Odds and ends

Captain's Log, Stardate 12.19.2005

Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall. Psalm 55:22

Prayer Line
How cool is this? It's a blog where you can request prayer for yourself or your loved ones.

From the blog:
This is a free website to request prayers, as well as to pray for others in need. All prayer requests are sent electronically to an all-denominational network of prayergivers, so that the site mimics the Duke University MANTRA project where researchers discovered that surgical patients' recovery was improved by 50 to 100 percent when prayer groups from 7 different religions prayed for their rapid recovery. More details about the Duke project appears in "Prayers at Work" on this site.

Camy here:
I think this is many different religions, not just multi-denominational Christian. I wonder if it hinders prayer when someone not a Christian prays for you? Hmm, I think I'll ask my youth pastor about that one.

First Novel Journey
Gina Holmes continues her rockin' interviews this week. Today is mystery writer Peggy Darty. Tomorrow is discussion on failure being a blessing with commentary from Randy Ingermanson and Randy Mortenson.

Adult stem cells
This article describes how scientists can grow new cartilage for transplant in osteoarthritis patients from their own bone marrow stem cells. Maybe there's hope for meniscus growth too--my husband can sure use new meniscus in his knee.

Writing: Doing research for my next book. Reading THE FIRST FIVE PAGES and feeling depressed that I haven't done enough revisions to my suspense, especially that tedious line-editing that I abhor.

Wondering who to send Christmas cards to? I rarely send them (I'm too lazy to write them after logging in my hours on my manuscript). Plus it's already a bit late. But wouldn't it be smarter of me to send a few this year? Or is that brown-nosing?

Comments

Anonymous said…

I'm still planning on sending cards. Eventually.

Mon Dec 19, 10:02:00 PM 2005

Unknown said…

Christmas cards???? Surely you jest!

Tue Dec 20, 08:33:00 AM 2005

Dineen A. Miller said…

Brown-nosing? Hmmm, must be thinking of those agents and editors. LOL!

I heard on the news Monday was the biggest mail pick up of the year and that Wednesday will be the biggest delivery day since all those cards will be arriving to their destinations.

I sent close to 65 personal cards this year. That's a record for me, doesn't even include the half dozen or so professional ones I sent. Good grief! The list keeps growing!

Tue Dec 20, 06:14:00 PM 2005

No Cold Bums toilet seat cover

Captain's Log, Stardate 08.22.2008 I actually wrote out my pattern! I was getting a lot of hits on my infamous toilet seat cover , and I wanted to make a new one with “improvements,” so I paid attention and wrote things down as I made the new one. This was originally based off the Potty Mouth toilet cover , but I altered it to fit over the seat instead of the lid. Yarn: any worsted weight yarn, about 120 yards (this is a really tight number, I used exactly 118 yards. My suggestion is to make sure you have about 130 yards.) I suggest using acrylic yarn because you’re going to be washing this often. Needle: I used US 8, but you can use whatever needle size is recommended by the yarn you’re using. Gauge: Not that important. Mine was 4 sts/1 inch in garter stitch. 6 buttons (I used some leftover shell buttons I had in my stash) tapestry needle Crochet hook (optional) Cover: Using a provisional cast on, cast on 12 stitches. Work in garter st until liner measures...

Chinese Take-Out and Sushi for One

Captain’s Log, Supplemental My agent sent me an article from Publisher’s Weekly that discussed this incident: Chinese Take-Out Spawns Christian Controversy And here’s also a blog post that talks about it in more detail: The Fighting 44s This is Soong-Chan Rah’s blog: The PCS blog In sum: Apparently Zondervan (yes, my publisher), who has partnered with Youth Specialties, had put out a youth leaders skit that had stereotypical Asian dialogue, which offended many Christian Asian Americans. In response to the outcry, Zondervan/Youth Specialities put out a sincere apology and is not only freezing the remaining stock of the book, but also reprinting it and replacing the copies people have already bought. I am very proud of my publisher for how they have handled this situation. The skit writers have also issued a public apology . (I feel sorry for them, because they were only trying to write a funny skit, not stir up this maelstrom of internet controversy. I’ve been in youth work long enou...

Toilet seat cover

Captain’s Log, Supplemental Update August 2008: I wrote up the pattern for this with "improvements"! Here's the link to my No Cold Bums toilet seat cover ! Okay, remember a few days ago I was complaining about the cold toilet seat in my bathroom? Well, I decided to knit a seat cover. Not a lid cover, but a seat cover. I went online and couldn’t find anything for the seat, just one pattern for the lid by Feminitz.com . However, I took her pattern for the inside edge of the lid cover and modified it to make a seat cover. Here it is! It’s really ugly stitch-wise because originally I made it too small and had to extend it a couple inches on each side. I figured I’d be the one staring at it, so who cared if the extension wasn’t perfectly invisible? I used acrylic yarn since, well, that’s what I had, and also because it’s easy to wash. I’ll probably have to wash this cover every week or so, but it’s easy to take off—I made ties which you can see near the back of the seat. And...

Excerpt - A HUNDRED YEARS OF HAPPINESS by Nicole Seitz

Captain's Log, Stardate 03.05.2009 Update: Sorry, this giveaway is closed. A Hundred Years of Happiness by Nicole Seitz A beautiful young woman. An American soldier. A war-torn country. Nearly forty years of silence. Now, two daughters search for the truth they hope will set them free and the elusive peace their parents have never found. In the South Carolina Lowcountry, a young mother named Katherine Ann is struggling to help her tempestuous father, by plunging into a world of secrets he never talks about. A fry cook named Lisa is trying desperately to reach her grieving Vietnamese mother, who has never fully adjusted to life in the States. And somewhere far away, a lost soul named Ernest is drifting, treading water, searching for what he lost on a long-ago mountain. They're all longing for connection. For the war that touched them to finally end. For their hundred years of happiness at long last to begin. From the beloved author of The Spirit of Sweetgrass...

Tabi socks, part deux

Captain's Log, Stardate 07.25.2008 (If you're on Ravelry, friend me! I'm camytang.) I made tabi socks again! (At the bottom of the pattern is the calculation for the toe split if you're not using the same weight yarn that I did for this pattern (fingering). I also give an example from when I used worsted weight yarn with this pattern.) I used Opal yarn, Petticoat colorway. It’s a finer yarn than my last pair of tabi socks, so I altered the pattern a bit. Okay, so here’s my first foray into giving a knitting pattern. Camy’s top-down Tabi Socks I’m assuming you already know the basics of knitting socks. If you’re a beginner, here are some great tutorials: Socks 101 How to Knit Socks The Sock Knitter’s Companion A video of turning the heel Sock Knitting Tips Yarn: I have used both fingering weight and worsted weight yarn with this pattern. You just change the number of cast on stitches according to your gauge and the circumference of your ankle. Th...

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