Monday, February 07, 2011

MiiQuest Update

Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

It all started out so fabulous and shiny. (OK, not so much that, but rather sweaty, panting and super sore...but that's not really very inspirational.) Stuck to my core principles: no new gym membership, no new equipment, no new DVDs. Managed 30 days of intense daily workouts following the Biggest Loser 30 Day Jump Start DVD's plan to a T.

[A word about this workout: I like it. I think it's a very well done and rather good comprehensive circuit style workout. However, it's 5 10 minute segments that you are to do in various combos for 30 solid days. It builds from 1 segment a day to 4, so by the end, you're doing 4 of the 5 workouts every day. A bit maddening, but it did push me to do things I wouldn't have otherwise. I just wish I had instituted the "music only" option earlier. That little gem of programming let me stop swearing at the poor Biggest Loser contestants and get in my own head instead. Highly recommended once you know what you're supposed to be doing, which is basically after week 1.]

Then the flu hit. HARD. 4 days of fever, body aches (such an insufficient word), racking cough...generally wanting to die from minute to minute. A week and a half later I'm still coughing and pretty much want to lie down on the floor and sleep and sleep and sleep. Chances are I have a headache every day at some point. So much for working out. Attempts to restart last week left me doubled over trying to expel a lung. SO FRUSTRATING!

BUT. I have lost almost 6 pounds.

AND. It's Monday again, prime time for gearing up. (at least I'm trying to tell my head ache that...please go away!) This time I shall be using a combo of Biggest Loser Workouts: Cardio Max and Power Sculpt.

Hopefully I can get another month under my belt and wave bye-bye to another 5 pounds.

Fingers crossed.

Happy Birthday, Charles Dickens!

Oh, joy! It's here! Big announcement time is here!!! My super top secret patterns (4 of them!!) are almost ready to make their debut. The book went live to preorders today! Check out this press release from Shannon Oakey at Cooperative Press:

Today would have been Charles Dickens' 199th birthday, and Cooperative Press is pleased to announce that preorders for What Would Madame Defarge Knit? open today in honor of the author whose formidable character Thérèse Defarge inspired Heather Ordover's book. If it's been a while since your last literature class, remember that in A Tale of Two Cities Defarge knits and knits, secretly encoding the names of people she will have killed. Vive la révolution?

Don't worry, there isn't a murder prerequisite to love this book! Ordover, the creator of popular podcast CraftLit, has assembled an inspiring and thought-provoking collection of 20+ patterns, as well as essays and other tidbits inspired by literature, illustrated by the talented Jen Minnis in a black-and-white woodcut style that pays tribute to Dickensian-era publishing.

And if you're reading this, chances are good you are a strong supporter of small independent publishers. You may be interested to know that this book will be the first Cooperative Press release where all designers receive a direct royalty share of each sale. Our Fresh Designs series, which will be out later this year, is set up similarly. Instead of a small, one-time payment for their work at the beginning (and not a penny afterwards, no matter how many copies the book sells), designers have an opportunity to earn an unlimited payment for their work.

Visit the WWMDfK? website for more about the book's contributors and other behind-the-scenes information. As of today's pre-release, the book is 200+ pages, illustrated.

LIMITED EDITION HARDCOVER — ($45)

Signed, with extras. This is a special creation and will be limited to less than 100 copies, numbered. Shipping is included, as is a PDF copy of the book.

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DIGITAL EDITION — PDF ($16.95)

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DIGITAL (PDF) + PRINT ($26.95)

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