Hey Y'all!

It's 2012 now and I thought it was time to bring you up to date on what's been going on these past few months.

Fall semester was a challenge for me to get through.

The fun started two weeks into the term.  I went to Urgent Care on Labor Day, where they confirmed the painful lumps under my right arm were caused by a staph infection.  I was given a prescription to fight it, but that didn't work.  A week later, three of the bumps had gone away but two others had combined forces into a 'mega-bump.'

When I saw my PCP's NP, I was directed to go to the ER for an incision and drainage (I & D) of the lump. Gail was concerned that the staph could interfere with my dialysis graft, so she made me promise to go to the ER that day, but she also said it was okay if I went to my ASL class beforehand.  Unfortunately, Carol missed that part of my text, so she headed out to the ER.  Imagine my surprise when I was signing in at the ER desk to hear my name spoken behind me.  She'd been camping out for an hour waiting for me to get there.  It was awesome to have her there with me because my niece, Anna, was at Children's Hospital in Wilmington, DE, that night, so my mom couldn't make it down to Annapolis.  Anyway, Carol was with me through the whole thing; the sick-o likes watching medical procedures because she's an EMT.  I spent two days in the hospital on IV antibiotics and a culture confirmed that the infection was MRSA.  That's the 3rd time I've had it.  Consequently, I had to drop my Entrepreneurial Thinking course because the due dates couldn't be extended; part of the class is to compete in the Best of Business contest. I knew I needed to  have less stress in order to heal, so it was an easy choice to make.

Then October rolled around... I purchased a ticket to the Multiple Sclerosis Fantasy Ball over the summer, although the ball wasn't until Halloween weekend. On the way to the Ball, my cell phone rang.  It was Carol calling from West Virginia.  She and her brother were camping with their families when she fell coming out of her RV. She landed with her foot between the metal stair risers and snapped her leg and ankle. It was snowing heavily out there, otherwise I'd have

Waiting for the doors to open

just turned to head west.  I had a great time at the Ball, but was worried about Carol throughout.  The theme was "Goblins & Gears" which translated to Faeries & Steampunks.  Kasey and I were Fae trying to act Steampunk, but we got it a little bit wrong.  I was sparkly but had reading glasses rather than goggles. Kasey had a lace Elizabethan collar with her satyr horns and sparkly cape (that I made myself!).  

The Faery Queen & her faithful servant

Kasey was, of course, the belle of the ball.  I heard numerous compliments on how well-behaved she was and how friendly, too.  She was a hit with the children who were present, for sure.

And she won a door prize! ...which she gave to me since it was the "Pamper Yourself Bath Basket." Candles, hand-made soaps, fused glass soap dish & candle holder! She's a lucky little sod! She won a Grand Prize at the LYS opening in September, too.

The day after the Ball I started running a fever that lasted for five weeks.  Five tests later, there were no answers as to the cause and the fever just suddenly went away.  The doctors still don't know what was going on.  Unfortunately, the resultant "fever brain" meant I couldn't concentrate on school or anything else; my memory was non-existent.  When I talked to the doctor about it, there were at least six different times where I knew there was a specific word I wanted, but I couldn't think of it; I could only explain the definition or say "painkiller that starts with F" and she would have to start guessing until she got it for me.  I wanted to scream in frustration every time it happened! It also meant I couldn't remember ASL signs or how to finger-spell words...which meant I had to withdraw from ASL before I failed the class.  My remaining class of the semester was Introduction to Fine Arts, which I arranged to receive an Incomplete in; I have until February to finish the coursework.

Also in November, two pieces of my needlework were featured in the Textile as Art exhibit at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts.  My work was in a gallery, y'all!  How freakin' cool is that?!  The pieces that were on exhibit were my counted tread book, A Stitcher's Companion, and Ocean Star, a needlepoint piece in which I changed the colors to suit my fancy (tagged as 2009 finishes). I also demonstrated needlepoint, stitching for the first time in over two years, during the First Sunday sale on November 6th.  I worked on another Nancy Buhl piece called Iris and Fans Quilt. This is the progress I made in the five days around the First Sunday demo. Of course, I haven't touched it since then.  Not because I didn't want to, but because my eyes were so strained I had to get prescription reading glasses after dealing with severe pain for two and a half weeks.  When an ophthalmologist tells you that OTC readers are good enough and that your eyes will "even out" please don't believe him. Eyes don't work that way, and I found that out from a friend who stepped in and asked me to come see her at her work, Lens Crafters.  Amazingly the pain that I was taking hydrocodone for immediately went away when I put on my new prescription readers.

To sum it up, Fall 2011 was just not my semester.  My friends, and even some of my professors, say that it's because I was doing so much: school, work study, Relay For Life, the Fantasy Ball, dialysis, and dealing with the health issues that arose.  And I hadn't had a break since before my cancer fight and resultant two surgeries during the Spring term.  Maybe they're right; I don't know.  But I'm trying to slow down.  Really!  Besides the two courses, I dropped all my extracurricular activities, including History Club.  I couldn't completely withdraw from school and I couldn't not work my work study job, although I did lose my eligibility when I withdrew from the second course.  I've been reinstated and begin work again on Tuesday, so that's been resolved. The one thing I was not willing to give up was my seat on the Planning Committee for the Arnold/Annapolis Relay for Life event. I figured it was only a once-per-month commitment, so I could handle that.

Dishcloth Angel

Acrylic Scrubbles

Speaking of Relay, I've raised $106 through the sale of my knitted items.  My team, Make Cancer History!, is selling dishcloth angels and acrylic scrubbles.  Angels are $7 each, with $6 going to Relay and $1 set aside to buy more yarn; scrubbies are $3 each or two for $5.  Because the yarn for the scrubbles was donated to us, we are not holding money back to buy more; there's more than we can knit this year!  If you're interested in participating in a Relay event, supporting Make Cancer History! by purchasing items, or helping us make them, please send me an email.  There are many color choices available for both angels and scrubbles.  To make a donation, join my team, or honor a friend or loved one who has/had cancer with Luminaria, please choose the appropriate link on my personal page. My goal is $2500.00 and I've already raised over $300.  In total, we've raised $197 just from the sales of angels and scrubbles, thanks to the volunteers who are knitting and crocheting away on them! 

Unfortunately no one in my family was on camera duty this Christmas, so no one took pictures.  My nieces and nephew loved their gifts.  I was particularly surprised how attached Caleb was to his belts; he wore both of them as bandoleers and used the iGun app on my iPod to "shoot" everyone in the house.  Within 20 minutes he was re-loading and switching guns all by himself.  Not bad for a 4-year-old.  He doesn't have any toy guns, so the virtual gun on the iPod is as close as he gets.  He'd completely forgotten about it by Wednesday when he and his mom, cousin, and sister came to visit me, in any case.  He was wearing his belt, though!

As for knitting, I ended 2011 with 44 knitting finishes.  They included:

6 pr. Felted Duffers (slippers) - 4 were gifts
7 dishcloths (assorted patterns)
16 dishcloth angels (Relay Fundraiser)
6 scrubbies (3 for Relay)
3 cowls
3 scarves
1 pr. wristlets
1 mini fascinator, felted
1 tunic-length cardigan

All in all, I'm happy to have 2011 behind me and I'm looking forward to 2012.  I hope you and yours have a happy, healthy, and safe 2012 as well!  ...and I will endeavor to update here more often.

Love,
Beth
with Kasey Kay

I think my crafting friends will appreciate this story:

When I found out about the First Sunday demonstrations, I had to find the thread pack, chart, and canvas for the project.  The canvas was easy; it was in my 5-drawer lateral file cabinet, where I keep "all" my needlepoint (NP) and cross stitch (XS) stash.  I say "all" because that's what I believed.  Until I tore apart every drawer of the file cabinet, going through hundreds of charts, looking for the one that went with the canvas that was already on stretcher bars.  Then I went through the sweater organizer that holds all my fabric.  Still no NP chart or thread pack.  The only NP charts I could find were the ones I'd already completed. So where were the rest of the charts I hadn't stitched but kitted up?  They weren't in the rolling craft tote in my closet; that was empty.  But no. My Stitch Bow binders with the full set of DMC were in it, so it wasn't empty. The two rolling craft totes beside the dining table were empty; no need to look there.  So back to the lateral files. I went through the three 12-inch-high stacks of charts again...Checked inside every file that looked like it was stash-related...Pulled out all the picture frames and assorted board games that were hiding out of sight within the drawers...Still no thread packs.  Then the two rolling craft totes caught my eye again and I decided to open them...You know where this is going, right? 

AAK!!  My stash multiplied!  Beads, XS kits, fabric, NP canvas, thread packs, charms, sequins...I thought they were empty! I thought one 1'x1'x3' drawer of nothing but charts, a sweater organizer of fabric, and some miscellaneous other hiding places was it.  I had no idea both the rolling craft totes--that I was planning to sell, mind you--were chock-full of even more stitching stash!