Missing the point

This article on "wikis that work" originally included Encyclopedia Dramatica as a wiki that works.

It was then removed from the list because of criticism from commenters saying that ED is full of "trolls" and other internet scum. How dare they pick on kids and call it a wiki! How dare the editors take part in this tomfoolery! I ask you all, isn't this the point of ED? If you want to know where an internet meme came from, this site will tell you and give you massive lulz in the process. Who else will patiently explain Pedobear?



My point is that of course ED is full of trolls. And of course these trolls are going to pick on fourteen year-olds that act like little snots. These are probably the same little snots that clog up Xbox live and talk trash! Fourteen year-olds suck, people, and their feelings need not be spared.



Side note: Yes, I do hate children.

Morrissey

By dumb luck, I'm able to take Steve to see Morrissey. It's in Ann Arbor at a teeny-tiny venue. It should be pretty neat, even though I'm not a really big fan. The show sold out fast, and I had been planning to surprise Steve with tickets. A girl on livejournal had to sell hers. Lucky, lucky!

Although, like Peter Murphy, I'm sure Morrissey is not as pretty as he was twenty years ago. Now, David Bowie, on the other hand, will probably still be goddamn gorgeous in another twenty.

I'm aware that this is a very photo-happy post, but the world needs more pretty 80s men in it.

Pajamas

I've been working through my hedera socks, I promise, but there has been more progress on the sewing front than on the knitting front.



I finished a set of obnoxiously awesome Hello Kitty pajama bottoms. My mom got me the pattern and fabric for Xmas, and I kept putting them off until last week when I finally started them. She honestly couldn't have picked better fabric or an easier pattern. I used McCall's M5282.

I'm already at work on a second pair to be gifted. Hopefully I can get the size adjustments right.

Another thing I've been slowly working my way through is John Grisham's A Time to Kill.



My law school to be sent me a pre-law reading list, and this was the most interesting thing on it. Next I will try to slog my way through either Gideon's Trumpet or Dickens' Bleak House, but we'll see. The Dickens is something like 1,200 pages long, and that just doesn't seem terribly appealing. I'm not sure I'd finish it off before starting classes!

As far as the Grisham goes, though, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The plot twists made this book more like a suspense novel than courtroom drama. I had not read any Grisham prior to this one, and it makes me want to pick up more of his books. The plot was engaging and I loved the ending, but I do want to keep my review vague as not to ruin it for anyone out there who may be thinking about reading it.

For the rest of my evening, I have cranberry jice ad Stoli waiting for me.

New Glasses

I got new glasses by SEE Eyewear, most assuredly the sexiest specs I've ever had.

Too bad I didn't like the pink ones.



They make me happy. There's not much else going on at the moment. I'm working on knitting Hedera for the most part. Past the heel on the first one.

Dress! Couch!

I made a dress.



The pattern was McCall's M4826. I got the slinky silky cherry fabric on clearance. Good stuff.

It's actually my first dress. I'm still new at a lot of sewing, to be honest. There are a million little mistakes in this thing, but you know, I still love it and will happily wear it out when I have an occasion!



I was feeling kind of silly. Not many of the pictures were turning out well that actually show the details of the dress. There are pockets in this dress, after all! Makes me feel very June Cleaver-ish, having pockets in a poofy dress.

I still, however, think I might alter the top a tiny bit more, and sew in some support of my nonexistent cleavage. This size was meant for someone with a few more curves than me!

And, for my second finished sewing project, a story:

My SO and I are basically poor college students. Well, I'm done for now, but money is still tight because I'm starting again soon. Nice furnishings are expensive... or are they? Steve is a very frugal guy when it comes to some things (not video games). There are green couch sectionals and footstools that were a whopping $5 each on ebay. They were leftovers from the local community college's lounges. There is a couch that paid Steve's roommate $0.41 to take; there was change in the cushions! This is an extremely nice couch in perfect shape, and comfortable. The person tossing it to the curb was redecorating. Yeah.

Enter the leather loveseat. This found its way next to the dumpster of our apartment complex. It was about to rain, so I insisted that we get rid of a green sectional for it.

Well, as time wore on and the saved-from-the-trash loveseat had graced the living room for a while, we realized why it was residing next to the dumpster. It was low-riding and hideously uncomfortable to sit on for extended periods of time. Steve wanted to put it back where we found it. I wanted to save it.

I got upholstery fabric, 3" foam, and some pillowforms. I went to work.



Now, we have a comfortable loveseat. Perfect for the activity suggested by what's on top of it. I thought the red fabric would be more interesting than matchy-matchy black vinyl.

Delicious

I work on Easter. I have the past couple of years, in fact. Holiday pay is wonderful, someone always leaves cupcakes in the break room (This year they were decorated beautifully! Should have taken a picture on my cell phone.), and I don't have to see my cousins that drive me batshit insane. The customers I deal with on days like Easter are usually in a good mood. I joked that they were all either Asian or atheists. They were pleasant, whatever they actually were. They were also few and far between; I know my company was not profiting with the full staff it was paying. I got a lot of administrative junk done.

However, my grandma got crafty this year and decided to have Easter on Saturday night. I got my family dinner, and holiday pay, too. I suppose this is a good thing. My youngest, most irritating cousin declared that I was a mean-hearted person when I suggested she eat herself and "do us all a favor." She's twelve, so she actually understands the mean things I say to her now. Oh well, I only see her three times a year and that is plenty.

This morning, while putzing around and pretending I don't have to go to work later, I decided that I needed to try out my new French press. Yes, I am a freak who buys everything from amazon.com. This also includes many of my video games; Guitar Hero 2 for the Xbox 360 is on its way. (Would it be wrong to knit a guitar strap for my little guitar controller?)

No, really, the reason I love Amazon is for things like the customer reviews, used copies of books, and my sweet amazon credit card that sometimes sends me gift cards.

I had been continually reading that French press coffee is greater than drip coffee. I'm sort of a skeptic. But I had to try one, as it would complete my coffee paraphernalia collection.



This is momentous, isn't it? I mean, this could change the way I home-brew coffee forever!

There was lots of water heating up in a tea kettle behind me. I was listening to it, trying to figure out when that perfect moment was to take it off and pour it into the press with coarsely-ground coffee in it. You see, the water isn't supposed to be boiling, but damn close.



Then it has to sit there for four minutes. This is agony. I'm not sure if this coffee is going to turn out well or not.



Oh, what was I ever worried about? The stuff was delicious. The only improvement I can imagine is hotter water! Get that stuff closer to boiling...

I'm not sure yet if I'm a convert. At least I've given it a shot.

In knitting news, I'm on the sleeves of Eiffel and still am very unsure about the hemp yarn. This yarn is sort of a shot in the dark, really; I have no idea if this hemp is going to feel as lovely as it LOOKS on the original version on Knitty.