that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be released in TWO PARTS!!!!!

*cue me jumping up and down and squeeeeeeing lots*

The LA Times broke the story on March 12, and can be read here, Dan Radcliffe was interviewed by TV Guide and that can be read here (and No, that's not how's he's gonna look in the next movie, that's Dan as Jack Kipling, ca. 1915, and No, that's not a caterpillar attached to his face, Jess), and the PFW forum is all atwitter, as is the one over at The Leaky Cauldron. Everyone (DR, Heyman, etc etc) have all been saying that the movie would have to be very long, because unlike the previous 6 books, you really can't leave anything out of DH. The speculation now is 'where the heck are they going to split it?' Dan was right - there really isn't a definite point to end DH1.

The bad news? Well, we thought DH was going to be released in May 2010, 18 months after HBP (Nov 2008), but that's now been pushed back to DH1 coming out November 2010 and DH2 in May 2011. I don't think I can hold my breath that long.

I'm very excited about all of this!! Bet you couldn't tell. Ha. *bouncebounce*

My other news is that we are tentatively considering going to NY in the fall to see Equus on Broadway. I have read - and I don't remember where, I'll have to double- and triple-check this - that DR will be performing the run from about September 25th thru the beginning of February 2009. D is supposed to do a little digging too - I've never, ever been to NYC, and her mom lives in Manhattan. I have a feeling we'll be invading the Proprietress in November! Squee! A-in-Oz-ATM thinks that I need to go 'hang out at the stage door' or something. I....well, for all my hand-waving over my head, I am not a stalker. These people are PEOPLE, fps, and I just, well, I feel funny intruding on their privacy. Even IF they are actors, and they're there to entertain! I dunno. Thoughts?

Anyway, I DO have some yarn to review, but I need to sleep first. I'll try to post the review tomorrow evening so I can procrastinate cleaning. I'm not having someone install telephony in my house with it looking as it does.

Cheers! (and zzzzz)