42point1

why i love inspector o

katherine — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:14:23 PDT

I stumbled across the Inspector O series of books in the library a couple of weeks ago. They're written by James Church, which, the book jacket informs us, is a pseudonym, because Mr. Church is (and I quote) "a former Western intelligence officer with decades of experience in Asia". The Inspector O novels are set in North Korea. O is a fascinating character, one of the most engaging detectives I've run across in a while, in one of the most unusual settings. I've quickly become a fan -- so much so that as soon as I finished the first book ("A Corpse in the Koryo") I immediately grabbed the second book ("Hidden Moon"), and I've got the third one ("Bamboo and Blood") on hold. I ran across this passage last night, and realize it's just one of the many reasons why I've quickly become a fan of Inspector O. O...

it never rains, but

katherine — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 07:17:12 PDT

Popping up for air -- oh, well, and to make a bit of an effort cleaning up the house, because after the last month, and now finding myself in between projects, I'm noticing all the stuff I was either content to let slide, or didn't even notice was sliding. But! I have news! Remember when I mentioned having my presentation selected for Podcasters Across Borders? For the knitters out there, I probably should have put that in perspective, maybe by saying that for the podcasting world, that's a bit like a knitter getting a pattern accepted into Knitty. But guess what? I saw Amy Singer, editor of Knitty on Saturday, at the Downtown Knit Collective's Spring Frolic. And she told me that a pattern I'd submitted had been accepted for the next issue -- Summer 2009. So, podcasters? That's a bit like getting your presentation selected at PAB. Oh, hey,...

busy. busybusybusybusybusy.

katherine — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:22:37 PDT

Busy, and honestly, I don't have much to say that's worth writing about. Small stuff I share over on Twitter, but even there, I don't have much time. Busy trying to write a bunch of new patterns up. Busy trying to get a new podcast up off the ground, and realizing that that a blog might have been easier. Spelling I can check, pronunciation of Indian names and hindi words, well, that's been challenging. Lots of reading and writing and movie watching as I test knit things and write up patterns. Plus, a knee that's acting up (had an MRI last week, waiting on results), and back and neck pain because my gait is wonky from the bad knee. And you know, spring. Sprung. Finally, so I'm thinking ahead to the farm and the garden. Oh, and you know, this -- I'm the third one on the list of Sessions....

the best job in the world

katherine — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 17:37:54 PST

Remember The Best Job in the World? There was a flurry of interest about it a while back in the news and on Twitter -- an island in the Great Barrier Reef is looking for a caretaker, and put out a call for applicants. Well, after receiving over 34,000 applications, they've narrowed the field down to a short list of 50. 11 of those 50 will get an interview -- but! There's also a vote for a Wild Card Applicant -- the person with the most votes will get an interview. The cool news? One of those applicants is a local kid -- a very talented student from the University of Guelph. Don't believe me? Look at the video he created: The kid is 20. And he's amazing, isn't he? Go vote for him, willya? Postscript: It's Rob writing the postscript -- Katherine said she had some problems getting the...

podcamp toronto 2009

katherine — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 07:23:00 PST

My head is still full from two days of podcamp -- and I'm starting to feel that post-event let-down, a kind of low-level blues as I adjust back to what passes for normal living around here. But I've been thinking about how amazing it was -- around 500 people showed up, volunteers helped out to make sure things ran smoothly (or as close to it as possible when you're organizing an unconference). I didn't attend a lot of the sessions -- but those I did, I really enjoyed. They got me thinking, they inspired me. I spent a lot of time just talking to people -- and the sad thing was, I didn't get to see everyone I wanted to, and those I did see, well, there just wasn't enough time with them. Such is life, and you cherish the moments you do manage. But I want to take a...