6 Days to the Bahamas...

As a job perk, I have earned a trip to the Bahamas next week for 5 days of sunshine with my best friend Matt. I'm excited for not only the trip and some time off but some time with my best friend. I met Matt as he was my boss about 7 years ago and since then we have been very close. Unfortunately, we live 1000 miles apart and I have only seen Matt once in the last 4 years.

Matt is the one I trust with everything - every dirty little secret, every event, every story. Matt knows everything about me and if there is something he doesn't - it's just because we haven't had a chance to catch up.

Every girl needs a best friend like Matt. I am really looking forward to our time together next week - if we don't do anything but just hang out it will be a very successful vacation.

I really miss my best friend - I haven't seen him in almost 3 years.

To the judgmental at the Sunday knitting circle - if you have issues with myself or my friends have the fortitude to say something and not just make faces and comments to your friends.

Throughout my life, I have been judged or teased - for being too tall, too fat, too something. I have always found that with knitting everyone is welcome and everyone is friendly.

For the past few Sundays a certain individual and political figure in the community has dramatically shunned my friends and myself.

I feel as if I'm being judged by someone who doesn't even know me and someone with these shallow values doesn't even deserve to be blogged about but since I've reached the point of frustration - I'm blogging.

Only a few individuals will understand who I am ranting about but in general I think knitters and humans alike can relate to be judged and criticized by others.

What annoys me most is that this individual thinks she is better than myself and my awesome group of friends.

I may not dress the part on the weekends nor always act prim and proper but Sunday afternoons are my time with my friends at one of my favorite places in town. I'm an awesome person with an outgoing attitude. If I choose to wear flip flops and jeans then it's my choice.

To the individual I'm referring to - this is your loss. It's your loss of not getting to know me, learning from me and getting to know my amazing friends. My friends have managed to help me through some of the roughest patch in my life and I know I can count on them for anything.

To the individual I'm referring to - I'm punky, I have tattoos, I have piercings. I also have a high level professional job. I manage multi-million dollar projects and team fulls of individuals. I have strong moral and religious beliefs.

To the individual I'm referring to - every Sunday for the past 6 weeks I have watched you stare and glare at myself and my friends, then walk away. What is sad is that a few people follow you for the only reason of finding out community gossip.

To the individual I'm referring to - it's only knitting. To bring snobbery and shallowness into my hobby is just uncalled for.

I will continue to knit on Sundays with my friends at one of my favorite places in town. I will never be a snob or make someone feel not welcomed.

My mother raised me to know better than to judge others.

I realized this week that I'm a lot braver and a lot gutsier than I used to be - I no longer shy away from situations and I have learned to stand up for what I believe from both a personal and a professional standpoint.

I did something very out of character this week and I'm hoping it has a huge payoff.

Enough said on that topic for the moment but there will be follow up in the weeks to come if it works out in my favor.

Tonight is Angie's baby shower!! It's my first time attending a baby shower - I'm very excited. I have to hurry and finish the baby sweater I made - I will post pictures shortly.

It's good to be home - the red eye flight was rough as the tough boy marine who sat next to me was visciously sick throughout the flight and decided to revert to being a child.

Tattoos and Memories

My good buddy Rick spent 5 hours fixing another one of my tattoos yesterday- I now have the most beautiful flower garden on my arm.

It was hard to get great shots of the tattoos but...






The knitting needles that Rick fixed last week:



Rick asked for fresh skin next time - I think I'm done with tattoos for a long while...

Once again, I have a broken back. Unfortunately I had the pleasure of spending 10 hours on an airplane yesterday. On my way to Denver the weather changed drastically and after 2 hours of circling Denver we landed in Colorado Springs to refuel and wait for the fog to clear. I finally made it to San Diego and my back had decided it was going to make my week painful and torturous. As rare as I complain, I have spent most of today lying on the floor of my team members different cubes as I touch base with them.

In knitting news...

Lisa, my most favorite client of all time and my knitting grasshopper sent me pictures of her wonderful wallaby and her first pair of socks.

Notice the socks are identical and perfect - I was so amazed in how perfect they came out.

Even my other most favorite client, Chuck, has taken to knitting - I love the impact of seeing a first time knitter taking to the obsession.

Pictures below.

Wonderful Wallaby:




Perfect Pair of Socks(PPS):

Favorite Erika Picture!

This is my favorite picture of Erika - her love of monchichi's is just starting (she is holding Aunt Amy's monchichi)...

Strange to be back in Iowa after a few weeks away but as always the weekends always go by so fast. I have hopes of going to the Renaissance Fair before it rains and to have some quality knitting and friend time.

I was able to get my new tattoo "fixed" last night by an amazing tattoo artist at Sacred Skin - Rick did a fabulous job and I am absolutely thrilled with his talent. He wouldn't let me look at it until he was completely done and it was a bit of an agonizing wait with a great payoff. I LOVE the tattoo - the colors are bright and it now looks like three dimensional knitting needs and yarn. I'm hoping to get the before and after pictures from Rick. I will post new pictures of the tattoo shortly.

I'm missing San Diego today for various reasons. Outside of Elvis, I miss these kind of evenings:





I haven't ever worked in a city where I instantly fell in love (with the city) - someday I would love to live in San Diego, even if it means just pitching a tent on the beach.

This week will be a lot of fun - San Diego and Las Vegas. It's already been stated that what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Life's not bad when you can end a day this way...

Time flies when you are having fun - or working nonstop. I'm in beautiful San Diego with some great people having some great times - just unfortunately working.

Making the best of the situation - I am staying less than a mile from the ocean and have been able to see it very late at night. I'm hoping to post some pictures if I ever get to see the ocean in daylight.

To my friends who are bbqing and spending time at their beach houses making memories - enjoy - I'm making some special memories of my own. This weekend is starting to compare to my New Year's Eve spent in San Francisco working. It comes with the territory of my career and as always, I'm making the best of the situation.

After much dramatic news this week about someone who I thought I was close with(boy was I way off the mark and am still kicking myself over), I have discovered a part of me that has been missing for years. I feel like a different person and am anxious to see what the future brings.

Sometimes distance and space is all a person needs for some perspective on one's life. I don't think my life will be free of drama but I know better times are ahead.