Answers to the Name "Lucky"

Thus Begins my Tale of Woe:

My computer broke.  And "broke" here means that I had to reinstall the operating system, and either relocate/reinstall everything in the whole digital world that matters to me, or learn to live without it.  3 day Odyssey.  Lotsa missing e-mail.

I have a cold.  The hamburger-throat, soaring fever, streaming face kind.  Makes me DELIGHTFUL company, as observed by my family, who go back and forth between taking pity on me and avoiding all contact in fear of infection.  Typhoid Mary, Table for One.

My editor would like me to hurry up, already, with my review of the page proofs for my new book. This is a grueling process by which I look AGAIN at everything I said, and everything I made, and everything there are pictures of.  And there are more than 300 pictures.  I hate to seem ungrateful, but I'm kinda tired of this book now.

A certain Knitting Superstar, whom for now we'll just call Ms. Crazy Pants, would like me to participate in a train wreck freak show beauty pageant showcase of knitting teachers where, let's just say we'll be impressing people, but not with our knitting. No pressure.

I made a knitalong.  My first one.  And I worked super-hard on it, leaving nothing to chance.  I strong-armed my friends the yarnmakers to get involved.  I got hundreds of trusting souls to sign up for it, and to buy a pattern they couldn't even see.  I hired the best technical editor in the whole wide world to make sure the pattern was perfect - after all, can you imagine what would happen if all those knitters got mad at me for some stupid mistake?  They are KNITTERS, after all.  They have access to many sharp, pointy sticks.  They all trusted me to do a good job.  And then the Gods of Arithmetic kicked me. Hard.  In the teeth.  It seems that I caused, through my uncanny ability to get the !*@(^!(?  numbers wrong, All of the Yarn kits to be short of yardage.  And not a little bit short.  Short by about HALF, as far as I can tell.  Of the many and varied Dumbass Mistakes I've made, this one is more embarrassing than most.  The knitters are being really nice (mostly), but until I can make it right (which requires yet MORE intrusion on my poor friends the yarnmakers), things are gonna be pretty ugly. 

And that's how I know I've somehow run afoul of the Universe.  All the signs are there: Technological Malfunction, Physical Torment, Public Humiliation, and Math. It's official, Gentle Readers.  I'm that crippled one-eyed dog they call "Lucky".

Aftermath

At our house we use these fabric bags with ribbon ties instead of wrapping paper for Christmas.  Just like wrapping paper does, they end up in a pile on the floor after the frenzy of present-opening.  Bailey seized the opportunity.  I resisted the temptation to join him.

The Huff family attended 4 parties in three days this year; with both a brunch and a dinner on Boxing Day.  We are well and truly pooped.  And we all have food hangovers.  Phillip and I felt so debauched and gross after the 3rd party that we took a donation to the food bank in the hopes of restoring karmic balance.

Today I'm finishing the sample for our Mystery Knitalong.  And then, just because it's the ONLY thing I haven't indulged myself in during the last few days, I'm going to spin.  Just. Sit. And Spin. 

For those who went back to work today, I wish you a very quiet, and short week.  There's a special vibe around the workplace during the week between Christmas and New Year, and it's not altogether unpleasant; Half the world is on vacation and the other half is just phoning it in.  And for you who are on vacation, I send my hopes for a peaceful day of reflection.  And if you need it (like we do),  the antiacid of your choice.
 

Tradition

Every year the Smallies and I choose a few new ornaments for the Christmas tree.  We always get the pretty blown-glass ones from Germany, and we try to choose the ones we think symbolize what was important to us during the prior year.

This year Lindsay learned that keeping a fish aquarium may be more work than a girl as busy as she is wants to commit to (we lost several specimens, and there were, um, discussions).  She thought this beautiful Koi might be the right sort of fish for her: sparkly, elegant, and non-biological.  Campbell took up the guitar this year, so we were delighted to find this perfect replica of his beloved six-string waiting for us.  I picked the owl, because a dear friend says I remind her of a baby owl, and calls me "Hufflett".  I'm hoping it will help me Wise Up.  Paisley (our black scottie dog) got a fire hydrant, because we already have a black scottie dog ornament to match her.  And the white scottie is our favorite this year, because it's our first Christmas with Bailey.  We think it might be his first Christmas ever - he's a rescue dog, and it's hard to imagine that he'd know much about festivities, based on where he came from.

So in a way, the annual ornament gathering is our Huff family Year in Review.  What was important to you in 2011?