We did drive in the snow!

It did snow yesterday!  It started snowing while CUrt and I were in the Mall.  (all shopping done except his sister and dad)  After lunch and  a brief nap it was still snowing.



So Angie and I went driving in the snow.  First though she had to clear the car, so it wasn't one of those mobile "igloos" I can't stand.





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No actual pictures driving.  She did good.  Not sure about how my heart faired though!

Weekend Plans

 Here comes the weekend!  My plan is to go to the mall with Curtis and not leave until I am at least 90% done, and the extra 10% must be potentially on line!


It's supposed to snow, so if it does, I want to take Angie out driving.  She drove in snow last winter, but that was all before her license, and 10 months to someone at 17 is a lot longer than someone my age!  I really hope it does, so that a school day won't be her first time behind the wheel again, and so the other maniacs at her school have some time to get used to it again!

You Are an Impulse Shopper

When you go shopping, you have no set strategy. You just browse until something catches your eye. You like sales, but you mostly like them because they're an excuse to shop. Of all the types, you are the most likely to be a shopaholic. You can't stop shopping! You're not the kind of person who makes a list or plans what to buy. So sometimes you end up with too much stuff.

What Kind of Shopper Are You?

The First Rule of Blogthings Is: You Don't Talk About Blogthings

       

Angie got her DL.....finally

So I guess three times is the charm. As I have mentioned in prior posts, Angie had failed her driver's license exam twice! The first time she did not use her turn signal once over the entire course. The examiner came up to me after her test and said she did a textbook parallel park ( thanks carl!) but didn't signal in or out so she failed. There was a stop sign that was on a bit of an incline. (both her father and I drive stick shifts, not automatics) and she didn't roll back at all. But she was turning right and didn't signal. Failed that. Didn't signal for her K-turn- failed that. Her second time through, she hit a cone entering the course. That is an automatic fail. So on Thursday, Curt took her to her test. ( If she failed again she would have to wait 30 days not 14) He texts me, just as I'm getting in the shower that she stalled at the beginning of the course. So I'm pissed for the entire shower. Like I had it!! First I'm thinking that's it, I'm not taking her anymore, she can only go places she can walk. Then I'm like I'll call the driving school, have them give her a refresher and take her for the re-test. And when she buys herself a car and insurance (it's the insurance that would be the killer for someone without a job) she can drive. So I get out of the shower and text Curt did she pass or fail, no response. So I call his phone. She answers and says she has to go back in a year!! A year!! I was so pissed I hung up the phone. You have no idea. She calls me back and tells me it's because NJ gives out a restricted license at 17 and she has to go back in a year to get her regular license. GRRRRRR. Now I'm worried she's watched too much racing with me!! I already threatened her about that though. So here's to safe driving! And those of you living in NJ may want to be a little bit cautious if you see a young girl behind the wheel of a berry saturn or a blue VW!

8.49%

That's how much of the year has gone by already.  Kind of unbelievable isn't it??  Me, I've spent half the month not feeling well.  I started coughing the 14th, got really sick the 16th, started getting better the next week, but now I'm like stalled at maybe 80%.  I've still really wanted a nap everyday (only got 2 this week) am low on energy (ok, for me that's like being a normal person instead of the energizer bunny, but I'd like me back please) and still have that knotty feeling at the top of my chest with the occasional  cough and have to  blow my nose periodically.  This sucks.

Angie has failed her drivers test twice.  sigh.  She has also been working on her schedule for next year ( senior year - gulp)  So far she has - Calculus / Geom honors, Physics 2 AP, Survey of World  Lit& Comp honors, 1/2 year Sociology, 1/2 year Animal Behaviour, French 4 honors, Statistics A

p, gym/health, Foundations of Philosophy (since that doesn't get enough kids to run  every year she has  Multi media Business Presentations as an alternate, but after talking to some kids taking the class now she wants a different alternate because she thinks the class won't be advanced enough considering what she already does to accompany presentations in her classes (they have presentations not oral reports in her school, they are even expected to dress appropriately - I ould have hated that) ) I know most kids would look for an easy class especially with 5 honors/Ap classes, but she knows if she has an easy class she won't do well, she does her best in harder classes. weirdo.

Work has gotten a wee bit better.  I've kind of learned my way around the hardare dept.  I only need to ask J for help finding things occasionally. What is still making me nuts is the overnite guy who needs glasses, but doesn't like wearing them.  So even though the sku number is printed on most of the packages in the tool area, he looks at the picture to figure out where things go. So SAE and metric are all mixed up, wood bits with bi-metal.  I had a minor tantrum about it the other day and started  throwing stuff on the floor.  Also the dept sup keeps trying to cheat the system, but he's not consistent about it so half the time I'm just guessing.  And I'm really not going near any of it with a ten foot pole.  All he needs is an auditor to look close and he can get termed for falsifying documents.  And the sad part is it is wholly unnecessary.  If he just ran his dept right.  D has been pissing me off.  He keeps complaining he's bored and has been using personal time to go home early every day.  It's not his fault.  He has about 1,000 skus he's responsible for.  While he does pack out spray paint every morning, he doesn't do anything in recv.  I have 14,000 sku's,  unload the carpet truck 3 afternoons a week, and keep the carpet machines filled.  Also as a machine trainer, everyone in the building needed to be recertified on the different lift trucks this month.  The store mgr yelled at D the one day he was trying to help me because  I had a ton of price changes and exception counts to do. Told him to go back to paint.  I'm telling you he hates me. And the company eliminated 7,000 positions yesterday.  There are also re-srtucture changes taking effect next week.  I know my position is part of that restructure but  no one knows exactly what will happen.  The rumors are everywhere from cutting down to 4 of us, to getting rid of all of us.  While a lot of people are freaking out, I refuse to do so.  It won't change anything in the long run, and I know I'm the best at my job, and even the mgrs that really don't like me know they need me. It's kind of sad to watch people who are used to just skating along suddenly trying to do their jobs right,  one thing that they can't avoid is that it takes a lot longer to un-do a reputation than it took to build it.  

Craft wise - I still have one short fingerless glove to finish and those ends to weave in.  I need 6 more squares for my VJGC afghan but , I may make 8 or 9 because I laid out my squares last week and wasn't happy with the balance.  I have to figure out where I left of on the pink anklets  9 i really need to make notes, especially when I don't pick up a project for a month.  I started Breeze - anklets from knitty. I'm using the wicked stepmother yarn I bought from Ruth over the holidays.  I have 4 of the 6 flowers I'm making for the knit flower project.  I want to finish 2 more this afternoon, so I can mail them out this week.  

My house is an absolute mess.  I just don't have the energy to pick up after my 2 slobs.  I need to get it cleaned up, because it is sucking the energy out of me.  

So tomorrow is the super bowl.  Who are you rooting for?  I 'm going for the Cardinals.  I really can't root for an AFC team unless they're playing the cowboys ( sorry C!) I do love polomalu on the steelers, if I had a son who played football I would make him watch steeler games just to see this guy play.  He really puts out 100% no holding back every play of the game.  And he is a complete nutcase on field but a nice guy off.  I can't stand Warner, but the Cards need him to have a shot. At least in NJ,Steeler fans are highly obnoxious and I don't want to hear them forever.  Ultimately the reason I'm backing the cards is pure selfishness.  Right now, the 49ers, the Cowboys and the Steelers all have 5 rings.  Neither the cowboys nor the 49ers are in a position to be a shoe-in for next year to tie it up, and I don't want the Steelers to be the only team with 6 rings.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Afghan Updates

This is the most recent picture of the afghan from hell. Yes, it is very pretty and very very soft and comfy, but it is sooo boring to knit! And one row goes forever!!! My plan of knitting on it every lunchtime hasn't worked as well as planned because I keep taking 30 minute lunches. As soon as I finish my giant granny square, I am going to have to start working on the 'ghan at home as well because it has to be done by Nov. 1st to mail out.



This is the giant granny square ( ok not quite giant yet ) it was actually the brainchild of my daughter. I really hate seaming. especially seaming crochet. So I was whining because I didn't finish the red/white/blue squares n time to mail to Min, so I have to seam them myself. My daughter said you should just make one giant square that you won't have to seam. ( did I ever mention she can be absolutely BRILLIANT when she wants to be?) So since I also can't stand boucle yarn, and I bought a bunch of Lion Brand Boucle for 99cents a skein before I knew I hated it (it's just really hard to knit off the needle I think) and the 2 colors I bought look good together i am using them. I kinda wish I had a bright green to throw in, but lets not get crazy. Depending on how big it turns out, if I need to get in an extra inch or 2, I may hit AC Moore or Michaels and see if they have any to make a border with.

As I have already mentioned the red/white/blue ghan is still just a pile of squares. Sigh. I haven't gotten much farther on my socks either. I really want to get them done so I can start my 49er socks. Maybe if I work the ripple at home, I'll bring the socks to work on at lunch. As they are SIGNIFICANTLY smaller than the 'ghan at least I'll get more than 3 rows done a day. Then Friday I ordered 2 skeins of Malabrigo chunky. I bought a skein of paris night from The Backwards Loop - it's shades of darker blue. I bought a skein of charrua from Eatsleepknit - blue and brown. A friend of mine - sunnyspirit23 on Ravelry has created her first original design. It's a cabled cowl ( I think that's what you'd call it- kind of a short tube that goes around your neck instead of a scarf) , but with no offsetting purl stitches. She needed volunteers to knit some up, so she could make sure the pattern was ok, and I really do love cables, so I signed up. I figure I'd make one for Anna and one for Erica, for Christmas, since it's hard to figure out anything remotely fun to give them ( poor Angie - her aunts are 2 big what NOT to do's) I also have to figure out what pattern i want to use on the NORO I posted about a while back. Thinking shrug, but am considering looking for an EASY rectangle lace shawl. Will have to ask Grace if she thinks it will work for something like that (she's lovincomfortknits and the rate she cranks out shawls is nothing less than jawdropping. Of course I would also have to block it myself - every time I sort of mentionhow great her husband Tom is at blocking, Curt tells me not to even dream it)

Angie wants to go to the college fair at the County College of Morris today. It starts at 12, the race starts at 2 or 2:30 so I'll be letting her drive over. maybe I'll stay in the car and work on something. ( the weather is co-operating it's been really cool which for me at least is very conducive to knitting) OK sad story here. Yesterday morning she drove her father's car to breakfast. We were going to the diner which is right at the on/off ramp we usually take to get on route 80. She needed directions to get there. She has been going there maybe once a month since she's been alive. She has been going even more regularly because after games and other events at school she ends up there with her friends from school. Sigh. i told her grandfather (he's always calling me the week before an event and asking what to get her) that I was giving him 3 1/2 months warning that for her birthday (when she hopefully passes her drivers test) she needs a Tom Tom or Garmin or Joe Joe or whatever. The child will get lost in a paper bag. I have been thinking about this for a while now because her friends parents complain about the same thing. I think it is because when we were kids if we wanted to go somewhere we got on our bikes and pedaled over. Today, kids are driven everywhere. They are so scheduled with activities, that they've never had to figure out what to do for an afternoon, so they've never had to just get on there bikes and ride over to tommy's house or whatever. They need to go to dance ( the closest studio is like 4 miles away, Angies studio is 12), Rec leagues are at the field which is 3 miles away, the library is only like 2 miles, but you have to take a windy narrow road which barely has room for 2 cars, and there is no sidewalk. So none of these places are really bikeable. SO even around the town they grow up in they never really paid attention to how to get places.

Well - Tony is in kind of a no lose race at Talledaga today. He's in 11th. It is mathematiclly impossible for him to fall below 12th. So he can take some chances that the drivers in the first 6 to 8 spots can't. This also means that when he takes these chances, I will be having a stroke. so go Tony! and someone plase put 911 on speeddial! The 49ers are playing New England. going to be tough, but they can win this one. dallas is playing cinncinati so they are probably a shoe in for the win. sigh. I will tell you about the conversation I had about that another time. Buffalo is playing the cardinals. I really need Arizona to lose but that game can go either way. So - basically will be a rough sports weekend for me. (at least I no longer have to stress over the mets)

Ok - so several people have asked about Wile E.'s hat that was mentioned a few posts ago by curt. So here it is. Wile E and his infamous hat. When I forst learned to knit 4 years ago, I got kinda cocky about the whole deal. So I bought this purpley yarn and was going to knit a hat for my daughter. Of course the woman who rarely uses a recipe while cooking decides - I don't need a pattern, how hard could it be to make a hat? (this was before I knew about all the online pattern resources, but I don't know even if I did if I would have used one) It was also my first attempt to use circular needles. So I knew how to decrease, but not how to increase so I cast on and started working my way up. Made a brim, and started decreasing. Well problem number 1 - my circ's started getting too big. problem number 2- when layed flat it looked like a cool hat, when put on an actual head it no longer looked like a hat. it was not evenly hat shaped. It looked very weird. So, the Wile E that usually lives in the dining room was put into service while I tried to figure out what went wrong. Of course he doesn't have a people head . It looks like a kinda cool bucket hat on him. And since he needs a hole for his ears, the fact that the circs couldn't go down smaller didn't matter anymore. So I bound it off and it became Wile E's hat. So here is the updated ripple 'ghan picture. It is now 19 inches long. It needs to be 45 inches long. Sigh. It is just 194 stitches each row and so boring that I have trouble knitting more than the 3 row pattern at one sitting. I have gotten 11 repeats ( 33 rows) - basically from above the last white stripe done since my last update on it. After my next white stripe ( 9 rows away) the pattern goes to 4 repeats of orange not 6 between the colored stripes. Maybe switching colors more often will help with the motivation. Then after another 3black/3white stripes it goes to 2 repeats of orange. Sigh.

I had the 'ghan in my car all week, figuring i would work on it at lunch. But it was totally the wrong week to attempt that. Dennis was on vacation so I had to do all the counts, packdown tags, out of stock tags, price changes and orders for paint and decor as well as my regular work. Normally not a huge issue, but Dan was also on vacation in receiving. So while Tammy was covering daytime trucks outside with the propane forklift, she doesn't have a license to run the slip machine. So any truck that came in during the day( thank goodness most of our trucks come in after 4) that needed the slip to get the freight off, I needed to cover. Technically I was also covering the carpet trucks for Dan, but since I kinda took over all those trucks anyway in the beginning of July that was kind of business as usual. So I took a whole bunch of 31 minute lunches, coming back to unload waiting trucks. So with running to Dunkin Donuts to get coffee, I didn't really work too much on the 'ghan . Also since I have gotten spoiled with Dennis knocking on my car when it's time to go in, I couldn't really get as involved knitting as I would usually do.
Also, as school starts very soon, my daughter was kind of busy, and she wanted to drive herself to where she needed to go. (even 4 blocks she would normally have walked) So i spent a lot of time in abject terror in the passenger seat. She hasn't stalled the car when starting from a stop - even on hills- all week so there is some improvement. But she doesn;t want to slow down early or slow enough and whips around corners while I'm going brakebrakebrakebrakeBRAKEBRAKE!!!!! But she is getting better. Fortunately I'm getting all the extra gray's dyed with my roots this afternoon!

So I didn't get much done on my toe up sock. I only have 3/4 of an inch to go before I start turning the heel, but this project feels it is taking too long as well. Sigh