happy and sad at the same time

happy easter to those who celebrate. easter is one of my favorite
times of the year because it comes in spring...one of my 3 favorite
seasons. it is a time of rebirth, renewal, rejuvenation, and this
easter/spring is even more special to me because i have decided that it
also represents MY resurrection. jay and i, who have been together
about 5 years, are breaking up. it's really a long, boring story, but
i think it will ultimately be a good thing for both of us, once we heal
from the hurt we're both feeling now. it will take time. we love each
other very much but weren't on the same page regarding our
relationship, and honestly we haven't been for a long time. he thinks
i'm making a big mistake, but mistake or not, it's mine to make, and i
will live with whatever consequences that come from it. so this
easter, i'm celebrating. i have a great new job, a cute new apartment
(moving in on friday), and a TON of family and friends who love and
support me. life is good, and will only get BETTER!

SAY HELLO TO....

The NEWEST librarian at The Ohio State University!!!!!!!!

I am so pleased and honored to let y'all know that the Diversity Resident position that I applied, interviewed, waited and prayed for was officially offered to me today. It is a wonderful opportunity that I have known about and waited 3 years to apply for. This is my proverbial "foot in the door" and I will enjoy every minute of it. I was informed that if permanent positions become available during my 2-year appointment, I am welcome to apply and interview for them. I do look forward to one day enjoying a full-time, permanent tenure-track position with the University. Right now though, I am just incredibly humbled and thankful for this opportunity. Each of your prayers, good thoughts and positive vibes has sustained me through this process, which for the last 3 weeks has been nothing but waiting. Those of you who know me know that I am not the world's most patient person, but I
know that waiting on the Lord results in abundant blessings.

I am told I may start as soon as April 11, which is 2 weeks from Monday. Seems like there is an awful lot going on all at once, but I think I thrive on being busy. I don't have time to be bored, that's for sure!

Now...I'm going home to take a celebratory NAP!

my apologies

good morning, dearest blog readers,

seems like mz has been negligent in her duties as a blogger. no posts in a week! for this, mz must apologize. it seems that she is going through some inevitable life disturbances that have kept her away from her blogging. she has taken a couple of new pictures to share with you once her life settles down a bit, and she thanks you in advance for your patience while she attends to those pressing matters. be assured that mz is still knitting whenever she has a moment or two to spare, and her clapotis is coming along nicely...it's still in the increase section but mz hopes to knit her way to the straight section sometime soon! this evening perhaps?

happy good friday, readers. mz wishes you a good weekend, and a joyous easter.

you spin me right 'round baby right 'round...

...like a record baby, right 'round 'round 'round...

i tried my hand at spinning again today. practice makes perfect, so i'm told. here's what i have. a little more even than my first but i have a lot more practicin' to do!


more yarn!

a lil late for valentine's day but...

...here's a heart-shaped sachet for my DRU exchange partner!


sachet. lavender. mmmmmm...

spin spin sugar*

i am so happy to have been properly enabled by my friend dj. she taught me how to spin....look at my very first yarn!


my first yarn!

and look. i had the nerve to buy some roving too...for when i am a better spinner:


red roving, red roving

*spin spin sugar is a song from the sneaker pimps. i love their first CD. reminds me of the semester i spent in london (september - december 1996). i LOVE that place.

my first visit to an alpaca farm

hi, pretty llama girl!


look at those locks, willya?


outside alpacas


inside alpacas

about that job...

good morning, everyone:

i -just- got an email from one of the assistant directors of the library whom i've been in touch with throughout the application/interview process. she tells me that the library director (who will make the final hiring decision) was on a much-needed vacation last week. she says she should be able to get back to me this week regarding my status. i was hoping to hear something -today- but y'all know that patience has never been one of my virtues :-)

thank you all again for your prayers, good thoughts and positive vibes regarding this...keep 'em coming! i'm excited about the opportunity. i've been waiting for this exact opportunity for about 4 years. it would be nice to have a permanent, tenure-track position, but this is the proverbial "foot in the door" that i have been looking for. i know that God leads us where we are supposed to be, so all i need to do right now is to listen to Him and then do what He says (James 1:22)!

ready...set...BLOCK!

all the knitting and crocheting on the round baby blanket is finished. wheeeeee! this is actually my very first time blocking anything. it's all laid out and pinned on the livingroom floor...that's the room that is absolutely used the least. i think it's probably a bit small even for a newborn baby but i was afraid that if i took much longer making it, the baby would outgrow it before it was "big enough" :-) even those of us without children know that babies grow like weeds! she probably won't be able to be swaddled in it, but i figure it can cover her when she's in her stroller or carseat, when she's napping or when the new mommy is nursing her. in any case, i do hope that little miss skyler likes it.


whole blanket


center detail


yarn over detail


shell-stitch detail

but i don't NEED another hobby

so today before our scheduled family dinner, my momma dragged me to some jewelry and bead show. "i just have to run right in and get one thing!" yeah, right. understand, i've known my momma my whole life (almost 30 years) and a long time ago i learned not to believe her when she says she'll be "right back." so we go into the show and start looking around...turned into two and a half hours but it was fun :-) she has recently gotten into making her own jewelry, which i think is very cool. my momma is very artsy, must be where i get it.

since she is beginning to make her own jewelry, she is selling off the jewelry and stuff that she no longer wants on ebay. i took a look at her "for sale" pile and picked out a few things, including about 60 or so millefiori beads (see pic). like i said i'm not interested in jewelry making, instead i will use them to make....STITCH MARKERS! it's a perfect complement to my knitting hobby, so it's easy to justify :-) here's a (bad) picture of what my new beads look like:


millefiori means a thousand flowers...i think. 

me? an enthusiast?

that's what this enneagram test says. g'head and take it yourself. it's free.

free enneagram test

not knitting related but...

yesterday i had my on-campus interview with ohio state university library.
my uncle's advice was to "take no prisoners" i called him back this
afternoon and said "i killed 'em all!"

i was nervous but once i got in front of the first committee i met with
and started talking, i was fine. cool as the other side of the pillow.
i ended up having a great time! spent 5 hours there, meeting with a
couple different committees and several individuals, had lunch with a
group of folks at the faculty club, had a tour of the main library and
the library where i will be working most of the time (food, agriculture
and environmental sciences).

i looked damn good in the ralph lauren pantsuit, stuart weitzman pumps
and pearl earrings i wore (yup, i went "shopping" in momma's closet!).
i borrowed her full length llama fur coat too (it was sho' nuff cold
and windy today but this homegirl was waaarrrrrrmmmm. all i needed was
a matching llama fur hat to match haha). i looked good, felt good and
feel like i did very well.

i should tell y'all that out of the 42 people who applied, 9 (including
me, of course) had telephone interviews, and of those, 3 are having
on-campus interviews this week (that's only 7 percent of the applicant
pool!) . all that's left is for them to call -me- with an offer i
cannot refuse! i expect to hear from them by the end of next week.

thank you again for all your prayers and good thoughts! i felt them
fortifying me through a very busy day. i will definitely let you all
know what they tell me next week.