One Day of Pretty

My folks came for a visit last weekend. Somehow, each time they come up they manage to have a beautiful Saturday. Sundays usually are rainy or are cold. But, Saturdays somehow turn out to be beautiful. Such was the case last weekend. We went to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens- the weather was fantastic, it actually hit about 75 I think. There were only a few clouds in the sky and all the cherry blossoms were out. I have such a hard time picking my favorite time of year. I love the Spring, when everything is starting to bloom, and it is just gorgeous. I love fall too - when all the leaves turn crimson and gold and it starts to get cold and I can bust out the sweaters and boots. But this last Saturday was just plain pretty.

Of course, this week we are back to crappy weather, there is talk of snow this coming Saturday, and I am really wondering where the heck Spring has gotten to?? Don't get me wrong, I love the cloudy, rainy weather here. But I am ready for some sunshine. Some Spring time. I'll be down in Los Angeles and San Francisco in three weeks, so I guess I will have to wait until then!

New posts with pics of the townhouse to come...

It's.....Spring?

On the drive home last night it started to sleet. Then it turned to big, fat snow flakes. And by the time I got home and changed into comfy clothes this was happening outside:






Um, it is nearly April, right? It was pretty though!!

I've Always Been Too Old For This Shit

I ventured out tonight, the night of all holy and horrid nights for those of us who are unattached. As NPR coined it "National Singles Awareness Day" a.k.a Valentines Day. I figured what the hell, I'll go out with a few other co-workers who happen to be unattached. So we did. We signed up for a singles mixer and paid our (ridiculous) fee to attend tonight's event at a nice Seattle bar/restaurant. Now, don't get me wrong, these types of events are fine, may even lead to something. However, tonight? Not so much. Tonight four beautiful women walked in and soon realized that we were knee deep in desperate. And not the fun, funky, hip desperate of your twenties, where you could at least count on getting asked out/made out/got laid at the end of the night. Oh no, this was the horrible, jaw dropping, almost (but not quite) humorous desperate of the thirty to forty somethings. The kind where you wonder what the hell you are doing in this room, with all these people, with a half-assed DJ playing semi-decent hits from the 80s, and then want to kick-yourself-for-actually-paying-money-to-attend kind of desperate.

I was talking to a woman who seemed to be in her early forties, and she said she was considering moving because while she had met many very fine women here in Seattle, the men had little to be desired. And, while I am sure this was not exactly a great cross-section of men to base an opinion on, being that it was Valentine's Day for god's sake, still I had to wonder if she didn't have a point. For example: One of the gals bought the first round when we arrived. I then asked everyone if they needed a second round, in front a guy who had been chatting us up for the past 10 minutes. Said guy, turned to my friend after I walked away to place the order and said "Oh, I guess I should have gone to get you all drinks." Um, hello? Yes. You are the man. Pay for the drinks for the women you are trying to chat up. I know, it's not cheap, and maybe you aren't sure if you want to invest in drinks for 2-3 women at once, but for fucks sake, be the man, grow some balls, and at least OFFER to buy them. Or place the order. Or make some sort of gesture that verifies that you produce testosterone. If you see a woman that you have been talking to that is holding a nearly empty glass, realize that perhaps she could use a fresh libation. Think about it. The very least is you waste $8-$10, the most is you liquor her up enough that she may actually want to continue talking to you. Or, *Gasp*, she may even think you are a gentleman and say yes if you ask her out. But when you watch her friend walk away to the bar to get a drink, and you do nothing, then don't be surprised when we move on. I'm sure there is some anthropoligical explanation somewhere about it, but women (and when I say 'women' I mean 'me') want you to take the damn lead and pretend you know more than the 21 year old bartender that I am now ordering my drinks from behind the bar. For Fuck's sake.

Happy National Singles Awareness Day.

Holy Cow- It's Been a While!

It's been over a month since my last blog posting, life just gets hectic sometimes! I just got back from visiting Payal and family in Hawaii. Wow, what a great place to live! It was lovely and sunny and warm (well, we had a nice debate about that- Payal would get cold and when it hit 68 degrees. Hmmm.... it snowed a few days before I left Seattle, so I think we have different views of 'cold').



I got to spend quality time with her, which is by far more time than we have spent together in the last 10 years. I got a fantastic shot of the girls, who I adore:




And this is the beauty of Oahu:



Maya decided that I had to teach her to knit, so we went out and got her a little starter kit. She would see me knitting and run and get her needles and 'thread' and sit next to me. It was one of the cutest things I have ever seen, and the best part was that she took her knitting in for show and tell to her kindergarten class the day I left. She is such a great kid, I love her with all my heart. Her little sis, Kayla, has a smile that warms your heart, and I was there just in time for her 2nd birthday party, which was all kinds of fun. I miss hearing them coming down the stairs calling "Masi???" (Aunt in Hindi).

Got back to Seattle and had a lovely weekend- went to the Pike Market on Saturday and had one of those rare gorgeous days where there is hardly a cloud in the sky and the water was sparkling. I wished I had my camera with me, but it was sadly at home. Sunday night we had a few inches of snow, which meant I was stuck at home since I couldn't get my car up the driveway. I tried my hardest, but just managed to get about halfway up and then lost traction and started sliding backwards. Let me tell you how much fun that is!! Since I am a So.Cal girl originally, I have NO idea how to drive in snow. And, I have found, not many people here in Seattle are that great at it either. So I got to work from home on Monday, and then it was back to the normal grind as usual this past week.

On the knitting front, for those of you who are keeping track, I am about to start a sweater for Dad. My first full sized sweater, so this should be interesting. I just have to seam the tank top I made for Kayla, then I can mail that to her. Of course, I have about 3 other WIPs on the kneedles, and a dozen other projects that I have waiting in my queue of things I want to make. My next start will be a felted bucket hat. Perhaps I can get that done prior to my parent's visit in a few weeks. It's been so cold lately that I think that will help my mom stay warm. :)

Anyway, I hope to post more often, but that is the latest update!

An Almost White Christmas

Happy Christmas! Today in Bellevue it snowed, briefly, just enough to give the forest outside our windows a dusting of white.

This is my first Christmas in Washington, and it has been just lovely. Last night I went out to dinner. After we finished, we got out just in time to see the show in downtown Bellevue where they play holiday music, have a light show, and a drum core dressed as toy soldiers comes out and plays to the music. It was like Disneyland, without the scary 8 foot mouse! I then went and saw Atonement, which was fantastic, if a little on the sad side for xmas eve.

Today I am simply staying at home, relaxing by the fireplace, and watching the snow melt. It is a perfect holiday. I'll be doing a little knitting, of course, and some eating, and I will be making a yummy dinner later tonight of chicken with mushrooms, garlic and olive oil accompanied by baby broccoli and creamy polenta. Mmmmm! And I even have a little bubbly that I may bust out!

Happy Holidays!!!

Johnny Bird

Johnny Bird, my roommate's little 7 year old cockatiel, passed away on Saturday morning. He was a funny, sweet, cantankerous little boy who went unexpectedly, and way before his time. I was lucky to have 10 months with him, and I am so glad that he had gotten to the point that he would let me rub his head and kiss his tummy. He was well loved, and is hopefully up in birdie heaven with my beloved little Boo Bird. I miss you Mr. B!!

Oh, She's Crafty!

We have a new partner on our team at work, who is expecting pretty much any day now. The team bought her a gift, and I was the lucky one who got to go get it and put it all together. Normally, when you have a group contribution, you can get a pretty big-ticket item. However, the registry listing didn't really have many of those listed, so I went with Plan B, which is my favorite shower gift in the world: A Basket of Never Ending Cuteness.

Exhibit A, before wrapping:





Exhibit B, after wrapping.




So many cute things, so little time!

Today, This Is Happiness

It is a dreary, raining Sunday. It's getting darker sooner, and it is definitely Autumn. It really is my favorite season. Some people love Summer, with the heat and long days and beaches and barbecues. Not me, I love Fall. You get to pull out all the scarves, hats and coats that have been stuck in the back of the closet. It's cooler out, with a crispness in the air that is so clean that it feels like your lungs are being cleansed with every breath. It hasn't gotten to the point where it is so cold it snows, but you still get to bundle up. Fall is all about the warm clothes, the warm drinks, and all of my favorite colors start showing. Chocolate browns, crimson, golds, burgundy, and dark green. There is a fire in the fireplace every night, and the lights are on low. And, yes, it is knitting season!!

So, tonight, on this dreary, raining Sunday I am happy. Today this is what is making me happy:

It's All About the Memories

I've not been much in the mood for blogging lately. My grandmother passed away, and while it wasn't unexpected, it still seemed to happen quickly.

There are so many things that I remember about my grandma, so many little parts of me. Swimming in her pool, even when the water was only 65 degrees. No matter what time of year, she would let me go swimming. And we always started my visits with trips to the grocery store. Oh, she used to load me up on Oreos, or Toll House cookies, Chunky soup, and roasted chicken; Mc Donald's was usually a stop, and there was a See's Candy right next to the market and we would usually stop in for a lollypop. More often than not it was Butterscotch.

And she would read to me, Go Dog Go and The Emperor's New Clothes. She would let me color with crayons and pastel chalks, finger paints and acrylic paints. Then there was the whole craft stage in jr high, which was always a trip to Michael's to get supplies. I loved going to her house- because no matter what, I could just be me there. For some reason I recall watching The Monkeys and parts of the Thorn Birds, being scared to sleep when the NightStalker pyscho was loose in Southern California. Polishing her big wood coffee table wih Pledge and watering her plants in the livingroom. Playing with my barbies.

I remember she had a whole box of the same color of lipstick. I don't remember if she was trying to sell them, or if she just liked the color so much that when they discontinued it she bought a whole box. She had this weird stationary bike that I would ride every so often. It made a strange whhhooooshing sound when you got it going.

She loved to talk to people, especially the last few years of her life. She would talk to anyone, as long as they talked back. And she loved to learn. She gave me my very first journal to write in when I was 11. I wrote in it every day, and then came the stories, the teen-angst poems, the teen introspection. She encouraged it all. She always felt bad that she didn't have much money, but it never mattered to me cuz she always had a smile and laugh and hug.

She was a wonderful grandmother, and I miss her. RIP Doris Oseplan, I hope you are looking down on all of us with those big blue eyes and that happy laugh!

Ruffles

Short post- here is what I am working on at the moment. It's the front of the tank for Miss Maya, whose favorite color right now is purple. I am hoping with the long weekend that I can get the other half done and start on the matching one for Miss Kayla, her little sis.

Sweaters, Oh My!

I have completed two very cute little sweaters. The first one, I added a little pocket and the flower buttons. It was originally supposed to be a baby sweater, but I think the pattern was off. Once I completed it, I took it to a store and compared it in size to other shirts/sweaters in the kids section, and it’s about a size 2T. So much for a baby sized sweater! Since no one I know has a kid who fits in that size, I have let the shop use it as a display in the window until I can find someone to give it to.

In the meantime, I played around a bit and created this little number. I’m not going to put on buttons, but I do want to add some embellishments, maybe embroidery or something cute to spice it up a bit. It’s the smallest little thing I have done, and darn right adorable. It may actually be too small for a newborn, but if that’s the case it will make a great sweater for a teddy bear. It’s a win-win. I am sure the cute couple who I have in mind for this will love it either way. They are due in about 3 weeks, so I have to finish it this weekend and get a little box to put it in.

My next project is a raglan sweater that has embroidered detailing. We’ll see what size it comes out. And, I need to make something for my friend Payal’s two girls. Maya just started kindergarten (Holy cow how did that happen? I remember holding her when she was only two days old!) and little Kayla is about 18 months. Since they live in Hawaii, I can’t very well make them sweaters. But, I can make them skirts. My next mission is to find a cute pattern and get knitting!

One Green Globe Newletter

I have a little plug for my friend Marie's business- if you are interested in Green efforts, please sign up for her FREE newletter here : http://onegreenglobe.com/news/category/the-green-page-enews/. Feel free to pass the link on as well.

Coming Up for Air!

Hello! Contrary to what you may believe based on my recent blog activity, I have NOT fallen off the face of the earth. I fell into a crack, but not completely off! I have been quite the busy bee lately- between gearing up in the new job which is amazing and stressful and caffeine filled, and trying to have some sort of personal life, my old car dying a slow death, getting a new car (meet Lulu, pic below), and trying to be supportive of my family from a trillion miles away while my grandma deals with brain tumors... well, let's just say that blogging sorta fell down on my to-do list. As did knitting. As did emailing people back, let alone calling...

So, with that. Here are some updates.

1) The new job - Working at Starbucks in their corporate office is quite amazing. I have never worked at such an upbeat, hard working, fun-loving company. I have had the opportunity to do many coffee and tea tastings, make my own personal versions of what is sold in the stores (mmmm... caramel macchiato....), shake hands with the CEO, and yesterday I got to listen to Michelle Obama speak to the company. Yeah, I work at one of the best companies in the US. And I actually mean it!

2) Meet Lulu, my new little car.

Ok, so this is not MY exact car, but it's the same model and color, so you get the idea. The evil VW Jetta all but stuck it's tongue out at me after finding out I had plans to trade it in. So, rather than having a little dignity and grace, it decided to leak the entire contents of it it's engine coolant all over the place. That was a fun $700 repair just so I could then turn around and trade the darn thing in two days later. But, little Lulu here is a great car, and I am happy to have her! And, she is RED. Whoohooo!

3) Grandma - for those of you that I haven't told, we found out a few weeks ago that she has 2 tumors in her brain. She goes in and out of lucidity, and she is currently in a hospice unit. My poor parents are about to lose it, and I can't even talk about it. My grandma is very special to me, and I am so very sad that this is going on. So, please send good thoughts/vibes/prayers her way. It isn't something that is going to get better, but hopefully it won't be something that drags out and causes her pain.

4) Knitting - I am trying to do a cardigan for my downstairs neighbors who are expecting a little girl in Sept. I think I may have to scrap it and start new because the pattern I have, while easy (moss stitch) is not working out for me. So, I have printed a new pattern, will try it using the same yarn, and hope for the best. If that doesn't work, they will be getting a pair of booties and maybe a hat instead! I have about 4 other projects that I have started and are on hold, and once I have completed them I will post pics here.

5) Books - I met a lovely gal via email, and we are going to start a book group together. I am very excited at this prospect as I have not been able to find a group I really liked since I was in San Francisco. Not sure if it's going to be just a book group, or possibly what I am calling a 'cook & book' group. It will start sometime in the fall and I am just putting together the guidelines and thinking about where to post it. And, of course, I just stayed up until 2am last night finishing the last Harry Potter book. Wow. I am amazed at how well the story wrapped up, and greatly bummed that there will be no further Harry stories to come. What will the world do without more Harry Potter? I woke up thinking about the story and the characters, and not many books can make me do that. J.K. Rowling, you are phenomenal. Thank you from the bottom of my fantasy-loving heart.

That's it for now friends! Hopefully I'll get back on the blogging bandwagon and have more frequent updates.

Happy Happy

I have survived my first two full days on the new job. The universe aligned itself perfectly for me to start at this exact time- new boss is on vacation for the week, 4th of July fell right in the middle of the week, thus allowing me a 4 day work week, and Mother Nature here in Seattle got a little confused and apparently thinks that we are actually somewhere closer to the equator because it is HOT and crystal clear outside.

My new job had a little pre-requisite reading. Since I am now a Starbucks Partner (read: Employee), I read the Chairman's book called “Pour Your Heart Into It”. I was reading this book last week, and kept coming across some very interesting tidbits that made me say to myself “If this is even remotely true about the company, I am going to LOVE working there!”. Now, I’ve only been here 2.5 days, but my experience thus far has been incredible. I mean it. I feel like I am back in the heyday of the internet boom when I was at Netscape- the people here are super nice, they are all very social, and there is nary a bad vibe to be felt. I have been introduced to a great many people (many whose names I will not recall 10 mins after I meet them, but that is expected when you are new), and I am scheduled to meet with at least 10 other people in the dept. The office décor is wonderful- very artsy, and there is so much natural day light that I don’t even feel remotely sad that I have an inside cube. I received my official badge today and my ‘partner card’ which is the most important thing to have- that is how I get my discount!!

I have also learned how to use the happy espresso machines that are in the break rooms, and OH. MY. GOD. I have full access to every flavored syrup, including my fav- the caramel sauce used for caramel macchiatos- all the teas, and much more. I made a lovely latte this morning, and am happily bouncing around after the double shot of espresso that I added to it. I am sure the novelty will wear off at some point, and I will go back to drinking my normal Americano, but for now, I am trying it all. I may even have a mocha tomorrow, with some peppermint syrup added. Or maybe Hazelnut. Or….hmmmmm….. maybe I will COMBINE some and create an altogether new drink. You just never know.

In other news- I showed Daisy, my pot-bellied baby dragon, to Shannon at Cultured Purls, and she liked it so much that she is thinking of having me do a class on it! How cool is that?? So at some point in August I may very well be leading others down the path of hatching their very own baby dragons. I’m working on a second one which has a metallic yarn for the tummy, spines and wings, and once I am done I will post more pics. I think this one will be a male dragon. Maybe he will be called Jake.

Oh, and in other news, I will soon be the proud owner of a Macbook- I am so excited I can hardly wait for it to arrive. I want to play with all the fun stuff that comes with it, and finally synch all my iTunes in one place. And, the absolute best thing about it is the little webcam that is built right in that allows you to video chat with people. And since Payal and her family use this all the time I will be able to see them while we talk- this will help the girls not forget what their Erica Masi looks like. And I will try to figure out how I can get others to jump on that bandwagon too- It will be just like the Jetsons- The future is now folks!

Is it christmas, already?

I received two very happy surprise presents the other day.

1. Yarn. From Peru. Lots of it.

My friend Astra went to Peru and as a thank you for looking after her kitty, Pico, she brought all that back for me. There is baby alpaca in there, very soft, and some of what they call "Maybe Alpaca" as they are not sure if it's alpaca or man-made. And she talked a woman into selling her two spindles, so I could see how they spin the yarn. So very cool. So, I have yarn for days and days and days and days..... And the tote bag is awesome too!

2. Then, after picking up my new addition to my stash, I got home and found this waiting for me:

It had a lovely note from my new boss welcoming me to the team and to the company. How nice is that?? I love this company already and I haven't even started!!

I'm So Cute!

I’ve been quite the busy bee lately with the knitting. I figure I should get in as much knitting as I can in the next week, before I start my new job. I have the feeling I'll be busy and exhausted for the next few weeks and won't have much time or energy to tackle much more than a garter knit scarf, if I'm lucky. As a result, I have made my very first stuffed animal- a tiny little baby dragon. Her cuteness just makes me giggle. The places where I read the pattern incorrectly, made a small little mistake, or tried something new, all those little imperfections are exactly what make her so darned adorable.

She still needs teeth, possibly eyelashes, and a name. I got this pattern from Knitty.com and if you'd like it too you'll find it here.

First Day of Summer- A Comparison

Welcome to the first day of summer everyone! This time last year I was in the midst of what LA likes to call the "June Glooms", where it is overcast and weird in the morning, and around noon or so, it melts away and is sunny and beautiful, and usually warm.

This year, I have come to learn that Seattle weather is a bit different. As shown by the comparison below:





Yup, we are in for some rain showers, possible sun breaks (that's what they call them here, sun breaks. However, I don't think it is like a coffee break, you can't run for the door when you see one coming!) and general blahness. And, true to form, I love it. I love that I am not sweating by 11am. We had a beautifully sunny and clear day yesterday, and today, not so much.

Also, today is the longest day of the year, and the sun actually doesn't go down here until about 10pm or so. It is something that takes a little adjusting, I must admit. By the time my body feels like it is time to go to sleep, it is about midnight. But damn, it's so nice having at least 4 hours after work where I still get to see daylight. Not so great on the shortest day of the year, where the sun is setting at 4pm, but that is another post entirely.

And, just to add to the crazy which is where I live, last weekend was the Fremont Summer Solstice Parade and Pageant. This is the an event to help people in need, and all donations go to a good cause. You may well be asking "Erica, what is so crazy about that? That sounds like a great thing!" and indeed it is. However, what you don't know is this- people strip down to nothing, paint their bodies, and ride bicycles in the parade. Seriously. I have to laugh, because my friend Lisa sent me an email before I moved here, that was a slide show of people painted riding bicycles. When I asked her where they were, she said Seattle! I knew I would be right at home.... Not that you will see me participating, but just the idea that people are so nutty makes me laugh. Sadly, I missed the parade this year, but I am for sure going next year. I never made it to Bay to Breakers in SF, and I think this has the same feel, minus the long distance run/walk.

Enjoy the first day of summer, where ever you may be!

Caffeine Highs and Employment

I finally landed a gig- at Starbucks (corporate)! It's a support position, working with one of the VPs there, and I have no idea of what the group actually does, because, hey, I get a pound of free coffee a week plus all the coffee I can consume in the break rooms, and who cares what you have to do when you have that much caffeine in your system! All I heard when I talked to the recruiter was "You'll be suporting...blahblahblah...in the blabblahblah group....which does blahblahblah....oh, and you get free coffee." (Um, just kidding. Sorta.)

Yay for the full time, permanent, coffee perk-filled job!! Whoohooo! I am officially now part of the Seattle area, having worked at both Microsoft (aka Ginormo Software Co) and now Starbucks. I think I'll shoot for either REI or Amazon next!

The Poncho Lives

Diane finally got Delaney to wear the poncho I made her. So cute. She still doesn't love it, but I am happy that she finally wore it long enough for Diane to get a picture of her in it. Yay!

The Police, a Baby Blanket, and a Birthday

Hmmm.... sounds like the begining of a twisted hollywood movie! Nope, just that it is officially my 35th birthday today, I saw the Police in concert last night, and I have pics of the baby blanket.

The concert absolutely rocked last night. Not to date myself too much, but they were RAD! Sting is so great live, and he is the only man I know that just gets better with age. Thank you again to Matt for giving me one of the best b-day gifts I have received in a long time.

And, as promised, here are pictures of the baby blanket I made. I put in the little hat and made it look pretty. I can't wait for my co-worker to get them. I can't believe I actually made this!!