WLAP

It's been almost a year since my last post, and I'm sorry for that. A lot has obviously happened since then, but the main reason I'm back is my new Weight Loss Accountability Plan (WLAP for short)!

My boyfriend and I have decided that we really need to step up our efforts to get in shape, as in we actually need to start doing something instead of just sitting around talking about it. My main problem right now is my job; it's hard to find even a smidgeon of energy to work out when I have to be at work at 3 AM. Add to that my returning status as a full-time student, and you get a major lack of day-to-day consistency. BUT that's all about to change, because next Wednesday is officially my last day at Michaels, and I can't tell you how excited I am!

Last week, I was offered a job as a Work-Study Student Assistant on campus, a position I have been struggling to get for quite some time (like several years; I wanted a job like this when I was working on my first bachelor's degree). What this means in terms of WLAP is that I'll be waking up around the same time every day, which will do wonders for my body in terms of sleep and will hopefully make it easier for me to keep up a fairly consistent workout schedule. It should also help me eat at more regular intervals.

Now, WLAP. I'm going to start taking pictures of everything I eat. Why? Because I'm too obsessive-compulsive to be efficient at tracking my calories. I spend way too much time trying to make sure my measurements are perfect, and not nearly enough time moving my ass. I still want to be held accountable for what I'm eating though, hence the pictures. I got my first smartphone back in July, and it has a really decent camera, so I'm going to take advantage of it. I figure it's always with me, so why not?

I also want to work out for at least an hour at least five days a week. I know it'll take some time to work up to this, but I'll get there. I want to eventually start running as well. I'm going to start taking advantage of the gym on campus; I'm paying for it, so I might as well. I'm going to start hiking again. I love hiking, especially in the fall, and there's no shortage of places I can go around here. I have several workout apps on my phone too, so I really have no excuse not to work out.

I'm going to drink more water, less coffee. I'm going to take the stairs at every possible opportunity. I'm going to use my lunch box, bringing extra food to make sure there's no reason for me to buy the crap they sell on campus. I'm going to cook often. In fact, I'm going to post about all the Pinterest recipes I try! I've had great success with some of the recipes I've gotten off there, but not everything has turned out the way it was supposed to. Documenting those experiences should be fun. ;)

Tomorrow morning I'm going to weigh myself, and I'm going to take "Before" pictures when I get home from work. I probably won't post those pictures until I feel more comfortable with my body though. Then I'll be so proud, I'll likely be posting them everywhere! This journey has been a long time coming, and I'm going to document every step of the way. I'm sure I'll get lost a few times, but that's part of the fun.

Diagonal Washcloth Makeup Remover Pads

So I've recently become obsessed with knitting those diagonal garter stitch washcloths, because they're really the best washcloths ever, and it only takes me a few hours to knit one. I knit one yesterday:

And I really am just so in love with the way the colors turned out. Then I decided that I wanted to make matching makeup remover pads (Because how freakin' cute would that be?!), but there are only patterns for rectangular or square ones (that I could find, anyway), and I wanted them to be diagonal like the washcloth, but without the eyelets. So I just made up a pattern! If it can even be called a pattern. I'm sure anybody could figure it out without one, BUT here it is just in case:

CO 3 (I used size 8 (5 mm) needles and Lily Sugar'n Cream yarn, because that's what I used for my washcloth, but you can use whatever needle/yarn combination you prefer.)

Row 1: K2, CO 1, K1
Row 2: Knit
Row 3: K2, CO 1, K2
Row 4: Knit
Row 5: K1, KFB, Knit until 2 stitches remain, KFB, K1 (7 stitches)
Row 6: Knit
Rows 7-12: Repeat rows 5 and 6 until you have 13 stitches
Row 13: K1, K2Tog, Knit until 3 stitches remain, K2Tog, K1 (11 stitches)
Row 14: Knit
Rows 15-20: Repeat rows 13 and 14 until you have 5 stitches
Row 21: K1, S1 K-wise, K2Tog, PSSO, K1

BO and weave in ends, and voilà! you have a diagonal garter stitch makeup remover pad! Make several more, and you'll have a set! :D

Oh, and here's a picture to give you an idea of the size:

A Series of Unfortunate Events, that Is Turning Out Surprisingly Well

GUYS!!!!!! My LAST. SEMESTER. EVA!!!!!! starts tomorrow morning!!!!!!

I was supposed to graduate in May, but I failed my Perception class. In my defense, about half the class failed. It was hard. I've been trying to look at it as a good thing though, because I now get to take Theories of Personality, a class that I've always wanted to take, but previously didn't have time for. I'm also taking a Human Services class on Family Violence, which is gonna be cool, and a Public History class, which I'm eh about, but the more hours I take, the more financial aid I get, and I am b.r.o.k.e. And on that note...

Bank of America is auctioning off my dad's house on September 6, so my dad, my two sisters, and I are about to be homeless, which royally sucks. It's been a long time coming, but looking back on everything, I really don't see how I could have done anything differently. An unfortunate series of job losses, car accidents, and other such lovely events hit my family at an already bad time, and this is just the end result. As much as it sucks though, I really do believe that this needed to happen. The reasons are many, but far too personal for me to feel comfortable blogging about. Luckily, as of right now, we all have places to stay until we can get things straightened out.

I'm staying with a friend who lives, like, five minutes away from campus, which pretty much eliminates all the issues I've been having with getting to school, finding a job, etc. I can walk to all sorts of places if I have to, and there's a bus system. I only wish that getting around without a car could be so easy in Jasper. Anyway, I'm moving in on Saturday, and things are really looking up for me. Oh, and I get to keep Salem, which I am so far beyond excited about! That's something that I just was not expecting, and I was really upset about it too. I have some truly incredible friends. <3 I hope that I'll always be able to be there for them like they've been here for me.

Fall 2011

Okay, so I'm apparently not all that great at this whole planning thing, but I'm really, really, really going to try this time!!!

September

• Veyla fingerless mittens (for the Gryffindor Fingerless Glove Along September Challenge)
• At least one Grandmother's Favorite washcloth
• A few Wave blanket squares (for the Gryffindor Scrapghan-A-Long)
• A dyeing project
• Finish The Brightest Witch of Her Age for Detention

October

• At least one more Grandmother's Favorite washcloth
• A few more Wave blanket squares
• Summer Flies shawl
• Finish Dad's Vampy Sweater for Detention

November

• Commuter Fingerless Mittens (for the Gryffindor Fingerless Glove Along November Challenge)
• At least one more Grandmother's Favorite washcloth
• A few more Wave blanket squares
• Finish My Vampire Muse for Detention

Advanced Studies

• Four pairs of Bella's Mittens for my Arithmancy OWL (A Vampire Slumber Party, An Obsessed, Vampire Stalker, The World's Only Clumsy Vampire, and Just Like a Real Vampire)
• Gryffindor Hogwarts Scarf for the Order of the Phoenix

Quidditch

• TBD

I'm going to stick as close to this plan as possible!!! Third year, HERE I COME!!!

On another note, I started listening to a new podcast yesterday. Two fellow Gryffindors, naturallyknitty and StarKnits, started it not too long ago, and they're so much fun! They're sisters, and their podcast is appropriately called The Weasley Sisters. It's a knitting/spinning/Gryffindor podcast, so if you're interested in any of those things, you should definitely check it out! You can subscribe for free on iTunes!

My Rest-of-July Knitting Plan

I'm trying to get in the habit of blogging more often. Of course, it's been difficult to type anything lately, especially a long-winded blog post, because Salem thinks my boobs are the perfect place for a nap. I mean, really, have you ever tried typing with a kitten napping on your boobs?? It doesn't help that he thinks the perfect time for a nap is when I'm on my laptop and therefore paying less attention to him than he likes.

So, I've noticed that I tend to spend a lot more time planning to knit than actually knitting. Another way of saying this: I spend way too much time on Ravelry. My current effort to remedy this is a knitting plan for the rest of this month, along with weekly knitting goals. So, without further ado:

My Rest-of-July Knitting Plan

• By the end of this week (Sunday, the 10th):
• Knit 3 more balls on Dad's Vampy Sweater.
• Knit Hermione's Deathly Hallows hat.
• Knit 2 more panels on My Vampire Muse.
• By the end of next week (Sunday, the 17th):
• Finish knitting Dad's Vampy Sweater.
• Knit 3 more panels on My Vampire Muse.
• Finish knitting first Wave blanket square to block and measure.
• By Sunday, the 24th:
• Weave in ends, block, etc. Dad's Vampy Sweater.
• Finish knitting My Vampire Muse.
• Finish blanket squares.
• By Sunday, the 31st:
• Block, seam, etc. My Vampire Muse.
• Knit Summer Flies.

It's a lot for me, but I'm going to try really hard to get it all done!

Kitty!

I got a kitty yesterday! His name is Salem, and this is him:

He likes to play with my yarn and needles while I'm knitting. :/ But I loves him anyway!

Twi-Hard Knits

Okay, so I'm a total Twi-hard. And I really love finding knitting patterns based off things that are worn by my favorite characters in my favorite movies. In fact, the whole reason I started knitting was because I really, really, really wanted a pair of Bella's mittens, the ones she wears in both Twilight and New Moon.

Of course, I still haven't knit the mittens yet, because I wanted to make sure I'd gotten in lots of knitting practice first. But I'm planning on knitting myself four pairs this fall, in four different colors (gray, red, blue, and purple), as well as a pair for my sister (in brown). I guess I could've just bought a pair from the original maker, Ruth Cross, but $74.26 is just more than I can spend on a pair of mittens, even though it's totally worth it, since they're hand-knit. This way though, I can afford several pairs, and I can also get my hands on other knits from the Twilight (and other) movies! Now, before I get back to my original point, here's another picture of the mittens (from the Ruth Cross website):

Aren't they lovely?

Anyway, I didn't originally plan for this blog entry to be about all the great things you can knit from Twilight, but I guess that's where it's headed, because what I originally wanted to share is that I started knitting Bella's scarf from the baseball scene. Great pictures of this scarf seem to be very hard to find, so here's one from its Ravelry pattern page:

Now, I love this scarf and am beyond excited to be making it! It's made by seaming together a bunch of knit panels, and the seaming is apparently a bitch, but it's supposed to be totally worth it in the end. I've only finished one of the panels, but I'm actually really glad this scarf is made the way it is, because I usually find knitting scarves to be very boring (which is sad, really, because scarves are one of my very favorite accessories!).

And that was what I wanted to share!