Wednesday

I have been woefully neglectful of this blog. But that's because I overcommitted myself this semester and it has been flying by.

For my English senior seminar class, we are currently reading all of Dante's Divine Comedy. And we have to come up with topics for our final papers, which I might actually be excited about if my idea works out. I've been talking to my professor about writing on Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass). This would enable me to do something substantial with my interest in children's literature. I'm just worried that I won't be able to write a 25-30 page paper on it. Considering this as my final paper topic was a good excuse to buy a book of critical essays on the trilogy that I've been eyeing for a while now: His Dark Materials Illuminated.

This semester is also exciting because I am presenting papers and chairing sessions at two conferences. The first one is at St. Francis University in the Chicago area March 16-17. But the most exciting conference is the Sigma Tau Delta (English honor society) International Convention in Pittsburgh, March 28-31. It should be an amazing experience, especially since Illinois Wesleyan's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta was named an Outstanding Chapter (a big award). The preliminary program is 37 pages long! Which means that there will be tons of people there and an impossible amount of things to do. :) www.english.org

I can't believe tomorrow is already March; it seems like just yesterday that it was the beginning of February, even January. I'm at the point where if I don't write down what I have to do, there is absolutely no way I will remember it later. So now is the time for a bzillion lists. Crossing off what I have completed is the best part. On to the list, or perhaps something fun like watching The Office.

Knitting

I just recently started knitting (thanks to the encouragement from wonderful aunties), and I have two scarves to my name. The first one was really for practice and it's not long enough to wear, but I love the colors. The second scarf I used big needles, bulky yarn, and so it's big and warm. I've been wearing it everyday in this bitter cold weather.

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detail of my first-ever scarf

My next project is with Debbie Bliss orange alpaca silk that really is blissfully soft. I started making a k2 p2 scarf, but it's not very wide. So I think I might make a mistake rib scarf (and possibly a matching hat) once I frog what I have and decide how many stitches to cast on. I'm not sure how wide I want it and I don't know how many stitches I'll need to achieve that desired (and elusive) width.

I should really get to reading before class tonight, but W.J.T. Mitchell's Iconology just isn't calling out to me to read it. In fact, I think he prefers to confuse his readers to prove his own astounding intellect surpasses theirs. I need to get off this computer before it sucks away my entire day.