I Totally Saw That Coming

So a few weeks ago, my boss announced that he would be leaving the company. This wasn't good news, mostly because I think he's great and I really enjoyed working with and for him. It also meant that my job (I'm a Corporate Bitch-slapper Executive Assistant) would probably fall by the wayside. I've spent the last few weeks in limbo, but found out this morning (upon my return from vacation) that I was right. So as of this afternoon, I am without a job.

*Sigh*

Whaddarya gonna do?

Well, I'm going to spend the rest of this week regrouping, decompressing, and recovering from my vacation (more on that in a bit). I'll do a little networking but that's it. Monday, however, I'll jump into job-hunt mode and make that my job. Depending on how that goes, we've got some decisions to make about how we want to handle the future, but I'm hoping for positive things so we don't have to take any drastic measures. In case you're concerned, bank robbery and the like aren't on the list of potential 'drastic measures'.

On A Happier Note...

My last full day at work (last Wednesday) was a fun one - it was my birthday! I can't freakin' believe I'm 50. I was gifted with two of my favorite things - yarn and champagne. Here's the yarn:

It's Blue Moon Fiber Arts Silkie - I can't remember the color way, but it's beautiful and soft. I started swatching right away but I don't know yet if I'm going to use it for socks or a scarf. Whatever I choose to make, it's going to be fab.

Reconnecting

The day after my birthday, I flew across the country to Vermont to spend time with old friends at my high school reunion. Before I went there though, I spent the morning here. My best friend from grade school and her husband raise Alpaca, and I got to hang out, play with fiber, and pet Alpaca noses. It was awesome.

Meet Tika. Cute, huh? (She's not the first Tika I've met but she is the first whose nose I've wanted to kiss - no offense, Tika #1!)

The whole crowd:

Someone looking kind of dorky:

Two new friends:

Who clearly don't understand the concept of personal space:

I could have played with them all day.

If you're interested in hand-spun Alpaca yarn, or unspun (but carded) Alpaca fiber, check out the website or shoot them an email at Arashi@together.net. They have beautiful stuff and can do custom work too. You'll not only be supporting a small business, you can rest assured that your purchase came from Alpaca that are treated well and generally lead one cushy, happy life.

From there I headed over to my high school for my weekend-long reunion. It was awesome. It was fab. It was amazing. And SO much fun! I'm not going to post the any of the 100+ pictures I took of the festivities (who knew that a bunch of people my age could have so much party energy?!) but here's a shot from our climb up Putney Mountain to give you an idea of where I grew up:

Yeah, poor me.

I also managed to join some grade school friends for a pot-luck brunch, visit with family members at my cousin's house near Boston, and took an impromptu trip to Maine to have lunch with my brother's widow before catching my flight back home on Monday night.

I'd originally planned to visit Webs and some Vermont fibery businesses (to check out Grafton fiber or another Golding spindle), but all the socializing didn't allow time for those side trips. I did however, manage to drop by the Green Mountain Spinnery (in the same town as my schools), where I picked up a skein of one of their sock yarns. This is a wool/Tencel blend that I've been dying to try out. Yay for birthday money.


I was super-busy the whole weekend but managed to get some knitting done on the plane. I started my Monkeys using my Crown Mountain Farms Aqualung hand-spun:

I love how this is turning out - a little color variation but not so much as to obliterate the pattern.

I also started a Lace Ribbon Scarf - I'm using Handmaiden Sea Silk, and it is amazing stuff.


Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch...

I'm not the only one who has been busy making stuff. Brian just harvested these:

And these:

And made this sourdough bread:

See why I married him?