To Have or Have Not...

This subject has been a hot topic for me for as long as I can remember. I even recall an impromptu speech during my senior year speech class on the subject. Hair. My hair in particular.

I have childhood memories of dreading the sight of the brush and crying as my mom would try to drag the bristles through this wild mass of curls. Tight curls. No More Tears became my friend at a young age and made the task a bit more manageable. My hair was such a challenge for my parents, while my dad claims to not remember, one day he sat me on the butcher block in our kitchen and cut it. Cut. It. Off. Lucky for me I have my 1st grade photos to remind him where a white bow was placed on my head so not to be mistaken for a boy.

In the first grade, I became friendly with a black girl in my class – and her family introduced me to the perm. My mom would purchase the salon sized relaxer and blow dryers for the trade of them managing my hair. I remember stations being set in her grandmother’s kitchen. First station: relaxer; Second station: the comb through; Third station: the fan if the relaxer started to sting and had not been on your head an adequate amount of time; Fourth station: rinse and wash; Fifth station: blow dry and flat iron. We continued this process for many years… In the Seventh grade my god-mother, who owned a flower shop in a local shopping center, would trade flowers for my hair appointments. This situation carried me through to college where I became responsible for my hair appointment costs to today.

To me, the subject of black ladies and their hair is funny. I have been relaxing my hair for 20 years – part habit, part afraid to see what it looks like natural. Would I feel as pretty with shorter, curly hair? I always had pretty hair – usually long – and even when acne or feeling too pudgy would get me down, I could spend a few hours in a beauty shop and walk out feeling prettier than I had when I entered.

Laziness paired with curiosity paired with impatience led me to the idea that I should grow out my natural hair. It has been 20 years so I do not feel I have ever had a proper introduction to the natural hair, nor any knowledge of whether or not it is manageable, etc. If you have ever attempted to grow out hair color or a hair perm, you can feel my pain!

After almost one year with no relaxer I said a prayer, confirmed with 12 people that I would be okay if I cut my hair, and made an appointment with Amber Lynn. (This is where I should insert a photo… Maybe later :-) )

I’m actually happy with it – and think it’s kind of fun. I am now proudly a Have Not and I am really glad that I did it!

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood!

This week has been a GREAT week for me! Three really positive things happened… I can share ONE as of this moment.

Officially I started RoseKnits November 2008. This was also the month of our wedding, because I’m smart and overly ambitious like that. Doesn’t every girl dream of starting an Etsy shop the same month that she is making the commitment of a lifetime, why not? RoseKnits was my answer to having lots of money to buy yarn! At some point, I started making more money than I could justify spending on yarn, consequently calling it a ‘business.’ As we approach our two year mark, I’ve happily produced and pedaled over 1000 bags! Last year I was acknowledged both the Vogue and Knit Simple holiday editions: Exciting! Well, yesterday, knitwear designer extraordinaire, Cecily Glowik MacDonald ordered a bag from ME! Tonight I plan to prepare her extra special package to slip in the mail on Saturday! If you have yet to scope out her designs, you should! She’s AWESOME! So awesome, she recently co-authored New England Knits with Melissa LaBarre.

I currently have Goodale on the needles, a design by Ms. Cecily, and I have many, many more in my queue! So, friends, that pretty much made my week! Tomorrow John and I are headed to Wichita to see DMB in concert – I’m sure Stefan has been missing me ;-)

Next week I hope to be able to share another piece of the happy pie and will at minimum show you what I’ve been knittin’ on and some new things in store for RoseKnits!

Have a fantastic weekend! I know I will!

When the Hustle and Bustle Doesn't End, Then What?

I often find myself saying... "When I'm not so busy..." and "After this happens..." and various other word combinations that express the same meaning of, "when life slows down..." but I'm still secretly still waiting for life to slow down and last time I checked it hasn't. And it doesn't seem it is going to any time soon. I yearn for the Saturday where I don't have to get dressed, get in the car to go somewhere, and where showering is optional.

This is good and bad - just depends on how you look at it, I suppose. When John and I were busy, busy, busy keeping the house cleaning, doing showings, etc. I thought once it sold it'd be different. Well, folks, it sold and we have been packin' all weekend. I wake up in the middle of the night and start day dreaming about the new house and all of the painting, etc. and realize that certainly by the end of the year, it's not going to slow. We're headed back to NYC early November and we'll be spending a week in Detroit over the Christmas holiday. What happens when life doesn't slow down? How do we keep up? And why on earth do we make it so busy? Boredom, today, is not allowed. There seems to be no value in being bored.

Although I threaten to never work again, the idea of not having a 'work' to go to is so scary to me, I've got at least ten things lined up 'just in case...' So, maybe you can help me...

What are your tricks and tactics to simply take time to smell the roses?

A New Week and a New Bag!

I have been kind of MIA since we returned from NY. Two days after our return I had to have a quickie medical procedure - that didn't work - so I get to do that one again, UGH! I started working at Loops and I've been trying to keep RoseKnits updated... You get the picture, right? We're busy as heck! We also had scheduled to play in my company golf outing this past Saturday (100 degrees outside with 22 MPH winds) and had an open house yesterday (which meant lots of cleaning! I often ask myself if life ever truly slows down - and I'm beginning to think that it does not.

I have, admittedly, been on some kind of fabric frenzy and ordered A LOT of fabric last week... Somewhere in the neighborhood of 70 yards or so... And I'm still sittin on 20 yards that I've not cut into. Surely this will get me through the month - or year rather!

I did manage to add a new bag to the shop yesterday, we are calling this one the Bag Buddy! The bag measures 10" wide by 13" tall and it's perfect to toss in a project and toss in your larger bag! And it is priced right at $12!







Tonight and tomorrow night I'll be working at Loops and trying to figure out where the gym fits into all of this business! I am hoping to head over after I finish my shift (around 8 PM). This is out of the norm for me, but some times we have to try things out to see if they will work! Hope you all have a fantastic Monday!

Life Update!

It has been almost one month exactly since I last blogged so I figure I better get with the program! Someone asked me a few weeks ago why I had not updated the blog - and I believe my response was, "I've just not had many positive things to say..." This is not wholly true, so I am going to try and do better!

We are still here - hanging out in Tulsa, OK. Our house officially went back on the market one week ago today. We are excited and hopeful that it will sell quickly because honestly, I'm just not great at keeping all of the yarn and sewing stuff put away! I like to spread out and see what I'm working with - one of the reasons for the move - I need my own room.

Additional to that tidbit of news we have also been doing some planning and decision making. I hate making decisions and I think I say this every time I am faced with any kind of 'real' decision... You know, something outside of what are we having for dinner? My job situation is still a bit shaky so we are planning for sudo unemployment. I am actually going to try working at the yarn shop part-time and sewing! RoseKnits has been doing well and doing fun hobby stuff seems, well, fun right now. This will allow me to stay home and raise our kiddos whenever they get here - and I am dreaming of thumbing through cookbooks and preparing excellent dishes for John!

I am quite petrified of these 'decisions' (and I know I can change my mind and always look for something corporate, right?)... What if I am a horrible SAHM? What if I am unemployable once my kids return to school? And the biggest concern, what if I hate sticking to a budget!!? I purchased my first book yesterday on staying home and how to return to work afterwards... ha! ha! And John says I'm not a planner...

This weekend I will be working at my first official fiber / craft show, Fiber Christmas! Tomorrow is my last sewing day - I should have around about 100 bags!!! Yay! And a few other goodies to take! I am uber excited!!! And will surely take pics and let you guys know how that one turns out!!

Until next time... Which will hopefully be tomorrow!

We're Still Alive, I Promise!

It has been awhile since I have taken a seat to talk to you from blogger land... Here goes nothin'!

I suspect that you all thought that John and I killed each other in an effort to prepare our house for sale. We did not. The things that have been transpiring in the Saltsman household are much, much more interesting than death!

I only wish I could tell you the details of what has been going on; but I cannot. Maybe a little later, we'll have to see how it all unfolds!

An update, nonetheless. We listed our house last Wednesday only to remove it from the market Thursday evening. I am excited to report that TWO people viewed our house on Thursday and a few others drove by this past Saturday searching for a 'For Sale' sign only to find nothing. We've dug St. Joseph out of the front yard and placed him in the kitchen ~ in hopes of using him in the future. Yesterday, my dad took us to breakfast and brought his truck so we could make two grueling trips from mini-storage to our house. Our garage looks much like it used to, only cluttered with boxes of stuff rather than the stuff. I plan to bring those back into the house one at a time in hopes of getting rid of some of the stuff.

The yarn, well, it never made it to the garage... It went right back to the room that it was packed from, but did manage to find some new shelves that hubby installed Saturday night. That room has the appearance of being a bit more tidy and organized.

In the near future John and I are looking at some changes in both of our lives, and YES, we will be making the changes together vs. apart just in case some of you were thinking the worse!

So we are alive, well, and plugging onward! Hope to have more updates for you soon!

Writing A Short Story

We all have a story and what makes the story significant is the way in which it is told :-) Lately I have been working on a short story or a chapter, if you will, that will hopefully someday have a place in my novel (<-- better known as my life).

I have been selling bags on Etsy since January... Wow! I now have 32 sales which is pretty exciting... Last week I landed my first 'official' store order. My LYS has ordered 12 knitting / craft totes and 12 fortune cookies!!!! I cannot explain the excitement! And I think John is finally starting to take me seriously --- I have a lot of ideas, bless his heart. At this point I do not have any real intentions on this bag thing; it is more or less just done for the love of beautiful fabric, and the fact that a girl can only have so many bags... It also provides some additional funds for yarn.

I will be posting regular updates on RoseKnits (roseknits.etsy.com)... Because it is fun and it is all me!

Anyways, what are you guys writing about lately? What is going on in your lives?

Well Laid Plans

When I think of my life in relation to what I always thought it would or should or could be, I always think I'm behind the curve. The curve is relative though, right? In college I had a well mapped out plan. Graduate at 21 (check), Married at 22 (uncheck), Finished producing offspring at 26 (uncheck). And that was the loftiness and full extent of my goals and plans. I can't believe I'm writing this because as I do I now realize that I did not have a clue.

I am 8 weeks away from my 27th birthday - and if I compare to my previous expectation, I have failed in every sense. Well, I did graduate college :-) After completing my bachelors degree - and my engagement to my college boyfriend went kapoot (thank goodness) I needed a new map. After all, when the marriage portion and everything thereafter --- which wasn't much --- failed, I needed a back up plan. Instead of getting married I got a masters and a job. In place of the babies that I most certainly was not having, I got a dog. And instead of working on my 2nd child, which was difficult because none of the preceeding existed, I bought a house. And instead of turning off my human incubator at age 26, I am able to comfortably entertain the idea of really turning it on. I am only one month into my marriage - instead of 6 years OR divorced for 3 (the latter would have definitely been an idea entertained).

It is funny how plans, as we all know, can turn out so incredibly different and so much better than we ever intended. I think all of my so called failures can today be merited as successes.

So, in 2009, I resolve to live a day at a time and do what is in front of me. Oh, and to do it well :-)

Consistency, That's What I'm Going For!

I've not blogged in awhile, nor have I really felt like it. We had the wedding, the honeymoon, and then we returned home - and while my home life is great, work life, not so much. We're right squat in the middle of layoffs and while I don't ever have a problem terminating employment for a deserving party, when the employees are essentially undeserving, well, it's a different story.

Don't worry... I know it started off as such but this blog will discuss nothing of the economy - no more about layoffs - no more about work, really. We're going to discuss my feeling fat.

While on our honeymoon, with much ease I seem to have gained 10 pounds. You know, it usually takes people weeks to gain this amount of weight, but not I. I did it in 6 days. Should I write the Guinness Book of World Records for this blessed event?

I think it started with eating in our hotel room - after the reception - where I swear, I ate nothing. I ordered a fish dish. I ate fish on our honeymoon, hell, how is it I partake in sushi and John has something fat and greasy and I gain the weight that theoretically should have landed on him, not me!

When we arrived in Hawaii I attributed my swelling fingers to the difference in climate and even called my god-mother to confirm. I didn't eat anymore than usual - and I'm sure that caramel macchiato I had everyday had no effect - after all, it was non-fat milk. Now that I'm home, it's just not improving.

I called my mom for some comforting and she said, "well, you were probably starving yourself up until the wedding so when you started eating normal again...." blah, blah, blah, I didn't starve myself until the wedding so that school of thought isn't working. I mentioned my weight gain to my husband and instead of his usual response of, "No your not" he said, "I've gained weight, too" so this should tell me it is noticeable!

And happy fat? Well whoever coined that term wasn't any bigger than a toothpick because there is nothing happy about fat. Not to mention the fat is upsetting all of my clothes :-)

Back to the gym in the a.m. where I can hopefully head off this explosion before it fully happens!

Professional Student

Ever since I graduated with my master’s degree I have been contemplating returning to school, yet again, to pursue a doctoral degree. This urge comes and goes, and sometimes it is a bit stronger than others.

My Uncle, who fuels this urge by calling me to report the latest stats of hiring and placemat at his university, has not called for awhile. The last time he did call (and I think I was having a bad day at work) I rushed out to purchase GRE study books because I had decided at the very least I would take the test, make application, and let the chips fall where they may.

My friend, Andra, said the words again the other day – doctoral degree… Even though she said the words for her own benefit, I quickly latched on! I thought, maybe I will find a renewed enthusiasm for education of the book kind after finishing up with the wedding. After all, I will need something else to do to fill up my free time!

Who knows, maybe this time the GRE book has a chance of finding its way off of the shelf and into my tote bag to be lugged around side-by-side with the continuous knitting projects. I may take the test, make application, be accepted and become a student, again.

Even if I ultimately decide not to go, something inside tells me that I should make application. I would not want to spend life wondering whether or not I would have been accepted…

And the Lights Come On... Finally!

I have worked with my current employer for almost two years now. It’s funny because when I took this job my boss told me, “Now keep in mind, the offices are scheduled to be remodeled soon…” Well, I bet you guys can guess when the offices were remodeled?! How about, they weren’t. It was supposedly on the plans for 2010, but given our current business state, I will not hold my breath for fear that I would pass out or suffocate!

My office is situated next door to the nurse’s office. Guess what we share besides a common wall and door linking our offices? A light switch! Our nurse has very private information in his office – supposedly – therefore no one can have access but him. This leaves me without thermostat control or a light switch! If he does not come to work, to gain access to either of these novelties, I have to call the guard to come unlock his door. I cannot tell you how many times I have come to work early (well, I probably could tell you because it isn’t that often) BUT to come into a dark office and have to call a guard and wait until you can have light – it’s a pain in the arse and can completely put a damper on your day – especially when you are in a hurry! I mean have you ever been sitting in your office – mid optimum productivity – and have your light turned off~! I have, every time someone gets a piece of dust in their eye and the nurse has to take a looksee. And then when you tell people that your light is connected to the nurse’s switch and they all feel the need to ‘test’ it. Like my bitching isn’t enough to know this is a fact. The friggin’ lights are connected.

My compromise. Climate control – I can do without. I just have a space heater that I usually run twelve months of the year. I have been begging and pleading for months with our maintenance supervisors to please, please, please install a light switch in my office. Isn’t this something that we should be entitled to – dare I say – to be productive employees? So today, my begging and pleading has paid off. I’m having a light switch installed.

So as I sit in my dark office while the maintenance men do their duties, I’m pleased to know that persistence does pay off and I am spending my last few hours in dark state that I am unable to control. In a few hours, folks, I will have light! That I can turn on and off at my own leisure.

Presidential Elections and Marriage

John and I probably fall in the majority as we sit in front of our television and anxiously await the outcome of the presidential election. We woke early this morning so that we could make it to the polls early enough so not to disturb our busy work schedules... I guess this is what married life is? We're not married yet, but we have been living together for a year and a half.

As our wedding day nears (25 days to go), I don't think the reality of what is going to happen has really settled in. I know that we are getting married, and aside from John being unwilling to help with thank you's, he really is a wonderful man! I feel fortunate that he's going to be my husband and that I get to spend the rest of my life with him, I guess it just seems further away than a mere 25 days.

It probably will not fully hit me until I am walking down the aisle minutes away from accepting a sacrament - with someone else. Scary! My reality probably isn't helped by the fact that I refer to our 'honeymoon' as a 'vacation' and John as my 'boyfriend.' Ah, well! All minor details...