I heart Doris Day movies

Sweater Progress

I finished the first sleeve last night. This is a really great pattern if you are looking for a
cardigan. It is easy to follow and you can alter the length and width pretty easily to fit you. And trying it on as I go is great for getting the right fit and the right sleeve length.

Movies
I watched "A Touch of Mink" last night, starring Doris Day and Cary Grant. I love Doris Day movies. She's plays the innocent young single woman from the midwest trying to make it in New York City so well. The blantant sexism is this Doris Day movie in particular was both funny and disturbing. In 2007 we look at this type of movie very differently than men and women did when the movie was made in 1962. One big shocker for me was Cathy (Day) and Mr. Shayne (Grant) going on vacation together and they weren't married. This movie straddles a lot of social mores and was probably racy when it came out. There are a lot of things that made me scratch my head, but the biggest one was the fact that she called him Mr. Shayne!

What's the point, really

Ok, fair warning, my snark is continuing today.

In today's mail I got a Christmas card from my older brother. Nice gesture, his way of reaching out (we don't really talk), it's all fine. But it wasn't in his handwriting! What's the point of sending cards if you aren't even going to sign them yourself?

As crazy as it sounds, I hope that he hired someone to sign and mail them. Because the only thing worse than that would be if his icky girlfriend did them for him.

Oh, sweetness, we need to talk...

Knitting and snark

Here's the progress on the Top Down Raglan.



This sweater is customizable: buttonholes, shaping, sleeve length, body length. I bought this yarn (Queensland Collection, Katmandu DK) when I was in Nags Head this summer, $7 a ball, and I love the color and feel. It is wool, cashmere, and silk and feels perfect for this cardigan. I am breezing along. The pattern is really easy. This is my first foray into buttonholes and they aren't nearly as scary as I thought they would be. I bind off 2 stitches and then cast them back on the next row.

I took a drive to Frederick, Md., today to poke around and do some Christmas shopping. There are some really nice stores in the downtown, art galleries, restaurants, coffee shops. Its fun to browse.

One present for me was "I Bitch, Therefore I Am." Have you seen this new theme of books and cards? The writers use images from old advertising from the 50s and 60s, mostly of women coiffed, pearled, and high-heeled, in the kitchen beeming with joy over the fact that they are cooking and cleaning for their families. They are paired with snarky, sarcastic, histerical captions. They are the funniest things EVER. And they don't get old, no matter how many times you read them. Another really funny line is by Anne Taintor. Here's one example of the snark:


It reads the tree wouldn't be the only one getting lit this year

When I was with my college friends this summer, Becky introduced us to these books. We were laughing so hard, tears rolling down our faces. The husbands didn't really get it, and the kids were perplexed at what was making all the ladies so hysterical.