Winter Blues

Do you know what I hate most about winter? It's not the freezing cold days, or the ice or the snow. It's not the lack of daylight. It's not the nights when I'm so cold I can't sleep, when I can't get warm unless I run my hands under steaming hot water for a full minute. No, it's days like today. Mild, sunny days that mimic early spring. We get a few--sometimes one a week--quickly followed by another cold snap. It's cruel! It's like showing a child a puppy and then taking it away.

Fortunately, January is passing quickly for me this year. I'm completely preoccupied with thoughts of my upcoming trip and all of the things I need to do to get ready for it. I'm crossing my fingers that the weather will be sunny and warm while I'm in Italy this time.

Knitting-wise, I'm speeding through another bear. This one's for me. I'm using O-Wool Balance, a 50/50 blend of organic cotton and wool, in a nice brown tweed. It's a worsted weight, so he's bigger than the last one, and I'm overstuffing him so that the body is firm, not squishy. I'm almost done with the second leg. Next up, I'll be knitting a pair of Saartje's Bootees. Not for anyone in particular; I just want to use up all of the extra Malabrigo I've got leftover from the socks I just finished. Today I bought some purple wooden buttons, which I think will look really nice next to the purple wool:

Last week I put in for a schedule change at work. Tomorrow I'll find out if I got it, and if I did, it'll start on Saturday. It's the kind of radical change I need to snap me out of the winter blues. Also I'm thinking about getting my hair cut like this again. Thoughts?