Of Moose And Men
The Best Laid Plans Of Both Often Go Astray

Had to pick up some dress shirts, and a new suit for the proceedings this upcoming week. Got neighbors to check in on the cats. Then we ran off to see the anniversary re-showing-in-theaters of Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith. How anyone can watch that, listen to the dialog, and think it is anything other than a children’s movie is beyond me. I had forgotten how cheesy the dialog was, and how badly they made the actors perform it. Oof.

Some more progress on the shawl. Almost done with the second set (of 3.5) of repeat rows in the last bit. Not a had pattern, just longer and longer as it grows toward the end. And almost done with skein #1, probably of 2 total, but I have more just in case. And just in time for the next Maryland Sheep & Wool festival, which is next weekend (3rd & 4th). Will have to see what in the queue I’m dying to get wool for.

Work was lots of drama today, all of it external to my office, but most of which I was in the middle of. I am forever grateful that I ‘grew up’ legally in a general law group, because I was exposed to a lot of nonsense that can go wrong with agencies, so I know how to spot a lot of crazy issues. And that was definitely at the fore today. Yes, I’m vague-blogging.

Consensus is that my agency’s budget request for next fiscal year is a mixed bag. On the one hand, major cut in funding. On the other hand, we’re still requesting funds, and they’re not proposing to roll us into another agency or abolish us. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

More knitting this evening with the first three episodes of the second season of Andor. Got through another four rows as those suckers get longer and longer. I can see why people like them, especially as they get more intricate. I can also see why people have to put in ‘lifelines’ that they can frog the work back to. This one isn’t that complicated, but I definitely tried to drop a couple stitches before I quit for the evening.

Had it thoroughly in my head that I had a doctor’s appointment at 9:30 this morning. Got there around 10 minutes early, was all good. They took me back, I’m in the middle of talking to the doctor when my phone gives me the one-hour-before-your-appointment alert for the appointment which was apparently scheduled for 10:30. D’oh! It worked out, because their 9:30 was running late, so hopefully I allowed them to adjust the schedule. I did apologize to the receptionist and thanked her for handling it so smoothly.

Passport appointment went as scheduled. The woman at the post office was great, pulled it all together, took the requisite unflattering photo, and I’m all set. New one should arrive in 4-6 weeks. Whee. Also managed to snag some of the Betty White and Keith Haring stamps.

The husband was at home today as well, so we picked up comics and Wendy’s for lunch in between appointments. Did a little knitting – I’m halfway through repeat 2 of 3 in the last section of the Hoek shawl I’m working on now. Leftover pizza tonight, and the cats are enjoying the windows being fully open for the first time in ages. Not a bad middle of the week.

Went to the DC Men’s knitting group today, and the shop had these gorgeous knitting project bags in leather. I’d seen them online before, but they were just as dreamy in person. Despite looking them over multiple times I just couldn’t justify another bag, especially one that would really just be used to haul knitting from floor to floor in the house (the lack of anything other than a single handle makes it unpractical for hauling outside). But man were they pretty (and they had all four shades on display).

Knitting went well. Walking to/from knitting went well, with the brace on. Apparently a possible side effect of cortisone is a flushed face, which I had both today and yesterday. Took my temp several times, all normal, before bothering to google side effects. D’oh. And I made some good progress on this shawl. The current section has me adding 10 stitches every two rows, so it’s really growing. Got to chat with a new member who took up knitting during the pandemic, and has stuck with it. He’s going to attend the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival for the first time this year, so we were sharing tips, like have a project list so you have an idea what you might want to buy, rather than just picking out every pretty skein you see, as that way lies an impossible yarn stash.

Slept for shit last night, between eating too much Chinese food and the knee still setting down. So today was lots of video game grinding, then I watched a couple movies while finishing a dish cloth I was working on to try out some color work before I tackle a blanket in a similar pattern. But first I need to finish a shawl I’ve been working on.

Was sorely tempted to take advantage of Brooklyn Tweed’s going out of the yarn business sale, but I don’t need to spend the money right now, and I definitely don’t need any more yarn guilt.

Stomach’s calmer, so here’s hoping sleep will be easier. The husband is out of town with his sister to commemorate their Mom’s passing during the beginning of the COVID pandemic, which leaves me plenty of knitting time.

I had a whopping one thing planned for today, to make breakfast ahead for this upcoming week. Got it done (a ‘crustless quiche’ – basically an egg bake with some veggies in it), and whipped out some meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner as well. Woo.

Was otherwise mostly a zombie today. I did also get a repeat done on a dishcloth I’m working on. It’s in a two color honeycomb pattern, and I’m treating it as a preview of a honeycomb blanket I have queued up sometime soon (I bought a kit, so the yarn is here and ready). I get it now, and the dishcloth is actually easy enough to do on the Metro, so I might work on it during the morning commute. Or not. Who knows.

Knee is still unstable. *shrug* Which was a large part of sitting on my ass knitting or playing video games today.

Figuratively and literally. Finally managed to pin down management to provide a final agency position on some things which we need for next week, balancing between court orders and administration priorities. After work I finished a hat I was making for the husband and wove in all the ends (Xmas themed, but he’ll be able to use it next year). Learned to use a new pom-pom maker (so much easier than by hand). Then after dinner I picked up the shawl I started last year and made some progress on that. Overall a nicely productive day, without quite as much insanity as the rest of the week.

Been knitting a Santa hat the last couple of days. Chunky yarn and an easy pattern (1×1 ribbing for the brim, and all knit stitch for the body), so it’s been knitting up quickly. Unfortunately the pattern underestimated how much yarn I’d need, so I’ll have to run down to Dupont to get another skein of the red for the body so I can finish it. Might get three more (2 red, 1 off-white) and then I’d have the option to knit a second one if I got the bug.

We got our photos done for the Xmas cards this morning. Then home for a brief rest and off to see Wicked, Part 1. It was really, really good. They went back to the book to flesh out some more of the stories, and it felt like a movie, and not like a stage show that was badly adapted to moving pictures (like so many movie musicals do).

More work on the shawl I started back in October. Hoek, from West Knits, in the discontinued Legacy color way from Neighborhood Fiber Co. out of Baltimore (stash pic here). First time back to see the guys in the DC Men’s Knitting Group since before I dislocated the knee last year. Made good progress on it, both before I left, and at the local yarn shop where we met.

I think I’ve broken my yarn pull-ball winder. I suspect it’s fallen out of the closet one too many times and knocked something out of whack because last night the second ball of yarn in a row just thoroughly fucked up and did not wind correctly. Thankfully this time I managed to ‘wind’ it completely so I was able to then convert it to a regular round yarn ball without any tangles, but I’m definitely not a fan of those.

Finished the husband’s fingerless gloves last night, wound up fresh yarn, and cast on my first shawl. The shawl had an interesting garter tab cast on that had you knit up several rows, then turn the work to pick up stitches on the edge, then turn again to pick up along the cast-on edge (so it stretches out/bends the original few rows). I’m at the point in my knitting where I like to switch back and forth between “let’s learn something new” (the brioche hat, this new shawl) and “let’s do something easy” (the fingerless gloves).

Oh, and I finished the latest Wooble amigurumi this week, JoJo the Bunny. He’s so fat. LOL Next up is a fox, and hopefully I’ll get better at more consistent stitches with the practice.

In the meantime I turned 52 last week. I was thinking about that and about my work anniversary and realized that come December 1st this year I will have worked for half my life as a Federal employee. And don’t think for a moment that I won’t pull that out in meetings. LOL