Paper

There is something really satisfying about shredding up paper. But not just any paper. Only the kind of paper that is really, and I mean REALLY, thin!!!! So thin that when you rip it with your fingers you can keep ripping it past the point of really being able to rip it! Satisfying I say.

But maybe what is more satisfying is reading the words on that paper and remembering the good times. Abiding by the rules of "don't let anyone else see", you rip it up so no one can see it and it's so nice to rip up paper so thin. 

This CD I'm listening to is amazing. Someone who used to love me made it for me. I love it. They really did love me. It's so perfect. Nothing will compare.

<3 <3 <3 <3

New Year, New Me! Ha! 

October Only Means One Thing...

Or perhaps two things. Turkey is one. Yum. The other is music! Gigs Galore!! In other words, I have some gigs coming up that everyone should go check out. October really is lovely! This time last year it was snowing like mad. I'm pretty stoked to wake up and there still be no snow on the ground! After our non-existent Summer, I say we deserve a lovely October.

Right! Back to the music! So there are some coffee shop gigs I have coming up! Do yourself a favour and check 'em out. Details can be found here: ( www.vanessamastin.com/tour.html ) Good. So now that you're all set and coming to my shows, Also, you'll hear songs you can't hear online, so you better come just for that! ha! Also, I went to the shops and am making a bunch of things to hand out at my shows. Ooo! 

Okay! So enough of my shameless plug for my music,  Update! No longer going to stay in a pyramid. Found out that it's gross and really smokey. Gross. So now we're staying at a place that is the replica of my favourite City ever! Wooo! Excited! 

And the mittens? We're at 57 pairs! 

 

Geometric/ Team Spindle

Have you ever dreamed of sleeping inside a geometric shape? I mean, granted we all already do. Be it a square or rectangle, or for the adventurous types, a half-trapezoidal configuration with slanted roof... I digress. But! Have you ever thought in your wildest dreams you could sleep inside a pyramid? I for one, have not. BUT! I get the honour of fulling this now apparent dream by doing just that! Sleeping in a giant pyramid! 
Vacation time! With me, I have to go somewhere fun! And what better place then the city of sin? I'll not only get to sleep inside a massive pyramid and finally have my makeup resemble the people who built it (well.. not really), but I'll also get to visit my good friend the Candy Coated Chocolate Peanut Dude! Example:

 

Hopefully this guy will be less dirty when I see him again.

So There you have it. Have you guessed yet? 

Either way, I'll be soaking up the sun and living the dream. *Ahem*

Now For Something Completely Different:

Recently, I've wanted to take up Spinning!!! (Because knitting isn't weird enough). But the realization that spinning wheels are expensive and aforementioned trip is not cheap, I decided to go the thrifty route and get a drop spindle. This is a good idea to get started, but I know I'll be after a wheel come the new year!!!

So here it is:  

After lesson one, here's what I've got:

 Wooo!!!

Next project, dye the yarn!!

As for the Burger Chain, I was lieing, there is a reason:

O.o

Traffic Lights

There is a stretch of road on my drive to work that irregardless of time of day or day of the week, the lights always turn red. You are guaranteed to sit at the red light, wait for it to turn green and by the time you get to the next light it is red. I'm pretty sure they are set this way. Maybe it's the city's way to ensure that speeders don't speed. But it does seem a bit over kill/ridiculous! I just can't stand pointless red lights! 

So this topic of lights got me thinking of my travels to Europe, Summer of 2009. We started our 2 month tour by getting to know everyone on the bus which would soon become our home. We were told to go around the bus and introduce ourselves and say where we're from, a bit about yourself and what light you are. The idea was, Red meant you were taken and not looking for any type of relationship. Amber meant you were neither looking nor not looking. And last but not least, Green meaning single and looking. This was the best way our tour manager figured to ask the uncomfortable question that everyone wants to know! hahaha. As it seems, it's not everyday you go up to someone and ask their relationship status. But then again, how often do you find yourself on Facebook or MySpace looking at someone's Relationship Status? It's like an unwritten rule. You do not ask, but you want to know.  Ha!

So what's everyone's light? I suppose I'm Amber, but the way Kat said it best:  "Amber... I'm not looking, but if something good comes along, I'll snap it up."

Burger Chain

So! Pet peeve time! I just don't get drivers! It doesn't seem to matter what you drive, you get on my nerves. I just don't get why people drive sooooo close to the rear of my car that if I were to touch the break a little, they'd smash right into my car. I understand needing to get somewhere in a hurry. I also understand the want to drive fast. But that, my friends, is what the fast lane is for. This may come as a surprise to some, but would you believe that the far left hand lane is actually designated the fast lane?? And that the right hand lane is the slow lane. Rock Science! I know. But I'll try and make it simple. If I'm going the speed limit (It's there for a reason, we all ought to do it), then I'm either in the slow lane or the middle lane if there is one. If you want to race and go reckless fast, do not tail gate me in the slow lane. That's just stupid. 


Vice Versa. If I'm in the fast lane, it's because I'm passing you. Do not then drive faster to then get in front of me to then slow down again. You pass on the left hand side. It's just a fact. Why people continue to be unable to understand these simple unwritten rules, is beyond me. 

Enter in rain/snow/fog/weather related anything:
So then people decide it's okay to drive faster than their already over the speed limit fast and not use turn signals and only high beams! .... bah! I do not understand the "magic" they must posses to feel safe enough to put their lives in jeopardy for the feeling of "getting somewhere fast". When I can't see the road due to rain and the speed limit is posted 80, and I'm doing 80, give me a break! Do not tail me and then pass me and cut me off going 150!!!

I just wish I was a traffic cop sometimes. Then I would pull over all the people that seem to think they are God and can do whatever they want with no thought of others. *Sigh* Maybe one day they'll learn.

[/Rant]

(As for the title..no reason!)

Whatcha gonna do with all that....

Mittens! All those mittens, that is!!! 

So here's the deal! My wonderful sister is getting married next year. She, like me, is a knitter (as you may remember from previous posts). 

So in Estonia, there was a tradition that women who were getting married, knitted mittens for their guests.  Like this:

 Beautiful but time consuming for certain. So What does my sister suggest to me? You got it! That she wants to knit mittens for every guest invited to the wedding. Nothing this complicated to say the least (in fact quite simple!!!) but mittens nonetheless. No one in our family is Estonian... this is purely for the challenge and fun.

Enter Ness. I knit. So why not ask Ness to knit half the pairs?? ... Not a problem! 'Cept there are 100 people invited!!! 

As a consequence, at work I use my slow time to knit mittens. I might even have an unknown nickname as the "Mitten Girl" for all I know! But it doesn't matter who I talk to, people are intrigued by my knitting! A good way to use time during the lulls and no need to think about it. So it's been fun. So consider this your first update.

To date, we have:

42 pairs
84 Mittens
58 more pairs to go.
less than a year to complete this task.

Not the most updated photo, but you get the idea

Stay tuned...

School Again

Every September marks the beginning of a new year. Ever since the young age of 4 or 5 people get ready. The great anticipation. The anxious sleepless nights. Thinking about what will happen. Every September, thoughts of fear and excitement fill the air. Who will you meet? What will happen? Will you have fun? Will you be scared? 

School. 

I can't help but smile as I take a drive, in the one of the last warm days of what ever this so-called "Summer" was, and see all the children from 4 to 18 walking around. Waiting for a bus. Driving home. Loitering. Ahh! Such a relief to know I no longer have to go through that. Suffice to say, I've done my bit. 17 years of schooling later, I am happy to say that this is the second September in a row where I've been school free. No more debt to add on to the 4 year University degree I've accomplished, no more crummy over priced text books. 

Life is good. I've also learned that half the stuff I learned in school/Uni, really doesn't pertain to every day life. And I've also learned that I really don't know anything at all. Through allllllll the knowledge I've gained, I'll never come close to ever knowing everything! So much I don't know, or so much I've forgotten. 

I've also learned that it doesn't matter how many friends you had in High School, everyone leaves anyway and no one cares in a few years. Funny how life is so tragic and important all at once over nothing. I'm glad that I went to school and graduated from High School as well as convocating from University, but if I had to do it again, I wouldn't. I don't regret it, but I don't miss a thing! :) 

The Story of Yarn and how it took over my life....

Hello again! So today's topic is all about yarn!!! How I love yarn! I never though anything of it a few years ago, but when my sister started knitting back in 2007, I liked the idea too! So shortly there after in 2008, I picked up knitting. I grabbed the wrong size needles to start on and the worst yarn to begin with! It was so chunky and bulky, I couldn't even see my stitches. But! It was also useful because I couldn't see my mistakes either! ha HA! Needless to say, I started on a scarf and promptly got bored after a week of it. I wasn't fast enough and that scarf was never going to get finished. So I set knitting aside and decided to focus on other things, like traveling! To Peru for example! (But that's another topic for another time).


It would seem that knitting was not for me. But those of you who know me knows how this story ends. Moving on. Enter a friend of mine who wants to learned how to Crochet! Not only just crochet, but crocheted Cupcakes! Here's an example: 

I really like this little guy! I thought he was so cute with his cherry and his smile! I also love the look of the other cupcakes too! So I went in search of patterns for cupcakes! What ended up happening though, was me stumbling upon (I'll check that website out ONE day.. for now... courage!) a WHOLE bunch of patterns for little amigurumi dudes!!!   

Amigurumi: knitted stuffed toy: is the Japaneses art of knitting or crocheting small stuffed animals and anthropomorphic creatures. 

So says Wikipedia! 

So there I am looking at all these patterns and thinking to myself, "Well I already know how to knit, sort of, so why not just knit them instead of learning how to crochet?" So that's exactly what happened! I came across some patterns for knitted limes, lemons and apples (as you may remember from my first post!! :D ) So I decided to start there. After learning the "hardest technique" first (knitting on double pointed needles!) ... hahaha! I was on my way to Amigurumi goodness!! 

So what ever happened to that Scarf?? I did finish it! And it only took two more days to do it! After a 10 month hiatus, I brought it back and it had a whole bunch of cute little fruits to keep it company. It turns out that I perfected scarfs as I've made MANY a scarf since then! But that first one I ever made gets used more then any other the others! Mostly because it's so comfy and I don't care if it gets ruined! hahahah! So there it is. 

Wondering about the cupcakes?? I did learn how to crochet too. In 2009, I bought a book called, "The Happy Hooker!" (As Crochet uses Crochet Hooks! Get it?  Hahahahaha!) and it was a book teaching me how to crochet. I now do both knitting and crochet and love them both! I find they both have their own unique ways about them and am very glad I know both. So I did do a cupcake. Nothing as elaborate as I'm sure I will one day, but here she is: My first crocheted Cupcake:

There have been many more interesting things I've knitted and crocheted, but that's all for now!! :D So if you're ever feeling down, just go buy some yarn! I know it works for me!!! :D 

Relieved, Literally.

So basically, here's the scenario... 10 bathroom stalls, no one in the washroom. You go in. Choose a stall. Someone comes in after you and chooses the one RIGHT beside you. ... I mean peeing in public is bad enough as it is, but when someone is RIGHT beside you? I don't know about you, but I just think unless the bathroom is completely full, why wouldn't you leave stall or two in between for extra "privacy"? The Sociologist in me wants to come up with something profound, something along the lines of, "This is humanities cry for help, showing their insecurities and their constant need to be by someone, with someone to feel whole"... but then I think, "It's the washroom.... could this really be that profound?"  I'm not sure if men have the same issue, but there must be some type of unwritten rule that if the washroom isn't completely packed and you see someone is a stall at the end of washroom or the start of it, you don't go RIGHT beside them. I donno... maybe I'm analyzing the situation too much. You tell me. 

Also... speaking of washrooms, I was convinced for the longest time that there was a poltergeist in the washroom at work. Only because every time I was in there alone, would I hear the weirdest of noises. Almost like a semi-laugh type of thing. It sincerely freaked me out. It also didn't help that I had watched Ghost Busters recently, but that is a REALLY funny movie!! Honestly, I had forgotten how good it is! But I digress, so then one day after that sound happened, I looked up and saw.... An Air Freshener.  Yes my friends, an air freshener was the source of my irrational fear of the washroom. Go figure! Now I don't know about you, but couldn't they make no noise at all? Or something like, "I'm an Air Freshener, Don't be Alarmed!" Okay, maybe not that last one, but you get the point. Anyway.... 

Since we're on the topic of washrooms, I am in the process of going through the short videos I took whilst on my Europe Adventures last year (another topic some other time) and came across this one. I have to admit, it does a good job sanitizing! And do not worry, there was nothing in the bowl when I took this video. hahaha. For 2 Euros to use the darn thing, you better believe I was going to take a video of it! Enjoy!

And one last thing... something that frustrates me a little, is leaving water EVERYWHERE after you wash your hands. And you better wash your hands, don't think you can get out of it now that I've stated this. It's just simple common sense... after you wash, use that excess paper towel you always grab but never need and wipe up your few drops that you left on the counter. I don't know why this is so hard for people, but it's just a really nice decent thing to do.

Okay... washroom talk is over. Who knows what I have next on my mind. Till then!



 

A whole lotta fruit

Whilst deciding upon a Title for my very first entry in this Blog, I began by clicking on the box for "Title" at which point a pull down menu of all the previously typed words I've entered in the past showed up. Upon going through this list, as it intrigued me to see what I had written in the past, I found a whole lot of fruit names. Lime! Coconut! Lemon! Apple! You get this idea. It would seem at first that I am intrigued by fruit. In a sense, yes, I am. In a different way. I like to knit fruit. (You: What??!) It's true. I knit, first and foremost. Sure, the occasional scarf and hat, but when I really starting knitting, I was interested in using yarn and needles to create polyfil stuffed knit fruit! Such as the following which I personally knit! ha HA! 

So that explains the title. As for all of this.... I've been meaning to start a Blog, but just never really got a round to it until now. Also, I have to admit, I'm not a huge fan of the term, "Blog". Something about it sounds silly to me. I mean, I get the "log" part, no problem... but the "B"??? Where did that come from? I posted this query a while back and had a friend of mine Google it for me (and since Google was used as a verb, it's got to be right). She came up with that Blog is short for Web Log. Which we decided was "We Blog" . hahahaha. Either way... It makes more sense, but I still don't like it. There it is.. it's like Blob or something. Just doesn't sound flattering. But there you have it.

I also took it upon myself to look at all the terms and uses and policies and what not before signing up.... after a few days of reading I decided this was okay and good. So here we are. I wonder how many people will stumble upon this (I hear that's a website too... maybe I'll check it out someday) and enjoy it, and who will just continue on. Not sure, but that's what it's at right now.


Anyone still there after all that?