To My Husband On Our Second Anniversary

Oh Connor, who knew that this last year of marriage would be a tough one to get through. Not because of any friction between us... just that life decided to throw everything at us at once: illness, family deaths, loss of friendships. As it turns out, all that hardship has further glued us together.

The Death Valley trip we went on with Joe

Even through it all, you have been kind and compassionate even when I've fallen apart. You kept up on chores on the weeks I could hardly get off the couch. You've had a good attitude even when things we hoped for didn't work out. Thank you.

The time we went to the Rocky Mountains and took the wrong trail with your family on the way to Dream Lake. 

Despite it being a tough year, we still were able to have fun together. Looking back, I'm really surprised by all the travel we still managed to do. We made it to Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, Kentucky, and Hawaii together. We also traveled to different spots in California like Sequoia National Park, the Alabama Hills, Death Valley, Camp Layman, and Pinnacles National Park.

The time we went on that all-day canoeing trip in Kentucky. We chose the fiberglass canoe because it wasn't hot from the sun. It turned out to be superior because had a flat bottom and didn't get stuck on the rocks.

Looking back, I can now confirm that when we got married I got the better end of the deal.

 Happy anniversary, my love.

A Very Kiwi Christmas

I might have missed my Christmas deadline with these socks... luckily Christmas comes around every year. I really enjoyed knitting this pair. The pattern, Geek Socks, by Wei Siew is completely potato chip knitting. I just had to have another round, another stripe, another another another. 

I did make an edit to the pattern: I knit heel flaps rather than an afterthought heel as recommended in the pattern. I have gotten reasonably good at getting my stripes to look nice in heel flaps, so I went for it. I only had to rip once because I decided I didn't want the red stripe surrounding the heel.

This pair is so cozy, too! I bought Stray Cat Sock's Essential Deluxe base, which is a 80/10/10 Merino/Cashmere/Nylon base. And I'm just in love with the Kiwi Christmas color way. It reminds me of the Grinch Who Stole Christmas.

I'm pleased to report that I was able to enable friends at knit night. When I had ordered all my yarn, I'd offered to tack on anyone else's order to help save on shipping from New Zealand. No one took me up on it. But after I started knitting these socks... well. I'm pretty sure Stray Cat won't be going out of business any time soon.

I'm not the only one to have finished up some knitting. Connor knit me a pair of Lambing Mitts out of Stansborough's Mithril (also a New Zealand yarn) in the Kokako color way. 

When he knit himself a pair, he left out the extra bit that can fold up over the hands. I insisted on having that part added.

Connor even joined me in watching Netflix while knitting. We watched Versailles while he knit the second mitt and it ended up too small! The plot was pretty stressful at times; he must have been knitting much tighter. Connor ripped it out and knit a third one and that one fit just fine.

So now I have warm hands and feet. It's been pretty cold, so I'm sure they are both going to get lots of use.

Now Over To Our Correspondent In Japan

Hello all. It's been a hard week in the Bear Ears household. Connor's grandfather passed away, so he made a quick trip out to Kentucky for the funeral before coming back, spending a day with me, then jetting out to Japan for a three week business trip. His brother Mason is joining him out there, which I am thankful for. Mason has been diligently studying Japanese, which is helping Connor out a bunch. Meanwhile, I'm holding the fort down, seeing the occasional doctor, and also helping Scooter out after he had his surgery to remove several troublesome fatty tumors. (It turned out one was wrapped around his jugular vein, so it is good he got the surgery.)

Connor and I have been able to talk over the phone, which is great. We were actually speaking to each other during the big earthquake that hit Japan. (Somewhere between a 6.9 to 7.4 depending who is reporting.) He wasn't too close to the epicenter, but he was in his tall hotel building at the time and the swaying really worried him. Luckily he is safe. He sent me this amusing email and has given me permission to share. So today's post comes from Connor in Japan.

Connor:
This is our hotel, one of the tallest building in Japan, and certainly the tallest in Yokohama. Our room is on the 54th floor, which puts us in the top “thirdrant” (a new Masonism; think quadrant). We were swaying pretty hard during the earthquake, but Mason wasn’t worried because he read that our hotel was equipped with “tuned mass dampers” just for this kind of thing.

These are 1 yen pieces, worth less than a penny. They are so light weight, they have to be hollow and probably float on water. Mason went on for a good 5 minutes boasting about how he would never pick one up off the street. Later in the evening one of these fell out of his pocket and he panicked in case it had been a 5 yen piece.

Our bathroom is very weird. See exhibits A, B and C.

Exhibit A: There is an area of the bathroom mirror that never fogs after a shower.

Exhibit B: Our high-tech toilet.

The controls of our high-tech toilet. The seat temperature is regulated, so it always has the feel that someone just used it right before you.

Exhibit C: Our bathroom’s volume dial. What does this go to?! The toilet? Mason’s answer: "The speakers, of course.” Why does our bathroom need speakers?!

We found a noodle shop where we didn’t have to speak to anyone to order. You put your money in the machine and push a button that corresponds to your order, and out pops a ticket that you hand to the waitress.

Mason is looking forward to this snack he found at 7/11. We call it the “noodle dog”.

Thanks for your observations of Japan, Connor.!I'm looking forward to hearing more about it.

The Baby Is Always The Triforce Of Power

My good friend Elaine is going to have a baby soon, so the call that many a knitter feel: I had to make her something. What started off as a simple baby hat idea quickly grew. She and her husband are big fans of The Legend of Zelda, so I knew that I needed to make the baby an Elven Hero hat. Then it seemed like Elaine would need one too. Of course if Elaine had one, so would Caleb. (I think new dads get a little left out in the baby hub hub, so I wanted to make sure he was included.) And all of a sudden there were three hats.

Connor had been talking about knitting a pair of socks as his fourth project, so I talked him into knitting a pair of baby socks for our friends. He worked really hard. He hardly needed any help at all. I was impressed.

This is Elaine and Caleb's first, so in keeping with the Legend of Zelda theme, we packaged everything to match the different parts of the Triforce. It seems appropriate since the three of them are essentially going to become a Triforce.

 This baby is going to be loved, and now it is also going to be cozy.

Wedding In Kentucky

Connor and I were in Kentucky earlier this month for a wedding. I'm not a big fan of weddings (I find them overwhelming), but there is a short list of ones that I am committed to go to. Luckily that list got shorter now that Joe has gotten hitched. We last saw Joe earlier in the year when he came out and saw Sequoia, the Alabama Hills, and Death Valley with us. At the time he hadn't proposed just yet, but he told us a good story about he and his now wife, Emily. When we learned the wedding date, I felt that our wedding gift needed to be inspired by that story. Although I was a little nervous about going a slightly less traditional route for a wedding gift, the reaction they had when they opened it made it all worth while.

And the gift? Well, early in their relationship, Emily agreed to play Joe's all time favorite video game series: Mass Effect. In the first one, there is a vehicle called the Mako that you drive around for parts of the story. Using that vehicle can best be described as trying to drive a drunken rhino. It just isn't easy. Joe told us about how Emily would drive the Mako as if it was invincible; driving into lava (instant death), driving into oncoming fire (near instant death), without a second thought. He said it was like she was a member of the Cult of the V8 from Mad Max Fury Road. She might as well have been screaming "Witness Me" while facing down hundreds of space pirates. The thought was irresistible, so I drew this for them. 

This picture wouldn't have been completed without Connor's help. He kept encouraging me even after the third and fourth drafts of this picture didn't work out. 

Two days after giving the gift, the love birds were married. It was a beautiful wedding with neat touches. Each table had a book theme. I got to sit at the Lord of the Rings table with Connor's family. Joe sat us there on purpose since Connor and I had an accidental Lord of the Rings themed wedding. Connor delivered his best man speech, explaining how he and Joe were soul mates. He went on to let everyone know that they were so close that the two of them got to the point where they would finish each others..... sandwiches. Things like that.  It was a great speech. As the reception was winding down, Joe and Connor got a last moment to themselves. Then Joe was off with his lady love.

Soul mates to the end

Mr. Bear Ears Has Warm Hands

I'm so proud of Connor. Just last week he finished his third knitting project: a pair of fingerless mitts.

When he knit his first project, a scarf, he learned all about knit and purl. With his second project, a cowl, he got comfortable knitting in the round. With this project, Connor really stretched himself; he learned how to use the magic loop method of knitting in the round. He had to start over several times, which I didn't even know about because he was able to restart the magic loop all by himself. Connor conquered the m1L and m1R increases. He also wove in all the ends himself this time around. (I helped him out with his first two projects.) Connor used the Lambing Mitts pattern, but ultimately decided not to add the garter stitch band at the top of the hand. He felt that it would be too bulky when typing.

Although we are still experiencing summer, the mornings are cool, so Connor is already using his mitts when he drives to work in the morning. He mentioned that he felt a bit like Link from the Legend of Zelda games while wearing them.

It was a happy accident that he was wearing his Link shirt when we took the pictures of his mitts

There has been some discussion over what might occupy Connor's needles next. He likes a challenge, so it came down between socks or a sweater. Socks have won out... this time.

Mr. Bear Ears And His First Knitted Scarf

Connor had been diligently knitting away at his scarf. He thought he would have it done for next winter, but it got cold, so he became "motivated to finish" so he says. I'm pleased to show off his very first knitted project, a 2x2 ribbed scarf in Jill Draper Makes Stuff's own Rockwell in the Pacific color.

We decided that the only place the Pacific scarf could be photographed was in front of the Pacific itself

He's already received compliments at work. A co-worker told him they didn't know what a "manly" scarf would look like until they saw his. He was pleased to report to them that he made it himself. I'm so proud.

I'm also pleased to report that he is working on his second project already. It is Purl Soho's Lovely Ribbed Cowl out of Anzula's For Better Or Worsted in the Mariana color.

Since he is on his second project, I thought it was high time for him to join ravelry. You'll find him under the moniker mr-bear-ears.

Annual Goal List 2015-2016 Edition

2015 was the year of becoming an adult. After marrying Connor, we worked to separate all our finances from our parents (or the financial umbilical cord as my Dad likes to call it). We even got our own Netflix account, the true mark of adulthood in our day and age. We did things like book our own vacations and cringe as we spent our own money. I also got to visit places I didn't ever expect to, including the San Juan Islands (thanks Cat and Jim!), the Florida Keys, Salvation Mountain, the Hoover Dam, and Valley of Fire.

Now to this year's highlights.

I got married! It's been great. Connor and I have faced some tough stuff this year, but I wouldn't rather face life with anyone else.

Thanks to Gabriel Harber for taking such grand photos

Learning to snorkel. I didn't ever expect to even try snorkeling, but it is definitely a new favorite thing. It was even more fun because Connor taught me at the Dry Tortugas, which we arrived at via float plane. We will have to go back.

Connor was copilot on the float plane on the way back. We have absolutely no images of us snorkeling because we were having such a good time.

I taught Connor how to knit. At first he told me he was just happy to be a knitting connoisseur. Eventually his curiosity got the better of him. He's already saying things like, "That's my yarn!" and "Maybe we can go to bed after this row." I'm proud of him.

Connor with his boyfriend, Scooter

And now for the assessment of last year's goals:

Goals for 2015:

1. Develop stronger cooking skills. Specifically, I'd like to develop a menu of different meals that spans at least a week. This year I had to go gluten free, which means I have to be much more mindful about food. All my guilty pleasures had gluten. It's been interesting discovering foods that feel like a treat and adhere to my new diet.
Status: Indirectly Achieved. I taught Connor to cook. This was smart because while I'll cook if I need to, it turns out he likes to cook. I don't cook much anymore.

2. Put together a wedding. This is a bit of a challenge because I didn't grow up designing a dream wedding in my head. Connor and I are now working on what we would like the day to look like. Connor is a champ and is supporting me while I'm busy discovering that I have more opinions than I thought I did.
Status: Complete! We are awesome, our families and friends are awesome, so our wedding was also awesome. We have made it 10 months. Go us.

3. Declutter my life. I have so many things! I don't need all those things. I can feel the weight of owning more than I truly need. I also have a large amount of paper records/things that need to be sorted. We all have that large box of paper that you ought to have organized years ago, but now it's sat in that container for a decade and you still aren't motivated to go through it. This is the year for that.
Status: Ongoing. When we moved, we got rid of things. But we moved to a bigger place and found we needed things like a rug to be more comfortable. Mostly we just traded things. Our place its pretty clutter-free, though.
4. Write a comic book. Over the years I'd often think about putting out a comic book. The topic has changed over time, but the desire to make one has remained. I'm not sure if I want to complete a project of this magnitude in just a year, but I think I'd like to just start working on it.
Status: Morphing. I started writing my daily comic again, and have been at it for over 5 months now. Connor and I were working on a website to put it up. I keep going back and forth on whether or not to put it online. I could happen.... maybe.

5. Knit Connor a sweater. I haven't started yet because I believe in the sweater curse. I'm not even swatching. But I have the yarn and a good idea of what I want to knit. Super bonus: we are such a similar size that I can make a sweater that we will both fit into. I'll just have to roll up the cuffs.
Status: Still a goal. I knit him a cowl this year. I have yarn and plans to knit him a sweater. I've settled on designing the sweater. It could be a while yet.

Things on the list got done in one way or another. I'm most pleased with learning that Connor likes to cook. Even he didn't know. We both get to benefit.

Goals for 2016:
1. Work on a menswear pattern collection. Ideally it will have two garments and three accessories. I've been interested in developing a menswear collection for awhile now, but before Connor entered into my life, it was hard to motivate myself to knit garments for someone who wasn't me.
2. Put up a daily comic site. This was a goal in 2011, which changed in 2012 because I stopped doing the comic. But I'm drawing the comic again... so it's a goal again.
3. Learn to weave. I've alternated between being really interested in trying out weaving and having no interest at all. At the moment, I know I have yarns that would look far better woven, so I'm interested again. And I have a buddy who is going to loan me a small loom so I can see if I like it.
4. Design a sweater with set in sleeves. I think doing the math for different set in sleeve sizes is rather intimidating, which is precisely why I must try.
5. Go somewhere I haven't been before. This year, our current vacation plans are to places I've been to, but want to share with Connor. I hope that we can throw in one that I haven't done yet.
6. I'm adding a bonus goal this year: Work on the Knitting Photography Series again. I worked on it in 2013, but stopped when I put my energies towards finishing writing Lit Knits instead. I've wanted to work on it, but just didn't put time aside. I think I'd like to give it a go again.

And so concludes the annual goal list.
When I was writing this year's list up, I looked at some past years for inspiration and realized that I've done a list for 7 years now! I know.... it surprised me too. Here's links to the past posts: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015.

It's Knit Night After All

The other week Connor and I were dog sitting Scooter. I had gone out for my weekly Friday Knit Night. When I came home, I saw this:

Connor told me, "It's knit night after all."

Joshua Tree, Salvation Mountain, And Disneyland, Oh My!

Last weekend Connor and I went on a trip to see bits of California I've never seen on our way to the final destination: Disneyland. Originally we were going to go by the coast and stay in Morro Bay. But wouldn't you know it, all the colleges in the area were doing their graduation and there wasn't a hotel available along the entire central coast. All of it. So despite the heat, we decided to go to Joshua Tree instead. We arrived in the evening and saw the sunset, which was much more impressive because a storm had rolled in and we saw the occasional flash of lightning.

The next day we headed further south to Salvation Mountain. On the way we stopped by Bombay beach, which contains ruins of a once vibrant holiday community. The Salton Sea smells just as bad as everyone describes, but it was still quite interesting to walk around. I hadn't realized that the Salton Sea was formed from a leak in irrigation from the Colorado River in the early 1900s. It has no inlet or outlet and over the years has gotten polluted from agricultural runoff in the area.

By the middle of the day we made it to Salvation Mountain. It is a monument built by Leonard Knight out of adobe and is his tribute to God. The scale is amazing. And to think one man built it. There is a "yellow brick road" that you can climb to stand at the top of the monument.

Salvation Mountain is just in front of Slab City, a place that looks like it has come straight out of a Mad Max movie. There is an outdoor art display in "East Jesus", not far from "West Satan". We drove by, but it was quite hot (106F or 41C), so we stayed in the car. We spent the rest of the day driving around the rest of the Salton Sea, including stopping at a border patrol checkpoint (we were pretty darn close to Mexico at this point). We eventually made it to our hotel in Anaheim that was walking distance from Disneyland. At this point I was suffering from a pretty bad cold, but we walked to downtown Disney, had a lovely dinner, and walked back.

The next day was epic. We spent 15 hours at Disneyland, including lunch at my all time favorite restaurant: The Blue Bayou. It was quite crowded for a Monday, but no matter. We got onto each ride we wanted to once. (We also saw someone getting proposed to.) By the end of the day we staggered back and passed out immediately. Not too many pictures were taken because we were having a lot of fun. But near the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, I found this hat and decided that Disney missed out on having a really good extra in their movies.

On our last day, before leaving LA, we stopped by the La Brea tar pits. I'd been there before, but Connor hadn't. I highly recommend going to the Page Museum that is located on the grounds. Connor got to meet a large mammoth.

We then drove up Highland street so Connor could get a glimpse of the Hollywood sign before we drove on to Solvang for an early dinner. It was 10pm by the time we got back home. We filled our four days to the brim and drove over 1000 miles (1600km). By the end, we were quite happy to be back in our own bed again.

Two Knitters, One Roof

Connor has started his first official project. I thought we'd gotten pretty far in the swatch, so it was time to try out a scarf. We decided on a 2x2 ribbed scarf. To get him going, I handed over two skeins of Rockwell from Jill Draper Makes Stuff in the Pacific color way.

Since we've started the scarf, Connor's been saying things like, "We should knit tonight." And, "One more row."

He's making great progress, too! Maybe when he is done, I'll get to borrow it.

A New Knitter Is Born

When I last asked Connor if he'd like to learn to knit, he told me he was more of a knitwear aficionado than a knitter. I thought I'd ask again, and this time he was curious. I imagine it had something to do with watching me knit all the time.
So, the other day we sat down and I showed him knit and purl. He caught on faster than anyone I've ever seen before. I showed him tinking. ("Tink" is "Knit" backwards, because that is what you do when you have to go back to fix something.) He got proficient. At one point he asked if there was such thing as "double tinking" after having to go back twice.

Connor said I should name this picture "Brown" because he is wearing a brown shirt, sitting in a brown chair, and knitting brown yarn. 

On our second day of knitting, I showed him how to make ribbing. He was so interested in seeing the pattern emerge that I offered to go work on dinner. Who am I to stand in the way of a new knitter? By the time he looked up and offered to help, dinner was done. He was surprised that he hadn't even noticed.

Yesterday, he said that he should work on his knitting. Knitters, I think we've got another one!

Honeymooning

I know you are all wondering, "Did she finish the shawl?" I'll put you out of your misery. I did. But I won't have pictures to share for a bit longer. Just know that it looked great.

So Connor had kept the honeymoon a secret. He asked my boss for a mystery number of days off and took me to a mystery location. He did well. We spent three days in Carmel and Big Sur. 

On one of our stops we walked down a path to the ocean. I leaned against the fence and took in the view. Then I looked down.

And saw that there was poison oak everywhere! I somehow managed to miss it all. Even the sprig that was right between my knees.

Connor had never been to Big Sur, so I volunteered to do the driving so he could enjoy the view. We stopped by classic Big Sur locations such as Bixby Bridge.

We popped by McWay falls as well. Some kids hopped off of the path to see if they could find a way down. (terribly illegal) I don't think any of them knew what poison oak looked like. They might now.

It was a lovely three days and it was pretty tough going back to reality (work, responsibilities, etc.) But Connor and I have been hard at work making the apartment comfortable and improving our cooking. Now if only I could fit a little more knitting into my life!