Is it break yet?

Residents are LOUD.

APO Activation went swimmingly. It set a good standard for us to follow or raise for future ceremonies. We definitely need to get 3 or more rooms next time - 12 people in 2 rooms left a lot of us on the floor.

I just got back from a presentation called Ultimate Money Skills. It felt rushed - she had a lot of good information, but any part of it could have been focused on longer to give better information.

I'm a bad blogger

Really. I can't think of anything to write. Here goes nothing....


I'm waiting for Chrismas to come and go before I work on any big new exciting things. I asked Santa for lots of needles and notions, so I'm dragging my feet to see if I get those or not. Also, I don't want to buy lots of yarn when I could be buying presents for my loved ones. Not to mention I have about a month of down time between semesters to knit or crochet all the livelong day.

Mostly I've been cranking out items for charity - squares for a blanket (I can't remember if it's Project Linus or Afghans for Afghans) that my stitch'n'bitch is making, and crocheted hats that my fraternity sells to raise money for Relay 4 Life.

I also managed to make a cowl out of my bamboo yarn. It's super duper soft and it keeps my face and neck warm, and that means something in Wisconsin.

Duty Pants

A quiet weekend is a good weekend for the RA on duty, but that also means it's a boring weekend. I did a lot today, made a bulletin board, ordered my mom's birthday present, even did some homework. And then I ran out of things I needed to do and got bored. So I end up watching movie after movie on tv.

I'm in knitting limbo right now. I can't really afford the yarn (and needles) for the projects I'd like to be working on, so I'm using up what I've got on things I'm not really interested in. And if I'm not really interested in a project, I don't want to work on it. So yeah, knitting limbo. But I have a foam head to put my hats on, so hooray!

Ahoy!

Naughty me has been too busy with other things to remember to blog, but as it is Friday and I have no classes I'll bring this up to speed.

I had a cold and I kicked it's ass, but now I need to buy more tea.

It really, really sucks to go from working full time for lots of dollars to working part time for not as many dollars.

I am less than thrilled with my first brow waxing experience.

I'm feeling guilty about not doing my homework, even though it's all due Tuesday and it's only Friday.

I'm going to make a panini for lunch.

Last Day of Freedom

Tomorrow evening is the start of RA training, which means University Housing wakes me up in the morning and tucks me in at night. So today is officially a day of televee and yarn. Not really all that different than most of my free time this summer, but today it's OFFICIAL! Other RAs will be moving into my building today, so maybe they'll stop by and say hi.

I'm pretty excited about my new yarn storage. Formerly an over-the-door shoe holder of my sister's, now a lovely display of my yarn. It's presented a few difficulties - the metal hooks didn't fit over the door so I used Command hooks, then I had to adjust those when the whole thing fell, and then I cut the peephole in the wrong place. All in all, I'm satisfied with the result.

Welcome to the Doll House

I had a fabulous, fabulous, fabulous weekend with my sister in Stevens Point. I helped her paint, move in to, and decorate her new apartment. First of all, without anything in it the apartment is fabulous. French doors! A 3 season porch! A really nice shower! Cute windows that are only a foot off the floor! Locationwise it's superb for her - she's two blocks from her job. We painted accent walls in three of her rooms. The first room you walk into is connected to the living room by French doors, so the blue accent wall in the first room and the green wall in the living room really make them feel like separate spaces instead of one big room. The teal wall in her bedroom is almost like a headboard for her bed. We had quite an adventure bringing her stuff up from the storage facility. The couch and loveseat were not that heavy as far as couches go, but to get them in the door we had to take off the doorknob! The bureau of doom was heavy as hell and a pain in the ass. Evil, evil bureau. We got all her stuff in and then went shopping. I spotted the perfect rugs, and they turned out to be on sale! I am wonderful! I then saw a display of 4' palms for $15 and got one for her housewarming gift to put in the sunroom/patio. We had some dinner (yum yum steak!) and went back to set things up. We got the big furniture items put together and in place and the boxes of stuff in the right rooms, although we didn't really start unpacking them. This weekend was exactly the break I needed. I am in love with her apartment and I was so happy to see her again after her long long summer away. I can't wait till I have a chance to visit her again!

Blargh

I've been having a miserable week. Work sucks, people suck, life sucks. The front wheel of my bike was bent completely out of shape, presumably by drunken hooligans. My one free afternoon was accidentally wasted. APO books are a complete mess. Among other things, of course.

Trying to be positive, this is my last week of work, and I get to see my sister on Saturday.

Movin' on up

I'm mostly done moving to the new room. My legs are sore as all getout from walking up and down the stairs. Tonight I'm working on putting things away, and then tomorrow I'll finish cleaning out the old room and I'll be done!

The pirate hat has been a headache. I had to restart because I twisted the stiches, and that frustrated me so I put it away and then I've been busy with moving.

Sock it to me!

I really want to try knitting some socks. However, I have no sock yarn. This could be a good thing: I can make one 'practice pair' of socks with slightly-too-large yarn and get a feel for how they are shaped. Then, when I have the munnies, I can buy sock yarn and go nuts!

I'm super jealous because the hall directors are having a potluck in the kitchen below me. It smells really good. Maybe they'll offer me their leftovers.

There are some flowers in a little vase at the front desk, and I'm totally loving the green marigolds!

Money talks. Mine says "Goodbye".

After reviewing the sorry state of my finances, I've put myself on a budget. Three days later and I'm ordering yarn online. Clearly I need to practice this a little more. I decided that necessary things like groceries and toiletries and cell phone bills and the like are exempt from the budget, but things like yarn and going out to eat are definitely budgeted items. So with the meager $15 purchase I made, I've blown this week's budget and half of next weeks. Hopefully in the coming weeks it will get easier, as I will be busy with RA training and I will have my cafeteria meal plan back.

YARN BALL WINDER!!!

After a very long weekend, my yarn ball winder is here! I'm as happy as a clam.














No more loose skeins!

Getting back into the groove

After a breif 1-month hiatus from yarning, I'm feeling re-inspired. I finally broke down and ordered a yarn winder, which should arrive later today (hooray!). Unfortunately, I need yarn. And not in the normal yarn addict way, where new fiber is always welcome, but I actually don't have the yarn I need. Until recently, my stash has consisted of Red Heart Super Saver because it was cheap and readily available. As I learned yesterday, RHSS doesn't felt so easily (or maybe I just have no patience?) So I need to get some nice felting yarn. Seeing as I don't have a car, my only ways to purchase yarn are online or hitching a ride to the nearest craft store 30 minutes away. And I honestly think I'd get the yarn faster if I ordered it online, but I want to be able to feel it and see the color with my own eyes before I spend my hard earned dollars. Oh well, at least it's payday.

Cthulu Hat

Hat base:

Cast on 100 sts on dpns. K1 P1 for one inch. K all for 4 more inches.

Crown decrease:

Round 1 and all odd rounds: knit all

Round 2: *k8, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 4: *k7, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 6: *k6, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 8: *k5, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 10: *k4, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 12: *k3, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 14: *k2, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 16: *k1, k2tog,* repeat around

Round 18: *k2tog* repeat around

Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitches. Weave in ends.

Tentacles:

Pick up 2 stitches on front of hat with dpn. Knit 2, then slide the stitches to the other end of the needle. K2, slide to other end of needle. Repeat until desired length, cut yarn and pull through remaining stitches. Weave in ends.

Wings:

Pick up 10 stitches vertically on the back of the hat.

Row 1: k2 p2 k2 p2 k2

Row 2: p2 k2 p2 k2 p2

Row 3: k2 p2 yo k2 yo p2 k2

Row 4: p2 k3 p2 k3 p2

Row 5: k2 p3 yo k2 yo p3 k2

Row 6: p2 k4 p2 k4 p2

Row 7: k2 p4 yo k2 yo p4 k2

Row 8: p2 k5 p2 k5 p2

Row 9: cast off 2, p4, k2, p4, cast off 2

Row 10: cast off 2, k2, p2, k2, cast off 2

Row 11: cast off 2, k2, cast off 2

Row 12: cast off all

Weave in ends.

Checkouts: A lesson in leniency

I admit it, I am a doormat. I am way too nice and I let my residents get away with waaaaaaaaay too much. However, after re-cleaning almost every room on my floor after hall closing, I know that next year, I need to check all the drawers, make sure carpets are actually vacuumed, and enforce the cleaning of microwaves.

I have a handful of days off before I start my summer job, which is not much different than my rest of the year job. I'm working for University Housing as a Conference Assistant, and I honestly don't know what they'll have me do.

A Little Help From My Friends

On duty last night, sound asleep in my bed, and I get a call from the security assistant, who turns out to be my friend Mike. "Hey, sorry to tell you but there's vomit to be cleaned up on 2nd floor." So I go get the puke sucker and take it up to second floor, but when I get there I remember that I tend to gag when I see/smell vomit. I called another RA down from the 4th floor cause I knew he could handle poop, so why not puke? I am extremely grateful that he cleaned up the vomit for me and was very nice about the whole thing.
The Moral: Friends who clean up puke are real friends indeed.

Stevie the Pointer

Attended the RA conference at UW-Stevens Point this weekend. I've been to Stevens Point a lot through DI and visiting my sister, so it was really cool to see the renovated UC. It kind of looked like an airport.

Although the conference was less spirited and fun than WURHA, the programs I went to were a lot more useful and interesting. I'll outline a couple of my favorites:

Build Your Billboard - We made 'billboards' for ourselves with markers, stickers, and magazines. Then we looked at everyone's billboards and said what we thought they meant. The point of the program was that we may come off differently than we intend to, so we should watch what we say/do/show to portray ourselves accurately.

More Than Just A Pretty Face - We talked about body image for a bit, then we wrote a list of things we didn't like about ourselves on a notecard. Then, we ripped up the notecard. We got mirrors and we went around the room looking at other people and writing something good looking about them on their mirror. It was a great program because everyone felt good about themselves after, and if I have enough funds to get mirrors for my floor, I fully intend to put this program on.

Back To Kindergarten - Intended as a stress-reliever program, we watched cartoons while eating fruitsnacks, fingerpainting, and playing with Play-Doh. I think that this program would also go over very well with my floor of art students, especially during midterms.

I also enjoyed 'A Complaint Free World', which can be found at acomplaintfreeworld.org

It is time for class, so my tea and crackers and I are signing out. Peace!

Ode to Desk

I really adore working the front desk in my hall. If I could be an RA and a desk worker at the same time, I would be over the moon. It's great because it's the only job I've had that allows me to sit at work, and I get to use my computer, listen to music, do homework etc. instead of standing around waiting for the next customer. I also really enjoy seeing people walk through the lobby and saying hello to them.

I don't think people realize the vast resources we have at the desk. Not only do we have movies and cooking equipment, but we have board games and tools and oh so many wonderful things to check out.

I would really like to see better vacuums, though. Our vacuums (James Dean, Audrey Hepburn, Hugh Hefner, Elvis Presley, and Marilyn Monroe) break down frequently, and even when they are working they don't always do the best job. I guess that's why we have multicolored carpet, though.

February is crazy!

I am still exhausted from WURHA this weekend. A thousand kudos to the D-Ship and the conference staff for the outstanding job they all did. I had been very frustrated getting ready for the conference because of the time consumption factor, but it was totally worth it. It was also really great to see first-time delegates experience it and fall in love with conferences.

This weekend I'm headed to the RA conference in Stevens Point, about which I currently know nothing. Tomorrow is the informational meeting and I'm pretty pumped to find out how it's going to go down.

I'm currently waiting for my belated January program to get approved. Since the primaries are tomorrow, I'm encouraging my floor to vote by giving them some resources on the candidates and offering cookies to anyone who shows me their "I Voted" sticker. This will be the first voting experience for the majority of my residents, so I really hope they take the opportunity to get involved in the democratic process.
I am also supposed to be involved in a team program this month, but I'm not sure what the plan is for that just yet.

Gee, I wish I remembered what free time felt like...