The leaves were glorious on my 100-mile drive to my lesson, and the weather was wonderful. We get the same today, with better weather, and again I have to drive 75 miles on the same route for this audition (it's a house audition, for a company I've sung with before, but I've never actually sung for the artistic director as I will tonight). I'm glad I've taken off for tomorrow, so I can enjoy our last day of the year (ostensibly) in the mid-seventies. I have to find a cafe that isn't in a strip mall! I want to look at trees while I knit and enjoy a latte. Ooh, one of those pumpkin-flavored ones...

(For those of you who don't know: I have a part-time day job, and theoretically work part-time on singing--practicing, lessons, auditions, traveling, translating, listening to recordings, rehearsals all should be allotted 20 hours a week on average. I usually take a day off every week to concentrate on singing. Also, I try to sleep in past 9 A.M., which is actually important for my singing as well as my sanity.)

Still totally stoked about Tuesday night. The first time I hooted was when they called Pennsylvania--really McCain's last chance to win--and then again when they called Ohio. Then I did the math. Eleven o'clock was still such an amazing, jubilant moment. And it was quite lovely to hear it in Keith Olbermann's sexy, stentorian voice. (Yes, I kinda have it bad for him. I even have this fantasy where I run into him in the Starbucks in Grand Central--during audition season I always stop there and get a peppermint hot chocolate before I catch my train back upstate--and he takes me out for a steak dinner. Et cetera. Mark is not too keen on my having a TV boyfriend, but we still have to watch Countdown anyway...)

In fiber news, I have actually broken down and decided to make some gifts. But they're all simple, quick things that I want to make--cowls, mug cozies, dishcloths, maybe a little scarf or two for someone special. And I'm trying to use up the novelty stuff I've collected, with varying degrees of success. When I need a break I work on the Monkeys--and also, remember my Estonian stole? I started working on it again last week, and I've finally finished the first part. I am still no fan of nupps, and am glad I won't have to do any more until the very end. The cable needle I had is about the same size as a size 6 needle anyway, so it really made no difference; I ended up just doing them the conventional way, being very careful. My forearms are still sore. Bleck. Luckily, the 70% alpaca doesn't bother me nearly as much as 100% alpaca--maybe it's a mild allergy after all...