A quiet night, a stack of books, a tuna melt on rye

I have finished the first stage of my swap bag. I'm super happy with the results of the color work although the shape is a little wonky. I think I managed to block most of the wonkyness out, but we will see after it dries. I guess this means I need to get my butt to JoAnns to get some fabric for the lining and a zipper. Or maybe a button. I'm not sure what kind of closure to use yet. Anyone have a preference for their bags?

First off, a picture from the ( prom party... )
( Then some knitting projects )

First off, my cousin and his wife are having a little girl for whom I've been making a sweater.  It's lacy and yellow and will have little sunflower buttons all down the front (and is entirely machine washable).  Now my mother had informed me that she was due towards the beginning of April, and I adjusted my knitting time frame around that.  Today, my father (who is apparently more up on these things) said that no she is really due on March 2 and that every thinks it will be an early birth.  I don't think I'm going to be done and shipped on time.  Well at least I did a larger version of the pattern, so she probably wont be able to wear the sweater for a while anyway. 

Next, I played the civilization board game, last night with some friends.  It was the second time we'd played and both times Egypt has won.  Somehow, I think it may add something to the game to play it in a room full of archaeologists.  We spent the evening arguing over which city each black dot was supposed to represent and describing our skirmishes in the game as various historical battles.  I was Crete, which I love because each of the pieces has a little representation of the famous bull jumping paintings.  Yeah! 

I seem to have developed a reputation within our gaming group of being the rediculously nice one.  I deal out the damage I have to equally among other players instead of heaping it all on one person.  I also tend to not make a big production about how well I'm doing in the game and will often come out of seemingly no where at the end to win.  Sometimes being quiet has its advantages.  I do find being known as the "nice one" funny, because I was playing will all people I work with (save one) and at work I'm always being told how mean I am.  Really people, make up your minds. 

Also I can't wait for Thursday.  I've taken five days off work to attend the Gallifrey One convention in LA.  Maybe this year I will actually talk to some of the guests, since I've seen more of classic who and actually listened to some of the Big Finish Audios, so I wont feel like as much of a poser talking to someone.  I'll have actually seen/listened to their work. 

    Georgia is a lot further away from Louisiana than it looks.  I always forget that until I'm in the car; usually around the fourth hour or so it hits me.  We left at 10:00 am central and arrived at 9:00 pm eastern, which gave me time to work on the  Little Devil Pants  for my cousins and listen to Little Women  courtesy of LibriVox.  It will, however, make it slightly more difficult to wake up for work tomorrow. 

    Also, I finished  The Gun Seller, which I enjoyed, but not nearly as much as I was expecting to enjoy it.  It was very funny.  But I felt like I spent the whole novel going "that's funny, I should laugh at that" instead of actually laughing.  I can't decide whether this was a case of me over-hyping the  book to myself before starting based on other people's hype, or whether I just couldn't fully appreciate a spy novel satire because I don't read that many spy novels. 

This week we found, in no particular order:

• A Historic Standing Structure (read abandoned house).  That means more paperwork, bah! Also actual stuff, Yippy!  Also, I get to use the icon again, so that makes me happy. 
  
• The hills of Louisiana.  Louisiana is not supposed to be a hill filled state.  It is actually quite flat.  However, I feel like I've been mountain climbing for the past two days.  And it doesn't look like the hills leave anytime soon.  We're supposed to be surveying the second highest peak sometimes this week, which may or may not be home to some endangered weasels.  Yeah, that's what I thought. 
  

And I learned:

•     Falling is a lot more annoying when you're carrying things in each hand.  As I traversed the hills there was a certain amount of slippage, which has resulted in a knot on my forehead where I hit it with the shovel and a bruise under my breast where I fell on the screen.  This job may be the death of me.  Of course, that could also be my extreme clumsiness. 
  
• That I should look into learning about historic standing structures.  The paperwork wants you to identify certain aspects of the structures including overall style and feature style.  Really the only housing style I can consistently recognize is Victorian and there are not a lot of those around here. 
  
• I get six days off for Mardi Gras!
• Tuna Fish made with poppy seed dressing and avocado is quite good. 
  

In other news, I am knitting myself a pair of multi-colored fish net thigh highs.  That may possibly be the coolest thing I've ever done, resulting in the coolest clothing I've ever owned.  Now I just need an occasion to wear them.  And maybe a garter belt.

    By special request of
zooropababy
 I will in fact up date this journal.  For those of you following along at home  (which I am quite sure is exactly four people) you will notice that I update under two circumstances: extreme boredom and employment changes.  This update involves both. 
    As my six-month employment gig at small-archaeology-firm-pennsylvania ended at the end of December, I found myself some work at much-larger-firm-Louisiana.  This necessitated my packing my worldly possessions - at least the ones I think I might possibly at some time need - in the trunk of my car and driving to Louisiana.  I am currently in a Days Inn in Birmingham, hence my boredom. Interesting parts of my trip so far include:

1. Discovering that I have watched way too much CSI, when upon locating my room in the Days Inn in Roanoke, VA my immediate thought is "I'm in murder central".  I was in fact in the last room on the floor right next to the exterior stairway leading to the parking lot.


2.  Receiving a phone call from the field supervisor while at the Alabama Welcome Center in which he informs me that he just found out that I was hired, and could I come to Georgia for January 8.  I had sudden visions of driving back to PA only to turn around and do this again next week.  Instead, I will be going on to Monroe as originally planned
   

Tonight I will have quite possibly the most interesting New Year's Eve ever, in which I sit in a hotel room and knit sweater sleeves. 

I feel really productive today as I:

1. Got my oil changed

2. Picked up my last JoAnn's paycheck and exchanged the two skeins of green chunky yarn for two skeins of green worsted weight yarn, so that I have the appropriate materials for the sweater I want to make.

3. Checked out the West Chester Grower's Market. Yay! locally produced fresh vegetables! Also, Yay Amish people! I got cucumbers, dill, potatoes, and carrots. Now I shall make a dilled carrot and potato salad. Really, someday I will convince myself that I like to cook.

4. Returned books to the library - but then I do that every Saturday, so it's not really a surprise. Sadly Reefer Madness had to go back. I may need to get a personal copy as what is better than a musical based on 1930's propaganda about pot.

5. Divested my closet of the clothing that I no longer plan to wear.

6. Went food shopping for things not found at the grower's market, like milk and bread and the yummy macaroni salad.

Of course, the one thing I really needed to do - get my car inspected - did not work out, so I shall have to make an appointment for later in the week.

In other news, after a week of being a Archaeological Lab Technician I can safely say that I am in fact working with rocks, lots and lots of rocks. I get to wash the rocks, divide the rocks based on size and type, count the rocks, and finally weigh the rocks. Occasionally, I get a rock that was actually shaped into a stone tool, but most of the time, just rocks. I love my job, it is so cool!

Today I taught myself to knit. Anyone want a scarf?

Also I purchased a digital camera to I could take pictures of bananas. Wow has my life gone down the hill lately, and its all the bananas fault. I'm not even allowed to turn the airconditioner down for fear of making them unhappy.

My emmy experience is now complete, someone that I wanted to win finally has. Felicity Huffman is my hero. See icon.