If you lived in or around Columbus, Ohio in the early 80’s, you’ll understand the title of the post. If not, find me when I’ve had a beer and I may perform the Columbus Visitors Bureau ad from that era. With hand gestures. It’s all very “Young American,” and quite entertaining!
No pictures for the next few days, sorry. I took the battery out of my camera to charge it, tucked it away in my suitcase while packing (?), and promptly forgot where it was. When I couldn’t find it, I decided to leave my camera at home. Which was silly, of course, because as soon as I checked into my hotel room I found the battery.
So since I have no pictures, here’s a photo that a friend sent of a litter of kittens the stray she found last month delivered on her birthday! Happy belated birthday, Claudia!
TNNA
So here I am, checked into my hotel room and ready to go.
I got my room through Priceline and saved more than 50%, but I’m not right AT the convention center, I’m about 8 blocks away. Eight long, hot blocks when I have books to transport.
I weighed the options:
- A – Expensive room at convention center, cab to and from the airport
- B – Cheaper room a few blocks away, cabs to and from airport and convention center
- C – Cheaper room a few blocks away plus rental car
When I was able to get a rental car for $13/day, with a free day (a promo from NWA I found through their website) Option C turned out to be best for me (even though I have to cover parking, but by NOT parking at the hotel it’s $9/day).
I have a big suitcase full of samples, several heavy cartons of books, and I just don’t want to be lugging this stuff into and out of cabs. Plus it’s just so HOT here. And when I have some spare time I may be able to scoot off to the Eddie Bauer outlet.
Back in St. Paul they’re preparing for some rough weather, possible tornadoes. I guess I’m glad I’m here, but I wish the family were here, too…
I’ll be taking a class tomorrow morning – reading Japanese patterns – and I’m very psyched to be taking a class. I don’t get a chance to take many of them, but this is a wonderful weekend for classes.
I’ve been filled with trepidation about my trip, about TNNA. It’s silly, but better to just face it than try to squash it and have it explode out. It’s been a rough few weeks, filled with a lot of support but also a lot of pain, and I begin to wonder if I’ll ever be at the place I was in designing and teaching that I was 2 years ago. One thing I do know is that it feels like I have to work twice as hard to get half as far, which is often a sign that I may not be working as efficiently as I’d like.
So now I’m here, settled in and wearing shorts (!), ready to go off on a long walk to see if there’s a way to get all the way to the convention center entirely in air-conditioned corridors and skyways.
Gerry’s been bored, feeling fretful and at loose ends. He’s been taking guitar lessons, but the whole constant pain / can’t-walk-too-far thing can be a problem when trying to take on a larger project. This weekend there’s a conference on the media in Minneapolis, and Gerry read where they were looking for some video-type volunteers.
He wrote to the folks producing the conference, explained his credentials and his current physical limitations, and they said they can use him! So he’s volunteering for two short 3-hour shifts this weekend, and I’m SO happy that he’s getting out there. I’m very proud of him.
Courage and Hope
I picked up Knit With Courage on Wed and was gratified to see how beautifully the printing and photography came out. The book is a lot thicker than I thought it would be, it’s 320 pages, and although I did a TON of editing I’m wondering if it should be even shorter.
Gerry’s pleased with the book. It’s the non-edited proof, there’s still work to be done on it before the “real” pub date of 9/1/08, but it’s a thrill to have it in my hands!
I’ll be passing out copies to folks at TNNA and sending book out for review – my heart is in my mouth! I’ve had several books out now, so the “new” feeling from my first couple of books is gone. But I have more excitement and – well, fear – about this book.
It’s been such a personal journey for our family – but told in a very public way. Of course I want it to be well received, but even more than that I want it to speak to people – perhaps helping someone who’s on a similar path.
Financially, as long as I break even I’ll be happy. If it sells well, I’ll be thrilled. My feelings are so close to the surface right now that I need to find a way to steele myself against the inevitable negative reviews and comments.