On the verge of another year...

Well, 2006 was a year of many changes - what's that saying, "May you live in interesting times?" That was this year. Next year will bring more changes but hopefully they will be mostly of the happy kind (for instance, our wedding in May!). At any rate, it's time to count my blessings:

1. Peter. My fiance, my love, my rock. Every day is better for having him in it.
2. My friends. Old friends (B&K, N&D), new friends (S&D, L&A, S&L). All good and loving people who have helped get us through rough times and celebrate good times. Worth their weight in diamonds.
   
3. A nice house with room for all our combined stuff, comfy furniture, lots of food, and two cats.
4. Two good jobs - one full-time which is always evolving and improving, one part-time which is a great way to blow off stress and make a few extra dollars while (really) having fun. I mean, they let me play with yarn a lot of the time! :)
5. A working body and brain. This can't be underestimated - I am at a good weight, in reasonable shape, get (almost) enough sleep, and have time to read, write, think, knit, etc. Yes, I get ill at times, but I can deal with it. 99 days out of 100, though, I'm pretty good.
6. The Internet. This is a blessing! Look at all my net-friends, free knitting patterns (woot!), and other resources at my fingertips. And high-speed, no less. (see #4 - being able to afford high-speed Internet is also a blessing!)
7. Life. Maybe this should be #1, but just the joy of being alive, in my life, as it is, is a very great blessing indeed.

Ok, enough weepy stuff. :) Today we're packing out the rest of the stuff from the other house into this house (which means tomorrow, finding room for things and unpacking it). I also work from 2-6:30 and then it's fondue party time at S&D's place. I don't know if I'll make it to midnight but I'll try. :)

Happy New Year!

FO! The scarf is done.

Ok, I took a goof-off morning today. Slept 'til 9 (yay!), had some breakfast and then read newsgroups and blogs whilst knitting away on my striped scarf. And even though there's still about half a ball of cream and 3/4 of a ball of navy left, I'm calling this puppy done. It's 4 1/2' long, plenty for a wrap-around and tuck-in. Yarn is Mission Falls Superwash Wool, knit in 2x2 rib 40 stitches wide on a 5 mm bamboo circular needle. Each stripe is 2". You may recall the hat I made , which then inspired the scarf. Note to self: 2" stripes mean a lot of ends to weave in. Love the look of this, don't think I'd do it again in a hurry though!

Yes, I've taken the picture on my unmade bed. I was going to make the bed this morning, but a certain Squeeky cat is having her extended morning nap and I hate to disturb her:

Cute kitty, non? And now, sadly, I have to stop goofing off and get some things done. Stew to get started in the crockpot, laundry to put away, dishes to unload and load, and then - finally! - my baking/grocery list to compile. By which time it'll be time to shower and go to work, I think. Although I think Squeeky's got the right idea - I could half-do with another nap, myself!

Moving (more) day and my? cats

So it's Saturday, and in a little less than an hour (thank you, Inigo Montoya) we will have several strong backs and pairs of willing hands to help move the rest of our big stuff (and whatever little stuff we can) from house a (old house) to house b (Peter's old-moving-back-in and my new, house). I really detest moving, having done way too much of it in the past. And with everything that's been happening lately, this morning I just want to hang out in my penguin pajamas (yay for Mark's Work Wearhouse!) and vegitate. Not an option. But before we pitch into moving (more) stuff, I want to tell you about my cats.

Actually, "the girls" were Peter's mom's cats; Mush (pronounced 'moosh'), who is older than god but still kicking strong, and Squeeky, who was a rescued kitten about three years ago, if I remember right. But now, well, they kind of come with the house. Now I am not a cat person, never really. Love kittens but when they get big they get that "cattitude" that annoys me. Plus, as a knitter, I worry about what they might do to my yarn. Reasonable, yes?

Well, since we've moved in (a few days, feels like a year, gods I'm tired), Squeeky has decided that I need to rest more. Whenever I sit down, she's on my lap, and insisting on being petted for at least 10 minutes. So I have to take a break, because it would be mean to displace kitty, yes? Yes. And yesterday when I started trying to pick out my carefully sewn-up crown of my Tosca hat (which needs to be frogged and reknit - I have smaller hair than I did last winter), she nuzzled up to me and put a paw on my wrist. NOT THE YARN! She is a good kitty. Mush just shows up for food and then hides out in the bathroom vanity cabinet (she likes the heat from the hot-water supply line, I guess). But Squeeky is making me feel a whole lot more "at home". And it means a lot. So now I am a knitter with cats. But Peter's still responsible for the litter box!

Current OTN: started a Feather & Fan scarf with the Great Big Sea silk, but the colours that looked like autumn leaves in the skein look more like sourball candy in the ball and when knit up. Not sure about that, it may need to go in the bins to 'season' awhile. So the christmas dishcloth, and the to-be-frogged-and-reknit Tosca hat. Peter's sweater is waiting in the wings for some semblance of order to be restored (no way am I screwing that up in this chaos!).

But now, time to put on pants and get on with the day.