How not to end a vacation

25 hours in airports and airplanes. That's a lot of hours. It is, in fact, 4 inches of a sock that both my feet fit in, ripping the sock back, trying again for 2 inches with the right size but horrible colour pooling, 2 entire Dwarrowdelf repeats, 3 Eddings books, and a 45 minute nap. I flew back via 4 cities and two airlines, and 3 countries, and now I'm very tired.

The vacation was lovely though. MM and W got married, and the wedding was beautiful and sweet and lots of fun. All the pre-parties were fun too, although exhausting, since I plunged straight into them after 1 night's sleep. Jet lag plus busy days keeps things interesting. I also attended my first professional baseball game (the very creative rehearsal dinner) and it turns out I think baseball is boring in person too.

The day after the wedding, rather than relaxing, R and I flew back to KS for a week of hanging out with the dogs. I got bumped to first class, and actually felt like I had enough room. That was excellent. Mom 1.0 and B came to visit for a couple days, and we sent a vanload of stuff back to Parents 1.o's house to store until we can ship it here. The puppies were super happy to see me!

We attended opening night of Macbeth, got my wedding ring sized up so I can wear it again, brushed Quasar until all the matted fur was gone, and shared lots of chocolate. It was a good trip, although a little short.

Things that are happening

I've been getting together all the papers so we can get R's visa. Since I'm a "highly skilled worker" he automatically gets a work permit, which is making this process a little easier. Since he was born on a military base in Europe, the paperwork has been a giant pain. I registered our marriage at Gemeente Delft, which is like a city hall. That part was easy, since I just had to take the marriage certificate, its apostille, and my residence card (which I'm legally required to carry all the time anyway) to the building and hand them to the people there. However, I recieved a new form to fill out, which had some awkward spots. Since R is still in the states, he doesn't have a visa number yet; what goes there? Do I have to mail it to him to sign, or can we fax it? Naturally, I didn't read the form thoroughly until I got home, so I couldn't ask about it. I have it (I think) all ready to go, though, so it gets mailed to R tomorrow. Just as soon as I find out where to buy stamps.

The world cup is over, and I haven't heard a vuvuzela since. Pure awesome.

I tried fixing my bike tire, but I think the hole was too big. O very thoughtfully loaned me a tire repair kit, and explained how to use it. The whole process was pretty simple, I'm just not sure it worked. I suspect I'll need to buy a new inner tire (this is like, 5 Euros or so) and learn how to replace that. Fun times! I like fixing things. I had planned to take pictures of the tire patching process, but my hands had too much adhesive on them to be touching my lovely camera.

Now that I've been paid again, I'm planning an exciting trip to IKEA. I really need a new mattress, so I don't have to sleep on the perpetually falling apart bed, and I could use a couple picture frames. Plus, IKEA is fun to wander, and Delft has a ginormous* one.

R and I have had some more activity with showing the house since we lowered the price again. We're giving it a couple more weeks, and then are probably going to take it to auction. We've reached a point where as long as we have to keep paying the mortgage, we're losing money, so it's better just to cut it loose now. Besides, we're young, and can earn more money later.

I need to find a tailor, or borrow someone's sewing machine, to fix a tiny fit problem on the dress I bought for MM's wedding. The top needs to come in by about half an inch, and the hemline could definitely be raised an inch or so. I could do it myself with a machine, but I'm not hand stitching it, because I really really don't enjoy hand sewing at all. This is very apparent in my choice of knitting patterns, which rarely require any seaming. Granted, that's also partly because it's cheaper to buy a sock's worth of yarn than a sweater's, but still. That's not my point, which is that hand sewing is tedious and sharp. I am a huge fan of nice blunt plastic yarn needles, I must admit.

I'm impatient to finish the second red sock in the pair, because I really want to use the leftover red yarn with leftover brown from the previous socks and make a nice pretty scarf or something.

July has just flown by here, partly due to the week I had a migraine, I'm sure. I'm way behind on pictures, so I've added a handful of old ones. The only unusual thing I've done was have a BBQ (by this, people here mean grilling out as a social group, not actual BBQ-ing) with all the roommates. However, as it started raining right as we sat down to eat the first course, I didn't get many pictures after we finished prepping all the food, because we were busy running inside with all the stuff, and then finishing the cooking under an awning as the rain poured down. It was fun though!

*Is ginormous really a word? The spell check doesn't underline it, but does underline IKEA. Which is even stranger, since spell checkers usually assume all caps words are acronyms, and therefore not subject to normal spellings.

Downtime

For the past bit of time, my life has been pretty bumpy. Moving, starting a new job, and adjusting to a long distance relationship are complicated enough when you speak the native language, let alone when you don't. This week, I shall be studying cheese words so I know what I want to get at the grocery store. I've had to adapt to reading signs with a million "j's" in them, navigating public transport, buying groceries without reading the ingredients, walking everywhere, streets that don't form a perfect 1 mile square grid, and interrupting people to tell them I don't speak Dutch. Not to mention buying stuff I didn't have space to bring (like towels! towels are very important!) and settling in with three roommates who were essentially total strangers. Plus that whole starting a PhD thing.

So other than shopping, my free time has all been downtime. I have been killing Mario (seriously, I cannot beat this level) and knitting.

My knitting has been a little sporadic, what with the wicked case of start-itis I've developed, but I do have some links to pretty pictures!

Lace
MM's blue merino/silk lace is finally done! A link to a photo will be added later, when I have a photo. The blue lace is all put away, and I don't feel like getting it back out yet. That was definitely my longest project to date, and my first laceweight, lace knitting, and beading project, all in one! I am quite happy with how it turned out. When I started it, I was hoping it would be ready this summer when she gets home from deployment, and I certainly beat that deadline! I've found that I really like lace knitting. It's interesting, and complicated, and blocking it is really fun. I started a green lace project to replace it, but it has since been frogged. I kept ending up with extra stitches, even though it doesn't look like there's an error in the pattern. On a Friday when I couldn't get into work but had already come to Utrecht, I found a yarn shop and bought some purple laceweight. (Actually, I found the shop by accident, and I went in to buy a new row counter since I left mine in NYC, and somehow ended up with a ball of purple laceweight.) I have making a lovely beaded cowl with it, and it is pretty much the quickest pattern ever!

Blanket
The blanket I started for an airplane project is finally done! Of course, it's June and it's a wool blanket, so in all likelihood it's just going to go in the closet, but that's not the point.

Socks
I've also been on a bit of a sock jag lately. I decided to learn to make socks, and the construction of a complex 3D object is simply fascinating. However, the sock yarns I had before I left were super cheap cottons, and I have learned that 100% cotton makes my hands pretty darn tired. I currently have 2 pairs completed, 1 half pair (I'm not sure I like it) and 1 partial sock. The partial sock was started to have something to do on the train, and I really like the DPNs it's on. I'm super excited to start socks with my fabulous new Imagination yarn, but it's in skeins and I haven't wanted to wind it into balls yet. Also, I should really finish the pairs that I've started first.

Scarf
Speaking of fabulous Imagination sock yarn, I've started a scarf with the Evil Stepmother colorway, because it was too pretty for socks. I was working on it while listening to the end of Good Omens, or the Nice and Accurate Prophesies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (the audiobook is the only thing that made the blanket possible) but the book has since ended. Side note, it's an awesome book, and you should read it.

Silk
I've restarted the recycled sari silk project, and it's going much better this time. Since I don't know the yardage of my yarn, and I'm not about to unwind the balls and measure, this project will hopefully be a wrap, but could end up a pillow or purse. I'll just have to see as I use the yarn up. This yarn is absolutely impossible to accurately photograph.

Code is awesome when it works

4:45 PM
I am running code. In fact, I'm waiting for it to finish. I'm also trying to figure out what time would be normal to leave, since I'm now at KNMI instead of on campus. Also, this code is hella sexy. Seriously, it's amazing. This is FORTRAN with a GUI, running on a ton of processors. Sometimes. I got an error today because the code (doing some sort of finite element analysis over a fair chunk of the coastline over a 6 hour period) was running on too many processors. I hadn't made the simulation complicated enough for it to use all the processing power available. Which means the code is efficient too. Awesome.

Anyway, I hope the Aeroboys read this, because no one else will relate to the geekiness in that first paragraph.

It's been an exciting day here in science research land! Having gotten used to the routine of going to campus every day, today I switched it up and took two trains to Utrecht. I usually like having routines, especially considering how crazy everything else is currently, so the morning was a little stressful. I made the train connection and got to Utrecht with plenty of time, and then I got help from CS finding bus tickets. I met an entirely new batch of people, even though I'm still working on names from my uni dept, and around 2pm I finally had a computer set up.

The downside of meeting new people today is that they're all significantly taller than me. Like, way way taller. Three of the people in this group have hit the 2m (that's about 6' 7") mark. It's ridiculous.

Getting on the train at all was pretty exciting, since it's nearly impossible to buy train tickets for the nearby station without a Dutch bank account. The smaller station only has machines, and they only take debit cards and coins. I certainly didn't have €21 in coins! My debit card doesn't work because US cards use a different format than EU ones. Most ATMs can handle both, but not a lot of other machines. I cannot wait to get a bank account! E bought the train tickets online for me, which was super nice of her.

I can knit about 2 inches of sock on the train ride from Rotterdam to Utrecht, so the new coffee break socks are growing pretty fast. I might need to rename them train socks, since I've been doing most of the knitting on the trains instead of during the coffee breaks.

The bus ticket thing is an elegant bit of technology, I think. I got a plastic card, and loaded it with a chosen amount of money, and then I just hold it up to a scanner (this takes like 2 seconds) when I get on the bus, hold it up again when I get off, and it deducts the fare for however far I went. You don't even have to slide the card, just hold it by the machine. It's quick and easy, both good when dealing with public transportation. I *think* I can put more money on it online, although I bet I need a bank account for that.

Code's still running. Yay for running code!

I've applied for a bank account at a local bank. It was pretty hard comparing banks online, because they don't have much in the way of English pages. They all seem pretty similar. I picked based on ease of understanding the Dutch, bank locations, and the fact that I could start the process online, which is helpful when banks aren't open on the weekends, when I could actually go to one. According to F, I picked the one most like a credit union, which I'm somewhat amused by.

I think the code finished! Why, in fact it did! And it worked! You wouldn't BELIEVE how much data this puts out. This is a huge improvement from last week. As it's now 6PM and I have an hour train ride to go, I think I shall be heading home.

Happy birthday to J!

Some random observations

1. It's much more pleasant walking through parking lots when all the cars are small.
2. Grocery shopping in a language you don't speak is challenging, especially at the open-air market.
3. A "short walk" here is much longer than a "short walk" in the states. The expectation that you would walk or bike to the market that's 2 km away is pretty motivating though, and it was a really nice walk.
4. Sidewalk construction projects get done really fast. Particularly strange is that I've never seen anyone actually working on the sidewalk, but each day the project has progressed about 20m farther.
5. Coffee breaks are sacred. That's awesome.
6. They sometimes serve free alcohol at university-sponsored events. A lot of it.
7. I should have brought my farmer's market bag with me, since the ubiquitous plastic grocery bag is pretty absent here. Luckily, my purses are big.
8. Having a roommate (F) who has lived in town for 11 years is very helpful. She gives excellent directions.
9. Stores are closed on Sundays, so I have nothing to do today but relax. Also awesome.
10. The cure for boredom with two blue knitting projects is apparently varigated taupe-to-orange socks.
11. The members of my department are very excited to finally have a native English speaker on the team.
12. I get irrationally frustrated when I can't understand Dutch, and apparently think I should have learned it in about 2 days here. I realize this is silly.
13. My Pakistani roommate (S) makes really really delicious food.
14. E's cat, Pasha, is the only animal I've ever met that is as obsessed with people food as Parents 1.0's dog.
15. I am apparently very approachable (or look like I know where I'm going) because people keep stopping me to ask for directions. I have yet to be able to help anyone.
16. I really like the lack of pickups and SUVs. It makes walking along streets seem much safer. Also, it's easier to see street signs.
17. The auto train ticket stands don't work with American cards. They require the fancy new kind with a microchip.
18. Pasha very much likes merino/silk yarn, and spent an hour sleeping on it.
19. I need better shoes. Or to get used to walking so much.
20. There's a website that plans routes for you based on public transportation. It's the best thing ever. Except for having access to public transportation in the first place, which is even better.
21. Kids play outside by themselves here, with no adults in sight. I like that, but it's disorienting.
22. It's hard to think in math after a year of unemployment. Satisfying though.
23. There's an IKEA here. S and I are going, because we both need furniture. I'm excited, and already know what I want to get.
24. Skype cannot register a clear image of Quasar. All the fuzziness screws up the webcam.
25. Everyone I've met so far has been really nice. The first question I get is "How did you get here?!?!" followed by "Where are you from?" and then "Corn, right? and Wizard of Oz?" At least they haven't asked if I grow potatoes, which makes them more conversant with US geography than several coastal Americans I've met.
26. Happy birthday to the lovely AH!

At least I'm not in icy water

Houston Airport: Apr 13, 2PM

Traveling has gone surprisingly well thus far. I even got my ears to pop on descent into Houston!

The Wichita airport was amazing this morning. I was very tearful, because I'm leaving on an adventure and R, Nova, and Quasar aren't, and all the people I had to deal with were simply amazing. The check-in counter guys were quite impressed with my luggage! On my Wii Fit board, one suitcase was at 48 lbs and the other two were juuuuuuuust over 49 lbs. On the airport scale, they were all under 50 lbs, but one of them cheerfully sat at 49.8! So the Wii Fit weighing method worked out nicely, and I am totally the winner. The ticket-checking lady at the beginning of the security line asked if I was okay, and mentioned she always tears up when leaving her grandmother, whch made me feel a lot better. It was so nice of her to take a minute to sympathize. The scanner people were very nice too, and helped me put my laptop back in my very full carry on bag. They were a bit confused by my second battery, but my explanation that a new batter and external charger was cheaper than replacing the motherboard generated sympathy for frustarting computer problems, and some interest in external battery chargers. Security took me all of 5 minutes to get through, and actually made me feel slightly better. When's the last time that happened?

Knitting makes waiting for boarding much nicer. I found my gate, bought a soda, and knit two blanket rows, and then it was time to go. Much better than sitting watching the clock. The flight was fine, with flight attendents who obviously enjoy working with people, and spent a lot of time cracking jokes. I was on an Embraer, a puddle-jumper with only 3 rows of seats, so I had a window and an aisle at the same time. I love getting the single-row seat on little jets. We got stuck sitting on the tarmac for 2 rows of blanket (20 minutes) which was hot and made knitting wool seem a little silly. The flight was fine, although a little bumpy on ascent and descent.

The Houston airport is weird. I'm pretty sure it's been built in stages. We landed in terminal A, and it's hideous. No windows, just flourescent lights, ugly wall coverings in a sad dingy white. Now I'm in terminal E, following the clackity-est shuttle ride ever, and it's so much nicer. Big windows, some with interesting etched patterns, skylights, wide open spaces, and walls that look clean. It's like moving forward about 30 years in terms of design. It's a little warm, but I can live with that. I did want an excuse to wear my new socks though. I have socks and slippers with me, in case my flipflops are too cold in the air. Also, they didn't fit in any of the suitcases. While I ate lunch, I read “Physics of the Impossible” and learned that the word “robot” comes from an old eastern European play about automated workers, and was chosen because it means drudgery in Czech, and labor in Slavak.

Newark Airport: Apr 14, 6PM

First off, happy birthday to B and MM!

I am absurdly early at the airport, since they told me I should be at my gate by 8PM and I've been here for an hour. But I am so grateful to be here, that it's okay that I'm spending this lovely afternoon staring at hideous carpet.

My flight to NYC yesterday was fine, although rather bumpy towards the end. My seatmate was a very pleasant gentleman who was very interesting to talk to. We had a discussion of the intersection between art and science, and the damage that commercialism does to both, or something, and I knitted. He helped me get my luggage onto a cart, and walked with me to the taxi line so I wouldn't accidentally stumble upon a company that charges twice as much. He was very helpful, and made landing a lot easier than it would have been. Thanks random guy!

I woke up bright and early today, and found the consulate without any trouble. Although if more stores would put their address numbers on the building somewhere, that would be helpful. I got there super early, before the consulate even opened. So I had to leave again, and wandered around the area. I watched some ice skaters at Rockefeller Center, and then I noticed a tiny photography shop that advertised passport and visa photos. And I thought to myself, “Do I need one? I have no idea! Stupid not clear website!” Because I'm nervous enough about this whole visa process, I figured it wouldn't hurt to get some photos, which turned out to be entirely the correct decision. The first thing they ask you when you show up to “pick up” the visa you've been told is “ready” is ask to see the photo you brought to make sure it fits the guidelines.

Then they couldn't find me in their system. That was nerve-wracking.

I was apparently filed in a weird spot, probably because I have a weird status that's between student and knowledge worker. They found me though, and I filled out a short form and turned in my photo.

Now about those quotation marks above. “Your visa is ready, and you need to arrange with the New York consulate to pick it up” means different things to me and to the people who do the visa making. See, I read that and think that the visa is ready, and I just have to go get it. Right? The consulate even said I didn't need an appointment when I phoned them, I could just walk in. That's not what it means. It means that the Dutch government approves your visa, but the people at the consulate still have to sign off on it, and print it, and put it in your passport, and this usually takes 3 days, ok?

Panic.

I'm leaving tonight! Nobody told me that ready doesn't mean ready, and that pick up means drop off your photo and passport. THOSE ARE NOT THE SAME!!! I didn't scream though. I'm really very pleased with how calm I was until I got back to my hotel room. They said they'd try, but they couldn't guarantee they'd get it all done by closing time at 5pm, and could they have my cell phone number? The employees were fantastic. They were sympathetic, they were friendly, they were working on it before I got out the door.

Back at the hotel, I called R and came up with a back up plan. I could book another night in the hotel (which I did, since I didn't need the added stress of nowhere to go with 150lbs of baggage and 30 lbs of carry on) and book another flight out later. Studentuniverse still had spots on flights for the next several days, for under $500. We'd lose some money, but we do have the savings (from my severance and selling the car) and we can always earn more money. I ate, I showered, I knit blue lace, and I stared at my cell phone, willing it to ring. I chatted with Mom 2.0, which was calming, and didn't answer when Mom 1.0 called because she didn't need to stress out too.

When the credit card company, who apparently forgot I told them I'd be traveling, called about possible fraud, my fragile equilibrium was destroyed. An unknown number, asking for Ms. Myname? Has to be the consulate, only it wasn't. I called R after that, because I was all upset again, and he went to lunch so he could stay on the phone. When he got home, there was a message on the answering machine. I was all “maybe we got a house offer! Who else would leave a message?” No house offer, but it was the consulate, who couldn't reach my cell phone for some reason, even though I had perfectly clear reception. My visa was ready, and I could pick it up until 4:30pm! I looked at the clock: 3:09. I threw off my socks, found my flipflops, remembered my keycard (I locked myself out once last night) and left the hotel.

I didn't run to the consulate, because I can't run in flip-flops, but I did walk very very fast.

Back at the consulate, I walked up, said I was there to pick up a visa, told them my name, and I am now the holder of an MVV entry visa! Thank you New York consulate employees! You were very fast, and I am very grateful. Now we should maybe work on some translations.

At the hotel, I repacked my carry-ons, asked for luggage assisstance (ZOMG, I totally forgot to tip the guy. He got me a taxi too. Sorry about that, super-nice and very helpful hotel employee. You walked back into the hotel way too fast.) and checked out. Remember, I had asked to extend my stay another day, and it was about 3:45 (late check out is by 3 ($35), super late by 6 ($100 and something), after that you pay for the room) so I was prepared to have to pay for the second night. The front desk lady was awesome though, and not only didn't charge me the second night, she only added the $35 fee for the earlier late check out. Fantastic employees at the Manhatten Center Hotel!

Now I'm at the airport, and I can leave when I'm supposed to, and I can quit saying “it's just money” every few minutes, and everything is all better! I gave the taxi driver a very generous tip, because he helped me get my luggage up the curb, and because I'm became very very cheerful, perhaps giddy, once I had the visa in my hand. There's a British boy's choir here, and they're ADORABLE. They even gave an impromptu mini-concert, which I assume was an attempt by the handful of adults to keep a large group of boys busy while waiting for boarding. They're really good.

So good thing to know: always always always ask how long it will take, even if the wording totally implies it won't take more than half an hour. Learn from my experience, because it sucked.

Now I'm just waiting to board, and I am so excited to be started the last part of this very long moving process!

Note: I totally flew on a Boeing 777! That was pretty neat.

London: Apr 15, 5:30 PM

It was much more exciting when I wasn't stuck in an airport.

I'd like to point out that the Titantic sank on April 15th, and I'm glad that my problem is much smaller than that one. I'm not drowning, for one thing.

Of course a volcano in Iceland errupted just in time to screw up my flight. Anything departing by 11:30AM got out. My flight was supposed to depart at noon. I am so frustrated with this trip! I admit, I could totally see the funny side of this if I didn't have a migraine, but I do, and it screws up everything.

We got off the plane and were told that we had to collect our baggage, and then exit to the ticketing area (which is outside customs and security) to rebook. Which is fine, I don't want my luggage to get lost in London. However, they couldn't put the baggage onto the baggage claim until the gate for it's flight was released, which doesn't happen until departure time, EVEN IF THE FLIGHT IS CANCELED. I'm not sure why, but I resent it. I got to sit in the comfort-free baggage claim area for 4.5 hours this morning. On two hours of sleep, and did I mention the migraine?

I made a friend while waiting. This poor couple, they were planning a second honeymoon river cruise vacation, and they're going to miss at least half the cruise because we can't fly out of here. They're looking at just going back home. How much would that suck?

Finally got my luggage, using the delightful free luggage carts, went through the "nothing to claim" customs hall, and out to the ticketing area. There are so. many. people. waiting in line.

A ton of signs said to rebook using the airline's website, so rather than stand in a 5 hour line with a pounding head, I went on a quest for WiFi. Or rather, first I went on a quest to figure out what I was supposed to be doing, and eventually decided that I needed internet. I found it too, after asking about 6 people. However, because I didn't book through the airline website, I'd have to pay full price for a ticket, and for Saturday, the flight I'd take was about $1000, taking the exchange rate into account. Yeah. Then I remembered that I have travel insurance, and a volcanic eruption is exactly what it's for! Of course, my only contact info was by phone. While dejectedly walking down to the still huge line of people, I saw a pre-paid phone store, so I am now the owner of a UK phone. The travel insurance people are trying to book me a new flight, and just found me a hotel! I will always buy travel insurance from now on. I'm sitting in the airport, with coffee and a comfy seat now, and feeling better than before. Still frustrated, and my head still hurts, but less.

I talked to an airline employee because I wanted to know where the volcano was, and I told her that volcanic eruptions lower Earth's temperature, and that's neat. It was even relevant to our conversation, and she thought it was neat too. That's me, spreading nerdiness wherever I go.

And hey! The lovely travel insurance person just got me a flight! For Saturday. If I get a hotel reservation, I could leave the airport! And go to sleep! That would be excellent.

PS: Anyone else wish I could tell this story as well as Megan would have been able to?

Open House

The open house today went well. Most of the people in the age bracket appropriate for this size of house LOVED my paint colors, although several elderly neighbors were rather taken aback. I hope they were only shocked by the orange wall in the basement, because if my blue and gray living room was too much, that's kind of sad. The realtor really liked how we staged what little stuff we have, which was nice to hear after all our hard work! Another realtor who came to see the house thinks a house-hunting client of his would like ours, and love the neighborhood, so we'll hopefully be showing again later this week.

In the past week, not only have we cleaned the house twice, we've also painted the front door white, painted a small angle wall gray, scrubbed the baseboards the dogs get muddy, washed, folded, and put away a month's worth of laundry (since I don't have to wear job appropriate attire, laundry is usually motivated by R running out of socks, and he has a lot of them), moved all the packed stuff into the van, organized the storage room, put the storage room door back up, fixed the guest room door, planted butterfly garden seeds and mulched the flower beds, and changed the dining room light switch. We didn't manage to get the bedroom ceiling fan up, because R slept wrong and strained a neck/shoulder muscle. He couldn't lift his arms above his head, making wiring near the ceiling impossible.

We spent most of our exiled time at the bookstore, where I overheard a conversation between a couple of 15-ish year olds. The boy was sad because some girl wasn't calling him, and the girl was recommending not stalking the not-calling girl. I really wanted to tell him "she's just not that into you, quit trying" because the situation sounded like the not-calling girl just didn't know how to say no. I didn't, though, because that would be a tad creepy. I imagine he'll figure it out.

My lovely blue lace knitting project is moving right along. Now that I understand the pattern, it's pretty fast work. I imagine it'll get tedious before the end. I've finished 3.5 of 14 pattern repeats, so I still have a fair amount left to do. According to my spreadsheet, I'm 30.38% done. I'm very happy with the clear beads, and glad I went with them instead of blue ones.

In which I trimph over a ball of yarn

I got new yarn yesterday, and the pretty blue laceweight for MM went onto needles, as soon as I found the size 6 circular. It was hiding. Casting on laceweight was interesting, since I've never worked with such tine, stretchy stitches before. The cast on I was supposed to use just resulted in knots, so I internetted to find something that would produce the same effect that would work for me. The border was super easy, even with learning how to add beads with the smallest crochet hook ever, but then I got to the lace. The first row took me 3 tries, because I had dropped a stitch in the previous row and kept not noticing. Luckily, this yarn sticks to itself pretty easily, so after all that time, I could still just put the stitch back on the needle. The second row I did 1.5 times, because I forgot the beads but noticed halfway through the row. The third row I got right to start with! I am making much progress, and I LOVE how the beads and the yarn look together. The timing was fantastic, as I can now work on this project and leave my two airplane projects for the long airplane ride. I didn't want the airplane projects to get too bulky, but I needed something to work on. Naturally, now that my new yarn is here, I have the perfect light for scrapbooking again. I'm pretty happy to have things to do that generate a sense of accomplishment though.

R finally has some options, and might be heading to California to earn better money, in a job in his field, while looking for something in The Netherlands. I'm not thrilled with the long distance idea, but adding to savings instead of subtracting from them until the house sells is a pretty big perk to the idea. And with the paperwork issues, he can't move until he gets a job anyway, so he might as well work somewhere that isn't happiness-destroying retail. When our house sells here, I might be buying our next one without his input (just like this one) but hopefully someday we can house-hunt together. I've found a darling house that's practically on campus and has a decent yard, and another farther away house that's rent-able IF there's some sort of transportation available. I don't think a 15 mile bike ride to and from work is reasonable. Especially since I haven't touched a bike in 8 or so years.

I decided it would be a good time to review my New Year's Resolutions. Thus far, I'm doing well at 1, haven't had the chance to work on 2 (I don't currently have a bike), am still Rosetta Stone-ing my way to 3, have done nothing at all for 4 (especially now that I'm carless during the day), can't work on 5 because I have no deadlines to meet, have rocked out 6, and am not doing so well at 7 because there's nothing in my house to photograph except the dogs. I will take some new yarn pictures later when the camera battery is charged.