In which I've been a bad blogger

I can't believe that I haven't posted anything since July! The Interwebs is not going to submit to my total domination if I don't post more often, that's for sure.
So here's a recap of what's been going on since last we talked. Panera never called m back, so there's ANOTHER job I didn't get. The restaurant I used to work at, 6 years ago, was hiring for their second location, so I applied and now I'm waiting tables again. It's not bad, and the money is okay (it will pick up once football starts), but I'm disappointed that I couldn't find a suitable management position in 8 months of trying. It's a little disheartening to not be wanted.
On the knitting front, I've almost completed the first of the lace socks, and just finished a handbag that needs felting and sewing up. And a leather handle. I guess finished is to be taken quite loosely here.
The garden still grows, and I've pickled peppers and made homemade pepper jelly. Hopefully I will be able to can some tomato sauce before the tomato plants quit producing. Canning takes a lot of effort and equipment and time. I hope that all the effort is worth it.
I promise to post more frequently and put up some knitting pictures and maybe relate some interesting stories from work.

Job Interviews and First Dates

Going on a job interview is a lot like going on a first date. There's the elation of the phone call, setting up that first meeting. Then there are the nerves, the anxiousness, waiting for the day to arrive. What should I wear? These pants? That shirt? No, that shirt is too sleazy, maybe this shirt instead. What shoes should I pick? Don't want to be uncomfortable; I'm nervous enough already. Don't want to look too formal, but not too casual either. What about my hair? Straight, in a ponytail, should I get a haircut? (I should have gotten a haircut) Crap, why the hell is it raining? Okay, different shirt, pants and shoes. Does this outfit make me look fat? Professional? Like a skanky girl? When should I leave to get there? Don't want to be too early, that looks desperate. Definitely don't want to be late, that looks like I'm not interested. Will he like me? Will I like him? What will we talk about? I hope I don't talk too much. Did I eat anything today that's going to give me gas? Did I put on deodorant? Man, I wish I could smoke. Can't smoke beforehand, there's plenty of time for him to find out about that later. What if there isn't a later? Can't think about that now. Damn, I'm early. Okay, drive around the parking lot. Still early, screw it, I'm going in.
Now I'm here, and he's here, and he doesn't seem to mind that I'm early. So far, so good. Let's chit chat about things, about work, and jobs, and experiences. Give a little, get a little. Don't make any assumptions, but I think it's going well. Good eye contact, laughs, feels like a real connection. Okay, now he's talking about other people that he has plans to see. Don't feel rejected, this is just a first meeting. He can't offer me the moon the first time he meets me, right? Now he's saying that he will make a decision next week, and I will hear from him by the end of next week.
I hope he calls. I hope he calls and it's good news. Has he called? Damn technology has us so connected that we expect immediate results. Did he like me? Was I smart enough, funny enough, talented enough, ENOUGH enough for him to pick me? God, why did I even put myself through this? It will be okay, he will call and it will be good news.
Just like a first date, with the same pressure and nervousness and excitement and all that. Now I have to wait and see what becomes of it.

How does your garden grow?

Mine grows through the inifinite patience and wisdom of the boyfriend. He is, after all, a landscape professional, and making things grow is his forte. My forte? Killing green things. This is why I'm not allowed to mess around in the garden unsupervised. We will have an abundance of tomatoes and hot peppers by the time summer is over, I don't know what I'm going to do with them all. I think I might need to learn how to can so that I can put up some of this bounty for winter. This lovely purple flower was grown from seeds, and lives in a pot on my back patio.

This is a lovely ornamental chile pepper plant, also growing in a pot. I don't know if they are edible, but they look awfully HOT and I'm not going to try any!

This is one of the banana pepper plants. I've already picked one, and it looks like 2 more should be ready in a week.

Here are the jalepeno peppers. They should be ready within a week or two.

Here is one of the four tomato plants. This one is a better bush, and has already produced two yummy tomatoes!

The funny thing is the boyfriend doesn't even like fresh tomatoes. He'll eat salsa, and tomato sauce, but he does not like tomatoes on sandwiches, salads, nada! He just likes growing tomato plants!

I've found some recipes for pickling peppers, so I'm hoping that the pepper plants produce enough for me to try out pickling!

Back to our regularly scheduled knitting tomorrow.

It's too hot to knit

Today reminds me of a country song that goes, in part, "It's too hot to fish, too hot to golf, and too too cold at home." It's almost too hot outside to knit, y'all! Especially since my air conditioning unit is doing this freeze-up, thaw out, leak water under the wall and soak through my carpet thing today. I've got it turned off for now, but I don't know how long that will last.

I'm cruising towards the home stretch on the February Lady sweater. Got the first sleeve done, the second is in progress, and the finish line is in sight. I can't wait to get it finished so that I can wear it! Of course, it's WAY too hot to wear a wool sweater anywhere, but wear it I will, just because I made it.

I do love this time of year, because gardens start producing their bounty, and there's nothing better than the first tomato of the season. I ate mine tonight, and it was delicious. I've also got banana peppers that are probably just a few days from being ready, and jalepeno peppers that should be ready in a week or so. Anyone know what to do with fresh banana peppers? All of my experience has been with pickled and/or processed banana peppers, so I'm kind of at a loss as to what to do with them. Any suggestions would be quite welcome!

I also like this time of year because this is when county fairs start popping up. I love going to county fairs, with the cotton candy and truck pulls and corn dogs (and lots of other food on sticks) and other fun stuff. If you know of a fun county fair, let me know! I LOVE them lots and would love to go to a bunch this summer.

In which we explore what's on the needles

Today is all about knitting. Not going to talk about anything but knitting. Just as soon as I talk about the power outage last night! There I was, watching Intervention, and all of a sudden, the power goes out. I had a brief moment of panic (did I pay the electric bill?), then realized that they wouldn't disconnect your power at 9:30 at night. (And I had paid the electric bill.) I went outside, and the neighbors were outside and NO ONE had power. It was that time of night where the sun has almost completely set and there's only a little ambient light left in the sky; I think one would refer to it as "gloaming." Everyone was on their phones, calling friends and family throughout our small town, seeing who had power and who didn't. All told, approximately 3000 people lost power, due to a transformer blowing up. The power was restored permanently (there was an instance of "now there's power, and now there isn't") around 12:45 AM or so. Funny how once the power was restored, I was able to go to sleep. Without it, it was too quiet!

Now we return you to your regularly scheduled knitting!

This is the progress on the February Lady sweater. The body is done and I've started the first sleeve.

Here is the sleeve. As always, click to biggify. The sleeve is quite easy, way fewer stitches than the body, and therefore going quickly. The only thing that I had a bit of trouble with was picking up the stitches. Other than that, it's been a relatively easy knit. My mom likes it so much that she wants one too!

Since I hate to be a one project knitter (everyone else is multi-tasking on the knitting, so why shouldn't I?), Saturday I cast on another Oriel Lace Scarf, this time with some laceweight that I ordered from fearlessfibers.etsy.com. This yarn is gorgeous, came in a neat, well-wrapped skein, wound up on the ball winder with no problems at all (which is huge for me, since I don't own a swift and the boyfriend objects to standing around holding yarn), and knits like a dream. This yarn could star in knitter porn!

These pictures don't do the colorway justice. It is called "majestic" and it's all purple mountain majesty, to me anyway. It's purple, dark smoky gray, lighter gray, and just lovely. I will take it outside today and try to capture a better picture of the colors. I highly recommend going to the Fearless Fibers shop on etsy.com and browse through the yarn. Prices are good, shipping is fast, and the yarn is scrumptious.

When you have nothing else...

You knit. And when it seems like everything is going against you, you knit. You knit, and you exercise control over this one thing in your life. You take yarn and needles and you bend them to your will and you make them do what you want (most of the time). You have this one thing and it's yours and you own it and you (sort of) master it.
This is what I hold on to in these tough economic times. It's what I turn to when I get rejected, yet again, from another company who doesn't want or need my exceptional services. It's what I do when I think that I can't do anything else. At least I can still knit, I think to myself. At least I still have yarn and patterns and ideas and the desire to create. And then I can face that umpteenth rejection email from some anonymous HR drone whose algorithms didn't come close to computing who and what I am and what I can offer.
It sucks not having a job. It sucks even more to not be able to get an interview, much less a job. It sucks to get rejected by a computer program which takes your resume and your online questionnaire and comes up with a mathematical probability of your ability to do the job. That program doesn't know me, doesn't even take the chance on getting to know me. I am more than my resume, and no one seems to want to know that.
I know, I should be grateful for the things that I have. And I am, really. I just want to go to work. But I knit. And I try not to be bitter and mad and depressed. So I knit.

Even though I have nothing to say

I thought that I would post anyway. Nothing exciting has happened in the past week. I thoroughly cleaned my house yesterday. I watched a 2 day marathon of Ice Road Truckers. I got a new Lego Star Wars game, the first trilogy. It rocks! I totally love it more than the first game. I knitted a bit, but the sweater is boring me because it's just the lace pattern till it's as long as you want it.
My grandmothers are coming into town this week, for my nephew's birthday. They get to meet my sweet boyfriend! I'm excited about that, not too sure how he feels about it. Um, that's really all I got.
I know, I bore myself sometimes.
My nephew said my name last week. Sort of. As well as an almost two year old can say it. He hasn't said it since, but we will work on that today. He may have been saying Cheetos, now that I think about it. Hmmmm. Cheetos sound good.

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope all of you enjoy your holiday weekend. While you're grilling and swimming and fishing and whatnot, please take a moment to remember why we get this 3 day weekend to kick off the summer. Remember all of the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure both our freedom and our way of life. Remember that we have an all-volunteer armed services, and those who chose to serve deserve our respect and our gratitude. They keep our borders safe, they preserve our way of life, they are the eyes in the night, making sure that we can sleep in peace. Take some time this weekend to say a prayer, raise a flag, thank a soldier, and honor those who have fallen in battle.
Have a great weekend, and happy birthday to my brother and my sister!

I'm kind of sad

Just found out that one of favorite blogs is done, finito, going the way of the dinosaur, not going to be out there on the interwebs anymore. So today, instead of reading what I have to say, go see what he had to say.
www.welldonefillet.blogspot.com
Funny, funny guy, great writing, truly a bright spot in my day.
Aw, Manuel, you will be missed!

Now I've heard it all...

http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=73684&catid=2

Just click, and then read, and then come back to me.

Read it? Okay, then! Really?!?!?!? I mean, I've had my fair share of customers who I thought about shooting, or maybe stabbing, but I've never actually DONE IT!! This article made me laugh out loud. I can see how the situation progressed, in my mind. I think that this is a result of the erroneous notion that the customer is always right. In reality, the customer is rarely right, sometimes they're not even in the ballpark. Too many people have an over-inflated sense of entitlement, and they persist in flaunting it in public. I feel like it's my duty to deflate their sense of self-importance, even if it's just a little bit.
So here are my rules for proper customer behavior whilst dining in public:

1: Having money does not make you better than your server. If anything, it makes you dependent on your server to feed you, since you aren't at home cooking for yourself.
2: If you have particular needs, please make them known to your waitstaff prior to ordering. This will allow us to tailor your order to those needs.
3: DO NOT snap you fingers, shake an empty glass, yell "Hey you!", or in any other way summon your server as if she was your lap dog. She is not, and her bite is WAY worse than her bark.
4: Think before you speak or act. If you wouldn't do it/say it in front of your grandmother, you probably shouldn't do it in front of your server. Remember, this is your only chance to make a good impression; you don't want to be "that guy."
5: Please and thank you are not endangered species. Use them often.
6: Eye contact is one way to let someone know that you are listening to them. Staring at her breasts is NOT a way to let someone know you're listening.
7: Servers have LONG memories. We will remember every slight, every bit of attitude, every nasty thing that you do or say. We will share those stories with our waitstaff friends. We know everyone in the business. Your hatefullness will spread faster than the swine flu. Don't be "that guy."
8: We don't care who you think you are. In the dining room, the waitstaff are the most important people. We are the emissaries that tread the DMZ that is the kitchen, and we are doing it for you. Unless you would like to risk your life walking back into the kitchen to get your food, realize that every trip we make is into hostile territory, and should be rewarded with combat pay.
9: Ifyou do not believe in tipping, which is your right, do not frequent full-service restaurants, unless you are picking up a carry-out order. You are not proving a point, you are not bucking the system, you are not speaking out for under-paid servers; you are being a cheap-skate tightwad, and the only person that you are hurting is your poor server. You think that servers should be paid a higher hourly wage? Take your fight to Congress, not your favorite dining establishment.
10: And last, but not least, if you truly do have a miserable experience when you go out, and it happens all the time, no matter where you go, then perhaps you should consider the possibility that it's not them, it's you. You might be the kind of person that no one on God's green Earth can make happy. And if that's true, perhaps you should stop inflicting your misery on the hapless staff of whichever establishment you choose to frequent. I'm just saying. Maybe it's YOU.
That's my philosophy. I think that dining out would be much more enjoyable if we all followed the rules.

Getting my knit on...

This is the finished Oriel Lace Scarf. I didn't want to post a picture of it any sooner, because it was a gift for my mom on Mother's Day. Click the pic to make it bigger. It came out gorgeous after washing and blocking, and it grew a bit too. It really came out quite nice, and I can't wait to get another one on the needles.

Currently, I'm working on the February Lady sweater. It's coming along swimmingly, so I'm a little stunned. It's actually quite easy, once you get past the counting, and the dizzyness that 282 stitches on the needles can create. I'm kind of concerned, because I keep thinking that it shouldn't be this easy, and what am I screwing up, but I'm following the pattern, to the letter. I'm checking my stitch count, to make sure that I'm not losing, or adding, stitches. I'm working on the body right now, and apart from the enormous amount of stitches on the needles, it's really kind of boring. The lace pattern is a 4 row repeat, and it's pretty easy. I know, I know, I keep saying how easy it is, and in the end I'm going to get bitten in the ass by the Knitting Fates for mocking them. Oh well, if it doesn't fit me, it will fit someone I know!

It looks like a real sweater, doesn't it? I mean, it's missing sleeves right at the moment, but according to the pattern, you do those last. Click on the pics to make them bigger, and admire my handiwork!

That's what's new for today. I'm going to do some laundry, and knit some sweater! If I had known it was this easy, I would have done this a long time ago!

In an effort to be more scintillating...

Not really. I mean, I could post stories about my hell-raising past, but seeing as how I don't quite remember every sequence of events, I don't think that it would be any fun for any of us! I thought that today would be a good day to thank my mom.
My mom and I haven't had the easiest of relationships. Mostly this was due to my stubborness and hard-headedness, I will admit. I wasn't the easiest person to get along with in my twenties. It is with benefit of age that I can admit this now. Hindsight being 20/20 and all. That being said, I don't know what I would do if I hadn't created a closer relationship with my mom. She is always there for me, to answer questions, to listen to me babble when I'm lonely, to encourage me in all of my endeavors. I think that I owe a lot of who I am today to her. (Apart from the obvious genetic contribution)
I was always, and will always be, a daddy's girl. Me and my dad are so much alike that you would be hard-pressed to think that anyone else could be my father. It took years for me to get that close to my mom. Now that I have, I wouldn't trade our relationship for anything.
Today, on the day that we celebrate mothers, I want to take the opportunity to thank my mom. Thank you for not giving up on me (I would have, a long time ago), thanks for always listening to me, especially when I'm rambling on, thanks for encouraging me when I thought that I would never figure out this knitting thing, and thanks most of all for being you. For teaching me how to love unconditionally, how to cherish your spouse, how to discipline and nurture at the same time, how to be the best woman that I can possibly be. I couldn't have done without you. I wouldn't have wanted to do it without you. You are the best, and if I don't tell you often enough, I love you!
Happy Mother's Day, to all the moms out there, especially the ones with headstrong daughters who don't listen. Trust me, one day, they will, and they will appreciate everything that you have taught them. It might just take some time for them to admit it.

Did you miss me?

The interwebs have been acting up at my house, and were consequently put in time out, which is why I haven't posted in a while.
Here's a brief recap of what's been going on: the spring meet at Keeneland wrapped up and we worked on Derby Day (quite busy and made good money), finished the lace scarf and got it blocked (will post pics as soon as I take some), cast on the sweater and am past the collar and yoke and working on the body (I love it and it's going pretty fast and relatively easy).
Yesterday my dad had a heart cath done. It was a scheduled, non-emergency procedure, and he made it through relatively unscathed. The cardiologist found one blockage (80%), inserted a stint, at which point it opened right up and had good blood flow. He spent the night at the hospital, came home this afternoon, and is feeling pretty good.
Unfortunately, my best friend's husband woke up this morning with chest pains, and is also having a heart cath done this very afternoon. We suspect that this whole incident is a ploy to to get out of Mother's Day obligations! Seriously, I am hoping and praying that he will make it through with flying colors.
Last night I went to Friends & Co. for a Rock-A-Billy Cafe employee reunion. It was fantastic, seeing everyone again. Most of those folks I haven't seen in 10-12 years. It was awesome catching up with everyone, seeing pictures of kids and meeting spouses. It was such a wonderful time and I can't wait to get together again with everyone.
As a result of seeing everyone last night, I have a job prospect. The guy I used to work for is now a branch manager for a bank, and he is looking to hire someone to help him run his branch. So, I will be sending him my resume and hopefully I will get an interview! Keep your fingers crossed!
I will post pictures of the finished projects and works-in-progress as soon as I take some. As long as the weather holds out, I might be able to get some nice shots outside.
I hope that y'all missed me as much as I missed you! (hee hee hee) I promise to post much more regularly!

Just another Monday

It's just another Monday. Nothing too exciting has been going on. I finished the Oriel Lace Scarf, just need to block it, and then I'll post pictures. I'm knitting the gauge swatch for the sweater. Let's see how much it lies!
The car is running so much better, what with the new computer and all. Of course, running at all would be better than what it was doing before, which was not running!
Friday was the last day of the spring meet at Keeneland, but we all have to work on Derby Day, too. It kind of makes me laugh, that 20,000 people come out to Keeneland on Derby, to watch TV.
I really don't have much to post about today. I'm spending the day with my nephew, Thomas. He's still sleeping right now, so our day together hasn't started yet. I think that we will play outside, probably in the dirt!

Just when you think that you're getting ahead...

Just when I thought that I was getting ahead, putting away extra money in the bank, I find out from the mechanic that it will cost $400 to get my car fixed. Evidently, the computer died. Didn't even know that a '93 Sable HAD a computer, but whatever. I'm looking at the bright (well, the less depressing anyway) side: at least this happened while I'm working, it's a fixable problem, I had a really good week at work last week so I can afford to get it fixed now. It's just frustrating, to have to pay out that much money, when I just put it in the bank.
I ordered the rest of the yarn and the needles that I need to make the sweater. I don't want to give too much of it away, just in case I fail miserably at this endeavor. If you never hear about this sweater again, forget that I ever brought it up. You can assume that it is buried in a bottom drawer, and it made me a quivering heap of dejection and weeping. But, maybe, I will rock this out and you will have to hear about it FOREVER!
By the way, I hope that you like the new look of the blog. I decided that I wanted to change a few things, which turned into changing some other things, which turned into changing the look of the whole thing! I also took off some of my personal info; I figured that the entire American interwebs didn't need to know my real name! That's right, I fully expect the entire American interwebs to be reading my blog, any day now. Really, they're coming. Really. (Actually, if the 3 of you that do read this would make all of your friends read this, then perhaps my plan of total interwebs domination would have a chance of succeeding!)

Rainy days are made for knitting

It's Monday, and I'm off work, and of course it's raining! I guess I'll spend the day knitting instead of running errands. I've cast on the lace socks, and I just received the laceweight that I ordered, so... maybe that might get cast on too! I highly recommend the seller at Fearless Fibers, on etsy.com. Super fast delivery and the yarn was even more gorgeous than it looked online. Can't wait to wind it up and get it on the needles!
This weekend was just as great at work as the beginning of the week. Great customers all weekend, good money, good times with coworkers, just all in all a GREAT week at work! i'm kind of sad that it will be ending this coming Friday; now I see why Turf Catering has such a high return employee rate every meet. I'm seriously considering coming back in October for the fall meet, if I have a job that will allow me to do that. I created a Facebook page for all of us that work together, so that we can stay in touch after the meet is over. If you're on Facebook, find us in the Lexington Kentucky Room - Keeneland group.
I should probably clean the house today, so that I can spend all day tomorrow relaxing. But I think that we all know that I might get some housework done today, but I'll save the majority of it for tomorrow!
I'm going to make some coffee and do some knitting, and perhaps get some clothes in the wash. Maybe unload the dishwasher. Or wind up some laceweight into balls.

Thank God it's Friday!

I've had a pretty good week so far. Work has been fantastic; I've had great customers and the money has been great too.
Wednesday I waited on a group of folks that were from the Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival. If you find yourself in southeastern Kentucky for Memorial Day weekend, I highly recommend going to the Mountain Laurel Festival in Pineville, Kentucky. It is being run by the nicest group of people that I've ever met. They were an absolute joy to take care, very polite and courteous, well-mannered and I think that they were truly happy to be at Keeneland that day. I made really good money from them, but that wasn't the reason that I enjoyed them so much. (Okay, not the only reason!) They were absolutely wonderful to take of, and I hope that they had as much fun spending the day with me as I did with them.
Today I had another group that I also really liked. They were with Credit Solutions, and they were a ball to have in today. They all were betting on the horses, enjoying the beautiful day and each other's company. It's having customers like these two groups that remind me of why I have always loved the restaurant business. It's good to have customers like this, especially when you wonder why the hell you're doing this for a living. Sometimes it's good to be a part of someone's special occasion, even if you're only the person delivering drinks.
I really needed this reminder this week, after last weekend. Last weekend had me questioning why in the world I would willingly do this for a living. You would think that on the 2 biggest days of the spring meet, the Maker's Mark Mile on Friday and the Bluegrass Stakes Day on Saturday, I would have had a fantastic time and made tons of money. On the contrary, I left work both days feeling angry and overworked and totally underpaid. Those two days, when our dining room was filled with big wigs and high rollers and whatnot, I made jack crap. I made more this past Wednesday, from small-town, nice, polite, regular people, than I did taking care of the hoi polloi. I went to bed last Saturday night wondering if I was even going to go back to work this week. I'm so glad that this week has gone so fantastically well. It's been a real self-esteem booster. It's confirmed my belief that I am a good server and it was the customers' fault last weekend that I didn't make any money.
Hopefully, this Saturday and Sunday will go as well as the first part of the week. The only downside is that I haven't had much time for knitting, because I'm so tired! I have several projects that are on the drawing board and as soon as I get some time to myself when I'm not exhausted, I will be casting on some KNITTING. I'm using all caps because the next project that I'm tackling is a sweater, for me. That's right; I'm making clothes. I've got the pattern, the yarn (I think I have enough), all I need is one particular circular needle (knitpicks.com here I come!), and some free time and I'm making a sweater. Yep. I'm going to do it. Just as soon as I can read the pattern and not hyperventilate.

(By the way, I sold a bottle of Dom Perignon today! Yep, I sold a $200 bottle of champagne!)

Monday, what a lovely day

Seriously, it's a dreary day here in Nicholasville. Cloudy skies, it's threatening rain, perfect day for drinking coffee and knitting. I will work on the lace scarf today; my goal is to complete at least one full repeat of the pattern. I also want to cast on the lace socks with the lovely souvenir yarn that I brought home from Gatlinburg.
Work is going good. I must say that I have a beautiful view from my dining room at Keeneland. The room overlooks the track, right at the start/finish line. It doesn't suck at all.
I'm off today, and I should be cleaning the house and doing laundry. The dishwasher is running right now, so I'm well on my way to having a clean house before Donnie gets home this afternoon.
Easter was fantastic! Thomas had a fun time, and we had fun watching him play outside with his bubble mower. I love being able to spend time with my family.
It's time to start knitting for the day. I could probably dust, too, and pass the vacuum, but there's always tomorrow!

Socks, finished

I finished the socks that I've been working on! And just in time, too, because it's 35 degrees outside! It's April 7th and it's barely above freezing. It's ridiculous, I tell you.

I'm pleased with the socks, even though the toes are different. I was running out of yarn towards the end of the second sock, and I had to join the leftover yarn from the first sock. The colorway varigation didn't match up. But they look cute anyway, and they are very cozy and warm.

This past weekend was my first weekend working at Keeneland. I'm waiting tables in the Lexington Kentucky room, on the 4th floor. It's nice, and so far I'm enjoying it. I'm working with a great group of people, most of whom have worked there before. The money is good, and it's pretty easy work. No food service, since it's all buffet on the fourth floor. I just schlep drinks and bread pudding, and clear plates. It was tough though, since I haven't been working, and my feet HURT! It should get better as it goes along.

I'm enjoying two days off before going back to work on Wednesday. I've got to clean the house, do some laundry, and maybe get some knitting done.

More about Gatlinburg

Yummy souvenir yarn! I bought both of these at Smoky Mountain Spinnery in Gatlinburg, TN. The one on the left is Cascade Yarns Heritage Hand Painted sock yarn, and the on the right is Berocco Ultra Alpaca.

I've already picked out a lace sock pattern for the Heritage, but I haven't decided what to do with the alpaca. I've been petting it, and admiring its softness.

I'm resisting starting on the new socks until I finish the pair that I'm working on. I should be knitting right now, as opposed to goofing around on the internets. But I realized that I hadn't posted about the yarn that I brought home from my vacation.

The Smoky Mountain Spinnery is a charming little yarn shop, located right outside downtown Gatlinburg. It's in the back of a fishing supply store, and both are owned by a husband and wife team. They are both charming and hospitable, and very friendly and helpful. I recommend that if you ar going to Gatlinburg and you're looking for yarn or fishing lures, check them out! The Spinnery has a good selection of both yarn and spinning fiber, as well as supplies. To be honest, I didn't look through the fishing stuff, but Donnie liked it! At last, a store that we both want to shop at!

I got a friend request on Facebook today from a girl that I worked with YEARS ago. As a result, I joined a group on Facebook of people from Rock-A-Billy Cafe. It is awesome to look at pictures from back in the day, and share memories. I had forgotten how much fun it was to work there, and how many cool people I got to work with there.

I got a job!!!

Keeneland hired me for the spring meet! Yay! I'm going to be working for the next three weeks! I'm super excited about this. (As if you couldn't tell, what with the exclamation points and all) I'm going to be serving in the Lexington/Ketucky rooms, upstairs on the fourth floor of the clubhouse. Quite posh, I tell you. It's all fancy-pants and high roller and whatnot. But I'm still excited, because I've wanted to work at Keeneland for years, and have never been able to, so to have this opportunity is just awesome. Besides, I get to go to the racetrack every day for the next three weeks. That doesn't suck.
I think that it's time for me to buy a new car. And by new car, I mean newer than the one that I have. It died seven times on my way to babysit this morning. By the time I got here, I was a nervous wreck, almost in tears. It's enough to drive a girl to drink, I tell you. I just wish that it would hold out for another month, let me get some money in the bank, and then I could face spending a crapload of money on a car. Arggghhh!
I've been spending some time lately with the knitting. Almost done with the socks that I've been working on, got Donnie's IPod armband holder done, finally sewed on button eyes on the sock puppets that I made for Thomas, and got a new sock pattern for the yarn I bought on vacation. I got all this done because I couldn't get on the internets for the whole week. It sucked.
I'm going to eat some breakfast and knit some socks, because that's how I roll.

Best. Vacation. EVER!!!

Got home yesterday from the Great Smoky Mountains, and let me tell you, it was AWESOME!! We had such a wonderful time, and I can't wait to go back.

We were such tourists while we were down there. We rode most of the rides, and shopped, and ate, and hung out in the hot tub. I'm glad to be home though.

We drove down to London Thursday night, and stayed with Donnie's parents. We made our way to Tennessee on Friday morning. We drove through Cades Cove, and saw probably 60 deer and a wild turkey. Once we got to Gatlinburg, we checked into our cabin. It was located about 14 miles from downtown, and it was soo cute! Located right next to a stream, so we had the sound of running water all weekend.

We went downtown, and started right in with the fun stuff. We rode Ripley's Moving Theater, took the ski lift up the mountain, went to the top of the Space Needle, and had a wonderful dinner at Lineberger's Seafood Company.

Saturday, I cooked breakfast at the cabin, all the good stuff, biscuits and gravy, sausage, and eggs. Then we went to Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies. WOW!! It's been a while since I've been to an aquarium. It was amazing! Stunning fish, lots of sharks, giant spider crabs, and stingrays.

After the aquarium, we went on the tramway to Ober Gatlinburg. That was pretty cool, too, although the ride up wasn't as good as the ride down. On the way up, we were two of the last people to get on the tramcar, and we couldn't see anything from the middle of the car. On the way down, we were among the first on, so we got to stand right at the front by the windows.

Once we were down, we had lunch, and then went back to the cabin for naps.

We went back downtown later that afternoon, and did some shopping, then it was back to the cabin. I forgot how tiring it was to sightsee! You do have to walk everywhere in Gatlinburg.

We spent Sunday making our way back home, stopping in Pigeon Forge and Seiverville for more shopping. We got home around 3:30, and I was worn out! Vacation can be exhausting!

I'm so glad that we went. We had perfect weather, and a perfect time, and I'm so grateful that Donnie took me for my first time to Gatlinburg. It was amazing!

Running to the mountains...

Isn't he the cutest thing you've ever seen?! We were enjoying a beautiful day outside, playing cars and trucks.

I'm getting ready for our trip to Gatlinburg today. We are leaving this afternoon, heading to London to spend the night with Donnie's parents, and then we will head to Gatlinburg tomorrow morning. I'm really excited about it! I'm just amazed at how much stuff we're bringing. I've been obsessively checking weather.com to make sure that the weather will be nice. I've packed three knitting projects, and we're going to a yarn store, so I should be able to get through the weekend without running out of knitting.

Speaking of the knitting, I'm almost done with the first sock, and I'm hoping that I will have the second sock started this weekend. The lace scarf is now languishing in the knitting bag, so it's coming along, too. I'll take pictures of everything this weekend, hopefully out in the nature.

Professionally, things are looking up as well. I went to the Keeneland spring meet job fair this past Tuesday, and they want me to come in for Captains training next. Their captains are like dining room managers. The director of dining services, who I interviewed with, said that if they didn't have a captain's position that suited me, then I could go to the servers' training. So, more than likely, I will at least be serving at Keeneland this spring meet. I'm excited about it; it feels good knowing that I'm going back to work, especially after not working for so long.

Well, the dryer is done, so I've got laundry to fold. If I have Internet access in the Great Smoky Mountains, I will post updates this weekend. Otherwise, you'll just have to wait till next week!

Spring, where are you?

3 days ago, it was 70 degrees. Today, there is snow on the ground. Welcome to March in Kentucky! I guess knitting wool socks is all of sudden smart and well-planned.
Speaking of the socks, they are gorgeous! The colorway reminds me of the ocean, all blues and greens. I've been a busy little knitter lately. Last weekend I knocked out an armband IPod holder for Donnie, in a funky camoflage yarn. Now, I'm making another one in gray, to match his work uniform. Because he likes to match!
The lace scarf is still hanging out in the knitting bag. I think that I'll be ready to go back to it when I've finished the socks. Or at least one sock. Right now, I'm trying to figure out what projects I want to take with me on our Gatlinburg trip next weekend. I'm sooo excited! I've never been to Gatlinburg, and we've got a lovely cabin about 13 miles from downtown. There's a yarn shop that I want to go to, and a Coach outlet store in Seiverville! We're planning on going to the aquarium, Dixie Stampede, the Space Needle, and ride the ski lift up the mountain. I'm most looking forward to soaking in the hot tub, whilst looking out into the woods for bears.
Of course, my OCD is kicking in. I've made a list of what I need to pack for me, and another list for what Donnie needs to pack, plus another list for food and beverages that we need to bring. Plus a list of where we want to go and do, and ..... well, you get the idea. I hope that the weather is nice, and I get lots of pictures.
Off to fix lunch and see what I'm fixing for dinner.

Woman, thou art fickle...

The more I looked at the sock yarn, the more I wanted to knit it. Then, I get my invite from Ravelry, which encourages me to list all of my yarn and books and patterns and such. And there's a place for your projects, and my page looked so lonely, what with only one project on there, and I thought, well just cast it on and then you'll have two projects to list. Just cast it on... famous last words! The lace scarf? What lace scarf? Can't you see I'm knitting socks? The scarf and I are on a break, free to do whatever we want with other patterns and yarn. We both need this. Time apart will make us truly appreciate each other. Besides, it's warming up outside, who needs a new scarf? (The argument could be made about who needs wool socks, but we're not going there.)
I'm spending the day with the most charming, lovable,gorgeous man I know. He's my nephew and I guess that at 21 months, he's not technically a man, but he is the little man! I'm so lucky that I've been able to spend so much time with him, since he was born. He brightens my day, and watching him grow and learn blows my mind!
Pictures tomorrow, of lots of fun things!

And so it goes...

I'm still knitting the charming lace scarf. It's still charming, but I'm starting to feel a bit of boredom creep in. While I'm working on it, I can see some cute sock yarn, waiting for me in my knitting basket. I know that I should take it upstairs and put it with the rest of the stash, but it's pretty, and I like looking at it. There's also some soft gray alpaca that is begging to become a baby toy. Don't get me started on the green/yellow lace that I was working on before it bored me to tears. Even its simple 4 row repeat is looking attractive.
This is why I stopped knitting scarves for a while. Once you get past the charm and novelty of the pattern/yarn/colorway, there's still like 182 feet to knit. Okay, maybe not that much, but still. Scarves get kind of boring WAY before they get to any useful length. But still I plug away at it, because it is beautiful, and I do love the yarn and the pattern. Hopefully, it will get charming and exciting again.
Knitting does give me an excuse to watch TV. I figure that if I'm doing something productive, then it's okay to watch an all-day marathon of America's Next Top Model. Of course, some people think that it's not okay to watch ANTM all day. Some people, maybe a person who lives in this house, thinks that no one should watch ANTM, even for one hour. I won't mention names, but we all know who he is. Really, he would rather watch logging all day. How many trees do you have to watch fall to the ground to get that it's dangerous? And boring? It makes a garter stitch scarf in black look exciting.
Speaking of exciting, I saw my first Noro 2 row scarf live and in person the other day when I bought the lace weight for my WIP. The young lady who had knit it had used a chunky weight yarn, and it was even more lovely in person than in any picture that I had seen.

The Job Search Continues

I got rejected by Longhorn Steakhouse. It sucks more than I thought it would. I have sent resumes to several other restaurants, but so far I haven't heard anything. I know that there are a lot of people out there looking for a job, and employers have lots of resumes and applications to sift through. Being unemployed is getting old, though. I'm tired of not having anything to do. There's only so much knitting that I can do in a day!
I worry that I'm not going to find anything. I know that I can always go back to serving and/or bartending, but I would rather find a job that has a future. I'm getting too old to worry about making enough in tips to cover the bills.
My biggest fear is that I'm not qualified enough to get a good job. I worry that my lack of a degree is going to hinder the job search. I worry that I'm not going to find anything that would make me want to go to work every day. I worry, I worry, I worry.
Still, it could be worse. I could not be receiving unemployment. I could be homeless. I could be alone. But I'm not. My dear sweet boyfriend has been very supportive during all this. Thank God for him.

Lace Blocking and Why It's Fun

So I washed and blocked my first piece of lace. It's a shawl from a pattern I got from Creative Knitting magazine. The original pattern called for a silk ribbon yarn, but I used a plain red wool instead (I was stash-busting). It looked pretty good unblocked, and the pattern didn't call for blocking. But since I'm working on a more intricate lace scarf, I thought that this would be good practice! It looks even more amazing than I thought it would. The blocking has brought out the stitch definition, and you can see the pattern! You can also see some of the mistakes, but I don't think it's too bad for a first attempt at lace!

As to the other lace project I've got going on, it's still going great! I love the pattern. It's got enough variety that I'm not getting bored, and I'm absolutely charmed by the look of the yarn in pattern. I'm flying through it, which is good, because there are 17 repeats of the 28 row pattern. So far, I've completed 3 repeats of the pattern, and no mistakes yet! Bragging about that is inviting the wrath of the knitting fates, I know, but the pattern is easy enough to know where you are most of the time. Hopefully I will have this done soon, and have pictures posted of its charming loveliness.

What I've knit for me

These are two scarves that I made for myself after Christmas. It was a stash-busting exercise, since I have a lot of yarn, and wanted to use some of it before I could justify buying more. They are both the same pattern, just different yarn combinations. I used the one row scarf pattern from the Yarn Harlot, but I used two worsted weight yarns, knit together using US size 11 needles.

I used this same adapted pattern for Christmas gifts this past year, so if it looks familiar, then you probably got one!

The blue one is a variegated acrylic, combined with a fuzzy acrylic. The pink/brown one is a variegated wool, with pink, rose and brown, combined with a solid brown wool. I like that while they are the same pattern, they have different textures due to the different yarns.

I am currentl working on a lace scarf. The pattern is from 101 Designer one-skein Wonders, edited by Judith Durant. It is the Oriel Lace Scarf, and I'm knitting in Koigu KPM, in a gorgeous gray/brown color. I think that when I'm done I will get more of this yarn to make fingerless gloves to match.

Today I will be blocking a bigger piece of lace. It's a shawl, knit from a worsted weight wool. I'm excited but also a little nervous, as this will be my first lace-blocking attempt. If it works out, there will be pictures up tomorrow. If there aren't any pictures, then we all know that it ended up looking like scrunched up wet noodles.

Lego Star Wars and why the Force holds the universe together

So I've never been a video gamer. I stopped playing video games when the controller got more complicated than a joystick. My brother, on the other hand, is a pro at it. Me? I don't seem to have the hand-eye coordination to be able to play the new games.
As Fate (or the Force, you decide) would have it, I fell in love with a man who likes to play video games. He's not obsessed by any means, but he enjoys a little Need for Speed or God of War every now and then.
Then I found the game that would change my mind forever. Lego Star Wars. I know, it's a game for children, which is probably why I can play it. It's awesome! It reminds of my childhood, when my brother played with both Legos and Star Wars figurines.
I'm hooked. The characters are little Lego people, and when you destroy something, it blows up into little Lego blocks!
So you see, the Force gave me something to share with the man I love. Now if only he would get off the Playstation so that I can play!

Why I knit

So I started knitting Thanksgiving, 2006. So I am a fairly new knitter. I've read that there are 2 types of knitters, process and product. I am definitely a product knitter. I love the feeling of making something out of a ball of yarn and some pointy sticks.
I got inspired to learn how to knit over a game of Scrabble. I was playing with my sister, my brother and his wife. She was crocheting something, a blanket I think, and I thought to myself, I want to learn how to knit. My mom had a book that teaches knitting, along with some yarn and needles. Thankfully, the book had instructions for left-handed people, otherwise who knows what hobby I would have picked up!
Since then, I've made scarves, socks, hats, baby toys, washcloths, and lots of mistakes. But I've learned more than just how to knit. I've learned patience, some math, and dedication. Knitting has given me focus and the ability to see things long term. It takes some imagination to look at a ball of wool and see a lace scarf hiding in there.
It also gives me a connection to my family that I didn't anticipate. My mom has always been crafty, and she makes some of the most beautiful needlepoint. My sister-in-law knits and crochets and is great at both. My sister does gorgeous orgami. We all have this creative drive in common. It also makes me so proud to see someone that I love wearing something that I made for them. There is something to be said for seeing your loved ones being sheltered from the cold by something that came from your hands.
I'm working on my first lace piece right now. It's coming along, but right now it looks more like wet noodles than lace. Patience is a virtue, right?
So that is the beginning of my knitting story. There will be more chapters to come.

I told you there would be pictures!

Okay, it's just one picture. These are the first socks I ever knit. I was pretty amazed at myself.

My First Blog Entry

Well, I've finally done it. I've joined the ranks of the technology-abled folks. I just bought my first computer, and I'm going to do more with it than play spider solitaire, I promise!
I've always wanted a blog, just so that I can share the wit and humor that is me with all the internet. Plus, I'm unemployed right now, so this has to be better than talking to the cats, right?
I plan on having pictures of my knitting on a regular basis, as well as pictures of my cute nephew.
Check back for more!