Tis the day after Christmas, and all through the house, stomachs are upset from the sugar binge we've been on for days. But it was fun. Now it's time to clean out the kitchen and get my diet and exercise plans in gear. To help with this noble goal, the offspring bought me a very nice portable CD/MP3 player that is promised not to skip - I have an early generation (allegedly skip protected, or whatever they called it) CD Walkman, and that damn thing skipped all the time. I'm pretty sure they've improved the technology since then, since I see neighbors jogging with theirs - I couldn't even walk briskly with the old one. This unit is a fraction of the weight of the old one, and so shiny and cute. So it's time to load up on high energy walking music and hit the pavement again, as I haven't done in quite some time.


Today Girlchild and I will hit the mall and shop until we drop. Tonight it's coffee at L's for me, Girl will no doubt find her own entertainment, probably at her brother's house. She's bored out of her mind here in Orlando and talking about heading back up to Tally Saturday or Sunday, and I can't blame her - much as I enjoy having her here, I understand the feeling - I climb the walls at my parents' house too. She misses her friends, her stuff, her own bed, and wants to clean her apartment and get everything in order for the new semester. She's been home for over a week, that's about as long as most adults can stand staying with their parents. We'll shop today, it will be great fun, and if she wants to drive back tomorrow I will understand.


Tomorrow is a full day. I will finally get a long-overdue haircut, Tomorrow night my late husband's best friend is having a party. Sunday will actually be a day of rest, and knitting. I've taken Monday and Tuesday off, and like Girlchild I have visions of deep-cleaning this house for the New Year. The Tree will probably come down - it's nice, but I'd rather get it out of the way and mop the tile floors thoroughly while I have some time off. Wednesday is New Year's Eve and I'm sure the office will close early, then I'm off Thursday through Monday. One partial work day next week. I think I can handle it. I need to make an appointment to get the Bossy One groomed, and this time I will insist that the groomer give him a puppy cut - this dog has too much hair, and worse, I think he has too much OLD hair - you know how human hair gets sort of dry and split-ended if it grows out too long? Yorkie hair is the same texture as human hair, and behaves very much like human hair. Murphy is suddenly getting tons of mats in his coat, and he never had a problem with mats before - the only thing I can think is that his hair is tangling more because it has gotten damaged - and of course, taking out the mats only damages it further. Time for a shorter haircut and a fresh start.


I cast on and knitted about an inch of the Kureyon ribbed cap. I don't believe it'll be done by the time Girl bugs out to go home, so it'll have to be mailed - at least the scarf will be fringed and ready to go. She has been making some comments about the slowness of my progress on Bardot - actually about my apparent abandonment of the project - so Bardot goes onto the front burner. I promise.