I am SOOO Nervous...

I start doing my job, for real, today. The last 4 weeks have been training. Lots and lots of classroom training. And I go live today. And I'm so nervous. There is so much to remember, so many steps we need to do, so many things we need to say. I know the stuff in my head. It's just that we haven't had any practical application of it, just simulations, and today we go live, with real customers. I'm freaking out just a little. I am absolutely THRILLED to not be getting up at 3:30 am anymore, though. Getting up when it's light out is a fabulous change. I'm not excited about loosing all that afternoon free time that I had, but I think the sleeping till it's light out makes up for it.

No real news on the knitting front. I'm just really burned out. And I've lost the driving need to keep my hands busy. Once I settle into a routine at work, I will probably do more again. But right now, I've gotten about 5 inches of Clapotis and about 10 rows on a dishcloth in the last 4 weeks. I've cleaned my house. I've cooked a lot. I've learned a whole new job completely unlike anything that I've ever done before. I've spun up about 2 oz of fiber. I've met a lot of new people and found a few new friends. But the knitting just isn't happening. I'm still on Ravelry and Knitty too many hours each day. I love looking, planning, imagining. But when I sit down and pick up the needles, I just don't feel the calm settle over me anymore. I knit so much at my last job, several hours a day. I lived and breathed fiber and yarn and knitting and crocheting. And most days I really enjoyed it. But without that driving need to keep on top of things in the fiber art world, I've stepped back to more of an observing role. I want to feel driven to pick up my needles or hook and create something. I miss the calm, brainless, relaxing rhythm of it. But it's just not coming right now. We all need a break sometimes, right?

Anyway, I'm just a couple weeks out from my Blogiversary, so I'm thinking of doing a contest. I'll update you on it when it's closer. It's the end of May, the 28th. So be looking for a give-away that week!

Signs of Spring

Lilacs are budding

Roses are leafing out...

And I just brushed a pile of hair out of the dog that is as large as a soccer ball. And that was with her normal brush, not the Furminator. I try to do the normal to get all the loose hair then go over her again with the Furminator to get the rest of it. Usually, I get a baseball size off of her with each. I'm almost scared to go over her with the other brush now! She is really and truly in the midst of blowing her coat. We've had her just over a year. She was at the end of her spring shed when we got her. Immediately had to buy a Furminator to deal with the hair. Normal brushing kept her up till her fall shed. Then it was Furminator time again. Winter was easy, brushing once every week or two. Now we're back to twice daily brushings. Ugh...

Sorry for the so long without posting. I'm halfway through training for the new job then I get a much more pleasant schedule. I'm currently at 5am - 1:30pm. Which means I'm awake by 3:45am. And in bed by 7pm. I'm constantly exhausted. But only one more week then I'll be at 9am - 5:30pm. There's not a lot of knitting going on. I'm pretty burned out. I'm working on a springy Clapotis that I'm about half done with. I started another pair of Jaywalkers but lost my momentum. I have 2 or 3 panels on my skirt done, out of 8. The afghan has 2 more strips to go. The Endpaper Mitts have .5 to go. And I just don't have enough creative juice left to do them. So I've got a reversible dishcloth in my purse for mindless work and I'm just waiting for enough energy to continue with the other pieces. Hopefully once I'm off this dreadful schedule I'll be able to start again.