Protecting your iPod With a Little Ingenuity

Recently my daughter (Sarah) became the recipient of an iPod and requested that I knit her an iPod sock for some added protection. Considering its small size, this seemed like a fairly simple undertaking - - something I could create with some leftover yarn.

Since Sarah attends college in another state, the greater challenge was determining the appropriate measurements. So began my search. I was able to find a picture of an iPod Sock (sold by Apple) online, helping me to understand her specific request. From there I was amazed by the number of sites offering instructions for creating a handmade iPod sock. Well, sort of amazed. The truth is, nearly everything seems to be on the internet. Often it is more a matter of reminding ourselves to search.

Now the fun part. Here are a few of the terrific sites I located. There are plenty more, so you may want to perform your own online search.

Perhaps one of the most obvious sites to check would have been a yarn company. Lion Brand Yarn, of course, offers a pattern for knitting an iPod Sock. Check their site for the Free Knitting Pattern for an iPod Sock, for beginners. You may need to register.

Instructables.com offers many different sets of directions for making iPod cases. Check out this one, Yet Another iPod Case, and also consider some additional options in the right hand column. There are even instructions for the creation of a case for other electronics, such as your PDA and camera.

Lastly, blogger Suw Charman requested that her "mum" knit her an iPod sock. The knitting instructions are provided on her blog, Chocolate and Vodka::DIY iPod socks. Kudos to Suw for suggesting that her "mum" add a pocket for storing the earphones. How simple and clever!

In the end, I decided not to knit the sock. This winter I lost one of my favorite gloves. Sarah has always eyed that particular pair of gloves. Taking my inspiration from these other sites, instead I chose to make use of the one lonely glove and remove the fingers to remake the glove into an iPod Sock. I remodeled the remaining yarn from the fingers into the earphone case. I have to say, it's really pretty cute. It may need a little tweaking once Sarah is home for spring break with her iPod in tow, but that should be an easy fix.


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Mom

It Is Practically a Forbidden Word

In our house, it is lovingly referred to as the "G" word (shhhh......don't let my daughter see that I am mentioning it in my blog today - - so sorry, Sarah!). Any guesses? G-R-A-D-U-A-T-I-O-N! It’s not that it isn't something to be proud of, something you have been aiming for these past four years, something very exciting and memorable, something worth celebrating! It is all of those and more, but without belaboring the point, graduation can be mixed with the bittersweet of leaving the familiar behind: the comfort of a college you love, the place you call home, surrounded by the friendships you adore and depend upon daily, the opportunity to continually try new courses and new extra curricular activities, all on “CST” (college standard time). Certainly it is hard to let go of a good thing.

Making this transitional time even more challenging is the big question: what next? And then there is an even bigger question: what to do next when the state of the economy is at odds with job hunting. There are a lot of big questions and not a lot of easy answers. However, do not despair; you have a lot in your favor. You are young and resilient, and your first opportunity will certainly not be your last. This will just be one stepping stone to your future - - a bright one.

This is a huge topic, with many subtopics. Having a senior in college, I have done more than my fair share of reading up on the issues. Over the next few weeks I will continue to address this big next step in some of my postings.

In the meantime, check out this recent article in the Boston Globe, by Christin Bolzan, entitled “Who will hire the Class of 2009?” The author puts a relatively positive spin on this somewhat daunting task. Your homework for today: give it a quick glance. It offers some great practical ideas for a variety of majors.

It took you time to find your niche in college. A new and equally promising niche awaits you. It will happen. Most importantly, keep that positive attitude and keep moving forward! There is life after college.