A meme and everything else.

So I've been memed by Abby and so here I am answering these questions and then there are some pictures to look at after you get through.

“The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.”

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?

Well, I'm never good at remembering what happened in what year so I'm winging this one. It is now 2008 so I need to think about 1998...I know we moved to Michigan in 1999 so that means I was working for my mother at her bed and breakfast in 1998.

My mom and dad bought their house in 1983 when it was a falling down heap. I am not exaggerating. There was a foot of sewage in the basement, bad plumbing, a coal furnace which heated the house, the roof was off of a portion of the house and there were pigeons living in the attic and a couple of third floor rooms.

They bought the house for $50,000. It has 22 rooms and just under 10,000 square feet. It is beautiful now with 7 guest rooms all with private baths as well as a private area for my parents.

In addition to renting the rooms my mom also does private parties, weddings, showers, etc. I think I started working there in 1996...or 95. I did the desk work and the phones and the scheduling. I also did tours where I dressed in period clothing, I cleaned bathrooms and changed sheets. If someone called and asked for the person in charge of the phone service it was me. Looking for the business manager, me. Looking for the person in charge of advertising, me. Anything else people wanted I did it and I changed my job title at least twice a day. My mom thought it was hilarious but it kept her from having to handle everything.

At Christmas there is a huge display. The decorating begins in the 2nd week of November and the stuff stays up until mid January. There are a minimum of 35 trees between 6 feet and 10 feet tall INSIDE the house as well trimming in every nook.

It's fab. But there are also at least 2 parties per day - 7 days a week - for which my mom does the cooking and I would waitress and then change clothes and do an hour long guided tour. Tiring.

12 years ago I was working in a lab growing cells and doing research.

19 years ago I was working at a company that duplicated video tapes and I was in quality control - I watched movies for a living. That's where I met Lou.

Before that I was a waitress in a diner.

Before that I worked in quality control for a company that made glass parts for military airplanes and other government projects.

Before that I worked for a company that made interocular lenses.
Before that I was in high school.

There's some other stuff in between like when I was making custom wedding dresses and other stuff...

2. What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):

It's about 2:30. So far today I've answered plenty of emails, ordered my surprise goody bag gift for all SOAR participants as well as any staff that might be present (I've been assured by Karen Brock that EVERYBODY will want one), bossed Lisa around - she was taking pictures of the fantastic hand dyed silk I got from Amy and now she's meditating on how to move things in the equipment room so it doesn't look like a storage shed:-) - helped a few people take some things home with them that they didn't know they needed, cleaned the shop bathroom (sort of).

So now here I am updating the blog and then...
Chelsea will be here and I will show her how to update the website, AND fix the mess I made of the inventory in Quickbooks.

While she does that I will work on the June newsletter to include upcoming classes and festivities and maybe even a sale or two.

Then I will begin to spin yarn for a spinning kit I want to put together.

When I get home I will kiss the kids and maybe even my husband, and then update the webstore with the beautiful silk and add some more things that I have photos for but haven't put in yet.

There's lots more to do but I have run out of day and so...tomorrow.

Well I'm home now and I've done everything from Chelsea down to update the webstore - that's up next.

3. Snacks I enjoy:

Chocolate Milk
chips and fresh salsa
chocolate
cheese and crackers - I don't care what kind
chocolate
Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia ice cream

4. Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

This is something I don't think about much so it's been hard to come up with ideas. So here are the first things I thought of.
1. Get out of debt

2. Take this trip.

3. Pay every one's way to SOAR this year.

That's all I can think of. I'm sure if I thought about it more I could come up with some things which are more beneficial to the world but...hhhmmmmm.

5. Places I have lived:

Limerick, Pennsylvania from the time I was born until I was 18.
Glendora, California
Covina, California
Azusa, California
Ontario, California
San Bernardino, California (All of those Californias were in a 5 year period.)
Back to Linfield, Pennsylvania where I met and dated and married my darling.
Howell, Michigan

6. Peeps I want to know more about:

1. Kate
2. Ted
3. Janel
4. Heidi Kim
5. Kathy
6. Jessie

There are more than this but...I'm stopping at six.

So now for the photos.Here is the continuation of that impossible circle/triangle/square shawl thing that Sharon is knitting. Unbelievable.

Maggie
Spinning the camel. On a suspended spindle. Not even supported. She amazes me.
Last Friday there was a trip to the hospital with Ryan. Got his hand caught in the Mach 1 while he was treadling it with his hands. His hand blew up like a balloon and got blue immediately. There was lots of crying. I thought it was broken. Nope just bruised.
Progress on my Abby Batts shawl. All of the spinning is now done but I don't have pictures of the last yarns right now. It's going very well. I'm using that out of focus book called Knitting Lace Triangles by Evelyn Clark. It's published by Fiber Trends. I don't currently carry the Fiber Trends patterns so I called up the Threadbear and they shipped it pronto.
And a scarf for the scarf exchange I did. I don't think I'm supposed to be posting this right now cause my recipient hasn't gotten it yet. It's in the mail. Maybe she won't look.
It was organized by Ted. We sent him fiber, he sent it to somebody else. They spun it and knitted it into a scarf and we get it back as a finished object.

This is the yarn before it was knitted. I did it thick and thin. It was a handcarded blend of cotton, hemp, wool and silk. Lovely to the touch.

This fiber came from Lorraine Smith of Toronto. She is the editor of Spinner's Quarterly. A lovely little magazine. If you love spinning then you should really get yourself a subscription. I had a subscription and then let it lapse and then renewed. Go sign up. She takes Paypal. Here's the link.