Working on a cardigan

So I have been busy with work, and crochet.
I get scheduled days off from work, and then they call me. I have a hard time saying no, or ignoring a ringing phone. I know it's sad. So I must find a place to work on my crochet, or other crafts, where I can't hear the phone ring.
I am really excited about this project, it was actually a pretty quick to work up, and not too complicated.

I don't really own cardigans, and I see cute ones in the store. I think I could just make one. So that's what this is. I have now finished it, except I need to add a button to it. I have plenty of buttons, but want to make sure I pick one that will work the best for it, and I haven't taken the time to do that. I have been busy crocheting a bomber hat for my brother for Christmas, and I still have some mittens to make for a friend. I am also making three raccoons, for the kids of my friend. I can never do just one project. I usually end of having at least three projects going at once. The good news is that I will finish them all.
I will have a chance Friday afternoon, to add the button to my cardigan, and get a picture of the finished project. It fits really well, better than the knit cardigan I made last year :(  I could have sworn I did the gauge on it, but it still came out a bit too big for me. It looks so pretty though. Oh well.
I have some great cardigans saved on my ravelry account, that now that I have made one that fits, I will definitely make more.


I have long day of work ahead of me, unloading a Christmas truck.
Have some fun today!

What's Blooming at work!

So the final installment of what's blooming at work, for this season. Next week is my last week of the season, I need to get busy figuring out what I am going to do for the next five months.


Well it's that time of year so mums are blooming at work!

Of course we also have pumpkins! Can't wait to pick out one. I don't know what I am going to carve this year, but it will be fun!

Dress Code

So yesterday I had an interview (yay). I think it went well. I just have to wait for them to go through other interviews, and my background check. I am not worried about the background check, it was the mention of a dress code. Alas a dress code, I was spoiled the last two winters. I could wear what I wanted, within normal reason. This company wants black shoes, black pants, and medium blue shirts. If I get the call, I will need to take a trip to goodwill. The other thing, I chickened out asking about was tattoos.Mine weren't showing for the interview. I will be getting another one in October, on the inside of my fore arm. It will be getting colder, so I can wear long sleeves if it is necessary for my to hide them. I understand tattoos, are still not completely socially acceptable. Even as more and more people get them.

The dress code got me thinking about my whole life, and the relationship (or lack their of) with style. I have never really been up on what's in style, or what's in. Main reason, it is not always comfortable, and would be expensive to be constantly trying to keep up. I will say I am happy to see flannel has come back. SO comfy!

In grade school, I wore sweat suits very, very often. I am talking about same color pants, and top, with the top usually having some picture on it, like a cute kitten or two. Grade school wasn't a big deal, we were too busy playing to care what we were wearing. I got into middle school, and then started to wear jeans. My family didn't have a lot of money so most clothes came from Goodwill, Salvation Army, or the church thrift store (not a bad thing, if I had known how to make it work for me). Then Walmart came to town, and I did get some newer clothes. Luckily for my parents, my last growth spurt was around middle school. I reached my final height of 4'11". I was small so most of the clothes that fit me well, came for the children's section. I wore clothes that were comfortable, and nothing really to flashy. I was more of a background girl.
High school  started, and my freshman year, I wear a Maine sweatshirt obsessively. It was navy blue and in white letters, said Maine across the front. I got it from a thrift store, and it was comfortable. I would consider it like my safety blanket for my first year. I got teased. After that year it disappeared. 
Since then I have had a few  jobs with dress codes, so I bought clothes accordingly.

I have always kind of struggled to figure out my own personal style. What makes me feel happy, and comfortable. The biggest thing for me was feeling comfortable with myself. I have actually built up confidence, and become happier with who I am. I never really worn dresses or skirts (my mother always complained about it a lot , when I was young). This is the first summer I wore dresses, and I realized how much I really like it.
I have made a lot of skirts for myself this summer, and have worn them a lot. I made my own skirts because stores never carried the right length that works for me. Usually way too short, or too long. I could pick out my own fabric, and go nuts. This year I also finally signed up for Etsy. I am in my happy place. Poor Pitiful Pearl, Violet Bella, Mountain Girl Clothing, Emandsprouts, etc. I love it! I might call my style, eclectic, free spirit, fun. Now if I could find a place to work, that lets you wear your personal style ( I understand, within reason).

I do understand that the dress code, creates a more professional look.

Sorry for how long that was, and not terribly exciting. It has just been on my mind. Any thoughts about dress code? What would you call your own personal style? Any other Etsy shops you might recommend?

Have some fun today!

sore and hunting

Friday brought a truck to work, and now sore shoulders, YIPPIE! The whole trailer of the truck was for us. The nice thing was it only took us 2 hours to unload the truck. Now we have all kinds of fresh plants to sell. Some of the tree hydrangeas are in bloom. The blooms have got to be pretty close to the size of my head. I do find myself to be pretty fond of the classic grandiflora. Nice and white, and it finishes with a blush, also gorgeous dried. I had a woman come up to me at work one day asking what was that tree with the white flowers called. I pointed to a hydrangea, she said that was it. I told her what it is, and she was just in love with it. She told me she was from Texas, and she had never seen them before. I guess hydrangeas are more of a New England shrub. Has anyone seen them down south? In Texas? I have to wonder if it gets too hot, or maybe they would just prefer the shade more in the south?
I will have to go on a mission to find a really nice old hydrangea to take a picture of.
The gardening season is getting close to finishing, so I am out looking for the winter job. I have worked as a barista the past two winters. I have loved the job, and the great customers, but the environment, behind the scenes was not good. I did work with some really great ladies, but I won't say more. So I have filled out applications, a few at coffee shops looking to hire. Hopefully I will hear back soon. There is still two more months of actual gardening, but most people are not completely convinced they can garden in October.
It's all good!
Now I need to get ready to drive up to my dad's for a BBQ. Can't wait to see him, my brother, sister, Sue and her kids. Must remember to not be so shy with the camera.

Have lots of fun today!

finally what's blooming at work

Good Morning!

I finally got my stuff together and got a few pictures of my favorite blooming plants. This is what is blooming at work right now!

Astrantia major 'Venice'

Coreopsis 'dream catcher'

White Stokesia (Stoke's Aster)

None of the mums or asters have started to bloom, but the buds on the early ones are looking pretty big! I will definitely be getting pictures of those. The ornamental kale is huge this year, at least as big as my head! No I don't have a large head, I think mine is proportional to my body.
Also I wanted to document Tyrell at work,

He is the male of the three barn cats at work. I can't say he is a complete Maine Coon cat, because he seems slightly small. He won't let anyone brush his fur, so when it matted up, he had to get a fur cut. He won't show his face on camera. His tail is still really fluffy too.

Have a great day!

What I am listening to

Lately there are certain days, I dread going to work. I enjoy what I do, I don't even mind unloading trucks. I do mind drama. This summer two people have been creating drama. Unfortunately one is my manager. The other is a co-worker,  that should work under the manager, but he wants to be the giving orders. So he has antagonized the manager, and done things that are complete opposite of what should be done. At this point in the season, the manager has had more than enough, but won't fire co-worker, because he does sell plants really well. So both are miserable, and the rest of us are stuck in the crossfire. The other thing, they are the oldest on the crew, you would think they could be adults, and sit down and try to talk this out.
So what do I do? Well I hook up my I pod, on my way into work, and listening to music. Recently I have been listening more to my Switchfoot play list. It just makes me happy, and if I get one of their songs stuck in my head for the day it should keep me in perspective.
I first heard about them maybe 11, 12 years ago. I was taking dance classes and we used one of their songs, for our recital, learning to breath. I got the album, and loved all the songs. I think each album, has brought great songs, and beautiful words. Just one of my favorites, off the first album I bought:

Work day

So after all that talk of chai ice cream yesterday, I churned it this morning. YUP! 5 am, I was churning ice cream. It finished pretty quickly since it had been in the fridge over night.I tried some this morning, and it is so yummy! this is the recipe I used.Sadly my tooth screamed, with the cold. I think it is time I buckle down, and find a dentist to take care of this (cavity?), even if the idea of bill scares me.

It is a work day. A truck came in yesterday, I got to miss unloading that one (shucks). Although, I will probably be putting a lot of it away today. Lots of trees and shrubs, and I very excited to see the fruit trees. I wish I had enough land, and was closer to the coast (warmer winters), so then I could grow the cherries, and peaches. I could grow the plums, pears, and apples but,  I live near several apple orchards, I am happy to visit and support the local orchards. Honestly I would love to be in a much warmer zone to grow lemons, and have an olive tree. Daydream!
There should be a lot in bloom, and I will try to get some pictures. It is a great way to work on my picture taking skills.

Keep hydrated and enjoy the day!

Just in time

Good morning!
Shocking morning for me. I went and sat down at the computer, I thought I would balance my checking account. I found an odd charge that just went through this morning. I don't know the website, and it is supposedly based in California. I called up my bank, and was told it was authorized on Monday. No I worked all day, and didn't even use the computer that day. I have to cancel my card, and go to a branch to get a new one. But the biggest thing is I feel very shaken, and angry that someone, would steal from me. I thought I have been so careful with my card. Clearly someone found a way to get it. They didn't clear out my account, but it's my money, and if I hadn't been paying attention how long before I would have lost a whole lot more. I am in no way rich, and my job is cutting back on hours. I am trying my best to cut back, and save, because the winter job, just doesn't pay as much. It reminds me again, of how people can treat each other. I am sound a bit dramatic, but I have worked at a bank, and I had one member who came in adamant that the check that came in the mail, was real. We tried our best to explain it is a scam, she even told us she had called the number and they said it was real (of course they would!). But she was desperate to believe. There was a hold put on it, to try and protect, and by the end of the month, the check kicked back.
I am just so glad I found it this morning and took care of it, I may not get that money back, but I still have enough to pay my bills, so I made out pretty lucky compared to what has happened to some people. Hopefully the rest of my day can be much brighter.
There is a truck coming in today, hopefully they will come early, so we are not unloading plants in too much heat. There will also be a lot of watering today. At least it shouldn't be as hot as it was on Monday, but still the humidity!
I did find my camera (hooray!), but the birds have flown from the nest (oh well). It would have been neat to at least have seen them learn to fly, and take off.

I leave you with a picture from one of the drives that David and I took.




Tab

4th of July weekend

I was so happy to get a chance on Saturday to see my mom, brother and sister. They came down to camp out in the pop up camper, my mom just bought. Mom is not much of a planner, and had to call around to find a place, because it is of course 4th of July weekend. Thankfully she found a place and I got to see my brother and sister! I even have pictures, maybe not all that great, but I am getting better at getting out my camera and using it.
Sara and Joe


Joe and mom



I got David to use my camera and get Sara, me, and Joe.


Not the best posing, but the better posed picture, came out blurry. They will only let me take so many pictures of them, before the pictures start to get really crazy.
We sat around and talked for awhile, and it was really nice. I was so happy to see them.

What did I do on the 4th? I got to work, YAY! wait! what! Yup the garden center stayed open all day, it was hot and sunny, perfect weather for swimming and BBQs. I pruned roses, sweated, had a few popsicles, drank lots of water, reapplied sunscreen, and helped some of the customers that actually showed up. There really wasn't a whole lot of customers, and most of them wanted annuals. I got home at 7, and showered, relaxed, had some chicken wings, and a Harpoon UFO. I know, not very exciting, but after being out in the sun all day with around 90 degree temps, I was not full of a lot of energy. I also had to work the next day. Monday was a bit busier, still just as sunny and hot. Also a sparrows nest had been discovered, in a pot of black eyed susans ( we have put a hold tag, so nobody tries to buy it). The two babies are pretty big, and I can't believed we missed the nest for so long! Why don't I have pictures? I can't find my camera! I know it is around the house, but it sprouted legs and is hiding somewhere on me (possibly snickering). I hope I find it in time, so maybe Wednesday I will get action shots of maybe babies learning to fly.
This is not the first time I have seen a birds nest in an awkward place. Last year it was in a dwarf burning bush shrub, (the customer came back after they realized the nest, thankfully mom came back to the nest). I don't understand how they think those places are safe, plenty of people walk by, and move the plants around, and we water them.


Tab