En lang dag...

This week is going slowly, slowly. I'm afraid it was a bit of a boring day for E, but I just couldn't muster the enthusiasm or energy for more than a walk to the library, unfortunately. We did have glorious weather today, which helped a lot, though. I think part of the problem for me is that there is just no relief from the constant attention-seeking. I had a maximum of seven minutes alone to myself at one stretch (I timed it), and for a lone wolf academic like me, not having any head space really knocks me off kilter. Okay, I admit it: I really miss work, especially since I'm in the midst of so much exciting new research. This makes me feel like a bad parent, but it's the truth...

The new sweater project is at a point where it is now worth taking a picture of:

I'm making this up as I go along. The plan is to do ribbing all the way through the pullover, maybe with a little cabling at the sides when I hit the waist, maybe a few increases over the hips. Not quite sure yet, and I'll just have to see when I get there. So far I'm super happy with the way it's turning out. I think this will be infinitely wearable. The two previous incarnations of this yarn were both cardigans, and I have developed such an aversion to cardigans that I couldn't wear them. To put it bluntly, my breasts and chest get really cold when I wear cardigans. Weird, I know, especially since every other knitting woman I know of--regardless of cup size--loves them.

I'm sure some people would look at this and cringe because of all the ribbing. For some reason, I happen to love knitting 2x2 ribbing. I think it has to do with my super-effective continental style of knitting. I barely have to change the position of anything to switch between knitting and purling, so ribbing is totally no big deal. I've been wanting a sweater like this for a really long time, but never found the pattern I wanted. I've now learned enough about the magic of top down knitting (especially from the Miss Honeychurch sweaters I knitted earlier this year) that I am able to design my own--yay! The ribs are a little wonky since I'm re-knitting the yarn, but I'm banking on it all smoothing out with a good soak and block at the end.

Today I made what I think must be my fourth or fifth dish out of Camilla Jensen's Bønner og linser. This one is called "Oreganofreste kikkerter," but since I didn't have any fresh oregano (and don't liked dried oregano very much) it ended up being Spisskummenfreste kikkerter" (cumin-sauteed chick peas):

The verdict was split. I loved it, KE thought it was just okay. I also made a thai green curry for dinner that got mixed reviews. That I just winged, but I realized half way through that I was missing a couple of essential ingredients. I forgot about fish sauce, which I always used to use when I made green curry back in the US, and I also didn't have frozen green beans, so I had to substitute with frozen peas, which don't work nearly as well for my idea of a green curry.