zen flesh, zen bones

i ordered 'zen flesh, zen bones' - a translation of a collection of zen koans and works - from work, and bought it. this is unusual for me... i usually order something, leave it on the shelf for a few months, and then spend a few hundred dollars in a buying frenzy. but. i've wanted a readable introduction to zen buddhism for a long time, and it's an excellent, readable collection of important zen texts. and that is the way to understand understanding zen - through reading it, rather than explainations of it, second hand. it's a clearer, fleshier way to get to the heart of it. i think i have a book 'the heart of zen' which bamboozles me, but not sufficiently to clear my mind and be zen. in any way.

i've recovered old shawl of cashmere and am picking at that between the alpaca one.... i've just fallen in love with the stitch pattern in 'victorian lace today' and the ease of knitting with alpaca, the laceweight of which is infinitely stronger than the cashmere - as much as the cashmere is feather soft, and so light and airy as to feel like it's not even there, the constant breaking shits me. the silk is softer, and about 50 times stronger. it withstood all sort of abuse in my many attempts at self-designed shawl. so my 4 cones of silk stare at me, me at them, and i play with the current shawls. i am deeply excited about being knit-proficient enough to embark on one of the giant, spiral shawls in 'victorian lace today'. oh lordy that is one exciting lace book. and 'a gathering of lace' and 'artic lace' are so so So high up on my list of things to knit.

hey, i get paid for my 'brow' contribution! whattya know! i will get a knitting book, and/or yarn with it to celebrate Knitty Article Publication. and if any of my lovely knitty angels are interested in reading about the Knittyboard, you can order it through 'the lifted brow' link to your right.

i have had too much coffee today. v. at the IMA ended up with a ten minute rant about book distribution in borders verses in other brisbane bookstores, followed by a run down of my favourite books, and the necessity of stocking translated literature in order to gain a fuller experience of contemporary international publishing. yes. coffee makes ranting. hm.