Success!

Look! I swatched something! And to make it even more astounding, I swatched it right!

This is the gauge swtach for my next big project. I'm going to make Ilga Leja's Sea Urchin, a very open top with 3/4 length sleeves and a Sea Foam Wave pattern that moves in two directions. It looks rediculously easy to knit .. which probably means it won't be, but hey. Can't blame a girl for dreaming, right? I'm making it out of some of the Peruvian Baby Silk from Elann, which is an alpaca/silk blend.



I finished the bag at last. It's a lovely little thing, too. It'll definitely get plenty of use, especially since it's stretchy. And it has renewed my desire to knit bags out of grocery bags, too. Talk about the perfectreusable grocery bag!

I have gotten many compliments on my Peacock Bag though. Granted, most of them were from family members .. but they count too! I know they wouldn't tell me if something looked like crap. But still .. it's nice to hear something really looks good.

Ravelry Details - Peacock Bag
Ravelry Details - Sea Urchin Top

Saturday Jason took me to the Daniel Stowe Botanical Gardens. It was a lovely time. If I hadn't managed to drain my camera battery for the third time by leaving the camera attached to the computer, I could show you some of my favorite pictures. But since the battery is dead again ... I have to charge it. Again. I have to be able to take pictures of the flowerbeds in the front yard anyway, now that those are completely planted.

So .. yeah. Menstrual and all, I stayed home today, though I don't think my boss has coverage for the store I was going to cover .. and I feel awful about it, but goddammit, I can't work when it feels like my uterus is being twisted repeatedly by Hulk Hogan. I'm fine by about 6pm, or if I'm sitting down, but my job has to be done in the mornings, and isn't a sit-down thing. So .. she will have to deal without me, cos I just can't make it out to Rivergate and handle my own store .. and I hate it, but I'm female and not past menopause and she'll just have to understand. That'll teach me to agree to cover another person's full vacation right before taking my own.

But I promised to tell you about the birthday gift Jason gave me. He's always been one that can't stand to wait .. though I have to admit, I get that way too, when it's a good one. But this is one helluva birthday present, and I just have to brag a little.

He got be a Nikon D50 SLR digital camera, a good lens to go with it, a UV filter for the lens, a camera bag, and pre-paid for lessons for me to learn how to use said camera. I'd take a picture of it, but it's kinda hard to take a picture of a camera ... but here's the website for the particular camera I have. It is cool as anything, and as much of a shutterbug as I am, it's going to be a great camera for me to play with.

For just an example of the pictures I can take with this camera, here's a shot I took of Isis.




So for those counting, I have gotten a cool as shit phone/pda, and a mega-cool digital camera within two months. Good god, what am I going to get for christmas???

In other, -really- exciting news, the Southeastern Animal Fiber Fair is ... *duhnduhnduhhhhn* TOMORROW!!!! Wahoo!! In 24 hours, barring catastrophes or anything else, Brandon and I will be on our way up to Lake Lure, where we have a house rented until Monday. Jason and Larissa will be coming up that evening, but since we have to figure out how to start a fire in the wood-stove, and have to find the place on top of that, we figured we'd go up there as early as possible.

I'm bringing some knitting, of course, though I only have the burp cloth on the needles right now. But how cool will it be, sitting in the living room together, all .. minus Jason probably .. with our knitting, just gabbing away all the time while it's a frigid 20-some-degrees outside? Oohing and ahhing over the things we saw that day while driving through the mountains, or at the Fiber Fair itself. And celebrating my birthday while we're there. It's going to be so utterly perfect, I can't even begin to explain.