YSaC, Vol. 887: The tracks of their tears.
2010 December 23
more geo tracks – $20
i saw the ad for geo tracks on here for 30 that is a great deal i also have a fugure 8 set that i am just selling cause we switched to thomas set and that is growing alot for christmas thanks to craigslist
just this small figure 8 set was almost $100so the bigger one for 30 is an awsome deal and this for 20 would be 50 for original cost of at least 200
That’s right, for just $20 you can get $30 which would be $50 for an original cost of almost $100 or at least $200. And while you’re at it, your kid can get bored watching a plastic train go around in a figure eight. Isn’t that worth $20 (or maybe $200) to you?
Not a figure eight, a fugure eight. The extra fug makes it worth $20 or $50.
Bad photography skills cost extra?
*runs off with cheap camera to supplement income*
So Sparky’s selling his fugure 8 for $20 because he saw it on CraigsList for 30, but he paid $100 for it and it’s worth $200? Let’s check the Cat Math.
:extracts tinsel from catulator, installs fresh kibble:
Let’s see … Carry the rutabaga, divide the catnip by the fugue 8 … add the interger of the salmon puffs… And that comes to … tiny toy train filled with creamed spinach. So close!
Throw in a Tonka truck full of rye toast and we got a deal!
Mmmm …toast!
He’s strong to the finitch
‘cos he eats creamed spinitch
He’s Sparky the Seller Man!
Maybe it’s because it’s so close to Christmas, but I say the poster gets bonus points for not adding the 8 to make the whole thing worth 208.
That’s the spirit of the season!
Not a figure eight, a fugure eight
I’m really glad you cleared that up, christina. I thought it said fugitive eight, and was wondering when it was going to start rambling about being on the hunt for a one-armed man.
Well, that, or our musically-trained here might offer ideas on an 8th Etude or Fugue; perhaps even an Eighth Sonata . . .
It’s a figurative fugitive, really. A cognitive thought trapped in the deep recesses of Sparky’s head, trying to make its way through the misfiring synapses without losing anymore of its coherency.
A fugure eight is what Rosie O’Donnell has…
A sideways fugure eight is something that is infinitely fugly, what Rosie O’Donnell is. Coincidence? I think not.
Sparky = Rosie O’Donnell
Elementary my dear 40 Wattsons
Just tracks, no train? I guess the little engine that could ran away with the little red caboose. That’s Amore……
Thirty what? Thirty flea collars? Thirty gallons of barbeque sauce? Thirty copies of War and Peace in Russian?
Minutes. Sparky stared at it for 30 minutes before the idea finally percolated to his frontal lobe that he had some just like it, if not as nice, so maybe he could sell his, maybe even reference that other set, help the guy out and make the whole thing seem more attractive for an even bigger set of geo tracks.
Incidentally, I never new Geos ran on tracks. I always thought they had tires, and didn’t so much “run” as “ambled.”
Oh, there goes Taco again, infecting my brain.
*knew
You’re my kind of people, really. But I wish you wouldn’t tempt me into wanting to Google these things. Somehow I don’t think that “Thomas the Tank Engine slashfic” would be something our IT people would understand if they did a search of my browsing history. Damn new work computers.
There IS a Robot Chicken skit involving Fisher Price toys, and while not sexual in nature, it takes them into “adult situations”.
I present: Twelve Angry Little People:
http://video.adultswim.com/robot-chicken/12-angry-little-people.html
*edit-This was supossed to go below SJ and Lola’s comments.
And I thought Gnu were ungulates and ran on toes . . .
I used my Google-fu and it is apparently a real thing, although Sparky has predicably spelled it wrong. And, since this is the internet, there is even a fan site. http://geotraxblog.blogspot.com/
I did not check to see if there was any fanfic, but there probably is.
Rule 34. Probably right next door to Thomas the Tank Engine slashfic.
Geotrax do look kinda fun, though were I a kid I’d still prefer an RC race track.or something. Either that or a real train set with realistic miniature stuff. (I had a thing for that kinda stuff when I was a kid. Still find it fascinating.)
You wanna see weird slashfic? Weebles. No appendages, they wobble but they can’t fall down, and apparently, they’re insatiable.*
*This may not be true. I am afraid to look, so I just made this bit up.
Lola, I am both repulsed and intrigued that you would Rule 34 Weebles.
Mindfield’s comment about Thomas the Tank Engine had me thinking of children’s toys and slashfic, and then (don’t ask, I don’t know and would prefer not to think about the way my brain works sometimes) realized that Weebles are the least anatomically-correct toy I can think of (Fisher-Price people from when I was a kid running close second; I don’t know if the current ones are the same) and that slashfic involving them would be utterly ludicrous because of their anatomy, or rather lack of. I threw in the bit about them being insatiable because … they’re inanimate, and the idea of a small piece of plastic having any sort of sex drive whatsoever is impossible.
This is my brain without coffee. Now you see why I self-medicate. It helps me be more (apparently) normal.
Makes sense to me.
Not sure if that says more about your uncaffeinated state or mine…
I’ll just settle for the comforting (to me, at least) thought that I’m not alone. 🙂
Being not-alone with you guys is very comforting. : )
[railroading matte]
Ah, real train sets.
An impermanent life doomed my ability to be around those who could have inculcated the mindset of “layout first, then scenery” which gives the best balance in model railroading. Where you build scnery as light as possible, right to delicate, so that it is not great effort to reduce it, change it, even change its seasons. All to let the trains roll about their business, paying no heed to missing scenery only filled-in in the mind of the looming would-be engineer.
(Egads, what a terrible sentence.)
Was killing time the other day, and saw a model railroading magazine, so I browsed through that. Some fascinating stuff in there. Like WiFi stuff. Not merely enough to have wireless video giving the engineer’s eye view from the track. No, things like integrated sounds and effects. Like when a passenger train pulls into a station, the station makes the sort of announcements that one hears in a station. Signal loops and the like, operation just like the 1:1 prototypes.
There is a lot more variety in steam power than in my youth. Cog engines; shays for mining or logging; a lot more of the high-speed and heavy-draw steam power, too. (Still boggling my mind how one coordinates the motors in a 4-8-8-4 articulated.)
Even some editorializing on how computer simulations were “cutting into” the “base” of the modeling scene.
Ah, life in miniature.
[/matte]
I was never able to get into model building, really.
Well, other than for designing dungeons for P&P gaming anyway.
*Hides his plaster block molds*
About 30 years after I got it, I gave away my Tyco train set to my godchildren. I was taught to retentively put everything back in the original box and did, so that was what they got it in, and it still runs. I had fun with it, even when older and it just came out to go under the Christmas tree (occasioning much excitement for the cocker spaniel, who tried to pick the engine off of the track with her mouth, and who was definitely confounded by its apparent ability to retreat – go in reverse – when she got near it). Never got really, really into trains, but had a lot of fun with that as a kid. There was a boxcar accessory that unloaded when you pushed a button, the main interest of which was the fact that it tended to shoot the cargo out past the unloading bin and across the carpet. Observation: the little cargo boxes were easier to find and the track fitted together more smoothly when we moved from shag carpet to shorter pile.
Doesn’t everything go better when you move from shag carpet to shorter pile?
Thirty obos, clearly.
OT: I saw a classified ad for an Oboe player the other day and I thought of all of you. <3
An “oboe player” just boggled my mind.
Not least for trying to imagine an electronic one (and whether it ought to be USB-compliant or not).
Then of some wandering, human, minstrel in search of employ.
Then, off to squick, of some sort of rules-skirting singles ad . . .
I need more coffee.
Happy Festivus, One and All!
How could I forget? Of course, being that we all had to be to work at 6am, there was much airing of grievances earlier in the day. But now I am home, gearing up for the feats of strength* by consuming mass quantities of coffee.
*Feats of strength may or may not simply be doing dishes and laundry.
Trackotta and Fugure in S minor. If it’s an original Yoham Sparky Bark recording then sure, I’d say it’s worth $20 or $50 for $200, depending on condition.
Many, many doors.
Funny aside: I’m sitting here reading this and my child asks, “Why are you looking at Geo Trax?”
Which is weird, since he only has the airplane set that flies through a barn which has blue tracks, I’m not sure how he recognized this. At least he’s now into Ironman and Transformers, so does anyone want to buy a huge set of Thomas the Tank Engine trains? Spent close to $300, but I’ll sell them for $50, and there is another set on CL for $60, so that’s a savings of almost $200. Does not come with conductor.
I’d bite, but I still have all my Thomas the Tank Engine stuff from when I was much shorter than I am now.
These are destined to become collector’s items. Missing parts and pieces.. but collector’s items. I’m positive.
Fugure eight? Oh, I get it! It’s a fugly hexagon!
I love you.
Get a caboose you two.
Meredith, I luvs you too!
Taco, there are too many jokes that I want to make in response and they’ve all tried to come out at once. There is now a 20 joke pile-up between my brain and the keyboard. I hate that!
Good to see you back, Manda! I hope your family is coping ok.
Thanks! We’re doing as best we can and are looking forward to this month being over. Things can only get better.
I certainly hope they do.
I saw a bird cage for sale on CL, they were asking 100, it originally sold for $400, so that means I can sell my smaller, rusty old cage for $50, and it’s a great deal at $350!
I’m confusticated.
I think this is going to be even more boring than the Llamanun (BBUH) supposes. Because I don’t see a vehicle, either. (Geo or otherwise.) So junior is going to be just sitting watching the fugure eight. Unless we get junior some Genie Pigs to race. Which, frankly, I think we could feed them some coffee slices and they will be more motivated.
By the way, do you suppose Sparkette’s computer has no shift key or punctuation? She used none, in any case.
Paging Mr. Mindfield! Smiley dog, please report to the Snark Lounge. Andie would like to pitch the next adventure of Pickles and Winston for your approval.
Ooh! It’s like Pickles and Winston meets Days of Thunder or Smokey and the Bandit!!
For some reason now I’m thinking of Stuart Little, only with 100% more magic and 100% less Michael J. Fox.
But this would be a fun little chapter, perhaps Pickles rescues Winston, makes good their escape but are forced into a department store during the worst of the Christmas shopping season.
Pickles and Winston in Unstoppable!
Pickles peeked out from the drainage pipe in which he had temporarily hidden himself. Although he liked to think of himself as worldly when it came to understanding humans and the sort of things humans did for reasons even humans sometimes didn’t understand, he was nevertheless woefully unprepared for just how many humans there were on the streets at any given moment. Being only six inches tall on all fours had the distinct disadvantage of putting him at eye-level with hundreds upon hundreds of boot-clad feet shuffling back and forth completely blind to anything at ground level where Pickles was trying to pick his way.
His only advantage was that he had a general sense of where the pet store he had been taken from was located; Pickles made mental notes of landmarks and direction changes from the back seat of the car he was toted to his new home in, and he was pretty sure he was close now. The real problem wasn’t finding the place, it was getting to it in a world that was most certainly not designed for quadrupeds, much less quadrupeds who could easily fit under the stride of the average human’s heedless footwear.
Seeing a break in foot traffic, Pickles left the safety of the rain gutter and hugged the wall as he dashed down the street. In a stroke of luck, it turned out Pickles was closer than he thought; a human was just stepping out of a familiar doorway carrying a caged rabbit. The rabbit, with his ears folded back and his whiskers twitching violently, spotted pickles and silently mouthed the words, “help me!” as he was carted away. Try as he might, he played the scene back in his head several times and still couldn’t figure out how he mouthed the exclamation point.
Pickles sat just under the step that led into the store and waited for another human to leave before making a run for it. He just managed to squeeze in as the door closed and hid behind some bags of cat litter while he assessed the scene.
The pet store was pretty much as he recalled, though he wasn’t used to this vantage at ground level. Just the same he saw that some animals were gone, and a few new ones had taken their place. Bobs, a marmot with the foulest mouth he’d ever heard, was gone. He was strangely going to miss the little cuss; his stories of his last owners were one of the things that kept him sane while he was trapped here. He never did get around to explaining why his name was plural.
One thing that wasn’t gone, however, was the familiar cage in the center of the store with hand-written sign that said “Genie Pigs.” Pickles was hopeful, as at the time he and Winston were the only two such rodents in the store, and it wasn’t likely the cage would be kept there if nobody was in it. Pickles assayed the layout and found an ideal route, so while the shopkeep was occupied with customers and no one was around the cage, he scrambled his way across the floor, climbed up some tiered boxes of fish food that were stacked beside the cage, and peered in.
“Winston!” Pickles exclaimed.
“Ahhh!” Winston screamed as he leapt to his feet, hitting his head on a hanging feather toy; Winston was napping.
“Winston!” Pickles called again.
Winston spun round to face the source of the noise. “Pickles? Pickles!” He ran to the bars and shoved his nose between them. “How’d you get here? Where’d you go? Why did you come back here?”
“Never mind that,” Pickles said in hushed tones. “We can talk later. Right now we need to get you out of here.”
“How?”
“The cage opens from the outside. I’m outside.”
“Oh! Excellent point, but you’d better hurry up, there are only a few people keeping the shopkeep busy. And do be careful!”
Pickles made his way around the narrow ledge of the small table that jutted out from under the cage to the front, where he reached up, undid the latch, and opened the cage door. Winston was waiting there, and the two of them made their way back to the other side of the cage and down the fish food boxes.
“Hampster!” called a very young voice from the checkout counter. The offspring of one of the humans checking out had spotted them.
“Crap!” Pickles said as he grabbed Winston’s paw and made a dash for the back of the store.
The toddler, during a moment of parental inattention, ran after them, repeatedly yelling “Hampster! Hampster! Come here, hampster!”
Pickles ran down an aisle filled with bird paraphernalia and made a sharp right at the end, Winston bouncing along behind, barely keeping up. They rounded the other side of the aisle and made back for the center of the store, the toddler tromping along not far behind.
“Megan!” the father called after his wayward daughter. “Megan, get back here!”
“Hampster!” the girl called back.
The furry duo arrived back at the center of the establishment and made a bee-line for the door, which was disappointingly closed.
“Megan!” the father yelled again as the little girl emerged from the aisle.
“Hampster!” the girl responded again, pointing at the duo. Fortunately, the father ignored her attempts to direct his attention.
“No!” the man said. “Stop running off, we’re going now.”
The little girl looked crestfallen. “But … hampster!”
“Let’s go!” the father said as he grabbed her arm and pushed his way out the door, daughter in tow, completely oblivious to the two of them waiting right beside the door frame.
As they humans made their way back onto the street, Pickles and Winston ran out the door before it closed again. It seems there were certain advantages to being small after all.
Pickles watched as the little girl, hand held fast in her father’s, awkwardly looked back at them and, in a sad little voice, mumbled, “Hampster…”
(To be continued…)
Seriously, do we have any literary agents or publishing company execs lurking about here? Even better, any Cartoon Network folks willing to pick this up for a season or two?
I will pick it up for two seasons, I pay 14 boxes of vintage cereal and 12 crack blacks.
(And a pig at a party if the ratings are good)
This is turning into quite the interesting not-quite-kids’-story. One of our 2D art creators could illustrate it. 🙂
Thank you. 🙂 I was going to write about the department store and train tracks, but I couldn’t skip Winston’s rescue, so I ended up splitting it into two parts. Provided there’s nothing story-worthy tomorrow I’ll probably post part 2 (which is really part 4) then, as long as work isn’t too busy and I can finish it before we leave for the Christmas party at noon. (Work will probably be dead though.)
Oh, and Hammy? If you can throw in a disco BBQ then you’ve got yourself a deal.
How about a haunted hawk instead?
I still have some platform shoes to cook.
Oops, typo-ed the email address. I’m sorry if I embarassed anyone going about in nought but a quilt square.
Actually, I thought it was sexy. 😉
But you can borrow my poncho, if you want.
Let’s see… lousy poncho…quilt square… [*puts on either side of scales]
Look… muffins!
Yes, in either outfit, I can see your shoulder muffins.
You should get that mole checked out.
That’s uh… that’s not a mole.
Then that’s one awfully lumpy freckle.
Man, talk about a rough figure 8 to navigate! There you are minding your own buisness driving the train then BOOM! the yellow recognizer squashes the train and takes you to be integrated with the MCP.
No wonder this thing is $20 for $50, $200!
Still coping with the reddish Recognisers from the movie the other day.
Movie was still good. Mr Bridges plays both roles very well; though there are some traces of Dude in the one character.
I still have to get out and see it with the TacoMa’am. Unfortunately procuring a babysitter for Tron around Holiday is difficult.
I have a large pet carrier he would probably fit in if you’d like to borrow it.
Ok, just had a bit of Seinfeld-esque run through my head at that–presuming that relatives might be about for the holiday season.
TM to Relative: Here, watch Tron; we’re going to go see Tron.
Relative to TM: Huh? Do you need babysittting?
TM to Relative: They don’t have toddler 3d glasses; so while we watch tron, will you watch Tron?
Relative: You’re a Looney!
Mrs Taco: *Nods sagely*
TM: *digs in pocket; produces CN$3 coin–puzzled expression*
*waves*
Hi, Sarajean! We’re box buddies today. Instead of coffee, I’ve made some lovely hot buttered rum and gingerbread muffins. Would you care for some?
P. S. There’s plenty for everyone!
Oooooooh! As a non-drinker, I’d like some hot buttered gingerbread muffins, please.
No problem, LRC.
*hands over a well-slathered muffin”
*reads Archie’s comment*
*feels like a creep because “well-slathered muffin” sounds like a euphemism*
… I’ll just have some rum, please, Archie.
Glad you’re done with your studying for a little while and are back with us!
*hands Lola a Christmus mug*
Thank you, my friend. 🙂 It is a pleasure to be back. I will be putting any higher education on hold for awhile in order to work on some projects around the Eyebrow ranch that have been neglected for some time. Plus, Mr. Eyebrows and I just bought a getaway place up north that requires some clean up and brush-clearing before we can actually get away to it. We plan on taking our 5th wheel up there and setting it up permanently. We’ve been looking for over two years and finally found the spot…beautiful valley view with Shasta and Lassen as bookends. Even though it’s remote, I still have internet connection so I won’t be without YSaC. Yay!
I used to love going to Shasta in the summer! Say hi to the mountain for me.
I used to drink Shasta in the summer!
I’ve always loved that there is a town near Shasta called Weed. Somehow this fits, like Shamokin and Pottsville in PA.
Omnomnomnomnomnom!
*hands Taco a Christmas napkin*
Yum, gingerbread muffins! And booze!
:dips muffin into hot buttered rum:
Next year, I say we do a YSAC cookie exchange. Or an Amazon wishlist exchange, as my boyfriend does with his webpals. I’m fine with either cookies or bath bombs!*
*bath bombs and gift cards made up most of my Amazon wishlist this year.
I did a secret santa with some of my other internet friends this year. One person volunteered to coordinate the giftees and addresses and did all the work for us. I got a name, bought and mailed a gift, and later received a different gift from a different state. It was cool.
I’ve done a lot of swapping in the past through swap-bot.com, it operates on the same priciple but the site takes care of assigning who swaps with whom instead of having one person in charge of handing out addresses. You have to sign up for the site, but it’s free.
That sounds like it could be fun. I like free.
I’ve done quite a few over the years, I had to cut back when the post office near me stopped having Saturday hours. It’s fun to see what random stuff strangers will mail to you. I once sent a dozen Jiffy-Pops to someone in Great Britain and got some very good salsa from someone in Texas in return.
I’m pretty sure this same guy taught my differential equations class in college.
*And that, kids, is the story of how Steve-O’s head exploded right in the middle of class. He really enjoys those coloring books he gets for Christmas every year, though.
Steve-O, will you make me a potholder in craft therapy?
And BTW, how’s your leg? All healed?
Read this as “my different equations class”. Yep, this would certainly be different equations!
Yeah, my leg is much better. That was quite an ordeal, and I was in and out of the hospital for a few weeks. I think I might live though.
On a related note, when the doctor told me that I could possibly lose my leg over the deal, he was quite amused when I asked him if he could make my prosthetic peg-leg flame retardant, given the nature of my job.
So, what did he say? Yes or no? And if yes, what do they use if it isn’t asbestos?
He wasn’t sure what to say. I don’t know if the humor didn’t translate past my narcotics, or maybe I was mumbling. That would explain why he gave me such a confused look when I started laughing so hard.
Hmmm, all of a sudden, it becomes clear why they moved me to that padded room.
Thanks, now I’m spatially disoriented by the pictures. The way they progress, I thought the last two were upside down. Xmas party last night. Whee! Eggnog and people with failed ambitions standing really close to me. And breathing. Did I mention the eggnog?
“What an incredible smell you’ve discovered!” Whee!
It’s the last train to Inception-ville, didn’t you know?
Also, Star Wars ftw.
Way OT, but you’ve got to love a daughter-in-law who posts this:
Packing up husband, baby, and dog.
Wrapping presents.
Laundry.
Giving the kitties extra love.
Cleaning.
Planning world peace.
HEADED HOME FOR CHRISTMAS!!!
Geotracks are what Geoducks make.
I thought they made tessellated domes?
No, but they make a mighty tasty chowder.
I thought they just made a mess.
They also make really good soup.
An invite to dinner isn’t something they give out very often, though.
Living in the NW as a child, it took me ages to figure out that geoduck and “gooey duck” were actually the same thing. Of course, when I got older, I also thought “Dungeoness crabs” were a social disease.
I really want to be able to snark at this today, but I really haven’t been trained in this sort of thing. I keep getting off track whenever I try to come up with something. I guess I’ll just keep chugging along until I get a burst of insight.
Oh, come on! You can conduct yourself better than that! You just need to build up a little steam. Pull yourself together! Pullman!
I know right?
Windy might punch his ticket.
But please, don’t let me see you pull yourself, thanks. That’s something between you and private shirt time.
WOW, that is WAY worse on screen than when I was thinking it.
I don’t really see how this could be less bad than it is, since it is about private t-shirt time. I’m wondering what less-naughty meaning you intended for this.
It just didn’t sound as….raunchy.
Tunnel vision today Taco?
It’s like no matter how much I rail against my own inability to snark, I just cant seem to get any momentum.
Did fusee what I did there?
You can do it, Taco! Just keep telling yourself, “I think I can, I think I can…”
He got a little sidetracked.
Yeah, but I’m gondola pull myself together any moment now.
I might have to resort to a roundhouse for this one, Taco.
Geo Trax Team: All Aboard!
[OT]
[Showing off]
I forgot to do this yesterday. I had posted last week that I’d found myself a Lemming pattern to crochet. For those who don’t do the facebook but still want to see my results, I have a picture of Lemmy for you.
[/Showing off]
[/OT]
P.S. I will be selling clones of Lemmy for $20 each, and since I bought them for $100 and they’re valued at 30, you’ll be saving over $200!*
*I will not actually be selling these
Is that a Chia Lemming?
Sorta, if you water him he becomes damp.
Maybe I’m not as familiar with Motorhead as I thought, but he looks NOTHING like Lemmy to me. ::Cymbal crash::BaDum-ChA::
Also, I am in love with this little guy. The Lemmings Christmas game was one of my all time favorites!!!
He was rather easy/fast to make; so even if you barely crochet it’s a nice beginners project (I’m a beginner). Took me 3 days (probably 6 or so hours total) about 1/8 skein of total thread (2 colors and eyelash for hair) and 25c worth of other parts (Eyes & Stuffing). As only the second Amigurumi I’ve ever assembled (the fourth non-plarn project I’ve done, 7th if you count the plarn stuff), I was rather pleased with the results. Next one I make I’m going to start working on doing some of the Lemming jobs… maybe I’ll even see about making a little Santa hat.
If you know what you’re doing (like my wife does) you could probably knock together one of these in a single afternoon.
Rigth now, though, I’m working on a Little Cthulhu Amigurumi which I should have done by the end of the day.
If you know what you’re doing (like my wife does)
I’m a little concerned that Taco’s wife knows what I’m doing. I hope she’s not reporting to my boss, because what I’m doing right now is trying to get to 5:30 and out the door before any more work shows up.
I am very determined to ignore the eight-inch thick stack of files someone just dropped on my desk. There’s only 8 minutes to a four day weekend, I ain’t gonna do nothin’.
I started one last night but counted the stitches all wrong so I had to pull it apart & start over. I am extremely proud of the fact that although it was my VERY FIRST TIME crocheting, once I got started, my attempt looked pretty darn good.
These end up wrong-side out, correct?
They way I crochet, the lemming was right side out the entire time. However, this is all based on how you wield your hook.
Basically when you’re doing the part where you’re crocheting in the “back loop only” during the body (Rnd 5), whatever you’re using as the back loop goes to the inside of the lemming. For me that means my back loops are towards the inside of my project, but if you crochet from the other side then your backloops are on the outside and you’ll just flip everything inside out.
If you crochet in the circle on the opposite side of the opening from you then you’re crocheting it right side out. This is how I crochet, I push my hook through from the inside of the concavity to the outside when drawing up a loop, making the outside of the figure my front, and the inside the back.
If you’re crocheting on the part of the circle closest to you, then you’re crocheting inside out. Your hook will be pushed through from the outside of the concavity to the inside for your pullup loop, making the front of your work inside the figure, and the back your outside. You’ll have to invert the figure before stuffing and finishing it off.
Typically amigurumi are worked the first way so that when you stuff and finish off there isn’t a visible change in the stitch. Also, geometrically it’s more typical to crochet this way because the natural inclination of crocheting in the round is to pull the lip of the concavity towards you rather than pushing it away (This happens because you lift the tip up towards you in your pickup loop, stretching the outer strand and compressing the inner, which in turn draws the concavity towards the inside and up).
I’d take some illistrative pictures of what I’m talking about here, but I don’t have my camera or my crochet stuff with me.
Huh. I AM crocheting on the opposite side of the circle from me. Guess I need to stare at the fabric again to figure out front vs back. 🙂
I thought I was following you at first, but got totally lost.
Take pictures when you get home, please, I want to see what on Earth you’re talking about.
In your case front is the outside of the circle and the back is the inside. So when you’re doing your “back loop only” stitches, do your pullups through the inner of the two loops that form the rather suggestive looking stitch.
Again, I’d make some pics of this but my materials and media equipment aren’t with me.
EDIT: AR: Maybe I’ll work up a little tutorial on this. There is lots of information in various places on making amigurumi, but a lot of this basic learning stuff isn’t really covered too well on the internets. It’s one of the reasons my first project turned out to be so disasterous looking. There is a fair gap between “This is how you make a stitch” and advanced patterns. I think I can put together an “Anatomy of Crochet” picture tutorial that might fill that gap.
If only the Fora were working . . .
You, sir, are the master of subtle. 🙂
¿Que como? Was lamenting on how I missed our venue for other sorts of topics. It’s Festivus, and the miracle of crochet is not an Item of Grievance, but one of Admiration.
And, I need more coffee.
And for slyphic types to help accomplish all the things that want doing today, brownies, elves, whatever–a platoon would suffice.
Ah, my bad. I had thought your comment was a gentle nudge toward the recently revived and reinstated fora; which now should no longer require lamenting of their absence as such.
Indeed a Crafts “thread” may be merited in said Lazarus fora.
Windrose… I posted the recipe for you in the forum. –Random topics — I doubt you’ll have trouble finding it. 🙂
Basic crochet I can do, and simple patterns I can follow. When it starts getting into things like front/back I get confused, especially b/c I crochet lefty so everything’s going the other way.
Moira:
Please ignore my rambling. Apparently I’ve been doing it wrong (inside out). I blame the aforementioned lack of good conscise instruction on amigurumi construction. I now, more than ever, see the need for a bit of a “Gap” tutorial to fill this void. I shall make it part of my next project to snap some pictures and show how it should be done.
Thanks to a better crocheter who pointed out that my Cthulhu was inside out. Trust me when I say that there is no way I could have figured that out just by looking at it.
I think what they’re trying to say is that their set for $20 originally was $100, and the $30 set was bigger, therefore must have also been >$100. So if you buy that other listing and theirs, you get a great deal for $50, getting over $200 worth of train track toy things. So either this person is hawking both of them or they’re making some kind of weird sales pitch with an unaffiliated person.
(Of course it could also be a passive-agressive jab because they were hoping for more, but since the other person is selling theirs for so low, they have to go as low to be competitive)
Plus, they are lying lower than a polar bear floor rug. If they paid $100 for the set in the picture, they need to stop shopping on CL.
[matte/matt?]
[corey]Yeah, I did a product search for geotrax. If they actually paid $100 for that figure eight set, somebody took them to the cleaners. You can nab the same set brand new from Amazon for $48 with free shipping. And I think it comes with a bunch of stuff that isn’t in that picture.
[/corey*]
*Technically not a [matte] cause the price is a factoid.
Crap.. I’m always having righteous indignation at the wrong time. Time to get the Nexium.
Maylox can help with that too.
Now be fair, Sparky said it was ALMOST $100. Based on the proven math skills he or she has shown in the ad, it could have cost $50, that’s almost $100.
I’ve learned to interpret Sparkese sufficiently that even sans punctuation and capitals, I was able to interpret their flow of thought.
Even though said flow more closely resembled uncooked but scrambled eggs.*
*I discarded my first analogy. You may thank me now.
Hey everyone, the fora are back!!!
Also, everyone send positive thoughts to Windrose.
::thinks happy thoughts in a westerly direction as hard as possible::
::falls out of chair::
AR, my dear friend, thank you. 8) Let me help you back up into your chair.
*also sends positive thoughts, but does not fall out of chair*
My boss just called and said I may commence with my Christmas vacation in T-15 minutes! WHOOO HOOOOOOO!!! First time in three years that I’m not only not working on Christmas DAY, but am off on the days surrounding it!!! I’m as excited as a kid on…well, Christmas!!!!
Spike your computer in the inzone Mere!
Stay up! Sleep in! Start drinking at breakfast! Don’t get dressed all day if you don’t want to! Do whatever! Just enjoy yourself. That’s really nice. I’ve never had to work on the day, just right up to and right after plenty of times, so I’m glad you don’t have to.
I read “start drinking at breakfast” as “drink breakfast!” which, I guess is the same thing, but taken your way implies solids are to be consumed as well, which is probably a safer idea.
I like commas.
christina, I actually considered “drink your breakfast” first.
Welp, I’m out of the snark lounge for the weekend. Back on Monday for more Typo-y goodness.
I’ll plop the crochet tutorial on the fora should I have time to produce one.
Stay silly, and may ye have a pleasin’ Holiday.
Mr. AR got a job! And one he actually wants, too!
And there was great rejoicing throughout the Snark Lounge! That’s awesome, AR! Santa brought Mr. AR a job! Wassail for everyone!
Thanks Andie! I’m not sure Santa even knows where we live, but something finally brought good news our way.
Yay…congratulations. *throws a limeade your way (nonalky of course)*
Thanks. And we just got back from going out to dinner, at which there was alcohol. Conclusion of the evening: once you knock your drink over, it’s time to stop drinking. Especially if there’s blood….
*happy dance*
*spin, spin, dance*
What an awesome piece of news!
Whooooo dancing! : )
Yay, Mr. AR! One you actually like and want is even better than one that you just want!
Maybe Santa likes your goyim jokes. 8)
Yeah, he was applying for just about any job for which he might possibly be qualified, but this was one that was right in the field he wants to go in to.
And everyone likes goyim jokes, right?
Two goyim meet on the street. They’re old friends, and haven’t seen each other for a while. The first one says, “Hi, how are you?” The other one responds, “I’m doing pretty well, how about you?” The first one answers, “Pretty good, can’t complain.” And they go their separate ways.
*snort*
The exception to that joke was one of my grandmothers. Waspy, DAR background, definite shiksa, and she could complain at Olympic level. In fact, at a card shop once my parents found a button that said “The more you complain, the longer God lets you live” and we all thought it would be hilarious to give to her – except she would not have thought it funny. She lived to be 85, so there might have been more to it than a joke! 8)
These days, most of us are grateful to have jobs, and I’m particularly grateful that, most of the time, I like my job. I hope the same is true for Mr. AR.
Happy Happy Joy Joy! I wish we lived closer to each other so I could rub you for luck. Er. In a platonic way, of course! 8) This is a sure sign that the economy has gotten up off its lazy butt and started creating jobs again! I just know Mr. Windrose aka Chthulhu will be working again soon.
I’ll second that, Windrose. Ratman* has been mostly out of work since August (apart from a couple of weeks full time and a bit of part time, but the part time wasn’t in his main field** of expertise), has been unable to claim much by way of benefits, and he has now set the seal on a grotty Xmas by going down with something nasty. Some good luck would be welcome.
*I was going to call him Mr Ratwoman but that sounded weird.
**Archaeological joke.
Huzzah!
Okay, Archie and SJ, here comes the One-Two-Punchity Punch Punch!
G’Night, East Aurora!
Thanks, Windy! The punch was sparkling and bubbly…or was that the champagne?