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Yesterday I spent a lovely day with friends at the Cottage Hobby House in Anacortes.  It's a lovely little cottage that has been set up for sewers and other crafters.  Lots of space, wonderful light, ironing boards and irons, cutting tables and rulers, plus a little kitchenette.  Just within walking distance (or a short drive) of two fabric stores and a yarn shop.  We spent almost 12 hours laughing, eating, sewing, eating, visiting, eating – well, you get the picture:

During the day, one of my friends admitted to an embarassing number of UFO's (Unfinished Objects).  At first I felt a little self-righteous because I don't have anywhere near that number.  But then I realized that given the number I DO have, I have no reason to feel superior. So, I am declaring this year the year of UFO's.  I am going to commit to working on and finishing a number of them.  No real goals as to specifics, but a determination to visit some things that have been hibernating way too long.  Most of these are quilts, and many of them are quilt tops that just need to be quilted.  I've always been a hand quilter, but I'm taking a machine quilting class in February in hopes that I can at least tolerate it and get some of these tops done.

First up (simply because it was on top of the stack) – the Snowman Quilt:

I just have a few more small filler blocks to embroider and then it will be ready to piece.  Since most of the blocks are pre-quilted, this will be easy to machine quilt with just straight lines.

Never fear, though, that knitting will take a back seat.  Evenings are still my knitting times and I've gotten quite a bit accomplished.  I finished the second clue on the Enchanted Wood shawl:

I'm not entirely sure if I'm in love with the gradience – it looks a little sharper to me in person.  But I love the way the beads are coming out – they look like dew drops on the trees:

And I'm up to the plain knitting portion of Nagano:

Last Saturday we spent a Girls' Day Out with Abby.  We poked around the antique shops in Snohomish, visited Uajimaya – a big Asian supermarket.  I think Abby was in heaven and piled her cart high with things that she can't get at American supermarkets.  Some of it looked pretty tasty, but I think I'll pass on the dried squid (sorry, Abby, but that's just more for you!).  To cap off the day we took her to the Crab Pot in Bellevue.  The dinner she and I chose consists of crab legs, mussels, oysters, clams, fish, potatoes and corn on the cob in a big pot that they dump on your table.  Yummm!!

Believe me, there wasn't much left when we were done.

They say that it's a woman's perogative to change her mind.  If that woman is a knitter, it must go double!  Since my last post, several plans have changed.

First up is socks.  I started the Lacy Scallops, and as is often the case with my small, skinny feet, it was apparent from the get-go that these socks were just not going to work.  They were immediately frogged and I searched around for another pattern.  After auditioning a bunch, I settled on a tried and true.  Marguerite's basket weave ribbing socks.  Marguerite's socks are simple and well fitting.  And even though I have a lot of patterns in my personal sock-of-the-month-club, if they are not well fitting, they will not be knitted up.  So there!  Just a day or so after starting them, I was on a fabric shopping outing with my Round Robin group.  I was mentioning my sock knitting venture for the year and there were strong hints given that some of those socks could be gifted for birthdays.  These are probably the only three people on the face of the planet that I would knit for besides my immediate family, so I took the hint to heart.  The first recipient, Caroline, has a birthday coming up in February.  The socks I had already started won't fit her, so I started a new pair.  The yarn I chose has limited colors, but because the color runs are short, still reads as very busy.  I was a little frustrated trying to find something that the colors won't overwhelm until I remembered Nutkin.  It seems to bear up well under busy patterns, but is still rather impressive and fun to knit.  So – on the left, the basket weave socks and on the right Nutkin:

 

The basketweave socks are in Koigu PPM and the Nutkins are in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock.

Next up – Lusekofte.  I sat down to read the pattern and it is so convoluted!  I had expected that this would be patterned after an historical Norwegian knit, but I should have read closer.  It appears Knit Pick's aim is to take historical patterns and "update" them to make them more wearable.  I don't think this has been an improvement.  I started making note of all the changes I would make to the pattern, when it occurred to me I might as well change direction.  I dug out all of my Dale books and found one that makes my heart go pitter patter (whether in happiness, or trepidation, I'm not sure).  Nagano.  I've had this in my library forever and have occasionally taken it out and dreamed over it.  So now is the time.  Although, in looking at the charting, perhaps I should have my head examined!

 

But I have made progress – see?

This is my second attempt.  On the first attempt, I cast on for a Small.  My mind just couldn't wrap itself around the concept that I'm anything smaller, so I completely ignored the actual measurements.  It soon became apparent that Small is actually Huge.  So I frogged and am now making an XS.  I like their sizing – it's very flattering.

Last weekend Abby brought the girls up on Sunday because Ben had to work.  They went to church with us and it turned into quite an adventure.  Right in the middle of the sermon Mei-Mei looked up at me and said, "I'm going to scream!"  And she did.  It was just a quick, high pitched squeal, but it was enough to get everyone's (including the pastor's) attention.  Good thing she's so cute.  And speaking of cute:

Busy week this week – but haven't I said that before?  I keep waiting for things to slow down, but I'm not holding my breath.  I just have to keep reminding myself everything doesn't have to be done the first month of retirement.  Yesterday I was sitting down in the middle of the day knitting and trying to quell the feelings of guilt.  It seemed so decadent.  But I had to remind myself I'm making great headway on my organizing goals, fixing hubby a good home cooked meal every day and pretty much keeping up with all my other responsibilities.  I'm sure the feelings of guilt will go away very, very soon!

As much as it's fun to spin with hundreds of spinners, it's also a boatload of fun to spin with just one.  This past weekend, hubby, Maggie and I headed down to Lorette's.  We were a little worried about how Maggie would get along with the dogs, but after a little posturing between Maggie and Riley over who was the alpha female, they got along just fine.  Riley and Maggie agreed to co-share the alpha bitch status and pretty much ignored each other.  Lewey, the only male, seemed a little befuddled and, like a typical male, was a little confused over how to win Maggie's heart.  He alternated between completely ignoring her and trying to knock her over.  Toward the end of the weekend, they were starting to play a little and I think given another day or two would have been chasing each other all over the house.  While the hubsters solved the weighty problems of the world (how does this label maker work??):

Lorette and I happily spun away.  I'm not sure if we look happy or a little insane:

I suppose it depends on who you ask.  John and Bill might have voted for the latter.  And, just for the record, chocolate martinis do not seem to have a detrimental effect on my spinning.  I have a few new bobbins spun up of a beautiful Romney from a local sheep named Rainbow.  It's such lovely fiber and it almost spins itself.  No pictures because I've been struggling with dark gloomy days – maybe next week.  I plan on having two bobbins spun up to take to the local spinning group for help with plying.  I think I'm going to splurge on a tensioned lazy kate.  My last two plying experiences were pretty miserable.

I do have my first finished FO of the year:

These are a generic top-down sock with a YO cable from Charlene Schurch's book.  The yarn is Araucania Ranco.  This is a lovely, lovely yarn – so smooth and squishy.  I decided to take some advice from the Yarn Harlot this year.  I have her page-a-day calendar and in it she suggested that rather than joining an expensive sock club, you make your own. Go through your sock stash and pick out 12 skeins of yarn (I KNOW we all have at least that much, or more!).  Pair it with 12 patterns you've been planning to knit and Voila!  Your own sock club.  Throw them in Ziploc bags and each month pull out a new one.  I now have 12 bags ready to go.  My plan is to close my eyes and pull out at random.  Next up will be Lacy Scallops socks using some Koigu PPM that's been in my stash since the Dark Ages.  That pattern has also been in my queue since then, so it's nice to finally pair them up.

I also finished the first clue in the Enchanted Wood Mystery Shawl.  WARNING:  Spoiler picture ahead:

Forgive the crappy picture – grey gloomy days are not providing much love for photographs and the flash washed it out.  So far this is proving to be fun.  So much so, that I am joining another Mystery Shawl KAL – this one the Evenstar Mystery Shawl KAL.  I figure since I'll be waiting for clues to come out, I can justify two shawls going at the same time.

Also in the mail this week – a box full o' yarn:

This will be the Knitpicks Norwegian Lusekofte sweater – for me!  My original intention was to do this for the Ravelympics – you know, the insanity where you commit to complete a project during the Olympics.  But the more I thought about it, the more I discarded that idea.  Retirement is all about lack of stress and the last thing I need to do is to stress myself out over knitting.  I may start on that tonight.

As I mentioned there are lots of grey, rainy, gloomy days here in the Pacific Northwest.  But I can't possibly complain.  I have an intact roof over my head, warmth, plenty of food and water and plenty of productive things to entertain me.  My heart is breaking for the people in Haiti.  If you haven't already, please donate to the organization of your choice.  Ours is the Red Cross, but Doctors Without Borders, World Vision and dozens of others are great ones as well.

 

Yesterday I went with a friend to a St.Distaff's Day spin-in.  There were probably about 150-200 spinners there and just about as many varieties of fiber.  It was complete sensory overload!  So much so, that although I took my camera, I didn't take  a single picture.  I was probably saved by the fact that most of the vendors were small and didn't take credit cards, so I had to stick to the cash I had on hand – probably a good idea in any situation.  But I did come home with some goodies:

Alpaca/silk and every bit as yummy as it looks.  This will definitely wait until my spinning skills improve a little.  I also bought a pretty little zebra wood wraps-per-inch measure:

 

I did get some very positive encouragement from fellow spinners who told me my first efforts were looking quite good.  Since coming home I plied my second skein.  This plying effort just about kicked my butt, with tangling and backspinning, but I learned a lot and by the last 1/4 of the skein was doing much, much better.  It is drying now and I'll post pictures later.

I also came home to some packages in the mail.  Ben & Abby gave me a gift certificate to Paradise Fibers. I was a little overwhelmed at all the choices on the website, but finally just dived in and made my choices.  They have terrific customer service.  I ordered on Thursday and the package arrived on Saturday, and that included a holiday in between!

 

The two fibers on the left are variegated Merino top, the pink is Louet Corriedale.  Thank you Ben & Abby!   I think I am all set for fiber for a good long time now and will probably save up my fiber money for the big spin-in that is here on Whidbey Island in April.  Well, except for some Romney that I may buy from my friend here who raises sheep.  How can you resist fiber from a sheep named Rainbow?

Lest you think knitting has totally taken a backseat, I have been knitting and blocking lace.  First off, the Creideamh Shawl is finished:

 

This is a big shawl – so big I can't get it all in the picture.  Stats:  Creideamh Shawl by Renee Leverington.  Yarn, Miss Babs Yearning in Sandstone, Knitpicks Harmony needles – size 4.

Also finished and blocked – Sue's Swallowtail Shawl:

 

Stats:  Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn Clarke, yarn – mystery lace yarn from my stash, needles Knitpicks Harmony, size 3.

And, a new pair of socks started with some beautiful teal Araucania Ranco:

 

And a Happy Anniversary to my parents who celebrated their 62nd (is that right Mom & Dad??) anniversary yesterday.  What a blessing it was to grow up with parents who showed me what a marriage should be.  I never saw them treat each other with anything but love, kindness and respect.  I'm sure they must have had their struggles like the rest of us, but after 62 years, theirs is still a love story.  Love you guys!!  Edited to add:  My Dad informs me it's 63 years!  I made the error of doing my math using 2009.  Yes, it is 2010 now – wow!

Breaking news – I have made yarn:

This is my first official skein of yarn.  The fiber was given to me by the owner of the shop where I bought my Traveler.  She referred to it as Icelandic wool and said it is from a sheep on Whidbey Island.  Local yarn, no less!  I am quite proud of it.  It's a little bumpy and thick and thin, but that's to be expected for my first try.  And not all of the bumps are totally due to my inexpertise.  The fiber actually had some slubs in it, so there was no getting around them.  They do tend to hide my little glitches, though.

This is my second go around and I think I am actually getting a little better:

Not sure what this will end up, but it seems to be at least a fingering weight single (possibly finer in sections).  I'm looking forward to a great time this Saturday when I go to my first spinning get together with my wheel.  My friend is picking me up for a St. Distaff's Day spin-in.  It should be lots of fun.

In other fibery news – I finished both the Nutkins and a Flower Basket scarf:

The Nutkins were given to my sister for Christmas and the scarf to my best friend.  I also finished Sue's Swallowtail Shawl, but it still needs blocking.  This now leaves me with only two projects on the needle, the Reversing Tide scarf and the Creideamh Shawl.  The shawl is getting very close to being done.  See?

Yes, lace knitting is indeed a leap of faith.  Without any way to spread out my work and check it I'm assuming that since each successive row lines up with the one before, I'm good.  It's always worked before and I am confident it will this time.  If all goes well, I hope to complete this before I start the mystery KAL on January 10th.  Retirement has indeed made me more productive!!

This was the first Christmas with the whole family nearby and it was as wonderful as we hoped.  The girls were very excited, but also very grateful for the gifts they received.  One of their favorites was a dress-up box that my sister (with a little help from me) put together.  Two lovely ladies ready to go shopping:

Robes sewn for them by Nana.  And I have to share this picture that hubby took at my retirement party:

Could that not be a Christmas card?  However, don't let the angelic expression fool you:

 

After Christmas I went home with my sister for my birthday treat.  We spent a fun day ice skating, dining out, shopping and a movie (Avatar – a wonderful, magical treat).   I haven't been ice skating in probably 30 years and I managed not to break my 60-year-old neck!

Hope that everyone has a safe and enjoyable New Year.  We're meeting the kids for a daytime party at the Children's Museum, early dinner and home by 8:00.  We always have been real party animals.  Happy New Year everyone!

I have the first week of retirement under my belt and am ready to determine it all good!  I do have to admit to a little disorientation.  Hubby and I kept thinking every day was the weekend!  We would get ready to do things that we normally do on Friday or Saturday and then realize that it was the middle of the week!  If that's the only downside, I think we can get used to it fairly quickly.

Where to begin?  How about at the beginning?  Saturday was a big retirement/birthday party for me at the original doc's house.  I was so humbled by the amazing outpouring of love and appreciation.  There were about 20 people there, including former employees and my favorite former doc, who attended via webcam.  Ben & Abby and the girls and my sister were there and it was an absolutely wonderful night.  Some of the gifts were even fibery – here's Isobel trying to cop my wool:

And two dozen beautiful pink roses – one for each year:

The week started off with lots and lots to do.  I think everyone is right – whenever did I find time to work??  There was Christmas sewing to do (pictures after Christmas) and even a little leisure time visiting some knitting projects.  I started Sue's Swallowtail shawl and made decent progress – I've finished the body and started the first Lily of the Valley border:

 

Notice the little dog nose.  Maggie thinks she needs to be included in everything.  I decided I needed to get this done before starting the Enchanted Wood Mystery Shawl in January.  And, spurred on by Kris, I started a pair of Nutkin socks.

This is a fun little pattern.  I'm not ready to do multiple pairs, but am enjoying the process.  Work also continues on a Reversing Tide scarf. 

This is a great, almost mindless pattern – very easy to memorize.  The scarf is reversible, but has a different pattern on each side.  The yarn is a lovely handpainted merino that came in one of my Embrace the Lace shipments.  It was intended for knee socks, so the yardage is substantial.  I just couldn't see this as knee socks, but it's making a beautiful scarf (maybe two!).

This weekend was busy with granddaughterly doings.  We met the family at Warm Beach Camp for the Lights of Christmas.  The whole camp is decorated with millions of Christmas lights.  And, of course, the obligatory visit with Santa:

The girls really enjoyed it and we took them home with us for a sleep over, giving Ben & Abby a few childless hours.  The next day we took them home, dumped them off and then went on a Christmas dinner cruise, given to us by the new doc and his wife as a retirement present.

By the end of the day we were exhausted!  Definitely a surplus of excitement, if there can be such a thing.  Today will be a relaxing day.  After church I will be playing with my new toy.  Oh, didn't I mention??  Friday I took delivery of this – some assembly required:

After two hours, this is the result:

It's an Ashford Traveller.  After much research I felt that I couldn't go wrong with an Ashford.  On Thursday I attended a local spinning group and was welcomed with open arms.  I think the ladies were really excited at getting their hands on a newbie!  They've set me up with workshops, spin-ins and offered to give me all the guidance and lessons I could possibly use.  Oh my – when did I have time to work???

I hope all of you have a very blessed Christmas.  This year, especially, we are counting our blessings.  We are so grateful for the good health and prosperity that God has given us, along with the blessings of a family that is near and time to enjoy them.  But most of all we are grateful for the gift of God's Son sent to us.  May His peace be with all of you.  Merry Christmas!

It's hard to believe that the day has finally come!  This whole week has been a little surreal and yesterday was no exception.  I have to admit the last day was wonderful.  In some respects it was business as usual.  There were still patients to be greeted, insurance problems to be solved and personnel issues to be discussed.  But throughout it all was the constant thought that this time would be the last time that I did each of these tasks.  The day started off very nicely with a desk piled high with cards and a dozen red roses from the original doc and his wife:

The new doc took us all out to lunch to celebrate my and the original doc's birthday (we share the same birthday, but I'm a year older than he is).  I thought I was going to be able to hold it all together until about the last hour.  The original doc's wife came by to bid me farewell and tell me how much my being office manager has meant to them.  Her husband gave me a touching card telling me that I am one of the most competent people he's ever known (high praise in my book!).  Then the doc who just sold the practice called from California.  He told me how much my being his office manager had meant to him.  He said that for 10 years I had kept him organized at work and was truly his "work wife" (our little joke).  He said that he and his real wife were so grateful for how easy I had made his life. 

The interesting thing is that through all of this the new doc remained strangely silent.  Although he took us out to lunch, he does that for every employee on his or her birthday.  He never said a personal word of congratulations or thanks to me.  But this was perfectly ok as it confirmed that I was making the right choice – as if there was any doubt!

Last night I had a defining moment.  I usually wake up in the middle of the night and have a hard time falling back to sleep because my mind is racing with worries and concerns about work.  Last night I woke up and in that half asleep/half awake state I visualized a bunch of folders.  The largest one was labeled "Work".  I opened it up and it was empty!  So I rolled over and went back to sleep.

My random number generator (hubby) picked a number and the winner of the Swallowtail Shawl is Sue – Cody Country Knitter.  Congratulations Sue!  I have already been in contact with her and she wants a white shawl.  Perfect in my opinion.

And now let the party begin:

It's really getting close now – only 4 more working days until retirement.  There were a few days this past week when I wasn't so sure it was going to happen, though.  We promoted from within to fill my position and then hired a new person.  This past week she was admitted to the hospital with suspected appendicitis.  She is still in the hospital, though, while the doctors try to figure out exactly what is going on.  As she said, "They've ruled a lot of things out, but nothing in."  This created a real dilemma for me.  Our front office is basically a two-woman operation.  Could I really go off and leave the other one in the lurch?  Thankfully, my problem solving skills kicked into overdrive.  We are entering a very slow season and the schedule is pretty empty, necessitating having dental assistants take unscheduled time off.  This next week I will pull one of the assistants up front and do a crash course on front office skills.  Everyone is happy.  The dental assistant is happy because she doesn't have to take time off, the other lady is happy at not having to run the office by herself, the new girl is happy because her job is being held for her and I'm downright giddy that I get to retire in 4 (count 'em!) days!!

A really bright spot in the past week has been some intense fiber enhancement.  The Friday after Thanksgiving saw the arrival of two packages.  The first contained my new Embrace the Lace shipment.  It has the softest camel colored wool along with a cute pattern for a matching cowl and fingerless mitts.  

I had momentary thoughts of diving in and knitting these for a Christmas present, but therein lies madness.  I squelched that thought pretty quickly and will address that pattern when I have more time.

The other package was a beginning spindling kit.  Hmmm – was it just a few months ago that I said I wasn't going to take up spinning?  As Lorette says, "Never say never!"  I seem to have become slightly obsessed with the idea of spinning.  I started with the spindle and have managed to spin some incredibly crappy yarn:

I will still keep playing around with it, but this has convinced me that I want a wheel.  I've spent hours poring over the internet, reading Ravelry groups and different articles.  Double drive vs. single drive, single treadle, double treadle, finished or unfinished, Lendrum, Kromski or Ashford?  It seems the more I read, the more confused I get.  However, our LYS sells Ashfords and I stopped in yesterday to talk to the owner.  I have an appointment today to go and try out a Traveller.  I think I'm leaning in that direction simply because she's local and will give free lessons.  She's also available for advice and coaching.  Living in a slightly remote area as we do I'm thinking that is a clear advantage.  In addition, I've been invited to join a spinning group that meets here locally every week, even if I do not yet have a wheel.  Regardless, the actually purchase will have to wait until after Christmas.  I don't need any distractions between now and then.  However, I have already begun buying fiber!  This lovely roving from Corgi Hills Farm just arrived on my doorstop:

This had to be the best customer service ever.  I ordered it and seriously – within 10 minutes I had notice that it had shipped.  Was the postman waiting on her doorstep?  I had it within just a few days and she included some beautiful samples as well.   This is so beautiful that it is going to have to wait until I hone my skills a little bit.

Another package arrived a few days after the first two.  I was a little puzzled because I didn't remember ordering anything else.  Turns out this is a Mystery Shawl group I had joined several months ago.  The mystery begins in January and they were holding off on shipping the yarn until November.  I had completely forgotten about it!  This is the Enchanted Wood Lace Shawl Knitalong.  The yarn comes in gradations and you use them in order (forward or backward doesn't matter as long as you use them in order).  I've never done a mystery shawl and I think it will be great fun.

Oh, and knitting peace?  I think I may have somewhat achieved it.  I am down to three projects, as long as you don't count the Dale sweater that has been hibernating for several years.  I have one lace shawl, a pair of socks and a scarf:

The scarf is for the Red Scarf project.  Not sure if I'll finish it before the deadline of December 15th, but if not I'll save it for next year.  Of course, knitting on it is such a pleasure since hubby gave me my Christmas present early:

 

Dog added for scale. It's a Varilux light and I love it!  No eye strain and it has a perfect little shelf for all of my knitting doo-dads. 

Well, off for a busy day.  I seem to have done something to my serger so I have to run it down to the south of the island for repair.  It will be a nice road trip for me and Maggie. 

Late breaking news – I came home from our road trip to find this in my mailbox:

I'm pretty sure I have The Knitting Doctor to thank.  Thanks Lorette!

We have so many things for which to be thankful this year.  Yesterday we went down to Snohomish and spent our first Thanksgiving ever with our biggest blessings:

Abby cooked her first Thanksgiving dinner and it was wonderful.  It was probably one of the most relaxed Thanksgivings I've had in a long time.  I didn't have to do a thing!

I was also able to deliver some knitted goodies to her.  Her cable and rib jacket was all finished, including the zipper, and I'm happy to report it fit her perfectly:

I also delivered her Coriolis birthday socks:

They turned out just a little large for her, especially in the heel, but I think they'll suffice for keeping her toes toasty on these damp, cool Pacific Northwest winter mornings.

I especially want to give thanks this year for my mother-in-law, Ruth.

Despite some very difficult odds, she managed to raise a wonderful, caring son (along with 4 other wonderful children).  She's been a kind, compassionate mother-in-law to me for over 37 years.  On Thanksgiving day she suffered  a heart attack.  At first they didn't think the damage was too great, but further tests showed significant damage to her heart.  She has been declining rapidly over the past few months and her doctor has recommended that she begin receiving hospice care.  She's still in the hospital, but the hope is that in the next few days she'll be able to return to the adult care home that she's been living in for the past few years.  They are set up to care for her there and it will be a familiar place to her.  We are all praying for peace and a comfortable, pain-free situation for her as she enters into the last days of her life.

One of the things I’ve been coming to terms with the past
couple of weeks is letting go.  I
suppose everyone who has worked at a job for as long as I have (over 24 years)
feels a certain sense of ownership. 
In my case it was strengthened by the fact that the original doc and I
literally opened the doors together. 
I was with him the first day he started seeing patients in this
office.  I’ve seen the practice
grow from only having about 20 patients to having over 3,000.  During that time I’ve been given a great
deal of say in how the practice has been developed and have had a great deal of
responsibility.  When the practice
sold 10 years ago, the new doc was even more accepting of my involvement and
made me feel like a real partner.

 

With the new ownership all of that has changed.  It’s probably fortuitous that my plans
for retirement have coincided with the change.  I’m not sure I could have stayed on otherwise.  But I’m also having to grasp the fact
that the practice I’m leaving is not the practice I’ve spent 24 years building
up.  That’s really hard, but I
think I’m coming to accept it.  I
have to, because I can’t change it. 
But accepting it is making my last few days a little easier.  I’m teaching as much as I can, but what
the new ownership has the employees do with that is their decision and one that
the practice will have to live with. 
I can leave with my head held high knowing that I did all I could to
make the practice successful.

 

I’m now looking forward to a whole new chapter of my
life.  My emphasis will be totally
altered – from business/medical oriented to an opportunity to indulge in
artistic endeavors.  I’m looking
forward to concentrating more on my quilting.  I have a competition quilt that I would like to finish in
2010, along with an embroidered quilt for Abby.  Quilts for the girls’ bedroom are on the agenda and I would
like to be more proactive in either altering knitting patterns to suit me more
or designing my own.  I hope to
have more time to exercise and do yoga. 
Maggie and I have started agility training and I look forward to the day
when we can compete.  I’d like to
take up some new interests – improve my photography skills and learn to use my
camera and maybe even eventually dabble in spinning.  And of course, continue on with my scrapbooking.  Whew!  I’m exhausted just thinking about all of the possibilities.

 

A lot of people have asked how we can afford to retire so
“young”.  I’ll get on my soapbox a
little, but bear with me and there will be a payoff at the end – I
promise.  A lot of that has to do
with my husband’s defined pension plan. 
He was offered a cash bonus for early retirement at age 55 and jumped at
it.  But we wouldn’t have even been
able to afford that if we hadn’t run across Mary Hunt many years ago.  Mary has a website called
debtproofliving.com.  I highly
recommend it.  Her philosophy is to
give away 10% of your income, save 10% and live on 80%.  She calls this “living below your
means”.  The central tool in all of
this is to carry no debt.   We
began living that lifestyle.  We
used our credit card so we could earn air miles, but we paid it off every
month.  We made it a goal to pay
off all of our debts except our mortgage (and we’re working on paying that off
early) and not to go into new debt for anything.  If we couldn’t afford it, we did without or waited until we
had the money. 

 

You might think this would cramp our lifestyle, but in
contrast we felt very liberated. 
When you jump off the great American consumer machine you feel such
freedom.  You no longer have to
“have it all”.  I like Mary’s
quote, “Because I live frugally doesn’t mean I don’t spend
money. It means I spend money thoughtfully and with a sense of discipline and
purpose. As my life is blessed and my income increases, 80 percent increases as
well.”  We’ve learned to manage our
money instead of letting it manage us.   When the recession came and we watched our investments
tumble, we felt a little concern, but not panic.  In fact, we’ve decided to live off hubby’s retirement and
leave mine to sit for a few years and gain back some of the losses.  One of the biggest impacts on our life
with being debt free is that we have choices.   We choose where our money will go, knowing that it is
not a bottomless well!  When your
money is going to pay high interest rates on credit cards, you can’t
choose.  The bank or credit card
company chooses for you.  And as of
now, they can choose to jack up your interest rate at any time and for any
reason!  That is bondage!!

 

Ok, so I told you that if you managed to
wade through my lecture (and a post with no knitting content and no pictures),
there would be a payoff at the end. 
To celebrate my retirement, I’ve decided to do my very first giveaway!  Leave me a comment and you’ll go into a
drawing for a Swallowtail Shawl, made in your choice of color.  All comments made from now until my
retirement date of December 10^th are eligible (except in all
fairness I probably have to disqualify any family members – but they can
contact me and I’ll do a shawl for them anyway!).   Each comment will be numbered and I will use a random
number generator to choose.  Just
be forewarned that the knitting will have to wait until January.  I plan on spending the first three
weeks of my retirement relaxing and playing with my granddaughters!