walk along the open road of love and life - surviving if we can.

mmm. I am feeling very at peace with the universe.

feeling so forgiving, I even changed my ex-ex-ex boyfriend's name in my phone book from "Ignorant Slut" to "Loserface." :)

more and more things are falling into place. new job finally came through for me (free coffee is mine once more), I THINK I figured out what I still need to transfer to UTD (just need to get admissions on the phone and apply for scholarships), and post-break-up complications are fading fast.

there was a brief interim of uncertainty on all those points, but just when I was getting worried nothing was going to work out like I wanted, it all turned around. this is why I love life :)

I've been lucky enough to meet some very interesting and inspiring new people lately, and I'm back to teaching artsy kids with the Purple Crayon, so I'm thinking a creative revival is in store for this summer. I threw a few pots on the wheel yesterday (the heat dries them so much faster and makes my lack of bats much less of a problem), and am going to start cranking them out to sell for supplementary income (shoe moneys).

I know I say this every other post, but I really am going to take some pictures of all my crap to shamelessly promote myself in the near future. look forward.


side note: this just solidifies my total geek status, and I'm almost a little embarassed to mention it, but I almost have 50 followers on Blip.fm, and it makes me freaking excited. 48 people appreciate my taste in music. geeeeeeeekgasm.

I'll let you borrow my four-leaf clover

things are going quite nicely. I'm feeling very accomplished.

I'm making a lot of progress on the things I really want to do. I'm also making a steady income, and saving a decent amount each week. I'm well on my way to moving out and being financially independent.

I've also done a lot of knitterly things in the past week or so. I had the honor of test knitting for the awesome leethal, and helped perfect her new pattern, the Skoodlet. You should definitely check it out - it's adorable and extremely clever. I don't know how I ever survived without it.

I also updated my etsy slightly (added a hat - that counts as an update), and plan on adding more soon. I got my amazing photographer of a sister to take some pictures for my shop and for ravelry... and I think we're going to have a great partnership from now on. I can take decent pictures if I really work at it, but I'm too lazy most of the time. Gibson has a great camera, so all her pictures turn out looking incredible. I <3 her.



Horizontal Ribbing Stripey Hat
for sale on etsy.



So You Think You Can Hat
raveled.


more later. happy weekend!

the only steps that matter are the ones you take all by yourself

ladies and gentlemen, life is good again.

oh wait. I haven't written in a while, and you had no idea life wasn't so good for a week or so there. I'll explain.

I quit my job at Escape, and started my new one at Peet's. The new one that pays much, much, better. But I wasn't sure I was going to like it. I'm still not entirely convinced, but I'm getting there. They hired me as an opener, and one of the reasons I was hating my job at Escape was because I had to work so many morning shifts. But... and I never thought I'd see this day, but I've become a morning person. Not really by choice. Now I'm out like a light by 10 every night, and up at 7 or earlier every morning. This has been a little tough to get used to.

One of the worst parts was having a class from 5:30-6:45 that required way too much preperation and participaiton. The professor refused to lecture. Instead, she wanted to do this hippy, "interteaching" thing where you're required to read the entire chapter and basically write a detailed outline of it, then come to class and teach everyone in your small group what you wrote about. Screw that. I'm dropping that class today. I'm not going to spend 2+ hours before every class working on homework. I'm in college. I earned the right not to do that over four agonizing years of daily homework.

So now that class is out of the picture, and I'm instantly 100x happier. Now I have it pretty easy. All I have to do is come to class, take a few notes, write a paper ever now and then, and skim through my textbooks before an exam. Bliss.

And my history professor consistently impresses me. I actually enjoy coming to class every morning. His lectures last 30 minutes (and the class is supposed to be an hour and 15 minutes long), and while you have to be pretty on the ball with notetaking to get everything down, he teaches the material in a way that sticks, and lets you know exactly what to expect for the test. He wins. I'm going to give him a pretty amazing review on RateMyProfessors.com at the end of the semester.

But back to me being a morning person. It definitely puts a little stress on certain relationships - I'll try to hang out with friends or the boyfriend after 9, and I'll end up falling asleep doing whatever we're doing. Movies are rough. I sleep through them all. Then I feel like shit when I wake up, and barely have the energy to drive myself home and crawl into bed. But I'm going to find a way to fix that. Naps might be the answer. Or maybe I'll give polyphasic sleeping a shot.

But everything else is quite nice. I feel like I'm going to have time and energy during the day to do all the things I've been depressed about not being able to do. I've been knitting a bit, and I'll get some pictures of my projects on here soon. I got back my joie de vivre.

nobody said it was easy.

hi there.

missed you. I've been pretty caught up in other things lately, but there's a lot I should have written about. first - I've had quite a few days of feeling like I'm floating/dreaming/high out of my mind. in the best possible way. gotta attribute those to the adorable Coffee Master I'm currently dating. and, you know, the fact that I'm a ridiculous, irrational, optimist.

but then... my job. I get tired of hearing:
"Do you really want to be a barista for the rest of your life?"
- Yes.
"You think you can really make a living making people lattes?"
- Probably not.
"Find a job doing something you're really passionate about."
- Um, hello? Coffee?

not that any of this has ever discouraged me from being head-over-heels in love with my current job. I love the customers, the relationships with the regulars, the adrenaline during the morning rush, the ease with which you can make someone happy by memorizing their drink, the control I have over tips, the FREE COFFEE, the access to a decent espresso machine... oh god. love love love.

I also love the people I work with. but due to massive drama, we've lost two over the past month. not only do I miss them terribly, our store is now incredibly understaffed. also, the majority of our employees are in school, and during the semester I am among the only three who can work during the weekdays. so all my shifts start at either 5 am, 6 am, or 7 am. and I close Saturdays and come in at 8 on Sundays. that leaves me with a maximum of 6 potential hours of sleep, which wouldn't really be that bad, but the chances of me actually falling asleep as soon as I get home from work are slim. boo. also, I'll be working a total of 30 hours a week, plus 12 hours of school... and I think that's a lot to ask of anyone.

so I'm quitting. and it's tough. I had a few days where I felt completely unmotivated and uninspired to do anything - as if all I was actually capable of doing was working (found my inspiration, though - watch The Science of Sleep).

but... I turned in an application at Peet's, and I got a call yesterday and set up an interview for tomorrow. eek. there are things about Peet's that I'm not terribly excited about (uniform, potential slllooooww shifts, noisy grocery store right beside it) but there are other things I am excited about, like being paid what I deserve, getting the lunch breaks I'm legally entitled to, and hopefully having a more flexible schedule.

so wish me luck. I just want a job I can be happy with. that lets me play around with an espresso machine.

10.

Apologies for the non-post the other night. If I could steal my camera back from my sister I'd at least make my non-posts full of photos like ysolda's non-posts.

I've realized what's going on in my life has nothing to do with how stressed I get - it's all perception. I can have a million things due tomorrow, too many hours and early mornings at work, relationship/friendship/family issues, and yet, feel fine. It's weird. And I'm not sure if I can control it. Let's find out, shall we?

I want to knit. I want to see movies. I want to sleep in.
Christmas break will not come soon enough.

Buuut. I still love being a barista. I'm finally confident enough in my shot-pulling and milk-steaming (hot damn, I learned to make some kickass foam) to feel pretty good about the drinks I make for people.

I do have some issues with the management... but for now I'm just staging a quiet rebellion, and will think about quitting in the summer when my art teaching job picks back up (+awesome raise!). And even then... maybe I'll try a different little independent coffee shop?

And I'm going to try something new: saving money. I still haven't touched any of this month's paycheck. Could be because I haven't had time to go to the mall and buy the new pair of shoes I'm so desperately craving, but it's all still there nonetheless. I'm finding that I actually make enough in tips to pay for meals and other absolute necessities, so I rarely use my debit card anymore. I even tip with my tips. This is good.


So, I have a few rare hours before I'll feel obligated to start studying for my Personality Theory Exam that I should have taken today but am going to take tomorrow, so I'm going to kick back, watch Life, and be zen.

03.

Long day.

I work 6-2 on Mondays, and I always come home slightly dead. I used to work 8+ hour days all the time at the Purple Crayon, but I always had some breaks between classes to sit down, and there was even time to grab some lunch occasionally. Not so much at the coffee shop. It's generally a madhouse from 7-11, and there's enough to keep me on my feet the rest of the time.

A coffee shop is pretty ideal place for a psych major to be working. We get our fair share of weirdos (today - people completely wasted at 9 in the morning, a guy in his bathrobe talking gibberish and trying to apply for a job, and the more "normal" type of weirdo who orders pearls in his latte). And I've definitely run into quite a few classic examples of personality disorders. I probably should stop diagnosing my customers, but it's hard to resist.

Speaking of people with personality disorders. I had a run-in with someone from my not-too-distant past today that I really could have done without. But that's what you get when you work at a popular coffee place in a small town. It was bound to happen eventually. Didn't spit in his coffee or spill it in his lap. I think I handled it reasonably well.

Unfortunately, besides taking an amazing nap outside (I'm actually outside now - there's an incredibly comfy couch in my half-completed barn, so I'm partially protected from the elements, but still breathing the delicious night air) and reading 500 million pages of psych homework, I didn't do much worthy of note today. Damn these 8 hour shifts. And I won't be able to stay awake much longer, either.

But I made lots of caffeine-addicted people happy today, so it was totally worth it.

02.

Ahh, Day 2 of NaBloPoMo. I was going to take the advice of some NBPM veterans and get my posting done in the morning, but... yeah, no. Nothing has inspired me yet. So if this post ends up being pointless and lame, I'm sorry.

I'm going to hang in there, though, because I really, really, like getting things accomplished. I love making lists and checking things off them. One reason I love 43things.com. It's a little more long term than my to-do's on iCal, but most of the goals I have are reasonably accomplishable (not a word). Plus, it gives the option of writing entries about your progress, and people can send you e-encouragement in the form of "cheers." There's also a 43people and a 43places, both similarly amazing.

I should really start a new list of all the big-ticket items I need to buy and can't possibly afford unless I start practicing some self-control. Maybe that'll remind me not to blow $100 on shoes every time I go to the mall. I might try paying myself every time I get free coffee at work or at Starbucks... that could add up fast. One or two $4 drinks every shift, and if I factor in all the doughnuts, I'll have my Lambretta in no time.

Annnd, I'm about to go back to work making delicious lattes and etc, but it just struck me that this blog is in dire need of a redesign. Yes?

if it's not too late for coffee, I'll be at your place in 10.

Oh, life. It's lovely.

But it does wear one out.

School remains hectic - I'm coming to terms with the fact that life will not end if I don't make the dean's list this semester... still going to work my ass off to try, though.

The coffee shop is quite nice. I've had three 5 am shifts this week, and though they've been more fun than the cold-molasses-y slow night shifts, they freaking kill me. I've been pretty good about getting to sleep by 11, but that still only gives me 4.5 hours of sleep. Not quite enough. I can give customers huge fake smiles and get their orders right, but when I get home I crasssssssshhh. Which is not good when one has massive amounts of homework to do.

But, again, it would be much worse if I had to deal with bitchy coworkers. And I'm finally getting tips, so that extra dollar or so an hour makes my pay almost comparable to what I was making at the Purple Crayon. And I feel like I have a bit more control over tips - chat a little bit with the customers and compliment their shirt/purse/motorcycle, and you're more likely to get a dollar or so.

But on the other hand, some people get their only social contact at the drive-thru at 6 am, and thus talk your ear off for 10 minutes and proceed to pay in exact change. :(

And some people are just flat-out rude. Srsly. I may feel like murdering everyone who talks loudly to me before I've had my morning coffee, but I can usually control that urge. Obviously there are those who cannot.

And that's about it. My life is work, school, sleep, and the occasional pre/post-work/school outing right now. And lots of delicious, free coffee. And doughnuts. Oh my. I've gained three pounds since I started working. Yayy :))


*note to Latte Boy: good-looking guys are actually a rarity in the mornings - don't be jealous. I only flirt with old, ugly guys.

I never knew just what it was about that old coffee shop I loved so much

Whew. I feel like things are more or less back under control. Sleep helps immensely. So does eating some decent food. Maslow is a freaking genius. There are still way too many things to do and not a lot of time to do them, but at least it's not making me lose my mind anymore.

Work is going fantastically - I finally got to make drinks today and (kind of) learned to use the register, so I don't just stand in the back and feel helpless during a rush. Loving the people I'm working with - it's like I've known them forever.

Hat Attack - I died :( My victim overnighted me her almost-finished hat, and I got it that morning, but had to take a psych exam and then work, so I didn't get to knit a stitch on it before I got the hat that killed me in the mail that afternoon. Tragedy.

Pictures soon - of my murder weapon, and of some spinning I've been doing. I tried navajo plying for the first time and it turned out rather excitingly.

annd...
avocado smoothies = ♥

take my hand, and we'll make it, I swear.

I can't remember ever being this stressed in my life.

I keep telling myself, "this is a good thing - it builds character, strengthens tolerance, teaches patience..."

Whatever. While true, whatever positive things may happen as a result in the future, none of them really help in the moment. Having no time to do anything except work, study, do homework, and freak out about how much work, studying, and homework you have to do sucks hardcore. I don't actually have time to be writing this blog, but I think it helps a little bit - maybe to pinpoint what's really bothering me, maybe just to get it out there so I'm not dealing with this alone.

Like I've mentioned before, procrastination and my tendency to be easily distracted are probably what puts me in these stressful situations, but it does seem like all my professors get together and assign everything to be due at exactly the same time. Conspiracy.

One of the things that is absolutely DRIVING ME CRAZY is how all these psych classes are turning me into a hyper-analytical self-therapist... I pretty much uncontrollably start analyzing everything I say or think while I'm thinking or saying it. It's like there are two voices in my head that are both trying to talk at the same time - unbelievably confusing. My professor warned everyone at the beginning of the semester that this might happen. Didn't tell us how to stop it, however.


So. On stress. I think right now it would be great to have some kind of cathartic, emotional release, like a fit of screaming or some frustrated tears... but instead I'm going numb, and parts of my brain are shutting off so I can't feel anything except frustration at not being able to feel anything. Ego defense mechanism? Maybe, but they're supposed to be unconscious. If anything, I'd call this intellectualization.

Can't shut my ridiculously busy brain off. I used to be able to when I was taking yoga. Now every waking moment it's going over these impossible questions and trying to find solutions. Silly brain, just accept that the only solution is to STOP THINKING and just DO the things that need to be done and not distract me so much. Grr. Inner conflict, much?

I think there's a big part of me that has trouble accepting helplessness - I'm pretty strong and independent (or so I'd like to believe), so I should be able to do anything, right? I think so. But I can't wrap my head around the fact that certain things are outside of my control.

I know other people have been here (I'm starting to wonder if this is how all the LCA Western Civvies felt during senior year) - what do you do? I really can't spare any time for relaxing things like knitting, spinning, watching movies... is there just a certain state of mind I should aim for?


Well. My lunch (which is also going to have to count as breakfast and dinner until I can eat after my 6:30-9 class) has finally sunk in so I don't feel on the verge of passing out. Back to work.

you know, you know, no, you don't, you dooon't.

Aw, hell. This isn't a knit blog.

I know I might have said it was a few times, and I know a good number of you who read this are knitters (ha! I see via flickr pro that 7 people were interested enough in my Fibbonaci Frequency hat to click the link from here :) I'm so popular.), but this is really just an outlet.

I've realized I love writing. I've known for a good long while, of course, what with all my success in english and journalism classes, but then for about a year I was writing nothing but boring government/history/literary analysis essays... mostly about things I really couldn't care less about.

Now that I'm in some classes that I'm really passionate about, I'm inspired to write about them. And other things, things that matter to me; I want to share them somehow, even if no one cares about them as much as I do.

I still try to be discreet - I have a paper and ink journal that I write the really personal stuff in (though admittedly, not very frequently) - and not mention names or details. I know I get a bit uncomfortable sometimes when I read about myself on other blogs...


So, as for the future of this blog - the content is going to change as my interests change. And I definitely anticipate staying interested in knitting for a good long time, so it very well may remain primarily a knit blog. Just thought I'd clear things up in case any of my seven knitters were disappointed at the recent lack of yarn.

Oh, and I got the barista job! It's what I really wanted, anyway. I'm still not grown-up enough to make the sensible choice - I just want to have fun and drink coffee right now :)

tuesday morning, in the dark - I was finding out who you are

Hmm. 4:30 am, not sleepy. Time for another one of those weird, deep-ish thought explosions.

The primary reason I'm still awake is my essay I'm writing for Psych of Personality. I definitely wasted my weekend (but had quite a bit of fun in the process) that was supposed to be devoted to studying for the scary Abnormal Psych exam I have to take by Thursday, and it wasn't until late Sunday night that I even remembered this essay was due. And I'm usually so good about getting these things on my iCal to-do list. Getting them on there, yes. Doing them before they're due, not so much.

On Personality Theory - I'm loving the class; the prof. is a genius, we have great class discussions, and the subject itself is absolutely fascinating, but...

I'm not sure I can deal with the massive amounts of mandatory introspection involved in the assignments. As I'm writing this 6-volume novel of an essay about my results from the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Test (take it - I'd love to see your results and thereby get to know you way better), I realize there's a lot about myself that I never really wanted to know.

I'm all for learning about what makes other people tick, but I hate having to explain myself to other people. Maybe because it means explaining myself to myself first. And if I do manage to dig that deep into the inner workings of my psyche, it sounds vain or self-absorbed when I put it into writing. Could I possibly just be vain and self-absorbed? Let's not go there.

Can vanity really exist if you consciously recognize it in yourself? Or is it one of those catch-22 things like humbleness (if you consider yourself to be a humble person, you're bragging and thus not being humble)?


Job interviews - what on earth do you say when they ask you to name three bad things about yourself?

"I work too hard."

"I'm a perfectionist."

"My right eyebrow is slightly higher than my left."


I'm becoming more and more convinced that I have ADD. That would explain a lot. Every single time I do homework, I spend a ridiculous amount of time doing absolutely everything imaginable except homework. It's a miracle I ever finish anything. My ability to procrastinate is truly impressive. I'm impressed, at least. I'm kind of proud of it, actually.


Now I'm tired.

The Death Hat Always Knocks Twice.

I think a lot of people don't realize it, but knitters are totally badass.

There's Madame Defarge, from Tale of Two Cities fame; the domiKNITrix, a true mistress of the yarn and needles... and then there's me, of course.



my finished Fibonacci Frequency hat for HA2

- my Therapi arrived just in time, so I used that instead of the merino. Gotta say, I wasn't too impressed with it for $10 a 110 yard skein. It had a good number of knots (it was knotty. you know what we do to knotty yarns, don't you?), and knit up it bears an uncanny resemblance to Simply Soft ($2 for 315 yards)... the made-from-jade part is still pretty cool, but I'm still probably not going to buy it again.

So! It's in the mail - should arrive to kill its target before 3 tomorrow (spent an arm an a leg on postage. but at least I'll still have my arms and my legs, which is more than I can say for my unlucky victim).

Now there's nothing left to do but wait... and check the mail every day in fear.


In other news, I've had some surprisingly good luck on the job-hunting front. I had an amazing interview for a receptionist position with a random company that was recruiting on campus, and they're supposed to call today. AND the coffee shop I applied at a few weeks ago and had kind of given up on called me this morning to set up an interview on Monday.

So I have a bit of a dilemma. The receptionist job is not very appealing to me (expect for the salary, the potential for career advancement, the benefits, and how good it'll look on my resume) - I'm afraid it'll be a bit of a The Office situation (though the boss seems about 100 times more competent than Michael), and I'd be Pam of course. And I really have no need for yet another Pam/Jim-type relationship, which is clearly inevitable if I become the office receptionist/art student. But still. Lots of benefits.

And then there's Escape, basically the coffee shop in Allen. I'd be around coffee all day (that's almost enough to sell me by itself), be able to see friends, dress more casually, get free coffee, have more varied shifts (I think the receptionist job is your basic 9-5), and... did I mention coffee? Downsides are the lower pay, the early mornings, and the possibility of having to deal with people I don't like who live in the neighborhood (I swear, everyone and their mother goes to this place). But... I've been dying to be a barista for years now.

So I really don't know. But neither of them have made legitimate offers yet, so it may work itself out in the end.

When I look back now, that summer seemed to last forever.

Ohh, summer, I'm going to be sad to see you go.

Not that it was particularly relaxing as it has been in years past - I worked a bit more than I was used to and had to survive without my boss for over a month. But the overwhelming theme was freedom, just like every summer's should be.

It has been truly beautiful - kind of like a song by Wheat, The Shins, or Sondre Lerche (don't know what I mean? please, please, let me make you a mix CD immediately). Doesn't really make that much sense when you try to analyze it, but look at it in a dreamy, detached state of mind, and it's perfectly clear. I guess it helps that I've been in that state of mind the entire summer.

I'm tempted to continue that train of thought and turn this into a deep, intro/retro/ultra-spective monologue, but I've really said it all right there. Simple, sweet, and sublime.

School starts a week from tomorrow. I definitely spent $600 on textbooks this afternoon, which is about $200 more than I spent on tuition. Love college.

I'm a tad trepidated (< not a real word) about taking four classes in a semester after my freakishly easy senior year, but I think I'll be okay. I have two psych classes, both with the same highly-rated professor (8 chili peppers on ratemyprofessors.com), a Spanish class I could have easily CLEP'd but decided to take so I don't forget everything I've learned by skipping a semester, and a 3-hour design class that looks promising, if a bit inconvenient.


Tomorrow is my last day of work for an unspecified period of time - summer classes have ended, and the fall schedule conflicts with my school schedule, so I'm only coming in every month or so for holiday specials. I'm definitely going to miss it - I've been doing this for three years now, and making way more money than I ever possibly could have been elsewhere. It's probably time to move on though. The Purple Crayon is looking at its final days if no one buys the business - my boss has been ready to retire for years now.

In very exciting news, my mom randomly stumbled across an amazing deal on a kiln on Craig's List the other day, and after I went down to Dallas to inspect it, she snapped it up. I'm no kiln expert (I've been burned on them enough times that I should be, however), but it looks beautiful and is going to be able to do whatever I need it to in the way of high-firing. I have to figure out how to use cones until I can afford a pyrometer, but that's just old-school and cool anyway.


Knitters - if you made it through all that non-yarn-related content without your eyes glazing over, I commend you. Here's some relief:



This is the first of the Chevaliers I was talking about. Ugh. See the weird, stretched out stitches? I'll have a block party tomorrow and see if I can fix those. Also, if my hand looks weird, it's because that's a right-hand mitten on my left hand. Too hard to take the picture otherwise :)

Annd. I don't know how I missed out on the first round, but I'm crazy excited for Hat Attack 2! I'm actually swatching (OH em gee) because I'm not sure I feel like spending $20 on the suggested yarn (I'm sorry, I mean weapon). My dream of being a knitting assassin has finally come to fruition.

Voulez-Vous Crochet Avec Moi?

yeah, you do.

This is just going to be a quickie (ha), because I'm seriously exhausted and I have cupcakes in the oven, but I feel like I should update my legions of fans on how my creative enterprises are coming, bi-monthly at least.

I've been crocheting - I found a pattern for an amigurumi coffee cup, and never looked back. I also made an oddly-shaped-yet-adorable bunny, and two freeform bees. Love how fast it goes compared to knitting. Still love the knitted fabric better for clothing, but crochet is sturdier, and better suited to toys (hey, like amugurumi!).

I was feeling hardcore a couple of days ago, so I cast on for Bayerische (anyone have any idea how to pronounce that?)... and those babies have teeth! I'm cableing sans cable needle to make it even scarier, yet admittedly, easier for myself.


Work is actually going okay; I only had one week of insane Tuesday and Wednesday classes while my boss has been gone, and I've gotten a break from them this week and last week. My Monday class is wonderful - it's just four mind-blowingly talented 12-14 year olds who make a masterpiece of whatever project I assign them with little or no help from me. I actually got to paint and draw with them yesterday and made a halfway-decent picture.


iPhone update for iPod Touch? Totally worth the ten bucks. As long as I'm within range of some wi-fi, I can do everything an iPhone can do except make phone calls and use Shazam (no microphone =[ ). Excitement.

That's all - pictures tomorrow, possibly. I'm kind of a picture tease, and I apologize. It's nighttime, and there is no decent lighting in my house whatsoever.

*ETA*
oops, accidentally posted with the date and time from when I thought up the clever title (about a week ago), and just now fixed it, so if this is in your blogroll twice, I'm dreadfully sorry.

Taking Care of Business

Work has been pretty crazy lately. My boss is pretty disorganized (I sympathize - we're artists, not accountants), and occasionally I end up having to pay the price for her lack of foresight. I've become used to having the project I'm going to teach explained to me at the literal last minute, but this week I had to make it up as I went along with two classes - one of which had twelve 6-10 year-olds. And of course, only half the class arrives on time, so I'm constantly jumping back and forth between steps to help the latecomers catch up. Also, during the summer, there are always kids going out of town who want to know when they can do a make-up class. That was so much easier to deal with when we had our own place - people could come in pretty much any time we were open - but now we have to find a class in the next session for them to come to. And these sorts of inquiries are always made in the middle of class, with dozens of noisy kids all asking for help making various parts of a clay monkey pencil holder that I'm making up on the spot. Utter Chaos.

Now my boss is going out of town for three weeks, leaving me to basically run the business. I am, in fact, freaking out slightly. But maybe now that I have all the projects ahead of time I'll be able to divert some disasters (like leaving all our glazes at the other facility when all the entire class had left to do was paint their clay pieces. that was a fun day). My entire schedule has changed - thank God for iCal or I'd never show up at the right place at the right time. I'm also going to have to start dressing a little more professionally so parents will take me seriously. Last week someone asked me what my "qualifications" were, and I was a little taken aback. Am I qualified? I finally decided to call myself an art student, even though I'm majoring in Spanish/Psych/Chem and haven't taken any college art classes to speak of yet. Makes me sound legit.


I've been knitting a little bit, but there are so many things I want to make, that I end up starting a million projects at once and never finishing any. I'm almost done with Hello Yarn's top down bonnet (figure-8 cast on is freaking brilliant), but I probably made it far to small to fit any normal baby. Damn gauge.

I did flickr (yes, that's a verb) some pictures of thank you cards I made for people who sent me especially large graduation checks - here's one of my favorites:



Uniball ink pens = love.

Summer Breeze Makes Me Feel Fiiine.

Hello Knit Blog.

I know you must have missed me.

I'm back. But I have nothing to show for my long absence. Except for the beginnings of a boring-yet-adorable garter-stitch-striped alpaca scarf and two hats (one of which I can't remember where I put for the life of me)I haven't knit a stitch. Nor spun a yard. Forgive me. Things have been hectic.

Okay, I'll be honest. They haven't been too hectic. It's due to a little thing called senioritis. It causes total and complete apathy about everything except graduating. And as of May 16, I's graduated. Please join me in a moment of pure, summery, bliss.

But now that I've got that whole high school thing over with, I'm so very inspired to plan for this summer. So here's a few things I'd like to get accomplished before September.


1) Work.

The studio where I used to teach closed down due to an increase in rent and a shitty air conditioner that the landlord refused to fix, but we're moving our operation to two different rec centers (one five minutes away, the other twenty minutes) and will have to cross our fingers that the people firing our clay stuff don't screw things up horribly.

I just got a raise - (yeah!) but I'll only be teaching about 25 hours a week, so I should have plenty of time to do other things. Such as:


2) Learn.

I already have my classes planned out for this fall, but to get into the C++ class I want to take (yeah, that's right. totally to meet geek boys.) I need to take College Algebra as a coreq. Eww. And before I can take that, I have to take College Mathematics, or maybe my SAT scores will cover it, or I might have to take the TSI again, or I might have to take "developmental courses" to finally learn the math I should have learned in high school, blah blah blah.

But I was lazy, and didn't find out what I needed to do in time for the beginning of Summer 1, so I'm taking History II online. Which means I have about a month to finish the entire course by myself, and nothing is due until the 21st. But half of everything is due the 21st. So I could potentially procrastinate like none other, but I'm going to try not to. I still haven't finished the first chapter of the textbook.


3) Read.

I'm going to keep working on my "101 Great Books Recommended for College-Bound Readers" list over the summer, as I'm technically still "college-bound," and I'm sure it'll still be valuable even after I've been college-bound-and-gagged this fall.

I've kind of been on a utopian kick lately (Walden Two and 1984 rocked my brave new world), but a few friends of mine are starting a Jane Austen book club (inspired by the slightly entertaining movie by the same name), so Emma is next on my list. I've seen movies for all the books except for Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, but reading Pride and Prejudice after seeing the movie (even the 6-hour Colin Firth version) makes me think reading the books will still definitely be worthwhile.


I'm also going to get an amazing skin-cancer-inducing tan, visit every coffee shop in Texas, and stay up until 4 at least one night a week.

Oh, and on a side note, the Last.fm widget on the side there is going to be much more in sync with my actual music consumption now that I have a macbook and multiple ipods to update it with. Thank you, graduation moneys.