catch 22 and all

    I find myself in a bit of a quandry lately, brought even more to mind with an email I received yesterday morning.     I am 11 hours shy of fulfilling my degree plan, and scheduled to take 12 hours in the fall semester which will complete my double major and minor hours. While the courses won't be terribly difficult, they are upper level courses, and will require a large time commitment. (Translation: read books, write papers,read books, write papers, read books, write papers.)     At the same time, my honors thesis will be due about mid-semester. I submitted approval papers for my study prior to leaving for Mexico and still have not received any further information. So, I have lost the opportunity to use the summer students for my project (which requires at least five weeks of participation).     Now, all this could be resolved nicely, if I pushed graduation til May... and the best possible way to do this would be to get hired into a full-time position at the university. [The reason why not just any full-time job would be as good a solution is the benefits available as a university employee.] While I was in Mexico, I checked the current job listing, and amazingly, there was an opening (a good one) at the library. Perfect. I applied, and also emailed my former supervisor to check on the situation. Then, my son let me know that I had been called for an interview the following Monday. Oops. Calls were made, messages left emails sent and received, but the short of it is that the person doing the hiring wanted to do so by the 21st, and I didn't return until the 26th.     So, once back in MS, I checked the listings again and found another position annouced for in the Honors College office -- unfortunately, the above mentioned email informed me that I am ineligible because I am enrolled the Honors College.     Now here's what keeps going round in my head: one of the primary reasons for considering a full-time job is to extend the time available for me to complete my thesis as a student of the Honors College. If I dropped out of Honors College, thereby being eligible to apply for the job, I would no longer need to extend the time to complete a thesis.     Now the weird part is that the library job is still in the listings. Yes, I will go make myself look foolish tomorrow morning by asking about it. Alert! Knitting content follows!     While in Mexico, I finished LB's Open-Mesh Market Bag -- I only wish I had a photograph of how it looked full of (first) all the fragile items I packed in it to carry onto the airplane, and (second) all the things Continental made me take out of my suitcase because it was over 50 pounds but then allowed me to carry onto the airplane. I swear, if it had been red instead of yellow, all the little kids would have thought I had Santa's pack!     A couple days ago, I finally cast-on for the Berroco Suede Knitting Tote (materials for which I carried all the way to Mexico and back, along with supplies for about four pairs of socks -- what was I thinking??) At 210 stitches per round, I'm going pretty slowly. It would be faster if I had size 8 circulars.... think I'll go check eBay. LC

you know you've been to a Spanish in Mexico immersion course when you

1. place your order in Spanish to the Popeye's cashier in the Houston airport simply because she was speaking Spanish to the patron before you. 2. the first thing you watch on television is "La Fea Mas Bella" -- but it's not nearly as much fun without your Mexican hijas to watch with you. 3. find you have to stop yourself from saying "gracias," "hola," and "salud," instead of "thank you," "hello," and "God bless you." 4. can't block out all the nearby conversations because for the first time in over a month you understand everything people around you are saying. 5. open the sports page of the local paper and are disappointed at the lack of World Cup coverage. 6. still throw toilet paper in the trash. to be continued... LC

interruption

    Interrupting my Mexico trip to note a sad discovery.     In the spring semester of 2005, I took a world geography class from a really compelling and funny professor who, during our study of Asia, showed the film Genghis Blues. This documentary followed the adventure of an American songwriter, Paul Pena (perhaps best know for writing Jet Airliner, made popular by Steve Miller Band in 1977) as he performed in a throat-singing competition in Tuva. In the summer, I rented the DVD so my husband could watch. Not only was the type of singing fascinating, but the scenery was spectacular.     So, the other day, I was playing the soundtrack and one particularly melancholy tune touched me. I thought it was French, but it is of Cape Verdian (islands off the coast of west Africa) and from Porteguese. Tonight I found the lyrics and the translation, but searching with Google revealed that Paul passed away on October 1st of 2005 from complications of his diabetes and pancreatitis.     Upon my discovery of the loss of this sensitive and talented man, I hope that someone will discovery not only his music, but the country of Tuva and its proud heritage. Here are some more links to help with the latter: Friends of Tuva, Wikipedia's entry on Tuva, and here's one more page of Tuva information. LC, raising a glass in honor

down-sizing

    What a strange 'eating' day I had today. Had my normal(school day) breakfast of scrambled eggs (2) and skim milk, adding a banana today, but then after my nine o'clock class I needed something to drink, and eneded up eating an early--and large--lunch of Chicken Asiago Salad and Fruit Salad (of which I only ate the grapes and brought the rest home to Rodger). Bought apple juice, but never drank it. It was a "big salad" and I was a little miserable in my next class.     Rodger and I had made plans this morning that we would go to Ryan's for a good supper tonight, since he now gets off from work much earlier. I worried after my large lunch that I wouldn't be hungry. I was wrong; well, it was more than five hours between the two meals with no snack! Had a short nap after John and I got home (with my feline sweetheart, Brickly, curled up beside me), and when Rodger got home he woke me and away we went.     It was a good meal, but I basicallly ate the same thing I always eat there (now): steak, vegetables and water. I didn't have more salad, and only a few grapes and a sugar-free cookie for dessert. Afterward, however, I felt unsatisfied. Much of the joy we used to have in eating out seems gone. Eating is now a chore most of the time. And I was feeling fairly frumped when we left.     We decided to drop by Hudson's so Rodger could get some more of the juice he bought last week. They didn't have any, but I strolled through the clothes looking for cotton fabric (rather than knit) tops for Mexico. I didn't find any tops, but they did have the stretch Capri pants that I've looked at but not yet bought. I grabbed several pair and tried them on... they were T O O B I G ! ! !     I had to go down a size and boy, did that ever surprise me. I had no idea that I'd lost enough weight to make that kind of differece. I did know that I was abel to wear some pants that a friend gave me last year that I hadn't been able to wear before, but this totally caught me off-guard. Needless to say, my frump disappeared.     There's more I wanted to write, but I've got to go to bed. LC

hot momma (or "hot, momma!")

The A/C is broken. It's rather hot for mid-April in Mississippi, in my opinion. And it's dry.dry.dry.dry. Someone (stupid) is setting brush fires along the interstate. "They" say it has not been this dry in 70 years. Don't know how "They" know that, but regardless, we could sure use some rain. The A/C is broken. It's too hot to knit. Which really frustrates me because I had to rip out all that I did during the day yesterday (starting another pair of socks for sister) before I went to bed. Which was very early this morning, actually. Neither John or I was awake enough to make classes today. Such bad children we are. The A/C is broken. I'm too tired to read. My eyes, that is. Are too tired. They are really squirrely the last week. The distance portion of my glasses is totally useless. I pulled out all my old glasses to see if any of them would help (they didn't). I have to tilt my head a bit to have sharp(er) vision. I'm getting a crick in my neck. Just found my FosterGrant magnifiers though, so now I can see to read (and knit) better. The A/C is broken. I did get some knitting done today, though I just got hotter and hotter through the afternoon. I discovered the A/C is broken when I tried to turn down the thermostat -- a result of wondering why the A/C wasn't coming on since it was getting hot in the house. But it always does get hotter in the afternoon, so I didn't really think too much about it. And I was sitting under a halogen lamp knitting and finding mistakes and ripping and reknitting, just generally frustrated. The A/C is broken. I was actually going to cook tonight, but it's too hot. Rodger arrived home from work to find me napping in the recliner. I told him the A/C was broken. We hope that it is just the thermostat. Obviously, I wanted to go out to eat. I've been having just a little bit of carb 'treat' every day. Only at one meal. I want to see if they'll check my glucose at the health clinic on Friday afternoon. I am not drinking soda, sweetened tea, or even fruit juices; no cookies, candy or anything like that. I do want to know how a small amount of carb 'treat' will affect me. So, we had Mexican tonight: grilled chicken breast, beans, a very small amount of rice (I like to stir the salsa into it), only 3 chips with cheese dip and some wonderful guacamole. I know it might seem high on the fat side, but he's letting me do that for now. Still not fatty enough to upset my stomach, so that's good. No weight gain since Monday, at least by my scales. I weighed before I went to the doctors, so I have a pretty good idea how to compare the two scales. The A/C is broken. Fortunately, the air outside is cooling off and so is the living room. Maybe I can get the foot of this sock done tonight afterall. Oh, I am itching to buy some more small size DPs. I love the Susan Bates Quicksilver style. So slick and easy to use. Wish they came in the short length though; so much nicer for knitting socks. I'm thinking about some pairs of circulars too, to try knitting two socks at once. Been 'window-shopping' online for sock yarns, too. I want some Opal Petticoat, but seems like only the overseas sellers on eBay are listing it. There's another one... Dancing, I think it is called. My paypal balance is burning a hole in my pocket! Enough of this rambling for tonight. Did I mention the A/C is broken? And that it is hot? And that I have only had 3 hours sleep since yesterday morning at 6am?? If it's not one thing, it's your mother! (Love ya, Momma!!) LC

& the winning number is...

~ 95 ~     My doctor was flabbergasted! Frankly, so was I. I was simply hoping to be under 200. He said that it was not due to the glucophage, but to my diet. He was honestly shocked that I had actually cut out all my 'whites' -- he seemed to start to say that most people don't follow his instructions. Which to me seems really stupid. You don't fool around with diabetes! Anyway, he said I am obviously "diet sensitive." I had lost 3 pounds, and my blood pressure was a little higher than last Monday (not suprising with doing taxes, and paying bills, and school papers and reading and Spanish to re-learn -- and of course, the GRE is the elephant in the corner that I just don't want to think about). Now, I get three weeks on my own to see what happens. Maybe I can check my blood glucose at the university clinic in the meantime.     Yes, I indulged just a teeney bit at supper: I ate the skin and bit of meat off of (less than) half a small baked potatoe. And a small sugar-free cookie.     Today was the first day of classes after "spring break" -- what a joke. We have three weeks of classes until finals. I have two major papers and two smaller ones, and one final -- which, thankfully, is a take-home, 'short answer' type.     AND... I finally finished (except for the bind-off) the pair of socks I started on the way home from Natchez last weekend! All in all, not a bad Monday, Garfield.... LC

heels and toes, no pasta bows

    The excitement of attending the Lily Chin workshop in Natchez last weekend was unfortunately overshadowed by my health situation, but I did have a great time and learned a lot about short-row technique. So much so that on the ride home, I began toe-up socks using short-rows for the toe. I'd done the short-row heel ("hour-glass" it is sometimes called) on my Old Shale anklets, but wasn't really happy with the result. I felt it could be neater. I knew it could be neater because I'd used short rows on my hemp top last summer following instructions at knitty.com. But when I tried wrapping the stitches like that, I could not see them; I miscounted, and mis-stitcned like crazy, and finally gave up and did it like in the Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook.     Because I only made ankle-length sock with the ball of Sockotta, I had lots left, but I wasn't sure just how much. Thus, toe-up socks. I alternated between each sock, judging my yarn (using the Jaywalker pattern from MagKnits), and got up to the heels by Wednesday night. My goal Thursday was to finish the heels so I could do my taxes on Friday. I didn't really get started until late afternoon (first I slept in, then I had to eat, then run errands... and eat... and think about what to eat... and eat... and think about what to eat). Looking back though, I still can't believe how much trouble I had and how long it took me to knit the heels. "Best laid plans of mice and men"     The saga: First I followed these instructions from Wendy Johnson. Turned out fine, but the wrapping was a little different than what Lily had taught us. I did it her way on the second heel. I liked it better, so I went to bed (6am) determined to re-knit the other heel on Friday.     Yes, I was a good girl and did my taxes first. It was actually after 5pm when I got back to knitting. I do not know what my problem was, but although the first half of the heel went find, I bet I re-knit the second half three or four times. First I ended up with unequal number of wrapped stitches as I knitted the short-rows together. Then I did the wrong part of the pattern at the wrong place on the second half of the heel. Next (and at least twice) I managed to drop stitches or was unable to correctly un-knit the wrapped stitches. Finally, I was just too confused about what was what and pulled the whole heel back to the start! It was about 12am when I finally got finished.     I guess I now know at least one reason why few people continue pattern down the heel! It can be difficult to keep track of the pattern and the compensation for pattern. But for wearing with open-backed shoes, I like to see the pattern continue down the heel.     Now I plan to just knit in pattern until I run out of yarn. For the moment, though, I need a shower. But first, I have to eat something!! LC

cures?

    Driving home from the doctor's office this afternoon, where I was given the delightful news that I am diabetic, I began to wonder, just what is the last big disease modern medicine actually 'cured.'     There's no profit in cures for disease only in treatments, whether it's cancer or diabetes. LC

"flat-out A"

Professor said he only gave one on the mid-term papers and I got it!     I told a classmate the day we turned them in that I thought it was the best paper I'd ever written for this professor -- and there have been, hmmmm.... at least seven others. I think I am as pleased with him being pleased as I am with the grade! LOL     In my psych class I'm less than 150 points from an A for the course, so I'll need to get most of the available points for the research paper and presentation (which I really don't think will be a problem).     That leaves Islam class. I'm guessing he'll have our second (of three) papers graded by class tomorrow night. I told him when I turned it in that I had no idea whether I did what he wanted or not. I hope so. The paper seemed to write itself, but took longer to complete than I expected.     Now, to get the paperwork done to run my sleep study for my thesis and get all that material created and uploaded to the experiment site... and... and.... and.....     Somewhere between four to five weeks to get the remaining papers/presentations prepared, then two weeks more to get the study in order before M E X I C O ! ! !     I finished one sock (last week sometime?) and began the second one (on Friday?). I finished the heel last night and got the foot started so I could have some pickup knitting for waiting around at school, or taking a short break from the books. Which reminds me, I have 'homework' for the workshop this weekend! Yeah. I know. Pictures. Soon. I. Promise. LC

if that mockingbird won't sing

    We've lived in our house for over six years now, and from the very beginning there have been mockingbirds who sit and sing outside the bedroom window. Rather than disturbing, I have always rather enjoyed them. What always amazes me is how early in the morning they begin -- or rather how late at night??     Anyway, this morning the singing was quite different. Apparently this particular bird spends a lot of time where someone is playing video games. ALL the twitters had a definitely electronic nature. I wish I'd had my recorder in the bedroom; I was too sleepy to get out of bed to get it. But I will have it tonight and perhaps will catch it. It really is funny.     Little 'monkey-see-monkey-do' that I am, I just had to get some Socatta when I saw Rissa's great socks. It arrived on Friday, but I was still working on a hat for KniTibet. But, Tuesday night I gave in to temptation and began a sock with the fushia/yellow/orange colorway. I wanted to make them like the Old Shale sock in Twisted Sisters Sock Workbook. Somehow I managed to miss that the pattern was on the next page after the picture of the sock... so I spent a little time looking at Old Shale/Feather&Fan patterns I had and converting those 18-stitch patterns to the 11-stitch pattern the book says the sock used. Long-story-short: I started the sock making the pattern row every other row instead of every fourth row. It is a pretty pattern, but not really what I wanted.     I presented my problem to Rissa, who kindly pointed out the pattern on the next page of the book. I actually fought my desire to rip, grabbed a different ball of Socatta last night and started another sock using the pattern on the page. Turns out the pattern in the book does NOT create the same as is pictured. To get the same look as the picture Round 2 of the pattern, the purl row, must be:

p2, k7, {p4, k7} 5 times, p2

As soon as I can find my digital camera, I'll get some pictures posted.     Oh! Oh! We are going to a Lily Chin workshop in Natchez in two weeks! LC

ides, irish, italian

    Saw my former supervisor at the library yesterday; she said I was missed. Last week, one of the other workers asked me if I missed working. I do miss it, because I enjoyed working there. But I also treasure the additional time I now have. My stress level has definitely decreased.     Last night I finished another Spiral Rib hat for KniTibet and began a new one. I'm using the wool Rissa and I dyed in November. I've knitted up the golden brown, the aqua, and am now using the purple. When is it finished, there is one more hank of an olivey-green. I found some wool blend novelty yarn (No Boundaries brand) at Wal-Mart this week and am working that into the main body of the hat. Because I am carrying that thread across four stitches and working four stitches around each row, it is very soft on the inside.     Hubby was home when I finally got out of bed this morning. It had begun to rain just as he started to work at a friend's house, so they had to quit. He asked if I wanted to "do" something today.... now that the day is over, I remember that there was an Irish-Italian festival at one of the Catholic churches near campus today (celebrating St. Patrick's and St. Joseph's Days). Oh, well. I sure could eat some good Italian food. LC

adieu

I wanted to post this last night, but it was late when I got home and I went straight to bed....

"Tonight I worked my last shift in the library. Part of me is relieved not to have to work any more, to just go to class and study. But I also really enjoyed my job and I will miss the people. Not the lazy students who want you to do their research for them, but the ones whose faces light up when they realize the information they need is readily available to them either in our library or online. If I am lucky, there will be room for me during the summer or next fall. I've been told I'd be welcomed back."

LC

monkey-see-monkey-do

    Here are my Johari and the Nohari windows, following in Rissa's blog-steps.     Saw two good movies this weekend. One was "The Interpreter" with Nicole Kidmann and Sean Penn. The other was better, though. It was "{Proof}" with Gwenyth Paltrow and Anthony Hopkins.     Finished three hats for KniTibet with the wool I bought a couple weeks ago at the Hudson's in Jackson. Honestly, it was too much knitting; my hand is hurting a lot. Friday morning is was tingly-numb when I woke up.     Tomorrow and Tuesday are Mardi Gras holidays for the university, but I offered to work for a couple of the girls so they could have a long weekend. I am hoping to have lots of quiet time to study for an exam. LC

meanwhile

    I feel terribly guilty about not posting for so many weeks. I mentioned to Rissa this weekend that I've written several in my head on the morning drive to campus, but never get them actually typed out.     Life is rolling along, I'm trying not to stress over the amount of reading I need to be doing, and vascillating between wanting to quit and keep my library job. I have small chunks of time between classes when I don't seem to get much done, and once I'm home... well, I'm not as diligent as I should be.     I knitted up a large skein of Rowan chunky cotton chennille into three nice facecloths; two were a little large, the last one a bit smaller. They were to be gifts for my father, then I realized the yarn was black and not navy and he doesn't like black. So, the two larger ones are going to a dear friend instead. I will give him the third one, but doubt he will really like it.     I tore out all the rayon/funfur scarf. The longer it got the more the 'lace' closed up. Not sure what I'll do with it now, but I did discover that I had several other balls of rayon chenille in my stash, too.     So, in the very infrequent moments when I knit instead of read (and take notes), I am back to the green alpaca/silk. On Sunday, I finished the third skein. Now I think I will work the sleeves and figure out how to finish it, adapting the pattern to include the sleeves.     I picked up four balls of some high percentage wool blend at Hudson's while I was in Jackson this weekend. It's not great colorway, but it was 75% off retail and impossible to pass up. I should be able to get somewhere between 4 and 8 children's hats for KniTibet. I plan on knitting higher gauge than recommended to have a more dense fabric.     Seems I never posted a photo of the fine wool yarn that Rissa helped me dye in November, so here it is (click on the photo to go to the original post). On my screen it is much more orange than in real life; it is actually quite peachy. LC

back in the saddle

    Oh, it feels good to be back in classes. It would feel even better if I had gotten to sleep before 1AM this morning!     Last night was Intro to Islam; professor seems a little timid, but very knowledgeable. I didn't think his voice would even be audible on my voice recorder, but it was. Picked up the main textbook today and ordered another one last night (turned out that the BAM club price and free shipping was less than the half.com price plus shipping). The rest I'll get from the library or borrow.     Today we were off early... well, actually, we were off late, but I managed to get #2Son to his 8AM class on time. I just didn't get to stop for coffee! So I stopped on campus for a pumpkin muffin and decaf (NOT at Starbucks!), except there were no pumpkin muffins. They were the seasonal choice which is no longer a choice. Bummer. They were really good. The banana-nut just aren't as good.     My classes today -- Religion & Healing, History & Systems of Psychology -- were with former, and favorite, professors, and several former classmates as well. In only one of my three classes is there a non-traditional student. I decided to drop the yoga class (credit, not recreational) -- I'll try to start going to one of the rec. periods.     Got settled into my research carrel, too. Man! It is SO quiet back there I feel like people can hear me swallow! Also worked a shift in the library. A pretty quiet day, all in all. I'm relaxing tonight because I have no classes tomorrow and hubby will go off to work, so I'll have the day to read/study.     Biggest problem I have at the moment is getting hold of the woman who said I could borrow the textbook for my psych class.     Knitwise, I bought the 2006 Pattern-a-day Knitting Calendar last night at Sam's Club (and included the 365 Knitting Stitches in my BAM order). Now, I'm going to put a few more inches on the rayon/funfur scarf before bed. LC

enabling friends

    Just a quickie before midnight. Had a wonderful weekend, again, with friends in Jackson... did some knitting, did some reading, did lots of eating and visiting! Unfortunately, didn't do a lot of sleeping--at least last night while everyone else was! Woke up at 3am and couldn't get back to sleep. Then took a two-hour mid-morning nap and slept most of the way home late this afternoon. Not the best way to get to spend time with friends and my sweetie.     But I came home with gifts: a ball of luscious rayon chenille that I just had to get on the needles tonight. I knew it would go well with some "Sandstone" Fun Fur in my stash. But I also didn't want to hide the beautiful peachy-tan color of the rayon, so... for your viewing pleasure:     I am only using the Fun Fur along the sides of a center eyelet panel, in a diagonal scarf (i.e., when working the purl side, increasing on one side and decreasing on the other). Oh, yes, I rewound about half the rayon from the outside end into a pull-ball so it wouldn't be tangling quite so badly. It is silky and shiny and slippery, but really beautiful. Thanks, Rissa! And for the cotton chenille, too.     I worked far enough (making about four false starts) to take a picture that I hope will show the pattern well enough. LC

the little voice that is my mother

    For the past three days I've been knitting facecloths with some Rowan Fine Cotton Chenille that I purchased a couple years ago in San Antonio. My sister wanted something speical to give her sister-in-law; I thought chenille facecloths would be nice.     I used this pattern and made three; two for the sister-in-law, and the other one for my sister. I was pretty sure I didn't have enough left for a fourth, so I started one of these with the plan that I would just knit until I ran out of yarn. It was wee hours of the morning when I was finally sleepy enough to go to bed. The little voice told me 'you ought to go to bed' to the thought of doing just one more round.     Should have listened. Found a mistake this morning working the fourth row passed where I quit and went to bed. I should have finished long ago, but in addition, I had to work the last round (the bind-off) three times before I had it right. First time, I did one round too many to have enough yarn for bind-off; second time, I didn't have enough yarn to finish the bind-off round; third time was a charm.     I like doing these facecloths. I think I'll make some more to have on hand for gifts. I have a large hank of navy, plus I have this friend with a really large stash..... LC

loving knitting

    I have had several good day knitwise. First, I finally finished the underarm seams and all the yarn ends on the top I made with the hemp yarn this past summer (tidbits). Now to get it blocked!     Today I wound a 6oz hank of Classic Elite Inca Alpaca into a ball with the yarn winder and swatched for gauge. I started with US6 (one size smaller than recommended), but I didn't care for the openness of the stitches at 5/inch. Switched to US4, am getting 6/in and like the fabric much better.     One of the many nice gifts I have received from my friend, Rissa, is a computer program that designs sweater patterns. So, I want to get it on my computer and see what kind of sweater I can make. I have 22.5oz of brown (and .5oz of persimmon), which I hope is plenty for a mid-hip length cardigan/jacket.     I'll finish the swatch tonight and then go back to the green alpaca/silk. LC

home comforts

    Even though I despise cold weather and hope never again to have to live much further north than I do now, I have to admit that it is nice to have a fire and fireplace. After several days of high 70-degree weather, it has dropped low enough that we need a fire to keep from having to run the furnace. Waking up in a chilly bedroom and coming into the living room to find a warm and beautiful fire in the fireplace is very comforting.     As of this morning, I have ten more sleep-in mornings before I will have to get up early for 9AM class. It has been relaxing for the most part, though I have accomplished little that I planned. It doesn't appear that I will have to purchase a lot of books this term; that is good news. As much as I looked forward to the semester break, I now am looking forward to class beginning again.     I am nearly finished with the second skein of BlueSky Alpaca & Silk in this lace pattern and I am worried. It is rather short. Not having a lot of experience with wool and/or blocking, I can only hope that (as I have often heard)blocking will resolve the length problem. I really love the pattern, although it is sleeve-less and I hope to put at least a small cap sleeve on the top. I have three skeins of the yarn remaining, so my plan is to work the next two skeins into the body and save the one for sleeves.     I am sorry it has been so long since I have posted pictures. Restoring all the little things on a computer when you have to reformat always seems to take forever. I read somewhere that the urgent things of life keep us from doing the important things. If I was going to make a resolution for 2006 it would be that I would make time for the important things... LC

catching up

    Another holiday season finally over, and one in which I am sure I have once again disappointed my entire family (sans spouse). I forget to call. I am late with gifts: I don't like to shop -- crowd avoidance, wrap -- laziness, or have to ship them -- in general, I just dislike the whole ordeal. Oddly, I don't have this reaction about gift-giving and friends.     However, to me it is much more important to reach out throughout the year than on particular (and somewhat arbitrary) days. It would be fine with me if we didn't "do" Christmas at all. My sister is visiting from Hawaii and I made a small Christmas dinner for us. But as my children have grown up and especially since my mother died in 1999 (16 days before Christmas), the holiday spirit just seems to pass me by.     The week between Christmas and New Year's was a total wash... when I wasn't at work, I was home in bed feeling awful. I did manage to read Howard Becker's Writing for Social Sciences, and begin his Tricks of the Trade. I have not done enough 'chores' around the house though. Post-semester blues, I guess. Just can't get motivated.     Speaking of the semester, I did manage to make the Dean's list. My only B was in Spanish. Now I have only 12 required hours to fulfill my degree plan. Part of me is ready to get back to class, but I'm sure it will be here before I know it!     I broke all family traditions yesterday: no black-eyed peas, no cabbage, no bayberry candle. We had to return a movie to Blockbuster -- amazing how many stores were open -- and we had burgers at Hardee's because even at 2pm the restaurants were packed! My tree is still up (not even half decorated this year), though I don't think I will leave it up until Twelfth Night as is my custom. Pehaps I will have better 'luck' by not following traditional supersitions!     The old year went out and the new year has come in with a minor heat wave: it has been in the high 70s and low 80s here for the past several days, and not dipping below 60 at night. It would be nice, except the humidity is high. We've also had just a bit of rain. I guess it is pleasant in a strange sort of way. I love living in the South in particular for the warm winters, but this is too warm (actually, just too humid).     Knitwise, on New Year's Eve, I decided that I did not like the way my stockinette stitching looked using the BlueSky Alpaca & Silk, so I ripped it. All of it! Thanks to having the ball winder Rissa gave me for Christmas, I got it all wound nicely and quickly. Then I grabbed a pile of knitting magazines and in the first one found something in a similar gauge. I didn't really swatch, so it will probably be too small, or I won't have enough yarn, but maybe I will get lucky. I think it was actually after midnight when I started stitching -- I hope that will be propitious.     Happy New Year to all . . . LC

frost on the punkin*

    From 80 degree weather on Sunday to below freezing on this morning! What a system-shocking change... and upon leaving home this morning, I realized I was not dressed appropriately. I had to make a call home to have my sons bring my coat.     Have I ever said how I hate to wear a coat? I do. Especially in a car. Especially when driving. One of the great pleasures of the past five winters living here in south Mississippi is the joy of not having to wear a coat. And not having to tote around a coat once you are inside overly hot buildings.     Though I must say I was freezing in every building I was in today -- could have had something to do with the light-weight clothing I was wearing.     Bah-hum-bug on this cold weather.     BUT! Huzzah (as they kept shouting at the ren-faire yesterday) for Best Buy having my laptop ready to pick up tonight! I got my "baby-back-baby-back-baby-back." LC *I love this poem. My dad used to recite it to us, along with a couple of other James Whitcomb Riley poems (Raggedy Man, Little Orphant Annie among them). But in my college children's literature class (32 years ago), the professor suddenly developed a dislike for me after learning this fact... to the point of accusing me of plagerizing my children's story from another student (even though I had turned in mine first) and failing me for the class. I was too naive then to know that I could have fought it. I always assumed she thought me some kind of racist; which made no sense to me. The dialect of Riley's poems always struck me as just good ol' country folk.

having a heat wave

    Wow! Is it ever warm in southern Mississippi today. Not summer-warm, and not exactly winter-warm either. That probably doesn't make much sense, but if you've ever enjoyed the mildness of a southern winter day, you might understand. The weather today, however, just feels like something very unusual.     And it's another slow day at work. Or perhaps just a typical Saturday (I only work two Saturdays a month). Daytime weekday shift hours keep us much busier! We all get paid the same, but night and weekend workers get lots more playtime.     Speaking of work, I don't think I am going to next semester. I see lots of reading, research and writing time in my future. Perhaps I can come back to work for the summer term.     I've taken photos of the yarn Rissa and I dyed last month along with a few inches of swatching -- but neither of my sons has yet remembered to download and forward them to me by email, so I can't post them. Soon. I promise. It is really pretty.     The pattern I want to adapt (Fiber Trends' Estonia Garden) arrived. I'm going to need some help with the conversion, I think. I may have to get hold of the book that makes the Faroese type from neck down, as that is the way the FT pattern is designed.     Oh! The last whiney post I made, I forgot to mention the final straw that actually sent me to the keyboard: I measured the length of one skein's worth of knitting the alternating seed stitch pattern with the alpaca/silk and found it to be only three inches, where the straight stitching had given me five inches!! I am NOT buying any more of this yarn! So, I ripped back to four inches of pattern stitching and returned to the stockinette for the rest of the body. I'll make a similar border of the seed stitch pattern on the sleeves.     Under making lemonade from lemons, I decided that it was a good time to force myself to learn continental style. So far so good. Not only does it seem quicker, but it appears my stitching is more even -- I have to watch not to work to tightly though.     You'll notice the Boycott China logo now on my blog... though I wonder if it is truly possible to totally boycott Chinese products. Even if one watches lables, how can one know if the raw materials originated in China? I would especially like to see a boycott of the 2008 Olympics. "Oh, but the atletes have trained so hard," some might say... how many Tibetan and Chinese and Mongolian and other lives is that bronze, silver or gold medal worth?? Not a single one. Better than a boycott of the Olympics though, would be an end to the bruality, the torture and the oppression of the Chinese and Tibetan people. LC

the other shoe

    I should have known things were going too well...     Last week I found out the all three of my class substitution requests were approved. Also, that I am doing better in my psychology of learning class than I thought.     Thanksgiving used to be my favorite holiday. It hasn't been for the past five years. Thanksgiving was the last weekend that my mom was really 'with us.' Things just haven't been the same ever since. However, my husband and sons had a nice day and a good meal. We have a lot to be thankful for this year.     Since then, though, things have certainly going downhill. On Thursday night after #1Son went to bed -- after playing WoW on my laptop most of the afternoon and evening -- I rebooted the laptop and shortly it started making noise. The noise was like something hitting on the fan. The next morning it didn't take too long before the noise was back. I could smell a 'hot' smell, and shut it down immediately.     Then I had to get the old desktop set up, moved the data off the backup laptop harddrive and switch out the hard drive in the Vaio. I booted it up just to be sure it would, and the fan noise suddenly stopped. I'm afraid it totally broke or locked up; either way, it's heading to Best Buy tomorrow.     Along the way, just one headache after another, getting things set up and working, moving files, being sure I don't delete something I need. See, I have SPSS projects and note files for papers that are due within the next two weeks.     It's just aggravating more than anything else... and I felt like whining a little bit. LC

knitting when I should be studying

    Early this week my addi turbo needles arrived, and I excitedly moved my alpaca/silk project onto them. I didn't have any time to knit right then, but when I did pick it up to stitch, I saw a "3" on the needles. I was afraid that I'd ordered the wrong size, but realized that was the millimeter size, not the US. Unfortunately, the US2's I'd knitted that skein on were 2.75 mm, and I knew that in stockinette stitch the change would be very evident! So, out came all but the first 6 rows (edging).     In the meantime, the extra skein of matching dye lot arrived.... $6.00 shipping charge. First class postage was $.83. I'm sorry, but that is outrageous. I won't be shopping there again.     Last night hubby helped me wind the last three of the four hanks we (that's Rissa and me, the mouse in her pocket) dyed last weekend. Total weight just under 450 grams. The pattern I want to attempt to covert to a Faroese shawl is on it's way, fruits of a knitswap swap (thanks, Eve). Will post a photo of the pretty wound balls asap. I'm on campus now, and #1Son has commandeered the laptop for WOW gaming.     Back to the alpaca/silk... I decided to do an all over pattern of, I guess you would call it two-row alternating seed stitch?? I have another sweater that is done in that stitch and I really like it. The k1p1 is aggravating, but I think it will look nicer than all stockinette. My concern is whether the seed stitch is going to give a smaller width gauge, and therefore make my sweater a smaller diameter. Any ideas?     I can't believe the semester is so close to being over. I've had or will have next week the third test in my classes, so nothing else until the final. I only hope I can have time over Thanksgiving holiday to do the rest of the reading/research for the major paper I have to write (that's due 12/6). LC

who is this jacka$$?

    People who know me, know that I avoid political controversies like a plague. It is upsetting, mostly because there is so damnned little one can do about it. Still, I read something today that has upset me so much I really felt like I had to at least bring it to someone else's attention...

"There's a realization that we have to accept China for what it is," said James Sasser, another former ambassador who now represents clients doing business in China, such as FedEx, Ford Motor Co. and Motorola. "The influence that we can have on China in economics and political development . . . and human rights is frankly peripheral." From the Washington Post, 11.13.2005 (emphasis mine).

PERIPHERAL???? WTF??     If what is going on (and has been going on) in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, and all the rest of the Middle East is wrong --- then so is what is going on in China!!     Every time we support China economically, we are supporting not only the jackasses who think like Sasser (how coincidental that that's the name of a nasty computer worm) and the Chinese who are oppressing and torturing their people and those of the countries surrounding them. LC

another silly sunday

that feels like monday cause so many things have gone so squirrely . . .     I started the day by coloring my tired ol' grey roots. Unfortunately, my Hudson's bargain box of Clairol Nice 'n Easy was way too dark. I look more like my mother than ever I did before! Guess I'll just pass it off as a trick or treat prank.     Ate some breakfast and pulled out the Buddhism book I need to read before class on Tuesday. I spent ALL DAY yesterday (save 3 hours I went out to grocery shop, etc.) working on my data analysis project that is already one week overdue. And then... I just don't believe it... after all that, the last procedure I tried to run locked up SPSS and I lost all the data results. Fortunately, I have the information and graphs already placed into the project document, but my output file will have to be totally recreated -- I will need some of the information again. So, this morning, with only a couple of hours before I had to be at work, I just couldn't get myself motivated to mess with statistics. Buddhism seemed so much more appropriate for the moment.     But, of course, reading made me sleepy. So I headed to the bed for a quick nap before leaving for work at 1pm. At about 12:20pm, my co-worker called... major brain fart: I was supposed to start work at noon!     When I tried to clock in, seems I forgot to clock out on Wednesday--at least I think that's the last day I worked. I am so SCREWED UP some days and this week I've had more of those days than not. Then there's the Spanish test tomorrow night and lots of online "homework" to do before midnight tonight. I just can't seem to get caught up.     Did I mention that I finished knitting the blue and red Lamb's Pride Hat? I did. But not with Lamb's Pride. I like the pattern. I thought I had a link on the KniTibet pattern page, but it's not there. Thank goodness for Google, so I could find it again quickly to include the link.     I'm trying not to start anything until my new needles comes and I can continue on the Stripes Go Round pattern with the Alpaca & Silk yarn I bought from there... especially since I really don't have time to knit anyway. But there's just something about knowing you have something on the needles that you can grab for just a couple of moments to de-stress, or even escape.     Enough prattling... LC

circles of life

    Over the last couple of weeks, I spent a good amount of time researching graduate schools online. I'll need a fully on-line MLIS (Masters of Library Science) program. I'd like one without out-of-state fees. I want it to have a wide selection of elective classes available.     I looked at about a dozen or so, narrowing to a handful within the last week. I know you are supposed to apply to several, but there's always some big "con" (as in list of pro's and con's) for all but one. That one would be Texas Women's University. So, I think -- at least until I have additional information about these things -- I will only apply there and pray for scholarship award and waived out-of-state tuition. If I am not accepted, I think I shall just stay at USM and chance not being getting hired because my graduate work would be from there. The out-of-state fees are just too high to justify (at my age), and the schools with lower tuitions just don't have a program with enough variety to suit me.     As for the circle... TWU appears to be in Denton, TX, and closely affiliated with North Texas State University. This is about 50 miles north of where I lived during the late 70's and where my ex-husband went to college. LC

healing kitty & mommy

Nero update: he's getting around much better, though I think he still has some fluid. He started throwing up the Keplex, so he didn't get the full dose he was supposed to get. He also got VERY good at getting away from us, though we tried something different every time the medicine needed to be given to him. Cleaning up that regurgitated medicine wasn't any more pleasant when it was a cat than when it was a child.     A couple of nights ago, I finished knitting one hank of the alpaca/silk yarn. It only measured about 5 inches of 'fabric.' I have to knit 14 inches before starting the sleeves, so I don't think I am going to have enough yarn. Have emailed the shop to see if they can send me another hank. I really want to make three-quarter sleeves anyway, so I need it. Also want to get a longer length circular set of size two. What I have are too short and the join is aggravating. I always have to be pushing the stitches up over the hump. I do love working with the yarn though, it is yummy. It would probably look better in a stitch pattern. I wonder how I could work that in without having to start all over. If anyone has an idea, please let me know.     Oh! And by the way, if you don't leave a valid email when you make a comment, I can't reply to you except on the comment link.     I must be acclimating to the southern autumn weather more than I thought. I have been getting so cold on campus. It's not really the outside environment but the A/C in the buildings. So, I try to remember to keep a sweater with me.     The weather really has turned beautiful lately. The house A/C is turned off and the windows are open. Not so great for my allergies, but the air is nice. I just wish I could sleep more comfortably and better. "The insomnia researcher can't sleep."     I tried (formal) meditation for the third time tonight. It was a totally different experience than the first time. (Second time was guided imagery, not concentration meditation, like the other two times.) But the 'scientist' part of me wants to pull out all those journal articles I copied last term for the sleep/consciousness/meditation project I never got around to writing. I can not recall what they documented as far as brain wave patterns compared to sleep stages. I seem to remember a similarity to the pattern between wakefulness and stage one sleep -- just can't say for sure without checking. What about 'microsleeps' and meditation -- at least for those unskilled/unpracticed at it. So little time, so much research to read!     And speaking of, I have a test in Psychology of Learning tomorrow, laters taters, LC

i·ro·ny

is defined as: incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs. For instance....     The oppressive heat of summer in the deep south is finally beginning to subside. And so, having become even more conscious of the cost of electricity lately, and wanting to enjoy the pleasantness of the weather change, we have had the windows and doors of our house open for the last week or so.    Saturday night, unfortunately, eithe dear husband left the screen door open or one of the cats was persistent enough at pawing (clawless, no less) at it to get it open. Late in the night, sounds of a cat fight disturbed my study time. As I tried to untangle myself from laptop, electric and network cords, books, pens and remote controls, Nero came streaking through the living room. Next arrived #2Son to say that the screen door was opened. I took just enough time to do a cat-count before going to the door. Brickle was missing. Backtracked to get a flashlight because I couldn't see outside. When I got to the door, there he sat, all hunched down. He refused to come in with either cajoling or ordering. Like ANY cat and ANY time would do what you told it to do. When he did finally come in he hissed and growled at me at #2Son, at Sasha, but especially at Nero. Sasha too was quite nasty-acting to him. I stayed up a good bit longer just to insure there wouldn't be any further fighting.     Sunday, Nero stayed hidden away all day in a chair pushed under the dining room table -- his favorite place to hide. It is dark and the other cats seem to leave him alone. Monday, dear husband said he saw him a bit more, but didn't think he was felling very good. We didn't worry too much, figuring perhaps he got real scared or had eaten something outside that made him sick. On Tuesday, dear husband said he thought Nero was feeling better. Then that later that night, after we got home from Hattiesburg, Nero was laying on his left side in the middle of the living room floor, and we saw the problem. He has several wounds, one of them a rather large, nasty-looking hole in his side, and a gash below it.     Now, we live in a small town with no all-night vet clinic, so we had to wait until morning to take him. Feeling very guilty as the good doctor shaved the hair away from the wounds (there were a few more than we could even see the night before), we watched as he tended to our little rescued feline. Nero was really very tolerant of all that was being done to him; Rodger rubbed his face to keep him calm (he likes that very much). But the cut made to let the abscess drain was more than he could stand. And so, Rodger got bit rather badly in the thumb.     Nero is much recovered today. The last 24 hours were nerve-wracking though, worrying about Nero being further attacked by the other two cats. Fortunately they only seemed to have hissed and growled at him. All seems pretty well today... thought Nero doesn't like Keplex liquid any more than my sons did as children!     So... we may have a lower electric bill this month, but we spent the savings at the vets. LC

taking time update

    There are so many things I need to post about. Most of it good, but not all... so, might as well get the worst over with first.     The trip to Tibet has been disapproved for 2006 by university officials. It's a long boring story (and has nothing to do with the hurricane), but that's the sum of it all. Even though many of us who signed up to go will graduate before May 2007, those involved could not change the decision of TPTB. If I am able to go next year, I will try again to organize a knitting effort. For those of you who have already knitted something, I encourage you to either send it along to the Tibet Village Project Coordinator, or donate to another worthy charity.     Without KniTibet on my creative mind, I turned to some new yarn I purchased a couple of weeks ago. I went with some friends from Jackson. They bought wool embroidery thread/yarn for a crewel work project. I mostly went along for the ride, only to discover that it was also a yarn shop. Rissa swears she told me -- and she probably did -- I still had a lovely time gazing and fondling all the wools and silks and other beautiful items. I finally settled on four hanks of Blue Sky Alpaca's Alpaca & Silk in a pale green. I swatched a few days later and was pleased to get the same gauge I did making the Stripes Go Round top this summer in the hemp yarn. And so, I began another one. I carry it with me at school, but get (or take) very little time to work on it. I have only got about one and three-quarter inches so far. At 256 stitches per round, it's slow going. But for me, knitting is about the 'journey,' not so much the finished project.     School is going well. (I apologize if I repeat myself.) I have four classes this term: Advanced Data Analysis, Psychology of Learning (not a class about human education, but animal learning theory), Buddhism, and Spanish. On top of these, I have to prepare (by mid November! Yikes!) a thesis proposal. And along the way, I'm working 15 hours a week in the library and taking care of all the paperwork to be sure my transfer credits are all processed properly and applied to my degree plan. To make up for the two weeks we lost due to Katrina, we have lost our two-day semester break and will have an extra week of classes in December. Finals are over just a few days before Christmas.     I know people probably want to know our Katrina stories. Honestly, I don't have the energy to 'tell' it all. Wonderful things have happened, and extremely aggravating things have happened. EVERYTHING seems to have changed so much. It is truly a defining moment in time for those of us who have lived through it. I will say that we were very fortunate, both during the storm and since. Not everything has been perfect, but complaining seems so petty in light of all that others have suffered and lost in comparison. We are happy to be alive and safe and still have our home, our cars, and our belongings. We haven't gone hungry -- thanks to generosity of so many volunteers and donors. We have been granted grace periods by all our creditors -- except, somewhat ironically, the homeowner policy holder. About the worst problem we are having to deal with right now is the same problem with which the rest of the country is also dealing: high gasoline prices and the resulting higher prices of everything else.     I should write more, but I should also either hit the books or get to bed. Monday will roll around way too soon. LC

alive and well

as can be expected, at least.     Fifteen days post-Katrina and still no phone or drinkable running water, but we have refrigeration and air conditioning. Bottled water, ice and MREs are still available even though the Red Cross stopped serving hot meals at the high school cafeteria. The local schools are supposed to begin classes again on Monday, Sep 19. Our university classes resumed this past Monday; it is good to be back. Nice to have some contact with others and get a bit of news. Without phone at home (cell or hard line), our only internet access is on campus.     I have posts I wrote after the storm to upload, but I'm writing this on from my PDA and those files are on my laptop.     Thanks to all of you for kind thoughts and prayers -- still knitting for Tibet. Finished one more hat the first night we got our power back. I will send an email to those who have contacted me about this project soon.     No classes tomorrow -- but I have FEMA and DHHS lines to tackle. Maybe we'll even have time to get some real groceries. Regardless... we       are       so       fortunate! LC

not a pretty sight

   With three more days of summer vacation remaining, and having finished two hats for KniTibet, I decided to begin another last night. I grabbed a ball of Debbie Bliss Merino Aran -- sort of a deep persimmon color -- and decided to attempt the tubular cast-on as described on Sivia Harding's website. It worked out just fine and even though it was late, I knitted a few more rows in K2P2 ribbing.    After only six rows, I found a break in one of the three plies. Sort of a surprise, but at the time, I was talking on the phone to my sister, and just broke the yarn and kept going. A little more than one row, later, another break in one ply. Now, I start unwinding the ball... there were ten -- 11!! -- breaks in that 50g ball!!    Then I started to panic. I went to the back room and grabbed my bag of wool yarns.... so far, I've only found one more ball with only 3 breaks, an Adrienne Vittadini Vittoria. I don't think it's the yarn. I'm afraid it was a moth. I have 23 more balls of the DB -- I'm almost afraid to look too closely, but I suppose I'll have to do so.    Now, the funny part is that night before last, just before we went to sleep, I ask my husband if he would do the repair on the cedar chest in the back room (I have another one in my bedroom, too) if I got it emptied. My thought was that I would sort through everything in both of them and use whichever one was the better size for my wool yarns. Too little, too late.   On a brighter note, things went fairly well on campus today. The professor I had hoped for will be teaching the Spanish class for which I registered. We got #2Son "advised" and eligible to register for classes. And, even in the dreadful heat, managed to get a few errands run and the groceries bought without melting into the macadam. My sweet father lent me his SVGA monitor, so I am no longer stuck with 640x480 16-color resolution on the spare desktop until my laptop is back from the service center.    But, for now, we've had a terrible thunderstorm tonight and the DSL is out, so I'm writing this in WordPad to post at another time. I'm going to take another ball of yarn and try again with the tubular cast-on. LC

my first item for KniTibet!

   This is Celia's Sidewinder Hat, made with some of the wool my friend, Rissa, dyed the weekend I visted her last month. I added some Red Heart Kiss (Hickory) in the cabled edge. Most of the 'fuzzy' of the Kiss yarn seemed to end up on the purl side of the cable -- which is really rather nice as that will be next to the face and is so very soft.    I had wound the dyed hank into two 70g balls. The completed hat took a bit more than 70g, so I am making the second hat just a bit smaller and hoping I do not run out of the wool.    What I love about Celia's pattern is that it is simple to 'get into your mind' and then not have to refer to the pattern. It is a 12 row repeat and rows 6 and 12 are the key rows -- they are super simple to remember because the row 6 is where you make the cable twist and row 12 is where the pattern repeat ends -- and on each of these rows you are turning your work with 6 and 12 stitches, respectively, remaining on the left-hand needle. LOL! It is more difficult to describe, than to realize the connections within the pattern!    There are 38 more weeks until our approximate departure for Tibet -- my personal goal is to knit at least one item each week. I would be thrilled to have even 40 knitters send me just one item! LC

what did we do before.....

   My dear sweet hubby is always saying, "What did people do before [fill-in-the-blank]!" Usually he fills in that blank with "cell phones," because it irritates him to no end to see people driving and using cell phones. However, today it is my turn to say, "What did we do before VGA/SVGA monitors!!"    Yesterday I had to take my baby to the doctor... that is to say, my Viao laptop to Best Buy to be sent off for repair. The keyboard, which had been acting a little strange last week, putting a 5 behind every 3 I typed, went completely wonkers inputting 5s continuously. I managed one day of grace using an external keyboard, but even that didn't help come Tuesday morning. So, I switched out the hard drive and sadly left her with strangers. While they fix that problem, I also asked them to look at the overheating problem (again) and find out why the rear USB no longer functions.    Getting back to my frustration, I am now working on the backup desktop using an old EGA monitor that will only set at 16 colors and 600x480 resolution!! And, of course, that is only one of a multitude of little problems. Still, I'm trying to be glad that I at least have finally figured out how to connect into our home network. My sons are generous to let me access email and stuff on their computers, but my eyes strain with their super-high resolutions! (I try to warn, but it does no good.)    There is other nice news though. I bought an iPaq yesterday. And a Bluetooth keyboard. Also, I have gotten emails from half-dozen or so people about the KniTibet project. Thanks so much!    On the knitting front, I finally finished the striped top!! Just working on tying off the ends and fixing an error or three. I have to dig out my kitchner diagrams to do the underarm-body join, then it's ready to be blocked. LC

KniTibet

  A little over eight months from now, I should be on my way to T I B E T !   Along with me I hope to take suitcase stuffed with hand-knitted hats, scarves and gloves for the schoolchildren in Lhasa and surrounding villages.

  As I think I mentioned in a previous post, some of the students who traveled to Jamaica with us this summer took school supplies for serveral of the island's social service agencies. I was disappointed that I didn't know they were doing it, because I would have gladly contributed.

  When the Tibet trip was announced and I begain doing online research on Tibet, I decided that a charity knitting project would be a worthwhile effort -- and a side benefit might be building a foundation for a knitting group at the university.   Further information is available on the KniTibet webpage or by emailing me. I have also started a page of links to patterns and sizing information. There are currently no links to patterns for gloves yet. But I will find some for you! You will also find project specifications there soon. For now, here's what you would want to remember: 1. Items should be wool. Wool stays warm when wet. At the very least, please ensure a high wool content if using a blend. 2. Sizing should be for elementary/primary grade children, approximate US sizes 4 to 6 (the Tibetan children tend to be a bit smaller than US). 3. Scarves should have NO fringe; about 5 inches wide and about 4 feet long.   Please help me spread the word about this project by mentioning it to friends and/or posting about it in your blog and snagging the button at the top of my sidebar. Even just one knitted item from every knitter we can reach would be such a blessing! My contact at Tibetan Village Project tells me there are over 4,000 children on their 'waiting list.'   If you need a little more incentive, I plan to have a 'thank-you' gift for about a dozen knitters who contribute to this project -- awarded in categories, e.g., first received, most items contributed, etc.. LC

25th anniversary

of my divorce... I know. I'm weird.     On other topics, I'm wondering if I should be happy or mad with my father for getting me back into our genealogy research. He asked me (I don't even want to think about how long ago) to gather together what I have for him to send to a cousin of mine. A few weeks ago I downloaded a freeware program from Tucows and started happily creating family tree sheets for him. The other day, I suddenly realized there is no print option with the program. Then I found a family tree template for Excel, so I'm using that now. Plus I added a plain spreadsheet page to do the descendants table.    Of course, along the way, my curiosity has been piqued once again about the unanswered questions and conflicting information re: dates, marriages, etc.. So, I spent a whole day (Wednesday, I think) going through my papers/documents, inputting to the worksheets and nosing around the online sites. Most are terribly unwieldy, in my opinion. And where so much info used to be freely accessible, it seems the more information that is online, the more likely it is that you have to have a subscription to some ad-filled website to access it! I did locate about three likely contacts, but one was a dead address, and neither of the other two have replied.   Knit-wise, I'm finally working on the yoke of my striped top. I have a long ride to Jackson tomorrow, so if I can knit instead of knap, I might actually be very close to finishing it by the time I get back home.    Ahora, va eschucar CDs de español. Ciao. LC

woo-hoo!

    Grades were supposed to be available today (08/11), so, of course, I had to check before I went to bed... all A - A - A - A 's ! ! ! !     I am really surprised to have gotten an A in the Arthurian Literature class, though. Really surprised. I must have done really well on the final.     I'm so pleased... can you tell I'm pleased??? LC

21

    In 1984, about ten minutes ago (EDT) I gave birth to twin sons. It has been a long road -- full of fears and fun. Today my boys turned 21. I am very proud to be their mother and I look forward to watching them finish college, pursue their careers, find their true love and build a family.... not too soon on that last one!     We picked up their grandfather and all had lunch together at a local restaurant. One son threatened me with reciprical treatment if I got the staff to recognize their birthday -- I didn't have to worry. Their grandfather took care of that. And stupid me took the camera but left it in the truck! The rest of the day was 'just another day' after a few gifts were distributed. Brownies made later tonight.     No drinking. No partying all night. Less worrying for Mom! LC

right place, right time ? ?

    Like Jerry Jeff, I 'got lucky' today. During this last weekend visiting with friends, I guess my mind slowed down enough to realize that trying to do a double-major is foolish. I actually only need 27 hours to graduate, and I can do that over the next two semesters. So, I fired off a couple emails and did some pencil-paper figuring to see if I will be able to pull it off.     I realized I would have to take my major department's 'senior capstone' class and my senior thesis class at the same time (spring semester) to graduate in May. Wasn't sure this was do-able, thus one of the emails. The reply informed me that thesis was a nearly year-long process. This set me worrying. After class this morning, I dropped by the Honors College to talk with the advisor. Nice woman. Smart. Bright. Enthusiastic. And helpful! (That's not to say my other advisors are not --- um, well, except they are men.)     The bottom line is that she will substitute the research methods class (required by my major department which I took in the spring) for the prospectus class, and I don't actually register for the senior thesis class until the semester I graduate -- which I can set as August and still 'walk' in May (or wait until December)! What I have to do now is get things set up with an advisor and start working on my prospectus.     And just when I'm feeling great about all this, that little demon creeps up and whispers in my ear, "Too bad your so old. Why didn't you do this 30 years ago? You look so foolish!" I try hard to ignore him. It is easier some days than others.     So, it looks like my break will not be so free of 'school work' after all. I need to refresh my español before I go into 201. And also do some research before talking to the professor I hope will be my thesis advisor.     But I'm STILL going to read some books *I* want to read, and knit, and get hubby to do some long overdue honey-do's. Oh, the next three weeks are gonna fly by, aren't they ?!?!? LC

friendship

    The internet can be such a wonderful thing. Over the past 8+ years (went 'online' in early 1997), I met many people whom I consider friends even though we have never met in person. Even nicer, I have become good friends with a few people I met online whom I then met in person. Rissa is one of the latter.     This past weekend my husband and I spent the weekend with her and her husband. One of the things that was so great about it was that it truly felt like a weekend getaway for us -- I even remarked as I left work on Friday afternoon that "I'm going to Jackson for the weekend." Not for the day, not for a meeting, not for a museum exhibition, but for the weekend with friends.     Sounds sort of silly to put it that way. I guess we just stay home so much, and tend to only go on extended 'family' vacations (which means we go visit family -- not that there is anything wrong with that), or we only go away for a day somewhere. There is another couple we visit in TN (usually on the way to or from a 'family' vacation) with whom and in whose home we are probably as comfortable as we are in our own -- just like we felt this past weekend. And another in DC, too. All three of these friendships developed through the internet.     After all these months of classes and textbooks and papers, I didn't realize how much I needed to get away. Thanks, Rissa (& hubby & dogs & cats) for the refreshment . . . and we dyed yarn, too! LC

progress

    I am beginning to feel like this knitting for Tibet is going to actually happen!    I heard from Colette and now have a better idea of just what we need to do and how to do.    I feel much more confident about this project associating with someone who has, to use the very worn-out phrase, "been there, done that." So, I'm working on a logo, a webpage, and other ideas for getting the word out.    First, though I want to pass it all by the professor and see if we need to also pass it by International Studies or whomever at the university.     I hope to run some weekly knit-ins at either on campus or at the coffeeshop across the street, and also to get the campus newspaper to do a writeup.     In the meantime, I'm trying to stay focused on these last assignments for the summer courses, and knitting on the striped hemp top. Once I get the body done, I think the sleeves and yoke will go quickly. There's really no finishing, so when it's done, it's done. LC

knitting for Tibetans

    I don't have all the details worked out yet, but I am going to mention it now, since I just updated my blog to add the header text you see above.     Plans are in place and proceeding well for a trip to Tibet immediately following 2006 spring semester's end. We will mainly be in Lhasa, but also visiting Shigaste and Gyantse. This will be part of USM's International Studies program, as was the trip to Jamaica last May.     In fact, something concerning that trip is at the heart of this project. The students in one class were asked to bring a suitcase of items to donate to the social services organizations they were to visit. I only learned about after arriving from my two roommates, who were in that class. I regretted that I'd not had an opportunity to contribute.     So when the Tibet trip was announced, a knitting project seemed to be a natural idea. The sponsoring professor gave his approval, and I began to search for information and recipients. Over the next ten months, I plan to occasionally include some of that information, about Tibet, its people, its problems, here on this blog, and provide links to more of it that may be followed up by those interested.     For now, here are the basics -- subject to modification -- :     1)     wool items, or at the very least high wool content blends.     2)     sized for primary-aged schoolchildren,     3)     Tibetans seem to love bright colors (please avoid red-white-blue combinations), red, yellow & orange especially     4)     no novelty yarns     5)     no fringe on scarves There is also care being provided for elderly and I am looking into whether shawl-type items would be well-received.     Please pass this information widely as you are able and desire -- I have a very large suitcase for this project! As soon as I have confirmed exactly to whom these items will be delivered, I will post about it. I have names of several schools and orphanges and am making contact with representatives.     For today, however, I need to concentrate on finishing the reading for my two classes that end in two weeks! Yay! And, then, it's break-time for this kitty. LC

tidbits

    Perhaps it might be a good idea to mention for a change.     Just before I went to Jamaica with the university international studies program, I cast-on for Lanaknits' Stripes Go Round top (Summer 2004 Interweave Knits magazine), using their hemp yarn. As of now, I have about eight inches of the 14 required for the torso. I'm fighting strong temptation to begin something else! Something soft 1and fuzzy and warm -- but it is still much too hot in Mississippi to think about that. However, other than remembering the color sequence, it is mindless knitting. Great for riding, waiting, and laptop reading -- too bad Microsoft Reader's voice program is so poor. I'd get lots more knitting done if I could 'listen' to Malory and Twain instead of having to read them.     I had my first wireless experience today. There's a nice coffee shop across the street from the university that provides free wireless to the customers. Wish I'd been going there every week this term during my break between class and work! I'll bet it is much busier (and noisier) during the regular terms. We'll see. But the manager is really helpful, and the coffee is excellent.     Finally got to see the season opener of Monk. "George" needs to stick with "Jerry" -- on the whole, I thought it was disappointing. Here's hoping Friday's episode with John Turturro as Monk's agoraphobic brother is better.     Two-plus weeks left in the term -- then two blessed weeks of no classes. That means time to read what I want to read!! Not sure how much time off from work I'll get though; will probably have to fight the urge to pick up extra hours. LC

tomorrow! tomorrow!

(posting this just to make Rissa smile) 22.5 hours and counting! LC

moonchildren

    I am so fortunate to have met one of my birthday twins -- a true twin, as we were born the same year-- at least online. Maybe someday we will meet in person. She's such a lovely and sweet lady: Ellen is her name and she is a Kiwi (though she doesn't live there now).    It's already *my* birthday in Tibet, but here in the the US it is still His Holiness the Dalai Lama's 70th birthday, so here's a blessing for all of us...    (His astrological chart says he was born 4:38am LMT (-6:45). My birth certificate says I was born 3:27am EST. So, how close are those times? LC

just wanted to say

3 More Days! LC

on this date

    Did you know that both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the same day, July 4th, 1826?     Have you seen National Treasure? We watched it a couple weeks ago. I don't think it did well at the box office, but we enjoyed it.     How unpatriotic I am today -- laying around in my jammies, no food in the house, and, of course, no place open because of the holiday. I doubt we will see any fireworks except those on television. Both my sons are around today, so that is especially nice.     I'm nursing my sore back again. Evenso, I spent the late morning sorting piles of bills and receipts. I had big plans for lots of house-keeping chores this weekend. Ain't gonna happen. This afternoon I built a new template for this blog. However, I don't like not being able to right-align my sidebar text, or justify the text of my posts. I seemed to have done all right making an additional box below my profile, so I'll probably move stuff around some more. 4 More Days! LC

summertime... & the livin' is easy??

Wow. Almost six months since I published anything to my blog. I love my blog, so that lets you know just how consumed I have been with my courses for the spring semester! It was probably unwise to take 18 hours, half of them senior-level courses at that, but I managed a 4.0, so I can't complain. My family might, though! When I didn't have my nose in a book, I was just plain too exhausted mentally to do much else. I also started working part-time at the university library. Now, summer semester's half over, and I have already completed 7 additional hours of credit with 6 more to go for the term. I am SO looking forward to the August break... but, ya know, if feels good to keep my brain so stimulated. I have had great professors. I know I am lucky in that. I really only need 24 more hours to graduate (OMG, that's the first time I've actually thought about it that way...), but I was invited to apply to Honors College, and that adds 6 more required hours of coursework, so I'm not going to try to 'walk' next spring afterall. I've done very little knitting in the past six months. A couple of 5-hour baby sweaters, and I started my striped, hemp top in mid-May. Only about 6-inches of the 14 needed before beginning the arm-hole shaping. I pull it out when my mind needs a break, or I'm riding in the car without my textbooks. And speaking of texts, Morte d'Arthur is calling me....oh! But I didn't tell about Jah-maica yet!! LC

"Blueberry" Squares Hat

Finished just a few moments ago, a blue (& acrylic -- ugh!) version of Cranberry Squares by Janis Witkins from the Winter 2004 issue of Knitters: Bernat's boucle would not go down to gauge -- the yarn called for was much thinner -- but all I had to do was make it seven instead of eight units around. My head is really too small for a hat this deep, but to fit a larger head I will have to work the lower edge bind-off again. This project taught me that (at least at this point) I do not much care for modular knitting. A couple of factors play into this dislike:

• too many ends to work in
• too many stitches to have to pick up

I have a good bit of the yarn remaining, so I may experiment with working two-colors on the diagonal and see if a similar effect can be achieved.

I have finished three other hats and two vests over the semester break. I will try to get some more photos up (before I give everything away -- well, the second vest and matching tam are for me).

Spring semester begins tomorrow: Social Psychology; Experimental Psychology; Sleep & Behavior; Spanish 102; History of Mexico & the Caribbean; Mysticism. Plus I got hired to work about 10 hours a week at the university library. Think of me on Mondays and Wednesdays -- they will be 12-hour ones!

I had hoped to have my house in good shape by now, but it still looks like a tornado came through. However, my back is improving and maybe soon I will get things done. The most difficult part is remembering all I need to do!!

LC

Ol' Year, New Year

2004 slipped by for us as quietly as Christmas did. As the last couple of CST hour of today approach, I am hoping my mother's supersitions are indeed just that. We've eaten no pork, no cabbage, nor any black-eyed peas this day. And I have done none of the things I usually do on the first day of every new year -- not even burned a bayberry candle! Gads! How in a rut are we that almost the entire holiday season has passed as if just that many more same-old, same-old days. I did at least cook supper tonight, but nothing at all traditional. Crawfish in a creamy, cheesey, tomato-ey sauce over elbow macaroni. Hubby did proclaim it "the best macaroni" he'd ever eaten, however, he is not a big pasta fan like I am. All I could think of was how far it fell short of tasting as good as Semonlina's Chicken Parmesean or Olive Garden's Sicilian Shrimp. I will also do some knitting as soon as I finish this entry. Son#1 picked up the last Knitting Patter-a-day calendar at the Barnes & Nobles for me today. I looked through the first six-months of patterns before I had to set it aside, seeing at least a dozen things I *must* knit! I had a screaming headache compounded by some weird lightheadedness and dizziness. Son & hubby were watching Lord of the Rings Return of the King: I napped, but awakened feeling even more miserable and took some Tylenol. I swear I must be getting sick; I have felt terrible for a couple days now. Earlier in the week we went to the bookstore, where I gathered up the knitting magazines to see if I wanted to buy any. I decided on the Knitter's and searched the net when I got home for one of the pattern's yarns. At $11.00 a ball and needing two balls, it was out of my price range (for a hat that I'll probably not wear often anyway). I grabbed some Bernat boucle I had and attempted to get gauge. I came close enough to keep knitting the modules. I'm enjoying the pattern, but not all the tails. I can now see that there are ways to reduce the number of ends leftover to weave in. Having so much of the yarn leftover, I think I'll use a larger needle size, increase the size of the squares a little and make a matching scarf. To brag (and bore): I made an A in four of my classes (inluding Spanish) and a B in the fifth for a 3.85 semester GPA, bringing my overall GPA up over 3.7 -- yes, I'm delighted. Finals were a pain, but fortunately well-spaced for studying/preparing. Classes begin again in another week. I haven't done as much reading as I had hoped over the break, but I have knitted a good bit. Made another 5-hour Baby Sweater (tho' it still takes me about 10), a vest, and two or three hats; finished another vest for gift and something else I've forgotten. Used up all my Paton's Cha-Cha on tube scarves/hoods for gifts, too. Got a bunch of Fun-Fur I'd like to use up on something (or get rid of! LOL). Looking back at my resolutions for 2004, and knowing they were not accomplished or are important enough to continue, I again resolve:

• to remember birthdays ON-TIME (and bills)
• to use my creative skills for tangible results to those around me
• to delve deeper into my personal spirituality in order to attain resolution, for myself at least, over several personal situations
• to be content -- always my primary goal

"Four has long been a number of completion, stability and predictability, as well as the representation of all earthly things."

A blessed and prosperous new year to everyone,

LC

dinner, a show & fireworks

Dear hubby and I ran out to a local restaurant for a quick supper, only to find the town Christmas parade about to begin. We slipped in a back way. The parking lot was full, but the place was empty. We watched the parade from our table, then wound around the long way home to avoid the traffic. I'm not quite ready to admit it is Christmastime, but the little parade was sweet. Lots of pick-um-up trucks and trailers loaded with tons of kids in Santa hats throwing candy to everyone along the streets. About a half hour after we got home, we heard lots of heavy engine noises outside the house. Car doors slamming. My curiousity finall got the best of me. I saw police lights flashing at the north end of the street, just past our driveway. But the people were walking past our house. I went to the other end of the house and was faced with this view out my son's bedroom window to the south: Actually, the view I saw was much worse than this photo, which I took about five minutes later and does not truly capture the height of the flames and the overwhelming glow of it all set so close to our home!! We went running outside (with our cameras). I found myself thinking as I ran around the house that I was so glad hubby had spent the day getting the pine needles off the roof. There is nothing but trees between our place and the fire. I was also praying thanks that there was no wind! Brand new house. Not quite finished. No one moved in yet. There's a joke around here about Bubba's wiring work. Well, it's a joke to us anyway. We overheard a conversation just a couple months after we moved here. Two men were talking. One asked the other about the house which had just been rebuilt after a fire. The other commented that Bubba had done the electrical work on this new house too -- seems Bubba did electric work on the side. As for this fire, sure seems like it coule be suspicious? The fire department and police were occupied with the parade... could someone have picked a better time? This all happened about 6:30pm. The engine noise has only stopped withing the last hour. What hubby and I are both curious about though, is that neither the fire nor police sirens were sounded The smell brought back memories from the summer between my junior and senior years of high school. Our kitchen caught fire the day after school let out. It took all summer to get the house back in order from the damage. I'm heading to bed now, more than a little anxious about having bad dreams. LC

bad girl, bad girl

whacha gonna do if the teacher sees you?? I'm skipping a class right now. A class where I am supposed to be taking a test. A test that I know I can make-up... not a common thing on this campus. I'm just not ready. Why? Because I'm compulsive. Not satisfied to depend upon my class notes, I am driven to read all the accompanying chapters even though I *know* that it is probably not necessary. Two of the five essay questions on the test are about lecture material that isn't even part of the text. Lordy, I wonder about myself sometimes. The alternative, however, was to work myself up into an anxiety attack and be physically ill (anxiety is primary trigger for a physical ailment for me). At least I'm not doubled-up in pain and making love to the toilet this morning. And, I prepared a summary of a lecture I attended on Tuesday night for extra credit in another class, so I am not totally wasting my time here blogging for ya. Things are getting quite stacked up school-wise. I've got to be sure to budget my time, and most importantly stay calm. It really IS okay to make a B instead of an A, right? RIGHT?? I forgot my knitting today. Bummer. Sold all my Dazzleaire! And printed out a list of the rest (mostly Lion Brand) to pass along to the knitting group in the dorm here. Life is pretty good on this chilly Friday. Hope all is well with everyone else, too. If not, well, may the powers that be bless you. LC

sunday musings

The saga of the fuzzy scarves continues. I'm on the fourth one. Still struggling with a good cast-on. There's one where you just sort of carry a thread under the loops as you cast-on; that's next. I'm down to 48 stitches on this one. They really do stretch out big when you open the tube. The second one I made has to be totally redone. It is HUGE. Way too long and floppy. I'm liking about 75gm per scarf. Found out that a bunch of the 'co-ed' knit in one of the dorms on Wednesday night. Don't plan to try to join in, but I was happy to know that there *was* some knitting happening on campus. The knit meet-ups have never occurred in town, so I was wondering if it was just grand-ma's knitting around here. Had a good number of people stop at our yard sale yesterday. Most frequent comment heard was how pretty the yarns were, but they didn't know how to crochet. One lady did ask me if I could teach her. I told her after hearing so many wish they knew how, I might consider it and to watch the local free-ad paper for a notice if I decided to do so. Another thing, I think I just might as well list all Mom's books on half.com. I just don't get it. People will go to the half-price book store (or even the regular bookstore) and pay for books, but they think it is outrageous that I want half-price for these books?? MANY which have never even had the binding opened on them! To say nothing that the cover price is only half what new paperbacks are going for anyway!! It's not the heat, it's the stupidity. I know. That wasn't nice. Some times it sure seems appropriate though -- no matter what part of the country you live. Classes already seem to be winding down. Hard to imagine, but I think even fewer are attending class than before fall break. I still have two papers and two short-short thingies to write. Three tests this week. The only thing I think I am really dreading is the Spanish oral on the last day of class. And speaking of, I should do a little more of that tonight, and finish the Statistics chapter. So, I'm off... LC

Conclusion: Never try to use the 'magic scarf' pattern(s) with a fuzzy yarn. I was in a store across from the campus last week and saw a fuzzy scarf. One of those tube-types that you can pull long and skinny or open up and wear like a hooded cowl. I stood and counted (approximate) the number of stitch around, thinking I would make these with my Patons Cha-Cha stash as Christmas gifts. Before I began I did some looking around online at the various patters for something like this. I estimated about 100 stitches in the one I saw in the store, but it seemed way too big, and so I backed down to the 68 stitches found in an online pattern. First note to self: always use odd number. To be fair to myself, however, I didn't intend to drop the stitches... I thought it would just... well, never mind. It didn't. Second note to self: don't use cable cast-on. I'm on my second one and still haven't determined the perfect cast-on for this project. Long-tail with one yarn-over between each cast-on stitch is not it... I'm leaning toward invisible with two yarnovers between each loop for the third attempt. As my conclusion, my solution is to drop those stitches as I go. When I was tediously dropping the stitches in my first attempt, wonder wasn't the process basically the same as adding a yarnover between each stitch and then dropping it on the next row? So that's what I'm doing on this second try. It does, however, take more attention than just knitting away and then dropping the stitches, i.e.,: *k, yo, drop yo from previous row.*. I believe the key is a mantra, of sorts. Either "stitch, wrap, drop," or "wrap, drop, stitch," being sure to double check that you are always stitching into a knit-stitch and dropping a yarnover!! It is sort of 'loosey-goosey' and the first couple rows are the most tedious, but seems to be rolling right along now. Biggest problem is finding a 'safe' place to stop/put it down! And what I'd really like to know is how the one I saw in the store can be so, so skinny with so many more stitches?? Will update with success or frustrations. Happy Halloween to everyone! LC

meandering

I see by moonphases that is is new moon -- it's a toss up as to my favorite: new or full moon. There's just something about that teeney-tiny sliver up in the sky, especially when there's the warm glow of sunset still in the western sky, that makes me smile and feel all contented inside. Classes are fine, excellent in fact. Doing unbelievably well in statistics, of all things! Falling a little behind in espanol, but I should be able to catch up by next Wednesday, when our first typed composition is due. We have fall break Monday & Tuesday. I have an accumulating list of topics I'd like to write about -- um, not for espanol, just THINGS I need to get our of my head and/or off my chest -- and no time to write about them. I am one-fourth finished with the baby blanket, but it's too heavy to carry around on campus, so I'm hunting something else to work on. Most of my other projects are also too big. Guess it's time to get back to watchcaps or baby sweaters. Although, I REALLY want to make myself a sweater with the alpaca I bought last year... but still haven't really found the right pattern. And I'd like to reproduce this crocheted poncho I bought. It's from some rather fine silky thread, simply pattern, just a matter of getting started. It would be small, not too heavy and easy to work on between classes. later taters, hubby is waiting to head out to a tool sale... LC

more grades

    I've had three exams since Ivan roared through just east of us -- he surely did me a favor: two of the three were postponed a few days giving me more study time. How very egocentric of me.     Yes, two of them were the ones I was whining about last week, Personality Psych and Comparative Religion. And I did as well as I hoped and better than I thought, getting Bs in both. For some reason 19/25 isn't the C my calculator says it is -- but you won't see me arguing it with the professor! I think I'll know how to do better on the next one... same with religion. I hope. Still, I'd rather write more completely on fewer items than have to rush through and do a poor job on more questions.     The third exam was Spanish. I had hoped (and sort of expected) to make an A and I did. A low one, but still, pretty good for first test (which are apparently standardized throughout the department -- now *that* seems like compulsive micro-management to me).     Today has been weird. Wyrd, even. Slept late, felt sleepy all day and dozed a couple times... started to go to bed because I was sleepy again, and discovered it was only 8:30pm! This will not do. I have studying to do. I have knitting to do. I have yoga to do. I have pleasure reading to do.     And the good news of late is that half.com isn't closing after all, so I have many, many books to add to my inventory.     Which leads me to the bonanza we found last night at a local salvage-type store: about half the stock of a Books-A-Million store from Florida at 40% off! I put back most of my selections after DH found high-quality coveralls -- he's a true hillbilly at heart and I lurve him -- at about 75% off retail, as I do try to budget our foray's into "Treasure Hunt," especially when I can just as easily get from the library about a half dozen of those I decided not to buy.     One of the books I did buy is "Mindful Knitting: Inviting Contemplative Practice to the Craft," by Tara Jon Manning. Have only read the preface and introdution so far. Another one was a slo-cooker cookbook DH wanted, and another a gift for Son#2.     I'll be going back in a few days to plunder some more. I'm hoping to find Christmas presents and also a GRE preparation guide, just to get a feel for whether I could do well enough to make it worth my time. LC