first cold of 2007

I am going into the New Year with enough snot in my head to sink a small island. I hope I do not distribute the wealth, though I do bear some small grudge on K who has not caught either of my obnoxious colds this December. (I thought my immune system was supposed to get stronger as I taught longer... perhaps it's the stress from the budget cut mess!)

We've had an interesting few days before the New Year. My car battery had to be jumped, but since then it's been fine. I haven't driven out of town, so I'm a little nervous about the drive in to school, but it's started OK the past several days. The next day I woke up to find our puppy had eaten one of my bamboo knitting needles, which prompted me to call the vet, who told me to bring her in for X-rays just in case. $200 later, she came home with antibotics--it's in little pieces, so she chewed it up, but it could still cause small cuts. What a turkey.

Last night we went down to W to celebrate the holidays with our cohort of friends down there. We had some yummy food and good drinks (well, I tasted--the cold and the DD status prevented me from any real drinking) and the night before was K's work party, where everyone had a lot of fun and by the end of the night, several decided to emphatically let me know K was a really great guy and they / I are / am lucky to have him. Yep. Tonight we go up to the northern suburbs to visit my best girl KF (who will soon be KN--only four months!!). We were instructed to bring the Aerobed, the dog, and Guitar Hero. I have another little surprise for her game-wise (a little nostalgia for us). I'm most excited for her presents this year, only because there is one that I got a big kick out of buying for her... It is fine if it is returned, but I saw it and thought ... well, I don't know if she will read this before we make the hour and a half trek north, so I will keep quiet.

Still knitting away. I'll have to share some pictures of my creations soon. I've found some dishrag patterns that make neat shapes, so I've been doing those... very quick gratification! I must also get holiday pictures up from our Christmas in Wisconsin. I've been so behind!

Each day I've been trying to unpack and clean a little more. Our house is still a mess, but it's falling into place. I unpacked several boxes from when we first moved in--can you believe it? And I've started another box of donations for the Epilepsy Foundation. They come around and actually pick up all that stuff you don't want anymore, so I'm always happy to get rid of things that way. :) A lazy donator is what I am! I am always humbled when I go to K's parents' house or L & A's--they're so good at reducing the clutter (or storing it properly) and keeping the house nice. Hmm, I think I see a resolution in the works!

Speaking of resolutions, I was able to talk with A about stained glass and beadmaking, which makes me very excited for my class in February. She has a window making one next month, and we both may take a pottery class in April. These brief classes have been nice for me--both the creative writing, the academic ones at the U (Compleat Scholar) and now some crafty classes.

OK, on to getting ready for our drive. KF says there is snow--huzzah! None here. Rain last night. What a strange December!