On the creative front....

I've been bitten once again by the knitting bug it would seem, so there has actually been some productivity on that end. And last night I got home about 1am and did a little online shopping, so it would appear that there is more to come.

First, I finished a pair of socks for Grace out of Wildfoote yarn. They're kind of pretty (I'm not much of a pink and purple kind of girl) and at the moment they're thick like armor. VERY sturdy. I'm going to try washing them before they go to the intended recipient to see if that softens them up at all, otherwise she's just going to have to wear them a little until they soften up.

Next, I've been working on this sweater from the spring/summer 2005 Family Circle Easy Knitting....

I'm using Cascade Key Largo that I bought at the MMKG garage sale a couple years ago from Irene. It's very pretty and super soft (35% alpaca and 65% cotton) but MAN alpaca is sheddy. I have little pink hairs all over my apartment. I'm working on the second sleeve at the moment, but I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to go back and do the first one over because somehow I think I accidentally knit it 5 rows too short. I'm not entirely sure how that happens, but it wouldn't be the first time I've had problems following directions so it's not altogether surprising. Anyway, here are all the pieces in a big jumble, but you can get a pretty good idea of the color.

Last, I started another pair of socks yesterday. I'm not entirely sure who they will be going to at this point, but I'm making them a pretty average size among all the people whose feet measurements I have so I'm sure it'll come to me eventually. Either that or if one of you is reading this and your foot has an 8.5" circumference you can send me an email telling me how much you love me, these colors and this pattern as well as how long your foot is from toe to heel and who knows? They might end up being for you!

As for my online shopping, soon to come your way is a baby blanket and yet another pair of socks. I have to say, I think sock yarn is the most fun kind of yarn to buy because it doesn't take that much and you still have a wearable garment. Infinitely cheaper than, say, regularly knitting sweaters. And let's be honest, I do live in one of the most expensive areas in the country and it would be a smart idea not to spend everything I earn. Right?

Well, I'm gonna get back to watching some football (go Lions!!!) and knitting on these socks and thinking about how at this time next week I'll be in Michigan with my family (yay!) attending a wedding. I can't wait!!

the weekend at last....

I don't know about you, but I'm so happy it's Friday.



I'm also happy to say that the season premier of Grey's Anatomy was everything I hoped it would be. :) I laughed, I cried, I actually cheered at one point. OK, so it's possible I get a little too into these things, but I'm ok with that. One thing I'll have to get used to, however: for the last two seasons I always watch with Grace, either together or via satellite with phone calls during commercial breaks (since I moved to the East Coast). TV is so much more fun when there's someone to discuss it with as it's happening. Well, Grace had to go and move herself to the Mountain Time Zone so she pretty much had to screen my calls all night and I have to wait until she's finished watching it in order to talk about it. Oh well....



The downside of this whole Thursday night television situation is that The Office comes on at the same time as Grey's Anatomy and through the wonder of netflix I've become addicted to that show as well. I almost had myself talked into buying a Tivo a couple of weeks ago just for Thursday nights. In the end I decided that would not be a judicious use of my money so I will simply have to hope that I can find The Office online this weekend so I can stay caught up. You know, unless NBC decided to stop being jerks and put all their shows instead of just the random crappy ones that nobody cares about..... although maybe I shouldn't judge until I check that out.

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And in the end, it's a good thing I checked because right on the front page of nbc.com it says "you asked for it, we delivered!" or something like that, and anyway you can watch full episodes online. In case that bit of information is helpful to you.

OK, I promise to not write quite as much about television in the future, and my internet will (I hope, I hope!!) be fixed tomorrow so I can post from home and include pictures and everything!

Grey'sGrey'sGrey'sGrey'sGrey'sGrey's

Who's excited for the season premier tonight???? I know I am.

Last night I watched Private Practice and while it wasn't a life changing event or anything, I have hopes for the show. It could be good, and I would be happy for Taye Diggs if he was finally able to be part of a television show that wasn't completely terrible and on its way to cancellation after 5 minutes. I have heard that it gets better after the pilot episode... we'll have to see.

I also watched Dirty Sexy Money last night. I'm not sure how I feel about it. There was kind of a lot going on. I think it also has potential. And since Wednesdays have traditionally been kind of a wasteland for television (I am not a fan of Lost. I've never seen it, and I'm not that interested so I hope when it comes back they don't move one of these two shows to some time when I'll never be able to watch) I hope these can be good for those times when I'm home on a Wednesday with nothing to do...or wait a minute. That might be the definition of what a Wednesday is. :)

Countdown until my internet is finally (hopefully) fixed: two more days...

Detroit what?!

So, since I moved out to the East Coast, there has been no shortage of peer pressure for me to switch sports loyalties and cheer for all Boston/New England teams and forget where I came from. I have resisted. I have stayed true to my roots and kept my loyalties intact (as any legitimate fan should do), and not without consequences.

For anyone living under a rock, the Red Sox are the end-all, be-all of sports in this town. These people live and die by how the Sox are doing. Anywhere you go in Boston during the summer months (and ESPECIALLY toward the end of September), you'll hear a conversation about baseball. Will they make the playoffs, will they win the AL East, will the Yankees come from behind and steal their thunder, will they win the World Series blah blah blah blah blah. I'm amazed any work gets done. Ever. And it's not like in other parts of the country where there are people who like baseball and people who don't. It's EVERYONE. It's like a religion. Anyway, everyone I work with grew up on the East Coast (or has lived here for 20+ years) and I am the lone little Tigers fan, upon whom all abuse is heaped. Now this was great when one of the maintenance guys made a super cocky bet with me about a Red Sox/Tigers series in which the Tigers swept and I got a free lunch. But as the season progessed and the Tigers threw away the division and are not looking so good for the wild card (@$&^#%$ Yankees) I get no end of hearing about it. I was out sick yesterday and someone started a nasty rumor that it's because I couldn't face how badly the Tigers' season was ending....sigh.

And now is the added bonus of football season. Despite overwhelming reasons to stop cheering for the Lions, I just can't do it. And I enjoyed the brief, shining moment when they were 2-0 for the season, until last Sunday, which I'd rather not even talk about. I'm sure that most of you have heard about CameraGate/SpyGate/Beli-Cheat by now (if not, the Patriots were caught cheating during the Jets game). Shortly after that, someone put up a sticker (from our label maker) on our key box that said "Cheaters Patriots" which I thought was funny and pointed out to everyone else. I was UNIVERSALLY blamed for this. Now, there are three reasons I didn't do it:

1) I'm not stupid enough to taunt an office full of people

2) I would never have called attention to it if I had done it, I would have waited until someone ELSE noticed it

3) I would definitely have come up with something more clever than "Cheaters Patriots."

The next day I came into my office, bleary eyed as I usually am before noon, sat down to read my email and notice one from our building engineer that says, "I'm out today, and I didn't do it." A suspicious email if ever there was one. At that point I start to look around my office and notice that there are stickers saying "Looser Lions" (that's how it was spelled on the stickers) ALL over the place. I have found 16 of them so far, and there have been indications that there are still more. On my door handle, on my tape dispenser, my computer, the filing cabinet, the bottom of my desk, the picture on my wall, and the back window where I still can't reach to get it down. That was my favorite. You see the abuse and the false accusations? I do have to be honest here and tell you that I got my revenge in taping down most of the things in Bill's office with packing tape so he'd have a nice little surprise when he got back in the office, but still. I maintain my original innocence.

To add insult to injury, at some point during the middle of Sticker Day I noticed that in addition to Lions-hating stickers I also had some that said, "No playoffs for the Tigers". Ouch. It's a tough life I lead.

Anyway, if anything, this has reaffirmed my faithfulness to Detroit athletics.... but I wonder, is it worse to be a cocky, obnoxious cheating winner or a sad, it's better not to even get your hopes up perennial loser? I don't know, you decide.

one more thing..

Is anyone else as excited as I am that the new season of TV is starting tonight??? (yes, I know, I have no life)

It's kind of disturbing how impatient I am for Thursday to get here so I can watch Grey's Anatomy. I managed to make my way through all the season 3 DVDs last week and over the weekend. Before that it was rehashing season one of Heroes, which I'm super excited for tonight.

I figure TV shows are like mini movies and you get a sequel every week, which explains my attraction. However, is there some way to stop the networks from taking random 6 week breaks in the middle of the season so that I completely forget what was going on? I can't even begin to explain how that drives me crazy.

My 2007 so far....

So, the last year or so (well, 10 months if you want to be specific) I have been neglectful, I have been absent, I have been....elsewhere. In reality, I had decided that I was not getting the desired fulfillment from the blog universe, and I quit. Cold turkey, no warning, quit. However, I now find that I miss an outlet for me to spew all my craziness (and I have a lot) that doesn't involve one of my friends being singled out to take it all on at once. So I'm giving it another shot. I make no guarantees that I'll be all that interesting or all that regular with the postings, but at this point I'm pretty sure everyone has abandoned ship so it's unlikely I need to worry. :)

Anyway, my internet is down at home (yet again...) and I'm posting at work (shh!) so there are no pictures as of yet, but here's a brief recap of this year:

January

I went back to Michigan for a minute to see the fam and attend Sarah's baby shower, which was a lot of fun...suffered through a ridiculously cold and windy winter (with surprisingly little snow)...

February

I didn't do anything in February. I'm looking at my calendar right now and I think I must have been a hermit for the entire month...one exciting thing is that Sarah actually had her baby who I am very much looking forward to meeting in a few weeks...

March

I went home for a weekend to surprise my friend Jenny who had just gotten home from Federal Law Enforcement Training (she's officially a badass) and got to hang out with my college friends...a friend from high school came out to Beantown for St. Patrick's Day and while I know we had fun, the weekend is more than a little fuzzy when it comes to details...experienced the first storm of my life in which my apartment actually shook from the wind...

April

Amy & Marie came to visit and we did an honest-to-goodness walking tour of Boston and had a great time...another scary storm in which my apartment shook for an entire weekend and led to my watching the first Boston Marathon of my time in Massachusetts from the comfort of my couch...was happy to hear that my college roommate Stephanie and her boyfriend got engaged...

May

Went to Rochester to visit Toni and had a blast, although there was also a weird light headedness situation that was never adequately explained...started going to movies after work by myself sometimes as a way to relax (which actually is great as long as I remember a sweater, the Boston Common theatre is FREEZING)...went to my first Red Sox game in which they sadly beat the Tigers...

June

Fell on my a** walking/dancing to the car after a Revere Beach barhop and sprained my ankle which made the next weekend awesome when....my mom and Grace came to visit for my birthday and we took in the sights and had a swell time (despite the sprained ankle and all my complaining)...was very excited when Amy and Todd got engaged shortly after his return from Iraq and am looking forward to the wedding in December... April had her second child, who I am also looking forward to meeting in a few weeks...

July

I officially became a psychopath when my preordered Harry Potter book failed to show up the day of release because the postman opted not to climb a flight of stairs and knock on my door, instead leaving me a note. This led to me taking a walking tour of Winthrop in which I was stalking the guy for approximately two hours and never caught up with him and ended up having to buy the book AGAIN the following Tuesday because I just couldn't take it anymore. To this day I have still never seen my original book...went to a gallery opening for a show in which Toni had a piece, which was amazing (my friends are extremely talented)...housesat for Sacha and Toni while they were in France getting engaged (are you noticing a trend?)...

August

Got myself some awesome librarian looking glasses to make me look as smart as possible....got a call from my college roommate Jen that she got engaged on a surprise birthday trip to the Dominican...went to a bachelorette party for Carrie that involved a few scary drag queens and lots of dancing....also rearranged my living room so it looks like an actual room instead of a space with a couch and some crap thrown in it...

September

Finally finished unpacking my bedroom during what will go down in history as one of the most productive Labor Day weekends I've ever had (yes, it took me 14 months to unpack my bedroom)...started preparing myself for the next three months which will involve three trips home, two weddings, one birthday party, one major holiday, a bachelorette party and what I hope will be a chance to catch up with everyone I miss when I'm out here...

And that pretty much brings us up to date. As you can probably tell, I'm practically surrounded by people who are getting married at the moment. It's great and I'm unbelievably happy for everyone planning to tie the knot, but it does seem like a bit of an epidemic. It'll be a good excuse for celebrating for the next couple of years, that's for sure.

Anyway, that's about all I've got for now so we'll see how this blog business goes from here on out (although I have to be honest, I really hate the word blog. Is there something else I could call it? I'm going to have to marinate on this one and see if I can come up with a word that I think is a little less creepy - any suggestions?).