Busy With a Side of Toothache.
Many things have been going on here lately.
For starters, my boss was out all last week and we connected on Monday morning. A move of offices has been in the works for nine months or so now but we thought for sure that it would be January before we were moved. Not so much. In fact, it's going to happen on Monday. Our new office is painted artichoke heart green and eggplant with black baseboards and desks. This did mean a frantic scramble to get things done and packed, exacerbated by the fact that on Tuesday I was eating a cashew and caused a tooth that I'd been having serious issues with for sometime to start to really hurt and necessitate an emergency trip to the dentist.
So Tuesday night I paid a visit to 1800dentist.com and ended up at the dentist's office at 9.15 on Wednesday morning and was in, out and back at work by 10.45am. The bad news was that the recommendation for the tooth was a complete root canal and gold crown, which was going to cost a fair amount of money. We got approved for a method of paying it off monthly instead of all at once so the expense will be manageable and not catastrophic. And then yesterday at 3pm I went in for the first step of the procedure. Two hours and most of Vanity Fair later [I can watch movies with their little visor during the procedure!!] I no longer have roots in that tooth and I have a temporary filling. I go back next Thursday for the crown build-up and then again about 2 weeks after that for the shiny gold crown. I got very lucky, this dentist a. is very nice, b. specializes in endontics, and c. really cares about his patients. He called me last night about 4 hours after the procedure to check on how I was doing. I'm swollen and still a little groggy from the vicodin that I took last night, but it doesn't actively hurt, only if I accidentally bite down on it. Scrambled eggs are my friend currently.
And now, because I really feel like I've been looked out for this week [the tooth was just beginning to abscess so we caught it just before it did a lot of damage and 1800dentist.com somehow managed to find me the perfect dentist for me and we figured out how to fund it] I feel like I ought to pass some of that on. TheBoy and I have recently made some charitable donations and we'd like to pass along our chosen charities for others feeling moved to donate at this time of year.
Firstly, Child's Play. TheBoy and I met because of webcomics and to varying extents both identify with gamers. [Me much less so.] Through Child's Play we were able to donate toys to children at the children's hospital branch of the hospital that TheBoy was born at.
Secondly, and in part based on the encouragement of the Yarn Harlot, we also made a donation to Doctors Without Borders. TheBoy's mother has participated with a similar group called Operation Shoebox and both attempt to provide medical care in remote, underprivileged areas of the world. At a time where I am unbelievably thankful for the care I am receiving I feel it's my responsibility to help others in the same way.
Simple Knitted Bodice
A larger version of this image can be seen here [flickr] or here.
Simple Knitted Bodice
Yarn: Elann Peruvian Highland Wool
Needles: US 7 for body, US2 and US3 for lace.
Pattern: Simple Knitted Bodice by Stefanie Japel Stitch Diva Studios
Modifications: I knit the 48"-50" bust because that was what I was when I started. I wasn't so much that when I finished, and likely should have knit the next size down. I knit 5 repeats of the lace pattern instead of 3 inches, and I added a bit on the bottom. I also increased every 10 rows on the sleeves, for a total of 4 pairs of increases instead of every 5 rows for 8 pairs. They're still plenty big.
Date Started: 10/15/06
Date Finished: 11/18/06 although I didn't knit anything for two weeks in between.
Notes: Should I knit this again, I would separate the sleeves far earlier than the pattern calls for as my armpits are nowhere near as large around as the hole in which they go. Worn for Thanksgiving 2006, for TheBoy's family photo.