Cowboy

Sometimes, I get an urge to knit that is beyond reason. Tonight I was catching up on my blog reading and I was overwhelmed by the urge to do insane knitting - to finish all the projects on the needles so I can start new projects. I want to create. I need to finish blue sock #2.

So, it's barely wednesday, but it's wednesday none-the-less, so here are a few things that have made me happy this week:

1. Spring!

Now I swear, I've never been so obsessed with flowers as I am this spring. But honestly -- it's just so amazingly beautiful, I can't handle it. So... a tribute (and next week, maybe no flowers).

2. Arlene


Arlene is a 1962 Airstream (I hope no one has to click that link to find out what they are!). I love airstream trailers in a way that can't be described. I was raised with this love, and when I met my friend the beekeeper and found out that he lived in an airstream... well, I knew we had to be friends.


3. Making Movies
In addition to keeping bees, the beekeeper makes documentary films. This is another reason I knew we'd be friends. For the last year or so, I've been really interested in making movies. I really enjoy editing and I like the idea of the documentary as a medium for relaying information (as opposed to the academy, that that's another story for another time). The beekeeper is making a film now about local politics and yesterday I tagged along on a shoot. I ended up helping with sound for the first time. It was awesome. I want to do nothing more than make movies for the rest of my life. Screw this PhD (just joking... mostly).

4. My Cowboy Boots



At Theresa's request, here are badly-flashed photos of my much loved (and worn) cowboy boots. I bought them in Woodstown, New Jersey (now, before you scoff at buying cowboy boots in New Jersey, let me tell you that Woodstown is the home of Cowtown, the oldest continually running rodeo in the United States. Zanes Western Apparel, where I bought the boots, outfits real cowboys). I went to Zanes with Spitey, who was in the market for a new hat. I never had any desire for cowboy boots before, but something about these called out to me. I tried them on a whim. I liked them, but decided not to get them. We drove away from the store and immediately, I started waffling. Spitey turned the car around, drove me back, and made me buy them. I haven't regretted the decision for a minute. I wear them every single day (as is evidenced by the damage to the heel... I need to get them resoled), in skirts and in pants. I even wore them when I gave my first professional paper at the national ethnomusicology conference. And I make all my socks to fit them.

Tomorrow, I'm going to Philly. My friend, known to all as "Jellybean" (long story, that I'm sure he'd rather I not tell) is going to be in the US and my friend Jennifer and I are travelling to Philly to see him. See, Jellybean is doing his fieldwork (he, too, is an ethnomusicologist) in Chilean Patagonia. So I don't see him often. I'm also going to Philly to do some research in the library and meet with my advisor. It'll be a good trip, but I'm feeling apprehensive about it. It's been a while since I've been there, and... I don't know. Sometimes, no matter how happy you are where you are, realizing that things are changing is scary. I love it here, and the longer I stay, the harder it is to imagine leaving. But I loved Philly, and it's strange to think that my life there no longer exists.... Anyway, I'm looking forward to reconnecting with old friends and getting some work done. I'm sure I'll post while I'm gone, and hopefully, I'll make some more substantive knitting progress. Stay tuned...