Whooo Football!

On Sunday Ken and I accompanied my dad and his girlfriend Patty to the Broncos @ Redskins game. We were 7 rows from the field, on the 50 yard line. Holy shit that is close! I even got to go on the field and Chris Cooley signed my jersey!!! I can't even describe how excited I was!!!

See look - he signed my freaking jersey!!

Here's Zorn during warm ups

My dad and Ken with the Redskin Ambassadors (something like that, they weren't cheerleaders like we originally thought!)

And the hubz with some veterans

Some QB chatter

These are AWESOME! Wish I could have them for every game!


Even though the girls sat up near the top, we ran up there during half time to say hi! Love 'em!

This is a pretty accurate view from our seats - no zoom!

Since I got my jersey signed by Cooley, I am going to get it framed and "retire" it. But I don't think I want to get another Cooley jersey. I mean I do but I dont.

So I'm thinking about getting this dudes jersey now, Mike Sellers. We'll see though. He's big and bad and kinda cute!

Wow, is that for real? If I hadn't taken a picture, I might not believe it!

Game's over...

...time to go to the bar to meet up with those crazy girls!

Eagles @ Redskins

The week 7 Monday night game was the Eagles at the Redskins. About 2pm on Monday, I was talking to Ken on gchat and he nonchalantly says, "wanna go to the game tonight?" He's been offered tickets before, but the game just wasn't worth it and I don't really like to go out on weeknights (yeah, I'm lame). But it was a Monday night game, Ken wanted to see the Eagles and we hadn't been to a game in a while, so I said sure, let's go! It wasn't a done deal yet, but we did get the tickets and I am so happy we went!

We got 2 tickets, 2 wristbands for the "tailgate party" (which is NOTHING like tailgating, just free food, no alcohol), and a parking pass (which is AWESOME. If you metro, you have to walk about almost a mile uphill to get there). We left our apartment at 6 pm and it was almost 2 hours until we were walking in the stadium! Rush hour traffic + Game traffic = a lot of sitting still. So a little before 8 we got there and headed straight for the free food! Nothing over the top, but its still pretty good. BBQ pork and beef, buns, hot dogs, baked beans, pasta salad. So we quickly ate grabbed a beer (not a free perk!) and got to our seats.

The area we were sitting in has a concrete overhang above us.... which means there are TV's hanging up showing replays!

The skins totally sucked and that's all I really need to say about the actual playing of the game! Westbrook got knocked out pretty bad in the first quarter.


I think I read he had a concussion, but he was able to get up and walk off the field.

And then this is the last picture I've got of Cooley playing before he broke his ankle!


I feel so bad, but I didn't really realize he was hurt. Ok, now look at this picture.

It's hard to tell because I was using the digital zoom and then I cropped the picture too. I think its Cooley, but its hard to tell on the jersey if its a 47 or 17. I think its 47 though. When they introduced all the players at the beginning of the game, I noticed Cooley had BRIGHT bleach blond hair - like in this picture. And it looks like thats a helmet in the hand. BUT he is so tall! (alright, I looked up how tall Cooley is and it said he's 6'3, so that's another plus for it being him). And he's walking off the field - that's what really gets me. He BROKE his ankle! How do you limp off the field with a broken ankle? He must be pretty damn tough cause he's only supposed to be out for 4 weeks!

We left at half time. Didn't want to, but it was 10:15 or so and we knew it would take some time to get back to the car and drive home. We got home by 11 so that did work out.



Oh yeah and this picture! We are going to the Denver game on Nov 15 and we have seats in the general area of where I have circled! It's going to be so much fun!! Section 101 on the 50 yard line!

Socks!

Wow, 5 posts in a row! Alright! And this one has pretty pictures too :)

On Saturday I finished the Having Hope socks!!!

I love 'em! They are so warm and squishy! All the cables make them nice and thick. They were a pain in the ass most of the way. When I got sick and started taking cold medicine, I would cable the wrong way, cable the wrong stitches or just not cable anything! So I would frog and tink back and fix my mistakes, tell myself to pay attention more and then I'd mess up again! Even with all my mistakes, I finished the second sock in 6 days! That is a record for me! (btw for you non-knitters frogging is where you have to rip out your stitches - rip it sounds like rib bit, hence its called frogging! Tinking is knit spelled backwards and that is usually just undoing a few stitches.)

I hadn't shown off these socks either, so here are the Sock Knitters Anonymous Ravelry Group mystery socks from September. That month you had to knit socks that were either yellow or designed by Wendy Johnson. I went with yellow. The designer of the mystery socks was Nancy Bush and she is incredibly talented. If you mention Nancy Bush to most knitters, they will know who you mean; very much a knitting celebrity!

So without further ado, here are the mystery socks!

They are VERY bright in person. I didn't realize how bright they were until I wore them out in public. One of my co-workers said something like, DAMN those are some bright ass socks! I'm totally okay with being the one who wears bright socks. I actually kind of like it!

I have almost finished a knee-high sock too! (I would have finished during lunch today, but Miss Maggie decided I would make a nice place for her to sleep so I put my knitting down and paid attention to her instead.) These are really awesome - purple and silver striped. Its called illusion knitting because even though it is just stripes, there is a cat hidden in there. You'll see what I mean soon! I finished the pattern part on the first one, but I did the calf increases horribly, so I have to frog quite a bit and start again. I'm hoping to get them done to wear on halloween, but we'll see. I think it looks a bit doubtful. I lost quite a bit of knitting time last night because we went to the Redskins Eagles game (totally worth it) but I might be able to get it done.

I need to give a Wellness Core update and I also want to post about the game last night! (even though my team is totally sucking this year - that will be a rant within the post - and my fav player BROKE HIS FREAKING ANKLE LAST NIGHT!)... so until then!

Dear Apple,

I like you guys. I really do. I love my iPhone, I like my macbook (most days - except when it comes unplugged and then shuts down cause the battery won't hold power. sure, I could buy a new battery, but I don't want to spend $150 on a battery for a laptop that I might not use for much longer), but I'm going to tell you what you should REALLY be making.

What I want is an Apple touch screen laptop; basically an iPhone and laptop combined. It wouldn't need a keyboard or mouse (guess you could have a USB port for those who wanted an external keyboard and mouse). It would just be one compact thing; keyboard, mouse, screen. Don't ask me about the specific details. You are the geniuses Apple, you figure it out.

Like the iPhone, it would have an on screen keyboard. You wouldn't need a mouse, you would scroll and click just using your finger! Cause dudes, seriously, it'd be awesome.

ETA: I thought I should check out what is already out there and PLEASE APPLE!!! do something! Tablet computers need your help! Check out this you tube video of the HP touch screen - UGH!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtT3kCoVJqM&feature=player_embedded#at=72

Awkward!! Not at all what I am talking about, but just a sad, sad version of what I want. The keyboard made the screen unsteady and you have to reach across it. In order to actually touch the pictures, the guy had to hold the screen still with his other hand! Not necessary if you have one solid piece. And it needs to be flat; you gotta have some sort of back bone to it. Really, just a bigger version of the iPhone, that's what I'm talking about. And it has to be Apple. Sorry to my PC loving hubz, but you married a Mac girl!

Apparently CNET is with it! This is their wish-list for the Apple Tablet (which may or may not be released in the near or distant future.. hmpf. I guess the Macbook will be around for a bit longer.) This is EXACTLY what I am talking about!

Knitting post!

I got an extra 2 days off of work this week! Sick days, but days off nonetheless! I went to the doctor on Monday because I thought I had a sinus infection, and indeed I do. So I took Tuesday off too... just cause I could!

I managed to get some knitting accomplished this weekend for once. I finished a hat... but pictures will come later when I give it to its intended recipient!

I also finished the first Having Hope Sock and I really like it!


The pattern is easy to memorize once you understand how all the cables are supposed to cross.
I have had many problems though (all my own fault - from not paying attention) but we'll just say I have gotten better at fixing mistakes!

I started on the second one Monday morning and since I have made quite a few mistakes, I was only able to get to the gusset increases by the evening.

The other project I'm working on steadily is a Noro Striped scarf. I absolutely love it! I am using Silk Garden Lite (discontinued colors are 50% off at Webs!) and I just LOVE the bright color repeats. I want to get more, but I don't know what I would use them for. I guess I could get some just in case something comes to mind.

It sounds silly, but its so fun to watch the two colors constantly changing! I'm not sure whether or not I will need another skein or two to finish it, but I definetely see another Webs purchase coming soon.

I have some other projects lying around, but I really want to finish the socks! And I need to figure out if I need another skein or 2 of Noro for the scarf... hmm decisions decisions!

The cats have loved me being home these two extra days too! Ava has been near me almost the entire time. Sleeping next to me on the couch during the day, in fact she's about 2 inches from me now!

I am starting to tell a difference from the change of food. Maggie finally started eating it. I did the right thing and mixed the old food with the new and they are both pretty happy! I have finally been able to notice a change in Maggie's weight! She's not fat anymore! She will always be fluffy, but she's not as heavy or as solid as she used to be. And both of their coats are a lot softer!

Wellness Core - The Beginning

A couple of weeks ago I noticed Ava had really itchy ears. Thinking it might be ear mites, I rubbed some baby oil on them to kill any mites and to soothe the itchy skin. She didn't like it at all, but it seemed to help with itching.

I don't think she has ear mites though. It seems to be more of the outside of her ears that itch and Maggie is fine too. The only way they get mites is from another cat and Ava and Maggie are only around each other so... And lately more of her head has been itchy.

Last night was kinda bad. She was scratching enough that her ears were bleeding and she got the back of her head too. So I turned to Google. From what I have read, I think she has some sort of allergy. I have been trying to think of anything that happened about the time she started getting itchy, but I'm at a loss.

Anywho, another possibility is it could be a food allergy. She's been eating the same food for awhile, but I don't know what else to change! After doing some research I came across Wellness Core. Its grain free and 50% protein. Cats were not made to eat and digest carbs! If they were in the wild, think about what they would eat. It would be a LOT of protein. If you look at almost any bag of cat food, corn is usually number 2 on the list, if not number 1, and most of the protein comes from by-products. Its not something I would want to eat, so why would I feed that to my cats?

The Wellness Core website says:
We use delicious, real-foods like deboned meats, free of added hormones and steroids, wholesome grains and fresh fruits and vegetables to provide the perfect balance of protein, energy, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants in the healthiest way possible.

So far, Ava loves it but Maggie is turning her nose up at it. I think its kinda like someone who loves to eat fast food and hates salads and what not. She's used to the high carb really crappy cat food. When she gets hungry enough, she will eat it. (And I have to say, I thought I was buying decent cat food. I went from buying Purina One Healthy Weight to Iams healthy weight formula in an attempt to get Maggie to lose weight, but all they both have in them is a lot of corn and animal by-products)

The only small downside though is the price. I have progressively been buying more expensive cat food. Purina was like $10 for a 7 lb (or so) bag and Iams was more like $13, but Wellness Core is $22 for a 5 lb 14 oz bag. But supposedly since its 50% protein, you dont have to feed as much and it will last longer.

I am going to monitor their progress over the next few weeks. They are supposed to have more energy, a nicer coat (possibly shedding less), less puking (score!), and there are some reports of less stinky poop. We'll see about that last part.

I'll let you know how it goes!

And a knitting post to come soon! I am sick again - or rather still. My nose is stuffy and I have watery eyes, plus the cough, but medicine is making me feel better. I have a few knitting problems to fix, but hopefully by the weekend I'll have some pics to show! Plus I'll try to take a few of the cats so I can see if there are any noticeable changes from the new food!

I'm Back!

I am going to try to update this thing more often. But the thing is, I go through spells where I am quite content to sit here quietly and just take everything in. I dont have anything too important to say and I just enjoy the peace and quiet I guess. But, that's not how I am feeling now!

The past month or so I had been very quiet. On the weekends it was quite nice to stay home and knit, cook and clean, and watch movies and football. (and right now that actually sounds so wonderful because I am exhausted from this past weekend) But for the first weekend in quite awhile we went out... everyday this weekend!

Friday night was the best by far! After work Ken and I met up with Lori at Russia House. They had this mango and pineapple infused vodka... I have never had vodka taste so good straight! I just sipped on it and it was so yummy! The three of us then went to Bread and Brew just a couple blocks away and spent the rest of the evening with Christie, Patrick and Jarrod. It could not have been a better night! It was warm outside and a bit breezy, not your typical October weather. We had such a great time. The end of the night gets a little blurry and I was definitely hung over on Saturday, but it was well worth it. Plus I got to have some pumpkin beer!

Even though I was hungover Saturday, I didn't feel THAT bad. Ken and I just laid on the couch and watched movies most of the day. It was so relaxing and just the perfect Saturday afternoon! Eventually we got up and went to a party later on and that was fun too. I was still a little hungover and trying to get over a cold that doesn't seem to want to go away, but still a good time.

I almost dont want to even think about football... at least not Redskins football. UGH! So I'll skip it and just say I had a lot of fun watching the Denver game with some fun people! We went out to watch the game with Christie and her new boyfriend Rob and some more people joined us later on. Drank quite a few miller lites and then we headed home for some tasty lasagna I made earlier in the day. The weekend ended with Family Guy and American Dad. I quickly fell asleep and then cursed not having Columbus Day off this morning.