Really, today, all I want to do is pick my son up from school, right this minute, and hug his tiny body close to me. To keep him safe. To protect him. How I will do that, I don’t know, but this is my most basic, mama bear instinct.

This brings back a bit of the PTSD I suffered after September 11, 2001. I didn’t sleep for weeks, terrified that Los Angeles would be next. I avoided leaving my house, and I especially avoided crowded places. I didn’t want to drive on the crowded freeways. I cannot even describe to you the fear I felt stepping onto a plane that year to go back to Iowa for Christmas.

Today’s shooting echoes that level of terror, for me, because it hits close to home: I am a parent, and today, some parents lost their children in a horrible and unexpected way. My immediate reaction is to begin discussing home-schooling options with Oliver’s dad. I can recognize that this might be an extreme reaction. I’m still processing.

And in a couple of hours I will pick Oliver up from school. I do not know if he knows about the shooting yet; I’m not sure if they would have discussed it in his class.

In any case, I must suck it up and be the adult, even if I just want to hug my son and have a good cry. I must assure him that he is safe, that it is not his responsibility to worry about the evils in the world. It is my responsibility to worry.

If you aren’t sure how to talk to your kids about the shooting in Connecticut today,there are resources out there: the American Psychological Association has some advice, and the Fred Rogers Company has a thoughtful guide for doing so.

Some helpful tips:

1. Keep the TV off as much as possible. Watching the same events unfold over and over can be stressful and confusing for children (and adults, too).
2. Ask your kids what they know about the event. What they think happened may be much worse than what really happened.
3. Stay calm. Children easily pick up on non-verbal cues from their parents.
4. Prepare for extra clinginess, behavior issues, or bed-wetting. This is normal.
5. Find simple activities you can do together, and spend some time snuggling if that’s what feels right.
6. Keep discussions with and around your children age-appropriate. Also keep in mind that kids may be listening to conversations between adults.
And maybe you, as the adult, need some comfort. I found this particularly helpful:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” To this day, especially in times of “disaster,” I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.” — Fred Rogers
I’m holding onto that, for my own peace of mind. I’m going to be looking for the helpers. Because, really, that is all I can manage right now.

That’s just one side of me, of course — the other is very practical, pragmatic, and a bit of a skeptic. So basically, I buy into certain things knowing full well that they are probably B.S., and being totally okay with that.

Have you ever smudged your home? Smudging is where you take a bundle of smoking sage, and you wave the smoke around to clear negative energy in an area.

I felt like my Etsy presence needed a good smudging.

I’ve designed some really killer new stuff (if I do say so myself) that is suited to a broader audience, unlike my freeform crochet work, which is my art. And the new stuff just didn’t fit with Classy Broad.

SO. I’ve opened a new shop for these new designs, and I’m really, really excited about it. You ready for it? It’s called By Somer and I want everyone to see it.

Not only is everything in the shop on sale at a generous 25% discount for the grand opening, but YOU CAN WIN SOMETHING FROM MY NEW SHOP. You like free stuff, right?

THE GIVEAWAY

There are two chances to win! One on Facebook, and one on Twitter. Which means you could potentially win both giveaways!

On Facebook – LINK IT AND WIN IT

Post a link (on your personal or business page) to your favorite item in my new shop, By Somer, and YOU COULD WIN IT! Make sure you are following me at my Classy Broad page or my author page. Look for the giveaway post (it says GIVEAWAY in ALL CAPS, which is ANNOYING but grabs your ATTENTION), and leave a note there so I know you’ve posted the link.

On Twitter – TWEET IT AND WIN IT

Tweet a link to your favorite item in my new shop, By Somer, and YOU COULD WIN IT! Be sure to @ mention me in the tweet, but please don’t do it at the beginning of the tweet or it will go only to me instead of to all your followers. My Twitter handle is @somersherwood. Here’s an example tweet:

“I love this slouchy beanie from @somersherwood [LINK TO LISTING]”

Two winners will be announced on Friday, November 23. The prize is whatever shop listing you linked to on Twitter or Facebook (in your choice of color, of course)!

Good luck!

I’m a huge fan of shopping at farmers’ markets for fresh, organic produce. I love having a connection to the farmers who grow the food I eat. Plus, if you shop for in-season fruits and vegetables, often the prices at the farmers’ market beat grocery store prices.

But sometimes I buy produce at the grocery store. At some stores, organic vs. conventionally grown fruits and vegetables aren’t clearly labeled, and I’m not really sure what I’m buying. If ever you find yourself in a similar situation, here’s how to tell whether what you’re buying is organic, conventionally grown, or even perhaps genetically modified.

All About PLU Codes

Price look-up (PLU) codes are the numbers printed on those cute little stickers you find on bananas, apples, bell peppers, and the like. PLU codes are also printed on bags and containers of produce, like salads, or packaged mushrooms. The code is either a four- or five-digit number, and guess what? It can give you hints as to whether that bunch of kale in your hand is organic or not.

Here’s how you can tell:

Organic produce is labeled with five-digit PLU codes beginning with a “9.” For example, take a look at the sticker on my little red bell pepper friend here (which I need to do something with, like, today, because it’s about to go bad!):

Conventionally grown produce is labeled with a four-digit PLU code.

Genetically modified produce may be labeled with a five-digit PLU code beginning with “8″ though this labeling is inconsistent, at best.

Happy shopping!

[Top photo by Laura Padgett via Creative Commons.] 

So it seems like every time I turn on the TV, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is playing on one of the premium channels. We get the full channel line-up offered by our cable provider (since we are at-home people and never go anywhere, why not?), and yet I’ve watched this movie twice, from beginning to end, in the last two weeks.

Because this film is a product of writing/directing duo Charlie Kauffman and Michel Gondry, it’s pretty much guaranteed that I will weep like a wee baby. And I do. Every. Darn. Time. Add in a heartfelt performance from Jim Carrey, in which he does not do his best Jim-Carrey-doing-Jim-Carrey impression (save for one scene; why you gotta do that, Jim?!), and the brilliant Kate Winslet, and I can forgive the manic pixie dream girl trope and allow my heart to be broken for their characters.

If you haven’t seen it, DO. One of my favorites.

So here’s something I made while I watched Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Twice.

Truly a scarf for the manic pixie dream girl, or maybe just those of us who are bored of the standard winter scarf. I’m pretty proud of it. I love starting off with a little shape or texture and building on it until it becomes a full-fledged Thing. Click through to my Etsy store to purchase!

We’re gathering our courage to cancel cable; we’re going cold turkey, you guys! No more Eternal Sunshine for us, unless of course it’s on Netflix.

It’s been a while, I know. I know, I know. I’ve been writing over at xoJane.com lately, and I haven’t updated here at all.

I have a new cat, since I for sure won’t be having any more kids. Say hi to Khaleesi, Mother of Dragons:

Meow. “WHERE ARE MY DRAGONS?!”

I’ve also been recapping episodes of “Breaking Bad” over at SpinoffOnline.

And I’ve been busy designing new squishy, wooly wear, even though it feels like this summer will never end:

How was your summer? Any plans for the fall and winter? Or are you, like me, having trouble thinking that far ahead?

tiny circle pins

ruffly hyperbolic shapes on these pins!

circle hair clips

All available now in the shop!

Maybe, like me, you grew up isolated in a Midwestern town, before the internet was there to connect everyone, everywhere, to everything. Maybe you were a lonely, angsty young thing in the late 80s/early 90s who felt different and didn’t really like Top 40 radio. Maybe you wanted to DIY your own denim cut-offs and draw pictures on them with a Sharpie.

If all of this was true, you probably read Sassy magazine, like I did.* Wait, scratch that. You WORSHIPPED Sassy magazine. It was your church and your bible for all things Cool. You had never actually heard Sonic Youth, but now you knew about them and you could go to the local record store at the mall (you know the one, the one staffed by the white dudes with dreads, the one store that carried any music by Nirvana, before anyone outside of the Pacific Northwest even knew who they were) and have a listen.

And then Sassy went away and you grew up and found out that Jane Pratt started a magazine that was holy-crap-like-Sassy-but-for-grownups! And so you devoured Jane magazine until, of course, Jane Pratt was no longer editor and then it sucked so you canceled your subscription.

And then last year you happened upon this xoJane.com place, which is brought to you by the very same Jane Pratt, who was once singlehandedly responsible for saving you from wasting away in teenage mediocrity in your Midwestern town.

And it was like finding a long lost friend. And you pitched a story to them and they took it. And another story. And another. And before you knew it, you were a contributor and you felt understood in the best way, the way only a long-lost friend can understand you.

You can read some of my stories for xoJane here. Participation/commenting not only welcome, but encouraged. Stop by, won’t you?

*If I remember correctly, my subscription ran from 1988-1993

You can see the girls peeking over the dress form's shoulder.

I’ve been making these in tons of colors. Are there any other crocheted accessories you’d like to see?

For one thing, you can now buy Classy Broad hats and scarves in an actual brick-and-mortar shop! Wanna see my new Spring line? Here ’tis (click to enlarge):

Can I just take a moment and tell you how much I hate modeling my stuff? I dislike being photographed, but I do it out of necessity (1. time: I have limited time for photography and so I do it quick and dirty; and 2. money: I can’t afford to pay a model). When I’m modeling, I don’t know what to do with my face or my eyes or whether to smile with teeth. I have kind of a goofy smile and this little vein pops out on my nose. This doesn’t bother me at all — I like my interesting, kind of wonky, lopsided face — except I’m pretty sure veiny noses and toothy smiles do not sell handmade items. I’m not sure if what I’m doing does, either, but hey, I work with what I’ve got, you know?

Anyway, what you’re looking at (other than my dime-a-dozen, refusing-to-look-at-the-camera Etsy shots) are lightweight caps that make the transition from spring to summer (if you live in an area with mild summers, you know what I’m talking about when I say the nights can get chilly). Same with the scarves, which are really not scarves, but convertible cowl/shawl/hood things, made of lightweight, soft and warm fibers and one-of-a-kind vintage buttons. You’ll be able to buy these in person and online at Distinct Designers.

1. I am wrapping up my Kickstarter project and have the last batch of rewards sitting in a box on my dining room floor, waiting to go to the post office tomorrow.

2. I joined a desingers’ co-operative boutique here in Los Angeles called Distinct Designers. It opens vurrry, vurrry soon and ohmygodIhaveacraptonofstufftocrochet.

3. Yarn shopping. See above.

4. Crocheting. See above.

5. I stopped eating gluten, wheat, sugar and dairy. And I mostly quit caffeine this week but I need the coffee smell in the morning, so I’m still drinking decaf.

6. I found some amazing raw, vegan, gluten-free, sugar free dessert recipes. Yes, I am for serious. I’ll post my brownie recipe soonish.

7. I’m finally almost finished with The Night Circus, and I cannot wait. I hate this book so much but feel obligated to finish it since I’ve already invested so much time. I’ve been reading about six things at once and I’d like to finish at least one.

8. Day job. Still blows, still pays the rent.

9. Oliver is obsessed with skateboarding and is actually pretty good at it, too.

10. I’ve needed a haircut for about four weeks now but I’ve been too busy. You all don’t mind if I look like a damn hippie for another week, right?

11. Sundays are no-internet days for me now. As in, no email, no blog, no FB, no Twitter, no Instagram. It’s nice, and I remember how much stuff I used to get done when there was no internet.

Proper post soon, especially about those brownies.