wrap-up

Wow. You guys are so awesome!! I was having a gloomy Christmas (not for any particular reason, just not in the spirit), and next thing I know everyone is calling, sending texts, and emailing. I hope everyone had a great holiday...you sure made mine.

Our move has been great, minus the king size mattress and washer/dryer mishaps. Turns out those things don't really like a tight stairwell. Nothing is broken (that we can tell), but the banister and walls sure got a few scars. Sadly, the builder didn't have cable lines run when the power and water were done, so it's going to be a while before I have TV or internet service. This means I can only blog from work (ugh) and I can't go randomly look up all the things that I think of at night. Very frustrating. Oh, and my digital camera is somewhere in a box with lots of good pics on it. I'll get to those....eventually. And will someone Tivo Heros, Gray's, The Office, Earl, Buffy, and Mythbusters for me? I'm gonna be soooo bored.



I've been thinking a lot about this year and the direction(s) I led myself in and what sort of things I accomplished (or didn't). So I looked back at my goals from earlier this year to see how I did.

1 & 2: I chose not to compete after all. It was a lot more stress and work than I was willing to handle. I still have some exercise goals, but being on stage isn't one of them any more.

3: I did reign in my yarn buying (ok, just in the last month), and now I only buy for specific projects instead of being tempted by gorgeous stuff just for the hell of it. I also have focused my attention on learning and perfecting some new skills, including Fair Isle, and mastering socks.

4: I did not set up a meditation ritual, but I have a plan for that in the new house.

5: We moved, got new jobs and bought a house. And grad school awaits in just two (!!) weeks. Mission accomplished.

Overall, this was a year of change, which is exactly what I was after. Some changes were very hard but necessary (giving up gaming), and some were easy (getting jobs and moving back home).

I'm going to spend the next few days outlining a list of goals for 2007, including knitting plans, running routes, school insanity, and job hunting.

truthiness

so i am incommunicato for 4 whole days and i come back to the very condensed version of some very old events courtesy of stacy, who was just supposed to say hi ya'll, etc.

this is what i get for granting creative license.

since stace gave the short-and-dirty version of events (all true), allow me to elaborate.

i did graduate high school with a 4.2 gpa. this is due mostly to taking all AP classes my senior year, followed by failing all the exams that would have let me exempt those classes in college. smart when required, not so good at the cumulative stuff. there is only so much room in my brain.

the ex-best friend story is all true, though i did try in vain to make amends. sometimes i say i'm sorry when it's not my fault, and i shouldn't have bothered, but we had been friends all through hs and at the time it seemed right. now i realize we had a very one-way friendship and i lost absolutely nothing except the cost of a dress. hands washed clean.

all the nicknames are right but she did miss one (or probably several). i earned 'hoover' my junior year of high school. there was more myth behind it than truth, and it actually came about during an acting class, but it kinda stuck among a certain crowd of guys. (don't they wish.)

and yes, i did 'dance' for about a year. i ran out of scholarship money the last semester of my senior year of college, and my dad encouraged me to go wait tables at a local club. that lasted all of about one shift and smart me realized that keeping the clothes on was not the fastest way to pay my very due bills. i talked to some of the girls, had a drink (or five), and went for it. the first club i worked at was one of the most fun times of my life. i made a metric shit ton of money, met a lot of fun (if slightly insane) people, indulged in my most favorite pasttimes (flirting with reckless abandon), and discovered that i could be really comfortable with my body and my sexuality while on display for drooling men who dig the girl next door. i worked at a few clubs after that while looking for a 'real job' once i graduated. my dad knew the whole time, but i only told my mom after i stopped dancing. she only had a minor coronary.

maybe someday i'll post a big long story about my experience. god knows there a lot to tell! drugs, wrongful attacks of fake boobs and the nipples trying to escape them, crazy clients, indecent proposals (ya'll know), etc.

i'm not sure what the pinata bashing incident is about, but i was probably drunk. i did get married on my lunch hour, to my current husband. we had a civil marriage at the court house a month before our wedding. it was a 'just us' sort of thing since weddings are really for everyone else.

p.s. we're almost totally moved in, and we LOVE the house. pics and final xmas knitting coming soon!

We interrupt this blog for a hostile takeover.

Sorry to disappoint Mel's meager little readership, but she's currently indisposed and won't be writing any time soon. She's asked me to check in and do some updating for her, and I've gained creative license to blab all her dirty little secrets, or whatever I might decide to make up. Oh, and hi! I'm Stacy, longtime friend and chief secret-keeper.

I've also posted all the yarn she wanted to sell over at the Destash blog. If you like yarn, and I bet most of you do, go take a peek. The girl is not halting her knitting processes, but she is now on the verge of broke, what with the house buying and all, and wants to buy more yarn so she's selling stash that she won't be using. There's a lot up for sale. I think she might have some sort of yarn-buying disorder. Ya'll should make sure she's not sick or something. She's also real bad about making everyone around her learn to knit. She tried to teach me in March when we went to NYC, but it didn't really stick.

So, I bet you guys would just love some little secrets about our dear Mel. Let's see. In high school our girl was a bit of an overachiever. I think she graduated with a 4.2 or something close if I remember right. But she wasn't valedictorian. That prize went to her insanely bitchy ex-friend Melissa, who was not near as smart but she definitely worked hard I guess. Melissa showed her true colors when Mel got married the first time. Melissa was the maid-of-honor and threw an all out temper tantrum when Mel wanted to have actual living, breathing fun for her bachelorette party. She quit the wedding and I don't think they ever spoke again. In the meantime, I took her to an awesome male revue and we drooled over penises all night. Can I say penises here? Oh well.

In college, Mel's nicknames ran the gamut from Daley to Habib and Blueberry Muffin. One of her roommates gave her the Habib name when they were at a bar and she danced on a table to some song. Not long after that Mel did a little exotic dancing for real. I think her drinking had finally made her broke. She worked at the college during the day between classes and danced at night. And I'm not a lesbian or anything, but damn she could work it! And she has no shame whatsoever. All her roommates and everyone from her day job would come to see her. Ok I'm going to shut up about all that. Sorry Mel, don't kill me!

Oh yeah! The real reason I'm blogging for her is because she's moving into her house this week. It's really cute! But I'm pretty sure after this I won't be invited into the house or even to blog for her again. I'm sure she says hi to all you imaginary people. If you have her number, don't call or she might drop heavy furniture to answer. She's crazy like that.

Ok, now to find a way to dig myself out of this hole I've just created. Hey Mel, at least I didn't tell them about the pinata bashing, and that time you got married on your lunch hour!

Bye!!

S

i think i smell brains....

Wow so many things are happening at once right now that I can barely focus on any of it. I'm just head down, powering through and hoping there's some light when I look up again.

1. We close on the house tomorrow. I'm nervous, and giddy, and ready for it to be over already. Yes, the painters hate me. No, I don't care because they know I'm right. Yard work is done. Only some minor things remain (aside from the driveway) so we're closing anyway and holding money in escrow for those things.

2. I'm being advised next week for my first classes in grad school, and then I have to apply for loans. It's so bizarre because buying a house makes me feel all grown up, and going back to school makes me feel like a teenager again. I haven't done homework in eight years. I might hurt my cranium or something. Also, being this much in debt makes me feel like I might suffocate. Welcome to the American Dream.

3. Work is trying to dominate me in ways I'm not appreciating. Never really got into that whole S&M thing. But I can put on a good show. Ahem.

4. Knitting is my savior, my sanity, my freedom. I'm finishing the last hat tonight, along with finally finishing the first sleeve of the SKB. I just got so sick of that sweater and the sleeve's lace panels almost broke me, so I put it down for a while. Now I just want it off my needles. I've also started on Wendy's Drive Thru pattern as an 'extra' Christmas gift for my niece. She's tiny and the sweater is fast. I'm using KP's Swish, and it is so super soft that I don't even want to pick up anything else. There's definitely a sweater for myself in the works out of this stuff soon.

5. In my need to occasionally divert my thoughts (read: avoid some responsibility) I've found this game. I ditched gaming cold turkey about 6 months ago and I'm all the better for it (other than some wonderful people I miss). But, as a recovering addict, I know that the itch I feel to start spelling new words out of any text I'm given is just a thin layer of vaseline down that slippery slope. It's shocking that defeating an opponent with 'exacerbate' provides such a rush!! I'm a big fat nerd, and I'm ok. (And no, I'm not going back to any other kinds of gaming.)

Whew. Ok, I'm done. You may now return to your regularly scheduled life.

p.s. i'm a picky picky bitch

the builder asked us last week to go in and mark all the places that need paint touch ups or sanding down/repainting.

here's all i have to say about that.




don't send a perfectionist to stare at the walls for a few hours, mkay?

we have a knitter down

i repeat, we have a knitter down.

it was a torturous struggle, lasting several miserable hours. lunch and dinner were witnesses, as well as a few beers, a lousy football game, and lots of curse words in front of little children. oh, the horror.

the lace panels on the skb's sleeves have sealed a decisive victory. a mandate, you might even say. i have conceded to their uberness and my total lack of knitting prowess.

i appear to have suffered a repetitive stress injury and i can not knit. thank you, oh fair cursed lace panel. the intense physical pain of knitting the lace has made me not even WANT to knit. (this is the real tragedy, of course).

so i'm saying fuck it. i ripped out what lace i had managed to endure, and we're going with plain sleeves. i'm happy, the sweater is relieved at not being completely ripped or worse, tossed into the Basket of Doom, never to be seen again. once i'm able to knit again, i will pick it back up and finish my hats too.

it's really a shame that i can still type and have zero pain at the keyboard. i'd kill for another day off.

sigh.

i might be kinda cool

cause i got into grad school, ya'll.

and my jaywalkers? yeah, they're going with scout to the knitty gritty filming in december. cool by proxy at least.

yesterday we walked through the house with the builder and detailed out all the nit-picky things that need to be finished before closing. we are thisclose and i couldn't be more excited. granted i may starve in january, but, (cue scarlett) i'll worry about that later. the last major thing to be done is the landscape junk - retaining walls, drainage, and driveway stuff. yay.

i'm really thankful for a few days away from work. i'm going to knock out the purple sweater and get some finished photos up next week.

after my turkey/sweet potato souffle/pecan pie coma.

have a warm and fuzzy turkey day, ya'll!

pictures tomorrow, i swear...

Edited to add: pictures!

I've been promising myself I'd post pictures of everything I'm working on. I wish I was a better photographer though. Funny thing about me and cameras. They hate me. Doesn't matter if I'm the shooter or shootee, it rarely turns out well. So I'm skipping that part for the moment. (Pay no attention to my laziness. Move along.)




Simple Knit Bodice. I swear I'm going to finish this. I've knit up to the lace panels on each sleeve, and I have to do the finishing on the neck, then wash, block and wear with pride. And a tank top. And probably a little smirk, cause it's really gorgeous.



Socks in Cherry Tree Hill's Supersock Merino in Old Rose. My feet are set on permafrost for most of the year, so I decided I need lots of warm snuggly handknit socks to keep them warm this winter. Since this yarn works up very quickly, I've finished this pair in a little under a week. Turns out the key for me is to finish the toe on sock #1 and IMMEDIATELY cast on for #2. Even if it's 3 a.m.



Christmas hats. Mad hattering over here so my big ass family will have warm heads on Christmas day. Six down, four to go. Two of those are for toddlers, so I'm ahead of the game. Maybe I should make extras or something. Yes that cream Shedir you see was for me, now it's for Grandma. She's real picky and wanted something complex. Doubt she'll ever wear it...such a tragedy.

Oh! Eunny's little Endpaper Mitts have caught my attention and I'm going to make myself a pair soon.

Central Park Hoodie is still on the menu, I'm just waiting for the yarn to arrive. I ordered some snuggly Araucania Nature Wool in a light brown color from Webs. Mmmmm I can't wait.
.......................

Enough knitting news.

All my paperwork is in to the grad school (thank you Karen!), we close on our house on the 30th (provided the builder type folks meet all our contingencies...p.s. hurry it up boys, this girl is impatient and you're stressing her out), and I have my resume out to several places, so I have some options. I asked for more money today, again (see previous posts on my intolerable lack of patience), but I'm not sure that I'll get it.

Add to that whole mess that I have an incredibly unpleasant co-worker who is about to get the very rude end of Melanie Being Pushed Too Far. I have loads of charm and southern politeness (not to mention an off-the-charts cute factor), and I normally go too far beyond all that in an effort to understand people, but when I go out of my way to engage in conversation with you FIVE whole times a day, you better fucking recognize and respond. I'm way too busy and stressed out to be bothered with somebody's bad attitude. She's stinking up the whole place and making an uncomfortable situation ten time worse than it has to be. The worst part is that it is her JOB to be outgoing and friendly. Ha. Maybe we should switch.

P.S. I take back what I said about the new MCR album. I didn't give it a fair listen, and frankly, I was in a bad mood. It's very cohesive and well done, and kinda reminds me of Green Day's American Idiot. Tight. Well played. An album, not just a bunch of songs thrown together. Me love it long time.

blahgity blahg

I'm in limbo. It is frustrating. I may become monosyllabic due to the melting of my brain in this time warp called 'everything in my life takes for-fucking-ever'. No wonder I've knit six hats in a week. I need action! Specifically in these areas:

1. Grad school. Still haven't heard about my application.

2. My job. Still don't know if I'm getting a raise at any time or in any dimension. However, work at this point completely fries my brain, so I'm not sure any amount of compensation is enough. The voices in my head want the pain to stop.

3. My house. Can I tell you guys how much I HATE to wait? I might be the most impatient person to ever live. Waiting to hear back from a finance person is just torture. I know I'm approved, now gimme my damn house key, beotch. I have decorating to do.

4. The Simple Knit Bodice. I only have the sleeves left to pick up and knit, and yet, I can't bring myself to do it. The thought of the lace panel on size ZERO needles makes me cringe. And yet if I just made it short-sleeved, I'd never wear it. Damn lace. And I really want to start on the Central Park Hoodie.

Blah.

it's about damn time

Not that I'm a raging Democrat (though I do scream in a liberal direction), but YAY!

Plus: woot.



And, thank you Britney. Take him for all he's worth.

...oh wait

...nevermind.

i'm lazy, but i'm quick

Hi! This week has been super insane, what with the end-of-month work junk, and the knitting on my purple sweater, and the buying of a house.

YES! I said buying a house! We did some budgeting and made an offer this week and the builder is meeting our contingencies. We close on the 30th! It's big and adorable and perfect (except for the things the builder is changing, specifically the driveway and yard/drainage issues), and we're both just crazy excited. (Could I use more 'and's' in one post?! I do that when I'm excited. Insert lots of giggling here.)



See that whole lack-of-a-yard thing? Gonna be fixing that.

Also, I finally sat down today and wrote the Corset Scarf pattern, with some technical help from Denise, as you can see on the sidebar. Let me know if you download and knit it! I'd love to see some of these worked up in different colors. I almost made it in black with red ribbons or totally black with red rosettes, but the Funky Scarf Swap was about funkiness, not so much with the sluttiness. I might make the black for myself, since I'm cool with the slut/goth factor.

So, to the meat of the post...since we're buying a house and almost every cent of our money is tied up, I'm going to be breaking that little vow I made a while back. I'm going to be knitting ALL my Christmas gifts. All of them. Needless to say, every one is getting a scarf or a hat. But I'm quick. I made this decision yesterday, and I've already finished my mom's Blanche hat in Jo Sharp's Silk Road, in a pretty light blue. Tonight I started my step dad's hat in a brown tweed. He's a very brown tweed sort of guy. It's perfect.

My brothers will probably get black hats with various color stripes, and most of the ladies (my grandmother, aunt and SIL) will get scarves. (Lisa, this does not apply to you, unless you want it to of course :P)

I think I'm going to reserve Tuesday nights for our LYS's Sweater Support Group night when I want to work on my own stuff.

Whew. It's gonna be a crazy few months. House, holidays and grad school (January) all at once. Somebody cross their fingers and junk.

these socks did not kill me

And I have them BEFORE Halloween, as promised. These are now my official Punkin Day socks. Or any other damn day I choose.



Pattern : Jaywalker by Grumperina
Yarn: Socktoberfest by ScoutJ

The first sock took infinitely longer than the second. Having a deadline helped motivate me to finish, and I blew through the second one. It's way cool to have handmade socks on my feet. Crafted by these two hands. These! Mine! It is reminiscent of Tom Hanks on the beach and his pride at having made a fire. I have made sock! Not just one, but two! And they match! And fit! And they're so cool I think I might faint!

My costume tomorrow is Awesome Chick in Jaywalkers. Or serial killer. One of those.

(and god did i really post 3x in the last 7 days? what has the world come to?!?)

i can't sleep

i woke up this morning unable to move. at some point in the night the muscles in my neck seized up and it hurt so much i couldn't even turn over. after several muscle relaxers, muscle creams and a heating pad, it feels better, but not enough to let me sleep.

i'm also a bit depressed, and i can't put my finger on why. i'm doing so well right now, with the whole grad school thing and looking at houses and my insomnia has greatly diminished, so i can't figure out what's bugging me. and i hate a mystery. surprises too. i like to know what's going on so much that it almost makes me obsessive after an answer. growing up, it was almost impossible for my parents to surprise me at christmas. i can hunt down a stocking stuffer like no one else. and if it's a person i'm trying to figure out, god help them. i develop a weird stalkeresque vibe and i dig and dig and dig until i find what i'm looking for. then i just retreat back into my head and contemplate what the world means with my new-found information. i can't stand being left in the dark, or worse, lied to...that just makes me want to know more and dig harder. but at the end of the day, i just want to know what's going on.

so maybe it's that in the last few weeks i've gotten a lot of messages on my myspace account from guys i used to date, with the usual wording being 'hey stranger! what's up? how ya been?'. the immediate response in my head is along the lines of 'you dumped me in college and you wanna know how the fuck i am?!? don't make me get shitty with you, asshole' and 'i dumped you and i still remember why, and i still have nothing to say'. old friends are great to hear from, but someone who wouldn't return my phone calls can fuck off. still, i can't help but wonder what the hell they're thinking. they're probably losing their hair and having early midlife crises.

ok i just stubbed my toe and cut my foot open. i think it's time to attempt sleep again. maybe.

good things

1. I finished one Jaywalker, and have started on the other.

2. I'm getting a fat raise in January.

3. I scored a 434 on the MAT, out of 500, and I only needed 374 to get in. (p.s. i rock)

4. I'm going to grad school.

many things, one post

Last week took about 3 days too long. All work and no play makes me tres boring and also a little brain-fried. And very frustrated at my job and all the changes. And I'm still waiting to hear my test results to see if I get into grad school. Also, I want to buy a house RIGHT. NOW. And then have babies (twins, please, so I only have to do the whole labor thing once), and knit lots and lots of sweaters and wee things. Be glad you aren't totally subject to the workings of my brain. Ya'll would be fried too.

Yesterday I was home sick and finally went to the doctor for this month-long cough. The usual suspects are to blame: upper respiratory infection/bronchitis. I get the same thing all the time thanks to my allergies and asthma. Allergies cause mucus, while the asthma makes my lungs weak. Slap me with some TB and call me a lunger.

While I was home, I was privy to the insane amount of cuteness that goes on here during the day. I give you shameful evidence:

Tristan snuggled in my blanket while I took a shower.



Murphy and Sydney keep the computer chair warm.



Tristan and Molly get a solar recharge.



I'm in serious need of updating, and a big shout out of "Thanks, you rock!" to my Funky Scarf Pal, Kristin.




I love this scarf. The blues are exactly me. And she sent some yummy pink yarn and lots of Asian goodies!!

And a bit of Jaywalker progress:



I love this yarn, and I am ready to wear these things already!! I wish I knit faster, cause it's getting cold around here. My toes need wool! I will finish this toe tomorrow and immediately cast on for the second one. I will have a completed pair of socks by Halloween if it kills me.

I am still going to write a pattern for the corset scarf, I just haven't gotten to it yet. But soon. It's really pretty easy, I just have to sit down and map it all out.

In other random news - go see The Departed. I love Matt Damon in many sick ways, so it creeps me out that he looks a LOT like my little brother. A lot. Good script, awesome cast, crappy continuity (so sayeth the film major), and a bit too much of the shootings in the head. I'm not a DeCaprio fan, but I totally bought his performance. Jack rocks, of course. Overall, a good movie with lots of bad cops (a total shocker, I know).

Also, I picked up the new My Chemical Romance CD today. Not sure yet if I like it. It might be a little too over produced for my sweet punk heart. But I love with a passion the Open Door CD from Evanescence. If you have any feeling for Amy Lee, you will go get it now before I steal her voice and run away to be a rock star in some other country. 'Call Me When You're Sober' and 'Weight of the World' are my favs. Not many women make me swoon, damn it. Buy. It. Now. or the drummer gets it. I'm just sayin.

Socktoberfest & FSS

**Edited to add: I'll be writing up the pattern in the next few weeks since there seems to be a tad of demand for it.


I'm back from Philly, and they kept us so busy that I had no time to knit (other than put the finishing touches on the Funky Scarf for Michelle), and I didn't even see Philly or do anything worth mentioning, aside from working my ass off.

However, now that I'm back, I've started on a pair of Jaywalkers with the Socktoberfest yarn from Scout (who is awesome, as is her yarn).

Drool at the yumminess of it all.



Aren't those colors just perfect for fall? I plan to have these finished by Halloween. I actually started another pattern and realized about 3 rows in that this yarn would make kickass Jaywalkers. And so it shall be.



As for the Funky Scarf, it got sent out on Friday to Michelle in Canada. I really hope she likes it. I went with a corset theme, using Elsbeth Lavold's Hempathy in Off White. I knit two identical strips lengthwise and joined them together at the lace section using a green velvet ribbon. I also used yarn overs strung with ribbon to create a boning type effect. Then I imbellished with some silk rosettes, and tied the ribbons at the bottom for fringe.



Some Detail!



Closer boning detail.



Yet another view.



My only regret is that I didn't have my steamer with me, as I had blocked the pieces prior to putting them together and the edges had begun to curl. They could have used a final blocking for a slightly crisper look. Regardless, I like it a lot, and when I get some time, I'll probably make one similar to this for myself.

whee

just found out i'm flying to philadelphia on sunday for a week-long work training conference.

there had better be some good shopping and lots of yarn stores, and maybe a little history for fun.

i should remember to pack my camera.

maybe i'll be able to pop in while i'm gone with knitting pics, cause i plan to take a few projects along so i can finish them. oh la la!

b'day recap

Remember how I'm not so great with the details? Let's just say we had a lot of fun at Emeril's for my big fat birthday (and thanks for the good wishes everyone!). Food was good, service was awesome, company was even better than all that. The restaurant is gorgeous and we'll definitely go back, but we'll probably just have appetizers and drinks instead of a full course meal.

My birthday was awesome. It was a beautiful day, and I just felt amazing. I spent most of the day being very high energy and feeling one with everything (cause I am everything and everything is me. ya'll know*).

And now plans are in full swing for our May trip to California. Lisa and I bought travel books, cause all I know about is LA. We'll probably fly into LA and drive up the coast then fly out from somewhere up there, maybe Portland? That would rock.

I'm madly working on my funky scarf for the swap, and it will be ready, blocked and put together on Friday. Then it's back to my sweater and casting on some socks. I have strange sock urges these days.

*(and apparently my stalkers know too. cut it out already, you suck.)

Wow.

I'm officially 30.

I guess it's ok, since I was really lucky to survive 20 (drunken near-death experiences) and 25 (divorce).

When I was very young, I was convinced that I wouldn't make it to 16, so in that respect, being 30 is fucking awesome.

And now my family officially has permission to bug me for babies.

Dear gods help me.

SKB progress

But first, a little cuteness diversion. That's Molly (stripy cat) sitting on Tristan's head in the window. I guess he was there first and she maneuvered in on him for quality solar regeneration. Ellie was sitting on the chair and wanted to say hi as I was clicking.




Here's the SKB so far. Pay no attention to my jammies and the random shit on my countertop. Can't wait to do the finishing edges on the neck to see how much it actually reveals. But I LOVE it. I knit a few rows before starting the lace after having to rip it out b/c when I tried it on the first time the purl rows were on my boobs...not good.



The lace took forever on size zero needles. Bleh. But that's what it took to get gauge. Finally finished that section and the purl ridges last night and I've done 3 repeats of the hip increases today. I should be finished with the body soon, but I'm feeling the crunch on finishing my funky scarf for the swap, so I may put this on hold until that's completed.



Also, I love these beads and I think I've used them effeciently enough so that I'll have plenty for the sleeve lace sections. They're size 11 in dark cranberry. This is gonna rock once it's finished and blocked. I can hardly wait!! I wanted to wear it to my birthday dinner this weekend, but that's clearly not gonna happen.