Mall Rat

I am an aging mall rat. For those of you unfamiliar with the term:
Mallrat:
-noun.
homo erectis drawn to its own ilk, who frequent establishments conducive to the obtainment of goods and services. Primary goal is consumerism or to be a voyeur in the midst of consumers. It's natural habitat is loud, colourful, filled with a multitude of consumerism. It is drawn to artificial lighting, and odours from the food courts or mid mall snacking vendors. It will lose track of time easily and readily. It can disappear easily into the abyss of shoppers and displays for hours on end only to reappear in search of nourishment. It can travel in schools or as sole individuals in a never-ending quest for the next unique article. It's superior knowledge of trends and cult lore is bottomless and fueled by those in it's school. It's lifespan is usually from that of 12 to 18 years of age, however it has been known to start at an earlier age and extend well into senior years.
-made popular by the movie, Mallrats, directed and written by Kevin Smith, released October 20, 1995.

You what I noticed today at the mall? Well too bad. I'm going to share regardless :). The senior citizens and the teen age groups wear very similar clothing. Have I mentioned this before? Both groups are prone to wear plaid and baggy clothing; Both have ear devices, albeit for different reasons; Both linger at the food court well past the allotted pointed time on the signage; Both appear to be there everyday. I could probably go on about the similarities, but I worry about revealing too much of myself.
Today was the day the husband and I designated as "shopping for the Christmas festivities". I won't lie, it was an utter hell of an excursion. The lines were worse than the ones at Wonderland for Drop Zone. I have discovered that my ultimate pet peeve are those that linger in the aisle, leaving their cart unattended, talking loudly into their cell phone about a useless topic, all the while ignoring the common courtesy to let others get by for fear that the other person would steal whatever they are vainly searching. I have also discovered that colouring books are far and few between. The technology of crayons has also increased ten fold. I was way out of my element today. I was victorious. I found what I was searching for, and then some!

Okay, that sounds way too negative. Let's change topics.

Friday was a good night. We watched Cloverfield. A very minding bending, sci-fi thriller. At the start of the movie though, I thought my cable was out.

That was the image on the screen for the first few minutes. When you have gone through as many televisions as I have, you get a scooch paranoid. It had a good plot though. I liked how the viewer sees it all through a camcorder. Reminded me of Blair Witch Project. I won't say too much more. I do not wish to spoil it for those who have not seen it yet.

We also had Thai food and this to drink:

It is a Pelee wine, called fittingly: Pelee Bird, Sauvignon Blanc. not that I always select wine based on the awesome labels, but this one is cool, (and it wasn't me who picked out this one due to the cute label;) ).

First the bird sees the drink, tastes the drink, then the drink wins. I love it. It's quite tricky to take a picture of something shiny. This was the best I could do:


I also worked on some very small mittens. I found not too many patterns for mittens to fit a 3 year old hand. This was strictly improvisational.


This is the yarn I used. It was a great deal at Zeller's and according to the label, 100% wool. Now that I think of this, it will probably felt. This may prove interesting.


The yellow piece of yarn is my waste yarn holding the stitches for the thumb.

The very tiny mitten emerges:


Complete with Idiot string.

I don't mean that to be offensive. That is what we used to call the cord that attached the mittens together and ran through the sleeves of our coats so we wouldn't lose them in our efforts to build the better fort.

Well I have rattled on for enough this evening. Actually, it is now the early hours of the morning and I still am not sleepy. I suspect I was overstimulated with my quest for the perfect colouring book and crayons. I hope you all enjoy the holiday shopping and I wish you all the strength and endurance to survive.

It's A Weird Little World Out There

It was a bit chilly out there today. This morning we had our Christmas breakfast with the drivers. It was awesome. For one hour, I get to act the goof and just be silly. I am just of the guys, there for a good time. There are no boundaries, no us versus them, just a group of people sharing a meal together. I loved every minute of it!
Now that I am home, I am relaxing and just surfing around the world wide web. OMG!! It can be a frightful place, but oh so fun.
I stumbled on this image today!
She is one brave lady. I"m terrified of the flu shot. :(
I'm not sure if I have shared this link or not, but I am willing to share again. It's my favourite part of the show to be quite honest. I always wondered how they can create so many different ideas over such a lengthy period of time. When this show first aired, I was in elementary school.
Another thing the net has taught me, no matter how bad your day was, there is always someone that is worse than yours. CAUTION: some very graphic pics, not suitable for all viewers.
There is also some self-help at our fingertips.
When all else fails, we can simply hide in the closet until the badness goes away for a while.


I'm going to try and coax Napoleon out of the front hall closet. I hope you all have a great night!

A Little of This, A Little of That

I had an excellent week end. I finally finished my curtains. It only took a few months:


I had also finally gotten around to removing my Hallowe'en decorations. I thought it best I put away the skeletons (or knit them scarves and toques so they can be festive skeletons) when I discovered this:

It would appear one has been tragically maimed.


The list of suspects is short, but confusing as both appear to have alibis and were at separate ends of the room at the time:
Suspect 1:


Suspect 2.:


We had a lovely meal tonight:
My dinner:


Husband's dinner:


I know, I know....Mine are always a bit more to the plain side. I just like meat on mine. :)

This wine went awesome with the meal.

It was also a great buy. I believe it was under $10.

After supper, we ventured out for a walk. We saw some great Christmas light displays:

This one was my favourite for the night:


I know there are no festive lights on this tree. I just liked how there were still leaves left on it when the rest of the foliage were naked.


It's hazy because my breathe got in the way of the shot. It was bloody cold out tonight.


This one threw me off a bit. It looked like the head of reindeer when I drove by. Upon closer examination, it's a trumpet blowing angel!:


This the building we live in. No, our unit is not seen from this vantage point. :)


These are my walking shoes. Surprisingly, they are quite warm. I suspect it is because they keep me off the ground a few inches.


We may look like dorks, but we are warm dorks! :)


I'm off to continue raiding tombs with Lara. I wish you all a good night and we will speak again soon!

Comfort on a Plate

The week end is almost here!! Do any of you have some awesome plans? Mine involve vacuuming and completing a certain set of curtains.

I had the most wonderful meal the other night. Actually, it may have been five nights ago. My days tend to blur together. It was a stew with dumplings. Just happiness in a bowl if you will.


This wine went splendidly with the meal.

I really do love a good meal. It just makes me feel all warm and toasty and happy. All very good things. What do you all find comfort in?

Napoleon prefers confinement and darkness.


Rebel prefers to be alone. (note: no picture of Rebel. He requested not to be in the photo shoot today)
I especially love when it is freezing outside and you come back into the warmth, get on some snugly pjs, curl up and watch a brainless movie. I think that is what I will do tonight.

We went for our walk yesterday, so I don't feel the least bit guilty about staying in tonight. We saw some very cool Christmas lights on display. This is one:



When we have more snow, I'll take more pictures. I think they look better when the light reflects off the snow.

On a completely different topic, I stumbled upon this:

You Are Boggle

You are an incredibly creative and resourceful person. You're able to dig deep and think outside the box to get things done. You are a non linear thinker. You don't like following directions You draw your inspiration from the strangest places sometimes. You're constantly inspired.

What Board Game Are You?

Give it a go. It's fun !

I hope you are all well
Be safe and stay warm.

Winter is Upon Us

I could sense the chill when I finally pried open my eyes this morning. My spider senses were correct.
This is what I woke to:


And just think, some of it had already melted. I don't actually step outside until 900-ish.

On a more fun note:
Check out this neato torpedo stocking stuffer:


Finally. A mouse/night light!! It comes in all sorts of colours. The orange however spoke to me. It asked that I adopt it. I just couldn't refuse.
It moves very quickly across the screen as well. We found at Wal Mart for under $10. What can I say? I'm attracted to things that are very shiny!

There is actually not much else to share at this point. I'm happy Friday is almost here. I can't wait to get back to sewing my curtains. I need a full day for that task. I hate having to reset the machine. Napoleon is not very helpful in that department. Just when everything is located comfortably, the little terror tries to run with the fabric or the actual pedal for the machine :( He is very committed to being the center of attention. Lord help us if I look at anything else for more than a minute, even if it is inanimate.

Hope you all have awesome plans for the week end. I would love to hear what you all have on tap. Night all!

Just Another Evening at Home

Here is a little update on my wheels. It is still sick :(. Apparently, the little heat I had felt coming through the vents earlier in the week was actually a minor event of flamage. Who knew? So, my truck is still under the watchful care of the mechanics.
We enjoyed a great supper. It wasn't anything spectacular. We just had a craving for Chinese food. What better to wash it down than with a nice bottle of sparkling wine:


It was also a wonderful aid to help clear off a few little projects and start a few more.


I completed the back portion of the little sweater for a special little person I have yet to meet.


I made a huge dent in my curtains for the living room. There are four panels that resemble this one.


I completed my section for the Traveling Scarf group:

I knit up a scarf just for me.

I need to feel a bit of extra warmth since we have been hoofin' it for most of the week end.

Rebel was a great supervisor:

He is careful to inspect every stitch.

And on another off topic thread from my mind, I have yet to take down my Hallowe'en decorations.

I just wish we could celebrate for longer than a night. Perhaps a week long event?

I hope all your weekends was just as much fun, or more so. Enjoy the start to another possible good week!

Is It Friday Yet?

Perhaps it's just me, but this week has particularly long. I was absolutely swamped at work. We are down on staff members due to illnesses and cheap travel accommodations to warmer places. I have been playing catch-up all week as a result. I think I should follow Rebel's lead and hide out until it all goes away.


On a more pleasant note:

• It will be Friday in under a minute.

• I have received a mail package that does not require payment to be made.

• It was a scarf from the Traveling Scarf group on Ravelry!

• I'm sleeping very well at night because I am actually tired.

• I have started a scarf that I think will make someone very happy. That someone is me by the way. :)

• My truck will be cured and have heat on Saturday!
• I came across a web site that offers a cure to a very difficult week.
  

Has anyone else noticed that people have been exceedingly bizarre? I'm going to go now and do some research and see if a full moon is in order.
Hope all of your weeks are progressing a little more calmer than mine. Stay well everyone. :)