Busted!

Having a blog is a mixed blessing. It provides an excellent opportunity to improve one's writing skills and is a good way to document progress on knitting projects. It allows friends and family to stay up-to-date on what is happening in one's life. And that's where I got busted by my mother (Hi, Mom!).

Tom and I typically spend the first week in August with his family in the Outer Banks in North Carolina. We also typically stop by my parents' house for a quick visit on the way down and back. Well, this year we didn't stop. Even worse than that, I didn't even call to let my family know that I was going. A few days ago, my mother calls and says "It's a good thing you have a blog so I know what you've been up to. How come you went to the beach and didn't stop by?" Oops. No excuses, I was a bad daughter. I hadn't called in a couple of weeks (I usually call every week). I didn't stop by on the way to the beach. I felt horrible. So, I'm going to try to get down there during the week (perfect, since I have no job responsibilities) either this week or next. It will be good to visit. I'll give you a call, Mom, and let you know when I'll be coming!


Employment News
The second interview with the company in Rockville went well. I'm one of two top contenders. They should be making a decision early next week. A friend gave me another job lead that sounds like it could be promising...it's closer to home, working for a non-profit, and sounds like it could be more structured and less hectic than my previous jobs. So we'll see where that ends up.

I spend Friday afternoon working with my friend Susan at Y2Knit. And that got me to thinking. How many yarn shops can a geographical area support? There are four that I would consider to be relatively local, although they all at least 20 miles away (which to me isn't very local). Could my town support a yarn shop? What would it take for a yarn shop to be successful? Can I earn a living wage after it's established?

Having a yarn shop would certainly meet the need for wanting to earn a living by doing fiber things. But would I enjoy it? I know that I'd get less knitting done than I do now. Susan recommended developing a business plan, so that's what I'm going to do. I think it also means that I need to visit a lot of yarn shops (oh, the torture!) to see how they differ from each other.

Extreme Knitting
And last, but not least, there are three Extreme Knitting entries today. And they are linked by a common theme. All of them were taken while working!

Emily had this photo taken while in full clerical garb. She says:

I don't have a book tour like the Harlot. I live in Oklahoma, so nowhere near mountains. I am, however, an Episcopal priest, and it occured to me I could at least put on appropriate Sunday garb to knit.

(Please note the vestments include a chasuble, stole, and alb, plus microphone and Sunday best including plastic "clericool" collar underneath.)



I don't know, Emily, a plastic "clericool" collar doesn't sound like it would be cool or comfortable. And knitting in all those garments is definitely extreme. Bonus points will be awarded if the air conditioning wasn't on in the church.

Andrea interpreted extreme knitting in a slightly different way. She...um...took her knitting to...(dare I say it?)...er...Hooters:



I can't do Andrea's story justice, so you have to read about it in her own words. Andrea, your post mysteriously mentions a skiing injury. After you heal and are cleared by your doctor for more extreme sports, I expect to see a picture of you knitting while on skis!

The third entry is amazing. Kris took her knitting to an amusement park. On a roller coaster. And she knit while plummeting down very steep hills very fast:



Notice the contented smile (if that was me, I'd have a look of stark terror on my face). For the roller coaster lovers among us, the ride is Goliath at Six Flags Magic Mountain and she's knitting the Soleil tank. Kris has additional pictures of the adventure here.

Thanks for the great entries!

I'll be sending the button soon (it's finished!). I've also got the gallery framework set up and should have the gallery linked in the sidebar in the next week or so.