Tick-tock...

Wow, inventory came & went....THANK GOD!
I've been bitching enough about work this week that I'll just spare everyone the boring details...
Only 2 more days at Naperville!!! I will miss the people & the challenge, but not the chaos and the commute. 'Nuff said about that.
I leave for Big D early Thursday morning & I'm really looking forward to getting on a plane to go somewhere, even if it is the city I couldn't wait to leave (let me stress, the city NOT the people).
Speaking of leaving Dallas, I guess I could take a moment to reflect on the past few months...
I've been here since June 1st. Almost 3 months since I've up & left my life to start a new one. I know my move not only affected myself but others in my life. It was a really hard decision to make, but one I don't regret.
This move has completely changed me. It may have seemed crazy to some people, but it's turned out to be an amazing adventure so far.
I've tried new things, made new friends, started not one, but soon two new jobs, ventured out to do things on my own, ridden my bike, spent more time with Radar, walked, cried (a lot), become more independent, more stable (well, maybe not financially...moving across the country ain't free you know!), and the list could go on & on....
I'm happy with where I'm at, even on the days that I cry like a freak...
I've embraced Chicago and Chicago has embraced me....now talk to me when winter hits!

S-u-c-k, traffic ain't no fun today it's sucky...hey hey it's sucky!

I trust you all figured out that the title should be sung to the school age song of,
"u-g-l-y you ain't got no alibi you ugly, hey hey, you ugly".

Enough...

If you've been watching the news you'd know there were violent and torrential rains this afternoon in the city of Chicago & surrounding areas.

First, the tornado alarm went off at the store/warehouse..."this is NOT a drill, I repeat...this is not a drill". We had to evacuate all employees and customers...fun, fun, fun...That lasted about 30-40 minutes.

Oh yeah...did I mention that when I got to work I realized that I had left my leftovers sitting in my lunch bag on the floor???? About 3 days worth of chicken pasta in the trash. Thank goodness Radar wasn't that nosy and or persistant enough to open Tupperware.

Then, the icing on the cake...
I got in the car at 5:30ish to go home...
I can't even muster up the energy to go through all of the sorted traffic details but the end result was this...
I arrived at my front gate at 9:08 pm. It took me 3 1/2 hours to go approx. 50 miles.
I am officially defeated.
I will be taking the train this morning even if I have to walk through fire to get to & from the train stations in order NOT to have to drive.
Sigh....

The end is near...

I officially have one week of work left as of today (not counting tomorrow's day off!). Not really like I have no more work...just no more work 50 miles from home!

I am trying to get ready for inventory & it's sucking the life right out of me. Funny since I'm going into an inventory control position with my new job!! At least there I will be totally in charge of what I am doing and not working off of the system of others. Kind of like diving into someone else's sandbox and messing up all of the toys....it will be MY sandbox and that's how it should be to make ME happy.

Do I sound a little bitchy today???
I'm feeling a little crabby...

Well on the bright side I have a day off tomorrow & if it's not raining yet another day here, I will go ride my bike...and I have Stitch N' Bitch in the evening which is one of the highlights of my weeks.

Let me rinse & repeat....knitting is one of the highlights of my weeks....dear Lord help me....help me fast...

C-C-C-C-C-CHANGES!!!!!

Just when you thought I couldn't have any more change in my life...
I GOT A NEW JOB!!!!!
No, I'm not a complete freak, I'm still with Crate&Barrel, just a TOTALLY new position.
I will be the operations manager/Inventory Control person at the Photo Studio in fabulous downtown Chicago. The photo studio is where the catalog & internet photo shoots take place.
In a nutshell, I will be in charge of all of the merchandise that travels between the warehouse & the studio. I should also be acting as the assistant manager. The studio has only been open 8 months so there is a TON of opportunity upcoming there in the near future.
On the fluff side, the job is Monday through Friday, and it's downtown which is NOT 50 miles from my house like my current job is.
I have inventory on the 26th, the I'm going to Dallas for a visit the 30th-3rd. I start my new job on Tuesday, August the 4th.
You don't know if you don't try right??????
In the words of all great surfers....I AM STOKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stitch N' Pitch 2007

Becky, Kristen, & Sarah from the Edgewater Stitch n' Bitch

Hey all! We had a ton of fun at our Stitch N' Pitch game this Saturday night. We had a few beers and enjoyed watching the Sox game in the heat.

Not to offend anyone but let me tell you, there is some SERIOUS white trash at that ball park! You just couldn't get enough of Billy Jo and Bobby Sue...and I thought I'd left the South!

The game was fun, although "the women" as we'll refer to ourselves, sat & talked while enjoying our stadium beer. There were probably about 6-8 rows of knitters in our area...fun, yet bizarre to watch.

Afterwards, we went to an art show at the home of a friend of a friend, and on the way I had an unfortunate accident and took a fairly large "chunk" out of my big toe. The words "chunk" and "flap" have been used quite frequently to describe different parts of the injury...I'm glad I'm off tomorrow as the "flap" had to be removed and now I just have a "hole". Nice...are you all grossed out now???

It's a wonder I can do this since I quit yoga back in March!

By the way, I now feel that paper towel, band-aids, and hot pink masking tape should be a part of every persons street triage kit :)

get your fiber

If you had told me 10 years ago that i would be shopping for yarn and trying to be a part of Chicago's knitting community I might have accused you of smoking the ganga...
I went to 2 amazing yarn stores on Wednesday afternoon. This pic is from one of their web sites.
Let me just clarify that it is a myth that knitting your own garments is cheaper than buying them....at least that is unless you drown yourself in acrylic yarn (a.k.a plastic) which is pretty darn cheap. Even then, the first sweater I made with acrylic ran about $50.
I was so flipping excited about this particular store, Loopy Yarns. I'll spare all of the details but let me just say, I could have easily spent a small fortune there...so if you ever want to know what to get me for a gift....
I've now got new yarn for 2 new projects & I'm currently working on my first pair of socks. I am just getting to the hard part which is making the heel...I think that might be what caused today's ever-lovin' migraine.
Anyway...I think I AM becoming part of a knitting community... I am still going to stitch n' bitch twice a month, I'm going to a White Sox game tomorrow which is a city wide "stitch n' pitch" group outing...a bunch of people knitting at a Major League Baseball game, and I'm going to a seminar in September that my SNB group leader is giving about making crocheted coral reefs for a collective project that is a homage to the disappearing Great Barrier Reef. (check out the site AND check out the main IFF site as well while you're there....both weird and strangely interesting http://www.theiff.org/reef/index.html )
I am officially an old lady...all I need now is box of Correctol in my nightstand drawer...."for gentle relief"...

I know, I know...

I haven't posted for a while....
I've been working my ass off the last 2 weeks. My store designer was out of town so I stepped into her place. I was working a bunch of hours & had lots & lots of display changes...which = a physical job I haven't done in a while.
It was nice being Mon-Fri again but I'm back to normal this week. I have to say, I kind of missed my Wed. off.
It's been in the mid 90's here & everyone is talking about how damn hot it is. I can only chuckle. I will admit, the humidity has been a bit high so it does feel like around 100, but again...I guess I'm used to it. Talk to me again about weather when it gets cold here!...THAT I am not used to!
I have Stitch n' Bitch tomorrow night and then this Saturday I am going to a Sox game for Stitch n' Pitch! A group of knitters from around Chicago is going to the game to enjoy the game & collectively knit :) What an old lady I am...all I need now is to go to an antique mall & eat lunch in the tea room...nasty.

Hell on wheels....

I just took Radar for a walk wearing my name tag. I was sitting on the couch reading my email before I realized I still had it on....I really need to get a job closer to home so my mind isn't so screwed up all of the time.
The entrance & exit ramps to my street are closed for construction now...I've been trying to find alternate routes to work with very little luck.
The last 2 nights it's taken me 2 1/2 hours to get home from work...that is insane. Tonight I think I found the one which only took an hour & 1/2 which is actually shorter than my original commute....that too is insane.
As much as I love the bug...I'm really tired of sitting in it.