Big Top, Big Time!

My mom and I bought this red and white striped fabric last weekend when I was home for Jessie's baby shower, because my mom wanted me to sew some valances for Ava's circus-themed nursery.  I haven't used my machine in a few years, doing more knitting than sewing, and I realized my machine's foot was missing!  After visiting several stores, I finally gave up and went to Wal-mart; since they sell the brand of machine I own, I figured they might have spare parts.  The following scene took place, after I walked up to a sales associate:

Me: Excuse me, but do you have any sewing machine feet?

SA: No.

Me: Really?  

SA: Well, we have some over here.

... and she led me over to several sewing machine feet, which all fit my machine.

The final result:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Whose Campus? OUR Campus!

Screw this noise.

And screw the noise of four helicopters hovering in the airspace above UCLA, and police sirens across campus.  Take your para-military tactics and get the hell off our campus.

PO'ed? Take action:

Contact the UC Regents

Contact your local representative

(Sorry about the LA Times link above-- no indy media has posted the fee hike yet.  Here's a link to Democracy Now discussing what this fee hike means)

Knits and Wits...

... at least, I hope for wit!  There ought to be a law against mid-terms extending across more than two weeks.  My first mid-term was in class, on October 30th, and my last mid-term is due next Thursday, on the 19th!  I have to say, though, this paper I just finished, on Paul Otlet and the International Institute of Bibliography, is quite awesome-- toot, toot!  

I've been knitting like a crazy person to take a break (read: procrastinate) from all these mid-terms, but I can't post pictures of any of it, because they're all gifts... except for the lovely Star Crossed Slouchy Beret (you can click through this link if you're a Ravelry member-- and if you're not, get on it!), designed by Natalie Larson (all her patterns are adorable!).  My favorite part of this pattern, aside from the slouchyness, is that star spiral on the top-- of course, I was working on this pattern on the bus, and thought I knew how it should go, and ended up with something totally different.  I still love it, though.

Thanks to the Infamous Lady for posing for this shot-- it's incredibly difficult to take good pictures of yourself in a hat.

Library Pledge: Westwood Public Library

Library: Westwood Public Library

Date: Saturday, October 24th, 2009

I visited this library for a reading by Francesa Lia Block, pesky pixie author of Weetzie Bat.  

I have an author worship problem; whenever I meet a writer whose work I admire I tend to get a little spazzed out... When I met Jonathan Safran Foer way back in... 2006?  I got up to the book signing table, and handed him my book, the Post-it with my name on the title page, and I couldn't even talk.  Couldn't say a word.  I just handed him the book, gave him a wimpy little smile, and walked away.  He kind of looked at me funny... he will be at the Santa Monica Public Library tomorrow talking about Eating Animals.  Maybe I should go and try to not flip out.  But really, has anybody seen Mr. Foer?  I know he's married, but jeez louise.  Can you blame me for going silent? Also, I'm vaguely annoyed about Natalie Portman's recent article on Huffington Post regarding this book; is it really fair for someone to be gorgeous, have kissed Devendra Banhardt, be a genius, and be morally awesome, too?

Anyway, I had the exact opposite effect with Ms. Block when I met her (it was a very small, intimate kind of reading; quite lovely, actually).  I started talking a mile a minute about my niece, my sister, how only the very best boys we dated were Secret Agent Lover Men, a book report my sister did where we chopped all this cheapo doll's hair off so she would have a funky Weetzie-do... ridiculous.  

The library itself is very nice; I have it on good authority that when it rains, because the library has a metal roof, it's quite soothing.  Rainy-day ambiance is very important for libraries, in my mind; this library also has a back window that looks out over a tiny little cemetery.