i knit...

...who knew??

i feel like its been forever since i had a knitting post. almost forever since i posted period, actually. honest, i just don't spend much time on the internet when i'm at sister's. i'd rather just hang out, but i have been knitting a bit here and there. the nice thing about knitting is that i can knit and carry on a conversation at the same time, thereby making it a preferred hobby when spending time with people.

when i was in lubbock in october, i found a lovely little yarn shop. it was quite the boost to my spirits and made texas seem more like a place i could actually live. while there, i signed up for the email list and bought this pretty skein of yarn. the only email i've ever recieved came yesterday... saying that the owner was closing down the shop. even sadder is the fact that i won't be in texas to take advantage of the sweet sale. boo.

Interlacement's Periwinkle Petite

but the yarn i bought was gorgeous and was the perfect amount for a long skinny scarf. i added a fringe and in the end used up all but about six inches. and once again, due to the lack of human models around when i finally get to photographing projects, nearby animals had to suffer the indignity of scarf-wearing.

pattern: multidirectional scarf

how can you not love that face??

Waffles the cat looking super pleased to be wrapped up in yarny goodness

meet dozier

this is the newest addition to sister's household; he is a treeing walker coonhound. he's actually matt's dog and will someday be trained to be an actual hunting dog. in theory. sister and i are doing our best to undermine his transformation into a "real dog" by snuggling him and spoiling him with toys and kisses. matt seems thrilled by our efforts...





is he not the cutest thing you've ever seen???

a busy weekend

it has been a busy few days here in gallup, a state made all the more difficult by the fact that i spent saturday running on two hours of sleep and am pretty sure i was still drunk when i woke up at 7 am. which i am surprised i even managed considering we didn't make it to bed until 3. neither my liver nor my head was all too pleased with me, but the friday night comedy show was pretty fun. i just don't recover as quickly as i used to.


but why on earth was i getting up so early anyway?? this weekend was the red rock hot air balloon rally at red rock state park. i have to say, the mass ascension was definitely worth the pain of getting up. my only regret is that i wasn't able to make it to one of the glows because we had stuff going on both nights. i also never managed to climb all the way up the rocks (because i am a chicken shit and have a healthy fear of death) to meet some work friends, but in the end it worked out because i got some way better shots walking around on the ground. and the friend that said shooting into the sun was a bad idea... i have to disagree. it makes the balloons look like they are lit up!


and the 24-70L performed beautifully. this is a lens that i had constant access too back in the days of my ex and his truckloads of camera gear, and probably the lens i miss the most. it is a perfect range for so many different subjects and it takes beautiful pictures. it also costs a small fortune that i cannot yet afford; however, i have discovered the delightful concept of renting lenses. its very sad to have to part with it (i boxed it up this evening) but i enjoyed having it for 4 weeks at a fraction of the price.


i'm definitely glad i had it for the rally. and just to warn you, its going to be a picture heavy post because i just couldn't chose between them to narrow it down.

i never realized how giant the balloons were. it takes a team of people to get them all laid out and inflated. and the baskets are super tiny; they fit three people but it looks pretty cramped in there.

at first they sort of went up one at a time, and then all of a sudden there was just this rainbow of color all over the ground. there were some pretty neat ones too... like the ladybug on a sunflower (you can see it from the backside in the photo above) and a wicked witch, complete with hat and broom, and even humpty-dumpty, floating around on his head.

i've actually done quite a bit of picture taking in the last few days. there are some cute kids to share and a knitting project that is finally finished, but i will have to hold on to that one for a little while.

an arizona holiday

So the most of the clan, including mr. z and the pups, made it to Green Valley to spend Thanksgiving at ma and pa Z's new house. It was really nice to get to spend a few days with everyone (a few days that did NOT involve freaking out over wedding related activities). We mostly just hung around the house and vegged. There was no Black Friday shopping, which was a-ok with us... but there was a bit of driving around to check out the scenery, and to eat at Pinnacle Peak. yummy!

little bro and his gal

some sunset action... the more yellow one is probably more accurate coloring but i like the purplish one better

sister at a scenic pull off in the white mountains

All in all it was a lovely, relaxing weekend.

Mexican hog roast

Last Saturday we (meaning me, sister, and Matt) spent the day at one of Matt's buddies house enjoying a hog roast, Mexican style. Matt got up at the ass crack of dawn to join his friends to kill and disassemble the pig. Sister and I, on the other hand, being less than enthused about seeing our food still in the form of a living breathing animal, slept in and made our way out to the roast around noon-ish. By the time we got there, there were several cook fires going, one of which was roasting some delicious ribs, another a pot of red chili, and the third a big vat of fat and meat. Think bacon, but all in chunks rather than thin slices.

they called them chicharillos, or something.
and they were delish... once they were cooked

Once these bad boys were done (muy tasty, by the way) they sliced and diced the skin, which had been hanging on the end of the horsetrailer all day. (I didn't say it was appetizing...) Then those went into the pot to make some homemade pork rinds. Now, they tell me they shaved the pig before they butchered it, but apparently its hard to shave a pig entirely. Needless to say, I was unable to eat any pork rinds. And jokes about picking pig hair out of your teeth are not funny. Just for the record.

if you look closely, you can see the hairs. *gag*

I also got some good pictures of the kids running around, but I feel it would be a disservice to include them in a post containing raw pork and hairy pig skin.

Official Wedding photos

Many apologies for my absence, but I have had limited time and limited internet access. And to be honest, its been kind of nice. I've been reading lots of books (i.e. the entire Twilight series, the Inheritance cycle, and a handful of other random paperbacks) and doing some knitting. But I do have some things to blog about... eventually.

spending some family time together the day after the wedding.

BUT, this post is just to let those of you who aren't yet aware know that the official wedding photos are now up on the photographers website. you can see them here. Just enter the code 081011.

baby stalking

the day after my bridal shower/bachelorette party i managed to haul myself out of bed and halfway to Cincinnati for the renaissance festival. it was, to say the least, an interesting experience. While watching a sword-fighting show, pegasaurus and i were seated behind an adorable baby. so i practiced my baby stalking skills.


is she not the cutest thing?? even her little crocheted hat is cute.

and just to avoid any confusion or potential alarm (amongst my ten readers)... baby stalking is mr. z's affectionate term used to refer my propensity for getting really excited about taking pictures of babies. I don't REALLY stalk babies... much.

debauchery

once again, we will take a break from my own mediocre photography and pointless rambling to indulge in more stolen wedding photos. this time from a friend who just happens to be married to our officiant. while everyone else was taking pictures of the decorations and other pretty things, she was capturing the pure ridiculousness that the night deteriorated into.

she did also capture some good ones from throughout the day, so without further ado... our wedding day, more or less. (a few of these are from other friends as well)

we got married.




we ate.



we danced.



we posed for photos.

maybe the absurdity started around this point.

we smoked cigars.

my mom is probably wondering who the hell that spanish guy is.

and from there on out, it just got absurd.

the shrug was perfect... until i lifted my arms. then, not so much

there are probably a lot of similar pictures floating around out there with more of our male guests.
and i have no idea who's hand that is.

As Tracy pointed out, there are no pictures of Mr. Z taking part in the craziness. Perhaps he was out with the guys fixing the generator. Or perhaps he was talking to the guests... which I probably should have been doing, instead of leading the locomotion, but whatever.

Texas Tech

Yesterday I went onto campus with mr. z in search of a notary for some of the name change paperwork. Afterwards we wandered around Texas Tech, enjoying the sunny day and the lovely architecture. (Almost) all of the buildings are a beautiful spanish colonial style, with gorgeous tile roofs and ornate details. There is an unfortunate math building designed to resemble a calculator... a tragic carryover from the 80's I assume.

the lanterns along the ceiling are fantastic

but the campus totally redeems itself solely on the basis of this sweet arched walkway along the side of the chemistry building. it is spectacular in every sense of the word. it is difficult to capture just how awesome it is.

a little cross-processing treatment

i can totally picture engagement or wedding photos here. at least, i can picture them in my head. even if i did have models, i'm not sure i have the technical ability to do them proper justice.

a more vintage treatment

there is also this other sweet building, with a rocking staircase that would also make for some sweet portraits. i had to use the fisheye to get the whole staircase in, which is further proof that i need that 24-70. the distortion wouldn't work so well for portraits.

talk about an amazing blue sky!

there are several other spots on campus that would make for some fantastic portrait shots as well. lots of archways and stairs and quaint details.

they also have some cool sculptures scattered around campus, many of which seem to have books as a theme.


this was a life size "man" made of books. there were also giant marble books scattered around a fountain, and a wacky sculpture of tiny characters climbing all over a mountain of notable titles.

Ohio State is a beautiful campus, don't get me wrong. There are lots of very pretty nooks and crannies scattered around (i LOVE the secret labyrinth garden) and some stunning architecture there as well. But Tech seems to have a more cohesive building appearance (aside from one or two wacky structures) and I was pleasantly surprised by how pretty it was.