The World According to Marney

Post-Op Updates

2009-04-01T08:07:00.003-04:00

Well, since the last time I posted, I have been in full recovery mode. The surgery went well and I have been trying to get better as quickly as I can. So far that is going well for me.

The first week was rather painful and uncomfortable all the way around. There really wasn't anything I could do that was comfortable, particularly if it involved wearing clothes with a waistband. And in weather that is hovering around freezing, that is usually pretty much everything. I took the rest of the week off from work and spent most of the time sleeping and resting which is pretty much all that the pain and pain killers would let me do.

The second week, was a little bit better. Less of the pain, but more of the uncomfortable-ness. Still the waistbands were not good and sitting in a chair all day long was not pleasant. And to tell you the truth, I think I went back to work a bit early. I should have taken more time off. But I didn't and it's too late now.

Last week was much better. The itching was in full force. I'm still sore in all of the incision points, but they are definitely healing. Clothes were not nearly as awful but loose fitting clothes are still preferable. I also started with the WiiFit. I can't do anything that works the Abs for the next few months but I can do most of the yoga and the basic aerobic and balance stuff.

I am now looking at week 4. I don't know if things are still going as well, but I'm still having some pains in my abdomen due to some digestion issues. I think that at this point I need to bring it up to the doctor. Since things are supposed to be getting "back to normal" and they don't seem to be doing that. Also for the past 2 days, I have been getting nauseous for the first time since the surgery.

On the bright side, I have taken all of this down time to do a lot of knitting. I have made a cardigan for me, Peter, a pullover for Sandy (colleague who just had a birthday). I'm also working on an afghan that will be our headboard eventually. Yes, that's a lot of knitting, but when you can't move a whole lot, other than your hands, and you need to do something, this is the best way to keep from going nuts.

Schooling

2009-02-20T08:02:00.002-05:00

So just because I have nothing better to do, I have taken on more adventures in my life by taking classes at Bergen Community College for Wedding Planning and Coordination. Now the original game plan was to add skill sets to my current career of corporate meeting planning and networking within a more specialized field. Well since I made that decision, I also started helping 2 friends plan their weddings this year (both in October 2009). So I am actually putting this knowledge to good use and using them as "homework".

It is actually very similar to what I already do and quite redundant in many ways. But there are a lot of details that we have on our corporate scope of services (floral arrangements, invitations, etc) that, in theory, we can all do but have never been challenged by a client to do. Now, with this lovely 4 month crash course under way and having the owners of both an invitation shop and floral shop in the class as well as a dozen budding planners and field trips out to bridal shows and a very skilled and seasoned instructor, not only will I have an understanding of budgeting these things, but I will have local connections. I am totally not regretting this decision at all!

And heaven forbid should something happen with the economy and there be a reason for me to need something more specific to fall back on, I will have a certificate and a path for more personal planning in my pocket. Keep your fingers crossed that the economy stays strong, because with my dual weddings right now, they are definitely a complicated challenge. And they take away from precious knitting time. But for dear friends, I would sacrifice even that whole-heartedly. Maybe not for strangers.

What's up with me now

2009-02-09T08:05:00.003-05:00

So I have been telling you what has been going on in the past year, so I thought I would let you know what has been going on with me lately. Well this is going to be a short post. I can sum that up in a couple of lines.

Work - I have been putting in a lot of time at work lately now that the economy has taken a hit everywhere. Meeting planning and travel are areas that don't generally stand up well when companies are trying to cut back their funds. But on the bright side, because we are an outsourcing company, we can pick up some slack in very diminished departments that are still expected to make contributions to the company. Also we have some leverage with national chains and with large accounts to be able to wield some good discounts and reductions on the bottom line. So it's a good and bad thing all at the same time.

Knitting - When I'm not working, I'm usually knitting. It's really the only thing I can do to keep my fingers busy and the stress down. Just like after 9/11, I seem to have a bit of pent up energy that I need to focus. Either I do that through knitting or I will find some other outlet, like eating or throwing things or something else less productive. At least with knitting, I can keep it all on the up and up.

Health - Unfortunately, that has not been all that great lately. My headaches have been mostly under control but I'm still fighting with them at times. And now I'm dealing with other problems. I found out that my 8 years of vegetarianism/pescetarianism was not in any way helpful in the cholesterol realm as mine is VERY high. And also I will have to have my gall bladder removed next month. I'm finally coming to terms with this. It has been a bit of an ordeal for me, but I'm dealing with it. Mostly I'm tired of the doctors telling me I have to change my diet and laughing like it's a big joke and their know something I don't know. If I've been playing by the rules for as lng as I can remember, and I'm still losing the battle, how can I ever try to win?

That's pretty much everything right now. Almost everything else for me is being put on hold until the health thing is taken care of. So I'm hoping that in about a month and a half I will be in a much better place and feeling much better. Until then, I'm just getting through each day as best I can.

More updates with pictures

2009-02-02T17:05:00.006-05:00

I know that i owe a lot of stuff over the last year. Here goes. Let's start with the wedding dress. This is the one I knit. I designed it from pieces of other patterns that got Frankensteined together. I think they came out well.

Keep in mind that I got married in a park in March in Vancouver. I needed to be covered in Alpaca. It was the only thing that made the whole thing less than freezing. I did have my little shawl but really, this sweater dress was what made me survive the weather of my wedding. It was gorgeous but very cold. And seriously, did you think I would do something traditional?

What else do I have to share with you? Well, there is Jersey. What do I have to say about Rutherford? It's not Manhattan, but it's good. Peter and I love our condo. We're in a cute little town just on the west side of the Lincoln Tunnel. If you know where Giants Stadium is, you can find our place. We are across the street from the train station so getting into NYC or anywhere else is very simple. eriepcrutherfordnj.JPG
The train station doesn't look quite like that now, but they are doing construction on it.

We are still getting used to being in a small town. But one thing we haven't lost is great restaurants. Within walking distance, there are at least a half dozen amazing restaurants from our place and a dozen more that are worth eating at regularly. And since it's a dry town, you bring your own wine or beer and for no corking fee dinner is a whole lot cheaper than NYC. For steaks, there's Mignon. Across the street, you can get just about anything at Village Gourmet. You can get about 2 dozen different kinds of risottos at Risotto House. There is also sushi, Greek, Italian, Bakeries, pizza, Thai, Cuban and much more. And everything is all just a few blocks away from us.

On the other side of the railroad tracks is East Rutherford. That is not a dry town so that is where the bars and pubs live. So we can go over there to have a beverage if we would like. Ah, the best of both worlds.

I have also become more of a host now that I live in a place that has more room. In my last few homes, space has been non-existent. So Peter and I have started making up for this but inviting people over. Particularly since trains and buses are easy from NYC and parking is plentiful for drivers. We have a decent kitchen and an open floor plan. That means we can cook, have plenty of room for tables and seating and entertain like real people. It's almost like a dream come true. And for anyone that is a smoker, even though we are on the 5th floor, we have a terrace with a lovely view of downtown Rutherford. And as we learned on the 4th of July lovely views of fireworks in NJ.

I think I am going to end this post with a picture of my helper monkey, Chairman. He loves to help clean and do chores. As you can see, he's always doing everything he can to make chores go faster. All about efficiency.

I am a very bad blogger

2009-01-21T13:55:00.003-05:00

It has been over a year. I can't believe it. I have proved to my grandma that I can't keep a promise to blog more often.

In the past year so many things have happened:

1. I got marrried
2. Bought a condo.
3. I moved to Rutherford, New Jersey
4. I went to Vancouver, Victoria, Portland (OR - and the 'Couve), Baltimore, Columbus, Strathmere (NJ), Boston, St. Michaels (MD)
5. I bought my first car ever - 2005 Acura TL
6. I was selected to be a part of a special committee at work that is helping to reorganize and strengthen the company - it's called the SMILE TEAM. (I could tell you more about it, but it would sound a bit silly out of context and I promise I didn't drink any kool-aid)
7. I knit many, many things that I can't even begin to tell you about - though I will as I continue to blog, including my wedding dress (which I started in 2007 but finished in 2008 - blocking it in the hotel room two nights before the ceremony)
8. I visited a ridiculous number of hotels - I don't think I can count the number of them all.
9. I hosted a couple of lovely parties at my house (something I never did in my VERY SMALL apartments in NYC)
10. And mostly, I worked, went home to my lovely husband and adorable kitties and enjoyed being a bit more domestic than I have been in the past.

And now it's a year later and I have not blogged at all. In fact, it's the 21st of January and I'm just now getting around to it. I need to get that fixed. I'll get there. More to follow - including pictures.

Happy New Year

2008-01-06T20:51:00.001-05:00

I would like to introduce you to the new members of the Andersen-Lindberg household.

Chairman Meow

Nano

Catching Up

2007-12-06T07:42:00.000-05:00

Here we are in December. I know I haven't been blooging much this year. I have to say, I can give all kinds of excuses, but it doesn't make that much of a difference since I just haven't done it.

That being said, I have all kinds of catching up to do. First of all, I have started to get involved in Ravelry. But I haven't really gotten far in logging things there either. I do like the way I can keep track of all of my knitting projects and stash and needles. If I had a week of nothing to do but update Ravelry, I would still not have everything logged in.

I have been knitting a lot. In the past couple of months, I have made a few sweaters, worked on my slow going wedding dress, got back into socks, and worked on a few small projects. (I have some pictures, but I still need to post.)

I know this is not really much of an update, but I'm trying to do better. I'll be back soon with more info. Really I will.

Wedding Clock

2007-09-25T20:39:00.001-04:00

I Got Wedding Yarn!!!!

2007-08-16T20:37:00.001-04:00

20 Skeins of Classic Elite Miracle

I picked them up today. I am so very excited about this. Still don't have a solid pattern, but I've been plotting, drawing and contemplating.

Yarns, Dresses and Moving

2007-08-12T23:32:00.001-04:00

Well, I have been making progress on the wedding dress design. Today, as Peter and I were walking to Starbucks, I was inspired by a design for the dress. When we got our coffee, I grabbed a napkin and searched for a pen to start drawing. I'm still working out the details, but this could be quite an undertaking.

On Thursday, after a heated discussion about changing Peter's move from Friday (a day I took off to help) to Tuesday, I needed a bit of retail therapy. So on my way over to help pack, I decided to stop off at Knitty City. Lucky for me that they were open late that night. I explained to the woman at the counter that I was going to knit my wedding dress and we purused the selection. I managed to come home with a ball of Classic Elite Miracle in Fundy Bay Blue,

Lang Silkdream in Steel,

and Catalina Bably Silk in Baby Blue.

Though I like them all, after a swatching frenzy, I have decided to go with the Classic Elite. It is a delacate blue/green (Peter would call it Grue) with a slight varigation, almost as though it's painted. There is a little bit of fuzziness without it being itchy or fluffy. The other two are really beautiful but not quite what I was looking for.

So, today, I put in my order for 20 hanks of yarn for the pattern that is building in my brain. We finished packing up Peter's apartment for his move on Tuesday into my place. I have cleaned out some of my apartment so he should fit well. Also, I have been keeping up on my Abercrombie knock-off sweater.

The lighter picture is good to see the detail a bit sharper, but the actual color is closer to the blurrier picture. (I'm still working on getting my camera settings straight.) The yarn is Knit Picks Essential. It's a 2-ply with one strand inbrown and the other in navy.

Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things

2007-07-30T23:51:00.000-04:00

So, in my deliquent months of non-blogging, I had a tendency of not spending much time knitting. Mostly because as the weather started getting warmer, I didn't really want to have too much extra fabric. But this is all changing.

While my niece Hailee was in town, we made a pilgramage to the Flagship Abercrombie & Fitch store on Fifth Avenue. Prior to that time, I had never been inside an A&F store, which is ironic since they are a client for work. Anyway, I saw a sweater that I knew I could make myself, better. So, with the idea of the sweater in mind, I went home, logged on to Knitpicks.com, found some lovely Essential in Shoreline for this project. I did a little bit of tinkering with the image from the website and what I really want this sweater to become. I have it already on the needles (not bad since I got the yarn delivered today). I think I should be in pretty good shape with my scribbles and notes.

To make life more interesting, I have also decided to knit my wedding dress. I know this is quite an undertaking, but I'm going to give it a try. Again, I think I will probably design at least most of it. I'm still looking into yarns, and am willing to take suggestions. I am leaning toward either silk, cashmere, bamboo or something else that may be a bit elegant when knit up. I'm also going to do beading. I went a little nuts over the weekend picking out beads online, but I wanted to make sure that I had plenty of options when the time comes for actual beading.

So, I'm back on the knitting saddle. I'll probably be in yarn stores over the weekend to find something fabulous. Pictures to follow.

BAD BLOGGER

2007-07-27T14:05:00.000-04:00

I know I have been missing in action for a long time. I don't have any good excuses other than life gets in the way. Since the last time I posted, I have been working a lot, spending time with Peter and friends, had a visiter from back home, had to take another kitty into the vet - this time for kidney failure, knitting, and just doing stuff.

But to get to the good stuff, I do have great news; Peter and I are engaged! He popped the question on my birthday about 2 weeks ago. After trying to recreate our first date, going to Flatiron Lounge for drinks and dinner at Chat 'n Chew for dinner. Unfortunately, Chat 'n Chew was closed (whether permanently or otherwise is not clear). So instead, we went to Blue Water Grill which was fabulous. In his ideal plan, he wanted to find a cosy bench in Union Square Park to do the asking, but since it was a beautiful night, everyone was out. So instead, we went back uptown to my place when he decided to ask. He gave me his mom's engagement ring which is gorgeous.

To answer questions without answering them, we don't have anything set as far as plans are concerned. We're trying to figure out the best way to do this without being a pain or extremely expensive for a lot of people. So details will follow.

In the mean time, we are trying to figure out living spaces and when we might be able to afford to buy a place (which we have been talking about for quite a while). So there are many pieces that are up in the air for the near future. So expect changes and updates as I have them.

Actually heard on the air today...

2007-03-15T08:55:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow, there's a chance of 3-5 inches of snow. Right now it's 61 degrees.

Heading Back West

2007-03-09T08:35:00.000-05:00

I know I have been very lax in posting lately. With all of the problems with George, having to put him down (more about that later), hearing about my Grandmother being rushed to the hospital (I'm happy to say that she is doing much better) and lots of work to do, I haven't really had much time for reflecting on what's going on with me or anything. I shouldn't say I haven't had time, but I haven't been motivated to do so.

In any case, I do have news for those of you one the west coast. Peter and I are going to be out west the last week of this month. Since he hasn't really experienced the PNW (except his VERY short stop on the way back from Japan), we have decided to explore and visit family in one trip. We will be flying into Seattle where we'll stay for a couple of days, rent a car and drive up to Vancouver BC for a couple of days, drive back to Seattle and take a train down to the 'Couve to spend a few days there. Then we're back by the time his Spring Break is over.

We are in the process of working out the details right now, but it looks like Seattle will be March 24-25 (Saturday and Sunday), Vacouver, BC will be March 26-27 (Monday an Tuesday), March 28 will be a travel day from Vancouver to Vancouver with a stop in Seattle. The remainder of the trip (March 29-31) will be in the 'Couve and a red eye on Saturday night. And then Sunday will be the day of recovery from Time Change and Red Eye.

More to come soon.

George

2007-02-08T07:18:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for your thoughts about George. I found out last night that this is much worse than I thought. George has cancer. The cyst on his head is a tumor and there are mast cells in his blood. They think his spleen may have lesions and want to do an sonogram to look for more. He also has a heart murmur and his thyroid may be problematic.

I'm really not handling this well right now. And to top it off, I'm going out of town for a couple of days for work. I'm hoping that his time away will give me a chance to think about something else for a while. Peter is going to look in on the kitties while I"m gone.

Other than that, all I can do is wait until the vet contacts their oncologist to look a George further.

But George is a trooper! He's acting a bit more normal, though still not eating much. He's still a big snuggle bunny and purrs 85% of his day.

Busy

2007-02-06T11:40:00.000-05:00

I am having a hard time finding time for anything that is not work these days. For the last month, I have worked more hours than I can count. Pair that with the 2 hour commute each way, it's amazing that I have time to sleep any more. Also, I was in DC at the beginning of last week. Though I worked about 15 hours a day for the 2 days that I was there, I did get to stay at the Mandarin Oriental. It's a small price to pay for such a beautiful hotel.

Upon my return, I managed to be a part of a panel for a meeting of hotel sales people. I was one of 5 meeting planners that spoke our minds about the industry, trends and what we are looking for from a hotel. After being back in the business for 2 months, I can't say that I would have chosen that role quite yet, but that's the way it works.

This weekend, Peter and I noticed that George was a bit lethargic and really not himself - not wanting to eat and throwing up more than usual. So I took him into the doctor this morning. He had blood and urine tests, xrays and cell samples from a cyst that had formed on his head. Poor guy has been poked and prodded all morning. Then I had to separate him from the other two for the day so he won't eat or drink anything. I have to wait until tomorrow before I will know anything more. But I am not looking forward to the results. I'm worried for my baby.

I'm having a hard time focusing on work right now. I think I'll work from home tomorrow so I can be with him. But then I have to go to Columbus for 2 days. Lucky for me (and him) that Peter is willing and able to stop in and check on him, particularly if he needs any medication.

Knitting Update

2007-01-10T21:16:00.000-05:00

I was wandering through the internet and came across a page dedicated to Knitting With Balls, the most recent of the knitting books that I worked on. If you look at the book, the projects I made were the hounds tooth blanket and the bronze colored cardigan hoodie.

I inquired about the next Stich 'n Bitch book. I have been waiting to hear about when I should start working oon the blanket again. Apparently, it is being postponed until Spring.

In the mean time, I gave the original blanket to John and Aaron for Christmas. Actually the only Christmas present I had ready before Christmas. I have the pillow almost finished. Maybe that will be a belated birthday present for Aaron and a surprise for Debbie in the new book.

Also in personal excitement, I discoved that there is a brand new Yarn store only 1.5 blocks away from my new home. I spent a little bit of time and money at Yarnotopia last weekend. It's a cute little shop that has pretty good selection. I'm very happy that I don't have to go too far to find good yarn. So, I managed to get some Di.Ve' in blue for a hat, mitten and scarf set for myself. I guess I have something to keep me off the streets for a while.

Happy New Year

2007-01-04T07:01:00.001-05:00

Well, here it is January 4th and I am just getting around to blogging. December was a hard month for me. New job with a commute to New Jersey; New apartment; Packing and moving and cleaning out the old apartment; Holidays (much ignored or at least put on hold). It was quite an ordeal to battle. I'm just now getting back into the swing of things.

I am finally getting used to the commute into New Jersey. I have been very lucky in the past not having to travel outside of a maximum 30 minute subway ride. Now I have a subway ride to a commuter train to a carpool. All in all, about 1:45 each way door to door. It makes for much audiobook listening.

Work itself is very busy. Today is my one month mark in the new role and I am already working on 9 very demanding meetings. I'll be traveling this month to Columbus to meet with one client and likely Washington DC for an event for another client. Last week with the skeleton crew, I was able to test my mettle as being the senior staff member making decisions like I knew what was going on. I think it's a good match, me and this new role. I'm very happy.

The new apartment is wonderful. Although I am being lax in getting out of the last few boxes, it is a pleasure to be in this space, which wasn't always the case for the last apartment. And the kitties love the many rooms to hide in and the tall cabinets to jump on. It is a kitty adventure haven. Of course as I type, they are all asleep within a foot of my chair.

The holidays were pretty mild this year. Christmas was spent with my kitties and cleaning the old apartment. New Year's Weekend was spent at Ikea and Bed Bath & Beyond. As my proesent from Mom and Dad, I got an occasional table (strangely no longer on the Ikea website) plus a few other small items. Peter scored a new chair, footstool and lamp. Of course, we also rent a Toyota Tacoma for this job.

But it's back to the grind now. I have to get ready for the long journey into work. Happy New Year to you! May your 2007 be happy and healthy.

Move is over

2006-12-19T12:14:00.000-05:00

I made my big move this past weekend. And now I know why I didn't move for the past 1 years! What a pain!

I think the hardest part was getting the kitties to the new place and settled. Those poor cats have not been in a car in about a decade - when they were each kittens. They don't leave the apartment much at all. So to be crammed in a carrier and taken in a car to a strange place, it must be the scariest thing in the world. Not to mention, I only have 2 carriers, so Koshka had to go in a duffle bag.

Peter (the best boyfriend in the world) rented a Zip Car so we could take a few things and the kitties to the new place before the move. I had one carrier and the duffle on the floor by my feet and another carrier on my lap. Once we started, I felt bad for Koshka and tried to open the duffle a little. Well, he jumped right out and I couldn't get him back in. So he spent the entire scary ride in my arms watching the world pass by very quickly. At one point he tucked his little head in the crook of my arm to hide. Well it wasn't hard to get him back into the duffle for the transfer to the apartment.

The move itself went very well. The movers were great - especially with all of those stairs. I love the new apartment. As soon as I get out of all of my boxes, I'm going to see about having a few people over. Oh, and let me tell you, I am SOOOO enjoying the washer, dryer and dishwasher. They have been run a few times already.

I'm still working on the remains/cleaning of the old place which should be done this week. Maybe sometime soon, I will finally be ready for the holidays. That has been the absolute last thing on my mind lately. But the back to back three day weekends will be totally relished.

New Job

2006-12-07T13:32:00.000-05:00

Thank you all for the phone calls and emails about the pending and realized changes in Marney's World. It's nice to have people out there with congratulations when I am up to my eyeballs in chaos.

The new job is going well. I have made it through the first few days. Though it's a bit of a slow time right now, there are a few projects that may be taking over my time in the very near future.

I am also adapting to a commute for the first time. I am not used to having to take anything more than the subway at most to get to work. But sometimes, we all have to make sacrifices to do the right thing. So, I have been taking a train out to Montclair, NJ and catching a ride with Mary Jo to the office - then she would take me back to the train to go home. All in all, about an hour including getting to/from the train station in NYC. Yesterday, I took the bus home from the office. Since it stops right in front of the building, you would think that this reverse commute wouldn't be so bad. Well, 2 hours later, when I was getting home, I was really rethinking that plan. Nothing like holiday traffic to make a bus ride even worse.

I just made the arrangements for my move next weekend. I now have a little over a week to get cleaned/packed up for this adventure. I decided that with 2 different walk-ups, I didn't want to do any of the heavy lifting, nor try to get any of my friends involved in that. So, the date of the move is the 17th. I'll pick up the keys on th 15th or so, take a day or so to scope out the layout and go for it. I think I may take the kitties up there the night before, just so they won't be underfoot with all of the move. Plus, I can put them in a room in the new place so they are out of the way.

Well, I should get back to work.

Busy Week - and it's only Wednesday

2006-11-29T22:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I think of all of the weeks that I have lived through, this is definitely one of the most change filled. At least in the top ten. Perhaps only beaten by birth, the move to New York and puberty.

Monday was my last day at Rogen. It was a tough last day that I couldn't truly relish in the relinquishing of my job. I spent most of the day training my replacement who was finally confirmed hours before the Thanksgiving holiday began. I did spend my lunch hour with all of my colleagues at Havana NY. There was a rousing game of "what about Marney will I miss most". It was very sweet and a bit disturbing. I also went out with drinks with Gus, who is in total denial that I'm gone. I think he is trying to convince himself that I'm on vacation or something.

Well, I made it through that day without too much trouble. But my next task was to find a new place to live. And Tuesday, I did just that.

I signed a lease on an apartment here. It was the only apartment that I looked at in person, but definitly not the only one I checked out on line. It's a 2BR with all new appliances including a washer, dryer and dishwasher. You can't beat that with a stick. Now I need to figure out how and when I'm going to get over there.

Today, I spent most of the day relishing my state of non-employment. There was much lingering around the apartment with the kitties.

I think tomorrow will include a journey to Smiley's Yarn Riot which is taking place on 57th Street. This will be the last year that I'll be within walking distance of this sale.

On Friday, I have a date to The Awesome 80s Prom. Since I only went to 3 proms during high school, I think I need to add another one. This is also a celebration of some December birthdays for friends of mine. (Anyone in the area that wants to go, let me know and I'll get you the details for the discounted tickets.)

Next week will be another busy one. Monday is my first day at my new job. Tuesday is Peter's birthday. I don't think I have mapped out the rest of the week, but I think it ends with one of Peter's friends fromm Baltimore staying in town. But that may work out best for me, since I might be able to get some packing done...

I'm still here

2006-11-18T19:25:00.000-05:00

i'm sorry if I've been a bit lax in posting. Things have been a bit hectic lately between trying to get everything cleaned up at work before I go, starting a search for a new apartment, and juggling all of the rest of my crazy life. I have been sick for the past week, either a really bad cold or a mild flu. It hasn't been easy to get things finalized a work when I was in home in bed.

I just left Peter and Gus (my colleague) in line at the Toys"R"Us - Times Square waiting for the Wii-lease of the Nintendo Wii. There is a bit of a to-do down there and I am very happy that I am not waiting with them. It should be much less painful than Friday's PS3 launch. That doesn't mean I want to wait from 6PM to midnight with thousands of other gamers in the middle of Times Square. But then again, I have made it past 30, so I'm a bit of a stick in the mud.

Next week is Thanksgiving. I'll be heading down with Peter to spend it with his family in Maryland and Virginia. It will be nice to finally meet the rest of his family. I'm looking forward to it. I met his mom and her fiance in June when that came up for a weekend visit.

So the next couple of weeks are destined to be very full. My last day at Rogen is the Monday after Thanksgiving. I start at Ultra-Mar on December 4th. Between those dates, I plan on looking at apartments and hopefully, signing a new lease. No word on where yet, just trying to get out of this place.

Maybe there will be time to rest in December...

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T16:14:00.000-05:00

Well, another Halloween is upon us. I managed to be the only one to show up at the office with a visible costume (bleeding vampire bite - tasty yet disturbing). My colleague, Nicole didn't want to be left out of the game, so I made her eyes bleed - just like when we are all faced with those endless TPS reports. Jen, was supposed to be Jem of 80s cartoon fame, but is still waiting for the completion of her costume. Her boyfriend, Ruben came in to the office for his transformation into Pee-wee Herman. None of my other colleagues decided they wanted to be celebratory today, until the cupcakes with eyeballs came out. Ah, the great equalizer - pastries.

Nicole is chronicalling all of this with pictures, but none to post quite yet.

New Changes

2006-10-27T21:03:00.000-04:00

It's official. Mary Jo finally convinced me to listen to her pitch for me to work with her. After a couple of months of wooing and me bringin my guard down a bit, I have agreed to work with her at Ultramar Travel Management. I will be going back to the world of Event Planning. I'm really looking forward to this big change in my life.

On the flip side of this, I wasn't actually looking to leave my current job. So, for all of you that thought that I was in a good place, I was. But this is an opportunity that I just can't turn down. I will be working with someone that I know, trust and like. The position is a substantial promotion from my current position. The salary is also a big leap. And to make things even more interesting, after a bit of getting into the swing of the job and the company, I will be working from home primarily.

I haven't yet given my notice for my current position, due to the fact that everyone that I could tell in an official capacity has been out of the office for the past week. And the big boss isn't even in this hemisphere. I should be able to talk to them on Monday or at least someone. I will be staying there at least until Thanksgiving. Since that is the tail end of the busy season, and it's 4 weeks from now, I think it's more than generous.

I have already talked to the others that do what I do. The three of us have been talking about how things could change as well as me giving them a heads up on the projects that I may still have hanging out there by then.

But to be honest, I have been feeling a bit weird about keeping all of this stuff to myself and not being hoenst to my colleagues. In fact when I was talking to a friend about this change the other day, she pointed out that I don't sound very excited about this. I realized that I'm not letting myself get excited in case it starts to ooze out in an inappropriate place before I can tell the right people.

But back to more changes, between my crazy landlady (who calls me constantly to tell me that she calls and not why), my lease being up at the end of the year, the new job with better money and the need for space at home in which I can work, I am going to look for a new apartment for the holidays. I'm hoping that with the holidays taking up the time of most renters, I might be able to get a good deal. So I'm taking any leads I can get for apartments that might be available December or January.

Updates

2006-10-20T00:29:00.000-04:00

Well, I haven't had a whole lot o time to post lately. Partly because of my recent guests (Mom & Dad) and partly because I seem to be working a lot lately. Maybe it just seems that way, but that's enough or me.

So, I'll back track a bit. Mom and Dad came to visit earlier this month. Their stay included meeting a bunch of my pals and my coworkers (at both locations). We also had some really good food. They tried new cuisines and food including haggis and Irish Breakfast. We also managed to catch The Metropolitan Museum of Art, American Museum of Natural History, Statue of Liberty and Columbus Day Parade. I also got them tickets to see Jersey Boys. We got in some shopping - well enough to get Dad a new watch and Mom some clothes. Of course, there were souvenirs a plenty.

Aside from that, I have been thinking about some changes in my life. I have decided that I want to move out of my apartment when my lease is up. This has been confirmed by my land lady becoming a crazy stalker who leaves "messages" saying that she called me. Well, that was the first message. The follow up to that brilliant message was to threaten to send a "letter through a lawyer". But she never told me what it was that she needs from me or why she's calling. I tried to call back and got her machine. Since I haven't done anything, I have no idea what her problem is.

Well, I have to go to sleep now. I have a big day tomorrow and need to get sleep. There is a possibility that more changes may be in the works for me...

Exciting Knitting News

2006-09-28T23:36:00.000-04:00

I just found out that I may have my own knitting pattern published. I have been working on a blanket that is pretty easy to make and full of colors. This would be for a new Stitch 'n Bitch book that is dedicated to color. This would be my first published pattern!!! I am very excited about this.

I think this is the next step in my growth as a knitter. I've managed to tackle most patterns I have come across. I have been interviewed for a magazine and a tv show. I hae knit up items for 2 books, Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook and Stitch 'n Bitch Nation. Also, I have knit items for retail and for individuals on consignment. I have more sweaters than I need. I have also made more items out of yarn than are truly necessary. So, it makes sense that I get into the design aspect of it all.

Good Times!

2006-09-22T17:27:00.000-04:00

Last night, I got to experience one more taping of the Colbert Report. Life is good! The best part about it, of course with the exception of the company of Peter, Angela and Tim, were the 2 freaks that managed to get into the front row of the audience. Two girls donning as much pro-USA garb and paraphernalia as two college girls can don. Including the hand drawn eagle on their arms, the red, white and blue ribbons in their hair. They screamed, shreiked and shook with excitement at seeing Stephen Colbert. It was HI-LARIOUS!!!!! Not to mention, it freaked out pretty much everyone as they came out on stage. Stalker alert!

Not much else to chat about today. Have to leave one job to go to the other, so there's not much time right now.

I survived another year

2006-09-15T08:25:00.000-04:00

The saying that time heals all wounds is not entirely accurate. I think this can only be the case if you are given time away from the situation. And being here in NYC, it is very hard to get away from the World Trade center. We hear about the World Trade Center Site Memorial almost every day. Constant coverage of health effects and what the governemt is and isn't doing about it. There is the World Trade Center Health Registry (which I actually am a part of) sending out notices about problems and issues that may be health related. And there isn't a moment that we don't hear from the family members of the desceased.

Then if you move into the political sphere, you have the President starting a war in the name of this disaster (which only recentlyhe admitted were not directly related). The entire world has now been moved to a "Post 9/11" environment. New in compentant government agencies have been created in the name of this disaster. Every candidate makes this an issue (health, security, widows and children, aggression, etc.)

Then there is entertainment. The trailer for World Trade Center made me become hysterical in a movie theatre. There's no way I was going to watch The Path to 9/11. And we can't forget the exploitation of the other areas that were part of the destruction with United 93.

I am still waiting to get to the part when I can experience time away from this tragedy. Maybe someday...

Horrible Anniversary

2006-09-11T08:18:00.000-04:00

I want to thank you all for your thoughts today. Just to let you know, I am choosing to hibernate a bit today. I'm working from home and surrounding myself with things that can distract me from every moment of news, broadcasting and conversation today.

I thought that I would be okay today until yesterday when I couldn't stop crying in the morning and really couldn't get the cloud from over my head.

So, forgive me for being a bit of a hermit. If you try to give me a call/email, I may just let it go to voice mail/sit in the inbox. But I'm hoping that tomorrow will be a bit easier to get through.

Laboring since Labor Day

2006-09-07T23:47:00.000-04:00

After a wonderful long weekend in Canada, I feel like every moment of this week has been at work. I guess it must be to make up for the long weekend, but after three work days, I am officially exhausted.

Let me go back to recount my adventures in Montreal. Peter and I met up in Montreal on Friday. He had been in Toronto for a few days before, since he had much more vacation time than me. I think I spent more time in the airport before my flight than I did in the air! Who knew that Montreal was just a 50 minute flight from here.

We wandered around without too much direction. Although, we did happen to be there during Festival des Films du Monde(World Film Festival of Montreal). We also caught Musée McCord Museum and Musée d'art contemporain de Montréal (which happened to be across the street from the hotel).

The biggest adventure was getting back to NYC. Let me just say that I think I may have sworn off cabs altogether because of the inconsiderate drivers at 1:00AM on Monday morning. And I think I'll try not to fly into Newark so late that the train doesn't run regularly anymore.

Anyway, back in NYC, there has been much working and toiling. But the most fun happened this morning as I was trying to embark on work. I was about to walk out the door to head off to work when I noticed that there was something blocking my way. Oh, that would be the lock that decided not to unlock from the inside. Yes, only Marney can be locked INSIDE her apartment.

I tried to call the super. His phone had been disconnected. After a NASTY conversation with the landlady last week, I didn't want to think about calling her. So I called Peter, at work. Being the true knight in shining armor that he is, he flew down to my apartment to rescue me. All that needed to be done was to unlock the door with the key from the outside. And I was sprung - only an hour late for work. Oh well, at least I got some more quality time with my kitties.

I thought I had plenty of things to keep me out of trouble. But I guess I can even find a way to cause a ruckus.

They will stop at nothing...

2006-09-06T14:18:00.000-04:00

Knit Lite Knitting Needles

Need I say more???

Pretty Changes

2006-08-31T00:19:00.000-04:00

I just thought I needed to give my blog a bit of a face lift. I got very fed up with the old look. Particularly since Blogger's very attractive banner at the top of the screen would sometimes obscure the title and sometimes show it. Also, you'll note that I have 2 sets of comments on my posts. I'm going to phase out the non-Blogger ones. But in the mean time, there is a strong following of Mom's comments from many people. So I thought I would keep them for a little while.

Not much to share. I'm counting down the minutes before I head out on my long weekend vacation. I was going to do laundry and pack tonight, but I was stuck at the office until it was too late to get to the laundromat. Grrrr.... Oh well, I'll have to make due with whatever clothes I have that are clean.

Oh, I did get new exciting toys from Herrschners. I purchased some cross stitch supplies that arrived today. I think I'm gonna start in on the very fun and naughty samplers for some friends. I have had a few requests already. And I finished the pillow (except stuffing it) as housewarming gift number one. It has a lovely "Beeyatch" with bees on it. Quite adorable.

Knitting Update

2006-08-28T07:58:00.000-04:00

I think I have been neglecting my knitting progress in my latest posts. Unfortunately, I have no pictures right now, but I'm working on it.

Current projects:

1. Blanket for my newest cousin. It is completely knitted, but i want to put on a fabric back to protect small fingers from the embroidery that I put on it.

2. Pillow as a house warming present for a friend of mine who has just moved into her new apartment. This will also have some help from other needle arts. I was inspired by Subversive Cross Stitch. I am almost finished with the knitted part. I have some cross stitch supplies en route right now.

3. This is the most exciting project of all. After seeing this article, I knew that I had to knit with corn. That's right, 100% corn made into yarn. So, when my shipment came in, I shared with everyone. Strangely enough, each person that I told about it did the exact same thing: smelled the yarn. No, it doesn't smell like corn. To be honest, I'm not sure what part of the corn it's made from. I would think probably not the kernals. But in knitting with it, it is pretty soft and sturdy. It's in a thin tape form, but doesn't stay flat when knitted. This one is just starting, so i'll give updates as I progress.

There are a couple of other projects on needles here and there, but nothing worth chatting about.

Debt Free

2006-08-22T10:30:00.000-04:00

I did it! I made it! After a conscious effort over the past 6 years, I just made the final payments on my last 2 credit cards. No more loans, credit card balances or any other nasty and ugly liens on my financial existance.

It hasn't been easy, particularly when I first started battling the monster. When I first cut up my cards and started doing nothing but paying them back, it was very painful. I recoiled a couple of times, but all in all, kept trudging forward.

I have to say, Peter helped me secure the final nail in the debt coffin. I sold off some of my magical stocks that appeared in my life to take care of the last bit. Nothing like money that appears in my life seemingly out of nowhere to make it that much better.

Perhaps I will venture into other forms of monetary growth. Now that I have played the stock market, perhaps I will dive deeper. I don't think I can handle this much adult responsibility. Being a grown up is scary.

The Summer of my Discontent

2006-08-21T15:04:00.000-04:00

This blog is starting to sound like a broken record..."It's too hot"..."I hate summer"..."Grumble, grumble"... Well, this entry is going to add to my grumpiness. I have achieved another low in my summer misery. That's right, I have lost electricity.

Yesterday afternoon as I went home from spending time with Peter, there was a sign on my building's front door. "There is no hot water. The boiler is down. It is a Con Ed problem that won't be fixed until 8/21." Fine, I can deal with a break in my hot water, particularly in the hot summer months.

I made it upstairs, through the lighted hallway only to discover that I can't turn on any lights or anything that might be plugged into the wall. Not happy. 88 degrees at about 6PM and the sun was slowly slipping into the horizon. Luckily, Peter was there with me and reminded me that there are a number of (not-so reasonably priced) hotels in the area that are likely full of electricity. After I kicked him and called him a smart-ass, he offered to share his electricity with me.

I remembered to add to the statistic of calls made to 311 to inform Con Ed that they suck. I was informed that my lack of power is of the utmost importance to them and they will push my call to the top of the gi-normous heap of dis-satisfied customers without power. For some reason, I don't have a whole lot of faith in Con Ed's ability to fix these problems quickly. Just ask the folks in Queens and Staten Island.

In a brighter note, I went to see Little Miss Sunshine over the weekend. This is a must see movie for anyone that thinks their family is wack-a-noodle, has dreams of escaping their small life or just likes to see Alan Arkin, Steve Carell, Toni Collette and Greg Kinnear do what they all do best. I laughed so much in this movie. It's smart and funny.

Oh, and thanks for all the well-wishes. I am feeling much better. That icky stomach bug stuck around for about 5 days. So, I don't think I'm allergic to New Jersey. I don't think it was motion sickness. I don't think it was something I ate. I think it was just my involunatary attempt at bulemia. (I didn't care for it and will probably steer clear of it in the future.)

Thankfully cooler!

2006-08-14T20:08:00.000-04:00

After a grueling week of heat, we have been blessed with gorgeous weather over the past few days. It has been much cooler (particularly at night) with pleasant breezes. I am very grateful that this evil heat has passed, at least for now.

Over the weekend, I got to take advantage of my friend Mary jo's birthday present to me. That was tickets to see Goo Goo Dolls and Counting Crows in concert at PNC Bank Arts Center. It was a wonderful day of spending time with MJ and a couple of her friends out in NJ. We hung around the Montclaire area for the afternoon, collecting supplies and food stuffs.

Let's face it, there is nothing like letting Marney loose in a dollar store, particularly when it is a true junk store. At one point, while MJ was paying for the sheet set (which came in very handy later) for our picnic, I managed to have a different adjustable ring on each finger, and the ugliest sunglasses in existance on my face. It takes so little to amuse me.

We met up with MJ's friends and made our way south to the concert. There was a bit of time to enjoy the beautiful weather with a bit of a picnic and chatter in the parking lot. It really was a wonderful day for it!

The concert started out really well. The Goo Goo Dolls played well. Though I admit, I was a bit distracted by the 738,947,283 teenagers that couldn't figure out where they needed to be at any point in time. Oh, and the guy with the disgustingly itchy butt. So the Counting Crows came on and brought the concert to a screeching halt. They announced that one of their close friends died the day before and they were going to only play "beautiful" and "accoustic" music. Talk about an instant bummer. It was beautiful music, but terribly depressing.

So the way home was a bit of a downer too, as we talked about the downer concert. Well, that was until MJ and I got into her car so she could take me back to Manhattan. That is when I started to feel queasy, and then, just about the time we hit the stop and go traffic in front of the tunnel, I managed to relive all of the food I had earlier that day. And we were stuck in the stinky car with lots of traffic. Thankfully, the remainder of the sheet set was handy for a lttle clean up action. Not fun. Thanks MJ for putting up with my sickness. I feel awful.

Both Sunday and today, I was alternating between okay and really yucky. I ended up leaving work early to rest. Right now, I'm okay, but I don't truly think that is going to last. At least it's a slow time at work!

So, I'm going to get back to resting and recovery TV. I hope to make it back to the land of the living tomorrow. I guess we'll see.

It's freaking hot!

2006-08-08T10:28:00.000-04:00

I am not alone! This article makes me realize I'm not crazy for either hating the ever growing heat or for loathing air conditioning in all of it's comfort-making abilities. I am not as conflicted as I thought.

I Officially Hate Summer

2006-08-07T21:41:00.000-04:00

I have come to the realization that summer may very well be my least favorite season. It wasn't always that way. Back in school, it was a time of vacation and fun. There was swimming and parties to waste time before having to go back into classes. But that hasn't happened for quite a long time.

Now, for me, summer is a time of extreme weather and sweating. There isn't anything that makes it fun or nice that is different from any other time of the year. In fact, there are many things that I don't want to do because of the heat and humidity.

I haven't even begun to get into the smells that overpower everything. As garbage and other "stuff" bakes in the summer heat and diffuse in the stagnant, humid air, it is almost as though we are walking through a world of fermenting trash.

In the winter, the cold is at least bearable. I can bundle up as much as I like to stay warm. Plus snuggling with kitties or another warm body is much more fun.

Spring may be rainy, but it is not prohibitive to getting things done or motivation to do what needs to be done.

Autumn is the best time of year with cooler air and more comfortable climate. The trees changing colors are and added bonus.

For many seasons, I have relished the fact that how ever uncomfortable I may be with the climate, it will pass. But I am starting to get a bit frustrated with the extremes. Is it global warming? I don't know. But I am starting to wonder if Alaska might be a fun option.

Or maybe I need to find a job that lets me take the summers off. At least there would be something to look forward to in summer.

I'm Tired of Summer Already

2006-08-04T00:13:00.000-04:00

Make this heat stop. That's all I ask. I know I don't care for the air conditioning as a rule, but I have come to depend on it much more than I am comfortable doing. The A/C at the office has been on the blink for the past 2-3 weeks. And with temperatures hanging out in the high 90s and low 100s (before the heat index), I am not comfortable, ever. I look forward to extra shifts at the theatre just because it's cool.

In brighter, and much more humane news, Ayelet and Moe popped into town last week. For 3 years in a row, the three of us have managed to get a mini vacation in with each other. 2 years ago, it was in Las Vegas, when I planned to go with family, then Ayelet decided to visit her grandparents living there and Moe decided to come along, too. Then last summer, when Moe was staying with my parents for her summer internship in Portland, I stopped by for a visit and Ayelet drove up from California for a weekend. This time, Ayelet came for a visit to NYC and Moe decided to drive through on her way to her sister's house in Jersey. I'm guessing next year will be in San Francisco or Pittsburgh (their respective homes).

It was good to see them, though I'm sorry I couldn't make it to the second gathering of the group. Instead we have to revel in the yummy Peruvian Food and ice cream. It was a lovely gathering of the usual suspects.

In more recent excitement, I acquired something that many people own - in some form - but never really see. When I worked for Morgan Stanley, I bought into the stock purchase plan, paying a percentage of my paycheck back to the company for discounted stocks. Well, after you have been gone from the company for 5 years, they make you take responsibility for these stocks. I got a notice that I had to roll my shares over to a private account or they would cash them out to me - sort of. Since I didn't have an account to roll them into (and was too lazy to do much about it), they cashed out my partial shares and sent me an actual stock certificate. I think that's pretty nifty, actually. Of course, it's really not practical, but it is cool to have. So, I did the responsible thing and opened a brokerage account which is where the certificate will end up going. But until I send it in, I will still have my fancy little stock certificate.

Sidewalk Etiquette

2006-07-26T19:32:00.000-04:00

Why is it that there are so many people that just have no courtesy while they are walking down the street. I'm not talking about giving the right of way or walking at snail's pace during rush hour. I'm not even going to get into the idea of taking up as much of the sidewalk with your befuddled family and the multi-child stroller. No, all of those things can be forgiven or at least overlooked for the most part. I'm talking about the plight of the fashion forward ladies.

For anyone that has never walked down New York streets (or any other urban sidewalks) wearing heels (spikey, high, pointed, unwieldy), please take a look at the footwear around you. Take a good look at the reason why many ladies will not walk on grates or manhole covers. We get stuck. For some shoes, they come off entirely. Others mearly keep you locked in place as your leg tries to detatch from your foot.

In a city that has so many grates and manhole covers as NYC, it becomes a dangerous obstacle course without having to push stupid flat-shoed people out of the way. I am pleading to all pedestrians out there; please do not make anyone in heels walk on the grates. We are all very frustrated with avoiding very avoidable broken ankles.

S...O... H...O...T...

2006-07-18T19:59:00.000-04:00

It's moments like these that make me long for the cool, humidity-free land of my youth. We have been dancing around 100 degrees over the last couple of days. To make my usual suffering of no A/C at home even more intense, the A/C went out at the office, too. Needless to say, I have been feeling a bit grumpy lately.

Well, last weekend was my birthday which was a wonderful time all around. I spent Friday with Peter for dinner. Saturday was spent with some serious gaming. I got possession of the office PlayStation Portable. On top of that, Peter got me a very fancy present, which required him to break it in with a little bit of gaming himself. Then on Sunday, I met up with a bunch of friends for some dinner and pool. That was a lot of fun! Kudos to Angela for arranging the festivities! Other presents include houssehold accessories that worship my kitties, beautiful John Haber original earrings, note cards and flowers. Thanks to everyone.

Peter and I met up with Tim and Angela earlier in the week for some swing dancing. I think Peter has still not forgiven me for that. But, I believe that he could be a fabulous dancer if he put his mind to it.

Not much on my horizon right now. Main goal is to stay cool. Wish me luck!

Happy Belated 4th!

2006-07-05T08:25:00.000-04:00

I know I have been very lax in getting posts out lately. But to be honest, there is really not a whole lot to talk about. I have been working like a fiend for the past month or so. I am hoping that some of the recent changes in my day job may make it better for me very soon, but it's still a bit early to tell.

Anyway, my Independence Day weekend (surprisingly almost a full 4 day weekend - aside from one matinee on Sunday) was very hot and humid. Even though I have been here for about 15 years, the weather still amazes me. But in this case, it led to watching 2 movies (a good source of A/C).

On Monday, Peter and I saw Who Killed the Electric Car? which was a very sad documentary about how General Motor's EV1 was totally removed from the market and the technology has been shelved. For anyone that has an interest in the air quality of the world and technology that can remove us from our "addiction to oil", you should check this one out.

Last night we saw Superman Returns, which was much better than I thought it would be. Though the camera shots in the action scenes are worthy of dramamine.

Since we were in the cool theatre, we managed to miss out on the fireworks last night, but in my opinion, we were doing much more in supporting this crazy country by supporting our capitalistic, free market system. Or something like that.

Anyway, I hope yours was happy and healthy.

Memorial Day Weekend in Boston

2006-05-30T18:58:00.000-04:00

For the long holiday weekend, Peter and I decided to head up to Boston for a little change of scenery. I haven't really spent much time there and he lived there for a few months before moving to NYC.

Some of the fun things we did:

- Had dinner at Peter's favorite sushi place in Boston, Shino Express Sushi.

- Made fun of the fabulous and not-so-fabulous costumes for Anime Boston 2006. (I think anime conventions follow us around the globe - first Tokyo, now Boston)

- Got smarter at the MIT Museum.

- Got thoroughly amused by The Museum Of Bad Art. If you have not been here, you can't truly appreciate the ambiance. First of all, it's in the "basement" of a movie theatre in Dedham, MA. Keep in mind that the basement is the entryway to the Men's room. Also, the 30 or so works of art(?) were surrounded by the flood from the bathroom which left a very large and yucky puddle, preventing us from truly appreciating the entire collection. Totally worth the price of admission - $0.

- Rode around in a Toyota Prius - due to the ease, convenience and relative price-effectiveness of Zipcar. I am still hoping that this will revolutionize or at least greatly impact the car rental industry.

- Ate chowdah. Oh yes, there was chowdah!

- Watched both X-Men: The Last Stand and The Da Vinci Code because of the relative closed-ness of Boston on Monday and the scorching heat.

- Enjoyed (well, Peter did) the $2 cheese burger and fries at the bar of McCormick & Schmick's after 10PM. I watched and sampled the fries.

- Learned about the "special" logic that is frequently used in Boston. It was amazing the number of times the phrase "it makes sense to Bostonians" came up in conversation. It's not something that I truly understand, but then again, I'm not from Boston, nor have I spent more than 3 days in a row there.

All in all, it was a very good weekend.

Jury Duty

2006-05-24T17:24:00.000-04:00

I was called in to do my Civic Duty beginning today. Nothing like uprooting my job and life for sitting in a room with a bunch of strangers, all loathing the situation. There were quite a few people who left early to defer their service because of various reasons. Probably because we were told to anticipate being there for no less than 3 days and as much as 2 weeks. Like the trooper that I am, I decided to stick it out.

By lunch, not a single case. It wasn't until about 3 that they finally called jurors for a trial. I wasn't in that group, but then the odds were in my favor, since there were about 150-200 people waiting along with me.

Then at about 4PM, we were told that the trials were moving slowly and there would be another bunch of jurors tomorrow. So, we had officially served and can't be called for another 4 years. That's right, not even a full day and I'm free of Jury Duty until 2010.

I'm not going to lie. There was a twinge of superiority in knowing that those suckers that bailed in the morning will have to serve in the very near future for, most likely, a lot longer than one day.

I am so ready for this week to be over

2006-05-12T06:51:00.000-04:00

This week started out with a phone call at work from my landlady telling me that my kitty (Koshka) was wandering around the hallway of my apartment building. Poor guy was pretty freaked out when I got there. He must have zoomed out when I was leaving for work in the morning and darted up the stairs. He is happily back inside and not venturing out any time soon.

I also made plans to go up to Boston for Memorial Day weekend. Peter told me that he liked the Boston Park Plaza Hotel and Towers and wanted to stay there if possible. When I looked up rates, it was a little bit higher than I was hoping to get for a room. So I did some hunting. Everywhere I looked, it was about the same. So I tried Hotwire.com for the first time. Of course, they don't tell you the name of the hotel until you confirm the booking. So I debated between a hotel that was in the right price range and the next one higher which was still at the original rate. At the last minute, I decided to go with cheap. When it was all confirmed, I ended up with the Boston Park Plaza. Who knew?!?!

I have managed to work a lot of crazy hours this week followed by late nights of playing Kingdom Hearts 2 to relax from the working. So there has been a growing lack of sleep that is starting to show signs. I am truly not as young as I used to be.

We are trying to hire someone at work to be an addition to the roles that my colleague Gus and I have. We are both a bit overwhelmed with this very busy time of year. So in addition to all of the work that we have to take care of, we are also tasked with finding a new person. Isn't that the way, in order to lessen your work load, I have had to greatly inrease it. On the bright side, we have 3 people coming in today to meet our staff (or as much as will be around).

Allergies have been out of control lately. I read over the weekend in the New York Times that "The tree pollen count in Brooklyn yesterday was 690, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. Counts above 90 are considered high." I generally don't have a huge reaction to allergies. Maybe a day or two of being uncomfortable in the Spring. But in the past month, I have been on prescription medication and that hasn't been enough to keep me breathing well. I am happy to say that the massive rain that fell overnight has dropped the rate to "low" for today.

And yesterday I got the confirmation that Mom and Dad have purchased their airline tickets for their visit to NYC in October. Now I have to find someplace for them to stay. I'm looking forward to their visit. I think I'll try to get some good tickets to see Jersey Boys. I'm sure they would love to see this show. Of course, I see it twice a week, every week. I guess that would make me a bit of an expert. And they can be like the rest of the audience and tell me that I don't know anything about Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons because I'm too young. But I bet ya that I know more of the songs than they do, and all of the words, and the choreography...

Okay, I have to get myself ready to go in to work early again. Today will be another 15 hour day between the two jobs. Wish me luck!

Busy Weekend

2006-05-01T10:16:00.000-04:00

So this weekend, I found myself in all kinds of fun adventures. Saturday was spent almost entirely win Brooklyn with friends at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden: Sakura Matsuri Cherry Blossom Festival. With a slight Japanese twist to lunch and dinner, it was almost like going back to Tokyo. Especially since it was so crowded. (Here's a link to a picture that Peter took while we were there. I'm getting very lazy with the picture taking with him around. )

On Sunday, after brunch, I was surprised with tickets to see the Moscow Cats Theatre with my friend Aaron. There is nothing like seeing cats do things that cats are rarely seen to do, like being trained in any way. It has inspired me to teach my cats to balance in my hand with their hind legs in the air. I have faith that they will learn this eventually. Though I don't know if I'm ready to lose that much blood.

Family Surprise

2006-04-23T22:39:00.000-04:00

When I was back home for my Grandfather's funeral a few weeks ago, I talked to my Aunt Michele. She and my cousins Amanda and Alyssa had a trip to the East Coast plenned. She gave me her itinerary for the 6 days in Boston, NYC and DC (talk about filled trip!). I managed to forget about the date that they were going to be in town until I got a phone call on Thursday night letting me know that they were in town.

On Friday, I was able to get out of the office for a bit to meet up with them and do a little site seeing in Mid-town. It is always wonderful to have family visit. I'm really sorry that I couldn't spend more time with them. They are all on the side of the family that I don't see as much. I think I should probably fix that in the future. It's just so hard to see everyone when I have so little time.

Anyway, it seems that my cousin Amanda is going to be going to culinary school after she graduates. And she has fallen in love with the East Coast big cities. I told her mom that I am happy to open my door to any of the family that wants to check out the big city. Plus, it give a bit of comfort zone for any parent that is reluctant to send their "baby" to the big city.

Camping...Me?!?!

2006-04-17T17:09:00.000-04:00

Believe it or not, I actually went camping. Well, sort of hiking and almost rock climbing, too. I went up to The Gunks with Peter and some friends this past weekend. Everyone else is big into climbing while I am still rather secure with my feet on the ground. Actually, I'll probably try it in the future, just not when I'm not prepared and don't know what I'm doing. I'm a big fan of not maiming myself against large cliffs.

In any case, the entire adventure included camping on the nicest weekend of the year so far, wandering around some "mountains" (I still think it's funny that the Eastcoasters think they are mountains), watching perigrine falcons play, and -get this- driving. That's right, I also used that handy little license of mine that is getting cob-webby in my wallet. Oh, and I got to be the team photographer with Peter's fancy new camera.

I did contemplate suggesting the traditional Easter camping treat, Peeps S'Mores, or hiding eggs in the woods to find in the morning. For some reason, I think that might have been received poorly by the Ranger who kicked us out early Sunday morning.

All-in-all, it was a fun weekend, but I hope that the next trip I make goes back to the kind that has running water.

Snow in April

2006-04-05T11:31:00.000-04:00

It is officially Spring. We have had 60 degree weather off and on for the past couple of weeks. And today, we have the largest snow flakes that I have ever seen falling like crazy. It started with rain, then they all became snow. I have lived in this city for 15 years and I still can't get used to the weather!

Oh, wait, I think it's stopping now. Nothing like a 30 minute snow storm!

Remember Me?

2006-04-03T18:32:00.000-04:00

Grandma Dolly, This one's for you!

I know I have been very lax in my posting of late. And I got scolded by Grandma for not keeping this updated. So, I'm back.

There is a LOT to talk about but I don't have a lot of time for typing. So in a nutshell -

1) I just got back from a wonderful trip to Tokyo with my beau. It was 9 days of wandering around a foreign country, pretending I still remember some of the language I learned in highschool. But really relying heavily on the English of the Japanese people. There will be more following, including pictures.

2) Just as I got back from Japan - literally on the train from the airport, I found out that my Papa died. This was not entirely unexpected, but rather freightening since I saw him just the day before on a little side trip on the way back from Japan.

3) I couldn't tell you what time it is or when I am going to fall a sleep for the past week. Between spending 9 days in Japan, one day (Actually I lived through Monday 3/20 twice - once in Tokyo and once in Portland) on the west coast, one day traveling east, one day in NYC, 3 days on the west coast and then hitting daylight savings time on the way back to NYC, I'm lucky to be awake during daylight hours at all.

4) I am up to my ears in Girl Scout cookies. I extended the selling of the cookies from my cousin (the family girl scout) to those in my NYC network that don't have anyone knocking on their doors. I think the order was around 90 boxes this year!

5) I just finished up a couple of projects for another knitting book. This one is called Knitting With Balls - a book by and for male knitters. It was a bit of a fiasco considering I got the materials 3 weeks late and had less than 2 weeks to make a hooded cardigan and a throw. (I got them in a bit late, but as fast as I could.)

I can't think of anything else at the moment because I am very, very tired, yet still at work. I'm gonna go home, sleep and try to think of more things to post. G'night!

I'm not dead

2005-11-08T20:09:00.000-05:00

Just to catch you all up:

Scarves - done
Work - busy but good
Theatre - more shows to work on so busy
Hurricane surviving friends - happy and healthy
Other stuff - good

In general, things are all good but busy. I had a great time for Halloween. The one major side effect is that my hair has been MANY colors in the past week. I decided to go blue a la Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. So, I went all Manic Panic Shocking Blue. I figured that it would wash out with all of the hair washing and such. Well, after a week of blue hair with green tinges, I wanted to try something else. So, thinking that maybe the peroxide in the copper color might help the blue to leave. But that just gave me orange roots and blue ends. So I went with dark brown which made it black with brown roots. And that is where I'm at now. At least until the blue fully washes out. Or I cut it all off.

In knitting news, I'm making the cardigan in Vintage Knits for myself. I got some pretty olive green cotton yarn when my friend Jules was in town. And after I finished the scarves, I dove right in. I forgot how long it takes to do something on size 3 needles with a lacy pattern. Not nearly as much of the instant gratification of whipping out a scarf in 2 hours. But it's nice to purl every now and again. I guess it's a trade off.

Oh, I almost forgot. I am once again trying the NaNoWriMo. That's right. I'm trying to write a novel with everything else that's going on in my craziness. I'm already a week behind. Go figure. I started out strong with 2 solid days of writing. Then life hit and I stopped. I guess I've got to get going on that. So I'm off. Wish me luck.

Finally a little hurricane relief

2005-09-08T21:55:00.000-04:00

I finally talked to my friend Julia down in New Orleans today. She had left me a message on Thursday saying that she was okay and that she'd talk to me soon. Of course, I didn't believe that and tried to call her repeatedly until I finally got her voicemail on Sunday (the first day that the lines were working again).

She got through to me tonight and told me that she is at her Mom's house north of Lake Ponchetrain and getting by for the time being. They have no running water, no electricity and a lot of fallen trees to clean up, but for the most part, everyone and the house are okay. Jules has had a chance to look at her Grandmother's house in Metarie (where she was living) and it looks like there is minimal damage. But her Father's house had 40 inches of water in it. And after being submerged for the past week and a half, he will have to totally gut out his first floor.

Although I'm still a bit angry about the entire situation (handling of it before, during and after), I am a bit more calm after talking to Jules on the phone. She's talking about visiting family in the eastern coast of North Caroline (which I reminded her is still a hurricane ridden area). I have offered her to stay with me if she wants to get away for a while, since she has no job and not much holding in one place at the moment. I haven't seen her in quite a long time, so I would be very happy for the visit. Maybe I'll be able to get a bit of sleep tonight for a change.

What does it look like when a muppet gets sick?

2005-09-03T22:28:00.000-04:00

I did nothing but knit scarves today. Still in jammies - watching a bit of tv - listening to audiobooks - and knitting. I am up to 27 which is the amount I needed to be on track for this week. I think I'll get a few more done tomorrow and Monday since I turned down all of my potential Labor Day weekend plans. Instead of going back down to the Jersey shore with friends or hanging out even here in town or the last minute invitation to go rock climbing upstate, I opted to stay home, sleep and knit. That's all. Not very exciting. But I am well on my way to getting through these scarves on time.

Scarf Count - 20

2005-08-30T08:41:00.000-04:00

Well, I am officially behind on my scarf count. I had figured out that I had to do about 7 scarves per week to give myself enough time to finish and ship without being too tight on time. And here it is 2 days into the 4th week of scarving and I am still finishing up the last 2 from last week. Maybe I just need to cut out a bit of my social life. Well, it is getting a bit out of control anyway. I think once I get about 25 of them ready, I will send them off to the Girl Scouts. That way they will definitely have enough time to get some of them ready and such.

I have to say, I have gotten a lot of compliments on them as I knit them around town. I was at a focus group last night and while I was waiting (and knitting), two women started talking about my creation. Thus far, the scarves have seen: a) the office, b) the subway/bus, c) commuter train/platforms to the Jersey Shore, d) the beach, under an umbrella with plenty of sun screen for both of us, e) a few different parks in Manhattan - Central, Bryant, f) a few cafes, g) Broadway theatre and h) a movie theatre. Why limit your knitting to the confines of your house, that is my motto. Any suggestions on where I should take to knitting next? Why not? Friends' houses? Restaurants? Museums? While shopping? I'm open to thoughts.

Has it really been almost a month?

2005-08-12T15:51:00.000-04:00

Man, how time flies. Since last I wrote, many things have happened. I made a trip to the West Coast for a little visit with the family and friends. I have been going out so often that I am wondering if I really need an apartment or just a storage space and a gym membership (for showering and locker/closet purposes). I have taken on the task of knitting 50 scarves for a Girl Scout troupe to sell at a bazaar this fall - 2 down, 48 to go. I have told my WTC survival story to a friend who is planning on doing some writing about the topic.

Well, I'm at work right now, so I don't have the massive amounts of pictures I took at Mt. St. Helens, nor the adorable pictures of my kitties on the verge of a heat stroke (not really but they are not enjoying this summer), nor the scarves that are eked out for the girl scouts. So, you will have to hold on until I actually make it home again. At this rate, it might not be for another month.

Busy

2005-07-17T00:03:00.000-04:00

Well, it looks like I'll be back in the Pacific Northwest next week. Between visiting the family, seeing my friend Maureen (staying with my parents for the summer), catching a glimpse of Ayelet, going to my cousin's wedding reception and celebrating my sister's birthday, I will have a very busy trip.

One of these days, I would like to have a little bit of quiet time. I feel like I haven't had more than about 5 minutes to sit still for the past month. It has been a very crazy summer so far. I couldn't even tellyou what all I've been doing, but it's been fun.

It's too hot to get any knitting done. It's been too hot for a lot of things. The only thing that seems to be okay to do in this weather is to eat ice cream. So that's what I have been doing. Mot so productive, but very tasty.

Richard Cheese

2005-06-16T02:59:00.000-04:00

This evening, I managed to expand my merchandising career by helping out a friend of a friend. In an attempt to find someone to sell CDs and stuff at their show, I was conneccted with Richard Cheese and Lounge Against the Machine. It wasn't a particularly difficult gig, but it was fun. I didn't get to SEE the show, but I heard it all (and I got to knit a few rows of my latest project while the fans were listening and not buying). And we can't forget the drunken attempts to hit on me which kept me on my toes.

If you aren't familiar with Dick and the gang, they sing popular music in lounge form. Very funny and clever stuff!

Well, apparently they liked me since they invited me to eat with them after the show. Okay, so it's 2:45 AM on a school night and I am just getting home. But I got to relive some of my misspent youth by hanging out with the band. Nothing like being the cool kid once again.

Now I have to go to sleep, since I have to work in the morning - ooooh, that will be fun!

2005-06-07T23:11:00.000-04:00

For the past week or so, I have been fighting a nasty cold or flu or something just as miserable. But, to those that are within earshot, you will be happy to know that my voice is almost back to normal and I will be shrieking at my normal levels very soon.

In the mean time, I managed to finish my tank/shrug twin set. (Pictures to come soon) I am now working on a tank from the Kidsilk Haze I got for renewing my Rowan subscription. So much for the frilly scarf pattern that they sent along with it. Not really in the mood for a scarf, now that we have hit 90 degree weather out here.

That's right, the summer is attacking us full force. It's not even summer yet. But the humidity and the heat is here for the long haul.

Happy Memorial Day

2005-05-30T21:49:00.000-04:00

Despite the beautiful weather and luxurious day off, I managed to lay low all day this holiday. Mostly, I spent much of the day knitting. One of my coworkers has a new baby. Actually, the baby was born the weekend before I started working there. I have been meaning to make something for this little guy, but haven't found a pattern that I liked for the yarn I chose. So, I started tweaking today and managed to make this sweater into this:

I know, it's no longer a cardigan. And I know that there is a hood. I even know that the gauge is totally wrong for the pattern. But considering I was knitting for a 1 month old and not a toddler, it was really knitting without a net. And I know that charcoal gray is not your typical baby color, but I was informed that this baby prefers to wear black. So, this is the closest I could come up with in my stash. And at least I had some help.

Koshka is such a good helper. But not as helpful as his brother, George:

But George really sticks with helping with the household chores, like making the bed. Especially any chore that involves sleep, hiding and eating.

Busy, busy

2005-05-23T07:25:00.000-04:00

I know I have been neglectful in my posting, but I have been very busy lately. Work is going very well. Everyone keeps saying that it seems like I have been there for a long time. I take that as a compliment.

This is also the season for going out and doing stuff. Between BBQs, theatre, just getting together, celebrating new jobs/leaving jobs, and the like, I feel like there is rarely a time that I am just at home anymore. So, I took yesterday as a day off from everything outside of my apartment. I didn't answer the phone or go outside or anything. I was being a total hermit. It was so needed.

Speaking of employment, of my closest friends here in NYC, a large number of people I spend lots of time with have either been unemployed or got a new job within the past 3 months. It's kinda strange, actually.

In good, yet potentially dangerous news, my new office is all of 3 blocks away from one of my favorite local yarn stores, Yarn Connection. I managed to stop in on my lunch hour last week and scored a bag of Silky Tweed in gray. It was on sale and is already on the needles for a tank top and shrug twin set. I am still tweaking my patterns, but I think they should come out very pretty.

Well, this is my early week at work, so I need to head out to work.

Latest Projects

2005-05-09T22:40:00.000-04:00

Thank you all for your comments and e-mails. This new job is such a wonderful change for the better for me. It has been a long time since I wasn't totally miserable in going to work every day. Well, I have been keeping myself busy when I am not dealing with my job learning curve. Wanna see?

These were special request from Dad. And I happened to have plenty of left over peace fleece from my sweater. Apparently his golf clubs need to have more than one set of clothes. So, I decided to make these a bit more fun and special...

They are monogrammed. If you don't know Dad, his name is, well... Bob.

And let's not forget about Mom. This is the poncho that Mom requested from me.

You can't tell in this picture, but there is an eyelet pattern and a scalloped edge in this big, bulky poncho. No spelling required for this one.

Happy Marney

2005-05-03T22:04:00.000-04:00

I am happy to say that so far everything is going very well in the new job. The people there are really nice, helpful, smart and personable. I like that I am doing a bit of the event planning thing with not so much of the chaos that goes with it. Granted, it has been all about the training so far, but I still have a very good feeling about this situation. So much better than the last gig. SOOOOO MUCH BETTER!!!!

But, it hasn't stopped me from knitting up a storm. I would include pictures, but my camera is eating up batteries like crazy, so I have to see what I can do about it. So, in the mean time, you will have to imagine the poncho, the blanket and the golf club covers I have on needles or about to finish. I should get things back in order with this camera thing soon.

Decisions, decisions

2005-04-26T16:10:00.000-04:00

Today, after meeting with the support staff of a very reputable company that would have offered me a decent salary, great benefits and a fabulous environment, I decided that I would be rather unchallenged and ultimately bored with the workload and have nothing to inspire me to go further, as the promotion path only goes one level up to the exciting role of Executive Assistant. So, I decided that taking a job for a bit less money but more variety in work and a career path that sounds intriguing is a better situation for me.

So, here's the scoop:

I will be the new Customer Service Assistant for Rogen. It is a business training and strategy company. This is the company that offered the presentation skills seminar to me last week. After seeing them in action, I really felt good about what the company stands for and does. I have met with about half of the consulting staff already as well as the person that is doing the entire job that I will be sharing. One of the things that I really like about this situation is that they are tailoring the position to my abilities. They were originally looking for a junior person to do this job, but since they saw what I have done, they have reconsidered and decided to pass on more responsibility to me as they are growing in other directions. I love that they have given me a promotion before I even started.

So, that's the news. I start my new job on Monday and will give you updates as I have them.

Still waiting

2005-04-25T18:47:00.000-04:00

Well, when I talked to my recruiter about my pending offer, she informed me that there is another company that is interested in seeing me again. I went to see them on Friday and they want me to go back in tomorrow. So, I have postponed my decision for yet another day. I guess that means that I am still in limbo. But at least I have a new hair cut that makes me feel better. It's not much, but it's something.

I going to go back to knitting, since that has much less pressure than the rest of the world.

So, maybe more news tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.

Change in the weather

2005-04-24T08:52:00.000-04:00

I was joking with my friends that the beautiful weather we have been having here in the NYC area was directly connected to my unemployment. More so, the last day that was rainy and yucky was my last day of employment, and as soon as the weather turned back, I would have a job. Well, strangely enough, things are starting to look like that might be right. For the past 3 weeks, we had beautiful, sunny, clear weather and Marney without a job. Friday, when things started to turn meteorologically, I actually got myself a job offer.

Well, don't jump for joy quite yet. Although this position is the one of all of them I have interview for (and there were quite a few) that I liked the most, this one came in with the smallest salary offer by quite a bit. So, instead of jumping in and saying absolutely, I have asked to have the weekend to make the "right" decision. Since I really hate to negotiate money, I am in a bit of a pickle. I think I will have to at least try to so that on Monday when I call back. But I think that in the end, I would rather take a pay cut to work somewhere that would make me happy than to make more money in a place that would make me miserable. I will give more details about the job once I make it all official.

So, since I haven't really been posting much, I should also share with you what I have been doing. Mostly, I have been interviewing like a crazy person. I had 5 interviews last week and 2 full days of seminars (which were connected to the job offer). That means that there wasn't a single day that I wasn't "on." So, right now, I am trying to rest up as best I can.

On Monday, I have made plans with a friend to do a little bit of pampering. Both of us being unemployed are in a little need for some extra attention. I got suckered into a promotional thing for one of the salons in the city. You pay a small amount and get a dozen treatments as a chance for the salon to get their name out there. Well, the guy who suckered me, felt bad about my lack of income, so he gave me 2 of these promotional things for the price of one. So, I am sharing it with a fellow un-employee.

Fun Project already finished

2005-04-07T20:19:00.000-04:00

Not bad for a quickie. I think I spent about 3-4 hours on this scarf, 4 skeins and a simple pattern. It's a solid 6 feet long. Maybe this is something I can do for some extra money. The fuzzy scarves are popular these days, despite the fact that the weather is about 70 degrees these days. Maybe I'll give this a littl emore thought.

Yarn Fairy Strikes Again

2005-04-07T15:58:00.000-04:00

GIRL SCOUT COOKIES ARE HERE!!!!! I already craked open the Tagalongs and downed at least 5. MMMMMMMMMMM!!! Yeah, I should probably tell of the other people that ordered that they are here. That would be the responsible thing to do. Or I could eat them all...

Well, the packing materials for these cookies was a bit of yarn. There was 4 balls of Lion Brand Fun Fur in Indigo, 2 skeins of Red Heart Symphony in River Blue, 3 skeins of Red Heart Fiesta in Burgandy and 3 skeins of Red Heart Light & Lofty in Pheasant.

Already, I have the fun fur on needles for a furry scarf. Actually, it is looking a bit muppet-like. I love it!

THANK YOU YARN FAIRY!

UPS Sucks

2005-04-05T21:27:00.000-04:00

I stayed in all day yesterday waiting for my Girl Scout Cookies to be delivered. They never showed up. I looked online to find out what happened. It says they were attempted yesterday at 2:30. Well, I was here, waiting and no one rang my bell. I HATE THAT!!! I want my cookies. And now I have to go down to UPS to pick them up because they are morons. GRUMBLE!

So, today, I stayed in again and knit and looked for a job and ... man this is redundant. Okay I did go to a book signing this evening for Stitch n Bitch Nation. It was good to see Debbie and a few of the SnBers after my lengthy absence.

Not much else to report. But, if I continue on this path for too much longer, I think I may just go insane.

First Day of Unemployment

2005-04-04T17:26:00.000-04:00

Well, I spent the day at home. I was supposed to have an interview with a recruiter. But it was postponed until Wednesday. So I trolled the classified ads on-line, sent out resumes and knit my cardigan. I am down to the last sleeve on this puppy. Not bad, considering it is quite a bulky aran sweater and I have ony been working on it for a little more than a week.

One thing I did do over the weekend was post an ad for knitting lessons on craig's list. So far, no takers. Maybe I should include pictures. It was also suggested to me to knit for people for cash. But I really don't know where to find people that would be able to afford a handmade sweater/socks/ponchos/whatever.

I am also still waiting for the Girl Scout cookies that were supposed to be delivered today. But alas, it is 5:30 and no UPS. I would really like to have those cookies.

I did it

2005-03-31T23:16:00.000-05:00

I sent out my resignation from the latest blot on my resume. I know it was a bit rash, but I really think this job was worse than being unemployed. I have had a really nervous stomach for the past week and headaches that won't quit. Once a job manifests itself physically, I think there is really no option but to get out.

I really don't know what I am going to do now. I have my resume out in so many directions that there has to be something that pans out soon. I am going to start contacting temp agencies tomorrow and Monday.

Well, I guess I'll see just how resilliant I really am. Wish me luck.

Forced into Knitting

2005-03-29T23:50:00.000-05:00

Work has been stressing me out a lot lately. I mean a lot. So much so that I think I am getting a nervous stomach. I am not happy with my latest employment situation. Once again, I have found myself working for someone that does not appreciate me and does not treat me well. My, I have a penchant for finding the unpleasant bosses!

But at least I am trying to be productive about my unhappiness. I have found myself picking up the needles to calm my nerves more than usual. Actually, since this weekend, I have the back and half of one front piece for an aran cardigan finished. I frogged the aran sweater that I have had on the needles for the past couple of years. Sadly, there have been friends chewing on my yarn and salvaging wasn't easy. Oh well, I can make the best of it. And it looks really nice. I have been in need of a nice wool aran sweater. I think the cardigan will be a good choice. Easy to muck about in.

Well, I better get back to sending out my resume...again....still. I am really tired of looking for a job. But I think I may end up scrapping this gig before I have anywhere else to go. I am too old to be treated like this and too good to believe any of this crap. Last I checked, I am a competant professional that can do just about anything that I set my mind to. So, now I just need to find something that is worth setting my mind to. Wish me luck, again. And if you know of an opening in the NYC area....

Some Pictures from London

2005-03-20T21:41:00.000-05:00

Globe Theatre

Tower of London

St. Patrick's Day in Trafalgar Square

Big Ben chiming at 1PM

Parliament

Let me know if you want to see more, I have an album on line that I will be happy to share.

Home Again

2005-03-19T14:59:00.000-05:00

What a wonderful vacation! I have offically fallen in love with London. I had such a wonderful time there. I want to go back already. There are very few places that I have been to that have insired this much desire to return. The weather was great, warmer than NYC, no rain, gray but comfortable. I managed to see all kinds of sites, mostly the well known locales. But we made it to 2 different museums, Tate Modern and National Portrait Gallery. There was a St. Patrick's Day festival in Trafalgar Square last Sunday with all kinds of Irish bands playing and green water in the fountains. I hit the Camden Markets and Covent Gardens Market and found a few fun trinkets to remind me of the fun there. I also saw Festen on the West End (London's Broadway) on the recommendation of a poker buddy. Everything was just wonderful.

But I am back in the States now and almost back to the right time zone. The strangest thing that is going on right now is that I keep running into people I used to work with on the street. Yesterday, I ran into a co-worker from Morgan Stanley (haven't seen him in about 3 years) and today was someone from the Dodger world (haven't seen since Feb.).

Well, I am going to get back to catching up on some knitting that I feel like I haven't had a chance to do for a while (I took no projects with me overseas). So, today is all about relaxing on my home turf and getting back into my groove.

Vacation Time

2005-03-09T09:01:00.000-05:00

Today I am off to London. I will have a week in the UK just hanging with my friend, Ardra. She is the friend that went with me to Paris in November. I am so looking forward to this trip. It looks like I may be able to meet up with my cousin, Tiffany, who is out there for training for a new job. I think we will be meeting up over the weekend. Also, my friend, Angela, will be heading out to Paris for training for her new job and may stop by London to hang with us before she starts her training. I can't wait!

I am just hoping that it is just a bit warmer than the 21 degrees and snow that we have here. According to weather.com, I am looking at weather above freezing and no rain until we are about to leave. I am not complaining.

We are staying in Picadilly Circus at the Regent Palace. I am so excited! Well, I had to do laundry and errands before I go. I'll post pictures when I get back.

Completed Object

2005-02-27T18:11:00.000-05:00

With everything that is going on with me these days, I am having a hard time feeling like I am achieving anything concrete. So, I picked up some yarn from the Farmers' Market in Union Square. I love getting yarn straight from the farmer. It was some great merino wool.

I whipped up a little seaman's cap. Granted, the dye came off on my fingers something awful. But after knitting up and washing out the excess dye, this iss what it looks like.

Changes

2005-02-20T09:29:00.000-05:00

I am thinking about making some changes to my diet. For the pasts 4 years, I have been an ovo-lacto vegetarian. When I made the decision to give up all meat, I promised myself that if this diet harmed my health in any way I would make some changes. Well, with my new job, I have found that I don't have time to eat during the day. That means I have to get all of my nutrients in basically one meal a day. So, I am thinking that if I add fish to my diet and become a pescetarian, I can get more nutrients in my diet. Not only that, but it will make things a bit easier for dining, as well. And I will be able to enjoy sushi again, and fish & chips while I'm in London.

Right now, I am just thinking about chanign over. Because I am such a dork, I am doing all kinds of research right now to make sure that I am doing the right thing.

I have been trying to keep knitting on a daily basis. With as much craziness in my life right now, I really am depending onmy knitting for some sanity. Not to mention, I have a ton of yarn that is just waiting for inspiration. I am trying to get through my stash. I feel like I am killing 2 birds with one stone. Nothing like multi-tasking!

Job Update

2005-02-14T07:53:00.000-05:00

So, I'm sure there are a lot of questions about what I am doing these days. My days consist of wandering around the City fixing computers for those that can afford to have a technician come to their home. I have seen some AMAZING apartments in the past couple of weeks. Macs, PCs; individual computers, networks; simple fixes, complex problems; homes, offices; and everything in between. Some of the clients that our company has are celebrities, but I have yet to go to any of their homes. They are pretty much secured by the boss. That is quite alright with me, though. I am still learning the ropes and find myself making a few errors in dealing directly with people. I am not used to using computer jargon to distance myself from what I am doing. I have always been the one to make things more easy to understand.

Anyway, there is never a dull moment. Come to think of it, I have hardly had any time to sit still, and have yet had a chance to eat lunch while on the job. On top of that, by carrying around laptops, tools and other "stuff," I am convinced that a gym membership would be wasted on me. I am still getting the hang of everything. But I definitely need to get more sleep these days.

Good News

2005-02-03T09:07:00.000-05:00

Just when I thought things were going to crash and burn, a miracle comes down from above. I got me a job. Well, yesterday morning, I had an interview, by 8:30AM, I was working for a new company. I am a techie. I am working for a computer consulting company that takes care of the computer needs of people all over the NYC area. It's pretty wild.

I'll talk about it more when I have a few more minutes.

The clock is ticking

2005-01-31T17:56:00.000-05:00

I am down to 2 weeks of employment. And these will probably be the most insane weeks here. With the dead knoll tolling throughout the office, I wander around with a cart collecting all equipment that no longer has a home. "I'm sorry were you using that phone? I will have to take it from your cold, dead hands." I'm wondering if my last task here will be to clean out my own computer. Oh, I'll probably do that anyway, just because I would hate for all of this stuff to get into the wrong hands.

Forgive my morose attitude today, but it hasn't been a particularly fun day for me. There is just too much darkness around here. And in that, I am also talking about all of the overhead lights that are burning out. Sometimes reality has a way of making the metaphore easier.

Blizzard

2005-01-23T11:28:00.000-05:00

Well, we are about past the blizzard alert for this area. In the past 24 hours, I think we have gotten over a foot of snow. BRRRRRRRRRR. I bet Central Park is pretty right now...but this is all I see from my apartment.

So, for part of the day yesterday, I taught myself how to make a granny square. Wanna see?

Not bad considering the only crocheting I have enver done was in conjunction to edging or fixing my knitting. I am pretty proud of myself. I have to give some of the credit to my friend Tammy who explained how to properly do a double crochet. It makes a little more sense now.

Knitting Weekend

2005-01-17T17:55:00.000-05:00

The cold weather brings with it the need to knit. This weekend was all about just that. Before I started with my CNN encounter last week, I stopped off at Downtown Yarns and picked up 4 skeins of Lamb's Pride Bulky for no apparent reason.

Not having a specific purpose, I then tried to plot a use for my 2 skeins of blue and 2 skeins of green. Well, by the end of the weekend, most all of the yarn is gone - or transformed into 1 green newsboy hat (from Stitch 'n Bitch Nation), 2 blue and green footy-slippers (from my calendar patterns) and much of a blue with green, to-be-felted bag (also from Stitch 'n Bitch Nation). Not bad for not having a purpose. But I do need to get another skein of blue to finish the bag.

So in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I am working today. I'm sure, on some level, he would much rather have the masses be working diligently instead of enjoying a three day weekend. So, the rest of us that are putting in the hours today to make sure that the economy gets better are really more patriotic than the people that are at home watching their stories, or getting another day of skiing, or whatever. If I keep telling myself that, I am bound to start believing it. Alright, I am going to get out of here, now. Maybe I can find something else to knit up at home. At least that's one way to stay warm.

Ironic

2005-01-13T22:41:00.000-05:00

Is it a good thing or a bad thing to be in a CNN story about speed dating just before Valentine's Day? Well, lucky me, I get to be a part of such an ironic situation.

Last night, I ventured into the wacky world of speed dating only to see a camera crew hovering. Well, they were doing a story on the founders of this particular group and the rest of us just got to be a part of the background/background story. Talk about adding pressure to an already pressured situation.

So, if you are bored the week before Valentine's Day, flip around on CNN and see if you can spot me, my "score card" (yes, they actually filmed it), and my interview.

Just think, the last time I was on CNN, it was for knitting....

Better

2005-01-11T11:23:00.000-05:00

I ended up leaving work a bit early yesterday and rested for the whole evening. So, now, although I am not quite 100%, I am feeling MUCH better. Hours of watching Roger & Me, working on my fishnets and just relaxing worked wonders for me. Of course, watching the bunny scene in the movie was enough to make me feel queasy all over again. For that matter, there was a lot of the movie that was a bit unsettling. But that is what Michael Moore is all about with his movies.

I am truly enjoying my knitting pattern a day calendar that I got for Christmas from Grandma Dolly. (Thank you, Grandma!!!) Although I haven't started any new project from it, the first week has some cute socks, a great hat and a lovely shawl that may end up on needles before the year is out.

Oh, my friend Tyler is back from Estonia. He has been there for most of the last year teaching English as a foreign language. For anyone that knows him, that may be hard to imagine. But I am meeting up with him tonight to get the low down on all of his adventures. I'm sure it will be VERY colorful and interesting, to say the least.

31 Hours

2005-01-10T10:43:00.000-05:00

That's how many (out of 48) that I slept this past weekend. And the 17 hours that I was awake, most of my time and energy was focused on laying down, trying to keep food in my system and watching gam show reruns. Not a very productive weekend, at all. well to be honest, I am really wondering how long I will be able to make it through today.

But I did finish the initial bag (sans felting - for that required leaving my apartment) that I had started. Now, when my health returns, I will be able to focus on the fishnets.

I think I need to take a nap now..................

Blah

2005-01-06T13:09:00.000-05:00

That is all I can muster up to say right now. I just spent the past 2 hours looking for a job to replace this hoop-I-jump-through for a paycheck. Today, there is a big nothing. There are 7 different site that I check daily (not including any company sites I wander onto). I also have a couple of friends that have been farming out my resume within their companies.

So there's that.

I am rather pissed today - literally. As I got to my chair at the office, I smelled something that really could only be some fun odor from my evil felines. I didn't smell it when I left home. And I can't figure out where it is coming from, aside from me. Not my sweater. Not my jeans. Not my hair. I am freshly washed all over - really I am. Just every now and again, I can smell something rather foul. It is making me extremely grumpy. But it gives me good reason to avoid contact with as many people as possible.

On the bright side, I have been indulging in the projects of Stitch 'n Bitch Nation. I have a felted, monogramed, retro shaped bag (green with an "M")and a pair of fishnets (grape) on the needles right now. I am knitting for sanity now. That's all I have to keep me grounded.

Another Christmas Down

2004-12-26T19:19:00.000-05:00

The Christmas weekend of 2004, for me, included 3 DVDs of Sports Night, much knitting, watching The Woodsman (Kevin Bacon's new movie about a child molester), watching Hotel Rwanda (an incredible movie with a LOT of genocide), more knitting, Chinese food and spending quality time with my ex-boyfriend. I guess it really adds up to a very strange holiday.

But on the bright side, I have a new sweater:

It's the cover pattern from the Spring 2004 Interweave Knits, as you can see here:

I got the yarn from the Smiley's Yarn Sale earlier this month. I scored a bag of Adriafil Jumping Classic for $25 (10 balls). Since I only needed about 7.5 balls, I got a MAJOR BARGAIN on this sweater. I am also working on a pair of socks with some of my Smiley's yarn, as well. If I keep at it, I should be wearing my socks during the ever colder weather that is already upon us.

In the mean time, I will be donning my newly knitted apparel tomorrow.

Happy Holidays to All, or something like that

2004-12-21T10:46:00.000-05:00

Here I am, once again stuck between the hustle of getting all of the holiday hullabaloo into the schedule and not really having particular plans for the holidays. I know it seems strange. But then again, I am strange. I have managed to go to a minimal number of holiday parties so far, but still haven't been home much. I decided not to get gifts for anyone but family, and yet, I still can't muster the inspiration to buy things. And most of all, anyone receiving anything from me will be happy to extend the holiday long past the traditional season.

But I don't feel particularly bad about any of this. I am sitting here at my desk with the finally finished list for the cards being sent out by the office. If I'm not mistaken, it is December 21st. And though the cards are actually to celebrate the holiday I designated years ago as Kwa*Hanu*Mas, we are still pretty late with this project, considering the artwork for the cards has not been approved yet. The Hanu of Hanukkah has already passed. The Mas of Christmas is this weekend. The Kwa of Kwanzaa is about to begin this weekend, as well. Nothing like wishing happy holidays after the fact!

And to make things even more fun, we had our first snow accumulation of the season on Sunday night. It is mostly gone now, but the bitter cold is feeling at home. Yesterday, with highs in the teens and low twenties, I woke up to having no heat or hot water in my apartment. Don't you love winter? Happily, that has all been rectified now.

Alright, someday, I will get the hang of the holiday season, but I don't think it will be anytime soon. In the mean time, I will be indulging in Chinese food and movies once again this Christmas Day. I think conversion to Judaism is required if you spend more than 5 Christmases this way. Or as I was corrected, NEW YORK Judaism. Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel, I made you out of clay...

A bit of news

2004-12-14T16:57:00.000-05:00

I just found out that I have been extended in my job for another month. I will be gainfully (although well overworked) until the end of January. And there is still the possibility of another month being tacked on after that. I won't hear about that until this time next month.

In the mean time, I have been very busy lately. Saturday, I found myself with some friends at Woodbury Commons Premium Outlet Center. There was much shopping in fabulous outlets for Coach, Kenneth Cole, BCBG, and MUCH MORE. So, for 7 hours, four of us spent some quality time saving large quantities of money on designer products. It was a nice break from the normal grind of Manhattan.

Sunday night was the holiday party for my office. It was much smaller than most years with only about 400 people or so. Not bad for an office that has about 50 employees.

Well, as for any more permanent employment, the jury is still out. The following careers have been pondered by me/suggested to me:

Teacher - Primary school in NYC
Teacher - English as a Foreign Language abroad
Office Manager/HR Manager
Editor - Print/Online
IT Professional (although I am not certified in anything)
Professional Knitter
Cult Leader
Bum
Student

Of all of these suggestions, I am starting to lean toward the cult leader. I mean, let's face it, if I can maintain the charisma, the money will just follow. Now I just need to find something that will inspire people to give me money.

Random Bit of Info of the Day

2004-12-08T15:49:00.000-05:00

I can talk to Lewis Black for free on my cell phone.

Mr. Black was upgrading his phone service/phone as I was upgrading my phone service/phone just this afternoon. And as I can talk to anyone else using my carrier, he would qualify.

I have officially lost my mind.

Post Thanksgiving Coma

2004-11-26T15:34:00.000-05:00

After a long weekend in Paris and a few days of working/showing off my town to visitors and a Thanksgiving full of excitement, I have found it hard to make it out of bed today. It's already 3:30 and I have managed to blow off pretty much everything I thought I would do today. But I did watch the Schoolhouse Rock DVD I got from Netflix.

I have also been thinking about my employment situation. The end of December is only a month away and unemployment is looking much more likely. Despite the endless resumes I sent out, I have not heard back from any of them. So, as I was talking to my aunt Pam last night on the subway, I got to thinking about the NYC Teaching Fellowship Program. It would be a great way for me to go back to school without paying a ton of money that I don't really have and still insure some sort of employment. So, I think after this weekend, I may just go ahead and throw my hat in the ring for this program. I think it would be a good option for me.

Okay, that being said, I am going back to my knitting. I am finally putting my organic cotton to good use. Since I couldn't decide for such a long time about what to do with it, I am using it for the "Turtle Top" in Hollywood Knits. Nice chunky sleeveless turtleneck sweater. I could probably wear it on Monday. Love the chunky stuff.

Bon Jour Mes Amies!!!

2004-11-23T06:57:00.000-05:00

Paris is just what the doctor ordered. I spent 5 days seeing sights, shopping, eating, enjoying the change of culture, meeting new people, going to museums and wandering aimlessly. The bad news is my French has really gotten bad. But the good news is there are MANY Parisiens who speak pretty good English. So even my travelling companion, Ardra, could get by with her total lack of French. I did give her one phrase to say, "Ou est la sortie?" It's always good to have someone with you with an exit strategy.

We met a few locals while we were hanging out. They were all very friendly and very open. They all managed to ask about the political standing of the US. Parisiens do have a political streak in them.

So, where did we go?

Louvre

Arc de Triomphe

Bastille

Eiffel Tower

Seine

Musee d'Orsay

And so much more.

I am so glad we went out there. It was a fabulous time. I will tell more tales later on. Must get back to my normal life now.

I haven't disappeared

2004-11-15T13:28:00.000-05:00

Things have been very crazy for me these days. I know I have been very lax in sharing my info on this blog. But here's what's going on with me now.

JOB

I am working until the end of the year with the Dodgers. The entire company is dissolving so I can't really do a whole lot about the situation. Basically, last week, everyone got the date of their termination. The first round of lay offs happened last Friday. The rest of them are Dec 31, Jan 31, Feb 28 and March 31. By then, the entire company will have fallen into nothingness. So, I am diligently sending out resumes. My goal is at least one every day. It's not very easy at the moment. So, I am just hanging on to what I have for the time being.

KNITTING

I just finished my 50 clutchettes for Nicole. I think they are absolutely adorable. She may have some more work for me in the future, but I will wait until I get back into town to worry about that. In the mean time, I am thinking about selling my stitch markers in some way. I am still trying to figure out what venue(s) to go with. Also, the second Stitch 'n Bitch book just came out. I worked on a) the purple newsboy cap, b) the black cardigan, c) the London Calling sweater, d) the pink drop stitch vest and e) the swallow baby sweater.

VACATION

I leave for Paris on Wednesday. I am so very excited about going. I can't wait to get out of town for a while. I will be there for 5 days. That makes me very happy.

KITTIES

I had a bit of a freaky moment on Friday. I was in the bathroom, getting ready for work when Koshka started licking his chops and rubbing the side of his mouth. Well, low and behold, out pops a tooth - a molar. So I had to take him to the vet on Saturday to make sure that everything is just fine. Which is what seems to be the case. But the doctor was a little concerned about his low weight. So the blood tests should be in tomorrow. I am hoping that all else is well with this guy. He seems to be just fine other than being without a tooth. So we'll see tomorrow if there is anything I should be grumpy about.

I think that about brings me up to date. Well, I am going to get back to whatever it is that I'm doing.

Trick or Treat

2004-11-01T08:46:00.000-05:00

Aren't we adorable?!?! Meet Mass Transit Girl and Bus Babe. We met up with out other superhero friend Meter Maid, a little later in the evening, last night. Actually, the group consisted of the Urban League of Justice, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Spuds McKenzie, a Hanging Chad (complete with noose) and a Dark Angel. We were quite a site wandering through the Village.

Okay, with the fun of Halloween behind me, my next goal is to get busy with

That's right, I cam going to try to get my NANOWRIMO behind in gear again this year. One more November, one more attempt at writing a novel. I already have over 300 words of the 50,000 done. Keep in mind, it has only been 9 hours since we started. Wait a minute. I am wastin gwords on this blog. I need to put these words down in my novel.

Gotta go!

I made it through the week

2004-10-30T11:48:00.000-04:00

Friday was a day of total craziness. But to make a long story short, I have employment on Monday.

So, in the knitting front, I am making some of the "clutchettes" for Margaret Nicole. In fact, I am picking up materials a little later this afternoon. Very exciting!

ANd on Monday, I will be back at the Dodgers, as a Dodger. I have been offered a temporary gig there until the end of the year. My situation will be evaluated in December to decide what is happening from that point on. The staffing company also made an offer. They wanted me to "train" at various locations for 2 months and take on a record center at a law firm at the end of the year. Yes, that would be permanant. Yes, I would be paid my salary through the training. Yes, it would be a safe choice. But something I learned in life is the safe answer may not be the one that makes me happy. Right now, I am at a place that I like even though it is only for a couple of months. I'm okay with that. It will get me through the holidays and I can jump off the next bridge when it arrives.

Okay. This week drained me to no end. I realized that I was hired, fired, re-hired, re-fired, and re-re-hired by the same company in the course of 2 weeks. I SO need a vacation, now - which, by the way, is only 3 weeks away.

Much Happier End to the Day

2004-10-27T21:26:00.000-04:00

After a thoroughly wacky day at the office, I meandered over to the Shecky's Girls Night Out. This is an event that I bought a ticket to attend over a month ago. For the bargain basement price of $30, I got a goodie bag that included:

one.6 Chardonnay-full bottle
Monkey Business by Sarah Mlynowski
Killing Bono by Neil McCormick
Goody Spiral Curling Iron, Curling Iron Travel Bag, Hair Pin and Hair Elastic with Metal Piece
Biatta Panties
Ban Antiperspirant
Atkins Morning Start Bar
Lumene Skin Care samples
Revolution Tea 5 pack
Swab Plus lip and eye swabs
redken Blow Dry lotion
Healing Garden Spa Theraphy Sample Pack and Body Butter
Bawls Caffeine Drink
Sample CDs from Joshua Payne, The Shades and Toby Lightman
Wild Sexy Hair Product
Sample of Finlandia Vodka in Mango
Seche Vite Nail Top Coat
Curl Friends Purify Shampoo sample
Zone Perfect Nutrition Bar
And coupons for Esprit, Laser Cosmetica, New York Sports Club and Gloss Day Spa.

Plus there were booths for MANY cool vendors, including Magaret Nicole and her adorable hand knit clutches. So I made a point to find this booth (I looked all of the vendors over before hand). The clutches are even cuter in person. So, I had a little chat with her about how the bags are made. She suggested that I e-mail her about possibly doing a little something. But, she also inspired me to think further about a niche product that can be sold for a substantial amount (covering all costs of course) without feeling guilty about overcharging. Since it looks like I may have some time on my hands very soon, this may be something that keeps me out of trouble.

I think the fan may have been a direct hit

2004-10-27T13:18:00.000-04:00

I found out about an hour ago that my life here at the new gig is over on Friday. That would make it 2 weeks before anticipated. To top it off, the "signing bonus" that was supposed to be in my first paycheck was nowhere to be found.

So, forgive me if for a while I turn rather bitchy and bitter. I did nothing to deserve this situation. I knew nothing about it until it was all too late. All I did was come in, knowing that things were a bit of a mess, and try to make things better.

So, what about the staffing company, you may ask. It looks like the best they are likely to do would be to place me (with a pay cut) at some law firm, taking care of records or something like that. I think I would rather take unemployment than go through that. I could at least have my days free to find something else. In the grand scheme of things, isn't it better to take the pay cut and be able to look for a job than to do a job that a) I don't want, b) I am WAY too overqualified to do, c) would do me no better financially (or at least minimally) and d) a step down from any other position I could have elsewhere?

Holding Pattern

2004-10-26T08:15:00.000-04:00

Well, I am still working and probably will for the next few weeks. But, I have done A LOT of thinking about my situation. Although there are some possibilities in salvaging something from all of this (although slight at best), there is a part of me that is leaning toward some time off. I mean, I have been working for the past 12 years without any break. I have never been unemployed in my adult life. Maybe a little break would be a chance for me to put a few things into perspective and such. Not only that, but I am going to Paris the week after the lay off, and family will be in town the following week. By then, we will be knee deep in the holidays (which are always a challenge for me to survive). I think the new year would be a great time to start fresh.

I don't think this realization is particularly defeatist, but actually much more freeing for me. I have actually embraced a part of life that I never thought I would.

Don't get me wrong, I would rather find some other way to get through this mess. And since there are many changes afoot within my company, we can never know what any of us will end up doing.

I'm Still Employed...For Now

2004-10-19T19:26:00.000-04:00

Thank you all for all of the kind words of encouragement. It means a lot to me to have a cheering section behind me. Sometimes, I forget that the strange things that happen to me are not all that strange. Well, maybe they are.

Anyway, I am sitting at my new and soon to be old desk. I am on day 2 of the questionable employment. so, let me bring you up to speed.

....

Well, there really aren't too many changes in the situation. At this point, everyone seems to think that I have a job until the middle of November. At that point, I will be going off to Paris and can think of much happier times and places. Or something.

I have started sending out my resume, again. Not so much coming up for the holiday season. I may end up on the dole for a while until things get better in the new year. I don't know. Maybe something will happen serendipitously. Well, I am not going to spend a whole lot of time complaining or dreaming as neither will help me out of this situation.

So, when I have free time, I have been adding more metro cards to my cape, knitting up leg warmers to match the capelet and looking for work.

I do have something to share about my Haloween costume. My former coworker designed my logo for Mass Transit Girl. She then uploaded it to cafepress.com and made a pretty t-shirt for me to wear. I would show you all, but I have managed to lose that page. I guess you will have to wait for pictures.

Some days are good, Some days suck

2004-10-15T17:36:00.000-04:00

Today, the last day at the job I hate, the day of the conference I have been working like a fiend for, the day I have been waiting for all month, fell apart in every possible way.

No, the conference was wonderful. Went without a hitch.

The job is long gone. No more evil, abusive boss.

Facing a weekend of non-stop sleep.

So, what, say you, could possibly be wrong?

I got laid off. From a job I had not yet started. Anyone able to beat that one? Quitting one job and being laid off from another in the same day. How much sucking could there possibly be?

Apparently, there were money issues raised by the Duch company that runs the theatre company. They laid off 12 people with in the firm, giving them 30 days notice to move out. 4 of those 12 positions were the ones with the outsourcing company (including mine), 8 were regular full time staffers from all areas of the company; some who had been there for years and even decades. Well, in an attempt to not totally screw me, my once and future boss (although not for very long) spent all day yesterday and part of the day today hunting me down (I was at said conference with a dead cell phone) to see if I could rescind my notice at the old company. Of course, that is not really a possibility as they have already engaged someone else for the position - nor do I particularly want it to be an option.

So, the theatre company has delayed notifying the staffing company until Monday, at which point I will actually be employed by them and they can't rescind their offer to me, and have to deal with me as an actual employee.

So, what does this mean?

I don't know. I am going in to work as though nothing has happened. Since my employment is through the staffing company, it is thought that I will be employed for the 30 days that is remaining in the contract. Although, that is not for sure. It could be that they cut their losses and just let me go. At which point (or after the 30 days), I will actually be laid off and could qualify for unemployment. There is also a very slight possibility (VERY SLIGHT) that they could place me somewhere else.

I can't believe that it was just 2 weeks ago that these two companies were fighting over who got to employ me.

I am going to go into a bit of a coma for a while. I hope things will just magically change between now and Monday, when I walk into my new job as though there was nothing wrong. A girl can dream, can't she?

WHAT THE ?!?!

2004-10-11T23:13:00.000-04:00

I am at the office at 11:17PM on a Monday (which means I have been here since 7:30AM). I am covered in White Out/Liquid Paper or whatever that heinous concoction that managed to get all over me, my clothes, my hair and my desk in an attempt to make it actually do what it was intended to do - White Out things that are not white. Maybe this is a losing battle here. I just spent the past 10 minutes fighting with the copy machine (the main reason why I'm still here). I don't even like it here.

I think I should just stay here and let everyone see me in my white-out-ified mess, same clothes as the day before, and utterly disheveled. At this rate, I would have to be back here in 9 hours, anyway. Spend 20 minutes getting home and another 20 getting back, 45 minutes for the morning routine, the requisit hour for winding down at home before sleep, I don't think there is much chance for me to actually become human tonight. I don't even know if I can regain the right color.

Oh...brain...fuzzy...must...sleep...have...to...copy.

Wait a minute. Why am I killing myself for a company that I am leaving and a conference that I don't even care about? I have truly lost my mind.