Day 105: Blocking

I'm rushing to finish errands and chores before I drive home to my parents' house for the weekend. 

I soaked my Brand New Day Shawl yesterday afternoon and night and finally set it to block this morning!

I would have done so yesterday but I ended up spending the day with a friend from law school. He picked me up in the morning and then we drove to Santa Barbara for the day. Though cloudy, it was perfect walking-around-and-window-shopping weather. Sadly, I did not take any photos of State Street or the Pier. Mike did manage to snap a few shots when we stopped along the PCH on our drive back!

 We spotted dolphins (about 7 of them?), just swimming along. Less than 50 feet away from us.

I have to admit. I kinda love my life right now.

(Those are seashells and rocks in my hand, btw.)

Day 104: Waiting to be Blocked: Brand New Day Shawl

I finished the Brand New Day Shawl I started back in mid-May, immediately after Snow White's Breakup Shawlette. 

It's currently soaking in the sink, waiting to be blocked when I get home from a drive/lunch date with an old friend from law school. It's pretty gloomy here, weather-wise, so I'll wait until a sunny day to take pictures of it and the rest of the shawls I've knit for myself. 

I know that today is not the day for it, but I can't wait until I can spend hours at the beach doing this:

Yay for summer free from studying for the bar exam!

Day 90: Backlog of FOs

I realized this morning that I haven't posted much knitting progress on here during the past few months. Needless to say again, I've been a bit preoccupied.

While I haven't been knitting consistently, I have finished and started quite a few projects:

I knit and blocked Snow White's Breakup Shawlette.

And then immediately cast on for my Brand New Day Shawlette. I've got another set of rows to complete before I can start the lace edging.

I also knit some fingerless mitts...

a hat...

and a cute hood for my upcoming road trip with my best friend, Sarah.

Day 77: This just in...

I passed the CA Bar Exam!!!!

Day 75: Rebound Cooking, Knitting, and Dating

It's getting easier to get through the day without thinking about Nick so much.  I'm often distracted with 

Dinners with family:

Cooking dates with new friends:

Recipe from The Smitten Kitchen

 

Reading/preparing for book clubs: 

And lots and lots of knitting. 

Progress on Snow White's Breakup Shawl:

Knitting dates with new friends:

This was his progress after about an hour. Look at that even garter stitch!  

I've also gone on a whole slew of conventional dates with interesting men I have little interest in. Dating is hard, but I know I need to be single right now to focus on myself and the goals I want to accomplish in the coming months. One of those goals is definitely to meet a lot more people here in LA and develop a nice social circle. Can't do that if I don't put myself out there and at least try.

I get my bar results on Friday afternoon at 6pm. Those results will determine the next 6 months of my life... whether I can start looking for jobs or whether I have to sit down, study and take the exam again. At this point, I just want to know the results, either way. The waiting game is just awful.

Day 61: Rebound Dating

I miss Nick. Sometimes I think that I'm romanticizing our relationship and our breakup too much. I try to focus on the negative things about him and our relationship that I didn't enjoy-- trust me, there was plenty. But every time I speak to him on the phone, I feel this overwhelming happiness at the sound of his voice. My body relaxes and I feel like I can breath again. At the end of the conversation, though, I remember that that feeling is just a temporary high and it dissipates as quickly as it arises.

I spent the first few weeks after our breakup vengeance dating. I went to BBQ with Will, watched Love Actually, and How I Met Your Mother. I went out to bars and socialized with people. I made sure to do all the things that I wanted to do, rather than just what the person I'm dating wanted to do.

I've slowed down on that front in the past few weeks. I still see Will, though not with the same frequency or desperation to avoid being alone. He very much wants to be my boyfriend. I have to keep slowing him down and reminding him of the transitional position I am currently in.

I've gone on a few dates in the past weeks (one has developed into a really good friend while the other was a total schmoozer who I am not interested in) and have a couple more lined up for this week (both on the same day, actually). I've unofficially adopted the lines, "cause all these girls they add up to like half of your sum, so if you break my heart, I'll just be having some fun," as my motto during this strange transitional period.

I know that I need to go through this now. I know that good people are coming into my life. I know that I'll meet the right person when I least expect it.

But I hate this waiting! I'm no good at it! I wish I could fast-forward to six months from now when most of this stuff will have sorted itself out.

Recap

I celebrated my 26th birthday with a puppy-shaped cake, courtesy of my parents, and Monday mimosas with my friend, Sarah.

I went dancing in the streets, literally, with my mom to celebrate the Persian New Year.

I then flew to Denver for an ADR conference and to help the SHU DRS team became National Semi-Finalists at the student Representation in Mediation Competition.

My hotel, the Brown Palace Hotel and Spa, was lovely.

I especially loved the glass-stained windows and ceiling.

And even had a chance to walk around a bit on the first day of the conference. I loved this guerrilla knitting I came across, so much so that I had to snap a few pictures.

I also found the best used bookstore I have ever visited in my life. This is essentially what I want my house to look like, with its brick, high ceilings, comfortable furniture, and exposed wood paneling. And of course the bookshelves overflowing with books.

 

I haven't been knitting. I lost the mojo after Nick and I broke up and I haven't had the will power to force myself back into it. I miss him, though I'm not in pain over it anymore. How can I be when I moved 3000 miles away? The key has certainly been getting out there, meeting people, and going out on dates. Still no one special on the horizon, but I am certainly having fun with it.