I am a trivia night loser...

Yes, we came in absolutely last place tonight, but I bet we had the most fun. My one contribution, that was correct, was that Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Treasure Island. We were by far the loudest table and we didn't even have any alcohol. It was all natural, which should be really scary...

Aren't you surprised I'm still on line. Came home cable and Internet still worked. Woo Hoo. Won't have any access after tomorrow though because I have to return the modem and cable box.

So, I came home and packed up the rest of the breakable dishes. Tomorrow it's pots and pans. I pack and I pack and it never seems to be any less stuff that still needs to be packed. It's scary.

So I bid a fond farewell to all my St. Louis friends. I will miss all of you. No more blogging until next week.

Yet another sock...

Another day another sock. Yep, finished yet another one. This is Pattern #12 from Joy Slayton's Ribbing Plain and Fancy. I bet everyone is hoping I get to unpack soon so I have a different pattern source for my socks. The yarn is Knitpicks Sock Garden. I like them. They're knitting up really fast.

This may be my last entry until next Thursday. I stupidly turned my e-mail service and cable off as of tomorrow. Of course, maybe that will fource me into packing more. Only 4 more days to get everything packed. Oh My!! I packed more of the kitchen this evening and then packed my dresser drawers full (bless the movers who said I could leave clothes in them as long as they weren't loose - so I took out all my socks & underwear and replaced with sweaters, etc.). So now, I basically have 5 pairs of clothes left out. I better not get too dirty... Packing would be easier if I hadn't jam packed every second of my last 5 days in town. Trivia night tomorrow night. Bank roulette Saturday am and a going away party with the knitter's Saturday night. Brunch with friends on Sunday and then Monday is it. I have a feeling I'll be up really late on Monday finishing it up... I admit it...I'm a procrastinator...

I packed away all the wine glass, champagne glasses, martini glasses and even a few regular glass drinking glasses this evening. I have some plastic glasses left out to drink out of for the next week. My apartment is beginning to look like Box central. I have boxes piled to the ceiling on one wall of my apartment. I'm beginning to feel claustrophobic. I did meet my 2 box quota for the day though. Good Gwen.

Every day I go to dinner or out to lunch with someone and it's "the last time I'll go to dinner/lunch with them." Not forever, but before I leave. It's kind of little sad every day. Tomorrow is the last Wednesday with the knitting posse.

A new kind of wonderful...

I've discovered a new kind of wonderful...the lemon tiramisu at Macaroni Grill. Mmmmm...and it would have been so much more wonderful if I wasn't so full. Definitely a winner if you haven't had it yet.

I packing news, 2 more boxes packed. DSL and phone service ordered for my new apartment. Only thing left is cable and I'm leaning towards cable with DVR service.

On a bad note, I've already lost one of the 2 sets of keys that the apartment complex gave me. I have no idea what I did with them. I'm hoping I left them at the apartment complex...

Countdown: 8 Days left

And then there were 9...

days that is. 9 days until I pack up my little car and drive accross the state for good. To that end, I signed my new lease today. Yeah. Moved in a few things I didn't want to movers to move, pictures, etc that they feel the need to crate at a steep price.

So, without further ado, pictures of my new apartment... The first is looking at my kitchen/dining room from the sunroom.
The second is the looking into the sunroom from the dining room. Notice my ultra swanky chairs in the sunroom, where my mom and I rested after hauling stuff up to my apartment.



Now, a couple of things you'll notice...no, that's not just the picture, you are actually looking at the absence of what us apartment dwellers call "Whitewall" which is the totally ultra day glow white paint that you usually find on apartment walls. My walls are kind of a soft cream color. Yeah! Which also accents the crown molding you can see in the dining room. I'm so excited. I can't wait to see if with all my stuff in it. More pictures forthcoming in 2 weeks of that.

Other than that, not a lot of packing going on this weekend, but I did almost finish another sock...that counts for something doesn't it???

The beauty of February 15th...

Need I say anymore. For any who do not recognize, that's a Valentine's day box of Godiva chocolates 50% off. Yes, February 15thth truly is a wonderful day. You should be so proud of me, it made it all the way home in it's sealed box. Not so sealed anymore...

There was knitting today as well...and tomorrow there
will be frogging because although you can't tell, the sock toe would fit bigfoot. I don't know what I was doing. I was experimenting with a pattern and the next thing I know I've got 72 stitches on size 2 needles and the toe will fit bigfoot. So, verdict, I really like the pattern, which you really can't see here, but I need to restart it with less stitches. By the way, this is pattern #12 from Joy Slayton's Ribbing Plain and Fancy. (You can tell I packed all of my sock patterns can't you??)

There was packing today as well. I sadly have managed to accumulate a whole box full of purses. When did that happen??

Countdown to KC - 14 days

14 day countdown

Today marks the official beginning of the countdown to move. The moving truck comes 2 weeks from today to haul away all my stuff. I actually packed two boxes tonight (and it didn't kill me, go figure). I'm hauling trash out of my apartment like you wouldn't believe though. Surprisingly, I must be feeling better about moving since I've stopped knitting quite so much. I was quite the knitting machine for awhile...of course, it could be that all I have left to knit on is Faina's scarf as well, but I won't go there. Beautiful scarf. Just can't get into it...

Days to Departure: 14

Black Tuesday

It's that day again... The day single women everywhere dread...V-Day without a date. The media has attempted a new tactic this year...giving gifts to people other than a signifigant other. While I do give kudos to Hallmark for realizing that not everyone has a signifigant other. On the other hand, I'm not going to give a friend or my personal trainer (as if I have one) a love bear either. Nice try.

I did get some Valentines treats from my mom, unfortunately, I was so focused on remembering to pick up the boxes she had for me, I left them at her house. I really, really want that Reese's peanut butter heart now.

Oh well, bring on the Happy 15th, national day of 75% Valentine's day candies. Sweettart hearts, here I come.

A new Olympic sport

Another Finished Object. Julie's Birthday Socks in the Yarn-over cable pattern. #17 in Joy Slayton's Ribbing Plain and Fancy. Soccotta yarn. I think this is one of my favorite sock patterns.

I've decided that the Olympics needs another sport. Procrastination. Or maybe the Olympics aid me in procrastination, either way, I'm an Olympic procrastinator. I watched the Opening ceremonies. I watched Hockey during the day on Saturday. I watched pairs skating and speed skating on Saturday night. I watching Luge and more speed skating and downhill on Sunday. In the past 2 weekends, I've finished 1 baby sweater, 1 scarf and 2 pairs of socks all in my avoidance of packing. Although, this weekend was better than last because I actually packed some boxes. (what a concept. Moving in 2 weeks, packing a box or two). I went through my closet and got rid of some clothes, although since I just went through this exercise 3 months ago, not as many as you might think. Packed cothers that I know I won't wear in the next 2 weeks. Kitchen is up next, but I still need to eat, so that will be next weekend.

Jaywalking in my Jaywalkers

So, due to moving in 2 weeks, I didn't think that I could join the knitting Olympics and work on some new challenging project and still get packed. But, I did knit during the opening ceramonies and Voila! Finished Jaywalker socks.
Made from some knitpicks yarn that I dyed myself, which is why they're two different colors. I dyed the yarn in the ball, which resulted in the nice stripey effect, unfortunately, the yarn in the middle didn't get a dyed all the way through, hence sock 2 is a lot lighter than sock 1. I think I'm going to overdye sock 2 with some more watermelon kool-aid and see if that turns the white pink and they match better.

My comments on the Opening Cermonies. "They throw the flag." I actually liked them. Not as abstract as some of them have been, so it was more interesting. Luciano, as ever, brought the house down. Now, who out there from the 5 second glimpse we got can reproduce the pattern on the scarves that the athletes from Belarus were wearing. Those looked cool. Also liked the hats on the Norwegians with the skiers knit in them. Other than that got some more work done on Julie's birthday socks. I got out Faina, but had to put it away because I found myself totally engrossed in parts of the ceremony and losing my place in the lace pattern. The events should be better for finishing that.

Well, we have a date. My stuff will officially be loaded on a truck February 28th and hauled off to Kansas. I have about 18 days in which to complete the packed. I packed 2 more boxes this evening.

I interviewed for my replacement today. That's really bizarre feeling. I'm really excited about my new position, but it's weird to talk to someone about doing my job. Usually, you're done and out in 2 weeks before they even find new candidates. We have a couple of good candidates so I'm glad that my boss has a choice and isn't stuck with "okay, I'll take this one."

Procrastiknitting still going on. I'm to the toe of my Jaywalker socks. Yippee. I also unpacked the pattern for Faina that I had packed. Kind of hard to finish a scarf (finally???) without the pattern. I hadn't sealed the box. I guess subconsciously I knew there was something in that box I needed...

Procrastiknitting...

I'm procrastiknitting as defined by knitting everything and anything to avoid doing something else you really should be doing. In my case packing. Note from my weekend blog updates that I finished 2 objects over the weekend. On Friday, when I was home from work waiting for the moving estimator guys, I should have been packing. In reality, I finished a Baby Albert sweater and frogged and restarted the 2nd Jaywalker sock. On Saturday when I should have been packing, I went out to buy more yarn to finish a scarf and buy buttons for the Baby Albert. I came home and turned the heel on Julie's Birthday socks. Sunday, I worked some more on the Jaywalker, finished the scarf and then finished the first of Julie's birthday socks and started the second during the Superbowl. Tonight, I went to babysit my neice for awhile then came home and turned the heel on the Jaywalker socks. Sum total of boxes packed in the past 4 days...1. 1 measly box. (I'm so ashamed...) Procrastinknitting...it's a good thing I packed my yarn or I could be in big trouble...

More Finished Objects for February

Another Finished object to round out the weekend. This is a scarf for a co-worker who begged for one. I really am not a novelty yarn kind of person, but knitting it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and on size 15 needles, only took a few hours.

I also finished the first of Julie's Birthday socks and started the toe of the second during the Super Bowl this evening. It was a great time put on by my friends Jenn & Eric. It seems to get more chaotic every year as more and more children enter the mix, but they are definitely entertaining to watch. They provide two rooms in their homes with TVs, one for the serious football watchers and one for the commercial watchers. There were 3 knitters in the second room. Not something you see at every Superbowl party. I love it.

February is for Finished objects

I've decided that February is for Finished objects. To help me along on this, I've packed away all my yarn and only left out my unfinished projects. 3 pairs of socks on needles, a baby albert sweater, a flower basket shawl and last, but certainly not least, Faina's scarf. Of course, this does create problems, because I got my sockapalooza pal and the yarn I want to use for her socks is packed away. Oh, well, since I was going to experiment with different patterns, I can do that and then start her sock when I get to KC.

So, I present the first finished object of February. It's a
another Baby Albert. It's missing the buttons still because I threw them away in a cleaning frenzy last weekend. I'll have to go out tomorrow and buy more buttons since the individual this sweater for is only in Monday of next week. So finish it I must.

The finished sweater wasn't all I did today. I frogged
the second Jaywalker sock and started it over. I also worked on Julie's birthday socks. We've had to cancel our dinner several times, so she hasn't seen it yet. I think it looks cool, you can't really see the pattern in the picture, but it's pattern #17 for Joy Slayton's Ribbing Plain and Fancy. It's a yarn-over cable pattern. I really like this pattern for socks.

As you can see, I got lots of knitting done today in between visits from moving company estimators. The good news, at least one quote came in less than I was expecting. I'm expecting a couple more on Monday, so we'll see. I'm targeting a move date of March 1st. Which isn't all that far away.