On Looking Hot in a Trench Coat AND Having a Brain

Normally things that enrage me never make it into the blogisphere (unless it's a knitting snafu that others might also run into). But since this attacked new media itself (which isn't just twitter, but also podcasts, blogs, and other social media) it merits a response. Plus, when you further attack the integrity of women as beings with the ability to work hard and use their brain to make their way in the world, you open yourself up to the most vicious of attacks.

It's no secret that I am a big fan of Felicia Day. Her impact on the internet world through Knights of the Guild and then other projects (no, I'm sorry. Her impact on the world. PERIOD) has directly influenced the future of television and the web-based viewing a large number of us enjoy. I have often said "Felicia Day is my hero," and that statement is always true.

It's also no secret that I am a huge fan of Twitter. I have either met or enriched my relationship with many (maybe all) of my closest friends through this medium. It has also allowed me to engaged in a community of individuals around the world, all connected through our common interests and internet activity. I'm not so much talking about the overall twitter community, but the many different realms in which I interact that are based on the various podcasts I either listen to or am involved in. And I'm NOT talking as one of those people who lives alone and has no human contact beyond their computer (though Windows and I would probably have a lot of things in common). I have a life outside of my computer, but Twitter has significatly enriched my life through contact with other people who are into the same things that I am (ie Buffy, Smallville, knitting, etc).

Yesterday Felicia Day wrote a blog post about a Vanity Fair article in which she was featured along with several other women who are entreprenuers and very successful. What connects them all? They are very successful Twitter users. Sounds like an awesome study of how New Media is emerging and maybe even how it is becoming the chosen vehicle of intellectual, ambitious women.



(I mean, look at that picture. How awesome?)

Unfortunately, the author took this opportunity to marginalize these "Tweethearts" (seriously? Could you be more condecending?) She frequently refers to them as "girls" and uses all sorts of supposed Twitter slang that is viewed as juvenial by actual users. Her treatment of these women as unimportant individuals who are unable to achieve success without engaging in an online popularity contest is offbase and very offensive. It is very hard to understand why this woman is trying so hard to put down other successful women unless she herself views the world as one giant popularity contest and must put down others' success to make herself sound more intellectual. Honestly, it totally had that highschool vibe.

Ok, I'm not going to rant anymore. Geekweek has an excellent response if you would like to learn more. All I have left to say is, Vanessa Grigoriadis, you have just declared war on informed women everywhere. And we are a formidale opponent.

Christmukkah (minus the mukkah)

Christmas has come and gone and somehow I managed to get all of my gifts made in time. I'm serious. It was a race to the end, knitting up one last gift a few days before Christmas under a blanket as we watched a movie as a family, but somehow I managed to get them done (did I mention we got snowed in the weekend before and were trapped in the house together?)

With one notable exception, all of the gifts I made this year were hats. Figure if you're going to make something for everyone you might as well follow a theme, right?

I started my sister's hat back in October[ish]. It was the only gift that was knit on schedule, but it turned out quite nicely. She's rather quirky and artistic, so the unique butterfly pattern seemed perfect. Sofiya Cremin's pattern is a lot of fun to knit up, provided you don't lose count in the decrease section (or do as I did and put it down for a while and forget where you were).



My mom's hat is one that most knitters will recognize -- Ysolda Teague's Riply. I knit it up in Borocco Alpaca Light and still have some left over. The color is an almost navy shade of blue, but has a lot of other colors flecked into it. Mom's a PE teacher, so I thought she needed a more girly hat. Hence the lace band. And those pleats! So much fun.



(this is the "Faith, stop taking my picture!" shot)

The other two members of the familiy, Dad and my brother, recieved identical gifts. Or at least that was my intention. As you may remember, on Thanksgiving my family ran a 5K (yes, we trot for our turkey. Though some of us may have walked for a bit), and as it was rather chilly, the male half of our four-person group was not too happy with their lack of hat choices. Well what's a girl to do but knit running hats for the ones she loves?



(photos courtesy of Jen Marriner Photography)

Both hats were knit from the same pattern, the Seaman's Cap, which you can still find on Ravelry (though not the actual details of the pattern). Unfortunately, halfway through the second hat the pattern seemed to disappear from the internet. Now we know, kiddies, always print your patterns if they're not a download! I managed to improvise from what I remembered but it came out shorter than intended. Fortunately, my brother loved it. I mean seriously. I don't think he even took it off when he went to bed.

I made 5 other hats at the last minute. Fortunately they only took 2 days and maybe a total of 4 hours.



They're Jayne hat ornaments! Sent to a few of my online friends to decorate their Christmukkah trees or fingers as the case may be. Easy and fun, I just copied this pattern for Jayne hat pins.

Oh, and I made one more Christmas hat.



It's Hermoine! Better known as my BFF[fffffffff . . . well, you get the idea]. Now she is truly chic geek as she chases her students around the playground (I don't actually know if she chases them, but I think it'd be entertaining).

The last thing I made was 1 nearly completed glove for the boyfriend to wear when he plays hockey. He's only been asking for a pair since March. Maybe next Christmas he'll get the other half.



I have much more to tell you about, but haven't the time right now. But I promise to be back soon. Until then, remember, needles are for knitting and stabbing annoying people at the grocery store.