pinku

up, up, and away

Thanks for all your help ladies! I think I am going to leave Tina (that's what we call my laptop) here in Tokes. It's kinda heavy anyway and the last thing I really want is to lug an extra 2 killos around on holiday. Now we are three hours away from leaving our house, then we get on a bus that will take us to Narita Airport and that takes 2 hours. We then wait 2 hours at the airport and then fly direct to NYC, which takes 14 hours crossing 14 time zones. I have my comfy yoga pants to wear on the plane, a refreshing facial spritz and some colourful sock knitting. CAN'T WAIT!!

ok. I seriously gotta go finish packing now!!!

I leave you with a pretty pink pic of Joy's gloomy bears. Thanks Joy and see you next week!!

ps Darin left a comment on pinku yesterday:

Katherine says noone will like my jokes, but I made a page of a couple knitting related ideas I had yesterday: www.bendall.biz/stinku.html

Just for the record I did find it funny.

What do you think?

I have been thinking about this for ages and had decided not to, but.....

DO YOU THINK I SHOULD TAKE MY LAPTOP?

I lean towards no because I rarely have an opportunity to be away from the computer, but it would be convenient to upload our photos and to blog I guess.

We'll be boarding the plane this time tomorrow.......and my bag is still empty....

And did you see that Secret Pal 5 numbers are over 500 - yowza!!

Lucky Ladies!

The first lucky lady today is Erin. Check out her new pink vespa!!! She's also trying to think of a name for her lovely pink ride....all suggestions welcome! I think she definitely needs a name from the 50s like Laverne, Frenchy, or Rizzo!!

The second lucky lady is me coz there are only two sleeps until we leave on a jet plane!! I can't wait to go to Teva's book launch in Manhattan next week. Joy has organized a big group of NYC knitting gals to come and I can't wait to meet everyone. I just checked the weekend weather forecast for NYC and it says 72 degrees and thunderstorms. I learnt from living in the States a few years ago that anything above 70 is good news (you know I come from the land of celcius and semi-tropical weather - Brisbane is about to hit winter and the daytime temps are still not below 20 degrees celcius). I like thunderstorms too, but hopefully we'll get some fine weather too. I might even be able to wear my merino wool shrug (i.e. if I block and seam it over the next two days). If anyone has any suggestions of MUST visit yarn stores, thrift stores, etc, in the NYC area then please send 'em my way. I especially like reconstructed clothing lately.

SWAP UPDATE: Have you sent out your package?? Mine was sent off today - I bought and made all of the goodies a while ago, but I just never got around to putting it all together. Anyway, if you haven't do your best to try and get your swap packages out sooner rather than later. I was lucky to receive an unexpected package (she's not my swap partner) full of colourful, fun hair clips from the very talented Lucy in Melbourne. Thanks so much!!! Photo to come.

Last but not least, I leave you with a picture Darin took today of a little doggie near our local 7-11. I think it is just so funny. We'd love nothing more than to have a dog come live with us, but dogs and cats are not allowed according to our apartment lease!!

Healthy eating

I try and eat healthy mostly. Except yesterday after yoga, I walked out carrying my mat, bought a soft-serve vanilla ice cream on the way home and then met Darin in the park for a beer. Hmm, personally I think that my actions are slightly contradictory. Darin believes that all of those things make you feel good, so why not? My dad always says everything in moderation is ok - that sounds good to me.

In general, eating healthy is pretty easy in Japan: portion sizes in restaurants are smaller, there is an abundance of fresh fruit and veges available in addition to fresh tofu, fish, etc. However wholegrains are hard to come by. Sure brown rice is becoming more popular, but it's almost impossible to find real wholewheat bread and pasta. I know I live in Asia, but bread and pasta are both popular in Japan, but I feel it is considered more of a treat rather than a staple like rice, which makes sense I guess. I can still be glum about it though.

I came across this website and it is very inspiring. The recipes look relatively simple and quick and the nutritional information is very detailed. I am glad that chickpeas (or garbanzo beans) are the food of the week coz I have a big bag (of chickpeas) and have just been waiting for a good recipe and also to buy a food processor so I can make some hummus.

For lunch today, I had two onigiri and a steamed chicken salad with wakame. I actually don't really like wakame unless it is in miso soup, so I left it in the container. I felt guilty because I know it is good for you. After reading a few websites about the benefits of seaweed, I went back and ate it. Feel so much better now.

I also came across this list of Top Ten Foods to keep you healthy.

And does this apple tart make your mouth water, because I'm drooling all over my keyboard here at work. Nah, only kidding - I'm not that gross!!

knitting news: Just about to finish the second sleeve of Iris, so then I have to block and seam but not sure whether I'll have enough time before we leave on Saturday. I am also trying to work out what projects to take on this trip. I think I'll take the knee high stripey sock project from the first Stitch n Bitch book, and maybe a crochet top project....hmmm.

*** 5 sleeps until we leave for the U.S. of A - see you soon Angie and Sam!!!

Loop-d-Loop

Well life seems pretty dull after you've met knitting royalty. After a day of absolute highs, everything else just seems so mundane. I still can't believe it all happened - was it a dream?

BUT, everytime anyone writes about Teva Durham's new book, Loop d Loop, I get excited. It's been on my Amazon Japan wishlist for months! I know a lot of people have this book already, but it's not on sale here in Japan yet. It will be the very first book I buy in the US when we arrive in New York in eight days! Holy moly. It'll be such a nice break from Japan.

So, I read on Knitter's Review that Teva is having a book launch party in NYC at night on June 1. I wrote to Teva to see if it is ok if I pop in (and get my book signed of course - duh!), and it all looks ok except that I don't have anyone to go with - anyone in NYC keen?? I want to spend at least one day haunting all the cool knitting stores, etc.

ps I signed up for Secret Pal 5 (coz I'm such a sucker). I think I'll keep the pinku and the prince banner up until the post falls off this page.....and also to keep that fire burnin'!!!

Ami Ami Shite, Happy!

This is the chorus of the song that the knitting prince sung to us - yes, you heard me right - he sung to us. It basically means that I am really happy when I knit! The tv crew brought a little boombox with the prince's cd - a song he recorded to sing along with kids (and us!). HA! I have a feeling I'll cringe when I see that scene on tv.

So here are some things I learnt after last night's Special Tokyo SNB with Japan's Prince of Knitting, Mitsuharu Hirose:

1. TV cameras make you sweat like crazy, and some people are not born to be in front of the camera (uh, me).

2. The knitting prince likes drinking beer.

3. The knitting prince crochets mostly and really fast. He likes lace knitting and fine guage yarn.

4. The knitting prince knit/crocheted his sister's wedding dress and it took him two years to do so (luckily she wasn't in a rush to get married!).

5. The knitting prince is a tv professional, utterly charming, sweet and talented.

What a night! You know - out of all the members of royalty around the world, I am super glad that I got to meet knitting royalty. I was sweating most of the time, and was stuck with the uneviable task of being the on-the-spot interpreter. Not that I minded - it was all about knitting after all. I think everyone had a great time. Hirose-san asked us about how the group started, why we like about knitting in a group and what we like about knitting in general, etc. To see our unprepared and most likely seriously edited answers, tune into:

NHK Channel 1 on June 1 (Wednesday) at 10am - the program is called 'Seikatsu Hot Morning'.

I will be in the US - in New York actually on that day, so I won't be able to watch it live, but the producer said that he would send me a copy of the tape. If it is not too embarassing, then maybe I'll stream it on the web.

So I know what you are thinking - Stop writing and show us the pics!!!! OK, here they are:

It's a little over exposed but here's my most prized possession (now). Very kindly retouched by Claudia - thanks!

Claire and her special prince

Special Tokyo SNB announcement: PINN is getting married!!! Congrats to Pinn and Ken! And guess what - Ken is making Pinn's wedding dress!! A super talented and crafty couple. Watch out for Pinn's design in the upcoming summer issue of Knitty. We just realized that when we started the SNB a year and a half ago, we were all single. Since then every single one of us has gotten married or engaged, AND Jen had a baby! Hmm, so if you want to stay single, don't come to the Tokyo SNB!

Here's the prince making his way around the room - here he is holding the back of Claire's cardigan - he described it is 'beautiful'.

Those princely hands in action

And to finish up, the perfect prince pose

To see the rest of the photos, visit the Princely Gallery!

Mighty princely

So I made it to the hobby show on Saturday with Chris and we had a blast trying out a bunch of different crafts - leatherwork, button covering, and some other weird disappearing pen thingy (photos to come). Um yeah, anyway I was disappointed that there was very little to do with knitting - for a moment my heartrate jumped to about one million when I saw a sign for Noro, but alas they had very little at their stall and I took nothing home. I was also disappointed as I had wanted to meet the knitting prince, Mitsuharu Hirose on Thursday but couldn't take the day off work. Claire tried to console me by telling me that there would be other opportunities - 'yeah right' I thought.

But alas - Claire has once again guessed right, and supposedly the knitting prince wants to come and visit our little Tokyo SNB this week and he will be bringing tv cameras!!! I was worried because I forgot my makeup today and thought they might film at tonight's SNB and I definitely can't go on national tv au naturelle!! But because of Hirose-san's schedule it looks like we'll have to have an impromptu SNB this Saturday. Hope all the girls can make it, and I have to get my hair done!! :)

UPDATE: The schedule has been changed and it seems that Hirose-san can make it TONIGHT, May 17 at the Pink Cow. Gawd! Thank goodness I have a loving husband who is bringing me my makeup, my camera and my Orangina. I wouldn't normally ask, but this is seriously serious.

For those of you are wondering why I would be excited about this - here's a CNN article about Hirose-san:

Knitting Prince strings along thousands of women

TOKYO, Japan -- Though many people may like to knit, they probably never thought it would be the talk of the town.

That may all change, thanks to Japan's Knitting Prince.

Mitsuharu Hirose, who is in his early 40s, has become a heartthrob for Japanese women who tune in to watch his knitting show or buy his how-to-knit videos and books.

In a scene more suggestive of pop stardom, hundreds of women stand in line for hours to get Hirose's autograph or to shake his hand.

Hirose knit his first sweater in high school and was captivated by the idea of making clothes out of a single piece of string. Now his sweaters are full of intricate designs using not only yarn but also ribbons, beads and even fake fur.

But for many fans, his knitting skills are rivaled by his lanky looks.

"When I knit, I concentrate and watch my hands. But when I see him on TV or on video, I get too involved watching him and drop stitches," said one woman in line at a recent department store appearance.

I absolutely love that last quote. I think I'll be dropping more than stitches on Saturday tonight.

Turning 30

I turned 30 a few months ago. I didn't really think about it much, certainly wasn't worried, and was lucky enought to spend it in beautiful Thailand with my 'new' husband here:

Since turning 30, and maybe even a year before I turned 30 I noticed that I am definitely becoming more health conscious. I figure that now is the time to make myself fitter, more flexible, and in general healthier. I am certainly not obsessive about it, but it has definitely become more of a state of general consciousness for me and I like it.

I found a yoga studio near my house, so I am going to try it out on Sunday to see what it's like. It's not cheap, but nothing in Tokyo is, and as Darin says you are really saving 1000s of $$$ in the longrun because you won't have to fork out as much money for health bills in the future.

Tonight I am also going to check out a store called Lululemon in Aoyama. I found it via the Being a Broad forums. It's a Canadian leisurewear company that focuses on yoga gear. That's been the most fun thing about getting healthy - there's a reason to buy lots of new 'gear'! The company also produces a monthly ezine, which is packed with motivational stories about health, fitness, food, and living. Check it out! All the archives are available too.

So yeah, everything's was good until I read this article. I just thank the lord that they didn't take away the site until I downloaded the Veronica Mars finale.

ps How's the hair accessory making/buying going? I think I am going to take care of that this weekend. Look at these cute Hawaiian bobby pins (the link was one of my google ads - thanks google!).

Think pink!

Melinda in Kobe sent me some really great pink photos that she took recently. Thank you so much! I really have to start taking more pink photos - pink makes you feel good. Here are my favourite two - Enjoy!!

I like a man that's confident enough to embrace pink in his life!

ps How fantastic was the Veronica Mars Season One finale (there's a great write-up in Salon) - I cried and hid my eyes quite a bit - I never said I wasn't a whimp! My friend Claire totally guessed who killed Lily after re-watching last week's episode - she's so clever like that. You know Claire - if you had a blog, I'd like totally link you right now!!!

Crazy needles

So I thought I'd share a pic of the crazy clover needles (neither circs or straights) that I found at the Salvation Army Bazaar here in Tokyo. I also scored an old Clover crochet needle set in the cutest red case, and some not so cute but very useful double points. Nothing was more than $2. Bar-gain!

and here is the diagram that was on the needle packet

and finally a pic of inside the crochet needle case!

Darin also wanted me to mention that he is really happy with a drawing he is doing for a super secret project. Go get 'em tiger!