When we were starting to plan our drive to Washington from Wisconsin, I held a strong opinion on only one subject: I wanted to see Mount Rushmore. I feel like every other kid has had a pilgrimage to ...
What to do after getting such a late start? Take it easy. After much debate we decided to mostly just push our schedule back a day and add in a trip to the Badlands National Park.The National Park sy...
Oh. My. Well, that couldnt have gone much worse. I guess the apartment building could have caught fire or maybe some sort of alien invasion, but barring that...first our movers decided at the last mi...
A wise man named Tom Petty once said, "The waiting is the hardest part." Truer words...being in Madison these past two weeks after my defense have been painful knowing that we have to leave. ...
Were moving away from Madison in a week. Regret isnt quite the right word--but Im feeling something in the same family as regret about leaving. I accepted a job in BFE, WA (Richland, classiest member...
Lets get this out of the way: I passed my defense. It wasnt exactly smooth sailing, but when something is pass/fail, it ultimately doesnt matter. Lets not discuss whether or not I wasted six years of...
For my Something different post, Id like to insert a little surreal randomness into your day. Nina the pit-bull terrier mix investigates a tiny snowman in the yard at the Dane County Humane Society e...
Short answer: (via Lana Kane of Archer) Noooooope. Longer answer, my knitting habits wax and wane through the year. Wisconsin and the Midwest in general see the full range of seasons, with negative t...
Who inspires my knitting? Thats an easy one. None of my friends in real life are knitters, so I depend upon the community of people Ive met through blogging. They keep me plugged into the knitting wo...
He loves yarn and handknits almost as much as I do.
Ive hemmed and hawed about whether or not to participate in this years Knitting and Crochet Blog week. I just looked at the topics this weekend--it was like procrastinating on homework. But I always ...
Guys and gals, Im stressed. The PhD (or fud, as we like to call it) defense is coming up early next month, and I seem to be metaphorically crapping my drawers. In my college days I used to get sick e...
Around a month ago, we were regularly walking on the lake.About three weeks ago, we went cross-country skiing.Sammy helped.A week later, Sammy was in the lake instead of on it.And in another week, th...
Mistakes are a part of life...that I absolutely despise. My parents tell stories about how when I was a kid, I wouldnt put pen to paper on a puzzle or maze until I had figured out the solution first,...
Last stop, Sapporo, eponymous city of beer fame. We had some more stupid-Americans-with-too-much -shit exploits right off the bat. Once we arrived in downtown Sapporo, we had the option of taking the ...
We planned to do a backcountry day with a guide while we were in Furano. The first day we arrived, we got a message saying that the date we had planned to backcountry was forecast to have severe weat...
On to the north island of Japan, Hokkaido. We brought all of our own gear, which set up many scenes of hilarity where the silly Americans camped out with their mounds of junk.Waiting for a bus with a...
The copilot and I havent had a proper vacation in over a year. A long ski weekend here or there, but we were past due for an adventure. The seeds of an idea were planted a couple of years ago when I ...
One of my favorite benefits of being part of the blogging world is the sense community with fellow crafters. I think I would have scoffed at the phrase "my internet friend" a couple years ago...
For the past five--maybe even seven--years, Ive dutifully gotten my flu shot. Usually I dont even have to ask, my doc has always pushed them like a street-corner crack dealer. This year, they ran out...
You might want to sit down, because Im about to blow your mind: dogs often like to chew on sticks. Second revelation: knitting needles are kinda like sticks. Especially the bamboo variety.Again???For...
From re-designs to ripping apart to lost socks, these have been a long time coming. I finally posted the Powder 8 Socks pattern to Ravelry.The spiel:Whether you’re braving the winter weather or curle...
A few days ago, the copilot and I brunched at Madison Sourdough, a bakery down the block from our apartment. Its a great place to people watch (who am I kidding--our entire neighborhood is a great pl...
Weve been training our shepherd-husky mix Sammy to pull us on cross-country skis for a few months (sans snow), and we finally got the chance to try out the real thing this weekend after Madison final...
I know I said that I wasnt doing any knitting for Christmas gifts, but I may have done just a little. I dont really even think it counts because the recipient is completely unaware of Christmas, the ...
Sunday was a new start for ski touring at Snoqualmie Pass. We tried to get an early start.The parking lot wasnt too crowded...strangely there were a handful of emergency vehicles there too. A f...
You know how sometimes an event or milestone seems so far off you kind of subconsciously assume that its never going to happen? Thats how I have felt about graduating from UW with my PhD. I havent ta...
Seriously, you guys. Still not done with these fracking man-socks. Well, technically I finished them, in the sense that they have all the components neccessary to constitute a sock: heel, gusset, toe...
Happy Holidays, Seasons Greetings, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah (boy is that hard to spell), Happy Kwanza, Merry Fesitivus, and Happy New Year. Phew, glad weve gotten that out of the way.Seasonal ...
My girl crush the Stitch Diva has some awesome sales going on for some gorgeous yarn! TREAT YOURSELF.This has been your exercise in trying to resist temptation for the day. :)ETA: If it encourages yo...
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