You know you're obsessed with knitting when....

The scene: Friday evening, computer room

Husband: playing WOW on his computer

Me: Kissing him goodbye on my way to the gym..spies that he is killing Ice Yaks
(no, I don't make this stuff up)

Me: Save me some Yak fur.

Husband: uh-huh (not looking up from the yak-slaughter).

Me: I wonder what I could knit out of yak fur?

Husband: Weren't you going to the gym?

FO, #1

The Crossover Scarf, for my sister's birthday.

I think it looks better in person than in the pictures...it looks kind of messy when laid out, but it's nice and lacy-looking in person.

I lied, this will be my first gifted knit object, as my friend's baby is due after my sister's birthday, and I really wanted to try this technique before I go back to stockinette in a baby blanket.

I got the Ick

Oh, I'm sick. As a dog. It came on like someone flipped a switch the other night, right after we had chinese food. My throat got very sore, and my glands felt huge, and at first I thought I was having an allergic reaction to chinese. But then, the fever started and the body aches. I've been in bed for most of the last two days, alternately knitting, groaning, sleeping, and watching TV. Ugh. I really really want to get better to go to Yoga Day USA on Saturday - a whole day of free yoga classes! - with my mom, but we shall see. Right now I'm trying to beg her to bring me soup and medicine, and some TLC. I'm sure she will after work, because she's such a good mom. Don't know what I'm going to do when I'm sick in Cincinnati. I mean my husband takes good care of me, but it's not the same as my mommy.

Gifts for Yourself

I posted a ton of new stuff in my shop last night, including Mary's debut handbag listing, which is garnering lots of attention so far! Take a look!

I'm also having a Valentine's Sale - But one get item, get 25% off an item of equal or lesser value.

What I'm cooking...

Made these recipes last night...I tried to replicate the whipped sweet potatoes from the Weber Grill restaurant, which I love, and these came pretty close. My only issue was with trying to peel the potatoes after they were cooked...too soft to do with my veg peeler, I ended up peeling off the skin by hand, and these suckers were HOT! Next time I'll try peeling before microwaving. As for the chicken, I added about 1/4 c barbecue sauce instead of 2 teaspoons. Who on earth could make barbecue chicken with two teaspoons of barbecue sauce? Much more flavorful my way.

Overall a good, yummy dinner that was quicker than I thought it'd be.

From CookingLight.com

Vanilla Sweet Potatoes
2 pounds sweet potatoes
3/4 cup 1% low-fat milk
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, softened

Pierce potatoes with a fork, and arrange in a circle on paper towels in microwave oven. Microwave at HIGH 10 minutes or until tender, rearranging potatoes after 5 minutes. Wrap in a towel; let stand 5 minutes. Peel and mash potatoes. Combine with milk and remaining ingredients.
Place in a 1-quart casserole; cover and microwave on MEDIUM for 7 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 2/3 cup)


Chicken with Barbecue-Bourbon Sauce

4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup minced shallots
1/4 cup bourbon
3/4 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 teaspoons tomato-based barbecue sauce

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and pepper.
Heat oil and butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.
Add shallots to pan; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add bourbon to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned pits. Cook until bourbon mixture is reduced to 2 tablespoons (about 5 minutes). Add broth and barbecue sauce; cook until broth mixture is reduced to 1/2 cup (about 3 minutes). Serve sauce over chicken. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 chicken breast half and 2 tablespoons sauce)

Big Bad Baby Blanket

I'm very excited....one of my friends from work is pregnant with her second baby, and she's due in about 6 weeks. Which is of course very exciting. BUT. I am excited because I decided to knit her a baby blanket from the Stitch 'n Bitch book. It will be my first knit gift to anyone, but it's a relatively simple pattern, and I've got all that on-call time next month to knit (when I'm not admitting and taking care of my patients, that is. Right.) I think she would appreciate it, too, as she's very into stuff that's not mass-produced chain-store. Her daughter right now is always dressed inthe cutest little-girl funky stuff, so I know I can get away with making it in a cool variegated blue-green yarn, rather than pastels. I'm getting yarn today!

Crazies in the ER

Usually I joke about how unrealistic the ER-type TV shows are...ERs are never that busy, that crazy, and very rarely have gun-toting nut-jobs. I know. I've been in quite a few ERs at all hours of the day, and it never happens.

I may have to eat my words today.

I worked an 11-11 shift, and my god, I am spent. I had two people in florid congestive heart failure, one guy with an infected leg...all the way up his leg, and a lady who was eating dinner in a restaurant, and collapsed, with a huge bleed in the left hemisphere of her brain. Those were just the interesting patients. Then I went to reach for a chart, glanced at the name, and recoiled in horror, as if it were a snake.

It was a patient who is what we call a "frequent flier." All the other ERs in the city know not to admit this guy, except ours. We have a few docs who have the CYA-complex, and he keeps getting admitted. I know this because he was admitted to my team back in August, and we could. not. discharge the man. He knows how to manipulate the system, he knows how to fake symptoms, he steals from other patients, he pleasures himself in his hospital room in front of nurses.....he's a disaster. Luckily, as the resident, I have the ability to cherry-pick the "learning cases," and did not go see him.

So when I heard the deafening crash from one of the other hallways, imagine my surprise to find out it wasn't him. No, this time the suicide-attempt patient, who was guarded by at least two cops, broke out of his room, knocked over all the storage carts in the hall, and invaded the room of another patient, threatening her. Then, the cops tackled him, cuffed his wrists and ankles, and the attending snuck up from behind with a shot of Haldol.

So, to all the Doc-dramas out there that I take such great pleasure in shouting at while my husband rolls his eyes at me, today I eat my words. Today. I can't promise that when Grey's Anatomy comes on tomorrow I won't shout "that's not how you do it!" at the screen, but for tonight, you were right.