Knock, Knock! Anyone There?

Yup, it's been a while. It's been a looooong while. I really kinda left this blog hanging, didn't I? A few of you were even nice enough to email me to ask if everything was OK because I hadn't been around for a while. That was very sweet of you, so thank you for checking in.

Yes, everything has been fine. I just got overwhelmingly busy in a short span of time and several things had to go by the wayside, this blog being one of them. I'll give you a (very) brief overview of my life this past year. There are prizes involved if you read to the end!!!

I'm starting the blog back up because I never really intended to let it slide. It just sort of...happened. And then Kristen was having a blogiversary giveaway on her blog, and I realized that we started blogging within a couple weeks of each other. We found each other's blogs way back in the beginning and I've been following her story for years. I also realized that my blogiversary would be the perfect opportunity to restart things. My brother was also very enthusiastic about the idea because he says he never knows what's going on with me otherwise. That was a good enough excuse for me, so here we are on my 4th Blogiversary.

So when last I left you a year ago, I had just been hired on to a new part-time job. Here is my life in a nutshell since then (complete with random FO shots):

1) Part-time job became full-time. Woohoo!

2) I earned three degrees to make copies and travel plans for other people full-time? Boo! :(

3) Quit job (sort of) to go back to school. Agreed to work part-time until replacement found.

4) Last fall semester: Worked 20 hours a week, volunteered 10 hours a week in psychology lab, took 6 classes, studied for GRE, applied to grad programs, managed to survive. Woohoo!

5) Didn't get in to grad school (shortage of research experience). Boo! :(

6) Spring semester: Volunteered in research lab, took 4 classes. Much easier to manage. Woohoo!

7) Still can't find a job. Boo! :(

8) Started working at my favorite LYS on Saturdays. Woohoo!

It is now summer and I am still getting research experience in a different psychology lab on campus. The flexible schedule allows me to pick up random shifts at the LYS during the week and get to the gym more often. (Yes, I joined a gym. I'm super excited! It is brand new and it opened in April. It is women-only and has a spa and you can go to as many classes as you want. Woohoo! Unfortunately, my overzealous running habit caused me to come down with a nagging case of plantar fasciitis nearly three months ago. Still can't walk without limping. In fact, I just got a night splint and casts for custom orthotics today. Boo!)

I am back to my old problem of trying to find a job and weighing the pros and cons of going back to grad school. If I can get a decent job in my line of interest without more schooling I would be thrilled. I'm trying to break into market research analysis. You know, running focus groups and doing the statistics and all that fun stuff. We'll see where I end up.

Now that I have updated you on all the pertinent information, it's time for the fun stuff! I picked up some fun blog prizes at my LYS this week for three lucky commenters. All you have to do to enter is leave me a comment to let me know that I still have some readers. And hey, if my brother and my mother are the only ones who comment, then I guess we're keeping the yarn in the family. ;-)

First up I have two lovely skeins of Berroco's new Flicker yarn in the Siegfried colorway. (No, I have no idea about the name either.) It is a gorgeous, light gray with subtle glints of silver. I love this yarn. Get this: it's a worsted weight and comes in 189 yds/skein, but each skein is only 50g! This yarn is so light and lofty it's unreal. It has a unique chainette construction a lot like my beloved Rowan Lima and it is super soft and squooshy. Berroco has just released photos for their dedicated Flicker pattern book in time for TNNA, so they should be hitting stores soon I hope. In the meantime, you can download a free Flicker ebook from the Berroco website. Two skeins are enough to make several of the patterns in that book.
















Next I have two skeins of Universal Yarns Classic Shades in the Harvest colorway. I love this yarn, and I don't normally say that about mostly-acrylic blends. It is a 70/30 acrylic/wool machine washable yarn with amazing color changes. I would definitely opt for this over Noro any day. It is super soft to the touch and each colorway is very pretty--none of those "ugh" colors like you find in Noro. Two skeins will give you 394 yds of fall-colored glory. This is plenty of yarn for a couple of Noro Hats or a Noro Striped Scarf, without the scruffiness and veg matter from Noro.
















And finally, lest you think I don't like Noro, I have a skein of their laceweight Kirameki. The color I have for you is a mix of pinks and purples which I think is just lovely. I got a skein for myself and made Grumperina's Volna scarf and I LOVE IT. I loaned it to the shop I work at to be used as a model so I'm looking forward to getting it back so I can wear it. ;-)









If you are interested in winning any of this yarn, or even if you aren't, please pop up and say hello. I will accept comments until this Friday, June 17. I would love it if you can let me know if there is anyone out there still reading this. LOL In the meantime, thank you for reading!

Still Alive

Sorry about that. I didn't mean to be all, "OmigodIhaveanewjobwoohoo!" and then take off for weeks at a time. I do appreciate ALL the comments you guys left for me on my last post. I replied to everyone who I could find email addresses for, so THANK YOU to those of you I wasn't able to reach. It's been...busy around here, as you can imagine. I started my job a week and a half ago and it's been a bit crazy since then.

Work has been fine. Not really stressful, because like I said I'm pretty much doing the same things I was doing back in Minnesota, but with different people and different proprietary software programs to learn. I always hate the first few weeks at a new job, when you're spending so much time trying to remember peoples' names and what they do and who to call when you need help figuring out how to order office supplies, or where to drop off time cards. Working only 20 hours a week is not a benefit in this case. My to-do list grows daily--every time I cross something off, I add two or three more things. I still don't have access yet to most of the websites and programs I need, so that limits how much I can do. Why did I have to start at the busiest time of year for academic offices? In addition to the normal day-to-day stuff to deal with, I also have to help plan all the commencement activities this department is putting on, and let's just say that they do A LOT OF STUFF at the end of the year.

Note to anyone out there thinking about working in academia: start in the summer. The campus is a ghost town and you get nearly a year to get up to speed before having to plan for the graduation hoopla. Don't start mid-April when the office is fielding calls from students frantic about whether or not the bookstore is handing out the wrong color tassels for their major, and the faculty is trying to decide on how many cookies vs. bottles of water to order for their commencement reception.

The good news is that everyone I work with has been great so far and I'm confident that as I learn my way around the bureaucracy, my to-do list will shrink. I'm not as confident that this Mac girl can learn her way around Windows Vista as quickly. Seriously! They moved everything around! I feel like I'm learning how to use everything all over again. :-/

As for knitting? Well...my knitting time has dropped off dramatically. Even though I am only working 20 hours a week the amount of time I spend preparing my clothes, packing lunch, showering and blow-drying, commuting, and all the millions of other little things you do to prepare for work is the same as for a full-time job. It would almost be easier just to stay at work for the full 8 hours than to leave after 5. But I do get Fridays off, so I can't really complain about that. :)

Sorry for the long, photo-free post. I'll try to have something more interesting for next time, but I just wanted to pop in and give an update.

Omigod! Omigod! Omigod!

OK, first of all, you guys are FABULOUS! Thank you to everyone who left a comment telling me NOT to feel guilty at all about having a bright, shiny new machine and just to ENJOY IT for Pete's sake! And you know what? I think I will. ;-)

The stars must really be aligned for me though because exactly one week after I nervously bought my new sewing machine, I GOT A JOB OFFER! Dudes, I have been applying for every job that crossed my path for nearly two years and this was the first one for which I even got called in for an interview. (Actually, there was an "assessment" with all sorts of office-type tasks, then came the interview.) And finally: the offer!

It's certainly far from ideal: it's not in my field AT ALL. In fact, it's an office manager job at a university...essentially the same job I left in order to go to graduate school! Although with this position, I do get more responsibility. It is only part time (until the state's higher education budget gets more money, but that could take years) and right now this position is subject to the state's furlough "program" so that takes a 10% cut right off the top. BUT...it is a job. I liked the people I met when I was there for the interviews. I will be able to resume payments on my student loans. My husband and I will be able to stay in the apartment we love instead of moving to a cheaper, smaller, more distant location. And in all honesty, the part-time hours kind of suit me right now. I can ease back into working outside the home after several years of school and forced idleness, and I will still have enough time to devote to keeping the shop humming along as it should.

I can't even begin to express the amount of relief this job has given me. I tried not to talk about my unemployment woes too much on this blog, but those of you who have been there: you know. It's a constant pressure, a constant strain. This is a step in the right direction and hopefully things will only get better from here on out. And who knows? Maybe there will even be a few knitters at the new job. ;-)

I Feel So Spoiled

This past week has been an embarrassment of riches for me, so much so that I almost don't even want to post about it because I don't want to come across as though I'm showing off or anything, but it's just so fabulous that I really want to share!

It all started a few weeks ago when I was told by the sewing shop that the "great machine" I bought last summer at a garage sale for $30 was actually broken and unfixable. (It still works just fine in all respects but for the stitch length--it bounces back to the largest setting no matter what you do.) I really want to learn how to sew, so that was very disappointing but nothing I could do much about at the time.

But then a few things happened. First, the repair guy offered me a refund on the $50 repair fee as store credit. Then I had a birthday and my mother agreed to chip in some money for a new machine. Then I got paid for a few freelance knitting jobs. Then my husband and I finally did our taxes and instead of all the money going towards his new glasses, like we had planned, we had some left over. It all added up at exactly the right time and I was able to get a brand new sewing machine last week!

I rushed out to the store on Tuesday and they had one last one in stock. It's a Janome DC2010--still on the low end as far as sewing machines go, but the woman helping me said she would not hesitate to recommend this machine to her granddaughter if she wanted to sew, and that it would last me for years. It looks complicated and fancy only because they printed the stitch guide on the front of the machine, but that's about it as far as bells and whistles. Still, I'm thrilled. It will do everything I need and I am so excited to start playing with it!

To add to the excitement, I really wanted to find a place to put a machine. Like many households, I really don't have a spare flat surface--even our kitchen table is small and the outlets beneath it are being used by our wireless router anyway. So...my husband and I headed out to IKEA yesterday to find a table. We came across one that was only $20--score! I wanted a slightly wider one though, so I think the end total was still only $36. It fits perfectly next to the window, and now I have a place to leave my machine instead of dragging it out of the closet every time I want to use it.

Lest you think I'm too spoiled, here is a more accurate photo of the sewing corner:
The table just barely fits between the wall heater and the window, which has a heavy curtain over it because it is in the southwest corner of the building and the afternoon sun heats up the place like nobody's business. The area to the left of the table is the small coffee table that holds all my knitting supplies, and immediately behind it is the fireplace. And yes, the fireplace is now filled with all our DVDs, which used to be shelved nicely in the corner where the sewing machine now sits. I've been wanting to get rid of that dorm-room-looking stand for a while now. We don't watch the DVDs we own much anymore anyway. I would much prefer to burn them all to a hard drive and get rid of the physical copies. Someday. But for now, I think my first project will have to be a nice curtain to hang over the fireplace and hide them from view. :)

This is the most extravagant purchase I have made for myself in a loooooong time, and I admit that I'm feeling a little uncomfortable about it. I mean, isn't this just inviting disaster? Is my car going to explode next, or our rent increase dramatically? And now that I have a sewing machine, it means I have to buy more stuff in order to use it (namely, fabric)...that may not happen for a while. LOL But I have the biggest hurdle cleared, right? Oh, and the mailman just dropped the latest issue of Burda magazine through the door. Perfect timing! ;-)

Wanna Win Some Fibery Goodness?

Hey all,

I know I need to do a regular blog update, and it's coming, but I wanted to let you all in on a chance to score some fiber fun!

Kristen and I have been reading and commenting on each others' blogs for...wow, a couple of years now I think. She's super great and does some nice work so it's worth checking out. But now she's giving you even more reason to look--she's participating in a walk for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America and is raising money for the cause. Please read her post to see why this is so important to her.

While you're there, you can also get the details about her prizes! She has some pretty nice stuff already, but I hear that even more prizes are being donated so it's worth keeping an eye on what's going on over there. I am sending her a little something from my shop, too, but you'll have to keep up with her blog to find out what it is.

Good luck, everyone!

Question for Sock Knitters

All right all you sock-knitting pros: I have a question for you.

I have not made a lot of pairs of socks, so this may be a stupid question, but bear with me: I have a fit problem with all of my socks that I cannot seem to conquer. My socks are always extremely difficult to get on over the heel, and they are always quite tight across the ankle once I get the socks on. What gives?

I am knitting to gauge. I do not have giant ankles. I am tall (5'10") and I do have long feet (size 10), so I'm wondering if I just have a wider heel/ankle space than other people? I recently discovered that tall people generally need longer arm holes than others (Such a DUH moment when I read that in a sewing book! So that's why t-shirts are always tight there, despite my skinny arms!) so it's not outside the realm of possibility.

But if that's the case, then how do I go about compensating for it? My ankles and feet are skinny and long, so adding stitches will just make for a baggy sock. I have tried using more or fewer stitches in the heel flaps, and I have tried making longer heel flaps. I'm not sure what else to try and I was hoping someone might have a suggestion for me.

Is there anyone out there who can offer up some much-appreciated advice? :)

Are You A Knitter?

Earlier today, for reasons that are neither relevant or interesting, I found myself waiting around in an office on a local college campus. There was one other woman already waiting when I arrived, and we smiled at each other as I sat down in a chair nearby.

She looked at me quizzically and said, "You look familiar. Do you work here on campus?"

"No," I said, "I don't. But I can't guarantee that we haven't met somewhere. I always have trouble recognizing people out of context."

"Oh, me too!" she replied, "But you look so familiar to me!"

"Huh. Maybe I just have one of those faces," I said, and that was the end of the conversation because we had to move to a different office.

I know I don't know her because I know everyone I know in this city (meaning that it's not as though I have met so many people that I have started to forget some of them), and she's not one of the people I know. But she also looked familiar. And friendly. When we got up to head down the hallway to the other room, she was delighted to find that we are the same height (a rarity in a world dominated by women who are less than 5'10" tall) and we continued chatting as we walked until the office worker with us asked if we knew each other already. Nope. Not at all.

Of course, as soon as she said I looked familiar (and when I knew that she didn't know me from "real life") I desperately wanted to ask her if she was a knitter. Maybe she's on Ravelry and has seen me around. Maybe she even listens to the podcast or reads this blog! (No, I harbor no illusions that I am that well-known, but it could just be one of those flukey things, ya know?) But I didn't ask her for one reason: if she wasn't a knitter, then just think about how random and unrelated such a question would be. It would be akin to breaking into a conversation about financial planning to ask someone if they have ever hunted rhinos.

Or...thinking about it now, maybe it wouldn't have been that weird. *sigh* I'll never know. And now my curiosity is killing me!!!