Mother Update

Okay, so my mom didn't come home from the hospital yesterday, but today she did get to come home. It sucks, because I had to return to work today and I wanted to be there to help her out. She has to wear the pins for three months, yuck. I don't really have much more to say about that, except I wish I wasn't in Louisville.

Other things;
*My cousin's wedding was beautiful.
*The boy has to play every day this week except for tonight. I'm sad, because I'm all in need of cuddles. At least he doesn't have to play too late.
*I have 16 inches of sleeve.
*I have way too much laundry to do.
*I also need to shower, since I haven't done so since Saturday afternoon (no time!).
*Starting August 8, I'll have to stay later at work every day.
*Ryan Gentles emailed me at random. That's him, second from left:
I met Ryan like two years ago, when I was in Indianapolis with a friend. We ended up hanging out and having a really good conversation, and it was really great to hear from him out of the blue. I was afraid we had lost touch forever, so yay Ryan for emailing me. It really made my crappy day better.

That's about it. I'm going to check other blogs, update the Knucks KAL page with new members, and so on.

I still really wish I were at home to help out my mom (pout).

Adios, and much love.

Today has been very, very long.

And my long day has nothing to do with work. I feel like all I do on blogger is complain, but today I have a right to. This morning, I called home to tell my mother I was on my way back to my hometown from Louisville, and I found out that she had fallen on the front porch and was taken to the ER by the ambulance. It was another two hours before I got the complete prognosis: she was washing off the front porch and slipped because it was wet. Her ankle was basically shattered and she also broke the bone right underneath her knee. It turns out her left foot might be broken as well (they just x-rayed it; it's all bruised and gross looking.) She had to have immediate surgery on her right ankle, and now it has pins in it. She'll probably have to have surgery again in three weeks and this is the kind of break that takes a loooooooooong time to heal -- her foot will probably never be the same. My poor mother! My dad was at the hospital all day, and I've been to the hospital twice, taking care of my brother and sister in between that time. My sister is seventeen so she can pretty much take care of herself, but my little brother is eight and very worried about his mom. I took my brother and sister to the hospital to see Mother tonight, and my brother saw where her foot was draining -- lots of gross blood. He was pretty freaked out by it, but now he's all cheerful again. I'm going to try to do as much as I can before I return to Louisville -- and I'm going back tomorrow night. The plan is to do as much housework as possible, make things "cripple friendly", and cook some food that my dad or sister can just heat up over the next week. My sister will be able to help out around the house, but she starts school on Friday, so I don't know what Mother is going to do then. It really was a terrible break; she's not going to be able to do much herself. I hope she gets back from the hospital pretty early tomorrow, because I want to spend as much time with her before I head back to Louisville. I feel guilty for leaving her high and dry, but there's not really much else I can do except cram in a lot of work in one day.

Obviously, I haven't been knitting. I could have knitted in the waiting room while she was in surgery, but I was on and off the phone with my sister. She kept asking the most (at the time) insignificant questions -- "Can my boyfriend come over?" "Can we still go to the wedding?" "Is Daddy going to the wedding?" (this, after I told her that he was going to stay at the hospital with Mama . . . of course he isn't going!) "Are we still going school shopping next week?" . . . those things don't really matter to me while my mom is under anesthesia. We kind of downplayed the whole thing to my brother, and maybe she just didn't get how serious it was -- at first they said there was a chance it wouldn't heal at all; now they're saying it should be okay but it's going ot take a long, long time. Seriously, though, she acted as if nothing was wrong. Like, when I called home this morning, this was our conversation:

Me: Hi, is Mama there?
Sis: No, she's not here.
Me: Where is she?
Sis: She's not here 'cos the ambulance took her away.

That's enough to make me have a heart attack. She finally told me that she fell on the porch and that the ambulance came, but the bone wasn't broken, just chipped. Obviously it was much more serious then that. THEN, this afternoon, she went to my cousin's house (the same cousin that was getting married) and just hung out while he was trying to get ready for his wedding. I told her that she should leave him alone so he can get ready, and she said, "it's okay, he's in the shower now." I personally wouldn't want my little cousins hanging around while I was preparing for one of the most important days of my life, but she insisted that he didn't mind, so I have to take her word for it. I'm just kind of stressed out and trying to figure out what I can do to help before my I have to go back to the 'ville, and my sister is concerned about the fact that her boyfriend is going on vacation on Monday and she doesn't get to see him tomorrow before he's gone for five days. I guess I keep thinking about how I would want my children to treat me, and I'd be pretty hurt if I were laying in a hospital bed and my daughter asked me when we could go school shopping. (They were going to go to Louisville on Wednesday to visit me, see the boy play, and do the school shopping then; now Sis is concerned that she won't get to go school shopping before Friday. So what? She has plenty of clothes.)

I guess my main problems are a)my mom is hurt and b)my sister is kind of oblivious to the fact that my mom can't walk, and won't be able to anytime soon.

I'll get over it. I just really wanted to vent.


I'm too tired to check the other blogs I usually frequent; I'm going to call the boy in about ten minutes when he's finished playing to give him an update, then off to bed. I do want to say that Petra, the Unbearable Lightness of Being is probably the best book I've ever read, and you should get it immediately.

Thanks to all you people in blogland that have put up with my complaining. I promise, there will be a happy post soon. I did end up taking the brother and sis to the wedding, since I couldn't really do much at the hospital, and that was good times. Those two are so perfect together! Anyway, I'm much too tired to type any more, and I need to wake up early tomorrow.

Much love.

TGIF!

I am so happy that it's Friday!

Work is kinda blah . . . today the boss (meaning the division boss, which is my boss's boss) came into my office and complimented my work. That's great, and made me feel really good and kind of embarassed (you know, the embarassment you feel when someone compliments you). Still, I think I'm going to start looking for a new job -- after the KSF I don't want to work here anymore. I could stay for the North American, but I think I'll be a lot happier back at the after-school program. It's less money, but I loved the kids and I could work on my school stuff if I didn't have anything to do -- here, I can't do that, and since I'm a senior in college I'm going to be really serious about class this fall. I wish I was independently wealthy so I didn't need a job. *Sigh*.

The good thing is that tonight, I get to see the Boy and friends play at the Jazz Factory's Late Night set. I plan to use this time to finish my Knucks. Also tonight, the bass player is supposed to bring me Immortality by Milan Kundera. I hope he doesn't forget . . . there are other things I should be reading like my LSAT book and research for my fifteen page paper, but I don't wanna. I'd rather read fiction.

Yesterday was a good day for knitting ^_^ I finished all of the increases for one of the sleeves on my cardigan, which rocks. I decided (for now) not to fix the holes in my sock, so I'm just gonna wash 'em and call them totally finished. Plus, I went to the Knit Nook where they started hosting a Stitch n Bitch on Thursday nights, and found a shrug I MUST knit. Of course, I'm not going to use Pure Silk, because there's no way I could afford it. I am instead using Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, which is luxurious enough for me. I'm going to make it in the ever-versatile black. It's definitely going to be the most complex pattern that I've tackled to date, but Kristin at the Knit Nook is going to be knitting it at the same time (in the Pure Silk . . . oh, to own a yarn store!) so I'll have a good resource to help me out if I need it.

I need to make a list of things to pick up before I go home tonight (I'm such a compulsive list-maker), so I should do that before 5:00.

Much love.

Groan . . .

I have lots of stuff to do, and little motivation to do it. The last few days at work have been soooo busy, but my desk is for the most part clear so I'm not gonna fret about taking my time today. Last night after work, I went straight to bed. I didn't even eat anything. The boy was practicing all night (for about four hours), but I didn't wake up until I heard him eating leftovers. I watched a bit of Waiting for Guffman, then back to bed. Now I'm all groggy. I always hate how I feel after sleeping a lot -- just kinda gross -- but I guess I needed that sleep or I wouldn't have been in bed so long. I tend to have a lot of nightmares, so rarely is sleep restful for me.

I didn't make any knitting progress last night, but since work has me all in "Memo Mode" (I swear, I've written way too many memos lately, and I hate memos), I did make a list of all of the projects I've ever knitted and their status. Here it 'tis, my Knitting Progress Report!

#1. GO-GO GARTER STITCH SCARF from SnB
Made with Blue Sky Bulky.
FO!

#2. ZEEBY'S BAG from SnB
Made with Lamb's Pride Worsted (Oatmeal)
Needs to be blocked.

#3. RIBBED-FOR-HER-PLEASURE SCARF from SnB
Made with Lamb's Pride Worsted (Orange You Glad)
UFO -- I have no desire to work on this between now and when it gets cold.

#4. CARDIGAN from Yarn Girl's Guide to Simple Knits
Made with Lamb's Pride Worsted (Grey Heather)
Needs sleeves and finishing work.

#5. KNIT NOOK SOCKS from the Knit Nook
Made with Lamb's Pride Superwash (Serendipity Turquoise)
Needs finishing work -- and what about the holes?

#6. KNUCKS from Knitty.com
Made with Cotton Fleece (Robin Egg Blue)
Needs second Knuck (join thumb, thumb gusset, ribbed cuff), embroidery, and finishing work.

This weekend my goal is to do all of the finshing work on all of the projects that need it . . . blocking is just kind of a crappy process. My cousin is getting married on Saturday, so obviously that's gonna take up some time. And I still don't know what to wear to the wedding!! I am going to see the boy play tomorrow night, and I have to take door, so I'll probably be knitting at the show -- it'll be a perfect time to finish that Knuck. I am going to work on the cardigan tonight since it's cooler today. My friends Black Stone Cherry are playing in town tonight -- I grew up with these boys and spent lotsa days and nights in the Practice House. They just had their cd released on Roadrunner Records and they're touring the nation, which is huge for them. John Fred is seriously one of the few people from high school that I adore, (well, even like for that matter -- most people in my school sucked) and I always knew he would be a rockstar. The thing is, I'm not really in a rock'n'roll mood -- I feel so LAZY today! Still, I don't know when I'll have the chance to see these guys again, so I'll probably go out and see 'em . . . one of the few things I miss from high school is hanging out with John Fred.

I probably need to actually work now. Gross. I just feel kind of gross today in general. Too much sleep is bad for you.

Adios.
<3<3<3

A moment to breathe.

This week, work has been hoppin'. I'm not complaining, though -- it's much better than sitting here and being bored.

I finished my socks last night . . . not great, but certainly not terrible. They're only my third completed project. I'll have pictures as soon as I get around to takin' 'em. I need to do a little finishing work . . . I think I might screw up picking up stitches because there are little holes on the side. Hmm, how to fix it? My Knucks are coming along great and should be finished pretty soon. That raises the question of what to knit next. These are my next few projects . . . most of them are small.

* One-Hour Baby Booties (SnBN) for my cousin Melanie's baby.
* Bubby, also for Melanie's baby (to be born in September).
* Cable Knit Purse, for me! My friend Wes wants to learn to knit cables, too, so we may have a cable party.
* Skull Bikini, for my best friend Alex.
* WWII Vest (x2) for my boy.

That's a good start.

Only 10 minutes left of work . . . I can't wait to go home!!!


<333333333

Tag, I'm It!

Work has been uber busy lately; I guess as we get closer to the Fair I will be continually getting busier. I decided that if I didn't take a break, I might go crazy, so I decided to fill out Petra's tag. I'm not going to send it to anyone, because I don't know who to send it to, but here are six weird things about me.

#1. I stick my tounge out when I'm focusing. This includes studying, knitting, and other things that require concentration.

#2. I was born on October 29, so I came home from the hospital on Halloween.

#3. There was like a year that I was completely obsessed with circus peanuts. You know, these:
I ate them by the bag. The big bags, too. It was a minor addiction.

#4. I graduated high school in only three years. (I skipped my junior year.)

#5. When I was a kid (ages four through about six) I had to wear an eyepatch because I had a lazy eye. I had surgery when I was six that eliminated the need to wear the eyepatch, but I will forever have the pirate spirit.

#6. I want to be like June Cleaver when I grow up. I don't consider this to be weird, but some people do. My best friend says I'm in "Housewife Hell", and I'm not even married. I think "Housewife Hell" is an oxymoron, though. My ambition has always been to be a wife and mother; everything else that I do with myself is just extra (or to keep from being poor).

You know what sucks . . .

Not having air conditioning. That sucks. My boyfriend got the floors redone, and for some reason when the floor guys moved out, the air didn't work any more. Granted, I could have stayed somewhere else Sunday night, but I stuck out the heat / polyurathane scent because there's no place like home, even when it makes you sweaty and stinky, and nowhere makes me feel more at home than with the boy.

It's been a busy week, so I haven't knitted much -- my little sister and our friend Chastity came to Louisville for a visit, and I've been trying to neaten the house up as much as possible. Plus the weather! I did cook last night, in celebration of green tomatoes from my grandparent's garden. I made fried green tomatoes, fried chicken and mashed potatoes. Tonight I'm making lasagna, which means I won't have to buy lunch for most of the week 'cos I'll have leftovers. I've knitted a sock and a half and a Knuck and some fingers. I want to finish one or both of these projects tonight. I REALLY need to work on a research paper, but that just isn't fun. Maybe I'll do that if I get bored at work today, since I can't knit at work.

Since I have no knitting pictures, I will share this picture of the boy. He's so darn cute I had to show him off. I wish everyone in blogland could hear him play. Until then, you can just picture him in a hand-knit sweater vest.

Peace, and much love.

Yarn, yarn & more yarn!

Last night, I was watching Breakfast at Tiffany's and having some Boombozz Pizza with my boy and my best friend called and said, "Do you want some yarn -- Kate has some to give to you." Of course, the Boy and I stopped the movie and got our butts to Heine Brothers. Kate gave me a huge bag of yarn -- a big brown shopping bag full. I haven't looked through it all yet, but I know there are lots of partial skeins and some full skeins. She said that I was the seventh person she had gifted and she was just trying to de-stash.

Speaking of De-Stashing, I also bought some Cascade Fixation from DeStash -- four skeins in color #5104, which is very similar to the color my Knucks are. There's nowhere to get Cascade yarns locally, and it only cost $10.00 for all four skeins. I can't wait to get it in the mail . . . I already have a few patterns in mind.

My Knucks are well on their way . . . I am almost ready to join the thumb. I have pictures to show you all when I'm on my personal computer.

Much love and happy knitting.

<3333

P.S. Great show tonight in the Louisville area at the Rudyard Kipling -- John Whittaker, Josh Hawkins, Jesse from These United States.

Socks and Knucks

Lots of knitting progress to report! I turned the heel on my sock last night and mananged to pick up stitches without making any holes. I never realized that turning the heel is basically the same as short row shaping, so it makes me wanna find a curvy top and go at it. I've gotten pretty far along the foot part and will take pictures soon.

I also have made Knucks progress. I've finished the thumb and the little finger . . . enough for the "gnarly" surfer hand, but not enough for a Knuck. I was distracted with a Sharpie, so I feel okay about the progress made so far. I've never knit on size 4 needles, so I'm proud of myself. I love the way the fine gauge looks. And I totally dig dpns . . . it feels like your making progress when you move on to the next needle. My Knucks, btw, are knitted in Cotton Fleece from Brown Sheep Co, color Robin's Egg Blue:

I dig it.

And that's all for now, but I'm sure more will be coming soon. I want to take a nap. I knitted on my sock during my lunch break, and now I wish I could pick it up again. Anything to do . . . work is so blah.

Much love.

Today is magic picture day! . . . and let there be cake!

Because the pictures keep on comin'!

This is the fabulous yarn purchased from The Knit Nook. Notice that the yarn is mostly Brown Sheep Company. This was not on purpose . . . I must just really like their yarn.

The ever-growing needle stash . . . all of my straight needles are showcased in this lovely orange cup.


Here is Ms. Tawnyatay showing off the handles purchased at Hobby Lobby for my soon-to-be-knit cabled purse (which is going to be created using the cream colored Lamb's Pride Bulky pictured above.)


Oh, you want more pictures? Okay, one more.

This is what I've knit today, so far . . . it's 25 rows of sleeve . . . that's 4 sets of increases that I haven't messed up yet. I think I just needed to knit when my mind was clear.


* * *


And that's it for the pictures . . . I think.

In other news, today is my man's birthday, so . . . Happy Birthday to My Man!

I baked him a cake with homemade icing, and it's quite ugly. The icing is caramel and hardens really quickly, so I kept having to add cream and mix it again, even while I was icing the cake. If you want to bake your own ugly cake, here's how . . .

How to bake the cake: Do what the back of the box tells you to, yo! I used Pillsbury classic yellow cake mix.

How to make the caramel icing:

You will need 1 stick of butter, 1 cup of packed brown sugar, 1/3 cup of heavy cream (and then some), 1 16 oz. box of confectioner's sugar and 1 t. of pure vanilla extract.

To make it, melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the brown sugar and cream and bring it to a boil. When it comes to a boil, transfer that steaming hot concoction to a mixing bowl and add the confectioiner's sugar and the vanilla. Use a handheld mixer to mix the icing until it reaches spreading consistency. It will probably get all hard and thick, in which case you add more cream, a little at a time. Ta-da . . . homemade caramel icing.

I think I'm going to blame my mixer for the cake being ugly. When I was halfway through mixing the icing, my handheld mixer just broke. Suddenly it stopped working and the air smelled like burnt electronics. I had to switch to another mixer, and quickly so the icing wouldn't get too hard.

I need to knit. And fix my hair. And get dressed. Tonight I will be going out to dinner with my boy and his family, and I don't want to look like poo.

I think I will play around on the internet first.

Cheers, and happy knitting!!

Pictures that I promised.

Okay, remember when I said that I had pictures of my sock progress. Here it 'tis:


And, I found my glasses the other day (they've been MIA since April.) This is me with glasses:


Lots more pictures to come later today . . . I must share with you the yarn that I purchased yesterday. Hooray for new yarn and needles.

Lots of love.

Slightly better . . .

Okay, I'm in a bit of a better mood . . . meaning I'm for the most part over it, but I still need the boy to confirm all is well before I'm 100% happy. PMS makes for an emotional Tonya.

<3

Ugh.

I was just handed my paycheck and I'm *still* in a bad mood . . . I must really be down.

I think I might be too sensitive. If someone snaps at me, it usually doesn't bother me. In fact, I don't care what over 99 percent of the people on this planet think of me. If it's someone I love, I'd rather be slapped in the face. I keep reminding myself that I probably deserved it -- especially since I was snippity first -- and that neither of us is a morning person, so I should just forget it.

But I'm still sad.

In knitting news, I have frogged my cardigan sleeve about three times. I keep getting the increases screwed up around the third increase. I don't really know what I'm doing wrong -- probably paying too much attention to the tv and music and not enough attention to the sleeve. I probably need to work on those increases when it's quiet until I get used to 'em.

I also bought handles for my soon to be knit Cable Knit Purse, which is going to be some blend between this pattern and everything mentioned in this thread.

You should probably leave a comment to cheer me up.

Neglect.

I've definitely been neglecting my personal blog . . . I've been trying to figure out why so many people on the Knucks KAL are having trouble -- blogger says they have all received invites, I promise! Anyway, I'm reeeeeeeeally excited about starting those Knucks!!

Since I've never used dpns before, I decided to do some practice. So, I'm making socks! The pattern is from the Knit Nook, and Kristin is very helpful. They are made using size 9 dpns, which is HUGE for socks, and Lamb's Pride Superwash in Serendipity Turquoise. Look at how pretty the color is:


I promise I'll have pictures soon. I've actually already taken 'em, but I usually hook up to the wireless internet at the coffee shop for my personal computer, and it's really crappy for uploading pics. One day I'll be patient enough to sit still while they upload. Next Monday I'm going to learn how to turn the heel and all that, but I've knitted up to that point. It's cake using dpns, which is good, 'cos I'm uber pumped about those Knucks and now I have the confidence to make 'em.

I've also made lots of progress on my cardigan, despite lots of unkitting (I learned that when you're sick and exhausted, you end up with lots of unintentional holes in your work.) All that's left is knitting the sleeves and finishing! I'd love to finish it by Saturday.

My boyfriend has requested THREE sweater vests, inspired by this album cover:

He wants one in kind of army drab green, a heathered gray and a camel/khaki color. I'm going to use Sev's pattern, and probably Lamb's Pride Worsted, since I know it knits up to 4 1/2 sts/" with size 8 needles and I've used it lots and lots. I told him that I love him, but not enough to knit him a sweater vest on size 4 or 5 needles -- he's just gonna have to deal with the bigger gauge. Actually, I just looked at the pattern again, and it's knit on 6's, which wouldn't be TOO bad, but 8's are better :) After all, there is the sweater curse to worry about. I hope that since the vest has no sleeves, my relationship will be curse-free. I did give him my first scarf, and got compliments instead of a break-up.

Theoretically, I should be working right now, since (after all) I'm at work. But, I think I'm going to browse patterns again, or maybe make a list of the next several things I wanna make, in order, since I'm getting really far on the cardigan and I think my ribbed scarf is going to be in UFO territory until the weather gets colder. It's just so *boring!*

Lots of knitting love <3

P.S. I have no idea where my SnB book is. Hopefully, it's in the back of my car somewhere.

Knucks KAL

Visit the page. Join. Prepare to make Knucks!

Finally, pictures!!

Cardigan: I've finished about ten inches of the front since I took the picture, plus the back is finished. I'm using size 9 24 inch addi Turbos and Brown Sheep Company Lamb's Pride Worsted.

Zeeby's Bag: Finished! I used Brown Sheep Company Lamb's Pride Worsted in #086, Oatmeal. It took a less than three skeins using size 8 straight needles. I was about 2 inches away from being finished when one of my bamboo needles snapped, so I switched to aluminum needles at the very end. (My heart did skip a beat, and not in a good way.) The pattern is from Stitch 'n Bitch. I followed it almost exactly, except I used only one color and did not do the decorative stitching in front. Instead, I added those snazzy Kopilot buttons!

Cable Knit Purse

I read this entire thread today. It makes me wish I could knit at work. At least I can use the 'net to look at patterns! I've told myself that I'm not going to buy any yarn until July 15, when the Knit Nook has their sale. Instead, I'm just going to make a list of the next five to ten projects I wanna knock out, then buy all the yarn the 15th. I just need to figure out where to store all that yarn.

At least it'll give me time to finish my caridgan and ribbed scarf, which my stye has prevented me from making progress on. It's just so hard to find motivation to finish a scarf in July. Maybe I'll put that off a bit longer, and just avoid using size 10 needles.

Love!<3