And, it's that I'm just not a blogger anymore. I don't look forward to it like I once did, but rather it feels like this huge chore. I think about it all the time, but just can't muster the energy to actually load the admin page and type something.

Partly it's that I've been in a perpetual bad mood for months now (with no end in sight). It dampens my blogging mood when I have almost nothing good to blog about and there is only so much bitching I can do here without risking y'all getting sick of me and my bitching. Worse, I don't read my friends' blogs much anymore either, and when I do, I never comment. A rut, for sure.

So, while I'll still try to put something here every once in a while, I am on Twitter. And Facebook. And of course Flickr and Ravelry. So i'm not totally "off the grid".

Maybe I'll come around.. I don't know. It seems a shame to keep this thing up for five years and then quit, but I've got nothing good to say. Why publicly harp about my miserableness?

Expect more politics here.

I've thought a lot about my "lack of interest" in blogging over the past few months and I think I've come up with at least part of the reason. I segregated my blog last year, moving political discussion to liberalmom.com. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but looking back it really wasn't. It's just not me. Politics, or rather, progressive politics, are such a big part of my life. Only a hand full of friends read that blog.. and I appreciate those readers, when I do get around to posting there. But, by segregating my thoughts, its as if I was hiding my political leanings, and I don't normally hide. Shrinking Violet, I'm not.

This is a huge political year, probably the most important election season of my entire life - so much I could have written about, and didn't, because I thought no one would read. What a wasted opportunity.

I'm not sure what will happen to liberalmom, as I did invite others to post there with me. And thankfully they have had that soapbox when they felt a need to vent. So ladies, you know who you are, feel free to tell me what you'd like to do with that blog. I'll keep it if you'd like to post there. If not, I'll probably redirect the domain to come here.

So anyway... the past few days in politics have been interesting. That isn't to say that since the morning Sarah Palin was tapped as V.P. candidate, that it hasn't been. I'm still rather dumbfounded by that decision - as is every conservative in my personal life. Great job McCain, they all ran the other way screaming in horror. So thanks for that! Really!

So far I've tried to ignore McCain as irrelevant, because he sort of is. Out of touch, bad ideas, even worse decision making. But the fear cards being played this week by the McCain campaign... The racial undertones... the hate inciting...

From Dana Milbank of the Washington Post

Worse, Palin's routine attacks on the media have begun to spill into ugliness. In Clearwater, arriving reporters were greeted with shouts and taunts by the crowd of about 3,000. Palin then went on to blame Katie Couric's questions for her "less-than-successful interview with kinda mainstream media." At that, Palin supporters turned on reporters in the press area, waving thunder sticks and shouting abuse. Others hurled obscenities at a camera crew. One Palin supporter shouted a racial epithet at an African American sound man for a network and told him, "Sit down, boy."

and more..

Also from Milbank..

"I was reading my copy of the New York Times the other day," she said.

"Booooo!" replied the crowd.

"I knew you guys would react that way, okay," she continued. "So I was reading the New York Times and I was really interested to read about Barack's friends from Chicago."

It was time to revive the allegation, made over the weekend, that Obama "pals around" with terrorists, in this case Bill Ayers, late of the Weather Underground. Many independent observers say Palin's allegations are a stretch; Obama served on a Chicago charitable board with Ayers, now an education professor, and has condemned his past activities.

"Now it turns out, one of his earliest supporters is a man named Bill Ayers," Palin said.

"Boooo!" said the crowd.

"And, according to the New York Times, he was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, 'launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol,'" she continued.

"Boooo!" the crowd repeated.

"Kill him!" proposed one man in the audience.

Emphasis added by me.

McCain/Palin campaign? You done pissed me off even more. I've never wanted a President Obama as much as I do right now. You sling the hate... and I'll spend all my time slinging hope. Reality has a well known liberal bias MY FRIENDS, and I think you know that, otherwise you wouldn't stoop to this sort of shit.

So, to close this with a smile...

I hope you found it as funny as I did.

There, I feel better already.

Where on earth did summer go? I actually had to turn my heat on the other day, because it was 58 degrees in my dining room! I'm not ready. I'm so not ready. Its times like these when I think a warmer climate would be ideal. North Carolina? Tennessee? And if the political climate in the south wasn't such a diametric contradiction of my own views, I'd be packing up a moving truck.

The impending cold also makes me literally itch to knit a sweater. This is weird, because I don't like knitting sweaters. Too much investment in yarn ($) and time (I get bored and never finish them). And while I've always turned away from the, in my opinion, fashion disaster also known as the "shrug", I'm anxiously awaiting the pattern release of Elizabeth's Gordian Shrug (ravelry link here). Luckily, I'm a back up test knitter for this pattern, but damn... I'm cold now.

Other knitting... I signed up for Hat Attack 2, which started last week. The pattern was released on Tuesday, and I had a finished hat to send out to my target on Thursday. My first kill. Since I haven't received a hat in the mail from my assassin, I'm still "alive" and waiting for an unfinished hat from my target to keep playing the game. Confusing? It confused me too at first, but now I have the rules of the game down pat.

Its an interesting pattern, based on a Fibonacci sequence, which I usually shy away from for whatever reason.. I don't know. I despise the yarn called for in the pattern (SWTC Therapi) and opted to sub with Sublime Merino Cashmere Silk DK. It caused some gauge issues, but in the end it all worked out.

As for Music Monday... I know I sort of gave it up in my lack of blogging over the summer. However, I'm bringing it back with a bang. On Friday we celebrated International Talk Like A Pirate Day, and I've been listening to a lot of Flogging Molly lately. Combine the two and you get...

If I don't blog again this week. Have a great one y'all!

It is so hard to post after such a long hiatus. Part of me wants to sit here for hours and tap out a long update.. but I'm not going to do that. I'm just going to try to pick up where I left off, and get back into the swing of things.
Summer is off to an interesting start though! The kids finished their school year last week, just as Richard's office has decided to transition from maintaining a working office to everyone telecommuting. Great in theory.. and with gas prices so high, its a money saver. But starting off.. during the kid's first week of vacation, when everyday is barely managed chaos. Well, lets just say, we all hope to work out the kinks quickly.

As for knitting. Boing! is still in progress, though I've taken a little break from it. The Celtic felted bag is in hiding - I actually hated the pattern as it was slightly confusing. And when I hit a glitch like that in a pattern, I'm completely turned off. Maybe I'll go back to it.. I'm not sure.

What I am rather obsessed with currently is Lizard Ridge. I've watched Paige knit on hers a few times on Saturday mornings when we all get together and well, I was smitten. A weird thing for someone like me who tends to walk right past the Noro at every yarn store. Its pricey.. and its scratchy. But I couldn't resist any longer. And whatta ya know.. I actually don't mind the feel of the yarn. Its also incredibly helpful to my wallet when Beth at Sheep Thrills gives us Ravelers a sweet discount.

The pattern tells us to knit 24 individual "blocks", much like a quilt. Screw that. Too much seaming! So I'm working panels using the equivalent number of blocks. One panel down (left) and the second one in progress (right). I'll be making four total. I've definitely slowed down a bit this past week with all of the changes here at home, but I'm still making steady progress.. and I'm not bored yet.

And oh, Its Monday! That means Music!

Love Rise Against.. And love Little Boxes. For those unfamiliar, Little Boxes is the theme song for the tv series, Weeds (Monday evenings on Showtime) Every episode features a different artist singing the theme (see here for the most recent release). If you have never seen the show *gasp*, get the first few seasons from Netflix and catch up. Its one of the best tv series, ever. Fantastic writing, great acting, hilarious!

So the blog (and my email) went down around 8:30ish this morning.. and now its finally back up almost 12 hours later. If anyone tried to visit today and timed out - Sorry 'bout that. Believe me.. it made me plenty grumpy.

Just when I was trying to get my blogging mojo back...

So I missed music Monday (which I've decided to rename as "whats on my iPod?" anyway) but even setting that aside, I've missed blogging about everything lately. My mojo apparently went on vacation again. Its not that I haven't thought about blogging.. I've just had nothing to say.

So because I don't want to just throw a post here once a week with a music link, I forced myself to take some pictures..

While I'm more fond of the moniker, "McSame", "McW" and "McBush" serve the purpose. You can get your very own stickers here. And free while supplies last, so hurry!

Another We Call Them Pirates hat. I think this is my 5th or 6th one? This one will be gifted to a friend who is moving to a very snowy and cold state in two weeks. I really love this pattern - it goes so fast! Its being worked in Patons Classic Merino - on US3 needles and I'm getting proper gauge.

Now for the music.. Its not new by any means, but when I think of Boston or Massachusetts, I think of Dropkick Murphys. With the breaking news of Ted Kennedy's tumor today.. I just wanted to pay homage to the "Lion of the Senate" in my own warped way. Get well Senator!

Next week I'll post what I had originally planned. A clue: Guitar Hero III Bonus Tracks.

Whoops, I forgot to do the random number generator last night! But I did first thing this morning, and Beth's number was the lucky one! Congrats Beth! I wish I had one for all of you, but I'm happy to lend my copy out when I'm finished with it (Paige? Kris? Loren?) So Beth, I'll bring along the book this weekend when I'll be seeing you!

Additionally, I wanted to apologize to everyone who has commented for the past few weeks. A) I've been really busy and not replying to email as I should be and B) complicating this, is that my spam filter has not been working right. "Real" emails have been going in my spam filter, and tons of spam has been landing in my main inbox. Since I get so much spam, weeding through and sorting it out can be overwhelming to the point where I quickly scan for "real" mail and delete the whole lot of them in frustration.  I think I have it fixed now, so hopefully my former comment etiquette will return.

.. or a meme and how it relates to the sniffles?

Nan tagged me for a meme over the weekend, but while I expected to complete it earlier this week, I was hit hard with some sort of viral nastiness. So, since my week thus far as been nothing but viral nastiness, I bring you my meme..

Write your own six word memoir. Post it on your blog, including an illustration if you’d like. Link to the person that tagged you in your post and to the original post if possible so that it can be tracked as it travels across the blogosphere. Tag at least five more blogs with links. Leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play!

• Nyquil
• Sniffling - Sneezing
• coughing - Aching
• Stuffyhead - Fever
• So You Can Rest - or not.

So now I'm tagging, hmm.. Cass, Loren, Beth, Daisy, and KaKi. And yes I know I cheated.. I used way more than six words.

If I weren't so sick this week, perhaps my meme would look different. But being this sick has its benefits. I'm nearly finished with a pair of socks that I started to knit on the way to PA on Saturday. And I finished The Kite Runner (not as good as A Thousand Splendid Suns, but only slightly so).

I know lots of family have been visiting hoping for our pictures of Grammy's 80th birthday party from last weekend, but I haven't gotten around to downsizing them from their original 20+meg size yet. Viral nastiness leaves little patience/energy for sitting at a computer futzing in Photoshop. But I am hoping that Richard will set aside some time before the weekend to show me how to do them as a batch.. all 150 of them so I can upload them to Flickr. I even have some video - my favorite is Danny and Jay playing Guitar Hero (who knew Danny could rock like that?) But the funniest one is the one where I zoom in on the "meter" and watch it quickly plunge to red while they try to do Slayer on "easy mode" - it was hilarious! For an idea of how hard this song is, here is a video of someone playing it on expert mode (omg!) And by the way, I must buy Guitar Hero, as soon as financially possible - I'm addicted.