1. I finished the gift-hat for the AAUW gift exchange:
This is Tin Can Knit's "Antler Toque" (a free pattern, or you can purchase a book - I think "Pacific Knits" is the one that has it). I'm really happy with how it turned out, it looks good. It was a fairly fast knit, not as fast as the hat I made for my brother, but fast enough. The yarn is just a plain old Paton's wool, the worsted-weight wool that JoAnn's sells.
The party is *next* week so I'm a little ahead (heh, heh) on this one.
I do have to decide whether to launch into a third pair of socks for my mom, or to relax a little and consider getting her something like a King Arthur Flour gift card as an additional gift. (I'm leaning right now to "get either a gift card for some kind of baking/cooking supply place, or a gift basket of nice food," partly because it saves me time. I have two knitted pairs of socks and one purchased alpaca pair, and also a special washing bag for in the washing machine.)
2. I had my dental checkup today.The last one was just about a year ago; I missed the summer one I usually have because, first, I was stuck in Illinois in May (flooding), and then the early-August new appointment....well, that happened while I was in Illinois in August, after my dad died. This was the first one I was able to get (I called in like September: my dentist is very busy, especially since I'm unwilling to cancel class for a non-emergency thing, it's hard to make an appointment).
The good part of it? Even though I required EXTENSIVE scaling (ugh)*, the dentist came in to check me midway through it and after poking at my teeth (I hate the explorer tool) and consulting the extensive x-rays (they do a full head set every 5 years and I was due), he said there was nothing wrong with my teeth. And my gums look okay.
(*seriously, it took like 20 minutes. I was literally the last patient walking out shortly after 5 pm - it was a 4 pm appointment, but I got called back maybe 15 minutes late. I am a "hyperaccumulator" according to one of the hygienists there, in other words: there's nothing wrong with my dental hygiene but I'm just unlucky in that my saliva dumps a lot of calcium and junk on my teeth and it sets up. )
I really dislike scaling - they use an ultrasound one which I guess works better and is less risky for your teeth, but it sounds like nails on a chalkboard combined with a very quiet but very high-pitched leaf blower and it makes me NUTS, especially on the top teeth, where my head bones conduct the sound right into my ears. It was easier to hang on through it after I knew I wasn't going to have to come back for further work, but it was still unpleasant.
But at least this is the last "dreadful" thing for a good long while for me - I have a lot of grading this week, but that's just grading, I can manage it (and I got some done this afternoon). And my exams are written for finals week.
****
I'm still contemplating some kind of "little celebration" for the end of the semester. I'm almost now leaning towards NOT going to Whitesboro this weekend (my last open weekend); I don't get enough quiet time at home and it would be nice just to be home, be quiet, sit and knit, and watch Christmas tv this weekend.
Though I might change my mind later. But I don't think I want to go to the Target or similar, those places are ugly nuts on pre-Christmas Saturdays. (Other option: I don't give an exam Tuesday, and I could go then. No lunch at Lovejoy's that day, though....) If I went on Tuesday - or Friday of exam week - I could make a trip to Ulta also and stock up on things, so I wouldn't have to run out to the one near my mom during break, or order stuff and have it delivered to her house.
I'm really done with teaching....one course, it's court-case discussions by the students; another class, they are presenting their final projects. In the intro class, I give a quiz one day and an exam on Friday, and in biostats it's project discussions. Most of my work this week is grading and also trying to clear the mess out of my office.
No comments:
Post a Comment