31.1.11

two hundred and ... one?

oops. that last post was my two hundredth. i was intending to make excited noises over the two hundredth. but i didn't even realise. my bad. guess the excited noises will have to wait til 250. then i'll be halfway to five hundred. okay? okay.

day 4- a habit that you wish you didn’t have

unfortunately, i can't do this day justice, as the habit that i most wish i could break requires photos  to properly explain, and that would mean fishing through endless numbers of boxes to find everything, because i just moved, and that would be very annoying and probably wake my roomie up.

however.
the habit i most wish i didn't have:
UFOs.

that is, UnFinished Objects.
i have a terrible habit of starting Something Awesome .... and then not finishing it, or taking months and months to do something that i could really do in a couple weeks.

case in point the first, there's a cloak. or rather, there's pieces of a cloak. mostly put together. and it's for someone. and i'm so so SO sorry it's not done yet.
however. moved = sewing machine OUT = i WILL get it done.

case in point the second, there's a pair of socks. or rather, there's half of one sock. i'm knitting it for ME, so no rush. but i still feel it sitting there giving me the evil eye. and now i'm thinking i'll frog it anyways and start over, possibly using a different pattern, and possibly making my own pattern. [definition of frog for non-knitters: rippit, rippit, rippit....]

case in point the third, there's a cropped sweater. or rather, the collar of a cropped sweater. i already frogged a cowl-scarf-dealy to produce the collar of said sweater. again, for me, so no rush. but again, feeling the evil eyes.

case in point the fourth, there's a corset. or rather, there's a pattern for a corset. i haven't got as far as the actual corset yet, cos i keep having to start over on the pattern because of how difficult it is to fit a corset. again, just for me, so no rush. but i'm STILL getting the evil eye thing.

see how bad this is?
and i still have bajillions of ideas in my head for more Awesome Things. like a painting. i definitely have paintings in my head.
and there's a dress i wish i could make, if i were ever able to do any screenprinting - even diy would be awesome.
and i want to build a bed.
and on and on it goes.

i wish i could just focus on one project at a time, and get it done. but i find that really difficult, apparently.

30.1.11

day 3- a picture of you as a child

well now. i don't have too many digital photos of myself as a child.
one of the only ones i have available was already posted by jay, in HER day 3 post.


see? i'm the one with the thick-haired bob on the right.
we should hang out again sometime, you and i, jay.



this was several years later, during my two years in scotland. i'm the gawky one with braces. my sister lakebythepond is in the canada shirt to the left, and my brother nathan is the brown one to the right. the other two are my scottish cousins. i seem to have a penchant for awkward haircuts.



and this one was shortly before the last one, before i got my hair cut. my brother is on the far left, that's me with the stripey scarf, and my dad is on the far right. it's kind of hard to tell what we're doing, but it was snowing and we were rejoicing and trying to catch the flakes on our tongues.

[blogged from the new apartment!!]

29.1.11

i am Elizabeth.

this is not right
i'm not you -
nor are you me.
so why are you taking
my identity?

you're putting my name
to your face
and mirroring me,
commandeering my space
copying, aping,
stealing, invading

my life is not yours
so what do you see
that's missing in your life
that you'd take from me?

i am Elizabeth
that's not your name
i know who you are
and we're not the same.

© Elizabeth Klassen 2011

day 2- the meaning behind your blog name

this one's easy.

i have a friend who's ... well ... a little strange sometimes.

and he would continually misspell my name on a forum that we both spent time on.

[i admit, my spelling is a little unusual, but not so hard that a little memorization won't take care of it.]

i spell the short form of my name, "Lizzi".
and i was seeing "Lizzie" and "Lizzy" and other [wrong] variants.

so i made noises like i was offended, and told him he was spelling my name wrong.
so he apologised.
and then i felt bad for making him feel bad, and told him i really didn't care that much, and that he could spell my name however he wanted.

so he did.

he spelled it S-Q-U-E-L-C-H-B-A-K-E-R.

so technically, squelchbaker is pronounced "lizzi". i know, odd, right?

but the result was, that i kind of liked it for all its oddity, and it became my online alias - so if you go search "squelchbaker" on google, it'll all be me. i think my deviantart is under that name, as well as a few other things - my ravelry, etc.

"squelchbaker blogs" was the natural extension of my alias when applied to blogging.
so that's the story of squelchbaker.

----------------------------------

also, just had to share - MOVING DAY IS TODAY.

and, i met someone that made me smile yesterday - i was thrift-shopping with my grandma for bedsheets for the move, and met an older lady [in her sixties? maybe?] who was manning the till at one of the thrift stores we went to. and the radio behind her was playing something along the lines of Metallica or something similar, i'm not entirely certain what it was. but either way, it wasn't the kind of sound i was expecting to hear.
so on the way out, i asked her, "who chooses the music?"
"whoever's behind the till," was the reply.
"and ... you chose that?"
"yeah, everyone else prefers Star FM, but i like The Hawk," she said.
and that bloody well made my day.

28.1.11

day 1- recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself

  1. i am addicted to music.
  2. i am also addicted to interesting writing implements. i own a couple of good old fashioned dipping pens, the kind that scratch abominably; and i also recently acquired an entertaining gel pen from Staples that "erases" - or, turns invisible after the addition of friction from the rubber end of the pen - without destroying the page as traditional erasing pens used to.
  3. if i had a million dollars, i would go to school and learn whatever the hell i wanted. and maybe purchase a vehicle of some nature; see next point.
  4. i harbour a secret fondness for crotch-rocket-type motorcycles. if i had the cash, i would get one.
  5. i also harbour a not-so-secret fondness for corsets. i wish i had the knowhow to make myself an amazingly perfect one that would fit just right.
  6. i enjoy dressing up as dark and as gothy as i can before going to church - or anywhere else, really. it makes me chuckle to myself.
  7. someday i want to learn the violin.
  8. i also want to learn welsh. and mandarin chinese. and maybe russian, too.
  9. my earliest memory is of my third birthday party, and of one of my birthday presents getting taken away. i got a barbie doll from someone, and my dad very strongly disagreed with the barbie image for whatever reason - so he took my birthday present away from me.
  10. when i was little, i wanted to be an astronaut when i grew up. i also wanted to be a gymnast and a writer.
  11. i still haven't decided what i want to be when i grow up.
  12. i want to find a LARPing group to join. that would be awesomely entertaining.
  13. i crack my knuckles. and my neck. and my back. and sometimes my toes. sometimes people don't like it when i do that.
  14. i kind of want to get involved in another play. i was in two in my last year of high school, and i enjoyed myself immensely, and i'm kind of wishing i could do that again right now.
  15. i love jesus.

27.1.11

an incentive? we hope.

yes, it's true. i am an irregular blogger. i would piss me off, if i followed myself.

so. as an incentive to get myself to blog more, i'm going to follow my friend jay's example and take the:

30 Days of Blogging challenge

day 1- recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself
day 2- the meaning behind your blog name
day 3- a picture of you as a child
day 4- a habit that you wish you didn’t have
day 5- a picture of somewhere you've been
day 6- favorite super hero and why
day 7- a picture of someone/something that has had the biggest impact on you
day 8- short term goals for this month and why
day 9- something you're proud of in the past few days
day 10- songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad
day 11- write a bucket list of things you want to do before you die
day 12- write a poem to someone you love
day 13- your 5 favorite books and why
day 14- a picture of you and your family
day 15- put your ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play
day 16- a picture of yourself
day 17- someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why
day 18- plans/dreams/goals you have
day 19- write about a sweet memory from your past
day 20- write a letter to someone
day 21-a picture of something that makes you happy
day 22- what makes you different from everyone else
day 23- something you crave a lot
day 24- post your favorite quote or verse of scripture and why
day 25- what I would find in your bag
day 26- list 10 things that you are thankful for
day 27- my day job verses my passion
day 28- cruise a thesaurus and pick out 10 words you like the sound of
day 29 - favorite tv shows and why you like them
day 30 - movies you can watch again and again

i'm starting tomorrow.
officially.
and if i don't, you can kick my butt.

22.1.11

some saturday musings

so i figure i ought to chuckle at the irony of this - i start to get annoyed when blogs i follow don't post for a while .... and then i sit and don't post either.
so i guess i'll subject you all to another blurb about me!

i think i must be a real vampire. night shift (also known, appropriately enough, as the "graveyard" shift), i have discovered, suits me down to the ground. my sleeping pattern adjusted just fine, i like the flexibility of having my mornings open, and yeah. it works for me.
i've actually found myself wondering why people are out so early in the morning - and then realising it's nine o'clock pm.


speaking of vampirishness - i am kind of sort of leaning towards the possibility of maybe, just maybe ... building myself a coffin-shaped bed? cos it would be epic win and it would make me happy to the bottom of my little black gothy heart. so there.
as it is, i am most definitely putting black fabricky curtainy drapeyness in my new room (that i'm moving into on the 29th - YEAH) - especially if i stay on graveyards, imma need something to block light so i can sleep. particularly in summer.

and speaking of people who sleep in coffins, i decided i needed to watch all the old NCIS seasons that i hadn't watched before (because i think i started with season 5 or 6, i'm not quite sure which) so i have a lot to catch up on. and Abby Sciuto is still my favourite character ever.
... she sleeps in a coffin.
in case you hadn't made the connection.

oh and i acquired a brown coat.... thrift stores ftw. now i too can be a Space Pirate.
... now i just need to get my Jayne hat back. have you fixed it yet, mom?

and i'm also rapidly approaching my 200th post - and in a couple months' time, two years on this blog.

anyhow. think that's about it for now.
toodles, all.

19.1.11

darn.

my white shoelaces
are coming untied
the sock i knit
is unravelling
all the holes in the world
are descending upon my creations
i defined myself
with words that have become blank spaces
in the dictionary

every turn of the earth
carries with it one more mess
one more tangle
to sort out
a knot in a thread
i stitched a patch on my heart
and watched it fray

this bandaid will not hold
does not stick any more
i carried you too long
to let you keep firing
your silver-plated bullets into me

prove to me
that the holes i see in your socks
will not keep wearing through
because i refuse to darn them

nor will i patch
the holes in the knees of your jeans
and the elbows of your sweaters

this is why
when i make things
i try to make them last
so that i don't have to mend them after
because the mending
takes longer
and hurts more

© Elizabeth Klassen 2011

16.1.11

an award? me? really? you shouldn't have.

so. um. [clears throat] i'd like to thank my mom, my dad, and ... er. wait. this isn't the oscars, is it. heh.

no, it's not the oscars. BUT - my special awesome friend over at Hallsi gave me a blog award! that's right, my very first one! thanks jay! and she said some nice things about me that i really don't deserve.
so you should go read her blog.
go.
scoot.
get out of here.

but first:


however. the award comes with CONDITIONS.

the conditions:
1. thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award.
2. share 7 things about yourself.
3. award 15 recently discovered great bloggers.
4. contact these bloggers and tell them about this award.

so. fulfilled the first condition already. now for seven things about me.

I. i like making lists, on blogs or elsewhere, of random information about myself.
II. i do not enjoy beer.
III. my toes are cold.
IV. sometimes, i go out of my way to be different from everyone else. like using roman numerals to list things. because i had to point that out.
V. my deodorant smells like mint and my shampoo smells like oranges.
VI. i'm currently attempting to learn russian.
VII. i forgot to write the last letter of my first name when i was signing the signature pad for my driver's license.

but i only have four blogs that i follow that i think this award is appropriate for:

I. my mom, over at the corvidarium - best and most awesomest artisticky mom ever :) she makes beautiful things. love you mom!
II. gertie, from gertie's new blog for better sewing - i feel really privileged to be able to watch the progress of her various sewing projects, and see the amazing results that happen, and also to read the thought-provoking debates that happen on some of her posts (eg, the recent gun-print dress post). thanks for sharing, gertie :)
III. jo, at bridges on the body - again, it's a real privilege to get to see beautiful sewing projects (in this case, corsets) emerge, and with some fantastic workmanship too! thank you as well, jo, for sharing with the rest of us :)
IV. and last but not least, emily from some girls wander - i really enjoy seeing the vintage-flavoured (and often simply vintage!) styles that she loves. where on earth do you find such gorgeous pieces, emily? oh and her art is fabulous too, you should check it out.

thank you all; sayonara.

11.1.11

house, job, money....

so. many changes for the new year.

first. one you should know about already if you read my blog. new apartment, new roomie with two cats, own kitchen. OWHN KITCHING. [side note: i've decided that the first thing i'm going to do, when we're all moved in and my pantry is all PROPERLY STOCKED, is i'm going to make bread. homemade bread. none of this machine business for me. mmmmm...] and actually, speaking of new place, i'm going to need to buy a bed.

second. again, you should know about this one. i'm on graveyards. which is completely oddball. and i come home from work at about the hour that i used to START. so weird.

third. there comes a time in every girl's life when she makes a very important step. and that is getting a credit card. no, i will NOT go spending crazy. it's just for building credit with. because if i make purchases on it and then pay it off IMMEDIATELY, it's all good. no interest. and i plan to always make sure i have the money in my regular bank account before i use the credit card. i'm thinking ahead here. also, set up a savings account today that automatically takes a certain amount of money out of my account on payday and saves it. so that's cool.

aaaanyways. life with me. again.

9.1.11

diana lens, you're awesome.

remember that new lens from a couple posts back? the diana lens that i got for christmas? well, it arrived :) 

[and for the peeps reading this from facebook - you'll have to click through to my blog to see the photo resulting from awesome new lens, cos it won't show on the preview.]

7.1.11

thousand tears

it'll be one long night before the day is over;
one sad sad song, and a lonely road.
forever was too good for you, and so we'll say goodbye;
i've cried a thousand tears for you, no more.

these untread paths have followed me, unsung songs, your memory
i leave it all behind now, choose no regrets
take your fallen branches, light a fire and keep warm -
i'll not be your matchbook.

i'm surrounded by silence now, but one of solitude
and your fear has proven true, you're lonely once again,
holding heroes to the light like trophies, glinting gold
i was never your prize.

the tree fell in the forest - i watched and wept,
a burning red-orange sun sank into the west.
forever was too good for you, so we said goodbye;
i cried a thousand tears for you, no more.

© Elizabeth Klassen, 2011

6.1.11

hot damn! FINALLY!

a couple of "finallies" - last week (was it only last week? good lord it feels like a year!) i finally got my N license - on the fourth try. not that i'm a bad driver, mind you. just that they have their checklist, and i wasn't shoulder-checking properly the previous three times. anyways. so i can drive myself places, if i have a car to do it in :)

and the other finally? the one i'm super duper excited about?
my friend and i finally found a place to live! I HAVE A KITCHEN OF MY OWN. hells yeahhhhhh! and some james barber cookbooks to use IN that kitchen. SO stoked. and my kitchen looks fan-freaking-tastic. the apartment is fantastic too - i have a teeny tiny private balcony off my room, as well as the main apartment balcony; we're on the second floor and have a great view; two bed, two bath, allows cats; in-suite laundry; and the price is right! we take possession on the first of february and man i just can't wait.

and oh yeah. monday night i start graveyards at timmy's. woot :P