Faire season has come and gone, with the major high point being TOH’s and Silver’s job sharing.  It was really nice to be able to spend time with my husband.  I didn’t take a lot of pictures, but one of these days, I’ll put up the ones that I did take.  And maybe last year’s.  And maybe the 2009 cruise pictures, too.

Silver’s new garb turned out wonderfully, and eventually I’ll have pictures up.  We’re already thinking that for next year, we need to create something outrageously ostentatious.

The winter blahs seem to be setting in early this year, though.  All I want to do is sleep.  And then sleep some more.  And have a nap when I wake up.

Work is still quite insane.  I finally have a list of candidates for my assistant position.  But, the list presents new problems of its own.   I need to pick and choose between candidates, set up interviews, check references, etc.  But I have all of these other tasks to work on as well.  There’s too much to do, and never enough time to get it all done.

The commute is still meh.  Normally the trains run great, and it takes me about 3 hours round trip to get to work and back.  Lately, though, the traffic on the roads between the house and the train station has been ridiculous.  It has been taking me an average of 40 minutes to drive the 6.7 miles.  To add insult to injury, Tuesday night’s train home broke down, and it took me 3 hours to get home.  I spent about 5 hours in transit that day.

I want to get back to sewing, but motivation has been lacking.  Klumpen says I ought to make a list of all the things I need/want to work on, so maybe I’ll tackle that sometime soon.  Sven still needs to go in for servicing, and the laptop we were using to run the pattern making and embroidery software has kicked the bucket.  My personal laptop has also died.  Apparently, laptops do not like me right now.

Music-wise, there have been a couple concerts since I’ve posted.  Back in August, we went to see Carbon Leaf and Great Big Sea at Wolf Trap.  We had fantastic seats, in row 2 of the orchestra pit.  Which can be a liability when the kids say something to make me laugh hysterically during one of the quieter songs.  (Sorry, Bob.)  Then last month, the kids and I went to see Guster at the 9:30 Club.  It was a great show, as always.  They played all of “Lost and Gone Forever”, in order, as well as a bunch of other stuff and 2 new songs.  They did a few songs that they rarely play, had a guest string section, horn section and children’s choir.  And, of course, Scooter with Cowbell.

I have been reading voraciously lately.  In the past month or so, I’ve read Company of Liars, Elantris, Mistborn, The Well of Ascension, and Warbreaker.  I’m currently working on The Hero of the Ages and after that will either read The Gathering Storm (which is a continuation of the Wheel of Time (WoT) series, written by the author of most of the other books I’ve read lately), or The Autobiography of Henry VIII, or maybe even go back and reread some of the later books in the WoT series before I start on the newest one.

So, that’s what’s new here.

Seriously. It feels like it was just a couple weeks ago that we threw the NYE party at the stupid big house and were packing for the February cruise.

But, here it is, September, and tomorrow is TSM’s 13th birthday. Yes, why yes I am having a bit of a freak-out about that, thank you. My baby is turning 13. I will officially have two teenagers living in my house. The “good” news is that Klumpen won’t be a teen for much longer, since she’ll be turning 20 in nine months.

But, back to TSM. He’s not quite so “Short Man” anymore. In fact, he’s nearly as tall as I am, and I expect him to be even taller by the end of this school year. He’s a good kid, and is turning into a fantastic person. We like hanging out with him, and he seems not too terribly embarrassed by us as well.

So, tomorrow, in all the remembrances of 9/11, remember that it was a great kid’s birthday first.

In work news, I still do not have an assistant. I keep hoping the job posting goes out soon, but there are other issues that keep jumping in line ahead of mine. And then I have to hope that I actually find someone in the pool of qualified candidates that I think will work well with A) me, B) my team and C) the Division. Add in interviews, background checks, and all the other bureaucratic red tape, and it will be December at least before I have anyone here.

In the meantime, the stress of not having enough time to do what needs to get done is causing the “tension-related migraines” to reoccur (not that I think it ever really went away in the first place, but, whatever…). So I took yesterday off, and now the headache is even worse because I have to try to catch up from yesterday.

I have been trying to knit a little more often again. I finished the Mystery Shawl that I started in June of last year, but still haven’t blocked it. I also finished the Seascape Shawl that I’d started back in March of 2008. I also still haven’t blocked it out, but Klumpen did dye it from a boring vanilla to an interesting green for me. I also found the pair of socks I thought I’d lost, and have been working on them. I finished the first, and am now at the heel flap of the second.

Sewing wise, I’ve been working on Silver’s garb first (he is paying me after all!) before I work on my own. I did help Klumpen finish a shirt for TSM, but he hasn’t worn it once. He’ll probably grow out of it before he gets around to wearing it. I have yet to make anything for myself. Hopefully I can work on something soon. I still need to either adjust or remake my Italian gown, and I still want to make the red velvet Italian with the crazy cutwork sleeves. But, being so tired I can’t see when I get home tends to put a dent in those plans. I do need to make a new pair of velvet tights, though, to replace the ones I ripped when I fell this past Saturday. My knees hate me right now, but they seem to be healing well enough.

Speaking of garb, Faire has started again. We’re already two weeks into the season. TOH and Silver are trading days at the booth, so I actually get to spend time with my husband! And it tickles me immensely. But, I do miss having my brute squad – with Deuce in Wichita through this week, and then working weekends now through the end of season, as well as Spyke working at Faire, I’m left to my own devices. Not that that’s a bad thing all the time. I still wander around and greet everyone I know, and a few I don’t. (“Honey, honey, come meet my new toy!”) I’ve met a few new people this year, and spent a little more time with people I met last year. I probably still spend the most time with the DoRTs, though, since they’re my some of my favorite people.

So, I think that’s all the news so far. At some point, I’ll put up last year’s faire pictures, and the few I’ve taken this week. Most pictures of me are over on Facebook in other people’s albums, which is ok by me. I’m more often the one taking the pictures anyway.

For now, it’s back to work.

Work has been kicking my ass.  The so-called “Chinese Curse”, “May you live in interesting times” has certainly been in play at my agency.  My boss has been in New York all week, scrambling along with about 1/2 the agency in the current economic situation.  I’m still trying to figure out which direction is up.  And there are a bazillion projects due RIGHT THIS MINUTE!  (Not really right this minute, but it sure feels that way.)

Then there was last night’s cluster fuck of a “Safety Precaution” at TSM’s school.  His school and 2 others were put into a “secure the building” mode (aka: Lockdown) because the police got a tip that a murder suspect might be in a house nearby.  They received that tip around NOON.  They locked the schools down around 1:45.  The police entered the suspected house at 6:45 pm.  Nearly 7 Hours after they got the tip?!! 

The quote from the Public Relations Officer just pissed me off.  “We are not going to knock on the door and ask is that person home,” said Officer Ericka Hernandez of the Prince William County Police Department. “We are going to take every precautionary measure to make contact with the occupants of that house.”  OK, fine, I understand taking all precautions, but taking 6+ hours to contact the occupants and enter the house?  That seems a little excessive.

And the school system is touting the excellence of their evacuation plan.  Um, no.  I got one text message.  At 5:21 (time stamped by them at 4:45) saying “Woodbridge MS students remain at school”.  The school system website and TV station kept repeating the same thing, over and over.  Sometime after 6 pm, they started saying that they were evacuating the elementary school kids to a different middle school, but no word on TSM’s middle school.  It wasn’t until I got a call from TSM (on his teacher’s cell phone) around 7:20, that I knew they were evacuating his school to the other middle school.  The tv and website didn’t say that until at least 7:40.

And let’s talk about their choice of school to evacuate to.  Fred Lynn Middle is in a congested neighborhood with little to no parking available at the best of times.  So let’s send 2,000 students and teachers there at the same time, and have parents come and pick them up all at the same time.  (If they got the message to come pick them up.)  Add to the fact that they blocked off half the access to the school, forcing people to make illegal U-turns on Route 1 to double back, and it was beyond a mess.  According to TOH, people were parking anywhere they could fit their vehicles.  What I don’t understand is why they sent everyone to one school.  There is another school, just as close to the original schools as Fred Lynn, and they could have sent some of the kids there to cut down on congestion.

TOH and I were in constant contact once I’d heard the news.  He stayed late at the office to monitor the web sites while I took the train home, and then I monitored the web sites and tv while he drove home.  I’d hate to think if I were a single parent with less electronic access.  How would I have known what to do?

TOH & TSM arrived home at 9:30.  6 hours after TSM normally gets home.  And the guy is still at large.

In less ranting news, this weekend marks the mid-point of Faire.  I’m enjoying it, but I’m not feeling the “Must Go To Faire” vibe that I have in the past.  Maybe it’s the fatigue.  I don’t know.  But this weekend’s weather is supposed to be fantastic.

So, the new job started last week. I’m enjoying it, but I’m swimming in information at the moment. It’s quite the transition to go from an office of <95 people who don’t need anything from you other than the occasional password reset to an office of ~200 people who need everything. Well, not really everything, but a lot more.

In the 8.5 days I’ve had the job, I have:

• welcomed 2 new employees to our division (with 4, maybe 5, new employees starting next week)
• spent over 2 hours in a workshop with attorneys to begin writing their performance plans for the upcoming year
• scrambled to find vacant offices for those new employees
• learned that I’m actually the supervisor for a staff of 4 (I have minions!)
• begun the process to hire a 5th person for my staff
• served on the panel to hire two other employees
• am serving on the panel to hire my boss’ new secretary
• and so on.

And, oh, 1/2 of my staff is on vacation this week, and one of the other two calls in sick every other day. I’ll be mentioning that at performance review time.

In personal news, the Maryland Renaissance Festival has opened for another season. My garb is all just slightly too big, but it works well enough. I need to make a new pair of pants for TSM (because he’s not quite so short anymore), a new shirt for TOH, and probably take in my stuff if I can. A lot of it would have to be completely disassembled and then reassembled to do that, and it would almost be just as easy to make new.

For the first weekend, we’ve already gotten to practice first aid skills. Hopefully there will be no more bloody injuries.

I’ve also been issued a challenge by one of my friends. It will require cunning, stealth and creativity, but I’m certainly not one to back down from a challenge.

There are still people at faire that I could go the rest of my life without running into, but such is life. I’ve been trying to get to know other people before forming opinions of them, not always successfully. There are definitely people that fall into the “first impression was the right one” category.

So, that’s pretty much it from here these days.  As my new boss describes it, I’m “still trying to drink from the fire hose”.

It’s Friday afternoon.  I’ve got 45 minutes left of my work day.  And I’m bored to tears.  So, here’s an update.

I still haven’t heard anything on the other job I’ve applied for.  The automated system still tells me that no selection has been made.  I’ve sent an email to my “inside” source, asking if he’s heard anything, but he’s not in the office until Monday.

I’m frustrated with our in-house Desktop Publishing group.  I ordered a dozen or so nameplates for new staff arriving in the next couple of weeks.  I got them today.  They look nothing at all like the existing signs in the building.  Did someone change signage fonts and not tell me?  Petty annoyance, I know, but I’m still annoyed.  Not to mention, they forgot to send the 1/2 dozen nameplate frames I ordered at the same time.

I’ve been knitting more lately.  I find it easier to concentrate on knitting than on sewing at the moment.  Actually, I seem to have lost almost all drive to sew.  Life has been kicking me in the head again, and sewing takes so much more effort than I can put forth.  Knitting, on the other hand, is more mindless.  At least the patterns I’ve been knitting are a bit more mindless.  The MMario QAL shawl is easy to just sit and knit and not have to think very hard.  The Goddess Knits Shawl is a little more difficult, but still easier for me to concentrate on at the moment.

The loss of any desire to sew makes me sad, which just makes it that much harder to want to sew.  It’s a vicious cycle.  I had to tell a client I would not be able to finish her garments.  I really don’t know when I’ll be able to get them done.  And I have another friend who wants stuff for the upcoming faire season.  The good news there is that everything is simple, and once I do get the desire to sew back, won’t take very long.  But I feel horrible for letting her down.

I don’t even really feel like sewing for myself for the upcoming season.  And with the weight I’ve lost this year, I probably need to sew for myself.  I’m not sure anything will fit.  There’s about 2 months to go until it starts.  Hopefully I’ll be feeling a little more upbeat about sewing before then.

In happier news, TOH and Klumpen are throwing a party for my 40th birthday.  We’re combining it with a party for our friend, Action Deb, whose birthday is 2 days after mine.  So, if you’re in the neighborhood of the “Stupid Big House” on July 12th, stop by and join the festivities.