Honestly? I have never been interested in cross-stitching and my very few attempts at stitching ended badly. These cross-stitch versions of Banksy's street art might just tempt me into picking up a needle and the thread, though. The site is in Swedish, but all you need to know is that "ladda hem" means download and "gratis" means free. Yes, they offer free downloads of Banksy cross-stitch patterns. You can also grab skulls, feminist symbols and '80s Michael Jackson patterns.
Biting Tails
I recently discussed Alasdair Gray's fiction with someone who had contemplated doing a parody of Lanark for NaNoWriMo. I countered that Gray does such a fine job of parodying and plagiarising himself that it would be a moot exercise. 1982, Janine and Something Leather can be read as the latter parodying the former. Within Lanark itself you get the A-Z Of Plagiarisms which in itself is a parody. Would it be possible to write (fan)fiction about a body of work which is already plagiarising and fictionalising itself? So, to my mind, the solution would be to write an article called "The Resistance of Parody - Alasdair Gray, Bakhtin and the impossibility of Fanfiction" and what a very amusing writing exercise that would be. Not quite a novel, of course, but I might get cracking on that during November.
PS. There's a reason why this blog entry will be filled under "humour"
As You Wish
The third and final US presidential debate has been and gone whilst I was soundly asleep. I have looked at various reactions - ranging from Republican blogges to left-wing UK newspapers - but this remains the funniest take I've read:
::30 minutes into the debate, tension has increased as each candidate has perfectly parried each others attacks::
McCain: You are wonderful. Obama: Thank you; I've worked hard to become so. McCain: I admit it, you are better than I am. Obama: Then why are you smiling? McCain: Because I know something you don't know. Obama: And what is that? McCain: I... am not left-handed. [McCain moves his pen to his right hand and gains an advantage] Obama: You are amazing. McCain: I ought to be, after 20 years. Obama: Oh, there's something I ought to tell you. McCain: Tell me. Obama: I'm not left-handed either. [Obama moves his pen to his right hand and regains his advantage]
And if you are less geeky than me (which is very, very likely - yes, I'm embracing my inner geek nowadays), they are referencing this film.
Self-Awareness
Nothing says GEEK quite as much as a grown woman shouting "Byron! Byron, you idiots!" at University Challenge. Whilst knitting a jumper.
For the Love of Old Books
I like many things, but there are not many things that I love. I definitely love incunabula (books printed between 1455 and 1500) and early modern period printed books. Yesterday I went to Edinburgh to look at some very old printed books from Scotland. I was not disappointed. I have long been interested in and worked on the shift from (handwritten) manuscripts to the (printed) books. The shift is not as abrupt and clear as many people assume; post-Gutenberg handwritten manuscripts were still produced and printers arguably sought to make their product look as much like handwritten manuscripts as possible. Although The Scottish National Library do not hold any incunabula (as far as I know), I was pleased to see some early 16th century books which still displayed evidence of this urge to mimic handwritten manuscripts: typefaces designed to resemble handwriting, woodcuts trying to look like hand-drawn illustrations and rubrication (emphasising parts of the text using red ink). Gorgeous, fascinating stuff.
And Edinburgh was her usual, gloomy, beautiful, fantastical self.
I like visiting the city but I couldn't live there, I think.
Saturday Verbal Rampage
I managed to spend yesterday afternoon in very pleasant company. Whilst the rainstorm nearly flooded Glasgow, we had hot chocolate, listened to jazz, curled up in chairs and knitted whilst discussing the US presidential election. I appreciated the afternoon all the more because it made me reflect on far I have come this past year. It takes time to establish a network in a new town, let alone a new country. 2008 has been a long, strange and very tough year - but I am now able to spend a rainy afternoon in excellent company. Thank you all who have been helping me get to this stage. You know who you are. And speaking of knitting.. I am currently working on a red version of the February Lady Sweater. I keep having to rip back rows for some peculiar reason, so it is fairly slow going. Fortunately I think I have managed to crack a particular design problem, so hopefully I will have it done quite soon. The winter's rapidly approaching and I'm going to need all the woolly bits that I can muster. Or perhaps I should just turn on our central heating?
Finally, a few links seeing as it is Saturday and I'm in a lazy, lazy mood. + I am not envious. I'm slightly overhelmed: welcome to an informed tech geek's library. + Today is the 'official' Dogs Rule Day (although, as TangledFrog sez: "Every Day is Dogs Rule Day"). + Related: Could I possibly interest you in photos of people wearing clothes knitted from their dogs' fur? It's slightly freaky but I couldn't tell you why. + So, you want the best 150 online flash games sorted by type and each given a mini-review? You got it.
It's almost time for crap TV, so have yourself a great weekend.