Wednesday
4:58 p.m. - 2004-02-18


I finally found the letter I got last year from my college roommate, Sue. I had put it aside so that I wouldn't lose the address, but everything got shuffled when we painted the bedroom. I thought about writing her later, but that never works for me, the eternal procrastinator, so I sat down and wrote a letter quickly. He mailed it for me yesterday.

I did not get to have any fun on my lunch hour today because I had to rush home and spiff up the living room because some insurance man was coming over here after I got off work. I had to sign some papers and it was all over in ten minutes, but now I feel better that we have long-term-care insurance. After facing the fear of the expense of long term care when my mother was sick, I like the feeling of protection for my family. As always, my husband's expertise is so useful in these matters. I often wonder how I would have gotten through life without him, since I don't seem to have any real interest in financial matters, more shame to me. Of course, without me he would have died of food poisoning long ago, so I guess we're even.

I spent last weekend sewing and watching my shows, and finished up the aqua shirt. Now I am working on a tissue wool black shirt with a sleeve design I am trying out for the first time. I have two pairs of black pants cut out in the same fabric, a lucky find on the $1/yard table.

I have my birthday money and Christmas money still intact, and have been thinking what to do with it. Today I was reading the Mary Maxim catalog from today's mail, and saw The Incredible Sweater Machine, which would be fun to get. I have always wanted a mid-gauge machine and that is cheap enough. The machine knitting teacher I used to see seemed to think it was an OK machine, though a little Mickey Mouse. My standard machine knits very fine yarn up to a light sportweight, and my bulky knits thick yarns and worsted at about 4 sts/inch. I like sport weight and a tighter gauge on knitting worsted, so that could be fun. So far, the favorite sweater I have made on the machine was a fair isle in periwinkle blue and soft yellow that I gave my sister for Christmas. She found a nice yellow T-shirt to wear with it that matches it exactly, and it looks great on her. I get some machine knitting magazines, but it was strange how the patterns in them look strange, not classy but more like cheap dimestore clothing. If you are going to pay so much money for the yarn, you may as well make something classic, like a St. John's Knit. If I had more room, I would have my machines right out where you could get at them easily, preferably in front of the TV.

Time to get going to Jason's house.