I'm home EARLY

For once in the week, I suppose that I should come home a tad early, and make a real supper. There just never seems to be enough time!

So after my PT, I decided to go home and forget about life for a while. I bought myself lunch at "my favorite place" down the road a piece, and when I got home, I thought it would be a good idea to clean the kitchen, because if you want to make a nice meal, you really need a clean kitchen, right?

So I did that. Presto, and the dishes are stashed in the dishwasher and as it purrs my dishes clean--or did the cat hop in there? I decided to get going on my papa's hat. Yes, Virginia, I DID remember to get the size 11 double points, and four rows, a little sew up the inside to hide the threads, and it's done.

I model for you now....with Prince in tow...


















I really tried to get the same look in my eyes that Prince has, but somehow it's just not gellin'.

Hat for Papa-Part Deux

Last night, I came within 4 rows of being done with the hat for Papa. Yarn Harlot made this in an evening? She must be a FAST knitter, and I must be TURTLE-SLOW. But it's a process, right? Therapy, right?

I'm too competitive for my own good!

So now, I have to find Size 11 dpns to finish this little wonder, and then I can take it to him and have him try it on. I think I'm going to make another one--just for kicks--for his wife. She can wear hers to support him!

Anyway, had I bought my Size 11's last night, I could have finished the hat, and you'd be looking at a finished project, but could I stop off at the knitting place--considering I drove right past it without thought?

NOOOO!

So, I give you part two of Papa's cap, and will finish tonight with a picture!

My animals were posing last night--especially my TomCat, Chat Au Lait--ready to pounce on sleeping husband...


I can almost hear "Don't move! I've got you covered, and I'm just pretending to be uninterested in your hairless head!"

So alright, Chat, pose for the camera!








And he did this:






You, are a perfect cat.


See the box under the cat?

Ah, that's another story.

I received a panicy email from my friend Ray. "The computer isn't working right." He says. So I email him back with assurances and that I'll come up on Saturday to help him work things out. But he is adamant, and decided he'd broken it, I suppose, and he returned all his computer related stuff and tried to get his money back.

Only Best Buy has a 30 day policy for returns, and he was just a scant few days beyond that.

Mental note: DO NOT BUY FROM BEST BUY ANYMORE.

He was so frustrated and unhinged on the whole affair that he told Best Buy Geek Squad to junk it.

I'm shocked, you see? Well, of course you can't see, but I wrote back and said

"YOU WHAT?"

Well, to his credit, he called them back and told them that I would come over and pick it up, which I did. I'll fix the machine, no problem there. Geek Squad told me that they'd turned it on to see what was what, and they told me that Vista's operating system was corrupted. Ah, okay, that means Reinstall Vista. No problem.

Except for one thing. He returned all his peripherals. The router. The fancy wireless printer! Ouch.

So I have a weekend project--getting his puter running again. I think that this time, I'll put it together so that it immediately goes to the world wide web and his particular website, and a shutdown sequence that is a lot easier than Vista's--not sure what that will be--perhaps a more understandable icon on the desktop than the circle at the bottom of the screen--now that, I'll have to consult with my own Geek Squad--but otherwise...it's not impossible, and how to explain to my friend Ray, that the computer isn't BROKEN, just the software is acting up, which you can EXPECT to happen when you're a new user...which actually, I thought I'd explained to him. But maybe he didn't hear it?

My dog looks on with doubt in her eyes...











No, seriously. This isn't rocket science, unless you don't understand how computers work. I'm sure that he doesn't want it back. He has a friend who said that he'd buy it from him, otherwise, he's out $700+, and while I'd like to have the machine, I don't have $700 to buy it. Hell, I don't have $100 to buy it! I'm not sure that Ray's friend will give him the money he paid for it. My hubby said that his friend could probably sell it for more than what Ray's friend would give for it--after all, the operating system has to be rebuilt, right? That's a real difficult process, right?

Wrong.

Stick a disk in the cdrom and let her run. Then allow the machine connection to the internet to update. It's a no-brainer. But Ray? Like I said, he went into meltdown before I had a chance to work on it.

Well, it sort of ticked me off. Yes, it's true that I can't just drop everything and run up to his house and spend the entire day working on a computer. I do remember the days when I got really anxious if my puter wasn't working right. Now, however, it's "just one of those things" you deal with on a day to day basis if you have Windows as your operating system, and that goes triple, IF YOU HAVE VISTA.

Not that I'm bitter.

So, having said all that, my other cat, Smokey/Cherise (we really haven't made up our minds what we want to call her--she's been in our home for 6 years)...tries to hide from me, knowing what the weekend holds. I'm sure she thinks that I'm not up to the task--and depending on what transpires over the weekend--remember I need to finish the hat--I should be done with the reinstall before bedtime, Friday. Leaving lots of time on Saturday to return the Cool Machine to Ray, and the massive effort to try to convince him that probably the only thing he did WRONG was to try and shut down the computer when it was updating--or downloading an important update, then disconnecting it from the internet while downloading--who really knows what happened. This old gal can fix it.

A hat for Papa

Having finally located a pattern for a perfectly wonderful hat for papa (my father in law), Prince found the perfect yarn, and so we cast on for the hat for papa.

The Yarn Harlot's "An Unoriginal Hat". Two cables and knit and purl--she did the hat on dpns. I'm doing mine on a circular, because I don't HAVE size 11 dpns right now (will have before I FINISH the hat, tho...) And Prince shows off the results so far. I realize that it's sort of a wad of nothing--but I'll take a better pic of papa when it's on his head. So you'll just have to take my word for it that it's coming along well.

Introducing!!

Prince and Runt!

These guys have been helping me work on my mother's piggie socks...See how far I've managed to knit!?
That's the cuff and the top of the piggie plus the ear on the right hand side, just in case you couldn't decide what was going on. I finally managed to find some straight needles (as opposed to circs), and the knitting is going much better. I opted to use a little fair isle on one side, and intarsia for the rest, otherwise, I'd end up with far too many bobbins. It's going well, I think, and I've made some progress, as you can see.

I found these guys hanging around at Linen's & Things, a store that's going out of business and having some bonzer sales. Bonzer is good for the pocketbook. I bought curtains for 4 windows--at 30% off--Prince and Runt were in a basket at the checkout counter. Since I was hunting for a present for my mom's birthday coming up, Runt was the obvious choice. Prince followed directly after that, as he (and Runt, too) have VOICES. Yes, my new friends can talk. Prince says "Rippit" (a valuable tool for knitters) and Runt--well, he sort of grunts...but it sounds suspiciously like part of Prince's voice...

Prince will very likely make himself available now for every knitted article I work on from here on out--and perhaps be a stalwart mate for my blogging. He's a cool guy that way!

I joined another german knitting group--Not that I can read, speak or write german, but because they do sock kals--and we all know how much I love socks, right? Can't stay away from them? Addicted to them? Buy yarn after yarn, even though I know that I don't have enough time left in my lifetime to knit everything I see that I want!

Actually, I tell my husband that I'm saving for retirement--because I won't be able to afford any of this stuff once I'm retired. Am I right, or what?

Below is my last pair of socks that I knitted. Not that you should really care, since regular readers here should realize that I'd already posted about these, but I am also in SAM 6, and the person who runs the blog there needs a pic of my last pair of socks because I only gave her a picture of one sock, and to post on SAM, you need a pair...so the obligatory entry here so that she can use it for SAM 6.

Piggie Socks, Revisited

I restarted the piggie socks with a knitted on cast on. I started the k2tog, and suddenly, the cast on was so tight that I couldn't get it beyond the join.

I cut the thread and pulled it off.

These socks have it "in" for me.

They simply do not wish to be knit!

So, I'm thinkin', maybe I'll just make some regular socks and stripe them, and CALL them "Piggie Socks"--when in fact they'll look like strawberry/chocolate socks? I'm likin' that ide'er, but I hate feeling defeated by a pair of socks.

Oh Gawd, did I just say that? At 4am?

----

Yesterday went pretty well at the office--no major meltdowns, and I got a TON of work done. When I got home, I gave my husband fair warning about the "paybacks" he was due, and to never EVER wake me that way again. We'll see how well that goes.

Mandy the Border Collie got on the treadmill in the afternoon to take her walk, and then got off and ran to the door instead, and got a "no, we're not going outside yet" reaction. After that, she really didn't want to get on the treadmill, but I stood firmly by and she got on the treadmill and did a 5 minute walk. She's so hyperactive that I don't want to make her walk on the treadmill more than that until her hyperactivity is quelled some by age. I'll try 6 minutes today.

I tried to stay up and watch "Monday Night RAW!" on television, but became exhausted just watching, so I flipped off the tv at about 9:30pm, and crawled in under the covers. This morning, hey! I'm at my "witty best". Go figure.

Maybe I should start those socks NOW?

Piggie Socks

I've still not begun these socks. I think the holdup is the cast on--It's a difficult one for my wrist AND for my eyes. I'll take the yarn to work with me today, and hope to get something done on them, but I think I will change the cast on to a knitted on cast on, then k2tog, k2tog, p2tog, p2tog, instead, since I don't particularly care for the k1, p1 look on socks, preferring k2, p2 instead. This knitted cast on might make an easier first row as opposed to the long tail cast on that I learned as a child--I also considered casting on to a larger needle, but the look of the finished article is sloppy, and I might decide to go down yet another needle size if I don't like the look I get with the knitted cast on. I also considered a provisional cast on, as well as a bohus, which is sort of like a double knit edge like on my dk hat...more work, meaning less time.

There's also the issue that my Father In Law would like a cap--now that he has no hair from chemotherapy--I found a great hat, and have JUST the yarn for it in stash--but I'm scared if I knit it for him, he'll die--

(I had a really good friend of mine--made a beautiful quilt for her, she died within 2 weeks of giving it to her...so you can see why I get scared when I make things for people--)

So this morning, my husband decided to wake me up to tell me something, laughing when he scared the bejesus out of me, turning on the light in total darkness and yelling my name. I think I pulled an exorcist--I lifted off the bed an entire foot!

BOY WAS I MAD!

I mean, it's not enough that I wake during the night, several times, then have trouble getting back to sleep--when I DO get some quality sleep time, he's got to ruin it for me....soo..

I'm just going to pull it on him. Maybe I'll poke him from the other room with a broom handle so that I don't get WHACKED doing it--but let him start snoring in his chair, get the broom, poke him (not softly either!) and yell at him--rather than by the name I usually call him, but by his GIVEN name, which I never use--

And then stand there and laugh at him when he falls out of his chair to the floor?

What do you think? Is turnabout fair play? Afterward, I can let him know that paybacks are a terrible thing, you know? Maybe he won't pull his freaking little cruel jokes on me anymore.

And with that, I let the dog into the house, wipe her little feets, and gather my belongings to head to the office. It's going to be a long day!

Working on Mother's socks

The title today is something of a mistake--since I'm not working on my mother's socks, but UNWORKING them--can you say Tink, Tink? Frog? Ripit?

I had to undo them because when I ripped back to the ribbing, I put in a life line, and didn't do it right, and only got part of each stitch (the yarn is really too soft, and doesn't rip out very well), and ended up frogging out of frustration. Once I'd frogged it, I didn't want to restart it because the top cuff of the socks are a cast on two times as many stitches, then k2tog, p2tog, which is really hard on my wrist, plus my eyes were not focussing correctly (oh, did I tell you it was after midnight when I was working on them?)--so I wound the bobbins and simply put it away until today, Sunday.

Now, I don't want to start them because hubby will be up and awake soon, and we'll be going to breakfast together. We have really nice Sunday mornings.

It's incredibly HOT in here--the stove is going, as it has all night, and it's now 70 degrees in the house. Too hot for me!!! I like about 60 or so. Therefore, I'm blogging in the coldest part of the house to try to keep my brain from melting. It's so warm that the snakes are coming out of hibernation! When that happens, I have to go out to the barn and get a mouse for her, then she'll go back to sleep--hot or not.

There's a very cool pattern on Annie's Attic today, a HOLLY AFGHAN. I printed out the instructions, although it's another one of those "I'll probably never get to make it, but it's just simply beautiful" types of things.

My mouth tastes like I've been sucking on cat toes--did I tell you that my cat sleeps on my chest? So I'm drinking some water. There's a load of laundry in the washing machine, and it's rotating merrily on it's program. I've never had a front loader washer until this one, and call me crazy...

The first time I washed a load of clothes, I watched it do it's thing--sat a chair in front of it, and watched it work--fascinating. Almost better than television? I asked my supervisor once if she understood that, and she said that back in the day, lots of people did that when they got an automatic washing machine. Hmm. And I thought I was nuts?

So I don't have a picture of the start of these socks yet, having unknit them back to the beginning and prepared a little better with bobbins--I might go down a needle size and up a sock size--I'm not having a lot of luck with the needle size recommended--but I usually have to go down a size or two--from normally sized patterns--just to get gauge--so nothing new there.

I'm also considering doing a bit of spinning--that overdyed green I saw at the fiber fair has me wondering how she got that lovely forest color--what she "overdyed". I'm pretty sure it was grey roving--but it could have been a moorit color--which I have none of. I'm thinking time to go to ebay, but I don't want to spend the money.

So, I figure I'll just blog my little heart out about zilch and bore you with inactivity.

I hope that we get the curtains up today.

What's Wrong with this picture?

I actually got a jump on Monday's work at the office on Friday, which was cool, because I didn't think that I'd get that far. The drop in phone calls about:

1. How do I do an address change.
and
2. Did you get my fax.

Are no longer my responsibility, and I can transfer those calls to the case specialists. It drops my callback list from 20 voice mails to maybe 6? That's a 75% drop (almost), and the incoming callers are generally getting the message as well, and I'm transferring the callers that I can to the case managers.

So it's helped TREMENDOUSLY.

I noted that one of the women in the office has moved to a different office. I asked my colleague, who sat next to her if she moved because she was going to be moving ANYWAY, or whatever have you (being nosey is my forte). We ended up talking about her (since she was not at the office at that point) for a half hour after it was MY time to leave, which is 4pm--and my colleague told me the scoop--

Firstly, this person has been shifted from one job duty to another in an attempt to find her something that she could do, and do responsibly and accurately, and she's just not able to deal with the stress of a high workload and a busy phone, plus the constant interruptions of a staff intent on getting their work done. At one point, I even asked the supervisor if she was taking medication regularly--not because of the stress, but because of

Secondly, she seems to have a personal life that is out of control, and she's basically spouting off at people in the office when her personal life doesn't "go her way". I didn't expect an answer from the supervisor, mind you, on that query, but wanted to get across that she seems to have some really extreme reactions to different stimuli.

Thirdly, she was in the area when two of my colleages were discussing her and her work ability--and wondering how in the world she can keep her job when she's not doing it. The supervisor has shifted her from one duty to the next to try and get her into a position that suits her, and there's just nothing. I don't have much to do with her anymore, because I've found that she wants everything filtered through the supervisor--even when the supervisor asks me to pass something to her, I still have to give it back to the supervisor with a note to give it to this person. She goes off on me at the slightest provocation, and doesn't work well with ANY of the rest of the staff. No one trusts her, and we all talk about her as something of an oddity.

I feel a little sorry for her, because I remember being young, being a divorced mother of a hyper child, and wishing I had some relief. To her credit, she seems to do BETTER than I did with her child, but the staff at the office are SUFFERING! I was always the other way around.

Everyone would like to tell her to go to the doctor and/or a therapist to talk with someone about her difficulties, because

Fourthly, her most trusted colleague moved to a different job across town--first, to have a little more stable job; second to get away from this person, because she was constantly tying up her "friend's" time in personal life issues, and she wasn't able to get her work done because of it. What she never knew is that her "best friend in the office" talked about her just as much as any of the rest of us. This absence of this woman's most trusted colleague has left a vacuum in her life, and she's reached out to the newest member (a temp) on our staff, and has started tying up her time with such discussions--the temp, who is mostly responsible for filing and pulling files is starting to bear the marks of a frazzled employee (like the rest of us) being loaded down with too much work--things like hair sticking out at the root...it's frightening, actually.

So she (and I am trying to protect her identity) is something of a pariah in our office. She's not a BAD person, by any stretch, but no one in the office really understands her--I understand her, and I still try to avoid her as much as possible. Everytime I've tried to work with her on something, I've paid the price, so I'm just not going there anymore. So I don't know what to do. My colleages are all very happy that she's moved to the other end of the office.

So I'm basically keeping my nose out of the matter, and she's become blog fodder, but I can't help it. Her behavior frustrates me. The fact that I understand it, somewhat, scares the living hell right out of me.

----

So I promised pics of the hotpads yesterday, and here they are, hanging on my kitchen wall.


Aren't they just to die for? The tails are not "tied down" to the hotpad, but are "free form", making the "cat" somewhat 3D, and such a cute idea. I can make a whole bunch with different themes.

I also ended up buying Scaredy-Cat, and how cute is that pattern anyway (see yesterday's post for the link)? I'd like to start it, but I know that I won't finish it until well after Christmas. Besides, I have to make these socks for my mom--which turned out to be something of a nightmare--done in intarsia, rather than fair isle, and I am none to keen on intarsia--why did I pick this project anyway!

Because my mom likes pigs, and wants some socks for Christmas, and these were the only ones I could find in evidence anywhere. And the finished article is so darn cute--but it requires the use of bobbins, I'm pretty certain of that, and my bobbin work is always SO tight that the finished article doesn't fit--or fits poorly, and you can't have that with a sock, right?

So I've ripped out about 5 rows--which didn't make me happy at all, and I'll wind some bobbins later today to make these socks. I want them to work, and work correctly. Unfortunately, I won't be able to start on the project again until after hubby gets out of bed (yes, it's early yet) and we clean out the corn stove and prep it for heating our house. MY GAWD! IT'S COLD IN HERE! I've also got 4 windows to put dressing on this weekend, and a trip to a small fiber fair around noon today. So it's a full weekend--for sure!

-----

Last night I put the leash on the dog--literally--and got her to walk on the treadmill. She is getting used to it, and soon won't mind it so much as she does now, but now it's a fight to get her on the thing, get it started and get her going at the right speed so that she's almost running and not meandering back and forth like she does on a regular walk down the road. I keep dog cookies handy for when she does her walk well, and at a quick and steady pace. She's learning. She doesn't like it right now, but she will appreciate it come winter when I won't be able to take her on frequent walks--she's a border collie, you know? So she's just off the treadmill this morning and has had her doggie treat. She did really well on the treadmill today, although she didn't want to do it at first. She did finally make it, and took a short walk--then decided to stop, and rolled right off the machine! LOL! It was like watching a cookie fall off the conveyor belt. I will someday get a picture of her on the treadmill, but right now, while still teaching her, I have to hold the leash, and touch her to keep her steadily on it.

I got her a KONG toy, several months ago, and she has played with it like it was a ball, running around the house with it, drop it, bounce, pick it up and run to the other end of the house with it...but I found out that you're supposed to put TREATS inside. Well, I got some treats, and she likes to play with the KONG with that treat in there. It's become her favorite toy--even over tennis balls!

---

One day, some time ago, I got some pics of the autumn scenery near my home. Yes, I was motoring down the road and taking these pictures, point and shoot as I was driving. Some of them are----well?? Askew? (Hysterical laughter)In the parking lot where I park every morning--gorgeous tree, eh?


On the way home, a lovely, colorful vista--

And a scene that could have been on Driving Miss Daisy. This is the view pointed straight down the road near the Looking Glass River. It's beautiful down here.

The fiber fair in Mason was fun. We had a good time getting together and chatting. The fair was a bit small, but several fiber artists were represented. I wasn't interested in buying anything, though. There was quite a bit of wool mixed with some lovely colors, but I didn't have the money to get enough for a whole sweater, and the roving that I wanted had already been purchased by someone else. There was wool, mohair, angora, alpaca and more represented, but I left empty handed.

How in the world I accomplished that, I still have no idea, but afterward, I was exhausted! I came home, had something quick to eat, and then I went to bed. I slept for 4 hours! Now I'm up again, considering whether I should start working on my mother's socks.

CYA!

Getting Organized

It's a sad day when I call "this" organized:

I decided to use the empty box of Fresh Step cat litter, along with a plastic shopping bag insert, to hold USED cat litter. Now, when I clean the cat box, I can take the litter in a little baggie tied up into the garage to wait for the day we go to the dump.

Rather than using the cat food bag, which ends up too heavy for me to carry up the steps.

The empty box of cat litter also has a bucket style handle, which makes it lots easier to carry, and the plastic grocery bags fit in the smaller bucket just perfect, and it makes the smaller bucket "re-usable", but I could use them, as I have so many--but they make PERFECT small trash bags for beside my chair for when I don't want to get up, or I've got a scrap of yarn to toss.

It's really cold in the house this morning--not because it's extra cold outside, however, so this begs the question--where's the cold coming from? The good thing is that it's Friday, and the weekend is upon us, and I just have to get through one more day, and then I'm FREE!

I'm hunting for a pattern for a crocheted or knitted black alley cat. I was looking on Ravelry, and found one for $5, but I'd just as soon find a pattern for free. Even so, the one on Ravelry is really cute, called "Scardy Cat". Arched back, fuzzed out tail, surprised expression, you know the drill.

Still I want to find one that's free, so I might be a while--Halloween will come and go before I find it, I'm sure. Forget it, I'm going over there to download. The magic of credit cards!

I finished the hot pads, and found that my camera's battery is empty, so pics will have to wait for later this afternoon. Sorry, 'bout that.

Well, off to check the other blogs I read and Annie's Attic for today's pattern.

Ya'll enjoy your day!

This Week

Of all the weeks that I've had working where I work--(assuming, of course, that's a vague enough reference), this week so far has been the most busy, yet the most calm--of any weeks that I've ever worked.

The stress is still there, but it's a little less, I think. And a little goes a long way with me.

The snakes have started their hibernation, as snakes do that sort of thing. The dog has been sick a few days this week, but I've got a spot-bot now...

Oh, short advertisement here...

IF YOU HAVE A DOG OR A CAT THAT SOMETIMES HAS ACCIDENTS...

A Spot-Bot is what you need!

Nuff said. That little wet vacuum has literally saved my sanity!

Today, I see my physical therapist, and she's been bugging me for a new mouse to start using my left hand mousing--to give my right hand a rest. Since the office was taking it's sweet time about getting the new mouse due to funding issues, I bought my own (FINALLY!) and started to use it.

Do you know that this really has helped my right hand...and I know this because now my left hand is starting to twinge on me in the same exact place as the right hand. This tells me two things---

One, the mouse was the culprit and
Two, management has got to get me away from this one program that is so mouse intensive that it's not funny.

You see, I'm a hotkey person--when I first started with computers, I used a mouse almost exclusively--because I didn't know the hotkeys. Many inexperienced computer users are mousers--in fact, you can almost peg a new user by how much they use the mouse instead of the keyboard--People who are familiar with their computers use the keyboard for more of the most common commands--such as copy/paste, undo, print, open-new and the list goes on. People who know their computers use the tab key more often than the mouse--and know how many tabs to hit to get to where they need to go on the screen.

Of course, all this will change, when laptop monitors are "touch controlled", and you can drag a window over here or over there, just by touching the screen and literally "moving" it. I suppose that sort of technical piece of technology is in the making, and in some cases, already here, but I figure it's out of my price range, which runs from FREE to $10.

Anyway, you can tell that this particular program was configured by someone who was an inexperienced user, because nearly EVERYTHING is done by mouse. I really had to push, and push hard, to get the hotkeys that I knew should be available, and even then, things don't work the way that they should. This pesters me to no end, because now, the person who was working with the programmers has left our area (I'm pretty happy about that, actually.), so there is no way to get any sort of upgrade now.

So, I suppose that, unless I start complaining (dare I say, bitc#ing?), I'll likely never get "better" where my hand is concerned.

Therefore, I am crocheting for a while. This action, especially with the yarn I'm using, is even harder on my wrist, but I set it down every few minutes to give my wrist a rest, and it seems to be working out okay. I also started these socks for my mother for Christmas--and I'm wondering if they'll get done in time. If I could work on them exclusively, then perhaps, but there are so many neat patterns available.

How dare they come up with new patterns all the time! I hate that!

Well, seriously, I don't hate that. I LOVE that. I guess you could say it's a Love/Hate sort of thing.

But the stress at the office is less, and I'm getting things done--not in the time frame I'd like, but they're getting done.

Unreasonable fears

ALLEGROPHOBIA: Fear of being late and getting stuck behind an old lady on the M1 doing 12mph while keeping her left-hand indicator constsantly flashing.

This phobia is related to hating to wait. It's actually a response for those of us who think that the world should revolve around us. We hate to wait, and worry about being late, because, of course, if you're late, you'll have to wait even longer--especially in the case of the doctor's office.

Am I right, or WHAT?

Anyway, I hate to be late, and I hate to wait. It's the control freak in me. If I'm early--or right on the dot--I figure that I'm prepared, and that makes me feel like I'm in control of something.

But then again, consider...

The doctor's late, and I still have to wait. Oh, that just peeves me to no end! How come other people don't live by my rules for myself?

How narcissic is that?

So I quietly SEETHE while I wait. Just because I'm usually early or on time doesn't mean that the other person has the same limitations on their time (or availability), and so I have to keep telling myself "it's okay that this insensitive boob is making me late for everything else that *I* have to complete in my day! I'll just call so and so and let them know that I can't make it because my doctor doesn't work on the same schedule that I have to work with--after all, he's got a college education, and I'm just a nut case."

So when I end up behind that little old lady on the highway, I can relax, and know that while it inconviences everyone in my life who is waiting on ME, and inconviences me by making me wait, and wait and wait, I can sit behind the wheel and say "In the grand scheme of things, it's not the end of the world--I'll just work a few minutes more at the end of the day--or chop my lunch in half, and go with the flow."

Or maybe I could pass the little old lady and flip her off.

I suppose it's a choice you make in life, right?

Hubby's Stressed

"I didn't sleep at all last night, " he tells me this morning. Gad, no wonder! The plant he works at is shutting down, and he can't make up his mind whether to retire, or to quit GM and try to find other employment, or to transfer to another plant and take a lower paying job...he's basically stuck between a rock and a hard place, and really doesn't know which way to go. There's a union meeting tonight, and he's not sure what they plan to discuss, but I'm sure he'll be late getting home.

There are many other men for whom the plants are closing December THIS YEAR.

"Merry Christmas," says my hubby.

He had nightmares about tornadoes last night.

"It really peeved me, because you wouldn't go to the basement," he says--now that's love!

I figure he probably punched my lights out and carried me to the basement in his dream, but yeah, I suppose he'd beat me to a pulp to keep me safe from a tornado, if he had to do it. It made me smile.

Sheesh. Am I a lunatic or what?

So I'm glad that for now, I can still connect to the internet and write in my blog. It helps keep my sanity in some semblance of order. I don't know what I'd do without my hubby, my friends, my dog and my cats--and my blog.

The Hot Pad to Beat All Hotpads

I started this little fluffy project for Halloween--an orange hot pad with black trim and a black cat superimposed on it, from Annie's Attic--a small free pattern, but was so cute that I couldn't resist--at the same time, seeing lots of other applications for it, in different colors of course, for all seasons--not to mention holidays and so forth.

So I downloaded/printed the pattern, and crocheted it up last night, failing to finish it before bedtime, but I have just one more round to go before I can hide the ends and it's done, but it is turning out so cute, and of course, I will post the final picture here.

Monday has come again. They seem to come so much faster these days. I'm hoping for some sort of miracle at work, but so far nothing has been forthcoming. A drawn tarot card shows the 4 of cups, where the person of interest is sitting next to a tree, dreaming about perfection, when there are three perfectly good cups before him. I suppose that means I should stop grousing about how nice it would be to be caught up, and enjoy the fact that I have a job at all...probably a good idea, after the dream I had the other night.

So I'm going to go see what Annie's Attic (see button below on the right) has to offer today, let the dog in and feed her, and then pop on over to the office and see what today brings.

I suppose I could pray for sunshine?

Saturday/Sunday another weekend

Here, but only for a moment...

I spent my Saturday with my friend, Ray, setting up his computer with a wireless network (very cool) and some new anti-virus/internet software, plus showing him how to create a favorite in Internet Explorer. Wait until he finds out about Firefox--

But I digress. We had to run into Saginaw to get some parts and accessories. I had wanted him to buy MS Word, but he was unable to buy it just now. So he bought this anti-virus/anti-spyware software by Web-something or other (see how short my memory really is?), and then we had lunch at Applebee's, and then we went back to his house to show him "how to install software on his pc.

He's really starting to get to know his computer, I think, but he's still "iffy" on doing things he believes will harm his computer--like installing a program. I figure once you've done it once, and the pc doesn't blow up--hey, you're good to go! He is still at the stage where he's afraid that it will blow up and never work again. I remember those days.

Anyway, when he gets MS Word, I'm going to let him do the install--while I'm there, then I'll show him about the drivers for his wireless printer (oh, man is he SO up to the minute with the latest technology!) and how to take care of those. I let him know that he needs to contact Charter and ask how to set up his email account--so that he doesn't have to use hotmail anymore, and can filter his messages on a piece of client software (such as Eudora). We could chat on irc if the mood strikes him, but that's a bit down the road, when I have time to show him which server to use (there are a ton of them now compared to when *I* was on irc a lot).

I spent the entire day there, writing down instructions on how to do this or that--mostly he likes to surf the web, and he's got a pretty powerful computer to do that--but nonetheless, I left instructions on how to make a favorite and how to create a folder to put it in that would make "sense" later to him. Vista, which everyone says is a memory hog, (and it is, just like every other Windows software) is really pretty savvy, and I think I'm going to get it at some point, and install it on MY computer. Then again, I might save my money and switch over to a MAC--that might take a while.

Word's been that I've been feeling a little stressed--well, with my inlaws being so sick, my back and right arm/hand being in pain, and my husband's job information and my own job being rather unsteady, I'm under tremendous pressure, and the dreams reflect that stress. So I purchased a book this afternoon to sort of "Calgon, take me away...". I haven't started it yet, preferring to work on a hot pad from Annie's Attic.

So, I start to crochet. And this is a pretty cool hot pad--of Halloween ilk-a pumpkin, with a cat on it. So it's sort of a fluffy project--something quick and dirty. I'm hoping that it works out well.

In the meantime, I started reading Ceasar Millan's book, and that's pretty impressive. I'm having fun with that, and watching television about Atlantis--interesting stuff.

Piggie Socks for mom!

Well I started, but fell asleep in my chair, and didn't really "get to the good part" where the "piggie" starts, but it is on the next row.

I can barely wait for my first break to start that row--it's going to be so cool to watch this pattern develop!

From the book "Knitted Socks" by Anna Tillman. There's a picture of Penguin socks on the front. Those MIGHT be next, but I'm not sure. We'll see.

In the meantime, off to the races---

Oh, and I got some really cool pictures last night of what Michigan looks like in the Autumn with all the colors in the trees and such--may post those tonight.

Cya!

Renegade Chili

Not a recipe folks, just a cool snippet from something a girlfriend emailed me. I didn't edit a bit, and since it's not mine, and since I can't imagine who wrote it, I quote it for you below:

"I went grocery shopping recently while not being altogether sure that
course of action was a wise one. You see, the previous evening I had
prepared and consumed a massive quantity of my patented "You're
definitely going to $h!t yourself" chili. Tasty stuff, albeit hot to
the point of being painful, which comes with a written guarantee from
me that if you eat the next day both of your a$$ cheeks WILL fall off.

Here's the thing. I had awakened that morning, and even after two
cups of coffee (and all of you know what I mean) nothing happened.
No "Watson's Movement 2." Despite habanera peppers swimming their way
through my intestinal tract, I appeared to be unable to create the
usual morning symphony referred to by my next door neighbors as
thunder and lightning.

Knowing that a time of reckoning had to come, yet not sure of just
when, I bravely set off for the market; a local Wal-Mart grocery
store that I often haunt in search of tasty tidbits.

Upon entering the store at first all seemed normal. I selected a cart
and began pushing it about dropping items in for purchase. It wasn't
until I was at the opposite end of the store from the restrooms that
the pain hit me. Oh, don't look at me like you don't know what I'm
talking about. I'm referring to that "Uh oh, gotta go" pain that
always seems to hit us at the wrong time. The thing is, this pain was
different.

The habaneras in the chili from the night before were staging a
revolt. In a mad rush for freedom they bullied their way through the
small intestines, forcing their way into the large intestines, and
before I could take one step in the direction of the restrooms which
would bring sweet relief, it happened. The peppers fired a warning
shot.

There I stood, alone in the spice and baking aisle, suddenly
enveloped in a noxious cloud the likes of which has never before been
recorded. I was afraid to move for fear that more of this vile odor
might escape me. Slowly, oh so slowly, the pressure seemed to leave
the lower part of my body, and I began to move up the aisle and out
of it, just as an elderly woman turned into it.

I don't know what made me do it, but I stopped to see what her
reaction would be to the malodorous effluvium that refused to
dissipate, as she walked into it unsuspecting. Have you ever been
torn in two different directions emotionally? Here's what I mean, and
I'm sure some of you at least will be able to relate.

I could've warned that poor woman but didn't. I simply watched as she
walked into an invisible, and apparently indestructible, wall of odor
so terrible that all she could do before gathering her senses and
running, was to stand there blinking and waving her arms about her
head as though trying to ward off angry bees. This, of course, made
me feel terrible, but then made me laugh. Mistake.

Here's the thing. When you laugh, it's hard to keep things "clamped
down", if you know what I mean. With each new guffaw an explosive
issue burst forth from my nether region. Some were so loud and
echoing that I was later told a few folks in other aisles had ducked,
fearing that someone was robbing the store and firing off a shotgun.

Suddenly things were no longer funny. IT was coming, and I raced off
through the store towards the restrooms, laying down a cloud the
whole way, praying that I'd make it before the grand mal assplosion
took place.

Luck was on my side. Just in the nick of time I got to the john,
began the inevitable "Oh my God", floating above the toilet seat
because my ass is burning SO BAD, purging. One poor fellow walked in
while I was in the middle of what is the true meaning of "Shock and
Awe." He made a gagging sound, and disgustedly said, "Sonofabitch! ",
then quickly left.

Once finished I left the restroom, reacquired my partially filled
cart intending to carry on with my shopping when a store employee
approached me and said, "Sir, you might want to step outside for a
few minutes. It appears some prankster set off a stink bomb in the
store. The manager is going to run the vent fans on high for a minute
or two which ought to take care of the problem."

That of course set me off again, causing residual gases to escape me.
The employee took one sniff, jumped back pulling his shirt up to
cover his nose and, pointing at me in an accusing manner
shouted, "IT'S YOU!", then ran off returning moments later with the
manager. I was unceremoniously escorted from the premises and asked
none too kindly not to return.

Home again without having shopped, I realized that there was nothing
to eat but leftover chili, so I consumed two more bowls. The next day
I went to shop at Albertson's. I can't say anymore about that because
we are in court over the whole matter. Bastards claim they're going
to have to repaint the store.."

I think I laughed a bit to hard--I had chili for dinner yesterday...YIKES!

Socks done!

And the winner is...Tenna! Boy, what a trial! Remind me to never do vanilla socks on size 1 needles and 72 stitches. It took forever!

But they are beautiful. And I present them to you on the green covered sock-stand runway--my dining room chair--for your viewing pleasure.

Here of course, you see the view from the front. Notice the stylish lines of the toe decrease, which have additional shaping for the--wait a second...okay, the notes say "left foot", which follows the model's lovely, lovely toes (yes, they are pedicured underneath those socks), the bump of the oh-so-slight bunion below the Little Piggie that went to Market and the changes across the left side of the toes to accommodate the little piggie that "cried wee-wee-wee all the way home", to end in a nearly flat kitchnered space across 16 stitches which traverse over the first three piggies, giving the toes a snug, perfect fit. Special mention goes to the 2 x 2 ribbing that broke up the odd coloring in the hand-dyed flat feet and never, I repeat, never pooled-on EITHER sock, which was something of a disappointment. The 2 x 2 ribbing follows down the instep just to the point where sock meets the tongue of the tennis shoe and then disappears--vanquished by the plain-jane stockinette that hugs the foot but doesn't cinch. The ribbing helps to hold the sock in place on the leg of our model (me), and is perfectly attuned to the requirements needed, but not so much as to cut off the circulation!

As our model turns the foot, we find a perfectly done short row heel that fits like a glove. If you look closely, you can see how the ribbing follows down the instep, stopping at the top dead center of the arch.

The model tried to get turned around so the view could be seen from the bottom of the foot, but it meant taking a picture from behind--well, no one really wanted to see that, so this is all you get. The runway model put her shoe back on and typed this "fashion show" for your pleasure.

You can clap now. Our model is going to work.

Yesterday...

All my troubles seemed so far away..

HUH?

Okay, back up, rewind, regroup, eyes front, march..

The other day, I found out that my supervisor must think that I'm an idiot.

She gives me the okay to show the case managers how to do an address change when I ask for it. I spend 45 minutes of my day doing so. Then THEY complain to her about my method--which of course, deals with 4 different computer systems, and needs to be done a certain way to get all the information in one place so that everyone down the line can do their job, including me, RIGHT?

So in their meeting, without consulting me, she okayed for them to do it a different way...creating duplication of effort FOR ME.

I, naturally, was furious. She gave me the authority IN WRITING to do this, and then UNDERMINED ME.

And when I asked her why she undermined me, she counters with "No, it's You that Undermined me! Telling people how to do their jobs is my job, not yours."

Which is true enough--so I countered with "Then why did you give me written approval to show them how to do it, and then take it back without at least CONSULTING ME about the matter? Surely you must know by now that there IS a method to my madness, and a desire to keep duplication of effort at a bare minimum. What you've done is made MY work have to use more effort, because the information that they are passing to me is not complete enough for me to do my job, and if you don't put good job practices in place from the start, when the new systems come up, it's going to be a freaking nightmare! You think it's bad NOW? Just wait a couple of months.

Hell, I had one case manager do an address change, and the parent had an apartment number, which I could CLEARLY discern from the printout of the usps.com, but she completely missed the fact that usps.com was stating that the address has an apartment #. So I gave it back to the worker, requested she call the parent and get the apartment #.

These people are going to go by the letter, and we'll have invalid addresses EVERYWHERE, because these people don't know where they live! They have dyslexia! They forget they have 5 kids, not 4. The system thinks they have 6, but they only have 5! It's a freaking nightmare.

And for the last 8 years, I've been doing this job.

It's a wonder that I haven't lost my mind.

Um, what's that you say? I should check before I leave for work this morning? Good idea.

Fodder for the psychiatrist, I always say, fodder for the psychiatrist.

Caylee Anthony

Listen to CNN--Casey Anthony has been indicted! Murder 1 for Caylee, who has not been seen since Christmas.

I remember when the Tarot group notified us about this case. I pulled the 10 of pents and the ace of cups. Mom says she feels that Caylee is close by--this tells me that Caylee is buried nearby, perhaps not in the yard, but in the neighborhood.

I read from the cards that she was buried beneath a pine tree. The face on the cup was her face, and the 10 of pents is situated on the card in a triangular shape, which made me think of a pine tree, rather than a deciduous tree.

Cadaver dogs on the property "hit" in several places in the yard, as well as in the trunk of the car. However, most of the case is being kept pretty hush-hush.

The entire episode reminds me of the case here in Michigan that had entire neighborhoods up in arms for months, while the PARENT'S stood by, apparently grieving, while the entire time they were culpable.

I asked the ether one day "Who Killed Ricky Holland? Where is he?" And the ether brought my father's best friend's face into my vision. His name was Larry Lee Howe. Ricky was finally found. The guilty father who dumped him on the roadside in a swampy area, just off Howell Rd. Howe, LL. Larry Lee Howe.

The whole thing made me shivver.

But I'm pretty sure that the little girl is dead. Today, I drew The Tower, 3 of wands, lovers. The mother is going to lose everything, including her freedom, having made a terrible choice. Somehow, I see some sort of secsual perversion going on somehow, because of the lovers, but it could also be a reference to the mom's boyfriend...who might be a non-issue-I don't know much about his involvement with the family...

It's all so very sad--that such a lovely little girl would be taken from the earth so soon--such a short little life, with no time to have impacted much on the world, except to draw tighter the bonds between normal mother/child relationships.

I hope that justice is realised...very often in child deaths like this, the guilty party does end up behind bars or dead by some other means--it's true what they say--"What goes around, comes around."

Worked a Whole Hour and a Half Today!

And that's saying something.

I thought I would be in and out--but mostly...I was out.

I got through my voicemail, which filled up again instantly, and answered some calls. I suppose that I should begin from the wake up bell.

Turn off the alarm, there's no fire. I'm not going to make it...I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, most of THAT punctuated by wake up-cough-sneeze-sniffle-cough-blow nose into the handy tissues that I keep in a tissue box on my pillow for just such emergencies-close eyes-cough-and maybe fall asleep again.

I finally arrived at the office at 9, even though my supervisor told me to go home. I stayed until 10:45--doctor appointment for the GP about this sleeping problem I'm having (see paragraph above if you don't remember what I mean).

He gives me an Albuterol treatment and a script for an inhaler and some Afrin.

From there, to lunch, and I dine on Big Mac and Fries. The lettuce was bad, I think--and bad lettuce always comes back on me quickly--too much information?

From there, to PT for my wrist. Did my exercises, all seems to be going pretty smoothly--as long as I don't overstress the tendon, I'm good to go.

From there, to Kroger to get my scripts. I'm standing in line waiting, and that bad lettuce kicks me in the gm...short for glutius maximus--for those less informed, the south end of my north? Me BUM?

So drop of the script and run, not walk, to the bathroom, and not to toot my own horn, but I did.

Once out, picked up my script, and back to the car. 2:30pm. If I head back to the office, I can work another hour before it's time to go home. I decide that it's just not worth it.

Originally, I thought I would be in and out. I paid full price for my parking, and I was only there for an hour and a half. I could have parked on the street for fifty cents. I'll have to talk to the parking attendant tomorrow and have him cut me a deal on tomorrow's parking, because I paid for the whole day, but only used 1.5 hours. NOT FAIR.

So now, I'm off to knit my fool head off. I got my Knit Picks magazine today. There's a lot of goodies in there that I'd like for Christmas...

Honey???????????????????

More birds at my Feeder

I thought I would plague you with more bird-feeder pics--remember the bluebirds I couldn't catch on camera? Well, I told you then that I wouldn't bore you with that fuzzy picture. Now, I'm taking that back.

The bluebird is preparing to take off from the top of the feeder. Let me see if I can circle him in photoshop so that you know what you're looking at.

That's him. Inside the white circle. So I DID catch him on camera, just not quickly enough.



I had some doves drop in. Literally.


And on my way to work one morning, I chanced upon a great blue heron in the river. This is a pretty spectacular pic, if I do say so, as they are not exactly the "pose for the picture" type!

For those of you who don't believe that I have tendinitis, here's the pic of my cast to prove it. This was sort of an "odd picture day", when I didn't have much else to do.

And lastly, the long awaited, still undone flat feet socks. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel, as I am only one inch away from the toe decreases, and I can hardly wait to get started on them again later today.

Sadly, however, they will have to wait. Since I am VERY sick with Acute Sinusitis, breaking a fever, and didn't get very much sleep last night, I am returning to the doctor after taking the last of my Z-Pack for a followup visit, and then to my physical therapy, maybe visit the office to let them know I'm not exactly dead yet, maybe get a little work done there. Then home and back to bed where I belong. I'm exhausted. I'm stressed out. I'm physically ill.

And now, my husband comes to me and tells me that his workplace is shutting down the plant that he works at, and he doesn't know if he's going to have a job next year.

Did I need anything else to stress me out?

And I thought I was sick before!

Well, I finally stopped in to the doctor's office on Friday, and I have Acute Sinusitis! He gave me a Z-pack (which seemed like hitting a mosquito with a sledge hammer at the time), and the second I started the Z-pack, I started getting sicker.

Really sicker.

As in, I couldn't eat, sleep or BREATHE for the last 3 days!

I'm a mess.

Home from work again today, and wondering why I can't just cut off my head and leave it in the corner while I go to the office.

HA! Funny me, right?

So, I thought I'd check the email. My eyes hurt. Tell me how in the world my eyes would hurt? So I decided I'd do a little surfing on the web. Internet is sort of losing it's appeal for me--except for the blogging bit, but even that's been sporadic of late--what with my father in law being so sick, my husband being so sick, my mother in law falling on her face and breaking her eye socket (how in the world does that heal?) and now me.

When it rains it pours, or so I've heard. I probably need to dress and head to MacDonald's for something to eat for breakfast so that I can keep a little of my strength up.

I've also had no stomach for knitting, but I did get some spinning done while sitting in my chair, coughing up my lungs...I have to take it off the wheel now to the niddy, and then I can start another batch of yarn. With any luck, I could conceivably get another skein done in a couple of days if I keep at it--of course, I'd have to stay home ALL DAY. But I can think of worse places to be...

My head hurts, and let me tell you, the food isn't just for sustenance--it's more for being able to continue to take things like Tylenol, antihistimines, decongestants, and drinking lots and lots and lots of WATER. So much water, that I head to the head every hour on the hour, and that's saying something. But Sinusitis does that to you. You have to drink lots of water when you have a sinus infection. The antihistimines dry you out so much.

I bought some woad seeds online, even though I guess the plant itselt is inedible. I can still use it for dying yarn. It makes a pretty blue.

Well, guess I'm going to go get breakfast, as I can't take much more of this sinus headache. Maybe I'll drop into the drug store and get some more good drugs?

Colder Weather Coming

Newsflash, right?

But this year, I'm finding that I am far less ready for winter to come for some reason. It might have something to do with the itching of my eyes from the fields being harvested. It could be that I'm coming down with a cold (fever, chills and a sore throat this morning), or it could just be that general "malaise" that hits me every now and then.

It's as if I want to say "Slow down. Let me OFF this bus!"

I'm thinking about staying home part of the day, but since I was out of the office for most of the day yesterday, I figure I probably should go in. They don't care if I come down with pneumonia--they only care that I don't bring it into the office and spread it to their cubicles--and let me tell you, the office I work in is one of the "sickest" in the state. The recirculated air in there. One person gets sick on the 5th floor, and the entire building is down with the flu. I expect you think that's an exaggeration, but it's not.

I rose from bed this morning when my husband's alarm went off, and let the dog out. Yesterday, there was something that was stinking up my internet corner. I believe that I eradicated the smell this morning. I think it was a bottle of catsup that fell down behind a bag that I didn't know was there.

But it could have been me.

Even so, as I sit here, I don't "ew" as much--which is a good thing. Sometimes, you smell something for just so long that you don't smell it anymore. But last night, I couldn't deal with it. It was seriously stressing me out, but I was too exhausted from all the driving yesterday that I just went to bed.

I've seriously got to get back into my garlic bagel habit, or I'm going to be sick with everything that comes around. The problem is that the little store on the first floor of my building doesn't carry them anymore, so I'm going to have to find a good recipe and make my own now.

I'm not sure where I'm going to find that, but it is pretty evident to me that I'm going to need some extra support this year, considering how I feel ATM.

Ya'll enjoy your winter. I think I'll hibernate.

Are We There Yet?

Went to work this morning, knowing that I would only be at it for 4 hours--then off to my PT then off to my mother's to take her to the county offices.

Quite a day of running, actually, which exhausted me, and once home, I decided that I needed a little nap.

Two hours later, and I'm up and at the computer, smelling something very noxious. It actually smells like someone left something to rot over here, and I'm going to have to investigate. You never know--it could be a cucumber--that's what it smells like anyway.

Have had a bird at the feeder recently. Sparrow body, but black and white stripes on the head. Very striking bird, and far too pretty to be a sparrow.

The goldfinches have lost their vibrant yellows, trading for dark grey green and black and white stripes on the wings. The titmouses have returned, and such cute little bodies. A woodpecker has been visiting the suet cake, along with a couple of chickadees. The feeder is busy much of the day!

The socks are going slowly still, and the spinning too. I have dyed a pound of white roving into a deep grape color, and can't wait to get my hands on it for spinning.

The bird with the white stripes on its head is a White Crowned Sparrow. I have two of them. They are migratory--which means that it's likely that they are just passing through, but if I keep the feeder full, they might stay. That would be rather cool, because they are VERY pretty, and I'd like to see more of them. The woodpecker is, I believe, a Downy Woodpecker--common in this area, year round, but the red patch on my woodpecker's head is longer across the top of the head. I could not find anything closer than a Downy--surprisingly, there are several varieties of woodpecker that have yellow patches on their heads. I'm excited about this website--I can now look up birds that I'm not familiar with as they stop by my feeders. I've always found birding an interesting hobby, but have never pursued it formally. Maybe it's time to do so!

Horrible Sick

I think I might have the flu.
I'm staying home from work.
My father in law is starting Chemotherapy today. Maybe it's sympathy illness?

They are working me to death at the office, and I feel quite lousy with chills and everything. I'm supposed to get a flu shot soon. I hope I don't end up with the flu before I get the flu shot.

How Ironic Is That?

The socks made out of the Flat Feet are slowly getting done. It takes so long now because I can only do 2 rows at a time, and then my wrist starts to hurt me again, so I stop for a while. I got a Parafin Tub for heat therapy to my hand and wrist, but that doesn't seem to help much either. This tendinitis is tenacious, if nothing else.

So back to bed I go with a thermometer. Bye!