YOP #39 or Finding the Gold Vein in the Rubble

This past week should have been fired except it managed to redeem itself at the end. It seemed to be a week full of slip-ups, fires and forgetfulness. I managed to forget over the course of several days the following:

• Music for a rehearsal
• Keys for work
• Camera to document work
• Double pointed needles to finish hat

On top of that, the apartment building that my bonus kids live in with their mother caught on fire. The apartment two floors above theirs to be specific. That led to dashing about trying to rescue a hedgehog (I knew they weren't going to let us near the building let alone inside but if I drove the teenager down there, I knew she wouldn't be able to just try to run past the police). The hedgehog was rescued by a building caretaker and came to stay with us for part of the week, so that at least worked out. There was also teenager drama (trying to establish boundaries with teenagers who aren't use to them is fun, really). So by yesterday, I was definitely going to fire the week. But then something amazing happened yesterday.

I started to think of all the good things that had happened.

Earlier in the week, after the last post I wrote, I went and looked at my TARDIS shawl. I think I may actually know where I am! I've been so intimidated by it, that I haven't even bothered to look. Feeling frustrated (and a bit flippant about the project), I pulled it out and looked at it. I could clearly see where the increase ended, so it was just a matter of counting. It's actually a fairly easy pattern once I looked at it again. It's intimidating because it's lace and there's so much of it and it looks all the same. I blame my desire to get my craft room clean again as the culprit. This desire forced me to actually look at the project again.

I finished another project this week. The gray alpaca tam is finished. It's the one that I was hoping to donate to my church for a fundraiser. They needed it yesterday but I didn't finish it until last night. I emailed the person in charge of donations and said I could bring it by today. I'm sure I'll hear something either way at some point today.

It's finally starting to warm up, though it did snow on Friday. I wore my Blood Orange Newtons to try to keep the snow away. Someone who I told this to commented that at least the snow wasn't sticking.

Possibly the most comfortable socks I've made for myself to date.

I'm hoping that this week I'll finally get to taking pictures of things that I haven't documented yet. Perhaps even today. Rumor has it that it's suppose to get up to 60 F. 

Instead of casting on another Cookie A pattern (I might as well wait; I believe I've got another week until the next patterns are released), I've cast on what was going to be just a Plain Vanilla Sock. I got done with the cuff and realized I'd go cross-eyed in the brain if I did that, so I've added an eyelet pattern. This would be my first sock design. If I like it, I'm going to write it up and have the pattern tested.

There were other amazing things that happened yesterday and actually earlier in the week that are related to work (I got to hear Osmo Vanka, former conductor of Minnesota Orchestra, play clarinet yesterday) but the thing that really pushed my mind back into a happy place was something written on the sidewalk in chalk on the University of Minnesota campus. It simply said "You're Amazing". That little innocent street writing changed my outlook for the entire day. Husband doesn't know that yet (he will once he reads this post) but I'm sure he'll appreciate knowing that something helped my spirits when it was such a hard week.

Finished Objects

• Japan Scarf
• Birthday Bag 
• Socks, the Final Frontier
• Ladders to the Sky Socks (Test Pattern)
• Waves of Love 
• Colormatic  
• Here Fishy Fishy I
• Gingy
• Fuzzy, the baby blanket
• Japan Scarf II 
• Scarfowl
• Here Fishy Fishy II 
• Gillian
• The Angels Have the Police Box  
• Mini-Socks 
• Grandma's Tam
• Neck Hugger 
• Blood Orange Newtons
• Alpaca Tam 

Works in Progress

• Police Box
• Trip
• Vanilla Eyelet Socks