i might be wrong

CIMG4040.jpg, originally uploaded by digitaltammi.

I was going through my yarn stash, taking pictures and cataloging on Ravelry and I found this scarf. I had completely forgotten about it. It was in my big yarn basket buried at the very bottom. Really, that's no way to treat cashmere. I can't remember what brand of yarn this is (maybe Art Yarns) but I do remember that it is 5-ply cashmere and it costs $45 a skein. I bought it at Knit NY as a total impulse buy. Now that I've found this soft and lovely scarf, I plan to finish it... if I can find the pattern, that is. I have no idea where it is, the basement maybe?

So far, I've finished 2 other items. The fingerless gloves and the Chevron Scarf for Pat. I'll post pics later. Right now, I'm happy to cross them off the UFO list.

Of course I was not able to keep my vow of not starting a new project before finishing 3 unfinished ones. Last night I was thumbing through Twinkle's Big City Knits and took a good look at the Twinkle Hoodie. I went right over to the bulky yarn stash and pulled out a chocolate brown skein of Lana Grande. Before I knew it, I had a sleeve. I had enough restraint to leave the sleeve and go back to the fingerless mittens. But you know, technically, I did finish 2 sweaters... the knitting of the sweaters is done, I just need to sew on sleeves. I've said before, I am bad at this. But that is about to change. I am taking a finishing class at Purl in a couple of weeks, after which I expect to be an expert at mattress and kitchener stitch. And sweaters will no longer be intimidating.

Awhile ago, Clay and I found, what we thought, was the perfect place to have our wedding. We saw the place a couple of times and it's beautiful. It's a 10,000 square foot loft in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. It's sunny and bright and it's got skylights and 2 rooms which would be great for the ceremony and the reception. After a couple of weeks of trying to get the owners to send me a contract so I could hand over the deposit, today I learned that they don't want to take our deposit yet because THEY MAY NOT BE ALLOWING WEDDINGS AND OTHER EVENTS TO TAKE PLACE IN THE SPACE ANYMORE!

Apparently, they had a wedding in the space recently and someone got drunk. The drunkard ended up hurting himself really badly and may sue the loft owner and the building. The building may not allow them to have events anymore if they get sued.

Needless to say, this is terrible news. We love the space. It is perfect for our wedding and the amount of people we're inviting. I was happy to have this crossed of the list of things to do. Now, we may have to go back to square one. They said I should call back next week and they'll know for sure if they'll be allowed to rent the space for events. I really hope we can still have our wedding there. My heart was sort of set on it. We wanted to get married next year on November 22nd. We still have time to find another place if we have to, but really, this is NY and some of the places we were looking at were already booked for next year. This sucks.

Chevron Scarf in a Bow, originally uploaded by digitaltammi.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the Chevron Scarf for Pat is finished. This is how I presented it to her. I made the icord out of some leftover merino and tied it in a bow. She liked it! I hope it provides her with a little comfort in the months ahead. Get well, Pat.

My First KnitPicks, originally uploaded by digitaltammi.

Yeah, I'm late. imgtimeline me if you wish. I only just found out about KnitPicks through Ravelry. Then I saw an ad on the site publicizing their current yarn sale. I can't believe the bargain I got. I bought enough yarn for 2 projects, Muir and Tree Jacket, and it only cost $50! And it's good quality yarn, too. I can't wait to knit this stuff up. And since I already broke my vow there's no stopping me.

CIMG4095.JPG, originally uploaded by digitaltammi.

Yeah. It's nearly here. After training for months the day I've been waiting for is almost here. Although I've been training, I have to admit to some mild nerves. I'm sure it'll be fine.

Last week I went to Philly to run the end of the course. When I walked out of the hotel there was a man dressed in running clothes, stretching and looking at his Garmin. I asked if he was running the marathon and he said yes. Turns out he's from New York (upper east side), too and since he was in Philly on business he decided to run the end of the course. We ran together and were well matched. He was really great to run with. My Garmin wasn't working and neither was my Nike+, but his worked and he said we were at about 9:45 pace. We chatted and shared race day strategy. He told me his mantra is "Don't be an idiot". I love that and you can bet I'm going to use it out there on Sunday morning.

What makes this even more special is the crew of friends and family who are coming to Philadelphia to support me. Clay, of course, will be there. He always comes out for the big races and I love him for it. Also Clay's mom Sonia, Clay's aunt Andrea and maybe Clay's sister
Sheena. Dorla and Kevin will be there as will three good friends from work who are also marathoners, though none have run this year. Kim's run 8 marathons and is taking time off due to injury. Abbey and Deb have both run the NYC Marathon once. Abbey says they're coming because for her it's "passing the torch". I'd better stop writing about this now because I am getting a little teary eyed. It's just so friggin nice of them.

I sort of know a couple of people running this one. Good luck, Ken from the Upper East Side, my running partner from last weekend. Good luck to Jian my fellow Powered By Dim Sum team member whom I've never met. Good luck Guy from the Road Runners who missed the NY Marathon lottery and signed up for Philly in anger like me. Let's go kick some ass!

IMG_2436, originally uploaded by ultraclay!.

Yep, that's the back of me (in the blue jacket), coming into the finish line. Today I can say eat my dust to the girl in black behind me. Yesterday, I was unable to form a sentence that didn't include the words "Oh" and "Shit". That's what i said over and over again after I crossed the finish line. I said it to myself. I said it to the girl in black before I gave her a hug. I said it to the woman who put the medal around my neck. I even said it to my future mother-in-law.

I could not have run 26.2 miles without the support and love of Clay. I mean, he was there with me from the beginning. He supported me and made me get out of bed to run on cold weekend mornings when I didn't feel like it. He fed me good food and loved me even when I was surly and bitchy. He yelled "WOO!" when he saw me at Mile 7. That "WOO" made me smile all the way to Mile 13 when I saw him again. Clay yelling "WOO" is funny to me. I love Clay.

And then there was Sonia, Clay's Mom, Andrea, Clay's Aunt and Sheena, Clay's sister. They came in from New York, stood in the cold and rain to cheer me on. They walked 6.7 miles yesterday to catch me at points along the course. They say they had a good time doing it. I love those people. At Mile 13, they all yelled for me in unison telling me to "Go" and that I can do it. A woman who was running near me said, "That was awesome. Go Tammi!" I smiled and told her, "I love those people. Each and every one of them. They are awesome."

And Dorla and Kevin were there, too. They too, got up early in the morning, braving the cold and the rain and the wind, walked 6.7 miles, all to cheer me on along the course. I will never forget coming up Chestnut Street and spotting Dorla's bright green ski jacket. I saw her and ran right for her to give her a big hug. She looked so happy. I was so focused on her and the family that I missed giving Kevin his hug, but I couldn't leave him out. I ran back to squeeze him and then I could go. That was at Mile 7. They were there at Mile 13, too yelling "Go Tammi". Dorla ran along and we waved at each other. She had the biggest smile on her face. That carried me to happily to Mile 14 where, to my surprise 3 of my co-workers were waiting for me.

I knew they were coming but I thought I'd see them at Mile 15 or so. They saw me before I saw them. They had signs! It was awesome. I stopped and chatted with them for a bit. Abbey, Kim and Debra have all run marathons before so they're first question was, "How do you feel."

"I feel great," I told them. I was all smiles. I was so happy and I felt really strong. I felt like I could get the thing done and I was kicking ass. They snapped some pictures and told me to go, so I went.

I was running along feeling fine until the wall jumped out at me at Mile 21. I crashed into it but dug into the Gu reserves and soldiered on. Miles 21 to 23 were the hardest 2 miles I've ever run in my life. I walked part of 21 and part of 23. They were long and lonely and endless. But I made it through. By the time I got to Mile 25, there like angels, were Kim, Deb and Abbey again. They yelled "Go Tammi" I yelled "It hurts". Kim yelled, "I know." That made me laugh and gave me the strength to go on.

I only had to go about a half mile more and there was Kevin! He was scouting out to see how far away I was. Another angel who gave me strength to keep going. To keep running and not to stop and walk. "You can do a mile and a half more," I kept telling myself. The end of the course was a nasty uphill. I grunted up the hill and cursed and told myself to keep going. I could see the finish line. I really was almost there. Once I got up that hill, I saw the family again. They looked happy and excited and that got me happy and excited. It gave me the power I needed to pick it up a little and finish the damned thing. And I did it! I finished my first marathon. And yes, I do want to run another one and I will!

And you know what else? I came in to work to find my office decorated with balloons, flowers, candy, a new plant, and signs congratulating me. When I came in, Abbey played the theme from Rocky. I feel like I won.

26.2 in 4:36:58 - Not bad for my first time.

Thanks for the pictures, babe.