Vague Oscar content

I usually don't watch the Oscars, mostly because it bores me. I think I watched them last year because I had just got back from a road trip or was leaving on one the next day (something like that). This year, I went to an Oscar party and had a blast. Some observations:

The red carpet show was only interesting in that we got to critique what everyone was wearing. The general consensus was that Johnny Depp didn't look as quirky as usual.

Star Jones should not have worn a dress with a back that low. She's lost a lot of weight, but she's still a bit saggy and the dress really emphasized that.

Mike Myers looks orange-ish. Lay off the tanning lotion!

Chris Rock was very good and behaved himself. Well, except when he was dissing people who weren't there. I don't think he would have gotten away with the Russell Crowe bit if Russell Crowe (who I loathe) had actually been there.

What criteria did they use to decide which awards would be presented on stage and which awards would be presented in the audience? There didn't seem to be a theme.

"... comedy stylings of Jeremy Irons." Hee! I've seen his outfit variously describes as Jesuit robes and something that could comfortably worn at the dojo. I thought it looked snazzy.

Beyonce has a terrible French accent. Almost everyone at the party spoke French to some degree or another, and we universally agreed that she sucked. As pointed out by the Vidiots, why couldn't they have used Johnny Depp's wife?

Robin Williams - hee!

What in god's name is that thing on Adam Duritz's head? It looks like some kind of freaky atomic tarantula perched up there. We also admired the moxie of the guitarist wearing the "I (heart) Scarlett" t-shirt.

Speaking of Scarlett, who cares?

There is a woman sitting in Sidney Lumet's box with the most enormous boobies. She's applauding wildly, and they aren't moving, which lead us to believe that they are fake.

Oh, lordy - it's Beyonce again. And we like the fact that the Phantom is running away from her. Hee!

Sure, send out Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek together and make me feel twice as fat and ugly. Thanks Academy!

Antonio! So lovely!

Strapless dresses seem to be the thing this year.

Josh Groben is cute. Beyonce... not so much. Enough with her already!

Yay Yo-Yo Ma! Farewell, Jerry Orbach! I'll miss you the most!

Prince is a pretty, pretty man. He has a very feline face. (I had a dream about him last night. Karen's friend Kris was doing his taxes, and we weren't allowed to be seen by him while he was at her house, so we had to hide in the laundry room. Which sounds like something that might happen in real life.)

Shut up, Sean Penn. Seriously, you have no sense of humour and I question your sobriety at that moment. Did you really sit in your seat for the whole show stewing about that remark Chris Rock made about Jude Law? You probably did, and spent the better part of that time thinking of a snappy comeback. Alas it fell flat, and somewhere out there Jude Law is shaking his head and thinking, "Dude, you are so not the person I want defending me. Shut up."

[Update 03/01: I heard tonight that Penn is starring in a movie with Law, hence Penn's comments. Still, "Shut up, Sean Penn," and throw in an eye roll for good measure.]

The rest of the show was pretty uneventful. Props to Jamie Foxx and Clint Eastwood, and better luck next time to Martin Scorsese.

Another book I didn't buy

I forgot to mention that I also completely failed to purchase My New Fighting Technique is Unstoppable on Friday afternoon. Don't be fooled by its length and simple and uncomplicated illustrations. This book packs a punch! (Also? I'm not afraid to make a fool of myself by laughing hysterically in the middle of Chapters. Just so you know.)

Beware the Melties!

Obviously, I'm in a chatty mood tonight. Could be brain hibernation thing. Could be the fatigue. Could be the cranberry juice and vodka.

Steve the First. Certainly the funniest thing I've heard on the CBC lately. Naturally, Don McKellar is involved, but so is Mark McKinney.

Anyways, it's on at 11:30 tomorrow morning on Radio 1. Do yourself a favour and listen if you are able.

What's in your wallet?

Earlier this week, the Hot Librarian (who never fails to leave me laughing so hard I gasp for air - she's that funny!) was musing about what women keep in their purses and how it says something about them. What we carry in our purses is probably insight into what we value, or things we can't let go of. Purses are also memory repositories - remember that trip to Lettuce Knits, and how crazy cool Kensington Market was? Well, the receipt is right here, and the memories are coming back. What we carry in our purses is also indicative of what kind of emergencies - medical, cosmetic, or other - we are prepared to deal with.

Or, it could just mean that I don't clean out my purse all that often, and I must have a brick in there somewhere because it weighs a ton.

• Wallet, naturally. Library card, Subway coupons, Blockbuster card, the usual suspects. The unexpected - a $10 credit for The Bookworm, a used bookstore in St. Catharines where I've had a credit slip for the last fifteen years or so (when it gets low, I just bring them a box of books I don't want anymore and replenish my credit). A ticket stub from when I went to see Fantasia 2000 at the Imax in Bayer's Lake. A receipt from the Clay Cafe. A discount card for Disc Go Round, a new and used CD store in Halifax. (Hey Phillip - do you want this? I won't be back anytime soon, alas.)
  
• Cellphone. I lost my password, so I can't check my message. Sorry to the person who left it - I'm not intentionally avoiding you, unless you are the collection agency who's trying to get in touch with the person who had the number before me.
• Tissues, because I sneeze a lot.
• Hydrocortisone cream. I am genuinely puzzled by this - how did this get here, and when did I think I would have a rash emergency (ha ha) that would require this? Obviously, it's something I must have thrown in there on my way to work one morning, when I am not at my best (obviously).
• Altoids, the curiously strong mints. Mmmmm!
• Name tag from the OLA conference. Why haven't I taken this out yet?
• Notebook and pen to write down random stray thoughts that occur to me when I'm out and about, such as things I shouldn't forget to bring with me to Sudbury, potential taglines for my blog (what do you think of "It's Dewey Decimal-riffic!"?), and the middle three books in the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series, with years of publication and ISBN so I can (eventually) order them through interlibrary loan.
• Lip stuff. Burt's Bees Beeswax Lip Balm, which is superfantastic. Body Shop Cranberry Lip Balm, which is sparkly. And a Lancome Iced Cranberry Juicy Tube, which I like but is kind of messy to put on.
• Burt's Bees Lemon Butter Cuticle Cream to keep my cuticles moisturized. Otherwise, they look hideous.
• Buttons (the kind you sew) from Courage, My Love. They're funky, one-of-a-kind things that I forgot were there. Huh.
• receipts from half a dozen places, none of them very exciting.
• A phone number on a slip of paper. Oh dear, I don't remember getting this. I hope I was having fun when I got it. (No, wait - it's someone in the book club's phone number.)
• A government bond. Geez, I thought I had taken that out of there.
• My income tax assessment form from last year. Ah - that explains things. No, seriously - I went to the bank to do some banky things and needed those two forms.

Well, a good half of that junk is coming out. I need to take my car to Canadian Tire tomorrow, and I need to make room for books to read while I wait (hopefully not three hours).

Friday night mind-dump

I've just finished a really intense week, where you have to sit still for hours at a time. No checking your email or switching tasks or playing with your hula hoop when you need a break.

(I know - I heard the collective ".....hula hoop? WTF?" Yes, I have a hula hoop in my office for when moments of writer's block set in, or when I need to be distracted.)

So, my brain has kind of gone into hibernation. I was in need of retail therapy this afternoon, so off to my favourite enabler - Chapters!

What I got (Magical Thinking, Choice: The Best of Reason) is not so notable as what I didn't get.

• Busted Flush, the latest by Brad Smith, whose All Hat was pretty a good novel about racing and real estate, set around my hometown.
• Bellydance, by Dolphina, who has some excellent tapes about bellydancing.
• Haunted hillbilly by Derek McCormack, a story about Hank Williams and a vampire - it's actually quite good.
• Sarah by J.T. LeRoy, mostly because I couldn't find it.
• Various manga, mostly because I couldn't remember which ones TangognaT has been recommending lately.

Sellevision and Running with Scissors went to Thunder Bay with a collegue, who has been instructed to read them and pass them along. It was only after she left that I recalled telling my mother I'd bring them home for her to read. Rats!

Oh, also - good luck to Team Jakubo at the Canadian Men's Curling Championship in Edmonton next week. They're the team representing Northern Ontario and they're based out of the same club where I curl on Monday nights. One of the guys on the team totally laughed his ass off at me when I ended up sprawled all over the ice the first time I tried to curl back in October. (I was killing myself too, and he made sure I was okay before cracking up.) Good luck, guys! SWEEP! HURRY HARD!

I always thought she was after Shaggy

A bit of fun.

You Are the Very Gay Velma!

She might not even realize it... But Velma is all about Daphne ... not Fred!

What Gay Childhood Icon Are You?

They say it's your birthday! Happy Birthday to you!

Happy 24th, Stinky!

You can't play cards without the Joker

Tonight is my grandparents' card party, which they hold every year to celebrate their anniversary (which was actually last Saturday. Happy 17th!) They invite all their friends and family for an evening of eating, drinking, and progressive euchre. There are prizes for the top three scores, the lowest score, and the most euchres. My dad has, in back-to-back years, won all three. Door prizes are also given out, and then we have dinner, usually around midnight.

This is the first year in a few years that I'm missing it. Us kids weren't always allowed to go - it's only since I was finishing up my undergrad that my sisters and I started showing up. Partly because it's a raucous time, partly because they didn't want to invite my sisters without inviting me. They wanted to make sure I understood the game before they'd let me come to the card parties.

See, I'm terrible with the rules games. From the time I was in elementary school ("Okay, so if the bottle is pointing at me, do I kiss the person next to me or across from me?") until I went away to grad school ("Okay, so if I've 'never never' done something do I drink, or do I drink if I have?") it's always taken several very patient people to explain the most elementary guidelines of any game. Sports, I can pick it up quickly. Show me how to do something on the computer or with knitting needles, and I get it. Card games? Not so much.

It started when my sister Denise got really bored one afternoon when we were about 9 and 10. Denise already knew how to play the game, and wanted to play with someone. Both my parents were busy, and Rachelle was too young, so that left me. Except I didn't know how to play, so she was going to have to teach me how.

Now, Denise is really good at teaching people how to do things. I present a unique challenge to her abilities both because I'm her sister and I don't catch on to the rules of card games very quickly. The lesson quickly dissolved to the point where both my parents had to come and separate us, so it was decided that now was not a good time to teach me.

(Another funny story about Denise and I playing games: when we were little and playing hide-and-seek, my dad could hide me in the best spots in the house and Denise would still find me right away because I couldn't stop giggling. My dad put Denise on the kitchen counter with a cereal box in front of her, and I'd walk by her fifty times before my mother pointed her out to me.)

Eventually, I did learn how to play, but it was years before people stopped asking, "Are you following suit? If you have trump, play it." Or, "Why did you play the bower on that queen? You should have used your king and saved the bower." I'm not a bad player now, but I still have the tendency to go alone with not much in my hand, or to pass when I could order someone up.

Also not attending - my dad. He had a tooth pulled, and is home watching "Gladiator" and like me, is cursing Gary Bettman and the NHL.

Err... oops

Sorry if you checked in here this morning and found the background to be either grey or one of several other shades of green or pink while I tried to figure out what the background colour used to be. I was playing with the template of what I thought was my test blog (which is my NaNoWriMo blog, kept up for the express purpose of fudging about with the template) last night, but turns out was the template for my main blog. I guess I was so tired that I didn't notice I'd ftp'd the wrong file to myself.

(Thanks to my mom, who emailed me this morning to point this out.)

Tagged for a meme

Just before lunch, I checked Bloglines to see if there was anything new and interesting. And came across this:

5. Three peeps to pass this on to?

Anna and Carol, because they both manage to say astute things about teevee. And Rebecca, because she really needs to close that book and turn on the television.

Oh Amanda, we've never met in person but how well you know me :) (I did pass you a few times at the OLA conference, but I didn't get a chance to say "Hi!")

1. How much space is left on your TiVO or Comcast box?

Well, I don't have one of those doohickeys, nor do I have the Canadian equivalent. I suspect that if I did, I'd be recording every program that piques my interest. I know I'd be recording Sugar every day, and probably Mythbusters. For certain, I'd be recording Rick Mercer's Monday Report and Corner Gas, both of which are on while I'm at curling.

2. Have you ever bought a DVD of a tv series and if so which one?

Yes - I have Firefly and season 1 of Futurama. As well, I have a couple of episodes of The Muppet Show on DVD.

3. What was the last tv show you watched before reading this message?

Last night I watched CSI. I wasn't really interested in ER and there wasn't anything else on that made me want to leave it on.

4. List five shows you won’'t miss:

That's a hard question. I turn the tv on a lot and flip channels, mostly watching whatever happens to be on Food TV or Space, but it's mostly background noise for whatever I happen to be doing at the time.

There aren't a lot of shows I make an effort to sit down and watch. Lost would be one such show, A Cook's Tour is another, Battlestar Galactica a third, and CSI. If I remember, I try to watch Farscape reruns on Sunday afternoons, and Iron Chef America on Sunday nights.

5. Three peeps to pass this on to?

Let's see... Denise because she's my sister, Jamie because she needs something to distract her from worrying about Thor (her cat - he'll be fine!), and the tinylittlelibrarian because she's a fellow librarian and bookworm.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go finish reading my book ;)

That green stuff you eat with corn chips

A few weekends ago, I saw three separate recipes for guacamole on Food TV. Alton Brown had one, Michael Smith had another, and I think the Barefoot Contessa was the third (or Rachel Ray, who irritates me). All were nothing like my guacamole recipe, which is actually my roommate-from-grad-school's recipe.

Take one ripe avocado (do you know how many tries it took to spell that correctly?). You'll know it's ripe because the skin will be a dark, dull green. If it's shiny, or merely darkish green, let it sit on the counter for a day or two. Cut it in half and remove the pit - you can use the pit to try and grow an avocado plant, but it will take a long time and chances are, you live in a region that does not lend itself well to avocado cultivation. Anyways...

You don't need to peel the skin off. The skin is thick and stiff, and the innards are soft, so you can scoop them out (this bit only took me, what? Five years to figure out? Up until now, I've been trying to peel the buggers. All the while, scooping is so much easier. Duh.) Scoop the soft creamy insides into a food processor or blender - something that will make the mixture smooth.

Add about a tablespoon of lemon juice. You can use fresh lemons, but the stuff that comes in the fake plastic lemons is okay too. Blend a little. Add two tablespoons of mayonnaise, or whatever, to your taste.

You're going to have to add garlic, and it's up to you how much you want to use. I usually use one clove, but more is great, too. Chop it finely, and throw it in with the rest of the mixture. Blend briefly.

Now, these are the super-secret ingredients. You may be asking yourself why I am telling you if they're supposed to be super-secret. Well, I'm telling you so you can add them, but don't tell your guests what the secret ingredients are, 'kay? Alright - add a dash of Italian dressing and ketchup (catsup?). That's it.

Blend the whole thing until smooth. The versions I saw all kept them chunky; they used mashers as opposed to a food processor, so there were still chunks in the dip. But they weren't as smooth or creamy - it's just your preference, I guess.

If you leave the guacamole uncovered, or even covered, it will turn brownish (unless you've left it on the counter, then it will be fuzzy and green, which isn't good. Put it in the fridge when you're done with it.) It turns brown because avocados, like apples, get oxidized when exposed to air, which is why they turn brown. That's what the lemon juice does - delay oxidization, or minimize it. It's still good, and if kept in a covered container it can last a week or so.

It's 6:30am, and I'm up. And I'm listening to something called "The Windmills of your Mind" and I'm getting dizzy

Last night I heard the Worst Version Ever of "Street Fighting Man" by Rod "Honk If You Think I'm Sexy" Stewart. I mean, it was terrible, just awful - he made no attempt to make it sound anything like the original until the very last verse, and then he did the vocal gymnastics. Too little, too late.

If he had made it better by covering it*, I could forgive him. However, he made it worse, he mocked it, and for that I can't excuse him.

(And I 'm up because I was having an annoying dream. I was visiting my parents, and I was taking the bus back to Sudbury. When I got to the terminal, I realized I'd forgotten most of my stuff - all I had was my briefcase, my makeup bag, and my t-shirt. The most frustrating thing? I'd forgotten all my reading material, so I was looking at a six-hour bus ride without anything to do except socialize with my fellow passengers. That's what made me wake up weeping.)


*There are not many examples of songs being made better or more interesting by being covered. Tori Amos' version of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is one example. Marilyn Manson's cover of "These Dreams" is another (oh shush - I liked it!). Johnny Cash doing "Hurt" is a good example.

Remember kids! All of this is my opinion only!

Thank god that's over!

It's a good thing that I decided not to post yesterday. I was in a downright foul mood last night, but I hadn't been that way all day. There were a few incidents, like crushing the prongs on the extension cord for my block heater, that made me wish I'd not gotten up. The weather wasn't co-operating either - it was snowing when I got up (ooohhh pretty!), but it was freezing rain by the time I got to work, and then it started to rain shortly after (ummm... not so pretty).

Curling pretty much bit the big one. Even though we were on sheet 4, which is my favourite sheet, we lost big time. I missed several big shots and fouled up a few more, in addition to turning the air blue on a few occasions. Plus I was tired and bored and cold and stiff.

(Sheet 4 is my favourite because of the vaguely naughty advertisement at the one end. I know they're probably pieces of mining equipment, but "scissor lifts" and "man booms" sound like they wouldn't be out of place in a well-stocked S&M dungeon.)

I was also stressed out about a thing I had to do after work tonight (work-related so... yeah, no details.) It went better than I expected. Plus, I was listening to Phillip Cairns' Mud Songs Webcast when I got home, so I'm much more mellow now.

So, to summarize: I did nothing special for V-Day. Go me.

Cookery

Once again I've spent the better part of the evening watching Food TV. And I'm finding that I'm thinking "Umm... ew?" to myself less and less. Now, it's more like, "Umm... huh. That looks interesting." It's a bit of a personal revelation - I'm curious to find out what coconut-encrusted scallops with a light dusting of cocoa powder would taste like. (I don't think that's exactly what it was, but I'm paraphrasing - parafooding?)

I'd totally love to be a patissier, someone who makes desserts and sweet things. That would be a cool job, I think.

And if anyone knows how to get on Iron Chef America to be a judge, could you drop me a line?

(Oh, and peanut butter and apple sandwiches are scrumptious. Slice the apple thinly, and layer the slices over a the peanut butter.)

Book Club Verdict: The Devil Wears Prada (and the results!)

The general concensus was that it sucked. It was too bitter, too full of complaints, and there were no attempts to break free until the very end. We could muster no sympathy for the protagonist, and the antagonist was simply too over-the-top extremely evil. None of us could relate to her plight, although we did recount horror stories about bad bosses that we've had in the past, such as the supervisor who spent 10 minutes explaining how to place a stamp on a stamp pad or the executive who tried to deny giving someone permission to attend their sister's wedding.

Worst of all, there was no plot. It was like one long diary entry, and not a very good one at that. If this book were a friend we had taken out for coffee and told us everything that happened as it did in the book, she'd better not bring it up ever again or we'd get up and walk away.

I felt stressed out reading this book. I finished it last Thursday, on the train home from Toronto, and felt overwhelmed. I'd had a good day, but felt that if anyone asked me to do anything, I'd completely snap at them because they were being unreasonable. Certainly, this is not a good book to read if you want to read something light and fluffy.

And, so now on to the results. This is how things went down:
Other / Stargirl: 1 vote each (1% each)
Violet & Claire: 2 votes (3%)
The Thief Lord: 3 votes (4%)
A Cook's Tour / Deafening: 10 votes each (14% each)
Happiness(tm): 13 votes (19%)
The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants: 29 votes (42%)

Thanks to everyone who voted.

Voting for the next book club book

Okay, so we've finally set a date and time for our next book club. This means that voting on what I should chose for my turn will end at 5:30PM on Friday, February 11th.

Vote early, vote often, and get your friends and family to vote for the book of your choice.

Zen Spam

This afternoon, I got a spam message in my email at work. It was one of those wierd things, with an oddly described product and a whole bunch of nonsense after it. One of the gems of wisdom that followed the product description went something like, "Every culture gets the circus it deserves. Spain has the bullfights, Italy has the Vatican, and America has Hollywood."

So, does that mean Canada has the passport office?

(Dude! Rex Murphy! She was in line behind Rex friggin' Murphy, people!)

It's too early in the morning

Two things:

First, if you want a Gmail invite, leave me a comment or send me a telegram or something. I've got fifty of them to give away. That's right, you heard me correctly - fifty. Get them while this offer lasts!

Second, I forget what the second thing is. I'll remember when I'm in the shower and my computer is off, and I'll swear that I will remember it until I get out and turn my computer back on. However, by the time all that happens, I will have forgotten it again. Maybe it was a belated Joyeuse Mardi Gras/Happy Shrove Tuesday or maybe Happy Chinese New Year.

Gah.

Audio book discovery

Normally, I amuse myself during the six-and-change hour drive home by listening to the radio or CDs, especially the Rolling Stones, Led Zeplin, Modest Mouse, The Trews, Buck 65, Sloan, and several mixed CDs. It can't be anything too mellow, which is why I've had to take Blue Rodeo, Tom Waits, Lucious Jackson, and Portishead out of rotation.

I don't do audio books well, partly because I'm too easily distracted and I'll either drive into a ditch or miss some crucial plot element. I'm also partly worried that the narrator will be monotonous and bore me to tears. When we were little, my sisters and I would listen to them, especially on long trips Down East. But now, they don't really do much for me.

A few years back, I tried to listen to Hoot on tape, but was unsuccessful. No offence to Chad Lowe, who was doing the reading, but it didn't interest me. I'd read the book and quite liked it, so maybe it was the fact that I could have read the book on my own in the time it took to listen to the first two (of six) tapes.

I was especially wary of books read by the author because, what if they don't sound like the voice I hear when I read their books? I'd be crushed with disappointment.

The reason this is significant is that the local library only had Augusten Burrough's Magical Thinking on audio CD, and I've been wanting to read it since before Christmas, when I heard a review of it on the CBC. The first book I read this year was Sellevision, and I liked it.

(On a completely tangentially related note, I never formally announced any interest/disinterest in joining the 50 Books Challenge - read fifty books in fifty weeks. I planned to announce my participation around week 20, when I will have read my 50 books way ahead of everyone else, and could childishly taunt the other participants with a hearty "Eat my dust, suckers!")

Well, it took me all the way home and a large part of the way back to here to listen to the whole thing, plus fifteen minutes while I was unpacking (The Ongoing History of New Music was on when I left home. I love me some Alan Cross!). And I enjoyed it!

Burroughs doesn't sound exactly like what I had imagined, but I wasn't upset by that. His voice was well-suited to the essays he read, which were snappy and biting and occasionally hilarious ("Beating Raoul" had me cracking up all the way through Barrie). Sometimes, they were even sad ("Mark the Shrink"). I could have read the book in a quarter of the time it took me to listen to them, but it wouldn't have been the same. (My favourites would have to be "Last First Date" and "Key Worst.")

I'm looking forward to the trip home at Easter, when I will be listening to David Sedaris' Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim.

Time flies

Where do I start, where do I begin?

Toronto and the conference were a blast. What was three days felt like five. Wait - Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Huh. I guess it was actually five days altogether. Well, okay, what was five days felt like a week. (Hey, it's my blog - I reserve the right to change my story!)

The short story: only two new books made it home with me, plus two comic books, all from The Beguilling, who are an awesome library-friendly comic book store. Last year they were also at the conference, and this year they participated in a number of sessions on graphic novels, comics, and manga. Many hours were spent catching up with friends and former co-workers and classmates over lunches, coffee, and martinis. The sessions I attended were terrific (with the exception of the technical details of a project that I nearly dozed through at one point.) I don't often get my geek on and flaunt my librarian "cred" here, so I'll spare you the details.

(To hell with that - the big reason I love going to these types of conferences is because I always come away feeling professionally "refreshed" and excited about my job. It's energizing to hear about what other librarians are doing, and how I can take the lessons they learned and apply them to my job, whether I'm a public librarian or a library consultant.)

Also stowing away in my luggage: plenty of Lush products and copious amounts of yarn. H'oh boy, did I ever pig out on the yarn front! In my defence, I will state that everything I got at Romni Wool and Lettuce Knits cannot be found either up here or in Guelph. And it's all so pretty!

As well, I managed to fend off a cold with Echinacea, raw gingerroot tea, and vitamin C drops. I felt crappy Thursday, but managed to pull off Friday and the rest of the weekend with minimal difficulties. Saturday night we celebrated my Dad's birthday. I started a pair of socks with some Briggs & Little I got the weekend before (or was it two weekends before? Oh well...) Due to the fact I had to completely unravel one of the mittens I made last week because I couldn't pick up the dropped stitches, I may have the socks finished before summer.

(Later update: I've had to frog the mitten yet again because I realized I was doing a 2x2 ribbing on the cuff, when I'm only supposed to be doing a 1x1 ribbing. GAH!)

Much more to blather on about, but I'll break it down into several, easy-to-manage posts.