I decided that what I wanted for my birthday was some purple silk yarn. Alas, I have no money in the yarn budget. But I do have a large cone of teal silk yarn. So I over-dyed it with a lot of red, and the initial result was a lovely eggplant color.
Then I washed it. It bled. And bled. And left purple spots all over the bathtub. And now it's back to teal. :( At least it's much softer after a good bath!
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Can't sleep
Not like this title is a surprise to anyone, right? At this point, between working nights and new antidepressants and the nasty cold that's been going around our family, I might as well buy a glittery lavender cape and change my name to "Insomnia Queen."
So time to list some major blessings that have happened recently:
Grandma got out of the hospital about three weeks ago. Last I heard, she is back to her normal self, including playing the harmonica.
I passed my six month employee evaluation at the hospital with flying colors! After the lousy experience I had working at Mills-Peninsula, it was very nice to have my supervisors tell me that they thought I was a good nurse and were pleased with my performance. Incredibly affirming!
I have a spinning wheel! (As always, I'm too lazy to get up and snap a picture of it. ) Brian's parents got me one for my birthday next week. It's a Clemes & Clemes modern style-spinning wheel. Mostly indestructible (always a plus with the Mimi around) and works like a dream.
So time to list some major blessings that have happened recently:
Grandma got out of the hospital about three weeks ago. Last I heard, she is back to her normal self, including playing the harmonica.
I passed my six month employee evaluation at the hospital with flying colors! After the lousy experience I had working at Mills-Peninsula, it was very nice to have my supervisors tell me that they thought I was a good nurse and were pleased with my performance. Incredibly affirming!
I have a spinning wheel! (As always, I'm too lazy to get up and snap a picture of it. ) Brian's parents got me one for my birthday next week. It's a Clemes & Clemes modern style-spinning wheel. Mostly indestructible (always a plus with the Mimi around) and works like a dream.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Work weirdness
Work has been weird lately. I foolishly said yes when the staffing office asked if I wanted to pull extra shifts this week without looking at my schedule. Therefore, I've worked five out of the last seven days.
The staffing office canceled me for a few hours here and there, so it thankfully wasn't the full 60 hours that my 12 hour schedule would usually cause. Still, I'm very grateful that tonight is my night off.
Every so often the e-mails I receive from my higher-ups make me want to go "WTF?" Especially these two that I read Friday night:
Email # 1 stated that one of my co-workers is in the process of gender reassignment and therefore will now be known as something completely different, starting immediately. (Unexpected, but it is The Zeros.) SO BE SUPPORTIVE, YOU DUNDERHEADS!
Email #2 stated that there would be NO non-work related Internet use while at work. No, it doesn't matter if it's your lunch break. Infractions will be dealt with severely.
How can they possibly be so encouraging and empathetic towards my friend's sex change and yet intolerant of our need to check e-mail at 0315 on slow nights?
And how am I doing with these things?
The co-worker seems much happier and more relaxed, so for shis sake, I hope the rest of this change also goes well. As I told shim, "We love you and we love working with you, but pronouns are going to be a bit awkward for awhile." S/he seemed to take this well.
Last night was so crazy busy I didn't get a chance to chart until well after midnight, so the Internet policy wasn't a temptation at all.
The staffing office canceled me for a few hours here and there, so it thankfully wasn't the full 60 hours that my 12 hour schedule would usually cause. Still, I'm very grateful that tonight is my night off.
Every so often the e-mails I receive from my higher-ups make me want to go "WTF?" Especially these two that I read Friday night:
Email # 1 stated that one of my co-workers is in the process of gender reassignment and therefore will now be known as something completely different, starting immediately. (Unexpected, but it is The Zeros.) SO BE SUPPORTIVE, YOU DUNDERHEADS!
Email #2 stated that there would be NO non-work related Internet use while at work. No, it doesn't matter if it's your lunch break. Infractions will be dealt with severely.
How can they possibly be so encouraging and empathetic towards my friend's sex change and yet intolerant of our need to check e-mail at 0315 on slow nights?
And how am I doing with these things?
The co-worker seems much happier and more relaxed, so for shis sake, I hope the rest of this change also goes well. As I told shim, "We love you and we love working with you, but pronouns are going to be a bit awkward for awhile." S/he seemed to take this well.
Last night was so crazy busy I didn't get a chance to chart until well after midnight, so the Internet policy wasn't a temptation at all.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Screaming with Mimi
We watch a lot of children's DVDs in our house. Not only is it (probably) safer for Shirley's emotional health than watching our Jet Li movie collection, but I'm also trying to get better at my Spanish skills (After years of practice, I believe my competency is now at "extremely verbal toddler" insead of "sedated parrot.") through watching them with the Spanish language track switched on. Lately, I've been working my way through the "Garfield and Friends" series.
Fans of the series may remember the segment "Screaming with Binky," in which Binky the obnoxious clown ("El Payaso Binky") comes onstage and yells "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDZZ!!!!!!" at the top of his lungs while the other characters try to maul him. Just the sort of mindless entertainment that made the sugar-infused Saturday mornings of my childhood such a trial for my mother.
Last night, we were able to experience "Screaming with Mimi." Immediately after dinner, Shirley was unable to cope with the unfortunate reality that she had drained her bottle of milk and commenced to show her displeasure vocally. When time out in her crib didn't work, I decided that since she wasn't going to be happy regardless of the situation, I might as well go ahead and give her a bath. In retrospect, this plan may have been a mistake. My left ear is still ringing slightly from her wails.
After ten and a half hours of sleep, she's a much happier person, thank God.
Grandma is also doing much better. She's been moved to "the head case floor," and if all goes well should be going home this weekend.
Fans of the series may remember the segment "Screaming with Binky," in which Binky the obnoxious clown ("El Payaso Binky") comes onstage and yells "HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDZZ!!!!!!" at the top of his lungs while the other characters try to maul him. Just the sort of mindless entertainment that made the sugar-infused Saturday mornings of my childhood such a trial for my mother.
Last night, we were able to experience "Screaming with Mimi." Immediately after dinner, Shirley was unable to cope with the unfortunate reality that she had drained her bottle of milk and commenced to show her displeasure vocally. When time out in her crib didn't work, I decided that since she wasn't going to be happy regardless of the situation, I might as well go ahead and give her a bath. In retrospect, this plan may have been a mistake. My left ear is still ringing slightly from her wails.
After ten and a half hours of sleep, she's a much happier person, thank God.
Grandma is also doing much better. She's been moved to "the head case floor," and if all goes well should be going home this weekend.
Friday, April 17, 2009
He is risen!
I love Easter. Probably it has something to do with my childish joy over any holiday that involves special church services, lots of loud singing, and Marshmallow Peeps, but Easter is my all-time favorite holiday in the entire church year. (My favorite personal holiday is the Winter Solstice, but that's just because it means that the light will come back and my seasonal depression will get better. And since God apparently chose to make me with seasonal issues like this, I trust that God understands. It's strangely difficult to find cards that say "Happy Winter Solstice," so I usually settle for "Happy Holidays.")
It's spring-time, flowers are blooming, wildlife is reproducing (A note to the neighborhood feline population: Please try to modulate the volume on your late-night serenades and lover's quarrels. The cuteness of your eventual offspring does not outweigh the disturbance you are currently causing in my sleep.) and God has conquered Sin and Death and Hell! Jesus is risen from the dead, HOW COOL IS THAT!?
It's spring-time, flowers are blooming, wildlife is reproducing (A note to the neighborhood feline population: Please try to modulate the volume on your late-night serenades and lover's quarrels. The cuteness of your eventual offspring does not outweigh the disturbance you are currently causing in my sleep.) and God has conquered Sin and Death and Hell! Jesus is risen from the dead, HOW COOL IS THAT!?
I had planned to spend the previous week in Wyoming visiting Grandma, as the 9th was her 80th birthday. However, due to "budgetary shortfalls," we're having to delay the trip until August, when the passes will be clear enough to drive. (I haven't had the heart to tell our trusty Toyota that it's got a four-cylinder engine, but the fact remains that it's mostly fiberglass. I refuse to drive in snow and ice unless it's absolutely unavoidable.)
So we spent Easter weekend with Penny and Dave. After a very disturbing midnight cryptic text message from Mom (which I followed up with multiple panicked telephone calls after I checked my messages at 0500) I found out that Grandma had fallen, gotten a subdural hematoma, had emergency surgery, and was in ICU in Cheyenne.
And as of yesterday, she's still in ICU. Granted, of all the things which can possibly be interpreted as "bleeding on the brain," a subdural hematoma is one of the easiest to fix, but brain surgery when you're 80 is still...brain surgery! I'm trying to turn off the "nursing panic" that comes from having the letters "RN" behind my name and knowing what could go wrong, but it's still hard.
So we spent Easter weekend with Penny and Dave. After a very disturbing midnight cryptic text message from Mom (which I followed up with multiple panicked telephone calls after I checked my messages at 0500) I found out that Grandma had fallen, gotten a subdural hematoma, had emergency surgery, and was in ICU in Cheyenne.
And as of yesterday, she's still in ICU. Granted, of all the things which can possibly be interpreted as "bleeding on the brain," a subdural hematoma is one of the easiest to fix, but brain surgery when you're 80 is still...brain surgery! I'm trying to turn off the "nursing panic" that comes from having the letters "RN" behind my name and knowing what could go wrong, but it's still hard.
(Extra points to the ICU nurse I first talked to on Sunday when I couldn't get ahold of any of the family. "I can't tell you anything because of the HIPPA act and the privacy laws, OK?"
"I know that," I said. "I'm a RN in Oregon and can you just tell me how many drips she's attached to so I can know if I need to fly out there right now?"
She chuckled. "Okay, I'm not telling you this, but your grandma's awake, talking to us, and doing much better than before the surgery.")
"I know that," I said. "I'm a RN in Oregon and can you just tell me how many drips she's attached to so I can know if I need to fly out there right now?"
She chuckled. "Okay, I'm not telling you this, but your grandma's awake, talking to us, and doing much better than before the surgery.")
So I'm doing what I usually do when family members are sick and I can't sleep and I'm worried--knitting. I've got about 1200 yards of handspun in a pink/orange/brown/ colorway (And about 2 more ounces of my own "crazy batt" to spin up more in case I run short.) and I've started the gauge swatch for Sonnet. Thank God for nice easy mindless knitting.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Night off
I have tonight off work, and my sister in law Meegan was crazy enough--I mean kind enough--to watch the Mimi overnight tonight. Brian will be out at a meeting until late tonight, so a traditional date night is slightly out of the question. I'm thinking I'll bake some cookies, watch random things on Netflix, and spin more yarn. Currently I'm trying to spin enough lace weight yarn for a cardigan. 600 yards down, much more to go!
In other news, I joined Ravelry, but have no idea what to do there. Any tips?
In other news, I joined Ravelry, but have no idea what to do there. Any tips?
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