Still Haven't Fallen Off!

Today at the gym, I finally had a successful treadmill outing. I used to treadmill all the time and prefer it to running outside, actually (how far have I gone now? ok, how 'bout NOW?). At some point, though, I got accustomed to running on the street, in part, I think, because by running away from one's final destination, you're somewhat guaranteed a more respectable amount of total miles because, hey, you've got to run back to your starting point before you can stop. Otherwise, I am NOT good at making myself keep running when I don't feel like it.

This street running worked splendidly through the middle of January (I know, I was amazed, too!), but now the air is consistently below freezing and the roads are snowy, icy, and generally slippery. So back to the treadmill it is.

The transition hasn't been fun, to say the least. Either my calves were in pain because of the adjustment, or I'd get this weird motion-sickness thing, or I'd just plain get BORED without changing scenery to look at. But today, today, it finally clicked again. My MP3 player, set to shuffle, gave me a bunch of high-energy songs to keep me motivated, and I pushed myself to run faster, rather than just going through the motions and calling it a day.

And I managed not to fall off the back of the 'dmill, slamming into the concrete wall in an amazing display of klutziness. I always consider this a victory.

The New 'Do

I just got back from getting a HAIRCUT! Yay! Goodbye, long, stringy hair that only looks good for about two seconds after I brush it. Hello, cute, fun, more professional look. I feel so much lighter! My hair swings and moves now!

!!!! Yay!

Before and after:

I've got mail!

You know those post cards that letter carriers leave in your mailbox when they have a package to deliver but you aren't home to accept it? There was one in my mail yesterday. So exciting! Someone sent me a package! What could it be?

I'll tell you what it could be. It could be the sandwich I spent $25 to send halfway across the country by super-fast-overnight shipping more than TWO MONTHS ago. The sandwich that (obviously) never made it to its intended destination, the sandwich that showed up in the postal service's records as 'delivered' (so no refund for me, thanks) has been sitting unclaimed all this time, and has now boomeranged itself back to me. Shut up, boomerang is too a verb!

Sigh. Instead of a thoughtful package from someone who was thinking of me, all I got was a big, cosmic slap in the face.

And, can I just say, ew. Freezer packs do. not. stay cold for two months.

Fortunate

Oh. Kay. Here's what the sweater looks like for real. Still not great pictures, but they give a better sense of the sweater that took forever and a day to knit (damn you, size 2 needles). It might not be entirely realistic because I don't often stand in super-hero pose like this (well, there was Halloween, but that's not representative of my life), but you get the idea.

Also, I decided I'm really glad I decided to call this thing "Fortunate." Because I am. My life, she is good. :)

I don't knit ALL the time!

And now for something entirely different...

I have wonderful friends. Here are some of them! Yay!

It'll have to do

Ok. So I've got a picture of my latest sweater. Unfortunately, my latest sweater is not very photogenic. It's a lace cardigan in a dark yarn, and the camera flash lighting is far from flattering, if that's even possible for a garment.

The pattern I started with was Lucky from Debbie Stoller's Stitch N Bitch Nation. I made so many changes, however, that I'm calling the sweater "Fortunate." The sleeves are shorter (I ran out of yarn). I used snap closures instead of a side tie (didn't quite get the side tie conceptually, plus, again, I ran out of yarn). And I did more waist shaping than was called for because I always do.

I might put up a picture of how the sweater looks on me, but first I'll have to figure out what to wear under it. Because it needs something under it, for sure. It's lace. :)

Tentative "ta-dah!"