My best gift: It kinda blends in with the table there, but this is a swift. It's used to wind skeins of yarn (not pictured: ball winder, my second best gift). I wound a small skein of cashmere-merino yarn into this lovely little cake: The colours are more lovely in... Continue reading

Because I work downtown and live near a major bus hub, I have my selection of busses to take to work. I encountered a Crazy Bus Lady when I used to take one bus (which turned out to be an unnecessarily long route), and now that I take a different... Continue reading

When I was a wee lass, Pop Shoppe pop and Beep were treat-staples. They both disappeared when I grew up, then they both made a comeback. Pop Shoppe has been around for awhile now, but Beep is making a limited-time-only reappearance in grocery stores. There's nothing like a blast of... Continue reading

This is a blurry little photo of Rob Schneider, who performed in the casino last night here in Halifax. He was funnier than I had expected. The opening act was a guy named Peter White, who was pretty funny himself (warning: that's a You Tube link). Someone brought Rob a... Continue reading

I've been spending an inordinate amount of time at Yelp these days. All it took was reviewing one restaurant and I was hooked. You can review anything from bars and coffee shops to malls and banks. It's a great time-waster when looking for events or new places to eat in... Continue reading

Every year I make my two bosses some dishcloths. The first year I made them they made it clear they definitely wanted more, so now it's an annual thing. It's nice to have your projects appreciated by someone not related to you. This year's batch: I somehow ended up with... Continue reading

A few weeks ago Mike and I headed to the valley to try some more local wines than you can get at the NSLC. Apparently our liquor stores only carry wines that can be mass-produced for all of the stores in the province. Of course, small wineries are not able... Continue reading

Please don't see Tic/Mob Rules. (The UK version is called Tic; for some reason they gave it a completely forgettable name for the US release.) I only watched it to see my Daniele Favilli. Apparently director Kevin Parmer believes he's the next Guy Ritchie, with a little Tarantino tossed in... Continue reading

Mike and I spent last weekend in New Glasgow, a little town in northeast Nova Scotia. We actually wanted to visit a vinyard in the area. It was a lovely scenic drive near the ocean to Jost, a winery in a wide spot in the road called Malagash. It's a... Continue reading

This is Daniele Favilli. I am not a sci-fi fan, but Mike is. He was kind enough to alert me to a very hot scene in a recent episode of Torchwood: Miracle Day featuring this guy and ... some other guy I don't care about. I think his name is... Continue reading

As mentioned a few posts ago, I have a pretty brown thumb, literally and figuratively. I've killed many a plant in my life. My poinsettia is still doing well, which is a pleasant surprise. In a knitting swap I recently received a cute little daisy grow kit (no idea what... Continue reading

Tubbs is still fat. But also still pretty active. Just not in this photo. Buddy tends to hide his face when he sleeps. (Awwww.) Also an active cat, but only when the camera isn't on him. Continue reading

I have a tendency to kill any plants I bring home. I don't know how I do it, it just happens. So I have been pleasantly surprised by this thriving poinsettia I brought home from work after Christmas that looked to be at death's door at the time. Last year... Continue reading

Good Eats & Bad Movie: I briefly knew Halifax's local "celebrity chef," Ray Bear, when we were little kids. He's had a couple ups and downs with his career over the past few years but things finally seem to be settling down for him. His new restaurant is called Mix,... Continue reading

David Ferrer made it to the semis at the Aussie Open this year. What is it about Russian women and Spanish men in tennis? Continue reading

This command is on the wrapper of a Playtex Sport tampon wrapper. Make what happen? What should be happening? I'm bleeding; what more should happen? Another wrapper says to "Keep your eye on the ball." What ball? "Don't cry - get back in the game." Who's crying? What game? And... Continue reading

Ever since Star TV was rebranded as E! here in Canada, we are seeing a lot more celebrity-reality shows. And I'm seeing things I simply wasn't meant to, like Vince Neil on skates and bimbos married to rock stars. There isn't enough eye bleach in the world to unsee what... Continue reading

This square is for a Ravelry group that makes blankets and shawls for people going through difficult times (The Amazing Flying Squirrel Karma Team). For this particular project, I had to make a mitered square, a squirrel square (a square with a squirrel in it) or a granny square. Having... Continue reading

For your viewing pleasure. The Australian Open is so far away ... Continue reading

Materials: Cascade 220 Heathers or similar worsted-weight yarn Size 7 (4.5 mm) needles Gauge: Not critical to this project. CO multiple of 8 (40 stitches will give you appx. 8 inch width with worsted weight yarn) K 1 row. Row 2: P3, *K3, P5 to last 2, P2 Row 3:... Continue reading

This: This is my almost-obscene tank top. I just got tired of knitting it after awhile so I made it just long enough to cover the essentials ... and that's it. Obviously just for around the house. Mike likes it, that's all that matters. Also a cat bed: Yes, that... Continue reading

A couple of weeks ago Mike and I saw Inception and Grown-Ups. Inception was, of course, fabulous. Great actors, great writing, great effects, great story. We loved it. But Grown-Ups ... Imagine you are a fashion designer (Salma Hayek) and your work is being showcased in Milan. Now imagine not attending your own show because your husband (Adam Sandler) and his friends from junior high are spending a weekend in a little cottage to remember their basketball coach from 30 years ago. Imagine discovering your husband had cancelled your trip before you'd even agreed to spend said weekend in a cottage with a bunch of bare acquaintances. Imagine being okay with it all after spending exactly 30 seconds on a dock listening to people make asinine confessions. Imagine almost two hours of a "comedy" with no comedy. I dozed through the final "big" scene (another basketball game, of course). Mike loved it. He found something to laugh at, believe it or not. So just see Inception. Continue reading

I enjoy watching Til Debt do us Part. Gail does have some good ideas for cutting back on expenses and saving money. And, you know, paying off debt. Sometimes, however, watching her show is very frustrating. There's nothing like trying to drum up sympathy for a couple whose combined take-home... Continue reading