i’ve moved!

I've moved over to my new server! You're invited to check out my new site at www.jennhx.com!

This one won't be updated anymore.

this ain’t corny

It's cliché to say you are what you eat. Journalist Michael Pollan examines the huge impacts of what we eat in his new book called The Omnivore's Dilemma. I haven't read the book yet, but I listened to two interviews with Pollan, introducing his exploration of the food cycle and its impact on public health, the environment, the economy, and the landscape. In particular, he focuses on corn, the premier agricultural product of America.

In the numbers

• A farmer can sell a bushel of corn (equivalent to 56 lbs of food) for only $1.45 today.
• At the supermarket, one dollar can buy 2,500 calories of processed foods (crackers, cookies, etc which are laced with corn products) or only 250 calories of carrots.
• Over a few decades, we went from spending 18% of our national income on food to spending 9% now. During the same period, our spending on healthcare went from 5% to 16%.
• Agricultural companies' investments in corn: they buy a raw ingredient at 4¢ and sell a value-added product at $1.00.
• Production of each bushel of corn consumes 1/4 to 1/3 a gallon of gasoline.
• A full one-fifth of our fossil fuel use goes towards our food!

Some tantalizing quotes from the interviews:

• "Corn is the perfect industrial and capitalist plant."
• "Corn is sipping fossil fuels."
• "We prize cheapness in our food over quality, and we're paying the price. The irony is of course that a cheap food economy is incredibly expensive."
• We are paying an "irresponsible price" for our food because its cheapness belies the huge costs in public health, environmental health, and your own health.

Take a listen to these fascinating interviews and check out the book too!

Michael Pollan on NPR's Fresh Air (as always, the wonderful Terry Gross really draws out her subjects and creates a riveting, flowing interview.)

Michael Pollan & others on Radio Open Source

The book The Omnivore's Dilemma at Powells.com

jeff’s socks completed

Socks done! Just in time for 85 degree temperature today! The photo is on My Flicker.

Yarn: Trekking XXL.
Needles: one 40" circular size US 1.
Method: Magic Loop.
Based on this pattern, 72 stitches. Cuff is K3, P1. Stockinette stitch foot.
Time: almost two months.

And I completed the May dishcloth for the monthly dishcloth KAL. You can see it here.

In other knitting news, have you seen that Keeping You in Stitches has a list of all Knit-Alongs?

if you didn’t know already…

matriarchs and cannibals

Matriarchs
In honor of mother's day, I wanted to post a photo… taken last summer of my "matriarchal" family. But since I am unable to post a photo, you'll have to go to MyFlickr to see it!

"Matriarchy is a form of society in which power is with the women and especially with the mothers of a community."(-Wikipedia) My writing teacher has a fascinating, hopeful poem called Sarah and Hagar, about the mothers of the Jewish and Arabic peoples, respectively, and what could have happened differently if the mothers had changed the laws which left all property to the eldest male.

Cannibals
I've been cannibalizing some old blog entries because wordpress keeps giving me this message: "Sorry, you have used your space allocation. Please delete some files to upload more files." And I keep deleting and deleting image files and it keeps giving me the same message. I'm beyond frustrated with it. This is why I am trying to switch servers. I love photos, but I am not a techie, and I don't want to get bogged down in endless tech manipulations. My domain name jennhx.com has been down most of this week because of my new server setting up stuff. Their tech manipulations should have been done by now, but alas, no news… it tries my patience. My posts have thus been limited lately.

I love posting photos. I want to write, possibly professionally, but it's hard. It's much easier to post a photo and be done with it. I love taking photos and want to learn more about how to take good ones. But the lack of photos space on this free blog means I've been frustrated…

Too much is going on in my life that I'm unable to write about. Too many thoughts are swirling my brain

(I'm digging a hole/And the walls are caving in behind me/Air's getting thin/But I'm trying, I'm breathing. Come find me… -Joshua Radin)

making clarity difficult, nay impossible. Why this lack of clarity, I've many guesses but no certainty. I've been spending my time (with my counselor's support) meditating, walking a lot, trying to think positively, listening to Louise Hay, having tea with friends. And I've been spending my time (on my depression's urging) banging my head against the wall*, missing old friends, getting mad at friends who moved away from Seattle, wishing the past away, wishing the past back, cannibalizing the tiny bits of happiness I find, despairing at any change in myself…

…and knitting. I'm almost done with these infernal socks. I'm going to get them done today. I almost got them done last night but then realized I'd made a mistake on the toes so I had to frog.

…and reading. I finished (re)reading Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice for the Knit the Classics read/knit along. This was one of my favorite books and I still love it. Austen's wit and social criticism ring well with me. I got complètement sucked into this book this week, could not put it down!

…and watching movies. I (re)watched La Gloire de mon Père, based on the Marcel Pagnol novel and featuring my first love, Provence! It's the sweet story of a boy discovering his father is only human, set in the beauty and mystery of the provençal countryside. I'm savoring watching the second movie, Le Chateau de ma mere!

In my writing class, I met a woman from Québec this week. We spoke en français for a few moments. I miss speaking French so much! But I was awkward and didn't exactly know what to say.

*not literally

save the internet

Fellow bloggers, help keep the internet free!

"If companies like AT&T have their way, Web sites ranging from Google to eBay to iTunes either pay protection money to get into the "fast lane" or risk opening slowly on your computer. We can't let the Internet–this incredible medium which has been such a revolutionary force for democratic participation, economic innovation, and free speech–become captive to large corporations."  MoveOn.org

service disruptions

this site may be down sporadically the next week or so as I move to another server.

this one’s for Jeff

Have you seen this…?

I just had to post this knitted tank (cover) because well… my hubby is a tank aficionado. Click the photo for more info.

Jeff says…

This [knitted one] isn't the first pink tank, the original is the Pink Panther. The French Army used German Panther tanks they commissioned to be built immediately after the war. There is no known photograph of the Pink Panther but it is said to have been a newly built Panther in red oxide primer that was sent to Indochina to be localized (painted, fitted for hot weather) and evaluated for use there by the French. It ended up not being used and sat in a plantation for years. In 1971, from the air, a crewman from an airborne gunship claims to have seen it and it was faded to pink color.

Also, an artist used a Russian T-34 tank of WWII vintage as a canvas:
http://www.cubittartists.org.uk/mirpink.html

BTW, that one is based on an updated WWII American tank, the M24 Chaffee in case you want to impress any knitters.

Yes, I'm a tank nerd.

Didn't think you would learn all that on a knitting etc blog, did ya?

reorganization

Last Monday, I took my study, which looked like this:

…and transformed it into this:

It's difficult to take pictures since the room is really narrow, but it looks and feels a lot bigger, and I have much more desk space for collaging now.

I was inspired by a big cushy armchair which I got for FREE by the side of the road! We were driving around the north end of Lake Washington, in some richie neighborhoods, and what to my frugal zealot eyes should suddenly appear? A FREE sign on a big overstuffed armchair with little ottoman! With some maneuvering, the chair fit into the back of my Saab (thanks to the amazing 56+ cubic square feet of storage once you fold down the back seats!).

The original upholstery is in great shape except for a large tear on the seat. The cover washed up beautifully and now it looks like new. The cats love the chair and are fighting over who gets to sleep on it. Here, tiny Jasmine grabs the big chair and big Cooper, the small ottoman!

The chair reminded me that we can get what we need. I have a very difficult time believing this with my heart. But, I am not working so money is tight, and I have been really thinking about how a comfy chair would do wonders for my study. Et voilà!

We just heard our apartment building sold, so we don't know what will happen to us. We knew it was a possibility. We are just hoping they don't increase our rent substantially or ask us to leave. On the other hand, it might be time to move soon anyway because Jeff's work is moving to Kirkland, which will be a longer commute for him.

My ear has been acting funny for the last 24 hours, so please send me some good ear vibes. I've got a loud ringing in my right ear. It is very uncomfortable.

you guys rock!

MANY MANY thanks to generous friends and family who contributed towards my participation in today's Safe from the SunWalkathon sponsored by the Melanoma International Foundation. You guys rock!!!

Together, we raised money towards melanoma awareness and education… and also won the Mark J. Scharke Memorial Award for Top Circle of Friends Fundraising Team!

THANKS TO THESE SUPERSTARS:
Barb
Christa
Christine
Christopher
Donna
Dona
Gerard
Jane
Jeff
Julie
Leah
Louise
Manijeh
Michelle
Pamela
Stan

For more information on why I participated, click here. Today's event included free skin checks, a 3K walk, freebies (sunscreen, hats, etc) and awards. (Click for larger images.)

 

There was even knitting time as we waited for the closing ceremonies.

Sure, you were raised to think a tanned body looks better than a pasty white one. But once you learn the facts, you realize there is no healthy tan. I hope you'll help spread the word.

pride & prejudice project planned

Over at Knit the Classics, we are starting Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, one of my very favorite authors. Love that subtle wit. And my project to knit along with P&P will be..

The Flower Hat from Interweave Knits Winter 2004 issue. The P&P sisters always wear bonnets, and this Flower Hat has a bit of the English countryside to it. The younger sisters covet ribbon; this hat has a silk ribbon flower on it (although I may do a knitted flower). The yarn is Yorkshire Tweed Chunky in color Damp (teal). Damp seems like the perfect color to represent those moldy old English homes.

—

As if I didn't have enough to do, I joined this:

for small, mystery projects which could be good gifts. I need some easy cotton dishcloth knitting for meditative reasons!

sock update

Second sock started. Jeffhx's birthday is on Sunday…. Can I get this done in time?

My guess is, no. Since it took me over a month to do the first sock. But now I don't have to make any decisions, so in theory I can just knit, knit, knit! Ok, so I have a few other things to do too, but…

In any case, I missed (by far) the deadline for the Cirque du Socks KAL. The pair of socks was supposed to be finished by the end of April. I did manage to finish a single sock in that time! Bravo to Cara, who knitted four pairs in one month. I am in awe.

50th post!

31.2

My weblog owns 31.25 % of me.
Does your weblog own you?

About a month ago, I took this quiz and discovered that my weblog owned 18.75% of me. Today, the day of my 50th post, I scored… Well, a bit higher. Should I be worried?

One question on the quiz: If you see something interesting or unusual on your way to work/school, you'll immediately think of blogging it (YES/NO). I had to answer yes to that one.

Well, if you saw this, wouldn't YOU want to blog it?!

 

I made Jeff pull over when I saw this. That's right ladies & gents, a barbershop hauler. Need I say more.

Would YOU get your hair cut here? Leave me a comment (YES/NO and WHY). Or, the very brave could call 206 579 ROGG.

Rogg it!

 

(sad) rabbits

There is a large park in our Seattle neighborhood called Woodland Park. It has a zoo… but in the regular park section, rabbits are living in the "wild."

But they aren't actually wild animals; rather, they are abandoned pets and their descendants. This was going to be my urban safari part 3, but after reading up on this issue, I'm too sad to make light of it.

People are abandoning domestic rabbits to the "wild." Once there, the animals are ill-equipped to survive. Earlier this year, volunteers started rounding up animals to take them to the Rabbit Meadows Sanctuary. Eight days later, they were forced to stop the round-up. Too many animals were already pregnant; but, even more importantly, the temporary housing for the rabbits at Magnuson Park failed. As the Seattle Times reported, "Part of the building where rabbits have been held for medical care has been rented to the Drug Enforcement Administration. Gun noise from the agency's training practices is scaring the rabbits and unnerving volunteers." The Parks department apparently is angry with the volunteer organization for releasing this latter information to the news.

A not-so-funny bunny life: Some humans adopt you for Easter. After the Easter fun has faded and they realize you need loving (and time-consuming) care, these humans abandon you in a park. Dogs and other predators chase you and you almost get hit by a car. Finally, you're rounded up by loving humans. They are taking care of you when other humans start shooting guns next door.

More about the Woodland Park rabbits in the news.

These photos were taken April 1, one month after the roundup began.

i love mail

I received this in the mail on Saturday: a wonderful quilted & beaded card created by Sara! I love getting personal mail, and especially when it is so lovingly crafted. Thank you, Sara!

VOILA. This ends April's project spectrum colors, orange and yellow. Watch these pages for May's color: GREEN!