Hmm…been a while since I’ve written.  What’s been happening?

Well, I finished two projects for two precious babies:

A blanket for my cousin’s new baby girl Katherine.  It is my first real crochet project – yay!

Booties
for Amanda & Philip’s new baby boy Jack.  Jack is still in NICU, so
please say a prayer or two for him and his family if you are the
praying kind!

I am hard at work on a scarf…

…that will be a Christmas present
for someone who lives in a cold place, and can appreciate wool like
Texans can’t.  I’m using PaintBox yarn and it is beautiful, but I’m at
a part in this skein that was apparently poorly spun and keeps
breaking, which is getting frustrating!  This yarn was far too
expensive to be frustrating!  I’m also doing a WarmUpAmerica square /
test swatch for Jennie’s scarf.  She requested Fisherman’s Rib, but I
want her to see an example before it becomes a whole scarf.  I’m also
searching for some perfect handbag patterns for more Xmas presents, and
have found a few good ones.  And, I am anxiously awaiting the arrival
of this:

which I ordered with birthday money from Grandad.

School
sucks, as usual.  My classes are hard and give too much homework, and I
spend too much time in the computer lab.  And yes, I would like some
cheese with my whine, preferably pecorino imported from Pienza.

I went to Michelle’s wedding a few weekends ago, which was very nice.  I have put all the pix I took on my new PicasaWeb (http://picasaweb.google.com/ashley.pagnotta
– it’s a work in progress so check back frequently!) but here are some of the best ones from my camera and Mrs. P’s:  

That’s all the excitingness I can think of for now.  Hope everyone is well!

This is what I do in the computer lab at 4:00am.  It’s the chaotic motion of a damped, nonlinear, driven pendulum.

It is cool, believe me.

Sorry for the lack of updates; I have been ridiculously busy. In trying to tame the busy-ness, I’ve been thinking about my goals for this semester. In some semblance of order, they are:

0) Live in such a way as to embody the fruit of the spirit. “Glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”

1) Make A’s in all my classes. This is going to be hard. I am doing ok in all of my classes so far but is taking a lot of time.

2) Be a great Student Development Exec for Wiley. This is taking far more time than I thought it would, but I don’t want to do a half-ass job.

3) Make a contribution to the community. I plan on doing this by continuing to volunteer as a victim at Disaster City (the most fun volunteer work in the world, ask me how to get involved!), knitting squares for Warm Up America, and helping recruit high schoolers to come to A&M.

4) Have fun with my friends, who I so rarely get to see. Enjoy the little things, like the birds in my backyard and the feel of soft-spun wool wrapped around bamboo needles. Encourage and connect with friends who do not live nearby through both electronic and ‘snail-mail’ means.

5) Score well on the Physics and General GREs. Possibly apply for some National Grad Fellowships. (The more I research them, the more I think I’ll wait til I’m in grad school and then apply.)

6) Take advantage of the unique opportunities that A&M has to offer.

7) Lose 10 pounds. Eat healthier and more environmentally friendly.

I think that’s it for now. I probably won’t be able to write much this semester, but we’ll see. Hopefully I’ll get a proper blog up soon about Disaster City, because it really is awesome, but for now check out the (sadly uncaptioned) pics that are in that link.

In an apparent attempt to sabotage my grades (so I have something to
blame them on besides lack of intelligence, perhaps?), I purchased some
books yesterday evening after Meag’s bday dinner.  I got a chick-lit
short stories collection, Zadie Smith’s new novel (I’m in love after
the Vogue article about her!), and Queen Bees and Wannabees by Rosalind Wiseman.  Now, those of you familiar with the Lindsay Lohan flick Mean Girls
should recognize this last title, because it’s the book the movie was
based on.  I’ve been reading it almost non-stop since getting it, and
it is beyond fascinating.

Middle school was an admittedly shitty time for me.  I know now that
this is pretty standard for all girls, regardless of race,
socioeconomic status, natural beauty, etc.  Wiseman’s book is sort of a
roadmap for parents of adolescent girls, explaining Girl World and
giving parents tools on how to help their daughters make it through
adolescence with as few scars as possible.  Tina Fey picked up a lot of
the terms used in the movie from the book, and many of the stories from
real teens that Wiseman interviewed ended up as scenes in the movie.

The most shocking of these was The Rules.  Gabrielle, 15, wrote about
her group’s rules, and they are nearly verbatim to the rules of the
Plastics: “You can only wear your hair up (like in a ponytail) once a
week.  You can’t wear a tank top two days in a row.  You can only wear
jeans on Friday and that’s also the only time you can wear sneakers. 
If you break any of these rules, you can’t sit with us at lunch.”   
She actually says, regarding why it’s important for existing friends to
‘vote’ on the inclusion of potential new friends, “You may like
someone, but you could be wrong.”  Wow.

The book is awesome, and I recommend it to anyone, with the caveat that
it’s probably best to be at least a few years out of high school and
diconnected from the Regina Georges of your school.  If any one of
y’all would like to borrow it, I’m happy to lend it out after I finish.

***

The Woodlands for Meagan’s birthday was super fun.  Had a great time
playing with her sweet dog and not-so-sweet birdie.  Dinner at
Cheesecake Factory was delish, as always, and we had tons of fun
hitting up Barnes & Noble at 10:30pm on a Friday (we are nerds and
we are ok with that) and then wandering around the riverwalk, feeding
the turtles, fish, and ducks in the pond our CF leftovers.

The football game was also fun today, especially since we destroyed
UL-Lafayette, as expected.  And, although it is rare that I root
against the Big XII in a nationally-watched game, I’m pretty glad that
Ohio State beat Texas.  There are too many Longhorn fans and players
who have been too cocky for my taste lately.

Bedtime now.  Buona notte a tutti! 

*School is good.  And hard.  Really really hard.  And busy.

*Wiley recruitment is going well.  If you go to A&M, you should join Wiley.  It’s the coolest.

*I don’t like the new Facebook facelift.  It is creepy to the max.

*The Ags won on Saturday – whoop!  Hopefully that trend will continue.  The new Jumbotron is sweet, the ribbon boards are not.

*I registered for the Physics GRE.  It makes me want to cry.

*Little Films officially comes out in 10 days!  Yay!  My copy of Big Iron World is waiting at home to be wrapped and I can’t wait to get it.

I think that’s about it! 

All good engagements should include scout socks.

I love the look on Jack’s face in this pic.

The happy couple.

I got called ‘materialistic’ for taking this photo.  Appreciate it.

Our gateway.

With Ry Taylor.  Yep, he’s Rod Taylor’s kid.  I am a groupie.

Some veggies from our garden.

We knit mice.  We are cool.

Rich Cabins according to HH.

I’m back in TX.  I hate humidity.  I miss the mountains already!

Yay!  Jackie and Karl are engaged!

He asked her last night at Beaubien’s campfire and it was wonderful.

I have photos but they are still on my camera…earliest they’ll be up is the 15th but realistically they’ll be up after Gather, so check back later.

Have a great last few weeks of summer y’all!

Alex & I in front of a huuuge train in Pueblo

Rod & Ry Taylor at Beaubien’s Phil-Fiesta

Two photos of Britta, the cutest little homesteader!

I only write new entries every two weeks and even put up a bunch of pictures and nobody even so much as comments.  Sad face.

Currently in Pueblo, CO, with the fam, enjoying air conditioning, flush toilets, and showers.  It is nice. 

Here are some pics from the past few weeks, mostly from the 4th…

Jackie & the Taylor boys…she was a little muddy!

With Heather, one of my PCs

With the one & only Kansas Jack

Ry & Amberley

Mrs. Therivel came to visit – yay!

Some photos.  The fire is out.

Troop 8 Crew

Smoke from Rivera Mesa

My PCs at the Gorge in Taos

With Jackie at the James

Amberley & Jack

Cool sunset over the barn

Our little burrito – he was born May 21!!!  He’s the cutest!

I love y’all!

And yes, Kim, please send me info about that baby blanket program.  You rock.

All of y’all should send me mail!