Abrupt Change of Topic

Obsession

2011-12-16T13:17:00.001-05:00

2 Santa's and some other stuff I'm too overwhelmed to mention (PLANET!)

I think it's fixed now!

2011-12-12T10:33:00.002-05:00

So I had a big birthday this past October and my family threw me a party.

One of the cool gifts I got from Bezzie is this yarn bowl. Very cool!

iPad annoyances

2011-12-05T10:10:00.001-05:00

About a month ago my iPad underwent a complete system upgrade. I synced it, updated it, re-synced it and now everything is in the wrong place, my playlists are messed up, and the photos I have on here aren't what I used to have. I like publishing from the iPad since I always have it with me, but before I can show you what I've been up to the last year I need to clean everything up.

Which may take days because I can't sit for too long.

More fun to come, I promise; until then another kitty photo!

I forgot I still have a blog

2011-12-04T16:25:00.001-05:00

Really I didn't, but there has been a lot of crap going on in my life and so I felt there was no reason to bore you with moaning and groaning about pain about chronic back pain.

We'll start off small and cute: Fanny is a big girl now!

It followed me home. Honest!

2010-06-18T18:33:00.003-04:00

Oh Hai!

Dat lalee been callin me Fanny. Iz dats me?

Oh hey! Cool! A little one!

She did it to me again. Sigh.

So, I think I have a Boy Friend

2010-06-16T14:12:00.002-04:00

Remember this? The guy who lives out of state, who I get along with really well? That relationship has stepped up several notches.

We talk every day and have been for a couple of months now. I either get an e-mail, or we IM, or I get a phone call, or like yesterday, all three. When we do talk, our conversations average about an hour.

But there’s the distance thing. And he doesn’t like cats. And I have a kitten all picked out because they’re ready to be adopted. And he’s a smoker. God! But I guess none of that matters since he’s at the other end of the country, and neither of us is moving any time soon.

He’s invited me down to visit. I’m thinking about taking him up on it.

(I know! I promised photos of knitting and kitties. They're coming.)

Plans Change and Disappointment Ensues

2010-06-04T11:27:00.001-04:00

I’ve been stressing out about a big thing in my life that I’ve been mulling over and “processing” (thinking about obsessively).

I need another surgery on the knee I just had surgery on last summer. It’s been making a horrible crunchy noise for a while now. The doctor was convinced that once all the muscles in my knee were strengthened up again, the new knee cap component would align properly and the crunching would stop.

That didn’t happen.

So the last time I saw my ortho surgeon (a month ago), he said that I needed arthroscopic surgery to clean out the scar tissue and fascia that has built up and is catching under the knee cap. (Oh and Yes! It’s painful!) He’ll also cut the tendon that holds the knee cap in place, because my tendon didn’t tighten up like it should have (and does in every other human who has this surgery!) BUT, while he’s in there looking around, and when he cuts the tendon, he may decide that the patella implant needs to be moved because the cutting of the tendon won’t help on its own. That means he’ll cut the knee open again, and put in a new knee cap component.

The crappiest part about all this is that I don’t get a real vacation again this year. It’s like the 3rd or 4th year in a row that I won’t get to go to NC for the family vacation. But the knee needs to be taken care of.

I’m so bummed out.

I promise knitting content, kittehs and the present I bought myself in the next posts.

I really needed that

2010-06-01T14:13:00.002-04:00

The three day weekend was just what I needed. Although I really wanted to go to CooknKnit’s annual BBQ, I had made other plans. Next year I’ll make sure to keep that day opened.

I spent a good part of Saturday with Jen and her sister who was visiting from England. It was so nice to see her again, and as always I love spending time with Jen. We went to one of the yarn stores we get to every few months. We never fail to walk out with their largest bag full of yarny delights. This time – not so much.

We didn’t buy anything. Jen and I were in shock. Her sister, who is a quilter, not a knitter, did buy one skein of yarn for couching. It came in this very cute little bag. A bag neither of us had ever seen. Jen and I were in shock.

The biggest problem was that the yarn selection was either very drab or kind of off the wall. It seems like if you are looking for something other than basic Rowan or Sublime, forget it. They do have other yarn lines, but the colors are all kind of baby colors, or bright baby colors. I’ve looked at the same yarn the last few times we’ve been there.

Very disappointing.

So we didn’t buy any yarn. I’m still in shock.

Sunday, because of the lack of yarn purchasing, I was kind of going through withdrawal, so I texted Shannon to see if she was working and if not would she meet me at the LYS in Basking Ridge. After a bit of planning, we ended up in Princeton at the yarn shop there. Shannon bought yarn for a cardigan and I bought… nothing. Again. Nothing was calling out to me. They do have a nice selection of yarn, but nothing needed to come home with me. I have three patterns for shells I want to make and I don’t have yarn for any of them. It’s crazy.

I did have a great time with Shannon. The day was perfect to window shop, grab a bite to eat, and sit and knit. We definitely have to do that again.

Monday was hang around the house day. I didn’t get my usual chores done on Saturday, so by default they had to be done on Monday. That’s OK. It felt good to putter around the house.

All in all a stellar weekend. Except for the no yarn parts.

(Oh, and I did make a purchase. A “YOU LOST 75LBS!” present to myself but that’s for another post.)

It's official!!!

2010-05-28T10:01:00.002-04:00

And FINALLY

I've lost 75 lbs!

It took forever to get 6 lbs off this body to get there. Forever = a little over 2 months. Although I have been losing inches all that time, the scale didn't reflect the lost inches. It was very frustrating.

But I'm there. Finally! I'm in the home stretch.

When I reach my goal I'm getting myself an iPad!

Yeah, I'm having one of those days

2010-05-24T12:30:00.002-04:00

Did you ever have an e-mail conversation with someone about a work topic and you're sure they just aren't reading what you're saying and that they aren't going to give an inch on what they are doing instead of compromising?

So instead of having a tool I used a lot, someone else decided no one used it and took it over for their own purposes.

That put me in my place I guess huh?

MD S&W

2010-05-15T09:07:00.004-04:00

You've all seen the photos and recaps around the blog-o-verse, so I won't bother posting my recap here, except to show you this...

Kilt or man in a skirt? I think man in a skirt. There are plenty of guys in kilts at these fests, but the pockets make this just a skirt. And a CARGO pocket?

Comment with your thoughts.

And so…

2010-04-23T08:39:00.003-04:00

… what’s happening with EC2.0?

I asked him out. He told me he is still legally married but has been separated for 7 years. He owns his own house and all. But there have been several attempts at reconciliation to no avail, but they're going through another one again. He hasn’t gone through with the final step of the divorce because his wife is “very fragile”. Then he said “but otherwise, yeah”.

Yeah, I don’t know what that means either. Gah!

So for a couple weeks we’ve kept up the flirting and all that crap. I thought about his still being married and decided that things would just have to continue the way they have been. Not a good situation for me to get into.

I'm really good at attracting unavaliable and uninterested (dude from on-line dating) men aren't I?

*sigh*

What’s Happening…

2010-04-21T08:44:00.000-04:00

… with getting a new kitten? (thanks to Kim for commenting)

Well, they’re still too little to take away from their momma. EC2.0 showed them to me last week and they still have their eyes closed. But – CUTE! There are three of them and they’re black and white spotted. CUTE CUTE CUTE! I told EC2.0 that if it was at all possible I want a male. I decided last night that if I do get a male, he will be named Otto. I’m serious.

This month is kitty well visit month for the furry girls. So I had them at the vet last night and discussed getting a kitten with her. The vet was very supportive of my adopting her and asked if she thought I could catch the Mom and get her spayed. That’s something I’d love to do, but after the $450 visit last night, I don’t know if I can swing it.

Why that much you ask? Well, first there were the 2 distemper shots they needed which are good for 3 years. So that was like $110, for the shots alone. Then their yearly rabies shots, Noel’s butt shave (Kitteh Brazilian!) and Katie got blood taken for blood work.

It seems that now Katie is a senior aged pet. Here I was thinking she was 6 years old. I adopted her from the vet’s office and I was under the impression she was 2 when I got her. Apparently, she was 4 when I got her because she was born in 2002. Anyway, she needs some dental work done. Poor little thing has a genetic condition where her gums grow up and over a tooth. So they need to remove the tooth. They gave me an estimate for that and I nearly passed out. I’ll be saving up for that.

Oh, and Noel gained 1.5 pounds this past year, bringing her up to just over 18 lbs. I have to start her on a diet and feed her separately from Katie. Technically, I am not allowed to lift her since I can’t lift anything over 10lbs since the knee surgery. LOL! Katie gained a whole .2 of a pound.

All this blather to say that the girls are healthy and have their shots up to date so a new kitten coming in with worms and fleas won’t affect them too much until the parasites are gone. Especially if I keep them apart till the vet gives the OK.

I heart Cherie Priest

2010-04-20T09:10:00.002-04:00

Go here:

Here

Laugh and commiserate.

Nogo Mojo

2010-04-14T11:28:00.001-04:00

I’ve been “un-creative”. Or maybe “un-creating” is the right phrase. I’ve ripped out one sweater that was partially finished. There are three more that I need to rip. I have scads of first socks that are in various stages of completion, and those need to be ripped too. Shawls, the same thing. I’m reclaiming a lot of yarn and I have no desire to knit anything with it.

A few years ago I was making and selling beaded jewelry. I participated in a few craft fairs and didn’t sell all that much. I didn’t even recoup the cost of entry. My jewelry was pretty, but the organizers didn’t realize they had several people selling beaded jewelry at all the events I was at. Anyway, I’ve been taking apart all the jewelry I made and reclaiming those supplies too.

Could this be a way of clearing the decks for something that’s coming? Is there a big ass project/event coming my way that I need to be mentally unfettered for? Should I worry about being so un-creative? I’m not even working on anything I had been working on. It’s pathetic.

Or maybe I’m preparing for a change in needle art again. I have a bunch of needlepoint canvases that’ve been calling to me. I wonder if that’s the next thing for me, for a little while anyway.

An open letter to a man we’ll just call Bob

2010-04-12T14:16:00.001-04:00

Dear Bob,
I’m so glad we’ve found each other after all these years. I’m really enjoying catching up via e-mail. The book club for 2 that we have going on is a lot of fun, and I’m enjoying the books too. All the intriguing things you’re learning about and sharing with me (even tho I don’t want to know about things like HAARP) keep me on my toes. I kinda even like you’re a bit of a conspiracy theorist.

The problem is, I have a crush on you again. Yeah, a woman my age with a crush. And you’re single, never been married like me. And we’re both a bit broken which well, I think it works. So I figure I’ll ask; will you be my on-line boyfriend? It’s kind of the only relationship we can have with you being in another state and all. We can still see other people (LMAO!), but I just want to know that there is someone out there who wants to be mine, and vice versa. Do you?

Internet SWAK,
Me

Oh Noze!!!!!

2010-04-09T09:39:00.002-04:00

Momma bought a new camera!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best Mascara EVER!!!

2010-04-05T09:27:00.002-04:00

As someone who is plagued by raccoon eyes, I couldn’t be happier with this stuff. LOVE IT!

Smoky Lash by Make Up Forever. Their liner is great too.

The Other Women

2010-04-02T10:43:00.003-04:00

These are two of the other chicks that hang out at Big Oil Company. The site is full of feral cats. Most of them females and only the one male (it’s the way of feral cats). In the ultimate wisdom of the BOC powers that be, they’re going to start putting out rat poison this spring. Now there are very few rats around because of the cats. So when the remaining rats eat the poison and the cats eat the rats… You know where this is going right?

The guy who works at BOC that is a cat lover and flirts with me all the time (herein known as EC2.0), is working on getting the girl on the left comfortable enough with him so he can adopt her. The guys have named her “Rocket Socks”. How awful a name is that? Good Greif! Anyway, she follows him around, and hangs out in his office in the construction trailer. Soon she’ll be living in his cozy house with the resident big fat cat. Lucky little one.

The other girl, and I forget what they call her (but it is equally as awful), would probably be a prime candidate for adoption, except for that she is obviously pregnant. This is not something I need to know on top of the whole rat poison thing. And there is another female around who they think just had kittens. Gah!

Before I knew it I said “That’s what I want, a kitten.”

“If I find where she had them, and I can get one, do you want it?” EC2.0 asked.

“Yeah.” It was out before I thought about it.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have too soft a heart when it comes to animals. Too tender hearted. I know I can’t save them all, but I can do what I can.

Right?

OMG! A kitten.

COOOOFFFFFEEEEEEE

2010-04-01T14:48:00.000-04:00

I need my coffee in the morning. On the days I work at project sites, I stop and get an extra large cuppa at Dunkin Donuts. Coffee at the sites is weak at best, so it’s wise for me to stop and get a decent up of coffee before I get there.

When I work in my main office I drink the swill they call coffee because I won’t make a pot of coffee before I leave in the morning. Besides I can’t find any coffee that I’m thrilled with. I just don’t make a consistently good pot of coffee.

So yesterday, when I was up in the middle of the night, I ordered this:

I’ve used the Keurig coffee maker before. We had one on a trial basis at the main office and then there is one at BOC, but there are never any K-cups. Besides, it’s really for the client and don’t want to use it when there is coffee for it.

Well, now I have my own and I can have my coffee before I go to work, and on the weekends I can have a consistently good cuppa. I’m so excited I can’t wait for it to be delivered!

Anita Blake – Vampire Hunter

2010-03-30T07:54:00.000-04:00

I’ve been reading this series of books, and am on book 5. I’m not too sure about the series, it’s OK and all, but I don’t know if I like them. I mean I’m into book 5, and they’re holding my attention, but I just don’t think I like any of the characters. They’re all so staunch in their beliefs and uncompromising. The only one who has any appeal for me is Jean-Claude, and he’s evil. I mean, come on Anita, screw his brains out and move on. None of this “he is a monster and I can’t be with him. I just want a regular guy” crap. In your line of work that ain’t gonna happen. Bang the vamps brains out and move on!

I thought the books would have been much more interesting if she became Jean-Claude’s human servant and was still a vampire hunter and zombie raiser.
And where is all the damn sex in these books. When do we get to the sex? I was promised literary sex (Did you know there is a band called “We Were Promised Jet Packs”? Well we were! But I digress).

I’m going back to Stephen King’s Gunslinger series for a while. Not that there’s sex in these books but I need to re-read and move on to some of the additional novels that I haven’t read yet.

Is three a crowd?

2010-03-26T09:54:00.001-04:00

I’ve been playing with the idea of getting another cat. This time, a kitten. I think Noel needs a baby of her own to play with and groom and generally be a momma to. She tries to do that to Katie, but my little Katie-Buttons is having none of it.

Fights ensue and Katie usually gets the worst of it. She’s been poked in the eye, scratched in the ear and God knows what all. I’ve heard the wail of pissed-offed-ness and seen Noel come racing into the living room with Katie fur in her mouth. Not cool.

So that is definitely the solution for Noel. Get her a cat of her own. But I’m a little worried about Katie. I wonder if this will put her right off the deep end. I mean, I already wrecked her life by adopting Noel, what if a third cat puts her right over the edge?

The girls have their “well visits” this month so I think I’ll ask the vet about a third cat. I wonder how much supervision they’re gonna need if I do get a third cat.

Is that one step closer to crazy cat lady?

Casting On…

2010-03-25T08:55:00.007-04:00

Or rather, looping up that chain!

This is the first sweater I’ve attempted to crochet. Crochet has been for blankets and scarves mostly in my yarny repertoire.

But this sweater jumped off the pages of Interweave Crochet and made me have to make it. I started it this 2 weekends ago and I love the shell pattern. I’m making it with Blue Sky Alpaca & Silk in pretty much the same color.

Picture courtsey of Interweave Crochet

The color is TDF, but the damn stuff is staining my fingers. It’s going to need a lot of washing and rinsing to make sure it won’t stain whatever I decide to wear under it. Probably a shell or cami for work, or a T-shirt or tank for casual.

Momma I help holds the string, k?

This is how far I’ve got so far on the back. If Katie would stop having to be a cuddle Button, maybe I’d be further along. She was another hindrance to completing my olympic sweater for the gold medal!

Shopping

2010-03-24T09:50:00.001-04:00

I’ve never been one for shopping. Well, maybe that isn’t exactly true. I do shop and boy can I shop. When it comes to clothes, I always went to the same big girl’s store and just picked out what I knew would fit; what shapes looked best on me. I never tried on and if it didn’t fit the way I thought it would, I’d return it.

Now, it’s a different ball game. I needed a dress for a wedding. Having no idea what size I am now, I thought it would be a good idea to just go to the big girl’s store and get the smallest size dress and hoped it worked.

But a few weeks ago I was hanging out with people from my HS, and one of the girls from my class was saying that she needed single friends because she is recently widowed. I said I needed single friends too. So I told her about this wedding and that I needed a dress. We made plans to go dress shopping.

Man, can that woman shop! I have never shopped like that in my life. I tried on every dress that even remotely interested me. Even if I thought “meh” it went into the try it on pile. And there was a pile.

I ended up with one of the “meh” dresses. It looked kinda crappy on the hanger but OH MY it looked really great on me. It’s just a fancied up black strappy dress. I have a bolero sweater to wear over it, which has pearls stitched onto it around the hem and neckline and down the front. Pretty.

What amazed me was that I was fitting into dresses that were 5 sizes down from what I was before I started losing weight. In a few more pounds that size will fit me perfectly. I did get the size that is 4 down from what I was. That’s a major accomplishment.

I found a dress!!! Woo!

Olympic Sweater - do I get a bronze medal?

2010-03-23T17:46:00.004-04:00

I participated in the Knitting Olympics, and I didn’t finish until the first week of March. I wanted to make a sweater that fit me properly, and I did accomplish it.

I had a couple of sweaters in mind, and since I was on Team Briar Rose, I needed to use that yarn, which was a joy because the stuff is beyond yummy. When I swatched with the two different Briar Rose yarns I had, I could have made the sweaters, but with size 2 needles. Can you even imagine? Size 2???? Both of them! Egads!

So I hit the books. Wendy Barnard’s Custom Knits (aka No Pants for You! to me and Bezzie) was my savior. There were a couple of sweaters in that book I thought would work well, but the one that called to me was the Slinky Rib sweater. I got gauge and when the opening ceremonies started, I cast on.

The construction was interesting, and the short row sleeve gave me some trouble, but seriously, I loved knitting it. I’m thrilled with it and I think it’s beautiful, but I think it may be a tad too short. I may make this sweater a little longer, rip out the bottom hem, take out the cast off and knit a couple more inched on it. I think I’ll be happier if it covers my lower belly a little more.

Now I just have to rip out all the other sweaters I have in progress and start them over, or find other things to make with the yarn. ;-)

“It’s a MAJOR AWARD!”

2010-03-22T09:49:00.004-04:00

A few weeks back I received a package from our office in North Carolina. Now we have three major US offices, one in CA, TX, and NC. It was kind of odd that I’d be getting a package from there and what the heck were they sending me?

Well, unbeknownst to me, I completed an “Administrative Challenge” last year. Maybe I was the only one.

The funny thing about it is that I never heard of this challenge. I wasn’t aware I was completing anything for it and I certainly didn’t expect any sort of award. Heh!

I ordered a frame and have it on my desk. I laugh every time I look at it.

Old Meme I thought would be fun to resurrect

2010-03-21T10:43:00.002-04:00

List the first 10 songs that come up on your MP3 Player when you have it on shuffle:

Wives and Lovers – Jack Jones
Simple Kind of Life – No Doubt
You are My Kind – Santana w/Dave Matthews
Girl from Impanema – Laurindo Almeida
Put Your Lights On – Santana w/Everlast
For All The Cows – Foo Fighters
Violin Concerto #5 in A “Turkish” Movement #2 – Mozart
Then The Morning Comes – Smash Mouth
Don’t Speak – No Doubt
Crushcrushcrush – Paramore

This says more about me than any blog post I could come up with! LMAO!

Play along if you want to and leave a comment so I can check out your play list.

Happy Spring!

The dating pool – Part 2

2010-03-20T14:43:00.002-04:00

So there’s this guy who works at the off sight field office I work at two times a week. He is not at all my type, but really cute. I’ve noticed that the skinnier I’ve got, the more attention he’s been paying me.

Which I guess in some ways it’s kind of superficial of him, but really, I wasn’t anyone you’d look at seriously 70 lbs ago except to note that I was a big girl. But he’s always been nice to me. And the fact that he’s giving me a little more attention just confirms and reaffirms that losing the weight was/is the right thing to do. It also keeps me motivated, kind of like working out next to a cute guy at the gym. It keeps me on the equipment longer. ;-)

Anyway, the company he works for is a contractor for Big Oil Company like my company is. So we don’t work for the same company, but we answer to BOC. We’ve spent time chatting, and since he is a cat lover, he’s shared a picture of his cat with me. He actually printed one out and gave it to me. LOL! I couldn’t throw it out. Who can throw out a picture of someone you know’s fur baby? Really. Not to mention that he is prone to putting things on his cat and taking pictures. Like the other photo he showed me of a very pissed off cat in a birthday hat. How can I NOT be attracted to this guy?

If there are too many people around, like the client or the 3rd and newest contractor to start working with BOC, he’ll walk by and tap the doorway to my office. Bezzie thinks there is a permanent dent in the doorway now. LOL! So there is interest on his part, I think. I know I’d be open to a drink, or whatever. But I have no idea how to get the dude to ask me out.

Yeah, I know. This is the 20th century and I shouldn’t be a chicken shit and I should ask HIM out. But, well, I’m an old school, disco era, chicken shit chick and I’d need 37 Xanax to just get up the nerve to think about walking up to ask him out. Isn’t there a way to kick the flirty-ness up a notch or something?

As a reward for reading this dribble… Gratuitous kitty photo!

She thinks it’s hers but it’s really MY bed.

The Dating Pool – Part 1

2010-03-19T08:53:00.001-04:00

Now that I’ve lost so much weight I feel much more positive about myself and more self confident. Since I’ve been working so hard on me, and all that implies (mental and physical), I thought I’d give on-line dating another try. This time, I tried eHarmony. Maybe that was a mistake, I don’t know.

There is only ONE guy who has answered my request to communicate. There are like 30 others that haven’t had the decency to reply or even “close” communication. Whatever. It seems like a lot of money to spend per month to not reply to someone. I’ve tried both the suggested way of communicating and going right to e-mail, and nothing.

Except for the one guy. We went through the whole eHarmony process and then went to e-mail and then he asked if he could call me. He is the most polite, gentlemanly guy I’ve come across. He texts me to ask if it is a good time to call. He was on vacation with his family the last 10 days and he texted three times and called me once. Nice. Not pushy, but at least he kept in contact and I know he’s still interested. He asked if I’d like to go out with him when he gets back, so we’re going to meet this Sunday for lunch.

I’m hoping it’ll be much better than the last date I went on!

Physical Torture

2010-03-18T12:58:00.000-04:00

Yeah, that’s what they call it at my therapy place. I know they’re there to make me feel better, to help me with what is aching and paining me, but I secretly think they enjoy making you hurt.

My evaluation appointment was actually kind of fun when I first got there. There were so many people who were so glad to see me, hugs and compliments on my weight loss, chatting to catch up, it was great. The therapist I had for my knee is the one I’m going to (along with another guy when she wasn’t available) for the hip.

So she poked into my hip/groin area. She made me go through all these range of motion things for my hip and my back because the problem may have been coming from my back, which it isn’t.

Then when she had the problem diagnosed, she asked if she could do some stretching to see if she could get it to stop clunking every time I take a step. Right up front I need you to know that it worked and didn’t start clunking again till after I got home from dinner last night (around 8:30).

What she did was STRAP HERSELF to my bent leg with a big long seat belt. I was laying on the treatment table and she stood next to my bent knee, put a folded up pillow in my, ahh, crotch, and buckled in. Then she started rotating my leg/hip, which takes a lot because I’m really flexible and so she really has to work at getting some sort of stretch in there.

I’m in pain today. Mission accomplished.

And I have another appointment tonight after work.

With the guy.

Not embarrassing at all.

New Toy, oy, oy!

2010-03-18T12:40:00.002-04:00

Yes, it is lavender!

It was time to upgrade. I am a spoiled girl. I really am!

Diagnosis...

2010-03-17T16:51:00.003-04:00

I have an injury to my hip flexor. Whatever that is. I have to go to the store and get a soccer ball or something of that ilk for use with my home exercises. At least it's fixable!

2 posts in one day. It's like a St. Patty's Miracle!

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!!!!!

2010-03-17T08:39:00.003-04:00

Check it out! 2 posts in ONE WEEK!

Hippy Hippy... Aw Hell.

2010-03-15T18:09:00.003-04:00

One of the resolutions I made was to post more frequently here on the ole blog. Here it is, March and I haven’t posted one damn thing. I also resolved to have my taxes done by the end of February, and they still have to be taken care of.

We’ll see how long I can keep this going. You may get some old news since I don’t have too much new going on. And my weight loss can’t be too exciting to anyone but me, my family, and dear friends. I don’t want this to become a weight loss blog.

I’ve lost just under 70lbs now. I’ve been going to the gym. If you know me at all, that’s shocking in and of itself. Here is another shocker… I have a gym injury.

I did something to my hip. I think I was using my hip instead of my thigh muscle to do leg presses. Now it clicks when I walk. Like I needed any more problems. Sheesh. I went to the doctor and we tried the rest and anti-inflammatory medication route, which didn’t work after the prescribed time. So I’m starting Physical Therapy on Wednesday. I’m praying there isn’t something seriously wrong with the damn thing.

To rip or not to rip...

2009-12-20T09:13:00.003-05:00

Hey! Hi! Hello!

I need your opinion... Should I rip this sweater out and start over from scratch?

This is how it fit a year ago.

Man I look like crap. How tired am I?

This is how it fits now. So do I completely rip it out and start over? I'm leaning toward yes.

What I did on my Summer Vacation

2009-10-04T21:24:00.004-04:00

OK - not a vacation, but while I was out on medical leave. I think it's important to note what I actually did, besides work on getting my knee back in shape. Besides, I'm proud that I didn't watch as much TV as I could have. No Oprah or Soaps for me. Yeah! So here's the list...

Audio Books:
Friday Night Knitting Club
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Eat, Pray, Love (which was great since it was read by the author)

Books:
Peeps
The Last Days
Knit Two
Water for Elephants*
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and Gone
(which are all the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Sookie short stories compilation comes out Tuesday!)

There are other books between Knit Two and Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, but I can't remember off the top of my head right now.

I did 183 Word Search Puzzles (mostly when I was up in the middle of the night, in pain, and couldn't concentrate on reading)

Watched:
Doubt (OMG! Brilliant movie!)
Coraline
Season 1 of True Blood (You saw that coming right? I've got a big crush on Alexander Skarsgard. Yum)

Finishes:
Girasole
Neon Green Happy Blanket
Cammo Blanket

When you put that together with PT and exercising on the off days, seeing some friends and keeping groceries in the house (when Mom and Dad went home) I guess I kept myself busy and my mind working.

Now it's back to the real world. I could definitely be a kept woman. Know anyone who would like to keep me?

*eta the book I forgot

Woo Hoo!!!

2009-10-02T02:14:00.002-04:00

I hit a mile stone in my weight loss. After hovering at 29.5 pound loss for two weeks, I finally dropped down below the 30 lb mark. Total lost is 32.2 lbs.

I blame physical therapy. As I said to IFT last week, I guess I'm working out now.

On that train of thought, I have 6 more weeks of physical therapy, 3 times a week. I think I'm definitely working out now.

Before Bezzie asks, that's 2 Noels and a 1/3 Katie total weight lost. ;-)

Sorry Shannon

2009-09-30T10:17:00.004-04:00

I'm not to blame. Bezzie is.

We were discussing which knitted item will be the most worn at Rhinebeck this year. Last year it was February Lady. I think IFT and I saw 20 or more of them the first day of the fest.

Anyway, she thought maybe this little number would be high on the list - Ishbel (Ravelry Link). I'd not seen it before and when I went to look at it, well. I had to purchase it and start knitting it right away.

I bought this yarn the first year I went to Rhinebeck. It's Brooks Farm Harmony (Harmony has MINIONS?!?*) Shannon has been trying to swap me for it for a couple of years now and since she wouldn't part with any Wollmeise, we were at an impasse. LOL

I think the lace will look great when I've got it blocked. I'm happy with it and it isn't too much of a PIA to tink back, even tho the yarn is mostly mohair.

*for Bezzie

Oh yes I did!

2009-09-23T08:52:00.003-04:00

The cammo blanket is finished! It took me a couple of days of dedicated work to get it done and I can't be happier with the results.

The afghans are folded and ready to go to the nephews. They are going away for an overnight trip since they have Monday off from school. They've asked me to take care of their dog while they're away, and I'm going to take the opportunity to leave the afghans on their beds while I'm there. This way they'll come home, go to their rooms and have a nice surprise!

The excitement is contagious.

But we like to sleep on clean sheets!

Almost there!

2009-09-17T11:19:00.002-04:00

So close to done on this long term project. All I have to do is finish the boarder on this one. When that's done, I have the Cammo blanket to finish. It's great that we've had a cold snap. Much easier to work on the afghan when I'm not bathed in sweat.

Speaking of borders... I'm almost finished with this little number I've been working on all summer. This is Girasole and I love the way it's come out. I have abo0ut 1/3 of the border to do and then it'll be ready for washing and blocking.

I'm using Lorna's Laces Shephard Sport in Butterscotch for this one. The yarn is so soft and yummy that this shawl will be a favorite of mine for a long time.

The pattern is very easy to follow, and has short repeats so you can easily memorize as you go. I was able to pay attention to the pattern and watch TV or listen to an audio book, so you know it wasn't too complex.

I love it so much I have the yarn for another all ready and waiting. I'd happily knit another pattern by Brooklyn Tweed any time.

But I won't start that one till this one is finished. And the neon green blanket has a border.

Silly Cat

2009-09-09T10:00:00.005-04:00

I think Katie's trying to get under the ottoman.

Lately if she isn't on me she is by my feet. It's going to be hard when I go back to work, for both of us.

Memorial Day through Labor Day

2009-09-07T13:24:00.002-04:00

There is one accomplishment I achieved between the official start and end of the summer.

I've lost 27.5 lbs.

It's really just the tip of the iceberg. I have a lot more to lose, but I'm so proud of my loss so far. I start back on my diet this week.

Long time, no post

2009-09-05T11:53:00.004-04:00

I’ve spent the summer concentrating on one thing; surgery and recovery. You may remember this swollen up knee which kept me from going to MD S&W and all the damage revealed by the MRI. On July 27^th I had a total knee replacement. The surgery went off without a hitch, but there are a few things I learned this summer that I wanted to share.

What I learned:

I have a high pain threshold, and a high pain medication threshold. What would be a high dose for a normal person was enough to just take the edge off my pain. My family and doctor were afraid I was becoming addicted. I was not and I am not.

If absolutely necessary, I can give myself an injection. I had a blood thinner which I had to inject two times a day in my belly. I was so glad when that was over and done with.

My local Health Department told me to put all my sharps in a container, tape it shut, (I had a red sharps container given to me), write “Do not recycle” on it and THROW IT IN THE REGULAR TRASH. Can you believe that????? When I questioned the woman I spoke with, she said that is what they tell all the diabetics that call them from the township, so it would apply to me too. I hung up the phone and cried.

You are never too old to need your mommy.

You can’t count on the people you thought you could.

I wasn’t ready for my mom and dad to leave, but as soon as I could drive myself to physical therapy, they packed up and left.

Nephew #2 will put down a video game to look at an incision. He thought the staples in mine were really cool.

I’d be happy working from home, or not working at all. I don’t want to go back to work in October.

Bezzie thinks my scar is cool. I think it looks too much like something Frankenstein would have. The nephews think it’s “looking really good”.

It's still a little swollen from Physical Therapy, but looking much better than it was in May.

The Date's been set!

2009-06-15T16:10:00.003-04:00

No, not the date for this… the date for this:

July 27th. It happens to be my Dad’s birthday. When I was talking to my brother last night he told me that he closed on his house on the same day. So it’s a date full of happy and good stuff. Perfect day to have knee replacement surgery.

Inquiring Minds Want to Know!

2009-06-04T10:31:00.000-04:00

On the way home from a baseball game last night, the subject of heart attacks came up. One of my nephew’s friend’s dad wasn’t there because his grandmother had a heart attack. So my SIL and I were explaining what a heart attack was. Then because my DN#2 loves Monty Python and the Holy Grail, he asked if she had a fatal heart attack. She didn’t. But…

“What is a fatal heart attack?”

“It means that you died from the heart attack. You can also say fatal car accident, which means someone died in the car accident”

That followed with Fatal poop. Fatal farts. All those things that make boys laugh.

Then DN#1 asks:

“Didn’t Elvis die of a fatal heart attack?” (How do they know who Elvis is at 9 & 11 years old?)

And because it’s funny – we said “Yes, while he was on the toilet.”

You see it coming don’t you?

DN#1 then asked:

“Did he finish?”

Binder Hell

2009-05-11T19:20:00.003-04:00

Guess what I've been doing for the past month. Putting together binders for submission to state and national agencies. Fun Fun Fun! This is a total of 42 out of the 49 binders. I took this photo on Friday and I really should have taken one today. The room is out of control.

The actual report part of these binders is still going through client approval, but once that happens, production starts up again. These all have to be shipped for delivery this Friday.

If I never see another binder again I'll be happy.

Happy Weekend!

2009-05-08T08:41:00.003-04:00

Knitting content

2009-05-06T09:00:00.002-04:00

I know! You’d think there’d be something else I’d want to ~~complain~~ blog about. Well there is this:

This is Liesl by Ysolda Teague. After quite a few false starts, I finally was able to get through the increase section. Then, when I got to the rows with no increases, I had issues counting to 8. Well 4 actually because it is 4 of one thing, then 4 of another. I can’t tell you how many times I had to reverse knit. I still need to weave in the ends and block it to within an inch of it's life, but so far I'm really happy with it.

I’m using Rowan Calmer, which is the second time I’ve used it. I made Soliel with it and it was wonderful to knit with. The only problem with Soliel was that I didn’t listen to my inner body image monitor and make it a little longer than called for. So I’ve only worn it once, and I’m waiting for inspiration to strike to figure out how to lengthen it since it has a lace pattern at the bottom.

I actually see another Liesl in my future. I shrunk a white cotton lace cardi I had for years so I need to replace it. For some reason Cotton Ease is calling my name. Especially since I’ll be making it in white and washing is a necessity. I tend mess up white very easily. Well, every other light color too.

I can't wait to wear it. I'm hoping the weather will be nice this weekend so I can block and leave the windows opened so it will dry well.

NJSASK

2009-05-03T07:56:00.002-04:00

Can you imagine not having a good time with Bezzie? I know I always have fun when in her company.

NJSASK started at this Tea Shop:

Greetings from NJSASK!

We’ve been here a couple of times and they have the most overwhelming menu ever. But so fun to read.

And the shop is literally 2 doors down from Sticks n Stitches. Our NJSASK outing ended there, naturally.

All in all a perfect inaugural NJSASK!

May already?

2009-05-02T11:52:00.002-04:00

This weekend is a big one for us Fiber Artists and Crafters (pick your term). It’s the weekend of the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival. I’ve attended the last 2 years and had a wonderful time meeting up with my peeps who I usually only chat with on the internets. It’s wonderful to get to see them. This year, I delayed the decision to last week. I hemmed and hawed and finally decided that there was no way my knee was going to hold up.

The cards were stacked against us from the beginning. IFT’s hubby is working longer hours because some of the staff at his work were laid off. So he works pretty much 6 days a week. IFT wasn’t able to commit because of his schedule and she wouldn’t have anyone to watch her boys for the day. Jen was on a business trip and wouldn’t be arriving till late Friday night, necessitating an all nighter. Bezzie would have had to bring both her boys, which she was willing to do. But 6 hours or more in a car with 4 ½ month old Moochie, who would be very cranky after a day being lugged around the fairgrounds had her hemming and hawing about going.

Then we discovered that we were both so wishy washy because of each other. Bezzie was going to go if I was going and I was going to go if she was going. It seemed it just wasn’t worth the knee pain and a potentially very cranky baby.

So this is why I'm not going. It isn’t, ya know, gross or anything, but it is VERY swollen and sad looking. I took this photo in the morning. I know. Awful!

I actually took this photo to send to my mom, but I know she would have cried when she saw it. I never want to make my mom cry.

I hope I didn’t make you squirm or anything.

Well Visit

2009-04-04T14:46:00.002-04:00

Today was the first time in a long time that I’ve taken 2 cats to the vet at the same time. This didn’t used to pose a problem when I had one big carrier and would shove both cats into it and off we went. But now… 2 cats, 2 carriers.

Katie was supposed to be an only child. But you know the story of how Noel came to live with us. So I ended up with two single cat carriers. I am not buying a large carrier to shove them both in because they hate each other enough as it is. Can you imagine the brawl in that carrier on the way to the vet? They’d both need the vet for more than a well visit after we got there.

The visit went well. They are up to date on shots and are healthy. Both need to lose weight. Katie looks perfect. Noel, well, she's a chunky.

After all the stress, they crashed out when we got home. Poor little girlies!

I'z fluffy! Not fatzzzzz.

Katie Buttons. Practically perfect in every way. ;-)

Invisible Touch

2009-03-26T12:24:00.003-04:00

I think about the oddest things. One of the things that crosses my mind often is touch. Most recently I’ve been wondering why it’s a recurring theme. Why is it so important to me? I finally figured it out.

I don’t have enough.

And I’m not talking about sex. I am talking about the daily stuff; a hug, a kiss on the cheek, a touch on the arm, holding hands. I realized this when I went to get my second shot in my knee this past Tuesday.

My doctor came into the exam room and shook my hand and then put his hand on my knee, the one he was going to inject and asked how it was feeling since the last shot. I was practically giddy. That little thing, that insignificant touch made me realize that it is lacking in my life.

I do get hugs and kisses from my family. But I don’t see them as often as you’d think with us living only 1.5 miles apart. When it’s been a couple of weeks I get big, running in from the other room, throw themselves at me, nephew hugs. When watching movies or TV with them, we all cuddle on the couch.

The times in-between those visits are long dry spells (for lack of a better phrase). I’m not really sure what to do about it that I’m not already doing. I’m see my friends as often as our schedules permit, but really, other than an occasional hug there is no need to touch your friends that much.

Trolling the internet to meet someone for a possible date and eventual relationship has been turning up with nothing but one, ahh, troll. I write to guys who interest me and they never write back. I do get some incredibly handsome men, all from out of state, with the most beautifully written profiles, who, when they contact you, can barely write in English. Those are obviously fake profiles for some sort of scam.

The past couple of days I’ve been thinking about the last two guys who touched me, in a loving and sweet way. First was last summer when I went out with HS guy. He met me at the door with a big kiss, then held me back, looked into my eyes and pulled me close and hugged me. It was sweet, tender, personal. I felt wanted. It was nice. When he dropped me off, he said he’d definitely be seeing me again and then never bothered to call or write. It’s par for the course for me. I don’t know why I expected more. I should know better.

Second, and I had to go back pretty far for this one, was when I was seeing My Mr. Big. When he would stay over, he always fell asleep with his hand on my hip. One night I woke up and he had his face snuggled up into my hair, forehead touching the back of my head. It was sweet. If I was cold, he’d hold me tight. Don’t get me wrong, he didn’t do right by me. But he is a sweet man and the woman he’s with now is very lucky indeed. And you know, he’s back in touch with me, which is why he got the name My Mr. Big.

I know you’re thinking, what about the “fiancé” (aka Commander Klingon)? There was no cuddling, no hand holding, no touching in a caring manner because then that meant something. He went out of his way for anything he did or say to not mean something. We went to a Giant’s game together, and in the crush of people to get into the stadium, I grabbed his hand so we wouldn’t get separated. I felt him stiffen. It lasted for 15 seconds and then he dropped my hand, and as a “joke” tried to hide from me on the other side of the crowd. Yeah – talk about body language. At least in his twisted little way he was more honest than HS guy or My Mr. Big. I’m no longer in touch with him which is a VERY, VERY good thing.

The faucet I got for my birthday still isn’t installed.

I’m not sure what the answer is. I’ve been thinking about going for a massage, but paying someone to touch you because you’re touch deprived, sounds wrong. Like not quite prostitution but close. I don’t know. Maybe I need to stop thinking so much.

Or maybe take more Xanax or something.

*comments have been turned off as there is no need to reply to my sad, depressing rant.

A few things…

2009-03-20T08:45:00.003-04:00

First an answer:

For Anon who left a comment the other day: Tish is using STR Medium Weight – color is Knitty Rocks.

I need to find that e-mail notification thingy they have ob Blogger now so I can get back to people in a timely manner.

Second:

OMG I am so bored at work it isn’t even funny! If I sat somewhere not in the public eye, I’d be knitting with my back to the door. If only I could be like IFTish. She can be on a string of conference calls and if she doesn’t have to brow beat them into submission, she sometimes sits and knits.

This is how bored I am. More plant pictures.

This tulip plant was given to me on Monday by another friend here in the office who’s last day was today. L If she didn’t find something before the end of the month, then she was going to be laid off. She found something so good for her!

We’re going to be getting a lot of work in the next few weeks. We have a major submission to a state agency which will involve putting together 12 copies of 7 different binders. Yup – 84, 3” binders. That’s going to be a pain in the butt, but at least we’ll be busy then.

Third:
Did I ever show you where I work on Wednesdays when I go to the client site? This picture was taken from Google Earth, so I’m not showing you anything that anyone else can see. They tend to get a little hinkey about taking personal photos there.

I do drive right by a whole bunch of oil tanks to get to the field office. It has got to the point where if I don’t have smell the smell of gas/oil once a week, I feel like there’s something missing.

Fourth:

My Cock-Knee shot was on Tuesday. It was interesting. I thought it would be unbelievably painful since the shot had to go in my knee. But the actual shot felt like I was getting a flu shot or something. Then when the rooster juice was going into my knee I felt pressure. When all was said and done with, it was a little difficult to bend my knee, and when I stood on it Whooo Boy! Stars! OUCH10 . When I got home, I kept it up and iced it, as per instructions, and it still hurts a bit. By the end of the day yesterday it really hurt so I did the ice and elevation thing again. Today it seems to be better.

I have shot #2 next Tuesday. At least I know what to expect.

Maybe tomorrow I’ll actually show you some knitting!

This cracks me up!

2009-03-18T18:03:00.006-04:00

Ad taken from Facebook.

Handsome Professional Men

Seriously? Handsome? The dude only has 1.5 eyebrows? He must have drank too much, passed out and woke up with this look.

I’ve wanted to blog more…

2009-03-16T19:16:00.002-04:00

… but there really isn’t anything all that interesting going on in my life right now. So I thought maybe I’d show you how utterly bored I am at work.

I’ve resorted to taking pictures of my plant. I think it’s cool that my Christmas Cactus is blooming again so close to Easter! Well thanks to Tish anyway. I’m not good with plants.

Christmas 2007, Tish bought both of us Christmas Cacti, in the same cute little pot. So this year hers started to bloom and she switched it with mine. I was away from my desk for half an hour and actually thought for a minute that my plant had all of a sudden sprouted all these buds. See. Bad with plants. Totally clueless. Then it dawned on me that Tish must have switched hers for mine. She switched it again when the one in her office started to bloom a month or so later. Then another switch last week, so this is the third time she’s switched it out.

She doesn’t have me fooled any more. heh

Tomorrow is the first shot for my knee. I’m so excited just to get the process started. I may not feel better till a couple weeks after the last shot, but at least there is an end in sight.

Is There a Target On My Back?

2009-03-12T19:32:00.002-04:00

Or better yet, when did I become a bad employee? All of a sudden I am being reported to HR for not working my assigned hours and given all sorts of crap for trying to arrange time out of the office for appointments for my knee.

Maybe I just don’t get why someone who has been in the work force for 28 years (HOLY HELL!) has to be treated like a teenager at their first job. Next week they’ll start asking me to punch a time clock.

GAH! (as Bezzie would say)

Let’s move onto a much pleasanter topic…

Look! Imaginary Friend Tish is making a sock! It’s her very first sock and it is coming out so pretty!
She is using some Socks that Rock she purchased at Rhinebeck.

In order for me to be able to show her how to turn the heel, pick up the stitches along the heel flap, decrease along the gusset and eventually, do the toe decreases and grafting, I decided the YO Cable sock would be my instructional knit a long sock.

I'm keeping the foot plain for clearer visual instruction. Tish has done a beautiful job. You should see how pretty the gusset looks, the decreases are not lumpy or bumpy or wandering in the wrong direction like my first sock (thank GOD it was felted after I finished).

BTW – does anyone know a good pattern for 700-800 yards of Noro Silk Garden Bulky? I’ve looked through Ravelry and the majority of the projects are hats and bags.

Online dating = blog fodder

2009-03-03T16:42:00.002-05:00

I’ve joined one of the on-line dating sites, one of the bigger ones that you see advertised all over the place. I’ve been a member since January and have had absolutely no luck. I’ve had a lot of guys looking at my profile, but a very few actually contacting me.

I’ve been trying to push myself to scan all the profiles of the guys who fit my criteria, but I have a bunch of hang ups that prevent me from doing that. I figure I’m interested in them, but they would never be interested in me because I’m overweight. Some days I get over it and I’ll write a guy who really stands out. Usually I don’t even get a response. Why do guys do that?

The one time I did actually get a response we chatted on line a bit and then started chatting on the phone. After a few long phone calls we finally arranged to meet for a drink one Saturday evening.

We met at 5:00 at a local chain type restaurant. I should have known that the reason he had a photo sort of far away wasn’t so I could see a full body shot, but because he was much better looking the further away from him you were. Remember that line from Tootsie?

“Can you pull further back?"
“How about Cleveland?”

Anyway, we shook hands outside the restaurant and he asked for a table. He said he was hungry, and I was too so we decided to eat. Neither of us ordered a drink (I probably should have). As we were looking at the menu I tried to make small talk and it was nothing but awkward silence. That should have been another sign.

He did open up after we ordered. He asked me how my week was and I told him about a special ID card I had to apply for so I could continue to work at one of my company's project sites. This site happens to have access to open waterways and frequently has tanker ships pull into their berths. The ID proves that I'm a US citizen and that I haven't jumped off a ship or something, but I digress. My date then went off on a series of tangents; he wondered if the people who work around the Great Lakes would need the same ID and then he eventually started telling me all about the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.

That’s right. The wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. He stayed on this topic for the remainder of our time together. Now just try and get that song out of your head. ;-)

There was a table of women next to us (and behind him) and as they were leaving one of the women caught my eye and she gave me an “oh you poor thing I’m so sorry” look.

We both paid for our meals and then left the restaurant. My knee was hurting and I couldn’t walk as quickly as normal, but even if I did, this guy would still have practically ran from me to his car. I had to yell “It was nice meeting you” at his back. I kid you not. I was so rattled by this that I stood next to a car that looked similar to mine, pushing the unlock on my key fob before I realized that my car was 2 spaces over. I was in my car, on the way home shortly before 6:00. Fastest dinner date ever.

If nothing else, I have a good story for the blog.

Actual knitting content

2009-02-24T09:41:00.003-05:00

Shocking isn’t it?

I have 2 finishes, a WIP, and a start to report. I completed my Eye of Keith Partridge shawl. It still needs to be steam blocked along the top edge, but I’m really happy with it.

I also finished a pair of socks. I’d wanted to try some “Flat Feet” I had in my stash, so I caved in and cast on. I love the way the color translated onto the socks. I finished the toe of the second sock last night.

And I started another pair of socks. A while back I used the Yarn Over Cable pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks and I loved it. So I ripped out a pair of socks I had started with some Smooshy in Butter Peeps and started the new pair. I’m so happy with the result, and the sock is knitting up really fast. I forgot to take a picture because I was getting tax stuff together and making sure I didn’t forget some things I needed to bring into work.

The lunch knitting sock is coming along. At least I’m past the heel and onto the foot.

I think I’m back in the sock swing again, which is a good thing because I have so much sock yarn.

And last but not least, I got a copy of Knitcircus in the mail (thanks to an offer to share an issue with a friend). I think it’s a great magazine, has a lot of interesting articles as well as patterns and a few other goodies. I’m planning on subscribing. You should definitely check it out.

Since I only have 2 knitting photos... Here is a recent picture of my coffee brown cat.

I loves my veemin Deeeeee.

My NFL Career ending injuries ;-)

2009-02-23T11:21:00.002-05:00

I had all good intentions to blog more often this month, but that sure didn’t happen.

So, what’s new with me?

A few weeks back we were expecting a storm, and so my knees were characteristically aching. Usually when that happens, the knees stop hurting when the storm starts. I’m accurate to within 24 hours. It can be really handy.

This time, the right knee didn’t stop hurting. It kept getting worse, to the point where I decided I needed to go to my doctor. He ordered an MRI and I was able to get in that week. 3 days later he called me with the results. It was so bad that when I asked for pain pills he offered up the heavy duty stuff right away. Let’s just say there is a list of things wrong with the knee, including an almost total tear of my ACL, which would end the season for an NFL player. The damage to my knee is so extensive, that if I were an NFL player I'd be done. (Sad that this is how my brain is wired.)

So I went to an Ortho Surgeon last week. The knee is as bad as it seems and the left one isn’t all that much better. We talked about options, what we could do to get the knee feeling and working better. Option 1 is cortisone. I’m not too crazy about that because it isn’t going to last that long (about a month if it works) and I can only get 3 shots a year. So that saves me 3 months till I have to try something else.

Option 2 is something the doctor called “Rooster shots”. My Mom & Dad both had these shots and they worked really well for them. The product their doctor used is called Synvisc, and is made from rooster combs. Somehow it coats the joint and helps to relieve the pain from arthritis. The treatment will last up to 6 months. My mom had relief for 10 – 11 months.

Option 3 is surgical. It would mean a knee replacement. The replacement knees used to last 10 years so they tried to only put them in folks who were older and wouldn’t have to have a second replacement because of wear and tear. But over the years they’re finding that they replacements are lasting longer, as much as 30 years. So it would be an option for me.

Cortisone isn’t really a good option I think. So it buys me a couple more months. I’m still not going to have as good a result as I hope to get with the Synvisc. So that’s what I’m going to do. The doctor ordered the product and they’ll call me to set up my appointments when it comes in. I’ll have to get 1 shot a week for three weeks.

Keep your fingers crossed that this works for me. If it doesn’t, then the only choice I’ll have is surgery. Honestly, deep down, I know the surgery is inevitable.

Serial Project Monogamy

2009-01-30T18:59:00.003-05:00

I never would have thought it was possible! I've been working on the same project for weeks. I took this picture last week when I was almost all the way finished with the third skein of Noro Sock yarn.

I also took this picture so Bezzie could see my Imaginary Friend Tish. See. She isn't a figment of my imagination at all! She. Is. AaaaLIVE!!!!

Another event of note that happened this week... A male co-worker came over to me yesterday and asked "Do you have any yarn with you today?" Notice he was smart enough to know I have yarn with me most days. I said I did and he asked if he could have a bit of it because he wanted to use it to tie a report together. He took about 2 feet of sock yarn and looped it through the 3 hole punches and made little bows on his copy of a report that went out to the client earlier that day.

I think the poor guy lost his marbles. But it was really funny.

And lastly, I have to say something about the latest internet knitting community shit storm...

Faking your death, even on the internet, is just asking for some really awful karma. The End.

Happy Superbowl weekend!

Go Cards!

Kids ask the damndest questions!

2009-01-20T15:42:00.002-05:00

You know how I’ve mentioned that the nephews ask me all the horribly embarrassing questions; the ones that make me think on my feet. Let me hit some of the highlights:

What happened to Bambi’s mommy?

How come Mommy has toys in the back of the van? (This was a couple weeks before Christmas and they still believe in Santa)

What’s a bra?

I have been spared the “How did I get in Mommy’s tummy” question. THANK GOD! My SIL was ready to give me books on how to answer that one. I think they asked my brother instead of me.

This past Friday evening I got to hang out with the nephews. We went to Ruby Tuesdays (even tho it was a Friday and, as DN#2 pointed out, we should have gone to Fridays). When we got back to their house, we watched a DVD. My brother is trying to expose them to more PG-13 type movies. Ones that they’ve told him their friends have seen. So we watched Dodgeball. This was about the 7th or 8th time they’ve watched it.

But they save the gems for me. Friday while watching the movie this came out of DN#1’s mouth…

What’s a hooker?

Yeah.

I came up with a lame answer about girls who spend all their time with guys, and they seemed to buy it.

Nothing new...

2009-01-11T12:15:00.003-05:00

I've been harboring a cold with a nasty cough and although I went to the doctor and got the good meds, it seems to be coming back. Ick!

So - Kitty Pictures!

"Peel me a grape"

"I'm ignoring the grape comment"

2008 Finishes

2008-12-27T12:58:00.003-05:00

Knitted Projects:
Argosy Baby Blanket
Embossed Leaves Socks
21 Hats for Alex
Ankle Socks for Mom
Ribbon Lace Scarf
Briar Rose Charity Afghan – 4 squares
Mr. Greenjeans
3 Everlasting Bagstopper
Baby’s First Tattoo
Mobius Wrap
Basic Ribbed Socks
Noro Striped Scarf

CrochetProjects:
Shawl out of Kiparoo Farm Sagamore yarn
Pineapple Scarf – Crochet
Chrysanthemum Tea Shawl
Peppermint Wrapper Baby Blanket

I'll update you on my WIPs which are completely embarrassing, but they need to be completed at some point. Urge me on will ya?

A Christmas of Firsts

2008-12-26T10:22:00.002-05:00

Christmas was wonderful. I got to do several things that I'd never done before, which all revolve around my SIL's brother and SIL (who I'll call George & Jane). They live in CA and so we only see them a couple times a year.

I got to pet zebra skin. George & Jane went to Africa and they brought back some really cool gifts for the nephews. They got small hand crafted drums, made of zebra skin. Very cool.

I got to participate in the lighting of the menorah last night. Jane is Jewish, so we celebrated both holidays yesterday. It's funny, but growing up in a town that was mostly Jewish, I don't ever remember participating in that celebration with any of my friends.

Coolest of all... I got to see the personal video Christmas card of a very famous rock star. George and Jane, as I mentioned, live in CA. They live outside LA, and in a pretty upscale neighborhood. Nancy O'Dell (from Inside Hollywood or Entertainment Tonight, I'm not sure which) used to be right next door till she moved a few months ago. Anyway, this particular rock star and his family live 3 doors down. So yesterday when George opened his e-mail there was this Christmas greeting from their neighbors. It was so sweet. It was nice to see the private side of someone who's in the spotlight.

So that was my Christmas. How was yours?

2008-12-24T12:52:00.001-05:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS

from

My personal solution to the economic crisis

2008-12-22T15:11:00.000-05:00

My dad keeps asking me if I have any money in savings for a rainy day. I do, but not as much as I should. So I decided that I needed to find some places where I can cut back and save. Here is my plan for the New Year…

Knit from my stash. I have plenty of yarn. More than I can use up in a year. I have at least 4 sweaters worth of yarn, an embarrassing amount of sock yarn, and enough for 2 afghans. It’s all beautiful stuff and there is no reason for me not to use it. So I will not be buying any yarn this year.

There are two exceptions to this; MD Sheep & Wool and Rhinebeck. I will be saving some cash toward those two events out of each paycheck, and part of my tax refund.

Get rid of my P.O. Box. It’s up at the end of the year and I really don’t want to pay for it. I have an unreliable postal carrier which is why I rented the P.O. Box in the first place. It’s been 3 years now and I think it’s time to stop paying for what everyone else gets for free and hope the postal carrier has become more reliable (or there is a new person on the route).

Cancel my account with Audible. I love the service, but there is a perfectly wonderful library in town with a vast selection of audio books that can easily be ripped to my IPod.

Stop buying books (with the exception of Knitting Books and they have to be really special). There is a perfectly wonderful library yadda, yadda, yadda. Not to mention the stacks of unread books I have at home.

Cancel all the pay stations I have on my TV. Sure, I watch movies on the major pay channels, but I have a feeling that if I joined Netflix it would be a heck of a lot less than what I’m paying for all the channels I’m not watching. So my subscription is going to change with the cable company.

I’m going to try and use up everything I have in my house too. I have so many soaps and body washes and lotions and stuff that I had to try. I’m not the only one with this problem am I?

Then there are the impulse purchases. No more. What I think I’m going to do is carry a small notebook with me and write down the item and the cost and then see how much I would have spent that didn’t need to be spent. I’m sure it will be eye opening.

I’m planning on a new expenditure though. The cost will be more than covered by all the money I’m “freeing up” this coming year. I am joining the YMCA so I can swim 3 times a week. They have a special in January where they waive the “new joiner’s fee”. The monthly cost gives me access to 3 area Ys, classes, fitness equipment and 3 pools. I think it’s not such a bad deal, especially since I want to swim. I need to get into better shape than I am and swimming will be the easiest on my joints.

So, when you add it all up I’ll be saving a nice chunk of change.

So Thrilled!

2008-12-19T10:26:00.004-05:00

Look here!

I suppose now you know who's the lucky December baby I knit the blanket for...

Noro Ho (ro)

2008-12-08T18:45:00.003-05:00

Lately all I want to do it knit things with Noro. I picked the sock I started up so I could finish it and I got all enthralled with the colors. Then I was shopping with Jen at one of our LYSs because our birthdays are a week apart so we go there and spend our birthday 20% together. Before I went I was looking through books and the internet (and Ravelry) trying to see what I'd like to knit.

I decided I wanted to knit 2 things... One was a simple lace weight stockinette scarf, like Amy Singer is making.

Now it’s not like I don’t have any laceweight yarn at home. I have plenty (like the camel and silk blend I got at Rhinebeck in 2007 or the 100% silk Tess I got at MD S&W). But this 100% alpaca just did me in. I had to have it. HAD TO. The yardage is fabulous and the cost (less the 20%) was right so it just jumped into my hands and I had to buy it. I haven’t started it yet because I can’t put my hands on my US 1 circular needles. I guess I need to do a little cleaning up of the yarn and WIPs this weekend.

So back to the Noro.

The other was an Eye of Partridge shawl (Original here and one in progress here).

Originally I wanted to make the shawl out of Silk Garden, which I thought would be fantastic with the color runs. But they didn’t have such a great selection. The colors they had in stock didn’t captivate me at all.

So I wandered around, looking at all my other options and found the sock yarn. They had a ton of the Kureyon Sock in some really fun colors so I ended up with this. How beautiful is this yarn? I love doing the shawl because it’s fairly mindless but has beautiful results.

I have 2 skeins which I hope will make the shawl long enough so it won’t point at my butt when it’s finally done.

I also finally had an opportunity to peruse some of the knit blogs I’ve not been able to read for a while. I got to the Yarn Harlot’s blog and saw what she’d been obsessed with and clicked on links and went to Ravelry and DAMN IT! I had to knit one! HAD TO!

I resisted. I really did. But I found myself pulling into one of my LYSs and purchasing two skeins of two different colorways. I started and kept going and going till I had to make myself stop and finish the Peppermint Baby Blanket:

Then I went back to the Noro and finished the scarf.

I’ve been working on the sock at lunch.

It’s almost all Noro all the time at my place. I’m addicted. Crap!

Out of the mouths of 10 year olds...

2008-12-01T14:59:00.002-05:00

It was cold here on Thanksgiving, so I wore some of my knitwear, specifically my steeked vest. My nephew #1 and I were cuddling on the couch Thanksgiving afternoon and watchin Journey to the Center of the Earth. He picked his head up from my shoulder and asked:

"Aunt Chrissy? Did you make this?" (scroll down)

"Yes I did"

"WOW!"

It's nice to know my nephews are being raised with a healthy respect for hand made things.

Fun Fact!

2008-11-24T16:28:00.001-05:00

My car smells like Urinal Cakes.

Seriously.

Projects with fiber?

2008-11-14T09:08:00.002-05:00

Yeah – there have been a bunch of projects. I actually finally finished a pair of socks. Remember when I used to finish a pair of socks all at once? I really got off the sock kick. The Noro threw me for a loop last December and I only finished ONE pair of socks this year. Until this past week. I finished the Red Heart socks.

The dye job was a little splotchy but I’d use it again; if I didn’t have enough sock yarn at home to make 3000 pair of socks. In which case I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn’t have a ton of sock yarn at home.

A new blankie project! It’s for a baby that’s due in December. I think it’s the perfect choice for a crocheted blanket. CUTE!! It also means I have to busta move on this. I have 6 repeats done of 40. 34 more to go!

Funny how the last new baby I knit for was born in January and this one is practically one year later. That’s a quite a time lag between baby blankets.

The big boy blankets continue to be ignored. I was hoping to have them done by Thanksgiving. That’s not going to happen with the peppermint baby blanket needing to be done in a few weeks. I really need to devote my time to them. The boys will be so bummed if they don’t have them at least by the end of January (which is when they guessed I’d have them finished). I want to have them done this year.

There are so many things I want to start. I have quite a few pair of socks waiting in the wings. I won’t allow myself to start them until I finish the second sock with the Noro yarn. I bought some pretty yarn from The Fold/Blue Moon at Rhinebeck that I want to make a pair of fingerless gloves with. Or maybe another pair of Mrs. Beetons. I love that pattern and they would pretty up my denim jacket.

I also want to start a laceweight project like Amy(Knitty) did a few months ago. I got this beautiful alpaca lace yarn for 20% off and I’ve been itching to cast it on. I also want to make Wisp, which I saw on Ravelry made out of Noro sock yarn. I have the Silk Garden sock (which is SO much softer than the Kuyron sock) and the color runs are perfect for Wisp.

There are some shawl ideas running around my brain also. I need to get them down on paper and see if they’re viable or not. Which means I need to see if I can actually create a pattern that looks as good in reality as it does in my brain.

It’s surprisingly hard to do.

(Sorry for the lack of links. I'll do that later when I can take more than 1 minute to post on the sly)

I do? Redux

2008-11-11T12:20:00.006-05:00

Back at the beginning of the college football season, Cmdr K made a bet with me. So imagine my surprise when he asked me last week if I wanted to go to the RU game. The one this past Saturday. Rutgers vs Syracuse.

The game Rutgers won 35-17, making their record 4-5.

They’ve won 4 games.

I won the bet.

Cmdr K is freaking out. He was so happy in the first quarter when Syracuse was winning 14-0. Rutgers had it all tied up by half time. Here we are at the game, when Rutgers tied up the game. Ignore how lousy I look (it was raining and crappy and we were soaked to the skin. I had my hair tucked up into the hat, which didn't work).

He asked me if I wanted to go double or nothing, that Rutgers won’t have 5 wins. How can I marry him twice? Heh

OK, seriously now, there is NO WAY I will marry him. He is too scatter-brained. He is always looking for someone else to date, which is insulting, but it sure lets me know where he stands. He gets mad at me for the dumbest reasons. He is a 52 year old man who has yet to grow up. He is not a great catch.

I think the joke has gone on long enough. I have to tell him that I’m never going to collect on the bet. I settled before and I know how stupid that is. I’d rather be alone than settle.

He’ll be so relieved.

Look What I Got!

2008-11-07T18:50:00.003-05:00

My birthday was last week and I was treated to some really wonderful presents. Firstly, I was lucky enough to actually have it snow on my birthday. I don’t think it’s ever snowed so early here in NJ. Naturally Bezzie said if there wasn’t snow on the ground by Halloween when she was a kid, it was unusual. I’d expect so in Alaska – sheesh!

I totally stole this picture of the snow from Shannonknits (on Plurk) or Midnight 2 Sticks (on Ravelry). She lives about 15 – 20 miles from me, and I know we both got hit pretty good with the storm.

I now work one day a week at one of our project sites, which is where I was on my birthday. It didn’t snow there, but it did rain buckets and we had thunder and lightening. By the time I got home all the snow was gone so I never got a picture of it. It was worth commemorating I thought.

Onto the present I got from Cmdr K. I don’t’ know if I mentioned, but he is a neat freak and really handy with the DIY stuff around the house. He’s done some minor repairs for me which has been awesome. Oh, and he’s a really good cook. A couple of months ago, he was cooking me dinner and he was amazed at the low water pressure coming out of the kitchen faucet. He went to get my tool box and he took the whole thing apart and determined that it was the actual arm of the unit where the water comes out.

Yes – that’s the technical term.

I have one of those faucets that incorporates the sprayer into the arm unit thingy and Cmdr K decided the arm unit thingy had gunk (another technical term) in it and that’s why the pressure was low.

You know where this is going don’t you?

So here it is, my birthday present from my non-BF:

It still isn’t installed but hopefully it will be soon.

When I got back into the office on Wednesday after my birthday, I discovered the BEST PRESENT EVER was waiting for me. As you know from my previous posts I work for small, petty people. Not a week goes by that there isn’t some dig at me and my work. Anyway, the other admin who I don’t report to came over to my cube to wish me a happy birthday and asked me (in a very hush-hush voice) if I had heard the news. No I hadn’t.

My Boss gave his two + weeks notice. As if that wasn’t enough, the admin I report to decided to retire. She'll still be around for a couple of months or so, working through a temp agency so she can train the person who is replacing her. I believe one of those days is the day I spend at the offsite office. I'll only have to deal with her for one day a week! I'm so happy!

I told my Mom that I got the BEST PRESENT EVER and she said:

"You mean besides the faucet?"

Heh.

I Voted!

2008-11-04T13:48:00.003-05:00

Did you?

It was a hard decision but I decided the best thing to do was to vote for the First Lady. Which one of the two women would I want representing our country?

Heh

Not really, but it almost came down to that.

Remember me?

2008-10-11T08:15:00.006-04:00

I know I've not posted for longer than this last time, but it feels like I've been away longer than usual. I was without internet for what felt like forever. Not because of the chewed cord to my wireless, but because of the chewed cord for my laptop! Damn cat! So I had to wait for the new cord to arrive. Naturally there was a snafu with the order and it didn't ship for 5 days.

The cubical I work in is situated so that anyone can see what I'm doing at any time. So it's very difficult to keep up on blogs, e-mail and all around general being connected to the WWW. I've been at a loss.

But, the computer is back up and running. All cords are sprayed with YUCK which is an organic, all natural gross tasting spray which seems to be keeping the gnawing teeth of the wire chewer at bay. I did get a good suggestion from my IT guy. He said to cover the softer wires (that must be Gummi Bear like) with duct tape or electrical tape so they aren't so tempting. I may have to try that in addition to the YUCK. This way if she does chew the tape she'll reach the YUCK.

There has been a whole lot of interesting news in the past couple of weeks. I'm now spending two days a week at one of our environmental clean up sites. They needed admin help in the field office. So here I am working next to ginormous gas tanks. I started this week and they've had a lot of visitors who have camped out in the empty office. But next week that office is mine and I'll be able to check in on y'all a lot more frequently than I have been.

Cmdr K and I have been seeing or talking with each other every day. Last weekend we spent about 70% of the time together. He talks about taking me to his place down the Shore and fixing stuff around my place, all sorts of things that only people in relationships or who are dating would do. But he still insists that we're not dating or in a "relationship". I don't know. I take this all day by day and see where it leads.

He made a bet with me before Rutgers started their season. Unless Rutgers wins more than 3 games this year, then he'll marry me. Naturally, he thinks I want to marry him, which I don't and he doesn't believe. I was teasing him the other day, saying that if Rutgers does win 4 games, I'm either going to make him marry me right on the spot (a guy at work is an internet ordained minister) or I'd just spring it on him one day when he was least expecting it. I can be so mean.

Here is a picture of him. I figure it's way past time for you to actually see what the guy looks like.

I thought this was the most appropriate picture. Heh!

Another Mystery Solved

2008-09-23T11:37:00.003-04:00

I’ve been unable to access my wireless internet connection at home. I noticed it on Sunday, but was able to connect though a neighbor's wireless (which I hate doing) for a quick check of my e-mail and my standings in the weekly football pool.

This is not an uncommon thing for my wireless to crap out. I either have to disable and enable the wireless card or re-boot the wireless router. After completing the disable/enable routine to no avail last night, I went to check the router. There was no power to it. I checked the power cord and all the wires attached to the router. Everything looked fine. So I checked to see if “someone” unplugged it. Nope, still plugged in.

I got a really bad feeling and checked the cord. Look what I found.

Gee. Who could have chewed the cord so effectively?

Nom it? Not meez. Musta beez sum onz elz.

It wasn’t my day to watch her.

I’m afraid one day I’m going to come home to a crispy cat. So I’m going to PetSmart and Home Depot at lunch to get whatever it is you put on wires so cats won’t chew them, and to Home Depot to get one of those hose type things to tame the rest of the computer wires.

Never screw with the Space Time Continuum

2008-09-19T14:36:00.003-04:00

It all started last weekend. The pseudo boyfriend aka my "fiance" (or as Bezzie and I have been calling him, Commander Klingon – cause he keeps clinging on. Bezzie is brilliant!) came over to watch the Jets game and cook me dinner. While we ate dinner the station switched to a different game (Denver v Oakland I believe) and it was a very dramatic finish. After we ate Cmdr K went in to catch up on what was happening during the game. I told him that we could rewind the game on the DVR so we could see what we missed.

He went on a rant about how doing that ruined the entire idea of live television, and how could I not see that watching it live was superior to rewinding and basically I was equivalent to the DEVIL for rewinding.

Since this was a completely new (and incredibly crazy) take on DVRs I thought I’d delve in a bit more.

What about recording TV shows or movies? That’s OK.
What about other live events, like the Oscars? That’s OK too because he has no interest in them.
So this only applies to sports? Yes.

He went on about how with sports you have to experience it right then and there or it isn’t the same thing. It didn’t have the same effect.

I asked him if he thought that by rewinding or pausing live TV I was fucking with the space time continuum because I didn’t have that capability – YET. The outcome is still THE SAME! Just a few minutes later!

Sheesh.

Which leads me to think that maybe the woman I work with knows the secret to time travel, and to bending time to suit her needs.

Yesterday she came in after 8AM and left at 4PM and put in for 8 hours. (yes I’m petty and checked her time sheet. She checks mine so it’s tit-for-tat). Today she was in before me (as per usual) and left at 2PM. Once again she put in for 8 hours.

I think I need to ask her how to mess with Cmdr K and his favorite live sporting events. She may be useful for something after all.

Oh look! Knitting content!

2008-09-15T12:36:00.007-04:00

2 finishes and 2 new projects

I finally decided the Ribbon Lace scarf was long enough and cast it off. I’m really happy with it. I’ve yet to wash and block, which I think will be two separate processes because of its length. I’m going to wash it and then let it dry, then steam block it. I just don’t have the room to pin it out to block.

Besides, I have a little kitty who would love to pull all the pins out and carry them around the house. That would be bad. I forgot to take a photo of it, so imagine it all pretty and long and blocked.

During the Ravelympics, when I realized that the Seascape Shawl and I were going to have a parting of the waves (heh!), I cast on this little beauty. It’s my first ever mobius knitting. It’s a cowl, which is kind of wide. I used alpaca sock and since I tend to run hot all the time, the wideness should help keep me at a comfortable temperature when outside.

I loved knitting this. I have plans to make another because I have some beautiful yarn that was initially earmarked for socks but will make a beautiful cowl.

Onto the new starts. The Bountiful Bohus Sweater from More Big Girl Knits has been calling to me ever since the book came out. I love this cardigan. Not to mention that I got the yarn at 20% off because I finished my DIC Mr. Greenjeans sweater by the deadline in the Loopy Ewe DIC Knit Along.

This time I remembered to alternate skeins with each row. The colors didn’t look too different, but you never know. And I get to steek again. I’ve done it once and I have no fear of it now so I’m thrilled about knitting in the round and cutting my knitting. I feel a little bit like a mad scientist when I think about it. “Igor! Cut the knitting! Mwwwahahaha!”

There is a story behind the next new start. It’s sort of become my tradition that when I’m at Rhinebeck, I purchase Briar Rose yarn but I have to use it before the next NY S&W Festival. Last year (2007) I used all the Briar Rose yarn from the previous year’s purchase (2006). This year I have one project left to do before Rhinebeck using the last of the Briar Rose I bought last year (2007). That is the other new start.

They had a beautiful Iccarus shawl displayed in the booth. I don’t remember which yarn it was made from, but I ended up getting 3 hanks of Grandma’s Blessing to make it. I’d like to get this one done (or mostly done) before the festival so I won’t feel so guilty buying more Briar Rose yarn. So here is the start. I have 4 weeks and a bit to finish it. I think I may be able to pull that off. I think it will become my lunch knitting.

I'll get a photo of Ribbon Lace. I promise. Bezzie has wanted to see it done for a while and she may get to see it in person before I get around to blocking and posting!

You may have been wondering...

2008-09-08T17:07:00.004-04:00

... why I don't cook often.

This is why...

Burned. Blistering. Still hurts.

Thank God for the short week

2008-09-05T10:00:00.001-04:00

I thought I was going to be very busy this week. It’s the first week of our financial month and that usually means I have a lot of stuff that needs to be done or coordinated by the end of the week. For some reason everything got wrapped up really early. So I don’t have all that much to do.

Which means the Blog is back in business, sort of. I used to be able to write and post from work (when I had an office). The good news is that I’m so busy at work that I don’t have time to write anything up. The bad news is that when I get home I’m so pooped, I can barely knit.

Last week I was sitting in our courtyard here at the office and I thought that maybe you’d like to see where I spend my lunch times knitting when the weather cooperates.

It’s really pleasant. A pretty fountain to watch and listen to, bright flowers, and usually no one bugs you.

Where do you knit at lunch?

August

2008-08-31T13:16:00.004-04:00

August wasn't the the best of months for me. It was a very stressful and emotional month for me. I'm glad September is only a few hours away.

Here are some pictures so you can see some of the highlights of August.

Dog Show with the Nephews.

Never let them play with your camera...

Or maybe I should let them use it more often since the photos are very silly and crack me up. They were very upset the the judge did not pick Jen's dog Jonathan as best in breed. They felt that the judge didn't know what he was doing. They are now big fans of Jonathan's.

Jets v Giants pre-season Football game:

With the Bezzie Family! Dr. Mad Scientist, Chunky and our dear Bezzie (I have no pictures of her with her eyes opened. heh).

Here are Bezzie, and me, her eyes are slightly opened here. She does have very nice eyes. I swear. ;-)
And I have a finish to report. You may remember Happy Blanket, my nephew #2 's blanket I made for him before he was born. Well, it is now in strings, and has a very very small part that is still intact. He wanted me to fix it which would be an impossible task. My SIL came up with the idea of making a bag to put Haps in so that N#2 could pull out the part of Haps that was still intact to snuggle with. Here is the Happy Bag.

It took me all of one evening to make. I made up the pattern as I went along. The bag was very well received.

Here's hoping September is a much better month than August! At least it's one month closer to Rhinebeck.

Questions and a Fitness-a-long Update

2008-08-26T09:37:00.001-04:00

HS Guy never asked me out on a second date. He actually became very non-communicative and then disappeared all together. Do I have to tell JtH she was right? You know I’ll never hear the end of how she knows what’s right for me and I don’t right? Why do I keep finding these jerks? Why do they find me? Why do I fall for their lies and lines every time?

Since HS Guy disappeared, my “fiancé” has been around a lot lately. He actually called a DAY IN ADVANCE to ask if he could stop by. Usually he calls when he’s like 2 miles away. Anyway, I was so pissed about HS Guy that I called my “fiancé” back and told him to come over. It doesn’t make sense, but it’s what I wanted to do.

When he gets there he has a shopping bag full of veggies from his garden and then he starts trying to figure out why my kitchen faucet has no water pressure. He takes the whole thing apart, tells me that what I really need is a new one and what kind do I want? He’ll come back and install it for me.

Then he cleaned my kitchen counters and took out the trash.

See, the thing is, he doesn’t want to be in a relationship. He hasn’t ever taken me out, and I usually only see him when he’s in the neighborhood and calls to see if I’m home so he can stop by.

But on the other hand, he calls when he hasn’t seen me for a couple days to find out how I’m doing. He’s very easy to talk to, makes me laugh and generally has good advice. Combined with all the aforementioned stuff he does around my place when he’s there (without me asking) and I’m just plain ole confused. Oh yeah, he’s cute too.

What the heck do I do about this? Maybe this is something I just shouldn’t question. I welcome all opinions.

Fitness-a-long update
I got on the scale this weekend and I’ve lost a total of 13 pounds since May. It’s taken a while to get rid of them, but they’re gone and that’s what counts.

Venting and a WooHOO!

2008-08-05T20:15:00.003-04:00

Grab a beverage and a snack. This is L-O-N-G!!!

Vent Part 1

I have this friend and neighbor, we'll call her JtH. JtH is a really good friend who would give me the shirt off her back if she could afford to. She’s seen me through break-ups, unemployment, anxiety attacks, and watched the kitties when I was away.

She has a couple faults. First, she is an internet dating site junkie. She is on every free dating site out there. When she first moved in (a couple months after I did), she was involved with a guy she met on the internet and had been with him for just under 4 years. Seems he was an internet dating junkie too and was constantly cheating on her.

When she broke up with him, she went back into the online dating with a vengeance. She talked me into trying it and I did. I met a few guys, dated a couple, got involved with one and was hurt by him. I took all my profiles down because I didn't like the process and it wasn't working for me.

JtH's second fault is that she expects the guys she meets on the internet to be "monogamous" once they write her. They can't be looking at any other profiles or on any other sites. She monitors when they are on and off line (through Yahoo IM and whichever tools each dating site has in place. It's too convoluted for me). Usually the guys are happy to chat and e-mail all morning and evening at first. Then a couple days later, when it gets a little too much to keep up, the tend to quiet down and may not answer/initiate contact as frequently.

This makes her mental. JtH calls me to rant that "John Doe sent me an e-mail last night, which I answered and I've not heard from him all morning." Or, "I got an e-mail this morning at 8:22 and I still have no reply back. It's 10:15 AM. Yesterday he was answering right away. Doesn’t he know I need communication? How else am I going to get to know him?"

Then she gets indignant and pissy and finally blocks the poor guy. He's trying to meet someone and have a life that isn't on the computer all the free hours of his day and lucky him meets JtH. Poor guy's had a full blown monogamous relationship with someone in less than 72 hours and they didn't even know it. I think they're lucky when she blocks them.

WooHOO!

I joined Facebook a while ago because some of my knitting friends are on it and I wanted to see what it was all about. There is an area there where you can affiliate yourself with a High School or College. I affiliated myself with my High School and a couple of months ago I re-connected with one of my childhood friends. It was so great to catch up with her.

Then, about a week ago, I get a notification that a "friend" request has been sent to me. I have to "accept" this friend. I practically fall out of my chair because it's the guy from High School. The athlete who had brains, and was hot on top of it all. The one all the girls wanted to date. You know what I mean. We all had them in school. I think "Of course I'll be your friend." He looks as good now as he did then. Better actually because he's a teddy bear now, and in HS he was much thinner.

We exchange e-mails on Facebook (one each), then he sends me his cell # and asks for mine. The next day he is texting me and then calling and texting. But not to the point where it's annoying or overly pushy. On Thursday he asks me out and we make plans for Saturday night. We have a great time. He is a gentleman. He kisses me when he picks me up, we have dinner and after we find a dark street and make out like teenagers. It was a great date.

We left it that he'll call and we'll make plans for another date.

We text A LOT last week. Wednesday - Saturday morning, back and forth over and over. There is no way I expected him to keep up that pace of texting.

This week he's on a business trip. I got a text on Monday morning saying he was away for a couple days this week and we'd talk soon.

Vent Part 2

So, I told JtH all about HS guy.

I know it's all my fault for even telling JtH about him and the date and everything. I was lulled into a false sense of, of, Ok I was excited. She has me going crazy now. I didn’t hear from HS guy on Sunday, but I didn’t expect to because he had a family obligation.

So Woo HOO; until I told JtH about it. At first she was very happy. Then, Monday lunch time, she text me asking if I had heard from him again. I didn’t. So then she calls at dinner. No I still hadn’t heard from him. Now I’m starting to think maybe I should have heard from him more during the day. I start to worry.

But wait a minute. He is on a BUSINESS TRIP. He was decent enough to let me know he was away and most likely busy doing, ya know, BUSINESS, for the next few days. But JtH, after complaining about the newest fly in her web and how he isn’t communicating enough, tries to compare her fly to HS guy.

“He could have found a minute in his day to text you again.” I got mad. I told her to stop pissing on my parade. That I was perfectly happy with the message I got earlier in the day. She backed off.

Then today after work she asks if I’ve heard from him yet. I haven’t and I really didn’t expect to either. So she starts in about how she is starting to suspect that there is something more than what is on the surface of HS guy and that if he was really interested he would have contacted me more during the day. “After all you haven’t heard from him in 2 whole days.” I. Flipped. OUT.

How does it become 2 whole days when I heard from him YESTERDAY???

I laid it on the line at that point. She is no longer allowed to talk about HS guy, or tell me her opinions of anything he does or doesn’t do. She is not allowed to even THINK anything about him and me.

But she planted the damn seed. Now I’m spending time worrying when I should just be happy that I’ll hear from him soon. I’m not crazy am I?

I’m off to focus on the positive.

And if you’ve made it this far…

KATIE TOES!!! SO CUTE!!!

Plurk!

2008-08-05T18:06:00.001-04:00

I'm a joiner! Check out all the fun here.

It Is BALLOON!

2008-07-27T09:04:00.003-04:00

The nephews were in a swim meet yesterday. Typically they start early and I can leave after their events. But this was the Championship meet with all the teams in the local league. It started at 9Am and I had to pick my SIL up at 8:30. The boys had to be there at 8 so my brother got them there to give my SIL more time.

So I went for my Saturday Starbucks and called my SIL on the way there to ask if she wanted anything.

"Hey all the balloons are up. It looks like they're landing at the Community College." I told her.
"I think that's one of the places they usually try to land" she said.

Starbucks is across the street from the College. Yikes.

At the light for the entrance to the college:

Waiting to turn into Starbucks parking lot:

Taken from the parking lot:

The thing that amazed me the most was that no one took the spots in the lot. Everyone parked on the side of the road or on the entry road to the college. I was able to get in get my Chai Latte and leave in 15 minutes. So I was on time to pick up my SIL. COOL.

Most importantly, the boys did great! DN#1 made the finals in one of his events, and DN#2 made the finals in both his events. There was an hour break for lunch and then they ran the finals. DN#1 placed 3rd and DN#2 placed 5th and 1st in his events.

I am so proud of them! I have to admit tho that my heart was in my throat and then my stomach and back again in the 25 or less seconds it took for them to swim their heats and their final heat. This individual sport stuff is a killer on Aunt Chrissy!

Anyway, there was a LOT of waiting around while the other events and age groups swam, so I started a plain pair of socks with the Red Heart Sock yarn. This is how long the day was...

There are some splotches in the dye, but actually I like the combo of short and long color runs. It knits up really well, no splitting, and nice stitch definition. So far, a "Thumbs Up".

A Shocking YPF

2008-07-25T17:33:00.003-04:00

Pretty Colors!!!

Reasonable Price!

Who makes this really cute and reasonably priced yarn? Where can you get it????

SHOCKING!!!!!

It's 70% wool and 30% nylon. And it's soft. So shocked. I can't wait to cast on a plain sock and see how this yarn knits up!

I think you can get it just about anywhere! ;-)

I know what you’re thinking

2008-07-23T20:47:00.004-04:00

“Have you been working on any projects involving yarn?”

Why, yes I have!

Lunchtime knitting has revolved around the Lace Ribbon scarf. It’s very long. I’ve used up one skein of DIC Smooshy and joined the second skein about 2-3 inches down. Which in real time is about one and a half lunch times (may not be a full hour depending on whether or not I need to eat or can wait till I’m back at my desk for lunch).

I think this is my favorite yarn of all time. Not just because the yarn is yummy but the colorway is so magnificent. I hope I can get the camera to do it justice. I know the pic is blurry but it represented the colors the best.

I have been working on the DN’s Big Boy Blankets when hot flashes permit. Some days it’s too damn hot, even with the a/c on, to have a blanket in your lap. I’ll spare you the photos but I can hold them up comfortably and when laid out on my lap will reach just about to my ankles. So I’ve got about 3 feet done on each? I’ll spare you the same ole photos and wait till they’re finished for the final photo shoot.

I am having ISSUES with my Seascape shawl. I’ve resorted to life lines and I haven’t even finished the first TWO ROWS of the main pattern section. It’s KICKING MY ASS! In order to get my head around this pattern, I need some motivation and some quiet time. So I went ahead and joined the Ravelympics to see if I can get help/motivation/moral support/chocolate/wine (heh) from my team. Since this is a project I decided to knit for the Loopy Groupie DIC Baby KAL, I’ve joined the Loopy Groupie team and am knitting in the Lace Weight Javelin event. Wish me luck.

Then there is this little do-dad.

It all started with an idea for a long term project with left over sock yarn*. Then I found some Patons Grace in my stash and started monkeying around with some patterns from this book and thought I’d practice joining as I went (article from Interweave crochet) for the long term sock yarn project and I just kept on going and going and going. I’m not sure what I think of it yet.

I know I need another color in there but what I have doesn’t really go with the colors I’ve used. Not to mention I don’t want any of the motifs touching another motif of the same color. So I think I need a 4th color. I thought maybe yellow and decided I’d stop at Michael’s on the way home yesterday for a couple of skeins. They don’t have yellow at Michael’s. I look on line and they have a color called “Ginger” that I think would work out great, so I may have to go searching for it at AC Moore.

Some times I hate my Michaels.

But they did have something that stopped me dead in my tracks. You’ll just have to wait till Friday to see that little gem.

Oh, and while we’re talking about WIP’s, let me give you a little Fitness-A-Long update. I’m a work in progress right? I went out and got me a fancy scale with numbers on it I can actually read. I weigh myself every two weeks and so far I’ve lost just under 10 lbs in 6 weeks. Yeah I know it’s really slow, but it’s weight that’s no longer on ME so I’m happy about that.

*If you have any left over bits of sock yarn you don't know what to do with and are willing to part with them, PM me over on Ravelry. I'd be glad to take them off your hands! My Ravelry ID is Buttercup.

Thought of the Day…

2008-07-22T19:20:00.001-04:00

Why do people think those testicles hanging off the back of trucks are funny? Why isn’t it considered indecent? Why is it accepted?

If I had a uterus hanging off the back of my car, it would that cause a riot.

(OK, I just saw there are people who want to have these dumb ass things banned. Count me in!)

Things that help me get through the day:

2008-07-21T18:12:00.003-04:00

The knowledge that I have sharp implements with me at all times. Who said it wasn't cool to be a knitter?

Some of the pages from my “Bad Cats” calendar. (THANKS Jen!) This is a new favorite:

And my new favorite – a box of wine.

Then I come home to this news:

Saints get TE Shockey from Giants for draft picks

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

I don't think anyone knows this but I have the biggest crush on Jeremy. And he's going to THE SAINTS??? NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! sob

This has been a day more horrible than I ever could have imagined.

I do?

2008-07-11T22:07:00.001-04:00

Remember way back at the end of last summer, there was this guy who was sort of in the picture, but then I didn’t mention him because it didn’t really work out? Well he’s always been in contact with me because according to him, we’re friends.

This is my routine with him because he makes me mental. He calls and I let him leave messages. Then every fourth or fifth call I’ll answer and chat with him because the male attention is kind of nice every now and then. Last night was one of the calls I answered. I told him a little about what’s been going on here at the office and that I was looking for another job. He thought it should be easy for me to find something.

OK, he drives a truck and makes deliveries all day (he’s our Fed Ex guy), so he doesn’t really get the world of expendable help. I explained to him that in my kind of position, companies prefer to hire temp to perm and if they can get away with it, a long term temp. I’m not saying that direct hire permanent Admin positions aren’t out there, they are. Just few and far between.

Anyway, I tell him that I need the health insurance, so I can’t take a temp job because I can’t afford the cobra. This is when I could smell the wood burning. I could practically hear him thinking from 4 towns away.

“I’ll marry you for like a year and put you on my insurance.”
“HUH???”
“Yeah, but I’ll need something in return.”
“HUH???”
“Like 20% of the equity of your condo”
“Forget it!”
“OK, how about sex 3 times a week?”
“How about I’ll pay the difference in your health insurance costs?”
“Sex three times a week is a win/win for you.”
“OK, you got me there. Pick a date and we’ll go to Maryland and get hitched.”

Now, I’m just playing along. I’m pushing his buttons when and where I could because this is the worst idea in the history of bad ideas. Besides, I know he isn’t serious at all. He hasn’t even asked me out on a proper date and here he is proposing. I can hear him trying to get out of this…

“No, we’ll go to Vegas!”
“We can’t afford to go to Vegas.”
“But I want it to be fun and special.”
“OK, you buy the tickets and we’ll go.”
“You quit your job then I’ll buy the tickets.”
“Oh no. I don’t quit the job till I have some security. So you have to buy the tickets and marry me, then I’ll quit my job.”

Dead silence.

“I’m feeling kinda backed into a corner here.”
“You put yourself in the corner. Don’t blame this on me.”

I’ve been proposed to twice in my life. Once when I was in High School and that was a big ole NO, and this time. I want better than a half-assed-sorta-hey-ya-wanna-but-I’m-totally-kidding proposal.

But if I get desperate enough, maybe I will take him up on it. (kidding!)

F is for Finished!

2008-07-11T07:21:00.002-04:00

Now that I’ve settled into my anger and disappointment (see last post), I finally have some FOs to show you.

First I have two Hats for Alex. These two additional hats technically make the three for June, which I never finished. So I’ll be sending 6 to Trillian as soon as I have the next three done.

This however is the crowning achievement of the past week. The Chrysanthemum Tea Shawl. I crocheted like a mad woman. I finished it in less than a week. I loved the pattern and I could knit it again and again and again. I used some Organic Cotton (Rowan PureLife) and although it was a little splitty, it has a great drape and feels so soft.

I also had to try and get a photo of Noel with her newest toy. Every time I picked up the camera she dropped it and plopped down to pose. Goofy cat. Anyway, she’s been running around the house with this sample card from The Loopy Ewe (in the plastic) for days now. I even slept with the damn thing last night. It’s not unusual for me to sleep with her favorite toy du jour.

Happy Weekend!!!

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuucccccccccccck

2008-07-01T08:35:00.003-04:00

Had a meeting with my boss and I won't be doing any of the Facilities stuff any more.

But I report to someone new. Guess who. Go on...

Yup. Even tho we have the same title and same job level. Nor did she report to me when I had the facilities coordinator part of my job.

And I have to move out of my office (which I couldn't care less about) and into the cubicle that is the least private (3 walls are 1/3 high and 1 wall 5 feet) and in the path of all the traffic (bathroom, kitchen, mailroom, copiers and direct line to the front door).

I am obviously being punished.

Cobra payments would be $549 a month. Too rich for my blood.

So I'm stuck for now. I applied to 7 job on line last night. Tonight I check out another job site.

You'll have to come by the office one day and see how well I fake happy.

At least my Katie loves her Momma.

So pissed off my head is about to explode

2008-06-27T14:30:00.003-04:00

So pissed in fact that I've composed an e-mail to my boss & HR. Names have been changed to protect the asshats I work for (not that this can't get me fired anyway). Also please note this is the angry version. I'll be cleaning it up and stuff.

It’s been six weeks since we had our conference call on May 16th in regard to my poor report card. At that meeting it was agreed that the Mother Hen responsibilities would be moved over to one of the other admins and that I would be receiving a new job description as well as a new version of my yearly goals and objectives. I have not had any communication on any of these action items to date.

I would also like to talk to you about your expectations for administrative coverage since this was one of my failing grades on my report. Today (Friday June 27th) LuLu left at noon for the day, leaving coverage for the rest of the day to me. She did not give me the courtesy of notifying me (so I could go get lunch from the café) or insuring I was available to provide coverage for the rest of the day. This left me with no choice but to work through lunch, which I know you prefer I not do. I also didn’t put in the hour as OT because you had previously informed me that any OT charged to overhead would be denied.

In our last Department Ass Kissing Meeting the new Summer Hours which one of the other divisions instituted was mentioned. We were told that was something we would not have since we have an option to get every other Friday off. As an admin I didn’t think I was eligible for this option. I was told that I wasn’t allowed to “bank” hours to leave early on another day during the week. This program requires that hours are banked for two weeks to get the Friday off. Can you please clarify why I am not allowed to do this within the same week?

There is a blatent double standard where lunch coverage, "banking" time, and leaving early are concerned. Because of my poor report card I feel that I’ve been held to separate rules than every one else in the company. In some regards, that is fair, but when it comes to company policies and procedures, all employees should be treated equally, which I am not.

I also feel that I should be allowed to work from home on occasion so I don’t have to use my PTO. This past week, Lulu worked from home, using her home computer. Again, this is something that I don’t feel I am able to do.

I should be afforded the same opportunities as Lulu.

Ok so that's the gist of it. I know it's not as angry as it should be. There should be a lot more Fuck You's for me to clean up.

Still I never know when I’m going to be reprimanded for something I have or haven’t done. I'm afraid to come in late; afraid to leave a minute before 5 pm and rarely go further than the courtyard for lunch so I'll be back on time.

I am physically ill Sunday evening and Monday morning at the thought of having to go to work. Friday afternoons I am more often than not, left here alone between 3 & 5 which pisses me off to no end. Right now there are 3 other people here and I know they will all be leaving within the next 45 minutes. But they'll sneak out the back door (which they never do normally) so I won't know they're gone.

The job hunt continues, but there are very few Admin jobs that are direct hire. I need the health insurance. Xanax does not prescribe itself.

Rant over for now. I had a whole other entry and everything for you. I'll post it tomorrow.

WIP Wednesday

2008-06-25T20:26:00.004-04:00

Here is the Pineapple Scarf. I love it. LOVE LOVE LOVE (All you need is love ba da da da dum) oops… sorry.

For pattern and yarn deets see entry below.

Lace Ribbon is still getting longer. I thought I’d take a photo so you’d see how long it’s got. I’m still in love with the pattern and the yarn.

Since life is a little calmer this week, I plan on taking a couple of days to work on the boys afghans. I showed them to my Mom and Dad and they liked the cammo one I’m making for DN1 and got a kick out of Haps Jr for DN2. No progress as of today from the last time I showed them to you, but hopefully there will be a small amount for next week’s update.

This coming weekend I’m going to put forth a concerted effort to do two things:

1. Find the yarn and finish the Bomb Shell tank I started 2 years ago. I only have the upper back, neckline and tank edges to finish. It shouldn’t take me too much time. Especially since I’ll be stuck waiting for my new dishwasher to be delivered. Yeah new dishwasher!!! Boo – asshole delivery/installation guys who took advantage of me being a woman this past Saturday and said they couldn’t deliver. I’m still steaming and will tell all later.

2. Find the extra skein of Rowan Calmer I made Soleil with last year and crochet up the excessively plunging v neck with a little decorative something or other, and lengthen it with a crochet border that plays off the lace on the bottom of the edge

Mostly tho, I started a new lace project. Once again I’ve jumped into another Knit-a-long. This is also with the Loopy Ewe and her summer KAL is to use DIC Baby (lace weight). I really like Seascape (in the Summer Knitty). So that's what I started yesterday. So far it's fairly straight forward. We'll see what happens when I get to the more involved charts. I'm sure it will knit up just as easily.

I think it's going to be beautiful! I have till October 1st to finish, which I think is totally doable.

Orien Rose Update

2008-06-25T09:19:00.003-04:00

Everything went really, really well. Go over to Roberta's blog for short but suscinct details. Thank you for adding your prayers, vibes, energy, etc.

Manly Men

2008-06-24T09:08:00.001-04:00

On Friday I dropped off the baby sweater which was for my mechanic and his wife. They’ve been friends with my brother forever, so I wanted to do something nice for them and this “oops” baby.

I walked into the store front and handed the package to Bob and he was so grateful and a little embarrassed. Then he asked if he could open it. Huh? It’s his kid too isn’t it?

He pulls out the little sweater and he was so thrilled. When he asked if I made it and I said I did, you should have seen all the commotion behind the desk. All these mechanics were huddling around him ooohhhhing and aaaaahhhhing and “WOW! You made that?!?!” It was like women at a baby shower, let me tell you. I have NEVER in my life got a reaction like that from a bunch of men on anything I ever knitted. Not even from my family.

I don’t have a picture of them standing around with Bob in the middle holding up the sweater because that would have discouraged them for life. Heh

I'm still laughing about it too.

Blogging for Orien Rose

2008-06-23T10:34:00.003-04:00

When I worked at the job I love to call the ass crack of hell, there was a small group of people who worked there that I became friendly with. I wouldn’t have lasted there the 3+ years I did without these few wonderful people.

Anyway, Roberta is one of those few people I considered (and still do) a friend. Mostly we keep in touch by reading each other’s blogs and commenting. But once in a while, for whatever reason, we re-connect and it’s like there was no lapse in time, like we just talked last week.

She sent me this yesterday and since I’ve helped ya’ll when I can, now it’s my turn to ask for your thoughts and prayers.

The internets are huge, but despite this, we’re really a small community with a lot of power. We’ve all seen what the power of knitters can do. So, I’m asking a favor for a friend of a friend. Roberta and her sister sent the message below yesterday. It’s the least I can do to post the information and say a prayer and ask you to do the same (say a prayer, send positive energy, think good thoughts, or whatever you feel most comfortable with) for Orien Rose.

"Orien Rose is a miracle. She is a nine year old girl who, just over a year ago, was in a horrific boating accident. There was skull, facial, and brain injury. Really bad stuff. Tomorrow morning, Tuesday, June 24th, she is having surgery, and we are looking for as many people on this earth as possible to simply think of her, and send positive energy.

You should see her now; have a look at this article from the other day. Orien is an exuberant and hilarious kid, and the interviewer doesn't even mention how she burped the entire alphabet for him.

If she were doing only half as well as she is the doctors would still be baffled by the speed and thoroughness of her recovery.

She is alive, well, and burping today due to teams of skilled and dedicated paramedics, doctors, nurses, and therapists, the fierce dedication of her parents, and the power of community. Orien Rose has been prayed for by Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, and Santeros, she's received energy from witches, Reiki masters, and anyone willing to simply hold a positive image in their minds for a moment.

Tuesday morning she faces the final hurdle: Replacement of the missing portion of her skull; a coordinated effort by neurosurgeons, plastic surgeons, and infection control specialists. AND by the people who've been sending her positive energy of myriad forms for this past year.

Orien, her father, asks that people put a reminder on their alarm clock. A reminder to just think about Orien Rose when you wake up. They check into Hasbro Children's Hospital in Providence, R.I. at 6:30 AM (eastern time) and the procedure begins an hour or so later, and it will go on awhile, so whatever time you get up will be fine.

You can read Christine's blog about Orien Rose's progress, and their progress as a family.

Feel free to repost this on your blog, or link here, or write your own version in your own words (or all three).

Oh! And now that I think of it, if you do go to Christine's blog, leave her a comment. I'd like to see her blog crashed by the spike in activity.

Thank you for being part of this very real miracle. As soon as we hear about the results of the surgery, we'll get a follow-up post out.

Deborah and Roberta Lipp
~Basket of Kisses
~Property of a Lady
~Roberta's Voice
~Ultimate James Bond Fan Blog "

And thanks from me - for letting me hijack my own blog for a moment.

Tales from the WIP heap

2008-06-20T11:19:00.004-04:00

And it is a heap, believe me.

Work has been kicking my ass and my parents arrived on Wednesday to attend a wedding this weekend. It’s been busy.

Here’s an update of some of the things I’ve been working on:

The boy’s blankets; There was no way I was putting an afghan on my lap the last couple of weeks, even in my house which has central air. No. Way. So there was no progress there.

My socks for Dad for Father’s day:
Yeah. I was knitting at one of the ball games the last couple weeks and my SIL asked me who the socks were for. When I told her they were for my dad she said she didn’t think they would fit. That he wouldn’t be able to get the sock on. Well, now I’m second guessing myself about them. I just may finish them and give the socks to her. Blue is her favorite color. Why do I have so much trouble knitting socks for my dad?

Lace Ribbon:
It gets longer and longer.

Pineapple Scarf:
This is my latest obsession. There isn’t one thing about this scarf I don’t love. It’s going to be one of those projects that I blow through, like the last crochet wrap/scarf (I finished in 2 days). And I love the yarn. I’ve never used Nashua yarns before and this is their organic cotton. It’s soft, has really nice stitch definition, and the colors are real pretty. I’d use this yarn again any day.

And once again the use of my lap for the photoshoot. But the black pants work!

Thanks to Justine at Anglefire Studios, I’m obsessed with this Japanese Crochet book.

That’s where the pattern for the Pineapple Scarf comes from. They have really creative stitch combinations in their designs and I’m hooked. There are about 6 things I want to make from the one book I purchased. I’d even make them all out of the Nashua Organic Cotton since it works up so nicely.

Yeah, I know I have many other WIPs or should I say UFOs around the house. I do intend to get to them because I want them to move from my year end unfinished list to the finished list.

But I keep starting new stuff. This must stop.

Bezzie – this is for you. A picture of the finished and blocked baby sweater.

Yeah, taking pictures at work again... ;-)

Finito!

2008-06-17T11:47:00.002-04:00

The baby sweater is finished and needs a couple of snaps sewn on and it will be ready to wrap up and deliver (pun not intended but HA!)

Pattern: Baby’s First Tattoo
From: Stitch & Bitch Nation
Yarn: Numma Numma Baby Boo in Strawberry, Banana, Kiwi (LOVE IT!)
I didn't block it last night like I wanted to but I still love it.

I wanted a cardigan pattern for this baby sweater and I thought this one was cute and would lend itself to lots of other yarns.

Hat for Alex #1 for this month.

I used left over STR Heavyweight for this hat. I think the color was Lunasea, which is so pretty and striped so nicely on this hat. Two more to go for June!

Kiparoo Farms Crochet scarf/wrap

I got the pattern and the yarn when Shannon and I went to MD S&W last year (2007). The yarn isn’t from the Kiparoo Farm people because the cost would have been insane. So I found this yarn and fell in love with it (sorry, I forget who the vendor was). 14 months later I get the itch to crochet it. I pull everything out and realized that the pattern is so badly written that it made no sense after “Chain 36. sc next 2 rows”. I needed to put my thinking cap on and worked out what the pattern should be and ran with it. I think it came out great. The yarn is nice and drapey and I’d use it again in a heart beat.

What have you finished lately? Anything?

Holy Hell!

2008-06-16T15:44:00.005-04:00

Has it been two weeks since I last posted? I suppose it has, but it sure doesn’t feel like it.

The weather has felt like hell tho.

During the heat blast 10 days ago, I was going to log on and leave a message that said “hot”; in small letters like that so you knew it was an effort to move, type, breathe, and even sit. Well that was truer than I realized. I was out in the 100F degree weather from 11-2 both Saturday and Sunday. That’s when DN#1 was playing in the town’s little league playoffs. It was so brutally hot. I even drank Gatorade (which is so gross tasting to me).

So he won his games on Sat and Sun and then his team moved onto the next game on Tuesday (cooler temps – like 90) and they won that one too. Thursday night (in the 90s again) was the big game to decide which two teams went on to the championship.

This caused a dilemma. Jen, Bezzie and I had been planning on meeting up at Anglefire Studios for their WWKIP day. But if DN#1’s team went onto the championship, it was going to be played on Saturday. I let Jen and Bezzie know of the possible conflict and teased them about knitting at the game and they both said “Tell us where and when and we’re there.” I love them for that!

They lost Thursday night. It was a heartbreaker too because the ump sucked. Even the field ump (ref?) agreed that he was pretty bad, so you know it wasn’t just us parents and aunt who thought so.

WWKIP day was on! Bezzie even told Karen from Cooknknit where to meet us. She brought her son and Chunky and Karen’s kiddo played non stop for a good three hours. At first we thought we were going to be the only knitters there, but a few more ladies showed up and set up their chairs and tables (brilliant!) or sat on the floor or the steps of the gazebo by the LYS.

I finished the baby sweater but I needed a bit of knitterly opinion and moral support before I crossed the finish line. Then I started a Hat for Alex and finished that after I got home. Pictures of them and of another FO tomorrow when I have a minute to take pictures of them.

Clockwise from bottom left: Bezzie, Karen and two lovely ladies whose names I can't remember for the life of me, and Jen who is standing.

The boys practicing the next Xtreme Sport of Gazebo Scootering.

The rest of the knitting ladies!