So I went into the kitchen earlier and flicked the light switch, and there was a flash of light and then darkness. "Oh man, not all three bulbs at once," I thought. So, I just went back out of the kitchen, probably having forgotten what I went in there for in the first place and then later this afternoon I went to the Jube for some more bulbs. I was making myself some noodles for dinner and I noticed that the clock on the stove was not working (it's a gas stove so the actual stove part was working fine). Reaching for my handy troubleshooting skills, which I left laying next to the computer after an unsuccessful attempt to try to figure out why I can't compile and listen to music at the same time, I deduced that perhaps I blew a fuse. To the basement! (insert triumphant music here) so I went down to the basement, narrowly missing hitting my head on the ceiling, and started looking for a fuse box. Naturally, the fuse boxes are in the furthest, dirtiest, most cob web infested section of the basement. Never a boyfriend around when you need him. Anyway, I flipped open the boxes one at a time (all of which are unlabeled) and all of the switches were in the on position. Blast! Back upstairs for a flashlight. Back to the deepest, darkest, most cob infested corner of the basement and ah ha! one of the switches had red in the little window, so I flipped it off and on again and now I have light in the kitchen. :) Time for a triumphant bowl of ice cream.

So I was getting ready to go this morning and I was running a bit late so I thought to myself "I'll grab a banana to eat in the car" so I grabbed a banana and then continued getting ready and then when I was picking up my bookbag and my keys and so forth the banana was gone! I looked all over, the desk and the kitchen table, and the counter and it was nowhere to be found. Perhaps there is some sort of time/space continuum anomaly in my apartment that sucked up my banana, which would also explain how my Programming 1 textbook disappeared and then reappeared a few days later. That, or a spy from the Jube snuck into my apartment and upon discovery of non radioactively green colored banana surmised that I must be shopping elsewhere and confiscated it as evidence.

I finished the first sock and it fits great! I also finished the first sleeve of my pink sweater. I'm definitely going to finish lots of projects this week because I want to go to a new yarn store with Carolyn this weekend so I can make the Lion Brand Crochet Poncho.

This is Gurgle:

Gurgle is a plant that Carolyn's mom gave me (along with several other plants, some of which have done well and some... not so much). Anyway, I planted Gurgle and he does not seem to be growing. I've tried playing music and putting him with other plants so that he won't be lonely and rotating him between the windows in my apartment. I even named him and I try to be encouraging when I water him, "c'mon little plant!" but so far nothing seems to be working. The same five leaves as when Gurgle originally arrived wrapped in a wet paper towel. I worked with a woman once who said she did an experiment on plants in school by feeding some of her plants tea instead of plain water, but I only remember the part where she said they grew a lot at the beginning, it seems like there was another bit after that. Maybe that's what he needs, a healthy shot of caffeine. Or maybe he just doesn't like the taste of Houghton water - it is pretty disgusting, perhaps he would prefer lemonade.

I haven't had time for any clever adventures this week, so instead I'm posting a bit about my brother from a conversation we had last night. I know it's kind of long, but if I was to shorten it any more you would miss out on the full length of the adventure.

Jeff: prepare to be amazed
Jeff: nay
Jeff: prepare to be really amazed
So Jeff has this friend, David, who took his computer speakers to France and fried the subwoofer. He gave it to Jeff to fix (seeing as how Jeff knows nothing about subwoofers and just likes to mess around).
Jeff: and me, being me, happily except something new to take apart in fix
Jeff: this was, perhaps, january
Jeff: so i crack it open, look around, having NO idea what im doing
Jeff: and notice the fuses are burned oout
Jeff: AH HA!
me: lol
Jeff: i say to myself
Jeff: i can fix this, no problem
Jeff: so i spend like 3 hours online trying to find the right fuses
Jeff: but in the end i prevail
Jeff: order them
Jeff: wait
Jeff: they come, i pop them in, set up the subwoofer, turn it on and...
Jeff: crackle sizzle
me: lol
Jeff: :-
Jeff: fear not dear listen, our story does not end there
Jeff: listener
me: phew
Jeff: hold on
Jeff: ok
Jeff: where was i
me: crack sizlw
Jeff: ah yes, down, but not out
me: sizle
me: right
Jeff: so i crack it open again, not about to give up that easily
Jeff: and im lookin
Jeff: im lookin
Jeff: theres circuit boards and thingys
Jeff: doohickeys
Jeff: and, still having no idea what im looking at
Jeff: but not about to let that diswayed me, i press on
me: if only you had taken electrical engineering of subwoofers
Jeff: and low and behold, i see an odd lookin little round tan thing
Jeff: an little round tan thing that does not look like all the other little round tan thing
Jeff: so, of course, i poke it
Jeff: and it crumbles
Jeff: it was cooked
me: lol
Jeff: AH HA!
Jeff: i can fix this
Jeff: no.... problem....
Jeff: him
Jeff: what was this
me: is this the part where you jump off the cliff onto your horse and gallop off
Jeff: in the metaphorical sense...
me: lol
Jeff: so i jump online, search for another hour
Jeff: but sadly, to no avail
Jeff: so i say, well david, if you want this fixed, go online and buy one of these thingys
Jeff: ....
Jeff: ...
me: lol
Jeff: :)
Jeff: no dice
Jeff: *#@&!
Jeff: alas, it seems as though im at an impass
Jeff: this was, perhaps, february
me: this is when your horse stops short and you fall off intot he mud
Jeff: and the subwoofer sat, under my fold out blue camping chair until
Jeff: until a fateful day last weekend
Jeff: little did i know when Erick asked me if i wanted to see SinCity
Jeff: what grand things awaited me that night
me: lol
Jeff: so we head down to the palisades
Jeff: we drive down, browse a bit before dinner
Jeff: eat at chi chis
Jeff: yum
Jeff: browse a bit more
Jeff: and they all head into hollister
Jeff: once again, not a place i would have gone by myself
Jeff: nor a place i stay in for more than 5 min unless im actually looking for something
Jeff: so i walk in, literally, do a lap aroudn the store, and walk back out, off to quest for new headphones
Jeff: and where do i look
Jeff: what store is right across the way
me: radioshack
me: subwoofers are us
Jeff: in a golden light from heaven, with an angel choir in the back ground
Jeff: wait for it
me: lol
Jeff: wait for it
Jeff: Radioshack
me: i already guessed that
Jeff: yes well
Jeff: whos telling this story
me: you type to slow
Jeff: for dramatic effect
Jeff: anyway, if i may proceed
me: yes
Jeff: so as i saunter into radio shack, little do i know what great things await me
Jeff: i find some headphones, which have since turned out to be crappy
Jeff: its so hard to find a good pair of headphones
me: yes it is
Jeff: and im lookin around, cause radioshack is apretty cool store to look around in
Jeff: and i see these drawers full of capacitors and resistors and doohickeys
Jeff: and im like
Jeff: what a minute
me: hey those look familiar
Jeff: exactly!
Jeff: but which one
me: the round tan one
Jeff: theres so many choices
me: :)
Jeff: of round tan ones
Jeff: .1, .001. 100
Jeff: all shapes and sizes
Jeff: armed only with my trusty cell phone
Jeff: i quickly dial my roommate
Jeff: eric
Jeff: ...what
me: not the same as erick who you went with?
Jeff: ya know that subwoofer under the chair
Jeff: (no)
me: ok
Jeff: rrrgg, yeah what about it (clearly half asleep)
me: lol
Jeff: can you bust that thing open
Jeff: sure, one sec
Jeff: (sounds of crashing, disorder, cat sqreeching)
Jeff: ok got it
me: lol
Jeff: ok, ya see all the round little tan things
Jeff: yeah...
Jeff: what size are they
Jeff: um...
Jeff: i mean what number are on them
Jeff: oh
Jeff: 104
Jeff: but theres differnt ones ok
Jeff: well, look for the burnt out one
Jeff: where is it?
Jeff: on that one circuit board
Jeff: .... i dont see it....
Jeff: hmm, oh well, thanks anyway
Jeff: so
Jeff: using a very scientific reasoning process
me: lol
Jeff: (eenie, meenie, minie...)
Jeff: i pick out a few packages
Jeff: pay, and go to the movie
me: did you buy more fuses?
Jeff: no
Jeff: i had some still
me: oh
Jeff: so a week goes by
Jeff: and i keep forgetting to get the solder iron from the fencing room
Jeff: very frustrating
Jeff: i keep forgetting... until tonight
Jeff: so i crack taht thing open
Jeff: spend about and hour trying to get 3 screws out (they glue them down)
me: yes they do that in computers too
Jeff: but with a little elbow greese, perseverance, and nail polish remover, i get out the screws
me: quite annoying
Jeff: solder the new thingy down
Jeff: (without setting off any fire alarms i might add)
Jeff: put her back together
Jeff: and just like that, we are ready to test it
Jeff: so i set it up, plug it in, turn it on...
Jeff: ....
Jeff: ...
Jeff: nothing happens
Jeff: hmm
Jeff: off
Jeff: on
Jeff: off
Jeff: on
me: lol
Jeff: ....
Jeff: ok!
Jeff: phase II of testing
Jeff: i sneak into davids room while his roommate is asleep
Jeff: and try it with speakers
Jeff: and
Jeff: it works!!
me: wow!
me: you are so amazing!
Jeff: i know!
me: and full of pracital skills!

Ok so I thought I would work on a few more rows of my sock when I got home today, so I dug it out of my bag and started knitting. A few rows later I noticed, hey this needle is a different color? Hey this needle is a different color because this needle is a different size! So the good news is I found my missing size 1 dpn, the bad news is I used it to knit a few rows of my size 2 dpn sock pattern. How do these things happen? Oh well, just keep knitting.

It's a sad thing when you've been in school for nearly 25 years and you have no practical skills except for perhaps the ability to dress yourself (although after a recent inside out pajama pants incident I'm not even sure about that). But no more! I started knitting my first pair of socks today. It's nice to know that if I was trapped on a deserted island I would at least be able to make my own socks, especially since I don't like having my toes exposed.