Blogtoberfest

Thanks to Stacy, I hopped on another train of opportunity/challenge. BigCat is hosting a Blogtoberfest. Those who hopped on this wagon are going to try to post everyday of the month.

First, I post pretty often anyway, so mostly this will up the weekend posts.

Secondly, there is a whole new-to-me world of bloggers doing this, so...more blog fodder!

Thirdly, I have selected some handspun yarn, and some hand-dyed roving for 'my celebration of 1312 unique readers over 9 months of blogging blather give-away'. Come back tomorrow for details and photos.

Fourthly, I mentioned Kathleen in Peru in yesterday's post, and forgot to link her. Apologies! (Remembering late is still remembering!) Kathleen commented on my FOL Sale post about the scarcity of local public libraries in Lima. It struck to my heart. I cannot imagine. I can take much for granted.

And that wraps up today's post!

Since January...

I started this little effort of a blog in January, and decided to track my stats shortly thereafter. It was a big decision on my part. Was I doing this just for me? Did I really care if anyone read my musing? Or where they came from...which is about as far as Google Analytics & Blogger takes me...or as far as I have figured out how to go with either....

Yes, the blog was for me, but I decided to track the stats, because I am that way. I am an analytical chemist, and those things are important. And I am a recovering codependent, and what other people think still plays a role in my life. (See. Awareness, and that is the first step!)

On any given day, I will check my stats for the day before, and go on with my life, but yesterday, I thought to see if I could check back to the beginning of time, as it were. I could!

Since Analytics started paying attention to me, I have had:

3859 visits (I am pretty sure only 1617 of those were from my sisters!)
1312 unique visitors
6744 page views
with the US, Canada, the UK, Peru (hi, Kathleen!), Australia, France, Netherlands, and Germany most heavily represented.
Ravelry has sent the most referrals (I love me some knitterly folk!), and 'Naked Cowboy' was the most interesting keyword searched.

More than the numbers, this blog has given me an outlet for connection with others I would never have connected with in any other way, and, totally unlooked for, with whom I have built relationships. I have been inspired with what you have done, learned with you, knit along with you, and laughed with you. This gives me a opportunity to put out there some things I have learned, formulate thoughts, show off a little, share much, and be accountable.

Thanks for reading. I think this calls for a give-away, a celebration of 1312 unique readers over 9 months of blogging blather give-away. I will spend the weekend in search of some appropriate fibery goodness and let you all know what I found on Monday.

P.S. Guess what I found while putting away my books...my copy of the 'Princess Bride'. I had looked all over for it a few months past. ALL over. Well, I now have two copies...one for each hand.

FOL Sale!

Boy oh boy! Today...well...this weekend is one of my favorites of the whole year. It is the weekend of the Friends of the Library booksale. It opened at at 8 or 9, and I could barely contain myself until I took my lunch at 11.

I present my haul for your inspection!

This does not include the 12 step meditation books I picked up for passing along AT. SUCH. GOOD. PRICES!!

I went with two particular titles in mind this time, along with a general list of authors, and random ideas of picking up knitting, quilting, and gardening books. Really, at $2 and $3 per hardback, one can't go wrong. If I end up not liking a title, I donate it back to the library (and get a charitable deduction!).

But I digress. My search was for two of my favorite books of all time. And I found them.

Behold! The Princess Bride, which Dearest Sister turned me onto in high school, waaaaaaay before the movie. When they made the movie, we were both skeptical at first, but were pleased when we saw the end product.


And The Phantom Tollbooth. I was read this in grade school, and was entranced by Milo's story. I remember it to this day. I found a copy of each of these earlier in my life, but they have escaped me. Don't ask me how. I don't loan books. (Their mine, mine, I tell you, all MINE!)

Now I have copies again.

On a side note...on my way back to work...I was caught by the infamous noontime Fort Collins trains and their engine switching. For 35 freaking minutes!

At least I had reading material.

Dealing With The Stress

The ups and downs at work continues. It appears that perhaps the end of all the unknowing is around the corner. Time will tell. The end of last month has turned into the middle this month, but then again....the first of the week is now Friday, so maybe the middle of the month is really November 7th... or even later. I know, it makes no sense, and I can't be more specific.

In the meantime, I go from day to day, thinking I am going to be able to wait this thing out, then swinging to doubting if the deal is going to be enough soon enough.

Mostly, I am somewhere in the middle, and handling pretty well…mostly...I think. Probably one would get a better, and more objective, opinion from Wonderful Guy. I might really be freaking out. I don’t know.

I know this. I am not obsessing about the need to know the future like I have done in the past. I am trying to work each day as if…as if I knew everything was going exactly like it needed to be. As if it was all going to turn out exactly like it needed to be.

I am trying to do that, not always 100% successful, but working at it. It’s a better place to be than continually worrying about things I can do nothing about. Better to take the steps I can take, to do the things I feel led to do, ask the questions to find out the facts I need, then make the decisions that are right for me, regardless of what is right for others.

Mostly.

On the Needles of Iron

Fall flowers from my yard. Asters and mums, all with their best hats on!

We have sox of alpaca, my own recipe, my own handspun. (Such the earth woman she is!)

mmmmm….squoooshy on my feet they will be!

We have a sunflower dishcloth from Mason-Dixon Knitting.

Very, very fun, and sunny! #2 is on the needles now. So many ends to weave, but so worth it! (Note: Pattern calls for many colors used for the center, but I used a variegated yarn.)

We have stocking stuffers using up lots of blue cotton yarn (thank you, Wisest Sister)!

Green, eco-friendly shopping bags from Plymouth Yarns…well, blue really…but still eco-friendly!

And the project which cannot be named.

Whatever can it be? And for whom? And for which I can find no pattern on line....

And FIVE Calorimetries (from Knitty). I have one more to go.



I hope they are appreciated and that they fit! Most are made with handspun, too.

And the ubiquitous 4-corner dishcloth for 1870 Pearl. With matchy matchy tribble (same site).
My favorite dishcloth pattern ever. Ever. And of which I have no photo because I forgot when taking all these others.

(See. Lots going on here besides complaining.)