I went ahead with the scarf gift, and was knitting feverishly until late last night and then again for an hour this morning before work:
Luckily the recipient is a very small person, so I stopped once I knitted about 46 inches. I used the pattern for Misty Garden from the Scarf Style book. The yarn is Trendsetter Muse, a mohair/acrylic blend which is super soft and fluffy, just like a cloud. The pattern is a really easy 4 row repeat, so it was good, mindless knitting. I think it was well received, and the yarn has lots of subtle color in it, so it will go with just about anything. I like it better than a $20 gift card :o)
In between my feverish knitting and making meatballs for our potluck at work today (recipe: 2 bags frozen party meatballs from Trader Joe's, 1 bottle Soy Vay Island Teriyaki sauce, also from TJ's, dump all (er, both) ingredients into a crock pot, turn it on under your desk when you arrive at work in the morning, thus torturing everyone sitting near you with that delicious aroma, and serve 3 hours later, when they're all hot and bubbly), I've been doing some reading lately. I'm generally a pretty fast reader, but my latest book, Cloud Atlas, by David Mitchell has taken the better part of two weeks to read. It's challenging, in a very good way. I'm not quite done, but I keep thinking about it. Here is my review so far: 
Cloud Atlas is really 5 novellas, split into two sections each, surrounding a sixth novella in the middle of the book. What makes the book so amazing is that each story is told in a completely different voice and all are very different styles. Some of the reviews on Amazon compare it to a Russian Nesting Doll, which is sort of apt, but not completely. In one interview I read with the author, he described the structure as if holding up a mirror. One reason I've taken so long with this book is the abrupt changing of styles. Each story is so fascinating and well-written, and the first halves of each novella have ended with suspenseful, cliff-hanger scenes so that I keep wanting to skip ahead. It's just all so clever, without being pretentious. I wish I could explain it better. It's very original and I highly recommend it, if you're up for something a little more challenging. I've already requested another of his books from my library, so it should be ready and waiting for me when I'm done.
Have you read anything lately that you highly recommend? I'm always looking for good books to read! I'll have to list some of my other recommendations, if anyone is interested.
Oh, I almost forgot, someone bought my little snowman. I can't even tell you how excited I get when I see those e-mails from etsy and paypal. It's always just a little unbelievable to me that someone really will pay actual money to buy something I made. I'm off to do a happy dance now! :o)
