12 August 2007

Toasted AND fried!

I know it's supposed to be hot in August, but jeez! I climbed into the Big Red Beast and lost my eyebrows in my hairline when I looked at the little digital thermometer. 108 degrees? No matter what I think of my job on any given day, I know I'm not really in Hell, so that can't be right. Once I started driving around and circulating air, the temp dropped down to a mere 99 degrees. Oh, much better.



So what is silfert working on when the mercury soars into the ether? Why, wool socks, of course! Behold the basketweave socks:


Well, that should be "sock", singular. And please forgive my less-than-stellar photography, but you get the idea. Which brings up another thought! On the socknitters.com forum, the question was raised as to whether or not there is still time to knit Christmas gifts. Last year, I made one gift for each branch of the family. Wooden boxes stained "Old Maple", with my special recipe glycerin soap and knitted washcloths inside. Each family was pleased, and the kids argued over who got to keep each box. Since there is NO way I'm gonna knit thirty-seven pairs of socks by December, what would make a good gift? And please don't suggest afghans. My patience is lacking under the best of circumstances.

On the topic of work again, I'm really looking forward to making that shirt. The whole "theft of paycheck" thing is just one of my major peeves. I had an agreement with the Editor-In-Chief to be paid for my column by tacking on a few hours to my timecard. Just enough to cover time spent in writing and research. It came out to a whopping twenty-eight bucks. Per month. After a year of this, Mr. Journalism 101 starts waving the circulation department budget around, saying, "Why are we paying her this much? Do you really think she's worth it? I didn't approve this!" To which our fearless leader replied, "Uh, gee, I don't know? How did this happen?" Apparently, they only pay five bucks per column for syndicated writers, so I'm way overpriced. After much muffled shouting from me and a brief conference during which I told the EIC "If I didn't enjoy writing this column so much, I'd tell you to take your paper, fold it into all corners and jam it crossways, but I'll settle for knowing that I am stopped EVERY SINGLE DAY by readers who say that my column is the only reason they take the paper", it was decided that I would be paid mileage for driving to interviews and such. Wow. I do my interviews via e-mail, and my research at the library next door to the paper! Let's see, six blocks translates to...two cents, I think. Before taxes. Snarl. I am going to talk to my Catholic friends and get a picture of Saint Lucy for my wallet. Patron Saint of writers, save me!

Which brings us to another segue. History has been made. Dad and I sang in church and I have the tape from the radio station to prove it! We ended up doing a fourth song, "Angel Band". The Michael Nesmith arrangement. Very happy making. I'm gonna make a copy of the tape for Mom S, since she was mentioned during the "Joys and Concerns" part of the service.

Himself has agreed that we should take a blanket and some bug spray into the boonies tonight to enjoy the Perseid meteor shower. We watched for a few minutes last night and saw two meteors and a satellite inside of five minutes.

7 comments:

Lisa Marie said...

I bet the Perseid meteor shower last nite was cool =) Hopefully, it wasn't too cloudy for ya guys to see stuff!

Matt said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lapdog Creations said...

Can you charge them the mileage that you WOULD spend/drive for the interviews if it weren't for the net?
Christmas... how about some really basic hats, mittens or fingerless mitts? Also, cell phone holders... SMALL things. I did some little change purse size bags last year - work great for tidying things up in purses or totes..

Lapdog Creations said...

Oh Senor Don Gato was a cat....
On a High Red Roof Don Gato sat...
He Went there to read a letter...
meow, meow, meow

Oh ... 4th grade chorus! lol

I told Bella's mom she should send those photos in to some of the doggy pic contest places!!!

Anonymous said...

The thing is...syndicated columnists are pimped out by the syndicate, and the columnist is paid QUITE handsomely by the syndicate (who takes all those $5 fees paid by newspapers all across the country and rolls it into a nice wad of cash to take to the bank). You do original work that is carried by one paper and one paper only...considering the fact that you more than make up for what they used to pay you in "added value" to the paper, they shouldn't even compare you to the syndicated columnists.

Saw one meteor last night, and it was a doozy...a huge thing that streaked across the sky, and we could even see it breaking up in the atmosphere. Too cool!

Mags said...

Hey~
Love the basketweave sox....wool in summer....mine felts a little but who cares, I love knitting..people look at me like I'm mad...well I am slightly!!!!
Aw...about the job you're caught between loving what you do and being appreciated for what you do..someday you'll be noticed and paid your worth!!!! You could wish on one of the shooting stars if you're lucky enough to see one thru the clouds!!!

Knits in Church said...

Is there a patron saint of knitting?
I personally rather like the Orthodox saint Basil the Fool For Christ, who is said to have supported the poor through shoplifting.
Remember, eventually Reality will catch up with Mr. Just Passed Journalism 101. And while Reality might be slow, it bites hard.