Thursday 28 July 2011

Kitty the stand-in jam timer

EJ put pics from Saturdays bout up on Facebook...I can remember my time as an NSO through pictures...















<3
Kitty

Tuesday 26 July 2011

Superman baby blanket

After a week or so of on and off knitting, the superman baby blanket is done.
36"square with the S logo as the centre panel...
















<3
Kitty

Monday 25 July 2011

Weekend roller derby road trip!

The excitement mounted this weekend in anticipation of a road trip to Dublin for the roller derby bout, Dublin vs Liverpool at greystones leisure centre!




And what an awesome adventure it was! I drove down in Bunbun and met the Belfast crew there...everyone was stoked!

A slight change to my first live bout watching experience came when their jam timer was running late so I got to not watch but JOIN IN! Middle of the track excitement, timing responsibilities AND I got a whistle...what more could any Kitty ask for?
The NSO's were so helpful and the ref's worked so hard...what a great bout! Dublin won in the end but both sides fought hard.

I'm very pleased with my Liverpool roller birds tee...yellow isn't my colour, but it is so cute!




After that excitement our wee crew headed for burger king at the services (traditional stop off) and the crazy banter continued...Soylent Green IS people!

The one and only downside was my continued inability to settle my moods and after the mega manic high of Saturday, Sunday saw a crippling crash. No skating...no leaving the sofa even...it's now Monday and my brain still wants me to hide away. If I didn't have to go to work I'd be sleeping right now.

In Belfast Roller Derby news, Hannahbolic Steriods has asked us to come up with five values for the website...I think mine are going to be:

D for Daring...you might never have skated in your life, but once you get involved in roller derby you'll be surprised at what you want to push yourself to do!

E for Exercise...skating is a great workout and much more fun than a trip to the gym! Anyone in any shape can join in with roller derby, it won't take long to feel the benefits!

R for the Radical bunch of people you are going to meet. Friendly, fun and supportive.

B is for the bad-ass you will become. You may think you lack confidence, but lace up your skates and embrace your derby personae and you'll be amazed at how much your confidence will soar!

Y is for Y'all just gotta join in...derby leagues work because of the people who join them...it's not just skaters, NSO's, ref's and all the leagues jeer leaders (who needs cheerleaders?!) make this sport the fantastic, fast paced, friendly, addictive creature that it is.

...what do 'you' think our five derby core values should be??

In my own personal skating news I'm still not back rolling again, although I'm now sporting very sexy arch support insoles which have helped my feet and knees feel normal again, so fingers crossed for this Friday being back!

Hopefully by then my lush Gumball toe stops will have arrived as well. Last week one of my new round stops vanished I to thin air...so clearly that was a sign to upgrade...




Can't wait to try them out!! Hurry up and deliver mister postman!!

On my iPod at the moment is the fab Sarah Jezebel Deva...so good and highly recommended. Get your download on, you won't regret it!
Sarah Jezebel Deva

<3
Kitty






Tuesday 19 July 2011

Skater intake!





I'm so excited about this!! Come on peeps, get your skates on!!

<3
Kitty

Sunday 17 July 2011

Off skates and kitten sleepovers

Another weekend off skates. Honestly it's just so frustrating! I just want to get rolling again!
Thankfully I've been distracted from the lack of derby by having CK's kittens to stay while he and Julie are up at Enniskillen...

Hilts and Penny are just adoreable!












I still couldn't stay away from training though and went along on Friday and today just to see what was happening and feel the stanky derby girl love.

Friday night included the most bizarre synchronised skate marching I have ever seen...I suspect Gutter Snipe was a Sergeant Major in a past life!


YouTube Video

Today Hannahbolic Steriods was coaching...I was gutted to miss the transitions drills as I really struggle with them....must get better and get back to it!

<3
Kitty

Thursday 14 July 2011

Skull dress and the rest

Sometimes knitting gets a bit too much, projects take too long, I walk away and come back to them...the skull jumper was one of those projects.

Started off a couple of weeks ago with a pattern for a fitted jumper. I increased the needle size to make it massively oversized and got to work...






Then got bored when Castiel kept trying to sleep on it mid-knit a I gave up for a bit






Went back to it only to have the intarsia skull design nearly drive me batty






So I wandered away from it an made myself a knitty squiddy ipod holder (pattern from anticraft)



Next day I still didn't go back to knitting...I went for baking instead....Mmmmmm macaroons!



and later on made a little summery fascinator, birdcage focal point, pocket watch fabric and vintage beads...






Finally today, after much procrastination, all I needed to add to the jumper was sleeves. Yeah, it was 22degrees today. I'll leave the sleeves off until the winter I think.

So, finally done, my punk tastic grungey skull dress...from a nifty pattern beginning in the DominKNITrix book (that's where the chart for the skull can be found) it's definitely got a made with mAlice twist now :D



<3
Kitty

Monday 11 July 2011

Another one bites the dust

After Friday nights roller derby training session I couldn't wait for Sunday skating.

By the time Sunday landed I was feeling less enthusiastic. I'd managed to stave my thumb on Saturday, my stomach muscles were cross with me from Friday's exercising and my knees were achey. It was so bad I started the day moping about as I had decided not to go to training at all.
Then I read a message on the group page from Hannahbolic, lots of peeps weren't going to be skating and no chance if a scrim...sad news, especially as we had a guest skater with us, lovely Little Myy.
So I pulled myself together in double quick time and decided to go for it.

I have to admit, there is nothing like skating with the BRD crew to make my brain a much happier place to be. Yes I hurt, yes doing my 25 laps in 5 minutes had me whimpering (I can't thank Gutter Snipe enough for skating behind me and encouraging me to keep going...I managed 25 3/4 laps even with my bad knee and foot!)






and yes I was sore from sit ups and push ups...but I was HAPPY!






Our drills were great, I loved pushing J-Mag into the jammer...and being pushed.





Then disaster...doing a making walls Drill I knocked skates with Cleaver who went down and I fell over her. Not so bad, I was all padded up...but I twisted my bad knee again. Oh the blossom of pain. I thought I was going to boke.






Ice packs delivered from the girls and I shuffled off track to spend the rest of the session watching.
A day on I ache, but I'm itching to get back on skates. Hurry up and heal!

Hmmmm...useful use of healing time...I'm working on an oversized knitted skully jumper






<3
Kitty

Derby photos by the lovely Emmarhage

Saturday 9 July 2011

Back on skates!

I am one happy Kitty after the Belfast Roller Derby training session last night. It felt so good to be back on skates.

My bruised foot was cross at me, but I had it bandaged up and skated until it submitted to my will.

The warm up drill of pop ups was the scariest moment for me as I wasn't sure how my knees would react to full falls, but I'm glad I went for it as my 187's did their job perfectly and I made the pyramid. That was a real boost to my confidence.
The only thing that really knocked me was my total inability to get any sort of speed going as every-time I set my sore foot down it was distractingly ouch. Oh well.

We had a bit of hip checking Walls (show that brick no mercy)
It turns out shoulder checking with no one to connect with is pretty tough though!

The constant jammer drill was probably my favourite part of the evening. I have total fear of jamming but managed to make it through the pack each time even when they were communicating and blocking full on...this spurred me to actually volunteer as jammer in the wee scrimmages. Ok, I only did it once...but getting through that pack (probably with a million minors, and certainly with one fall on my tailbone, ouch, lol) felt damn good!


All I can say is a MASSIVE thank you and HUGE squishes to all the Belfast derby girls who made being back on skates so much fun. They are the friendliest, loveliest, most encouraging peeps I've had the good fortune to meet. Smooches for our AWESOME coach Gutter Snipe and massive thumbs up for our refs, Derek and Leon rock!

And as if Friday was my day for smiles...the post man brought me my new Lip Service socks and super platform shoes!











I'm also smiling after a trip to the hairdressers this week...new magenta hair is love!



<3
Kitty

Tuesday 5 July 2011

Oh the weekend

What a strange weekend I have had.
Full of ups and downs!

Best bits were a Saturday with my little sister, lunch, rainbow hair dyes and talking crap.

And the fun at the Stiff Kitten for Kirsty Woo's birthday can't be forgotten. Yes the DJ was awful and far too loud for a bar...but the giggles and chatting and nice people made up for it.
(good to find out I'm not the only person who is fond of Jurassic park )

Sparkly birthday buns were baked and nommed!






PLUS I finally got to wear my swanky pink rhinestone shoes!






Sadly when getting out of the car once back home (with the heels OFF) I tripped over the footwell and sprawled myself across the road, damaging myself!













So no skating on Sunday for me AND I missed my Monday with my mum :( very sad indeed!!

Tonight I'm heading to the advanced derby practice. I'm not able to skate as I haven't passed my min skills...so I don't know how I'm going to feel, but I miss the girls so much I don't want to skip any time with them.
Part of me is still thinking about quitting derby...well, quitting skating and reff-ing instead. I feel so left behind at the minute. I don't know, I need to think about it some more...

<3
Kitty