I feel so lame. The knitting content on this blog has gotten pretty friggin slim, eh? Well, I think I'll try and do something about that starting ASAP. Unfortunately, I am basically going to be knitting the same project three more times, so it's not going to be all that exciting.

"I started another bridesmaid top. It's purple. Just like the other ones."

"Look at the picture - it's a purple bridesmaid top. But this one is a size 34, while the others were size 36 - can't you SEE the vast difference?"

Oy.

What in the world was I smoking when I laid this project on myself? Crack, and lots of it, it seems. All I want to do is knit something fun and pretty for me, but I really gotta do this. I can't have topless bridesmaids! Well, I suppose I could, but something tells me THAT would draw attention away from the bride, and I want as much attention as I can get. :-)

Wow, it's been a busy couple of days. The funeral yesterday was as expected, long, sad, exhausting. And cold. Boy was it cold standing out there.

Work today was just hectic, preparing for yet another presentation tomorrow. I was in a major crunch to get some things done, and luckily I managed them and everyone thought I did a fantastic job. Yay me!

I think the best news of the day was logging onto the corporate benefits site and discovering that I am now enrolled in our health plan! Halle-friggin-lujah! That is one major monkey off my back. I guess they took pity on me in Omaha and filed the paper form even after the online deadline had passed. Yay Omaha! I actually did a little happy dance in my office, thinking about the $3,600 I won't have to spend on COBRA insurance extension this year.

Other than that, not much to say. I feel like the world is swirling around me and I rarely have a moment to do anything but rush from one place to another. Maybe now it will start to calm down. Except that I have two birthday celebrations to go to this weekend (Rich & his son Trystan on Saturday, my Dad on Sunday). And soon the wedding stuff will be in even higher gear and I will have to start doing things rather than just thinking about them. Yipes.

Well, dinner at Noche was really yummy and lots of fun. It had been a long time since Leanne and I just got to hang out and chat, without either being at a party or with the boys. We're still playing with the design of the wedding cake, but the consensus is it's going to be a carrot cake! Can't do the cream cheese frosting on top, but it will be in between the layers. Yummy. She had mentioned once that it was doable, and I mentioned it to Ryan and his eyes got as big as saucers. Apparently, it's his favorite cake. It's mine, too. Who knew?

Unfortunately, I got bad news yesterday, too. Diana (friend since forever, maid of honor in this crazy affair) called to tell me that her grandmother died early yesterday morning. The funeral is tomorrow, so I will be taking the day off work to be there, with my boss's blessing, thank goodness. Diana was there for my grandma's funeral a bunch of years back, so there's no way I would not be there for her.

I forgot to bring any of my knitting with me, so I won't be making it to Stitch-n-Bitch tonight. I am really missing being there and seeing everyone! I am going to have to clear my schedule for next week so I can be there finally. In the meantime, I guess my stitch-picking-up for the tank will have to wait.

Wanted to give an update on the Moo blanket. I finally had the chance to wash it with the Synthrapol, and it didn't do much, unfortunately. Maybe the areas which had run were slightly lighter, but it was pretty hard to see a difference. I finally realized that although I could easily see the difference, it was not so obvious to other people that the ivory yarn was now greyish. So, I gave it to my cousin, and when I explained what had happened, she told me I was nuts, and that she thought it was beautiful and she was so happy that I had made something so fantastic for her baby, etc. So, although it wasn't what I wanted it to be, all's well that ends well, I suppose!

I managed to have a wedding/knitting nightmare last night. Pretty impressive. It was the usual scenario: the wedding day arrives, and somehow I have done none of the planning necessary, woke up late and have scary hair, no makeup and a wrinkled dress. Not so unusual. But in this one I actually forgot to knit the bridesmaid tops, so the girls also have nothing to wear and I am sitting panicking about myself and wondering what scary outfits they are going to show up in. Yeesh. I need this stress, right?

The funny thing is that yesterday we actually took care of one very important person’s wedding outfit, for the most part. Ryan and I went outlet shopping with friends of ours, and he found a fantastic tux at the Giorgio Armani outlet. It’s absolutely gorgeous, with 4 buttons, the trademark beautiful Armani cut, great fabric, subtle styling – the works. It was less than 1/3 of the regular price, so it was comparable to buying a "pretty nice" tuxedo full-price. He was very happy with it, and so am I. And if his animation career takes off in the Hollywood direction, he’ll be able to wear it to Oscar shows for years to come!

I’m excited to go to dinner tonight with Leanne, who has an afternoon appointment in the city. We didn’t get a chance to exchange presents before the holidays, so I am going to give hers (and get mine) tonight. We’re also going to talk about my wedding cake, since as she pointed out, it’s closer than it seems (152 days, according to theknot.com).

Thanks to everyone for the good wishes last week when I was so bummed. I still don’t have any resolution on the health insurance issue, but I’ll figure it out one way or another. It’s only money, right? Ha. Well, anyway, I think I am emerging from my post-holiday, post-moving funk, so I’ll be posting regularly again.

Well, I've mostly let go of the anxiety surrounding my health insurance. It's in Omaha's hands now. Either they will decide to process my application late, or they won't and I will have to pay for COBRA from my last job all year. Not much I can do about it at this point, as I don't have a time machine.

So, a little late, but Hawaii was nice. Not the beachy trip it would have been if we were alone or with my family, but still fun. We did manage one solid day on Waikiki Beach, and that was fantastic. Spent some fun time with the family, and with Kristy and Tom's adorable new puppy, Tweek (yes, he's named after the South Park character). I came home really jet-lagged and tired, and I think I'm finally catching up to reality again.

Last night I went to see such a fun show - "Mamma Mia!". What an entertaining night! They walked the cheese line perfectly, never straying to the dark side. I laughed so much, and felt like dancing afterwards. Unfortunately it was Thursday and I still had to haul my ass out of bed to get to work today. Yipes. After being out and not sleeping well Wednesday night, too, I am really comatose today. Luckily my boss and most of our project team are down at the client, and I didn't have to go. My office mate and I are planning a long lunch in celebration of this fact.

Have I been knitting? Yes, of course. I finished the front and back of Kristy's bridesmaid top, and all that is left is to pick up the stitches around the neck and armholes to knit a band. Unfortunately, my first attempt on the neckling looked like absolute crap, so I pulled it out before I even got halfway. I'm not sure if it's because it's a V-neck or what, but I will have to do some reading or head to my LYS for some assistance. Or bring it to SnB, if I can manage to haul ass over there this coming week. I think in the meantime I may start the second of the tanks, since I don't need the same size needles.

I should probably post a Happy New Year message, and tell you all about my trip to Hawaii, but I just can't right now. My mind is way too preoccupied with something I've screwed up royally. Apparently, the online health insurance enrollment packet I received a few days before my trip had to be completed by December 19th, and I didn't notice that date so I didn't do it. Now, unless they will accept the paper form and make an exception for me (I'm filling it out to give to the HR person tomorrow but it isn't her decision, it's someone in Omaha's), I will be without any medical benefits until this time next year, or will have to pay $310 a month for COBRA continuation from my old job. I'm really really upset about it and can't get it out of my mind. I am never that irresponsible, but since moving, all my paperwork has been falling by the wayside because I don't have a good routine yet. If I've screwed myself with this one, that will pretty much be the worst thing I've screwed up in YEARS.

Not much time, we're off to the airport in a little bit. If I have time, I'll post an update from Hawaii, but just in case, I hope everyone who's celebrating has a very merry Christmas, and a happy New Year! Aloha!

Sorry so silent lately. Life's been busy and I just haven't had a lot to say. Plenty to do, just nothing interesting to discuss. Not that I have anything exciting now, I just figured I'd pop in for a bit. Leaving Monday for Hawaii, so I am trying to arrange with a pet-sitter to take care of the kitties and fish, as well as making arrangements with my parents to go out there and leave our car for the week.

I love traveling, but always find the few days prior to my departure very stressful. Then again, this entire season has been stressful, so I can hardly tell the difference.

Only have a few inches done on the front of Kristy's bridesmaid tank, but with about 11 hours in the air and a changeover at LAX, I figure I can get a lot done on the way to Hawaii. Of course that assumes they let me bring my knitting aboard, but they haven't stopped me any other time so I think I'll be fine.

Company holiday party last night was dull. At least it started at 3:30 so we knocked off work early, and it was in the office so I didn't have to travel to it. Left at 5ish, got a few more presents, and went home to collapse. Woo-hoo, I am leading the high life. Tonight we're planning to go out for dinner and hit a local bar that looks nice and has a pool table, which is the big draw.

It is fuh-reezing today but sunny, so I actually enjoyed my morning walk to the subway. Very unusual. I think I'm on a bit of a high from getting Ryan two really good gifts last night. One is going to totally surprise him. Actually, I think both will, but one will do so even more than the other. So cryptic, aren't I?

I can't believe we're leaving for Hawaii in less than a week. Our flight is at noon on Monday. Ryan's sister said her fiance, Tom, has gotten lots of yummy things for Christmas dinner, and that they are really excited to see us. Me, too. I'm so happy that we've gotten to know each other and really like each other a lot. It is going to be so much fun to have her as my sister-in-law!

Lots to do before we leave, including finding a cat- and fish-sitter. Anyone in Brooklyn who's reading, I'd love a recommendation. Preferably someone who won't kill our pets or rob us blind while we're away. Too much to ask?

Too tired last night to knit, and I am not going to make it to Stitch-n-Bitch, unfortunately. There is just too much to do and we both slept horribly last night and the night before - I need to make up for it tonight or I won't last the week. Our company holiday party is Thursday afternoon/evening here at the office (on three different floors - I'm curious to see how that goes.) Then on Friday morning I may have to go to a client meeting near Philadelphia. No biggie except the meeting starts at 9 a.m., which means leaving around 6 a.m. to be there on time. Ugh. I'm torn because I'd really like to present the stuff we're doing, and meet the client face-to-face, but that is an ungodly hour to have to do so. We'll see what happens.

What a relief to wake up and be able to take the train to work today. I still hate taking the subway, but today I was grateful for it. Too much going on and not enough paid time off to stay home, so transit strike or no transit strike, I was going to have to be here. I'm just hoping it stays this way and they find a way to agree.

I've got my first client presentation here at 4pm. It's an informal one, on a conference call, but it's the first time I've done this in about a million years. At my last job I was never involved enough on a project to actually present, and before that I was freelancing and freelancers rarely present. So I am a little nervous. It's a fairly straightforward project, and the things that are new and different are actually things I suggested, so I should be able to talk about it fairly coherently. Still, there's a certain "dog and pony show" aspect to it that always unnerves me.

Right about now Ryan should be giving his interim thesis presentation at school. He's done a lot of great work - way more than any of the other grad students. He's stopped updating his blog, but last night I saw what he's presenting today and I was very impressed. It's a combination of storyboard scenes plus completed scenes, with music and dialogue. At least all the time he's been putting in on that rather than spending with me is coming to fruition!

Still coughing but not as much, and I feel much more human today. It does seem as though I am going to live - good to know.

Went to an eyewear sample sale last night at Alain Mikli. Fancy French eyewear designer. I needed new sunglasses to replace the ones I bought in Italy and lost, and I found a really cool pair with red frames for $30 bucks from his "lower priced" line - retail around $150. Then I spotted a cool pair of regular frames in a muted purple, that were just too cool to miss. Fifty bucks for frames that retail around $400. Yes, I signed up for their mailing list. Now in January, when my new vision plan starts, I'll go visit Yoon, my friend and eye doctor, and get prescription lenses for the purple frames. Yay!

The subway has been so crowded the past few days it almost makes me think the strike would be pleasant! Yesterday and today I had the same conductor's train, and he was very entertaining. Made lots of PSA-style announcements about pickpockets and not giving money to people who say they are from a charitable organization for the homeless. He was really into it, offering tips about keeping your wallet in your front pocket or holding your backpack in front of you - very helpful.

Tonight I think I'll start knitting the front of Kristy's bridesmaid tank while I watch "Must-see TV." I'm looking forward to hitting the sofa at the end of the day.

I saw a girl knitting on the subway this morning. She had raspberry-colored long hair and was working on what looked like the first row of ribbing for a sweater in what I think was a white cotton yarn. She was standing just a few feet away, so I took my headphones off and mentioned to her that if she was interested, there was a knitting group that met on Tuesdays right off Union Square. She was very interested, and said she had been looking at my scarf, wondering if I had knitted it (I had). So, if anyone spots her at SnB (the hair is hard to miss), be nice to her!

I didn’t make it last night because I’m sick again. Or still. Whatever. It seems to be a reverse virus. Usually I have a sore throat and feel crappy, then I get a cough. This time it was the other way around and now I’ve got the sore throat and feel crappy. If I were at my old job, I’d have called in sick, but I don’t have any sick time yet here until after the first of the year. Bummer.

I was supposed to go out tonight and wrap presents for a childrens’ charity with some friends, but I think I am going to have to pass. My body needs some charity, which will probably take the form of knitting on the sofa and going to bed early.

I haven’t started the second side of the tank just yet. Been too busy running around. Most of my holiday shopping is done, though I am still working on Ryan’s gift. I think I won’t discuss that in this forum!

Talk of a possible transit strike is really making me nervous. A few weeks ago, I could have just walked to work (albeit a long walk in the cold). But now that’s just not feasible – it would take well over an hour and involve crossing the Brooklyn Bridge in the freezing cold. I could carpool with some friends, but the mayor says they would only allow cars with four or more people to cross into the city. And I know traffic would just be hellacious. Let’s hope the MTA and the union can get it together and avoid the nightmare of a strike.

Thanks to all for the compliments on the bridesmaid tank. And no, I don't let Serena hang out on it a lot, so it's not cat-hairy. Ryan's kitties do like to sit on clothing, so I try not to leave stuff lying around where they can get to it.

Not much to tell today. I waited half an hour in the freezing cold this morning (20 degrees Fahrenheit) to get into the building where the Social Security office is. I needed a new SS card for work, and today was the day I chose to go. The 30 minute delay was because of security - they have one metal detector and a tiny lobby, but the building has offices for SS, IRS and Department of Labor. Half an hour to get in the building, 2 minutes to hand in the application, have the person do the data entry, and get a receipt telling me to expect my card in the mail in 5-10 days. Sheesh.

Then I got stuck at Fulton Street for 20 minutes on the subway because there was a sick passenger at Union Square. Argh! Didn't get to work until 10:45. Luckily I had said I'd be late and why, so no one cared. Plus it was a quiet day, so I didn't miss much.

Right now I am torn between surfing the web, unpacking some more stuff, and knitting by the TV. I think I'll go unpack until 8, then go for the latter, and try and let the web wait another day.

I finished the back of Kristy's bridesmaid tank tonight! I cannot believe it went as quickly as it did. This is a crappy background for it, but I managed to get one halfway decent shot



before Serena decided that Izzy shouldn't be the only famous knitblogger cat.

It was warmer than yesterday when I left the house this morning, and the snow was gently falling. There isn't anything gentle about what's going on out there now, though! It's snowing horizontally on 42nd Street, with the wind coming from the East River. Brr! I had to go out at lunchtime to buy some new gloves, because I lost one of my beloved red shearling gloves on Tuesday morning, apparently on the subway or on the street.

My friend Casey (who works across the street) met me for a Gap expedition, where I got some black fleece-lined mittens that I'd never make for myself. I also came back with two pairs of corduroys in black and stone, since they were on sale and they had my size. I've been experiencing a "comfortable pants that fit and still look good" shortage lately, so these should help.

My office mate got to leave work early, since she lives in NJ and has a long commute hampered by weather. But I am stuck here for the duration, it appears. Someone even rescheduled tomorrow's 3pm meeting for 4pm today, which is utter madness.

Sad to report that Shrimpy is truly gone. Speculation is he molted and was too weak to survive it, and was eaten by his tankmates after he died. So sad. He was my favorite. I didn't realize I could get so attached to a little crustacean. Now I don't know if I'd want to get another shrimp or not. It's sad to look at the tank and not see his cute little pinkness zipping around. He used to hang out by the filter, and it looks so empty there. I can't believe I am so emotional over a pet I never even touched.

It was so nice to go to Stitch-n-Bitch last night! I really had missed seeing all the girls and just hanging out. Plus lots of people admired the luna silk top so I was pleased. It really is so pretty - all the yarn's doing, not mine. I'm about an inch or so into the armhole shaping for the back, and am still amazed at how fast it is knitting up. And at how far the yarn went - I am just about finishing the first ball now.

Sad news on the fishtank is we couldn't find Shrimpy this morning. Shrimpy is/was a peppermint shrimp and was one of the first denizens of the tank last summer. He was also the coolest. As I put it, he had great shrimpinality! He just seemed like such a happy little crustacean. I hope he was just hiding, but it didn't really look that way. Poor Shrimpy. We've lost other fish in the past, but somehow Shrimpy always meant the most to me.

I'm headed out in a bit to the doctor's office to try and get some help with the dry hacking cough I have had for almost 2 weeks. It's finally driving me nuts. Even if it's viral, I'd at least like something that will suppress the cough, since the OTC stuff isn't doing a thing at this point. I can take Robitussin shots all day, and still cough up a lung. Yuk.

Man is it cold this morning! I thought my nose would fall off on the way to the subway. 21 degrees Fahrenheit when I left the house, and windy windy windy. Brr! OK, enough whining.

So this tank is coming along way quicker than I expected it to. I am just a few rows away from the armhole shaping with just a few hours last night and a few more tonight. I think it might be going so fast because the yarn is very thin and thus I can jam together a whole lot of stitches towards the end of the needle, and then just zip through them really quickly. That's opposed to knit, knit, knit, push, knit, knit, knit, push. I don't know, but something is definitely making it go fast. Pure determination?



I'm planning to go to Stitch-n-Bitch tonight, but I won't be there for too long, it seems. Stupid me brought the tank but forgot to bring another ball of the yarn, and I am close to finished with the one I have. I guess that will be my enforced deadline for leaving tonight. Probably just as well. I have a ton to do at home, but I really want to see some of my knitting girls! This way I guess I can do a bit of both.

Since Deb mentioned it, I figured I'd talk a bit about the fishtank. Ryan decided last summer that he wanted a saltwater aquarium. I love fish, but thought it would be a really expensive, pain in the ass hobby. After saying that, I supported him and helped him pick everything out. Two weeks ago we had the fun of MOVING the fishtank. Whee! "Luckily," many of the denizens had expired over the summer and fall, so we only had two fish, a shrimp and a crab to move. Over the weekend we picked up some more fish. We got a lunare wrasse, three yellowtail damsels, a tomato clown, an angelfish (can't remember the exact variety) and a green serpent star. So far just about everyone is getting along well. I took a few pretty lame pics for you.

Zebra-striped damsel (one of the original residents who survived the move with aplomb!)



Zebra and the new angelfish



Yellowtail damsels



One of these mornings when they are all out for feeding I'll get some more pics. I took these at night and most of them were hiding.

I decided to damn the torpedos and install IE5 on my Mac here at work. If someone from IT gets pissy about it someday, I'll just claim ignorance. At least now I can post to my blog. And that's what's really important, right?

Yesterday turned into a good day. I didn't really do all that much for most of the day - put a few things away, went back to the aquarium store with Ryan for some more rock for the fishtank. But around 5 pm I decided to start knitting, so I pulled out the Luna silk and the Artfibers pattern and started on Kristy's bridesmaid top. I was tremendously relieved that the knitting goes pretty quickly, even though it's a finer gauge yarn than usual. Actually, it's really not all that fine - 5.5 stitches per inch (that's 22 per four inches for those who don't feel like doing the math).

The first inch of the sweater is garter stitch, which I actually find goes more slowly than stockinette, since my odd method of purling seems to go faster than my knitting. For the 36" size, I cast on 99 stitches, and have already finished the waistline decreases and am about 12 rows into the bust increases. I'd say there's about 5" on the needles right now, though I am terrible at eyeballing measurements like that. The fabric is just beautiful - it feels wonderful, drapes nicely, and looks lovely. Now I am beginning to once again believe that I can pull this off.

I think the only reason I had any doubts was that phonecall I had with the girl at Artfibers. I don't know which person it was, but she made a big to-do about Luna being "very thin" and being surprised I was knitting it by hand. Whatever! She must be a chunky-gauge gal. (Yarnwise, I mean!)

Got a seat on the subway this morning, which figured since I left the knitting at home. I had to content myself with playing FreeCell on my Palm, as I had also neglected to bring a book. I'm really annoyed about leaving the knitting - now that I have started this sweater I just want to continue on it constantly. It feels so nice to actually want to knit again - like maybe some of the craziness in my life is calming down and I am getting back to "normal." I think I'll even go to Stitch-n-Bitch tomorrow night. I have a few errands to do in my old neighborhood (dry cleaning, prescriptions I didn't get a chance to transfer yet) so I will do those right after work, and then head over to Java-n-Jazz for a while.

Lots of upheaval these days for lots of knitbloggers. Squib is dealing with the aftermath of a layoff (been there, done that - it gets better, I swear). Staceyjoy has been struggling with electrical and other landlord-related nightmares, which finally seem to be working out, thanks to her tireless efforts. Stacey bought and moved into her new house. And lot of other folks seem to be just generally dealing with a bunch of crap that's keeping them from enjoying their favorite hobby as much as they'd like.

Count me in! We moved November 12th and still do not have a phone line in this place. As I mentioned earlier, the contractor who renovated the apartment cut all the incoming phone and cable lines. Cable finally made it in about a week ago, but phone is still AWOL. We have two Verizon appointments (one for the outside line and one to install the jacks in the apartment) on Tuesday between 8am and noon. Yeah, we'll see. Since this will be the 3rd such visit, I am less than certain it'll happen.

On the up side, we did lots of work around here and are getting the place shipshape. Most of the boxes are gone and the few remaining ones are not too tough. I mostly got the kitchen in order yesterday and celebrated by baking chocolate chip cookies. Yum! Just had a few for brekkie with a glass of milk. Hey, it's at least as nutritious as those sugary cereals, right?

Speaking of cereal, I cannot believe the price difference of cereal at the supermarket here in the city (even in Brooklyn, which is cheaper than Manhattan, though not much in this neighborhood) compared to the price at Target on Long Island. Some of the cereal was 50% less at Target than at Food Emporium on 14th Street! That is insane. At this rate, if we do all our food shopping outside the 5 boroughs, we will save the amount we spent on the car in the first place!

Well, enough babbling about cereal and money. I've still got plenty to do around here to make my little office space feel comfy and look good enough to post pics for you.

Not a lot of talking, but some new pics to share. First off, is this a cute baby or what? Liliana is wearing her new strawberry cap, and seems to like it.



And is this a cute birthday boy, or what? Since the big day was Wednesday the 27th, my family celebrated Ryan's birthday with cake after stuffing our faces for Thanksgiving.



And last, is this a cute cat or what? Serena's favorite new nap spot is on top of the armoire in our bedroom. Keep in mind that the armoire is over 6 feet tall, and she climbs up by using the wood beams inside the doors as rungs on a ladder. Then she either jumps from the top to the floor, or (most impressive) walks out to the very end of the open door and does a controlled fall/leap onto the end of the bed (about 4 feet away). Such a little acrobat, though you wouldn't know it from this pose!



That's it for now. We're off to the aquarium store today, so Ryan can take advantage of the $50 in new fishies that I promised him via a homemade birthday gift certificate. Maybe we'll have some pics of them later.