she who has been pricked by many needles

The verdict is in!

I finally met with an allergy specialist today who confirmed what I was fearing the most. First I was pricked on the left arm with 30 little plastic points containing various allergens. After about 5 minutes the column devoted to many different types of grasses was aflame with large welts. Explains the constant dripping of my nose from about April to June every single year.

Exhibit A

The other puffy spots awards were given to Exhibit B - Ragweed, which is why I am not particularly fond of indian summers - when these golden plumes rear their ugly heads and release what my body mistakenly assumes to be toxic....

And finally, the ubiquitous arachnid that snuggles you to sleep every single night: Exhibit C, the dust mite. Take a gander at this guy. Funny that the organism whose feces is trying to suffocate me while I sleep is a cousin to the you-know-whats that send me into phobic seisures should I see a photograph of one.... you know what I'm talking about... I dare not mention the "S" word.

UCK! So NASTY!

But the spot designated for cat dander! It was no where NEAR swelling! I prematurely squeeled with glee and sent out some text messages. The nurse told me to wait... that they had to do an actual INJECTION of the allergens with no reaction just to be sure.... and sure enough, it turned red :(

I give you: Exhibit C & D, my sweet little fluffy children.... how could these precious creatures be the cause of nightly asthma attacks... they are so innocent, and they only want to be loved :(

Rest assured, my new allergist is wonderful and is willing to help me continue sharing my life and my apartment with these two sweet angels. I didn't even have to bring in a photo of them!!! She did say that the absolute best option would be to remove the pets from my home, but she knew I would not do that. I think my general practioner may have warned her of my crazy-cat-lady-ness. In fact, Exhibit C is sleeping right here on the desk.

And oh yes we are going to do something about those pesky bugs in my bed.

Baby, it's cold outside

Over the past week Chicago has been blasted by a severely frigid wind leaving us to fend for ourselves in sub-zero temps. The wind chill is often 15 below... and after riding the CTA on Monday and Wednesday, arriving to my office with numb hands, feet, and legs, mumbling four letter words under my scarves, I decided it is best for all if I drive to work in this weather. As long as I get here at least 30 minutes early it's not too difficult to find a parking spot.

This weekend I managed to muster up the guts to brave the cold and go to yoga, the vet (of all places - poor kitties), the LYS, and out for dinner to celebrate Stephanie's b-day! No, I did not get to wear this hat the whole time (boo hoo). This is that I was trying on and I LOVE IT! I want one! NOW! I think I'm going to buy it. It's from LL Bean.

The ONLY thing that I hate about it is the fur. Except that's the part I love the most.

Any of you who know me know that I LOOOOOOOVVVE fur.... as bad as it sounds. All of the furs I own are vintage. Some of you would even protest against THAT. If I bought this hat I would feel bad for the poor bunny or bunnies... however many it takes to wrap around my noggin. Do you think they use the rest of the animal? If so, then I would be less upset about it.

There is another hat that is very similar at Land's End and it has faux fur. But faux is sometimes scratchy and not as warm as real fur.... What should I do????

Steph (right) and her friend Alyssa, visiting from out of town

By the way, the birthday dinner was at Indie Cafe in Edgewater and it was very good! The decor was fun and the food was great. Plus, you can't beat BYOB.

These temps are really only good for one thing, and one thing alone.... one guess.... KNITTING! of course, you moron! I have so many projects I want to work on right now. After the holidays I vowed to work on something for myself, but somehow I have four projects started and they are all for other people.

Main project is a zip up cardigan for Steve. I'm using Lamb's Pride worsted in a heather gray color. He picked it out a while ago. It's sort of itchy so I hope he's okay with that..... Anyway, it has a cabled band around the bottom. I'm getting ready to start the sleeves. It would be nice to have it done by his birthday. Part of that will depend on if I can get the last two back ordered skeins that I need.

The next most important project is a secret for someone special... but here's a little sneak peek.

In other yarn news I am expecting a large Knit Picks order.... say 3,000-yards-ish. Good deals. I wonder what the average yardage per order is from Knit Picks?????? Maybe that order really isn't so huge. I'll keep telling myself that.

Something else I thought was very knit-worthy: When we stayed at my Mom's house for christmas something from my past emerged. I was a little chilly so I asked for more blankets on the bed. The only extra one she could find was this one that she crocheted when I was in high school. We were the Hudson Tigers, so this blanket was made specifically for football games. How sweet!

Resolute

Maybe it's a little late in the year to be posting my resolutions. I promise you I have been working diligently on them.... I just want to write them down and make them known.

First on the list is the same as everyone else - lose weight! I'm finally doing something about it. I'm not saying I'm a sumo wrestler or anything, but it would be nice to lose this spare tire and look good in a bathing suit again. So I started watching everything I eat and have made some modifications. I guess I didn't realize that I was pigging out every day and eating sweets every day. For the past 2 weeks I have been eating very sensibly and I'm staying active. I'm doing yoga again... that 90 minute session yesterday kicked my ass. I can hardly lift my arm today!

As soon as it starts getting warmer out (unlike this weekend with a high of 10 degrees) I will be able to do more cardio type of activities.... walking and RIDING MY BIKE!

Second resolution is to take better care of myself and my pets. I went to my new doctor this week and, despite questioning my attachment to Monkey and Elvis (possible allergen), she is great! I think she'll be realistic and be able to work with me and my lifestyle... and by liftstyle I'm referring to a world I share with the animals I've made commitments to. Next step is a visit to the allergy specialist.

Monkey and Elvis also went to see their doctor this week. They are both fine except for the phantom peeing in the chair in the middle of the night. We are working on that. This is the fourth time in one month! Just when I feel I have gotten rid of the smell, which takes days and even weeks of spraying with an expensive solution, someone does it again. I'm not sure if I really like the vet we go to. They seem mediocre. Not good enough for my babies.

Third resolution: Become more obsessed with knitting. This will include embarking on more challenging projects.... several things going on at once.... I think I'm well on my way. I started listening to a knitting podcast that I really like. It's called "Cast On". I had never listened to a podcast before.... and I knew there were many on my favorite topic. It's a whole nother world, the podcasting world. I feel as if I'm diving deeper and deeper into crazy-knit-lady-ness. My friends laugh at me but they NO IDEA that I am just floating on the surface of the knitting-e-sphere. I'm making up words here.... More on knitting later. (Just one more thing: I started teaching my first formal knitting class this month and things are going great!)

Fourth resolution: Play music! I would like to find some ensemble to play with. My saxophone is sitting here collecting dust. I know my embochure is out of whack, but the goal would be to improve whilst having fun. Ideally it would be something community oriented. Some sort of wind ensemble. A swing/jazz/big band would be REALLY FUN.

christmas bounty!

I have been so busy using all of my christmas presents that I haven't had any time to blog about christmas presents. Some of my faves are this Dirt Devil Kone - sleek, stylish design elements and vaccuuming together at last!

I love the patagonia jacket that my mommy gave me. It's exactly what I wanted.

It has become a tradition for Steve to give me a new purse for christmas, even though I never ask for one. He always surprises me by picking something out himself. And I always love it. This year he bought me a clutch made from gum wrappers... it might sound weird, but it's more like a piece of art than something you would carry around every day. What I love about it is that it doesn't look like most recycled bags that you see at green stores or 10,000 villages. It's much more subtle. But it's beautiful.

We also received funds for a new bed and an external hard drive - woo hoo!

Okay - now for the knitted goods that were given at christmas this year... You know, the ones I had slaved over the entire month of December, down to the last minute, binding off stitches and weaving in ends... sewing on a button or two...

This is a little cable knit cowl that I made for Mary Tholking and it is probably my favorite thing that I knit this holiday season. First, it is made out of the SOFTEST alpaca.... so soft, you wouldn't believe it! (Misti Alpaca Chunky) Secondly, I knit it in one day. And the third reason - it is the best gift ever because it's so luscious and rich, yet only takes one skein so you won't break the bank. I think this would be a great project for learning cables because it is a straight rectangle and not too complicated. I already have several of my friends making them and I want to make about three more. You can get this pattern for free from Arcadia Knitting... and I think Kathy was talking about posting it on ravelry, but I'm not sure if she has yet.

The little duo is a gift I made for Steve's mom. I think it turned out so well, and a lot I owe to the yarn - fancy yarn, and lots of it - Malabrigo Greusa.... funny, it sounds like this yarn has genus and species names. Hhhmmm, what would Linnaeus think of that? Anyway, this is the Urchin hat from Fall Knitty, i think. And a simple drop stitch pattern scarf. Nice combo.

Doesn't she look pretty?

This one was a last minute mad rush, but I finished it in time. A BSJ in cotton, with an Aurora 8 edge, which for whatever reason I decided I wanted to do in stockinette. But it looked good. With a nice little rolled up edge.

I made these guys for my dad to wear outside to keep his hand warm. I actually started them before christmas 06. I should have just made the top open but instead I wanted to try half fingers.... not entirely pleased with how they turned out. I couldn't get the finger lengths right for some reason.......? But they are still warm and cozy and he liked them.

This is another Urchin hat, and was actually the first one that I made. It was for my dad's girlfriend, Cheryl. I used Lion Brand Homespun because it's so soft and easy to take care of. If you've seen the Urchin pattern you'll know that it is knit radially in 8 "wedge" sections. I think only knitted 7 for this hat because of the way the fabric drapes. It would have been way too floppy. I was pleased with the way it turned out. This photo is before grafting the ends together. Also, this is a pretty fast knit.

jingle bells, ho ho ho, santa clause, and presents to pretty girls...

I hope everyone is having happy holidays. So far we have consumed massive amounts of sugar, ripped pretty paper off of boxes, and exchanged some sweet gifts. Then we snuggled on the couch and watched movies. To quote Monkey: "This is the best christmas EVERRRRR!"

This is our official holiday photo for 2007. No, it is not photoshopped! I physically coerced the felines into sitting nicely in front of the tree... magic...

It took several photos to get this one. You can see the out takes in the Picasa photo album.

But christmas is not over! Tomorrow we are abandoning the furballs for some holiday cheer in Cincinnati.

Christmas Dreaming

I know this is a little late to be posting since I am celebrating christmas with my mom and dad this weekend.... but I thought it would be fun to post my wishlist.

- needle holders for straight, circ, and dpn knitting needles. I like these ones: http://www.purlsoho.com/purl/products/accessories_notions_list/32

- patagonia jacket - I have been wanting one of these for a long time, but have been too poor.
I like the following
W's Free Box Jacket in Spiderline:Poppy Fields size Medium
W's Retro-X Jacket in Pale Blossom size Medium
W's Synchilla Windzone Jacket in Teakwood size Medium I like this one the best!

- juicer/citrus reamer
- ice cream ball: it's a ball that you roll around and make ice cream in
- headphones: Bose like these or something else that's nice... maybe the kind that go around the back of the ear to stay secure
- a better radio and/or cd player for my kitchen (I currently have an alarm clock that was $4.99 at Target)
- dust buster: not a crappy one... I just threw that one out
- bigger computer monitor

I also have an Amazon Wishlist - click here

I would also love contributions for the following items:
- external hard drive
- bed
- tv (we already bought this and are paying it off)

These are good too:
- Target gift card
- Best Buy gift card (probably where I would buy a hard drive and/or monitor)

Okay now it's time to wrap the gifts I bought for OTHER PEOPLE including parents, sibling (because I only have one - who will be 20 yrs old on Monday - sister), and other loved ones, and pack my clothes so we can hit the road!!!

Homey for the Holidays

(I'm using homey as an adjective here...)

The holidays are in full swing around here with decorations, shopping, christmas parties, and lots of knitting of course! This is the time of year when daunting deadlines prevent sleep and I could practically start a fire from the friction of my needles.... why metal needles are often a good option. I feel like I have a pretty good handle on things, and since our family events are spread out I'm not freaking out.... yet....

Since this is our first christmas at home, and since we have a faux fireplace, I'm making our stockings. Here are the first two. The red one is Steve's and the green is mine. I'm pretty happy with how they are turning out. I'm just using basic sock style proportions and I've charted out my colorwork designs. Originally they were all going to be the same design, but (with some prompting from Steve) I decided to make them unique. It's more fun that way, right? I still have to design two smaller stockings - one for each cat. And I may have to make a third one in case we have someone visiting for christmas. This year it may be Steve's mom.

Still have to do the loops.... I'm thinking i-cord but I will welcome other suggestions.

Here are some detail shots:

We took a big road trip for the Thanksgiving weekend making stops in Covington KY, Cincinnati, and Toledo. Visiting relatives is always fun.... so is the food! Here are my four uncles with my dad and Granny.

The following weekend my mom visited us and we bought our christmas tree!

She also helped me rearrange the furniture and finish the couch cover - a 2+ year project!!! finally accomplished. If you can recall, it used to be a nauseating red country plaid.... and it looked horrible underneath Steve's large orange toned piece (my fave). So now it's a nice almondy-wheat color and the fabric is a microsanded duck canvas... very soft and durable. However, when the couch was by the windows the room seemed a bit too creamy, but this arrangement breaks up the plain areas with the orange chairs, and now the couch is across from the fireplace. Plus, everyone likes to see a tree lit up in the window, right? You will also notice our new TV!!!! - an early christmas present from ourselves and Steve's dad. It's AWESOME!!!! click on the photo to see more.

Last, but certainly not least, our tree! We only have about ten ornaments but I know we will accumulate them over the years. I also won a set of tree toppers on ebay, which should be arriving soon. We bought the tree from the guy in the lot on Sheridan Rd. We walked in a he sold us this one. I was a little skeptical to take the first tree he showed us. It looked nice but I wasn't so sure that many people used spruces for christmas trees. It's been dropping needles like crazy even though I've been making sure it has plenty of water.... next year I'm going with a frasier fir.... But I still think this one is pretty despite that there are needles everywhere. One of the cats will walk by and you will notice about fifteen tree needles littering the fur on their back... evidence? Well at least so far none of the presents have been chewed on.

The Great Knitting Book Caper

Someone in my SnB called our attention to this article... very interesting!

Librarians pinpoint bandit in mystery of missing patterns

(by Amy Goetzman - minnpost.com)

Overheard at a knitters gathering in Minneapolis: "The library catalog said the books were checked in, but they were not on the shelf. And I know how to use the Dewey Decimal system! Maybe the librarians are hiding them.

Confessions of a knitting librarian: "Well, actually, we were."

At some Hennepin County library locations, you'll have to talk to a librarian to get your hands on the latest knitting books. Why are they holding these tomes hostage when knitting is enjoying such a rebirth of cool?

Apparently the pattern books need protection from a wool-minded slasher.

90-something books vandalized

Last fall, librarians at the St. Louis Park, Ridgedale and Golden Valley branches noticed dozens of knitting books coming back with pages missing. One of the St. Louis Park librarians also worked at the Burnhaven library in Dakota County, and observed the same phenomenon at that library system. An estimated 90 books were vandalized, and an investigation was launched.

Vandals and fools should never underestimate the intelligence of people who work surrounded by books, and it wasn't long before librarians tracked down "an older gentleman" who was checking out massive numbers of knitting books and magazines from a far-flung array of libraries. He was often the first patron to check out a brand-new volume, making it easy to eliminate other suspects.

Once the avenging librarians pinpointed their suspect, they wielded their most shaming weapon: a massive load of library fines. The Dakota and Hennepin systems each levied approximately $400 in fines against the man and his wife, and banned the couple from the library for a year.

And that's when the stranger side of human nature presented itself. The man first denied the charges, blaming other patrons. Then he blamed librarians for the damaged brand-new books. And then he blamed his wife. He finally petitioned Hennepin County library commissioner Gail Dorfman for mercy.

Accused vandal needles librarians
"Oh, they felt very wronged," said Dorfman. "I worked with them, because they are regular users of the library and longstanding good citizens. We removed the fines (Dakota County did not), and perhaps the mystery of the knitting needle caper has been solved. It hasn't happened again.

"This was the biggest issue that we had, before the library merger," said Dorfman, laughing. "In this business of public service, things come up that you couldn't anticipate in your wildest dreams."

Vandalism of library material isn't uncommon, but when someone has a special interest, it catches the attention of librarians. "A few years ago, a person hit all the MELSA (Metropolitan Library Service Agency) libraries, and stole a huge number of materials," said Roseanne Bryne, deputy director of the Dakota County libraries. "He was particularly interested in fish and aquariums. Librarians noticed the theme, and they began comparing notes with other libraries. The authorities raided his home, and found boxes and boxes of materials."

Byrne says "99 percent" of patrons use the library responsibly. "People do love and appreciate their libraries, and this is extremely rare behavior. And most knitters are refined, gentle people who wouldn't do anything like this."

thinking of you

Danica Radtke

April 10, 1985 - Nov 19, 2006

Thinking of you today one year from your passing. Missing your sweet smile and all of your funny jokes. I am blessed in this lifetime to have known you, such a vibrant soul.

Beautiful Danica, I pray you are at peace.

Yarnythings

This weekend I went to a yarn shop that I had never been to before - Nina, in Wicker Park. It is a beautiful little boutique with luxurious yarns in almost a gallery type setting. Great atmosphere. Not too small. Helpful staff.

They were having their 3rd birthday sale - 20% all yarn. (and it's still going on today!) Due to the sale, however, there is no ball winding taking place today.... which I didn't quite get, since someone, whom I think was a staff member, was sitting on the couch knitting the entire time. Anyway, it wasn't a huge disadvantage. (I'll just make Steve hold some yarn while I wind.)

We purchased some wonderful yarn and saved $15. I bought 4 hanks of Malibrigo, and 3 balls of Aurora8..... all for projects I have in mind. The line was quite long, as we stood there for 20 minutes in our winter coats, but I don't think they are used to that sort of volume. There were cookies and tea. I had to remove my coat because I was getting warm, and by the time the woman in front of me had her turn at the register she almost fainted! Not sure why, but it gave everyone quite a scare and I think she was a bit embarrassed. But I hope she is alright!!!! Still a little worried about her, even though I don't know her.

In other news this week, I RECEIVED MY INVITATION TO RAVELRY!!!!!! Equivalent to myspace for knitters/crocheters! This site is awesome. I know it going to suck up large amounts of my time, but it's very cool, so I don't care. You should definitely put your name on the waiting list. There is still a lot of testing going on, that's why you have to be on a waiting list. It took a couple of weeks to get my invite.

If anyone wants to find me on ravelry my screen name is sarahsuemagoo.........

The Clinic Saga continued

(this is a continuation of a previous post)

The woman who is sitting next to me continues to wait for her name to be called. She's huffing and puffing and checking her watch. She approaches the receptionist saying, "I just need to see the doctor for a moment. I have to go pick up my kids by 6pm or the day care charges me extra." I'm thinking that she's in a much worse situation than me, so I'm not too upset when they call her in before me.... even though I know my appointment was higher in the queue.

I can hear the conversation going on behind the desk. The woman is saying that her bottom lip is totally numb, and the nurse is telling her that she is having a terrible allergic reaction and should have gone to the ER.

Finally they call my name and I'm a taken into an exam room where the nurse takes my vitals.

It's only about 5 minutes before the doctor comes in.

DR: Tell me what has been going on.

SBE: Well I've been wheezing and coughing an awful lot. It seems like it's been going on for weeks.

DR: (listens to my chest with her stethoscope) Yes, you are wheezing, you have bronchitis. Do you have any family history of bronchitis or asthma?

SBE: No, but do you think it could be caused by allergies? Because it seems like it only happens when I'm at home. Do you think it could be my cats? (I've been doing my own internet research. We poor folk often have to self diagnose if we can't afford to go to the doctor)

DR: Yes, it could be your cats. You should get rid of them.

OBVIOUSLY this woman does not have any pets and if she does, I feel sorry for the poor little creatures. If anyone knows me they know how INSANE-in-love I am with my cats and they would never even THINK of suggesting this. It is equivalent to someone saying a mother should put her children up for adoption. At this point I'm ready to burst into tears. I didn't want to cry in front of everyone so I managed to keep some sort of composure until I got home.

She writes three Rx's - amoxicillin, and two different inhalers. And as she's doing so, she's asking me if I will come back to this clinic after I get my insurance (I had briefly mentioned getting new job, etc). It makes sense that when people who have good insurance go to a clinic like this, it helps their patients who don't have insurance. I understand that. But do I really want to screw around with this sort of thing???? This is my health and my body we are talking about here. Not to mention the emotional stress of visiting the clinic.

I feel for those people, I really do. I feel like I have been one of them. It hasn't been as hard for me because I don't have kids to deal with, and Steve and I know that if we ever have any kind of real huge problem, our parents are stable enough to back us up. A lot of people don't have that kind of insurance. They have nothing.

But I feel like I deserve the right to go to a doctor's office that is clean and private, where medical professionals aren't too stressed to be compassionate. The doc says she wants to see me again in one week. "Okay," I say. I hope I never set foot in the clinic again, unless it's to donate money to them (if I were THAT well off....)

As I'm writing my check for the doctor's fee the paramedics are there picking up the swollen lip lady. "What else was on the pizza?" they're asking her as they wheel her out on a stretcher.

Now I have my inhalers that will hopefully get me by until I can see my new Dr.... who will hopefully refer me to an allergist, and never suggest giving my children up for adoption. I already feel much better after one day. It's a whole different world when you can finally breathe.

The Health Clinic Blues

Last night I went to the poor people's health clinic. My insurance doesn't kick in until December 1st and I have been coughing and wheezing for WEEKS possibly months... so I decided I couldn't wait any longer. I made an appointment, which lead to one of the most depressing evenings I've had in a long time.

I had planned my entire day around this appointment. I drove to work, got there early, left work early... and arrived at the clinic about 5 mins before my appointment. I had been there before.

I ended up waiting 1.25 hours just to get into the exam room. Someone in the office had really bad B.O. There were several small children from various families running around making noise. I couldn't get any knitting done... no concentration. (I wished I had my headphones..... would that have been rude?) It was like an extended El ride, only people kept getting on. Hardly anyone walked out the door the whole time I was in the waiting room. No one had any sense of personal volume.

A middle aged mother and her daughter, who was about my age, walked into the clinic when I was parking. They were waiting just as long as myself. The daughter went up to the receptionist several times (who was constantly on the phone - not making personal calls, I'm sure, but was very busy) to explain her situation. Apparently the mother did not speak English and the daughter had to be there with her to translate, or maybe also as her transportation. All they wanted was the mother's mammogram results but the daughter had to be in class at 5pm... they were there well after 5. I thought, "Oh God, how terrible to receive your mammogram results in a place like this.... especially if it was bad news...."

Another family came in through the door - a mother, father, and son who was about 9 or 10. None of them spoke English.... I couldn't believe that the son didn't know any. It seems like even if he went to a school where Spanish was the main language (not surprising for Chicago) they would at least have English as a subject.... who knows. Anyway, there was only one nurse who spoke Spanish. She spoke with the father for a moment just behind the counter. I think they were trying to find out how much something cost.... not sure. (Maybe I should brush up on my one year of HS Spanish :) The father came out and spoke with the mother. (At least the child was well behaved in this family. He wasn't maniacally bouncing off the walls like the others.) Then he had to consult the nurse again. He waltzed off behind reception and knocked on the exam room where the nurse was in with a patient!!! I saw all of this going on through the glass window of the reception desk. I saw him turn the handle of the door! There is NO privacy in this place! It's insane!

At this point I'm very close to just walking out the door and cutting my losses.

I waited.....

An obviously teenage girl comes through the front door with her freakin' 5 month old baby! The baby was very cute but this was ABSURD. This girl was probably 16.... I was disgusted - not necessarily at her, but at the situation.



Another woman comes through the door. She has an appointment, but she's after me in the queue.... she sits down... and waits....

to be continued...

Cardigan City

The first half of fall I spent lots of my knitting time working on a couple different cardigans. This is my first Baby Surprise Jacket and I LOVED the pattern! It's so awesome. For this one I used 2 different colors of sublime. I call this one Tavis's first cashmere sweater. It's for my cousin's baby due in about a week. I wanted him to have something fancy-shmancy.

I gave it to Zach & Niph recently and they liked it a lot. Of course it won't fit Tavis until he's almost a year or so.... maybe 9 months. But that's okay. It's nice to have something to grow into - especially cashmere! Now, it's not totally cashmere - it's blended with merino. Still I know it isn't practical, but it's not meant to be a practical gift.

I took these photos on a very nice October day in someone else's garden - tee hee!

A detail shot of the colors and buttons

I was so pleased with the way the first one turned out that I made a second BSJ and I'm not saying who this one is for! It's a SURPRISE.... just in case they read my blog... but if they DID read my blog they would probably know right away....

Anyway, I used Noro Silk Garden Lite and I forgot what the color was called. Maybe it was just a dye lot number. Yeah it was. And I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE the buttons I chose for this one. In the first photo I hadn't sewn them on yet, but the second is a detail shot. Surprisingly, I bought them at Hancock. I was in a pinch and I just had to spend some time looking. There they were!

Now, the third sweater is one that I made up myself, for myself. I really like it. There are a lot of things that just "happened" while I was making it. I didn't have a ton of expectations. A majority of the sweater is made by picking up stitches. I'm not completely happy with it so I want to play around with the pattern a little bit more. So maybe in a year I'll have another version...

It has one big oblong button to hold it together in front. Oh, and the yarn is some strange rayon blend that I purchased on big spools from Midwest Discount Yarn. I doubt if I will ever be able to tell what it's really made of or find any more of it. The next edition may be constructed of something entirely different.

I added some yarn overs to the edge to make it feel a little prettier.

Well I'm off to bed..... sitting at a desk all day really is exhausting.

More tomorrow on my christmas stocking dilemmas.

Pop Quiz

This photo represents a part of my first day at work. Is this:

a.) Me, yawning, exhausted from the time change.

b.) Me performing an operetta as an expression of my joy and gratitude for this new job.

c.) Singer with a Glove by Degas

d.) Me expressing my frustrations to the woman in HR... and maybe, just maybe, I'm making that gesture where my hand comes out backwards from under my chin. (Is that an Italian thing?)

e.) All of the above

So yeah, the first day was "no big whoop". Maybe I did feel a little bit like ant in an ant farm. Maybe I liked the feeling. Except I didn't like the part where I came home in the dark. That was no fun. But I DID like the part where I waited for Steve and we rode two trains and a bus home together! AND he changed his schedule so that we start and stop at the same time everyday so we ALWAYS ride two trains and bus together.... isn't that sweet???? He told his supervisor that he didn't want me to come home and have to start cooking dinner without him every day. Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

I had a fantastic four day weekend. George and Mary came to visit us, mostly to take the motorcycle back to Cinci for some work, but they also agreed to spend some time with us. But only if we played Wii, they said!

Steve is coaching them in tennis

In addition to all the Wii, we had a fake Thanksgiving potluck for Julie's bday! YUM. We were all in pain for the rest of the evening. That's how good it was. Everything was delicious. I should have photo'd the 10 lb chocolate pie.

George and I set up a website for him to post all kinds of family history info and details of their trip to Greece (who knows, maybe we'll actually get to go someday!) http://www.nyktas.com/ Nothing is really on there yet....

And on Sunday, Steve and I walked in the park. How nice.

Recently, Monkey and I had a photoshoot - *I* took pictures of *her*, not vice versa. She couldn't figure out how to work the camera.... something about thumbs.

Anyway, if you want to see more cute photos of my beautiful Monkey (and I know you ALL do) go to my Picasa web album.

Girl Day

Yesterday I had the day off. It's part of my long weekend before I have to go to a REAL job.

The night before was slightly chaotic. I hosted Stich n Bitch and consumed large quantities of spicy indian food, brie, goat cheese, cookies, and beer. If that isn't a recipe for disaster in my stomach, I don't know what is!

On top of that I noticed the basement had flooded just before my guests arrived.

Sleeping that night was restless. I couldn't stop thinking about the basement and my soaking wet storage space, my new job, knitting projects, etc.... I threw up the concoction I had ingested for dinner. Phew.... I needed a relaxing day.

Enter Brittany - my former neighbor and currently-unemployed, good friend. We spent the morning and afternoon by taking a walk along the lakefront with the sunshine floating down through colorful leaves, having tea, going to the hardware store, and the running store - we even went to the MALL and ate lunch at Ruby Tuesdays - ha! Normally I wouldn't be caught dead at Ruby Tuesdays but it was all part of the mall experience. Anyway it was a great time. I needed girlfriend time.

By the time I was home the hot water was turned back on.... oh yeah, did I mention we were without hot water for almost 24 hours??...... hence the flood.

I was able to clean out my storage space and not much was ruined. My luggage was dry, thank god. I re-packed everything and put it up on cinder blocks this time. So if it ever happens again - I'M READY!

After dinner Steve and I did some more studio/guest room cleaning so his dad will have a place to sleep this weekend. In short, I had a fun day AND I was productive! Whoa!

Tonight I'm being taken to see Phantom of the Opera, as it just opened this week in Chicago for a short run. Courtesy of my other friend and former neighbor, Sumi. Wow I DO have good friends. I'm so thankful for that.