Catholic Education Week

I found out at church yesterday that this is Catholic education week. Sometimes I wonder whether I had a particularly bad school, because none of the purported benefits really struck true to me. No, I don't feel that I had "Catholic values" integrated into every part of my education. I ended up learning more about a lot of folk practices, and I did get some basic (very basic) religion classes. But, had the Catholic board had a high school with a good math and science programme, I probably never would have learned very much about my religion. Probably not until I went to university, if then.

I have to wonder though. I don't see anything about the way that the school was set up that could allow there to be a strong difference. From what I've heard from a teacher in the board, there's rules against things that could make a difference. The teachers really aren't allowed to discuss moral or religious decision making, not when it comes to anything serious. In theory, the advantage of a Catholic school would be that the teachers there are Catholic, or at least hold Catholic values. You should be able to turn to them for advice. Which is a lovely idea, if they weren't so worried about stepping on the parents' toes.

What did I get from my Catholic schooling? Well, in fairness my mom attributes her return to the church to it. I also got peer-pressure to make my confirmation (first communion and reconciliation don't bother me as much, although we did do them out of order), which was done at an age I consider too young anyhow. I also got a strong admiration for the public school board.

Easter!

So Father Lawrence was talking about Easter baskets yesterday, so I figured I'd share my first ever Easter basket here.

The main part is the babka. None of the rest of the basket takes the better part of a day.

Babka isn't really what I would call health food:





















In fact, the dough looks more like a cake than a bread:


















My mom had some problems with this, and she has since learned that no, you don't make it look like bread dough, because then you end up with a lot of babka, and it's all really dry. Of course, the regular recipe makes a lot too:




















For size:

I ended up using that basket to put a couple of mini babka that I baked in regular cans into, along with an egg, for the priests. Mine went in one I borrowed. It was all very yummy!

Oh, if you want the recipe, I give you my mom's. I take no responsibilty for the offensive images that my dad put up there.

Ever have one of those bugs?

You go to see the prof and, without making any changes, the code works perfectly. For the first time ever.

Breaking Strain

The Hymn of Breaking Strain

Rudyard Kipling, 1935

The careful text-books measure
(Let all who build beware!)
The load, the shock, the pressure
Material can bear.
So, when the buckled girder
Lets down the grinding span,
The blame of loss, or murder,
Is laid upon the man.
Not of the Stuff - the Man!

But, in our daily dealing
With stone and steel, we find
The Gods have no such feeling
Of justice toward mankind.
To no set guage they make us, -
For no laid course prepare -
And presently o'ertake us
With loads we cannot bear:
To merciless to bear.

The prudent text-books give it
In tables at the end -
The stress that shears a rivet
Or makes a tie-bar bend -
What traffic wrecks macadam -
What concrete should endure -
But we, poor Sons of Adam,
Have no such literaure,
To warn us or make sure!

We hold all Earth to plunder -
All Time and Space as well -
Too wonder-stale to wonder
At each new miracle;
Till in the mid-illusion
Of Godhead 'neath our hand,
Falls multiple confusion
On all we did or planned -
The mighty works we planned.

We only of Creation
(Oh, luckier bridge and rail!)
Abide the twin-damnation -
To fail and know we fail.
Yet we - by which sole token
We know we once were Gods -
Take shame in being broken
However great the odds -
The Burden or the Odds.

Oh, veiled and secret Power
Whose paths we seek in vain,
Be with us in our hour
Of overthrow and pain;
That we - by which sure token
We know Thy ways are true -
In spite of being broken,
Because of being broken,
May rise and build anew.
Stand up and build anew!

From http://www.cuug.ab.ca/~branderr/risk_essay/hymn_strain.html

Girly Hands!

Ring size 5 1/2. Although given the troubles I had with my engagement ring, I might discover I need to size up to a larger ring after a little while.

Crazy Weather

It's bad enough that there's already a UV index being posted on the Environment Canada website (I suspect that it's automatically posted anytime it rises to moderate). But having a UV index posting with a high of 1 , and a low of -10? That's just annoying. Spring, stop teasing. Either come, or let winter stay!

CBS

Ok, I have a job for everyone out there who is eligable to donate blood (yes Liz, I know you're too light, and yes, I know that they hate you, Jeff and Scott). Please make sure that you start going often enough that they don't need to harass me. You'd think that if it's been 5 months since the last time that I donated that they'd figure out that there's obviously something up, and I have a reason to. But apparently no, people just forget for three months fairly frequently. This is the second (at least) phone call I've gotten reminding me that I'm eligable to donate. This is the second time I've had to explain that no, they wouldn't let me donate if I went, so there's no point in me going.

Eligability to donate goes on your calendar people. That's why they give you those little stickers (you, not me, because I put it on my computer. I'd have a hard time seeing what I was typing if I used those stickers). Maybe then we can train blood services to have a better algorithm in their notification computers.

One more step towards being normal

So I recently got I believe is my first comic book ever. Well, not counting Archie comics. Yes, I am mainstream enough to read comics. Of course, this being me, can you guess what kind it is?

Yep. It's a knitting comic. And if your reaction to that is the same as my initial reaction - thinking that it's going to be somewhat cheesy, because how do you make a superhero story about knitting, well you're actually going to be very surprised by the story.

It's less a comic about knitting, and more a superhero comic where the characters knit. There is more knitting promised in future issues, which I appreciate. As for the comic itself, I liked it, and I tend to not like graphic novels a lot, or comics done in that style (as far as I'm concerned when it's this short, it's a comic). Those two things together may condemn more than they recommend, but I'd still say it's worth a look. It's quite entertaining, and you will laugh out loud more than once reading it, if a sample of two people is anything to go on.

I would have two minor issues with this. The first is that it was too short. Which is very hard to actually call a problem I guess. However, as someone who considers Harry Potter a nice afternoon's read (except for books 6 and 7, I can't stand them in large doses), a standard-length comic is over all too soon. My other "complaint" would be that the pattern is far more simplisitic than I'm interested in. It's a cool idea, but it's not the sort of thing I make. The problem might just be that the pattern is "beginniner to early intermediate", although I don't necessarily object to easy. It's in the definition of beginner I guess.

All in all, it's enough to make me regret posting this late enough that I can't get the rest of the subscription for my birthday.

Squeal!

I'm getting a sneak peek copy of Handknit Heros! It's a graphic novel for knitters, and there will apparently be a knitted item featured in the issue, and it includes the pattern. All I know is that the pattern for this issue is a hooded scarf with pockets.

I don't know if I'll make the scarf, but if anyone would like it, let me know.

Dress Enough for an Engineer

So these are the latest Allan socks. Actually, these pictures are so late going up, that there is another pair of Allan socks on the needles. The pair on the needles is going to take a long hiatus though, as once I have those needles free I am planning on starting the bridal attendants' socks. Alex, I love you so very much for picking heavy weight yarn. That makes the whole project easy.

Back to the sock at hand - it's in Wildfoote, I knit it on 2.5mm needles at a tension of 16.5 stitches /5cm. (Yes, I know that's 8.25 spi, but in the interests of allowing people who don't like math to knit too, I have decided to eliminate inches from my knitting). I definitely recommend the yarn. It's very nice to knit, and so far seems to be wearing well, not that you can tell before a couple of years have passed. I think it's a shade thicker than, for example, Regia, so my tension isn't actually that loose, it's a very nice fabric. Here's the heel and cable a bit closer up.

The cable is a 2x2, crossed every 4 rows, and the heel accomadates Allan's narrow ankles by being a band heel, and the overall size of his feet by having an 8 stitch band. I believe there is a 2 stitch "guesset" to decrease from the 72 stitches I had in the cuff to the 68 stitches in the foot. The difference is because of the cable.

Sorry about the detail picture, but my camera turns the flash off if I set it to take close-ups. And it's just a point-and-shoot, so even if I did know how to take pictures properly, it wouldn't do me any good, because the camera wouldn't let me.

Yes, I still knit

I finally have batteries in my camera. I took them out for my bike light, as being able to get around after dark is more important than pictures. It only took me five months to buy a new set of batteries...

So, here is the shawl. If you want to see details, scroll down, that picture is quite large if you expand it (click on it).

I finished knitting it back in August. As you can see, it's not completely blocked yet. In my defense, I did try back at the beginning of September. The evidence of this is that the centre has been partly blocked. The centre is the bit in this post. Oh, and yes, I would have been able to to do the 4 boleros and a jacket as well, given that I've done most of a sweater and about 2/3 or more of an afghan, and there's still 5 months to go.

As far as I know, what I was doing will actually work, I just need to remember to keep the shawl wet as I work on it. I let it dry part way through, thinking that I could just wet it afterwards, like with normal knitting. The difference is that with lace, you want the extra little bit of stretch that the damp gives you, and if your work drys too much as you're pinning it out, you'll find that one side of the centre can be easily stretched to 75 cm (it was more, but I reduced it a couple of times to make it the same size as the other sides), and the other sides will barely reach 70.

I think I'll give it another try when the weather warms up and I can work outside again. Fortunately it's not being used as wedding reception decoration anymore, so I don't have a time limit on it, as the blocking probably won't get done until after the wedding, given where I'll be living and all that.

No Man's Land

As some of you (*ahem* Allan *ahem*) have heard a few times lately, I am firmly of the belief that "Green Fields of France" should be THE Remembrance Day song. It covers both sides - the issue of "never again" and how much of a waste war is, while still (in my opinion) managing to be very respectful to the boys (and men) who died in the war.

I just found an improvement, in terms of covering both sides.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUzQ6Am-bbc

There are two sides in any war. One more thing to never forget.

Minor Problem

So I need to go see the psychologist on Hallowe'en. (I could have this Monday, but I wasn't willing to skip enough class to make it). Does this mean that I can't wear a costume? Or maybe I can wear it, and just take the beard off then... Decisions, decisions.

My Favourite Course Again...

I'm seriously thinking that some of the readings for my women's studies course should have "not suitable for women" warnings on them, because there is no WAY that they should be expecting me to get through these without sufficient academic training. The article I'm currently reading is talking about how new technology and pregnancy loss interact. What makes it a real kicker is that the author of the article lost 7 children this way herself. And trust me, it comes out in her writing.

The Clothes Make the Woman

So I think I may have figured out why it's such a big deal to me that I actually have a jacket, and will be dressed all fancily, rather than just throwing a shawl over my shoulders and saying "good enough". Logically, it would induce less guilt to dress well enough with a new dress than to buy a new jacket AND a new dress to be dressed well.

Now that I have the basics that everyone agrees on, here's where I will start being confusing. I had been really distressed by the idea that I wasn't going to be dressed well. And yes, the fact that I care that much about my clothing is quite sad. I was distressed to the point where I had, for a while before ordering a bolero, been looking for a jacket to wear. And the lace shawl really is ok... I wear stuff like that all the time.

I think that the key idea here is that if you're going to do something questionable, then make it worth while. Yes, normally buying a new jacket when it's not actually necessary is bad. And yes, obviously buying a dress that I might not wear more than once or twice (with that knowledge when I buy it) is obviously horrible. However, while logic might say that doing both is going to be worse than doing either, it doesn't quite work that way in this case. It's as if I was going to buy some fruit from South America. If I buy apples, which are easy to grow and nothing fancy, then that's worse than if I buy a mango, which I can't get any other way, right? (I sure hope so). I'm aware that it doesn't really change the fact that I bought foreign fruit, but at least I got something worthwhile out of it. Same idea with the jacket. Buying it doesn't change the fact that I bought a new outfit (from overseas at that), but it at least means that the new outfit is more worth it than it would be otherwise.

Now, even if this does make me stress less about caring about that, I still have to accept the fact that I am far too concerned over my clothes...

Hey, I get it!

Ok, so I finally understood some of what we were discussing in Women's Studies! That's not to say that I'm not getting anything from the class. It's more that I tend to think it's utter BS. The idea that started to make sense to me was the idea of "the gaze". As far as I can tell, the idea behind it is that women always feel they're being watched (more that they are always being watched) by men, because women are "other".

Now, I still think that is somewhat BS. Yes, I have been aware of a sensation like that, but it's not as a woman, it's more as a woman in engineering. Occasionally in soccer too, but frankly, a guy who was one of 3 in 20 or so would feel just as out of place. However, it occurs to me that the fact that a lot of guys have odd reactions to whistles or yells might qualify under this. The odd reactions to which I'm referring is that a lot of guys don't seem to see anything wrong with accidently giving some sign that they heard the yell, etc. Actually a lot of them don't see anything wrong with reacting at all.

Now, I'm not going to say that the only reason someone would whistle out the window to get my attention , or make patronizing remarks when the light changes, is because I'm a woman. However, the fact that society makes it quite clear that yes, it's because I'm a woman, that people behave like jerks , I tend to assume that I'm the target of that sort of immaturity. (Note the difference between me being the target, and me assuming I'm the target because I've been told that I am). And that, I think, is the idea of the gaze.

Beauty?

So I'm currently supposed to be reading an article for my Women's Studies course. (As Allan points out though, "feminist" thought doesn't really seem to be connected to women per se). This one is about how make up came to be acceptable. Ever hear the term "painted lady"? That used to be a really horrible thing to be.

I've reached the point where makeup became acceptable - where the "commercial beauty culture popularized the democratic and anxiety-inducing idea that beauty could be achieved by all women - if only they used the correct products and treatments."*I would definitely argue that this is the perspective that is around today - and most people (and here I break with my complaints against "women's studies" to say that at least women are, I'm not sure about men) are aware of the fact that looking good is mostly what you do.

My complaint is that it's the only way to look good. The Dove "Campaign for Real Beauty" ads do not, in my mind, in the least act against societal impressions of beauty. They argue that anyone can look good. We should all be using cosmetics, because they can make us all look like the models actually do. Can someone tell me how this is any different from what they're supposed to be opposing? Oh, and if you can tell me how that fits with the advice given in the self-esteem workshop booklets for girls that they don't need to wear makeup if they don't want to, that would also be great. (I'd like to point out that telling the girls they don't need to wear makeup isn't actually a great idea, because it really is necessary, in the same way that brushing hair and dressing up are).

Ok, I think that's out of my system.

*Peiss, Kathy. "Making Up, Making Over". p 323. The Sex of Things: Gender and Consumption in Historical Perspective, ed Victoria de Grazia (UCP, Berkeley, 1996)

OK, so I'm lazy

I suspect that "I'm asking about Asperger's, I can get away with writing this e-mail only once" really isn't a good argument to use on oneself. (Especially not when it works).

Patience

It's not a good sign when I think "we've been on the road for a while, I wonder how close we are to Toronto", look up, and discover that we haven't even hit the 401.

Done!

Yeah, so my camera batteries are currently in my bike light. I need to get new batteries, and being able to ride after dark trumps taking pictures of my shawl(and I'm too lazy to dig out a screwdriver to get the batteries out of my camera. I just grafted 40 stitches in cobwebweight lace. I have an excuse).

The shawl isn't actually done, just the knitting and grafting. I still have about 7 or 8 ends to work in (actually I think there's more than that, because there is a loose part in the centre which I'm going to cut and tie and work the ends in). And there is still the herculean task of blocking the shawl ahead of me (taking the shawl out of storage and smoothing it out is projected to take 1/2 hour by the pattern. Blocking sounds slow and painful).

But the knitting is DONE!

Pictures when I get power for the camera.