November 30, 2005

Happy in blue


One new blue hat done and I couldn't be happier, this one is long enough to cover my ears too. I really liked knitting the hat top down and casting off with an i-cord. I believe it's a first for me, also there was no swatching for this, what's not to love? LOL! Will have to knit more hats top down, this is just too much fun. :) Also it was fun having a quick project to knit, this might be a great way to use up some stash yarn also. For the past two years I have knitted hats to donate in the month of december, this pattern could come in handy if I start making hats again this year. :)

Yesterday I was all excited about going to a craft store, I had planned on checking out yarn and rubber stamps. Sadly the yarn colors in the only half decent yarn they had were all pretty dull and they had zero stamps with a snowflake on it, barely a selection of holiday themed ones either. I was so disappointed, I wasn't expecting to not find anything. The store changed a lot since I had gone and it isn't as great in my opinion. So that pretty much shot my day at wanting to make a few holiday wish cards, now back to having none and no inspiration to create any either.

I get to meet Zoe's teacher next week and it will be soon enough, at least my daughter wants to go to school this week. Though it is hard to hear about how the teacher rewarded her class with computer time after screamed at the kids. ARGH!!!

Perhaps today, I will have time to cut out paper snowflakes!?

Posted by Jo at 12:10 AM | Comments (1)

November 28, 2005

You win some, you loose some.


Sunday was football night, I watch two games a year, the Grey cup and the Superbowl. Then, I remember how I like the game. LOL! Last night we went all out (or just about), we had tacos, nachos and my mom even baked a cake. No alcohol was served so why not enjoy cake instead? Our local Montreal Alouettes team was one of the two finalists so it made the game even more exciting. The game went in overtime, which hasn't happened since 1961. The Alouettes made a touhdown, both Carl and I had our arms in the air, then... the Eskimos made a touchdown. ACK! Then... the other made 3 points and that was it, we couldn't make more and lost the game. Sigh... It was a good game but boy is it hard to knit and watch a game when you are so into it. LOL! My heart stopped a few times and some plays I didn't understand so I was screaming at the tv for nothing. teehee!

It has been three weeks tomorrow since I have officially finished school. Since june I have always been convinced that I was going to find a job at the end and all would be well. It sounds innocent perhaps but we have been drilled for five months that there were more than enough job opportunities for the thirteen students in the class. Since I left my 2nd internship place I have been promised a job elsewhere. Carl was to start at the same place also, we were both referred this store by different people. Carl has met the boss a few times and was presented to many other bosses in different stores, his job position is more than he expected but he is pleased. Bottom line, he'd be my immediate supervisor. LOL! This morning we were both schedule to start working, all we needed was a call from the store owner.

We got and we also received some weird news, the internship place Carl worked at doesn't want to let him go. He was offered a temporary job that he accepted while finding something better, they have been warned he was leaving and even went a day more to help them out. So now we are both on hold for the boutique and are stuck not working. It feels like all is crashing and we are loosing everything. I am now fearful that this won't end up well and frankly I don't know what to do. My unemployment will end right after Christmas and then nothing. This is not what I have expected and I just feel empty, another brick on the wall as I say...


Of course when one knits under such stressful conditions, the hat they make ends up too big. Argh! I am using the Susan's hat pattern (check it out it starts on nov. 22 up to nov. 25). Now if only we can convince her to start up other projects too. I'm using Lamb's Pride wool for the hat, I ADORE this yarn which is NOT readily available in my province. Sigh... I dream of knitting myself a nice cardi/sweater out of this yarn. My gauge is perfect 5st/inch which is my favorite gauge (yes I am odd like that!) LOL! I was using the half linen stitch but wil change that as I rip out a few rows back to make the hat a tad smaller. You can almost see where I inserted a needle to unravel back too in the picture.

So now today, I need/want something good to happen or I'll just loose my mind. It's so hard to not have a job and see the holidays arriving quickly. At least everyone is back to health, Zoe happily went to school today and we have a roof over our heads. Might go crazy and cut out a few snowflakes for the windows, oh how wild can I get?

Posted by Jo at 12:03 PM | Comments (2)

November 25, 2005

The attack of the sickies


This may not look like much but there's few hours worth of knitting right there and 6 inch done. Being mostly housebound this week, I knitted quite a bit on this project. With our 1st real snowfall this week with snow still on the ground, I need a scarf. I am curious to know how other weights of Morehouse yarns feel as this lace weight is lovely to knit with. :)

Yesterday afternoon, Carl comes rushing home and we realise that he got hit by the bug, he is SICK! I mean violently S-I-C-K! Since last friday there's always been someone sick in this house, it's taking it's toll on both my mom and I. We are washing hands and everything else at lightning speed to help us not get hit too. I can't wait for a day where everyone will be healthy and where I get more than 4 hours of sleep in a row. I am exhausted, stressed, tired, everything is happening at the same time we can't cope with it all at the same time.

Zoe went to school wednesday afternoon, in the meantime Carl and Lucas baked and decorated a cake for her. She was SO happy when we celebrated her half-birthday, she smiled for the 1st time in days. It warmed my heart to finally see her happy! Of course her teacher told her it was a lie that we celebrated her birthday since she was born in may but whatever but Zoe knows she is right! On the school front, thanks to many messages of comfort, we will build our own chart of success for Zoe to follow. Her teacher has kept a few kids after class for extra help but Zoe wasn't one of them so perhaps she's doing better than we think!? Today the teachers were on strike in the morning and the kids had school in the afternoon, in Zoe's class there were only 8 or 9 so I hope she has a good time.

I am starting to feel like I want to knit everything all at once. I have so many works in progress though so it's hard to justify to myself to need to start yet another project. Also I keep needing more needles too. LOL!

Posted by Jo at 01:28 PM | Comments (2)

November 23, 2005

Heart break,


When one becomes a mom/dad or parent, they learn from that day on, they will do anything to protect the new person they love. When one of my kids is sick, I would do anything to take away the pain. I try to ease how they feel by making them laugh even for a second so they can forget how awful they feel.

Friday Lucas was sick, he got sick at a restaurant right before we ever got our food... I actually had to buy him new clothes before we got home, let's just say it wasn't a pretty sight but boy was he proud of his new clothing. LOL! We had a slow weekend monitering him back to health.

Monday evening Zoe got sick... Sadly for her it is all emotion related that makes her sick. We've been having a really tough time with her being in 1st grade this year. The lessons, the homeworks, the extra work the teacher gives them too, the demands of the teacher that we just don't believe in. Mostly, we are hating the teacher, it's tough to encourage Zoe when we understand why she's not to keen on going to school. My heart aches so much that all these feelings have made my daughter sick, she is very strong to hold her own in class though.

Both our kids have a very strong belief in what is fair, like respecting the rules, listening to teachers and whatnot. They will both get really hurt if a friend cheats, doesn't listen or just disturbs. Zoe's teacher also screams at the kids in class and has warned them of physical consequences if one didn't listen. ARGH!!!

How can I encourage my daughter in learning how to read when I know she is afraid to not meet her teacher's demands the next day in class!? The kids are not even learning the basis (to me) of how to read. So I try my best to help her out but since I am trying to have her understand reading instead of just learning the words by heart it's not easy. There are so many learn-to-read programs in english, sadly in french materials are lacking.

I'm meeting the teacher in 3 weeks and it will be hard for me not to bite my tongue and keep my views about her attitude and teaching to myself. How dare I judge a teacher on her work. How dare she make my kid hate school though... Tough job being a parent somedays, luckily both kids are great support to each other. You should see how Lucas was keeping Zoe laughing after she got sick or the other day when Zoe followed Lucas around the house carrying a bucket "just in case". LOL!

If you have a second today, I would really appreciate if you could take the time to think of us. I am loosing this battle and Zoe is missing her 2nd day of school. She look terrorised at the idea of going back, sadly I was supposed to start a new job today but that's been put on hold (not by my choice). Having her change teachers or school is just not a possibility at this time either. :(

Posted by Jo at 08:18 AM | Comments (4)

November 17, 2005

Melody shawl or scarf...


The yarn project that wasn't suppose to make it home. A month ago I placed an order online, a week later after not receiving any news I cancelled online. Then I receive my credit card bill and the kit is still charged, so the game of phone tag starts, they lost my order, they taught it was sent, wait someone else takes care of online orders, please call again another day. Finally I get a refund and many excuses, everyone is sorry and nice they will make up for it they promise. Fast forward to this week, a package makes it to my door! Being home made it extra special, I got to be there when I received the box and frantically opened it. The colors aren't what I expected though it will be even better that what I taught I was ordering. LOL! With our 1st snowflakes coming down on the city yesterday, starting Melody shawl (I'll use it as a scarf) is perfect timing I'd say. :)

The pink socks are both at the "finishing" stage, each need a heel and toe. At first I followed the Fleece Artist pattern for the heel but when my foot barely fit, I knew I had to rip it out. I tried a 2nd heel, using Dawn Brocco's tip, it made for a better more comfy heel. Now that the heel is knitted, I can see that there's too much in the foot part. So back to ripping an inch or two and knit the toes, most likely using the same star/toe method as the heel. As others have said prior to me, quick to knit, fiddly to complete! Of course after knitting the 1st pair I would know more about the measurements, it is great to knit and knit and knit make up the toes, finish the heels and tadah! Socks are done! I haven't worked on knitting socks top down in quite a while, it was fun to go back to that. The only reason I don't love knitting top down socks is that I am always worried about not having enough yarn in the end, also I try to use up all the yarn when I knit toe up.

Posted by Jo at 10:21 PM | Comments (1)

November 14, 2005

Happy days,


This past weekend we went to the big Santa parade, it's our 2nd Santa weekend but now in most malls the big fella has arrived. This year Lucas is enjoying the magic of it all the most, Zoe has heard terrible rumors at school about Santa not being real! SHEESH!!! The nerve of some kids... On saturday we saw 3 Santa's in different stores (don't worry, we have that covered too, these are all close friends to the real Santa, which is too busy reading letters and making toys!). The kids had a blast sliding down huge blown up slides, this mall has a terrific holiday display, my favorite so far.

On our way to our bestest of the best sitting spot to check out the parade, we walked by the place I had my 1st internship. Two of the workers were staring at us while we looked in, I was waving to them like crazy (they were just as bad as me LOL!) and had a huge grin for the rest of the day. Once the parade started the kids were so happy, it was about an hour long and I was really happy to be sitting instead of standing outside. The day was magical for the kiddos, it really started to feel like the holidays are upon us. Luckily most of my gifts are already purchased, I was worried that I would have a hard time finding what I was looking for but instead I was pleased to find my gifts on sale. Yay!!!


After frogging back about 3 inches, I am back on track for the socks. I am really enjoying this yarn, must find more, must get some again. All of the Fleece Artist yarns I have knitting with have been a pleasure, of course I only wish I could get more of it. LOL! Something to add on my gift list to Santa.

I am planning on knitting two gifts for each kid and then I should be done for these holidays. We are lucky in a way to not have many family gatherings and whatnot for the holidays, so gift giving is pretty much just us: the kids, Carl and my mom. The last two read my blog so... let's not talk about them for now... LOL!

Posted by Jo at 02:20 PM | Comments (1)

November 11, 2005

I like pink


Meet my pink socks, aren't they fun? They have kept me busy while other things aren't going too well. I'm impressed how fast they knit up, this was done in a day or so. The Fleece Artist is lovely to knit with, I enjoy it as much as when I knitted my koigu socks.

The IK Winter 2005 previews are up and it is funny to see that four people from my knitting group are in this issue. I just wished there was something I'd actually knit in it though but nothing inspires me much. Generally though, nothing has inspired me in the past few motnhs anyways.

A few days ago I wrote how excited I was to receive a job offer. Since, I have decided to turn it down. Ever since I set foot in this place I have been unhappy, badly treated and my slef-esteem was getting lower each day. It's been two days now that I am home and I feel good, I feel alive, I am smiling again. The people at work have told Carl they are sad to see me go but are happy I didn't accept the offer, they say I will find better elsewhere...

For now I am taking a few days to absorb everything, so much has happened too quickly and I need to take a minute to recuperate. It hurts that I haven't got a job at the end of my schooling but it feels really good to take some time for myself. In a perfect world I'd hop on the train and go to Toronto for the weekend, that's my place to run away too when everything stresses me out. lol! This time I am staying closer to home, actually this weekend there is a Vision show in Montreal (conferences and exhibit for people in the eyewear business). We'll see what good can come out of that.

hugs, very chilly weekend ahead here.

Posted by Jo at 08:39 AM | Comments (6)

November 06, 2005

Clap, clap


Another fun afternoon was spent with knitters, oldies and newbies joined together to share some time to learn, laugh and have fun. I cast on this new clapotis on my ride to the meeting, low and behold the designer of the scarf was going to be there... Boy did I feel like a dork, luckily she didn't laugh at me too much. I am using the very soft and luscious Fleece Artist kid silk yarn, what a pleasure to knit with it.


Zoe inherited of the previous clapotis (knit in Classic Elite Lush yarn), she is so proud to wear it too. I am lucky to have kids that fight over each other to wear handknits. Now if only I had my act together and knitted more items for them, best to knit while they want to wear what I make them. LOL!

A new week starts and it is back to waking up at 5am. Oye! This week will be filled with new challenges and I hope to get the best out of each day.

hugs,

Posted by Jo at 07:43 PM | Comments (2)

November 05, 2005

There is a happy ending

After seeing it mentionned on Caroline's blog and the Montreal Knit Blog, I just HAD to see this for my very own eyes. Fleece Artist yarns offered locally, so after a tough day I went to reward myself. LOL!


I left the store with Kid Silk and a sock kit in bright pink! These will be my 2nd pair in pink, Zoe thinks it's so cool to have socks in that colorway. Might have to knit her a pair for the holidays. Now my only dilemma is what yarn to start to knit with? LOL!

Yesterday I received bad news at work, then worst news, still I smiled and did my work the best I could. The day ended with me receiving a job offer in the department I want! WOW! I sure never saw THAT coming, the girls I work with were bummed I was leaving them but at the end they said I was right to go in surface. I felt that having the same supervisor as Carl was not a good thing for either of us. I do not want to do something wrong and then have him receive comments or whatever. For me, it is easier to work on the 1st floor and Carl on the 2nd floor. I am pleased with this, I will have one of the most physical jobs but feel like I am really doing something that means a lot. I will be working at creating the prescription on a lens to make glasses.



I have noticed that when I am not knitting, something is missing. Just like someone quitting smoking or something, it is very odd, I start pacing and thinking about patterns, fondling yarns and just wondering what to knit. These are two swatches that were suppose to give me a clue as to what to knit.... a sweater. They didn't give me the gauge I wanted so that will be put on the back burner for a while. Until I am tired of knitting with Fleece Artist. LOL!



I have often said that when I wear handknit socks, I feel lucky (especially with Koigu socks too!). Yesterday was a weird day but in the end, I felt very lucky with how it turned out. I think I need more socks to feel lucky everyday. LOL!

hugs,

Posted by Jo at 09:07 AM | Comments (6)

November 03, 2005

Bricks, bricks, bricks

Well here's a little surprise, on day 10 of my internship I got to change department, this is the 4th one now in this company in barely two weeks. I'm stuck with a bunch of girly-girls that love David Beckham and can't believe that he isn't the perfect man in my opinion. SIGH... They wanted to gossip all afternoon and I felt like bolting out of the room, which is slightly bigger than a closet (we are 4 working there). I have today to prove myself or else they are switching me to God knows where. WOW!

Of course I insulted the girls apparently when after they asked which dpt I preferred, I answered the surface. But don't you get dirty there? SO WHAT!?!? Oye! In this company everyone b*tches against those working in surface, they are considered the lowest chain. Thing is, if the surface doesn't exist then half the people there don't have a work, we need surface people to make lenses. Argh! What is so wrong with that?

So now I am never knowing what to expect from one second to the next. Tomorrow I have no clue where I am supposed to go or what time I should go in at. The coating supervisor (whom never ever talked to me) simply said, well since you hate it here follow this guy and you'll work with him from now on.... Hummm, ok. She never looked me in the eyes because I sure felt like asking her if she had a problem with me. I did the job each and every day, sure I did hate it but I still did my best to do the tasks I had. She never talked to me, ask for feedback or give me any. All I know is that I am most likely never going back there.

I have been in all but two departments in this company, what are the odds they hire me next week? I am not holding my breath! I now work with Carl's supervisor (which is really nice to Carl) sadly in my 15 minutes interview with him, he seemed more mad than happy to train me. Gives you an idea of the atmosphere maybe? Sure, I am going in today, give everyone a chance but this isn't me. All I wanted was a hands on job on making a pair of glasses. At this time, no position they made me work at has given me the opportunity to use what I learned in school, nor make me feel like I am smart. All these jobs, they usually hire anybody that sends in a resume. Do I feel better than anyone? NO! I do feel like I am smart and that people should treat me with respect, that is all I ask for, oh and maybe give me feedback on my work 'cause I'm thinking I have to be the worst worker ever if I see how they keep switching me.

Argh! Off I go...

Posted by Jo at 06:30 AM | Comments (0)

November 01, 2005

Sweets for everyone!


Halloween was a blast, the kids had great fun trick or treating for almost two hours! There are some new housings in our area but they still have dirt roads, not many kids were there so we were free to roam the streets without cars in the way. Lucas was 'flying' from one door to the next, he adored his evening. They both loved cheering "Happy Halloween" and receiving sweets. Zoe's Unicef box got filled up too, people were expecting Lucas to have one also. Only next year though as he will start kindergarden, he can't wait to have his very own box. By night they were both knights sporting scars from previous battles, by day Zoe was a cute asian girl and Lucas was Lucas-the-Builder. LOL!

Both Carl and I are on the last leg of our internship. Today though I was offered something special, a new project from school. Either Plan A: I stay and work (well hopefully they'd hire me next week) at mycurrent internship place. We heard that most of us would be hired for 3 months then... who knows.

Plan B though is that I go on a program that is sponsored by unemployment. I would be on the program for 5 months possibly at the place I adored being at on my 1st internship.

The dilemma now is that, A) I am presently at a big company (Plan A), one of the biggest in optics, B) I could learn more and even get a 2nd certificate at the Plan B place but I'm not sure I want to be selling to customers though (that would be a part of the job, can't hide from it) C) Pay would be better at Plan A, the schedule I have at the moment is ideal compared to Plan B (where I would work some nights and some weekends) D) I can see Carl at lunchtime if I stay at Plan A. E) Location of Plan B is fun, it's downtown, I can go shopping at lunch time. LOL!

At this present time, my focus is the kids, I started school for a better future for all of us. Carl's position in the company is pretty much secured, if not he already has a 2nd offer elsewhere. At my internship I am at the start of the lens making chain, other departments say that "those people" are like the lowest in the company. I like the guys I work with, I like the mood we have in the department and they let me play (work) on a 1 000 000$ machine. Hey, it makes me happy! LOL! Although my internship is in coating and treatments, which I do not enjoy much (the room is so cold and so are the people...), I prefer to be with the surface guys anyway. They keep teaching me new things all the time, they enjoy my company and say I work well, one has told my supervisor twice how well I do the job. It makes my day! :)

So.... anyone has some wise advice for me? I really don't know what to choose.

Posted by Jo at 09:22 PM | Comments (2)