The Last Day

Whew! I did it! A post a day for the month of November. And I have to admit, I found it easier than posting less frequently. I doubt I will continue to post daily, but I hope to post on a more regular basis.

I don't usually knit specifically for xmas or birthdays. When an item is done, it goes to the recipient right away. But I am working on a surprise xmas project. Shh! It's a secret!

Both heel flaps are finished on the Trekking socks. Today at lunch I plan to turn me some heels. Another inch was knit on the red-red-red sweater last night. If I average one stitch a second, one inch of sweater should take about 20 minutes. But some time is lost shifting stitches around the needles and pulling yarn out of the skein and petting HipHop on demand, so somehow it takes more like 60 minutes. That doesn't seem right.

My final wish: happy holidays for all.

P.S. When I arrived home last night, I saw the hose from my outdoor faucet to my neighbor's garage was gone. They are now on city water, too!

I Hate the Mall

I can't even remember the last time I was at the mall, but last night I was reminded on why I don't shop there. After sitting in my cube-shaped sensory deprivation chamber all day, the mall feels like a huge dose of sensory overload. And when did watch batteries get so expensive? And how in the world can one find a pair of wool pants amongst the racks and racks of women's clothing? And where did all these strange stores come from? It was overwhelming.

So I went home and furiously knit an inch on my sweater. Now that I sit in the coldest cubicle in the building, I have become aware that most of my sweaters are made of cotton. I need wool!

Today it is really windy, bitter gusts up to 35 mph. I wish we had better winter weather, and by "better winter weather" I mean less wind and more snow, and by "more snow" I mean enough snow that I can cross country ski more than two or three times a year.

It's Started

Last night I cast on the body of the red-red-red sweater - twice. Actually, twice is good, as it is not unusual for me to make at least three CO's before I am satisfied. I almost always use a long tail cast on, and am usually fairly accurate on estimating the amount of yarn required for the long tail, but last night the first CO fell short by inches. So I undid my work, added another foot to the long tail, cast on again, and now I have an extra 2 feet of tail. Go figure. The lace stitch up the front is called "snowdrop" but I don't really see it. I picked this stitch because it easily straddles the front of the sweater and it involves no purl stitches. I timed how long it takes me to knit 190 stitches - between 7 and 10 minutes. So, if I work on the sweater for an hour each night, I may be up to the armpit in about two weeks. Hmmm.

Now that I am knitting a sweater, I am getting more interested in knitting sweaters in general. For my next one, I would like to do a bulky Aran style sweater. I think. I'm researching patterns.

And speaking of patterns, unless I buy a book of patterns (rare because we have a really great library system here), I usually limit myself to free patterns I find on the Internet. But I have been looking for an interesting lace shawl I can knit using one skein of fingerling weight yarn, without much success... until I visited Spritely Goods where there is this lovely shawl pattern for sale. I talked myself out of the $230 boots, but I think I can afford $6 for this pattern... if I don't weaken and buy some of the handpainted yarn, too.

And then there are the new Harmony Guides, from Interweave. Fortunately, these are on order at my local library, so I can try before I buy.

I wish I could retire early, so I could spend more time doing the things I love.

I'm still meditating on a New Year's resolution. I'm trying to identify something that, were I to find myself on my death bed tomorrow, I would be wishing I had done today.

I Hate Earbuds

It is so quiet up here on the second floor that I have resorted to listening to music over the Internet. My fave station WUMB is blocked by The Powers That Be, but I found some innocuous jazz on Yahoo Radio. I just wish the @#$%&*! earbuds would stay in my ears. I can be sitting perfectly still, barely breathing, and they still fall out. Maybe a little Duck Tape would help - you can fix anything with Duck Tape!

I am ready to begin the body of the red-red-red sweater. Time to cast on 190 stitches. Gulp! Again, in the interest of preventing death by stockinette boredom, I will do some kind of lace stitch up the front.

Today at lunch I got halfway through the heel flap of one Trekking sock. Unfortunately, I was a little late getting to work (because I overslept and the dog was feeling better so I took her for a short walk), so my lunch "hour" is a bit truncated.

Only three more days of NaBloPoMo - I think I am going to make it! Hope reading about the detritus of my life has not been too boring.

Makin' Progress

Today at lunch, I finished the cuff on Trekking sock #2 and started the heel flap. Last night, I reached "stitch count" on one sleeve of the red-red-red sweater/hoodie and would have done the same with the other sleeve had I not pooped out. And I have been meditating on how to graph the two halves of the lace shawl. Any other UFO's that need attention? Oh, yeah - unlined bags galore. Those sound like a good project for xmas week.

I wish my dog felt better. She is eating and drinking and the results of that are coming out the other end, so there are no blockages, but she is not very perky. Of course, she may just be wiped from all the comings and goings of various and sundry people at various and sundry hours of the day and night for the past four days. She is used to sleeping the day away, rousing herself only for eating, defecating, urinating, and taking a walk to check her pee-mail. Tonight is the cat's annual trip to the vet (just when she has finally forgiven me for the last set of shots!), and I'll make an appointment for Betsy for Thursday. If she is still not feeling well, she can be examined, but otherwise, she will get her shots, too.

(Last year I took them both at the same time, which was too stressful for all of us, plus the elder Dr. M got confused over who got what shots. No harm done, but I'd rather make multiple trips than go through that again.)

Oh, What a Good Neighbor Am I

I have city water, but my outdoor taps are still on my well. My neighbor is in the process of getting estimates to tap into city water. Yesterday he called because their well had failed. So we were able to run a hose from my outdoor faucet to his plumbing, and fortunately his pipes are such that the water could run through his softener, too. So now his household (with a teenage daughter) has water... for now. He is hoping that he can get priority with the plumber schedule-wise. Last night the temps dropped into the 20's and the hose froze, but I think it is supposed to stay above 30 for the next several nights. I am always happy to help a neighbor because I know someday (like the next time is snows 12 inches and I'm wishing for a super-sized snow blower) I will need their help. It is odd to hear the well run, though.

Last night my dog was showing all the symptoms of bloat. This is a potentially fatal condition in dogs, but it is highly unusual in a beagle-sized dog. What to do, what to do? We have an emergency vet clinic across town, but as much as I love my pets, I balk at paying extortionist rates for their care. Not only are the clinic's after-hours rates jacked up, they charge even more if the pet is not one of their regular patients. So, you go into their fancy-shmancy building, overly distraught, and they make it worse by hammering you financially. Hence, my reluctance to rush her there. She really was miserable, though, and I could not get any Pepto Bismol down her. She did drink some water and could go out to potty, so I decided to do a wait-and-see. And this morning she was definitely better. Whew! But I'm wishing there were a more economical late-night vet clinic for those scary episodes.

On the knitting front, I have the cuff completed on one of the Trekking socks. The stitch pattern is not the best to show off the colorway, and vice verse, so I'm curious to see what the stockinette sole will look like.

Rationalization

I have been busy rationalizing buying those $230 boots: my dad sent me a check for my birthday in October and will probably send me one for xmas, plus I received a 15% off coupon, plus I make my footwear last a long time, and they might not even fit, etc. Over the past several years, I have been migrating my entire shoe wardrobe to Earth Shoes since my lower back does not like switching back and forth between heel heights. So these boots would be an investment, right?

While shopping with my daughter the other night, I ran into the same problem in Von Maur where I discovered they carry Eileen Fisher. I love EF clothes - simple styles, quality fabric, beautiful drape, etc. - but I can't quite bring myself to pay those prices. I just worked my way up from Land's End to Eddie Bauer, and right now, that is as far as I am willing to go (and only with a coupon).

Believe it or not, I also have my limits re yarn. While I am willing to pay up to $20 for a skein of sock yarn, I balk when a sweater pattern calls for $200 worth of yarn; in that case, I might as well buy something from Eileen Fisher! Financially, knitting usually doesn't make much sense, but it keeps me off the streets. Such a guilty pleasure.

Now that we have officially kicked off the holiday season, I have been thinking about New Year's resolutions. Last year I committed to doing something fun each month of the year, and that worked out fairly well. I could do that again, but I think I proved my point and wish I could think of something else that does not involve self-improvement. Any ideas?

A Bit Late

Today I was wishing I had raked the leaves earlier, and that I had mowed one more time before the leaves fell. But my procrastination was not entirely simple laziness, as the maples were slow in releasing their hold on the leaves. And I was out of town. And then it rained. And then it snowed. I don't feel too profligate, though, as my neighbors have not raked yet. And at least my son was here to help, so it wasn't too awful a job.

Speaking of the son, I gave him the cream-colored IU socks, sans the IU logo. I could not figure out how to do the logo on ribbing, and it was just as well because, even though I used US5 needles with worsted weight Moda Dea Washable Wool, the socks are very snug.



I also gave him the too-loose-on-me socks, and they fit him perfectly.

Meanwhile, I bailed on the Undulating Rib socks because, quite frankly, I cannot count. I kept the k3,p1,k1,p1 ribbing at the top of the cuff, though, and after 1.5 inches, segued into a 6-stitch "twin rib" pattern from Sensational Knitted Socks (for which this photo does not do justice). And, once again, I am working from both ends of the skein. I'm a little nervous about having enough yarn. I thought the skein felt a bit light, and it was, by 4g. Hopefully, I won't need that missing yarn.



(Do you ever wonder if some less-than scrupulous people ever buy a skein of yarn, relieve it of a few yards to finish a project, then return the rest to the store for a full refund?)

Meanwhile, I have run into a bit of a quandary about the red-red-red sweater. The pattern I am using in a general way calls for stitch increases every 5 rows, up to a given stitch count, then more knitting until the sleeves are 15 inches long. Well, I am going to reach 15 inches before I achieve the stitch count. So do I continue knitting until I achieve the stitch count, even though the sleeves will be about 3 inches longer than called for? I think my arms can accommodate the longer sleeves, whereas I'm not sure the sweater will be as forgiving of a reduced stitch count on the sleeves. My lack of sweater-knitting experience is showing.



Thanks to Ally's comment, I discovered that Zappo's sells Earth Shoes, and shore 'nuff, they list the dimensions. But now I have a new problem: the boots I like and that I think will fit cost $230. Hear that choking noise? That's my inner Scrooge squeezing the pocketbook.

A Simple Wish

I wish you all a happy Thanksgiving holiday!

Step Away from the Yarn

Bad knitting day yesterday. The mittens are not the same size, but I can't tell if it is because I have stretched the first one a bit or if I really cramped up while knitting the second one. And I have cast on sock #1 of the Undulating Rib Socks several times and I'm still not happy with it, plus the shades-of-tan colorway looks very pink when knitted up, not very manly for my SO. After all this angst, I was afraid to pick up the red-red-red sweater, so I watched a movie instead, "Mostly Martha," which has a surprisingly G-rated love scene: everything is left to the imagination.

One of the purchases I made the other night was a skirt that just cries for a pair of black boots. The problem is, I wear only Earth Shoes (my back loves that negative heel) and while some stores carry a few styles, I usually have to order them online. That's not the problem, though. The problem is I have big calves and most boots do not fit me. Planet Shoes provides free shipping on returns, but I wish they would publish the dimensions of their boots, circumference and height. Then I could order with more confidence.

Wrongway Peachfuzz

A family joke (one of many) is how I can't seem to go anywhere without making at least one wrong turn. In high school, we took a standardized test to measure what we were naturally good at, and I scored high on mechanical aptitude, and yet when turning something with my left hand, I have to make the corresponding twist with my right hand so I know which way to go. Or chant, "Righty tighty, lefty loosey." Now that I knit an above-average amount (the average knitter completes 8-9 projects a year - HA! I've knit more socks than that since March!), I find myself struggling mentally with the more-than-unusual garment construction techniques, like the Surprise Baby Sweater and the Pinwheel Sweater.

So, is it any surprise that I am having a hard time adjusting to being on the second floor at work? I think one problem is that there are a lot more floor-to-ceiling offices up here, which obstruct the over-the-cubicle view. But I have figured out that those offices are mostly toward the front of the building, so once I get past them, I generally can get my bearings. Still, I keep walking past my cubicle. I wish my spatial abilities were better.

Last night I shortened up the Lopi mitten, so now it fits perfectly. This morning, I cast on the second one and knit up ten rows while sipping coffee. Chunky yarn + small project = quick completion. I hope. Winter is coming.

Remember the vintage lace top I was whining about several months ago? I am trying to work up my courage to attack that once again. My recent lace work has given me a false sense of confidence.

The Trouble with Sweaters

The trouble with sweaters is the same trouble as with socks or mittens: the terrible twos. Knitting socks means knitting two socks, knitting mittens means knitting two mittens, knitting a sweater means knitting two sleeves. But sweater sleeves have an additional burden: when you start at the cuff and add increases along the way, the initial speed erodes about halfway to the armpit. Another problem I am having is, once I reach the halfway point, the DPNs are not quite long enough and stitches keep falling off the end. I finally got to the point on sleeve #1 where I could switch to circular needles, but instead of continuing with that sleeve, I started up sleeve #2. For some reason, it feels better to be working on both of them at the same time.

Tomorrow afternoon the plumbers are returning to install a new hot water heater. I have lived here at least 15 years and I have never replaced the hot water heater. I'm sure the only reason it has not sprung a leak is there is too much gunk from the well in the bottom of it to allow the water egress. Also, I wanted to wait until I had city water because I did not want to gunk up the new one. So, my wish tonight is that tomorrow's installation go as smoothly as the city water tap-in.

BTW, I reviewed the wishes I have made so far, to see if I inadvertently repeated any. There are several knitting-related wishes, but otherwise they are fairly diverse. I'm a little surprised that I have been able to keep up with the daily postings, because I know I won't stick with it once this month is over.

Ouch

Yesterday was moving day at work. While looking for empty boxes, I wrestled with a box of paper and managed to pinch a nerve in my lower back. You know the feeling: shooting pains from hip to ankle. It's been a while since I did something like this, but I know the routine: lots of Advil, some stretching, and application of pressure to the resulting knots in my gluteus maximus. A difficult spot to reach but I'm sure my sweetie will help out tonight.

Several years ago, I was flying somewhere (to Tucson?) At one point, a woman several rows in front of me held her knitting up over her head to examine her handiwork. I could see each perfect stitch from where I sat, and I was consumed with jealousy. How did she do that? My stitches tend to look rather haphazard initially (thank god for blocking), and we won't even discuss gauge or laddering between DPNs. Although my knitting continues to improve, and I no longer approach the end of each project with dread (will it look okay? will it fit? will it resemble something other than a bird's nest of yarn?), I still wish most fervently that my handiwork were better.

But I keep trying. Here is a mitten from the Reynolds Lopi Icelandic wool:



If it looks kinda long and skinny, that is because it is. I read in The Knitter's Book of Yarn that Icelandic wool has little elasticity, and Clara Parkes is right; it was like knitting with baling twine, just as stiff and just as coarse. I'm using a free pattern from Lion Brand called "Starter Mittens" but I ribbed the cuff. The pattern says the mittens will fit an adult, but an adult what? I have large hands and on US6 needles, my gauge is a little tight (so what else is new?), and this mitten fits my hand snugly. The thumb is perfect but the overall length is a tad long. In fact, I may undo the end and remove a few rows. Icelandic wool is a bit too scratchy for next-to-the-skin wear, but I expect it to wear well, so these mittens will become my working pair, for shoveling snow, etc.

I finished the garish Magic Socks.



The colorway is "Jelly Bean Stripe" although I didn't quite get the stripes lined up. These look kind of odd but they fit me well (surprise!) In fact, I am wearing them right now. The yarn is sport weight and I used US3 needles, so they went fairly quickly. (From what I understand, LB has discontinued Magic Stripes, but it looks like they still have a couple of colors, including this one, listed on their website.)

And here is the official start of the red-red-red sweater:



After a certain amount of dinking (and tinking) around, I think I am settled on the sleeves at least, at last. I knit the first four rows on straight needles, then started knitting in the round, so there is a little notch in the cuff, allowing the option of rolling the cuff up. I could not face acres of stockinette, so I added the lace pattern "lace diagonal" as described in The Knitting Stitche Bible, just to remind me that I am counting-impaired.

Pix Now?

Yes, finally. I added photos to this page, and here is a shot of the Neverending Afghan:



Hopefully, Blogger will continue to upload photos.

Today is moving day. I mentioned the theme song from "The Jeffersons" to a cow-orker who then looked up the lyrics and sent them to everyone in our department. So now all of us can have that little ditty running amok in our brains today.

I haven't had much to do at work the past few days, so I have been catching up on blogs. Some of the authors are really out there. Makes my writing feel constipated. Pass the Konsyl, please! I wish my internal editor would just shut up.

Knitting: finished the Magic Stripes socks, started some simple mittens with the Lopi. Pix forthcoming (knock on wood!)

Movin' on Up

Ever since I found out that we are moving upstairs, the theme song from "The Jeffersons" has been running through my head ("Movin' on up/to the eastside/finally got a piece of the pie"). Unfortunately, I don't know most of the lyrics and, much to my lifelong disappointment, I cannot sing. I wish I could sing or play an instrument like it mattered or at least hear what other people hear when they listen to music. I try to catch "The Art of the Song" each week on WUMB, as the show teaches me about what to listen for, as do the interviews with singer/songwriters that occur all over the place on WUMB. Meanwhile, my singing shall be confined to the bruising shower.

The last pair of Magic Stripes socks needs only the kitchener stitch be applied to each toe and they will be done. The color is "Jellybean" and they are rather garish. Tonight I will make another attempt to upload photos to Blogger, so hopefully you will be able to see just how garish they are.

Meanwhile, I strapped on my knitting kahunas and played around with the sleeve to the red-red-red hoodie. I had started one sleeve on US8 needles, but the resulting fabric just looked coarse. So I knit up a bit on another sleeve using US7 needles and it looks much better. Then, since the prospect of knitting acres of stockinette just doesn't appeal to me, I picked out a simple lace stitch to decorate the sleeves. I like the initial results, so I worked out the arithmetic and am now ready to start a "real" sleeve. Gulp!

The pattern I am starting with is the Miss Priss Seamless Hoodie, from Schaefer Yarn, but I am using Cascade 220 instead of Miss Priss. Also, besides being seamless, I plan to knit it in the round, omitting the zipper (obviously) and omitting any purling as well. We'll see how my plans work out. (Someone once said, If you want to make God laugh, just tell him your plans.)

I Got Water!

And, not only do I have water, I have water pressure. I didn't think my water pressure was all that bad, but now the shower is positively bruising. And the toilet tank fills in a fraction of the time. And hot water gets to the nether regions of the house faster. And now I can get a new water heater.

It looks like I still have a job. The mantra from management had been, All development will be done offshore, but apparently they found some exceptions to that rule. Anything they decide not to offshore will probably land in our laps, and that's okay. But we will also be assigned some new tasks. In fact, we are moving upstairs at the end of the week, so we will be closer to our other customer base, R&D. While there are no guarantees, all this feels a bit more secure.

As for knitting, I wish I were a faster knitter. In general, I can devote only about two hours to knitting each day (more on weekends) and that makes me a bit reluctant to take on big projects, like sweaters, and even more reluctant to experiment with designs and stitches and yarns, as I don't want to knit myself into a corner that might result in massive frogging. Knitting is a process, and I enjoy the process, but I also like to have something to show for my efforts.

Pix, Pix, and More Pix - NOT

I have a bunch of photos to post, but Blogger won't let me upload them. Apparently, this is an ongoing problem. Hmmm. Maybe it is time to try some other blog tool.

Anyway... if I could upload photos, you would get to see pix of the yarn I described a few days ago. I think the "Faded Valentine"
may become a shawl, the Icelandic wool
will probably become mittens (if I bought enough), and the Trekking
will of course be used for socks, perhaps for my sweetie. I think it is his turn to get a pair. (Added photos 2007-11-15.)


The knitting projects I took with me on my recent travels were a hoodie and socks. I had started the sleeve on the hoodie, but it just wasn't sitting well with me. To achieve gauge, I went up a needle size (usually I drop at least one size) and am still missing the target, but it looks like the hoodie will be plenty roomie as it is. But I don't like the Inox needles I have been using. They seem sticky. So I stopped the hoodie and picked up the socks, my last pair of Magic Stripes. On size US3 needles, they are 75% complete. (Added photo 2007-11-15.)


The plumber guys are here, to hook me up to city water, and if I could post a photo, you would see I now have a baby backhoe and a not-so-baby hole in my front yard. There are all kinds of noises coming from under the house, and not too much swearing, so hopefully it is going well (no pun intended!) (Added photo 2007-11-15.)

It is becoming more and more difficult to think of wishes. Wishes can be big or small, selfish or selfless, frivolous or serious. I've been avoiding the obvious - peace on earth, etc. - but after flying over some beautiful countryside, I will wish that we learn to be better stewards of this planet.

Home Again, Home Again

Whew! If it is not exactly great to be home, at least it is great to be somewhere other than inside airplanes and airports. Once I get back to normal, I'll have knitting to talk about.

Tomorrow, the plumber guys are supposed to hook me up to city water. My wish is that it all goes well.

Foliage

I'm a little surprised about the New England foliage this year. Here it is, almost mid-november, and many trees here are still green, others have turned, and still others have shed their leaves. It looks more like early October.

Last winter my stepmother had a rough time healthwise, which was equally rough on my dad, but now she seems almost back to normal. So my wish today is that she and Dad have an uneventful winter.

Simple Wish

Today's wish is that I have an uneventful flight. And that my knitting needles make it through security. Technically, they are allowed, but the reality is it is up to the discretion of the screener.

Here are the pix I've been promising
Blogger is not cooperating this morning, so you will have to wait on the pix. Sorry!