Glad Matt Bartlett isn't my kid!

As some of you know, I've been glued to my computer for the past few days watching the Casey Anthony trial. That means that Michele and Stef have been constantly entertained as they hear me clicking away on my keyboard while I'm shouting at my monitor, "Oh, yeah?! You're a stinkin' liar!!!"

This is why I never followed my father's footsteps as a Defense Attorney. Where he sees only "alleged" crimes by "alleged" perpetrators I see dirty, rotten scoundrels who should do hard time for the rest of their miserable, criminal lives. And that's just for people caught jay-walking.

Yes...I know I can be a bit Draconian at times. But, on the other hand, I'm not the least bit Machiavellian -- unless you've got a marshmallow that I happen to want to eat. Then it's each man for himself and my treachery knows no bounds.

But back to the trial.

Imagine you're a 28-year old guy who gets into the courtroom to watch one of the most gut-wrenching trials of the decade. Are you riveted by the tension...the possibility of a young woman getting the death penalty for (allegedly) murdering her own child? Are you watching intensely as each side maneuvers to discredit the other's witnesses? Are you struggling in your own mind to draw a conclusion from all the contradictory data you're hearing from people of dubious credibility?

No.

You're sitting there like a dope giving a finger to the Prosecuting Attorney.

Now, why oh why would you do that?

"I dunno," he shrugged when confronted by a very angry judge.

He was just bright enough to reluctantly concede, "It was stupid."

Stupid? Just stupid?! Yeah...I'd have to say it was stupid. Six days in jail and $643 stupid.

The worst of it is that the guy has to admit that at 28 years of age he:
1. Earns about $14,000 per year
2. Has monthly bills of about $1500 per month
3. Has about $100 in his checking account
4. Has about $12 in his savings account

Okay...so let's do the math. He earns $14K. His bills each year are $18K. He's already on the road to financial ruin. And he's dopey enough to get himself sent to jail for doing something you wouldn't even expect from a 14-year old.

Holy cow!

Matt, I really hope you've learned a lesson. I hope that the people at TGI Friday's don't have to fire you for doing something so unbelievably stupid that the entire country hit itself on the forehead and gasped, "Huh?!!!" when they watched you in court.

But I do hope that your parents give you a much-needed kick in the backside and tell you to act your age. For heaven's sake...you're a 28-year old man.

(Note to TGI Friday's -- Yeah, everyone expects you to fire him.)

Learn all about cotton yarns in our newest issue of Just My Type

If you don't already subscribe to our newsletters, you'll want to do so right away. Or you can view our most recent issue online.

In "Cool Cotton Yarns" we teach you about the wonders of cotton yarns and we introduce you to a few that you may not already know about.

If you like to learn about yarns and knitting, you'll want to be sure to read this issue of Just My Type.

See Natalie Redding in a video about spinning her yarn business

You'll enjoy this video of Natalie. I sure did!


Audio slide show: Spinning her yarn business

I am not a Princess.

There are about a gazillion knitters on Ravelry now. Recently, a thread started in the Namaste Farms group about ego...selfishness...narcissism. I was surprised by how many people agreed with me that we need to step back a bit from loving ourselves -- just for being us -- and maybe be a little bit more objective.

When I grew up, talking about how wonderful you (thought you) were was called bragging. It wasn't considered polite.

But things changed and my children's generation were taught that they were wonderful merely for existing. That's what prompts the lament by many exasperated HR people, "They expect a trophy just for showing up."

I don't know what started this excess of self-esteem. Maybe the hippy-dippy 60s when we all decided we were cool. But I do know where it's gotten us. Our kids are scoring low in maths and sciences compared to students in other Western countries. But when it comes to self-confidence, well, they're top of the chart.

There is a discrepancy between ability and self-esteem.

This is why you see moronic Reality TV shows that celebrate horrific behavior. Bridezilla immediately comes to mind. Sure, it might be funny to watch those girls/women/she monsters. But heck...how would you like to live with one? It would be a nightmare.

These are people who think they deserve everything. They don't have to actually earn it. They live lives of immediate self-gratification. In other words, they're hollow shells with only the facade of humanity. They are what they buy.

"I am my Prada shoes."
"I am my Louis Vuitton purse."
"I am my Cartier watch."

How about it if we started to recognize people for actually doing something?

Natalie Redding started Namaste Farms and developed her own line of yarns. Hurray for Natalie!!!

Iris Schreier wanted to spend more time with her family so she created Artyarns. Congratulations, Iris, on recognizing what really matters!!!

My young pal Evan Citron quit his job in media sales and went back to school to become a lawyer. Great job, Evan!!! Now you can realize your dream of helping people achieve justice.

These are all just regular people who have dedicated themselves to doing something good...something that really matters. You probably know a lot of people like I do. Silent heroes who do what's right and who never expect applause. These are the people who deserve it.

Please post your thanks to regular people who deserve to be recognized for something they've actually done. Maybe they created a beautiful painting. Or wrote a poem. Or took dinner to a sick friend. Something that was done from the heart.

I think it would do us all good to read about others who know there's more to life than shopping and drowning in self immersion.

Very, very bad news for our middle kid, Laura

Alex's Father's Day card arrived today. He was a little perplexed when he read it:

Father's Day is for more than just Dads, you know.
It's for all the men who make a difference in our lives.
It's for the guys who give you advice, encouragement, and help when you need it.
It's for the kind of person you've always been to me.
I can't imagine celebrating Father's Day without thinking of you.

He showed it to me, wondering what on earth it meant. I told him.

He just telephoned Laura to give her the terrible news.

"Laura, I am your REAL father."

Wow! The LA Times ran a great article about Namaste Yarns!

A while back, Adam Tschorn of the LA Times visited Namaste Farms and interviewed Natalie Redding, the shepherdess and fiber artist who not only owns it, but who cares for the animals, sheers them, then spins and dyes their wool. Adam is one heck of a writer and he put together a truly wonderful feature story about Natalie. Today it ran in the Los Angeles Times with lots of photos showing her at work.

I was very surprised to see that Adam included some bits and pieces of a telephone conversation we had about Natalie and her venture. (Thanks, Adam!) He mentioned that Yarnmarket worked collaboratively with the burgeoning yarn producer to help her launch her products, the exquisite Namaste Farms yarns, to an entirely new market.

You cannot imagine how proud we are that Natalie gave us the opportunity to help her build her business. We know how hard it is to make it in this highly competitive field, so we were delighted to be able to help someone who we knew shared our work ethic and our values. She trusted us so much that she refused to accept money from us when she sent her first shipment of yarns. And we trusted her enough to insist we pay her before we'd even made a sale.

These days when we deal so much with multi-national corporations and very big, established businesses, it feels really good to see an American shepherdess and fiber artist from the hills of California succeed with a bit of help from a bunch of yarn-peddling YarnMartians here in Pickerington, Ohio.

Why I love Maggi Knits...but I'm going to have to fire Michele.

I hate having my picture taken. As a matter of fact, I didn't even have a photographer at my wedding(s). But when I tried on one of Maggie Jackson's creations at TNNA the other day I thought, "This is fantastic!" I couldn't believe how one piece completely transformed my look. And if anyone needs their look transformed, it's me.

The picture to the right is me on a good day. But, as you can see, I'm squinting because I'm out in the sun. And I'm fat because I like ice cream. And I'm wrinkly because our photographer, Michele, seems to have forgotten that we paid a LOT OF MONEY FOR HER TO HAVE PHOTOSHOP!!! which, apparently, she forgot to use to tighten my skin, unsquint my eyes, and thin out my thighs.

Michele is in her early 30s, unbearably thin, and gorgeous. Perhaps it didn't occur to her that some of us might need a little help.

Okay...enough about our former staff member, Michele...now back to me.

As I've gotten older (wider, wrinklier, saggier, grouchier) I've shunned the more creative styles in favor of fashions that scream, "Don't look at me!" If you've ever seen me in person, you'd know this is true. The minute you see me, a little voice in your head shouts, "Don't look! Turn away!" and, obediently, you do.

Alex is always after me to wear trendier clothes while I check out the patterns at Quaker Jane and consider whether Plain Dress is more up my alley. (I have to confess that I actually made this pattern because I thought a priest's cassock would make a really neat coat.)

Anyway, Maggie and her assistant at her TNNA booth put me into a variety of their gorgeous tops and I couldn't believe how nice they looked. On me! Really...I can wear them and not look:
a. immense
b. crazy
c. like my usual boring self.

This was quite a revelation. Now I'm hell bent on knitting myself up several of Maggie's "transformational" fashions. They're easy and they come as kits so you get everything you need including the gorgeous buttons that match perfectly.

There are a lot of fantastic styles and great colors that I might never have chosen because I'm...well...boring. The brilliantly un-boring Maggie has created some terrific modular designs that aren't complicated at all and that are very flattering for virtually every shape. (Even mine. I'm not exactly pear shaped. More like a tetrahedron with legs.)

If you're more creative than I am and you don't need to depend on the full-blown kits, I think you'd really love Maggi Knits patterns and yarns. Maggie is one heck of a fashion designer who made her name in ready to wear. She was the first Irish lady to become famous in this field, and she's a feisty little gal with a sense of humor and a taste for the irreverent that I absolutely love. Let me put it this way: If Maggie and I were together in Vegas, what happened in Vegas would stay on police blotters throughout the civilized world.

If you were lucky enough to attend her fashion show at VK Live in New York last January, you'd know exactly what I mean. She's dangerous. I love her. And I'm going to knit a bunch of her patterns -- like the one she lent to me for these photos.

With the help of Maggie Jackson and Maggi Knits, I can continue to be as boring as I want underneath, but I'll toss one of her fabulous styles over my head and voila! I'll be a fashion icon just like the model, Iman. (Oh...I've got to tell you. I was flicking my TV one Friday night when there she was: Iman. My nemesis. Sure, she might be married to the man I love, but I got to sit at home in my Clorox-stained night gown, gloating, while I watched her trying to sell harem pants on QVC. Yes. There is a God!)

Anyway, take a look at Yarnmarket's selection of Maggi Knits kits, yarns and patterns. I know you'll look great in them. If they can make boring old me look okay, imagine how fantastic they'll look on you!