New Blog Locale
I finally got my own domain name so here are the new links, for all things blog and blog:

http://www.presencemassage.com/yarninthelotus

and also my website itself has moved to:

http://www.presencemassage.com

Yippee!

Pictures, icicles, yarn...ya know
 First I give you, Ron in his new hat:

You can really see great detail of the hat in this picure, but I loved how he struck a pose, so there you have it!

 Below you'll find a beautiful icicle, and several gratuitous shots of me in my new hat. I love Pom poms!

 

 

 

Well, I have done something terrible to the formatting on this page. Perhaps someday I'll figure out what I did. In the meantime, you get this jumble. The lavender yarn on the far left is slated for a Lotus Blossom Tank While the Rainbow Noro you see quickly turned into the hat on my head above. The brown Cascade eco wool was a super deal, untreated, undyed, very inexpensive and supposedly very sturdy, to become a winter sweater for me, though we are praying for winter to melt away very soon. The navy blue Cascade Tencel blend on the bottom is for Lauren's Bohemian Poncho which I'm excited to start on very soon.

<> I've got more pictures coming soon. Ron's sweater got fixed and I"m SO HAPPY! very soon you'll see pics of him wearing it and details about how it got fixed. Also closeups of his hat.

<> In other news, I'm beginning to see how popular blogs are (I'm just a little slow) and I read an article in massage magazine about blogging to boost business. Well, I think I may put a link from my website to this blog, and try and start making some "massage relevant" posts, which I think would be fun anyway. I don't know, stuff about what massage has done for me, or about healing and health in general.

<> <>What I think is so cool about blogs is that people are just writing about normal stuff. In fact, that's what makes them so interesting. They're not (usually) contrived and boring, at least not the good ones.  They're educational in a conversational way, and they are intimate in an almost boring way -- people tend to disclose the little details about their lives, which seems to be what everyone is hungry for, hence their popularity.

<> So I'm going to try and write about stuff that matters, that people who get massage from me would want to read, without being too stuffy, because I think that's what I tend to do. I put on my college paper writing voice and ....that's probably why I stopped liking to write

Ah! almost forgot the last picture. My feet. I seem to remember lauren likes to take pictures of her footies randomly about, and I liked looking down at my feet this particular moment:

<><>

Update of DOOM!
Topic: Snow, Knitting, Massage

Firstly, Please congratulate me on figuring out the thumbnail phenomena and presenting you with beautiful pictures that don't take a million years to load. Simply click on any picture to see a larger version in a pop up window. It's especially nice if you don't care to see the minute details of the yada ya.

<>Secondly, please observe:

 

  

Yipee! I am legal! *And* I had another private massage client today, which I'm totally stoked about. In celebration, I took pics of my pretty much completed massage room.

 

 

  

<><> I have had a recommendation to paint the walls a more calming color, which I agree with. However, I already spent OVER $1000 making the room look like it does, and I'm not feeling particularly rich. Also, not knowing how many private clients I will truly have, I don't want to commit to the repaint when we eventually move. Maybe I can get Lauren to do it when she comes and visits. JOKE! (However, when we own a house, I WILL commission to you come paint a mural. Truly.)

Ron built the plain pine shelves in the corners. He continues to rock! Observe how totally awesome, beautiful, functional, and nice yet unobtrusive they are.

<> 
<><>Oh, and I know the plaid blanket sucks, but I have two of them, making it easy for laundering, and also I'm planning on knitting a blanket soon (read: in the next year or two) and I don't want to spend money on a Nice blanket before then. Cheap!
 

Next: Snowman! Ron builds a snowman with the nextdoor neighbors. They came banging on the door asking for help because they had decided to build a JOY-INT snowman and needed Ron's help hefting the midsection up on top of the butt-section. He was stoked to help and went out and rolled around some snow while I took pictures. 

This is the first snowman that inspired the giant one above: 

 

And here's a good view of our houses from the backyard:

Okay, Avast. The knitting of Ron's sweater is done. Unfortunately, observe the REALLY BIG sleeves: 

 

It may not be too noticable in that picture, but the sleeves do continue on to almost the end of each book. They are too long. I already tried it on him and he confirmed that he is not cool with the Kimono look. So I either have to 1. Re-block the sweater to the appropriate dimensions, because the first time I blocked it I didn't have enough pins for the sleeves, or 2. unravel the wrists and remove a few inches.

1 would be easier, but I'm not sure it will work. First I will sew all the hems down, then I will re-block and see what happens. I WON'T LOSE THIS SWEATER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  :) seriously, it was way too much work. I'll reknit whatever I have to.  Here's some more details shots for fun.

 

Thanks for looking guys! Love you! 

Peek Into My Life
Now Playing: live365.com
Topic: Home

 

Above you'll see some snow. This was just after the most recent first snow. After this picture was taken it snowed a few more times, and THEN i went out driving and had the experience below about the car sliding. I don't have any pictures of me playing in the snow, or building a snow man, because that hasn't happened yet. I like to run to the window every half hour and check to see how much more snow has fallen and squeal about it. But I haven't taken to full out playing in it yet.  

 Above is Ron riding his stationary trainer bike on the porch in the freezing snow. I don't know how he does it. He's kinda dark in that picture, but he's only wearing shorts and a tank top, and a little head band, not to keep his ears warm, but to keep the sweat from pouring into his face. He's that hot and sweats that much that even when it's below freezing outside, he needs no extra gear. Granted he's not moving, so no real wind, but to me it's extreme.  

Here's my lovely view from my kitchen while i make dinner. I was making dinner one night and was so happy and thought it looked so cool (and I'd had a glass of wine) that I had to snap a little picture of the fire and ron and everything. You can sort of see my knitting projects strewn all over the couch and coffee table. That's the general state of affairs around here. 

 And since I had the camera out, I figured I would take a picture of what i was cooking! Probably mostly retarded, but I've been reading blogs lately and getting into the voyeristic aspect of it, so I figured you'll probably be entertained by my dinner. Perhaps. The easiest mexican food! Organic Pinto beans from the can, heated up; red peppers sauteed; later i scrambled eggs with hella cumin and chili powder; tortillas are wrapped in foil getting read to warm in the oven. Put eggs, beans, and peppers in a tortilla and smother with salsa and wrap. Yum.

Tonight I'm on a mission to make Cuban Sandwiches which I am super stoked about. I just got a craving and lamented because I don't live anywhere near Miami, then I realized I could probably make them myself. So I have a jar of pickles and a loaf of french bread, two things I normally never buy, waiting for my experiments later.

 

The Body Bar

 I feel I must rant about my job a little more because I feel so damn lucky. I have done three massages there so far, and (aside from driving home and almost losing the truck) it has been wonderful every time. The owner and people who work there are all friendly and fun to work with, it's casual, and the pay is better than HAWAII!!! Crazy. I didn't think it was possible. The place is pretty fancy, it's only been open a year so it looks pristine and shiny, the rooms are really spacious and well appointed. Driving home today from the one massage that I did, I felt again eternally grateful that I can do something I love so much, that is relaxing and non-stressful (unless I'm doing 6 massages a day everyday, then I get pretty tired) that is lucrative enough to make me some money, and it's not a 9-5 job!!! I'm like, who should I be thanking for this? How did I get to deserve this, while others slave away!?!? I don't know, but it's something I continually feel gratitude for, like everyday, and try to express it to the universe, mainly in prayers and blog posts.

 

Picture Me: running beside a truck, snow all around....
Mood:  accident prone
Now Playing: live365.com
Topic: Adventures
...and you see what I didn't get to see today. Because I'm me, and I couldn't see me.

<> It's snowing a lot here, you see. And I just got a new job. I'm very excited about this new job and it's been snowing a lot here. I mean, not like 2 feet or anything...but close. I look outside and can't see the mountain nearby, nor the line of trees. Because there is solid snow/fog or something. Anyway, i get called in to work today. On one hand: great! Work! Money! Yay! On the other hand: snow? driving? ice? ugh!

<> So I drive there at about 3pm. The roads are pretty good. I do a massage, I give thanks that I work at a cool place and that I am actually getting work. All is good. The roads were fine. I gave thanks. I left at about 4:45 PM. Everything looked okay.

<> Here is the layout of our town. We live in Alto, 5 miles outside of Ruidoso. I work in Ruidoso. Alto is (as the spanish name suggests) higher than Ruidoso... only about 500 feet or so, but it affects the weather....and it makes the drive from Ruidoso to Alto somewhat of a climb. hmph.

<> Our truck. Is two wheel drive, and those two wheels are the REAR wheels, and for all of you LA, FL gals and guys, that means that the wheels that drive the truck have NO WEIGHT on them, which means that they will tailspin at the slightest nudge. Wheels that drive need weight on them to gain traction...like a car engine, that works well (as in Front Wheel Drive, yes?). So weeks ago, forseeing this, ron and I stole many rocks from a nearby riverbed to weigh down the back of the truck. We now have probably hundreds of pounds of rocks sitting in the bed on top of the back wheels. Still not the weight of an engine, but helpful.

 So I'm driving home from work (yay! work!) and it's getting dark, and i'm starting up the hill. And I start to go slower. And slower . And then I notice my wheels are spinning. Oh. Hm. I spin them some more. Maybe If I spin to a good place I'll get some traction. Spin, Spin.  Spiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin.

Spin.

I'm not going anywhere. The guy in front of me is doing the same thing, but he is stopped and no longer trying. I call Ron, "i'm spinning on the hill"  He says, "well, put on your chains."

Duh! My chains. In inclement weather, you put chains on the tires that drive the car to get traction. No problem. I'll just put them on (I've never done it before) Cool. I grab the box from the backseat (brand new just a month before) and step out of the car--

On to a sheet of ice.
Yes, the road, formally pavement and rock, is now  literally a sheet of ice. I can barely walk on it, how could I possibly put on chains? But my choices are limited here and so I close the car door and hang for dear life onto the car anywhere I can while I inch to the back to figure out this chain thing.

And I start to get the chains out to put behind the wheels (to later back over them, and then tie them around the wheels with bungee cords. works quite well actually). After trying to untangle the chains and kneeling beside the wheel, I notice the car is moving. THE CAR IS MOVING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I get up and see the car sliding backwards. Luckily the flashers are on, so is the emergency brake, but it's doing no good, apparently. I run to the driver door, open it, about to get in, then --- the car may be heading for destruction...perhaps through the guard rail and over the edge, or into an oncoming car. Better not get in. Rather take my chances running around on a sheet of ice with cars driving around.

Like any sane person would do, I ran beside the car, waving my arms and crying wildly "There's no one in there!!!' though surely no one could hear me because in weather like this, your windows are closed. So. I'm imagining at the very least the car will smash into the guard rail and get some (more) nasty dents. Luckily it runs into the snow bank where it finds some traction (snow has more traction than ice. can you tell my audience is floridians?) and nestles gently just a few feet before the guard rail.

PHEW! Since we are going up a hill, this is a mountain, and the car could have gone off it. If it was going more than 2 miles an hour. Phew. There is a van that pulled off on the other side, apparently concerned for me. While I had been screaming and waving my arms I had looked them and said "There's NO ONE IN IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" with great concern. The guy had looked at me with complete seriousness and said, "I can see that." At the time I thought it was entirely funny, but had no time to laugh.

Now I look at them and say, "I need to put on some chains, I've never done it before. Can you help me?" They had stopped for me. I didn't think it was too big a request. They looked at each other (both looked like stoner 20something guys, driving a beat up van, a la my dad) and as they were about to speak to me, I noticed chains on their back tires. SURELY! these guys would be able to help. The driver responded, "Neither have any of us."

WTF?!?! A lie, or the truth, no matter, I have no more time for these fools. I said something final, and took off to the chains I had left on the road, where my truck had previously been sitting before it took off sliding backwards. Cars were running over them, thankfully missing them.

I grabbed the chains, which I had took out of the box and were freezing cold (and I had no mittens on,) and carried them back to my truck and at this point the police had shown up. Thank lord baby jesus.  I now got the thorough scolding AND someone to put my chains on. The rest of the story being rather unremarkable. The cops put the chains on, treating me like some really stupid, really retarded WOMAN who didn't know that driving on sheets of ice is not possible and that I should have put them on miles ago. Thank you.

And I got home safely, into my loving sweeties arms. Yum.

Job! and sweater progress
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: live365.com
Topic: Massage

I got a JOB! Yes, it finally happened. And I didn't try hard, or go crazy, or even get too worried. It was my second "interview" (the first was just someone showing me a room I could rent in her salon. Ha! Funny, I wouldn't have called that an interview, but she did) and it was more befitting of it's name. The place is called the Body Bar and besides massage and facials they sell lots of body products...copious amounts, in fact. The deal is sweet and it resembles so much the situation I had worked out in hawaii it's scary. But good scary because i LOVE that situation. It's totally on-call, no set hours, and anytime I need to do something else I can just call and say "i'm not available." It's about 15 minutes from my house and I get an hour's notice for a massage I'd have to do.  So once again I get extreme flexibility in work hours, doing what I love, for who appears to be a cool boss. I'll update more as I work there and find out how it really is. I already have a massage lined up for next week.  In celebration I bought some shirts I can wear to work that are professional but cute.

 

In sweater related news, here is my progress on Ron's Avast sweater:

 

Above: the two sleeves are on the right, the body is on the left. 

 This is a close up of the two fronts of the body that will eventually have a zipper to join them.  Note the cabled band at the bottom. Very cool. 

 

 

Simple Knitted Bodice is Done
Topic: Knitting

Sorry for the picture overload, but I had to do it! I'm so happy to finish my first sweater ever. I started it on December 13th and finished the knitting january 2st, then it had to be washed and layed out to dry and blocked, which took a couple days. Granted I don't have a job, this is just about all I did during those 3 weeks.

 Knitter's Notes

Yarn: Knitpicks Andean Silk in Hollyberry. I used 10 balls

Needles: To get gauge I used size 4, then 3 as my knitting loosened up for the large needles, and for the lace size 0. Yes, it took forever to do the lace.

Pattern: Stitch Diva's Simple Knitted Bodice  in size XS (i'm generally a size small, bust 34)

There are little mistakes scattered about the sweater, but the kind of things probably not many, if any, will notice besides me.  I knitted the extra small because people were coming out with sweaters too big, and this yarn was supposed to grow with blocking and washing. Well, I'm pretty happy how that turned out. When I first tried it on, before blocking, the sleeves and waist were about 2 inches shorter than I would have liked. So I prayed that water would take care of that, and it pretty much did.  I really

think the size is perfect for me. As I wear it today the sleeves seem to shrink up a eensy weensy bit, and i think that's because my arms pretty much fill the sleeves width wise, and I've read that most fabrics can only stretch in one direction. So as it stretches width wise to accomodate my arms, it looses a little length, but not much.

<> The main thing I'm unhappy with is that it's ITCHY!!!!!!!!! Bah! I was planning on wearing something underneath, but it definitely has to be a long sleeve something, and so far i've found it hard to find simple long sleeve t-shirts with a neckline that I like to have sticking out from the sweater. The sweater neckline itself actually came out high enough that I could wear it alone and not be showing much, if any, cleavage. But I'd be itchy as hell. I think it's the alpaca content, though I'm not sure. It is a hairy fabric, you can see hairs sticking up everywhere which gives it a nice fuzzy look. I also love the drape, which doesn't really come through until after washing, but it's really nice.

<> I do love this sweater, though. I'm thinking of making a short , cap sleeved one in a machine washable, lighter fabric for summer.

<> Next on my list is a sweater for Ron,  Avast

(ignore the lump on my butt, it is NOT part of the sweater design, it just caught on my pants.  :)  )

Famous sweater is in the finishing stages
Topic: Knitting

This is the famous sweater. It is in the process of blocking. Blocking is process whereby, at the end of all knitting and sewing techniques, you thoroughly wet (or sometimes steam) the knitted garment to get it to be in the shape you originally intended.  This works best with animal fibers, which are prone to shaping techniques, but is also encouraged for other fibers as well, such as cotton and sillk. I tried it on before blocking and the sleeves were shorter than I'd like, and so was the waist. This blocking should take care of that *crosses fingers*.  This is the part where my knitting newbie-ness shows and I pray I'm doing the right thing, since I did spend all this damn time on it! I suppose it's slightly preferable to knitting a sweater that is 3 sizes too big. Because even if this is too small, I can still wear it (I wore it today before blocking with no ill effects) but if it was huge, I probably wouldn't wear it.

Irish Hiking Scarf
Topic: Knitting
This scarf I knitted for my sister Jennifer for Christmas. You can see her wearing it on her myspace page. I used size US 10 1/2 knitting needles, Marron Wax Bulky Merino (almost 2 skeins) from handpaintedyarn.com and the Irish Hiking Scarf Pattern you'll find at that link. I find it to be a really beautiful scarf and plan on making one for myself very soon. The yarn was unbelievably soft.

The sweater is almost done and I'll be posting pictures of that in a few days.

I modified the scarf pattern by making only two repeats of the cable 
pattern instead of three. I did this because I was using a bulky yarn and didn't want the scarf to be 
humungous. I cast on 30 stitches and had no troubles.

Sweater Update (simple knitted bodice)


I was going to wait until i was done with the body, but I realized I better try it on before going any further, even though I was pretty sure if fit. I was right! I like how it fits. If anything it's a little tight, which is good because the yarn is supposed to stretch with washing. The close-up is of the lace on the center panel, which I really like. I will add another 2 or 3 inches onto the bottom. I had to hold it down like that because it was rolling up and looked a lot shorter than it is. It will also have long bell sleeves with a lace panel on the elbow. There will be a neckline added, the same as the plain border you see on the top and bottom of the lace.

Merry Christmas!