Okay, so maybe this isn’t so exciting for most people, but it is for me.  Here’s a picture of my first knitted stripe. :thumbup:

I really like these 2 colors together in the suede yarn, too.  This picture isn’t that good because all I had was my camera phone.  The darker color is a sage green and the lighter color is called ecru.  It’s a cream color.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well now I have 3 projects on needles instead of just one.  I’ve been sick today so I played poker (and won $50) and knitted on my different projects.  I have to go to the doctor tomorrow and of course I’m taking my knitting with me.  I feel like crap right now, though.  My throat is sore, I am achy all over, my head hurts, and I have this tickle in my throat that keeps making me cough.  I can’t seem to stop coughing, even if I take cough syrup.  I’m just hoping I can sleep.  :sick:

Since I don’t have a job to go to, I went to Wal-Mart to pick up some knitting supplies and yarn.  I wanted to make a cat bed, but they didn’t have the yarn the pattern calls for.  I could’ve substituted, but I figured out I didn’t have enough money to get all the yarn at once and I’ve heard the horror stories about not getting all of the same dye lot.

I needed a crochet hook, another size of needle and a circular needle, so I got those.  Then I racked my brain on what I could make with less skeins of yarn that wasn’t a scarf or a hat.  I never did figure that part out, but I came across some Lion Brand Suede yarn and I loved the way it felt.  Also it looked like it would be fairly easy to knit with.  And it felt so yummy. 

I bought 2 skeins of sage and 1 skein of ecru.  I really had no idea what I was going to make.  Tonight I figured out what I’m going to knit with the new yarn and I think I have enough yarn to do it.  I’m going to make a bag/purse.  Somehow I want to incorporate both colors and I have some ideas.  Now I just want to work on it, but hubby’s tired of me knitting all day.  So I’ve only gotten a few rows done on it.  I’m not really following a pattern, but just doing my own thing after looking at many different patterns.  I am taking ideas from several.  For a first project other than a scarf or hat, I think I’ve got a challenging one.  I’m doing something original AND I’m wanting to use 2 different colors and make some sort of illusion pattern.  Whew… 

I have NO frickin idea how it’s going to turn out, either. :what:

Yo necesito encontrar un trabajo nuevo.  I need to find a new job.

Each of us was called into a meeting today and told the news.  The company is shutting down the office where I’ve been working due to ‘lack of work’, so we are all being laid off.

The rumors had been going around for a long time and I just got tired of worrying about it since there wasn’t anything I could do about it anyhow.  So I stayed out of the gossip circle as much as possible.  I have to go back tomorrow to actually get my personal belongings because I was on the motorcycle today and was unable to take much with me. 

The company has an office in Melbourne where my hubby has to drive to work everyday, so they may actually offer me something there.  But after thinking about it most of the day, I don’t think I will be able to do that because of school.  I could manage for the rest of this semester but I’m registered for a day class in the summer which will probably present a problem for me as far as getting a full time day job.  I’m not about to switch my schedule around in the summer because I really need to take that particular class because of the professor.  I doubt too many places would be very willing to work around me having that class, unless I’m working on a part time basis.  Then again, not having a job will probably strain me financially somewhat and there is no financial aid in the summer. 

I really don’t want to deviate from my plan and being laid off could definitely throw a kink in it.  I applied for unemployment today, but it will be about 3 weeks before I see anything and then of course it won’t be as much as I was making.  We were just about to spend a sizeable chunk of money to drop an engine and tranny into the Honda, but now I want to take a step back and rethink things.  If we do that, hubby has more reliable transportation (and cheaper on gas) to go back and forth to work.  But then I will be scrambling to come up with money to pay my tuition which I think is due at the end of this month for summer.  I’m looking at about $900 that I will need to come up with, plus money for books.  I could cut it in half by only taking 2 classes this summer and having to go another entire semester in the Fall which will push me back a semester, but that’s exactly what I don’t want to have to do.

And naturally this month I seem to have a higher electric bill, phone bill and water bill than the last couple of months.  I was trying to figure out how to juggle those bills before I got laid off.  Obviously if hubby doesn’t have reliable transportation, then he doesn’t get to work and right now I’m having to depend on his income until I get something else coming in.  So any way I look at it, it’s problematic.  Actually, it plain out sucks.  I find someplace that I actually enjoy working and this is the kind of crap that happens.  And I’m not sure how it is in other parts of the U.S., but down here when they lay you off, you don’t normally get any severance pay, pay for vacation days not used, or even any lube before they screw you in the ass.  It’s all about money in the pockets of upper management.  One place I worked I had a boss tell me that he couldn’t afford to purchase the needed supplies for me to do what he wanted me to do.  Of course he couldn’t.  He had a brand new Jaguar out in the parking lot and a riverfront house to pay a mortgage on.  I have no problem with people having nice things, but it’s extremely rare to find a company that actually values and takes care of their employees, at least down here.  From what I’ve been told, companies do a better job of taking care of employees up north for some reason.

I’m slightly pissed and upset about this, even though I knew it was a possibility with the rumors that were going around.  What I’m mostly upset about is the possibility that I might have to go an entire extra semester because of this happening and being short of money.  I’ve never been the world’s best at creating a plan because I tend to be more the spontaneous type, but when I do have a legitimate plan in place, I hate for it to get disrupted in a way that is going to cost me money or time or both.  Especially when it isn’t my doing.

Anyhow, I think a garage sale is in my future and possibly selling the Demon and hubby’s Mercury (if he will part with it).  I have a 401k from this job which I can roll over or cash out.  I need to find out if I get the huge penalty on cashing it out if I use it for school.  I know there are a few exceptions where you don’t have to pay the huge penalty for cashing it out before retirement age.  If so, that’s probably what I’ll do.  I don’t figure I’ll retire anyhow.  Hell, I’m just trying to start an actual career at about 45 years of age, so I probably won’t even have the student loans totally paid off before it’s time to retire, so I don’t see an actual ‘retirement’ in my future realistically.  But if I at least have a satisfying and non-boring career that pays me well, then I suppose it won’t matter too much and I’ll just try to take some nice vacations when I can.

Or I can sell everything I own and probably have enough money to live comfortably on for the rest of my life down in Costa Rica.  It’s a thought…

 

I had a pretty wild and crazy weekend.  And maybe just a tad kinky, too.  It was the last weekend of Bike Week and we had some friends coming into town to stay with us.

We had about 13 people at our house, sleeping in the band room, extra room, couch, recliner and the floor, even.

FRIDAY

Friday night, we headed over to our home bar, the No Name and milled around.  We saw some people we knew and checked out the band and the vendors they had on site.  They had a place selling body jewelry and tattoos.  I thought about getting one of those tattoos that can only be seen under a black light, but the prices were much too high.  I had already talked to a couple of other places and their prices were more reasonable.  I’m still undecided about it right now.

I noticed a few girls walking around with nothing on top.  They had painted over their bodies so that it looked like they had on a swimsuit top, but it was just painted on.  Naturally the guys were loving that.  There was only one other female in our group.  The rest were all guys.  We were supposed to meet some other members of our party at the house later on that night.

We were a bit late.  They had a wet t-shirt contest and both the girl in our group and I signed up for it.  They gave us these thin tank tops, which we tore up and tied in the back.  As we are standing around waiting for the contest to start, this girl started talking to me.  She was very friendly so I suggested that it might be fun for both of us to go together.  She loved the idea.  So they wetted us down with a pitcher of ice water and it was friggen COLD!  Really, really cold.  Then she and I got up on the picnic table and danced around with each and played with each other’s tits.  The guys were loving it. :sexy:

Yes I am still curious »

I’m always researching and reading about ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) since I have been diagnosed with it.  Some of you might find some of this information interesting or useful.  For the rest of you, I went ahead and put the majority of it behind the cut.  The “Recipe For Depression” is also behind the cut.  It pretty much sums up how I’ve felt a good portion of my life.

ADHD CHARACTERISTICS

ADHD has been characterized as “an addiction to the present.” [1]  “Just as an alcoholic feels he must drink to survive, ADHD individuals seek the intensity of the present because their attention and reward systems are fueled by the pursuit of immediate pleasures.” [2]

There is a general consensus that the hallmark of ADHD is a lack of inhibition. [3]  Individuals with ADHD are unable to stop themselves from immediately responding to stimuli and are more spontaneous than the average person. [4]  “They often lack the intermediate reflective step between impulse and action.  This can be charming and innovative, or it can be annoying and disruptive, depending upon the impulse and the action.” [5]

The ADHD trademark lack of inhibition leads to almost all of the other symptoms of ADHD, including disruptive behavior, impulsivity, restlessness, uneven attention span, disorganization, tactlessness, irritability, impatience, and risk-taking behavior. [6]  It also leads to many of the positive qualities of ADHD, such as creativity, spontaneity, intuitiveness, high energy, and openness. [7]

Yes I am still curious »

I wanted to write an entry earlier today but I’ve been nursing a bad migraine off and on all day.  I still have it even now.  I took some medication and it has dulled it a bit, but not completely, so after I’m done with this entry, I may just try to go on to sleep and hope that it’s gone by morning.

Work has been boring.  There hasn’t been much going on, partially due to Bike Week.  It clogs up traffic big time for a week.  It looks like we’ll have about 8 or so houseguests for the weekend and they all want to go out and check out Bike Week.  I would prefer to stay away from all the congestion, but instead we’re going to get right in the middle of all of it.  Joy.  I’ll probably be so ready to go back to classes Monday after all of this.  I really haven’t done much during Spring Break, but take it easy, clean some and knit.

Speaking of knitting, I have a question for you knitters out there or maybe even you non-knitters.  Is it a bad sign when you look at wooden shish-k-bob skewers and think “Wow, I could knit with those!  I wonder what needle size they would be?” :what:

Well, they’ve had a few deaths already during Bike Week.  I think a lot of times it isn’t always the fault of the driver of the car.  Just the other day I was coming back from my doctor’s office where I had to physically go and pick up a prescription because it is a controlled drug.  I was coming back to drop it off at the pharmacy when I noticed 2 bikers waiting to merge in traffic.  There was space in front of me and one went ahead and took off.  The other one delayed until he noticed his buddy had already left and he decided to go at that time.  So the guy pulls out on his bike right in front of me.  I’m talking slam on my brakes in front of me.  I almost hit him.  That pissed me off to no end because it wouldn’t have been my fault, yet he could have been seriously injured or even killed for pulling something that stupid.  I usually worry about old people in cars waiting until the last possible second to pull in front of me, not someone on a motorcycle just because he didn’t want to lose his friend who would’ve still been in sight.

I ride a motorcycle and lately I’ve had to ride about every day.  That means I ride 50 miles a day and 250 miles a week.  I’ve been riding motorcycles for over 15 years.  I’ve been in a serious accident on one and it wasn’t my fault.  It was 2 weeks after I bought my first motorcycle.  Some old lady pulled out crosswise in my lane to make a left turn, but just stopped there.  I had a car to my right.  It happened so quickly and I only had 2 choices.  One was to hit her car in the driver’s side door, which would have thrown me over the handlebars and probably over her car.  The other was to swerve and try to get around the front of her and hope to God she didn’t decide to move at the precise moment that I would be in front of her.  She didn’t, but there was a patch of oil, water and gravel that I hit and the bike went down on its side at about 40-45 MPH.  Somehow, miraculously, I got my leg out from under the heavy beast (about 600 lbs or so) and both the bike and I slid across the asphalt.  I slid about a block and the bike slid about 2 blocks.  I immediately jumped up and ran to the side of the road because I was concerned about a car hitting me from behind.  I didn’t even know how bad I was hurt.  I was wearing a t-shirt, shorts and no helmet.  I never hit my head, so I was lucky there.  I had my asthma inhaler in my side pocket of my shorts and it was the side I went down on.  I had this huge bruise about the size of a dinner plate because of it.  I also had road rash on both knees, both elbows and my left upper arm.  The woman that caused the accident bolted. 

Luckily some nice man stopped, helped me get my bike off the road and offered to drive me to the hospital or home and get my bike home.  We loaded the bike in his pickup truck and he dropped me off at home.  I didn’t want to go to the hospital.  In fact, I never did go.  But when I got home, I realized I didn’t have any bandages big enough for my injuries.  My car was in the shop so I had no other way to get around except the bike.  So I got back on the bike just an hour or so after the accident and rode to the nearest place to buy some bandages and first aid supplies.  It took a while for me to heal, but I kept changing bandages and disinfecting my wounds.  I still have some scars today from that accident.  2 months after the accident, I enrolled in motorcycle safety courses, and I’m glad I did.

I’ve had some close calls, but most everyone that has seen me ride or ridden with me says I am a good rider.  I try never to ride in anyone’s blind spot or ride next to a vehicle at all if I can.  I try to keep some space as a cushion around me and my mind is always thinking of an escape route if I need to get out of the way in a hurry.  I’m cautious at intersections and when people are pulling out.  I ride in different areas of the lane to maximize the possibility I will be seen more or that a car won’t try to share my lane.  I use my horn if I think someone doesn’t see me and they can get pissed about it if they want.  At least I know they see me.  I ride with my headlight on bright during the day.  I can lock up the back tire and keep control of the bike.  I know the proper way to apply the brakes.  Many of these things I learned in the motorcycle safety course.  Most of the time, I just figure I am totally invisible and no one sees me at all when I’m on the bike and I ride accordingly.

Some of these people that come here for Bike Week do not know how to ride.  They know how to operate the controls on a motorcycle, but they don’t know how to ride.  That’s why I really don’t like to ride during Bike Week.  I’ve even had some pass me in the same lane I’m in.  I don’t like that.  If I’m riding with other people, we always ride staggered and only pull up next to each other at stop lights.  If you want to ride a motorcycle, I recommend taking the safety courses even if it isn’t required.  You will learn a good bit.  Truthfully, if I hadn’t gotten back on my bike the same day I had the accident, I probably would never have gotten back on.  I had nightmares about the accident for a while after.  It just replayed over and over in my mind in slow motion.  It seemed like slow motion when it happened even.  Things like that are strange that way.

Most of the time I do enjoy riding, but this riding 50 miles a day puts a damper on it.  First of all, it’s usually cold in the morning, so that means long johns, extra shirt, jacket, 2 pairs of gloves (my hands can’t take cold at all because they have been seriously frostbit in the past), and a bandana over my face under my helmet.  Then I get to work and peel off the extra layers until I have to go home.  Because I ride a sport bike, I don’t have much room to carry anything.  I have a small tank bag and that’s about it.  I can put stuff in a backpack and wear it if I need to carry more things.  The only problem is that wearing the backpack makes my back hurt even worse.   My back already hurts a good bit from riding, being cold and the position I have to ride in.  Many times I actually lay down on the tank bag and rest my arms on my knees.  It also tends to make my neck hurt, though.  It might be one reason I’ve had some migraines lately.

The reason I’ve been riding to work is that we haven’t fixed hubby’s car yet, so he’s been using the truck to drive to Melbourne because it’s a 150 mile drive every day versus my 50 miles.  Hopefully in the next couple of weeks we can have it running and I’ll have the truck again.

Well, I’ve got books to read and knitting to do and sleep to get.  So that’s all for now.

When I lived in Atlanta, I had the chance to hear this when it was new on The_Neal_Boortz_Show.  It’s been around for a while, but it’s still pretty damn funny.  If you haven’t heard it, it’s worth listening to. 

Here is:  Boo_Got_Shot.mp3 

:biglaugh:

This weekend I received a birthday gift from Lorena!  She bought me something off my Amazon wishlist that I had been eyeing for a while and had almost bought myself a few times.

So that maybe one day I can aspire to knit as well as she does:biglaugh:,she bought me this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stitch_’n_Bitch:__The_Knitter’s_Handbook

Right now I only know how to knit and purl and that’s about it.  I haven’t tried increasing, decreasing, circular needles, double-pointed needles or cables.  So I think I will learn a lot from this book.  I love the pattern for the cat bed and may have to try that one soon.  Now I know what I’m going to do with my $50 gift certificate gave me for Target.  I need yarn!  And some other knitting supplies like some more needles and a crochet hook, since I don’t have one.  Maybe I’ll even break down and get some double-pointed needles.  Someday I know I’m going to want to try them.

I managed to pull a muscle in my right triceps and it’s been really painful.  But my wrists are just fine so I think I will have no problem doing some more knitting tonight.  I think I’m going to knit all during Spring Break!  :biglaugh:

I just wanted to let people know that I finally found a plug-in for Wordpress that is working wonderfully for cross posting entries to LiveJournal.  If anyone is looking for one, let me know.

:biglaugh::meow:

I had a decent birthday yesterday even though I had my last mid-term last night.  It was in Art Appreciation and I got a 97 on it.  I got an A on my Spanish test and have an A in the class so far.  The only one I haven’t found out about is my World Religion exam.  I feel at the worst I might have made a B on it, so I feel pretty good about the first half of this semester.  Next week is spring break but I still have to work so it’s not much of a break for me. 

It’s also Bike Week.  That means tons of people in town.  Those rich doctors and lawyers from up north like to come down here twice a year and play outlaw biker for a while.  The town loves it because they spend gobs of money here.  It does a get a bit noisy, though.  Also the traffic is terrible.  Still, there are lots of things to do and see if you’re into that sort of thing.  To give you an idea of some of the stuff that goes on during Bike Week, here’s a link to my neighborhood bar where I generally like to go.  Some of the pictures have nudity, just so you know.  And no, as far as I know, I’m not in any of the photos.  I browsed them to be sure.

http://www.nonamesaloon.com/index.html

I’ll probably head up there sometime this weekend.  They have poker on Sunday, but I don’t know if they will this Sunday because of Bike Week.  It’s supposed to be fairly nice this weekend.  I’d like to go play some golf, but not sure if I’ll get to.  We have guests coming into town next weekend and we have some stuff around the house to do.  One thing I’d like to do is get a shelf built to put some of my collectible ‘action figures’ (not dolls) and other knick knack stuff like that.  I already have a Catwoman figurine (still in the box) and hubby has the Silver Surfer.  For my birthday yesterday, I received two more action figures, this time from the anime cartoon, Fullmetal Alchemist.  Here’s a picture of the two I got for my birthday.  You’ll have to excuse the quality of the picture.  It was taken with a camera phone and there seemed to be some terrible glare coming off the plastic.  But it should give you an idea of what they look like:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Alphonse figure (the one on the right) is quite a bit heavier than the other one.  I really like them, though.  Now I really have a reason to get moving on making a shelf so I have a place to put them.  I’m debating on whether or not to remove them from the packaging.  I know the value goes way down if you take them out of the package, but I have yet to want to sell anything I’ve collected like this anyhow.  We once sold some Star Wars figurines in Atlanta that hubby had collected only because we needed rent money at the time.  Some of them were more rare because you had to send off for them.  You couldn’t buy them at the store.  To this day, I know he regrets selling them and I wish I could replace them for him.  He has the Millenium Falcon as well and even had the little ball where Luke was practicing using the Force.  Most everyone lost that little ball very soon after getting the toy.  I’m glad that he didn’t sell that when he sold the figurines.  Therefore I doubt we’ll sell anything else like that.  I wouldn’t sell these because he gave them to me as a gift anyhow.  But for now, I’m keeping them in the package. 

I also received a $50 gift certificate to Target from my brother.  I don’t have anything in mind yet to spend it on.  Hubby also bought me another guitar amp.  This one is bigger than the one I have, so now I can ‘play’ even louder, which I’m sure he will love.  Actually, he doesn’t care because he’ll just get on the drums and drown me out if he wants.  I had been playing around with the bass a bit more lately than the guitar.  I think I actually like playing bass more but maybe after I learn the guitar a bit better, I’ll like the guitar more. 

Well, that’s all I have for now. :smug:

I’ve been out of the Half Nekkid for a couple of weeks, but figured I’d post something today.

First a word from our sponsor…

Here’s a photo of my new dog tag necklace I got for my birthday :jap::

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click below for the “not so safe for work” version.   :alert:  Please do not click if seeing bare breasts offends you.  :alert:

Yes I am still curious »

The Questioner

Test finished!

You chose CY - your Enneagram type is SIX.           

“I am affectionate and skeptical”

Questioners are responsible, trustworthy, and value loyalty to family, friends, groups, and causes. Their personalities range broadly from reserved and timid to outspoken and confrontative.

How to Get Along with Me

• Be direct and clear.
• Listen to me carefully.
• Don’t judge me for my anxiety.
• Work things through with me.
• Reassure me that everything is OK between us.
• Laugh and make jokes with me.
• Gently push me toward new experiences.
• Try not to overreact to my overreacting

What I Like About Being a Six

• being committed and faithful to family and friends
• being responsible and hardworking
• being compassionate toward others
• having intellect and wit
• being a nonconformist
• confronting danger bravely
• being direct and assertive

What’s Hard About Being a Six

• the constant push and pull involved in trying to make up my mind
• procrastinating because of fear of failure; having little confidence in myself
• fearing being abandoned or taken advantage of
• exhausting myself by worrying and scanning for danger
• wishing I had a rule book at work so I could do everything right
• being too critical of myself when I haven’t lived up to my expectations

Sixes as Children Often

• are friendly, likable, and dependable, and/or sarcastic, bossy, and stubborn
• are anxious and hypervigilant; anticipate danger
• form a team of “us against them” with a best friend or parent
• look to groups or authorities to protect them and/or question authority and rebel
• are neglected or abused, come from unpredictable or alcoholic families, and/or take on the fearfulness of an overly anxious parent

Sixes as Parents

• are often loving, nurturing, and have a strong sense of duty
• are sometimes reluctant to give their children independence
• worry more than most that their children will get hurt
• sometimes have trouble saying no and setting boundaries

Renee Baron & Elizabeth Wagele The Enneagram Made Easy
Discover the 9 Types of People
HarperSanFrancisco, 1994, 161 pages

You liked the test? so please RATE it          

 

---

   

You are not completely happy with the result?!
You chose CY.  Would you rather have chosen:           

AY (EIGHT)

BY (FOUR)

CX (TWO)

CZ (ONE)

 

 

 

 

 

My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:           

	You scored higher than 0% on ABC
	You scored higher than 51% on XYZ

Link: The Quick and Painless ENNEAGRAM Test written by felk

on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test