New Stash and Movies

My best friend Bill and his wife recently had a baby, so I've been doing a little more baby knitting. The big project I'm working on for baby Sam is the Festive Fish blanket:



As you can see, I'm not even close to done. I didn't even start until after he was born, because he came a lot quicker than I thought he would - even though I knew the due date. Sometimes I'm just in denial about how much I can get done in any given amount of time. I'm using the Knitpicks Shine worsted and absolutely love the yarn and the colors I chose.

I also had a special request for some hats for the little guy (although we're suddenly having spring, so maybe he won't be needing them much longer!). I already had a couple of hats knit up, but I made one more especially for him:



I used the Jailbird hat pattern from MinnowKnits, Too just so I didn't have to do any math and used some of my leftover yarn from the mitred square blanket.

In other knitting news, I have some new additions to my stash. Kerry was nice enough to be my personal shopper at the Madrona Fiber Arts Festival again. Even though I don't need any more yarn, I felt a little bit ok with this because I actually have knit up all but one skein of the yarn she bought for me last year (yay for me!). Once again I mostly concentrated on the Blue Moon booth. I got some fantastic colors of Socks that Rock:



From left to right, that's Spawn of Braun, Never on Sunday, Jubilation, and Alley-oop.

Absolutely in love with them all. I'll be casting on the Jubilation soon, though, because I'm joining the latest KAL on the STR group on Ravelry.

I also got a skein of Luscious Single Silk in Spinel:



And because I fell in love with a skein Kerry brought back last year, I had her get me a skein of Cashmere laceweight from Just Our Yarn:



Catching up on a few more movies I saw this winter:



I was really surprised by how much I liked this movie. I'm not a huge Ron Howard fan (a lot of times I find his movies just too sentimental, too clean and pretty). I was just fascinated with this one though. As I'm sure you know, it's about David Frost's famous interviews with Richard Nixon, after Nixon left office. Both Frank Langella and Michael Sheen give amazing performances. You just are pulling for both of them. I mean it, it makes Nixon sympathetic. I'd really recommend this one, especially for people like me who love politics.



I AM, on the other hand, a huge Clint Eastwood fan. I have loved pretty much every movie he's directed, some more than others, of course. I wouldn't put this one at the top of my list, but I did really like it. Clint plays an old guy (shocking!) living in Detroit, the last white guy living in a neighborhood now populated primarily by Hmong immigrants. He's old and set in his ways and still remembering his service in Korea, so not so keen to be living among Asians. Because he's so angry and removed, he's pretty much estranged from his children and grandchildren. But somehow he ends up getting involved in the life of his teenage Hmong neighbor. I don't want to give away the plot, but it's a really good story and the ending was totally unexpected. I recently saw Changeling on DVD and can't believe he directed both of these movies this year. He clearly has more energy than most men half his age.



I saw this one before Joaquin Phoenix's recent strange appearance on David Letterman, thank goodness. I would have hated to have that in my mind while watching his sensitive, subtle performance. The movie is based on a Dostoevsky story. It's about an emotionally stunted guy who is living with his parents after his broken engagement has left him emotionally fragile. His dad owns a drycleaning business and he's in negotiations with a big businessman to buy him out. Phoenix meets the businessman's daughter and there's clearly a connection. They seem perfect for each other - they're both Jewish, down to earth and she clearly wants to take care of him. And obviously joining together would help the business deal too. So they start a relationship, but Phoenix is also drawn to his neighbor played by Gweneth Paltrow. She's blond, a party girl and as screwed up as Phoenix. The film is somewhat predictable, but more in an indie film way. I liked it, but it won't be on my Top Ten list next year.

Mid-Day Post!!

Hey, look at me! Blogging in the middle of the day, just like old times. Things have turned weird in the sleepy town of St. Paul. Things may get dicey with the last day of the convention today, so I was able to leave work early and get out of Dodge. Well, sort of, since I live in St. Paul too.

The other plus side of having the convention in town is that I got to go to a taping of The Daily Show on Tuesday. It was really fun to see how a show like that is put together and see Jon Stewart interacting with the staff and how much he gets into even the taped bits. It was really great. I had to stand in line for about 4 hours beforehand, but it was worth it.

Afterwards, a big protest with about 2,000 people was right outside of the theater. They kept us in the theater for about 10 - 15 minutes and then if we wanted to leave, we could go out the back door and take the risk ourselves of something happening. I figured it would be best to get out while I could, so I did. It's weird to see so many cops all around downtown St. Paul. Cops in riot gear, cops on bikes, cops on horse. I was parked on the other side of the crowd, so I headed around to circle around and be able to get in front of them. There was a big group of police officers strapping on gas masks and then rushing right at me, but luckily I got through and got to the car and out. One of my friends who left after I did ended up getting maced and the biggest clash between the police and protesters happened right in front of the parking ramp my brother used, so I was glad we left when we did.

While I was waiting in line, I finished up the first of the socks I'm knitting for the Knitters for Obama group:



I cancelled my sock club membership and joined a new one - the Artsygal Sock Club. Here's the July selection:



I love this yarn! It's a merino superwash and is super soft. The red semi-solid is really beautiful too. I think it'll be great for some sort of textured pattern.

The August selection was a bit different:



This one is a mix of bamboo, merino and nylon. The colors are a little more subdued than I'm usually attracted to, but I do like the pretty sheen of the bamboo with the softness of the merino.

Catching Up

Oh good heavens! I didn't realize how long it's been since my last blog entry, until I sat down to see where I last left off. This summer is speeding by so quickly!! What have I been up to since then? Finished up with the Fringe Festival. I saw some more really great shows and a couple of groaners. I thought I'd really miss not having the ultrapass this year, but I still saw 15 shows and that felt pretty ok. So, maybe next year I'll skip the ultrapass again. I believe the Fringe starts the day after I return from my big trip, so I probably won't feel much like running around town anyway.

I saw Keb' Mo' again. He was just as silky smooth as I remembered. Such an attractive, talented guy. The show was at the MN Zoo Ampitheater and I may be getting too old for that venue. There was an opening act and after three hours with no support, my back was killing me. It's so pretty and the sound is so good, though.

I spent the rest of that weekend at the Irish Fair. It was such a gorgeous weekend, just perfect! I worked a couple of the ticket booths, but most of my time was spent in the volunteer tent, helping coordinate all the volunteers, so I had plenty of time for knitting and whipped up these washcloths for the Knitters for Obama drive:



I went out to the State Fair and enjoyed all of the gorgeous work on display there. As I do every year, I vowed to learn how to do rughooking because I love those pieces. I managed to not buy any yarn there this year, but I did get my annual pair of fleece lined slippers, so I'm all ready for the cool weather now.

I did get this yarn in the mail:



It's another Obama fundraising yarn (100% of the profits go to the Obama campaign) from C*eye*ber Fiber. This colorway is called Fired Up and it's gorgeous!!

I saw a couple of movies, too:



I was disappointed in this one. I am a huge Will Ferrell fan and I even liked Semi-Pro, but this one was just not that good. There were some funny moments, and I do have to admit I was in a theater with only a couple of other people and they weren't laughing, so if there had been more people there laughing it up or if I had been alone and could have felt more comfortable just laughing out loud whenever, I may have done so. As you've probably heard by now, Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly play 40 year old men who are still living at home - Will with his mom and John with his dad. The mom and dad get married, so the two men have to live together and blended families are even more difficult with men who suffer arrested development, I suppose. Since I'm 40 myself, I just had little patience for two characters who were so annoying and ridiculous. The laughs weren't that huge and the ending was played much more straight and cheesy than one would expect from the first half of the movie. I'd say rent it if you love Ferrell, but otherwise, don't bother.

I liked this film much more:



This is a French thriller based on a mystery novel by Harlan Coben, an American author. I haven't read the book, so I'm not sure how different they are, but the film is really well done. It was really suspenseful and kept me guessing all the way to the end. It really has the feel of a Hitchcock film, so if you're a fan of that type of film, you must see this. I don't want to give away too much of the plot, so I'll just say it's about a pediatrician whose wife is killed one night while they're at their lake house. Eight years later, new evidence surfaces that may implicate the doctor in his wife's murder and he starts to wonder if she is even dead at all.

Forty is Fun

Last weekend Greg, Michael and I went to the Star Wars exhibit at the Science Museum of Minnesota:



We all really enjoyed it. There are a lot of artifacts from the Star Wars movies:



That's (of course) R2-D2 and Princess Leia's costume from the beginning of the first movie. There are also really fun activities and games to play:



That one was an activity where you build a vehicle that uses magnets to travel from point to point. Very cool and very fun. I'd highly recommend the exhibit if you're a fan of the movies or just like science. We also saw the IMAX movie about Special Effects. It's ok, but not one of the best Imax films I've ever scene. It's a bit dated since it was made a few years ago and there are so many more great FX techniques now.

Then yesterday was my 40th birthday. I had one day a few weeks ago where I kind of freaked out and thought 40 sounded really old, but the panic passed after a couple of hours and otherwise it really hasn't been that big of a deal for me. I guess I'm just pretty satisfied with where I'm at with my life now, so getting older doesn't seem like anything major. There's something about the mid-decades that are harder for me. At 25 I was the most freaked out about where I was and how my life was turning out. At 35 I had a little adjustment to realize that the picture I made for myself and how I thought my life would be wasn't going to be the same. But by now I've come to terms with my life choices and how things turned out and I really am pretty happy with everything. I guess we'll see where I'm at when I'm 45 :-)

I wasn't even sure whether to post about it, but I had to share the big surprise I had. I got up and got ready for work as usual in the morning. I walked out the door, thinking about what was on my schedule, etc. and I catch sight of a man in a suit standing right outside the door:



I'll admit I was really startled and frightened at first because he looked so lifelike and I thought maybe someone was stalking me, but after a second I noticed the face and realized it wasn't REALLY Barack Obama delivering some birthday balloons, just a life size cardboard cutout. Then I started laughing. It was fantastic! Thanks, Kerry - you got me good!

She also gave me a beautiful birthday cake tape measure for my collection:



And some of my co-workers had a real cake for me:



Yes, one of my co-workers calls me "Nae" for short, or sometimes Nae Nae. We're a little silly in our office sometimes.

I also had a gorgeous present from Deb sitting on my desk when I came in:



She hand-dyed some gorgeous merino sock yarn for me. My problems capturing purple on my camera are well-documented in this space, so I won't bore you again, but trust me, it's a gorgeous purple color. That birthday cake also had purple and yellow flowers, not blue.

After work I had a fun little party over at Senor Wong's with a bunch of people from work and some other friends. I really had a great time - it was so nice to feel so celebrated and loved all day long.

Happy Summer!

Well, it's officially summer and it sure feels like it around here. It's sunny and warm and humid. I've been partaking in the usual summer activities, too. Sunday we went to a baseball game:



Ben's team got to run onto the field with the Saints and participate in warm ups and such:



Ben's #13. The rest of us got to sit back and enjoy the game.







Even though the Saints lost, I wasn't too sad because they lost to the Sioux Falls Canaries and I still feel loyalty to my hometown. Plus, I got to sit outside and knit and watch baseball - how fun is that?

Summer also means Summer of Socks. On Saturday I cast on for my first (hopefully not only) pair of the KAL:



These are the Leyburn socks knit in Colinette Jitterbug. The colorway is Kingfisher and this picture doesn't do it justice. It looks just black and blue in that picture but there's a wide variety of purples and some green in there too. I really love it. It's my first time using Jitterbug and I really like it. It feels nice and soft and I like the fabric it makes.

And because summer is so short, I also picked up this yarn:



It's a Minnesota Vikings colorway from Chestnut Bay Fibers. The picture again doesn't capture the purple very well. It's a true Vikings purple, though. The yarn is a superwash merino and it feels so soft and cushy. I'm putting this one away until football starts in the fall again, though. Chestnut Bay will dye any team colors for you, so if you're foolish enough to support a sports team other than the Vikings and want some yarn of your own, check them out!

So Much Goodness!

Sorry it's been so long since I last posted, but so many good things have been going on!! I don't even know where to start. Last weekend I went to the drive in but I'm not even going to review those two films. I saw the new Indiana Jones movie, but Bill got to the movie late and he was bringing the food, so I spent a good 20 - 30 minutes dishing up food for the kids and getting everything together, so I feel like I didn't see the film well enough to do a review. My impression of it is that if you like the Indy films, you'd probably like this one. I enjoyed most of it, but I thought the end was a little too hokey, a little forced and wrapped things up a little too neatly. I'm a big Shia Lebeouf fan, and I liked him in this movie, so if they start a new series with Shia, I'll probably keep going. The other movie was the new Chronicles of Narnia movie. I never saw the first one and I only read the first couple of chapters of Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe as a pre-teen, so I really didn't understand what all was going on. I think this one is another one where if you're the intended audience, you're probably going to like it, but otherwise, eh. Not bad, but nothing earthshaking.

I managed to finish a project that I never even got a chance to introduce to you all.



Project Name: Holding Hands, Feeding Ducks Scarf
Designer: beforesunrise
Pattern Source: A Time to Knit blog
Yarn: Malabrigo Silky Merino - Purple Mystery Colorway
Yarn Source: The Yarnery
Date Started: 5/22/08
Date Completed: 6/6/08

Comments: This was a super quick project, primarily because I had a two-day CLE and I knit on the scarf through about 3/4 of it. I absolutely love this pattern and would love to do it again with a variegated yarn. I know the picture looks like a blue scarf, but it actually is an absolutely stunning color of purple. The red tones just would not show up in the pictures. You can see it a little better on the Malabrigo website, but they still didn't capture how striking the color is. I used 2 skeins of yarn and it's 64" long. I used a size 9 needle and cast on 33 stitches. It is 5.25" wide. This is a fantastic yarn - just as soft as you'd expect from Malabrigo and with a nice sheen from the silk. I would definitely use it again. Here's a closeup of the stitch pattern:



I also got to see one of my favorite bands last week:



In case you don't recognize those guys, it's REM. I've seen them quite a few times and I'd put this show close to the top of their best. As I (and the bands I grew up with) age, I find it interesting to see how the tock stars are handling the approach of middle age. I have to say, age hasn't phased Michael Stipe a bit. He still looks fantastic, long and lanky and bendy and energetic. The band played a great mix of old stuff and new songs off their latest album. I haven't bought the new album yet, but I definitely will after seeing this show - it sounds like a good one. Here's the set list for the other REM fans out there:

Living Well’s The Best Revenge
These Days
Disturbance at the Heron House
What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?
Hollow Man
Shaking Through
Man Sized Wreath
West of The Fields
Accelerate
Ignoreland
Star 69
Auctioneer
Houston
Electrolite
The One I Love
Final Straw
Sweetness Follows
Let Me In
Walk Unafraid
Horse To Water
Bad Day
I’m Gonna DJ
Encore
Supernatural Superserious
Welcome to the Occupation
Losing My Religion
Fall on Me (w/Johnny Marr)
Man on the Moon

The highlight of the week, though, happened in the same spot two nights earlier:



It was an incredible speech and I felt so lucky to be part of such an historic occasion. And the fact that the candidate that I feel so passionate about actually got the nomination made it even more spectacular. That never happens! I didn't take a ton of pictures, but I did take a few, which I'll share in case you're interested. It was my first time seeing Michelle Obama and I love her and I'm kind of obsessed with her purple dress, so I took a lot of pictures of the couple together. Here they are coming out to the roaring crowd:



Oh my gosh, they look so good together!



Here's the candidate, giving his amazing speech. The cheer when he announced he was the nominee was deafening!



And I couldn't resist this last one at the end, when Barack puts his arm around Michelle - the intimacy and love of the gesture was touching.



And I was even more happy about my latest yarn purchase:



It's from Black Bunny Fibers and a portion of the price goes to the Obama campaign. Yay!!

FO!!!

Oh boy, it's been a long time since I've posted an FO (at least one bigger than a preemie cap or bib). I finished the Cable Lattice Socks:



Project Name: Cable Lattice Socks
Designer: Coats Patons
Pattern Source: Knitnet
Yarn: Socks That Rock - Little Bunny Foo Foo
Yarn Source: Blue Moon Fiber Arts
Date Started: 2/16/08
Date Completed: 5/18/08

Comments: These are a little funky with the change from striping to flashing, but I kind of like them. The pattern is very straightforward and not difficult. My slowness in finishing them was just lack of knitting time, not difficulty with the pattern or the knitting itself. I fell in love with Socks That Rock all over again with this pair of socks, but I came so so close to running out of yarn - just a couple of yards left when I finished. I probably could have made them .05 to 1 repeat shorter and been ok, too.

It seems like I always have more coming into the stash than I have going out. I got a couple of new skeins of sock yarn as part of the Amazing Threads sock club:



I'm not a huge fan of the footie pattern that came with the yarn and this yarn is thicker than I typically like to use for socks, so I'll probably knit something else with this yarn.

Mid-week post

I posted a preview for this movie a couple of weeks ago and I got to see it last night:



I loved this movie. If you saw the preview (scroll down to my March 10 post if you want to watch it), you know it's about a chorus of senior citizens who sing rock n roll songs. Like all great documentaries, this film just brings you right into these people's world and you feel like you're part of it. Seeing old people sing The Clash and Coldplay could be cutsie and cheesy, but they and the chorus' director take it so seriously and professionally that it really is wonderful. These people really connect with the words to the songs and put all of their years of living into interpreting them. I cared so much about these folks by the end, it was almost like they were my own relatives. It's hilariously funny sometimes and deeply sad others. I would recommend this film for anyone. And, I have a pass for two free tickets to the next sneak preview on Thursday, 4/24 at the Edina Theater. If anyone would like the pass, let me know. The film opens it regular release next Saturday, 4/26.

It's also being shown as part of the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF)this Saturday at 5:30 at the St. Anthony Main theater. The MSPIFF is also showing some of the foreign films I've reviewed here over the last couple of months that I saw through Talk Cinema. In particular, Roman de Gare, And Along Came Tourists, and Yella. So, if any of those interest you, you don't have to try to find a DVD, you can see them at the Film Fest. The MSPIFF starts today, so expect to see reviews of some more obscure films again over next couple of weeks.

I do have some knitting related news, too - I got some new yarn in the mail:



This is a sock yarn from C*eye*ber Fibers called "Yes We Can". It's dyed in the lovely blues and reds of the Obama logo with some lovely purple, probably to show how Barack is building a bridge between the "reds" and the "blues". And best of all, $15 from the sale of each skein of yarn goes to the Obama campaign. I love it!

Weekend Update

Saturday was Talk Cinema and we got to see this film:



This is the kind of movie that you benefit from going in cold without knowing too much about it and figuring it out for yourself, so I'm not going to say too much. I'll just say that I liked it. Richard Roeper calls movies that have sort of interesting structure or twist endings "puzzle movies" and this would fit into that category. It's the kind of movie that you can talk about on a lot of different levels afterward - I love when a movie can bring up big philosophical issues as well as filmmaking and "taste" issues and you can really talk about it. If I still was in a movie club, this is the kind of movie I would choose to watch and then sit and talk about afterward. We had a good discussion led by a film critic from out east, but a small group where you could really talk about your thought and opinions about life would be even better.

After Talk Cinema, my friend and I had our monthly beading afternoon. I ended up just making one necklace and one pair of earrings because this necklace was very time consuming:



I really like how it turned out, though. The earrings were a little easier, but it was hard to work with the delicate chain - sorry about the poor photo quality:



In every picture I took, the camera focused on my hair, not the earring. I could have posted a lovely picture of my hair, but that's not what I wanted.

I also got the latest installment of the Amazing Threads sock club:



I should probably cancel my subscription for that, because I don't need any more sock yarn and I really only LOVE about half the selections, but now that it's only every other month, it's kind of fun to get and not that expensive. I'm going to wait until the May selection comes and re-evaluate then.

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas

I got a new cable for my card reader, so we're back in business, picture-wise. It's a snowy day today, just in time to make it look all Christmasy. I've been celebrating the season already, though. Both of my knitting groups had our Christmas celebrations this week. A week ago was my Saturday group and we had a really nice potluck - everyone brings such delicious treats! We do a Secret Santa type of exchange and I got a nice set of tubes for holding DPNs when you're knitting socks or such. Definitely will be using that. I also picked out a little gift for myself that day:



The new Noro Kureyon sock weight. So pretty!!

As I mentioned last time, I also started my one last Christmas gift, which I have no hope of finishing by Tuesday:



It's a zippered hoodie for my niece, Jessica. Luckily she's an X-tra Small and it's on size 8 needles, so it should get done fairly quickly. In fact, when I started knitting it, I got worried that it was looking like something that might almost fit me, so I was worried I was way off gauge. I double-checked the pattern and I was knitting the back, not one of the fronts. Yeah, that's tiny.

Wednesday night my other group had our little get together and gift exchange and I got an abundance of goodies. Everyone was so thoughtful and generous - it really made me feel lucky to belong to such a kind and caring group. I will share what I gave everyone, first because I've made it a rule for myself that I have to share my purchases on the blog before entering them into stash (hoping that I will shame myself from making more purchases) and second because you might like the idea for yourself. I sent Scout's Swag a picture of the coffeehouse that we meet in every week



and asked her if she would create a custom colorway for our group:



The tag, in case you can't read it, says "Wednesdays at Nina's". I think it turned out very nicely and we all were really happy to have our own, special colorway. Thank's Scout!!!

Lastly I got the December selection from the Amazing Threads Sock Club and it's really lovely:



It's Pagewood Farms hand-dyed. And finally, November tagged me for the Christmas meme:

Here are the questions (feel free to substitute the winter holiday of your choice & to add questions):

1. What was the best Christmas present you got as a kid? This is really bad, but I don't really remember any one specific gift I got for Christmas as a kid. We always got a lot of presents because we didn't get much stuff the rest of the year. I got lots of crafty stuff that I remember always liking.

2. What was the best Christmas present you got as an adult? My puppy Finbar. Back in 1996 I took all of the money I got from anyone for Christmas and put it together to buy him. I remember I drove out to the breeder in Buffalo, MN and it was a snowy night. I had intended just to look at the dogs, but I fell in love and had to take him home that night. I miss my babies this Christmas!

3. What’s your favorite Christmas carol? I thought I had done a Top Ten List of my favorite Christmas songs last year, but it turns out it was three years ago - goodness time flies! Here it is again:

1. The Christmas Song - Nat King Cole

2. White Christmas - Bing Crosby

3. Blue Christmas - Elvis Presley

4. Fairy Tale of New York - The Pogues featuring Kirsty McColl

5.Santa Clause is Coming to Town - Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

6. Winter Wonderland - Johnny Mathis

7. It Must've Been Ol' Santa Clause - Harry Connick, Jr.

8. Do They Know It's Christmas - Band Aid

9. Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy - Bing Crosby and David Bowie

10. Let it Snow - Dean Martin

4. How long can you stand to listen to Christmas music before you break? I love Christmas music, so I could probably listen to it all year long. I know it's weird, given that I don't consider myself a Christian. But I love tradition and I just really like the music.

5. How many Christmas albums do you own? A lot. I used to buy at least one every year. I didn't this year, because I'm trying to move everything over to iPod so that I don't have so much crap around the house.

6. Did you ever go caroling as a kid? I was in chorus in grade school and junior high and we would go carolling at malls and retirement homes and such. I don't think I ever went door to door, though.

7. Would you willingly eat fruitcake? I haven't yet, but I would probably try it in the right circumstances.

8. Do you own any Christmas sweaters? This is really embarrassing, but yes. I have two of them.

9. Do you own any Christmas jewelry? Of course. I have earrings, necklaces, bracelets and pins.

10. Do you wear them? Yes. I don't wear the sweaters to work or anything, but I do wear the jewelry to work.

11. Did your family have any Christmas traditions? Like what? We would have Christmas eve at my paternal grandparents house and we always had oyster stew with the dinner - the kids had to have some of the milk and eat one oyster. We also were allowed to have a little glass of wine. Christmas morning we would get up and open our presents from Santa. Christmas Day was spent with my step-mom's family. They always did a name draw for Christmas, because it was such a large family. Since my parents were divorced, I think we usually spent time with my mom and my maternal grandparents more around New Year's. We also did a ton of baking, which I used to keep up with myself, but not this year. My step-mom always makes lefse, which I love even though I'm not Scandinavian. We'd make sugar cookies, peanut butter cookies with chocolate kisses, fudge, white chocolate covered pretzels and a wreath made out of cornflakes and marshmallows. My auntie would always make Mounds bars and rosettes. My grandmas would make spritz cookies. Yum!

12. Do you buy Christmas presents for your pets? As I said above, I don't have any pets this year. But this is the first time since 96. Sometimes I would buy a holiday themed toy for Finbar or some holiday treats for them both. But My step-mom, my sister and I always bought presents for the dogs from the dogs.

13. What’s your favorite Christmas cookie? Probably pretty frosted sugar cookies. Though they aren't specifically Christmas cookies, I always make chocolate chip and I love those too.

14. What’s your favorite Christmas candy? Those Mounds bars my auntie makes. I've tried to make them myself every year, because I don't always see my aunt every year now that my dad is down in Florida, but they just never turn out as good as hers.

15. What’s your stocking look like? When we were growing up, we just had the red fake furry ones. In my house right now I have two stockings hung, though. I have a small one that a friend of mine knit for me, which I just love! and I have a fabric one with an applique snow man that matches a quilt I bought when I was in Georgia for work one year.

16. How do you feel about the “Steal from Your Neighbor” Christmas present game (the one where people pick gifts from a pile, but others get to steal it)? I have never heard of doing this at Christmas. I've seen it at baby/bridal showers and it's ok.

17. What is the oldest ornament on your tree? I don't have ornaments on my tree. But I always check on my mom's tree that she has an ornament I made in kindergarten. It's a cardboard tube that's about 2.5" long covered in silver paper and glitter. I think that's the oldest one on her tree - about 35 years old now.

18. Real or artificial? Artificial. I have a really small house so I don't really have room anywhere for a tree. I just put out a tabletop tree that is fiber optic, so it glows different colors.

19. How do you feel about Christmas letters? I have mixed feelings. I've never done one myself. I can't say I'm overly excited about them - I would really prefer to get a little handwritten note and keep in touch with people throughout the year. But if that's the only way I'm going to hear from some of my friends, I'll take it.

20. Do you have Christmas decorations or lights outside your house? What are they? Not this year. I used to put up some lights on the outside porch, but there's not really a good place to plug them in anymore.

21. How far would you drive to see Christmas lights? On my own I probably wouldn't do it. But if the kids wanted to or a group of friends, I'd be game to go wherever.

22. Are you a fan of tasteful or tacky? I lean toward tasteful. A really pretty light display is just gorgeous. I have to say a whole hell of a lot of lights gets me too, even though that's tacky. I can't stand the plastic and blow up displays, though. Just lights for me.

23. Do you have any Christmas collections? Nope.