Friday, June 30, 2006

Ascension?

Well, we're getting there... for one thing, I'm currently updating my blog at HOME - yes, friends, I have a new internet FiOS (fibre optic service) connection after a 7 HOUR installation today. Long story. Anyway, it and my new landline are working, so I'm thrilled. Of course, since I had all that time today during the installation, I've been able to unpack and set up quite a bit... things are looking pretty good even if I haven't located the dvd or tv remotes yet.

Kitty is liking the plethora of window ledges on *four* walls of the house and a whole screened-in porch to herself when I keep the front door open. I might add that indoor spayed kitty was quite popular last night - I went out for two hours from 8-10 pm and kept kitty on the porch - when I returned there was one orange tabby just parked outside on the exterior porch stairs, and a *second* black and white sylvester cat nosing around the bushes beneath the porch windows.

Still no pictures, but soon....

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Purgatory

"Where are we? Well, that depends who you ask. Collectively, you could say that we're in a state of purgatory... only without the gnats, the unbaptized babies and the good guide." -Brendan

Tonight is my last New Haven Stitch n' Bitch and then I'm angling for a visit for my last New Haven pizza... for a while. After spending the day luxuriating in our 1,100 sq. ft. palace yesterday and enlarging my ecological footprint by running the dishwasher and washing machine constantly, I've got our kitchen and bathroom in good shape. More than I can say about the state of our New Haven lovenest, er, closet, er, apartment. It's mostly empty but I'm finding the last 6 boxes the hardest to pack (!?). Despite my uber-cleaning yesterday, I managed to sit down and knit for a couple mini-breaks and have made some progress on that devilish egyptian cotton blankie. No pictures until the weekend! Home internet and phone hook-up don't happen till Friday, so I'm truly nomadic this week. I can't believe that I've moved 3 times in the last 2.5 yrs.... now you can understand the name of the blog, huh?

Gotta run and talk to one or both of these recruiters calling and perhaps the contact at the job I really want....

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Weekend Update

Move. Successful. We actually got done early (everything unloaded in Boston by 7:30 Saturday night)... back in New Haven overnight... back to Boston in the morning... back to New Haven Wednesday.... lots of cleaning and scrubbing in the next few days.

Friday, June 23, 2006

ARGHHH!

Ok, here's the scoop. I.Move.Tomorrow. TOMORROW. I'm so not ready yet and have absolutely no excuse for this state of affairs. I did get about 28 hrs notice for a job interview on Wednesday, so spent yesterday up in Boston... but still, I could be further along right now.

I barely slept last night - I tossed and turned thinking about my interview and second-guessing my answers and my overall assessment that it went well. I went over and over the things I should have added or made more clear... seriously, why do I do this? Of course, I also tossed and turned thinking about getting the last of the apartment packed up today. In the there's-nothing-I-can-do-about-it-now department, I need to stop procrastinating and get organizing.

So, while I have a pair of finished socks and a recently revived egyptian cotton baby blanket to blog about, I will have no photos until... ? next week ? ... perhaps longer actually... since we won't have internet installed at the new place until *next* Friday...

p.s. Do you ever just blank out and forget things that you know you know? Well, could someone tell me something that I should remember... do you still have to park your C: drive before moving a desktop?

p.p.s. I would do very poorly on a cognitive assessment right about now.

p.p.p.s. Jessica, we found 2 college students to help us move our boxes into the truck here in New Haven and they're charging $12/hr... if they're good, I'll pass on their info in case you want to save your parent's the hard labour. :-)

p.p.p.p.s. I think I'm totally blocking out the fact that my dad went in for a bone scan yesterday to see if he has cancer, after having radiation on some small liver tumours they found last year.

Friday, June 16, 2006

Freedom

I've got the okay to photograph and show the last two scarf projects I've been knitting (designed by Lauren). I couldn't be happier with how they turned out and I think that this was an appropriate use for the llama yarn (I was gifted a nonspecific amount and didn't want to scam my M-I-L's whole annual stash). So, where's the photo? Well, I'll procrastinate about that - it's a beautiful day and I'm meeting my honey for lunch "downtown".

The Regia socks (formerly the Regia baby sweater for Kian and otherwise known as my first pair of socks) are about 0.6 of a pair currently, but I think I'll get through the second sock quickly and likely while I busy myself during tomorrow night's Stanley Cup game (i.e., I won't be able to watch because I fear/expect the worst for Edmonton and looking down at one's knitting instead of at the game is a good way to deal with my anxiety. What? Turn off the game? I couldn't possibly.)

My next PRO-ject will have to be the Sandnes "mandarin petit" egyptian cotton baby blanket for "Octavian" that I deserted a while ago. Egyptian cotton. Fingering weight. Baby blanket. What on earth was I thinking? Well, at least it is a good hot weather knitting project...

In 8 days we (or at least our stuff) will be in Boston. I'm excited but definitely a little sad to be leaving.

Friday, June 09, 2006

What Do 'Ya Know?

Turns out that I *was* making my sock correctly. Yes, boys and girls, this chica knows how to follow directions. Not much in the creativity department, but following a pattern, well, apparently, I can do at least that much.


{Total Aside: Actually, I'm secretly happy that I was, in fact, able to turn a heel on the first try. I compare this to the time I had to take my state Engineer-in-Training exam - it is an 8 hr exam on engineering principles (calculus, algebra, computer programming, chemistry, physics, material science) that you take after you graduate university - people I worked with at the time told me not to expect to pass it the first time - a coworker was writing it for the 4th or 5th time when I was writing for the 1st time. I guess I was preparing myself not to pass, but when I did pass on the first try I had that secret gladness that I had actually learned something in the undergraduate hell that was the engineering programme. Basically, everyone would understand if I didn't pass, but passing was good... everyone would understand if I wasn't able to turn the heel, but doing it right the first time was good.}

Ok, so after some free, yes, free wine at Chow last night, courtesy of this favourite place... it was off to Stitch n' Bitch. It was a quiet evening despite my prediction that the incredibly crappy June weather would draw people out to knit. Anyway, I was lucky enough to see the world's biggest high quality stash at Lauren's place. Oh. My. God. If you, dear reader, have created a heaven in which wool, silk, and cashmere fibre would be delivered unto thee for all of eternity, well then, hang a left at Lauren's hall closet and go directly to heaven. Seriously, I had more than a little bit of yarn envy going. AND, I have a new benchmark for what I consider a large stash. :-)

So anyway, back to the sock... part of my confusion stemmed from Vogue's pattern vs. picture... the socks shown were not, NOT constructed in the same way that the pattern was written. I feel marginally redeemed for thinking I had gone wrong.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Road Trips, Speeding Tickets, Interviews, Hockey and a New Name


Got back from our CRAZY four-day road trip to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia for our friend's wedding and had a fabulous time (despite the incessant rain the whole drive home and my USD$185 speeding ticket in northern Maine). I have no idea why, but I did not feel motivated to do even a stitch of knitting. I felt like I needed to be moral support for the driver and I was just not feeling like it (I blame the bad sock). With so much going on (let's see, two job interviews in Boston tomorrow and hopefully another next week, just changed my name at the social security office even though they were insisting my green card needed to be changed first but I had called INS and waited 30 minutes on hold to talk to someone and they said the ss card should/could be changed first, Stanley Cup Finals, houseguests this weekend, major cleaning this week, moving in 2-3 weeks, paaaaaacking, setting up our move(!), getting my car fixed, registered in MA and sold), I'm feeling overwhelmed. And these silly recruiter guys keep calling and set up appointments for me to talk with them before and after the actual interviews - annoying! Ok, enough ranting I guess since none of it is knitting related today. Oh! And WTF happened to Edmonton last night?? Ok, I feel sorry for the goalie that got plopped into net with nary a practice shot, but still. Pictures later... must prep for interview for consulting job I don't really want that much...