On Saturday, I was pretty much busy 'round home.  Katie did drag me to the Y.  I walked a couple of laps around the track and then started to feel my shin splints, so I changed my equipment sign-up, from treadmill to recumbent bike and pedalled for 10 miles.  It really felt good -- a much better workout than I've been getting on the treadmill.  My got my heart rate up, I broke a bit of a sweat, I worked -- something I really haven't been able to do because of the shin splints slowing me down.

The biggest highlight of my weekend came yesterday when I met Purling Oaks Angie at a nearby coffee shop.  Angie and I are practically twins, with birthdays only two days apart!  I don't know if I've ever known anyone before with a birthday so close to mine.  We gabbed for over two hours  I brought Williamsro, knowing that it's on Angie's To-Do list and figuring she'd like to see it in person.  Also, I said as we met, "If I wear and sweater and carry a sweater, you'd pretty much know I'm the knitter, right?"  We talked about blogging -- the fun, the weirdness, the inspiration!  We talked about knitting -- but didn't knit a single stitch!  We talked about all sorts of stuff.  I think it pretty likely that we'll get together again -- in my neighborhood or hers.  ; )

On the way home, I delivered a ball of Cascade Pastazza to my mom so she can mend a hole in one of the Log Cabin Socks I knit for my stepdad for Christmas last year, and reinforce the other.  I asked to see said socks and OMG, it's a HUGE GAPING HOLE.  Some of the stitches on the other sock consist of three fine hairs -- they're not plies or strands or fibers, they're very fine HAIRS -- one more step and I'm sure they'll give.  I shook my finger at my stepdad and told him that the Log Cabin Socks are NOT for WALKING ON THE TREADMILL!  That's why God made walking shoes, for crying out loud.  It is very nice to know that he loves the socks that much, though.  I know he wears them a lot.  ; )  You know I'd MUCH rather he wear them out than not wear them at all.  Anyway, Mom will do her best at mending/darning, but another option is to make them into suede-soled slippers.

I know you know how happy I was to see Eddie (James "Thunder" Early) Murphy and Jennifer (Effie) Hudson collect a SAG Awards last night for their Dreamgirls performances, and that Julie Andrews was honored for lifetime achievement.  I actually Woo-hoo'd and pumped my fist in the air when they announced Eddie's name -- in much the same manner as I cheer for a Packer touchdown.  I'm sure the girls think I've slipped a little more off my rocker.  ; )  I love Chandra Wilson and her acceptance speech was wonderful -- and I couldn't help but realize this morning that three of the four actress awards went to women who could "thank their skin and nose and height and arms" and the other went to a woman with beautiful wrinkles.  ; )  I was thrilled to see the cast of Mary Tyler Moore -- especially Betty White (you know I love her) and Cloris Leachman and Valerie Harper -- oh, they all looked FANTASTIC!  Does this happen to anyone else:  Whenever I hear Jeremy Irons' voice, I can't help but picture "Scar"; it doesn't matter what he's doing, I see a lion.

Mittens.  After casting on three times with the Matchmaker -- starting with 2US needles, then 1US, then 0US (I don't even know why I have those) -- it has been determined that I shall have to shop for a pattern other than Graph 75 if I want to use the Matchmaker.  And I do.  So I paged through the book, counting stitches in charts, considering number of colors used, etc., and narrowed it down to one (or a combo or an adaptation) of these:  Chart 15, 54, 51, 97, 95, 108, 113, or 124 (which I've circled, so must favor).  I started a third Calorimetry while I mull things over.  Seems to be the mulling thing to do.

Finally, I saw that it was on this date in 1985 that We Are The World was recorded.  I still love that song and still have my record.  ; )