glut

two posts in one day! this wifi at the coffee shop paired with my mom's macbook totally makes me hot. if i had a penis, it would be erect right now. i know that makes me a nerd, but whatever. i am a happy nerd.

i learned to knit socks in alaska. this was my first finished pair. for years, literally, i've been trying to knit socks but just couldn't finish a pair. i'd get started and get all excited and work away happily until the heel and gusset parts, and then i'd get all discouraged and either rip it all out or shove the project into the bottom of a basket to be forgotten. in alaska, though, i ran out of yarn and this was the only thing left to work on. if you are trying to learn something and get blocked, i would recommend taking an extended boat trip. it worked wonders for me. in the end i knit two complete pairs and have finished one more. today my sister indulged me and we went to my favorite yarn store in anacortes (anna cross stitch!) where i picked up more sock yarn. i am heady with the knowledge that i can indeed make socks, and only make crazy stripey ones in big colors. i'll take photos of the other socks i've made so you can see those later. now that i can do it and am so pleased with the results i need a good pair of mary janes to show them off. i'm thrilled.

speaking of nerdiness, yesterday i ran into my high school history teacher. he was without a doubt the only reason i graduated from high school. he was interesting and excited about what he taught, and he focused my attention on something i never would have thought i'd be interested in. because of him i still give mini-tours to my friends when on the island and i still hunt down old books about the history of western washington. he introduced me to margaret mead and the state archives and college libraries and tofu, and for that i'll always be grateful. we had a great chat, where i told him i ran off to alaska with a redhead (he's a redhead too) and he told me where i should look for jobs and that redheaded men should be kept. walking away i told my friend that it was that teacher that made me love my nerdiness, never let us me feel embarassed for being interested in anything or being smart, and hooked me up with what would be my best high school friends. i might have been a nerd and a know-it-all and a dork in high school, but so were some other great kids and dammit, we were happy nerds. i still am, thanks to that man. that's why i can gush about high speed internet connections and stripey socks on my blog and not feel weird. seeing him yesterday made me feel great. it's totally been the highlight of being in town so far; i usually dread running into anyone i know, but now i feel more comfy about being here.