The Sweatshop of Love Blog

Awake and camped out at New Wave.

My first job ever was working at The Advanced Newspapers. I started when I was 15 filing ads and doing layout and typing for editors and helping the photographers. I got paid $6 an hour for like 15 hours a week during the school year and close to full time for two summers before getting a valet parking job at the Gerald R Ford International Airport. There are only two outstanding life experiences I garnered from The Advance: 1) somehow I managed to have two boyfriends without realizing it, meaning that I cheated on First Ever Boyfriend and Second Ever Boyfriend, setting myself up for a lifetime of dating debauchery. And 2) it was always fucking COLD in that office! I had to dress like it was January every day for two summers, looking like an 85 year old woman right up until I stepped into the office, where I fit in.

I’m flash backing big time right now! In my little skirt and wife beater (for the outside world), and long sleeve t shirt and sweater (for the FROZEN New Wave world). I also accidentally have two boyfriends.

1 – PT:

PT and His BF - Pronto Pup

2) Food:

This Face... All Weekend

Am I drinking tequila with a spoon? Could I be eating some alcohol infused soup? Or a Brandy Alexander?

Regular Old Mint Oreo Blizzard

I love food. I love eating. And I did a lot of it this weekend in Michigan. It had been a few months since I’ve been home so we had to make up for lost time. Grilling, baking cakes and cookies, ice cream. Grilling. More grilling. Smores. You know the drill. It is the most American thing about me, my vegetarian love of grilling every meal in the summer months. My dad, who is about as adventurous as an 87 year old Baptist from Georgia, commented to his coworker, ‘When my daughter comes to town we eat really weird food.’ This time ‘weird’ was fish tacos. Bygones.

Me Beating the Shit Out of My Brother Adam

I hung with my bros, we went to the drive in, we played bocce ball and bean bags until our arms were sore. Mine still is, honestly. But now we are back to the daily grind. You know, afternoons spent at New Wave blogging. GRIND.

But this week grind is going to include reading all 356 tiny print pages of Loving Frank, which just came in, before Monday’s Knitting Book Club. Yikes. I finished The Hours this morning and was left feeling appropriotly depressed, which means the book was good, right? Loving Frank better be a page turner or I’m going to be unprepared for my own book club. Talk about embarassing.

View From My Outside Desk

Eat your heart out, New Wave. Actually, don’t, because I will be seeing you in like 4 hours. Actually, I don’t even know what ‘eat your heart out’ means. Bygons.

I set up the card table on the porch and, as you can see, I’m enjoying a big salad, the sunshine, the fresh air, and working! Right now all I can thinking about is the Peanut Butter Cup and Mocha Almond Fudge ice cream in my freezer that wouldn’t be a temptation if I were at New Wave, but still. There isn’t a cloud in the sky. I’m rocking my outfit of choice this summer, the wife beater/skirt combo, and feeling good.

Ok I just got some ice cream.

Sock at the Sox's Game

Last night Mother Nature appologized to us about the last two games we tried to go to by handing us the nicest baseball night yet. It was so warm I got a waffel cone. My hands didn’t need to be hidden away in mittens so I turned the heel on my second sock.

Sad Boys

The Twins did not have a good night. PT’s face says it all.

(Yes, the Tigers won. I know that is what you were really concerned about.)

Despite the loss, the anti Detroit sentiment (so I wore my Tigers shirt! Whatevs), we had a great night. Anytime you can see a ballgame without getting wet/hypothermia, it is a great time.

I feel like I haven’t taught in a long time! Group class tonight, then Pattern Reading 101 tomorrow night, then we are off to Michigan for the Memorial Day weekend. My mom is texting me up a storm, my grandpa already has our Friday planned, starting off with a big breakfast at The Peppermill, followed by baking. Snickerdoodles and carrot cake, to be exact. The forecast is looking great for little Allendale; upper 60s, lower 70s and sunny through Monday, which is what we need considering we will be residing in a tent in the front yard. But, anytime you can sleep in a tent without getting wet/hypothermia, it is a great time.

That said, Allendale=dial up internet connection=no Allyson till next week. My goals for the weekend? Finish sock, finish The Hours, the Tigers at 25/18, gain 4 pounds. I can do it!

Have a great long weekend, blog friends.

In an effort to be more productive this afternoon/not be depressed, I’ve decided to get out. I don’t know what the deal is lately; I get home from work between 1:10-1:30, make some lunch, do some cooking, sit to do some work on my computer and at 3:30-4:00 I hit a wall. Why am I sitting at home? Why aren’t I a) working a real job? b) trying harder to be a real person? c) at least cleaning the bathroom? d) standing on a street corner begging for students? e) being MORE.

The funny thing is that I do a lot. I never turn the tv on in the afternoons unless there is a baseball game to watch. I’m pretty dedicated to this blog, I do a lot of writing and reading and cooking. I plan classes and write patterns. I’m not sitting watching Maury. I guess when you are kind of self employed not feeling like you do enough comes with the territory. I could always be doing more. There are always things I mean to do but still don’t get around to, even with all the time I have to do everything. I think everyone feels that way, though.

So, here I am at New Wave Coffee, where I teach most of my classes. It is good to be with people and not just with the cats (sorry Pudge and Velma). It is good to have an excuse to keep my clothes on. And it is good to have an excuse to sit at a table, at the computer, a notebook open next to me, my planner open next to me, and feel on the ball.

Busy New Wave!

Feeling pretty pretentious, though. PT let me borrow his fancy new Mac because my old lady doesn’t have wireless internet connection, so I’m sitting here with PT’s Mac, listening to my Ipod, however old and refurbished, blogging. The only thing missing is my black rimmed glasses, Threadless t-shirt, and pink leggings. My friend Nomi came in a bit ago and we are sharing a table out of necessity; I was lucky enough to snag this table just as someone was leaving. She spotted the Mac and grazed it lovingly with her hand.

“Oh is this the new one? Its so nice.”

“Oh it isn’t mine!” I was quick to point out. “It is Pat Tracy’s. He let me borrow it.”

“Wow,” she awed. “He must really like you.”

Seriously. Only 1% of all laptop owners have Macs, which I find hard to believe considering I look around New Wave and all I see are Macs. I can safely say I will never own one, I’m just not that high of a roller. I hope to always be dating a boy with one, though.

PT's Mussels

Thanks to Mark Bittman, PT and I made this amazing meal last night. Mussels and homemade linguine in spicy garlic sauce. We pretty much just made the recipe up, but if it hadn’t been for Mark, we would have just eaten out of the fridge. Mussels are only like $2.99 a pound! Who knew? This was one of the most expensive meals we have ever made, and it cost under $8 for both of us, and PT’s lunch today.

So, here I am at New Wave. I’ve emailed everyone that needs to be emailed. I’ve written this blog. Now for the real work. I’m writing a book. That is right. I’m sitting in a coffee shop, writing a book on my boyfriend’s fancy Mac. GOD. If the 15 year old Allyson could see me right now, all skinny and cool. The 15 year old Allyson, still 180 pounds and zitty, never having had a boyfriend, living in the woods of Allendale, MI, would lose her shit.