soda, socks, and submissions

1. Soda: So...someone out there who's taken chemistry: is Natriumkarbonat the same thing as regular baking soda? You can get baking powder in Germany, but normally you have to go to a chemist's shop to get actual baking soda. But yesterday I found Natriumkarbonat--"reine Soda"--in the cleaning section, and it appears to do all of the non-food things that baking soda does. (It also comes with a "Reizend!" warning on it, which is on cleaning products and other chemicals.)

(Okay--never mind. It looks like it's a slightly different kind of soda. I'll still clean and deodorize with it, though.)

2. Socks: I think I've finally figured out how to use the multi-needle thing in knitting socks. Hint: you never do knit on the wrong side, so don't try reversing things with each new round unless you WANT a totally different pattern than the directions say.

3. Submissions. I'm waiting on a few more crits that I know some people just got. But I'm hoping to start querying at the end of the month, so if you have any burning complaints about Heron that you think I should take into account, let me know by then.

Otherwise, thank you all very much, and it has been/is a pleasure to get to read your books. Considering the fact that I haven't been to the library this week, I've gotten to read all or part of three different and awesome books (er--and I will get back to you in a timely manner as well with my comments).

Off to read more now--yay!