One Last Shot

I know, posting again already? Well, I'd like to keep you all a bit more up to date this year.

I finally posted the pattern for my mittens on Rav. I've made so many from this pattern- not just the ones from the last post. I must have made 6 or 7 pairs of mittens from this general pattern, so it's great to have it written down.
I'm so pleased all the sizing worked, too. I made every size except the women's small this Christmas as presents, and they all fit wonderfully. Yay!

I love how they look with simple stripes. I need to make another pair in a chunkier wool as a layering mitt for days like today when it was freezing cold.
Anyway, it's here: Simple Slip Stitch Mittens.
I have a few more patterns that are very close to ready for publishing. One of them I just need to do a gauge swatch for (a cowl), one I need to finish the sample (a cape), one is part of my sockies e-book and the other is a secret project I need to slightly rework. Once it's reworked, I'd like to send it off to some magazines for consideration- how exciting!

 Here's a peek at it.

I've been immersed in period dramas the last few days. I've watched through all of North and South, rewatched Anne of Green Gables for the millionth time, watched an episode of Buccaneers and watched one of the many versions of Jane Eyre. It's been a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoyed North and South, and Jane Eyre surprised me. I've never experienced any of the Bronte sisters except for Wuthering Heights, which I disliked. Jane Eyre is a much different story, and I'm partway into the book now and really enjoying it. It seems I dismissed Charlotte Bronte too soon!
Now I'm getting my hands on more versions of Jane Eyre, and planning on borrowing the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice from my Kate manager. I also have some Dickens and Jane Austen on my shelves to delve into.
It's fun to be a million miles away in an entirely different time- and even more fun to come back to reality in my warm, cozy modern home with my yummy fibres and all my indulgent modern amenities.

As for the title of the post, my one last shot is about my career. I haven't had any luck, with the exception of my two wee little 4 month contracts, in getting any work related to my field since I left school. My career isn't stalled- it never started in the first place. I have gone through so many rounds of sending out my work and never hearing back and I was just about ready to quit and try to find a new career. But having no particular talent in anything I could earn a living from (oh, how I wish crochet could be a career for me!) and no particular ambitions other than animation, I haven't really gotten anywhere with that train of thought.
And so I've decided to do a new piece for my demo reel, tidy the rest of it up and give it one more shot to try and start my career. I'm not sure how I feel about it. Animation is filled with tiny contracts and short stints and trouble finding work, and even if I get one job I may never get another. I need some direction, though, and I need a real career job. So I'm going to give it one more good, thorough try before I give up for something else.
Wish me luck, I'll need it.