Nicky Epstein

(Is it just me or does Nicky's name make you want to have a Babs moment? "Nicky Epstein, Nicky Epstein!" Just me? Okely dokely then.)



One of the fringe benefits of being off sick on Friday was that I was able to make it into Tapestry Craft in the afternoon to meet knitting writer and designer extraordinaire Nicky Epstein and get a couple of her books signed. The event was organised by my buddy Kris, and was lots of fun. Nicky is very well known in knitting circles and it was kind of nice to discover that she was a warm, friendly person who was both generous with her time and quite modest about her success. In fact she and her husband Howard had no idea just how well known and highly regarded she is in this country!

Nicky demonstrated some techniques, passed around samples, chatted about her books, told some amusing anecdotes and spent quite a bit of time talking to everyone, signing their books and even dishing out little pressies. I bought a couple of books, one for myself and a gift for my friend Judy, and Nicky was so excited to see a genuine Male Knitter that she even gave me a bit of a cuddle. Nice! All in all a really fun afternoon, and even a glass of champagne to boot.

Kris has put up a page about the day on the Tapestry Craft website, and scroll down and you'll see a pic of me (in the purple polo shirt, chewing my bottom lip for some reason) with Nicky getting my books signed. Thanks for organising a fun event Kris!

Now It Really Feels Like Spring

Oh man I love this time of year. Once the Jasmine is in full bloom and the blossoms are all out, well, then it really starts to feel like Spring.



I spent as much of the past weekend as possible out of doors, soaking up the Spring sun and letting it banish the rest of my cold. Sunday was absolutely perfect, brunch with Mikey (the lovely ex) and his equally lovely new boyfriend Evan, then a few beers in the afternoon. Sadly nobody showed up for knitting at the pub later that afternoon, but I had a magazine with me and I kind of enjoyed sitting there for a while just enjoying the warm breeze.



I didn't do a lot on Saturday because I was still feeling full of cold, so I spent most of it hanging around the house or sitting out in my courtyard, although in the mid afternoon I did venture out and go to the Sydney Sity Klickers knitting group at a cafe just down the street. A nice social way to spend a few hours in the afternoon.

The only drawback to this time of year is, as much as I love it, it does seem to herald the end of the Magnolias that bloom in late Winter here. Still, it's a small price to pay.

On The Mend

Noon is as good a time as any to finally rouse oneself from bed, yes? After calling in sick today I spent the rest of the morning dozing, reading my book and flicking through the latest Vogue Knitting magazine in bed. (Ok, not everyone's idea of a good time, but I'm sure there's a bunch of you can relate.) Huh, twenty years ago I would have been buying Honcho or Inches magazines with the glee I now buy knitting magazines, it's a crazy world we live in.

A cup of tea and some wholegrain toast with imported French apricot jam, and the world looks much nicer. I actually feel quite a bit better today, even though my head feels a bit stuffier, probably because the low grade fever and sore throat has gone.

Anyhoo, sick talk blah blah.

The other benefit of being sick today is that I don't have to invent some bogus excuse to cut out of work early. So that I can hie along to the book signing organised by Kris (aka web-goddess) at her work, the yarn and needlecraft store Tapestry Craft this afternoon. Knit guru Nicky Epstein will be in the house!

That's a good enough reason to get out of bed.

Oh I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside

So I cut out of work early today because I was feeling craptastic, feverish and such, and it looks like the seriously sensible thing to do is to give up on attending the Amateur Unisex Strip Contest grand finale tonight too. I know, BOO! Seriously BOO.

So, consolation time. Some of my favourite things are warm weather, cute boys, vintage photos, vintage photos of cute boys, vintage photos of cute boys enjoying warm weather....

Anyway, you get the idea.

Let's start in grand style shall we? YOWSER.


I'm not sure whether I want to climb on top or slide under the bottom. Same old story.


Seafood buffet, and here I am with an empty plate and a fork in my hand.


Doesn't this picture makes you feel like an old, pervy, chicken hawk?


I'm not sure the names of the guys on each end, but the others are (L to R) Lucky Pierre, Lucky Pierre, Lucky Pierre, Lucky Pierre, Lucky Pierre, Lucky Pierre...


I think it's a rudder, or maybe a floatation device?...

Poorly

There is something not quite right about having a terrible, streaming head-cold when it's beautiful Spring/Summer weather outside, you know? I did sit outside in my courtyard a bit in the late afternoon yesterday, but mostly I stayed in bed with a jumbo sized box of tissues and a rambling 1234 page science fiction novel. It could have been a blizzard outside for all I knew. It certainly would have made having a cold feel a little more apropos somehow.

Anyhoo, I'm back in the office today, but I'm not sure how long I'm going to last before that bed calls again. Just thought I'd pop in, spread some germs, and then go again. Nice, right? Giving.

Be Civic Minded, And Do Your Bit For The Environment

A. Remember, if you see trash in the street, pick it up!



B. Save water and have some jolly japes, shower with 'the gang'!

It's Not All Pretty Sailors And Ugly Rooms, You Know

Bleh. Nobody likes to read great big long tirades of whinge (ok, maybe I shouldn't speak for all of you, some of the more emo of you might love tirades of whinge, but me eh, not so much) so I'm just gonna give you the PowerPoint slide bullet-pointed version of my Crappy Tuesday:

• I think I'm getting a cold, I have the scratchy throat and stuffy sinuses that seem to indicate same.
  
• Poor Britney. I can't stop worrying about her.
  
• I've injured my back recently, and the referred pain I started to feel down my right leg is getting past the point where I can assure myself it will Magically Go Away. Magically Go Away is normally my favourite remedy.
  
• The shitty 'helping out' job I've been doing 3 days a week in another department was supposed to be over already, but now it looks like the woman who's spot I've been babysitting is not likely to return to work. I may get stuck doing it until the department restructure is finished and I can take up my new job. NOT HAPPY. Not the least because I have to sit next to the Loudest Person In The Building for those 3 days.
  
• I've only just discovered that John Krasinski is in fact a cutie pie, and I kind of feel like such a lagger, you know?

What Every Home Needs

If you're a fireman. Or a stripper. Or one of those 'fireman' strippers!



From "Home Planning and Design", 1973. More delicious retro decorating zaniness in the Flickr photoset Your Swingin' Pad by Miss Retro Modern. It gets kind of scary.

[Link via things magazine.]

Absentee

Urgh, Monday mornings after a long weekend are just that much harder, you know?

I have to leave shortly to spend three hours in a meeting, which with travel time is going to swallow up more than half of the day. (Just for fun, while I'm there I think I'll imagine I'm in an episode of "The Office".) So I probably won't be around much today, or at least not until late in the day. Have fun.

[Updated: Ok, I'm back. It wasn't too bad as meetings go, even the opening prayer was, well, rather secular in tone. Oh, didn't I tell you? Our organisation opens every meeting with a prayer. On that point, DO NOT get me started, k? Thankfully I wasn't asked to provide it, even though they did ask if anyone had a special one they would like to contribute...

::crickets::

But a more salient point, who holds a meeting until nearly 2pm and doesn't provide lunch? Rude.]

Hello Sailor

Ok, the demi-highbrow bookishness of the last few entries requires an antidote. Heaven forefend that any new readers get the wrong impression that this blog has hidden depths, right?

So yes, I am obsessive about reading and books. I'm also partial to a vintage a sailor or two. Go figure! (You'll go mad looking for a link, there isn't one.)

Strum me like a ukelele sailor, that's an order!
Getting lei'd with these two would be fun, don't you think?

Oh hello. Caution, trouble below decks!

[Speaking of vintage, happy birthday Thombeau!]

The Cull

It's a public holiday here today, but a grey, rainy and slightly dreary one. So I decided this morning to throw on some old clothes and have a big clean, tidy up and most importantly... a cull. I decided to start with the absolute hardest thing I find to get rid of - books.

Over the years I have acquired lots of books, and something like 95% or more of them I would never get rid of. But you know how there are those few? Those poorly judged gifts? The nice cover wrapped around a thoroughly disappointing interior? Well, those books have got to go. Once I start stacking books on top of others in the shelves it's time to either cull or buy more bookshelves, and frankly I'm out of space for more bookshelves (I have 7 already).

So far I've filled a couple of shopping bags, and then it's off to the secondhand bookstore and/or Goodwill in the morning. These books will not be coming home again! Syonara!

Inscribed

[Phew, first real chance to stop and take a breath today. Imagine a day when you have extensive month-end financials to prepare and your printer, computer, brain and enthusiasm all refuse to co-operate. Also, you get called into a meeting that runs for 2 hours. On the upside it's a public holiday tomorrow! Yay, thank you POTUS and the Asia Pacific Leaders! Anyhoo...]

I love old and secondhand books. Love, love, love. I especially love it when there is a name and date, or some sort of identifying comments in a book, but best of all I love an inscription! Turns out I'm not the only one.

I have quite a few old books. Whenever I pick up my wonderful old 1920s 2 volume set of Mallory's "Le Morte D'Arthur" I like to think of Percy, the previous owner, and wonder if he enjoyed it as much as I did. Or wonder if Mabel made many things from the "Anchor Book of Needlework" she first cracked open in 1959. (At least a doily, I'm thinking.)

I have a few close friends that I can rely on to buy me interesting books, come birthdays or Christmas time. And if they haven't already, they usually get handed a pen and instructed to write something in the flyleaf. Not just for me to read, but long after I'm gone maybe someone else will read it and know that I had funny, sweet and kind friends? I hope so.

[Link via things magazine.]

Sweetie, Bring Mommie One Of Her Pills

I'm sitting at my desk. Really, that is the best they should expect from me for at least the next few hours. I wouldn't exactly describe this as a hangover, but it bears some resemblance.

Mikey (the lovely ex) and I had Birthday Dinner #2 last night at "Foveaux" in Surry Hills, which was recently voted Best New Restaurant in Sydney apparently. Chic, small, cozy and delicious. (The restaurant, not me. I'm not that cozy.) The food was stunning, the company superb of course, the service friendly and attentive without being obtrusive. Although, after Mikey mentioned to our waiter that he recognised him from somewhere, our waiter became very friendly and kept touching him on the arm and shoulder any opportunity he got.

He knows who the Daddy is.

Oh, and Unlikely Event #987: while I was standing outside the restaurant waiting for Mikey, in dark shirt, dark pants and long overcoat, a group of 4 Young Things stopped and asked me if they could go right in. Yup, they mistook me for a bouncer/door bitch! If I'd been quicker I would have refused them entry on account of Cheap Shoes, but as it was I blurted something like "Sure! I don't work here!!". Maybe not my best work.

Sock Blockers

Fellow knitters in the house, give me your opinion. Homemade sock blockers made from coat hangers. It looks to me like these could work ok, what do you think?

[Link via Whip Up]

The Neasdon Queen Of Soul

Here is a clip from one of my '80s obsessions, the voice of the beehive, the Nymphet of the Nail Varnish, the Neasdon Queen of Soul herself, Miss Mari Wilson:

"Just What I Always Wanted" by Mari Wilson & The Wilsations on "Top of the Pops", 1983 (I think).



Hey kids, those coloured spinning things at the start of the clip, they're what we old folks refer to as records. Neat huh?

This is the song that kicked off my obsession with Mari, and ecapsulates the early Mari beautifully. The camp, the fun, the nostalgic homage to an era, the joy of pop in a pure form. Mari deserves a much longer entry here but I'm a little pushed for time, so for now have a listen and I hope it whets your appetites. Enjoy!

Celebrate Good Times (C'mon)

Oh man, I had a hoot of a time last night. My friend Judy asked me out for dinner to celebrate my birthday, and we collected her friend Elizabeth along the way to make it a trio. Judy and Elizabeth have been friends for many years, and it was the first time I had met her.

The three of us got along like a house on fire, and they kept me entertained with outrageous stories and anecdotes over dinner (for example, ever wondered what it is like to go on a blind date with a man with no hands?). And you know what? These sorts of stories are just that much funnier when the story teller has a posh English accent. I don't know why, but it's true. A couple of bottles of wine, lots of laughs and some yummy Thai food, and it made for a great night.

Tonight I'm having birthday celebrations dinner Part 2 with Mikey (the lovely ex). 43 ain't so bad after all.

Therapeutic

There are times when keeping a blog, or I guess a journal of any sort, can be usefull. I don't really have a great memory so this almost daily record of thoughts, events and ephemera can be a perfect aid de memoir.

Birthdays always make me introspective. I woke up in a pretty negative mood this morning. All Waah! Woe! Woe, I say! I'm old! Thinking about the past year, and feeling like it was a year where I really didn't achieve much at all. A year of marking time.

But here's the thing. I just had a quick cruise back through a few months of my archives from last year and had to smile. I was reminded of all the fun of the past 12 months, the successes, all the good times that seem to have been briefly forgotten this morning.

As it turns out I've provided myself with a pretty good antidote here. And a part of that, a big part of it, are the comments many of you leave. The funny, the encouraging, the sometimes deliciously crazy and a couple of times even a bit flirty! There's no party without guests, let's face it.

And you're cheaper than therapy. :)

Forty Three Today

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaargh! Holy shit.

Ok, that's better.

A City Divided

Wilkommen zu Berlin meine Dammen und Herren!

(Except with one major difference, when I was in Berlin in the late '80s at least you were allowed to take photos of The Wall.)

5 kms of chain link fencing has been erected in Sydney to block off entire sections of the city into 'no go zones'. Sydneysiders are being discouraged from entering the city at all this week. Retailers, restaurants, bars and all sorts of businesses stand to lose thousands in lost takings. People living and working in the area have to show ID and justify their reasons for entering. Other areas around the city are designated 'stop & search' zones, where you may be stopped and have yourself and your belongings searched. Iconic Bondi Beach will be closed for a day.

On the upside, many of us (myself included) get to have a public holiday on Friday as further encouragement to avoid the city and the public transport system.

Welcome to Sydney George W. and APEC leaders!

Sociability

2 birthday celebrations, 1 for Karinne and 1 for Dawn. 2 sessions of knitting with friends, 1 at a cafe and 1 at the pub. 1 shopping expedition. 1 family member catch-up. Numerous beers.

Mix in some fine Spring weather that's more like Summer, and that's how you make a fun weekend!

(OK, getting laid as well would have made it a great weekend, but you can't have averything, right?)