Cambridge, Day One

So little to report.

My first non-international red-eye flight. As per usual, Matt slept the whole time, and I tossed and adjusted and futzed and was very jealous. Travel was largely uneventful, though. I was in such a daze, that not even the free upgrade to first class for the Phila-Boston hop could get me enthused.

Not surprisingly, it was dark and rainy when we arrived, but I still had no trouble recogizing Fenway and the Cask & Flagon as we drove by. Can't wait til the game tomorrow--I only hope the newly-returned sunlight decides to make another appearance tomorrow. Go A's!!

So far, the company/job that Matt's auditioning for looks good. They've set me up in an unused workstation, and have been very kind. I think they really really want to give him the job already, because the CTO keeps mentioning incentives/negotiations they would make.

I'm not at all concerned about that right now, though. It's the first day, I'm exhausted, and I'm still quite taken with all the stone and brick. It is simply beautiful, clouds or no.

Stay tuned for culinary commentary and ironic observations about the Ivy League school across the street!

It's Not Chocolate!!

Friends! We're in trouble! They're trying to take the chocolate out of chocolate!!

From slashdot:

"The US Food and Drug Administration is considering redefining 'chocolate' to allow substitution of vegetable oil ($0.70/lb.) for cocoa butter ($2.30/lb.), and whey protein for dry whole milk. There are already standard terms to differentiate these products from chocolate, such as 'chocolatey' and 'chocolate-flavored.' The change was requested by the industry group Chocolate Manufacturers of America. Leading the resistance to this change is high-end chocolate maker Guittard, with significant grass-roots support from the Candyblog. The FDA is taking consumer comments until April 25. Here is the FDA page on the proposed change, which oddly enough does not say what the proposed change is."

Again, the here is the link to complain to the FDA before they make a decision. As I learned in my Scharffen Berger factory tour, most chocolate here in the states has a significantly

Learn to Knit!

I love teaching people how to knit. I love knitting myself--besides writing, it's one of the few creative things that I do, so I love empowering others to create as well.

I find that quite often, when I have the opportunity to teach knitting, I am overwhelmed with the task of instructing people on what materials to be prepared with. My hope is that from now until forever, I'll be able to refer them to this blog post.

Yarn: My recommendation is to buy something fairly heavy in a simple texture and color. When beginners buy yarn that has very complicated textures or colors, it enables mistakes. It also hides mistakes, but then you can't learn from them. Very thin or fragile yarn can also be discouraging to new knitters because of breaking and/or the impression of very very slow progress.

I recommend 2 skeins (balls), to ensure that you will have enough for your beginner's scarf. If you want blocks/stripes, buy two skeins of the same style of yarn in two different colors. I don't recommend anything more ambitious than that for any one's first project.

Needles: On the back of nearly every skein of yarn that is commercially available is a symbolic code. Pick out some thick, plain yarn that you can live with, then look on the label for the crossed knitting needles, and the "U.S. #n." I recommend anything larger than an 8, but preferably 10, 10.5 or 11.

I also recommend circular needles (connected with a flexible cable) in the 16" range. If you really really want to use the long straight ones, go ahead and buy them, but if you ever become a habitual knitter, I guarantee that you'll end up replacing them with circulars.

Other Stuff: Scissors, a tapestry needle, and a bag to keep it all together will all get together to make your life a better place. If you're really serious, I also recommend a small journal to keep track of patterns, changes, ideas, and plans.

Questions? Leave a comment and I'll get back to you asap!

Guest Blogging

Everyone should read Bronwyn's blog. She's out there trying to make the world a better place by educating the poorest kids in Oakland.

Especially today, everyone should read Bronwyn's blog because I'm the guest blogger.

Dear Bronwyn's Readers