I'm such a sucker

I grabbed this meme off of Keohinani's blog. Why, with all the things I need to be doing, do I feel compelled to answer this now??

Three names I go by:
1. Karen
2. Puddin' Pie
3. Noodle

Three screen names I've had:
1. KnitGirl901
2. Ciana526
3. UltSk8Fan

Three physical things I like about myself:
1. Eyes
2. Hands
3. Feet

Three physical things I don't like about myself:
1. Hips
2. Butt
3. Nose

Three parts of my heritage:
1. Italian
2. Polish
3. English

Three things I'm wearing right now:
1. Glasses
2. Bathrobe
3. Towel on my head

Three favorite bands / musical artists:
1. Beatles
2. Eric Clapton
3. Sting

Three favorite songs: (it changes all the time)
1. Golddust Woman by Stevie Nicks
2. Southern Cross by Crosby Still and Nash
3. Sign Your Name by Terrance Trent D'Arby (just to really mess with ya!!)

Three things I want in a relationship:
1. Respect
2. Honesty
3. Fun

Two truths and a lie:
1. I'm selfish at heart
2. I'm not as fun as I used to be
3. I love my job

Three physical things about the preferred sex that appeals to me:
1. Long hair (but not too long)
2. Strong shoulders
3. A good laugh

Three favorite hobbies:
1. Knitting
2. Watching TV
3. Blogging

Three things I want to do badly right now:
1. Sleep
2. Eat something fattening
3. Kiss my husband

Three things that scare me:
1. Never taking a risk
2. Terrorism
3. Sleeping in my house alone (which reminds me, I've been meaning to blog a post about that one)

Three of my everyday essentials:
1. Coffee
2. Shower
3. Sweetpea

Three careers you have considered:
1. VP of a bank
2. Day care provider (for children)
3. Freelance writer

Three places you want to go on vacation:
1. Italy
2. Russia
3. China

Three kids names you like:
1. Emma
2. Jared
3. Julian

Three things you want to do before you die:
1. Have kids
2. See Italy
3. Learn to knit socks :)

Three ways I am stereotypically a boy:
1. Swearing
2. Burping
3. Leading in ballroom dancing (Sweetpea voted for that one)

Three ways I am stereotypically a girl:
1. Very sensitive . . . and moody
2. Born to shop
3. Love fancy dresses

Three celeb crushes:
1. Mel Gibson
2. Sting
3. Steven Cousins (yes, I consider him a celebrity . . . anyone else out there know who he is??)

I wasn't kidding!!!

When I said we rode horses in the ocean in Jamaica . . .

I sure wasn't joking. When we showed this pictures to my parents, they said they assumed the horse went in up to his knees. Ha ha ha ha ha. The darn horses practically needed scuba gear. It was one of the most scary things I've done, but also one of the most awesome. I wouldn't trade it for the world. Of course, it was sheer terror that kept me on that horse - I cut off all circulation to my hands because I was clamped on so tight! But it was a blast.

I've made a new Flickr badge and uploaded the vacation pictures to it. Blogger wouldn't let me add it to this post (it won't take text/javascript) so I had to add it to my sidebar.

I'm having a problem deciding if I should spend my time blogging about my vacation, or reading all the posts I missed while I was away, or getting some knitting done. But since you've been asking for pictures (you are all so sweet) I figured I'd post some quick ones first!! (I will warn you that they are pretty boring - picture taking was never my strong suit - no artsey eye I guess.) As for how to prioritize my spare time from here on . . . any ideas?

A quick post from the high seas

This will be very short because the on-board computer is so darn slow, and it costs 42 cents a minute. So help me, if Blogger eats this post I'm gonna throw a hissy fit.

The cruise has been wonderful. Can't remember the last time I felt so relaxed and stress free. The food and service are ridiculously terrific and I wonder how I'll ever assimilate to life back home when we disembark. :( The islands are heavenly. We kayaked in Haiti, horseback rode (in the ocean) in Jamaica (and I have a photo disk of pictures of me looking petrified to post when we get back home) and yesterday we snorkeled in Grand Caymen. Tomorrow is SHOPPING on Grand Bahama Island. I don't want to come back. (I would throw in some exclamation points - but that key doesn't work . . . so imagine them at your will).

In knitting news, I started my first sock for Socktoberfest. I successfully knitted in the round on five size 2 DPN . . . but then made so many bad mistakes I frogged the whole thing and will start again soon. I also have almost finished the body of Tie One On (which I wasn't planning to pack, but did at the last minute). I hope to finish binding off and knit one tie today. Then if I can do the second tie on Saturday I can wear it to dinner on Saturday night. That's the plan, but we've really been too busy to knit . . . which I know is a good thing. Not to mention it's too windy on deck to do any knitting.

Okay, I'm off to find Sweetpea and go lie by the pool and read. More on the trip and lots of pictures to post when we get back. Oh, and did I mention, I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME (insert 12 exclamation points here).

Yarn Porn and Bon Voyage

Since I won't have computer access on "Yarn Porn Monday", I figured I'd mix things up a little with a special edition of Yarn Porn Friday. However, I've decided that compared to other yarn porn postings I've seen, mine is pretty sad. I guess I'm just going to have to start ordering / buying more yarn. Oh, by the way, I stumbled upon a bog I had never read before called Major Knitter and found a link to this cool looking yarn store that is so close to me and I didn't even know existed!! How can that be? I can't wait to check it out after we get back from the cruise. (Yes, I did try to figure out if I had time to squeeze in a trip this morning, but I've decided some restraint would be better . . . . or else Sweetpea might put me in restraints!!!)

Okay, on to the yarn porn, courtesy of Knit Picks!!

The top two balls are Essential in Ash . . . for my very first pair of socks. If all goes well, they will be FO's by the time I disembark from the ship and I'll post them upon my return!!! By the way, thanks Keohinani for the suggestion to knit them on two circular needles. Unfortunately, I don't have one circular needle in the correct size for socks - let alone two - but I'll order some when I get back and try that for my next pair!! The yarn on the bottom is Wool of the Andes in Cranberry. I thought the color was great and ordered it thinking I could surely make some pretty nice Christmas presents with it!!

However, after receiving the gifts from my Secret Pal, I couldn't help but notice how nice it looks with the Debbie Bliss SoHo yarn. So I may have to "steal" some of it to knit something for myself!! I know, I'm just shameless.

This last yarn is Sierra, one skein in Coal and one skein in Tide. I have some good plans for this here yarn . . . plans that can not yet be divulged. You understand, right? I mean, I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you . . . and I like you all far to much!!

All of these yarns are really nice. Soft and cuddly (especially the sock yarn) and the colors are all beautiful. I'm really starting to get into this yarn buying thing, and I think I'm becoming more and more of a yarn snob. I was at the craft store the other day, and wasn't even tempted to buy any of the yarn there . . . . because it just didn't seem as nice as the yarns you see here. Oh no, it's all downhill from here!!

By the way, I just wanted to mention that I posted the pictures for my last couple of posts using Hello from Picasa and it works really well. It take a little figuring out, but it gives you so much more control over the pictures than blogger does. You can size them to any size (not just the three options on blogger) and also add borders and captions. The only downside is that when you send them, they immediately publish as a new post, which I then remove by re-saving as a draft until I've added my post text. (But maybe you can send them as a draft and I just haven't figured that out yet??)

Well, blog pals, that's it for me. My dad will be here in four hours to drive us to the ship. I'm not done packing. And I need to get to the eye doctor to pick up new glasses (that I might actually wear in public - that's a new thing for me). So I'm off on vacation. I'll miss you guys!!

The votes are in!!

(I was going to put web-links on all the names, but Miss McSpazziton was anxious to see what I've chosen, so I'm posting as is!!)

Thanks for all your comments and input on what knitting to take on vacation. I considered everyone's advice (which is a new thing for someone as headstrong and stubborn as me) and surprised myself by scrapping some of the stuff I thought I'd want to bring. And the winners are . . . . drumroll please . . . .

• Tempting - this will be my mindless project. I debated about bringing it because I was afraid I'd get confused on how to knit in the round. But thanks to the great instructional video link in Miss McSpazziton's comment I can't wait to give it a try. I had a few things I was cloudy on, but the video cleared that all right up. It looks downright easy and I'm confident I will have no problems. (I hear you screaming . . I know, I know . . . I've just jinxed myself!)
• Airy Scarf -This will be my challenging project, because sadly it is still quite challenging for me. It's not hard knitting - simple knit stitches and some k2togs and yo's - but the KSH is kicking my butt. I think it's harder because the yarn is so fine but it's knit on size 10 needles . . . or maybe I'm just KSH inept. Anyway, on at-sea-days we can sit in the sun and I can give it some good concentration
• Socks -You guys can totally take the credit for this one, because I wasn't even seriously considering bringing the socks. Again, socks are something I have yet to attempt. But so many of you voted for socks . . . even Kym who admitted she doesn't like to knit socks herself voted for them. And again, I watched the "turning the heel" and "knitting the gusset" videos in Miss McSpazziton's comment link and I think I can handle it.

So there you go. Yes, I'm not likely to have time to knit all three projects . . . but I'm a notorious over-packer. Just ask Sweetpea how many pairs of shoes I brought on our honeymoon. (Eleven! He was horrified. But in my defense, not only did we do a 7 night cruise with formal nights, dressy nights, pool time and shlepping around islands time, but we also spent a week in The Keys. Anyway, I wore all but one pair!!)

Thanks again for all the great input!!