Back to School

It's that time of year again. Fair warning - I might have to go MIA from the blog again. I'm working a lot after a coworker left this summer, and now I'm taking 6 credits during the fall semester. I'm not complaining (yet). I'm just forseeing some busy months ahead.

Results

I've got results to share! I'm completely overwhelmed by the ribbons I was awarded.

Division 55 - Crochet Class 90 - Sweater
Northern Dreams Pullover - Fourth
Division 55 - Crochet Class 92 - Fashion Accessory

City Girl Cap - Second

Division 55 - Crochet Class 95 - Toy
Hep Cat - Second
Division 55 - Crochet Class 96 - Ornaments (set of three)
Triple Crochet Snowflake
My Favorite Snowflake
and Northern Snowflake - Second
Division 56 - Hand Knitting Class 101 - Baby Sweater or Dress

Another Striped Baby Sweater - First

Division 56 - Hand Knitting Class 114 - Lace, any item
Red Hot Mountain - Fourth
Division 56 - Hand Knitting Class 115 - Socks/Slippers (one color)
Monkey Socks - Fourth

Division 56 - Hand Knitting Class 120 - Cap or hat (two or more colors)

Olympic Junkie Hat - First

Division 56 - Hand Knitting Class 121 - Scarf
Drop Stitch Scarf - Honorable Mention

I also got to see some really stunning pieces in the Fabric and Threads department and I'm so glad that I decided to participate this year. In fact, I'm already planning some projects for next year!

Competition

Tonight is the Fabric and Threads exhibit preview at the Iowa State Fair. This means that I'll find out whether I received any awards on my entries. I'm excited to find out the results, but I'll admit this doesn't feel much like a typical competition to me.

I've always been a competitive person. Growing up I used to participate in tae kwon do tournaments. I placed pretty high expectations on myself at those tournaments, and typically did pretty well. Now I just have to figure out what I should do with those damned trophies.

My job is also extremely competitive. We constantly have to bid against other companies for contracts. We win some, we lose some, but the competition is constantly there.

The Iowa State Fair doesn't feel like that at all. I feel like Iowa's knitters are all cooperating to put on a show. I would certainly feel honored if I'm awarded anything, but I'm mostly interested in viewing the collected efforts of my community of artists. (And hoping that we put on a better show than the quilters!!!)

No Turning Back Now

I just dropped off everything for the Iowa State Fair. I submitted everything that I mentioned in my previous post. Plus these three:

Division 55 - Crochet

Class 92 - Fashion Accessory
City Girl Cap

Division 56 - Hand Knitting

Class 101 - Baby Sweater or Dress

Another Striped Baby Sweater

Class 120 - Cap or hat (two or more colors)

Olympic Junkie Hat (sorry, I forgot to photograph this one before I took it)

I really don't think either of these hats will win anything, but it never hurts to try!

State Fair Bound

The deadline for state fair entries is quickly approaching. I've decided to make the most of my entry fee and try to find ten items worthy of entry. I'm not quite there yet, but I'm trying!

Here are the projects I've decided on so far. (Disclaimer: I reserve the right to edit these decisions multiple times before July 31st.)

I'm including Ravelry links, so if you aren't on ravelry yet, you either don't knit/crochet and therefore probably don't really care what I'm entering in the fair, or you do knit/crochet and you really need to get with the program!

Division 55 - Crochet

Class 90 - Sweater
Northern Dreams Pullover

Class 95 - Toy
Hep Cat

Class 96 - Ornaments (set of three)
Triple Crochet Snowflake
My Favorite Snowflake
Northern Snowflake

Division 56 - Hand Knitting

Class 114 - Lace, any item
Red Hot Mountain

Class 115 - Socks/Slippers (one color)
Monkey Socks

Class 121 - Scarf
Drop Stitch Scarf

Class 123 - Shawl (lace)
Zauberball Ishbel

I've got to come up with a few more items to reach my goal of ten. There are some that I have in mind, but I'm not quite sure what I'll choose yet. I want to help the knitting and crochet divisions make a strong showing at the fair. These arts are alive and well here in Iowa and I hope that people come visit the exhibits. We'll be on the second floor of the Varied Industries building. Maybe I'll see you there!

Our State Fair

There are some Iowans who can instantly tell you how many days are left until the start of the state fair. They are the type of people who can already smell the corndogs as soon as the snow begins to melt. I am not one of those people.

Despite the fact that Iowa may have the greatest state fair in the world (just ask Rogers and Hammerstein) I think I've only been there once in my life. I have vague memories of it from my childhood. I don't remember the animals, the exhibits, the food, or the three-hour drive to Des Moines. All I can remember is sitting on a burlap sack and flying down a giant, brightly colored slide. That might have even been some other fair.

Anyhow, my husband and I have been proud residents of Des Moines for three and a half years now. Every summer we have said that we need to make a point to attend the fair, but every summer we've found some excuse not to go. You see, as much as I might enjoy the fair, I really hate mid-August heat and massive crowds. And every time I picture us going to the fair, I see nothing but mid-August heat and massive crowds. Yuck.

But this year I've decided to get past it. I want to go to the fair. I want to see why people make such a big deal about the corn dogs. I want to "people watch" on the Midway. I want to see if that giant burlap sack slide is still there (if it ever was). I want to see the knitted and crocheted items that Iowans put on display. And I want to enter some of my handcrafted items to be judged in the fair. (I'll let you know what I've decided to enter in a later post.)

I probaby won't ever love the fair as much as some people, and I may even hate it so much that I never want to go again, but I won't really know until I just go.

My Two Jobs

Ok, so I don't actually have two jobs. But it sure feels like it sometimes. Sometimes I go to work here. I spend time doing things like writing proposals and reports, calculating laboratory test results, making phone calls, etc. Yes, that is a cooler in front of my desk, and no, it's not full of cold beverages. A couple of times a month I have to pack water samples into a cooler and ship them off to a chemistry lab. It's much easier to just leave a cooler sitting in my office than to figure out where I should store it.



Other days, I work at places like this one. Another aspect of my job involves visiting construction sites to confirm that projects are being built the way they should be. I spend my time doing some field observations, performing tests, and getting into (fortunately rare) heated discussions with contractors.

It's fun to work in a variety of different environments, and I don't always know what I'll be doing on any given day. It's also gives me an opportunity to physically see a project take shape. I can take the information that we gather in the field, design a foundation, watch the foundation be built, then see the rest of the building stack up on top of it. It's pretty cool stuff.