As I’ve mentioned here before, I’m a complete pushover for the Legend of Zelda games. Though each game that comes out seems to temporarily turn into my favorite one, this time I believe the Nintendo people have outdone themselves with their latest DS offering, Phantom Hourglass.

I had to wait for Christmas to get the game, because it was basically the only consumer product I’d really wanted last holiday season, and so it remained the only thing on my Amazon wish list for several long months. But worth the wait!

I’m a little too worn out from playing it all 3-day-weekend long to go into much detail, but Phantom Hourglass is a continuation of the Windwaker story, with its adorable cartoon-y design and seafaring theme. Interspersed with the gorgeous graphics are some wonderful “wooden” cut-out sequences, which have been my favorite moments in the game.

The play is challenging, but not overly so, making it a great traveling companion. And this is the first game I’ve played on the DS that made perfect use of the stylus. It’s almost Wii-like in its fluidity, only on a smaller scale. If you don’t have a DS, I would say that it’s worth getting one just for Phantom Hourglass.

OK, back to playing now.

Now that all of the dead snowmen have been cleared out of the Duane Reade store windows, it’s time for another pharmacy in New York to claim the title of Creepiest Window Display.

This is all wrong on a number of levels. First, the child-mannequin surrounded by empty prescription bottles and looking ponderous, as if she’s staring into the medicine cabinet and wondering if she should try the Vytorin next or the Levitra before she loses consciousness. The lab coat she’s wearing just makes me worry all the more about her.

Then, the decorative backdrop of warning labels whimsically blown up to giant size. I mean, who sells this? Perhaps pharmaceutical companies use it as a curtain during skit night at their conventions? That’s honestly my best guess.

My keen-eyed husband John is to thank for spotting this doozy of a window display, but I’ve noticed this locally-owned pharmacy’s window before—it’s always a bizarre tableau featuring the same girl mannequin in a slightly uncomfortable situation. They had her in bunny ears far into summer last year, for instance. I sure hope they keep pharma-girl up for a while too.

It’s time for the first Mochimochi Land pattern of 2008!

The much-anticipated pattern for Harriet the Sheep and Hayden the Haystack is now available in the Mochimochi Shop for just $5!

Who doesn’t need a rotund sheep? And Hayden the Haystack can also double as a pincushion. (You know, needle in a haystack? Ha, ha.)

Techniques for this simple pattern include knitting in the round on double-pointed needles, picking up stitches, and mattress stitch.

Buy the pattern as a PDF download here!

As any reader of crafty/design-y blogs knows, there are more gorgeous fabrics available now than ever before. On the other hand, all the yummy selections stocked in fabric stores these days make the not-so-beautiful prints stick out like a crooked hem.

What’s that dry riverbed of smooth stones doing in a craft store?

Oh, look again—it’s actually fabric printed with a stone pattern. Clever!

Suggested use: curtains in a rental cabin in the woods that smells like mildew.

Have a sporty friend who also prides him or herself on being politically correct? I have just the fabric for your next oven mitt gift for him or her.

I guess this print is just a little too… sweaty for me to want to get close to.

And lastly, don’t forget the popular movie tie-in fabric that your kid has been begging for.

Actually, any kid I know would be begging for his parents to burn the creepy new Captain Jack Sparrow blanket and make the nightmares go away.