Brief summary of the last month; more obligatory Claire pics

[oceantheorem]

 I just realized I haven't even really posted text in a while.  Man, I'm such a blog slacker.

The last few weekends have been so much fun.  Three weeks ago Jim and I went to a beer festival with two of our good friends.  Jim doesn't drink, but the rest of us sampled all sorts of different beers from microbreweries all over Michigan.  The best one I tasted was actually from a brewery about two miles from where Jim's parents live, so we've resolved to go back there so I can buy a warehouse full of their beer.  Jim drove us all to our weekly Friday night tabletop gaming group after the beer festival, which was quite amusing.  The group is up to about 10 people now, which is absurd for a tabletop adventuring group, but somehow it is usually still fun.

The following weekend the same friend who hosts the tabletop game threw a huge party for his Warcraft guild.  They are on the same server Jim and I play on, and we knew a bunch of the members (including one of the people who went to the beer festival with us, and who only comes to this part of the state on rare occasions), so we were invited as well.  It took up most of a Saturday night and lasted well into the small hours of Sunday morning and was just a fantastic get together.  I got to meet a couple of really awesome new people, too.  Afterwards I moved one of my characters into their guild so I could hang out with them online.

Last weekend we finally started back up with another tabletop gaming session that had been suspended for most of the summer while one of our group members bought a house and moved.  We finally met up in his basement, along with two new people, and even though we ended up spending literally half the time we were there helping the new guys create characters, we had a really fun evening.  The four of us who were playing ended up killing off a really scary level 6 bear of some sort, but Jim (who is the dungeon master) had rolled a 100 on his percentile dice (he rolls them to see how awful our random encounter is going to be, and 100 is the worst possible) decided that our victory over it had been too easy and that with a 100 we probably should have died.  So he sent a level 11 elite dire bear after us.  We were level 3 and 4.

We killed it.

It was pretty much the best D&D moment ever.

This week I decided I needed to make some knitting friends, so I used the location search on Ravelry to find a group in this area.  I finally found one that had active threads in their forum, so I introduced myself.  They get together on Wednesday nights about three miles from my apartment, so Wednesday I headed over there and met up with 3 of them.  We sat outside (it was a beeeeaaauuuutiful evening) and knitted for about 3 hours.  I was by far the youngest, but they were very nice women and it was fun to be able to talk knitting.  Also, they told me about the Michigan Fiber Festival, which is this weekend on the other side of the state, and when I expressed interest, one of them offered me a ride!!  So I am meeting her at her house tomorrow morning at 6 am and we're going to drive across the state so I can fondle pretty pretty yarns.

Also this week, Jim and I decided we needed a break from Warcraft, so we're going Tuesday to Tuesday without logging in at all.  The funny thing is, what I miss is not playing my max-level characters.  What I really want to do is log in and level some of my level 20-something characters on different servers.  I think the time for an extended break from Warcraft is imminent, though.  Just not really enjoying the experience anymore.

Also also this week, my boss told me I can start working full time.  He got me a new computer, so I don't have to shuffle around where I'm working depending on what day it is, what time of day it is, and who else is in the office (Thursdays were the worst; I had to use 3 different computers on Thursdays based on who was in the office and what times they worked).  So I now have a Real Job(tm).  Still poor though!  Cross your fingers he gives me a raise to go with the new full-time status.

Lastly, one of my friends from the tabletop gaming groups decided he wants a Dr. Who scarf.  It is a foot-wide, 14-foot-long monstrosity in 8 colors.  I originally estimated it would take me 12 weeks to knit it.  But I am getting paid!  Also it is taking a fraction of the time I predicted.  I'm a quarter through after only about 2.5 weeks of knitting (which I guess means it will still take 10 weeks, but hey, 5/6 is still a fraction.......).
I would post current pictures of my progress, but apparently Jim has my camera at his parents' house, where he is documenting the process of putting a new engine in his car (the old one blew up last week)(no one was hurt).

(obligatory picture of the cat)

The yarn for this scarf weighs FOUR POUNDS.  There are 28 skeins of yarn total.  Claire checked the box to make sure there were no ninjas.


My progress as of sometime last week.


Pretty colors!!!


Current progress.

And lastly (really lastly this time)... in February I knit baby sweaters for a guy in my guild whose girlfriend was having twins.  Finally got pictures of said twins wearing said sweaters.

Now to just knit three or four more of them for the 18 million people who are pregnant right now.  I've been REALLY productive with knitting lately, so that's a good sign...


Also, I'm pretty sure this entry in itself proves that I never was, nor ever will be, cool.  
tabletop games + Warcraft + knitting + crazy cat lady = completely uncool
Maybe the bit about the beer festival helped?

Comments

[alchymyst.livejournal.com]

Beer festival.. so it's knitting+drunken crazy cat lady. not helping.

[oceantheorem.livejournal.com]

Damnit.

[krisology.livejournal.com]

I was just telling Kayla today how much I miss you and our knitting parties. I've been getting more productive with knitting lately too - generally I hate knitting in the summer because it's too stinkin' hot.

I'd kill myself if I had to knit anything that was FOURTEEN FEET LONG though. GROSS.

I think I love Claire. I want to come play with her. Well, and you too I guess. And we should go out for sushi. And then knit afterward. Bwah! It is brilliant plan.

Also I totally got the pattern, thank you thank you thank you!

[oceantheorem.livejournal.com]

Aww. I miss you too. :-( And our knitting parties were freakin awesome.

The scarf isn't so bad. And since I'm going to the fiber festival tomorrow I have five hours in the car to work on it, so that should give me a good foot more... and remember, I'm getting PAID to knit it!!

I would love love love to have you come visit and go to sushi and knit with me. Claire would like it too.

Let me know if you have any problems with the pattern, or if you can't read it or something. It's pretty quick to knit! Hopefully that will work out for you. I like that it is knitted flat.

[thewierdmormon.livejournal.com]

Are you kidding? RPGs + Warcraft + knitting + cats + lady = FULLY AWESOME! ;)

[oceantheorem.livejournal.com]

You're clearly biased! :-P

[amagi82.livejournal.com]

You are SUCH a nerd. :D

[theknittinglamb.wordpress.com (from livejournal.com)]

Fiber festivals? I love fiber festivals! Hope you had a wonderful time. I'm going to call you about 80 times from Rhinebeck to tell you I miss you like crazy. Consider yourself forewarned.

Attempting the Dr. Who scarf is very, very, very, very brave. You are a greater garter stitch queen than I.

[oceantheorem.livejournal.com]

Oh man, it was amazing. I broke down and bought a drop spindle (the ladies from the local knitting guild are horrible enablers and I blame them completely).

I will be so jealous when you go to Rhinebeck. When is it? October?

The Dr. Who scarf has seemed much more boring since I came home with two skeins of lace, some roving, and a drop spindle. Only knit about four inches since I got back. Sigh... Only 8 more feet to go...