Package of Doom

Ok, Ok . . . I'm caving in to pressure! Here's a pic of the Package of Doom I mailed off to Alabama. (Ok, not the actual package, but all the contents anyway!) I'm hoping the local candy bars (I included 2) will make up for the plain, black socks. Think of them of the Black Socks of Death......or socks that go with just about anything.....or the stuff in my stash I was trying to use up.......

The socks are actually extremely soft! Made from Cascade's Pima Tencel.....50% Pima Cotton and 50% tencel (not sure what that is!). Unfortunately they are handwash only and lay flat to dry.

In other news.......you may have heard the big $200 million Power Ball lottery ticket was sold and the winner from right here! Fort Dodge, IA!! Believe it or not my husband purchased his ticket at the exact same location on the exact same day!! Dang! We were SOOOOOOO close!! Rumor is that a group of teachers has won--which would totally rock as teachers deserve special care and places in heaven for the work they do with our children day in and day out.

(Shoutout - Hurrah teachers!!! We LOVE you all!!!!)

Well, that's the scoop from my part of the world today. Dooglescout in AL....I hope you enjoy this package of doom!

The Mailman Cometh!!!

Well, I have completed my Socks of Doom for Sock Wars 2006 and actually put them into the mail at 2:09 this afternoon! Of course I am not posting a picture of them here for my target to spot and ruin all the fun when they arrive at her doorstep. Now that they're off (with a postcard from my town and 2 candy bars made in my hometown and sold only is a small area of Iowa--hope she likes them!!)......I'm a bit worried that the socks I made are actually a bit boring. I'm worried she won't like them at all! (sheeesh, I hate being a perfectionist and worry wart!) I don't think they're the sort of socks one wears with shoes as the fabric is just too thick. (I figured that was going to be a problem when I saw we were using DK weight yarn instead of fingering weight.) So my sock yarn was chosen with the idea of being more like slipper socks than regular.

Anywho........I'm done knitting for that project and feeling a bit let down now that things are out of my hands for the time being! I could use a good hand massage . . . . and a cup of chai . . . . and some chocolate ice cream. Then maybe I'll get back to my Christmas socks and afghan projects until such time as a package arrives at my door with more socks of doom to knit or a lovely pair that kills me off!

I'm In!

I couldn't figure out a way to put this button on my sidebar (code illiterate here!) so I figured I'd just add it into a post as a photo.

I'm really excited about Sock Wars!! I've never participated in anything like this before and I'm thrilled by the prospect of getting a pair of socks just for me that someone else took the time to do. Even more terrific if they happen to come from some "exotic" foreign place like Norway or Australia or Seattle (just kidding, though I've never been to Seattle and hope to go one day!)

Anyway the knitting begins on Sept. 22 and I hope to make it through round one alive! We have to use DK weight yarn, so I'm busy searching my stash for something acceptable (I've got a TON of fingering weight sock yarn! Drat!)

If anyone reading this happens to be a fellow warrior, be sure to say hey in the comments! If you want to read more about the event, check out yarnmonkey's blog. (Too late to sign up for this year though I'm afraid......sorry!)

Aran Afghan

I'm making an afghan for my sister. I'm using different Aran stitch panels from the "All About Aran" episode of Knitty Gritty on DIY. So far I've completed the Trinity Stitch panel and the Rope Cable panel. Each are supposed to be 12" square (although my cable panel appears to be smaller than the Trinity stitch one!) I haven't blocked them yet, so I'm hoping that will help. So far I'm really enjoying trying out these Aran stitches/patterns. I may even figure out the math to make a Celtic Knot panel the same size......we'll see.

I was thinking of using the traditional cream color yarn, however she has three kids at home (all boys) and is busy trying to run 2 businesses....so I opted to go with something that will hopefully hide the "love" a bit easier than cream would. Plus, I thought this purple heather would fit her decor nicely too.

The pattern calls for making 16 panels altogether....so that it becomes 4X4. I'm thinking of making 12 panels and doing it as a 3X4. Any thoughts???? Would love to know what you think!

Yahoo!

As I was going through photography school the past coupple of years I suspected that I might end up doing portrait work. You see, I like shooting people (with a camera of course!) I can relate to people of all ages and when I get shots like this for family, I believe I have the skills to make a fine portrait photographer.

The problem is that our town already has enough portrait studios. There wasn't really such a need for that in this area. What to do?

Well, I'm so thrilled to say that following through and doing my best on all the other units of photography (nature, photojournalism, commercial, sports, architectural, etc.) has really paid off!! I've just landed a part-time job with our local newspaper shooting some sports as well as commercial/advertising shoots as well!! I'm so excited and thrilled to have this chance to do something that I dearly love: take my camera, shoot photos and get paid! It's a dream come true for me! What's more, I'll also get to do some freelance writing for them (another thing I enjoy!)

I know that paragraph has way too many exclamation points in it. Sorry! I'm just so excited that I had to share!