Saturday, September 7, 2013

thirty-four

Five weeks.

It's really been five weeks.

Well, it's not that I've been lazy. As it turns out, selling a house, packing that  house, and getting everything moved 1,000 miles south is kind of a big task. If you were wondering if we have a lot of stuff, it turns out we do. We had to move approximately 5,440 pounds of stuff. I guess "move" is actually kind of a stretch. We had a moving company do it for us. In any event, it was still a big deal.

James and I are still in the process of selling our house; the settlement closes in a little over a week. Once more, selling your house is a big deal. We can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we would sprint towards it... if we were the sprinting type.

We have a house in Lake Mary, Florida now... and I really love it. It's a bit bigger than the house we had in Pittsburgh, and there's a great backyard for the dog. He's still getting used to all the different noises we have down here, so he's been barking quite a bit lately. Last night, there was some sort of animal hissing and yowling in the dark, and the dog and I were both afraid. It could have been a raccoon, a possum, or maybe a really sad cat, but we didn't want to find out. There's certainly a lot of wildlife here in the sunshine state.

It's certainly been an exciting couple of weeks for me down here. Dad and I drove down to Florida on Sunday, August 25. On Monday, August 26, before I had even logged 24 hours in my new state, I was in a car accident. Luckily, I'm not really injured. I have a minor neck sprain, and I'll be going for a follow-up appointment at the PT in a couple weeks. How did it happen? Well, I was stopped at traffic signal, and the light was red. Once the light turned green, the driver behind me drove right into my rear bumper. I don't think they were paying attention. To anything. I was warned about the roads down here; I just didn't think someone would be a bad driver around me so quickly. Sheesh.

Now, about the knitting... There was a two-week period where I didn't knit a single stitch, which also contributed to my absence here, and also my general anxiety level. That dark time is behind me now. Thank goodness. I'm almost done with two different projects now!

I've been working on my third pair of socks. It turns out that I really love knitting socks! The pattern is called (Are you even ready for this?!) Hermione's Everyday Socks. HERMIONE! Did I tell you I live right by Hogwarts now?? I'm using Dream in Color Smooshy, one of my favorite sock yarns, in a nice mustard yellow-ish hue. Here's my project page. Don't they look a little vintage? And I really love a contrasting toe, don't you?


Also, I've been working on another shawl by Veera Välimäki (shocking), who I love. It's called Bolt, and it's part of a Brooklyn Tweed collection that was released earlier this year. The pattern was actually a birthday gift, from my great friend Yvonne. I'm knitting this shawl in two different colors of Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light (even more shocking), Ink and Tern. I've reached the last part of the shawl, where I knit garter forever, but it's been total TV knitting the whole way. Veera's pattern's are never that complicated, but the results are always amazing! I think this is the fourth shawl of hers that I've knit. I really love her patterns. Raveled here.


That's all I have for now, but I feel better finally getting back here. I'll be in California next week, so I may not be back before the middle of the month, but you can be sure I'll have a few project finished by then!

Now I have to figure out what to do with all my coats...

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

thirty-three

It's all happening!

Well, kind of...

It will all happen, but at least it's started happening.

We are moving to Orlando, Florida! (which, by the way, is the BIG news)

We really love Orlando, and have family there as well. Also, we love Disney World. And Universal. And anything touristy about the area. It's going to be awesome!

So... A few weeks ago (although it feels like forever now), James was presented with a job offer from his company. The offer was great, but would require us to relocate. And this is not a "make the commute shorter" kind of relocation, it's a big one. After discussing it at length for a few days, he decided to take the job.

The following Monday was the most anxious I've ever been, that I can remember. We had decided that James was taking the job, but I still had to talk to my boss. I told him the whole story, and that this was simply an offer we couldn't refuse. I really didn't want to leave my job, and so I asked if there was any possible way I could keep my position and work remote. He agreed (almost immediately), and put the wheels in motion to get this transfer approved. Three weeks later, it's now 100% official, and I'm so excited! I really love my job, and I would have been so sad to leave the position, and the wonderful team.

So now we have one thing left to do... Sell the house. Our house has been on the market for three weeks exactly, we've had 8 or 9 showings, and our open house went very well. So far, we have a lot of interest, but no offers. My cousin told me that it takes (on average) 62 days to sell a house, but I hope it happens a little faster. We are priced to sell, and the fact that we've seen so much interest so fast (at least for our area) is encouraging.

James leaves for Orlando in 10 days, and he'll stay with his sister while I stay in Pittsburgh and try to sell our house. Once the house is sold, I'll pack up the U-Haul with my Dad (and the dog), and we'll drive down to Orlando to meet James. There's still a long road ahead of us, and I'm not looking forward to being apart, but we decided that this option is best.

So, that brings me to my next question... Does anyone have any LYS recommendations for Orlando? I've found a few websites, but it's always better to hear from a shopper, I think. I may be moving to Florida, but I'm still going to knit. And knit. And knit.

Speaking of knitting, there hasn't been much on my needles lately. I guess this whole moving and packing and selling the house thing has slowed me down. That being said, I may lay a little low for a while, but I'll knit when I can (as I always have). I am working on a test knit, but I can't really mention that here... yet.

PS - Has anyone grabbed a copy of the Interweave Harry Potter Knits Magazine yet? I have a copy on hold at Natural Stitches, which I'll pick up this weekend. I'm so excited!

Friday, July 12, 2013

thirty-two

So, what's it been, nearly a month?

Sheesh.

I've been feeling that I need to put some words down here lately, but I just haven't gotten to it. Life is getting a bit exciting. The truth is, there's a lot going on around here. Seriously, big stuff. Sadly, I'm not really able to release any news at the moment. It should be soon. Any day now, really.

I just wanted to get something down, so I could tell myself I did it. Even though it's a total almost post.

I've been knitting quite a bit lately, but I'm not sure if I'm going to make my Stash Dash Goal of 4,375 yards knit by August 5. The challenge started on May 24, and I've finished 9 projects to date, with a total yardage of 2,350. Things are looking bleak, as I enter the final weeks of the challenge. However, it's an informal KAL, and so I won't let myself feel bad for not making it (if I don't). Here's my list of projects (with links to the project pages)...

4.  Kiwi Hat

I'm currently working on the tenth project, another pair of socks. This is my second official pair, and I'm really loving it! I'm using the same exact pattern as before, but knitting one size smaller because my yarn is a bit heavier and the needles are 0.5 mm larger. Any tips for picking up stitches after the heel? I had a few inconsistencies with this last time, but I'm hoping to correct them with this new pair. We'll see...

So, I'm sorry I don't have too much to say. I know it's been a while. I'm hoping to share some big news with you all soon.

PS - I think I found the pattern for my first sweater!
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