It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a weekly list, but I think this week is the point at which I begin again.

The last few months have been quite nutty, as I’ve mentioned. For a couple of years now, we’ve had a coworker that wasn’t a particularly good fit. After time, this coworker came to realize this and decided to give notice, which was a welcome event overall. During this time we also had been looking for an additional team member, as our job duties have grown beyond our ability to keep up. So, rather than hiring one new person, I had to hire two. And get them trained, during a time of transition, and one that is already quite busy. The first new coworker began at the beginning of the month and is doing very well. She’s able to handle much of her workload already, and is quick to ask for more training when she needs it.

The second new coworker begins sometime in November so I haven’t begun that training yet. However, she already works here, she’ll just be taking a position with our team so her training will be lighter on me than someone completely new. I keep hearing from her frequently, and she seems as eager as I am to get settled into her new position. I keep saying I am really looking forward to us all settling in to our new reality. I think my staff feels that way as well, and I’ve seen a huge difference in inspiration, ideas, and ownership of projects. While I know we’ll still have very busy times, I am hoping that they’ll be the good kind of busy mostly, rather than the frenetic kind that upsets everyone.

I do believe this will turn over a new leaf in general for me. The past two years have left me often feeling like there’s something wrong with ME specifically, like why can’t I get it together? Why can’t I manage people effectively? Why have I lost interest in almost everything I loved to do? Why have I no desire whatsoever to be social and develop/maintain my relationships? Why do I fall into bed after work for a nap and then don’t want anyone talking to me the rest of the evening most days?

Then I look back on the past couple years and realize that all of these questions began at the same time my work situation changed, and likely once we get to a new normal I’ll be able to work on all those things that have been missing, bit by bit, in my personal life. So, I guess you could say I am looking forward to my new normal at home too. I bet Mr. Ink and Miss Butterfly are too! Though they keep saying that they will miss all the funny but frustrating for me work stories I bring home.

Well, that got a bit longer than I expected. Suffice it to say, the last couple years sometimes I’ve felt like I am hanging on by a thread, if I am being completely honest. Everything has been a huge juggling act, and a very frustrating and difficult one at that. Add a generous dose of “What should I DO!?!?!” inertia about my job, and the desire to stick with something I used to love even though it is NOT what I want it to be currently. I am hoping it will be again, in fact last week a project landed on my plate that is EXACTLY the type of work I want to be doing. So, I really am hoping for the best moving forward. Or at least, something a whole lot better than it has been.

Now shall we look at some yarn?

There’s some handspun. It’s 337 yards of 3 ply. I plied it in a gradient, so it goes from green to tan. It’s sloppy. So sloppy. Because I was working on it while adjusting to, and adjusting my new wheel. The fun part about this? It’s fiber sent from Introverted Knitter, plied on the wheel I got from Introverted Knitter, and in there, somewhere, is a small bit that was spun by her as well. So it’s kind of special yarn, even though it’s pretty sloppy on my part.

I made a few more adjustments to the wheel and began spinning another batt.

It had gorgeous colors, and with the wheel adjustments, the spinning was going very well. I am about halfway through this batt now, the first bobbin complete.

I do have a few more things to try with this wheel, but some of them will need Mr. Ink’s help I think, and I didn’t want to bother him about it yesterday. Everyone needs time to putter around with their favorite hobby before going back to work on a Monday.

Mr. Ink arrived home a little before noon yesterday, and I was very happy to see him. Miss Butterfly arrived home around 7 p.m.  I was pretty happy to see her as well. She retains a very nasty cough after last week’s illness, but other than that she seems well. Her appetite is back, she’s energetic, and she’s trying to get out of doing homework. So basically, back to normal.

We didn’t do much yesterday, Mr. Ink was eager to putter around his gardens since we’d had a hard freeze while he was away. Also, while he was away he purchased an evergreen tree for his sister in law, and planted it for her for her birthday. He said “I think I was more excited about it than she was, but I think she’ll enjoy it for many years to come.” And I suspect he’s correct, knowing her, it’s one of those acts of love she’ll talk about every time she looks at that tree.

Now on to my list for the week:

• Disconnect sink drain and clean out hair in the drain so it drains nicely again.
• Deep cleaning of bathroom. (It got a pretty good cleaning this weekend, but because of the sink drain issue, I didn’t complete the job.)
• Clean microwave. What an uninspiring job that is, right?
• Ride bikes this weekend.
• Finish body of current in progress sweater.
• Finish the singles on at least one of the 3 current spins.
• Go look for either a rug or a plant stand for the living room this weekend.