Well, after taking the month of May and first week of June mostly off from job hunting (except for networking, and I ate a *ton* of lunches and dinners with colleagues!), things really got hopping over the last two weeks.  It was like a dam broke somewhere, and I’ve had no less than seven live opportunities with whom I’ve either interviewed or scheduled interviews.  Unfortunately, my first choice decided to put off hiring anyone for the rest of the year.  I met their new GC at a networking happy hour, and we hit it off just fine, but she wants to wait to get a firm handle on things and isn’t sure they really need to hire anyone right now.  We’ll be having lunch later this month, and I’ll definitely keep up with her.  She seems a very nice lady and well worth cultivating as a professional contact and maybe friend.

Fortunately, my (close) second choice came through this morning with a very good offer!  I’ve accepted it as of five minutes ago and will be starting right after I get back from vacation.  What a weight off my mind!  As I’ve discussed with MCC and others, it’s not that I haven’t been very confident of finding the right job.  It’s just that I *hate* the uncertainty that goes along with the whole finding of the right job.  I’m just so relieved at not having to think about it any more that I considered the offer carefully for several hours, making sure that I wasn’t settling for less than I really wanted just in order to have a job.  But, I liked the people quite a lot and they offered me everything I asked for, including the salary, a VP title and three weeks vacation going in (plus the usual benefits).  Yay for me!  This puts a whole new complexion on the whole “budget for vacation” thing!

MCC and I are going out for a celebratory dinner tonight!  One of the best things about the bad times is the good friends who shore you up and encourage you.  I’m so blessed!

MCC and I went to another of the Noisejoy Social Club dinners tonight – the theme was cheese.  As we’ve come to expect, the dinner was excellent.  But the dessert . . . oh my gawd . . . I’m wondering who I have to f**k to get that recipe.  Or, better yet, have it made for me, with that ice cream they served with the crepe.  I don’t put much above chocolate and sex in this life, but that dessert may top both, especially with the port that was served with it.  I want, I want, I want.  (Yes, I’m a little bit drunk, but not enough to not mean it!)  We met another fabulous woman tonight, one who I think may very well end up a friend.  Of course, the fourth person at our table was the exception that proves the rule – absolutely insane.  Or on cocaine.  Or bipolar.  We’re just not sure.  Nonetheless, this particular Meetup group was a wonderful find.

Only eight days until we leave for Scotland – woo hoo!

If you’re ever at loose ends some evening or wondering what to do on an upcoming weekend, you might want to go check out Meetup.com.  It’s a web site where people form “meetups” to do whatever it is that interests them with anyone else who is interested in the same thing.  Tonight MCC and I went to a *fabulous* meetup called the Nosejoy Social Club.  The premise is that this guy who loves food and wine, and who happens to be a chef, cooks a five-course themed meal, and the members bring wines that will complement the meal.  Tonight was Greek food! 

MCC emailed me earlier in the day after she had found this one, and we RSVPed, each grabbed a bottle of wine and showed up at the rendezvous spot.  There is no required fee, although there is an envelope at each table in which you can place cash to reimburse the chef and the servers.  Kind of an honor system.  Apparently this group has been meeting for a number of years.  We sat with a couple of regulars and another new-comer and had a wonderful time.  The food was great with perfect portions sizes, they were generous with the many bottles of wine brought by the members, and the room was loud with conversation. 

We’re going back in two weeks for a “ginger” themed meal (is anyone surprised that MCC is all about this next one?).  This is likely to become my favorite meetup, ranking just in front of the Random Acts of Kindness group (which is the one that does Habitat for Humanity and other stuff).  A chance to meet people, drink good wine and eat great food – how can you turn it down?

Have I mentioned lately that I’m going to Scotland and England next month?  D, O and G, along with J, G and me are spending one week in a cottage in Scotland, two nights in a B&B in York and then another week in a cottage in Shrewsbury (on the Welsh border).  While in Scotland, we’re going to attend an SCA event that is being held very close to the town in which we’ll be staying.  So, today’s adventure was tub dyeing some silk to make a dress for the event.  You can guess the color from the title above!

The silk started out a kinda deep pink color, and I’ve dyed it to a rich red wine.  I think it came out well, but I won’t know for sure until the second washing (it’s doing the first washing now).  I don’t have a top loading washing machine, so I had to dye the silk in a big metal tub.  I’m glad I decided to do it in the garage because there are drops, splishes and splashes of red dye all over the floor.  (I also have an old t-shirt and shorts that have now become my work-around-the-house clothes.) 

I do *not* recommend this method.  Depending on how much fabric you’re dyeing, you need to use about 4 gallons of hot water, 4 cups of non-iodized salt, 1/2 cup of soda ash to fix the color and four tablespoons of fiber-reactive dye.  That’s a hell of a lot of running back and forth from the kitchen with gallons of hot water, mixing the dye with hot water to dissolve it properly, adding the fabric and stirring for half an hour, mixing the soda ash with hot water to dissolve it, adding it to the dye bath over a period of 15 minutes, and stirring the whole mess *constantly* for another hour.  You have to make sure the fabric is taking the dye evenly or you end up with streaks.  Then, you have to dump the water, rinse the fabric several times and plop it in the washing machine.  I hope my grass doesn’t die (no pun intended) from all the red water it just drank.

I have a month to make the dress and a white underdress (out of linen).  Since I’m not all that good a seamstress, I hope that’s enough time!  I do at least have a good pattern, and I’m sure I can talk someone into helping me tweak it once it’s ready for a semi-final and final fitting (oh, MCC, are you out there?).  Wish me luck!