Well, it's been just over a month since I last posted. I sure didn't intend to take a break from blogging, but that is what I have done. Christmas has come and gone, New Year's as well. Tomorrow is the US Presidential inauguration and a lot of people will be off work - not because of the inauguration, but rather because it is the day we commemorate Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday. I have to work and so does my dh. Our son is off work, but he may be the only family member not working tomorrow.
I don't think I mention in my last post that I was casting on several projects for my son's gf, I, who had finished a pair of ankle socks for herself that she loves to wear to bed in particular. She wanted to start a pair for her mother, my son, and a friend's son. Then she also decided that she wanted to make a couple of scarves for herself. She had an approximately 1500 mile drive each way coming up for Christmas where they were going to FL to visit my in-law's, so it gave her knitting time since she wasn't driving. I haven't seen how far she has gotten in person since she got home, but I know she sent me some pictures along the way of at least 1 of the scarves in progress. I am not sure if she might not have bitten off more than she could chew to start so many at once, but she wanted a variety to work on. That way if she got to a heel on a pair of socks, she didn't have to stop until she was with me again or anything. She doesn't yet want to learn to read patterns or to learn the heel process. English is her 3rd or maybe 4th language, so she wants to take her time. If I could find some patterns that were in both English & Portuguese we might be all right, but she says maybe 2 years, then she will be ready to learn to read a pattern.
I need to do some adjustments to 3 items I made for gifts - the sleeves are too long on my son's sweater & the neck is too tight for his head. The 1 granddaughter's socks need to be bound off a little differently since I made them longer & she has trouble with getting them over her calves. Another granddaughter, that I didn't get to measure, her socks are too tight around the foot, so I need to completely remake them. I thought there was a chance since I didn't get to try them on her while I was making them.
We have had some snow, but not much. We have had quite a few days with single digits in the mornings. So I keep telling myself it's only about 2 more months & then we are looking at warmer weather. I hate winter myself!
A week ago with mad the company Employee appreciation party at my new job. Every employee can bring 1 guest & it wasn't until about 4:30 pm that day that I knew whether my guest would be my son or my dh. Turned out my dh didn't work more than 8 hours after all that Saturday. So we both got a nice dinner for it and each employee was given either a gift or cash. The envelopes of cash were all gone before my name was called since I am 1 of the newest 4 employees, so I got a Nook Simple Touch. I had tossed around the idea of Nook or Kindle for quite a while, but never did anything about it. I still like the idea of a Kindle Fire since I could download shows and movies from Amazon to it to watch when I had a chance - car rides, etc. But I do have my little laptop that I could use as well. I have found several classics books that were free to download and got them put onto the Nook yesterday after receiving the 32gb memory disk that I had ordered for it. The nook doesn't have much of a memory built into it, but you can add memory. And with more than 1 memory card, you could add quite a bit actually. I do like that I can view .pdf patterns on it, so that will be handy and was 1 of the reasons I had considered getting one anyway. I haven't taken it yet anywhere with me, am waiting on my case to arrive for it - should be here on Tuesday & then the screen will be protected in my purse. I have added the .pdf's of the 3-4 items I am currently working on or want to work on to it so that I have them.
My mil was hospitalized last weekend with the flu and pneumonia, but she was dismissed about mid-week. I did get to talk to her for the 1st time in about 6 months while she was there - it made it easier that she was kept in 1 place! But my bil was there with her, so gave her the phone. Her dementia is really taking a toll on her, but I don't know how much of what I noticed is from the dementia and how much was from her being sick. I sure miss her from before the illness that is robbing us of her came into play. I have earned a sum total of 1 day of vacation time from work, so am thinking I may try to piggyback it to a holiday weekend and maybe even a day or 2 of no pay so that I can get up to see her later this year. She did tell me that she was wearing the Amazing Siberian Slippers that I had made for her Christmas gift though and that she liked them. I didn't actually hear my bil telling her that they were from me, so he might have done that just prior to my phone call.
I have found some new blogs recently to follow - 1 of them is
A Joyful Chaos that started out with a former Amish woman telling about growing up Amish. She has now co-written a book with another established author to tell her story. I want to order the 2 that will be out when I get my next paycheck. Growing up near an Amish community and interacting with the Amish as my mother bought goods from them has always made me be interested in them. So I am always wanting to learn more. Right now Mary Ann is having a give away on her blog of a book by 1 of her favorite authors.
Another blog I found recently is a woman in Australia who has discovered the joy of making socks, but she has already bypassed my 3-4 years of sock making in just 6 months or so - she is currently working on her 20th pair, unless she has already finished those! I do not know how she does it! Maybe I just have too many other interests! That blog is
MelsNattyKnits.
Tomorrow finishes up 3 months that I have been at my new job and I believe on Tuesday I should have a 90 day review, but my boss hasn't said anything about it. I do think that things are finally all fitting together and I have a clue as to why certain things are done and since I do, I now have a clue as to when to do certain things, so it is all getting easier. It's kind of hard to know what questions to ask when you do know exactly what it is that you need to be doing. I hope some of my notes might make it easier for the next person, if I were to give up my job at any time in the future. Not that I intend to, but I do remember 1 previous job that my notes probably helped the next person out. I know I passed them on to a co-worker who was doing the same job during the time that I was also doing the job and I believe they helped her.
I talked with my oldest (younger) brother - 1 have 1 sister & 2 brothers, but all are younger than me by 4 1/2 to 8 years - on New Year's, I believe it was. I found out that he had left Kansas in November to live in Oklahoma. He is with the woman that I can't stand. They say they are married, but I know they did file for a divorce at one point and I don't think they ever remarried. They just believe that because they went back to living together before the divorce was final, that it voided it. I think she is horrible for him, but I think he clings to her because he always wanted a mother to love him and she reminds him of our mother - but that isn't a good thing! Our mother wasn't a good mother! Anyway, it brought up what I always feel - I am the last in the family to know anything that is going on. And they wonder why I disappeared for so long & kept to myself?
Our youngest daughter is traveling for work & is currently in India until March. An experience of a lifetime for her!
At the last minute for Christmas, I was able to whip out a hat for our sil - it took me about 24 hours from start to finish & I believe he likes it!
Anyway, I think that brings me up to date for the most part!
Have fun & Happy Crafting until the next time!
I say look at it as a nice paid vacation. A time to do some of the things you always wanted to get done around the house but never had the time to do. I know it's been great having hubby home these past 4 months. He now has a new job, starts next week and I'm already missing him doing the house work...
I figure I am not going to get into too big of a hurry to accept the first thing that comes along, unless it starts dragging out. And I have plenty I want to try to do at the house. And since I haven't had a vacation since A & I cruised to the Bahamas, I am ready for one.
The pay may not be that much different than a lower wage I will probably be offered from the sounds of it, my type jobs they told me today will probably start at about 2/3 what I am making right now & then if it changes into permanent employment, there could be a pay increase. Part of that is because the company is paying the temp agency about 1.5 times what the temp agency pays you. But for clerical work, I have been told that it is rare to find a job without going through the temp agency. And I think it is less stressful. When I came here, I had been without a job for a month - if it were to repeat itself, I might just have a job about the time it ends here or if it is about a month after I start interviewing, that isn't too bad either - at least if there is the unemployment there as well.