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I finally had the bad vertigo reaction late last week and have been feeling mostly better since. I worked Tuesday and Wednesday but needed naps both afternoons when I got home which makes it hard to sleep at night which is what I think led to some vertigo this morning and missing work. It drives me crazy, it’s like I start to feel better and I want to go back to the way things were right away but I’m realizing I may need to pace myself more and figure out something to keep me in a good sleep schedule. Blogging at midnight definitely is not going to be part of that schedule. But I finally feel a bit better and I’m awake so I thought I’d post.

I made pretty lace sachets stuffed with lovely-scented rose petals for my mom and grandmother for Mother’s Day. I even sewed up the little inside bags and made the cord myself. Plus the roses were from my stash of flowers I dried years ago. I love knitting lace and cotton is perfect for it!

Here is the finished blocked lace:

and a close up of the pattern:

and the inside fabric and cord:

and the finished sachets:

I was quite pleased with them and Mom and Mema loved them and especially loved that I made them.

Tags: Knitting, Meniere's by Annie
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I’m still sick, had a second gentamicin injection on Monday (the 7th). Waiting for the nasty stuff to really kick in although this week hasn’t been much fun. I’m done with school which is kind of unbelievable and hasn’t quite sunk in yet. If I had attended my graduation, it would have been on Friday the 11th. So I’m officially a graduate, officially done with my Masters, officially a librarian. It is so nice to have that weight off my shoulders.

So what does a sick gal stuck at home do? Knit of course. And listen to lots of Harry Potter. I just finished listening to the 6th one and don’t know what I’m going to listen to next. I finished Julia’s Bag and it turned out great:

zipper and strap:

and a pocket on the inside:

And Julia liked it so that’s what matters. I’m realizing I should get myself a basic sewing machine. Just for sewing on zippers and such.

A few weeks ago I wanted to try out Log Cabin knitting as made popular in Mason-Dixon Knitting by Kay Gardiner and Ann Meador Shayne because I’m thinking about doing a baby blanket in that style this summer. So I grabbed some leftover yarn from another project and it turned out well enough. It’s just two colors so the Log Cabin isn’t as clear as it could be but I got a feel for how to work it evenly. And I ended up with a big rectangle. I let it sit on the table for a few days while I tried to decide what to do with this lovely, soft rectangle. And I decided to make it into a hand towel for our bathroom. So I got out my copy of The Knitter’s Bible by Claire Crompton and used the tiny bits of yarn I had left to make two little I-cords and sewed them on as handles. It’s not very tidy or well done but it served its purpose and its a decent hand towel!

I finished my Yellowstone Socks: and they are lovely and warm and fit perfectly. I had to knit the second one on needles one size smaller to get them to come out the same. Apparently I’m not great at making two things of the same size. But I’m in love with sock knitting. The yarn is Mountain Colors Hand Painted Yarns - Bearfoot inthe colorway “Yellowstone.”

Thanks to all who advised on the Camo Sweater sleeves, I decided to leave it as it was and the second one did in fact match. The sweater is nearly done, I just need to sew up the underarm seams, knit the collar, weave in ends and block it then I’ll post some pics.

I’ve been working on Mother’s Day gifts and a graduation gift for my sister so those are top priority right now as they would ideally both have been done by now. But I felt the need to update. I fiddled around with my blog layout a bit and I think I like it better, it’s a bit more streamlined.

Tags: Knitting, Meniere's, School, Tech by Annie
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More vertigo the last few days, hopefully this is the reaction to the Gentamicin and I’ll be feeling better soon. In the meantime about all I’ve been able to do is sleep and listen to audiobooks and knit. I finished the fourth Harry Potter last night and am waiting on the fifth to come in at the library.

The bag I’m making for my sister is nearly done. The pattern is Candy Stripers Messenger/Laptop Bag from Stitch ‘n Bitch Nation by Heather Dixon and the yarn is Cascade Yarns: Cascade 220 Wool.

Pre-felting:

Post-felting:

My first felting experience went well! I sewed up the strap but haven’t been able to finish it up yet because I need to get a zipper for the top and I haven’t left the house in more than a week. I’ll post a picture of the finished bag when it’s done. More knitting stuff in another post soon…

Tags: Knitting, Meniere's by Annie
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I had the gentamicin injection this past Monday (the 23rd). That new ear tube I had put in a month ago? According to my doctor my ear drum “was spitting it back out.” And then he said something to the effect that my ear drum scares him, lol. So he pulled the tube out and there was still an opening to do the injection through. All that stuff where they say it is relatively painless? Yeah, they lie.

According to my doctor and some of the articles I’ve read, the bad reaction vertigo often doesn’t hit right away. My doctor said that his patients usually are okay for 7-10 days when the bad stuff hits and then lasts a few days. Some doctors think the cells are initially stunned and take a while to react, some doctors think it takes that long for the gentamicin to soak through and circulate through the inner ear. In any case, I’m on day 5 and the worst I felt was Monday night and that was mostly the pain from the treatment. I think I feel worse than I have the past few weeks, but I definitely haven’t had that big reaction vertigo yet. It’s like there is this time bomb inside me and I don’t know when it will go off. I want it to go off so I know the treatment works and I don’t have to have it again.

In the meantime I passed comps and am putting the finishing touches on my final project for the Flash class. It’s just sort of now starting to sink in that I’m almost done with school. I mean, really, totally done. Not three weeks to relax and it starts all over again, but done forever! Just think of all the things I’ll be able to do without school constantly hanging over my head.

I’ve done plenty of knitting when I’ve been too sick to do much else so I’ll post about that soon. Now, off to finish my project before this time bomb goes off.

Tags: Meniere's, School by Annie
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So where have I been? Doing research on two very different topics: library science and inner ear surgery. I just completed hell week, also known as Comprehensive Exams. Four research papers on current issues in library and information science and technology, each coming in around 6 pages long (that was the limit — as one classmate put it, when did it get harder to write shorter papers than longer ones?). I think Comps are outdated and have become pointless, especially with the way our degree is obtained these days but that’s a whole ‘nother story.

But they’re done now so all I have left between me and my degree is my final project for my flash class which is FUN, unlike writing research papers. And honestly, comps probably wouldn’t have been so hellish if I hadn’t been battling Meniere’s symptoms all week. And I mean big time symptoms. Vertigo nearly every day. Mild compared to what I’ve experienced in the past but enough to keep me in bed and unable to tolerate light or sound most of the day. Massive fatigue. Terrible fullness in my ear causing headaches, neckaches, shoulderaches, and on one occasion, a migraine. I made it to work one day and I had to leave early. My boss is so understanding and sympathetic and I know that this past week was probably particularly bad because of the stress of comps. But enough is enough.

I’ll be curious to see how this next, relatively low-stress week goes for me health wise. But the last few weeks have pushed me on to the next step: Gentamicin injections. Yup, I’m ready for it and now that I’ve done plenty of research on it and especially read up on recent studies, I’m very encouraged about the chance to have total control of vertigo. The downside? 7-10 days of vertigo as a reaction to the treatment, although it is actually a good sign because it means the poison is getting in there and killing the little damaged hair cells and my brain is reacting and learning to depend more on my good ear for balance. That’s the best un-medicalese definition I can give but if you want to know more about Gent treatments for Meniere’s Disease, I really like this doctor’s website: http://dizziness-and-balance.com/treatment/ttg.html

The sweater. Decision was to stay with 160 stitches and go down a needle size and measure more often. But that got put on the back burner because yesterday was my little sister’s birthday and she picked out the laptop messenger bag from Stitch ‘n Bitch Nation for me to make for her. She picked out her colors and I’ve been working on it here and there when I’ve had down time or been unable to do anything else. Health and comps prevented me from getting it done on time but it’s nearly there, just some finishing touches needed and then the felting. I’ve never done felting before and it’s a bit frightening but I’m sure I’ll survive. I just hope the bag does too. I’ll take pictures soon and post, hopefully pre and post felting. The sweater will be picked up again soon.

Oh, by the way, my first gentamicin injection will be the 23rd, a week from tomorrow. I’m taking the week off work in anticipation of the vertigo. I’m stocking up on audiobooks and knitting projects for when I’m too ill to do anything else. I’m starting to listen to the Harry Potter books. I’ve made a habit of re-reading the previous ones before a new one comes out. This time I decided I’ll listen to the first six before I read the seventh one which will be out in a few months. Good books I’ve read (or listened to) recently but am too lazy, tired, and sick to blog about:

The Emperor’s Children, by Claire Messud

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury

Lucky, by Susan Patron

Two thumbs up for all of them but I’ll blog about them later. It’s nice to have a bit of time to blog. Sorry to my audio fans, I haven’t been able to record with the time constraints and super-sensitive ear but hopefully I’ll get a chapter or two done this week. Now that comps are in the past, it seems like I finally have time to do things I want to do. If only I felt well enough to do them all. Hence the Gentamicin injections. Wish me luck.

Tags: Books, Knitting, Meniere's, Podcast, School by Annie
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