SAFF Countdown

Hi Tania,
'Just a note to let you know I have received the registration form and check for your 2006 SAFF Workshops. You are confirmed for:

* Cable Ready / Melanie Koenig Sun., 10/29, 10a-12p
* Color Knitting The Easy Way / Melanie Koenig Sun., 10/29, 1p-3p

Both classes will be inside the McGough Arena, on the upper level, right, in the back, across from Melanie's vendor booth, #10 , Royal Fibercrafts. Just go to the booth about 5-10 minutes before the classes.

'Look forward to see you in October!

I will note, that -both- of those workshops are on my birthday. Happy birthday to me!!!

- - -

In other news, I really have been knitting. See!



Currently, the -only- thing on needles in my house .. at least the only thing on my needles, is the grocery bag I started a while back. Yes, the one I screwed up knitting, and had to frog several rows and managed to pick up the right number of stitches. There's been no laddering at all, and the pattern's still working just fine, so I must have gotten it right.

These pictures, btw, were taken with my nifty new phone. Have I mentioned yet how much I adore my husband? Let me say it again .... I adore my husband. He spoils me!!

Eeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Look what my husband, the wonderful man that I married, brought me home today!!!!! An I-Mate K-Jam.

*squeees and bounces all around*

I've been ooing and ahhing all over the place about the palm-pilot thing I get to use for work. And when he bought his new phone right before his birthday, I was all kinds of jealous of its drop-out keyboard. And I in general have just been covetous.

Well, tonight he came home with this absolute beauty of a phone, saying that it is because I reached my 10% goal, and got a job that I've kept for a month, and just because. Isn't he sweet, and wonderful? It's blue-tooth ready, has a camera (!!!!!!) and palm-pilot features .. just -everything- I could ever want. Integrated email! Music and videos! It synch's with my computer from -anywhere- as long as I have a signal. HOW FUCKING COOL!!!

I'm going to go eat dinner and watch survivor, and squeal a little more because of my AWESOME NEW PHONE!!!

Pictures Galore!!

Remember I promised some pictures lastnight! Here you go!

I love my husband.

He stopped at the store tonight for me, on the way home from work. and called to have me come out and help bring in groceries. When I got out there, I discovered he'd bought a few surprises for me ... three bunches of flowers .. including calla lilies, roses and my absolute favorite, sunflowers! .. and a pair of utterly adorable chiminea-shaped autumn pumpkin tealight holders. I'm so loved!

I'll take pictures tomorrow, when the light is better, because if I tried to take them now, they'd be awful. But I just had to gush before I went to bed. I love my husband. It took three vases to put out all the flowers .. because you can't cramp calla lilies and roses. Three! I have flowers all over the house now!

I have to work in the morning though, and I have a 4 hour day, because I have to put together a new fixture. Joy. At least things -seem- to be improving with the Spanish class situation. I've been asked if I mind my comments being forwarded to the department head, and the teacher himself has been much more communicative, and with moderately improved english. I'm still not pleased, but it's getting better.

Goodnight all. Sleep well. I know I will, with the sound of rain coming through the open windows, thanks to the deliciously cool weather. It's still expected to hit the low 80's during the days, but it's 60's at night now, and I am delighted with this.

Go me!

So. I've been working on a stretchable shopping bag for a while. I set it aside for a time, working on finishing up other projects and busy with school and work, and it had laid in my car for a while. I picked it up the other day, since I had nothing else to work on .. it's my only WIP at the moment! .. and the worst thing ever happened.

I screwed up the pattern. It'd been so long since I'd worked on it, that I messed up a whole round before I realized, because I got around to the start again and realized the pattern wasn't working, that I'd messed something up.

The stitch calls for a YO, then a sl1, k2, psso. Well, I didn't do the sl, and didn't psso. And so I added something like 40 stitches to the row. -Not- a good thing. And while I'm glad I caught it when I did, I was at a total loss on how to fix it.

I put it away for a day or two, working on classwork and my annoying teacher issue and other things. I glared at the little pile of half-finished bag. I moaned about how evil it was going to be to fix. Basically, I put it off, until I was in a better frame of mind to tackle what I feared was going to be an impossible repair process.

I sat down today to watch the new Martha shows on my DVR, determined that her influence would allow me to get through the task. It's a rainy day, perfect for sitting and watching TV and knitting, after all. So I started to try to tink. It wasn't working. I made some tea, and sat it down in my lap again. And declared to Brandon, my knitting and Martha partner, that I was going to have to frog.

He cringed. And shuddered. Visibly.

I pulled the circular needle out of the stitched, and started ripping back. And at the time, I was fully prepared to frog all the way back to the stockinette, which forms the very bottom of the bag .. which would mean frogging a full 7 inches of the bag. But as I pulled the yarn back and exposed the rows below, it began to look like I could salvage at least most of the finished work. I worked it back a few repetitions, and sat the fabric in my lap, took a sip of tea, and began the painstaking process of trying to pick up the stitches.

About halfway through Martha, I joyfully announced that I had picked up all the stitches, and proceeded to continue with the pattern. By the time the second episode of Martha was finished, I had knitted back to where I was, and with no apparent interruption of the pattern. I did it! I fixed a possibly horrible mistake! And without having to start all over again!

Tagged

The catchen-mistress spake. I obey.

If I had to choose one thing for the rest of my life, I’d choose:

Veggies: Cauliflower
Meat: Prime Rib
Starchy staple: Bread.
Bread: All? Okay, no. Parker-House Rolls.
Animal: Katzen. Which is kinda like catchen, only .. different.
Catchen: Isis.
Soda: Diet Dr. Pepper. No, wait. Birch Beer.
TV program: CSI.
Movie: Ack. Umm. Not V for Vendetta. Maybe the Lord of the Rings trology.
Book: Right now, Understanding Art sounds like fun to have forever. Much mockable art-ism.
Color: Blue.
Wood: Cherry. No. Birch. No. Maple. Maple.
Shoes: Forever? Uhh .. New Balance walking shoes.
Ice cream: Slow Churn Vanilla.
Soap: Cetaphil, aye.
Medication: Mucinex, since apparently, I will have this cough forever.
Metal: Silver
Eyewear: Contacts.
Washing up: Showers, unless I havea -deep- tub. Then bath-showers.
Cold or hot weather: Neither. Cool.

tetchy: peevish; testy; irritable.

That would be me today. Though at least I know why. Hello Aunt Flo! *growls* Y'know .. there aught to be a rule about one malady at a time.

So yes. I'm irritable. And it doesn't bode well for the people I have to deal with. Now, in the physical sense, that's Jason and Brandon, and maybe his parents. And I'm usually pretty good about not sniping and bitching at them. To them, yes. But I'm clear on the distinction with them.

My Spanish 101 teacher, on the other hand, is receiving the full unfiltered brunt of my rage at the moment. More to the point, my advisor, the Distance Learning administrator, and the Enrollment Administrator who I've worked with this semester are getting the brunt of my rage, which is fully directed at my Spanish 101 teacher. Why, you may ask? Well, just read this little gem of an email the class received from him today.

Submit Self Test Now, Hurry up. Brake is over, this is the last time that I do this, from now you must to submit you assignments on time. Do not send e-mail asking me that update the assignmnets. If I don't have on time, your grade will be automaticly 0.

Sanquintin

Now, I ask you. Would -you- want to take a class from someone that had such a poor grasp of the English language? How can we be expected to actually learn from a man who can't be bothered to write emails with proper spelling and grammar? How on Earth can I be expected to enjoy a class when we're treated like first graders? I've sent a scathing email to the individuals I listed above, basically saying how horrible this teacher is, and how I am considering dropping the class and taking something else. Except I've just realized, we won't get much of a refund on tuition, and I already paid $100 for the damn textbook bundle. So I'm going to have to tough it out and endure this awful class ... but I will make my displeasure known at -every- juncture.

Update: I just received an email from an Interim Dean at the college, assuring me that my concern was being addressed. I'm a bit intrigued as to what that could mean, but I am going to touch it out, and do the work for this next chapter, and see what happens. I know at least I'm not alone in my frustration.

And then some ...

First of all, I know it's Monday, but I took Saturday Sky pictures this weekend, and I just never got around to posting them. So .. here!






The top two are of a high-tension power line tower being used by vultures to cool off, it looks like. They were perched with their wings outstretched .. rather creepy if you ask me! The other two are of a house not far from Brattonsville that's in the process of being restored. It was just a really cool house, and I had to take pictures.

So, yeah. I'm alive. I'm not entirely over whatever it is that's got me coughing all day long, but I'm better than I was this time last week. I've been eating cough drops like candy, and drinking more water than a body has a need to, but I'm feeling better, so there's got to be something to it.

I've also got weight loss to report. I have, as of Saturday morning, lost 10% of my starting body weight. 20.4 pounds, to be exact. In Weight Watchers, you get a little keychain to celebrate that milestone, and mine is currently sitting on my keys, where it will stay as a constant reminder of my progress. I'm not going to let it slip now, that's for certain. I've been able to buy clothes in a smaller size, which is a delightful change, and people have begun to notice I'm getting smaller. Pretty soon, I'll be able to wear my own hand-knits!

Speaking of knitting, I have a bit more progress to brag about. I've finished the knitting on Brandon's Mini-Booga, and it's ready to be felted. I've also knitted two skinny scarves for my nieces, and finished the Mid-month KAL dishcloth from last month. I haven't yet had time to work on the 'mystery' cloth from this month, though I'm about to start working on one.

I'm spending the afternoon trying to catch up on all the blogs I read. If I've been noticably absent from commenting, it's because I've been sick and busy busy with work and school. Things have levelled off with both though, so I should be posting and commenting more regularly.

Countdown 'till the SAFF: 47 days and counting! Yay!

(SAFF, for the non-initiated, is the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair, to be held in Asheville, NC at the end of October. Jason, Brandon, Larissa and I are going .. I believe we already have the house rented and everything, and she has her plane tickets. And .. shit! I forgot to send the check! Gotta Priority that tomorrow!