EnigLdy~SheepFaced

Finished Bag

Look what I lined:

I took a bag that I liked but was too flimsy to use and cut it to fit.  Tada!  I've been carrying it all week and it is a wonderful purse.

Today I go to the orthodontist and get the permanent, bottom retainer yanked out of my mouth.  Certain foods cause areas to break loose and there is quite a buildup of glue from the repairs.  The area on the left has broken loose yet again plus that same area catches some foods that you cannot loosen with your tongue.  I'm tired of bending paper clips and digging behind my teeth.  I haven't been to my orthodontist for 18 years - I wonder if he'll notice that I've aged?  LOL  I am extremely faithful in wearing my top retainer at night (uh, cuz I paid for the orthodontia work myself)  so I am looking forward to only having a bottom retainer at night.  Freedom as of this afternoon!

Work has been very busy so I'm getting the "virtual desktop" installed at home.  This job is the very coolest.  Any time that I work over or work from home counts.  OMG - I won't be able to stand it.  Counting the hours you work?  Since when?  I guess working in HR they follow the rules.  They freaked when I told them about the 60+ hours I put in at my previous job and got, uh - was it zero credit for it?   Exactly what're you gonna do about it?  Quit and then have zero money coming into the household?  They had me by the short hairs - easier to drop the subject.

I'm plugging away at the Amish Red Afghan and a lacy jacket that I'm crocheting.  I did zero knitting/crocheting last night because I worked on paying the bills (you're welcome Mr. Creditor) and cleaning out the stash of warranty books.  What do you good people do with all your warranty books?  I have a 50-lb accordion folder that houses mine.  Sorted into their Virgo categories, of course.  I threw away about a 6-inch stack of assorted trash out of there and filed the new purchases.  Ahh, refreshing.

I got two cool ass CD's - Lou Rawls Love Songs and a Rascal Flatts CD.  DH and I saw the latter band on the New Year's ball drop program.  I'm listening to the LR's CD on the way to/from work and waiting to listen to RF's CD when DH and I can enjoy it together.

Have I mentioned that Fatgirl has gained an additional name recently?  She sometimes goes by the name of Blindgirl (or Helen Keller as DH so lovingly calls me).  My eyes have gone over the edge and I'm using readers almost the entire time I'm awake.  Yeah, really f'g humorous DH.  He loves chuckling at me when he sees me struggling to read something.

Have a good day.  I truly need to go and knock out some of these things staring me down.

Another FO and no more PigPen!

Today is day 4 of no smoking.  So far, so good.  I'm just tired of it.  Don't get me wrong, I could easily pick it up and continue.  I am tired of my chest hurting, the expense, the albatross, and the way I smell!  I'm going to track what I eat so that I'm aware of gaining weight and I asked for a membership to the local rec center so fat girl can workout - I'm more prone to use it if it is costing me money.  No schmucking - don't be a schmuck.

I finished the square for New England Textile Artists.  This will ship out in the next few days.  Yes, I fixed the dropped stitch you see.

I am closing in on the afghan I am crocheting.  I am on skein 6.  Wanna compare analness?  DH tells everyone that I'm like a machine when crocheting.  This yarn snags quite a bit and slows me down but I did a calculation since I made it through a skein in an evening.  Each skein: 278 yards = 3.75 hrs ---- 2.43 ft per minute or almost a yard a minute.  Move over Lily Chin because given the right yarn I might trump your speed record.  And no, I wasn't racing - this was a leisurely pace and I didn't plan on checking this until I closed in on the end of the skein.  Also, my curved left finger gave me trouble the night before since it is rusty.  I don't want sore hands from doing the things I enjoy.

Work is going well outside of being bored out of my gourd.  This is their slow period and "the perfect time to bring someone in" but I hate not being up to speed.  I can't even answer questions to callers or walk-ins.  I know this will change the more time I work here but for now...boredom.  I'm caught up on my blog reading, obviously.

Enjoy your day.  xoxo

8/2/06 Booga Bag #3

This bag ships out to SIL Missy today:

If you look close (click pic to enlarge) you can see the inside pocket - different/darker colors.  The yellowish white color throughout the bag is from the wool I recycled off a hideous vest I bought for 50 cents at a thrift stop that I bought when DB Donnie visited Texas.  I thought it would be nice to have it incorporated into the bag since the vest purchased caused such a quizzical look from him.  It is deeply gratifying to remake an ugly item into something (I hope) that is loved.

I also finished another string bag - one in burnt orange.  The bag used up the entire spool of nylon.  There must be less on the spool because of the thickness of the string.  I made do and finished the bag.  It had to be washed because of the machine oil smell.  I will attempt to get a pic of it for you to admire my handiwork.

I'm currently working on a pattern for a cable purse copy of a Vittadini knit I saw and is too rich for my blood.  I'm also knitting a vest out of cotton I frogged from the start of a pattern I never did figure out.  Pretty disheartening when you have 7" (cough) and you like what you see.  Such is life.  I guess it wasn't meant to be.

Words to the Wise: Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense.  Gertrude Stein

(So!? That it explains it!)

Mensa for the day: Amy is three times Marian's age.  Two years ago, she was five times Marian's age.  In four years, she will be twice her age.  How old are they now?

 

Finished Bags

I'm not sure why I can't add multiple categories ---- probably cuz I can't multiple anything except multi-task.  It never can be anything fun, can it?

Here it is and I love it:
I don't always love what I make.  Usually the things that take me the longest are the ones that have me scratching my head wondering what I was thinking.  This bag was super fast and easy ---- yeah, like me :-)  I like how it turned out and the size is perfect.  Much bigger and you'd have to have your hand(s) reinforced to carry it.  It is holding the rest of the stash nylon that I'll be using to make more bags.








Next we have an almost finished bag:
I'm on the final two rows of the bag and I'm gonna take it home and *may* use some fun fur around the top.  I am also going to work on inside pockets but dummy me forget to bring spare needles.  Guess I'll have to play Texas Hold 'Em on breaks.

Had a really nice weekend.  I enjoyed being with all the firefighters.  Imagine that.  We were out until about 2:00 a.m. so didn't get to sleep until around 3 ---- I drove back to the hotel since I had a Mr. Lush with me.  Some drunk must've fallen into my car in the bar parking lot because my passenger side mirror was pulled off the little balls that help it run.  Should be an easy fix.  I had to find my way back to the hotel and we had no idea where we were at - the big guy upstairs must've been watching out for me cuz we found our way back.  We got a loud tapping at the door at about 8 and I've worked on less hours of sleep but wheee it has been a while for a night out.  There were only 3 girls so we got lots of attention.  That is always good for one's ego.

Words to the Wise: Happiness is a choice...not a response.

Mensa for the Day: What two words, formed from different arrangements of the same seven letters, can be used to complete the sentence below?

Little Otto could think of nothing more likely to ________ his hunger than a good ________ with cabbage.

7/17/06 Kitty Bed

Here is what I've been working on in the evenings:

This is the Kitty Bed pattern from http://www.wendyknits.net.  It ended up being smaller than expected with just one run through the washer.  Yikes!  I think GF will still fit in it but we'll see if ol' Ms. PickeeAss uses it.  Since I tend not to sleep in the garage with her all I can do is look for the tell-tale signs of hair.  The pattern is super quick/easy.  I'm glad I can check it off the wannabe list.
Speaking of GF, this is her on Saturday:

Every time I'd call her (to look up at me) she'd start coming toward me.  Here I am with camera in hand and backing up trying to snap her pic.  Aww, fun.

Speaking of fun:  schek it out: http://www.mini-mum.com/pages/Miniknitmostrecent.html

Making the list of most disturbing: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5187010.stm.  I wrote a dissertation on the subject but if you know me at all - no need for me to rant at you when you know how I feel about this subject.  I kindly deleted my harping.

What else did I accomplish this weekend?  I baked a fudge pie for DS, a batch of lemon cookies and a triple chip cheesecake.  My DBDon brought me an Amish cookbook (mass-manufactured - doubt it is true Amish) when he came to visit in October, 2005 and I used the recipes out of there.  DS said the pie is great, the lemon cookies are pretty good and DH and I tried a semi-cold piece of the cheesecake last night.  I'm trying to kick myself outta this depression and into some sort of normal (for me) behaviour.  I have an appt with the shrink on Friday - looking forward to it.  I washed all the clothes but put none of them away.  Yes, none.  I took a 2-hour nap on Saturday and laid around on the couch a lot of the weekend.  I played with GB for quite a few hours yesterday.  I didn't accomplish much but I feel good today.  One day at a time is what I keep reminding myself.

New CD in my life - Allison Moorer - Alabama Song ---- yummy and worth looking into.  I avoid listening to this in the morning though because it makes me emotional the rest of the day.  I don't think it is the music's fault - just the depression kicking me in the butt.

A Finished Object!

How amazing is that?  I truly love this purse.  I haven't given it the "use" test but it is everything I thought it'd be.  I took this picture on our back deck.  DH is so creative - when we were cleaning it off for the party, he had JR powerwash around this big metal star.  Hehe- this star is made from dirt and tree sap!

Not only did I finish this purse but I'm also on the last row of triangles on the hyphen-boy bag.  I buzzed along on that while having total control of the television.  I watched all the medical and crime shows that I wanted to yesterday!  DH was at the neighbor's house working on a patio cover, DS hadn't showed up yet, and DD stopped by for only a few minutes.  It doesn't fall that way for me very often and I thoroughly enjoyed my alone time.  After this row of triangles I will work on the bottom of the bag and then it is time to throw it in the hot water bath and shrink it up.  I think I'm going to work on a tank top and some cushions next.  I look forward to new projects.

I had to share this since it reminds me of the growing up days.  Whenever one of us kids would make a rhyme Mom would say, "You're a poet and don't know it but your feet show it, they're Longfellows."

Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close.
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

--Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Old Stuff

If I were this pretty with my hair pulled back I'd be knitting me this hat.  Not that I like the hat.  Some people are just beautiful.  You would not want to see me pull a Demi Moore like she did in GI Jane.  Uh, no.  I guess I think this girl is pretty because she has the huge forehead that is prominent in my family.  Maybe we're kinfolk!

I haven't touched knitting, crocheting or sewing in days.  I'm completely caught up at work and that was the goal.  I've put all my efforts into that.  I am off next week and didn't want to have anything hanging over my head.  This caused me to not have energy enough to work on anything outside of work.  Sad, but true.  I'm overamped on all the changes that are happening in/to my family.  Having another one leave the nest and shipping the baby off to college seems to be more than my fragile psyche can handle.  I'm holding it together and that is all I can say.

Work, too, is going through changes.  We'll have a change of chair and we've already had a change of dean.  I think this is causing me unacknowledged stress.  When work and home change you have to create things to hold onto.  The fact that all things are good and not bad alleviates a lot of my angst.  Attending the ceremony to receive my award is also causing me stress.  That is bad.  I keep telling myself that it will not matter 10 years from now.

Mensa for the day:  What three letters can be placed in the blanks below to make four different words?

• ___tance
• ___lodge
• ___may
• ___cover

Is it my imagination or am I a mensa?  LOL

Words to the Wise:  Experience is the one thing you can't get on easy payments.

New Project

I received the silk sari yarn from Paula .  Lucky for me she was destashing this yarn.  I've been hankering to make a purse out of this yarn and as mentioned previously, this allowed me to also help out a fellow knitter/blogger.  I printed out a pattern that I'm sure I'll change and it will head to the doctor with me this morning.  This is what I'll be working with:

Last night I worked a little on the hyphen-boy bag.  I love how easy it is to just do a tiny area and feel like you're accomplishing something.  Each tier contains 8 little areas that you work on individually.  I think I'm half-way through tier 6.  Almost half-way finished with all the tiers!

Sad news --- we had 6 little birds hatch in a box on a stand out near the garage.  I was checking their progress daily but knew it was only a matter of time before my cat found them.  Found them she did.  I guess yesterday must've been the day they found their voice.  It makes me angry but I know that is her job.  She doesn't know any better.  I felt bad for the bird Mom last night.  She kept hollering about it.  DH says she won't mourn for too long before she starts building another nest.  DH is getting the box out of there so she doesn't rebuild in such a dangerous spot.  I wanted to move the box but knew the mother would never find it or might abandon it.

I'm off.  Enjoy your day.

Books Received

I received two more books in the mail: Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac and 1000 Great Knitting Motifs.  EZ's book covers, what I mentioned earlier, knitting reading - my fav.  The knitting reading is about design and how she would create.  Pretty interesting reading.  It is like a knitting diary of one year and takes you through the seasons along with seasonal projects.  Definitely a great addition to my library.  1000 Great Knitting Motifs is all graphs - this will come in handy when I start designing fair isle.

Here is the progress on the home knitting project:                                                      

and here is a pic of the entire circle:
Middle daughter said, "What is that you're making because it is hideous!?  I suppose it is with all the different colors but I'm sure it will mellow out once felted/fulled.

Middle daughter got a job offer yesterday!  She's had her hopes set on a teaching hospital, one located about 40 miles north of our house.  She interviewed for an ICU position and they offered her the job.  She has an extremely high GPA and is a cute girl --- who wouldn't offer her the job?  She starts work at the end of June and I'm embarassed to even mention her salary.  Embarassed for me, proud for her.  She's worked very hard and this has been a 6-year goal that she's achieved.  To say she was excited is putting it mildly.

Yesterday I made DS's prom cake and jello salad.  He came and picked them and my car up last night.  I'm looking forward to the 6:00 p.m. picture taking tonight.  He is excited about prom and I can tell that it means a lot to him.  It is so precious to see them doing adult things and enjoying them.  This is his day in the spotlight and I'm glad that he plans to enjoy each step of the way.

Enjoy --- I have a house to clean, laundry to do, GBaby's baseball games to attend and then on to taking pictures of Mr. Prom King Nominee.

The Project

This is what I've been working on in the evenings. It is fun - I even worked on it last night and I didn't feel very well.  I'm looking forward to the addition of each tier.  There is supposed to be 12 tiers total but I may cut it short since I don't want a huge-azz bag from hell.

I got a wonderful book in the mail yesterday.  I have my wishlist here and received an e-mail that some of the books I was wishing for hit the price limit I had set.  I ordered 5 of the books where the price seemed reasonable.  The first one received is HandKnit Holidays and let me tell you, this is a book that I would pay twice the retail price just so I can look at it.  I flagged so many pages that the top of the book looks like a porcupine.  There is such a multitude of projects and the projects fill the needs for many age ranges.  Not only are the projects desireable, they inspire my creative gene.  I'm almost as excited about this book as I was about Knitting In America.  The only reason I loved KIA more than this book is because of the reading content.  Not only do I love patterns, knitting and ideas, I also love to read about knitting.  They both deserve an A+ no matter how I want to compare the two.  There is a recipe in HKH --- I don't see a picture of the Walnut Cookies (blind me?) but I am thinking about trying the recipe.

I have about 2.25" left on the sock before I can begin the toe decreases.  Keep your toes crossed for me that I can get this completed and out of my life.

Today is my Friday ---- I get to knock out the baking for DS tomorrow.  Prom on Saturday --- Mama's baby...sob.

Words to the Wise: Be on the level and you won't go downhill.