New Petfinder.com App

I have taken over running Petfinder.com for the shelter. I think there is a lot of information that we can put out there for people. And a lot of browsers of the site could become new adopters!

I got an email from Petfinder yesterday morning announcing the new IPhone App. Sounds really awesome! So I download it right away and went searching for our dogs.

I couldn't find a single one! I searched in just our zip code and just for pit bulls to see if that would help, nope. On the real site we are on the second page in our zip code. I searched through 10ish pages on the app and couldn't find us. I find it extremely frustrating that a large organization like the MSPCA isn't easily found.

My only other gripe is that while searching the only thing you can see is a small picture of the animal. If you make your search criteria, then all those dogs should be a good mach, but then it's just on looks alone. But I understand that a lot about an animal that attracts people is their looks, I'm the same way. I'm really a sucker for anything gray, dunno why.

Aside from that the app seems pretty well put together. I think it's very clean looking and not too bulky. I read a review that said it crashed a lot, but so far it hasn't for me. I'll have to fiddle around and see how I'm going to get our dogs up onto some of these search pages!

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Valentine's Nerds

This is a photo of the best boyfriend ever. For Valentines he took me on a Stay-cation to the Westin where the annual Boskone was going on! Boskone is a sci-fi convention run by the New England Science Fiction Association. The guest of honor this year was none other then Alastair Reynolds, my favorite author ever. I got to meet him, get his autograph, hear a reading from his newest book, and hear him speak on a number of panels on everything from the concept of The Singularity, to how science fiction relates to what's going on in the real world, and beyond.

It was amazing. We got to meet other authors including Vernor Vinge, Charlie Stross, and Karl Schroeder. I did get quite a bit of beef from the girls at work. Everyone thought it was probably one of the nerdiest valentine's gift ever, but that it was the sweetest too. I agree.

I've pretty much stopped writing completely right now. It inspired me to start up again, now the only problem is finding the time to sit down and do it. After we get moved into our new (glorious) apartment I'm going make the time. In the new place there is a nice little nook just big enough for a small desk. I want to turn it into my corner. Enough space for my sewing machine or a laptop. We're going to purge a lot of possessions with this move, things we just don't need to hang onto. Some of the furniture will go up on craigslist and the rest is going to goodwill. The one thing that isn't getting purged is our book collection. Luckily the new place has a built in shelf that -may- hold most of them. For now. I'm looking forward to starting a new chapter without so much extra junk.

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Button on Blanket

Tadaa!

Pros:
* Super warm
* Really soft
* Layers awesomely under my coats!

Cons:
* When putting on the buttons, I did do it quite evenly, so the left side comes up further then the right. Weird, I know.
* I need better stitch markers so I don't create ladders like you see coming up from under the armpit.

No real complaints with the pattern, (B.O.B)it was really well written. It does seem to be made for someone with narrow shoulders. Or, I have a very long neck. The sweater is supposed to have a turtle neck, but it barely comes up my neck at all. This was such a quick knit that I think I'll make it again with some added shaping in the waist and a higher collar. Maybe put in some more cables as well.

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Honest Scrap

Ok Kendra doing the Honest Scrap list for you!

10 things about me people may or may not know about me

1: I love animals. I love it when Mike says "Wow you get paid to do that?" when I tell him stories from work (MSPCA Adoption Center - Boston) *plug plug plug* I just really love being around animals constantly. I would probably live in a zoo if Mike wasn't here to hold me back.

2: I would absolutely love to work at a sanctuary some day. I think one for orphaned Chimps or Apes would be the most fun. I've seriously considered trying to get an internship/volunteer at Chip Eden in South Africa. If I could do that, it would be amazing.

3: I don't really know what I want to do with my life. I do know that I want to have a family, and I want to work with animals. Unfortunately supporting a family on an animal related salary will not be as glamorous as say, a doctor.

4: At the age of 19 I was diagnosed with Hyperthyroid. Meaning my thyroid produced too much hormones, so they literally nuked it. 2 years later my thyroid was no longer producing enough any longer. Now if I miss my medication or my levels are off I'm a very forgetful, tired, psycho. "You will ENJOY Christmas!" type of thing.

5: While I'm a very good homemaker, I'm very picky about when I want to be one. I love to cook and have a nice house, but I don't like cooking in my craptastic kitchen that's completely cut off from the rest of the house. So we usually end up eating out.

6: Which means I'm trying very hard to cook more to save money! It's my new goal for life; save as much money as I can. Frugal without feeling like I'm going without.

7: I only read books that are an escape from reality. I've tried reading some really great books, but I can never stay focused on them. My philosophy is that if it's similar to something I could live through, why read about it? I love space adventures, sci fi, fantasy (not the magic dragons and cheesy ones). On that same note, I have a hard time keeping up on the news. If it's not huge to the point everyone is talking about it, I probably have no idea about it. This is bad, I should probably work on it.

8: I used to write a lot of short stories. This is something I need to get back into. Problem is, I write higher quality when I put pen to paper, but then it's so dang slow!

9: I knit and crochet (incase you haven't seen any other posts, heh). There is something extremely enjoyable in making something with your own hands. My parents gave me a sewing machine for Christmas and I'm really excited to expand into that area too! Who needs clothing stores?

10: I'm in love with the most amazing man ever. Life is truly going to be an adventure with this one! When I'm content with sitting at home he pulls me up and we go out and have a ton of fun exploring new places. He's the reason I'm in Boston right now, and I really love it here (except for winter). I can't wait to see where life takes us and see our family grow. Ok, I can wait a bit for that last part.

So there we have it! Summary of me!

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Long Time Coming

Finally, some pictures of finished projects! I have a sweater that I was working on last week and was literally only the collar away from finishing when I ran out of yarn. I just got my shipment of more though, so tomorrow I'll be able to finish it! It's going to be warm and squishy and delish.





First off, my Hexagon Blanket that's been finished for quite some time now. I really love this thing, it's huge, it's snuggly, it's pretty! Mike says "Who makes a round blanket?" But I love it. It never lives on the bed, it's always in the living room, either nicely covering our couch or wrapped around me, like now.










Next, my Autumn Blanket. I actually only finished this last night. A little late for the season, yes. It's not as big as the Hexagons but it's beautiful, and will look wonderful over the couch next fall.












Lastly, my Glittens! Technically they aren't finished yet because I haven't put on the buttons to keep the mitten tops down, but shush.

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