doppelgänger

In honor of Doppelganger week on Facebook last week, many users changed their profile picture to their celebrity look-alike. I chose Mara Wilson from "Matilda." I was almost her twin when I was little, which made me feel so special. It still makes me feel special. Do you see the resemblance?

For those who know me best, however, this is a much better look-alike.

Wishing this girl were my double, because then her coat would be mine, I played paparazzi on the way up to campus. Her backpack obscures the cuteness of the coat, but trust me. It is a piece of outerwear worth noting.

*Who is your celebrity look-alike?

bullet points

Friday:
-Finished work and class by 11 a.m., and read in one of the comfy chairs in the library, drank a can of Pepsi, and took a nap, all before meeting up with Charlotte for lunch.
-Tried to give blood. My iron level was too low, though. This happened another time I tried to donate. Lame. I really wanted the free t-shirt.
-Watched two movies with Charlotte and Josh. (my friend, Josh, not her boyfriend, Josh.) I finally got a Charlotte night because her Josh was out of town. Yes! While we were watching, I made myself some real food (by "real food" I mean that I cooked some noodles, heated up the rest of my Target brand pasta sauce, and made biscuits.) and finished the scarf that I started making as a Christmas present for Charlotte. Now it is an early Valentine gift.

Charlotte and I posed for a self portrait in our matching ruffle scarves. Charlotte's even happened to go with the shirt she was wearing!

Saturday:
-Cleaned the bathroom. Used a ton of Clorox cleanup. A ton. I only clean the bathroom every couple of cleaning checks, and I trust my cleaning skills far beyond those of my roommates. My roommates clean with paper towels and the 409 from under the sink. When it's my turn, I go to town.
-Went grocery shopping. My especially tight budget of late means stringent planning and shopping each week. I buy a weeks worth of food, planning out lunches as I shop. Awesome friend Josh gave me a ride, even though he didn't have any shopping to do himself! Friends are such a gift.
-Prepared my relief society lesson. The topic was time management, and I benefited a lot from reading talks from the apostles and studying this subject.
-Mom sent me and Charlotte 7-11 gift cards, so we got Big Gulps. (We would have gone for BG's that afternoon anyway, but swiping the card from Mom made it all the more enjoyable. I can't wait to go again!)

Sunday:
-Church was great. Inspired by Jill and Michelle, I have been taking notes in all of my meetings, and I love seeing what stands out to me. I love knowing that I can learn from any lesson.
-Wonderful friend Dan let me borrow his van to get up to Michelle's house Sunday afternoon. I got to spend all evening and night with her family and I loved it. I love being with family. When I first got there, Michelle gave me a hug and I immediately felt happy. I am so glad that we are friends.

Monday:
-I got good mail from my family in Texas! Thank you, Petersens, for making my day. I came home to an envelope stuffed with four sets of knitting needles in various sizes, Swedish Fish, Junior Mints, fruity gum, silicon rolling mats, and a book called "When Bad Things Happen to Good Knitters." I got distracted reading the book when I should have been reading for class, and I can't wait to see what wisdom is to be gleaned from this guide.


I am itching for this weekend, when I get to knit, make Valentines cookies with Michelle, and make and deliver my own paper Valentines. I just have to resist the urge to knit and paper craft in lieu of studying until then.

*What was the highlight of your day?
*Are you itching for the weekend?
*Are you working on your Valentines?

unidentfied knitted objects

Last semester, the fashion popped up on campus of wearing headbands with large embellishments (i.e., flowers, bows). Not being one to pass up a trend, I found some patterns and knitted up some embellishments of my own.

I love how massive this flower ended up being. However, if I made another, I would adjust the band a little. I like this as an ear-warmer or as an accessory to a hoodie and stretchy pants while I'm studying.

Charlotte said that this one looks like Hello Kitty. I like it, though.

*Have you noticed the embellished headband trend?
*Are you a follower of this trend?
*Do my headbands make you want to be a follower? ;)

complete!

When I was in fifth grade, my class participated in Rocket Day. This entailed assembling a small rocket from a kit, bringing it to school on said day, and launching if off on the kickball field. Grandpa has always been an amazing craftsman, so Mom asked him to help me with the assembly. I spent an afternoon with Grandpa on his patio, gluing the wings on nice and straight and putting together a top-notch rocket. Grandpa's attention to detail and skill made my rocket one of the best in my class. At one point during assembly, Grandpa told me that I was good at working with my hands. This compliment meant so much to me and still does. I loved that being good at working with my hands made me more like my Grandpa. Thus, I thought it appropriate to create something with my hands as a gift to him for his 90th birthday.

Almost an entire month after the fact, I have finished my Grandpa's birthday scarf! When I began this project the day after Christmas, I did not realize what I had gotten myself into. The yarn is a fine, taupe alpaca wool (cast-off from Grandma!). The size of the yarn and needles makes for small stitches, which makes for many many rows. I would be knitting for a couple hours and only add a few inches, but it was totally worth it.

I really love this pattern, though. The body of the scarf consists of an 18-row repetition, so it never became tedious. This pattern kept me thinking, and I loved seeing each new set of blocks come into being. My only concern is that it is on the short side. I like it shorter for Grandpa, though, because I don't want to overwhelm him with this scarf, as it is already quite wide.

Doesn't this yarn look awesome as it unravels?

*Are any of your projects close to completion?
*Would you wear this scarf?

good and not-so-good

Not-so-good: I'm almost out of food and don't have time or money for grocery shopping until Friday. I'm down to one can of green beans, a quarter bag of Goldfish, and one can of Diet Pepsi. I'm also completely out of apples. Seeing as these are my staples, this is bad. I'm looking forward to this weekend, when I will have time and resources with which I can make a huge meal and eat until I'm full and completely satisfied.

Good: I work at a place where there is food enough for me to scrounge together lunches (and semi-dinners) this week, since the lunch-preparing supplies at my apartment are limited.

Not-so-good: I left the apartment today to a sink full of dirty dishes and a messy living room, expecting to return to the same sight.

Good: I came home tonight to a beautifully cleaned and organized apartment! Our storage closet in the back hasn't been this tidy ever. I wanted to cry when I saw the sparkling sink, empty dishwasher, and tidy living room. I'm tired and have a lot to fit into the next three days, but everything is okay because my roommates cleaned the apartment.

*What are you goods and not-so-goods for today?

thursday's warrior

I engaged in several battles today.

:: Walking to and from campus, I battled with many treacherous sidewalks. Navigating these patches of watery, icy cement requires creative prancing to keep my pants and shoes dry. I am happy to report that my feel remained completely dry.

:: At work, I battled my hunger-induced urge to eat the cupcakes sitting in the office. We made them for an event going on tonight, and I wasn't allowed to eat any. Though the cake came from a box and the frosting from a can, they smelled delicious. Plus, I was starving. And these had sprinkles. I made it to the end of the day without caving, then snagged one on my way out. It was delicious.

:: My battle with the Red Box machine outside the 7-11 was not quite as successful as my other skirmishes. I have been trying to return "Julie and Julia" since Tuesday, but every time I try, the machine tells me that it is full and cannot take my DVD. Meanwhile, I am being charged $1.00 plus tax every night at 9 p.m., and my lack of car keeps from locating another, vacant Red Box. What the heck? I checked out my DVD from this machine. Shouldn't I be able to give it back?

Regardless of my RedBox frustrations, my day ended fantastically with a package overflowing with skin care and a box of Swedish Fish. Mom also sent the fantastic hand cream that our skin care company makes, giving me a weapon against skin-drying campus hand soap. It was great to get this from home today. Thanks, Mom! I will think of you whenever I wash my face or moisturize my hands.

*What battles did you wage today?
*Have you ever encountered an overpopulated Red Box?

monday miscellany

This post has been on my mind all day, and only now did I realize that today is not Monday, making the title incorrect. Reluctant to discard a perfectly good alliteration, I am keeping the title, and will include miscellany from both Monday and Tuesday.

And now for the bits:

:: (Miranda, I'm using your double colon bullet.) Charlotte and I spent all afternoon yesterday at Michelle's, and it was wonderful. I love being with Michelle, & Co. because their home feels so much like my own. We played fun games, visited, and exchanged knitting updates. Max shared his macaroons with us, which were so delicious. He also showed us the cookbooks that he received for Christmas. I love looking at pictures of food and learning about new recipes, so it was great to have Max read to us about macaroon making procedures and the like. (I cannot wait for the day when I have enough space in my kitchen to keep a variety of supplies and ingredients on hand so that I can actually make the recipes I read about.) Michelle even sent me home with a sandwich bag of Tylenol because she informed us that taking straight Advil in large quantities can cause stomach ulcers. This was bad news to my "all Advil" self, but now I'm taken care of, because taking two Advil and two Tylenol instead of four Advil lowers the risk of damage. I'm set!

:: I got into work this afternoon to find to my relief that the new Valentine's decorations arrived. I was beginning to worry that the plush monkeys would never come! Phew.



:: Though the outside temperature is still rather chilly, I wore a dress today. I've been limited to jeans and sneakers for far too long, and I was not about to let the weather dominate my style needs any longer. I did wear tights (teal ones, to be exact) and I enjoyed my Smurf legs, liberated from sometimes-tiresome jeans.

:: After a year and half in the Physics Department, I finally made it around to taking the van-driving certification class. An official Training Certification Card now sits behind my license, confirming that I am apprised of BYU seat belt policy and the precautions I must take when driving a large van.



Happy Monday-ish Tuesday all!

*Does bending your style to conform to the elements frustrate you too?
*Did you forget that today is Tuesday?
*What are your bits of miscellany?