A whole lotta work; a tiny bit o' knittin'

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Still workin' in Maryland. Vendor #3 is in the midst of their demos, one more day to go. And then one more vendor to endure next week and we'll be done, Done, DONE with the demos.

Alas, there's not been another Voice experience, I'm sorry to report, and the days are a hell of a lot longer and more painful when the presenter isn't daydream-worthy. There was a guy yesterday who was very cute - definitely cuter, physically, than The Voice, but, apparently it now takes an Irish brogue to pique my interest -- corn-fed middle America doesn't seem to cut it, these days. I guess I need to find some work over on the Emerald Isle, so I can be immersed in the brogue, night and day. Although, I might not get a darn thing done, for all the daydreaming that would take place. Does BBC America air any Irish shows?

Speaking of working abroad, there's a slim chance I might get some work in Dubai in the near future, which seems scary and exciting to me, all at the same time. My biggest worry would be what to do about the house and the cats while I'm gone. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

And speaking of Ireland, I came this close to emailing The Voice on Monday -- had a very innocent, business-like email all written and addressed, just had to click the Send button. And then I thought better of it and deleted it. And for all those of you who commented previously, saying, "what have you got to lose?", I'll tell you.

The main reason is that I'd be risking my current means of income. We're prohibited from any contact with the vendors during this system selection process, as it could be seen as bestowing favor on one over the others, or as them having undue influence and perhaps gaining the upper hand and winning the multi-million dollar contract by anything other than the purest of means. If the Powers That Be discovered that there was outside communication, I'd be out on my tail in short order. And in my line of work, getting kicked off a project is a career-killer. It's a small, incestuous world I work in, where everyone knows everyone, and word gets around fast. So, no, I won't be contacting him anytime soon, if at all. But his voice is in my head as I drift off to sleep at night, and I'm satisfied with that, for now. Almost.

Tonight, after the interminable work day was over, coworker L. and I barely made it to All About Yarn in Columbia before it was too late. Darn this job, cutting into my yarn shopping time! In the ten minutes before they closed, we did get a chance to fondle some mighty fine yarns, including Claudia's HandPaint, Cherry Tree Hill, Blue Heron's Rayon Metallic, some recycled silk, and many other lovelies. Neither of us bought anything, though, but if given more time, I think we both would have talked ourselves and each other into it. We have vowed to try to get there again next Monday, hopefully earlier. L. did tell me that by comparison, Lettuce Knit in Toronto is only about one-third the size. I found that very surprising, having heard a lot about that Canadian shop, (doesn't the Harlot knit there?). Whatev.

I'm so proud of myself -- I actually finished a UFO this week. The Eros scarf, she is done. Finished it on the train on Sunday, bound off in my hotel room that night and wore it Monday morning with my blue suit. I like it! But those ladder/railroad-type yarns are a pain to knit with. With every stitch you have to make an effort to pick up both sides of the ladder. I'm definitely going back to some smooth, worsted weight yarn for the train ride home!

I will share pictures of the FO this weekend, as well as a few from this week's travels. Stay tuned!

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