Goals, smoals!

Okay, okay. I know, why set goals if you aren't even going to try? Right? Well, I found out that there was another wedding quilt square that needed to be finished by June 22. That has to take precedence over the Pi Shawl right now. I started this on Friday, and worked on it a little over the weekend. I should finish it up today, barring incident, and then be ready to get back to the shawl tomorrow.

I hope.

This block is smaller, and the design is simpler than for some other quilts in the past. I'm not sure why they went smaller this time, but perhaps the bride made a request for one reason or another. The colors are green and brown, but a nice range of both, so it is a nice one to do. I just get so bored with the ones that have colors that are too similar, you know?

My dryer is sounding a bit wonky (squeaky) and I thought I smelled a bit of a burned rubbery smell yesterday. I could be imagining that bit, Himself has let the kids try out the fog machine in the past week, so I might have just been smelling residual stuff from that. But I think that is stretching it a bit. At any rate, we haven't had the dryer for 8 years, so I figure a bit of maintenance might be in order. Just to be safe. So, at least one day will be spent cleaning up my laundry room so the technician can get in and work comfortably. sigh It has been on my list, but I am really not motivated. Well, I wasn't motivated until I scheduled the appointment. Now I think I can get to it. LOL

I saw an allergist last week for my crazy allergies. He got rave reviews from my regular doctor's office staff, but I have to say, I wasn't impressed. Why do they always focus on pets? I mean really. I had much more severe reactions to all manner of other things, but the only thing he wanted to talk about was my cat. In fact, the area around the Dust Mites swelled up to the diameter of a lime by the end of the day. Saturday it still itched, and then it suddenly stopped. Then my eyes started itching and then they swelled up again. Seriously, all within an hour. I have no idea if this is all related, but the swelling of my face/eyes is why I went to a specialist in the first place. Very frustrating. I need to call his office and report the problem, but I don't want to hear anything else about my cat.

Not off to a good start, am I?

He did say that he didn't think I needed shots, which is good. I don't want them, I just want to stop itching all the time. Perhaps he focused on my cat because he knows I can't do anything about being exposed to dust, pollen, cedar, ragweed, etc. (That is my charitable explanation. I hope he appreciates the effort.) My cat is not making me itch.

The swelling is down today, thank goodness, but I looked horrible Saturday evening and Sunday. This 'event' was much better than the previous one, maybe because of the meds. I take a Claritin and Flonase (a nasal spray) in the morning, and a Zrytec and Flonase in the evening. If I wasn't really miserable, I would rebel. But I'm desperate. I think it is helping, but I'd like more time to be sure.

The cat, poor baby, is not doing as well after his vet visit. The last visit I thought we had reached the end. The doctor gave him B12 & fluids & something for vomiting, and he was bouncy and eating and really alert and perky (and not sick). This time the doctor repeated the treatment, but it did not have the same effect. He isn't eating well, and the vomiting seems to be returning already. I think this is going to be a rough week unless he suddenly perks up. I don't want to push him, and this wait and see thing is really draining for me too. I'm not ready to let him go, but this isn't about me. I've been taking pictures of him with the girls, so I hope that will help them when he is gone.

Ah. Sorry, so depressing. I'll go out with a shot of my Pi Shawl. I managed to get the increases to 288 sts done, and the first four rows that are just knit. I've got all the markers in place now, so I'm ready to start the lace pattern again.

I'm hoping that my "lucky streak" will hold out. I need serious quiet time to work on this thing now, and the rows take about 25-30 minutes to complete. I'm counting nearly every block of 12 stitches, so that really slooooooows things down. But I figure it saves time if it keeps me from missing/dropping stitches. If I have to rip it back, it will take a lot longer than doing it right the first time. Right?

My next lace project is going to be on fingering weight! That will be so much easier! Of course, by the time I finish this shawl, I might have gotten used to using lace weight. We'll see, I guess. I had totally spaced that my grandmother had a birthday this month. There's no way this will be done in time. I won't even stress about that deadline! However, since I can't work on this all the time (kids are way too distracting!) I decided that I will do another shawl out of the Eros yarn for her for her birthday. The Eros will also be in a red sort of color. I've had a hard time finding red, for goodness sakes! This one is a rosey red with some darkish green and black. (At least that is what it looks like in my living room.)

An added bonus is that the Pi Shawl will come as a total surprise to her since she won't be expecting two. I've started the Eros shawl, but I'm not very far yet. They are fast, but I really struggle with knitting into the back of a stitch. I think I can knit 3-4 sts in the time it takes me to knit into the back once. Plus, that ladder yarn can be tough to pick up correctly (and not through the middle of the ladder!). Still, it is a mind-numbingly simple thing to work on and I'm enjoying having it around to balance the Pi.

I haven't made much more progress on the sweater, though I do need to get a picture up. I think I'll be shawling until I finish the Eros, then back to the sweater for my easier knit piece.

Ah well, back to work! I really want to get this cross-stitch piece done. Just some flowers to go and it is finished.