Psychobunny

You do not need to make the loud *MWAH* sound when you kiss someone good-bye. You just sound like a dork when you do that.

Posted by TheBunny at 11:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Turning this:

Into this:

And leaving my hands looking like this:

Which is pretty gross because they don't look stained so much as they just look plain dirty. Ew.

The cherry jam is OK. Not my favorite because that good cherry taste is gone and it is just sweet. I guess this is why they tend to do this sort of thing with sour cherries instead of Bing cherries. So I'm a little disappointed and I think, next time, I'll just freeze them and use them in recipes.

On the knitting front, it is slow but steady. I fell in love with this cardi:

And knocked people over getting this yarn for it. It is Plymouth Tweed in color 5321 (aka Mallard). It is lovely and hopefully won't pill much. The temptation is there to do it in Merino or Alpaca but this is the kind of cardi I'll wear a lot so it better stand up to the challenge a bit.

And can I just say, I love knitting in the (almost) round from the neck down? I probably would love bottom up even more because then I'm not doing endless increases but rather the glorious decreases but I'll take what I can get.

Posted by TheBunny at 09:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

1. Work is busy. And the best kind of busy. I love the projects I'm working on, I love the people I'm working with and I feel appreciated. This is a nice change from the corporation where I loved the work but I was paid significantly less than people they had to fire for incompetence. People with the same job titles and the same work (except they didn't actually produce anything useful). And don't forget the corporation that I loved where I was working and who I was working with but wasn't crazy about the work and neither was the corporation since they laid off the entire department 3 months after I started. I'm trying to enjoy every minute right now. Who knows how long this will last!

2. Dogsitting entire packs of dogs. Completely overwhelming and all-consuming. It was like having 6 small children in the house. Constant laundry, cleaning, dishes, etc. I really can't figure out the dishes part since they eat their meals out of the same bowls but somehow, I was always doing dishes. I was so overrun with hounds I even had a dog bed in my closet. Which was just fine with those who get grumpy about being stepped on by less intelligent careful dogs. (*disclaimer: any jeans you may see hanging sloppily out of the dirty clothes bin are there because large, grumpy hounds were asleep and I missed the bin when I tossed.)

3. Deadline knitting. The Dulaan deadline always kicks me into another gear even though I knit pretty consistently throughout the year for them. But I always decide I didn't do enough when I go to put them in the box to send. Also, a good friend had her first baby and that means I must create the good mojo that goes along with handknitted items for babies. I'm convinced it is like good magic or something. Even if the baby can't wear it. And actually, the baby was born in Spring so I didn't make any garments, I did a blanket and some booties but the blanket was a bit of a slog.

Inspired by one of the patterns in Mason Dixon Knitting, I tried Lion Brand's Microspun. It was not fun to knit with. It was like knitting with embroidery floss but it makes up a great fabric. Although I suspect it will be snaggy. I washed this blanket and threw it in the dryer before I gifted it because the baby's Mom is allergic to dogs and, well, I have a few in my house now and then. It washed very well. I am impressed enough with how it did that I will likely make more baby stuff with it even though it was splitty and a hassle to knit.

Quick shot of the booties. I used some left over sock yarn but I can't remember which pattern I used. If anyone is desperate to know, drop me a note in the comments and I'll look it up when I get home tonight.

4. Summer. Great weather has been very distracting and even though I live in an apartment surrounded by busy streets and gas stations, grocery stores, etc., the wetlands around here nurture a lot of fauna. I've really been enjoying the baby bluebirds that dominate our green area and this morning I came out to this little guy.

He is an American Kestrel. He (and probably his Mom) thought the space between my car and the box on top was a terrific shelter. And it really was until I was rude enough to come out and start opening car doors. He panicked a little and tried to get out at the side which just didn't have enough room but with a little encouragement from me I showed him the back which was where he was able to get out and look back at me to make sure I was really going to evict him. Poor guy. If my bike didn't have a flat tire I would totally have let him have it. I didn't even mind all the poo he left.

He flew off with no problem to a tree nearby so I know Mom can find him.

5. The Beach. When the great weather kicks in, it is difficult to resist the call of the beach. And the wonderful knitting shop there. Tell Geisha I sent you.

6. Changes. We are in the process of saying goodbye to a beloved family member. Age and cancer are taking her slowly and we have been trying to enjoy our time with her as much as possible. This month we will have to say our final farewell.

Posted by TheBunny at 12:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Rosalynn Smith Carter (1927-)

First Lady

Rosalynn Smith Carter was named "The Steel Magnolia" by the White House press corp. for her Southern sweetness and tenacity.

Relationship: 8th cousin 2 times removed

Booker Taliaferro Washington (1856-1915)

American educator, political leader, author

Booker T. Washington was born as a slave but was freed at the age of 9. He received national attention as a spokesperson for African American citizens.

Relationship: 7th cousin 5 times removed

Lara Welch Bush (1946-)

First Lady

Present First Lady Laura Bush has taken an interest in the effects of the September 11 attacks on children. she has revived the more traditional role of First Lady back to the White House (gag)

Relationship: 9th cousin 1 times removed

Jane Austen (1775-1817)

English Author

Jane Austin was well educated and began writing at a young age. Though she wrote with a man's alias, many of her novels, which include Pride and Prejudice and Emma, have become widely popular.

relationship: 7th cousin 7 times removed

John Cage (1912-1992)

American Composer

John Milton Cage was an American experimental music composer, writer, and visual artist. He is most widely known for his 1952 composition 4'33", whose three movements are performed without playing a single note.

relationship: 11th cousin

Robert Peel (1788-1850)

American Police Officer

Robert Peel was the originator of the modern concept of the police force. He reformed British criminal law and established the Metropolitan Police Force.

relationship: Distant (24) Great Grandfather

Richard Allen (1760-1831)

Reverend, ex-slave

Richard Allen was an African American pastor and the founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. He was born as a slave to a colonial jurist.

relationship: 3rd cousin 10 times removed

Caesar Rodney (1728-1784)

Delaware Representative

Active in political beginni9ngs of the United States of America, Caesar Rodney signed the Declaration of Independence as a representative of Delaware. He was also a member of the continental Congress and President of Delaware during the Revolutionary War.

relationship: 6th cousin 9 times removed

George Eliot (1819-1880)

English Author

Mary Anne Evans wrote under the male pen name "George Eliot" so that her work would be taken seriously. Her use of counterpoint plot in her most famous work "Middlemarch"created a turning point for the English novel.

relationship: 10 cousin 1 times removed

Cary Grant
(1904-1986)
British-born, American Actor

Archibald Alexander Leach, better known by his screen name, Cary Grant, was an English film actor. With his distinctive Mid-Atlantic accent, he was noted as perhaps the foremost exemplar of the debonair leading man, not only handsome, but also witty and charming. He was named the second Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute.

relationship 10th cousin 6 times removed

George Read (1733-1798)

Delaware Representative

George Read, a signer of the Declaration of Independence from Delaware, was highly involved in the politics of the early United States. He served as a delegate to the US Constitutional Convention, was a Continental Congressman, and later was Delaware's representative in the US Senate.

relationship: Distant (44) Great Grandfather

John Wesley Hardin (1853-1895)

American Outlaw

John Wesley Hardin was an outlaw and a gunfighter in Texas. He was reported to be the meanest man alive, once killing a man just for snoring. Most of his gunplay was a result of his short temper.

relationship: 3rd cousin 5 times removed

Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)

Anglo-Irish Priest and Writer

Jonathan Swift is well known for his satirical prose such as Gulliver's Travels and A Modest Proposal. Swift, was also an ordained minister in the Church of Ireland.

relationship: 2nd cousin 8 times removed

George Wythe (1726-1806)

Virginia Representative

George Wythe was a slave owner who became an abolitionist. He signed the Declaration and also became the Mayor of Williamsburg Virginia.

relationship: 3rd cousin 7 times removed

Andrew Johnson (1808-1875)

17th President of the United States of America

After the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, Vice-President Andrew Johnson assumed the PResidency. Johnson was the first president to be impeached, but was acquitted of the charges.

relationship: 4th cousin 6 times removed

Ray Boone (1923-2004)

Baseball player

Raymond Boone has baseball in his genes. An infielder for the Cleveland Indians, his son, Bob Boone, and two grandsons have also played baseball professionally.

relationship: 6th cousin 3 times removed

John Milton (1608-1674)

English poet

John Milton is famous for his epic poem "Paradise Lost." The poem is written in blank verse and consists of twelve books. Paradise Lost follows the biblical story of the fall of man.

relationship: 1st cousin 13 times removed

Richard M. Nixon (1913-1994)

37th President of the United States of America

Richard Milhous Nixon was the first US President to resign from office. His resignation came from impeachment caused by the Watergate Scandal.

relationship: 7th cousin 1 times removed

Vina Fay Wray (1907-2004)

Actress

She is best remembered for her role as Ann Darrow, the blonde seductress of a gigantic, prehistoric gorilla in the classic horror/adventure film King Kong (1933).

relationship: 6th cousin 3 times removed

Mark Twain (1835-1910)

American Author

Samuel Langhorne Clemens thought of his pen name, "Mark Twain," while working on a riverboat. This humorist's works include Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

relationship: 5th cousin 5 times removed

Truman Capote (1924-1984)

American Author

His works have become film legends, such as Breakfast at Tiffany's. Born Truman Persons, he wrote the screenplays of many films, as well as creating the short story "miriam" which won an O. Henry Award.

relationship: 7th cousin 2 times removed

Sam Bass (1851-1878)

American Outlaw

American train robber Sam Bass robbed the Union pacific gold train and tool $60,000, the largest robbery of the Union Pacific to date.

relationship: 5th cousin 6 times removed

Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969)

34th President of the United States

Dwight David Eisenhower was a successful soldier and politician. He launched the program for an interstate highway system and raised the minimum wage.

relationship: 6th cousin 4 times removed

Angelica Van Buren (1818-1877)

First Lady

Angelica Van Buren was the daughter-in-law of President Van Buren. His wife passed away several years before his presidency, so she assumed the role of Fist Lady and White House hostess.

relationship: 5th cousin 6 times removed

Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973)

36th PResident of the United States of America

Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as President on Air Force One after the assassination of President Kennedy. He launched the Medicare Program, and saw the beginnings of the Vietnam War.

relationship: 7th cousin 2 times removed

Jimmy Hoffa (1913-1971)

Teamster Leader

James "Riddle" Hoffa was an American labor leader with ties to the Mafia. The circumstances surrounding his assumed death and disappearance are still a mystery.

relationship: 7th cousin 3 times removed

Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863)

French Artist

Eugene Delacroix was one of the most important French Romantic painters. His studies of the optical effects of color influenced Impressionism. Many of his works depicted contemporary events, such as "Massacre at Chios."

relationship: 7th cousin 3 times removed

D. H. Lawrence (1885-1930)

English Author

D. H. Lawrence was a prolific and controversial writer. His novels include "Women in Love" and "Sons and Lovers."

relationship: 7th cousin 3 times removed

Isaac Newton (1643-1727)

Scientist, Mathematician

Isaac Newton is regarded as one of the greatest scientists and mathematicians in history. He described 3 laws of motion that also govern the entire earth and the celestial bodies surrounding it.

relationship: 3rd cousin 11 times removed

John F. Kennedy (1917-1963)

35th President of the United States

Irish-American politician John F. Kennedy is an icon of American liberalism. His presidency saw the beginnings of racial integration, the Space Race, and the Cuban missile crisis. He was assassinated while in Texas.

relationship: 8th cousin 2 times removed

Butch Cassidy (1866-1908)

American Outlaw

Robert LeRoy Parker, better known as Butch Cassidy, was part of an infamous group of train and bank robbers, called the Wild Bunch.

relationship: 8th cousin 2 times removed

F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940)

American Author

Francis Scott Fitzgerald is considered to be one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. He wrote "The Great Gatsby" and "This Side of Paradise."

relationship: 7th cousin 5 times removed

John F. Kennedy, Jr. (1960-1999)

American Icon

John F. Kennedy, Jr. was a lawyer, socialite, and publisher. The son of President John F. Kennedy, John Jr. grew up mainly on the Upper East side of Manhattan. On July 16, 1999, John Jr. along with his wife and sister-in-law, were killed in a plane accident over the Atlantic Ocean.

relationship: 9th cousin 1 times removed

Charles Kingsford Smith (1897-1935)

Aviator

Charles Kingsford Smith was an Australian Aviation Pioneer. He was a legendary pilot who was the first to fly from the US to Australia, and the first to fly non-stop across Australia.

relationship: 8th cousin 4 times removed

Laurence Olivier (1907-1989)

British-born Actor, Director and Producer

Laurence Kerr Olivier was an Academy Award-winning actor, director, and producer. He acted in such films as Wuthering Heights, Pride and Prejudice, and Spartacus. Olivier also appeared in many plays throughout his career.

relationship: 9th cousin 3 times removed

I've been wasting all afternoon here.

Posted by TheBunny at 03:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)