Finished knitting

I'm doing better today. There's just a lot going on, and the heat isn't helping. My vacation starts when I leave work on Friday...I can't wait. At least I have tomorrow off.

I do have a knitting photo to show. This little sweater is the one I was struggling with. Not enough yarn in a discontinued color to finish it as the pattern dictates. So I made up a lace on the sleeves and voila!


It is from Natural Knits for Babies and Moms. The yarn is Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. I'm becoming quite enamored of this yarn. Too bad it costs so much. The buttons are from my collection.

The yellow and green blanket is still on the go...I'm not going to take a picture until its done...squares are rather boring to document.

I haven't been knitting much. We're doing a lot of work on the house and it's time to start weeding through things and do a purge. I'm not sure if we are going to attempt a garage sale or just donate it all. Ebay is an option on some things. And when not doing all of that, or working, I've been reading.

Well, I best be getting ready for work (yuk!)

Muggy

I'm irritated and lonely tonight. It's too hot and the AC still isn't functional. There is a lot going on that I can't talk about and I'm frustrated as all hell.

How are you?

ConnectiCon pictures...at last

We finally got the pictures of ConnectiCon off of my love's phone. Sorry for the quality.

When we got there we did a quick spin around to see where everything was and then wandered into the Webcomic Auction that was raising funds for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Being an artist myself, copyright and trademark issues are really important to me. Actually a friend of mine is currently going through some trademark issues.
Anywho...there we are watching the auction and my favorite artist Jennie Breeden of The Devil's Panties, Geebas on Parade and various others (damn this girl is prolific) went up. I looked at love as cute and pitifully as I could and he said go ahead and bid. So I did. Another dude and I got into a bit of a bidding war... my wonderful, generous and fabulous husband let me keep going. I won't say how much I paid but I won! This became my 30th birthday present...remember my birthday back in January that went uncelebrated? Yeah, well this totally made up for it. I had actually come to the Con to meet Jennie. I even emailed her to see what I could bring her. I came armed with fruit, candy and sandwiches.

So the goodies I won were a deck of her playing cards, a Men in Kilts...with a leaf blower calendar (as she states if you wear underwear it's a skirt. These are men in kilts) , signed issues of her comic book and an original signed cthulu geshia drawing done there at the con. Actually we ending up hanging out with her and a bunch of other artist all night. She gave the choice of two out of three geshia drawings. We went to dinner with them and an after party. Jennie did I tell you that you rock? Well you do! I had so much fun and it was a real inspiration being around all these artist doing their thing. Plus it was total bonus being refered to as "the hot goth chick who bought me".


I forgot to get an empty art journal at work to have sketches done by the artist for me...so I had them draw on me instead.

This was done by Hawk from Applegeeks. The pic of him drawing it didn't come out. This is version of Hawk from Applegeeks Lite.

Tim Buckley of Ctl+Alt+Del didn't have a booth there but that didn't stop me from asking for a sketch. I asked for a doodle of Zeke, my favorite sentient X-box.

Jennie did her little devil girl of course.

This is Jamie of In His Likeness. He did the Internet from his comic. I hadn't known of his before this and it now has a place in my regular comics. For some reason I failed to get one from Chrisiti from In the Puddle. Next time...

I did get Choo Choo Bear from Randy Milholland's Something Positive. We commiserated about Emerson students. I also got a paper sketch that will be framed and put in my studio.I spent all my money buying Jennie so I was unable to get the books and shirts I wanted to. Oh and this...I really really wanted to buy this. Even my love gave his approval. hehehe . In case you are wondering my shirt say Talk Nerdy to Me. It was quite a hit. To sum up it was absolutely wonderful...it was like coming home. It was quite inspiring as an artist and fun for the freak in me. Next year I will be there and in costume. I will also pull some extra jobs to make some just-for-the-con-money. I'm actually anxious to hit a few others, but then love may kill me.

A big thank you to all the artist that let us hang out with them.

Back in the open...

I finished the 7th Harry Potter book last night...at 11:59. I acquired it around 3 pm Saturday before a previous engagement. I won't talk about it here, not yet at least. But it is nice to listen to the news again and read the paper, or talk to people. Now I have freed up some knitting time.

In the dark

Here's fair warning: I'm going underground until I read the new Harry Potter. I've come this far without it being ruined for me...So see you in a day or two.

Thursdays

Thursdays are weird days for me. It's my night to close the store, so I usually don't go in until 2pm or sometimes 1pm. That gives me the morning to myself. There are two types of Thursday mornings that I will typically have. The productive one and a non-productive one. The first I get up at a decent hour, later than I normally do, but still early enough to get things done before I have to leave. On these days I can usually get a load of laundry done start to finish, clean the bathroom, and accomplish a number of tasks. The latter is like today. I sleep in late. Get a slow start and really don't have time to do much before I go in. I don't like these Thursdays very much, but when my body demands sleep, sleep it gets.

I'm working 6 days this week. I'm not going to tell the tale of the hellish week that has transpired in that place. It started when I went in last Thursday...and in the course of the week I've nearly walked out no less than 3 times, got close to being fired, been lied to and stabbed in the back, and generally have reached the end with this company. What remaining time I am there is merely to tie up loose ends and set up for my next employment adventure. I have too much talent to be wasting there.

I have several projects on the go right now. Once I get things sorted out I can say more. Lots of my free time has been reading. I've got to get through book 6 before 7 comes out on Saturday. Its sort of a tradition with us. Actually when one of them came out (5, I think) my sweet love went to the bookstore at midnight to get it for me. I had to leave in the am for a job out of town and he made sure I had it with me. He's definitely a keeper. I just want to read it before someone spoils it for me.

When the Sopranos ended NPR had an article about how if you didn't watch it the night it aired you would have to crawl under a rock to avoid spoilers...and then ten minutes later they reported how it ended with NO spoiler warning!!!! (It wasn't a horrible blow though. I don't watch the show. We don't have cable. *gasp*) I don't want that to happen with Harry Potter. I'm not the kind of person who reads ahead to see what happens.

Post-Con

The con was FAB*U*LOUS!!! I bought a webcomic artist...yes, you read that right. I was drawn on by several of my favorite artists. I have pics galore, but they are on love's phone camera, so it may be a day or two before I do a full post about it.

Today is all about cleaning the house and re hydration.

break

We've thankfully had a break in the weather. It was getting so oppressive. And our A/C ended up having a problem that dumped water all over the innards of our furnace. So now its very likely we need a new furnace. If that is true then here are the stats and winners of the appliance game:

Round 1: no one....dryer went
Round 2: me...stove went
If the furnace goes then round three goes to my love. That was his guess. Mine has been the washer and/or the fridge which have been running neck and neck with each other.

Yesterday was my first day off in a week...and without the A/C I was totally useless. I nearly died after I mowed the lawn. I thought I would come in and turn on the air before my shower. The house would be cool enough to let me get some housework done. Then I realized the full extent of the incident the night before. No turning on the air. I had no where cool to go. I wasn't going to go to the mall myself. So I just sat around....melting. I did get some knitting done. I've also decided to forgo the costume this convention. I'm just lacking the time to complete the one I really wanted to do. And I just can't toss together something right now.

A lot of my time lately is going to rereading the Harry Potter books before the new one comes out on the 21st. I was going to start with the fourth one and just read the last three. But then there was a conversation on whether or not Harry is going to die, and someone said that he thought he would until he reread the first one. Damn! So I started from the beginning again. I'm halfway through 4 at the moment.

So that's life at the moment. Lots o crap at work where its just as hot. for some reason its 10 to 15 degrees hotter in my shop than in the rest of the store. Its even worse if I have to turn the drymount machine on (which operate at temperatures between 175 and 215 Fahrenheit). I spend as little time in there as possible.

I will have pictures eventually....just haven't been knitting much. I have spent so much time at work lately.

I apologize for the lack of coherent statements today. Trouble kick starting the brain this morning.

uh oh!

oh crap...Connecticon is only a few days away...and I still don't have a costume yet. hrm.....

I'm still about just working...a lot...I'm in the middle of a 7 day stretch of hell.

instead of sleeping

getting better with a mouse. I'd love to try with a tablet.



Learn how to draw cartoons, comics, and anime at Sketchfu!

My hand at sketchfu

Lisa turned me onto Sketchfu. I thought I would try my hand at it. My mouse drawing definitely needs some work. Enjoy. (click on it to see it larger)




Learn how to draw cartoons, comics, and anime at Sketchfu!

Pondering...

I've been doing a lot of pondering, thinking, worrying, stressing, and dash of self-pity wallowing since the interview. I'm just not so sure where to go with my life at the moment. I just know I really shouldn't stay where I am at the moment, as far a work goes. I'd love to just quit and start free-lancing again. But I know that's when I'll suddenly, despite all the medical issues, get pregnant. And while that would be wonderful, I wouldn't have any health insurance. grrrr....

Ok, moving on to something that doesn't make my jaw clench and my stomach churn.

This sweater is turning out to be quite the little project of disasters I've created for myself. The "coordinating" yarn I bought looked hideous with the two existing colors. Just awful, so I'm back to making what I have work. There not enough to do a matching hat. I was making it work until I was two feet short on the color for the button band bind off. So I am stealing it from another part of the sweater. This really is a situation of robbing Peter to pay Paul. I'm determined to make this work. Come hell or high water....this will work.

Other then that I'm doing a touch of cooking this morning before I go into work. Today is our (delayed due to holiday) garbage day. Which is perfect broth making day. I save all (or most) of my vegetable peelings for broth. Carrot peelings, onion skins and the outer layers, broccoli stalks, the little ends of the garlic that get cut off, celery ends. Just about anything that is technically edible but not exactly desirable to do so. I scrub them well before peeling and put them in a freezer bag. When it is full I boil them for broth and toss the peelings. When I finally get a compost pile, they will go there. The broth either is made into soup right away or frozen for later use. Ice cube trays are great for this. Freeze it as cubes and then defrost only what you need for a recipe. I do need new ice cube trays for this. Use different trays then ones for you 'regular' ice, unless you want a brothy taste to your soda. I also boil any chicken/turkey carcasses for broth. After the meal I pick the meat off, but leave a little on for flavor and boil away. Again, its used right away and/or frozen. I love soup. I eat it all the time and making my own broth makes it much easier and much more economical to make.

I'm back

Well, I'm back from the interview. It went very well, though I now know this position won't be the magic cure for my current situation that I have been hoping for. We shall see what happens though.

Feeling a bit calmer after it was over I noticed that I wasn't too far from Creative Fibers. I felt that I had earned a little treat so in I went. I grabbed two skeins of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino to finish the baby set and a skein of black Silky Wool to get going on another project. For the baby thing I knew I wasn't going to find the same color. They had something *close* but I think it would have looked like a mistake, so I went with a totally different color to compliment the other two. I'm hoping to get that done tonight. I'm on my own most of today...I think I'm going pop in some Dark Shadows and knit my little heart out...and think...lots of thinking.

just testing

Just trying something out as a new profile pic. I took this in college with a timer. Yes, that's me. Yes, that's my violin. This is probably my all time favorite photo of myself.

And the days not over yet!

It has been a day of happenings...Very productive at work and I figured out a computer thing that had been stumping us for a while. I was out at 3ish since I went in at 7. Ran to Target and actually found what I was looking for. Out in the parking lot I got a call from the Doctor. I guess we're off to more in/fertility appointments. Then I get home to a message I assumed was the doctor...nope. I have an interview tomorrow!!!!! Now I know what I'm doing tonight...getting the portfolio together and try to figure out what I'm gonna wear. ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

I guess this would be a good time to announce my other blog venture:

Footprints in the Sky

This is going to be my scenic art blog. Its in it's basic form at the moment but that will change. So much to do...so much to do...eating would help wouldn't it. hrm...Well I'm off to see if I can knit and photo-shop at the same time.

Hot

its hot...so very hot. Normally this isn't a problem since we have central air. But the furnace is currently unhooked due to love's household construction. So we languish away. Not really good knitting weather. I've hit another roadblock on the baby project. I'm not sure if I'll have to break down and buy more yarn or not. I have a possible creative solution but then again it may fail miserably. I'll know when I actually pick up the needles to knit it. I just feel too grimy to do so. I'm saving my shower until just before work...

I did finish the other front to Otis. I'm becoming very bored with it...or knitting in general lately. I think its the heat...I have sewing urges but between a cat infested studio and power being shut off hither and thither in the house, it's not exactly easy to accomplish.

I'm antsy today as well. It's hard to work on things when love's doing projects of this scale, especially when he keeps hitting roadblocks. Today's Mantra: Never let a paranoid schizophrenic contractor design or build anything in your house. Unfortunately in our case he owned the house at the time and we are left to deal with his complete lack of planning, logic, or adherence to code.

Well I'm off to read for a while before heading off to work for the day/evening.

Cats on a Tuesday

We have many cat friendly perches in our home. Various places that one can laze about. Each cat has their own favorite. And then there is the Sunpatch. The Sunpatch exists during the middle of the day when the only bit of direct sunlight in the house comes from the skylight in the hall. The size varies as the sun makes its crawl through the sky but it averages about 1 foot by 2 feet. This is prime kitty real estate and a nearly daily battle will ensue for possession. I managed to document one such battle. I'm sorry for the quality of them...between the fierce fighting and the bright sun it was the best I could do.



This fight began when Isis walked up to the Sunpatch and looked at it. Loki came running down the stairs and sat right in it. Loki doesn't share well. If Isis is already in the Sunpatch Loki will approach and merely sit on her head. Don't believe for a moment that Isis is the victim here. She will often walk up to a reclining Loki, lick her head a few times and then CHOMP on an ear or a haunch.


The battles are somewhat evenly matched. Isis has no claws but is quite adept with her teeth, having practiced for years on us before we got Loki. Loki has claws but forgets to use them. Isis has several pounds on Loki, but then Loki has learned the trick of rolling on her back and using the floor and wall as leverage. Her favorite pose is the paw in the face. Isis will be sizing up the next attack and a grey paw will just smack on her nose and sit there. Her version of 'talk to the hand' I suppose.



Loki is the victor this time...mainly because Isis got bored, walked away, and demanded food from the audience in the kitchen. Doesn't she look proud.

Ha!

So just got back from love's company picnic. I usually avoid this since it's an odd thing being there...I used to work for the company and then I hit a glass ceiling during a campaign against me for fighting for safety issues. It seems its against company policy to NOT want to work in a carbon monoxide rich environment...but anywho. A new to the company employee is someone who went to college with the two of us. Someone who doesn't like me...or so I assume since she was talking smack about me to a rather good friend of mine. Actually the story is quite amusing considering she really put her foot in it on that occasion. So there she is...and there I am. She looked right at me and then ignored me. I grabbed my beer and kept on walking, sidled up to love and said what happened and plainly pointed out the fact that I still have the same figure I had in college and well...other people don't. Otherwise I totally behaved myself. Hey at least I didn't call her on the carpet for calling me a bitch in front of a bunch of my friends.

hrmph....

Sure everyone says something about the scissors but no one comments on the Eurydice set. *pout* As for the sheer number (get it.."shear"...well love would be proud of me) of scissors, mind you it is the merging of both our collections as well as tons of donations from people giving me their sewing equipment. I won't mention how many sewing machines (working and non) that are in my house.

I have been a busy little bee of late. Friday nite we threw a BBQ so of course it rained and had to move the festivities indoors. So that canceled the croquet match and the s'mores toasted at the fire pit, but it was fun anyway.

I finished the shawl for love's grandmother. I laid it out to show him when I bound of and then noticed something. Same dye lot but you can distinctly see the different skeins...son of a motherless goat!
I'm also working on a baby sweater for a friend. I have 3 skeins of yarn for it and a hat. I have two in the darker and one in the lighter. The hat was knit in the darker a while ago and I started knitting the sweater with the lighter main body with darker details....not enough yarn for that. So I frogged it all (i had done the back and the two fronts) and the hat and restarted with darker main body and lighter details. I'll do the hat a mix of the two. It's in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. Love the stuff...oh why don't I get more yarn??? I nabbed this stuff when It was discontinued. At least I'm working on my destashing.

I also had a late surprise gift from my old PRGE pal Obsidian Kitten! There is a beautiful tulip shaped bowl for candles...lets see the little bastard squirrels chop that off! A Batman button, some pretty pretty soap and a hand knit pot holder. The postcard has a picture of Charlie Chaplin from Modern Times. Not seen is the Fear Factor red fire ants gummies. Those didn't last long. Thank you again! It came at the perfect time as all your packages did.

Ok off to get my hairs cut by a professional, buy a pin drill and to the doctor's for some paperwork. Then to love's company picnic where I will try to behave myself. well...maybe.