Cross one off the list

One of the troubles I've been having with finding a job is narrowing down my list - with a whole world of opportunities open to me, it's hard to choose one thing. It's like that book I could do anything if I only knew what it was. That's part of the reason I've signed up with these staffing agencies. It'll give me the opportunity to try out some positions to see how they 'fit' with me. This weekend, I got to 'try out' a new job, and I've found I can definitely cross this one off the list.

I got hired by the temp agency to do a 'cater-waiter' job. You know - you go to a corporate dinner in one of those fancy hotels, or a wedding or fancy party and they have a sit-down dinner served to you at your table. Well, I was one of those people serving you. It opened my eyes to the strength and dexterity this job takes ... both of which I seem to lack. I had two 10-tops, and between the appetizer, salad, entree and dessert, I will say - I didn't drop one dish. .... now silverware, that's another story.

Mike warned me that I probably wouldn't be able to carry a tray with 10 dinners on it, and he was right. I did manage 9 of the salad plates, but only because they weren't double-plated. The hotel matched us up with the regulars, and the woman I was working with set up a system that worked out pretty well. I was in awe watching her. She was small, but strong and so quick! I'd have half of one table cleared, and she'd be half way through her second.
I did alright - no major disasters (except that my lack of speed caused me to get the shaft when they ran out of beef dinners - my table was definitely not happy about that.) We got it all settled, and I made it out of there without too much embarrassment. I just felt weak, and super slow. I was really impressed with the other servers and have a new found respect for the job. But I can also now cross it off my list of employment opportunities to pursue.

On the fiber side, I've finished the 1st fetching and am almost finished with the 2nd. The first one is a bit short around the knuckles, and I'm thinking of lengthening it a few rows. I'm not sure if it's the picot edging that's the problem or what, but I figured I'd deal with that after I finished the second.

Problem is, when I finished the first, I could tell I didn't have enough yarn for a second. I had guessed this might be the case when I started, and I had a backup plan. I had the remainder of a beautiful green hank of Malabrigo that I'd had been thinking of using as an accent, and decided I would just knit one blue out of the Lambs Pride, and one green one from the Malabrigo. Then I could just use what was left over for the picot edging and if I had enough, at the base and around the thumb.

So, as I said, I'm almost done with the 2nd, and although I thought they were a pretty similar weight, but the Malabrigo is bigger than the lambs pride! Not like, 'I knit these with a bigger size needle', but a little thicker and just ... I don't know - longer. I actually like how the Malabrigo fits better, it comes up further on my hand. But I don't have enough of it to make a second either. This is what I get from trying to be thrifty. I may have to visit Knit K before I go. They knit up pretty quickly, and I can probably get a pair done on the 10 hr. ride to KY or the flight to CA but I was hoping to have them done before I left. Not to mention that my left wrist is starting to hurt a bit. I don't know if it's from the cables, or the DPNs or all the work I've been doing on small needles. But perhaps it has nothing to do with knitting at all. Perhaps it's from trying to lift too many dishes on one tray. Perhaps. No matter, I've at least learned on thing I don't want to do - and isn't that one step closer to what I do want to do?