having a great life in spite of everything

You probably didn’t even notice it was ever gone. For most of the day today the KnitMonster site was totally crashed, I foolishly tried a different method of updating the Joomla installation, and really, I knew better (ya damn “expert”, why did I listen to you against my better judgment? (shakes tiny fist)). That is the worst damn part of that kind of thing, that nagging little voice that keeps reminding you that you’re a total freaking idiot, why did you just do that?!

Once it was clear that the site was seriously screwed, I did what you always should do in that case—I moved on to something else and tried to not think about it. Trying to fix something in the heat of temper isn’t wise, and dumb as I am I’m smart enough to not cause even more damage. So this evening my hubbie sat down with me, we carefully went over it, and finally decided to try the backup I had made right before the upgrade attempt (see, I have learned a couple things over time). (why not try the backup first? Because, don’t add more screwups on top, you gotta know you’re making the right move and not just piling on more problems.) The backup worked, the site is not only fully restored, I now have a second duplicate site which I will keep and from now on run tests on that one first.

On the off chance anyone else actually uses Joomla, I’d highly recommend the Akeeba backup extension. Though I think I might be alone in using Joomla, it’s complex enough to not be suitable for causal users, much more so than WordPress. I kinda like it, though, it’s easier for me to put up new files than if I used Dreamweaver for it all, and I’ve created this custom template that I’m rather fond of (I wrote every scrap of code in that template myself, too, even the php).

So, end result: I’m stupid, but not irrevocably so.

1. Be interested.

Dogs are naturally curious about almost everything, they want to see what you’re doing and get involved in it. Emulate that when dealing with others, take an interest in them and whatever they’re doing or talking about (people love that).

2. Be social.

Dogs have a social creatures, they very much want to be around other social creatures (most often dogs or people). People are healthier and happier when they have a well-developed social network, so whether it’s online or in-person get out there and sniff some butts and build some kind of social contact that charges you up on a regular basis.

3. Be protective.

This may seem at odds with the previous point, but it’s not. Dogs love social contact, and they also fiercely defend their own boundaries, it’s a necessary balance. Learn to set firm boundaries with people who drain you, and lock your doors at night (contrary to popular sayings, it was never safe to leave them unlocked at night). A dog will wake to check out and bark at strange noises in the night, then go right back to sleep as if nothing happened; they don’t live in fear, they have common sense.

4. Get plenty of sleep.

Dogs will instinctively nap regularly. For some odd reason, people often equate sleep with laziness. Have you ever seen a dog napping who suddenly hears a noise outside, and they go from zero-to-sixty in a half-second? That is not lazy, that is a highly developed system in action. If people could do that we’d all be a hell of a lot more productive.

5. Exercise is fun!

Dogs love to run, most dog games involve running at some point. They have a two-leg advantage over humans, but the idea works for other forms of activity, too—working your muscles feels good and it improves your health on all kinds of levels. It’s just like Elle Woods said in Legally Blonde, “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands.” Dogs virtually never shoot anyone, I like to credit the amount of exercise they generally get for that.

I suspect this is why so many people love dogs, we subconsciously recognize their superior traits. If we would all strive to be more like our dogs, the world would be a better place. Well, except for that butt-sniffing bit, I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to that.

I recently discovered knit designer Bethany Hendrickson (ilovesmekitty on Ravelry). She’s written some lovely patterns, I’m considering the Erg Chebbi Stole myself (it’s reversible, I love reversible!). I think I might be influenced a little extra by the great photography, I love it extra when designers have really good closeup images so I can see the pattern stitches clearly.

As a giant added bonus, Bethany donates 20% of online pattern sales to the UC Davis Honey Bee Research Program. Most people aren’t aware of the phenomenon of Colony Collapse Disorder, which has threatened bee populations in both the U.S. and Europe. It doesn’t seem all that important until you realize that bees are responsible for a significant amount of agricultural crop pollination, no bees means reduced food supplies. This is a vital issue, I am sometimes shocked at how little attention it gets. Not only does Bethany know about it, she’s actively doing something by contributing to it, which, IMO, makes her doubly cool. And now you can enjoy one of her patterns and make your own contribution at the same time!

Note: Bethany told me she is currently revamping her site so some patterns are not currently posted there; all of her patterns can be found on Ravelry here.

Are you ready for some football?!!!

I just realized that I am, in fact, not ready. I have my awesome double-knit scarf for the Longhorns games:

Wouldn't this be great in your team's colors?

But I do not have a scarf—or any other knit item—for the Houston Texans. At least that should be relatively easy to find the right colors, because, man, it was tough finding a true burnt orange for the UT scarf. The one above uses Vanna’s Choice by Lionbrand, the Rust color description on their site even says “deep burnt orange”. Ordinarily I never would have bought Vanna’s Choice (really, Vanna White? All acrylic yarns?) but I have to admit, the end result is pretty damn nice, I do love wearing this scarf.

A knitter friend who is a graduate of University of Miami also had a tough time finding the right orange and green for her team colors (apparently orange is a really tough one). I need to set up a page that matches yarn colors with team colors. Here it is so far:

University of Texas (burnt orange): Vanna’s Choice—Rust

I know it’s short, but hey, project is now started. Got any suggestions you’d like to add for your team? Let me know and I’ll include them.

Blogathon is happening today in Austin! I’m volunteering and scored the cool job of picking up the breakfast tacos from Torchy’s Tacos. Then it got even better when I was sent to pick up the cupcakes. It’s always fun to be the person bringing the food, everyone is happy to see you.
Just to keep with the theme, I figured I’d blog for a second about how I found a couple of balls of red Patons Angora Bamboo in the sales bin at Hobby Lobby (note: always check the clearance yarn there, never know what you might find). Only two balls, so I’m working on a lacy scarf pattern for it.