Please Welcome

Now appearing for the first time - Ellie and the new Babies. Yes, please note that this is what happens when you take a stray cat in, try to find her a home, are unsuccessful, she escapes for three days, comes back pregnant, has her first litter of four kittens, only two of whom you find homes for, your mom lets her out before you can take her to be fixed, and she comes back pregnant again - she has her second litter, this time five kittens. I tried to get a better picture of the kittens themselves, but my camera was not cooperating. We have two tabbies, one tortie, one solid black, and one calico. Currently the calico is the house favorite, simply because they are pretty rare. These five join the two boys left from Ellie's first litter, Spot and Smudge.
Spot and Smudge joined our other cats - Katie, Twiggy, Mushu and, of course, Ellie. So, we currently have, lets see, eleven cats in our house. We really have become the crazy cat house. So, if any of you would like a sweet kitten, or know someone who would, the new babes will be ready for adoption in 6 weeks.

Hot. Really, really hot

It is H-O-T hot people. Seriously hot. I am fairly certain that I have sweated off a good 5 lbs today. I think my brain may be melting. Last night, I stayed up and watched Lara Croft and the Cradle of Life, so that may be why another reason why I feel like I’m down a few brain cells also.

I managed to get K to embrace a little of his inner geek this weekend. Saturday, we bought Scene It! The Music Version and played like four rounds. As I was paying for it, he’s all like, “You know that you’re going to lose horribly right?” And, of course, he was right. Music trivia is his forte. But hey, the game was on clearance for $9.18, down from $37.00, and I held my own pretty well. When I got a chance to play that is.
If you’ve never played the game, I’ll sum it up real quick – you roll 2 dice, a numbered dice, and a category dice. You move your piece around the board the number of spaces shown on the first die, and then you have to answer a question based on the category die. If you answer correctly, you get to go again.
Have you ever seen someone hustle pool? You know, they let the opponent make a few shots, pretend to be not so good, then, bam, they hit them with some crazy trick shot and sink like 4 balls at once, and the opponent doesn’t have prayer? Well, it was a lot like that. Not pretty people. But, it was fun.

In other news, I’ve been making slow progress on my ballband dishcloth. I finished up the Blueberry hat, and started on a blanket for a coworker’s baby. It’s just too dang hot to knit. All I want to do is have a nice lie down in front of the fan. And, since E is spending the night with her dad, that is exactly what I plan to do.

Sadly, I will be missing knitting this week. I know you are all heartbroken. Try not to snag all the good yarn, and I’ll be back on the 9th.

And, as of Wednesday, it will be 2 weeks until vacation. That’s right, in just 15 days, my big fat ass is going to be doing a fine impression of a beached whale. Now I know ya’ll are sorry to have to miss that!

Imagine a creative title here

As promised, here are some pics of my new sock bag and DPN case from my swap with trek.
They really don’t do these lovelies any justice.















And some Ball Band progress.







And a new hat for charity knitting. I’ve done about an inch of K2 P1 ribbing, and have just started stockinette. When I get to the very top, I’m going to switch to green. It shall be called Blueberry.










In non-knitting news, I finished two good books this week. Angels Fall, the new Nora Roberts. It was good. Pretty much what you’d expect from her hardcover books. Girl goes to remote location to heal, girl meets boy, who helps her to heal, some mystery/murder happens, girl and boy become involved, and end up saving the day and each other. But, it has strong characters, a consistent plot, and better editing than some of her more recent works. Maybe she’s finally hired a new editing staff. I’ll give it a 3 and ½ out of 5.
I also finished Scent to Her Grave by India Ink, a pseudonym for Yasmine Galenorn, who writes the Chintz n’ China series I love. This one is set in a small beauty salon. The main sleuth, Persia, is some type of aroma therapist, but she’s been to college for perfumery or some such thing. I liked the general idea of the story, although I thought that it had some repetitious spots. It was like she forgot that she had already told the reader about such and such a place, or person. I like the Chintz n’ China series better overall, but I could get attached to this character as well. The premise is that Persia finds a dead beauty queen in the shop one morning. The local police immediately focus on one person as the killer, and Persia and her family/friends, set out to prove that the person the police have in custody isn’t the killer. It includes some possible love interest tension, as does the Chintz n’ China series. The outcome was a nice twist, one I didn’t immediately see coming. I’d give this book a 4 on a scale of 5.
And I am so excited about seeing our sock yarn tonight!!!! That's it, I'm done.

Ball Band-wagon

I have finally succumbed to the simplicity and beauty that is the Ball Band Dishcloth. Yes, it’s true. And in order to score some Peaches and Cream Cotton, I had to do a deal with Devil. I went to Wal-Mart.
I tried other places first. Meijer and K-mart both carry Lily Sugar n’ Cream, which is very close to Peaches and Cream, so I picked up a few balls at both places, thinking it would be enough-that I would be able to quickly conquer my desire to make a Ball Band Dishcloth.
But alas, none of the ones I started had that pretty bright feeling to them, like the ones in Mason Dixon. I needed to find some bright colored Peaches and Cream. And so I went to the last place I knew for sure carried P and C – that evil mega monster Wal-Mart. And behold, they had not one, not two, but three brightly colored, striped colors of P and C.
And I bought all three. Darn those Mason Dixon ladies. If they hadn’t knit up such luscious dishcloths in the first place, my soul would still be mine… And, have you seen the Elmore-Pisgah website? http://www.elmore-pisgah.com/ So many beautiful colors, so many yummy balls of yarn waiting to be knit into dishcloths. Perhaps if I order from the company directly I can regain my place in knitter’s heaven?

And, did I mention that I am anxiously awaiting a package in the mail from the lovely and talented trek? http://trekcelt.blogspot.com/ Hopefully containing a pretty pink sock bag and matching dpn case? And yay for me, she works with swaps, so even my non-credit card holding dark ages self was able to get hold of her wares. I love a good old-fashioned barter.

24 days to go until vacation. This will be my first real vacation since E was born. We’re planning to be down in Amelia for 4 whole days. We’re going to leave Wednesday after I take E to school (it’s her first day of first grade) then stop halfway there, spend the night, get up Thursday and drive the rest of the way, and leave Monday morning and drive straight back. I went ahead and took that Tuesday off just in case though.
So, I will officially have K all to myself for 6 days. I think we can do it. We’re taking my car, so if he misbehaves, I can always just leave him down there. But, now that we’ve talked things over, like how I felt about him paying for everything, and how I didn’t want him to come back later and try to hold that over my head,(which he swore, on pain of a knitting needle through his eye, he would never do) I really am looking forward to it. Since we’re taking my car, and I’m paying for the gas, I feel like I’m actually contributing to the trip. And, since we had our talk, things have been better overall between us, like we’ve cleared the air, and can move forward. Oh. Wow, I have really rambled on. I should probably go now, and if any of you are still awake, you should go too, and have a martini or something, since you made it all the way to the end.

Pictures!!

And now, without further ado, I give you, Pumpkin Head!

First I cast on 74 stitches using a size 8 16 inch circ. I worked some orange Encore in 2 x 2 ribbing until it felt like it was time to change to some green Encore. When I started the green, I wanted it to look like points, ya know, like on a real pumpkin, so I carried the green along and knit every 5th stitch green, then the next row, I knit the stitch before and after that first green stitch in green, and so on, until I had no orange stitches left, and I had made the complete switch to green. I continued working the green in plain stockinette, and began doing decreases every 10 stitches every other row. But then I decided it wasn’t decreasing fast enough, so I started doing every row, then after a few rows like that, I began decreasing every 4 stitches, then every other stitch, until I had 6 stitches left. I worked the 6 stitches for about an inch to form a stem, and then bound off, and voila, one pumpkin hat for a bebe. While I think it looks pretty nifty from the outside, it looks kinda scary from the inside.

I’m all afraid the baby is going to get some stray tiny body part entangled in the lengths of yarn that run the inside of the hat for like an inch or so. Am I being way too paranoid?
Also, I think I may have made it either too long, or not long enough. While I rolled it up on the doll’s head (an original Cabbage Patch circa 1980 now bringing joy to its second generation of Carter girls), I think that it would look better unrolled, but if I unroll it, the only baby it would fit would need to have been spawned by Coneheads. So, it isn’t perfect, and next time I make one, I’ll probably make it longer, and then maybe I’ll make a third one and make it shorter…

Newish book review

I purchased a digital camera last week, so I’m going to try and work on adding some pictures to the old blogola, but it may take me a while.
I finished a pumpkin hat for the Harlot’s WIC lady in Cal. While I borrowed the idea from Holly, I really sort of just made it up as I went along. I’m going to grab some AA batteries tonight, so hopefully I’ll have pics up later this week.
And, I know I said I would try and review (using that term very loosely) The Knitting Way, but I left it at home and I don’t want to review it without having it in front of me. I will say that if you are looking for lots of patterns and pictures of said patterns, this is not the book for you. The only pictures are in black and white, and there is usually only one picture of the item. However, it does have some really cool stuff to say about the meditative and spiritual aspects of knitting. More to come.
In other knittinb book news the copy of Knitting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush that I have been waiting for finally arrived today. I am so going to buy this book. It has lots of great sock patterns, as well as some fun history of sock knitting. If you liked Nancy’s Folk Socks book, you will like this book too.
It has great pictures; simple, easy to follow instructions and charts; and in the first part of the book, Nancy includes 4 different types of heels, and 6 different types of toes. She also has timelines of fun facts on the bottom of the pattern pages. (Fun for the history geeks among us that is.)
She also lists the full information for the yarns she used, so that swapping a yarn should be pretty easy. I hate it when a pattern just says “Yarn used WoolHouse PinkPetunia” and that’s all. Or just, “Worsted weight wool, 50 oz.” or “2 ply yarn, 280 yards” I want to as much information as possible, so that if I need to substitute a different yarn, I can without too much worry that it will mess up the pattern. But I digress.
All in all, I think that this book will make a great addition to any sock knitter’s book shelf.

Sorry, I couldn't resist

'What" will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

NEW CAR!!

First, Thanks to everyone for the Good Birthday Wishes. Second, Lots of LOVE and HUGS and KISSESS galore to K for the flowers. They are so pretty, and best of all is NO ROSES(Sorry if you are a rose fan. I just don’t care for them that much) Since I don’t have a digital camera with me, here is a pic snagged from the Nanz and Kraft website of what the flowers look like: (although I have a different balloon)

Apparently, that didn't work. Hmmm, I guess I need to figure out how to do this. Sorry.

Third, I got my new to me car!! I went with a 2004 Hyundai Accent. It’s a bare bones, no frills little car, and I LOVE IT! She is super cute and actually pretty peppy for a little car. And I mean little. I can reach every door from the driver’s seat, which is good since it doesn’t have power locks. It doesn’t have power windows either. But it does have killer AC, a tape player that works, so I can actually use the CD and IPOD adapter, driver, passenger, and side curtain air bags, 4 and 5 star ratings from the NHTSA and gets 30-35 MPG. But the best part? Total cost, out the door: 9385.00. How f’ing great is that? Oh, and did I mention that it has less then 30,000 miles on it? And 2 1/2 years left on its bumper to bumper warranty, and 1 year of free maintenance? So, if anything goes wrong, it won’t cost me a dime, unless of course it’s a tire that blows out, but even then, the tires are small, which equals inexpensive. And, I have heard that it should lower my insurance. WOO HOO! I made a practical car purchase. I may actually be becoming a responsible adult. Ok, so maybe it’s a little soon to assume that…

Hodegpodge

Alright, go ahead, ask me how far along I am on my charity knitting… I deserve to be flogged with the yarn, for I have done absolutely nothing. I bought the yarn, and I was all psyched to get started, and now… well I just haven’t really been in the mood to knit. I can understand what Liz was saying about apathy.
There are so many causes that I hear about, and think, “Oh yeah, I can totally get behind that” or “That is so awful. Someone should do something about (insert cause here)” When I was pregnant with Eden I read Ariel Gore, the original hip mama, and was so blown away by her spirit. I was all about working to bring about change and fighting the man. I was going to be the super cool, hip activist mom, and teach my daughter about how to be a super strong, assertive woman in our male-centered society. Then the baby was actually born, and I was so busy just trying to make it through the day, all thoughts of activism flew right out the door.
So, the other day when I read the Harlot’s post, it stirred up all my activist, hippie thoughts again. I’m thinking, here is something I can actually do. One of the hardest parts about being active and taking a stand against, or for, a cause, is that I don’t have a lot of spare time to do everything I would like to. But knit a baby hat? That I can do. So why I am stuck? I still feel very passionately that the cause is worthy of my time.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been preoccupied with my life and my own drama this past week. It was E’s 6th birthday, and between the cake, the presents and the parties, we are both pooped. Next year, I’m having one party. My families will just have to suck it up. E had three parties. Yes, THREE. One with my mom’s family, one with her friends, and one with my dad’s family. Oh, and we took her out to eat on her actual birthday. It was almost as much fun as Christmas, when I was driving all over the city trying to get her to 3 different Christmas parties. Oh what fun it is to be the child of a broken home, who then has a child and splits up with the kid’s father…
But, in good news, I am hoping to go by a new-to-me car tomorrow. I am soooo excited!!!! Everyone keep their fingers crossed that it all works out. I’m worried that I won’t be able to get a car I really like for what I can afford. I don’t want to have to settle for some ancient, fugly POS car. I’m hoping I can at least get one made in this decade. Wish me luck!
PS, A newish knitting book also arrived in my delivery box this afternoon. It is called The Knitting Way: A Guide to Spiritual Self-Discovery. I've only had a chance to flip the pages, and if you are a visual person like me, I am thinking this may not be the best book for us. It appears to have only b and w pics. More information to come..

My hippie side is showing...

Quickly girls! To the Needle Cave! We have work to do. If you haven't already, hop on over to the Harlot's sight, and read her post from today, then shout "Hooray for Boobies!!!" and start knitting those hats.
Let's help spread the word- boobie milk is the bomb for babies, and more new moms need to be made aware of its benefits, and how to find support if they are having trouble.
In our society we view nursing as taboo and becasue of this many women never see anyone nurse until they have a baby themselves. No wonder so many women have trouble breastfeeding! Let's give this noble cause our full support, for the babies and the moms.

Sentimental Sappyness

So I haven’t talked to K since the blow up yesterday. I hate this. I was up till like 2 am last night, going over our whole relationship in my head. I hate it when we fight. I'm sure some of you out there are wondering "Why is she with him?" I've asked myself that same thing a few times,and the answers are always the same.
Of course the biggest reason is that I’m so stupidly head over heels for him. But it’s more than that too. We have fun together. He makes me laugh. I can’t see him and not want to smile. He went into the yarn shop. He’s been trying to understand the yarn obsession. He lets me talk on and on and on. He thinks The Princess Bride is one of the best movies ever. He took me to see Coldplay. He goes for walks with me. He talks to Eden on the phone. He likes to go to the zoo. He’s a closet geek. I could go on, but I think you get the picture.
Our relationship isn’t perfect. Sometimes it’s a bit like watching a train wreck. But despite our differences we’ve been together for over a year. Even when we are driving each other crazy, there is this underlying fact: we love each other. He is my darker half, just like I am his lighter side. We are different in a lot of ways, but in some very fundamental, basic ways, we are like two halves to the whole. I know that is so super cliché, but as some writer said, “Clichés are clichés because they are true.”

Longish post

I think I may have mentioned a time or two that my BF can be a bit, well, insensitive. I can deal with this most of the time. I know that it is just part of who he is. But other times I get so fucking pissed off at him for being a rude, inconsiderate ass. Like today for example.
We, meaning the two of us, together, are supposed to be taking a trip to Florida in August. Already, he has planned where we will be going, and where we will be staying. I’m perfectly fine with this, since he has been to the place we are going before and I haven’t. However, I would like to think that when we get there, we won’t be doing only things that he wants. Today, I found out differently.
Now, all of my friends know that I love to knit. Not only do I love to knit, I love to look at and shop for yarn. I have been known to wander around Sophie’s fondling the yarn, much like a cat marking its territory. I love fiber, what can I say? Most of my friends also know that K and I have been dating for over a year. I have been knitting since before he and I started dating, so it should have come as no surprise to him that I have been looking around the net to see if there are any yarn stores in the vicinity of where we will be whilst in Florida, and also if there are any worth visiting on the way down there.
First, K made the remark that “We aren’t stopping so you can buy yarn.” He doesn’t want to have to get off the interstate and go out of the way so I can explore yarn shops. That’s fine, I can understand that – it’s already a 12 hour drive, and we only have a few days to spend down there, so he wants to make good time – that’s cool. So then I mention that there is a store in the town we are going to be near that I would like to visit, and ask how far from Jacksonville we’ll be. (There is a store down there also, but I don’t want to drive a long way to get there) Do you know what his response to that question was? “This is not some yarn expedition”, said in a rather nasty tone of voice. To which I replied “Jesus Christ K, chill out.” So he looks at me and says “Fuck you.” Then walks off.
Now, I am willing to admit that maybe my response left something to be desired, but I hardly think it deserved that response. I should mention that K is paying for the trip. He wants to go on vacation, but I can’t really afford to right now, so he said he would pay for everything. I told him I didn’t want him to do this, but he insisted. The above argument is just one of the reasons I didn’t want him to pay for the whole trip. See, I know that he’s thinking, “Why should she have any say in what we do? It’s not like she’s paying for anything.” It becomes not our vacation, but his vacation, with me along for the ride.
After this fight, I am terribly afraid that the whole vacation will be all things that he wants to do, places he wants to go, with little or no consideration for me. K seems to like taking me places and doing things that he thinks I should like. Not what I really will like. It often feels like he doesn’t really know, or understand me.
So I am worried that I will not have a good time on this vacation, and so I will be angry and nasty the whole time, which will in turn make him angry and nasty, and then no one will enjoy what could and should be an awesome chance for the two of us to go away together and spend more than one night at a time with each other. Oh my, I am so conflicted…

Riddle me this...

Here is a quick riddle for you all:
What word begins with and ends with an "e", but typically only has one letter? See you all at Sophie's!! - S

Birthday birthday

First, congratulations to Liz and David and Lucinda and Trevor!!

So, I mentioned to a certain someone that my birthday is only a month away, and that I had been eyeing a few things. Well, that someone may still need a little extra help so here, without further ado is my birthday list:
(For those among you who couldn’t care less what I want for my birthday, you have my permission to resume you normal lives, such as they are >^..^<

The portable case with gadget pocket found here:
http://www.organizedknitter.com/cases/gadget/bubblesteal.html

Or, a spot in the Fall Sock Club over at Mama E’s, since I missed the Project Spectrum club
http://www.mamaespot.com/blog/?page_id=34

Or, one of these fabulous kits from Knit and Plenty, as seen on the Harlot’s site:
http://knitandplenty.com/products.html

Or this fabulous pattern from The Garter Belt, whose purchase also benefits Breast Cancer Research
http://www.thegarterbelt.com/ww_fanny.html

And of course, a gift certificate to Sophie’s is always welcome.
(Did I mention that at Christmas, he actually went into the store??!! And not like right inside the door, but all the way baby!)

Okay, I’m done.

Pretty day

Too pretty to be inside!!!! I want to go home, but alas I have an hour left. Waaaa!!!! I cast on for K’s sweater last night. Deep breath everyone. I know I know, the curse. But I’ve been looking around (okay reading the poll answers from here: www.knittersreview.com) and I think that since K and I have been together for eons (ok, so maybe it just seems that way some days) its safe to start the sweater. At least I like the yarn, so if I need to I can rip the damn thing back and make myself a comfy blanket.
Yes, I have enough yarn to knit a blanket. When I finally snuck up on K and throttled him with the sheep, I discovered that his chest measures 49 ½ inches. Yes, you read that correctly. And, he likes his sweaters a bit loose and longer than average. Someone please ram a needle through my skull. Why does my boyfriend desire a sweater knit in oatmeal colored yarn, with no fancy stuff?
Thank god he chose that bulky alpaca. I’m getting three stitches to the inch, so the twitch in my eye may have only spread to half my body by the time I’m done.
He wanted me to put ribbing on the edge, but I kindly told him no dice. My baby’s a big guy, and ribbing on the bottom of his sweater – not a good look.
Also, I started on the second blue sock. And, I’m still working on the pink Jaywalker. It is kicking my butt. Because the pattern is tight I can only knit on it a little a time before my hand cramps up. But, it looks pretty.
Just like today. So pretty. I picked a magnolia bloom from one of the trees outside and brought it inside, so know my desk smells like yummy lemons.
And I’ve been reading mysteries. (Did I mention that I’m getting more like my mom everyday? Scary) I finished the Chintz n China series by Yasmine Galenorn, I highly recommend them. They are fun and well written. You can find out more here: www.galenorn.com I finished this series too: www.maggiesefton.com
I'm going away now. The sun is calling me... must head towards the light...

Knitting book lust

So my long awaited and lusted after copy of Mason Dixon Knitting arrived last week, and I finally had a chance to crack it open and really delve into it last night. Let me just say, this is one of the best knitting books I’ve ever come across.
Every knitter who wants to move beyond the basics should own a copy of this book. Not only does it have some fun patterns, it has a lot of advice and encouragement for moving beyond store bought patterns. It’s like having a little knitting muse sit on your shoulder saying, “Go ahead, try it, you know you want to.”
Looking through it and actually reading the advice and stories Ann and Kay have included, I kept finding myself going, “Yeah, I can do that.” And “Wow, think about how that would look in this color – yarn – stitch.”
It is awesome. I am definitely going to be adding it to my top ten must own knitting books. And anyone who knows me knows that I don’t just buy knitting books wily nily. They are way to damned expensive, but this one, well this one is definitely worth the cost.

WooHoo

Go me, oh yeah, I rock. I totally figured out how to add links to my blog. Alright, pick yourselves up off the floor and stop laughing now. We all know that I am totally un- savvy when it comes to computers and anything hi-tech.
And yes, I realize how ironic it is that I'm dating someone who works with computers all day and yet, still, I have no computer sense. I mean, like I have the sense to know that one should never, ever try to remove anything from a computer with tweezers - while the damn thing is still on!
True story! Some idiot in our computer learning center actually did this. These are people who are hired to assist the public with the computers. And this is how intelligent they are. God I love my job.
You would think that working in the field I work in, we would have, on the whole, intelligent people working here. You would be wrong. And not just a little wrong - seriously wrong. I am not sure how some of them made it past grade school let alone a Master's program. That's right - MASTERS.
To be fair, it really is just a lack of common sense. And a lack of intelligence. And no sense of reality. Or how to be helpful. Or polite. Or, I really need to go now....

ARGH!!

What is it with MEN? After bugging me about a stupid sweater for months - months people - I am finally ready to start on one, and the jack ass won't let me measure him. "You already measured me" Sooo, that was ages ago. You could have grown, or shrunk by now. Alright, so I lost the measurements, but still. He's been griping about this forever and mumbling about how I'll never knit it, and here I am, yarn all swatched so I know my gauge, pattern chosen, needles ready - and I can't cast on because someone won't let me measure them!!!! Argh!!!!!!!!!!!

Bad Girl

Hello my fellow yarn junkies. I was a bad girl yesterday. I took horrible advantage of the fact that a LYS is going out of business and therefore having a sale on everything - literally - everything, including needles and books and bags, oh my. I bought more sock yarn. Yes, I know I have many many skeins already, but one can never have enough right? I also bought some DPNs in a size 2, thank god, in bamboo from Clover. I can't stand the ones from Lakewood. They suck.
So, then of course I had to cast on a new sock. But did I use the new yarn? Of course not. I used the yarn Lucinda traded me. It is going to make a lovely pair of ankle socks for me. K thinks the striping yarn is too girly - yea, that means more stick a needle through my eye boring socks for him and his huge ass feet.
Also, today I got Big Girl Knits - gotta love a pattern book for the over size 14 crowd (see B I told you I'd gotten fatter)
And, I left a comment on Jordana Paige's blog, and she responded!!! She liked my bag idea!! How f****ing cool is that??!!!
So, know I'm off to SnB to buy another set of size 4 DPNs so I can finish E's sock. Alright, first I have to pick E up and make sure the Ass comes by to get her, then its off to SnB. Adios fellow yarn addicts.

No title today

Let me just say that getting to meet the Harlot herself was totally amazing.
I wanted to tell her how she was such an inspiration, and how much I admire her and her writing, because the way she talks about yarn, and knitting and well, life in general, is so right on. She gets it. That is such an amazing thing. But of course I just stood there like the village idiot.
And I think that I was almost as bowled over that she recognized Liz's sock as Liz was. I wanted to jump up and down and screech out "She knows your sock!!!!" in a voice so high pitched dogs all over Lex would have been howling, but I managed to restrain myself. Suffice it to say that the whole trip was awesome.
As soon as I learn how to post pictures and links, I'll try to get some up. Which reminds me that if anyone out there can help instruct me on that, I would be very grateful.