I love camping!

Spent the weekend in the Sequoias with Chauntel and Co. I forget how much I love the forest, the pine trees, the crisp air, the lack of material items. I just went over and read her post on our weekend and there is no way I could top that. She captured exactly how our weekend was. I do have many more photos but it was late when I started this post. I will get more up later on. But it was a really really good weekend. :)

Just a pretty.

Hi, how are ya!

Since I haven’t posted in freakin’ forever, I thought I would at least do a little teetiny update. I have started a few new projects: The Scarf in Rhodonite and Rolling Stone from Socks That Rock, a Silk Garden sweater that is modeled after the Shinano I finished earlier this year, a pair of socks, and the soon-to-be-started Mystery Stole 3. I am still working the Julia and she is still the love of my life. I just haven't had time to visit with her lately. Life has gotten extremely busy. I am not complaining, I am loving it in fact but I do miss my knitting. I am hoping to get some done this weekend as we (Chaun, George and the kids and I) head up to the Sequoias for camping. I am really looking forward to a nice quiet (well, I mean mechanically quiet, no cellies, no email, no tv, no radio) weekend.

It's the only picture I have ready to show. :) No worries, I will have others. Later. Someday. At some point.

Strangely, it's right.

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Random

About three weeks ago, I was tagged on a meme, "8 Random Things About Me," by Christine. I didn't forget, Christine! I just couldn't think of anything more than 1 random thing. Since I have time today (on a minivaca with my dad and brother) I am making myself sit down and come up with all 8 things.

1. I can't stand soggy vegetables. When I was younger, Wednesday nights were Pot Roast night. And cooked with the pot roast were potatoes and carrots. I had to eat two (2!!) thoroughly cooked carrots with my dinner. I quickly learned that the best way to eat them was to get a glass of milk and swallow the carrots whole with the milk. I shudder just thinking about it... I have since learned that vegetables don't have to be cooked 'til the cows come home, they can actually be warm AND crunchy!

2. I can blow air out of my eye. Technically it's the corner of my eye. When I have really bad allergies, I get so stuffed up that when I blow my nose, air is forced out. I believe it's between the eyeball and the tearduct that sits in the corner.

3. I have 7 tattoos. I want one more but am working up the courage to put myself through that process again.

4. When I was two, I taught my cousin Eric (who was 2 1/2) how to pee in the bushes. In his front yard. Around that same time, my cousin Kim was born. I hated her. So much so, that while she was an infant, sitting in her car seat on the kitchen table, I pushed her off. She survived.

5. I consider myself a non-risk taker, cautious, non-athletic, person but when I look back through my life, I have done some pretty non-cautious, athletic, risky things: skydiving, scuba diving, backpacking through Europe, skiing, horseback riding, motorcycle riding, water skiing. I guess I have to try it all at least once!

6. I wrote a novel in my freshman year of high school. We had a newly certified English teacher who had some very lofty ideas of what freshmen were capable of. We also read Les Miserables that same year. I do believe he changed his curriculum the following year.

7. Until I graduated high school, I scorned my friends who would dye their hair. I thought we should all be happy with who we are and not try to change ourselves. They finally convinced me to dye my hair purple after we graduated. I also didn't wear makeup until about 3 years ago. I had to have Chauntel show me what I was to do with all that makeup.

8. I am constantly being told I should be a teacher. I greatly admire those that take on the challenge but have no desire to be one myself.

I tag noone. Feel free though to share any random things about yourself in comments! :)

I totally ate dirt.

So my friend Tiffany and her boyfriend Mike are hardcore cyclists. Like pro cyclists. Tiffany, kind soul that she is, invited Jason and I along for a ride last night out to the jumps behind their house. No, I wasn't going to jump, just ride. So we go. Now, mind you, I haven't been on a bike in YEARS. I don't even own my own bike or even my own helmet. She outfits me with a helmet and a bike (her boyfriend Mike's). I ride out the driveway and back in to just check that it fits me. It does. So, we head down the street to the trail which takes us to the jumps. As we are riding, they (Tiff and Jason) are giving me advice. The only piece of advice that really mattered was about 'missile lock'. It's where you see an obstacle and fixate on it so you end up riding direct into it. So their advice was to avoid the obstacle by looking at the path beyond. Right. About 50 ft to the left of the street, the trail narrows to a 2ft wide pathway. A gate is on my left, a concrete embankment is on my right. A very steep, long, concrete embankment. As we approach this area, we go down a small hill and I pick up some speed. I am repeating my mantra to myself, "Avoid the obstacle, avoid the obstacle, avoid the obstacle." I start to lose a little bit of control of the bike because of the speed and the fact that I am coming up on a very narrow little tiny bit of dirt trail. I see the concrete embankment and I ... fixate on it. Next thing I know, I am at the bottom of the embankment. Yep, rode the bike right down the very very steep Concrete embankment. I now have road rash and a knot on my right jawline, scrapes on my hands, road rash on my right shoulder (the formerly injured one) and a daaaark purple bruise on my right knee. :)) I do want to say, I was wearing one of my knit sweaters. Not a hole in sight. I got the shoulder road rash THROUGH the sweater. It's like iron!!!