It's a New Year...

...and this is my first post? Oops. I guess I've been busy. I have gotten back to spinning on a more regular basis. I took some gorgeous merino top fiber I'd gotten from Lisa Souza in her Wild Things color and spun that into a beautiful skein. Now I have to set the twist. This will be my first time setting the twist so I hope I don't screw it up.

I joined a spinner's list, hoping to pick up some hints and tips (which I did save on how one woman "washes and whacks" her yarn to set the twist ), but right now the ladies are talking about how to knit two socks on one vs. two circular needles... Yikes!

Me? I like my dpns. I knit both socks at the same time (knit a cuff, knit the other cuff, turn the heel, turn the other heel, work the gusset, work the other, etc.) I can carry one sock with me or I can carry both.

Course, after two years of almost exclusively knitting socks, I'm making myself a pair of mittens. They were on my wish list for Christmas and the only thing I didn't get, so I'll make them myself. It's going to be a slow process but they'll be gorgeous. Lisa Souza's Sock Merino in Mars Quake on a size 0 needle. Yup, it'll take a while, but these babies are going to be gorgeous.

I did finish the pair of socks in Gypsy Girl's Tainted Love. Mom had gotten the yarn and kept trying to adjust the pattern so the color variation would work, but she just wasn't happy with how they were turning out. After frogging the socks three times, she gave the yarn to me.

Oh, I'll finally have pics. Youngest daughter got a new camera for Christmas, so I'm going to confiscate her old camera and she is REQUIRED today to show me how to go from taking a pic to loading it here on my site.

I got all the pics out to the family. Had some really great pics of my Dad, so I sent copies to my brother, my aunt, my uncle and my dad's cousin. Also have one pic of Dad with his Mom and one of his Dad (both of them had died before I was a gleam in Dad's eye, so these pics are the closest thing to having grandparents for me). Anyway, I did get all those in the mail as I had promised, so I'm happy about that.

The business is growing. There's some "fallout" with the new year. People who lost faith (or never had it to begin with) with how the business can grow, so they didn't renew their franchise fee. Their loss because this year is going to be a great year. My goal is to be Platinum by the end of the year, which means a lot of work on my part but I'm prepared, and all the bonuses that come with that. If I can reach that goal, I can quit my day job and concentrate 100% on the business. Imagine having the ability to quit your day job in a year and a half of time investment? If your boss told you that you could retire in two years if you gave him a few hours of overtime every week, wouldn't you give him the overtime? Well, that's the promise and I'm holding to that promise.

Lastly, in a huge fight with oldest daughter. I've forbidden her to have any contact with her now _ex_-boyfriend and she hates me. Oh well, I have big shoulders for my size. I won't tolerate a relationship I know is destructive and denigrating.

HAve to come back later with some pictures. I keep promising and never delivering. It's about time I delivered.