Tuesday, February 26, 2008

House Quiz 4

1. What colorless and odorless potion forces the drinker to tell the truth?
Veritaserum

2. If the spell to Apparate goes wrong and leaves half of you behind, you have been what?
Splinched

3. Who wrote the Standard Books of Spells Grades 1 and 2?
Miranda Goshawk

4. What is it called when brother wands meet?
Priori Incantatem

5. Name the charm used by Ludo at the World Cup to amplify his voice.
Sonorus

6. For what is the charm Aparecium used?
To make invisible ink visible

7. What charm requires the use of a Secret-Keeper?
Fidelius Charm

8. What color should the Strengthening Potion be?
Clear turquoise

9. What plants are used in preparing a confusing potion?
Sneezewort, lovage, and scurvy-grass

10. What condition is cured by Glumbumble?
Hysteria, caused by consuming Alihotsy leaves

11. What poton makes a werewolf safe so he can keep his mind when he transforms, and what substance makes it useless?
Wolfsbane Potion makes a werewolf safe(r). However, sugar makes it useless.

12. When does Fluxwood, an ingredient used in making Polyjuice Potion, have to be picked?
At the full moon

13. What color should a Shrinking Solution be?
Bright acid green

14. What potion is made from asphodel and wormwood?
Draught of Living Death

15. For what are Jobberknoll feathers used?
Potions affecting the memory, such as truth serums and memory potions

Monday, February 18, 2008

Quidditch Round 2

1. With whom does Ginny go to the Yule Ball?
a. Neville

2. When Harry arrives at the Burrow and Mrs. Weasley makes them all dinner the night before they leave for the Quidditch World Cup, what does her wand turn into?
a. rubber mouse

3. Since some of the sixth-year girls didn't have any quills on them, what did they think Krum might sign their hats in?
c. lipstick

4. How old does the Quick Quotes Quill say that Rita Skeeter is?
a. 43

5. What color cloak is Wormtail wearing in the Riddle house?
b. Black

6. What color is "Mad Eye" Moody's magical eye?
d. Blue

7. What color are the robes that Rita Skeeter was wearing when Harry meets her at the Weighing of the Wands ceremony?
b. Magenta

8. What does Sirius Black tell Harry, Ron and Hermione to call him when speaking around anyone else?
b. Snuffles

9. Which team beat Wales, disqualifying them from competing for the Quidditch World Cup?
c. Uganda

10. What does Madame Maxime say is the only thing her steeds will drink?
c. single-malt whiskey


Picture Hunt
Goblet of Fire
Madam Maxime
Dragon from first challenge
Viktor Krum
Madam Pomfrey

Thursday, February 14, 2008

House Quiz 3

1. What is Professor McGonnagall's first name? Minerva

2. Who is the librarian of Hogwarts? Irma Pince

3. What is Madam Rosmerta's job? She runs the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade

4. What is Rita Skeeter's secret? She is a Beetle Animagus

5. Madam Hooch is instructor of what subject? Flying

6. Who is Parvati Patil's best friend? Lavender Brown

7. What Quidditch position does Cho Chang play? Seeker

8. What is the name of Fleur Delacour's little sister? Gabrielle Delacour

9. Who is professor of Divination? Sibyll Trelawney

10. Who wrote "A History of Magic"? Bathilda Bagshot

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

100 Things Meme

100 Things about Me
- a meme that went around ages ago, but might be useful to this swap

001. I am somewhat sensitive to wool, and find most non-merino wool to be rip-it-off-and-throw-it-across-the-room-ITCHY within a few minutes of putting it on.
002. I can knit with itchy wools, but not wear them. The resulting things sit around and nothing ever happens with them.
003. I am absolutely IN LOVE with alpaca yarns.
004. I'm currently working on 3 different projects in alpaca - a pair of socks, a simple scarf, and a lace stole.
005. I want to own an alpaca farm so that I can have an endless supply of Alpaca yarn!
006. I enjoy working with mercerized cottons, and have never found them to hurt my hands.
007. I love semi-solid hand dyed yarns, like those from FearlessFibers.
008. I spend hours looking through Etsy obsessively, but more often buy things for swap partners than myself.
009. I love swaps, and have been in at least 1 swap a month since August '07
010. I like blue and silver way better than blue and bronze as Ravenclaw colors - but I prefer the Ravenclaw patches with the Eagle on them - because we're eagles, not ravens!
011. However.... I do love the Raven Clan colorways that Socks that Rock are doing now!
012. I am learning to spin on a hand-spindle.
013. I wish I wasn't in school, so that I would have time to take spinning classes.
014. I wish I wasn't in school, so that I would have time to take beading classes, too.
015. I am looking for a pattern so that I can knit my own wedding veil.
016. I love cyberpunk and steampunk.
017. Art-deco is one of my favorite design esthetics.
018. I really like Mission-style, Praire-style, the Arts and Crafts movement, and Mid-century modern, too.
019. Frank Lloyd Wright's work is really inspirational to me.
020. I am at a computer for over 10 hours a day, most days.
021. I love milk and dark chocolate, but hate white "chocolate."
022. I wore my Ravenclaw uniform as a costume for Hallowe'en '07 - but the muggles didn't suspect a thing!
023. Writing with a quill/pen/pencil makes my hands hurt... but knitting doesn't.
024. I have never tried Berty Bot's Every Flavour Beans - and never intend to do so.
025. I love sewing almost as much as knitting.
026. I knit a lot more than I sew, because its more portable.
027. I design and stitch my own cross-stitch patterns, as well.
028. I wish I had more time to play SecondLife.
029. I love Gothic and Industrial music.
030. I dig retro-futurism.
031. I love knitting cables.
032. My favorite cables are closed-end cables, such as seen in Eunny Jang's Tangled Yoke Cardigan, the Rogue Pullover from The Girl From Auntie, or Alice Starmore and Elsebeth Lavold's work.
033. I've only dabbled in lace, but it seems enjoyable, and not *that* hard - then again, I've only done easy patterns. I can see how it gets much harder.
034. I've only ever done mosiac/slip stitch type color work in my knitting - no intarsia or stranded color work.
035. I'm not adverse to color work... but I'd need an easy pattern with which to start.
036. I have at least 4 projects on the needles right now.
037. I'm hardcore suffering from Second Sock Syndrome on a pair of socks I'm knitting for my mum.
038. I knit at stoplights, sometimes.
039. In band class, I knit while the conductor is working with other sections on pieces - but not just during rests in my part.
040. I've been collecting my cat's hair when she sheds, with the intention of someday spinning it and knitting it into... something.
041. I sometimes worry that my knitting is the most interesting thing about me.
042. I ordered the yarn to knit my own OotP style house sweater, and it got stolen off my porch after it was delivered, about 7 months ago.
043. The yarn I ordered to make the sweater, that got stolen, is discontinued. It makes me ill to think about that beautiful yarn that's impossible to get now, rotting in the garbage dump because some idiot decided to steal it off my porch, and threw it out when they realized it was yarn.
044. I don't actually know any other knitters in person, only over the internet.
045. I have a bad habit of picking up and dropping crafting methods.
046. At various times, I have done needlepoint, cross stitch, chainmail, rug hooking, beading, weaving, costume sewing, fashion sewing, origami, and knitting. I still want to learn crochet, quilting, temari, lace tatting, and blackwork embroidery.
047. Knitting is the craft I've stick with longest and most consistently.
048. The scarf I'm working on now is the first thing I've knit for myself. Everything else I've made has been for someone else.
049. I'm terrible with deadlines.
050. I knit my first socks ever for Sockapalooza 4. They were sent on time.
051. I cook like I'm in a chemistry lab or potions class.
052. I'm very precise in how I measure, because I've been in too many science classes to let myself be sloppy that way.
053. I love Alton Brown and his show Good Eats.
054. I carry a sketch book around, and sometimes draw out pictures of sweaters that I see on other people that I would like to try to make for myself.
055. I still have yet to knit a sweater.
056. I'm a member of the Yarn Pirate's Booty Club.
057. I read 10 knitting blogs every day. It used to be 11, but then Eunny Jang stopped posting when she became Interweave Knits Editor... which was a loss for the blogosphere even if it was a gain for the knitting magazine world.
058. I desperately need to bring some order to my yarn stash.
059. I keep putting off bringing order to my yarn stash, because I want to take pictures of the yarn and put it on Ravelry while I'm bringing said order, but I don't have a lightbox so that I can take pretty pictures.
060. Organization was never really my strong suit anyway.
061. I wish a knitter would make it onto Project Runway - but there's no way they'd have enough time to actually knit something, unless it was a horrible thing on those ginormous needles.
062. If you can't tell, I think *most* things knit out of yarn heavier than worsted weight tend to be ugly. This includes Wenlan Chia's Twinkle knits, even though it seems everone and their mother likes them.
063. That said, there was this couch-blanket that I saw in a furniture store once, that was knit in a monochrome verigated, chunky/bulky, thick and thin singles yarn, on those crazy size 35, or maybe even size 50 needles. It was so unlike anything I'd ever willingly knit, and yet it was just this really beautiful blanket, that I vaguely think about copying.
064. Most of my wardrobe is black. Cables don't show up on black very well.
065. My big problem with most Fair Isle type patterns is that they come in colors that I wouldn't be caught dead wearing.
066. The clothes in my closest break down about like this: 65% black, 19% grey, 5% red, 5% blue, 5% green, 1% white.
067. For about 5 years, I wore only black/grey/white clothing exclusively. Its only recently that I've been incorporating color back into my wardrobe.
068. All my jewelry is made of "white" metals: silver, white gold, and platinum.
069. I like metal knitting needles. I generally use Boye's aluminum needles, or Susan Bate's Silvalumes, but I recently got my first Addi Lace needle. I have used plastic in a pinch, but really don't care too much for wood needles.
070. I tend to think that being an adult is overrated.
071. I used to do gymnastics when I was younger.
072. I play clarinet, relatively well.
073. I used to play baritone too, but that was a long time ago.
074. I like Ravelry, but I don't find it to be the time-eater that some people do.
075. I am three quarters of the way through this list.
076. I was a Girl Scout for 6 years.
077. I can't stand the taste of coffee.
078. I like tea, but only real tea, not herbal "tea." My favorites are Oolong and Jasmine tea. I also once had smoked lime tea from Japan, but have never found it anywhere else since.
079. I am addicted to caffeine, and get a withdrawal headache if I don't have at least 1 can of caffeinated soda a day.
080. I'm not addicted to anything else, so things could be a lot worse.
081. I call it soda, but most other people here in Ohio call it pop. I think I picked up "soda" from my dad, who grew up in Connecticut.
082. I like reading about knitting, as much, or possibly more, than I like knitting itself.
083. I am a completely self-taught knitter - I learned mostly from Donna Kooler's Encyclopedia of Knitting.
084. I wish JK Rowling had spent more time fleshing out the more obscure parts of her world... like how the wizarding world's economy supports itself, or what house artistic types and musicians would get sorted into, or why there was no wizarding university for advanced studies?
085. I refused to call myself a feminist for a long time.
086. I know identify as (among other things) a third wave, sex-positive feminist.
087. In my ideal world, I would be a professional student. However, its awfully hard to by the bills that way.
088. I have been so busy lately that my just-for-fun reading has slowed significantly. I used to read 3 or more books (not counting books that are primarily or solely knitting patterns) a month. I think I've managed only 3 books total in the last 6 months. This make me really sad.
089. I *love* editing papers/essays/reports/what have you. There's something really satisfying about going over things with a red ink pen and making them better.
090. The only reason I would want to be sorted into Slytherin is that I have house color envy.
091. Little girls may be made of sugar and spice and everything nice... but I am not. I definitely have some snake and snails and puppy dog's tails in here too. Probably also some bat wings, eyes of newt, and little white mice. *grin*
092. I love The Anti-Craft, and *really* need to get around to buying their book.
093. "I don't give a damn 'bout my bad reputation" Thanks, Joan Jett. Actually, though, I don't have a bad reputation. My feedback on Etsy, Swap-Bot, and eBay are all perfect scores.
094. Ash Wednesday is one of the very few things I miss about being Catholic.
095. I'm surprised how much I miss my sister, now that she lives 353 miles away.
096. I don't use my YMCA membership anywhere near often enough.
097. I just finished another row on my soft black ribbed alpaca scarf.
098. I love making stitch markers... but I rarely, if ever, use them myself.
099. I have never felted anything, but its on my list of things to learn.
100. I underestimated how hard it would be to come up with 100 things to write about myself that were mostly knitting related.

YAY!!! DONE!!!