Anyone have an extra million dollars I can have?

I am so tired of worrying about money. I am so tired of being OUT of money. Of course, being out of money hasn't stopped me from spending it... and it certainly hasn't stopped the bills from coming. I really thought that getting a second job would help, but apparently it follows the big-purse theory... you just keep filling it up. The husband is sure that he will have a job soon. He has been feeling better and he says he is ready to get out and do something.
Y'all know that I am MORE than ready for him to get out and do something. Despite all six months of evidence to the contrary, we are not a one-income family. And honestly, despite all six months of evidence to the contrary, my husband is a hard worker and a really good employee. I hired him, and he worked under me for years - he was my go-to guy. If someone needed a shift covered, if there was extra stuff that needed to be done he was the first person to volunteer to do it. He was good at what he did. Losing the job at the station was really hard on him - the university wouldn't let us renew his contract a second time after he wasn't a student anymore.
He had another job within the week... that was the call-center job that was so horrible but he did it. He hated it every day, but he did it. And then his dad died and everything recognizable about him went away.
Over the past few weeks he has really started to act more like the guy I married... he laughs more and has been helping out around the house and we have had actual conversations. It is so difficult to trust this new/old him. I'm scared that I'll lose him all over again and I don't know that we could come back from that again. We did it this time through sheer force of will.
I'm glad he is back. I missed my husband and I'm glad he's better at home - I just need him to translate that to the outside world.
I know that money won't fix everything, but I'm willing to take that risk. I am willing to risk the complications that come from too much rather than too little.

Dear World,

Kindly back off and leave me the hell alone so I can knit. It's not that I don't love you World, it's just that I am feeling very... um... is hermity a word? Hermit-ish? (Hermit-a, Hermit-as). Well, anyway.
I have lots of yarn and a few needles that did NOT snap in half and several unfinished projects that I do actually plan to finish (as opposed to those projects that I pretend I'll finish but will actually never see the light of day again). And also? I'm feeling very tired and quiet and would rather knit than work, go to class, cook dinner, clean my house, exercise, drive, sit in meetings that don't involve yarn, talk to strangers, talk to my family, watch tv or babysit.
If you could arrange for me to be put in some kind of comfy holding tank with all of my yarn, my iPod and regular snacks and meals I would really appreciate it.

Thanks so much!

NapKnitter

Somebody Smack Me Hard

Next time I get all weepy about not being able to have another baby. I have clearly lost the knack for it.
My sister came over for lunch today... it was all fine. We talked about nothing important, which is more than fine.
I have never (ever) in my 30-muffle-muffle-years cooked on a grill. How is this possible? Well, I have this basic aversion to the outdoors, what with all of the bugs and the sun and stuff. I also have a tendency to be somewhat of a hazard around fire. Those two things that I know to be true about myself have made me less than a perfect candidate for outdoor cooking. I enjoy outdoor cooking (and indoor for that matter) when someone ELSE is responsible for the outcome and I am responsible for drinking beer and looking happy that someone else is cooking for a change.
But she brought her little grill and then she showed me how to use it. I can now grill over charcoal. Hooray.
But the children. Holy cats, the children.
My child will sit quietly for hours on end if there is either a television, a book, some knitting or something to write with. If all of the above are present I may not even know she is home until she gets hungry.
She has been like this for as long as I've known her (though the specific items she wants have, of course, changed). Maybe I'm idealizing her baby- and toddler-hood. The world may never know.
But these children...
The one-year-old and the two-year-old spent the afternoon climbing on me. When they weren't climbing on me they were peeing on me, rubbing wet cookie into my couch or grabbing random things from the shelves and either chewing on them or throwing them at me.
They refused to eat, preferring instead to climb on me so that I couldn't eat or spit tiny little mouthfuls of food across the dining room.
They can not be stopped.
My sister is not a complacent, quiet mom. She does not sit by and watch these things just happen. There are just more of them than there are of us. And they have more energy. And they're armed with wet cookies and poo.

I need a drink. And a lie down. And my tubes tied. And perhaps my ovaries removed for good measure.

Disaster... Disaster Averted and My Sister Returns

Disaster
Thursday evening was spent at Twist. Andie came with me and a good time was had by all! I have finished 2/3 of my Clapotis... I just need to wind my third hank and I can continue. Meanwhile I moved on to my Monkey socks. I do love them. A lot. I think that once I finish my Monkeys for the swap I might just have to make some for myself.

When I got home (just in time for Tim Gunn's Guide to Style - which I love) I continued to knit my Monkeys...

And here's where the disaster part of the evening came in... A few weeks ago I purchased some lovely Socks Stix at Twist. I knew it was not a good idea. They cost $20 and I prefer KnitPicks metal needles because they stand up to my tension. But they're so pretty and they come in a nice little bag and who doesn't want really nice things from time to time?!?

My Monkey socks are the first socks I cast on my new needles. First and last, I'm afraid. I was in the middle of a k2tog and SNAP! Damn it.

And guess who couldn't find another set of size 1 needles? I did find a size 1 circular Addi Turbo... so in protest, and to keep myself sane, I cast on another pair of socks and practiced the Magic Loop Method. I also went online and ordered another set of size 1 DPN's. From Knitpicks, thank you very much. Why mess with what works?

Disaster Averted
The Sewer guy showed up yesterday. Early.
He cleaned out the line and said that it looked really good.
And the work he did is guaranteed for a year.
And it was less expensive than I thought it would be.


My Sister Returns
While I was at Twist my sister called. Yup, the sister who hasn't spoken to me in a year. That one. She wondered if I'd like to spend time with her and the kids on Saturday. I called her back and we agreed to have a little cookout here on Saturday - just hamburgers and hot dogs. She said we could "talk."
ACK! Who wants to talk? Can't we just pretend nothing happened?
(Just keep knitting, just keep knitting, just keep knitting...)
The Twist knitters were right there for me... they offered to hide behind the bushes when we met just in case I should need them. I think I can handle her. Maybe.

Anyway, she called this morning and we agreed that maybe tomorrow would be better after all. She sounded tired and I have one of those headaches.

We'll see how it goes tomorrow.

You Don't Want to Come in Here

We're having sewer line issues. Not "Holy Cats, burn down the house!" sewer line issues (yet) but pretty much any sewer issue is a bad sewer issue, right? The Roto-Rooter guys are scheduled to be at our house on Friday. Then all will flow freely once again.

It hasn't been as bad as the old house. The first sewer-related issue we had at the old house featured me screaming into the phone (at the landlord) "There is shit on the floor of my laundry room. Actual shit. On the floor. And also water. Disgusting, shit-filled water!" It ended with me covering my shoes with trash bags and wearing rubber gloves. I removed the washer and dryer and used an entire gallon of bleach on the floor and the undersides of the washer and dryer. (Shudder).

This time the washing machine overflowed and the bathtub drain gurgled ominously as the toilet expressed some reluctance to flush completely. We have established water allocation rules for the family. It seems that everything works the way it is supposed to as long as there isn't too much water flowing at once. Oy.

In knitting news... I am almost through the second skein of Blue Moon yarn. I bought 3 skeins so as soon as I run out of skein 2 I can do 6 more repeats before I start the decrease rows. I can't wait to be done! I'm going to wash it in baby detergent (and pet it and love it...) and wear it at every possible opportunity.

Dear fall, please come soon.

Happy Labor Day

This is what is going on at my house while I'm at work today. Lots of sleeping, very little anything else.
I am working my normal shift and then Andie and Bean and I are going to see The Nanny Diaries. After the movie we're off to dinner at our favorite Japanese restaurant. I hope it's open because I am really looking forward to it.



This is what is going on at work today... I am working really hard... on my Clapotis. (Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Heavyweight Socks That Rock in Blue Moonstone). It's big. Really big. And I have another whole ball of yarn. I'm going to keep going though... I like the fact that it will wrap all the way around me and keep me warm. If it gets so large that it's just stupid I'll stop and make wrist warmers or something. I love this yarn.

Did anyone else see the Blue Moon ad in the new Interweave Knits?? They have a "Raven Series" coming this fall. Um, hi? It's fall. Release it already!! I have visions of a big, dark, raven-y shawl! I have been obsessively checking the site but they remain stubbornly on vacation. Sheesh.

Anyway, knit on!

Dishcloth Exchange Questionnaire

Suddenly I can't stop joining stuff... who knows why??

Anyway, this is the link if you are also in a joining mood.

Dishcloth Exchange Questionnaire

1. Do you knit or crochet? How long have you been doing it? I knit... I learned about 7 years ago but have been knitting obsessively for the past two years.

2. Have you made dischloths before? Do you use them yourself, give them as gifts, or both? I learned to knit by knitting dishcloths and gave them as gifts for awhile. Now I generally knit one or two for myself every so often.

3. What's your favorite cotton to make cloths from? What cotton would you like to try that you haven't before ? I use Peaches and Cream. I haven't used anything else for dishcloths so I don't really know what else is out there. Peaches and Cream is inexpensive and comes in a lot of colors!

4. If you knit, do you prefer circular or straight needles? For all, do you prefer wooden, metal, or plastic needles? It depends on the project! For dishcloths I prefer straight, plastic needles.

5. What are your favorite colors? Any colors you don't like much? I love purples and blues and greens... and pink. I'm not that fond of orange and yellow.

6. What do you like best about Autumn? I love that it is finally cool enough to wear sweaters.

7. Pies: Pumpkin? Apple? Pecan? All of em? or No Thanks! Apple!!

8. When you were a kid, were you the one who couldn't wait to get started with school , or the one who overslept on the 1st day? I love the first day of school... the smell of school supplies still makes me happy.

9. Do you celebrate Halloween? (The real key here guys is especially knowing if you have an aversion to the holiday or little goodies/decorations associated with it, given the timeframe of the swap) Yes.

10. If you had to choose just 3 edible 'goodies' to eat for a full year, what 3 would you choose? Strawberry Newtons, Snickers and anything with peanut butter.

11. Do you have any pets? Kids? Husbands who seem like kids? ;) Two cats, 1 daughter (11) and a husband.

12. If you were to describe a particular yarn that shares traits of your personality, what would it be and why? Crystal Palace Bamboozle... it's relatively inexpensive (accessible), it is machine washable (low maintenance), it comes in a lot of colors (something for everyone) and it's squishy.

13. Do you use your cloths mostly for dishcloths, or as facecloths? Facecloths

14. Favorite Fall Holiday: Halloween or Thanksgiving and why? (Feel free to share another fall memory if you do not celebrate either of these holidays) I really like Halloween. We usually sit on the front porch at my friend Andie's house and eat chili (and lots of candy) and knit and pass out candy to the kids. It's a great time.

15. Do you have any allergies or aversions your pal should know about? Nope!