It's a Library Thing!

I have been exploring a couple of new (at least to me) websites at work this week, and it occurred to me that you all might be interested in them, too.

The first one is called Library Thing, and it is a site for cataloging your own personal library. (Apparently, libraries are starting to use it for cataloging as well, but I think it started for personal use.) You sign up and list your books for the world to see, and then you can find other people with similar reading interests. There are also discussion groups for various topics and genres. I found a large group for people who read mysteries and thrillers. I also found a fairly active group of knitters and a smaller group of crocheters. (The crochet group was started by Kim Werker over at Crochet Me - I love how the Internet is huge, but I keep running into the same people over and over!) If I get the time, maybe over the summer, I would like to sign up and at least list my knitting and crochet books.

The second site I have been exploring is called Library Elf. I can't tie it into knitting and crocheting at all, but if you are a library user, you might want to check it out. If your library is on their list, you can sign up and Library Elf will send you emails to let you know when your books are overdue. Actually, each email lists your overdue books, all other books you have checked out in order of due date, and any holds you might have pending or ready for pick up. It looks to be a powerful organizational tool. And amazingly enough, it is completely free! I think we are going to start advertising it to our patrons, because it sends the overdue notices much sooner than we can from the library.

I'm Back!

Sorry I didn't post yesterday. Sadly it wasn't because my weekend got extended. I forgot that I had to go to work early yesterday (for nothing, as it turned out, but at least I get an extra hour at home this morning). I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend. Ours was very low key, which was exactly what I needed.

I took the time on Sunday and Monday to try to finish up some goals I had set for myself this month, mostly involving afghan squares:

I managed to finish 5 squares for WUA, 2 for VT Tech, and one for Rebuilding Greensburg in May. (You've seen some of these squares before, but I needed a picture of all of them to post over at Crafting for a Cause. I actually only made 2 WUA squares and 1 VT Tech square this past weekend.) I also started a second square for Greensburg, and I am going to try going down a needle size when I start decreasing. Hopefully that will help my gauge.

I'm still pondering my June goals. It occurred to me that Craft Adventure is getting closer and closer, and it would be nice to have something new to submit this year. So I am contemplating trying to finish the peach/green/off white granny square afghan in June. It won't be for charity, but at least it will work with Summer of Squares! Hopefully I can find the time to make some more afghan squares for charity as well, but I'm not ready to say how many yet. June is such a busy month with family events that I'm not sure how much time I will have to work on projects. So we'll have to see what I get accomplished - stay tuned!

Happy Anniversary to Me!

This is quite a big week around here, and it almost passed me by without my realizing. Tuesday was my 200th post, and that made me go back and check when I had written my first post. Well, it turns out that today is my first anniversary of blogging! I can't believe that I have stuck with it for a year, but it is just about the most fun I have ever had. It has been such a pleasure to connect and share my projects with so many people that I would never have met otherwise. So thank you for making the past year special in so many ways.

I realized this week that I should have had a contest to celebrate, but I didn't leave myself enough time to pull that together. So instead, I have decided to do something that I have wanted to do for most of the past year - host an "along". I am calling it "Summer of Squares" and it is going to be for all of us who are working on afghan squares for one project or another. I should add that there will be prizes at the end of the summer, just to entice and encourage you to join and make squares!

Whenever I lead a book discussion at work, there is always a moment about 10 minutes before the discussion starts when I panic because no one is there yet. I always think "what if I lead a book discussion and no one comes?" Well, I am at that point with the "along" - what if I host an along and no one joins me? So please come play with me this summer! It will be fun! Actually, I wanted to announce it here first, but I will work at promoting it over the next week to some of the other groups I belong to and through the 2007 Knit Along List.

Now, to further whet your appetite for afghan squares, let me show you what I accomplished yesterday on my day off. First up, another square for VT Tech:

Next, I finished a square for Greensburg:

Unfortunately, the first 2 sides, where I increased, are perfectly 8". However, the second 2 sides, where I decreased, are closer to 9". I have a feeling that my increases are tighter than my decreases, and I'm not sure what to do about it. Maybe I should start to decrease at 7" or 7.5", or maybe I should go down a needle size when I start decreasing. I don't know, but I would welcome opinions. This is why I don't like to knit on the bias, though.

And finally, I started a granny square afghan for me:

These are 3 of my favorite colors, and I love how they look together. The square is 12", so I should only need 20 of them for an afghan. I am going to try to make each square slightly different, though. I can't wait to see how it looks all together. I should add that I know the corners a little wonky, but I haven't blocked it yet, so hopefully that will help.

I will check my email, but I probably won't be back to blog until Tuesday. So once again, have a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend!

Why I Crochet (and Sometimes Knit) For Charity

It may have been the 7 Random Things meme last week, or all of the time I have spent recently on charity projects, but something made me think of this story over the weekend, and I decided that I wanted to share it with all of you.

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to attend my town's annual hospice breakfast. Everyone who is anyone in town attends (including the UPS man, much to my surprise), and I really enjoyed going. At the breakfast, one of the men who works for hospice got up to introduce a new program called "Healing Hearts". By way of introduction, he told a story that has stayed with me over the years and has given me a lot to think about.

He said that as a young man, he had travelled to India to see Mother Teresa. When he had the chance to meet her, he told her that he wanted to move to India and work with her. He felt that was his calling. However, she told him no, that he should go back home. She explained that there was what she called the "Western disease" in America, and that disease was isolation and alienation. We have a lot of things in this country, but we are not always so well connected with each other. So she wanted him to go back home and find a way to combat this "disease".

Years later, his answer was the hospice program "Healing Hearts". This is a program for those who have lost loved ones that have been in hospice care. Once the survivors have gone through their grieving process, Healing Hearts helps them to reconnect with society. If they have a skill, hospice helps them find people who can use their skill. If they would like to learn a skill, hospice has a list of organizations that will teach them. (Question for my readers from my crochet guild - is the crochet guild on this list? If not, we might want to think about adding ourselves.) Anyway, Healing Hearts is all about ending the isolation of those who find themselves alone.

I think that what hits me about this story is that I am trying to do the same thing through my crafting for charity. The people we craft for are often isolated by trauma or grief or age or poverty. So my hope is that my handmade donations help those people to feel just a little bit less alone in the world. Even a lowly afghan square, when joined with other squares, can send a powerful message. Ultimately, I can't right all of the wrongs in our society, but I do what I can to make the world a better place.

So the next time you sit down to make yet another item for charity, remember Mother Teresa and know that you are also helping to fulfill her advice to that man from hospice.

Back to Work

So my four-day weekend is over and it's back to work for me today. We have a new book in our collection called Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire, and I kept thinking about it because I feel like I have been "crocheting like my hair's on fire" this weekend! It's been great fun, but yesterday it occurred to me that there were any number of things that I had intended to do this weekend that had somehow not gotten done. So I got my rear in gear and accomplished quite a few things. I finished the laundry, paid bills and balanced my checkbook, made reservations for vacation, applied for my passport, went shopping for clothes and shoes and makeup, and got my mother's groceries and helped her change the dust ruffle on her bed. When I got to her apartment, she thought I looked tired, so I had to explain what kind of day I was having! And I finished up the afternoon by doing some straightening in my yarn room and getting most, if not all, of my partial skeins of yarn in one place so that I can continue to make afghan squares.

So not much crocheting or knitting happened yesterday. I finished up one more WUA square, but I will post pictures when I get a few more done. I did poke around the internet a bit. Over at Our Finished Work, Jorie mentioned a group called Blankets for the Gulf. While I was looking at their site, I linked over to another group called Close Knit Hugs. I had no idea so many places are looking for afghan squares - it has given me ideas, but more about that at the end of the week! Anyway, Close Knit Hugs has the greatest template for 8" squares. I printed it out because that is the size of the squares for Rebuilding Greensburg as well. I also have to say that I have become quite addicted to Laura's daily block report - she is up to 105 squares already! But she needs over 1,000 more, so there is plenty of work left to do.

And Granny Makes 6!

Thank you all so much for your kind comments about my ripple preemie! Now I know how to get you all to comment! lol I also really want you to know how much I appreciate that you all take the time to stop by here and read what I have to say each day. I would love to return the favor, so if you have a blog and it isn't listed on my sidebar, please let me know and I will happily subscribe to you too.

Now, if you liked the ripple preemie, I think you are going to really like the granny preemie. Drum roll please!

However, putting the granny preemie together made the ripple preemie look like the height of sanity! By the time I had woven in all the ends, blocked the squares, sewn them together and edged the thing, I had a lot more than 1 hour invested. I really don't suggest doing charity projects this way! But the granny preemie was also a good learning experience for me, so ultimately I can't complain. I may have said this before, but I used odds and ends of sport weight yarn for the squares and an G hook. The blanket is approximately 20" square.

I don't know for sure yet, but it sounds like the preemie blankets are being donated later this summer (like August), so I may slow down a bit on them for now. By last night, I felt rather burned out on preemies, so I added 8 rows to my big ripple blanket instead. It is getting close to being done, so I might try to finish it up before summer really hits. I also have all sorts of ideas floating through my head for granny squares, and I am itching to start a granny afghan for myself, too. As usual, so many projects, so little time!

Finally, An FO Today!

This has got to be my favorite preemie blanket so far - a colorful preemie ripple!

Take a good look, because I don't think we will see its like around here again. Yes, it was kind of insane to do a preemie blanket like this! It actually took me an hour yesterday afternoon to weave in all the ends. However, I am very pleased with how it turned out, especially because the color scheme is not random. I sat down with the yarns and worked the striping pattern out myself. So it was a good learning experience. I have to say that the ripple along and the granny along have really boosted my confidence in my ability to work with color.

So that makes 5 preemies done. I have 2 more almost done, and I started another 3 yesterday that use much easier stitch patterns. Obviously, I won't have 10 done by Sunday, but I am still going to try to have 10 done by the end of the month. By next month, it is going to be getting too hot to make even small blankets, so I really do need to finish these up asap.

Most of tomorrow is going to be taken up with my crochet guild meeting, so I won't be back until Monday. Have a great weekend!

7 Random Things about Me

Well, this is terribly exciting. I've been tagged for the first time! Criquette tagged me with the 7 Random Things about Me meme. This is not going to be easy, because I tend to feel that I put it all out there on the blog anyway, but surely there are some things about me you all don't already know!

Here are the tag rules:
Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write on their blog the 7 facts as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag 7 others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you are tagging a note in their comments so they know they have been tagged and to read your blog.

1. I knew the day I met my husband that I would marry him. We met on Cape Cod on a whale watching trip with the Sierra Club - very romantic! 3 years later, we got engaged on Cape Cod as well. I was up for getting married there, too, but he put his foot down on that one and we ended up getting married in Wethersfield, CT.

2. I will tell you that I hate country music. My ipod will tell you that the only music I listen to that isn't country music is U2! This is due to the fact that I hate commercial country music, but I love all kinds of music "on the edge of country" like folk and bluegrass.

3. I am an only child, and I didn't go to preschool. So my first day at kindergarten, I had such a good time that I came home and asked my mom if I could go back tomorrow. She laughed and said "oh yes". However, I got the last laugh on that one when I ended up being a student for 15 years after I graduated high school!

4. Life stops every Sunday morning from 9-10:30 so that I can watch "CBS News Sunday Morning" - absolutely my favorite TV show of all time.

5. The only time I have been out of North America was when we spent 3 weeks in Scotland in 1970. I really need to travel more!

6. I took Scottish highland dancing lessons for several years growing up, even though I didn't really enjoy it. I still have my first kilt that we mail ordered from Scotland.

7. It's official - as of this morning, I have lost 20 lbs at Weight Watchers. That represents 10% of my total starting weight, so it is the first really big weight loss goal I have met!

I am going to bend the rule about tagging others, however. So many people have been tagged already that I can't keep it straight who has and who hasn't. So if you are reading this and haven't been tagged yet, consider yourself so tagged.

Hopefully this post has distracted you yet again from the appalling lack of FOs around here! I am going to be creative all afternoon, and I promise - FOs tomorrow!

Wild Weather Yesterday!

We had a wild evening of weather last night here in CT. The official word is that no tornadoes touched down, but what happened was about as close as you can come without actually having tornadoes. A lot of power lines and tree limbs came down, and a lot of people had a hard time getting home because the storm hit at 4:00 P.M. However, we only lost power briefly at home and not at all at work, so I can't complain. For once I was glad to work until 8:00, though. By the time I came home, the traffic had finally dissipated and most of the traffic signals were working again.

I bring this up because I have been thinking about the people in Greensburg, Kansas and about how fortunate we were last night that there wasn't more damage here in CT. There was an interesting article in Sunday's paper about the plans to rebuild Greensburg. I can't imagine how hard it would be to rebuild when almost every building has been at least damaged, if not destroyed. Since reading the article, I have been wondering if there would be any effort to knit or crochet for them. Thanks to a post over at Our Finished Work, I have found that yes, there is an effort to collect afghan squares for the town. They are looking for either knitted or crocheted 8" squares. I am definitely going to add this to my list of afghan square projects.

Afghans for Afghans

I picked up my new glasses last night, and the world is still a bit fuzzy this morning. I don't think that I will have much trouble getting used to them, though. I really like being able to see clearly close up, without taking my glasses off. I was just surprised at how difficult it is to see distance with them. Even when I look straight ahead, the bottom half of the picture is a little blurry. And I don't dare turn my head too quickly. The world really swims by if I do! But I'm sure that by this time next week, I won't even notice the difference.

Unfortunately, I got home too late last night to get much done on my preemie blankets, so hopefully I will have another FO for you all tomorrow. Someone at work quoted a line from Alice in Wonderland to me once - something like "jam yesterday, jam tomorrow, but never, never jam today". Sometimes, writing this blog, I feel like "FOs yesterday, FOs tomorrow, but never, never FOs today". Ah, well!

I did, however, have an "aha" moment yesterday. Over at Crafting for a Cause's Live Journal site, someone mentioned a really nice article about Afghans for Afghans. It reminded me that I have always wanted to donate something to them. I just can never decide what. I don't have a lot of wool in my stash, since I tend to use acrylic yarn for charity work, so blankets are out of the question. I guess hats and mittens didn't excite me, either. Anyway, it hit me yesterday that I could make some baby socks for them. I have enough yarn for that, and it would be really good practice for me to get more comfortable with knitting socks. So as soon as I finish up the preemie blankets, I am going to cast on for baby socks. I can't wait!

2 Preemie Blankets Finished!

This is turning into a much better week than the last 2 - much less stuff to do. (And no, I am not up for cleaning anyone else's house! lol) The hope of a 4 day weekend in my future has really got me motivated! So I got busy last night, and I have 2 more finished preemies to show you.

I really like the pink one on the right. The stitch pattern is fairly dense, and it should be a warm blanket. I'm less happy with the green ripple. I would like to try another solid color ripple but go down a hook size or two (or three, perhaps). Ripples seem to drape pretty well, regardless, and I think I would be happier with a denser stitch.

At 8:00 last night, my dh put on Antiques Roadshow. For some reason, that show just makes my skin crawl. I can't stand watching it. So I took myself and my crocheting upstairs and turned on AMC. Apparently, this is the 50th anniversary of An Affair to Remember, and AMC was showing it in all its glory. So I spent a very happy 2.5 hours crocheting and watching Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr fall in love. And to think that the first time I saw Sleepless in Seattle I had never seen An Affair to Remember. I have since rectified that situation more times than I can keep track of. Anyway, no doubt another important reason why I was so productive last night!

Back From the Weekend!

And what a busy weekend it was! Everything went well, though. We had a lovely day yesterday, and I think the moms enjoyed themselves and felt appreciated. My plan was to get as much of the work done on Saturday as possible, so that I wasn't all stressed out when the company arrived on Sunday, and it worked like a charm. We actually had time to sit and read the paper yesterday.

I also made some progress on my preemie blankets over the weekend, too, although nothing is quite ready for its "close-up" yet. I essentially finished two blankets last night, with a 3rd almost there. However, I realized that one of the blankets I thought I had finished still needs an edging, so I do still have some work to do. I also finished one more WUA square and started another VA Tech square that is about half done. I will try to truly finish some thing or things tonight and post pictures tomorrow.

And the best part? I am looking forward to having 4 days off this coming weekend and my house is already clean! I have 2 more vacation days to use up before the end of the fiscal year in June, so I am taking them this weekend. I might just make that goal of 10 preemie blankets done by next Sunday after all!

One More Trip to my LYS!

My efforts to apply for my passport hit a snag yesterday morning when I couldn't find my birth certificate. (We found it last night, along with my dh's, so I will try again next Wednesday morning.) So instead, I decided to visit my LYS before I went to work.

One of the ladies I met at Weight Watchers asked me if I knew or could find out about a CD-ROM that would allow her to design her own counted cross stitch designs. (I always bring some knitting or crocheting with me to the meetings, which is how the conversation came about.) My LYS is both a yarn and a needlework store, so I stopped in to see if they knew of any programs. And of course, while I was there, I did some shopping. I still had money on my gift card from Christmas, and it seemed like the time to spend it. Here's what I got:

The yarn is Plymouth Suri Merino, an alpaca/merino blend, and I have been lusting after both these colors for months now. I finally decided to get enough of each to make 2 more triangular knitted scarves. I just love to wear them in the winter. And I couldn't get left behind on the Interweave Crochet magazine. Given the price, though, I will be sending in my subscription card soon!

There are some nice patterns in the magazine, but nothing I can't wait to make. I have, however, become quite taken with this pattern from Elann.com. I don't usually go crazy for sweater patterns, but I am just itching to make this one. I think it might be the combination of knitting and crochet in one piece that has me fascinated. And it turns out that I have yarn upstairs that would work. Now I just need to find the time!

Unfortunately, time is going to be scarce this weekend. I have quite a bit of housework to do before Sunday, and then we are entertaining the parents on Sunday for Mother's Day. We try to keep things simple, since both moms are getting up there in age. I have ordered flower arrangements for them, and we always cook a special dinner as part of the gift. Serving filet mignon on Mother's Day has become a tradition in our family. So I won't have much time for crafting this weekend. However, I am taking a four day weekend the following weekend to use up the last of my vacation time, and that will give me some much needed R&R.

I probably won't be back until Monday, so let me wish all of you a great weekend and a Happy Mother's Day. May your children go all out for you this weekend!

I'm Officially Old!

I knew this would happen eventually, and last night was the night. I finally went in to get my eyes checked. I was about 3 years overdue for the appointment. Luckily my eyes are healthy, so I got away with it this time. However, the lenses in my eyes just doesn't respond like they used to, and this really affects my ability to see close up and in that intermediate range where I do most of my knitting and crocheting. So, yes, I am getting bifocals! Part of me thinks I am too young, but part of me is just so tired of not being able to see certain things with or without the glasses that I really can't wait to get the new glasses. Maybe I can finally finish knitting that pair of socks that I have put down because the stitches are just too small to see right now!

I am also still in sticker shock. It is amazing how much a pair of glasses can cost. However, since I use them every minute of every day, I spared no expense. I got the progressive lens (at least I think that is the right name) that don't have a line between the 2 halves of the lens. I also got the non glare glass because I work with computers and under fluorescent lights so much. And best of all, I got the kind that come with sunglasses that attach magnetically to the frames. The shades are the same shape and size as the glasses and are designed to not scratch. I haven't had sunglasses for 5 years, and I really didn't want to have to switch glasses every time I went outside. My dh has the transition lenses, but those don't work all that well, either. So I think what I got will be a good solution for me. Now I just have to wait a week and a half for the new glasses to come in, and then be patient for a few days while I get used to them.

We seem to have settled on Brier Island for vacation, so I am off this morning to apply for my passport. My mother, my grandmother, and I went to Scotland in 1970, and I was young enough to be put on my mom's passport. But I have never had one of my own. Other than a few trips to Canada and Mexico, I haven't been out of the country since 1970. So this is very exciting. And I am getting very excited about vacation, too!

Time to Think About Vacation!

There has been a tremendous amount of talking about vacation around my house the past few days. We knew we were ready to visit Canada again, and the Maritime provinces are always our favorite Canadian destination. We talked about Newfoundland, because neither of us have ever been there. Unfortunately, research revealed that plane tickets to St. John's would cost over $600 per person, so we decided that this isn't the year to make that trip. (Actually, even if I could afford it, I'm not sure I would want to spend $1,200 just on plane tickets ever.)

So we turned our attention to Nova Scotia. It is much more affordable to fly to Halifax, but then we would need to rent a car. If we want to travel in eastern Nova Scotia - Cape Breton Island - then this makes some sense. But then, last night, I brought up Brier Island, and it turns out that we both really liked the idea. Brier Island is a beautiful, quiet place. It takes 2 ferry rides to get there, and there is nothing to do there except whale watch, bird watch, and hike. There's one lodge, 2 restaurants, and a general store, and that's about it. Quite frankly, it's my idea of heaven. The lodge has a club room with windows on 2 sides and an incredible view of the Grand Passage. Sitting there, knitting, and watching the ferry go back and forth is one of the most relaxing things I have ever done. (We had stayed there for a few days on our last trip to Nova Scotia. Unfortunately, we arrived home from that trip on September 10, 2001. It's still hard to remember that trip without getting a little choked up.)

So of course I am already planning which projects I want to take with me. After all, it's only 3 months away! When it looked like we might fly, I knew that I couldn't take much yarn with me, and I immediately thought about lace and socks as good options. If we drive and take the Cat Ferry, then I will have more space to bring either more yarn or bigger projects. Decisions, decisions! It's a good thing I have some time to think about this.

May Goals

Last month, at Easter, my husband offered me his definition of eternity - two people and a ham. After this past weekend, I have my own definition to offer - two people and a yard full of weeds. I had thought that weeding the garden and the flower beds was discouraging, but weeding the entire lawn was just about overwhelming. However, we managed to weed, mow, and fertilize the lawn (the lime went down a few days ago), and even I had to admit that it looks better. And while it felt like an eternity, we really only spent about 4 hours, spread out over 2 days, doing yard work this weekend. (Can you tell that yard work is just about my least favorite activity in the world? Truly, I would rather do just about anything than work outside.)

So I did have time for some crafting this weekend. Apparently it was a starting weekend (as opposed to a finishing one). I finally managed to start 3 preemie blankets that I am happy with. I am using Caron Simply Soft and a K hook for all 3. I am using a shell stitch for the pink one. (It's the same pattern that I used for the purple WUA square last week, only wider.) I am using Dee's pattern for the blue one, and the Easy Ripple for the green one.

I now have 2 preemie blankets finished, 6 started, and the yarn pulled out for a 9th one. I decided that I would like to have 10 blankets made by the end of May at the latest (although the May 20th guild meeting would be preferable) and then call it quits on preemie blankets for this year. Realistically, I will probably just finish what I can by the end of May. 10 may not be possible, but goals are good, so we will see what I get done.

I Finally Have Time to Post!

My very busy week has finally come to an end. You know, I wouldn't mind so much if I had been busy for a reason (like Cole planning her wedding - now there's a good reason to be busy!), but I have just been busy doing stuff that doesn't amount to a hill of beans. Oh well, I guess every week has its stuff that needs doing. Last week just had more stuff in it than usual. And at least work has continued quiet. Everyone here in CT has been taking advantage of the beautiful weather we have been having and doing things other than reading. It's the calm before the storm of summer reading, and the library staff are making the most of it.

I did not make my goal of losing 20 lbs this week. By the time I was getting dressed yesterday morning, I was convinced that I had gained at least 1 or 2 lbs this past week. (The worst allergy month of the year coupled with PMS makes for one unhappy and pessimistic Priscilla!) As it turned out, I was only up .2 lbs, due to water retention, which means I probably had lost something last week. It should show up on the scale next week, so I was quite relieved after my weigh in.
I should add that there was no reason why I would have gained weight last week except for the fact that we went out for Mexican food Thursday night and I had hit the chips and salsa a little heavily.

Anyhow, as you can probably guess, little or no crafting happened this past week. I finished one more WUA square:

Yes, that's the square I was holding in Dee's picture of me from Wednesday morning. I started another WUA square that's about half finished, and I added a few stitches to a few other projects, but that was the extent of it. Hopefully next week will go better!

Happy Cinco de Mayo, and have a great weekend!

Nothing to Report

There has been an appalling lack of knitting and crocheting going on around here this week. My days have been long and busy, and I've been too tired in the evening to accomplish much of anything. It doesn't look like weekends are going to be much better for a while, either. Between getting the house ready for Mother's Day and keeping up with the outside stuff, the next couple of weekends are going to be busy. And I've also got to get the crochet guild's newsletter published in the next couple of days. But I'm off to Borders this morning for "Coffee, Chat and Crochet" with my guild, so hopefully that will jump start my crafting again.

So stay tuned - there will be FO's around here eventually, but it might take a while!