theraineysisters knitting and so much more

Merry Christmas to all!

Thanks to all of you for your wonderful suggestions for Maureen — she will cast on December 26!

We received this request from a loyal reader, Maureen:

“I’m a devoted reader of your blog and hope you can help me since although I knit, I don’t have a blog site. Would you please be kind enough to ask your readers for some suggestions…my good friend was just diagnosed with a very aggressive form of breast cancer and I would like to knit for her. Any ideas for a soft but warm yarn for hats for sleeping and going outside for medical appointments (we live in New England)? I also want to make a warm and easy to care for prayer shawl (I’m not a big lover of Lion Brand Homespun even though it meets the criteria). Knitters are always so generous with their time…I know it’s the busiest time of the year, but I need to cast on A.S.A.P.”

I know our knowledgeable readers can come up with some great ideas.  One idea for a Chemo Cap is the Shedir Hat designed by The Girl From Auntie (aka Jenna Wilson) for Breast Cancer Awareness Month (scroll past the Booby Scarf!) — it is a free pattern from Knitty.com.  It is made with one skein of Rowan Calmer and many knitters have made this one.

The Pi Topper is another free pattern designed by Corey Laflamme specifically for chemo patients because of her own personal journey.

There are a ton of prayer shawl patterns with a few linked to my Wrapped in Care posts.   There are many lovely and easy care yarns other than Lion Brand Homespun.

I found a really cute cashmere scarf (free pattern) that would be a great warm up and incredibly soft called the Ruffle Fluff Scarf by Amy Swenson.  It could be made of other soft yarn as well.

Let’s give Maureen some ideas — STAT!  She has some knitting to do!

…nor dark of night shall stay these knitters from their holiday gathering.  It’s true!  Knitters rock!  Last night was the December Minnesota Knitters Guild meeting, and it is a special one at that.  We do a silent auction to benfit the charitable work of the guild and bring treats to share in a festive, holiday atmosphere.  Enter bad weather!  The streets were gridlocked and people could not get anywhere in the snow.  About 15 minutes before the meeting was supposed to start, a handful of us were sitting and knitting and wondering if the meeting was a “go.” 

We decided to go into the large meeting room, set up a couple of tables and eat the cookies people brought.  All of a sudden, hordes of knitters appeared out of nowhere!  We ended up with about 60 people, a very successful auction and tons of yummy food.

Okay.  I finally made time to see the remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008).  I’ll share my “review” with this proviso: I am an atypical movie viewer.  I like a lot of movies that the critics do not like, and I hate many well-loved movies (case in point, “Sound of Music” ).  My review is meant to enlighten only and not meant to influence you in any way to spend your hard earned dollars!

There were MANY things I loved — I mean, really loved — about this movie.  I loved the premise (which differs from the original), I loved the beginning, I loved Kathy Bates.  Keanu was as wooden as Pinocchio, but it worked for me.  I just wanted more.  They would take the story line as far as ‘B’ and I wished they had gone to ‘G’ at least — they did spend time with some of the characters and let things unfold, which I like in a movie (the Spider-Man movies are great at that).  John Hamm and Kathy Bates basically had cameo parts (John for sure).  Some plot changes from the original worked for me and others did not.  They did leave in a signature scene, but it was better in the original (I won’t give away which one).  The special effects were not overblown, as they were in “I Am Legend” (really bad “CGI” zombies!).  I would see it again, and I will buy the DVD.  But many of you would probably be disappointed — esp of you love the original and/or go with high expectations.

The really irksome thing about the experience had absolutely nothing to do with the film itself.  First, I paid $10 for an afternoon matinee.  I was shocked, as was the woman in front of me — where is the afternoon discount??  Rip off.  Then, I sat in the theater with my $10 small soda and small popcorn to watch no less than 30 minutes of commercials.  Not previews of upcoming movies — there were some previews, but they were few and far between.  These were full-blown, unending, regular, “as-seen-on-TV” commercials that went on and on, non-stop for at least a half hour.  There you are, trapped, nowhere to hide, watching this parade of drivel.  I just sat there getting angrier and angrier!  By the time the movie started, I could barely remember why I was there!  Susan’s blood pressure starts to rise as she re-lives the horror!

Susan settles down…….Anyway, on a scale from 1-5, I would give it a 3.75.  Most would give it maybe a 3.  Worth an afternoon of knitting — for me, yes.

PS: My sincerest apologies to Becca!  Please don’t hate me because I do not like the Sound of Music!  I know it is an aberration and evidence of my dominant male movie gene!

PS2: In the interest of balanced reporting, I’ll share Irv’s take on the movie, “The new version is AWFUL! I hated it from beginning to end. Don’t waste your time or money. Kathy Bates must have really needed the money to do this. It is by far the worst performance she has ever given. And I’m a big fan of hers. Reeves’ performance is laughable at best. If you go, don’t say I didn’t warn ya.”

Irv, tell us how you really feel! 😉

I do feel a bit better — thanks to all for your well wishes! 

My mom always said if we were too sick to go to school [work], then we were too sick to go to the party.  So yesterday I dragged my sorry, snotty, coughy self into work so I would not have to miss my ‘Thursdays at Four’ soiree.   And it was WELL WORTH IT. 

Mary is the hostess with the mostest and has opened her home the last few years.  She is the warmest hostess and waits on us hand and foot — which we feel guilty about and love at the same time.

We ate, we talked, we knitted, we laughed, we ate, we ate…okay, you get the idea!  We also had a gift exchange and look what I got!!  I love him!

He is supposed to be a pincushion, but no pins are going into my lil baby.  He will join Santa this year on the Santa mantel.

I am making progress on the Baby Cables and may get done with the body today.  However, I also have to go to see “The Day the Earth Stood Still” today at some point.  

I am a sc-fi fan, a fan of the original movie, AND I love Keanu Reeves (after all, he is ‘The One’).   I know, I’m a nerd .