It's been another busy couple of weeks

Sorry it's been another two weeks since I've updated my blog. It's just been a busy few weeks - as I predicted. Also, I'm sorry I haven't been as good about commenting on your blogs as usual. I just haven't been able to keep up recently with everything on my plate...but soon, things are about to quiet down.

So, about a week ago I was in Israel. Everything on the trip was fine - but exhausting. I was basically advising students all week from 8 in the morning until 5 - it was a very long week. Plus, Israel isn't my favorite place in the world so I was just very happy to come home. On the bright side, I managed to get quite a bit of knitting done due to the extremely long plane ride (on the way home it was 12 hours!!!).


Once I got home, things didn't exactly quiet down b/c my students had exams that needed to be administered and graded and then there was commencement. So, it was very busy. The good news is that everything is graded - my final grades are all in. So far, no complaints about the final grades either - but we'll see how long that lasts.

So, I think things are about to get a little more manageable. Right now, my husband is away at a conference in California - and on Thursday I will be meeting him in San Francisco for our little vacation. We'll be spending a little over a week going from San Francisco to Portland to Seattle. Even though it means getting on more planes and packing yet again, I'm very much looking forward to getting away for a few days. I think I deserve a little vacation.

In terms of knitting news, I have managed to get a nice amount done in the last two weeks given the circumstances. So, here's the progress on the Amelie dress:

So, looking at the picture, the back (on the right) is finished - and for the front, I need to just shape the neck. So, we're almost there - then it's seaming and creating the little flowers. I think it's really looking good - but I'm getting tired of all of the st st. By the way, in case you're wondering, that's Sam's paw in the upper left corner - he just can't help himself whenever I try to take a picture of my knitting.

Anyway, that's basically it for now. I'll be sure to update before leaving for my trip. Until then, enjoy the rest of the weekend!

I've been tagged...again

So, earlier this week while I was in the midst of grading papers, exams, etc. I was tagged by The ADD Knitter for the 7 random facts about me meme. I feel like I've already posted a bunch of these on the 100 things about me- but let's see if I can come up with a few others.


1. When I was a young child, I had this strange bump on the inside of my wrist. The doctors called it a ganglion and said that it would mysteriously disappear. It did sometime in my teens.


2. I am left-handed - although not entirely. I prefer to use scissors with my right hand - but that's probably because they never had any left handed scissors in art class.



3. I took both French and Latin in school - and learned up through the AP level. I even won several national awards for each language in high school. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to take foreign languages once I got to college.


4. I do not wear glasses or contacts. This is a pretty weird/random fact for me because everyone in my family wears glasses. Somehow I managed to escape - although I know I'll probably need them when I get older.


5. I am a young professor but I look even younger. In fact, I was recently carded for buying an "M" rated video game...um, that means that the woman behind the counter thought that I was under 17!!!


6. I am obsessed with time and being on time. In fact, when I was about 6 my parents decided I needed to get a watch because they couldn't handle my constant questioning of "what time is it?"


7. I often prefer a quiet night at home with my husband and my cats to going out for a night on the town.

Well, don't say I didn't warn you!

Didn't I tell you that my posting would be more erratic than usual? I'm sorry to say that my predictions were correct. This really is the only free few minutes I've had to stop and blog. Plus, it's not like it's any quieter right now either - I'm leaving on a plane to Israel tomorrow and I haven't even packed yet!

So, two weeks ago (geez, has it really been that long??), I was telling you about the conference that I was about to have. Well, it was really quite a success. First, it was great getting some warmer Florida weather. But, I really didn't get to sightsee so much. I did get to present my research, and it was a lot of fun and very well-received. So, it was pretty successful - and I got some work in and a little knitting on the plane. Here's the progress I've made so far on the Amelie dress:
I think it's looking pretty cute - but the miles of st st is starting to get to me. Too bad I still have the back to finish and the entire front to start.

I know the progress I've made so far isn't terribly impressive - but it is impressive given everything else that's been on my plate.

So, I got back from the conference on Sunday and since then it's really been a whirlwind as I tried to fit everything in before leaving again. To give you a sense, I was up until 1am on Wednesday this week working on a paper that's due today!!

I just had a ton of other meetings along with the last day of classes this week, exams to prepare, papers to grade, etc. etc. Lucky for me, this will all be behind me soon - and then things will be back to "normal".

I still have a bunch of things to deal with this summer - so it's won't be a cakewalk - but not having to worry about lectures for the time being will make things a touch more manageable.

Okay, so that's it for now. Sorry for all the craziness - believe me, it's no fun living it!!