Accountability

I am trying to make some life changes. I want to be more productive in life, at work, at the “gym”, at my crafts, in my relationships. Making these changes is working so far. I feel better about myself- more confident, more connected, more centered.

One of these changes is centered on my blog. Right now, I’m writing maybe twice a month. I want to write twice a week. My plan is to do one post per week about my knitting, since I am knitting a little every day. I should have some progress each week to show, if not finished things. It’s amazing, if you actually knit you can finish things within a less-than-6-months’ time frame! Granted, I chose not to post this week about knitting because I am working on a super-secret project that I cannot quite talk about yet – except to say that I am within 40 stitches of completion.

The other changes I am trying to make are:

1. Fitness- Continue to work on cycling, start with a little core strength training each day.
2. Work- Minimize non-productive time
3. Relationships- Re-establish and maintain friendships that have been allowed to lapse.

I probably will not post very much about 2 and 3 here, though I may change my mind if I feel that I need to share.

As of yesterday, here is our cycling progress:



Yep. We’re over 700 miles for the year. We have at least 6 to 8 more weeks of good riding, so we will certainly hit 1,000 miles.



Now to just make sure that I am doing my core exercises… Hmmm.

No Progress

I haven’t really been knitting, just a row here and there on the Schieffelin Point Shawl. It’s a shame because I’m so close to having it done. I think I’ve got 6 more rows before I start the lace border.

We have been making progress on our cycling goals thouhg.

We are +50 miles over where we were at this time last year. We are planning to ride a minimum 40 miles both this week and next week. The three-day Memorial Day weekend will certainly help. If we can manage that we will be nearly +100 miles over last year. Unfortunately, it is looking like we won’t be able to participate in the Michigander Bike Tour this year though. Mr. TEKs has a project at work that is going to necessitate extended hours, so we are going to try to find a different tour.

Otherwise, my free time has been taken up by hanging out on the patio (which allows for some knitting) and playing Diablo III (which does not).

My apologies

Here we are, more than half way through March, and I haven't posted. There is good and bad, and more good news.

Good News/Bad News #1- I found a job! I started the first full week of February and I a very happy in my new role. It's with a small company, working with information that I have no experience with, so there is a lot to learn- along with a crap-ton of excel work! Excel makes me happy, I probably should go back to school for computer programming because I just love the problem solving aspect of figuring out how to automate calculations with formulas, functions, and macros.

The bad news in all this is that I have significantly less time to blog. My time at work is work time, though lunchtime might allow me to outline a post or two, and now that it is spring I'll be spending more time in the evenings on my bicycle, which will leave even less time for blogging and preparing for posts (like taking photos)

Good News/Bad News #2- Daylight Savings! It's great because I'll have better light in the evening for photography. It's not-so-great because I hate changing the clocks. Last week I was so off my game, it was aweful! I was getting up at minimum 20 minutes late every morning for work, which meant I arrived at work later than I would have liked.

How have my hobbies fared with the new job? My primary hobbies have fared well. I consider knitting, photography, and cycling my primary hobbies. Sewing, baking, and other crafts are secondary.

Knitting: I participated in a knittyboard swap, the theme was "New Year, (learning) New Things. My pal sent me a GREAT package. Pretty stitch markers, yummy tea, and the crowing glory- Misti Alpaca 4-ply Alpaca Silk in an amazing garnet color. I'd better get a black coat for the winter, I don't want to look like an Ohio State fan when visiting my in-laws in Columbus! (disclaimer: I do not care a whit for college sports. Mr. TEK does not care a whit for college sports. His extended family does not fail to give us crap because we live and work in Michigan- and horror of horrors- I work in Ann Arbor again!) She sent along a super cute pattern- Schieffelin Point Shawl that I immediately cast on for.





I also have a nearly-completed Pocket Cup Cozy, but I am still not happy with the pocket construction. Apparently I suck at picking up stitches. I'm just going to have to keep trying or just make them without pockets. It's not like that is difficult at all.



Cycling: The 2012 Summer of 1,000 Miles spreadsheet is live! And by live, I mean updated and on my usb drive. I'll give you a peek at the data analysis page (the rest is boring... unless you like line graphs with 2 data points!)


Since we started going to the gym in January, we were able to kick-start our outdoor cycling by cutting out the less than 5 mile conditioning rides. The weather certainly helps too. Hopefully we will be able to get another 10 mile ride in this evening.

Photography: I have barely had a reason to pick up my camera before today since I haven't been doing any blogging. I have not finished any crafty projects either. I've got a project for Easter, which I am really excited about, but other than that nothing much.



There are two new releases coming May 15 that I am super excited about. Diablo III and the new Garbage album. So giddy about D3... and the new computer I am going to get to ensure I get an awesome experience. I've needed a new desktop for about a year now, but I've been putting it off so I could get something to run Diablo to it's best advantage. Yes, I am quite happily a nerd.

Duke was quite mad that I was outside and he was not getting my undivided attentions.

Charting

I love to knit by chart. It's just cleaner and I really get a feel for what my project is supposed to look like. However, last night I gave myself a headache creating a chart for the raglan decreases for the Chevron Baby Sweater. The chart turned out well, but that was a LOT of excel, even for me!

Want to see it? Flickr smooshed it, but you can still get the idea.

If you want to get a copy of this chart, just drop me a line, either email or comments, and I'll see what I can do. I do not want to violate copyright law, and while I think my version is different enough from the pattern it is based on, I am not 100% certain.

The knitting is going well. I think I might have made a "mistake" that will make the steeking and picking up for the button band a little more difficult. It's not really a mistake, but I'm not sure what else to call it. I should have knit the 7 stitch section where the steek is going to be in stockinette in the seed stitch hem. I don't think it's a huge deal, and I am not about to start it over to change it.