Oh technology...it's a blessing...and a curse. It seems that the more cool electronic gadgets I acquire the more I lose the attachments and cords and everything that makes them work.
I have an excellent little camera that has served me well in its time but it seems I have lost the cord that hooks it up to my computer. Sad. What's worse is that I have a drawer full of cords in my computer desk containing cords for a million things that I don't actually want to use at this moment. I don't even know what they're for, but I'm afraid to toss them out because they might belong to some other gadget that needs to hook up to something and if I don't have them the world might blow up!
I think, in order to regain my composure, I'm going to do something very old fashioned; walk to the library and check out a book.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
The Winter Doldrums
This time of year is hard for anyone who lives in a cold climate like mine. It seems that the spring will never come and the air will always be cold. After months of fighting off various cold bugs and flu-like-symptoms you just feel drained.
It feels like this winter has been harder than usual; it came on strong in the beginning and stayed cold and snowy for a very long stretch of time. Weather like this requires a strength and mental fortitude that I was not prepared for...and there's still two and a half months left. I've always been a person who embraces the changing seasons, I love the contrast of heat and cold in this climate, but this year is trying. Maybe it's because I haven't taken a vacation, maybe I need to get outside more, who knows?
I've been trying to knit a lot but the problem with knitting is that it takes a long time to make nice warm things. So a sweater that I started in January will probably be done just in time for May. That doesn't do me any good. In the summer the thought of covering yourself with a large woolly sweater-in-the-making is much less attractive but this is really the time when one should be constructing their warm winter goods. Hmm... Knit faster? I suppose I can try...
It feels like this winter has been harder than usual; it came on strong in the beginning and stayed cold and snowy for a very long stretch of time. Weather like this requires a strength and mental fortitude that I was not prepared for...and there's still two and a half months left. I've always been a person who embraces the changing seasons, I love the contrast of heat and cold in this climate, but this year is trying. Maybe it's because I haven't taken a vacation, maybe I need to get outside more, who knows?
I've been trying to knit a lot but the problem with knitting is that it takes a long time to make nice warm things. So a sweater that I started in January will probably be done just in time for May. That doesn't do me any good. In the summer the thought of covering yourself with a large woolly sweater-in-the-making is much less attractive but this is really the time when one should be constructing their warm winter goods. Hmm... Knit faster? I suppose I can try...
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Equal Pay for Equal Work
To very little fanfare the 111th House of Representatives this week passed a bill that will give women more power to demand and receive equitable pay. H.R. 12 or the Paycheck Fairness Act amends the Fair Labor Standards act of 1938 expanding the abilities of women treated unfairly to pursue damages in court and increases the penalties for companies found in violation of this act. It also has provisions for data collection, grants for training and education in negotiation, and awards for companies actively trying to eliminate the gender pay gap.
HOORAY!!
I know that this probably won't make any noticeable difference to me, or to most of the hardworking women standing side by side with men who earn more, but at least it's something. Hopefully it will hit the lawbooks and women who need it will have recourse against their discriminatory employers. And maybe then, after a couple of companies have paid out large damages, other companies will re-evaluate how they figure compensation to ensure that everyone is treated fairly.
Update: This bill was passed by the Senate and is the first bill signed into law by President Obama.
HOORAY!!
I know that this probably won't make any noticeable difference to me, or to most of the hardworking women standing side by side with men who earn more, but at least it's something. Hopefully it will hit the lawbooks and women who need it will have recourse against their discriminatory employers. And maybe then, after a couple of companies have paid out large damages, other companies will re-evaluate how they figure compensation to ensure that everyone is treated fairly.
Update: This bill was passed by the Senate and is the first bill signed into law by President Obama.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Knitting for me!
Okay...I'm kind of ashamed to admit it but...I'm super excited to be knitting for me! While I like making things for other people I really knit just because I like to have the warm fuzzy soft things all to myself. I love yarn and wool and knitted things; that's why I knit by hand. And to make things that I know are just for me makes me so happy! Especially when I know that I am getting better and better at knitting and my finished goods are more beautiful than ever before. MMmmmm...I'm thinking of all the wonderful possibilities right now. I just made this hat for Mr. Yarn and I am getting very excited about making a much prettier one for me.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Happy New Year!
Happy new year to all! I hope this is the best year ever for everyone reading. Congratulations on making it through another year and may luck be your lady in the next.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Come and gone
Well Christmas is over and a new year is upon us. I think my one and only resolution for next year will be to NOT attempt to make all of my Christmas presents. I always think it sounds like such a good idea and then the reality of it kicks me in the face. Too much stress, I'm just going to make things for people and give them to them whenever I feel like it, they'll get UnChristmas presents, that sounds like much more fun doesn't it?
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Saving Money
Ever since the stock markets went into free-fall and the economy went sour I have noticed an abundance of money saving tips in pretty much every publication and internet post in existence. Most of these tips are benign and maybe slightly useful, but there is one that keeps surfacing that irks me: Save money by knitting.
To paraphrase Mr. T, I pity the fool who takes up knitting to save money.
Here's a rundown of what things cost me; I'll use the raspberry hat from a couple of posts ago for an example: One skein of the chunky Brown Sheep yarn costs $15.00. The hat took me at least 3 hours to make and at my current labor rate (from my employer) that would be about $60.00. $75.00 for a hat. That's not including the needles used to make it which I already owned and would cost about $8.00. Plus the design work which probably adds up to another hour. Hmmm...doesn't look like we're saving a lot of dough.
Yes, you can buy cheap 3dollar yarn from Wal-Mart and make something that's lumpy and ugly but you can also buy a warm and decent hat for 3dollars from Ragstock, and if you're really interested in saving money I'd suggest the Ragstock option.
Learning to knit with cheap acrylic yarn is asking for failure, frustration and disappointment. It's hard to work with, hard to fix errors and never looks good in the end. You'll end up spending twice as much time making something that looks half as good. That's not saving anything, especially sanity. If you want to learn to knit do it because you want to make something and learn a new skill, not because you want to save money. There are no shortcuts. The personal reward for producing something that is lasting, functional, and beautiful is immense. When you try to pinch pennies on materials or time, you are only shortchanging yourself.
To paraphrase Mr. T, I pity the fool who takes up knitting to save money.
Here's a rundown of what things cost me; I'll use the raspberry hat from a couple of posts ago for an example: One skein of the chunky Brown Sheep yarn costs $15.00. The hat took me at least 3 hours to make and at my current labor rate (from my employer) that would be about $60.00. $75.00 for a hat. That's not including the needles used to make it which I already owned and would cost about $8.00. Plus the design work which probably adds up to another hour. Hmmm...doesn't look like we're saving a lot of dough.
Yes, you can buy cheap 3dollar yarn from Wal-Mart and make something that's lumpy and ugly but you can also buy a warm and decent hat for 3dollars from Ragstock, and if you're really interested in saving money I'd suggest the Ragstock option.
Learning to knit with cheap acrylic yarn is asking for failure, frustration and disappointment. It's hard to work with, hard to fix errors and never looks good in the end. You'll end up spending twice as much time making something that looks half as good. That's not saving anything, especially sanity. If you want to learn to knit do it because you want to make something and learn a new skill, not because you want to save money. There are no shortcuts. The personal reward for producing something that is lasting, functional, and beautiful is immense. When you try to pinch pennies on materials or time, you are only shortchanging yourself.
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