Kat with a K

My head might explode.

Bradley Whitford is reportedly doing a Joss Whedon movie.

We have a new president.

Amazing.

Happy Inauguration Day!

(Remember this? Wow.)

I can't believe it's actually happening. I couldn't sleep last night - like Christmas Eve. I'm trying to think of something actually meaningful to say, but I can't come up with the words. Maybe later after it actually happens and sinks in.

I have a carefully-constructed plan to watch the ceremony in one of the conference rooms at work. It required lots of jumping through hoops and getting permission from practically everyone in the company, it seemed like. I hope it works. Wish me luck. (And of course I'm TiVoing eight hours of C-SPAN just in case.)

It's so awesome, I have no words...

News

I have accepted the position of Product Search Specialist at the company where I've been working for the past few years. I've been wanting this job for a while, and I am very very very excited.

Daily Reading (1/6/09)

Executive Orders: The Famous, the Infamous, & the Ridiculous
Robots, Not Roads
Obama vs. Osama
The 10 Best American Movies (I have seen none of them. Must remedy this.)
Democrats' Factions Could Stall Grand Plans
Understimulated
The Race to Run the GOP Gets Even More Ridiculous

Yes, Pecan!

In honor of the inauguration, Ben & Jerry's brings us a limited edition flavor in scoop shops: Yes, Pecan! Anyone try it yet? How is it?

And I wonder if they were aware of all this when they named the flavor?

Daily Reading (1/5/09)

Fifty Years of Popular Songs Condensed Into Single Sentences
Two Advisers Reflect on Eight Years with Bush
Mark Penn: The Man Who Blew the Presidency
From a Blind Date to Second Lady

Kalispell Mania

Believe it or not, I am weaving in the ends on my third finish of 2009 right now. But before we get to those, I wanted to show you a few of my last finishes of 2008. I got slightly obsessed with the Kalispell hat and made a few as Christmas gifts:

And now I'm working on one for myself...

Daily Reading (1/2/09)

Tortured Reasoning
Obama Faces Legacy of Lawlessness at Justice

And I found the following unpublished list of recommended articles from back in November. Some of them are rather dated by now, but they were all good, so I'm throwing them in here:
The Shadow President: How John Podesta Invented the Obama Administration
Sparring Starts as Republicans Ponder Future
The New Liberalism
Kids, Halloween Candy, and the Election
A Spokesman So Close, He's the 'Barack Whisperer'
Gail Collins: The Election Lives!
Which Minority Group Will Win the White House Next?

Fuzzy Scarf!

Remember back in November when I mentioned that I didn't actually have an everyday warm scarf to wear? Well, I promptly made one, and then never posted it. Here it is:

Yarn: Patons Allure in Turquoise
Pattern: Garter stitch
Knit: November 19-23, 2008
Ravelry page

Join the Dye-namics Sock Madness Knit Off!

Dye-namics Yarn is sponsoring a contest during March Madness. The rules are a little complicated for me to summarize, but basically, in each round participants are matched up against another knitter and have to race to knit socks. Whoever wins goes on to the next round. Go sign up now - only 64 knitters allowed!

Happy New Year!

Happy 2009, everyone! Here's my New Year's resolution for you: I'm going to start blogging regularly again. At least once a week. I promise. I hope it will be more than once a week, but I figure if I commit to something doable, I'll be able to actually follow through. I have a few reading and crafting resolutions, too:

Reading
1. Devote more time to reading. I always read at least a few pages before bed, but when I get stressed and busy it's too easy to let any more dedicated reading time just slip. I hate that.
2. Keep a list of the books I read, and review them all here. I did pretty well with this for most of 2008, but lost it toward the end.
3. Read fewer books at once. I think this will help me stay focused and finish more books. I am intrinsically incapable of only reading one book at a time, so I'm going to try for two - a main/serious book and a light book (like a romance novel or cozy mystery) for when I don't have the brainpower for the main book.
4. Read more books I own. I have several bookcases filled with mostly books that I haven't read. I want to go through and read them and decide what I want to keep to reread.
5. Read at least a few books I've been meaning to read for years. I'm not going to make a list in advance, but I have some ideas.

Crafting
1. Keep a list of everything I knit and crochet, and post pictures here and on Ravelry. Again, I've done okay with this in the past, but I want the list to be comprehensive this year.
2. Finish two projects before buying yarn for and/or starting a new project. I want to decrease my numbers of WIPs, but I know I'll never stick to a stricter rule, so this seems like a good compromise. Exceptions: I can buy more yarn for an already-started project if necessary. If there are several pieces of one gift (like a dishcloth set I'm making now), I can start the next piece of the set after finishing one piece. And if there's an emergency situation - like a sudden baby shower or something - I can start something new but then I have to finish three things the next time.

I'd also like to start writing some movie and TV reviews here, and posting about cooking more. But no specific resolutions there, I don't think.