O Carla, be thy name! I knitted and unpicked, knitted and unpicked last night and really have no Carla progress to show for it. Am starting to think this is a MAJOR lesson in patience I'm giving myself. I can tell you with supreme confidence that Rowan cotton tape yarn wears really, really well. It doesn't pill or fray despite being knitted and re-knitted to death. Le sigh.
I was good, peeps, I did not succumb to the lure of other projects, specifically the Koigu Frolic top that has been cooing to me from the project bag... heh.
Frustration on the roofing contractor and plumber front as well. Getting a return phone call is a major challenge, apparently.
NO frustration on the following: My passport arrived! Yay! and I found good flights to Hong Kong at better prices than a trip to Europe, go figure. So the trip to Bhutan is starting to feel real. The bad news is I won't really have any time to see Hong Kong since I have limited days I can take off right now. I'll be coming back to work directly from the airport and 30+ hours enroute. That ought to be amusing... Land of the Living Dead. Oh, well, just means I'll have to go back to HK for a leisurely visit there and to the beaches in Thailand and Vietnam.
Bottom line, along with everything else, I need to finish a long-abandoned Kureyon sweater in Brioche stitch knitted with double stranding of the yarn. It is COLD in the Himalayas and I had given away most of my old and moth-eaten sweaters from the years in Canada. Shame on me if I have to resort to buying wool sweaters with a house full of yarn.
Hurricane Charley update: The saga continues and since it is slipping from the news due to lack of dramatic new images, I'll gently ask all who stop by here to send prayers or thoughts or love and light to the folks in Charlotte county, Florida. And if you have a few spare dollars, they could use that, too. Most of the major charities like the Red Cross and Salvation Army are accepting donations.
It's too hot there to even think about it, but come the Fall, maybe some of us could organize an Hurricane Charley Afghan-Along for seniors who lost everything they owned. Down here in Florida, people tend to air condition the hell out of any indoor space to the point of needing a sweater or afghan to wrap up in if you're sitting still (on the sofa or in the office). So something warm and beautiful would sure go a long way wto lift spirits. Something to think about. If anyone is so inspired, please let me know. I might even be able to get some yarn donations for this, too.
Feed My Head 2010
Andrea Camilleri: The Wings of the Sphinx (Inspector Montalbano Mysteries)
The wonderful, irascible Inspector Montalbano of Vigata, Sicily is at it again. Did I mention he's wonderful? And there are 10 earlier ones in the series.Ariana Franklin: The Serpent's Tale
The very wonderful Vesuvia Adelia Rachel Ortese Aguilar (prepare to die!) continues her work. Who knew that the wretched pit that is present day Salerno once housed an amazing and Europe-reknowned medical school? Where even women were allowed to become doctors...Ariana Franklin: Mistress of the Art of Death
Wonderful. And amazing as a first novel. There are some inevitably cringe-worthy scenes (if you're going to be true to the middle ages) but Franklin's ability to bring those times to life is spot-on. And she is amazing with the first of the Plantagenets. Makes me want to jump his unsavory little bones.Nicholas Blake: The Worm of Death
Vintage 1960 British murder mystery. Good if you'd like to learn quayside shipping vocabulary for the docks at Greenwich...Kent Haruf: Where You Once Belonged
Well written but depressing. Very depressing. His others are better.Kent Haruf: Eventide
the sequel, sort of, to the wonderful Plainsong. I know that he's the father someone related to a knitblogger I read regularly. She mentioned him one time and the prior book Plainsong. Who? dunno. I'm not sure I would have appreciated Haruf as much had I not moved to a small, rural town. Go find him. He's quietly wonderful.Ray Kurzweil Ph.D.: Transcend: Nine Steps to Living Well Forever
Another state-of-the-research book from Kurzweil and the longevity physician, Terry Grossman. I liked Fantastic Voyage better, but for sheer quality of information relevant to our health today, it's hard to beat. You can get a free (but for the shipping cost) copy at Ray and Terry's, their website that sells the supplements key to the program. As they say, they don't care if you get the supplements from them or not, just get them, take them and make the lifestyle changes. Then we'll be around to benefit from the next geometric progression of the health research paradigm.Mehmet Oz M.D.: Healing from the Heart: A Leading Heart Surgeon Explores the Power of Complementary Medicine
so far so good. the ego required to succeed in the star-system world of cardio-thoracic surgery is only minimally present at the half way point in this book. In his world this is no doubt radical, radical stuff. Interesting to see the highest towers of traditional western medicine allow alternative therapies in.Diane Ackerman: The Zookeeper's Wife
Love Diane Ackerman. Just started this, I'll get back to you...Dana Stabenow: Whisper to the Blood: A Kate Shugak Novel (Kate Shugak Novels)
Another keeper. All is not well in The Park. The Aunties have taken matters into their own hands. Be afraid. another bit of wonderfulness from Dana Stabenow. Once again I'll be tapping my fingers for another year till the next Kate Shugak mystery shows up. Sigh.Byron Katie: A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are
Loving What Is continued on...tough Work but is there really a choice about it? heh.Greg Mortenson: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time
Alrighty, I'm late to this game but if you haven't read this, go forth and read it NOW. It's a wonderful tale and it's not over yet. As we ramp up the war in Afghanistan why not join the Dept. of Defense and do your required reading? As Rep. Mary Bono (yes, that one) says, you'll learn more about the region from this book than you will from months of Pentagon briefings. Go Dr. Greg!Andrea Camilleri: August Heat
Camilleri's latest Inspector Montalbano mystery set in Sicilia. Just wonderful. Now I have to wait a year for the next one. Crap.Janwillem van de Wetering: The Japanese Corpse (Soho crime)
Two Dutch cops sent to Kyoto to solve a murder in Amsterdam involving the Yakusa. Van de Wetering is a 'voice' like no other. He spent several years in a Zen monastery in Kyoto himself. The entire series has been re-issued by Soho Crime and is totally wonderful. And the cover design by Cheryl Cipriani is awesome. Yes, I'm a cover art ho.Anthony Bourdain: Kitchen Confidential Updated Ed: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly (P.S.)
Alice Hoffman: Practical Magic
The hardback has an illustration taken from Dante Gabriel Rossetti's Proserpine. Much nicer. Hoffman's a great storyteller. And I always want her characters to go forward to the next book. But they never do. Go read this one anyway. You're welcome.Tony Hillerman: The Mysterious West
This is a REALLY wonderful short story collection edited by Hillerman. Lord, I'm going to miss that man. All of the stories are set in the west or midwest, small towns and large. They're quirky and somewhat unexpected, especially relative to the usual work of the authors like J.A. Jance, Dana Stabenow (a bit darker), Lia Matera (chilling), etc. The true find for me is Wendy Hornsby. One of the best written stories, independent of genre, I've ever read. I've never read a more skillfully built exposition of the backstory built into the actual story. wow. I'm off to see what else of hers I can find.Charles de Lint: The Wild Wood
Re-reading this bit of loveliness from de Lint. Among other things, it's about an artist who's lost her mojo. It's apropos given that I've re-started The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron.Elizabeth A. Lynn: Chronicles of Tornor 3: The Northern Girl (Chronicles of Tornor)
Found this as I was repacking ancient boxes of books. It was written in the late 70s and is flat out wonderful. It's the third book of a trilogy (the 2nd one is Dancers of Arun) I highly recommend all of them. It's Fantasy with an incredibly drawn world worth of an Ursula LeGuin, deep and quirky characters, and stay-up-all-night story telling. go. find them.Julia Cameron: The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity [10th Anniversary Edition]
A birthday gift from the Gomez. Starting this once again after years of hiatus. Wonderful.
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August 18, 2004
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HK is a work adventure? When do you go?
I'd forgotten about your Frolic. How can you resist the koigu?
Posted by: Melanie | August 18, 2004 at 01:26 PM
A donation has been made to the Red Cross Disaster Relief fund in your honor. I couldn't make it "officially" in your honor because then you'd find out who I am!
Expect a wee gift in the mail shortly...
XOXO,
Your Secret Pal
Posted by: Secret Pal | August 18, 2004 at 01:38 PM
Don't I have the BESTEST Secret Pal???
And Melanie, if I can't boss Carla around tonight I may leave her (briefly) at the altar for the Koigu Frolic. She's ever so much more amenable..
Posted by: caroline | August 18, 2004 at 04:59 PM