Hey, I just noticed that yesterday was the first anniversary of the blog. I remain amazed that anyone besides me and my daughter actually reads it, but I do enjoy writing it. I've never been successful at keeping a journal - I need that feeling that I'm talking to someone - anyone! - other than myself. Blogging gives me just enough stimulation to keep writing.

My arm feels much better today even though I drove back and forth to the Mothership - six hours on the Turnpike did me no harm at all. It's my desk arrangement at work, I need to get someone to adjust things to take the pressure off the arm. I'm very close to finishing the second cat blankie, and brought home a box from the office yesterday to pack them up when they are all done. I'm enjoying the extremely simple process of making these blankies because I know it will serve a useful purpose and a good cause. It's making me think about my "normal" knitting - maybe knitting for me isn't really my thing. I get more pleasure out of making something very simple with very basic yarn - a cat blanket, a baby afghan for charity, etc. - than I do from making real things for myself in the more fashionable, high end yarn stuff. Go figure.

And this led me to explore the Shawl Ministry website while consuming my first cup of life-sustaining caffeine this morning. I really liked the ideas for personalizing the shawls with beads, charms, and so forth - I had been toying with that idea, but like so many of my ideas, somebody got there first. Beads are calling to me lately - I've mentally designed a bracelet to go with the shawl yarn in blues and greens I'd purchased in Fernandina Beach, now I'm thinking a few beads scattered on the fringe would be too cool too. I love lapiz and malachite together, and lapis and turquoise and silver together, and some turquoise and silver beads on the fringe of that shawl would be just right as a finishing touch. (You may have noted that despite my yen for simplicity my own shawl yarn is both fashionable and high end, but I never promised I was consistent. )

Today was a good day - good company. I love my co-workers, I really do - the level of wit and humor and good-people-ness is amazing for any group of people, and stunning in a bunch of lawyers. (No offense to lawyer readers, but I've been around long enough to have met every bad stereotype of the breed.) I haven't laughed so much in a long time. Useful work stuff done, a Marlins game attended (I bugged out at the end of the fourth inning with my drive home as a ready excuse - even in person baseball bores me to death) and a lot of head-clearing hours on the Turnpike, stereo cranked up, cruising at 85 with eyes peeled for state troopers (I slow to 80 for them, it seems to satisfy them every time). I feel refreshed.