I Am a Woman of Many Contradictions

Even though I am adamantly against having baby dressed and accessorized in all pink, I myself tend to gravitate towards all things pink. My friends have been quick to point out this fatal flaw in my logic many times now. Perhaps if my mother had fended off all the pink stuff early on in my life...ah, well, too late now.

As hinted, my birthday surprises arrived, and lo and behold, I am now the proud owner of a pink netbook, the Samsung NC10, courtesy of husband, and a hot pink iPod Nano, courtesy of the in-laws. The Nano is a replacement for my "ancient" pink iPod Mini, which Apple does not even make anymore.

(The picture of the netbook was taken my husband at his office, where he was setting it up prior to delivery to me. I like how the Fruit Guys box is so prominently featured in the photo.)

Can I tell you just how much I love the new netbook (and Nano, too, just in case in-laws are reading this)?! It is freaking awesome. So compact, and perfect for its intended use. It isn't meant as some super powerful laptop, but it fits my needs perfectly. Internet surfing, blogging, downloading pictures/videos/audiobooks (more on audiobooks later), keeping our budget spreadsheets, simple word prcessing, organizing my knitting patterns and recipes, etc. Netbooks don't come with Microsoft Office pre-installed like most regular laptops, but it is easy enough to get a copy of Open Office, an open source program, which, again, is perfect for my needs. I can even log into my office remotely using this thing. This means I don't always have to drag out my standard issue corporate peon laptop when I have to work from home. I love my pink netbook, and I highly recommend getting one (doesn't have to be Samsung, and doesn't have to be pink!) if you are looking for either a replacement for an old laptop, or a second/third/whatever computer for the home.

On to audiobooks. Husband and I recently joined the San Francisco Public Library. I don't know why we waited so long to do this. What really prompted me to join was that our local branch hosts sing alongs for babies and new moms, but once I joined, boy oh boy! Public libraries have changed since my school days! Did you know that lots of local libraries let you download audiobooks? There are probably some of you out there saying, uh, yeah, dumbass, that's been around for a while...but, whatever, I was slow to catch on. So, with new netbook and iPod in hand, I downloaded "O Jerusalem" by Laurie R. King, a mystery novel where the protagonist is a strong, young, female detective who works alongside Sherlock Holmes. I have been into the mystery novels lately. I try to avoid the sensationalist ones, but it is kind of hard to tell which ones will be good and which won't. For the most part, I have been sticking to the classics as well, since I just haven't been able to find a good recently published book for me to read. I also avoid all things that would be classified as chicklit, in which the women only seem to care about shopping, money, marrying rich men, and being thin. (Again, I am a woman of many contradictions because I also happen to love shopping, but I digress.) So far, the book I am "reading" is very engaging. The reader, Jenny Sterlin, has a great English accent, and reads very well.

It has been very relaxing to "read" on the couch at night, while mindlessly knitting a new baby blanket in all garter stitch. It is way better than just vegging out in front of the TV, especially since we are entering summer and nothing really great is on anyway. I am using Knit Picks Swish Worsted yarn in Lawn, Gold, Fired Brick and Allspice for my blanket. This blanket calls for so much yarn, I went with Knit Picks, so that the blanket could remain affordable. I hope this yarn works out ok. So far, it is pretty soft and nice to work with. I hear that some people have had problems trying to wash it. Even though it is a superwash merino wool, some people have said it FELTS. Oh well, nothing to do but soldier on and be careful when I do have to wash it.

The only bad thing has been, that for the past three days, poor husband has felt a little left out. He told me sadly this morning, "All you do is listen to your new iPod, now..." Well. This weekend we are finally going to see a movie. In the theater. With popcorn. Can't tell you how long it has been since we have done that!

NOTE: Edited to remove affiliation between Open Office and Microsoft. Don't want the Microsoft police to come get me :)