And Then There Were Six

In Memorium...

Miss Mocha

January 15, 1996

November 24, 2009

Gone but not forgotten

The Next Big Goal

Well, friends, I'm nearing my next big goal of 75 pounds lost...and I don't want to find them again. I'm only 10 pounds away. Who'da thunk I'd've gotten this far? I surely never would have a couple of years ago. And here I am, ready to move to the next level. This is like a really cool game I've never been able to play before because I didn't have the right equipment or mindset and all of that's changed. Game on!

The Light at the End of the Tunnel....

....Has been turned off due to the economy...and pay cuts, cost of living and on and on and on. However, I do believe I've been able to turn mine back on and it's growing a little bit brighter by the day. Through the advice of some very knowledgeable friends I have been able to take advantge of some of the "debt restructuring" opportunities in out in the world. By doing so, I'm managing to bring my life back into a reasonable balance after the massive pay cuts we received at the beginning of the month. I'm told by the time the project I'm working on at work winds down at the end of the year, the mortgage loan modification should be complete and in place so the massive amounts of overtime won't be necessary any more - good thing as it's probably going away anyway. Not only will I be able to afford the mortgage on my now-reduced salary, I'll have time to enjoy the things I've been stashing for that rainy day...nice. Time and a little bit of money - what a concept. So, there does really seem to be a light...hoping it isn't the train, but really is daylight heading my way...and that 2010 will be a better year.

Moving On

The last couple of months have been very challenging. Losing a beloved friend, health issues, challenges with employment being just a few. However, the more that happens, the more I keep finding out how resilient I am. Doesn't mean I'm not complaining about it to everyone who'll listen, not at all. ;) It just means that I've been able to survive it all a lot better than I have in the past, or that I thought possible in my own mind - Thanks, Lorraine! I'd attribute that to a wonderful host of friends and a fabulous support system. Thanks, all! Anyway, my point is, that through all of this going on, I've still been able to continue on that one big adventure: weight loss. And while the loss hasn't been big on the scale, it's been big in my mind. So, here's to letting go, moving on and moving up!

One Last Chessa Post

When we played with all the other cats Chessa wasn't interested until we brought over a wand with a long ribbon on it. I tried a few times to get her to play, but she didn't want to. One day when we were in the family room I tried again and Chessa was so funny! She was like a little kitten. She chased the ribbon and slid across the slippery wood floor. Candy and Sue said that was the first time Chessa had ever played like that. It made me feel good that I got her to play. She was so funny to watch!

Memories by Megan

I think what I would like to share most is something that happened at noon on the 27th (of July), the day she passed away. I had dozed off on the loveseat and I had a dream. I don't know where I was but I was sitting on a bench in a wide open area people-watching. I looked up and Chessa was coming toward me. She jumped up on the bench beside me and I started petting her as I always did. She purred so loud as she always did. She only stayed for a few minutes, then climbed up on my lap, licked my face and gave me a look I'd never seen from her before. Then she jumped down off the bench and walked away. I woke up instantly and went to check my email...Sue had emailed just 7 minutes before letting us know Chessa was gone. I like to think Chessa came to tell me good-bye before she went to her better place.

Memories by Gena

Sick of RUDE PEOPLE

What in the world ever happened to common courtesy? It surely isn't common any more. When someone said "thank you" the reply used to be "you're welcome." Now there IS no reply or even any kind or acknowledgement for the most part. Do people just not listen? Or don't they care enough to be bothered to respond? How did it get to this point? When did we all stop caring? Are we really all that self-centered and shallow?

Watch Out! Here I Come!

Through the sadness and heartbreak, the anger and frustration, the trampled and abused feelings, wonderful things still manage to find their way into our lives. Since Chessa passed and I received news of my pay-cut, life has seemed to spiral quickly down that never-ending drain, constantly gathering speed but only continually spinning, spinning, spinning, never going down. Knowing full well I'd done everthing I shouldn't have been doing during that time, I decided I needed to get myself on the scale to get myself back to reality and move forward. Maybe that would help to slow the spinning if it wouldn't stop it. Eventually, maybe I could get myself back on track, one step at a time. So, Saturday morning, I braved the scale. At that point, I told myself I would be very happy to have not gained, figuring I would have gained some from the reality check of the last few weeks. One foot....second foot. Can that be right? Step off the scale...make sure it is calibrated at zero...the cats have surely done something to it, yes? Step back on, one foot...second foot...bend down to read it. Well. HOLY CRAP! I've lost another 5 pounds! Not only haven't I gained anything, I've met my next milestone! And while I wouldn't recommend this to anyone, I'm very happy to be there and really ready to move on to the next! WOO HOO! 50 POUND MILESTONE! YOU CAN'T BEAT ME! 75 is the next one on my list....watch out, here I come!

More Miss Roo

What I love about Chessa is the way she was always the purrfect hostess, the first one to greet me at the door enticing me to lift her and give her lots of loves as she purred in my ear. She was the complete love bug, never failing to hop in my lap to give lots (and demand MORE!) love than anyone else. It was her job, and she took it seriously. Being Queen is not an easy task, but she was always up for it, giving more and more and more love. She is missed dearly, and remembered purreciously. Yes, I will remember her always.

Memories by Suz

For Chessa

So many memorable moments start with sitting down on the couch and being begged for love by Chessa. The moment anyone, no matter who it may be, sat down or even stood in the same place for too long, you could count on Chessa being there. Her love for everyone wasn't fake, it was purely everything you could ask for in a cat. Standing anywhere in the house you knew she would find you and you'd feel that familiar and comforting brush on your leg; followed by a meow or two and a pawing if you ignored her. She loved everyone with her humungous heart and she is always going to be missed. I remember walking around the corner of the hallway one day and seeing her sneak a pass at a stray mouse toy; the look I got when I "intruded" on her play time was just something else. Her personality shone through her eyes and her purring was amazingly loud for such a small bundle of love. Her being there always made me feel even more welcomed and it was a comforting thing to see her walking toward me, knowing what was to come.

Memories of Chessa by Tammy

Goodbye, Dear Friend

Chessa-Roo
4/30/94-7/27/09

It is with a sad and heavy heart that I say goodbye to a dear and special friend who has been by my side through thick and thin, through sickness and in good health for 13 years. We've spent many hours together, she with love in her eyes and a purr always at the ready for whomever walked in the door as everyone was always there to see her (at least in her mind). In Russian, Chessa means Bearer of Peace and Calm. And she always has been, instilling it in our home daily. It is a sad day today knowing that she no longer brings that gift to our home and that we'll no longer have her wanting love and affection from us pretty much all the time. We will miss you, Roo, but know you've gone on to a place where your love-bucket is now full to over-flowing and that you don't hurt any more. What more could I wish for for you?

And the Dyeing Goes On....

Here' some tweedy-types from Knit Picks...

and double-knit sock blanks....

and my favorite, the "faux-kettle technique" that was so easy and quick with just the coloring I love! These five are Cascade sock yarn...

And my all-time favorite, the Knit Picks 70% Merino/30% Silk. Maybe it's one of my favorites because I'm very fond of the silk. I'm also very fond of this luscious chocolate brown.

Dyeing Days...

Okay, so here are the results of the dyeing days...from the Louet sock dyeing class on the 17th.

Just Another Monday

There should be fanfare....and streamers...and balloons...and a big parade! Okay, maybe not quite that much. But it seems like there should be something that would mark this day as different than the rest. Only because IT IS! So VERY different. Today is the day I reached my first milestone....the 50 between the 100's....down a total of 45 pounds! I'm so excited yet it's just another Monday...get up, get dressed, go to work, struggle through the day...etc., when all I want to do is yell to the world, "I did it! Can't you see? I DID IT! I really did! And therefore I can CONTINUE to do it!" Yet, here I am, processing billing and sitting on conference calls trying not to burst at the seams working with people who just wouldn't understand and probably wouldn't care. People who don't know me, or people who do who are tired of hearing about it. That's okay. I know. Those who care about me know because they let me know. "I did it...I did it...I did it..."

Surprise!

Yes, I can still surprise myself. After being invited to a BBQ yesterday for the 4th of July, I was in a normal quandry: what to wear. It would be warm, but I had no shorts I would wear in public. A dress would be comfortable but might be too cool as it cooled down later on in the evening. A-HA! There's a pair of denim capris in the closet that I had bought on close-out for $10 several months back knowing they'd fit sometime during the summer. Would that be now? So I tried them on. WOW! It's NOW! I thought it would be another month or two before I could get into them. Guess I was way off base. Early on after surgery while everyone was telling me that they could see the difference as I was reporting the weight-loss and my disappointment because I couldn't see it, I wanted to cry with my impatience. I wanted to buy new clothes a size smaller and feel the difference. What I didn't realize was that at the larger sizes it takes more loss to show that difference. I now know that, and do finally see the difference. Some of the clothes that I ordered in the last batch at a smaller size than I had been ordering have to go back anyway because they're TOO BIG! Too funny! HAHAHAHAHAHA. Laugh's on me! and I'm laughing all the way to wherever this adventure is taking me!

How to Pick a Milestone

How does one pick a Milestone? I have a couple to chose from...I'm not sure what to chose as THE milestone right now, so I'm going to celebrate them both! The first big milestone was getting the insurance company to approve my surgery, then getting the surgery done. Now that I'm on my way, I'm ticking pounds off a couple here, a couple there. It's nice to be able to add them up...forty at last count. I finally made a keychain that I'm trying to keep updated after each weigh-in (please forgive me if I get behind, Jasmin) because I needed a tangible reminder of how far I've come because I just couldn't see it in the mirror or in the clothes yet. It's getting a little easier to see the changes now. Anyway, back to milestones. The first big one is a nice round number of 50, in between hundreds - not the total I've lost but the actual weight - a weight I wasn't sure I'd ever see again dieting. This milestone is only 5 pounds away. The second one is 50 pounds lost (I don't want to find them again) and this one is only 10 pounds away. I think there's some serious celebrating that will have to happen here in the very near future as both of these were places I really didn't ever think I'd see again. Big dreams starting to come true leading to even bigger dreams taking root. Thank you to all who have been supporting me through all of this. I couldn't have done it as easily without you!

Chartreuse: the new Blue

I'm tired of blue this week and I'd like to make an argument that the new blue should be chartreuse, aka BRIGHT LIME GREEN (substitute favorite color as necessary). How in the world can anyone be blue when you have that color staring you in the face? During weeks like this, I'd surround myself with this color (wacky mental picture of stapling chartreuse roving to the walls of wherever I happen to be) so I couldn't be anything but happy. Such a cheerful color wouldn't allow for tears, sad thoughts or frustration with your boss's "don't do as I do, do as I command you" attitude. It would make everything okay. Yeah, so I don't live in that color-perfect world. But, isn't it a lovely thought? Maybe I'll paint the walls in the spare room this color (toned down just a bit, or not) so when I walk in to get yarn from stash or whatever reason calls me into that room, I'd have that mini-refresher. I hate times like this when tears are on call at a moment's notice for no reason I can find or understand and everything just feels wrong. I keep hoping that I can go to sleep at night and the next morning whatever this is will be gone. So far it doesn't seem to be working and just existing is getting rather annoying. None of the normal rituals that have worked in the past seem to be cutting it...maybe there really is something to this whole green thing. ;)

What can I say?

So, what do you say when you have nothing to say? I guess "nothing" is the answer. So, it's nothing you got. It's not that I haven't been busy, sort of. There was lots of work - up until April 14th. Then there was lots of sleeping and healing, oh and fighting with the insurance company (still going on) for paid time off. State Disibility was great. Checks came every week or so...couldn't seem to quite figure out their timing and neither could they. There was quite a bit of knitting, some crochet, a little visiting, major resting and healing from the surgery. There's also been some weight loss: hopefully the tip of the iceberg. So, now I'm back at work as order seems to be restoring itself to my small universe and things seem to be calming down and evening out. Wrongs aren't necessarily righting themselves, but the wrinkles are being worked out and if not, they're being run over and left behind along with the frustration of the things I can't fix. So, all in all, it's a pretty decent view from the window. ;)

Shipwreck Shawl

3/17/08 I can’t believe how easy and enjoyable this pattern is...not to mention addicting. I haven’t been able to put it down since I cast on the first stitches, nor have I been able to set it aside to work on anything else. I’m loving seeing it evolve. I’m just about to the faggot lace and may have to set aside until the beads get here. Oh, well.
3/18/09 Had to frog the Madeira portion halfway through as things weren’t lining up (updates have been posted on Knitty.com for this section). I’m about 15% through the Madeira and it’s looking beautiful…beads arrived today. Nothing to hold me back now!

Playing Around

I haven't so much been finishing projects as wrapping things up, getting them blocked and ready to photograph. I've been finishing small projects here and there, but the bigger ones aren't making much headway. It seems I've been spending all my free time playing with my camera and some of the other toys I have to go with it, hence the photos of the finished projects...along with all the cats. Here are some of the projects done...Spriraluscious, finished just last night. It still needs to be blocked, but that's in the works. I also finally got both the Impressionist cowl and Meret Beret blocked. Here they are as well.

And Jasmin was sharing some artsy photos she had taken...of course I had to try out the new lens I'd bought...Thanks, Jasmin!And, of course, there's always the cats. Traver is so beautiful, he just doesn't take a bad picture at all.
Then there's Cody... who has a thing about womens' lingerie...

So, as you can see, while knitting hasn't been overly productive, it seems that other things in my life appear to be. I'm finding my rhythm again with camera in hand and am realizing how much I have really missed it. I see the photos come up on my computer from the 6.2 megapixel DSLR and then I see the photos from the 10.1 megapixel point and shoot and I think the point and shoot is on it's way to eBay. ;)

D-VA

I am the resident D-VA and don't you forget it! Not that I'll let you. No, I'm not fickle, I'm not vain, I am Cat and I rule this castle with an iron paw....okay, well, I'm really waiting for Chessa to hand it off to me, but it sounds really good, right? I personify all that is Cat in this world and have honed it down to a fine ideal. I can turn it on and off in a split second. My humans often shake their heads and wonder how I do it. I am CAT. That is how I do it...that and a lot of practice in the mirror when they're not looking!

the me they DON'T get to see! ;)

Happy New Year

Well, it's been awhile. The holidays are over and the decorations have been put away for another year. The weather is sunny and brisk outside. Chessa is home, the tumor on her paw has been removed and the outlook is good. The surgery went well and now time will tell if the wound will finally heal closed and stop bleeding. It's amazing how much better she feels, even after the surgery she went through. I can't imagine the pain she must have been in but not a peep out of her. I hope I can do half as well as she does in the same type of situation. My darling girl.

This has been a very strange holiday for me, not wanting to decorate for Christmas, yet celebrating with friends. It's been a very enlightening and peaceful time. As the new year hailed in, I was wondering what new resolutions I wanted to make and what dreams I wanted to pursue when I realized, most of my dreams had either been realized or fallen by the wayside in the rush and reality of life. My biggest dream, one I never thought to obtain was my house. And thanks to Mom, here I am. I couldn't have done it without her. And through all the landscaping, bathroom remodelling, laying of new flooring, etc, that dream was realized and POP! it was gone. Oh, no! Now what? So, 2009 is the year of me finding my dreams. I'm making a list of the things I'd like to do/see and we'll see what happens from there. One of the other dreams I had was the Alaska cruise we went on in May. I couldn't have gone with a neater group of people and have all the wonderful memories. I'd like to do Juneau again and do more photography (another dream that has some goals to go with it that are tied to getting healthier). All in all, it's all about me figuring out what I want to do/be when I grow up. Not a bad challenge, eh? Sounds rather like fun.