The plot thickens...

The title of this post doesn't have to do with any particular event, but a bunch of events in general.

The weekend of the 11th was tons of fun.  I drove down to Virginia Beach where we celebrated Trish's 40th birthday with a super fun barbecue.  A bunch of her neighborhood friends came over and I was finally able to put some faces with names.  She recently reconnected with a college friend (and my fellow bridesmaid at Trish's wedding), Joanne, and we were so happy that she was able to come celebrate.  She hadn't changed much, but obviously I had. The last time she saw me, I was 14!!!!  With braces!  My cousin Sharon came with her husband and three kids.  The kids had an absolute blast.  Anne, her oldest, decided she LOVED the hot tub.  We couldn't get her out of it!  Ally liked the pool and the dogs while baby Joseph just liked hanging out with all of us, nibbling on everything he could find.  My Aunt Bev and Uncle Joe were able to come down, which made us all very happy.  Aunt Bev had had a really rough summer, and I think she's starting to feel better mentally.  She's able to get out and drive by herself, which will help her morale, I'm sure.  She even went to Busch Gardens on Sunday (not by herself, but with a few of her grandkids).  Trish seemed to have an absolute blast, but the highlight of the evening was the pinata.  DJ got one in the shape of a "40" and filled it not with candy, but with alcohol bottles.  It was awesome!  Such a great idea.
 
Before I headed down there, I finished my mom's socks!  They came out beautifully and I can't wait to give them to her.

Last week at work was pretty much status quo, though it was interrupted by a migraine on Tuesday.  Unfortunately, it was the last week for my favorite client, Leslie, as she's moving on to a front office job at USCIS (good part is she's still in DC!).  Her replacement is someone I've worked with since March, but she has become a little bit of a micromanager since taking on the role of team lead.  She's kind of stressing me out, so I'm finding new ways to cope.  Hopefully she'll realize that things will get done without her hovering over everything - and that it has to be done regardless of her being in another meeting.

This weekend was very busy.  On Friday evening, I joined my knitting friends at fibre space to meet and greet Miss Babs, an indy dyer who supplies the shop.  She's so sweet and her color combinations are to dye for!  I got more than a sweater quantity of her worsted weight in a blue colorway named "Regent."  I also got a skein of sock yarn called "Moo & Ewe" - a mix of Milk Fibre and Merino wool.  It's so silky and yummy, they're going to be luxurious socks!!!

On Saturday, I volunteered in a disaster response drill at Reagan National Airport, playing the part of a family member of a plane crash victim.  It was very interesting and I got some good insight into how the Airlines, MWAA and emergency response work together in the wake of a crash.  The best part were the Red Cross therapy dogs.  They were participating in the drill, too.  Stormy and Titus are GORGEOUS golden retrievers there to lend a caring paw.  During the debrief, Titus fell asleep against my leg.

I didn't realize before, but A-Rod is
pulling a Michael Jackson at 3rd base.

Saturday evening was the Yankes v. Orioles game at Camden Yards.  IT was a beautiful evening at a beautiful ballpark.  The Yankees played a good game, winning 11-3 and getting CC Sabathia his 20th win of the season (the first pitcher to do so this season). 

Sunday was the Virginia German Shepherd Rescue.  I decided at the last minute to not go.  I, for once, listened to my body, which told me that I needed sleep and relaxation a whole lot more than I needed to drive to Reston with my crazy dog.  I made the right decision and slept most of the midday.  I was able to make some headway on my Bad Wolf Cowl, a neckwarmer with a pattern based on Doctor Who's TARDIS.  It's a fairly quick project with fingering weight wool.  I bought Shepherds Wool for it, totally forgetting that I had a luxurious skein of alpaca at home in the same color.  Oh well.  MIght just have to make 2 and give the Shepherds Wool one away.

I have been commissioned to make an earflap hat for my neighbor, Nicole.  I found a great pattern and am going to use my favorite - alpaca for it.  I can't wait.  I'll get started on that after I finish the hat and mitts for Stacey.  I'm cruising through those pretty quickly, so Nicole's hat should be ready by the time she gets home from Oktoberfest.

So that's the rundown.  I'll post more about knitting later, just needed to have the brain dump.