85

I have inherited my great grandfather Louis' heavy jawline and a
something in the eyes that gives me more than a passing family
resemblance to him but none of his fine crafting skills (my woodworking
talents never went beyond a City & Guilds in basic woodwork) and
none of his romantism.
3.12.05 10:31


Some people like going to the hairdressers. Some people even see it
as a treat. I don't. However I accept it as a necessary chore.

A
little while back Him Indoors persuaded me to try going to a better
salon (read more expensie than just popping in to whichever hairdresser
happens to look not too busy at the time I feel I can't go any longer
without a trim) so I got introduced to the world of having the same
person cut your hair more than twice in a row and massage chairs while
your hair is being washed (I am not big on massage but that's not too
bad).

The big advantage of having the same person cut your hair
everytime is that it cuts down on that bit at the beginning where you
have to try and explain what it is you would like in an ideal world
where your hair didn't have a mind of its own. You still don't get the
perfect cut but you know what you are going to get, it takes out the
element of surprise which is a huge bonus in my book.

The other advantage is that they soon gather that I don't really do small talk in an environment I find a touch threatening.

My wish list for the ideal cut seems pretty reasonable to me but appears daunting to the average hairdresser.

  • I
    don't like to have gunk in my hair, it it needs mousse, gel or wax to
    look good then it won't look good from the next time I wash it to the
    next visit to the salon.
  • I don't wear hoods or hats and I have
    lost so many umbrellas that I rarely carry one. It needs to be able to
    dry by itself into something presentable if I get caught in the rain.
  • It
    also needs to look neat and tidy if I let it dry by itself if I am
    having a slow day and need to skip blow drying. Sorry but given a
    choice between breakfast and drying my hair, porridge wins hands down.
  • If it is long enought to get into my eyes, it *will* get tucked behind my ears.
  • Appart from that I have no idea what I want (why should I have more of a clue about hair than I do about the rest of my life?).

When
I called for an appointment and was told the person who normally cuts
my hair was fully booked but I could have somebody else I thought, yes
ok I'll go for it.

I think next time I'll just wait for a slot.
The cut is fine, tidy if a bit flat, but trying to explain what I
wanted was excruciating and there is mousse in my hair (which shall
disappear soon as it's already driving me crazy).

Mind you this
is a powerful distraction. While I am wondering how long I will manage
to last before reaching for the shapoo I don't have to think about
anything else that is wrong with the world today or anything that could
do with sorting out. For he first time ever I understand why some women
go for a haircut when things aren't quite as they should be. It's
nothing to do with the pampering or the new image. It's all to do with
refocusing the attention on trivial matters. Yeah for the haircut.
3.12.05 11:24


After years of knitting I have at last tackled a sock. So far the
reactions have been fairly dismissive "Life is too short to knit socks.
Why would you want to do that when you can buy 5 pairs for £1 in
Primark?". I don't think "because I can" was a winning argument though
I can't think of a better reason to do anything.

I am quite proud
of the results of my first attempt which The Boy is proudly modelling
(oh the embarassement of having the same size feet as my 8 year old)
even if the ribbing could do with being a touch on the tighter side.
Now the science bit I did it toe up, in the round using DPNs, with a figure of
8 invisible cast on, I shaped it so that there is a left and a right
foot (slightly wider on the outside edge to accomodate the little
toes), the heel is shaped with short rows and I wish I hadn't bothered
with the cable on the cuff because cable needle + dpns is a bit like
battling with a small hedgehog if you are on the clumsy side.

sock

Now
the big question is of course, if I don't knit the right foot does it
still count as a UFO? After all the left foot is complete. Honestly, I
am not at all worried the other foot will turn out completely different
because I did not write down the number of rounds as I went along
(oops).
6.12.05 20:31


I only fell over once. Yeah.


Greenwich ice rink
20.12.05 08:08


I am making one of  these for somebody's christmas present.

Because I am not quite as classy as Ann
my yarn is not recycled sari silk, which would have meant being
organised enough to order the yarn in advance, but the nicest looking
yarn available locally. This means a varigated cotton mix which is
stiff to knit and makes my hands and wrists sore (the colour is nice
and it will lose a lot of its stiffness when the stiches are dropped -
well I'm hoping it will anyway).

Unfortunately I had seriously
underestimated the amount I would require and had to take a trip back
to Littlewoods (stop laughing, it's as close to a yarn shop as you can
get around here without having to go into Kingston which is not
something I am willing to do this close to Christmas).

Littlewoods is closing down, money off everything in the shop and you can even buy the staff room microwave.

Does
it make me a bad person if I say I did loiter longer than was necessary
- once I had secured enough cotton for my project - just because the
sight of mature women fighting over balls of 100% acrylic DK in baby
pink made me grin like a loon?
21.12.05 20:54


The Boy has been handed over to his father for Christmas and is not
returning until the 30th. I wonder if that explains why I can't really
be bothered with the whole christmas thing this year.
24.12.05 14:34


The most unexpected present this year is unexpected on 2 counts. Count
1: I was already given my joint christmas/birthday present a few weeks
ago and I thought we'd agreed not to bother this year. Count 2: I never
would have expected a new pair of steel toe cap boots in a million
years. Can I be forgiven for failing to show due greatefulness?
25.12.05 16:22


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