and the other...

Why yes, it has been almost another week since I've posted! I know I've driven off a lot of readers (based on now having a hit count that could fit in my living room at times) with my lazy-ass Bad Blogger crap. I'll attempt to make up for that with another long-winded catch-up epistle.

First, because of course this used to be a knitting blog:



That is my first sweater for the second granddaugther, in Lorna's Laces Shepherd's Worsted, colorway Child's Play. I made it in a 6 month size, figuring if it's too big in December the sleeves can be rolled up, and it'll last through her first chilly weather season. I LOVE LL yarns so much it's indecent, even their superwash worsted is incredibly soft and a pleasure on the hands. Of course, it's also pricey, but oh, so worth it. The sweater needs buttons, but I've given up on button shopping here, so the buttons will wait until I am back where buttons are plentiful. Then I will go to JoAnn's and find exactly the buttons I want, and remember all of my vitriolic posts about hating JoAnn's, and still hate them, but damn, they do have a great selection of buttons. Like the song says, you don't know what you've got till it's gone. Of course the really funny in that is I'm going back to the paved paradise. But they do have buttons.

I've also started a new sweater for Supergirl, in Cascade 220 superwash in a rich purple-blue color. It's not purple and it's not blue, it's somewhere in between. It, too, will probably have to wait for buttons, because I have a vision of pansy buttons, but I want to see them in person. Button-buying on the Net has been less than satisfactory.

Girlmama is on the home stretch, nearly ready to launch GD2. I'm telling you, my daughter is one tough chick, working full time in the Florida heat right up to nearly the bitter end - her last day at work will be 10/7, if she lasts that long. She thinks the baby has shifted lower lately, and we're now taking bets on The Day. She's hot, tired, ready for it to be over, but still doing well and feeling good - and by "good" I of course mean sleep-deprived after peeing 4 times a night and major heartburn and all the rest of the "normal" stuff.

My condo purchase has come together very nicely indeed, and I'll close one day in the last week of October. Right now, the game plan, such as it is: Wedding Shower is This Sunday. Out of Town Cousins will roll in on Thurs/Fri the 20th. Wedding Weekend is the 21st-22nd. On the 23rd, Out of Town Cousins and I will do the Biltmore in the afternoon, and dinner at one of the estate restaurants that evening. On the 24th, Cousin C and I will saddle up and drive back to FL together, with the dogs - I'll drop her at her house on the way, and continue on to my daughter and son-in-law's, where I will camp for a night or two until the closing on the condo, at which point I will move whatever I have carried with me into my new place and probably set up the air mattress there. I will have power and water and everything works and there should even be basic cable on and waiting, as it is included in the HOA fees. I will stay there a night or two, taking measurements and putting away whatever little things I have with me, then come back up here and pack like one crazy mofo, and bug out in the first few days of November. I need to hit the ground running there - the learning curve isn't nearly as steep and I have got to get out and work.

I've lined up a mover and have already packed a few boxes, but the packing process is trickier this time, simply because the apartment doesn't have as much open floor space - in the house I could make box piles in nearly every room and still navigate. Here, there's only a few spots suitable for packed boxes before we can't actually get around, and I will have a house guest and oh, yeah, that whole wedding business. Nothing much at all!

I know I must sound like I'm treating my kids' big, life changing events as an afterthought - that's not really how it is. If anything I'm treating the MOVE as an afterthought, which is why the last few days of October are going to Suck Mightily, even worse than last year's move here. But there will be lots of fun in between, and I'm so excited about parking my butt in my new place, in my familiar neighborhood and home turf.

I am NOT excited about leaving Asheville - I do really like it here, and if I didn't have to, you know, earn a living and shit, I'd be really happy to live here and just hang out all day, watching GD1 grow up. It's a great place to be a healthy younger financially secure retiree, but unfortunately, I'm only the first two things, and life back where I came from (cursing all the way) is calling.

My son brought Supergirl over yesterday for a play date with the dogs. The front window was open and I heard them arrive, and heard her counting the steps as she climbed the stairs with Daddy, "One...Two...Three...Four!" Then Murphy went complete hysterical stalker crazy, barking, screaming, and Jumping on Her, and no amount of NO! worked. We went to the dog park and tried to tire him out. It didn't work, and he started upsetting Supergirl with his full-on Crazy Love.

So we came back to my place and I finally stuck him in the crate, where he suffered the supreme indignity of watching his Beloved and Sophie playing, running around happy as two little BFFs can be. Sophie loves to play Chase and Hide and Seek, and she's teaching GD1 how it's done, with lots of giggling and merriment (Supergirl) and panting and jumping with joy (Sophie). Then they would pause to exchange kisses, and the games resumed and they played some more.

Murphy was highly disgruntled, watching from his cell, but that's what he gets for being a crazed obsessive stalker. They left before nap time, and we asked Supergirl if she wanted to kiss Murphy goodbye. She looked at him for a moment and said decisively: "No. Kiss Sophie!" (I'd say "Poor Murphy," but he really does act like some twisted, potentially dangerous little stalker that belongs behind bars.)

Although I'm truly happy to be moving back to FL on MY terms, and delighted with the condo and feeling much more positive about my future, I'm going to miss being here, watching this amazing little person grow up. (You don't need new glasses, the picture is sadly blurry.)



Okay, that's probably enough catching up for now. Remind me to tell you how happy I am on a semi-vegan diet, and how it dramatically improved my energy and my joint pain. Who knew?