Is August Over Yet?

Just back from our quick trip to Portland for wedding #2. The wedding was great. Fun was had by all. I'm a bit smitten with Portland- the trip was like a great first date. I left feeling like it was definitely a place I could see myself living. Too bad Mr. Beagle and I are affianced to another city...

We stayed downtown, as did a group of our friends. We took a quick side trip to the zoo, where the beavers entertained us.



On Sunday, we set off in search of some local Pinot. Pretty country.



On a knitting note, I finally got a chance to track down the sweater I've been slightly obsessed with since seeing in a shop window.

It's actually knit sideways...



...not what I was expecting. In any case, it's got my mind going thinking about fall knitting. Maybe a bulky cardigan could would be the thing to try to design myself...

Meh

Okay, okay. What's girly enough to make up for my football rant? A handbag? A pink-lined handbag?







I call it "Meh". Knit in a bit of stash Debbie Bliss Soho a couple of weeks ago and very roughly modeled on the Chinese Charm Bag from Stitch and Bitch. As much as I like the yarn, I don't love it for this and can't really see myself using it. I do really like the lining, though. Pink on pink on pink with a couple of pockets.



Progress on the Feminine Puff Sleeved Cardigan marches on. I'll be done with the lace at the bottom in no time and on to sleeves and the dreaded finishing.

I'm catching a case of the excitements that's running through the online knitting community over Ravelry. Just 2390 people to go and I'm in.

I took advantage of JoAnn's $.99 pattern sale this weekend:





Autumny skirt pattern and (clearance!) houndstooth denim. It'll go soooo well with my boots if I can pull it off.



Built by Wendy top pattern and slight-step-up-from-a-muslin cotton to try it out in.



The Built by Wendy dress that I've been admiring all over the place... which I plan to make as a top, since I'm afraid the dress would make me look (say it with me) pregnant. No fabric yet.

And to end on a note of geekery, look what Mr. Beagle brought me back from the UK:



So much more compact than Scholastic's version! If (when) I reread it, it'll be this copy, cause... um... I don't know.

An Open Letter to the NFL

Dear NFL,
You suck.

Why do you have to make my life so difficult? It's bad enough if you happen to live in an area where your team is regularly broadcast on local channels, since you need to get at least NBC, CBS and FOX AND ESPN AND now NFL Network. If you are, say, a Packer fan living on the west coast, the only way you can see most of the games from the comfort of your home is to shell out BIG money for a dish and a special package. If you have an irrational fear of cable, your only option is to spend the majority of your August through December Sunday mornings in a sports bar which may or may not have a working dish and a TV tuned in in time to see kickoff. This also means a bad sports-bar buffet breakfast and far to many bloody marys which make you sleepy in the afternoons and seriously inhibit your crafting ability. People also look at you funny when you knit in a sports bar.

Is there an alternative way, NFL, to distribute your sporty entertainment to football fans all over the world? I think there is: the internet. Perhaps you've heard of it, NFL. Everyone else is streaming quality entertainment (thank you ABC for Lost online and also for making the second half of the season not lame). I'd gladly pay to watch the Packers at home via the magic of the interweb. And maybe then, NFL, you would not suck so bad.

Sincerely,
Rebecca Beagle

Inspired by the sad, sad puppy eyes Mr. Beagle made when he found out that we wouldn't be able to see tonight's preseason game. Also by the nachos I did not get to eat.

The normal girly content of this blog will resume shortly.

Another?

A great wedding: Mr. Beagle's BFF and a lovely (and crafty) lady. It was held in a bar- ceremony and all- and was sweet and funny and relaxed and totally enjoyable.



Tasty bacon bloody mary at brunch the next day.



Just squeaking out of O'Hare in time to not have to utilize a couple of the gazillion cots set up (thunderstorms).



Arriving home to find a package from my mom: dental floss* and the ripple. Let me tell you, my mom... wow. The ripple is perfect: absolutely rectangular with perfect gage and oh so much soft merino.



*For some reason, all the stores around here have chosen to carry only minty floss. I like my floss flavorless, thank you very much.