Decision Number One

A few weeks back I posted that I made three big decisions in my life. At the time I wasn't up to mentioning what those decisions were because I wanted to see if I could actually do what I had set out too and what effect it would have on my life.

Now that sometime has passed, I'm starting to feel more comfortable with talking about my decisions.

Decision #1:

Eliminate negativity and "evil" (aka as bad habits and people that bring negativity into my life) from my life to the extent that I can at any given time. A lofty task - let me tell you.

There are/were a few ground rules:

• Minimal complaining allowed as I find complaining just increases my negativity.

• Understand that there will most likely be a few times I will slip and be ok with that fact.

• Try to find the good even when it all looks like bad.

It hasn't been easy. Especially when you encounter those negative people and they are people you care about greatly. However, I believe I have gotten to a place that I can say I've begun to really take control of this decision. It's a strange feeling. But a feeling I could get use too.

Until later . . .

It's Growing By Leaps And Bounds

I didn't realize how much the SYB really grew over the past week until I went to put together the stats for this post. There has been some serious progression. I think it has something to do with the fact that I finished the January socks and haven't started anything else as of current.


The Official Sock Yarn Blankie Square Count for June 30, 2009:

Squares Needed: 716

Squares Knit and Stitched Together: 25

Squares Ready to be Added: 0

Remaining Squares Needed: 691

I made a decision the other day about this blankie. I've decided to lay down a gauntlet once again. I'm placing a deadline on this project. I'm officially setting a project due date to be my 35th birthday which takes place in 2010. Should be interesting to see if I can do it! (See the countdown widget on the left hand side of this blog to see how much time I have left.)

Until later . . .

SPF 1,000,000 Should Do

As I mentioned in my Friday post, I was very happy to see the week come to an end. Mainly because the ladder half of the week I had developed a nasty cold that left me very congested and struggling to even consume liquids. Yes, I've been on a cold diet lately.

By Saturday, I was feeling better, but not 100%. This cold didn't stop me doing things and going places however I wasn't doing and going as much as I would have liked too. That said, I did venture out to the pool this weekend. Beforehand, I made a stop at my local CVS to pick up a much needed bottle of sunscreen. Being in discomfort from a cold was bad enough - the sting of a nasty sunburn would just exacerbate things.

Picking out sunscreen is up there on my list with picking out tooth paste, tooth brushes, hair dryers . . . well, you get the idea. It seems items like these don't vary too greatly in what they do, but their prices seem to be all over the board. Sadly, it's these types of items I typically find myself spending too much time on trying figuring out which one I really need and if the cost justifies what I'm getting. This time while making a decision I found myself thinking back to my high school Chem class. One of the experiments we had conducted during the semester was to evaluate the effectiveness of different SPF levels in sunscreen. At the end of the day we concluded that after SPF 30 it was pretty much pointless. Yes, I was factoring in a Chemistry experiment I had done many years back into a purchase that should have taken me no more then a minute or two to make.

What level SPF did I end up with? SPF 50 of course! Not because I believe that SPF 50 is THAT much better than SPF 30. The bottle of SPF 50 was the same price as the SPF 30, but double the amount. More bang for my buck!

Until later. . .

There's Another One I Can Take Off The List

I can remember the exact incident that caused my fear of water slides, but I don't remember how old I was. All I know is that I whipped around that last turn WAY too fast and the punch in the stomach I felt was not pleasant at all. After that I was done with water slides. So, when KP's son insisted that I go on the water slides I was hesitant. I tried dancing around the water slide issue the whole time we were there and with 15 minutes of pool time left I almost made it out of that visit without HAVING to go on the water slide.

Then KP informed me that she said she'd go in my place to make her son happy. Then out of the blue a thought popped into my head . . .

"You know, I jump out of planes, but I won't go down a water slide. What's wrong with that?" I said with a confused look on my face.

That's when I went over to my things and put my sunglasses in my bag. I had decided to give the slide a chance.

I choose the open water slide for starters. After climbing the 800 stairs and waiting in a short line it was my turn. At first I just sat up, but by the end of the ride I was lying down. It was fun! So much so I went again. This time I was lying down from start to finish.

So, there it is, one more thing I can take off my "fear list." The list is now down to three things - I believe. Not that it was super long to start with, but it's kind of crazy that it is now only three things. I'm kind of proud of myself for tackling these things finally. At the same time I'm kind of sad that the list is almost completed.

I guess I need to make a new list.

Until later . . .

Life is Convoluted

I'm finding lately that sometimes I lack the right words and that's when I turn to others to say them for me - Crazy Aunt Purl - Maybe It Comes With Some Cracker Jack.

Though I know life would be boring with one of the decoder rings that CAP talks about, however sometime it sounds damn nice to have all the answers right in the palm of your hand - literally.

Until later . . .

Free For All Friday (Better Late Than Never)

If there was ever a Friday I needed a "free for all" it is today!

So here we go. . .

Fill In Friday

#130


And...here we go!

1. She had a great outlook on life that inspired others, but all she wanted to do was see them happy.

2. My family and friend is are by my side, always.

3. I know this: There is a plan!

4. I'm still tired.

5. These words apply to me: talkative, private and mindful.

6. I'm glad to see the sun was shining.


I can honestly say, this has been one of those weeks that made me SO glad today was the end of the week. . . TGIF!

Until later . . .

Celebrity Deaths

I once heard American celebrities described as the closest thing America has to royalty. If that is the case, the American Royal family has suffered some great losses this week.

On Tuesday, June 23rd our first loss took place with the passing of Ed McMahon. McMahon had many acting roles over the coarse of his career, but I will always remember him as being Johnny Carson's sidekick on the Tonight Show and the host of the shows "Star Search" and "TVs Bloopers and Practical Jokes."

At the age of 86, his passing though sad, but wasn't a huge shock. He had been ill for sometime.

Then today, June 25th, news spread during the early afternoon hours of the day that Farrah Fawcett had lost her battle to cancer. She was 62. Again, though sad it wasn't a huge shock as it was public knowledge that she was not in good condition health wise.

I think the biggest shock of all came when I found out after getting home that Michael Jackson died - he was 50. I believe my shock was mainly because his death was sudden and unexpected. Also, he was on the verge of trying to make a comeback. Though faced with problems over the past years that had tarnished his legacy this concert tour was the hope that we would all remember why we had loved Michael Jackson so much.

For me, his music was a big part of my childhood. I still remember dancing to the Thriller albumn for hours on end. Also, how freaked out I was when I saw the Thriller video for the first time but that didn't stop me from loving the song. Or, watching him "moon walk" for the first time on national tv. And that is my experience. As I went through my Facebook statuses a lot of others I know have reiterated the same exact sentiment. MJ was part of our childhood and it is sad to see that go.

I think another reason his passing seems more significant than the others is due to the similarity to Elvis Presley's passing. Both the King of Rock and the King of Pop were at a time in their lives when their careers and personal lives were on a sad and steady decline. Both entertainers whom had a significant impact on the music world. Their deaths both sudden and both related to serious health issues. Though each of these legends personal lives were a mess, it is my hope it will be their music that will keep them alive forever and truly carry their legacy on for generations to come.

One last thought. . . It's not just our country that lost a great entertainer; it was the world.

Ed, Farrah and Michael - may you Rest In Peace.

Until later . . .

My Dealer Hooked Me Up

Last night I acquired more yarn for my SYB.

When I went over to my dealer's place it wasn't my intention to score yarn. Actually, my motives were just the opposite - I was going over there to giving them yarn. Yarn with bling to be exact. However, by the time I left I had scored a few things of mini-skeins myself. Given the disorganization of my sock blankie containment system (aka - my knitting bag) I'm not exactly sure how many mini-skeins I left with. I'm thinkin' it's something like two or three. Big or small it was a yarn hit and I wasn't complaining!

Until later . . .

Broken Record

I've been feeling like a broken record lately. Repeating myself a lot - at least to those who know me in real life. That is when I do talk. I've had a lot more "quiet" moments lately. Yes, I've been giving those around me an auditory break from my fantastic voice. All this really means is that I've got a lot on my mind that I need to sort through.

I feel like I have too many pots on the burner right now and none of them are boiling. I'm just sitting waiting for one, or all of them, to at the very least simmer. To add to everything the most exciting "pot" is the one I can't talk about right now and the not so great one can be a free-for-all. It figures, I'm allowed to speak of the bad, but not the good. Also, right now I'm just preoccupied with an important decision I have to make soon. A decision that seemed so far away once upon a time. Being the person that I am, I have already listed out the pros and cons of each direction I can go with things. Now I just have to figure out what my gut is telling me. It usually leads me in the right direction.

The effects of my big decisions are amazing. Well, at least decisions one and three. I had to unexpectedly put two on the back-burner. I'm hoping though that I can move forward soon with number two.

Oh, and to put any speculation to rest - no, I will not be knitting any baby blankets for an arrival of my own. I know some of the above could be misconstrued to read as such.


My weekend ended on a crazy note. An unexpected note. Sunday, I got home and was going about my evening when I got an instant message from someone I thought was dead. Well, I figured they weren't literally dead - more like figuratively. Their resurrection and entrance back into my life was unexpected and left me with little to say. "Wow! Just wow!" I think I must have typed that at least 50 times. To leave me speechless is hard to do. (I usually have more than enough to say about almost anything.) The conversation was awkward and left me right back where our last conversation had - hanging by a string not knowing when I would hear from them next. This time I wasn't hurt as I had been the last time. I just hope that they will find a path in life that will make them happy. That's all I want for those that I care about. They did leave me with something "deep" to think about. During our conversation, they said they didn't know who they were anymore. Hmmmm . . . Do any of us really know who we are fully?

Until later . . .

Oh The Joys Of Knitting

It's Tuesday which means it's time to give an update on my SYB. There is one little problem... I've been so focused on the January socks that I haven't worked on either of the blankies very much. Last night was the first time I made any alterations to it since early last week. However, there have been slight alterations so there is a change in my report.


The Official Sock Yarn Blankie Square Count for June 23, 2009:

Squares Needed: 716

Squares Knit and Stitched Together: 14

Squares Ready to be Added: 3

Remaining Squares Needed: 699

Yesterday, I finished my January socks - Woo-Freakin-Hoo! Though I guess they aren't technically done since I haven't grafted the toe. However, that didn't stop me from breaking the yarn and making a square for my blankie. (It's all about priorities.)

This morning, as I was getting ready to leave I took a peek in my ottoman for the March socks. I may have to start those next. Or, maybe I'll cast on a pair of fingerless gloves since it was around this time last year I first attempted them. I would think at this point I would be able to understand the pattern better and actually do it this time. Hmmmm. . . Then again, if I knit the March socks then I'll have more squares for my blankie. Oh, and another pair of socks! Decisions! Decisions!

Until later . . .

Giraffe

Here's the deal. . . I came across a post about on Rav about this guy who made a bet that he could get one million hand drawn giraffes by 2011. I'm not an artist by any means, but I figured why not. Above is my giraffe.

Now I'm calling on you to do the same. It doesn't take that long and it's fun!

Until later . . .

"You're going to fly a parachute one day."

"Ready, set, go!"

The first time I went skydiving I said I was doing it for several reasons. Like many virgin jumpers, part of my motivation was that whole living life to the fullest mentality. It was something I always wanted to try and if I didn't like it at the very least I could say I went skydiving once in my life. I had also been going through a rough time in my life and figured given what I had been through this was nothing.

Those three little words were my queue to arch back as we had been instructed to do in the training course and later with our instructors. So I did exactly that. In less than the blink of an eye we were in the air flying. I can still see the vantage point change from clouds right in front of me to the ground below and then to the horizon. I could feel the air rushing into my mouth and my throat drying up. I thought to myself "I need to close my mouth and swallow," but I couldn't stop myself from smiling. Next thing I knew I got the signal.

It isn't a secret I enjoyed my first time jump. I believe I've made reference to that several times on this blog. Though I had been before, I did have concerns going into this second jump. This time they centered around the fact that it was a year later and though life wasn't perfect it was nothing like last year. I wasn't in the middle of a life crisis put simply. Also, this time I was no longer a virgin and I couldn't say I was doing this for the experience. What if my memories had been jaded by that "first time" mindset? Lastly, there would be no additional jumper with us to document the event. This time all I would see is, well. . . everything, including the ground below. A slight sense of panic had entered my mind.

The signal was a simple one - a thumbs up. That meant we had stabilized and it was time for me to go through my two practice checks. I would take my hands from what they called a "lazy w" (both arms up in the air, but not fully extended) and put it into a "s" formation. My left arm would swing into the air half bent to check my altimeter while the right one would swing down to feel for the golf ball attached to the rip cord. After check number one, my arms would swing back to a lazy w and then instantly go back to the s one last time. After that, I could just enjoy the ride until it was time to pull the cord.

There were two things about this jump I wanted to do differently from the last one. The first dealt with our actual departure from the plane. During my first jump I had cheated and closed my eyes so I didn't have to actually see what was going on those first seconds of the decent. I knew it was the only way I was going to get myself out of that plane. The other thing I wanted to do differently had to do with my form. In the pictures from my first jump I could tell that I was tense. My hands were clenched into tight fists as I was flying through the air. On the first jump Sparky had had me hold onto the harness as we left the plane. This time he wanted me to put my arms in the lazy w position as soon as we got up to the door. I'm guessing this was to get me more comfortable with the whole concept of jumping out of a plane so next time I went up I could do it on my own. I was kind of glad this was the case because it helped me with my goal of keeping my hands open.

Hand and eyes open - I was ready to go.

My two initial checks would take place within the first 1000 feet or so of our decent. After that I could enjoy the ride as long as I periodically checked my altimeter for the magic number - 6,500.

10,000 . . .

9,000 . . .

7,000 . . .

Somewhere around 7,000 feet I started checking my altimeter even more frequently than I had before. 6,500 feet was right around the corner and not too long after 5,500 feet (the altitude at which I was suppose to pull the rip cord) would sneak up on me. Before I knew it 5,500 feet had arrived. I waived my arms in the air which was the sign to my instructor that I was about to pull the cord. Then my right arm reached behind me, grasped the golf ball and pulled the cord.

The panic I speak of left my mind just as quickly as it had entered. Oddly enough, it left as soon as we exited the plane. They say you go from 13,000/14,000 feet to 5,500 feet in a matter of 60 seconds. It doesn't feel that short of a time. It feels much longer. During that time there is so much that passed through my head . . . I had to make sure I did all the checks I was suppose to do and I was trying to take in everything around me.

Pulling the cord this time seemed a bit harder than last time, but in the end the chute deployed. Next thing I knew I felt the jerk up in the air and my instructor congratulated me on a successful free fall.

"This is even better than the first time," I exclaimed. The next 5 - 7 minutes would be pure heaven. The view was amazing. I won't try to describe it because I couldn't do it justice. You just have to see it for yourself.

As part of the jump, the instructor went through how the handles worked and how we would inevitably stop ourselves once we got back to the ground. However, this time I was the one holding onto the handles. OMG! I was now in control of this puppy. Since I had control I decided to try a spin or two since they had talked about it in the training class. The harder you pulled the faster and more intense the spin would be. My spins weren't that intense, but the instructor's were. At one point we were spinning paralleled to the chute. It was a lot of fun.

After we had played a bit I started asking lots of questions about how you control the direction of the chute. That's when I heard the words I never thought I would. The instructor said, "You're going to fly a parachute one day." I replied back with the simple question of why they said that. Apparently the types of question I was asking tipped them off.

We spent the remainder of the decent talking about how to control the chute and the types of things you need to look out for. As we neared the ground I was told to raise my legs up in a sitting position . . . we would be landing on our butts this time around and ride the ground until we stopped.

"Even better than the first time," I exclaimed as we came to a halt and I was released from the harness.

You either love it or you hate it. There is no in-between.

I've talked to many individuals after their first jumps and have yet to find someone who is just impartial. As for me, it's no secret - I love it. My second jump just confirmed what I had already known.

People either think it's cool or crazy that I'm in to skydiving. That is another thing that there is no in-between on. I was a bit concerned to tell my mom about this last jump, but after telling her I discovered I had nothing to fear. She said as long as we keep to a "don't ask; don't tell" agreement she was fine. She won't ask when I'm going next and I won't tell her what I've done until I've done it. This works well for me! Funny enough, after I told her she asked if I had more pictures. Got to love mom!

After much consideration, my long term goal is to get an United States Parachute Association A-class license . . . and possibly further licenses that would one day allow me to become an instructor myself. When I will do that is the question. On my drive home, I decided I can now label myself as a skydiver.

Now if I can just figure out a way to knit and skydive at the same time!

Until later. . .

Father's Day

Free For All Fridays

Another week is coming to an end and today is just about rambling, rambling and more rambling because my mind is all over the place today. . .

"The Real Housewives"

Bravo's "The Real Housewives" is heading to Chitown. I found this out when some one in a Rav group I'm part of posted that one of her friends was interviewed for the show. This particular individual's friend has apparently been cast for the show and they are now on the hunt for "housewives" to join her. We are in the process of encouraging our fellow Raveler to try out. How many chances do you get an opportunity like this?

.....................................................................................
Apparently it rained last night. . . Or, rain it was expected to rain. All I know is that I logged into my e-mail this morning and had 5 messages since 3AM from the Emergency E-mail Network notifying me of flood advisories. The last of these e-mails was to advise me that the flood warnings had expired.

So, I basically slept through potential flooding. . . and, so did you!

.....................................................................................

My undergraduate degree is in Advertising and Public Relations. In my very first advertising class the instructor talked to us about how one comes up with the concepts for their advertising campaigns. Or, as she put it - "The Big Idea." According to our instructor part of that process involves eating chocolate. Apparently, studies have found that chocolate stimulates creativity. (I think this study was conducted by a group of her colleagues as a way to justify their consumption of chocolate.)

As she passed chocolate out to the class, the instructor started to discuss who our client was and what their business objective was.

The Client: The Fort Worth Zoo

The Business Objective: To attract more corporate event business.

My "Big Idea": "Let Your Company Be Our Company."

It was a play on the word "company." I still have all the advertising pieces I developed for that campaign. It seems like ages ago since I did that.

I can't remember how I got that big idea, but I'm guessing the chocolate the instructor passed out that evening wasn't the catalyst for it. These days, all my "big ideas" usually come about while I'm driving. Why I'm not sure, but it has proven to be the case over the past couple of years. I only bring this up because recently I was in the car, again, when I solved a problem that had been nagging at me for awhile. This has actually happened to me a few times in the past week or so. I guess the moral to all this is that I should go driving if I have a problem to solve.

.....................................................................................

Friday Fill-Ins

I actually discovered these by reading the blog Wife, "Mom", Knitter.

#128

And...here we go!

1. I grew up thinking I had to have a set plan for my life. I'm glad I've changed my mind on that!

2. CNN Money was the last website I was at before coming here.

3. Why don't you compliment someone today? I'm sure it will be appreciated and make their day brighter.

4. Knitting helps me relax.

5. Thanks for checking out my blog. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.

6. It's very off-putting when people treat me as if I don't know what I'm doing.

Until later . . .

Time

Where has the time gone?

It's almost been a year since my first blog post. You know, I never did attempt fingerless gloves again after I gave up on them last July. I've thought about making them and totally planned to do it. However, sock knitting has seemed to get in the way.

Back then, "froggie knits like crazy" was something like "Knit One, Purl Two." There was something about that blog title that just didn't sit right with me. I think my real commitment to the the blog title fklc came when I registered the domain. Like it or not that was the title of my blog.

All rambling aside, it's almost been a year since I started this blog and I'm considering how I'm going to mark the occasion. Maybe a contest of some sort? I know I love a giveaway - especially went knitting items are involved. I'll have to think about this over the next week or so.

As for time in general - there isn't enough of it! This time last year, everyone kept telling me a year is nothing and it goes by quickly. I think my response to those comments went something like, "Yeah, whatever." (Ok, in retrospect I'm not proud of my response, but that is how I addressed it so I'll own it.) There are days/weeks when I'm trying to cram too much in. There are days/weeks that there isn't enough going on. I have to remember to embrace both these times because when I am experiencing one I wish for the other or I think to myself that I should have appreciated when I was going through the polar opposite. Maybe that's a sign just to embrace life as it is and just go with it.

All right, this is getting WAY too deep for today. On to other things. . . such as the fact that I finished my first January sock. WooHoo! The second one has been started as well. The sock is BEAUTIFUL. Makes me wish I hadn't waited so long to finish it. I took a ton of pictures of it last night. I can't wait to post them! That is, when I get the time to download them. :)

Until later . . .

My Life; This Life; "This American Life"

I think it was one of my former coworkers whom introduced me to the NPR show "This American Life." Actually, now that I say that, I know it was a former coworker who introduced to this show as I vividly recall the conversation.

I was waited for our fax machine to function, or get over whatever type of system-bleed it was having that day, and my coworker came up spouting off some remark about my productivity.

"Yeeeaaaah, if you were receiving a confidential fax on a public machine you'd be hovering over it too," I replied. "It's not my fault this thing is slow."

So as I waited, and waited, and waited, and. . . my coworker and I chatted a bit about various things. Amongst them, what we listened to on the radio. This particular coworker was a big fan of NPR and mentioned the show This American Life. "This American what?" I thought to myself. They recommended I check it out since I had been telling them of a podcast that seemed similar to the TAL concept. For some reason I thought TAL was newer than it actually was in reality. (Once again, I was way behind the cultural curve.)

Once I started listening I was hooked! It became one of my regular podcast downloads off of iTunes and soon that "other" podcast I listened to would fade into my podcast past. At this point, I even couldn't tell you the name of it.

Fast forward to this month. . . I have to admit I was shocked when I got the invitation to see Alex Blumberg present one of the TAL shows live. I was all about going. Though the show theme wasn't new, they had aired the episode about a year earlier, the content of the show was somewhat fresh with current event information added in. It was about everyone's favorite topic - The Economy. It was about how "the bubble" grew, why it busted and the steps our government has recently taken to try to help the situation. It was a FANTASTIC evening! I even played the role of TAL "groupie" and got Alex's autograph. I also got a chance, along with other, to chat a bit with Alex about what's going on in our world and about the world of public radio.

Since my American Life night out, I've been cruising the TAL archives listening to old episodes - going all the way back to the beginning of the show in 1995. Consequently, there is one episode on Anger and Forgiveness (one of my favorite topics). When I saw it on the list I was immediately intrigued. Apparently the show had been about: "Stories that reveal the societal 'trend' toward anger and away from genuine forgiveness." I eagerly looked for the link to stream the episode, but it wasn't there. There wasn't even a place for me to download it at a nominal cost. What the heck!? After searching the TAL site, it appears there are some shows that just aren't available for download or streaming, for whatever reason, and this was one of those episodes. *Sigh* Oh well! Such is life.

In the end, all I want to say is I would highly suggest checking out This American Life. I think it does an excellent job of presenting a unique voice to the things going on in the world around us.

Until later . . .

It Smells Like Rain

When I stepped outside this morning it smelled like rain. I can't explain what exactly rain smells like so I won't even try to describe it, but it just smelled like rain. There is rain forecasted, but I'm hopeful that it won't actually rain. It's been nice having the past few days rain free. Then again, it's been nice having a real Spring this year verses jumping straight into Summer. I will say this, if it does rain I will be prepared this time. : )

My sock yarn blankie is coming along quiet nicely. Until I get this thing finished (which I anticipate will be awhile), I've decided to make Tuesdays my Sock Yarn Blankie update day.


The Official Sock Yarn Blankie Square Count for June 16, 2009:

Squares Needed: 716

Squares Knit and Stitched Together: 12

Squares Ready to be Added: 4

Remaining Squares Needed: 700

This project has become such a focus of mine that I look at all the sock yarn I have in my stash and debate if I should just cut off the yarn I need now and knit the squares or wait until I actually knit the socks. In theory, waiting until I actually knit the socks could be a good motivating force to get more sock knitting done.

Though I'm definitely going to have to buy some mini-skeins and mill ends specifically for this project, incorporating yarn from actual projects I've made is kind of cool. It's like a historical record of my socking making progress. My hope is that I can keep all my actual projects in one specific area of the blanket verses having them all through the blanket. . . Well, maybe not. . . Hmmm. . . . I don't know now. Both approaches can be cool in their own way.

The blankie is not all I've been up to lately with my yarn. Out of the blue I decided to learn how to crochet. I've been wanting to do this for months now, but haven't taken the time to do so. I think I have at least three people who told me they'd teach me how. However, I learned on my own. Well, not completely on my own. I did watch a video on YouTube several times to get the hang of what I was doing. Learning from books is just not my thing. As much as I enjoy crocheting I don't know how much I will do. Aside from the fact that crocheting uses more yarn than knitting, it's also worse for your wrist. Yeah, I don't need to deal with more wrist problems. I'd had my fare share of those and am more than happy to avoid having anymore.

That's all - for now at least.

Until later . . .

Day 165: And It Put A Smile On My Face - June 14, 2009

My Project 365 picture for yesterday, June 14, 2009 is titled "And It Put A Smile On My Face." It's not the best picture I took that day - far from it. However, it's something that put a big smile on my face when my eyes glanced upon it.

It's only normal. Maybe for you it's a song that triggers it. Or, possibly a place. Suddenly the memories come flooding back. For me, yesterday, it was a Peanut Butter Nutella cupcake.

I swear when I saw the sign I had to do a double take. I couldn't believe my eyes. I haven't had, or thought about Nutella in ages (In real time, just a few months). Instantly I wanted to pick up the phone and say, "You'll never believe what I'm looking at right now." But I didn't. Instead, I just smiled and told the friend I was with how much I loved Nutella and that the combination sounded so decadent. However, I have to confess, there was more to that comment that meets the eye - and only one other person knows why.

As I ordered my Peanut Butter Nutella cupcake I recalled the first time I had Nutella. I had gotten the jar of it from a friend because I was on an anti-high fructose corn syrup challenge which limited my intake of sweets. Funny enough it wasn't until after the challenge was over would I take my first taste of this sweet treat.

It was deadly. I was hooked from the first taste . . . and it would soon become forbidden in my home. My love affair with Nutella would be a short one, but not due to my lack of admiration. Sometimes it's better for us to cutout things, even if we love them a lot, because in reality they aren't the healthiest thing for us. My enabler agreed. Their initial intention was for me to have a treat when I couldn't partake in the others I had before, not for me to form a bad habit.

I allowed myself to indulge in this tasty treat yesterday. It was absolutely perfect. The peanut butter cake was light and fluffy and the Nutella had a rich chocolaty taste, but not one that was too over-whelming. Once again, I wanted to pick up the phone and say, "You'll never guess what I just had."

And as for the double meaning of my initial comment to my friend yesterday. . . that's between me and the one other person - and it always will be.

Until later . . .

WWKiP Day

This time it wasn't snow and cold that we made our way through. . . It was steady rain. For me personally, the fact that all of my umbrellas were staying nice and dry in my office didn't even prevent me from venturing out. I was/we were still determined to meet up at the lo-cal we had agreed upon for this year's World Wide Knit in Public (WWKiP) day.

Originally, our intention was to drive up to a fiber festival somewhere outside of Madison, WI. However, between the predicted rain and the 3+ hour drive we changed our minds. Regardless, we were still participating in WWKiP day.

Despite the crappy weather, we had a lot of fun. I arrived at our meeting point early so I found a comfortable place to sit and worked on my project until the others arrived. Then we made our way over for some much needed caffeine and then to our intended destination.

As you can see, we took over the place. . .



Overall, it was a fun day. However, when I think about what it's called I laugh. For me every day is knit in public day. I've knit in bars, restaurants, movie theaters, cars . . . Well, you get the point. I don't need a day to specifically knit in public. Then I read this history of the event off the WWKiP web site.

After reading the history it now this makes a bit more sense to me. What I found most entertaining about the whole day was when non-knitters would pass by the room full of knitters and take a picture of us. As if we were part of the attractions at our location. Hey, maybe we were.

Regardless, I had a blast and met a lot of really nice people. A few of which admired my Sock Yarn Blankets (Yes, I meant blankets as in two not one) and offered to send me yarn for it if I gave them my mailing address. Wow! How nice! I happily gave them my information.

I hope all the knitters out there reading this had a fantastic WWKiP as well!
Until later. . .

I Spent The Day Naked

"I've been naked all day," I exclaimed to KP yesterday after she asked if I had gotten her e-mail, "So, no. I haven't gotten your e-mail." She knew exactly what I meant.

That's when KP remembered it was my volunteer day and I had been without computer/internet access for the whole day. Since 7 AM-ish that morning to be exact. It would over 12 hours before I would really get a chance to touch a computer again and get at least a brief moment to at least look through my e-mails before I had to get going again. This is truly odd for a weekday. Not so much the weekends, but definitely on a weekday. I'm actually surprised I didn't start having withdrawal symptoms. I think it was the fact that I did have my knitting with me and had some time during lunch and before dinner to work on a project that saved me. Had I not had the opportunity to knit, I think there could have been some serious problems.

Until later . . .

Officer Friendly, and My Mom, Would Have Been Proud!

Yes, I know the scenarios in this video seem cheesy, but they have a good point. A point that I'm glad I paid attention too. I guess "After School Specials" serve another purpose beyond a piece of media to mock.

On my way home tonight I noticed that the car behind me was following me. Now, I'm not talking about normal following where you just happen to be going in the same direction for a period of time. I'm talking about. . . I moved to the other lane and the car behind me moved to the other lane. . . Then I moved back to the lane I was in and the car behind me moved back into the other lane as well.

STRANGER DANGER ALERT!!!!

At this point I increased my speed a bit and turned into the first gas station I could find. I wasn't about to let this fool follow me home. Or, should I say, I wasn't going to be a fool and let this person follow me home. Said car got into the left hand turn lane and just sat there. It was if they were waiting for me to exit the gas station from the other side. However, I stayed put - patiently waiting. After a few seconds they suddenly decided to drive straight again.

"All's well that end well!"

Until later . . .

Blowing Off Steam

The objective of the evening was to go out and blow off some steam. So it felt appropriate to end the evening's events participating in an ad hock version of bungee jumping. No, I was not lifted up to ung-dly heights, harnessed to a bungee cord, and then dropped only to be jolted back into the air. Instead, I was harnessed to two bungee cords on both sides of me and then propelled into the air each time I jumped on the trampoline like surface below me. Kittibean took video and pictures of this happening and I can't wait to see them. I'm sure they are both worthy of Facebook presence. Afterwards, Kittibean informed me that I looked so happy and that it seemed as though I was having a lot of fun. KB was right, I was having a BLAST! However, I didn't realize how much this activity took out of me physically. Saturday morning I woke up to every muscle in my body aching. I took it all in stride as I knew why I was feeling that way.

Since I wasn't up to much Saturday, I felt it was a perfect time to try to make some progress on my Sock Yarn Blankie as my Banana Hannah socks are finished. I had learned the trick to joining all the squares without having to sew them together the other night. This made me even more excited about the project. There was one small problem keeping me from working on it that day - I wasn't sure where I put it. So, I started making individual squares. (Because this alone brings me so much enjoyment.) It wouldn't be until Sunday evening that I would find my existing Sock Blankie squares that had been knitted together. After my discovery, I promptly began to add my new squares to them. Now, I have seven squares knit together - only 709 squares (or so) more squares to go! WOOHOO! I'm definitely going to need some help and I don't know that participating in swaps until I get 709 squares is the complete solution to this puzzle. I have gotten yarn from some of my knitting peeps, but I think I may need to cruise the web to see what my purchasing options are as well.

On Sunday I took advantage of another yarn haul opportunity (you can never pass up those). In the process I ended up with a few free piece of art work for the new place as well. Double score!

Speaking of the move, I am very proud of my ability to get settled within the time frame I had set forth for myself. I think this was the fastest I've ever had a place come together. Now I just have a few odds and ends to do - like hanging art work and other decor items. A friend of mine found me a mirror that was just the perfect price too. Yay!

Well, that's all for now.

Until later. . .

Friday Fluff

Where I work, on your anniversary you are asked to fill out a profile about you. It has questions about what parts of your job you like the most, what you do, etc. Then there are the non-professional questions.

Since it's Friday I figured I'd end the week with a "fluff" post. So, I've snagged some of the off-beat questions from that questionnaire and am posting my answers below.

Tell us about a favorite event from your childhood:

One of my all time favorite childhood memories has to do with a Kelly Green dress my parents bought me. It was beautiful! It had a Peter Pan collar with a little bow tie in the center. The body of the dress had these embroidered flowers with a bit of pleating on the side of the embroidery. The dress had a full, fluffy skirt and a piece of fabric around the waist that tied in the back. However, it wasn't what the dress looked like that makes this my all-time favorite childhood memory. It's how it was given to me.

I was in the car with my mom and dad when we stopped at the grocery store. Dad and I stayed in the car while mom ran into the store. This was a usual thing for us to do. As we sat in the car listening to the radio my dad said he had something for me. That's when he handed the dress to me. As I looked at the dress and admired it he said, "You know I made it for you." I looked at him and replied, "No you didn't." He then insisted he did. Though I knew he didn't I let it be that he made it for me and thanked him for doing such a thoughtful thing.

I had that dress for years after I grew out of it. My parents even gave it to someone in our family and I insisted I get it back.

What's on your iPod?

Let's see here... ELO, Styx, Beatles, ABBA, Carol King, Bowling for Soup, Gwen Stafini, Lady Gaga . . . You get the point - a lot of different things!

What are three things that are always in your refrigerator?

Ha! A long time ago I don't think I could have answered this question as I didn't keep a lot of food in my fridge. Now, that's a different story. Those that have known me a long time find this hard to believe. So here it goes:

1. Turkey Bacon
2. Yogurt
3. Apples

If there were a job that is just not up your alley, what would it be?

Hmmm . . . Accountant.

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Night owl. No question about that one.

What was the greatest gift you have ever received?

My father's silver charm chain. (I carry it with me everywhere I go.)

If you could have any job in the world, what would it be?

Something that would combine my passion for knitting and photography.

Happy Friday y'all!

Until later . . .

A Good Day

Since 2004, June 4th has been a good day for me.

It started back then with the purchase of a condo.

The next year I got cable on that day. Trust me, after a year without cable you too would consider it a good day (even if it meant giving Comcast some of your money each month).

In 2006, the ex and I got married on June 4th. I know you'd think I wouldn't consider that a good day now and I would be all upset about it. However, I married him for a reason so it was a good day and I will always consider it so. Same for our one year anniversary which was in 2007.

Last year, on June 4th, I treated myself to a pedicure. That made my day good.

This year, I start a mini-adventure on the day I have deemed a good day for the past five years. Regardless of the outcome, I am excited about the chance I'm taking.

Today is June 4th - and it's going to be a good day.

Until later . . .

I See The World In Color

One down; one to go . . . And that one is almost finish too.

The first Banana Hannah socks was finished Sunday. It fits so nicely and looks awesome. The yarn pooled so incredibly nice you wouldn't even call it pooling. I know I've said this before, but I'll say it again . . . It's such a cool feeling to look at a hank of yarn and see the finished product.

With the onset of the summer, it's starting to appear that after the Banana Hannah socks I will be doing very little knitting for myself. Ideally, I'll be able to finish the January socks and maybe even the March and May pairs. However, I've been asked by two friends to make socks for them. Well, one is for them exactly and the pair is will be a gift for my friend's daughter. I'm more than happy to do so since these are good friends. Since I'm not doing a good job of cheating on my knitting right now I don't think I'll get much better at it going forward. I can't seem to split my concentration up between two projects. Summer is also a busy time of year for me. My weekends, for the next month at least, are pretty much packed already and the month has barely begun. My week nights seem to fly by as well. There is also the photography factor that has always been there, but becomes more apparent during the warmer months. I'm sure (hope) things will calm down, if not I'll have to reevaluate what I'm doing and see where I can shift things around. Or as I told one of my friends recently: Instead of getting overwhelmed - Divide and Conquer. In the end it's all good. I'll get in my knitting happiness when I can and be content with that.

I set the wheels in motion for decision number three today - or at least began to inquire about it with those involved. Should all my plans come to fruition, I will find myself spending part of the summer planning for the fall. More time taken away from knitting ... I'm sure I'll make it. :)

One last knitting related thing . . .

Dish Rag Tag:

Yep! It's that time of year once again. It just hit me just the other day when Emily posted about hurricane season. It made me think - isn't that when DRT should be taking place? If I remembered correctly, this fine weather phenomenon was the cause of delay of some DRT boxes last year. The talk boards of Rav are even starting to buzz with DRT talk and even I was talking it up to KP the other day. There is one small problem this year - the economy. Yes, the economy has put a damper on the lives of so many of us and now it's effecting DRT. Postage doesn't pay for itself and prizes don't grow on trees.

So, where am I going with this particular ramble? I think it would be great if we as a community could either donate prizes and/or raise the necessary funds to keep this swap running. I had a BLAST last year with this and would hate to see it fall victim to the economy. I think what's been going on over the past year in our world has already taken a toll on too many people. With that in mind, I ask that you just think about how you may be able to help this swap keep going. I know I have already thought of way I could help outside of paying the proposed entry fee.

Until later . . .

Priorities

Periodically I like to make a "to do" list so I'm sure my priorities are in check. . .

• KNIT
• Sort through coupons
  
• Grocery shop
• KNIT
• Pick up mail
• Mail packages out
  
• KNIT
• Schedule volunteer days
• Blog project
• KNIT
• Finish Yelps
• Download/upload last week and a half of Project 365 pictures
• KNIT

Yep, my priorities are definitely in check!

Until later . . .

Oddly Calm

I've been oddly calm lately . . .

So much so that even I'm starting to wonder what's going on with me. It's not that things in my life are perfectly perfect (or at least what I would perceive to be perfect) so that can't be the cause. I do have things going on that are of excitement, some of concern and others that are neither here nor there.

I've started to take action on my three big decisions, but I can't imagine the little I've done thus far would make THAT much of a different.

Hmmmm . . . I'm not sure what to make of all this, but I'm just going to go with the flow and take it as it comes.

Until later . . .