I started another blog!

Question: Why is she starting another blog? Isn't this one good enough?

Answer: I think one blog should be good enough but this new blog is very focused and kind of professional, rather than a life blog. I have been thinking about it for a while now and I finally got around to it since I'm procrastinating from doing my school work (Shhh! Don't tell Theo!).

This new blog is specific to my knitting. I guess I have been knitting for long enough that it is time for me to get serious about it, though I will never be as serious about it as I am about my art (I finished my new website by the way if you haven't checked it out you should.) Meanwhile I have been making sweaters and other things for years now and have always had people ask about them so it's time to take it to the next level. Through the new blog I will be talking about my projects, sharing my patterns, and hopefully selling original knit works on a commissioned basis.

It's a little crazy but hopefully it will be fun and things will develop from it. I don't have any projects up on the site yet but hopefully I will soon. I made Theo a matching hat and neck warmer set for Christmas so maybe I can get him to model them for the site since he practically won't take them off.

Technology is our Frienemy

Today I was at the drug-store to make the final purchase of our health flexible spending account. The account had $5.52 left in it and I thought that it was the prime opportunity to purchase some Airborne. I waited in the 7-person long line and explained to the cashier that I'd like to put exactly $5.52 on my flexible spending credit card and pay the rest in cash.

I could be wrong, but over the last few years I've come to the unsettling decision that many people don't have basic arithmetic skills. This is after numerous visits to the laundromat where I tell the cashier how much change to give me after they stand there for a very awkward 10 seconds before they look at me with an expression that says, 'Do you know?'

It quickly becomes apparent to me that two things have happened, the woman helping me does not know how to make the amount on the card $5.52 without me first paying the difference in cash and the woman does not know what the difference in cash would be. My zesty-orange airborne came to a grand total of $7.99. She asks me how much I'd like to pay in cash and tells me that I need to figure out what it is.

At this point, I get a little flustered because I'm very annoyed that she cannot tell me what I owe and does not have the means to figure it out. She tells me I owe $8 and I give her $3 and tell her I'd like to pay $2.48 until I see that the register says $7.99 and then I change it to $2.47.

She takes the money and I swipe the card and sign. She then stares at me again and says, "How much did you pay in cash?" I tell her I paid $2.47 in cash. She looks at the $3 and once again I encounter the awkward silence so I say, "I gave you $3 so you owe me 53 cents in change", to which she replies, "I'm not in the mood for math today."

This leads to my point: Technology is killing our arithmetic skills

If the people handling many arithmetic transactions on a daily basis cannot do arithmetic, how many people are left with these basic skills. I just may be that the people taking our money are not always the sharpest pencils of the bunch and that is why they're working a crappy dead-end job. The folks who learn to add and subtract in elementary school get the more mediocre desk jobs later in life; now that's something to strive for!

Things to ponder

Megan has been gone for most of the week at an art conference down in Dallas with Yoko Ono. It's now Friday night. Some of the things I've noticed since she's been gone:
1. It only took me 15 minutes to do the dishes from the week; I normally do the dishes for about a half-hour about every 2 days.
2. When I got our laundry back, I noticed that I had only worn one "personal shirt". This means that my life is pretty work-oriented. Why do I have so many t-shirts when all I need are my plain-t's?
3. I spend too much time on the computer.
4. Things are weird; I feel weird.
5. I don't feel very social.
6. I listen to This American Life a lot.
7. My posture is bad.
8. I stay up later.
I'm going to go into work tomorrow... Saturday. I don't like working on Saturday. Saturday is for wearing a "personal shirt" and some sunshine. At least I'll get out of the house.

Let it Snow

The weather here has been crazy. Last Monday the temperatures were in the mid-60s and then fluctuated to 17 on this past Monday. Yesterday, Tuesday, it snowed all afternoon. That's not an exaggeration either, I actually think it really did snow from 12pm to 12am. It was great! I was at school until late last night when the snow was perfectly settled and was starting to turn to freezing rain (does that count as snow?). The streets were so peaceful and quite. Above is a picture of the street we live on. It's amazing what snow can do even in Brooklyn. There was barely any noise too! It's too bad it's not sticking since the temperature is back up in the 50s today. This could be a fluke, but last winter was kind of crazy over here too. I can only think that it must be global warming in action.

Please remember to reduce, reuse and recycle everything you are thinking of throwing out. Instead of buying a new pair of pants try sewing the ones you have or donate them to a shelter where the people aren't as choosy. If you have something you want to get rid of and don't know if you should throw it away or not look online to see what kind of plan your city offers for curbside recycling and you can also find all sorts of alternatives for recycling "waste" from your home that may require a little bit more work but will be worth it for "future generations". Also, don't forget to turn off lights in rooms you are not occupying, and if this is too much for you please invest in the eco-friendly bulbs that create more light, last longer, and use less energy all over your home. Being eco-friendly will most likely save you money too if that is any incentive. Go too!