Knitting Pretty

Sometime this week, I was pottering around the interwebs (you have to say that word in a funny voice because it is, really, quite silly) and somehow I managed to stumble upon a movie trailer for a live action version of Where The Wild Things Are, that wonderful book by Maurice Sendak. I think most people in the English speaking world have heard of this book, if not have actually read it.

WTWTA is a great book about an angry little boy named Max. He misbehaves - in some really cute ways, like growling at his mum - and gets sent to his room without any supper. When there,  Max manages to travel to an island - by boat - where the wild things are. He becomes their king in a sort of staring contest so then he gets to run around with them and have a generally good time. But soon he feels homesick so he sails home to his room, to find his supper all warm and waiting for him. It's a really good story to read, even the American President, Barack Obama, says it's one of his favourites! He read it out to a couple of thousand people at the White House Easter Egg Roll this year.

Something I like about the book is how well it works on multiple levels. The book clearly addresses anger in children, which I am happy about because the wonderful little people in our world feel the same range of emotions as us adults, but it is so much harder for them to undestand, and express themselves. Max's adventure in the books is delightful on the entirely superficial level also, and I am sure that children who read the book, whilst may not be aware of the psychoanalytic implications of the book, are still nonetheless affected by them.

If someone had asked me if this book would ever be made into a live action film, and if that film would be good, I would have said no, but honestly, the trailer looks amazing! There are a few sets of WTWTA toys out there, some are plush, and others more action figureish, but of course, I want to know about knitted ones! And yep, there is a knitted Wild Thing up on Ravelry and a pattern on its way, here is the link to where it will be posted,

I will preface this post by saying that that asthma attack was brought on by a cold, so if anything I write seems a little fever induced, it may well be.  So today I wanted to write about Cute. Cute is very important, today, because it has become more than just a favourable adjective to a full on worldwide movement. The movement of Cute. It has become a powerful tool for promoting good causes, advertising, self-expression, and many other good things that my flu-befuddled brain can't think of right now. I am a lover of Cute, I think it's good. I think if we are going to be bombarded to over-saturation point with anything, Cute isn't too bad a thing compared to a lot of other things. Seeing as I am all talking of Cute and whatnot, I thought I would post links to an abundance of Cute on the internet that I frequent regularly.

First off, Cute blogs! I visit I Can Has Cheezburger everyday, because there is always a lot of cute on there. I love cats, because they are warm, fuzzy, good to cuddle, and are very cute. My cats often smell of strange things, like sugar, or millipedes.  Okay sorry, that was me being ill. Back on track now.  I also visit Cute Overload on a daily basis. They have lots of Cute, that isn't just in kitty form. They also have Disaproving Rabbits, puppies, birds, and many other Cute creatures. Another place to drop by, more on a weekly basis, is ZooBorns, because, well, babies are cute, animals are cute, so baby animals must be very cute! The cuteness here can occasionally be almost painful, those little babies just trigger my cute nerves and my nurturing nerves so I just want to sit and hold them all and sing lullabies to them.

YouTube has a lot of Cute there too, so I will link some of my favourite Cute clips there. Maru is a fat cat from Japan, who is adorable, loves to belly-slide into boxes, and has a wonderfully round shaped head, you need to check this fatty out, he's adorable. By the way, Maru is the word for 'circle' or 'round' in Japanese, so he is an aptly named boy. Here you can find a rediculously cute kindle of kittens - yes, that is the actual collective noun for kittens - being cute. Watch those little bonces closely, because they are going to be adorable! My fiance especially likes the grey one, second from the right.  If you're in the mood for a little bit of odd Cute, try this video, which is the intro to a Korean cartoon called I Love Egg. Oh and here is the link to the Powerpuff Girls playing their song, Love Makes The World Go Round.

Now today's knitting pattern must absolutely be Cute, so I went off to look on Ravelry for Cute patterns. I found Bunny Nuggets. I have to knit these, I have to knit many of these.

When I was writing my last entry, I wanted a good Powerpuff Girls picture. In my search for one, I found this beautiful sketch by an artist I had never before heard of, Sarah Mensinga. So, I had to take a look around her blog, and all the art on there too!

I took a look over the old entries, I found an ongoing story called Dragon Girl. Over seventeen entries, this pretty little story plays out, to a conclusion that I really liked. It sort of reminds me of Love and Be Wise, a picture story book that I have had for a long time. I love the classic children's stories, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Beatrix Potter's work, and I also really appreciate the more post-modern stories that twist old tropes around. The Paperbag Princess works on this premise, as well as The Stinky Cheese Man.

It got me to thinking about my own dreams of writing. Sure I write here, but I have the tentative hope to one day write children's picture books. I have had a go at it, written my very first story, though I know it needs a lot of work. It's hard to know what will work and what won't, and I am loath to let many people read it. I mean, my fiance has read it, and a few others, but as I said, it is a long way from finished.

The idea of sitting for a while and just tapping a few lines out on my keyboard seems alright to me right now. I just had a asthma attack, so I am happy to sit down for a while. I never had asthma as a child, even with my mother smoking around me for my entire life. No, that developed in 2006 when I managed to pick up the flu six times in a row. I was coughing so hard I would cry, couldn't breath, and nearly vomit! I went to my doctor, she asked me three questions, and then told me I had asthma. It didn't really affect me all that much, except that I now had a wonderful little puffer that allowed me to breathe, but it has gotten worse of late. It just sucks - pun not intended - to not be able to breathe in deeply.

Alrighty, now I'm off to sit on the couch and watch TV for a while, a perfect activity - if you can call it that - for post-asthma-attack recuperation.