Is this how the elves feel?

I have a fast approaching deadline. Two, actually. The obvious one is December 25. Christmas Day. I'm knitting gifts for most of the people on my Christmas list. Most by request, a few that I decided to do on my own. The other deadline is Sunday. Yes, that's right, two days away, Sunday. My parents are going to Colorado to be with Justin, Amy, and the girls for Christmas. They leave Monday, so we're doing Christmas, Part 1 with them on Sunday evening. The gift for my mom is handknit. Also, the gifts for my brother and family are all handknits. These must all be done by Sunday, so Mom can open hers and so they can transport the gifts for the rest when they leave Monday. Here's where we stand:

1. Mom's present: blocked and ready to be sewn and finished
2. Slippers: one totally done, one needing to be put together
3. Turtles: two more legs to make, then stuffing the shells, and putting them together
4. Socks: one down, one to go
5. Hat: not started
6. Mittens: not started

The hat is for my brother, and he is aware that it won't be on his head by Christmas Day. The requested specifics were not clarified far enough in advance for this to be possible given the other items in the queue. The mittens don't have to be done until December 25, and I can knock them out in a couple days next week. I also have a hat and a pair of socks to make for Michael, but I don't think he's expecting them by Christmas. Perhaps there'll be time once the mittens are done. We shall see.

Holiday Expo!

Yes, I'm a bit of a slacker and didn't post yesterday. But, I broke my NaBloPoMo streak a while back, and am therefore excused from subsequent absences and skips. Anyway, yesterday was pretty busy. Well, the past week and a half has been pretty busy. But yesterday we hosted our first annual Holiday Expo! Let me tell you, if you didn't make it, you missed out. We had displays set up of different products and gift ideas, the house was decked out for Christmas, and we had Bing Crosby's Christmas album playing in the background. Quite a few people came, and we had a great time. We had brownies, snack bars, hot cocoa, and various fruity drinks. A good time was had by all. The rest of you who didn't make it, you'll just have to wait until next year to have such a great time with us. Sorry. The holiday season only comes once a year.

Early to Bed...

Early to rise. Very true in this case. I'm taking our friends Patrick and Allison to the airport in the morning and will be picking them up at 5:40. Going to bed early isn't so bad, since Michael and I are still pretty wiped out from our recent travels. Michael fell asleep on the couch a little while ago, and I woke him up and made him come to bed. Tomorrow is going to be another busy day, so off to sleep I go as well.

We're Back

I think that says it all. We made it. We're tired. I'm going to bed now.

I had a clever title in mind but can't remember it now.

The audition didn't go so well. There were places that were less than solid while practicing, and those are the spots that always get you when playing under pressure. But, now I have a better idea of how to prepare for next time. Despite my disappointing performance, we had a really good day. We went to Craidarroch Castle, which was really cool. I'll post some photos of that later. The lesson yesterday at UVic went really well. I met with Sharon Stanis, and she had a lot of great tips. I'm still considering whether or not to apply, but I have a bit of time before I have to make that decision. I know everyone is going to be disappointed for me about the audition, but it's really unnecessary. I know what went wrong and why, and I'm really good with the outcome. I'm just glad it's over, at this point.

Victoria

We made it. We drove to Port Angeles, which took about 7 hours. We weren't sure how long it would actually take with the weather on Snoqualmie Pass and Seattle's propensity for traffic. But we made good time and didn't have any problems. It did snow on the pass, but the road was just wet and clear. The snow covered trees were pretty. We got to Port Angeles around 11:30, bought our ferry tickets, then got some lunch. We boarded the ferry a little before 2:00 an crossed the water to Victoria. Going through customs went smoothly, and we walked to our hotel. It's not far from the inner harbour, where the ferry comes in. We have a great view of the harbour from our suite. I'll post pictures later. We spent last night in because we were all so tires. Allison brought a bunch of food and made us burritos for dinner. I practiced a bunch and Michael and I went to bed around 9:00. Today will include practicing, a lesson with a violin professor at UVic, and possibly some exploration of the city.

Off to Canada

It is 3:41 am and Michael is loading the suitcase in the car. Patrick and Allison should be here any minute. Then we're off!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Weddings and Things

I played for a small wedding and reception this morning. It was probably the most fun I've had at someone else's wedding, and I was working. It was a very small guest list and an intimate ceremony and reception. Michael came with me and we both had a great time. They made us feel like part of the family.

I've been practicing as much as possible the last couple of days. I have a lot more practicing to do before Tuesday morning. At this point, I'm just hoping to make it past the first round. Michael will be mad at me if he reads this for not being super positive, but I don't feel super positive right now. I wish there were more time. Like another week. Or four. But, here we are. Not getting to practice for several days while I was sick did nothing to help. But, all I can do is the best I can do. Wish me luck, my friends. We leave at 4:00 in the morning. I am looking forward to my lesson with one of the UVic professors on Monday afternoon.

Failure, of sorts

So, yesterday was November 5, day 5 of NaBloPoMo, I did not post. I completely forgot. To be fair, I am preparing for an audition in four days. That takes precedence. Yesterday I taught two 5th grade strings classes, started sewing a sleeve on Katrina's sweater, practiced, drove to Spokane and took a lesson, came home and had dinner with Michael, practiced, emptied the suitcases my grandparents gave us last summer, found some more music for my gig tomorrow, practiced, watched a show with Michael while working on a sock (I only got three rows done), then went to bed. While, technically, there was time to blog, I just wasn't thinking about it. So now, the question is, do I keep going as if nothing ever happened, or just call it quits and go back to my (ir)regular blogging schedule? Care to chime in, anyone? Today's schedule will be just as busy, and will include packing and going to church. I have another lesson with my teacher this afternoon, which is good. My preparation schedule for this audition has been very different than ever before. We've been working a lot more on technique, rather than the actual audition material. But, the technique is necessary in order to play the audition material. I've been under orders to practice the audition material at half tempo or so to be able to focus on intonation. Now I have to get them up to tempo by Tuesday. All 14 excerpts. So...this will be interesting. Lots of practice today. There's no time tomorrow. I'll have to practice on Sunday when we get to Victoria (sorry, guys...that's why we're going). And on Monday. Hopefully it's enough time.

Finishing

I've finished knitting the separate parts of my sweater. I'm currently weaving in the ends. Then I'm going to wash the pieces, then sew them together. After that I have to pick up and knit the stitches for the collar. This will be interesting because the longest cable of my interchangeable set of circular knitting needles broke. It broke while I was working on the ruffle collar of Katrina's sweater. When pushing the stitches down along the needle, the part that screws into the needle head sheared clean off, leaving the majority of the connection inside the head of the needle, meaning that I'm without a long cable, and without a size 5 knitting needle head. I can buy replacement parts, and they're not terribly expensive, but I have to order them by mail. You can't order them online....really, what's that about? Don't they realize we're in the 21st century? Anyway....we'll see how it goes. Katrina's sweater is nearly done still. I have to sew the sleeve seams and attach them to the body of the sweater, then weave in the last few ends. Soon...I'll finish it soon.

Tuesday

1. Today was Election Day and I didn't vote. I'm not even sure what we were supposed to vote for. City Council and Mayor I think....what else is anyone's guess. The school I teach 5th grade strings at on Tuesday mornings is a polling place. They took over the gym, where I normally teach my class. We got moved to another classroom, and the kids, who are normally pretty chatty anyway, where extra chatty today.

2. Michael stayed home from work sick today. He's exhibiting meningitis symptoms. He started taking the medication for it and called the doctor's office. He has an appointment for two weeks from today. Hopefully it clears up soon and he's feeling better in time for our trip to Victoria.

3. I'm officially all caught up on the lessons I canceled while I was sick a couple weeks ago. Tuesday afternoons/evenings have become quite busy. I teach from 3-6:30 (tonight I went to 7:00).

4. My forearms have been sore all day from shredding the chicken with two forks yesterday. Anyone know a better way to achieve shredded meat?

5. Things are really starting to click in the audition material. That's good since the audition will be over by this time next week.

Time for bed...

Productive Day

Today has been fairly productive. I got some things done that had been hanging over my head for a bit, and also put in two hours of practicing. I realized today that I haven't given an update on my adventures in baking and such. Last week I made apple butter in my crockpot. I bought a five pound bag of apples, sliced and peeled them, then put them in the crockpot. It takes about 12 hours to make apple butter that way, but it turned out really well. I made a loaf of Oatmeal Whole Wheat Quick Bread to eat it with. I liked the bread fairly well. It is pretty dense, though, and Michael isn't a big fan of dense breads, so I probably won't make it again. I also made a batch of Cafe Mocha Mini Muffins. I thought these were yummy. The coffee flavor is barely detectable, but the recipe could easily be altered to leave out the coffee, if one were so inclined. The pumpkin bread is now all gone, and I think I'll have to make some more. Michael doesn't really like pumpkin bread, so I get the whole loaf to myself. I made Michael the Honey Crystal Almonds, which he enjoyed. Tonight I made shredded barbeque chicken, which was really easy. I put a bunch of chicken breasts (5 or 6 I think) in the crock pot on high for about 2 1/2 or 3 hours with a bottle of barbeque sauce, took it out and shredded it with two forks, put it back in for a while, then served it on hamburger buns. It was tasty.

NaBloPoMo

I've decided to participate in National Blog Posting Month this year. I'll be in Canada for a few days next week, so that should make things interesting. I believe my friend Patrick is bringing a wireless router with us, so perhaps I will have Internet access. So, here goes nothing.

Fall

I very much enjoy fall. Yesterday I went to the post office downtown and got to drive through some of the neighborhoods near downtown. I like those neighborhoods. There are places where the houses are not so nice, but for the most part (at least where I was yesterday), the houses are well-maintained. And they're not in a subdevelopment, so they have individual characters and it makes them more interesting to look at. There are lots of trees that have been there for a long time, and they're all changing colors and are gorgeous to look at. The wind and the rain yesterday caused a lot of the leaves to fall off, so the trees are getting more and more bare. But the colorful carpets of leaves that cover the lawns and sidewalks make me smile. I also like that once I finish a knitting project, I can wear it immediately. The weather is now appropriate for knitwear. I've been wearing my wool socks, now that I have a few pairs that I can wear frequently. I forgot to post a picture of the socks that I finished most recently. I like them. They're the perfect fall socks.


The pattern is Monkey by Cookie A, and I've lost the band, so I don't remember the brand or colorway of the yarn. I love the socks, though. I finished them last week, and wore them the next day. I also wore them again yesterday. They're even better after a washing.

I finished my flip-top mittens, too. They didn't take very long. I wore them today for the first time. It was chillier this morning than yesterday, so I thought it was perfect for a trial run. They kept my fingers nice and toasty, and I had the benefit of being able to flip back the top to use my fingers as necessary. They only issue I have with them is when I picked up stitches across the back of the hand to knit the flip-top part, I didn't go all the way to the outside edge on either one. It's not a huge deal, and if it really bothers me I can tack the edge down with a darning needle and extra yarn. But, for making them up on the fly, and the first pair of flip-top mittens I've ever made, I think they're pretty good.



I've also been making yummy things. Yesterday I baked pumpkin bread. I found a lower calorie recipe on allrecipes.com. I ended up using a whole cup of buttermilk (well, sour milk, actually) by accident. I soured a whole cup of milk and intended to only use half (and save the other half for the next time I make it). But, without thinking, I dumped the whole thing in. It turned out fine, though. I didn't even have to extend the baking time. It's very moist, and tastes great. I had two pieces last night and three so far today. I'm currently making apple butter. It's done in the slow cooker, so it takes quite a while. Slicing and peeling a 5 lb. bag of apples takes a while. The apples have to cook for about 12 hours total, so it'll be done around 10:00 tonight. Hopefully it's worth all the effort! I have a few more recipes to try in the next couple of days. We'll see how those turn out, too.

Endings and Beginnings

I finally finished the argyll kilt hose I had been working on. Here is the finished object:

I actually finished them on Sunday. They have been blocked, but took nearly all day Monday to dry completely. I haven't quite made it to the post office yet to get them sent off. My guilt over that is assuaged by my suspicion that I've contracted the ever popular H1N1 flu and that I shouldn't be in public. My days of illness have given me lots more knitting time. The raging headache and general malaise makes practicing a non-event, so I've been watching shows on Hulu and knitting. Kind of a lot. And mostly for me. I have been working on the finishing details of Katrina's sweater. The ruffle collar takes an eternity to get through one row. And it's 11 rows. Normally, that would seem easy. But each row takes about an hour to get through. No joke. So, it's slowly progressing. Plus (sorry, Katrina), I'm feeling selfish. I want to knit things for me. Here's what I've got so far:

The first picture is the back of a sweater I've started for me. It's simple...stockinette stitch, nothing fancy. But I have a feeling I'll wear it a lot once it's done. The second project, as you might be able to tell, is a mitten. It'll be one of those convertible, flip-top mittens. I've got the main body of the hand finished, I'm currently on the thumb, then I need to do the flip-top part. This will be perfect for the winter since they'll keep my fingers warm, but I'll still be able to use my iPhone without having to remove an entire glove.

Observations

1. When I have several things going on, I blog much less.

2. I'm really tired of working on these argyll kilt hose. These ones are small and I'm over halfway done with the second sock. But I want them done, and I want them done now. I have other projects that I would like to work on, and Christmas gifts to get started. I did finish the green kilt hose and delivered them to their owner in Portland a week and a half ago. I actually dropped them off at his wife's store, as he and his wife were out of town that weekend. I haven't heard how he likes them, but I think they turned out pretty well.


3. I think the cold makes me tired more. Since the weather turned I've been a lot more tired. That, or I'm still getting used to my new schedule. I'm teaching the 5th grade strings classes at a few schools, and I have to be there by 7:20 am. That's early for me. I'm not a morning person. Maybe it's just that getting up early on a regular basis makes me more sleepy, even if I go to bed on time. Also, I have a headache today, which doesn't help with feeling tired. And before you ask, yes, I take my vitamins and as far as I know I'm getting sufficient levels of iron.

That's all for today...nothing too fascinating.

Blessings

Yesterday I went to EWU for the last time (at least as a student). I returned everything that I needed to return and went to Records and Registration to withdraw from classes. I've told everyone that needed to know that I'm not coming back. This morning I actually spoke to the conductor of the orchestra there. He was very upset about the situation and how it was handled. But he totally agrees with my decision and is supportive of my decision to withdraw and pursue other options. While I was sure I had made the right decision, it's still nice to have outside confirmation. Since the decision has been made it seems like blessings have been coming our way. I've decided that I'm going to focus on two things for the immediate future: 1) practicing and working on building up my music career through auditions, performances, and teaching, and 2) working on creating more income through our business. Both of those things have been working out really well, and it's been less than a week since I've made the decision. I've had appointments already and have some coming up and I'm sure I'll get orders out of those meetings. I've been contacted by two different people to perform at their events (one at Macy's Northtown in October and one for a wedding in November). Today I received a call from the Coeur d'Alene School District asking if I would be interested in teaching the beginning strings class at one of the elementary schools. I'm going to email them my resume and meet with them later this week to see what we can make happen there. Now, nothing is confirmed yet, but I have a good feeling about all this. I'm truly blessed to have all these good things happening in the wake of a troubling situation and a husband who supports me through everything.

Pulling the Plug

As at least some of you know, my experiences at EWU lately have been less than satisfactory.

Let me start at the beginning.

This time last year I began the first year of the Master's program at Eastern Washington University with an emphasis in performance. I came in with the understanding that I would be working with the same teacher for the two years of my program. In performance degrees at the collegiate level, but especially at the Master's level and beyond, the program is often selected based on what teacher you will be working with. When I originally expressed interest in EWU, I took a lesson from the violin professor on faculty, I liked him, so I decided to go through with enrolling. Unbeknownst to me, the University had already decided not to renew his contract after the 2008-2009 school year. I found out through the grape vine during the first week of classes that my teacher wasn't going to be there for the duration of my program. When I confronted the Department Chair with this information, he lied to my face and said nothing had been decided yet. I was informed the next day by someone else that it had been decided, and that what I had been told originally was correct - my teacher would only be there for the first year of my program. I requested to be included in the search process for the new teacher, was assured I would be, and left to my own devices.

They did not begin the search until sometime in the spring, brought three people in over the summer to interview, and I was included in that process. I took lessons from all three candidates and provided my feedback to the commitee. Unfortunately, someone from the department sent an improper email to one of the candidates, the candidate complained to the University, and the search was cancelled. So, they're hiring someone temporary for the Fall Quarter, restarting the search to have someone permanent by Winter Quarter, and they're hoping it will be the same person they were on the verge of making an offer to previously.

So, this means that I would be having three teachers in a two year program.

The private teacher is the most important component of a performance program.

Does anyone else see a problem here?

I've been trying for the past month to work with the department to make the best of a horrible situation. I proposed that they hire me as a grad assistant for the Fall Quarter to handle the duties of the violin professor position. I meet the basic minimum requirements for the position as advertised, and am more than capable of teaching the current violin and viola students as well as the string techniques class. Out of this deal I would get more money and the right to work with a mutually agreed upon instructor for the academic year. They decided that this was not the greatest idea. Instead they told me I would have to take from whoever they managed to wrangle into the position (my words, not theirs), and that I should "look at it as the glass half-full." They also informed me they would allow me to teach the string techniques class in the fall. It would be great experience, they said. When I asked how much they were going to give me to teach the class, they said, "Nothing." So, they want me to do more work this year for less money. Does anyone else find that to be absurd? This is a class normally taught by full time faculty, and they want me to voluntarily teach it for free. I informed the chair that I don't work for free, and that I could use the time spent teaching the class teaching actual paying students. Frankly, I'm insulted that they even suggested that. I was further informed that allowing me to take lessons from a teacher of my choosing and still receiving credit from the University for it would, "set a bad precedent," and proceded with a ridiculous slippery slope argument. (I've noticed over the years that most of those slippery slopes never happen in real life, because we don't live in a ridiculously hypothetical universe, but maybe that's just me.)

Anyway, my scholarship money is severely reduced from last year, I don't have an acceptable situation with a teacher there, and they have no respect for me as a person or a professional. They, and the Department Chair in particular, seem to think that I'm a freshman who has no idea about the world at all. I wouldn't say my experience is vast, but I've done the college thing before. I pay my bills. I am, in fact, older than most of the Master's students. Most of them are 22 or 23 and I am 26. I have an entire professional life outside of the University. Nevertheless, they expect me to be grateful for whatever crap they decide to dole out to me. I'm not acruing that much more student loan debt for a substandard program. It's just not worth it. So, I have a few more things to wrap up, and then I will be officially withdrawing from the University next week, probably on Monday.

It actually feels good to have made a decision. I don't have to worry about it anymore and can spend my time focusing on other things, like the two gigs and audition that I have coming up in the next week and a half.

Finished!

I finished my first pair of commissioned kilt hose! I finished the argylls first because the dancer who they are for has a competition this Saturday, so I've been working on them exclusively this week so I could get them done in time. And I did. I will deliver them tomorrow afternoon. Here is a photo of the finished project:
This is a pre-wash photo...they're having a bath now, and I will soon take them out and lay them out to dry. The colorwork should be more even and the yarn softer after the bath.

Works in Progress

Life, or at least my life, seems to be a string of works in progress. I constantly have a few knitting projects on the needles, I'm pretty much always working on one piece or another musically, and relationships are constantly evolving and need attention in order to flourish. All works in progress. This isn't a bad thing. If anything, it's a good thing. It means that I'm growing, learning, exploring...all necessary to a full, enjoyable life. Stagnation would be so sad. So, I'm glad there's always something new to do or learn or experience. Right now I have several works in progress. I'm preparing to audition for the substitute personnel list for the Spokane Symphony on September 24. I also have two weddings to play this month, one this Saturday, and one on September 26.

Knitting wise, I have five projects in progress by my count. The two pairs of kilt hose that have been commissioned, the two pairs of socks I started while waiting for the yarn to come in for the commissioned hose, and Katrina's sweater. I still need to put the sleeves in and do the collar. Sorry, Katrina, for taking so long. I promise I'll get it done.

I have made significant progress on the kilt hose. I have the first sock done of the heather green ones (minus weaving in the ends). The annoying thing about this sock is that I thought I would have enough yarn in two balls to complete the sock, but I was about three rows plus the grafting short of a full sock. I did order five balls of yarn for the pair, to be on the safe side, and I'm glad I did. Here is a picture of the completed sock on my leg. It does not fit me well at all. The foot is about two inches too long, the leg is way too long, and it wouldn't stay up for long if I tried walking around in them. This is all as it should be, since they're for a man with feet two inches longer than mine. But it looks better on a leg, even a too small leg, than it does just lying limp on the floor.

Close up detail of the cuff:

The first sock of the pair of argyll hose is coming along. I have nearly all of the ends woven in and have seamed down the back and started the heel. I still need to finish the foot and sew down the hem on the cuff, as well as weaving in the last few ends once that's all done. It does look a bit silly right now, though.

The front:

The back:

Here is a picture of the clippings after weaving in about half the ends:

In an earlier post I postulated that I might get an entire pair of socks done before the yarn arrived for the kilt hose. This is true, and not true at the same time. While I was knitting the sock I had started at the Highland Games, which was a toe-up sock, I had the urge to make a top-down sock. So, I got out the yarn that I bought a year and a half ago when my mom and I went to Spokane on a yarn shopping tour, and started another pair of socks in a popular pattern called Monkey by the designer Cookie A. I finished both the toe-up sock and the top-down sock, but then the yarn came, and I haven't finished their mates. Here are the photos:

The Evergreen Sock (toe-up)

Monkey sock 1

Monkey sock 2 (or at least the cuff)

So while only two projects are actually on the needles, I technically have five in process. Katrina's sweater is not much further along than previous pictures (the body is sewn together now), so I won't post more of that until it's finished (whenever that may be).

Kilt Hose!

I have been working on the first two kilt hose orders for a little over two weeks now. The first pair, a cable pattern in forest heather are coming along fairly nicely. The first sock is about 11 inches long from the top of the cuff. I have a few more inches to go before I turn the heel and do the foot. I'm nearly done with the calf decreases.

The back

The front

The other pair are argyll hose for a Highland dancer. They're coming along very quickly. They're smaller than the green ones because they're for a girl, not a grown man. Also, I think watching the colors change makes me want to keep going on them, rather than working on the other ones. (I keep saying "they," as though I'm working both socks of the pair simultaneously. I'm not. I'm working on one argyll sock and one green sock.) The argyll sock is about 15 inches from the top of the cuff. This is an interesting one, as it's worked flat, then seamed down the back. The green socks are worked as a tube. I'm at the point on the argyll where I need to hole the heel stitches and finish the argyll pattern on the top of the foot. When that is done, I will seam the back of the sock, then work the heel and the bottom of the foot back and forth until it's as long as the top, then join it in the round to finish out the toe. This keeps the seam from going around the bottom of the foot. That wouldn't feel very good to walk on, much less dance on. I must say, I'm quite proud of the argyll sock. It's unlike anything I've ever made before.

Spokane Highland Games

This weekend Michael and I were at the Spokane Highland Games, which is held annually at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center. I was there as a vendor, enticing people with custom knitwear, particularly kilt hose. We went on Friday evening to set up our table and tent and stayed for the potluck that evening. We had dinner with the people whose tent was next to us promoting the Kilted 18 golf tournament they have in Post Falls in September. Another couple, Jim and Karen, who were there from Portland also ate with us. They gave us a lot of tips on other games we might consider going to, and said that we would do well. In fact, Jim was the first person to place an order with me. The person who was the vendor contact for the games also placed an order for argyll kilt hose for her daughter, who is a Highland dancer. I got a couple other orders from other Highland dancers as well. I was invited to another Highland Games in eastern Oregon, but it's the same weekend as my audition for the Mid-Columbia Symphony. I passed out quite a few cards and hopefully generated some more interest. For now, I've placed an order for yarn for the first few sets of hose. Michael was hard at work yesterday making www.jessicascustomknits.com a much better site. Meanwhile, I started another pair of socks for me.

I started them on Saturday while we were at the Games. It's a pretty quick knitting pattern. I just started it Saturday and haven't worked on it tons, but I've already got over 5 inches done. At this rate, I just might get the pair finished before the other yarn gets here.

July Update

Things have picked up a bit since June. Michael is all better now. He finished his medication on the 4th of July weekend, and hasn't had any trouble with meningitis since then. We went to Dallas, TX for the 4th of July to celebrate my grandparents' 55th anniversary. It was a very quick trip (we got there Friday afternoon and left Sunday afternoon), but it was fun to see everyone. The weekend before last, Michael and I went hiking in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest and we were definitely in the middle of nowhere. We were out there for about three hours and were pretty exhausted by the time we were done, but it was fun. We saw a deer while on the trail. We see lots of deer in Coeur d'Alene, but it was fun to see one in its own habitat, rather than our habitat.




Left:
Michael taking a break.

Right:
The deer crossing our path.












Left:
The view of the trail.

Right:
My shoes at the end of the hike. They're supposed to be green.











My brother is working on a Master's degree through a distance program, but had to go to Pasadena, CA for two weeks this summer as part of his program. So, Amy and the girls came up here to stay with my parents while Justin was in California. It was a lot of fun getting to spend time with them. We hung out a lot at my parents' house, but also went to the beach last week and went to Riverfront Park in Spokane the day before yesterday. We went on the carousel, took a train ride, had a picnic in the park under an oak tree and the girls came home with lots of acorns, and played on the big Radio Flyer slide.

At the beach.


I did finish the kilt hose as well. Here's a picture!


I am having a booth at the Spokane Highland Games on August 1. Come and see me if you're in the area! For more information go to www.spokanehighlandgames.org.

Doctors Visits, etc.

Michael is finally on the upswing. We went to the doctor last Thursday afternoon. The doctor was a bit concerned that Michael was still spiking a fever considering that the two week course of treatment was almost finished. He did go ahead and take him off the IV medicine as planned and put him on a two week course of oral medication. Not quite the clean bill of health we were hoping for, but better than continuing IV treatment. So, he finished his last dose of IV medicine on Friday night, and the home health nurse came on Saturday morning to remove the PICC line. He said it felt weird to have that pulled out (it was 43 inches long and went all the way to his heart), but it didn't really hurt. He went back to work on Monday, as planned, and a gracious individual donated 40 hours of time to cover the second week off that he took and didn't have time for. Michael gets to go back to the doctor next Thursday, and I think that everything will be fine after that. He's still feeling a bit on the tired side. He didn't sleep very well on Sunday night, so he started the week off extra tired, but he's starting to make public appearances again, and seems to be returning to his normal self. Yay!

I did finish knitting the first of the pair of kilt hose. I just have to finish hemming the cuff and it'll be done. I'll post pictures of it when it's done. Katrina's sweater hasn't gotten much further. It's no longer pinned to the floor of my extra bedroom, and I did connect the shoulders, but that's all. Seaming is not my favorite thing, so, it languishes in the corner until I can stomach it.

Given the slothfulness of the previous two weeks, I've been much more active this week. I got in a workout on Monday that did a number on my quads, so Tuesday I took it easy. Yesterday I convinced Michael to go for a short walk after dinner, and today I went for a 45 minute bike ride with my mom. We're planning on going again tomorrow. It feels good to be doing more than sitting on the couch in front of the TV.

Knitting!

So, I've blocked the sweater for Katrina. Here are the photos!

The fronts:


















The back:


















The sleeves:


















Here is an up-close picture of the pattern:



















I've also gotten quite a bit done on the kilt hose. When I tried them on last night they weren't quite as long as I had hoped they would be on my leg. So, I've got a bit more to go, but here are a couple photos of them on my leg. They're not the greatest pictures, as it is difficult to take pictures of socks on your own feet.



















Michael's not changed much. He's still not feeling that great. We have doctor's appointment on Thursday, so hopefully that goes well. Now I'm not feeling that great, but don't worry, it's not meningitis. I think it's a sinus infection. We make quite a pair, in any case. The house is a mess and neither of us have much energy to do anything about it. Oh well...I guess it'll get taken care of eventually. It would be nice to have a house elf to do the dishes and laundry and take out the trash. They could wear my nicest teatowels. And I'd treat them very nicely. Anyone know a house elf in need of a house?

Friday

The nurse from the home health company came by today. She changed the dressing on Michael's arm and took some blood. The nice thing about the PICC line is that they can just take blood through that – no need for more needles. We asked her about the fever he's been running and she said that's pretty normal, so that was reassuring. She also helped us figure out how to use the new bags they sent us with the last set of medical supplies. About half of them were the same as what we started with, and half were different, and we weren't sure exactly where to stick the spike. After a week of this, Michael's starting to get annoyed at not feeling well. We still have another week to go, and the nurse said it takes about another week after the treatment is finished to start feeling back to normal again. We also got the paperwork from the doctor's office that needed to be filled out so Michael can get FMLA. I picked it up, then took it to Michael's office. I also stopped by ISP to say hi and let them know that Michael's still alive. He helps them with their computer stuff and they love him for it, so I knew they'd like an update.

The kilt hose had a minor setback. I attempted to try it on last night, and couldn't get it over my heel. That doesn't work very well in a sock. So, I ripped back to after the turning of the heel and tried again. I've gotten a couple inches again with a slightly modified pattern that I think will work better. Hopefully, the calf increases will work out.

Thursday

So, in the last week or so with all of the fun going on with Michael's health I've spent a lot of time just hanging out watching TV. This means I've had lots of time for knitting. I have officially finished knitting the pieces for Katrina's sweater. I finished the second sleeve yesterday. It was a bit frustrating as I had to do part of the increase section three times, because for some reason I couldn't do it right. It was definitely user error, not problems with the directions. I did manage to do one sleeve correctly, after all. But, I did manage to do it, and I kept better track of the decreases and caught the two mistakes I made shortly after I made them. Now I need to block the pieces and put them together, then pick up a bunch of stitches and knit the collar. In the meantime I'm working on my other semi-abandoned projects: kilt hose. I started the kilt hose quite a while ago. I'm working them toe-up from a design of my own devising. I got the foot done and turned the heel, and they've sat in a basket ever since. So, I picked them back up last night. I originally started them with the idea that I could take the finished pair to the Scottish Highland Games in Spokane on August 1 and see if I could get some orders for kilt hose from some pipers, or other fans of wearing kilts. Even if I only took a couple orders, I could charge $150 for a pair of hand knit kilt hose. But, that won't happen if the first pair isn't finished. Or at least one sock. So, in that time, I've messed up several times and had to go back and fix things, thus putting me only an inch and a half farther along.

Michael is doing about the same. We have no obligations today, so we've been laying around pretty much all day. Tomorrow morning the nurse from the home health place will be visiting us to change the dressing on Michael's arm and check to see how he's doing. He's wanting food again, so I better go.

Finished

The paper is finished. The only minor detail is a strange citation situation that I've emailed my professor about. If she doesn't get back to me by tomorrow afternoon, I'll just make something up and send it. It's nice to have it done, though.

Michael seems to be feeling better sometimes. He's been joking around more today. Unfortunately, he's been running a low grade fever for the last couple days. It hasn't gotten to the point where we need to call anyone, but it's getting close. I keep hoping it'll just go away; that it's a remnant of the meningitis fever, not a new one cause by the PICC line. Our friends from church have started bringing us food. Katrina brought us some Stouffer's lasagna tonight, and it was yummy. And much appreciated. Thanks, Katrina! We still have over a week left of fun with infusions. I'm glad I'm done with school and can just focus on helping Michael get better.

Update

The last few days are a bit blurry. A fog created by lack of sleep makes the days difficult to keep track of and I feel like I'm floating in a bit of a timeless void. The few days since Friday seem at once not that long, and yet an eternity. Michael was released from the hospital Saturday morning. The unimpressive doctor came into his room and said something along the lines of "Well, I did my job. I signed the paperwork. You'll be released by noon." This of course was before I had returned to the hospital. I didn't actually expect Michael to be released until mid to late afternoon on Saturday, so I had planned on teaching my morning lessons. So, I canceled those and went to the hospital instead. He was officially released about 11:00 am. He's on IV medication until Friday, June 19. The dosing schedule is every 8 hours, so we get to hook him up at midnight, 8 am, and 4 pm. Fortunately, there are no needles involved. On Friday afternoon they inserted a PICC line (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) in his upper left arm. If you'd like to see a picture, he loaded one on his facebook page. So, he has tubes hanging out of his arm until June 19. The medicine takes an hour to drip into him, so that means we can only get about 6 - 61/2 hours of sleep at one time. We've been taking lots of naps. This is why the last few days are a bit blurry. I usually only sleep once a day, not two or three times. And these are long naps. This morning we went back to bed after his 8 am dose (around 9 or 9:30) and slept until 1:30. He's doing okay, but we're both pretty tired, him more than me. He's sick, so that makes him tired, the IV medicine makes him tired, and the pain medicine makes him tired. It's a lovely trifecta. Fortunately, I don't have to go to school right now since we're done for the summer, so I can stay home to take care of him. While things could certainly be better (like, if no one were sick), they could certainly be a whole lot worse.

The paper has made progress. I've been working on it today for the first time since Friday. It's close, but I think I'll have to finish it tomorrow. I can't think that hard anymore tonight.

No Kidding

So, Michael really is sick. Very sick...not just a cold or a stomach bug. He has viral meningitis and is in the hospital. He didn't feel well yesterday, but we thought at the worst it was a sinus infection or influenza of some variety. Neither of those are fun, but usually require little more than a doctor's office visit and some medication. Neither of us slept well last night because he was in pain and couldn't get comfortable, then started vomiting around 5:00 this morning. I did manage to go back to sleep for a bit after that, but set my alarm for 8:00 so I could call our doctor's office first thing. We weren't able to see our normal doctor, but took a 9:00 appointment with the nurse practitioner. We figured it was better than nothing...she can prescribe medications and if a doctor consult was necessary she would surely grab someone. So, we were there for about an hour and they ran some bloodwork and did a physical examination. At which point she said, "I think I'm going to send you to the ER for a spinal tap." And Michael said, "Oh, no...not meningitis." You see, Michael's had meningitis before about 10 years ago, and it was not a pleasant experience. He ended up spending two weeks in the hospital then. So, back to the car and off to the hospital we went. Bear in mind that neither of us had showered or brushed our teeth. We set the appointment at 8:15 and had to be in the car by 8:45. Michael was in pain and not moving very quickly, so I had to get both of us ready in 30 minutes. Definitely no time for a shower. Plus, I was expecting to be gone for an hour or an hour and a half at the most. Little did I know.

So, we spent about four hours in the ER. For being in the ER it was actually a fairly pleasant experience. Michael had a great doctor and fabulous nursing staff taking care of him. Our friend Patrick came and stayed with us the whole time. They did more bloodwork, a catscan, and a spinal tap. During the spinal tap, Patrick and I went to the cafeteria, where he kindly bought me lunch when I realized that the plastic in my wallet wasn't good enough for them (they only accept cash or checks). I was quite hungry, as it was almost noon and I hadn't eaten since 7:00 last night (wow...that seems like so long ago and it was only last night). The spinal tap came back positive for viral meningitis and then we got to wait for Michael to be admitted. Allison came sometime during the wait for the spinal tap results, and the four of us joked around and had some fun in the ER. The fact that Michael was high on pain meds and wearing a mask only added to the hilarity. He finally got moved into a room around 2:00 and I went home to take a shower around 3:30. By then Michael's mom Donna had arrived and stayed with him while I went home. She got there right after they got him in his room, which was perfect timing. She wanted to come sooner, but the ER room was pretty full already, so I had asked her to wait until he got in a room. Using her mom-sense, she came at just the perfect time. I didn't even have to call to tell her he was in his room. I had been in the lobby of the ER talking to my parents (who are now on their way to Wisconsin to help my grandparents get settled in their new retirement home and pack up their house and get it ready to sell) when they moved Michael up to his room (Patrick was still with him). So, when I got to the elevators, Donna was just getting on, so we were able to ride up together. The nurses on his floor have also been fantastic. I'm slightly less impressed by the doctor on his floor. She kept trying to tell us that hydrocodone and percocet are the same thing (Michael's allergic to percocet) and they are not at all the same. I finally said something and she looked it up, and lo and behold! I was right! .... Anyway. Michael's getting some good drugs, finally (it took the doctor until 6:00 to sign the orders so he could get drugs and food and we were in the room by 2:00...again, not terribly impressed). I just got home a little while ago and felt the need to document this for the world. Despite all the insanity, I did manage to get three more pages done on my paper. I have three or four more to go, so it shouldn't take too much longer. I emailed my professor and explained (briefly) what was going on and asked for a couple more days. She's given me until Thursday (I asked for Wednesday) to get it turned in. My plan is to try to finish it tomorrow, or Sunday at the latest, and to take the extra time for some serious proof reading. Given my current tiredness level, I'm not sure how coherent what I wrote today will be. The basics are there, but it might need some serious editing.

Update

I have five pages written. And now Michael's sick. My plan for a day of productive paper-writing alone time tomorrow will not be... Michael's sleeping right now. But he's on the couch, so I'm reluctant to turn on lights in order to see my sources and thus continue with the paper writing. We think he has a sinus infection, which is no fun. He just went to bed now, so the paper writing can continue!

*I'm now on page 7.

Procrastination

So, I should be working on my paper for my Twentieth Century Music class. The paper is due on Monday and I have yet to start. For those of you who are curious, it's about George Crumb's settings of the poetry of Federico García Lorca. George Crumb has composed nine works based on Federico García Lorca's poetry, which are Night Music I, Madrigals, Books I-IV, Night of the Four Moons, Songs, Drones and Refrains of Death, Ancient Voices of Children, and Federico's Little Songs for Children. Of these works my paper will deal with Ancient Voices of Children and Songs, Drones and Refrains of Death. I chose these two works because Ancient Voices of Children is the most well known of this set, and Songs, Drones and Refrains of Death is the composer's personal favorite. Anyway, I really should get started on it... I'm also planning on attending a grant writing workshop in Spokane at noon. It's free and is being put on by the Spokane Arts Commission. I have no idea how long it is, though. I also need to listen to the recording from my recital. I've been putting it off, but it's time to bite the bullet and find out how it really was. Well, time to get to it.

Dinnertime

The other night Michael and I went to Applebee's for dinner. There was an older man sitting at the booth next to us eating dinner alone. At one point the waitress came by his table and I think he asked her for the check. At which point she informed him that his bill had already been paid. He said "What?!" and looked around in disbelief. She repeated that someone had already taken care of his check. "Who?" he asked, and looked around the restaurant as though hoping he would just be able to tell who had performed this deed. After asking a couple more times, the waitress gestured to a couple sitting at a table across from them. He thanked them warmly and they had a short conversation. It was really uplifting to me to witness this random act of kindness. I often get discouraged about the state of humanity. Rarely do we hear about good things, bad acts rule the news. Witnessing such things restores my faith that there is good in the world.

Don't Blink, You'll Miss It.

That's how I feel about March. I blinked, and a whole month was gone. I mean, I remember all the major stuff that happened: my students played in Solo & Ensemble, I wrote a paper and finished out the Winter Quarter, I played four concerts in three days, I was sick for two weeks, had Spring Break, Michael had his birthday, and I started the Spring Quarter (on Monday). But it all went by so fast....I don't know what happened. Maybe it's due to the fact that it's April 1 and it's still snowing. I'm not a fan of snow in the spring. Snow in the winter is fine. But it's spring now and has been for a couple weeks. Enough already!

I addition to all of the aforementioned activities I also managed to finish the socks I started in December. Part of the reason they took so long was that I had to rip out half the first one and when I realized that fact it sat in time out for a few weeks before I picked it back up to finish it (again). The second sock didn't take nearly as long, as I did not make the same mistake twice. Here is a picture of one of the socks. It's hard to take a good picture of both feet at once.
Also, Mom got some tinker toys so we could build ourselves a swift. She gave them to me last Thursday along with a couple of hanks of sock yarn. For the uninitiated, some yarn comes in balls or skeins, which a conveniently wound for you. Some yarn comes in hanks, which is yarn that is just looped together and not yet wound into a ball. The swift holds the yarn for you so you can wind it into a ball. Winding yarn without a swift is possible, but can be very unpleasant (trust me...I know). Here is the tinker toy swift, complete with a hank of yarn on it that I wound into a nice ball.
I now have three projects on the needles. The sweater for Katrina (I have the back and the left front finished. I'm now on the right front.), the first of a pair of black socks for me (it's nearing completion), and the first of another pair of socks for me made from the yarn pictured above. I'm doing my own thing with these socks. I'll share more another time. Hopefully April won't go by in such a whirlwind.

Gloves

I have a pair of red fleece gloves that my mom got me for Christmas last year or the year before. I like them well enough. They fit in my coat pockets and keep my hands relatively warm. They keep my fingers from freezing off in the winter before the heater has a chance to warm up the steering wheel in the car. My fingers come comfortably to the end of the fingers of the gloves, except for the ring fingers. There is about a quarter of an inch of extra space at the ends of the ring fingers. I realized today that this is because the ring fingers on the gloves are the same length as the middle fingers. This seems strange to me. I realize that different people's hands and fingers are different sizes, but I've yet to meet anyone whose ring finger is the same length as their middle finger. My ring fingers are certainly shorter. And my pinkies are shorter still. The index finger on the glove is shorter than the middle finger. My ring fingers are about the same length as my index fingers. I should think it would make more sense to do the same to the fingers of the glove. Again, I realize different people's hands are different than mine, but I think that generally speaking my hands are fairly normal in terms of ratios. Some people's fingers are longer than mine, but generally their fingers have similar length ratios as mine. I've noticed that the finger whose lengths are most variable is the pinky. Is it just me? Does anyone know anyone whose ring finger is the same length as their middle finger?

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day has never really been a big deal with Michael and me. This is not to say it goes totally unmarked, it's just usually something small: a card, some candy, maybe go out for dessert or something, nothing extravagant. This year was a bit different. We actually celebrated a day late because Michael is on an email list for the Coeur d'Alene Resort and got an email about $150 lakeview rooms for Valentine's Day weekend. We stayed there Sunday night (since Monday was President's Day it worked out nicely) and actually got to stay in one of the Honeymoon Suites. The rooms are very nice and it was a wonderfully relaxing stay. We were on the ninth floor in a corner room, so we had a great view of the lake. Here are some pictures!

Bread

I made bread yesterday for the first time ever. It was really easy and I enjoyed it. I think I'll have to do it more often. It turned out pretty well, but I think the next loaf will be better. I forgot to put the salt in it until after I'd started kneading it, so I just kneaded the salt in. It worked okay, but it's a little more bland than normal. Next time, I'll have to do it when I put the other ingredients in. But, here is a picture of my first loaf of bread ever.

iPhone

I have to admit that I think the iPhone is the greatest invention of the 21st century so far. This is not to say something else won't come along and trump it...we're still in the first decade after all. Also, I know there are other comparable smart phones on the market and that other people think that those are wonderful and possibly the greatest invention of the 21st century. While I acknowledge that those devices could be wonderful (having never used one, I can't give a definite opinion), let me just say that the iPhone came out first. I'll take it as a given that we all acknowledge that the new generation of smart phones far outstrips the old smart phones...

Anyway, here is why I think the iPhone is so wonderful:

• I can send and receive phone calls on it
• It has visual voicemail, so I can pick which voicemails to listen to from the display, rather than having to listen to them all to get to the one I actually want
• I can send and receive text messages and it saves them in a conversation format, which is handy
• I can check all of my email addresses with the touch of one button
• I can use the internet whenever I want
• I can download games (many of them free) to keep me from getting bored while waiting in line, waiting for people, or during other times where just sitting is necessary
• I can put notes to myself in it so I remember important things

• The calendar functionality is easy to use and helps me keep track of my ever changing schedule

and last but not least

• It's an ipod

This feature is one of the most useful in the pursuit of my master's degree. For my music history classes at mid-terms we have a listening test on the music that we've studied thus far. This fun little version of "Name That Tune" took place yesterday. So, for the last several days the soundtrack of my life has consisted of:

• Movements 1 and 5 of Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique
• The first movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 "Eroica"
• The fourth movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 (yes, this is the famous one with the chorus and the "Ode to Joy" which is way better in Beethoven's original form than in the watered down version we sometimes sing in church that we call "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee." If you've never listened to it, I highly recommend it.)
• The Credo from the Missa solemnis also by Beethoven
• Beethoven's entire Piano Sonata No. 17 in D minor (which is also really cool)
• The first movement of Schubert's Unfinished Symphony
• Mendelssohn's Overture to "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
  
• The third movement of Dvorák's (pronounce de-VOR-zhack, it's Czech and should have an upside down ^ over the r) Symphony No. 6
• The first movement of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4
  
• Les Preludes by Liszt
• The first movement of Mahler's Symphony No. 1 (I love this symphony)
• The fourth movement of Brahms's Symphony No. 1
• and Don Juan by Richard Strauss

Because of my iPhone I've been able to take this with me wherever I go an study for my test. See, it's wonderful.

Phobias

Today I took my car through a car wash. It was incredibly filthy due to all the freeway driving that I do and the fact that it's winter. Now, this may sound strange, but I'm a little phobic of drive-thru car washes. I have no idea why. I realize phobias by definition are irrational, but at least some of them make a certain amount of sense. I mean, you could fall off a high place and go splat, or get bitten by a snake or spider and die. My other phobia is of needles. At least needles hurt, which could contribute to fearfulness. Also, there are those traumatic childhood memories of being held in a room by a bunch of strangers (doctors and/or their assistants) and poked repeatedly by needles in an attempt to draw blood while screaming for my mother who I could see, but they wouldn't let in the room. But car washes. That's just strange. And I was fine until I got into the car wash itself. Then I got this little panicky feeling, my heart started beating a little faster, I'm sure my blood pressure spiked, and my hands got a little shaky. It's so weird. I remember being scared of car washes as a little kid, but I have no idea why. Maybe it's a weird derivitave of claustrophobia...I feel somehow trapped, and then these weird arm things move all around me and make me feel like I'm moving when I'm not and cover my car with soap and I can't see anything. Now, I'm better about it than I was as a small child. I used to cry and scream and carry on out of sheer terror. Now I just get a little panicky. No screaming or crying. So weird.

Booties!

I came to a realization the other night. My friend Kelly is pregnant and is due in early February. It's already January. She is having a baby shower a week from Sunday. I need to do something about a present. I usually knit something for people's baby showers, unless caught almost completely unprepared (like, I find out about it the day before). I've known about Kelly's shower for about a week or so, but it didn't really sink in until Thursday night at about 11:30. With a deadline of just over a week, I would normally try to whip out a pair of baby socks. I've given out a few of those in the last year and people seem to like them. However, I'm in school and free time isn't in great abundance, particularly during the week. So, socks, even baby socks, take more time than I have to devote to them right now. I then went on ravelry.com and did a search for patterns for baby booties, and limited the search by needle size (and picked a slightly larger size, as things knit more quickly that way). I found a pattern called Wave of Babies as a free download, which I started working on yesterday. I've completed one pair of booties in blue yarn and I'm just finishing the first of another pair in orange. It's a really quick knit, and they're very cute. I think I've found my solution to short deadline baby gifts.

The Hula Hoop Experiment

On Monday I bought a hula hoop. Yes, it does seem a bit silly for a grown woman with no children to buy a hula hoop. I bought it for myself. I read an article over the weekend in a magazine that said that hula hooping was good exercise. It uses all of the muscles that make up your core, including both the inner and outer obliques (which is not so common in most exercises). Also, exercise is supposed to be fun, and this seemed fun to me. So, I went to Kmart on Monday and purchased a shiny, silver hula hoop. It only cost $6, which for a piece of exercise equipment is a bargain. I have used it every day since I bought it. The article says you'll see benefits from using it for ten minutes twice a day. I've done at least that much so far. I've been looking for something that I can do at home pretty easily that isn't boring or expensive. This seemed to fit the bill perfectly. I don't even have to wear special clothes to do it. This morning I decided to take my pulse when I was done to see if it actually raised my heart rate significantly enough to do any good. My heart rate was at 120 bpm, which is exactly my target heart rate for aerobic activity (according to this heart rate calculator). I figure that's a pretty good deal. I'll let you know further results as they become more evident (i.e. better fitting pants, inches lost, etc.).