I Did A Thing

I did a thing today.  Not much of a thing, but a thing nonetheless. 

All day at work, I was thinking of all of the things I need to do, and trying to figure out how to get out of this funk I've been in lately. I was thinking if I could just one thing, no matter how small, it might break me out of this paralysis I seem to be trapped inside. 

Therefore I was determined to do a thing, but said thing -doing was not without incident, because I needed my drill bits, and I couldn't find them.  My sister had sent me a new drill for Christmas last year, which came with its own set of bits, but even the smallest one was too big for what I needed. 

I knew I had another set that I had bought years ago, and I was sure they were on shelf in the craft room, but I couldn't find them. I looked everywhere -- in my tool box, in the storage boxes I'd tried to organize my stuff into, even out in the shed, but I couldn't find them. 

Taking a deep breath, I looked one more time, and finally found them in one of the boxes I'd already looked in three times. 

As soon as I found them, I realized why I'd had such trouble.  It's because I was thinking the little holder thingy was orange, so I wasn't looking for something black.  No matter, I'd finally found them, and got the correct sized bit I needed, then went outside and hung my little dragon light on the fence. 

Isn't he just the cutest thing?  He needs a name, now.  Any suggestions?  

 Where I have him positioned, he'll be watching over the beginning of my perennial pollinator garden, which is where my fairy garden will be.  Does that even make sense?  It's not going to be a full on fairy garden, but I am going to have some little houses, a pond, and maybe a cobblestone path nestled amongst the flowers.  

I was all happy and excited, until I turned around and saw this.  

And what is that?  OK, for reference, let's go back to this old photo from before I started working on my garden spot.  See the rectangle of leaves in the back, behind all of the day lilies?  

Those are spider lilies that the previous owner had planted.  The very same spider lilies I'd paid that landscammer a lot of money to dig up, which obviously he didn't.  I mean, I could have cut the leaves off myself for free.  I wanted the bulbs themselves dug up.  

Sigh,  I grabbed my shovel and dug up just the ones I could see, and ended up with nearly a 5 gallon bucket full of bulbs. 

Now I'm wondering about all of the day lilies.  Am I going to have to dig them up too?  Why can't people just be honest?  

And I'm right back in the funk...

All Or None

Me all day long at work:  When I get home from work, I'm going to do all of the things.

Me when I get home from work: Does none of the things. 

I had so much on my list to do this evening, and all I did was sit in front of the TV.  Story of my life, eh?  OK, I did do a few things, like drag the garbage can out to the road and rinse & refill the deer trough.  But I didn't start cleaning out the shed, nor did I hang my little dragon light like I'd intended to.  I just sat.  And watched TV.  

Speaking of TV, Great American Family has already started their new Christmas movies, and yes, I'm watching them.  I know, I know, they're cheesy and predictable, but I'm going to watch them anyway.  

Sometimes I think I watch just to see the decorations, since I seem to be decoration deficient.  I know what looks good.  I just can't make my stuff look like that. 

In knitting news, I finished this hat yesterday while watching football.  

The yarn is Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn in the Kaleidoscope colorway.  I haven't cast on a new one yet, because my hands are really sore.  It might be the change in the weather, or I might just be getting old.  I don't know.  

I know this is short, but I'm off here to continue doing none of the things. 

Laters. 

No New Tires For Me

I got up bright and early this morning, got dressed, and drove into town to get new tires for my car.  I got to Walmart and the lady behind the counter asked me what size my tires are.  

"I don't know," I replied, having never once been asked this question in all of the times I've bought tires at Walmart.  

"It's on the side of your tires," she said.   Yeah, I could have told her to look it up from the last time I'd bought tires, but she should have done that first.  Normally, they do.  The first thing they do is ask your phone number, then look up your record in the computer.  This one didn't.   She just said, "I have to know what size tire you need so I'll know if we have it in stock."   

So, I walked back out to my car, got into it, and left. 

I was so aggravated, I didn't even go get my dirt.  I drove down to another tire place, Gateway, pulled into the parking lot, then remembered how they'd cheated me a few years ago.  I'd gone in for a flat tire repair, and they said they'd fixed it, and they charged me for fixing it, but they didn't fix it.  This was back during COVID, and Walmart's automotive was shut down.  

When Walmart opened back up, I took the car there and they said I had a nail in my sidewall -- that apparently the techs at Gateway didn't find, which they would have done if they'd actually tried to repair the leak in my tire.  So I pulled back out, and came home and finished this hat while watching Texas finish Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry, and it wasn't even close. 

The yarn is Red Heart Supersaver in Icelandic colorway.  I have enough left in the skein for one more hat, but I cast on with more of my Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn yarn while watching Navy win a last second nailbiter against Temple and improve to 6-0 on the season. 

This colorway is Kaleidoscope.  I'm loving this yarn, I'm telling you.  It's so buttery soft it doesn't even feel like acrylic.  I'm pretty sure it'll be my go to yarn from here on out.  

In other news, my little bluebonnets seem to be doing really well.  

They're so much bigger and stronger looking than any time I've planted them before, so I think I might have just found the sweet spot for growing them.  

My other project for today was to fix this shepherd's hook.  It has been crooked from the first time I put it out, and it's always bugged me.  So, this morning I got out there and dug it back up.  I re-set it so that it was good and straight, tied it off with some yarn and tent stakes, 

then filled the hole in with red clay.  

I gave it a good soaking, and I'm hoping once it sets, the weight of the bird feeder won't pull it out of plumb.  Not that that affects its functionality.  It just doesn't look right. 

And what did I do with the dirt I dug out of that hole?  Why, I put it into one of my raised beds, of course. 

 It'll take a lot more to fill it up, but it's a start.  

But for right now, LSU is playing on the TV, and I need the computer to watch Florida vs. A&M, so I'm outta here. 

Laters. 

Oh, and Hook 'Em.  Geaux.  And most importantly Anchors Aweigh. 

Know Anyone?

Do you know anyone like this?  

Do you?  Well, I can tell you if you know me, you know someone exactly like this.  I'm so bad about starting projects, then abandoning them halfway through -- if I even get that far.  

I'm telling you one thing, though.  Putting up that privacy fence has made me feel so free.  

Free to get out into my own yard and do what I want without feeling like someone is hanging over my shoulder.  I've done more in the yard this year than I did in the previous nine that I've lived here. In fact, I always wanted to do something on the West end of my house, but it never felt truly mine.  I don't know how to explain it, but it felt more like the neighbor's yard than mine.  

I guess because every time I set foot outside, that particular neighbor was in my face.  I get it.  She was a lonely lady, but still...

I'm rambling a bit here, so I'll get to the point.  A few days ago, I was on Amazon checking out the Prime Day deals, and saw that there was one of the raised beds like the one I'd bought before marked down, labeled Used -- Like New.  

I don't have problem buying something that has been returned, provided all of the parts are there and it's clearly labeled as previously owned.  Some websites don't tell you something was used.  The dress I bought for Cody and Brennan's wedding was clearly used-- it had wrinkles and stains on it.  Sure it was half price, but still...it would have been nice to know. 

Anyway, this description said it was like new, and it was marked down $15, so I took a chance on it.  It was supposed to be delivered today, but by FedEx which can sometimes not come until 7:00 or 8:00 PM.  While I was waiting, I went ahead and put the one I'd bought previously together and put it into place.  

Much to my surprise, the FedEx man came before noon, so I ran outside like Hyacinth Bucket and snatched my package right out of his hands, sending him tumbling to the ground in my eagerness to get my new bed. 

OK, no I didn't really do that.  In fact, I was watching Call The Midwife and didn't even know he'd come until I heard him pull out of the driveway.  Or was it Heartland?  I don't remember.  I was watching something.  Not that it matters.  As soon as I heard the truck pull out, I got my package and quickly slapped a coat of the water sealant stuff onto the parts. 

I gave them about an hour to dry, then quickly got that one put together and into its place. 

 By the way, they're only in the shadow because it's Fall.  In Spring and Summer, this entire spot is in full sun most of the day.  It's why I chose it. 

Now that I have these in place, I can better judge how to place my two 4' x 4' beds.  I'm eventually going to have four of those, which will be for things like my tomatoes, various pepper plants, and stuff like that.  The ones around the edges will be for my herbs, and at least two will be for flowers.  I'm going to have a pollinator garden of perennials, and I'll have one for annuals like zinnias and whatever.  

It's going to take a while to get it all how I want it to be, mainly because I really need to slow down my spending until overtime season starts up again, and I still have to fill these up with dirt.  I want to try to find someone local who can deliver topsoil in small amounts.  I won't need an entire dumptruck load, but I figure it'll still be cheaper to buy in bulk than individual bags from the store -- which I did get some more on clearance when I went yesterday. 

I've got to run in tomorrow and get two new tires for my car, so I'll pick up some more if they still have any left. 

Oh, about those tires.  I was airing them up earlier this week, and realized the two older tires are nearly bald.  If we still had vehicle inspections, they wouldn't pass, so I'd better get new ones.  Usually, Saturday morning is pretty slow at Walmart, so I'm hoping I'm done and home before the ball games start.  I can watch on my phone if I have to, but I'd rather not.  

Plus tomorrow is the Red River Rivalry, and though I'm a Longhorns fan, I'm not optimistic about this one.  People are saying we owe Quin Ewers an apology, but I disagree.  Arch doesn't have the team around him that Ewers had.  He doesn't have a running game, or a top receiver, and he certainly doesn't have an o-line.  He can't carry the team by himself. 

Not even a Manning can do that. 

Decorations

My new neighbors have Halloween decorations in their front yard.  My nearly new neighbors have Halloween decorations on their porch.  My been here a while neighbors have Halloween decorations in their front yard, and my been here longer than I have neighbors have Halloween decorations in their front yard. 

I figured it was time I got on the ball and put up a Halloween decoration in my front yard, too.  I chose this one. 

I had a tough time deciding between this one and the little stack of pumpkins, but settled on this one because I thought the kitty reminded me of Evil Incarnate.  

Nah, it's too cute to be her.  But I like it, and more importantly, I feel like I'm part of the neighborhood now.  The only thing is, it said not to use an extension cord, so I couldn't really put it where I want it, but that's OK.  I'll just have to remember not to trip over the power cord when I water my plant on the front porch. 

In knitting news, I finished the second hat from my Hobby Lobby yarn in the Painted Canyon colorway.  

It matched the first hat so closely, I had to get it back out just to prove to you I actually knit two hats, an didn't just show you the same photo twice. 

I've got one more hat already OTN before I cast on with more of my new yarn. 

And finally, I've decided to occasionally add a Meme Of The Day to my posts when I find one that catches my eye.  This one made me laugh way more than it should have. 

Believe me, we all could use a good laugh these days. 

And finally, that thing about Stalker working at that other plant may not be true.  One of the brazers has a friend that works there and the friend said he's not down there. Maybe he'll show up, or maybe it was all talk.  We'll see. 

Rebates

I use a lot of those rebate apps.  I know you know what I mean --  Ibotta, Fetch, and the like.  I'd have to say Ibotta is my favorite.  I've gotten enough back to buy not only my electronic piano, but a bed, dresser, and two nightstands for Cody and Brennan's room.  

Their room here at my house, I mean.  

On the flip side, there are a few I simply did not like.  Upside, for one.  What I didn't like about that was that it requires you to check in to the app while you're at the gas station.  That just didn't feel safe to me, so I dumped it. 

Another one I didn't like was called Receipt Hog.  In that one, you have to scan your receipts to get spins.  Then you go into the app and spin a slot machine to see if you win any coins, which can then be redeemed for a gift card or Paypal payout.  The problem with that one is, just like a regular slot machine, more often than not, you don't win anything.  I kept saying I was going to drop it, and this week, at long last, I did. 

It took six years, but I finally earned enough coins to redeem for a $40 Amazon card.  I cashed that puppy out and dropped the app post haste.  And I know you're waiting with baited breath to see just what it is I bought with my unexpected windfall.  

OK, I'll show you.  Covers for my Adirondack chairs.  

Don't envy me my exciting life.  

But look at it this way, now I can sit down in my chair without having to scrub bird poop off of it first.  I'm hoping it will keep the dew off, as well so I can sit out there in the mornings and enjoy my cup of coffee, and maybe even put a little fire in the fire pit -- if it ever cools off enough, that is. 

The other thing I bought was a solar powered house number light thingy.  

That's not my house number, by the way.  It came with stick on numbers so it can be customized.  

I'd wanted something like this for a while now.  I do have house numbers on one of the posts on my carport, but they don't really show up that well, and apparently some people can't translate the huge numbers on my mailbox to "This is that house." 

At least I have confidence that emergency services will be able to find me should the need arise. 

In work news, I heard this morning that Stalker got hired down at another local factory, the one The Warden went to.  Word is, after he got fired last week -- or whenever it was, time flies when you're having fun, you know-- he went down there and begged The Warden for a job, so The Warden hired him.  That right there just shows that The Warden has no business running a plant. 

Doesn't surprise me, though.  After all, The Warden literally made up a position so Stalker could keep his job after they wanted to get rid of him from the prototype shop.  Some of the other brazers don't think Stalker will last long down there, because they don't play.  They're going to make him work and he absolutely hates that.  He likes those jobs where he gets paid a lot of money to do very little.  

By the way, one of the other brazers said The Warden is being an absolute terror in his new job.  

On a similar note, the new boss finally showed his face in the plant and we have a name.  He doesn't have a blog nickname yet.  He'll have to earn that.  Inspector Gadget naively thinks he's going to suddenly give us the management support we so desperately need, but haven't gotten in ages. 

I'm not holding my breath on that one.  How many bosses have come and gone since I've been out there, and nothing ever gets better.  

I can't wait to retire.

And just so this post isn't a total waste of your time, I managed to get a not very good photo of the Harvest Moon.  

 Well, the cat just ran into the house growling like a tiger, so I guess I'd better go see what that's all about.  My guess is it's that tabby tom cat that sometimes hangs around. 

I'm pretty sure he belongs to somebody.  He's too fat to be a stray. 

Today

Today was the day when the new Director of Operations was supposed to arrive at the plant.  I suppose he did, but he never came out onto the shop floor, so we still haven't met him.  Maybe he'll introduce himself sometime, though we haven't had anyone do that since C.E. Murrell -- three bosses ago.  

In somewhat better news, it rained off an on all day.  We only got about 1/10" which was barely enough to wet the dust, but it's better than nothing.  I was hoping the clouds would clear off in time for me to watch the Harvest Moon rise, but they didn't.  I checked a couple of times, but the clouds were so thick I couldn't even see a faint glow behind the clouds.  I came back inside and drank my traditional cup of hot chocolate anyway, even though it's 80 something degrees and the air conditioner is running.  

Maybe I can watch tomorrow, provided the weather cooperates. 

Not much else to talk about, so here's a photo of the hat progress. 

 

And finally, it would appear the bots have decided my blog is too boring and my hit count is back down to the normal 40 ish per day average.  I wish the blogging culture would come back, but people these days don't read.  They'd rather be spoon-fed a video instead.  

Oh well, I don't blog for the hits, but for the memories.  And I do appreciate the four of you who are actually real people.  

UPDATE:  I went out and checked one more time, and was able to see the moon through a break in the clouds!  The tradition lives on!

Birds!

And we have a finished hat.  

That was not without incident.  I'd knit the decrease rounds yesterday evening until had to switch to double pointed needles, then knit a couple more rounds before I went to bed.  When I got up this morning, the first thing I did after making coffee was to pick up the hat with the intention of completing it.  Only I couldn't find my fifth needle.  

Now, for those of you who aren't knitters, most sets of double pointed needles -- or DPNs as we say-- come with five.  You have stitches on four of the needles and use the fifth as your working needle.  Usually, when I put a project down before I've finished, I stick the fifth needle into the skein or cake of yarn so I don't lose it.  Now that the stage is set, let's get to the story. 

As I said above, I couldn't find my fifth needle.  I checked the skein.  I looked on the end table.  I checked the floor.  I even pulled the chair away from the wall and looked underneath it, and got down on my hands and knees, checking under the end tables while I had the chair out.  I stuffed my hands down between the chair cushions...no needle anywhere.  

I sat down flinging my hands in the air in frustration and said, "It's got to be right here somewhere."  

I reached over and picked up the Ziploc bag I keep my hat knitting notions in -- so they're easy to find in my big knitting bag -- and...there it was.  The missing fifth needle.  Why I'd put it in there, I do not know, but no matter.  I'd found it and hat finishing was carried out. 

Then I cast on a second with the same yarn.  

In other news, I'm finally starting to see birds at my bird bath.  You already know about the mockingbird, but these last couple of days, I've also seen some cardinals drinking from it.  I guess the winter birds will use it, so I'm glad of that.  

I also found out why my little bee pond keeps going dry.  I'd noticed that about a week ago -- it was going completely dry every single day, which had me totally bumfuzzled.  I get that there is going to be some evaporation, but surely it wasn't evaporating that fast.  So, yesterday I was looking out my back door, watching the birds on the feeder, when a movement in that planter caught my eye.  I looked over and saw a sparrow over there drinking from it.  I guess the bigger birds are keeping the smaller ones away from the big bird bath, so they're drinking from the bee pond.  

Probably after the basil dies back, I'll find a larger bowl and put it in there as well.  I'll keep the smaller one for the hornets, too.  All are welcome at this table.  We are all creatures of our God and King. 

Even fire ants.  

They're not welcome at my table, but they're still God's creatures.  

I said what I said.  Through gritted teeth and a clenched jaw, but I said it. 

Like The Wind

When I said I was going to knit by the wind, y'all thought I was joking, didn't ya?  I wasn't joking. 

I cast on this hat shortly after I posted yesterday, and got all the way to the crown decreases while watching football today. 

This is the  Painted Canyon colorway, and I Love the way it's knitting up.  I don't know if I'll buy more of it, though, because of how much white is in it.  The SCI asks us not to use white or pastels, because they're afraid the hats will get stained, and the sailor will end up disappointed.  In fact, I might not even send this one to them.  I might keep it to give as a Christmas gift.  I should have enough in the skein to do a second hat, so some lucky couple out there might just get a matching set. 

While we're on the subject, here is a progress photo of the other hat -- the one I'd been working on before I went to Hobby Lobby. 

The yarn is Red Heart in the Icelandic colorway, and the needles are my new interchangeable set I bought a few weeks ago.  By the way, I'd started off using one of the stitch markers that was included with the set, 

but I found it to be too stiff.  Maybe I just need to get used to these kinds of markers, but not right now.  At the end of the round, I switched it out for my loop of scrap yarn, which is what I'm accustomed to. 

As far as football goes, Air Force gave Navy a run for their money, but in the end the Midshipmen sang second in the first leg of the Commander in Chief trophy.  I had to laugh at the commentators, because they kept talking about the CIC being as important as this or that-- like when Navy beat Oklahoma in the Armed Forces Bowl.  I said, "No, the CIC is the only thing!"  Maybe it's just me, but I'd rather win the CIC than even a Natty.  

In the other game I watched, Texas apparently left their O-Line in Austin, because Arch spent the entire game running for his life.  They said he did a lot of growing up in that game, but they still lost-- and to Florida of all people.  Eh, Florida isn't as bad as their record indicates.  They completely outplayed LSU and would have won that game if they hadn't thrown 5 interceptions. 

OK, moving right along...

I know, I know.  I can hear you now.  

"Ugh, Becky!  Why do you keep showing us that pile of dirt?"

To that I say, take a good look, because this just might be the last time you see it without at least one raised bed in place.  I got out this morning and knocked some of the high spots down and filled in some of the low spots.  It's never going to be perfectly level, but I don't want standing water anywhere.  They're predicting a 40% chance of rain tomorrow night and into Monday, so maybe we'll get some, and maybe it'll get a good wetting down and I can see if there are any trouble spots left.  If not, I might just have to put the sprinkler on it and give it a good soaking that way. 

Speaking of trouble spots, look what I found growing while I was working in my garden spot:  

Those are spider lily bulbs -- the ones the landscammer was supposed to dig up.  This is not the first time, either.  I also dug up a bunch when I was running the roto tiller, along with some day lily bulbs -- all of which he was supposed to dig up.  

I'm beginning to think I should have just done it all myself.  It probably would have been less work, and my yard wouldn't be a wreck right now. 

Oh, well, no use crying over spilled milk.  The only thing to do now is clean it up and start over.  Well, not now, because it's already dark out.  Now, I'm going to finish that hat -- and this football game. 

Mississippi State vs. Texas A&M, in case you're wondering. 

Laters. 

My Big Adventure

Well, my biggish adventure, I guess.  If going to Batesville could be considered that.   I'd been looking forward to it all week, and today was finally the day.  

I hit the road bright and early this morning right after breakfast and headed north.  The road trip passed without incident and my first stop was Walmart.  I debated on even going there, but decided to check and see if they had some of the things my local store doesn't carry any more. 

They didn't, so I went to the garden center to get some of the garden soil that is on clearance, only it isn't on clearance at the Batesville store.  Just at the local one.  Weird. I passed on paying full price, then headed to Lowe's.

Except that I somehow got stuck in the wrong lane and ended up back on the highway.  No problem, I'd planned on going to the Mounds anyway, so I made that my second stop instead of my last.  I was very excited to see that the pavilion is finished, 

but the museum wasn't open yet.  

I got close enough to peek through the windows and there wasn't even anything inside yet.  I hope they get it fixed up soon.  I'd love to know more about the history of the area.  For example, there is a sign on one of the trails that says South Village.  

OK, but what is it?  What did they find there that made them think there had been a village in that spot?  Pottery shards?  Remnants of fires?  Shelters?  What else?  What did they know about the people who lived there back in the day?  All they have now is that one little sign by the parking lot, but it doesn't say much. 

Anyway, I was only mildly disappointed, but had a nice walk around the trails, stopping only briefly to take a photo of the Tallahatchie River.  

By that time, I had already worked up a pretty good sweat, so I headed back to the car and back to Batesville I went.  I stopped by Lowe's to use their facilities and look at dishwashers.  I've been wanting a new one ever since I moved into this house, and a couple of years ago the hose that goes to the top rack came loose so it's not useable.  The motor still works, but from everything I've read, it would cost nearly as much to get it reattached as it would to buy a new one.  But since it's just me, I didn't see the need.   I only use a few dishes and it's no trouble at all to wash them by hand.  Still, it would be nice to have a working dishwasher again -- especially one that the previous owner's grandkids didn't pick all of the icons off so I actually know what the buttons do.  

I found a couple that I liked, but didn't buy them.  I'm thinking I might order one off the website so I can make sure they'll deliver it on a day I can be home.  

A quick trip through their garden center, and finally I was off to Hobby Lobby!  It was the only store that was open in that new shopping center, and it was pretty crowded.  The good news is, everything was on sale for the grand opening.  I was so tempted, but I was good in the end.  I only bought a new Thanksgiving platter, 

which is plastic, so I can't break it.  Probably.  Maybe...

Heh, when I went to the dentist, I was showing her photos in my phone of some of the hats I'd knit and ran across the one where I'd tried to cut my arm off with the chainsaw.  She laughed and said, "You sound just like me!"  The point is, never underestimate how clumsy I can be. 

I also bought five skeins of yarn for charity hats, and that was all.  

In case you can't read the labels, they are from left to right:  Kaleidoscope, Green/Turquoise/Red, 

Sunset, Plums, and Painted Canyon.  I can't wait to cast on with them!  I think Kaleidoscope will be first.  Or Painted Canyon.  Or maybe I'll find some extra needles and cast on both. 

The only other thing I did today was to get out and scrap some of that red clay garbage off of my spider lilies.  I'd noticed that in some spots, it was so thick that the leaves were struggling to break through. 

 I think that -- combined with an extremely dry summer -- may be why they did so poorly this year.  So, I got the clay scraped back to what appears to be regular dirt, so maybe they'll come on here in a bit.  I probably ought to water them a bit, too, since we've hardly gotten any rain here lately.   They're pretty tough, though so they'll be OK in the end. 

And if not, I can always thin some of the bulbs from the back end of the yard and transplant them.  They probably need it anyway. 

But for now, I've got to get off of here and knit like the wind!

Weekend Mode

The plant had a good day today.  A really good day -- as far as production goes, I mean.  

At the end of shift, group leaders and supervisors all over were getting onto the intercom and giving shoutouts to their departments.  Congratulations.  Great Job.  All except for one....

Someone turned around and told Inspector Gadget that we deserved a shout out, too, but he said no.  "That's unprofessional," he sneeringly informed us.  

Oh, come on!  We tried to persuade him.  We ran 2760 headers today -- 660 more than our daily goal.  That deserves some recognition.   Nope, he insisted.  It's unprofessional.  

"It's not unprofessional to recognize your employees when they do an outstanding job!"  I told him, but still he refused us any sort of accolade.  

And he wonders why no one respects him...

After work, I had to go to the dentist for my 6 month cleaning and check up, and for once, I had a good report.  I'd have gotten out of there faster, but the hygienist and I only see each other twice a year.  We had a lot of catching up to do.  She's about to become a first time grandma, and I showed her the hat and sweater set I'd made for my nephew's baby.  

She mentioned that she wanted to learn to knit, and I gave her some tips -- she's envious of my upcoming trip to Hobby Lobby, and I said that when she makes it up there, she could ask and see if they have knitting classes.  Long story slightly less long, we finally stopped yapping long enough to finish the appointment, and I decided since I was in town already, I might as well go by Walmart and get my shopping done. 

That chore completed, I came home and told the cat "Weekend mode has been activated!"  and I promptly sat down in front of the TV and cast on a hat using my new interchangeable needle set. 

Some weekend, huh?  

OK, the needles are really nice and knit very smoothly.  The only problem I have with them is that the shortest cable is about 6" longer than the Knit Picks fixed circular needles I'm accustomed to knitting hats with.  I think it'll be OK.  It'll just take some getting used to. 

Meanwhile, here is a progress photo of my Demeter sock yarn hat. 

 But now, I'm going to bed, because I've got a busy day tomorrow.  

I'm going to Hobby Lobby!!!

Respect

Well, here it is, October 1 and haven't gotten anything done off of my to do list.  Except for getting the scrap metal picked up, that is, and I did call a plumber and a tree guy, neither of whom called me back.

I've been trying since then to work up the gumption to call another plumber and another tree guy.   And someone to break up that old slab where the dog kennel was.  Of course, it doesn't help that we're in the just kidding here's some more summer season of the year, and it's back up into the 90s outside.  

Right now, I'm so ready for fall and cooler weather, I don't even want to be out in it.  The heat, I mean.  Which means, the yard.  I did get out and piddle a little bit this afternoon, but didn't stay out long.  I didn't want my hair to get all sweaty. 

Apropos of nothing, I got onto FB this morning while I was eating my breakfast and the first thing I saw was a post from one of my friends.  Then I had to  scroll through twenty three -- twenty three-- ads to get to another post from a friend, or even a page I liked.  This is why FB is a dying platform.  It used to be fun, but I hardly ever post there any more except links to the blog.  

So, I piddled in the yard a bit, then came inside and finished the latest charity hat. 

 The next one I cast on will be with my new needles, because I've had the things for...I don't even know how long, and I haven't used them yet.  I really need to.  I paid too much for them to sit around collecting dust. 

And finally, before I go, let's talk a little bit about respect.  

Respect is something that must be earned, not demanded of others -- especially not from those to whom you show no respect.   It has to go both ways.

So if you insist on talking to your employees like they're children, and treating them like they're stupid, and nit-picking through their work like you don't think they know how to do their jobs, then you have no right to expect anyone to respect you.  

Treat your employees like you think they are worthy of respect, and you may just find you'll earn the respect you so desperately crave. 

Best Day Ever!!

 I got to work not so bright, but not as early as usual — they have us coming in at 6:00 for the time being— went through the indignity of having the security guard check my cottage cheese then picked up my other bag, and proceeded on into the plant…

Where I was met by a fellow employee who said, “Did you hear your stalker got fired?”

“What?” I exclaimed standing there in a state of disbelief, not sure I heard her correctly. 

She called his name and said, “Isn’t he your stalker? He got fired yesterday.” He and three others, she said.  I'll get to them in a minute.

Giving a loud whoop of joy, I hurried to the sub brazing area, and called to another coworker, "Is it true??”

She laughed and assured me it was and this is the best day of my life!  Well, of my work life at the plant, I mean.

And now we are so happy, we do the dance of joy!!

via GIFER

I'm telling you, it was so nice to work without feeling like I had to keep looking over my shoulder, and knowing that now that he's no longer an employee, I'll actually be allowed to defend myself against him should the need arise.  That, to me, was the most frustrating part -- knowing that I could have put a stop to his harassment years ago, but it would have cost me my job, not him.  It wasn't just me, either.  Since he got hired, there has been a steady stream of women going up to HR to complain about him.  

Probably the worst thing I'd heard of him doing, and I heard this from multiple women, was that when he was the brazing trainer, he'd threaten to fail them unless they gave him a little something something first. Then there was how he'd stand right behind women and rub his front against their backs...and film black women's behinds...the way he'd stick his leg way up in the air and wave his junk at people (that one you'd have to see to believe)....I could go on, but you get the idea.

All of that is over now.  Still, there is a part of me that can't completely relax, knowing that he'd been fired once before and his ...um...special friend, yeah, let's call him that ...his special friend in the front office made them give him his job back -- then got rid of the HR director who dared fire his buddy.  Even though that special friend is no longer working there, I can somehow see him calling them up and demanding they give Stalker his job back.  But maybe not...I'll get to that in a minute. 

As I mentioned earlier, there were three others fired as well.  Junior is one of them, and quite frankly, that's a relief, too.  He was more interested in playing childish pranks than in running the plant.  Not only that, I was getting mighty tired of hearing about how they do things in Japan.  

 The third guy worked back in quality, and though he did have a shop floor nickname, I had taken to just calling him Nasty Man.  He got this nickname because every time there is food involved -- like the anniversary dinners, the veteran's dinner, or a leadership conference -- he shows up and eats.  Once he's done eating, he'll pull out his napkin and blow his nose...sitting there at the table, with people around him still eating.  That's just nasty. 

The fourth guy was a front office employee, and I never had any problem with him, but didn't really deal with him much.  

Now, the story on the shop floor is that they are trying to cut overhead, and had offered all four of them different positions which came with a significant reduction in pay, and all four refused, preferring to be dismissed rather than take a pay cut.  If that is the case, nobody can really demand that Stalker be given his job back, what with him choosing to leave.  

I'm not completely sold on that theory, though.  I think if they had given them that choice, at least one of them would have taken it.  I can't see all four refusing a pay cut.  One or two, maybe, but not all four.  I'm thinking they were looking for an excuse to get rid of them, so they just let them all go. 

I wonder if the new boss had something to do with it.  I know he's not there yet, but he'd still have access to plant information.  Maybe he sees what we've been saying for years, that the plant is top heavy with management.  

Seriously, it ran so much more smoothly out there when we had one production manager, not four, and one supervisor per shift, not seven or eight.  I can see them needing two supervisors per shift with the way they have it set up now, one for production and one for components, but we sure don't need as many as we have. 

Speaking of, some of us were talking this morning and someone who shall remain nameless mentioned that Inspector Gadget needs to follow those other four right out the door.  When they keep moving someone from job to job to job to job because he can't do any of them, it's time to either put him on a machine or put him out the door. 

And there you have it.  That was my exciting news for today.  I need to go start trying to calm myself down now, or I'll never get to sleep tonight.  I think I'll start with a hot shower, followed by the newest episode of Halloween Wars and some knitting.  That ought to do it.  

Laters...

It’s Open!!

It's open!  The Hobby Lobby in Batesville is finally open!  

I know what I'm going to be doing this weekend.  

via GIFER

It'll be so nice to have an honest to goodness craft store nearby without having to drive 100 miles to go to Jackson or Memphis.  

You know what else was nice?  Inspector Gadget wasn't there today, and things ran so smoothly.  You know it's bad when the department runs better when the supervisor isn't there.   On a similar note, this popped up in my Facebook feed.  

Cody says we need to give him some grace, but it's been four years.  How much grace should he get?  To be honest, I'd be willing to extend him much more grace if it weren't for those temper tantrums he pitches in the press conferences.  

Speaking of grace, I do think we should extend some to Matt Eberflus.  I mean, he'd built his entire defense around Micah Parsons, then Jerry trades his cornerstone a week before the season starts.  Now he has to build a whole new defense at the drop of a hat. 

OK, there is a bit of speculation there on my part, but that's about how it seems. 

I had more to talk about, but I ...mostly...stayed up to watch the ball game last night and I'm a bit tuckered.  The serious talk will have to wait for another post.  I'll just leave you with this blast from the past.  

 Anybody else remember making these?  I'm going to go get some paper and try one!

I Did It

I finally did it.  I've been putting it off for a couple of weeks now, but yesterday evening, I finally did it after I'd done everything I could think of to put it off...

I finished this hat...

(The yarn is Forbidden Fiber Co in the colorway Toasted Marshmallow.)

I knit a few rounds on the latest charity hat...

(The yarn is Red Heart in the Neon Stripe colorway.)

I even got a new hank of yarn out of the closet and caked it up...

The yarn is Euphoria Knits, which I picked up at Fiber Fun In The 'Sip a few years ago.  I'll just let you figure out what this colorway is:  

But finally, I could ignore it no more.  The Demeter collection, which I also bought at FFITS, was calling my name, and it had gotten rather loud these last few days. 

Before I could stop myself again, I grabbed the pack, ripped it open, and pulled out the darkest color.   I quickly caked it up and cast on a new hat. 

The yarn is Jem Lux Fibers, the Demeter collection, and this colorway is called Heart of Demeter. 

Once I'd done that and knit a few rounds, I could almost hear the yarn breathing a sigh of relief, and everything around it relaxed a bit.  A lot, actually.  So much so that this morning, I took the yarn outside and knit in my chair while listening to the sounds of the birds singing and the breeze blowing. 

Oh, and look who came back.

He kept a pretty close eye on me, but I was able to sneak a photo before he flew away.  

Speaking of, I took up the hummingbird feeder that was in the back yard and brought it inside.  I'll wash it really well then store it away until spring.  I've left the one in the front yard for now, but I believe the heaviest wave of migration is past me.  Since the hummingbirds have gone south, I'll hang a suet feeder on that shepherd's hook for the time being. 

Before I forget again, my new neighbors have Halloween decorations out, and they're so cute.  I want to walk over and take pictures of them, but feel like that would be weird.  I hope they decorate for Christmas, too.  I'd love to decorate, but I don't have sense enough to make it look nice.  I don't want it to look like Christmas threw up in my yard, so I usually just stick with a wreath on the door and a string of lights across the front of the house.  

On a similar note, did you know Santa has started a podcast?  Yep, you can find it here:  Santa Has A Podcast. 

And another thing I keep forgetting to tell you is that we're getting a new Big Man Up Front.  Group Leader Shark said he'd be here in two weeks, but it was a week ago that she told us that, so I'm thinking next week sometime.  This will be the fifth plant manager we've had since Chris Taylor resigned in 2018.  You know there is something seriously wrong within the company when you go through that many in such a short time. 

No word on the new HR director, though, and to be honest, I've lost track of how many of those we've gone through in the last 10 years.  At least seven...and I feel like I'm forgetting someone.  Oh, well...

Me, I'm just trying to hang in there until I can retire...