The Future of This Blog

Obviously, there haven't been many posts on this blog as of late. What happened was, I got caught up in life and by the time I wanted to post something, I thought it had been too long and it would be embarrassing to post something now.

I'm considering making a new blog, for a few reasons: First of all, this blog has been a general smattering of anything, from spiritual ramblings to reviews to a variety of rants and general life updates. Over the past couple years that I've been sporadically posting in this blog, I've changed quite a bit and developed new hobbies and passions, while shedding other hobbies. I'm also going to graduate soon (May 2014). So maybe the new year is a good time to refresh things with a new blog. This new blog, if I choose to change homebase, would include two components: book/movie/video game reviews and posts on the subject of knitting. If I don't choose to make a new blog, I'll change the name of this one and change the outlook of this blog to match my focuses.

I'll keep you all posted. In the meantime, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

Summer of Jobs

The past couple of weeks, I've been working at ACCO (formerly Mead-WestVaco). Well, for all intents and purposes, I haven't worked here the entire summer, just a few weeks as a temp employee. My step-grandmother works there (she just celebrated her 35^th year). It's been awesome to have that connection; because of her and my aunt, I got the temp job until I go back to school. Not only that, but people recognize my last name and the family connection and I probably get treated better there because of it.

Anyways, ACCO is a factory in Sidney, NY that produces paper products. The reason I am working there as a temp is because they just bought out/gained a factory that produces products called “Daytimer.” Daytimer makes planners, address books, organizers, and other office products, That was the section of the factory in which I was placed.

The work I usually do revolves around working on a conveyor belt. I've gotten product ready to put into the machines, fed product into the machines, and placed product into boxes. When the machines break down, you're supposed to clean up the area in which you're working in, meaning sweeping the area, tidying up your area, etc. Sometimes, if a machine isn't working, you're moved somewhere else, sometimes to the other end of the plant. I can say one thing, it's very loud. Oftentimes, you have to wear hearing protection because of how loud the machines are. It's not a strange sight to see people walking by with earplugs tied around their necks. Then again, it's a necessary safety precaution—if you decided not to wear earplugs and worked there for several years, it'd be practically guaranteed you'd suffer from hearing loss.

There aren't very many words to describe the immensity of this factory. There are hundreds, maybe thousands of people working there. It's a very clean, bustling factory, and I'd like to say that this factory is hopefully the future of true-blooded American industry (especially since they added the entire new department to the factory). Too many things are now imported, and it's pretty cool that American industry still exists at all, let alone in Central New York state.

So yes, this is what I've been doing for the past couple of weeks. I've actually been working overtime, 45 hours a week. Pretty crazy considering that I haven't really been working at all this summer; only a botched job at a farm and a temp job at a shipping place. After next week, I won't be working anymore at ACCO, as I have to go back to school for my last year. I'm definitely cutting it close though—I work 9 hours the day before I have to go back—and it's an 4 hour drive up. I think that I'm going to have to start packing pretty soon for that.

All in all it's been worth it though. I've experienced a taste of industry in Central New York, and I will have enough money to buy my books online and save some money this year. A pretty nice turnout, overall.

Thoughts on Faith

In the long while that I've had this blog, I've never posted anything about my faith or beliefs regarding life and philosophy and whatnot. I have a friend who has a blog on this site and her main usage of it is to write devotional poetry about her faith. I'm not really a poet, and I don't use writing as a confirmation of my faith. And that's OK. But I guess I want to share with the world just a couple of things regarding faith and my beliefs. For the record, I'm not going to get all “Jesus-y” and preachy, because I'm not really comfortable with that sort of thing.

I think that part of Christianity, along with most other religions, is affirming that things DO happen for a reason and events that happen are in no way coincidences, they are reminders of an all powerful being that exists beyond our world (in my case, the Holy Trinity and God). Even before I became a Christian, I believed things did happen for a reason, but that affirmation continues to grow stronger as my faith and my religious believes grow and change with the events that happen in my life.

A few days ago, my sister, Tara, was involved in a serious bike accident. She received a lot of road rash and a severe concussion as a result—a concussion that caused her to lose all memory of the incident and the hours after it. You would think that her being harmed was not right; after all, if God is good, then why must everyone (and Tara in this case) suffer such trauma? Well, here's the thing. The premise of the accident was that Tara was going down a hill and hit a couple of jagged potholes. She went over the handlebars and fell on her head. I wasn't there, so how do I know? She had her accident right in front of someone's home and some people were outside and saw it happen. It gets weirder when the man who saw the accident knew my grandfather AND we share the same last name with him (he's my paternal grandfather). So when she told him her name (she couldn't tell him much else, not even her age), he called my grandfather immediately after calling 911.

So to me, the proof of God is in these two points:

1. She was wearing her helmet. The helmet was destroyed and there is a rock embedded in it that we still can't get out. That rock would have been in her head. She could have gotten brain damage or died without it.
2. The fact that she crashed right in front of a place where my grandfather and I could be reached immediately. We live in a rural area—she could have had the accident where there was no one around to help her and when we got there she had heavy amnesia and confusion. She could have stumbled down the road and gotten hit and killed by a car.

My sister is one of the most important people in my life. We've helped each other out on many, many occasions and there are times where I feel I have nowhere to turn except for her friendship and love. We are twins and we are connected in so many ways—now we are connected in our faith in God. No matter how many miles separate us, we are connected through our words and our spirits. What happened to my sister on Thursday and the events surrounding her accident are a reminder to me that there is a God.

Finishing What Was Started a Generation Ago

Those of you who read this blog may know that I've become obsessed in the past few months with needlework, that is, knitting and crochet. It's become one of my favorite hobbies, surpassing a few I've had in the past. Lately, I've been working on at least one project at one time; sometimes two and sometimes even three. It's something fun I like to do, relaxing, and I've even found a community of fellow knitters and crocheters on the internet. Finding people who have this similar interest is really awesome because it's not that fun if you're just doing it by yourself.

I knit more than I crochet. I've been slowly learning crochet techniques, but it's a slow process. I know the three basic crochet stitches, but I can do more with knitting. If you were to ask me which one I liked more, I will still tell you knitting, but it's becoming more of a tie now. You can do a lot with both; I've been incorporating both crocheting in knitting in some of my pieces recently and it's actually pretty cool how you can do that.

Last weekend, I caved and decided to buy a bag of what looked to be a bag of yarn in white and brown shades. I have a lot of yarn in many different colors, mostly acrylic, but I didn't have too much of whites or browns so it was justifiable in that regard.

When I opened the bag, there was a piece of yellowed paper with a pattern. I had seen the paper in the bag when I bought it but I thought nothing of it. I wasn't planning on using the pattern anyway; I had other things in mind for the yarn I was buying.

However, when I read the pattern, I couldn't help but stare in shock. The pattern, which looked like it had been typed on a typewriter instead of a computer, had a name, place, and date on the top. It said:

“Indian Afghan from Glenda Hartnick, Bushnell, Fla. 2/78”

Of course, the '78 is 1978. So I got pretty excited at that point. The paper was almost 40 years old! Intrigued, I looked at the yarn label, which looked pretty old. The label said, “Phildar Pegase 206,” and on the other side stated that the yarn was made in France. When I got home, I did a quick search of the yarn on the internet. Phildar, which I'd never heard of before, is indeed an exclusive French brand. How it got to the states in the late 70s, I'm not sure. What confirmed my suspicions that the “Pegase 206” was indeed out of date was the fact that I couldn't find that specific brand anywhere. I also saw skeins of “Pegase 206” on sites like Etsy and Ebay going for about $25-30.

What convinced me the most about the fact that the yarn and the pattern were connected is that the original colors for the pattern were black, red, grey, and white. However, the person who owned the yarn and the pattern wrote the colors brown, rust, beige, and off-white next to the original colors in cursive—the same exact colors that were in the bag. The person who originally owned the yarn had also started dividing the yarn into smaller skeins for the pattern, as the pattern is crocheted row by row, each row worked separately across with a fringe at the end.

When I get the correct hook for the pattern, I'll start working on the afghan.Whoever originally owned the yarn and pattern over 30 years ago never got the opportunity to finish what they wanted to start. I really wish I could get the whole story behind this, but I know I never will. I do know that the amount of satisfaction that I will feel when I finish this afghan that this person never got to finish will be paramount.

I am giving away the said pattern to anyone who wants to have it; after all, I wasn't the one who wrote it so I feel that everyone should enjoy it. It's actually quite simple. I am not much of a crocheter but I understand the pattern so it's something a beginner could accomplish easily.

I'll probably write another post soon about knitting or crocheting, or possibly farming, as I have a summer farming job that is shaping up to be quite interesting.

Bullhead Fishing Season

Going back on my last post, in which I claimed I was only posting once a month, I am posting an article that I wrote for the student newspaper about bullhead fishing. One of my loves besides knitting is fishing, and it's bullhead season right now, so what better topic to write about?

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Spring is finally here, and bullhead fishing season is still in full swing. Although bullheads can be caught at any time of the year, they are most often found and caught in April and May along rivers and streams, ponds, and lakes.

What are bullheads, anyway? A bullhead is part of the catfish family; they have slimy, scaleless skin and whiskers on their chin and around their mouth, also known as barbels. There are three varieties of bullhead found in New York State; black, yellow, and brown. The most common variety in New York are the brown bullheads. As fish go, they don't get as big as trout or bass; they average around 8-14 inches and can weigh up to two pounds. However, sometimes these fish can reach larger proportions—the state record for one of these fish is seven pounds. They are nocturnal bottom feeders, their diet being mostly insects, leeches, snails, and smaller fish. The best time to catch bullhead is at night during the months of April and May, due to their feeding habits before spawn season, which is usually in June or July. Right now is the best time to catch these fish, as they are more plentiful now and harder to catch other times of the year due to the change in their feeding pattern.

Luckily, bullhead fishing doesn't require a lot of expensive equipment or difficult set up. The basic equipment you need are a typical fishing rod and reel (with plenty of hooks), a place to fish for them, needle nose pliers, a lantern or flashlight, a nice stick or stand to place your pole on, and maybe a bucket to put all your equipment (and fish, if you're keeping them) in. When fishing for bullhead, it is advisable to bring plenty of hooks and maybe a pair of needle nose pliers because bullhead are notorious for swallowing hooks. If you've ever gone fishing before and had a fish swallow a hook, you know how much a pain in the neck it is to get the hook out. A pair of need nose pliers can be helpful in getting the hook out of the fish, but sometimes you cannot save your hook without injuring the fish. If that is the case, or you get too frustrated,

it's best to cut off the hook and put on a new one. Sinkers are also a good thing to have, since you want your hook and bait to be at the bottom of wherever you are fishing. However, you don't need particularly heavy sinkers to catch bullhead; split shot sinkers are usually effective. You may also want to use a bobber, that's up to you. Lanterns and flashlights are a necessity if you're night fishing, and since after dark is the best time to catch bullheads, it's advisable to take one with you. As for bait, there are a variety of bait types to choose from when fishing for bullhead. You can use anything from night crawlers and leeches, to bacon, hot dogs, and cheese. A bait that is also effective (but not for the faint of heart) is chicken liver. From both my experiences and research, the top two best bait to use when catching bullhead are old fashioned night crawlers (earthworms) and chicken livers. It's also useful to note that it doesn't matter how simple your pole is or what kind you choose to use; as long as you have good bait and your line is on the bottom of the lake, pond, or river, bullhead will bite.

When casting out, if you're on shore, you don't have to cast out very far. At this time of the year, bullhead will feed both far and close to shore. Once you've baited your hook and cast your line, feel free to set your pole down on your stick or stand and relax. If you don't want to set your pole down, holding your pole in your hands is fine as well (it is also helpful when you get a bite). When watching your pole, keep an eye on the tip of it; if it jerks, or your bobber moves (if you're using one) that's the best time to set your hook. If you're holding your pole and feel the line move, you're generally supposed to wait until the second nibble to yank your pole. Any method works, however, and how you choose to set your hook is up to you.

Once you've finally caught a bullhead, it's time to take it off the hook. Handling a bullhead can be difficult and even dangerous—these fish have sharp spines on their front and top fins that can pierce flesh and give you a nasty cut. However, if you handle a bullhead properly, it won't be able to hurt you. To properly hold a bullhead when you're taking off the hook, wrap your hand behind the gills of the bullhead, flattening the spiky fins. When you are taking the hook off, you may be alarmed by a squeaky sound the fish makes—don't worry, this is normal.

Bullhead are very good for eating—however, if you're not up to gutting and preparing your own fish to cook, don't be discouraged. Bullhead fishing can still be great fun, whether you're eating the fish or not.

When it concerns fishing, catching bullhead is a great experience. So grab your pole and get out there before bullhead season is over!

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The semester is almost over; when it's finished for good, I'll probably be posting hopefully a little more frequently.

Gains and Losses

At this point, I have come to the realization that I update this blog about... once a month. It's better than none at all, but since I don't write in a journal, this blog is really the only 'written down on paper' kind of way that is chronicling my life. I hope that in some way, these blog posts not only reflect my skills as a writer, but reflect my growth as a person. I think that is the greatest hope of this blog, as well as posting up movie and book reviews, and other useful/useless stuff that people might be interested in.

I'm going to be straightforward here; after all, this is my blog and why not?

I've definitely lost a lot in the past few months. The times I've been going through have been some of the hardest in my life—I've made plenty of poor decisions and had to pay the price for them. I've lost several support systems that I used to rely on more heavily than I should have. The thing about that though is that when I examine them deeper they were really never support systems to begin with. Some things and people I knew I was going to lose eventually, but the final blow on an already dying thing still hurts almost as much as continued emotional suffering.

I guess I've been angry a lot; angry at many things and at many people. Perhaps angry when I shouldn't be or at things that never did me wrong. I feel like that pain sometimes manifests as anger. For myself, I allowed that to happen because I didn't want to look weak. I STILL don't want to look weak. When you hold a lot of pain and suffering inside, it has a tendency to change into something else—I guess that could be dangerous if you let it simmer enough. That kind of stuff can eat you out from the inside.

I don't even know the point of this rambling monologue; if anything, it's more of an expression of my emotions and everything that's been crumbling around me. As I said before, this isn't the hardest thing I've been through—I've definitely endured worse things happening in my life. But to say these events aren't continuing to shape who I am, then I would be lying.

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In other, more cheerful and less contemplative news, spring is here!!! This means bullhead fishing, growing plants in my dormitory room like a crazy person, and enjoying the sunshine.

Plenty of knitting is going on as well. I'm not ashamed to admit how much I love to knit. It's a hobby that is very relaxing to me; if I have one thing that I can rely on to make me feel a little better, it's knitting or crocheting something and marveling at the finished product. I've never stopped being amazed how something can change from a ball of string to a physical piece of clothing, or a bag, or a case, or something even more amazing than that! I don't think my fascination with that will ever fade; that's a good thing, isn't it?

I guess I'll do some shameless showing off of my work in that case... Mostly because this is something I'm really proud of, since it came out so well.

This was done for a contest on Deviantart; I learned a lot while making it, and although it was frustrating at times (repetitive stitches), it really came out great. This is also probably the first larger thing I'm going to keep for myself. When I knit, I make things for other people as gifts. The only other things I've made for myself personally are washcloths for my face/hands. This is a little bigger and a bit more stylish. The funniest thing about this was that this yarn was originally going to be a pair of socks, but that's another story.

Oh! I also recently hit 1000 hits on this blog. That's pretty awesome. Thanks, everyone.

Although a lot of bad things have been happening in my life, there is still a brightness that I have to look forward to, and the knowledge that I'm safe in all senses of the word is not something to take lightly.

Spring Fever

I'm currently on my spring break—that is, I'm on my week-long break that the school gives during the month of March. Unfortunately, they're making us come back on Easter Sunday, so I won't be able to spend that holiday with my family. However, I'll be going back a little early so I'm not traveling on a holiday. The bus ride that I take to go home and go back to school is very long and tiring, and I refuse to travel on a holiday, especially for that long.

It's hard to believe that summer is coming closer. This winter has been the longest in at least three or four years—it's almost April and there is still snow on the ground. I think my step-grandmother shares my spring fever, as she is already breaking out her plants and gardening. My grandparents, who I'm staying with for the majority of this break, have a garden, and I know for a fact my step-grandma is just itching to get her hands back into the garden on the weekends. I know my grandfather is also itching to take his motorcycle out for a spin; after all, he brought his tractor out yesterday for a quick drive, but he said it was really too cold to drive it.

I myself have something of spring fever: I'm getting ready to plant some flowers and try to start them from seed. Right now I have no plants—my gorgeous cactus died last fall, and my roommate accidentally killed my chicks and hens I gave her to babysit over Christmas break. I really want to start some forget-me-nots, simply because they used to spot all over our yard the entire summer when I was growing up. They really are pretty flowers. Just to be safe, though, all of the flower seeds I bought from the co-op (local/organic food store) specifically state to “start indoors.” I really want to start from seeds to flowers, but we'll see. I know it takes a long time for some of them to flower, but I'll be patient.

My cactus last summer. Unfortunately I killed it last fall.

Speaking of plants and flowers and stuff, apparently I got a job for the summer at a local farm (not too far where I'll be living for the summer). My grandfather got ahold of the farmer down the road (apparently this farm is huge), and got my sister and I jobs at said farm. Decent wages too. I hope it all works out.

I've also been crocheting a lot. It's pretty funny, I swore I would never crochet, because it was too difficult and so different than knitting. I'm afraid I've become quite addicted, however. I've been crocheting mostly small things. I'm not skilled enough to do amigurumi or anything bigger than dishcloths or 'media device covers.' That is, I have been crocheting a lot of iphone/ipod cases. I made three for three of my friends.

An ipod touch case I recently made and gave to a friend.

Despite my earlier misgivings about the art of crocheting, I really like it. In fact, when I went to Barnes and Noble the other day (IT WAS AMAZING), I bought a book called “The Crochet Answer Book” by Edie Eckman. Seeing as I rarely, if ever, buy books brand new, I think this gives me some promise as a crocheter. I bought the book mostly because it's so hard to remember all of the stitches for crocheting, as well as the specifics of finishing, blocking, and whatnot.

I'd really like to start selling the things I crochet and knit, but for now I think it's going to be more of a hobby and a gift-giving thing than anything else. It really relaxes me, so as long as I can continue to knit and crochet, I couldn't be happier.

In all seriousness, though, spring needs to be here already!