Sarah's Birthday

Today is Sarah's 21st birthday.

She was born on mother's day 1986.

Dave and I didn't meet our daughter until July of that year. What a gift she has been. She is beautiful and kind. She works hard at everything she does. She is our joy . . . but 21 years have gone by . . . and it was just a minute ago that I held her for the first time. Just a minute ago . . .

Two down . . . one to go

NON-KNITTING INFO:

The two electives that I took for Spring semester are done:

Monday . . . final on HR Planning
Wednesday . . . final on Group Dynamics

Both of these were electives and yes, I did decide to take these classes instead of taking the scheduled electives:

Financial Policies (Survey of financial policies and problems. Covers such topics as working capital management, cost of capital, capital budgeting, capital structure, dividend policy, valuation, mergers and acquisitions, and long-range financial planning. Includes one or more of the following: cases, readings, and term project) and

Project Management (This course is designed to teach you the nature and scope of Project Management (PM). You will learn what the planning of a project involves, what managerial problems are associated with the design, control and scheduling of projects the managers are facing, and finally what techniques and decision tools are used to solve these problems. Several articles from practitioner journals will be discussed to supplement the theory. In particular, students after completing this course will be able to: a)Appreciate the key ingredients of management of projects. b)Understand how effective management of projects can lower cost, increase productivity and improve responsiveness to customer requirements. c) Improve their analytical skills through the use of PERT/CPM method).

Both of the courses described above required the use of a financial calculator . . .

hence my decision to take two HR classes. I know that these are graduate level courses and maybe in my pea-sized brain I really thought that since they didn't require a financial calculator they wouldn't be difficult. HA . . . and God laughed, she does have such a quirky sense of humor . . .

The HR Planning course involved a lot of statistics and calculations with respect to various analysis required. The Group Dynamics is an organizational behavior course. I have decided that I dislike organizational behavior courses. Seriously. Those courses are subject to the arbitrary dictates of the person teaching them. The ONLY advantage was that we didn't have to buy a book.

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Anyway, the finals were this week and since this is Thursday, they are done. A total of six essay questions and approximately 14 pages of handwritten responses.

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The last course is on Saturdays and ends June 30 with our final paper due July 2. Yes, there is a light at the end of this tunnel.

Knitty SP8

Shannon, you are awesome. You have been a wonderful Secret Pal and the last package was way over the top.

You are so right, the shortbread cookies are the best. The chocolate is very good and I am alloting myself a little bit, of each, at a time. I am going to savor the coffee over a couple of weekends!!

But the yarn, the yarn is fantastic. You did a great job of dyeing the blue green and purple yarns and I love the handspun and will let you know if it self-stripes and the lace. I love the shadow yarns from KnitPicks. It is a pleasure to work with.

Thanks so much!!! You are a great pal and I always looked forward to hearing from you!

Last week

Last week was one of those that I would pass on reliving.


I had a long rambling posting about how really awful last week was . . .

I deleted it.

This week will be better. It has to be.

For anyone reading this though, I would ask that you keep my sister and brother in your prayers. Thanks much.

Confirmation, Fountains and Socks

Lindsey made her Confirmation this Sunday. The kids have spent months preparing for this and they did a great job. This is a picture of Lindsey, our good friend and neighbor Wendy, who is Lindsey's sponsor, and Bishop Quinn.

Bishop Quinn's comments were excellent, as always. He talked to the kids about their faith and how they can act on that faith by taking positive actions within the Church and community. He compared faith and how we act on it to thermometers and thermostats. Thermometers react to what the temperatures up or down. Thermostats are much more proactive.

Zachariah took a couple of pictures of the plantings in our church foyer. He is fascinated by the fountain.



Socks ~~ I am not sure that I am ever destined to knit socks. I love sock yarn. I love the feel and gentleness of it and find it amazing that we take this beautiful stuff and put it on our feet. Nevertheless, I still plug along. I did buy on ebay, two skeins of Lorna's Laces Worsted in Black Watch Colorway. Lindsey's school uniform is a Black Watch plaid and I think she would enjoy having matching something or tother . . . I cannot use it for socks as they are not allowed to wear anything but solid color socks. From the same person, I bought more of the Noro Silk Garden (#8). It is what I made my entrelac scarf with and I want to add more rows to the scarf and maybe make a hat or gauntlets.

But the socks . . . it doesn't seem to matter whether they are two soxs on two circs or one sock at a time (on a circ or 4 DPN), I am unable to do it. Bah humbug.

Our Anniversary

Today is Dave's and my 27th wedding anniversary! He is the best. He is funny and smart and gets better and better looking as time goes by (he also wears the same size as when we got married . . . I wish I could say the same!).

He makes me laugh and smile. Thanks Dave for 27 years of love, patience and kindness. You are the best thing that ever happened to me.

Worldwide Knit in Public Day 2007

June 9th is Worldwide Knit in Public Day. See this website for information about registering or checking to see if there will be a location in your area . . . or you can set one up!

The sorrow of it all

Last evening, Monday, April 16, I had classes at Cleveland State. I and one of my fellow students were watching all the young students (Mike and I are substantially older than most of our classmates) studying, chatting, reading and working. Occasionally, you would hear wisps of "but something like that could not happen here." Ahhhh. And there is the rub . . . it could.

We live in a free society. Who among us would be willing to give up the freedoms we have for more safety and/or security? How much freedom would you be willing to give up.

By the time all is said and done, there will be tons of finger pointing. Where were the failures and who was responsible. Did the school fail? Did the parents of the shooter fail? Did any of his teachers recognize his sense of despair and not reach out? His friends who knew he was having problems, but were busy getting ready for finals and papers and dating and hanging out and were going to call him next weekend, did they fail him? The young woman that he shot first, how sad, how sad. The final responsibility, however, lies with the young man who in deciding that there were no other options, picked up his guns and silently destroyed lives.

Thinking about these children who have died and their families, including his, I pray that they will survive this. They will never forget, their lives are forever changed, but I pray they survive.

Friday and the weekend

Slept in Friday.
Slept in Saturday.
Slept in Sunday.
Woke at 2:30a, 2:57a, 3:21a, 4:10a and finally 4:31a on Monday. Why is that my body knows when I need to get up?
By the way, sleeping in consists of 9:00a on Friday, 7:58a on Saturday and 7:10a on Sunday.

Friday was spent spending quality time with Dave and Zachariah. I was going to clean the office but played games with Zachariah instead. We went to lunch and the post office and played games. Dave and I played "Power Scrabble" in the evening. 30 seconds to start putting a word on the board, 30 seconds to finish. It was loverly.

Saturday was sleeping in, showering, making breakfast, folding the laundry, driving Lindz to violin and finally school. Dave, Lindz and I played Boggle and Pinacle later while Zachariah slept and Sarah went over her "no-he-isn't-a-boy-friend" friend's home.

Sunday was spent at friends for the kids birthday. We are their youngest daughter's godparents. She turned 13 last Tuesday. They live a little more than an hour away. Dave drove there while I worked on a project for school. I drove home.

No knitting. None. Zero. Zilch. Nada.

Things I would knit for ME

this is a totally selfish post . . . it is a list of the things that I would knit for me. While you may recall that I was making the entrelac scarf for myself, it seems that Lindsey has more or less claimed it for her own. But then again, she is the scarf queen (currently 14, not counting the entrelac).

On the bus ride in this morning, while I was casting on, yet again, for the 2 sox on 2 circs, I thought that my yarn is going to be so ragged by the time that I'm done that I will have to keep these for myself. Myself? Really? For myself? Is that allowed? (actually, reminding me of the beautiful Saturday a couple of summers ago when Dave announced that the next day we were not doing anything the next day . . . we had been working in the yard all day . . . he said that we were going to eat breakfast on the porch, read the newspaper by the pool, play in the pool with the kids and, maybe grill hotdogs for lunch AND dinner!). Anyway, I digress . . .

Something for me. Besides these socks, what would I make just for me? So I came up with a list:

1) I have three skeins of Royal Bamboo in a blue/aqua/green that I could see in a "summer" entrelac scarf, rather narrow and very soft (of course, I'd have to keep at work or Lindsey would wander off with it).

2) Gauntlets for the office. Of course, this came from the fact that there are times when our office is so cold that we wear winter coats.

3) Gauntlets for walking or waiting for the bus or knitting.

4) Slippers. I love slippers. I love loose slippers that I can easily slip on and off . . . probably felted.

5) A small clutch. I tend to take my wallet with me when I go places, either tucking it into a pocket or in my hand. My purse is too big (knitting, needles, patterns, calendar, current textbook, cd player, etc., although I did recently cancel the Wall Street Journal so I don't schlep that to work anymore). But a cute little clutch thing, something like this, but a tad bigger: here

Or, I could finish the stuff that I have started for me. There is:

a) My Noni bag here. I have it almost half way done in a black/red/gray stripe. It is very lovely. Gee, I wonder where I put it?

b) THE sweater. The Kaffe Fasset sweater . . . I was working on it when my Mom died and haven't picked it up. I should finish it. It is knit from the back, up over the shoulders, including the sleeves, and down the front with added cuffs (6 inch). The only finishing stuff on the whole thing is the cuffs and seams. I am about half way down the front. It is made with variety of yarns and colors. It is from Glorious Knits.

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But, before I do any of these, I have to work on THE socks. Frankly, I'd be happy to just get them cast on properly and started!

Picture worth 1,000 Words

This is what Jacob's Field looked like this weekend:

We sat on the back porch Tuesday evening enjoying the sunset, drinking wine, slept with our windows open and hadn't worn jackets in a couple of days. Merry Easter!

Knitter's Geek Code

-----BEGIN KNITTER’S GEEK CODE BLOCK-----

Version 1.1

KCm+++ Exp++ SPM++ Bam++ Options+++ Addi Den+ Wool+++ Lux+ Syn- Nov- Stash++ Scale+ Fin Ent+ Felt++ Tex+ Circ++ DPN+ ML++ Swatch KIP++ Blog++ EZ++ FO+ WIP+++ W++ S++ F+ B Cr+ Sw+++

-----END KNITTER’S GEEK CODE BLOCK-----

And if you want to know how to do your own code, go to:

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring04/FEATgeekcode.html

Opening Day in Cleveland

Today's is the Indians Home Opener. On a beautiful sunny day, this is what Jacob's field looks like:

When I went by the stadium this morning, all the grass, seats, sidewalks were covered with SNOW.

Home opener forecast:

Lake Effect Snow Advisory extended through 4 p.m. this afternoon.

Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Ashtabula and Trumbull counties are all under the advisory.

In these areas 1 to 3 inches of additional snow accumulation is possible today.

Plan on more snow tomorrow with an additional 2 to 4 inches of snow.

So what is Miss Lulu doing this evening?

Hey, Miss Lulu, my view isn't of lots of trees but I do have some wine . . . come on over and I'll let you play with the stash (I know where she hides it).

A simple little square

So for the Whoduknit March project, we are knitting 12" squares. A simple thing. Bought the woolese in lovely shades of green, decided on a couple of patterns (and printed them on 4x6" cards so that they are handy).

And probably have frogged the stupid thing more than just about any other project (well, except for Lindsey's KnitWit hat . . . which I hate and will probably leave behind somewhere). The biggest problem is that it is like doing a swatch, a large swatch but a swatch nevertheless. So, I started the first one which had a couple of repeats of a simple cable pattern, figured out how many stitches, did a couple of measurements and figured that I would be about a 1/2" short of 12 inches, which could easily be adjusted with a crocheted edge (even made a note to self: "SELF: don't forget to measure and adjust final row to end up with an 11-1/2" square").

So, cast on, do three or four rows, and, keeping in mind that my pattern is on a 4x6" card, I whip out my card, use it as a psuedo ruler, only to discover . . . its about 12-1/2" and not 11-1/2". So then, thinking that maybe the cards aren't really 4x6" but maybe a tad off, I find a ruler and remeasure. F-R-O-G. And, because that was so much fun, I did it again with the same pattern, fewer stitches and still ended up making a mess of it, plus I am having to adjust the repeat on the pattern.

Then decided that I would try a new pattern.

Well, then I decided that I would just do a simple knit . . . no pattern, maybe a seed stitch.

BLECHHHHH.

So, now I have a very nice square more than half way done. A simple pattern, reverse diamonds. While I'm not thrilled with it, and have decided that the pattern would be better in a finer yarn and smaller needle, it is nice, a little blurry but nice.

Of course, it is also sitting on the dining room table. Stupid square.

Yarn Harlot's coming to Cleveland & I can't go

I wanted to go New York to be part of the knitters invading New York for the Yarn Harlot. I really was hoping to go but I have two finals and a paper due on Saturday (and shouldn't be visiting blogland).

But the Yarn Harlot is coming to Cleveland on March 30 @ 2:00p. Unfortunately, I will be at the very first class of the capstone course (my very LAST class for my MBA) . . . and the stupid syllabus is big enough that it can be bound in a friggin book . . . so I cannot go there either.

I am hoping, however, that the prof announces at 1:00 p.m. that he has to leave because there is an important speaker at Jos.Beth at Legacy Village. Or maybe if he sees me working on my knitting, he might pop up with "did you know that the YH is at Jos.Beth today? Why don't you leave early?" It can happen. Oh, look, and there goes another flying pig!

Books . . . read or to be read

Look at the list of books below: * Bold the ones you’ve read * Italicize the ones you want to read

* Leave blank the ones that you aren’t interested in. If you are reading this (and haven't participated yet), tag, you’re it!

1. The DaVinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. The Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrew Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According to Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

Other things I would recommend:
A. Wicked (the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West) (Gregory Maguire)
B. Artemis Fowl (all of them) (Eoin Colfer)
C. Haunted Ground (Erin Hart)
D. Lake of Sorrows (Erin Hart)
E. Cross (James Patterson)
F. Eragon (Christopher Paolini)
G. World is Flat (Thomas Friedman)
H. Freakenomics (Steven Levitt)
I. Beyond Bullet Points (really lame for actual reading but if ever need to do more than one powerpoint presentation and people have fallen asleep during your first one . . . this is a must) (Cliff Atkinson)
J. Knitting Rules (Stephanie Pearl-McPhee)
K. Knitting Without Tears (Elizabeth Zimmerman)
L. Scarlett (Alexandria Ripley)
M. Son of a Witch (Gregory Maguire)
N. I'll Always Love You (Hans Wilhelm . . . children's book about a boy and his dog . . . my kids love this one as do I . . . "I'll tell them every day, I'll always love you" a perfect message to your children)

There are many others . . .

Saturday morning . . .

Saturday morning was lovely . . . it is Spring break so no classes for me. Zachariah came trotting in around 6:40 wanting to know if he could climb into bed with me . . . too early, go back to your room for awhile. 7:15, he was back and I was too. You know, he always wants to snuggle, but then starts squirming and doing the countdown "what time are we getting up? 7:30. 7:30? Its 7:18? How much longer is it until 7:30?"

And then when I got up and opened the shades, it had snowed. AGAIN. Bah humbug.

So, I worked on the info necessary for my final in Innovations & Technology class, including the 12 page paper that is due Saturday. Finished work on the taxes, played Candyland, Chutes and Ladders and Hang Man with Zachariah, cleaned Lindsey's drawers (the 13 year old princess (and yes sunshine just because you can get your skinny butt into those jeans, doesn't mean that Momma will let you wear them in public)) and convinced the 20 year old that taking public transportation to the parade was the best thing to do (and no I do not want to go with you or even anywhere near the parade, thank you very much).

I did not make pancakes or waffles but did make eggs to order (actually, green eggs . . . the scrambled we added blue food coloring to and the fried eggs got green food coloring added to the whites . . . the scrambled looked icky, the fried had a lovely varigated design . . . didn't take pics though).

I never left the house the entire weekend. We were going to 8:00 Mass on Sunday but I woke with a splitting headache (staying up until 3:00 a.m. working on taxes a direct contributor) and horrible aches in my hips and knees (probably from the drawer cleaning).

Lindsey is leaving for Florida on Wednesday with a dear friend and her husband. She will end up missing three days of school. We did the battle of what all a 13 year old needs to pack when she is going some place that has a washer and dryer and will be only bringing a carry-on on the return flight. She was most particularly upset when I informed her that she could not bring large bottles of anything as she will be flying home.

Oh, yeah, and I blocked my entrelac scarf! Finished, blocked and done. And, I wish I had made it just a tad longer . . . ah well.

Entrelac . . . pseudo blocked

Here is the scarf which is almost done. I am on the last tier but needed to get a pic done for the Whoduknit KAL. I love the colors and love doing this. It is not complicated although I did have to frog on more than one occasion.

I am also working on some squares for the Whoduknit afghan project.

Next up is socks for the April project. I have the most perfect yarn. Very spring!

Lindsey tried on her entire outfit for graduation and Confirmation. She picked out the shoes first (big mistake). They are in a madras plaid. THEN we got to find an outfit that would go with the shoes. The other problem that happens is that she just turned 13 and has a 20 year old sister. Often she thinks she should be able to wear stuff that her sister does. In any event, I think we did good.

Victorian Lace Today

Wow, oh, wow!!

Look at what I got from my SP8 . . .

I have been lusting over this book ever since I read a preview by Grumperina http://www.grumperina.com/knitblog/archives/2006/11/replacement_in.htm

This book is to drool over. The photos are fabulous and the colors of the lace are just incredible. Most of the lace has been made up in different weights and yarns and the author gives a grand background of the origins of the lace.

Now while all the yarn and scarves and shawls and photos are fabulous, if you ever have the opportunity to lay your hands on this book, there is the obligatory techniques, cast-ons and basics, BUT this book continues where others just dream of going. Go to page 180 which starts with Understanding Lace Design, How to Make Your Own Wide Border, Other Borders and, finally, on pages 184 and 185, an honest to Pete discussion on how to design your own lace, including plotting repeats, etc. FABULOUS.

Wow!

He cleans up well

Isn't he just too cute. Sometimes, Zachariah and Lindsey will get dressed up for dinner. Usually, his hair is standing on end and he looks like the wild man. He cleans up really well.

While now its all slush . . .

This pics are from a couple of weeks ago . . . actually, it is how we spent Valentine's Day! The girls were working the drive, in front of the garage. Dave was doing closer to the street when a neighbor came over with his snow blower!! Thank you very, very much.

They had waited until after most of the blowing had stopped, but you can see from this pic of Lindsey, that there were still times when the blowing was still going on.

This is the garden. It is important to note that we used raised beds and the beds are 10 inches high. The vegation that is poking through are the dead pepper/tomato plants from last summer. In the spring, we (i.e., Dave), will rota-till all the dead stuff, including the tree leaves that were dumped on the garden back into the whole thing.

And then it all started clearing out and we were left with this wonderful sunset. A perfect end to a snowy and blowy and cold Valentine's Day!

The scarf . . . a love/hate relationship

I love the entrelac scarf. And it is beautiful:

but, what is that you say, "is it done?" Don't be silly. If you look real close, you can see the needle up at the top.

The thing I despise about this, is frogging it is a royal pain . . . both in the pattern AND the yarn.

So "don't frog" you say. Ha! You must frog when you discover that somehow you got twisted around and started going the wrong way.

And, then you ask "how did you get twisted around?" Its easy, especially when you don't complete a tier and then pick it up and start working on it, on the bus going home, when you are so sleepy that the only thing you should be doing is listening to your book (Haunted Ground by the way) or maybe just closing your eyes and relaxing (although there is the fear of snoring).

I have to say that I am so tired lately that I can hardly stand it. I get home from school on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:00 and usually Dave and I will sit and talk, enjoy a glass of wine and spend sometime together (it is rather nice to have the kids already tucked up and I do very much enjoy this time and the fact that he waits until I home to go to bed . . . he usually goes to bed at 9:00 cause he gets up at 3:00 to grade papers). But on those days where I'm not getting home late, I too have been going to bed by 9:30 (fortunately, last night Grey's Anatomy was a repeat). But I'm still tired in the morning/afternoon/evening. Arghhh, I'm sleepy and making stupid mistakes.

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I have bought the yarn for the Whoduknit from Joann's. I bought Lion's Brand Wool-Ease in a Forest Heather Green. It is very lush. I have yet to decide on what pattern I will do but have to look at the patterns to find one with a repeat that will even out to 12 inches . . . or maybe and 11 square of pattern with 1/2 inch edge all around. We will see.

So why do we do this??

I have to be honest. I am cheap. Seriously cheap. I shop for the best bang for my buck and seriously object to paying full price for anything. That doesn't mean that I wouldn't . . . usually not for me but will for my kids (just ask my daughters about the shopping expedition of this past Sunday . . . Confirmation/Graduation clothing were the goal of the expedition and we were successful and nothing was on sale).

I would NOT spend $30 on a scarf or gloves or hat. I will however spend $30 on yarn to make a scarf or gloves or hat . . . well maybe not $30 . . . but pretty close when you consider that the Noro Silk Garden was $7 a skein and the scarf took three skeins.

This is a discussion that my hubby and I have had for years. For our oldest daughter, I would make super fabulous dresses . . . until she decided that she wouldn't wear them. My Mom made her First Communion dress . . . I was going to but my Mom asked if she could. It is a gift.

I made Lindsey's First Communion dress and the dresses the girls wore for a wedding. The wedding dresses did cost less to make than to buy. The First Communion dresses were iffy.

The difference that my hubby and I have is the value of the time. For the wedding dresses, once I focused (and built up my nerve to actually CUT the fabric), I worked on them mostly in one evening . . . up until the point where I would have had to wake the girls to try them on for fitting. I recall climbing into bed at 5:00 a.m. on a Sunday morning . . . I had started on them at 8:00 p.m. the evening before.

So, again, why do we do this? Why do we spend hours knitting/crocheting/sewing when we could buy a similar product.

For me, it is the satisfaction. It is in seeing something done and you know, you get that smile. Awesome.

It is also the fact that I am cheap. I recognize that I could not buy a hand-made silk scarf for $30. Therefore, if I want a hand-made silk scarf, I will have to do it myself . . . and the time spent . . . well, its my time anyway.

More non-knitting; rather weepy for me at least

Let me tell you why I feel sorry for Brittany Spears and Anna Nicole Smith and why Craig Ferguson has earned my respect. It goes back many, many years.

When my husband and I got married in 1980, my niece was 11. Depending on whom you talk to, she started drinking at age 12 or 13. Life went on. Her parents dealt with counselling (individual and family). She had court enforced treatments . . . going as well as those types of things usually do. Sometimes she lived with someone and held a job and sometimes, she called the streets her home.

When she was 25, she had a baby. For her 27th birthday, she, her current beau (aka provider of the proverbial "roof") and baby celebrated her birthday until the wee hours of the morning. Things happened and our local Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) stepped in. Her daughter was removed from her custody and placed with a family member. Because she has never changed her lifestyle, she has never seen her daughter since. The daughter was adopted when she was 3-1/2. She will be 13 next month.

Seven years later, she had another daughter. The baby tested positive for cocaine at birth. The father's mother stepped in and has custody of that child who is now 7.

A year later, she had a son, by the same father as her second child. We were all amazed. For whatever reason, DCFS decided to give her a chance with this one. When he was four months old, he was removed and placed with the family that had the oldest daughter. He was adopted when he was 2-1/2.

A year later, she had another daughter, again by the same father (at least she thinks so). DCFS decided that she would not take this one home and another family member (bless her) stepped in and volunteered to help. She was adopted by them when she was 1.

She calls me. A lot. She remembers to call on my birthday and my husbands and her kids. She calls on holidays and has an incredible sense of knowing when the rest of the family will be at the house for non-holidays gatherings. She sends me Mother's Day cards.

I have always, ALWAYS been honest with her.
I have cried with her and laughed with her.
I have yelled at her, told her I was disappointed and pled with her to get help.
I have told her that she has wasted her life.
I have been nasty and mean and kind and gentle.
I have tried tough love and forgiving love.
When she has told me that I am not being "fair," I point out that what is not fair is that someday, I will have to explain to those beautiful children that their Mom choose a beer over them.
I will not allow my children, who were born from her womb, to see her or be seen by her.
I believe in my heart, that it would serve no purpose whatsoever and would cause more pain than necessary.
I have also told her that when it is needed, I will tell our children that their Mom loved them, but I will not lie to them.
She gave us an incredible gift, actually two. Lindsey will be 13 in two weeks. Zachariah just turned 6, and we are the ones they call Mommy and Daddy. We share the butterfly kisses and snuggles and hugs.
She is dying. She is 38. Her kidneys and liver are failing. She has been spending more time in the hospital than out of it. She is a terrible patient, checking herself out against medical advice and still not listening to those of us who love her.

And then there are times that I see

this beautiful little blonde girl

. . . dancing and singing . . .

. . . so innocent and kind . . .

. . . full of laughter and . . .

. . . hope for the future . . .

While the little blonde girl was my niece at my wedding, it could have easily been Anna Nicole or Brittany. Hopefully, someone will be able to reach Brittany who is teetering on the edge of destruction. It is too late for my niece and Anna Nicole.

And to Craig Ferguson, you are gentleman. You will always have my respect.

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Cold . . . its cold

Our Whoduknit for February was Northern Lights by Nora Roberts. It is based in Alaska. The description of how cold it is there made me cold. However, Cleveland's weather later has been trying very hard to compete with Alaska. It has been cold. Really, really cold.

And it snowed. We have about 18 inches in my yard and with blowing and drifting, there are areas in our yard that have about four feet. Couple that with zero degree temperatures and wind chill, it has made going to/from work miserable and cold. I've taken pics but have yet to download them. I will. Chilly.

On the upside, we are getting a heatwave . . . next Tuesday, the high is to be 32!

Entrelac done with first skein

I know that this is getting boring . . . BUT, I finally finished the first skein for the entrelac scarf. I know that we talked about following the colorway's repeat. In laying this out though, I'm not sure that it matters. First of all, there doesn't seem to be a repeat. It seems that at the beginning the color is teal, going to purple, then aqua then a clear green (almost Kelly green), then a tweading green to the teal and purple but then it is aqua fading into lots of purple (almost three full rectangles). Plus, this is a scarf. If it were a sweater or something I would need to match later on, I would be concerned. It isn't and I'm not.

I love the colors and the way they switch. Very Northern Lights.

I changed needles (but not needle size) and I'm knitting with my Options tighter than I knit with the Denise needles. Again, this is a scarf. It is for me and I'm not frogging it.

Entrelac . . . almost to the end of ball 1

This is very addicting . . . of course, I guess there could be worse things to be addicated to. This is seven tiers of entrelac . . . more importantly, it is getting close to the end of the first skein.

The colors are fabulous and thoroughly enjoying the way this is going together. The colors do not repeat often and the blending from one color to the next is very nice. The color that I am on now is only repeating for the first time. The darkest color which is showing up as a dark blue, is actually more of a purple tweady color.

It takes me one bus ride to do a tier. When you get right down to it, this requires more knitting than a simple scarf (which also explains why it takes three skeins). Each rectangle is fifteen rows of knitting, granted you are only doing eight stitches in those fifteen rows but it is still 15 x 3 rectangles x 8 stitches = 360 . . . I hope that works out right.

I also know that this is awesome since both my daughters have fondled it and wanted to know WHO it was for . . . the looks on their face were great when I said "me."

More Entrelac

This is the next tier . . . not very clear (I'm using Zachariah's camera.

And to the right is the next tier which actually because of the change in color makes it a little easier to see how the entrelac is developing.

Again, Deb (from Whoduknit) Rocks!! Thanks so much for sharing this technique.

Learning Entrelac

I have always wanted to learn Entrelac . . . because of other commitments, I have never taken a class on it. Anyway, the Whoduknit group has decided to do an Entrelac KAL. Today was our first "lesson." Here are my initial results, although I am thinking about taking it out and maybe using a smaller needle. I tend to knit loose.

It does look a tad lopsided but we were told that it will. I am using Noro Silk Garden which is Silk/Mohair/Wool. It is Color No. 8 which is blues/green but it also has areas of purple in it too.

Given that I'm so busy with school and work, I like doing stuff like this . . . I may not finish it as I really don't have the time BUT I do very much enjoy learning it. My theory is that after June 30, I will not have school anymore . . . only five more months.

SP 8 - First Package

I received a package from my SP yesterday. The package included a wonderful pattern for a beautiful scarf. Also, I received three skeins of KnitPicks Shadow Yarn in Lost Lake, Vineyard and Jewels colorways. They are gorgeous and yummy. She also included two skeins of yarn she spun herself. The first one is Border Leicaster (in gray . . . about 2 oz.) and the second is Colonial (in wine . . . about 4 oz.)

I have to admit that I don't want to do anything with this beautiful stuff right now . . . I just want to feel it!

Thanks so much!

More stuff and such

Last Thursday was Zachariah's SIXTH birthday. Amazing. He was such a little peep when we got him . . . actually he is still a little peep . . . I think he finally hit and held 35 pounds!! Anyway, we celebrated his birthday the Sunday before with my family. My sister Jacquie, her DH, Mike, son Michael (and his son John) and their daughter Mary came up from Kentucky to help celebrate. My brother Eddie and his daughters Caitlin and Jenny came. His wife was on her way to Maine to drop their middle daughter back off at college. He had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed showing John and Mary his train layout. It is taking up about half of the family room. On his actual birthday he took cupcakes for his classmates. I had "held back" two presents from those he received on Sunday so that he would have something to open on his birthday. Friends of ours from Albuquerque (soon to be returning to Cleveland) bought him a present at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens when we were there in late December. My boss and his wife (we have a strange relationship . . . my daughters were in his daughter's wedding) bought Zachariah a wonderful gift -- the five senses box and he has been having a blast with it.

This past Saturday, Lindsey participated in a Power of the Pen competition. Her team placed second for all the eighth graders and, individually, she placed 7th, the best in her school. There were 19 schools represented with each school having teams of six. She did very well and her writing was excellent. When I arrived home from school, she had just gotten home from the competition. I don't think her feet have gotten back to the ground yet. She and two of her classmates will go on to the next level of the state competition which occurs the day after her 13th birthday. We also have an interview this week (she and I) at her high school of choice, St. Joseph Academy. It is where my Mom and Sarah attended and is her school of choice over the other local all girls school.

Sarah has switched her major. She suffered through the nursing classes last semester. Late in the semester, and finally, after an entire evening of angst, admitted that she really didn't like nursing. She loved being with the patients. She hated the classes, the teachers and, probably the responsibility that goes along with it. She had a terrible semester. Arghh. I wouldn't be 20 again for love or money. Anyway, she has switched her major and has to take several more "core" classes (one is physics for healthcare and the other is technical math . . . I hope she doesn't ask me for help). Hopefully, by this time next year, she will be back on track for a degree.

Dave is just rolling along with his students. His principal has announced that she is retiring at the end of the school year and several of his fellow teachers are pushing him to apply for her job. While he doesn't have his administrator's certification, he could get them in short order . . . plus the requirements for private schools is different than public. Besides I'll be finished with my degree by July 1.

I have classes on Monday and Wednesday evenings (two of them - 6:30 to 7:45 and 8:00 to 9:15) and all day Saturday (8 to 5). The Monday and Wednesday evenings will be for 15 weeks. The Saturday is only for ten weeks and then I will only have classes on Saturday in the afternoon. The reading this semester is hideous. So, I will spend the rest of this lunch hour doing some . . . or maybe I'll do some more knitting?

Knit Mitt Kit Swap

This is what I got from Sarah (http://sarahsthreads.com/journal) for my Knit Mitt Kit Swap. While the picture only has one skein of the Rowan felted tweed, I got two skeins of this beautiful yarn. The book with the pattern is Vogue Knitting Mittens & Gloves. There was also two KING SIZE Heath bars (my absolute favorites). Best of all, however, is the bag, the super duper fabulous felted bag. Sarah not only felted the bag but did some great needle felting. The bag also has an inside pocket.

It was really great and I so look forward to making my mittens. Thanks, Sarah.

Beyond Bullet Points by Cliff Atkinson

The Page 123 Meme
1. Grab the book closest to you.
2. Open to page 123, look down to the 5th sentence.
3. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog.
4. Include the title and the author's name.
5. Tag 3 People.

In most photo databases like the Microsoft site, search results for a particular photograph will include related keyword search terms that can inspire you to search using other terms you hadn't yet considered. When you find a style of photography you like, you might also be able to search for photographs that have related styles.

Knit Mitt Kit Swap

I finished my bag for my Knit Mitt Kit Swap. While my downstream likes chocolate, I'm not comfortable sending it especially with yarn, so she got some Werther's. Kiki also was interested in Lorna's Laces as she cannot get it in Germany. There are also some bamboo needles in the bag.

The bag was made with Plymouth Yarn's Boku yarn. It is 95% wool 5% silk. It was okay to knit but had a tendency to pull apart.

Anyway, here is a pic of the bag

and a pic of what was sent to Kiki. I really liked the colors of the Lorna's Lace . . . and loved the striping in the bag.

the view

We have an incredible view from our office. These pictures were taken from my boss' office. His office faces Lake Erie which is the backdrop of these photos. This is the Browns Stadium, Great Lakes Science Center and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Actually, this is a better pic of the the GLSC and R&R HOF:

Of course, when I am sitting at my desk and look towards the Lake, this is what I see:

The stack of books next to the tissue box are all knitting related. And, to be really honest, right now that area is an even bigger mess as we transfer files from 2006 to 2007 . . . plus it is the most favorite place for my boss to dump stuff from his desk to mine!

Resolutions

2007 Resolutions

Jane from Whoduknit suggested that our group post our resolutions. Plus, everything that I've read states that the best way to keep a resolution is to write them down and share them Given that, I have to keep them attainable and reasonable:

1) Not buy anymore yarn until I have all my WIP done and if I cannot finish them (some are just hideous), admit it and get it off the needles, frogged and rewound. If necessary, give away the yarn.

2) Finish my MBA (LOL . . . I am actually scheduled to graduate in May . . . so hopefully this will happen!).

3) Lose 52 pounds (1 pound a week . . . totally attainable and will get me well on my way to my goal weight).

4) Walk more. Sit less.

5) Play with my kids more (losing weight will help with this one).

There are also things I would like to do and will hopefully buzz around and be annoying enough to be doable too in 2007:

a) Get better organized (home and work)
b) Get a grip on our finances
c) File taxes early (see b) above).
d) Relax more (see 2) above . . . once the MBA is done, I'll have a life . . . it will be six years in the making but it will be a done deal!!).

Christmas Photos

The traditional Christmas Eve reading of "Hurry Santa" and "Twas the Night Before Christmas."

Caitlin and Nicki. Caitlin turned 16 on 12/26 and Nicki turned 21 on 12/21. Nicki is a Junior at Unity College in Maine. She likes to entertain us with some of the non-traditional activities that happen at the college. One of the things she has to take back to school this semester is her cross-bow!

Jenny is in her second year of law school at CWRU. She graduated from NYU in 2005. She is Zachariah's godmother. Here she is thoroughly enjoying reading a Klutz book that Santa brought Zachariah. Jenny, Nicki and Caitlin are my younger brother's daughters.

Erich and Ryan. Erich is in the Marines and is based currently in North Carolina. Ryan has enlisted in the Air Force but doesn't start basic training until February. They are my younger sister's youngest sons. Her oldest son, Tommy, is in the Navy and is currently cruising somewhere . . . he does cryptology . . . very hush-hush.

Sarah and Caitlin did a great job at winning at Texas Hold'm. The guys were in shock!!

Zeke, Mary, MacKenzie and Sarah. Sarah and Mary are my younger sister, Jacquie's youngest children. Sarah is married to Zeke and MacKenzie is their daughter.
Hayden. Hayden was born on December 1. Sarah and Zeke are his parents. He is beautiful. He is being held by my sister, Jacquie. He is her youngest grandchild. Mary (the cute little blonde in the pics just above and below) is his aunt. She will be give in April.

And of course then there is Mary, Lindsey and Zachariah. My younger sister Jacquie and I (and, of course, our husbands), adopted siblings. Lindsey joined us when she was 22 months old. Zachariah joined us when he was four months old. Mary joined Jacquie and her family when she was six weeks old.


Lindsey does know the relationship between the three of them. When Jacquie and Mike adopted Mary, she was thrilled because she not only got another cousin but a sister too! When Zachariah and Mary are old enough to understand, we will share the entire relationship and circumstances with them.

It isn't the best of photos, but here is a pic of my sore thumb. I decided that I would try to work on Lindsey's scarf. It became a real challenge. The whole tip across the top is numb which makes it very difficult to much of anything but I figured it couldn't possibly make that much of a difference! HA! I finally put a rubberized thimble over the thumb which works okay and I thought was protecting the thumb. Until I pealed the thimble off and part of the scab came with it. Hmmmm. So it is back to the drawing board. I have two projects that absolutely have to get done sooner than later . . . a bag for the Knit Mitt swap and Zachariah's sweater. His birthday is January 18. I do need to get his sweater done. Someday, he will grow.

Timing is everything, I guess

About two months ago or so, a co-worker asked me about Weight Watchers @ Work. Our previous administrator would never allow us to do it but she retired last year. I told my co-worker that I was going to check with the new administrator but, as part of our United Way program, we were doing a weight loss challenge which ends at the end of November. I thought we should wait until it was over and maybe start with the new year.

A couple of things here. I like this woman. A couple of my other co-workers said that she is ummmm sneaky and backstabbing. I never saw it and had worked with her on a couple of other projects. Keeping all this in mind, I was nevertheless surprised when she informed me that she had contacted the administrator who: a) was very excited about it, b) gave her permission and c) congratulated my co-worker on taking the initiative . . . and she told me this and then asked me to send out an email to those I knew who were interested. WTF.

So, we have had three meetings. You cannot imagine my suprise at my weight. I've known that something was going on but my clothes fit, I was just incredibly uncomfortable . . . all the time. I missed last week's meeting because of a funeral. I attended yesterday and have lost 10.4 pounds. Now, I know that part of the weight loss is water and that the more you have to lose the faster the stuff comes off in the BEGINNING. I also know that I have been religious about staying on top of this, journalling, drinking water and staying right on target with my points.

Getting back to my crabbing, my co-worker who has organized this emailed me yesterday morning to find out if I would collect the leader in reception because "she had other plans" and would just stop in towards the end of the meeting. Because we want to be sure to get the "meat" of the meeting in, we have decided to do the "celebrations" at the end. So after our leader ended the meeting, she asked if anyone had anything to celebrate. I did. I did indeed. So I announced that I had lost 10.4 pounds. Later I get an email from my coworker telling me that there are a couple of people who are "uncomfortable" with the celebrations at the meeting, oh, and she wanted to know if I could book the conference rooms in my boss' name so that we can get a better room with less chance of getting bounced.

I told her that I would continue to celebrate. Whether it is losing 1 pound or only gaining 1 or 2 pounds over the holidays as opposed to my usual 10 to 15! I also booked all the conference rooms for future meetings.

I know this is minor things. On the other hand, being the B%$CH that I am, her weird attitude is enough to keep me on track . . . if nothing else just to have something to celebrate each week!

What kind of reader am I?

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm You're probably in the final stages of a Ph.D. or otherwise finding a way to make your living out of reading. You are one of the literati. Other people's grammatical mistakes make you insane.
Dedicated Reader
Literate Good Citizen
Book Snob
Fad Reader
Non-Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Create Your Own Quiz

http://www.gotoquiz.com/results/what_kind_of_reader_are_you

I knew it! Do you suppose this is why the librarians at our local public library know me by my first name??

Almost there, seriously

I cannot count it the holidays until I have finished my final, final for the Fall semester. We have a finance final and international business (IB or Idiot Broad) final on Saturday, December 16!!!!



Have I mentioned how much I despise my IB teacher. She makes me crazed. We have to prepare three case studies over the course. This is a 10 week course. Three case studies, a mid-term and final is a tad excessive. Worse yet is that IB complains about how BUSY SHE IS. Hello???? You teach TWO classes. Two identical classes. Do not complain because you find reading 63 various versions of the same papers boring, especially when you have to do this three times because you ASSIGNED them. Dolt!



But the best was that she returned our latest paper. I got a big old smiley face on mine. Oh, joy. So, when I got it home, I put it on the fridge.

The problem is that this class is such a waste of time. She has given us assigned seats by first name because she was going to give us credit for participation . . . oh, that is too hard so she is not doing that either.


Finance on the other hand is super fabulous!! Go ahead, ask me about NPV!!! This prof gives us a test every week . . . one or two problems. Of course, one of the problems this past Saturday took two pieces of paper. But I know NPV (in case you are wondering the NPV of an annuity is PMT[1-1/(1+r)n/r] . . . yeah and I didn't even look in the book for it . . . of course, I'm dreaming this stuff. It is so sad.

On the upside of things, it is all coming to an end. I've am getting to the finals . . . and not just the tests. This was the FINAL Fall semester I will register for. This will be the FINAL Christmas that I spend Sundays studying instead of making Christmas cookies.

It is amazing. After 32 years (with a major break), I am down to the final FINALS.

Two weeks before Christmas & Miscellaneous other stuff

I've changed the look of my blog and have yet to decide whether I like it. The pic of the Grand Canyon, Lindsey took at sunrise this past summer. We spent three days camping at the North Rim and the last morning, Dave woke the girls at 5:00 a.m. so they could capture some early morning rays! She has a great eye for color and depth. She took eight pics within a very short period of time. I'm going to make a collage of the photos for her for Christmas.

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While I don't recommend it, there is a definite advantage of slicing off a chunk of thumb. It creates the perfect excuse to not have to finish anything for Christmas.

I have officially decided that I am overwhelmed. Four masters classes (two finals on December 16). One involves essay questions, and, as you can guess, I can do well with essay questions. The other, however, is financial . . . formulas, formulas, formulas . . . and specific steps for doing things.

Again, while cutting a chunk out of my thumb did take the pressure off of my knitting for Christmas, the drugs for pain are not educational and memory enhancing.

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A co-worker and I were planning our floor's "whatever the reason for the season" gathering. There are 34 lawyers and 27 staff on the floor. Three lawyers responded and seven staff. We needed to order the food yesterday. It is a lot of work, including buying all the paper stuff, decorating the conference room, getting the food, setting up and cleaning up. Due to the lack of response, we cancelled it. One lawyer asked me if my intention was to create a "firestorm." Jerk. The invitation was sent via email. The response would take seconds: "yes, count me in" or "bugger off." Either one. I was told that we didn't send enough reminders (these are adults after all). I was called Scrooge. And, when one person asked that we do it anyway, and I suggested that they do it, I was told "no way, that's too much work and I don't have enough time." To the lawyer that suggested that I was starting a firestorm, I did reply that "I was too busy for anyone to tell me that they were too busy to reply to an email."

A couple of us are going to lunch on Wednesday. It will be a lovely thing.

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We have had several lake effect storms this week. The weather people anticipated that we were going to have another one last night/early this morning. My husband's school cancelled classes in anticipation and the fact that the principal and three of the teachers were going to be out at a workshop. I told my husband that if it was "bad" in the morning . . . and given my sense of exhaustion, a dusting of snow would be classified as "bad" . . . I was not going to work and just climbing back into bed. You cannot imagine my disappointment when I woke to discover that not only was there not a dusting . . . there wasn't any snow. Bah humbug!

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Oh, yeah, and just because I have absolutely nothing else to do and am so thoroughly overwhelmed, I have joined Weight Watchers. Yes, it is two weeks before Christmas. On the other hand, we have a new Weight Watchers @ Work and, as they say, timing is everything. Now, I know it isn't a friggin surprise that I'm fat, but to be totally honest, I was shocked at how truly FAT I am.

Duh, and I forgot to title this one!

I received my package from Leslie my Whoduknit Holiday Swap Secret Pal. As the Whoduknit group is a group of knitters that enjoy mysteries (or is that mystery readers who enjoy knitting?), the holiday swap was to include a mystery, something knitty, a postcard from your city or area.

My Holiday Swap Secret Pal was Leslie (aka hockeymom). She sent me a Dan Brown book (I love Dan Brown . . . and look forward to reading this one). The pics don't show it too well, but I also received a large zippered bag. It will be perfect for my knitting projects. I also received more stitch markers . . . I'm always losing them . . . it is indeed a mystery!

Since I had mentioned that I wanted to learn entrelac, Leslie also sent me directions on how to do entrelac. I think it is something that I need to tackle when I'm home alone, without any music on and no interruptions! Leslie's city doesn't sell postcards, she also sent me information about Troy, Michigan! Thanks so much Leslie. This was fun and you gifted me with useful items that I know I will put to good use!
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I took Friday off from work. I have 1-1/2 days of vacation that I was going to have to use by year end or lose. Let me tell you, there is no way that I am going to lose vacation days!

So on Friday, my oldest daughter and I went shopping and then picked up a friend for lunch. We found a wonderful new bakery which is only two doors down from my most favorite LYS. I bought a loaf of bread (we had wonderful French Toast on Sunday), chocolate toffee sauce and pepper mango jelly . . . both items to be used for Christmas. I also managed to wander around the LYS without buying ANYTHING!!! We then went to lunch at a Victorian Inn. It was wonderful and very relaxing.

Friday evening was my son's Christmas concert at school. It was wonderful. They did the absolute best 12 days of Christmas I have ever heard. Frankly, I hate the song. It just goes on and on and on and on. This production had an individual student from 1st through 12th grade "presenting" the gifts and the rest of the students singing the introductions. The individual students were fantastic. The first grader was as cute as a bug. The 5th grader that did five golden rings though brought down the house. She has the confidence of Barbra Streisand and every single time just wowed us all. The next song was "O Holy Night" sung by an 8th grader. She was fabulous. The largest logistical error was having O Holy Night following the 12 days of Christmas. Anyway, it is amazing the talent in the school. Nevertheless, the parents need to be told to behave. The entire program lasted 30 minutes and there were parents showing up at 7:15 for a program that started at 7:00! Many parents (grandparents, aunts, uncles and siblings) were rude during the performance in that they kept talking and chatting. I told Dave that what the director should have done was stop the performance and tell them to be quiet or leave. It might have had sufficient effect.
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Our furnace started misbehaving on Saturday. The furnace repairman came out Monday and we decided that after 30+ years, it was time to replace it. A new furnace is being installed today. We could not have a higher energy efficient furnace installed without moving the location of the furnace (it is currently in the middle of the house). There wasn't anyway they could vent the higher efficiency model. Nevertheless, the salesman insists that we will notice a difference in the heat delivery and lower gas bills. While he was there on Monday evening, I was making pork chops and slicing potatoes for scalloped potatoes. Zachariah wanted to help but I told him that the slicing blade was "way to sharp" and he wasn't allowed to touch. He kept insisting that he could and would be careful. Not to be outdone and to make my point (accidentally of course), I proceeded to slice off a chunk of my left thumb.

Since we were unable to find the chunk of thumb (and seriously, it was a chunk) and they couldn't stitch it (again, the chunk issue), the cauterized (sp?) it, bandaged it and told me not to get it wet. I ended up going to a salon yesterday afternoon to have my hair washed and blown dry. I figured I could afford the luxury. I wonder if I can make a claim on my insurance?

I did try knitting on Lindsey's long suffering scarf last evening. I did one row and decided that that wasn't going to work. I think once I have the bulky bandage off tomorrow, I should be able to do some knitting but the biggest problem is that it throbs. On the other hand, I never realized that I rarely use my left thumb for typing!