The SOTU was a good excuse to sit still and knit for a while - listen to the speech, but not watch the goings on. I got several rows done on a new swatch, all knit stitch (I’ve still not braved purl yet), and I’m happy with how evenly it’s coming out this time. It helps that I cast on only 30 stitches rather than 42 - the needles aren’t really big enough for 42 - so it’s nice and even this time. It’ll either be a scarf or a pot holder, we’ll see. Depends on how often I can sit down with it in the evenings, and how bored I get.
Still don’t have the whole “how to hold the thread in the right hand” thing down yet - I keep twisting it too tightly around my index finger. Will have to get my friend TH to show me how she holds the stuff. Or learn continental style. Who knows. I’ll get it eventually, I know.
Interesting speech for some of the stuff he addressed. The earmarks portion (the reason I watched, actually, since it has a bearing on my practice area) will be an interesting change, and is going to cause a lot of headaches with Congress (who will find a way to earmark funds, even outside the official committee reports, trust me). It’ll certainly keep my BGA’s government relations people busy. I suspect those same folks will be culling quotes from tonight’s speech for a letter we have to finalize tomorrow morning as well. Makes me glad I don’t have my work blackberry just yet.
It is, of course, too little too late. Earmarks rose precipitously under the last term of (R) control of the Congress, and while they’ve come down some, they’re still pretty high. Not that (R)s alone are to blame - (D)s earmark plenty, too. Not sure of the solution, past taking the measures he’s going to put into place - an executive order signed tomorrow to ignore these extra-legal set-asides is a good start. Weaning Congress completely off pork, however, is going to be an uphill battle.
Got my heel shot up this morning with cortizone, to counteract the plantar faciitis I’m dealing with off and on. The night brace is helping, but I got to a point where I finally agreed with the doctor that a shot was called for. We’ll see how that does. I want this stuff done with, it’s not comfortable at all.
