Second Verse, Same As The First

 I was knitting along on Cumberland Gap and suddenly things weren't right. Something weird had happened in the previous row (an interminably long cable row.) I had more stitches than I should have(by one). There was no solution but to 

drop back and redo the row.

First I reseated all my stiches and laddered back up a few that had dropped down further.

Then I reheld the stitches for the cable (being careful to cross it correctly) and reknit.

But wait! There's more. Continuing on I found that I had somehow completely twisted a cable. Like 180 degrees. Yeah. Drop it back, reknit.  I did that twice. What the #^$$& was I thinking?

 Finally all fixed.

Sock It to Me

 I finished the first sock!  

Seen here about to get its toe grafted.  I've cast on for the second and am just past the ribbing.  I did the unthinkable (for me) and actually discarded part of a yarn repeat so that I could start the second sock in the same place as the first.  Just because they are gift socks.  I, personally, love the idea of mismatched socks.  Even when I wear purchased socks I get the socks in packs with multiple colors and wear whatever two I happen to pick out of my drawer.  (It's always a disappointment to me if they do actually match). 

Here's the proof I actually discarded the rest of the stripe pattern.  No worries, I think I'm going to make a Scrap Blanket with the leftovers. 

No pattern*, just started with 64 sts, did 2x2 rib for 15 rows, then straight to the heel.  A traditional slip stitch heel flap on half the stitches, turned it then picked up stitches for the gusset and decreased them away.  I had a bit of an existential crisis for the toe.  I'd been liking a star toe shape, but wanted more of a wedge for this.  So I decreased every other row 6 times, then every row until there were 12 stitches left, and then kitchenered those together.  I like it; roundish, but not too pointy either.

*Sadly, the Percent Sock pattern I wrote and posted in the old r.c.t.y. Usenet group that Barbara Breitner (I can't believe I remembered her name) put up on the net (with my permission) is no longer out there -- or at least I couldn't find it by Googling.  I know alot of knitters used it in the "0s" because I came across it in several lists of "my favorite sock patterns online".  Ah well.  Anyway, I think this pair is a bit too big around (the length is dead on for the shoe size, though).  Next pair I'll do with 60 stitches.

You're Driving Me Crazy

 I had to take my car to get inspected today. I asked Dave to make the appointment, and he said it was for today.  He is working out of town in New York state, though, and leaving this morning.  I told him we could drop the car off Sunday night then.  He said OK, or maybe in the morning.  Now, I like to start my day early (7:00 AM) so that I can be done early and knit or watch TV or whatever in the evening.  I'm the kind of person who when I have to work I get up, get ready and get to work so that all the work is done and out of the way with and I can get on with my day.  Anyway, all day yesterday Dave never mentioned the car or dropping it off.  In fact, I forgot about it until I was walking home.  I mentally shrugged and assumed we would do it in the morning.  NO. Dave (who is a night owl) calls me after I was asleep (NOT a night owl see 7:00 AM) at 10:30 last night. 

Dave: We have to take your car.

Me (sleepily):  Huh?

Dave: We have to take your car for inspection.

Me: We will have to go in the morning.  I can guarantee you I'm not walking down there in my nightgown. 

Dave: Where is your owner's card?  Your insurance?

Me: I don't know.  Go online.

A pause while I hang up and just drift back to sleep,  Dave called again.  

Dave: I can't find the registration.  Go look for it.  

Well, I did find an old one (several years out of date) stuffed in an old wallet but it was enough for him to get everything together.  Sheesh.  

Older Son asked today (he was here for the frantic search). Why do you always rush around like that?  Why don't you just keep stuff yourself.  I told him it was the division of labor.  I cook and do the laundry.  Dave does yard work and car stuff.  I don't want to go crossing the lines.  That way leads to pink underwear for everyone and just hunks of meat and starch for dinner.

Long and short of it though we got up early and dropped the car off.  I was back here and logged in and working at 7:06.

The socks may be ready for toes tomorrow.  

I'm thinking next up some Halloween socks.  I found some Vesper yarn while I was poking around looking for sock yarn last week in "Spooky" and "Hocus Pocus".  I'm thinking I'll combine them and do a stripe repeat of each (kind of like a Wee Skeins, but not really).  At first I thought I would make Little Sock Arms for Gracie but then I got a grip.  She's EIGHT.  That's a lot of work for a sweater she'd wear what? Twice? If I'm lucky.  I'll knit some Halloween socks for her and for my friend Michelle.  The sad part (or great, depending on how you look at it)?  Michelle's socks will be smaller than Gracie's.  

The Next Big Thing

While I'm slogging away on Cumberland Gap

- Nothing much new to see there, I started a new ball of yarn (12 more to go) and I'm about to cable again - I've been debating about what my next big thing will be. My sit on the couch and knit while watching tv or reading thing. Right now I think it's going to be Shakespeare in Love.  I've had a serious crush on this pattern since it was published and I even have the yarn in my stash to make it.  I'll make it in white, of  course.  It's my favorite color, and that's what I have.  I struggled with letting go of my original intention for the yarn, which was to dye it.  But seriously, I haven't fired up a dye pot in six years, so what're the chances that's going to happen any time soon?  Runner up was Risen.  My niece got me the e-book Texture Is the New Black for my birthday and told me to "make something nice for yourself, you deserve it."  In that mindset I decided to make Risen and use Mad Tosh Tosh Merino Light.  I've never knit with it (I know) and thought it would be the perfect treat for myself.  But I don't know what's up at the website.  There are only a couple of colorways available for TML and they're, well, not me.  The color I'd really like is Couquette-Deux but apparently I can't get that in just plain TML, I'd have to get it in TML+Glitter, or Holo or something else sparkly.  Not that I'm against sparkle per se, but not what I was hoping for for this project.  I wonder if they can't get the base?  Is it discontinued?  It's just weird because they say they'll dye to order but there's no way to order a specific color that I could figure out.  Maybe I have to go further in to the ordering process than I did, I admit it was just a quick drive-by.  

In other knitting news, last night I turned the heel on my Star Fighter sock and I'm working on decreasing away the gusset stiches.

  

Denied

.

 Yesterday I ventured out to the grocery store.  Since the pandemic started, I've been working from home (I know I'm very lucky) and until very recently doing my shopping from home too -- I'd order online and go pick up at the store.  Someone would bring the groceries out and load into my car and I wouldn't have contact with anyone.  But on occasion I had to go into the store.  Such was the case when I found my beloved Pumpkin Spice creamer.  So I went back into the store again yesterday (the Pumpkin Spice isn't available online).  Imagine my horror when I saw this:

AN EMPTY SHELF where the Pumpkin Spice creamer should be.  The kid stocking the shelves looked at me like I was a lunatic when I took the picture.  And no, there was no Pumpkin Spice creamers on his little stocking cart (I looked).  I knew I needed to get more when I saw it (I'm on my last bottle right now.)  

Fortunately the ninjas at Amazon (really, I'm sitting right here less than 3 feet away from my front door which you can see daylight through so it's not like it's a barrier to sound and I never hear them drop anything on my porch.  They're ninjas, I tell you) brought this:

Pumpkin Spice coffee syrup.  I'm hoping it will be enough to tide me over. 

Knitting continues apace, sort of.  Yesterday I did almost an entire interminable row of cables crossing the wrong way.  Yeah.  I tinked back.  I debated ripping it out, but stuck with the tinking.  I'm not knitting to any deadline and slower just felt...right to me.  I'm reworking the cable row now.  Just a tiny bit of knitting on the striped socks last night, I was pretty tired.  I fell asleep and slept (mostly) 12 hours straight.  So I guess I was a little tired.  Must have been the shock of not finding Pumpkin Spice creamer at the store.  

Long Lamented

Since I'm knitting socks again for the first time in about a decade or so, I'm feeling the need for some more size 1 double pointed needles.  My favorite dpns are the long lamented Inox needles (I spent way too long searching for them on the internet today, they're now considered "vintage").  They were fabulous.  Some kind of coated metal (aluminum?  Steel?) that met all my perfect sock needle requirements. They were:

1. Metal.  Don't even get me started on the whole broken needle thing.  Especially in the small sizes like this, if I could snap it like a toothpick?  Then it's a toothpick, not a knitting needle.
2. Coated with something that gave them just enough grip.  This is a hard thing to quantify, but stitches moved along smoothly and quickly without sliding off unexpectedly.
3. Long enough.  I can't abide 6" dpns.  That length is just long enough that the point ends up digging uncomfortably into the meaty part of my hand (at least the way I hold my needles).  My beloved Inox needles were 10".
4. Pointy.  OK, maybe too pointy (they would dig a little hole in my finger if I used them too much).  But the rounded points (I'm looking at you, Addi Turbos) drive me nuts.

They were becoming scarce 5-6 years ago (the last set I got was from Kathy's Kreations and they looked like they'd been there since the '70s).  I noticed then that they were also sold under the Pym brand name, but that didn't turn up anything either.  I'm sure my old set are around some where, probably with a sock hanging off them.  (Wait, I think I did see them in the attic recently.  I think they still had this pair hanging off them.)

Just a random picture from the internet.  Look, there they are on the left. Too bad I can't buy them... 

I ordered some Knitter's Pride Carbonz and Hiya Hiya steel needles to test drive.  They should be here Sunday.

PS - I'm making the heel flap on my stiped socks and am not quite at an interminably long cabling row on the blanket.

Old Favorites

 The blandness of my current knitting leaves me with no pictures (I completed another cable row in the afghan, I knit another couple stripes on my striped socks.  Whoopee.)  So I will share a couple of pictures of favorite yarn colorways I dyed.

I called this colorway "Bell Bottom Blues" it is all shades of denim blues from palest acid-washed to darkest navy.  Some technical stuff- it's a monochromatic colorway, but wildly tonal; and randomly dyed.  There's five shades of blue there, as I said, in lots of depth of shade (dark/light) and it was dyed using the cold pour method (I mixed the dyes and poured them cold onto a skein of yarn) then steamed to set the colors.  Love, love, love this colorway.  Also I randomly poured around the skein, in no particular pattern and short (3-4 inch) lengths of each color.  I also dyed this colorway as a gradient, with the color shading in blocks from dark to light (or light to dark, depending on how you wound the ball).  I have no picture of the gradient right now (actually, since Dave took all my yarn pictures I'm sure he has it stashed away somewhere on one of his computers, but I have no access to it right now) but I do have a shot of some roving dyed in this colorway.

Another favorite colorway was "Primarily"

This was an experiment in hot bath ("kettle dyed") resist dyeing.  I wanted to see what would happen when I did three overdyed/resist dips using primary colors ("Primarily", get it?)  I started with a twisted skein and dyed it yellow until the bath exhausted, then re-tied the skein in knots and added red to the pot, then retied it again and added blue to the to the bath.  The whole time it was dyeing I kept thinking "I'm just going to get a lot of mud."  But when it was all over and the skeins were untied you could see all the colors.  Loved.It.   

Still Making Mistakes

Late last night I picked up my blanket in the middle of a long, 1x1 rib row and obviously in some confused state started knitting in the wrong direction.  

I turned in the middle of a row.   

At least I had enough wits about me to realize what had happened when I came back to it on the next (interminably long) row.  I tried to get it and I don't know if you can see it here but the loop on the left needle just winds back to the right instead of continuing on to the left.  In my defense, I had to work most of the night last night, I was pretty tired.  Anyway I ripped out the partial row, picked up the almost 250 raveled stitches and continued on.  I debated (and even started) tinking back, but this is just 1x1 rib, nothing complicated, and I was far enough past the cable row that I didn't have to worry about unraveling and having to cope with that.  So rip I did.  Then I picked up, reknitted and then placed my markers back on the next row.  Took about 10 minutes to get sorted.  

Once I was all straightened out I took a little break to knit on my stripey socks.  (Vesper Yarn in a [I'm pretty sure] long discontinued colorway "Star Fighter")

For the record, I try really, really hard not to put aside a project when it's having difficulties, as that way leads to UFOs.

Yarn Barf

 Big News on the knitted blanket front.  Not only did I get to perform an interminably long cabled row (#9 in the pattern chart) but I got to start a new ball of yarn!  Unfortunately, finding the end resulted in a fair sized yarn barf.

No worries, though -- it's all used up now and I'm slogging along as usual.  Only 13 (I think) more balls of yarn to go until I'm done with this thing.

I did start (for the first time in almost a decade) a pair of socks last night.  I had to order sock needles (size 1) because I had no idea where mine were.  I'm using some Vesper Sock Yarn in the colorway "Star Fighter" from the stash.  I'm not sure whether this was a club yarn or one I bought from Julia.  I was a club member way back when and also bought tons of her yarns.  I'm sure this is one I got to make socks for the boys.  But they don't wear hand knit socks anymore so I think I'll knit these for my BFF Michelle (who has teeny tiny [size5!] feet.)

Finished

 The Pumpkin Spice Cowl is finished -- here you see it reclining at leisure on the Decisively Pumpkin Scoop (I'll try to get a photo shoot tomorrow if I can wrangle a boy into taking pictures).  

I fumbled the kitchenering, and it's not as slick as I'd like.  As of right now I'm not inclined to rip the join back -- the recipient won't care (and would, I'm sure, be expecting a seam anyway.)

I'm back to the mind-numbing monotony that is Cumberland Gap.  (Knit Picks Brava in Marina).  I'm almost to a cable row.  Woot!  

The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul

 Yesterday afternoon I was knitting on my cowl and I looked over and saw this:

My knitting is dark, the yarn is mostly dark.  But like the first green shoots of spring, you can see, if you peer closely at the center of the ball the bright yellow peeping out.  The things that keep a knitter going.

One other thing that came up in the blog break decade was that I developed Type 2 Diabetes. (When I turned 50, along with a couple of other chronic health issues.  It was like my warranty expired.)  I'm struggling to keep it under control, and am somewhat frustrated by my PA's reluctance to refer me to an endocrinologist.  Anyway, what is working for me now is 1) I changed the time of day I give myself my insulin shot.  It used to be in the evening, per the PA's instruction.  Now I do it in the morning and my numbers are much better.  2) I've started only eating once a day.  Yeah, that's a bummer.  I have coffee (with my Pumpkin Spice creamer - Yum!) in the morning, and at 1:00 or so I test my blood sugar.  If it's too high [which it has been], I just have a cup of tea.  Then I eat a (modest) dinner with the guys.

Do you like my mug?  My sister Jane and I buy each other mugs with our initials on them.  Sometimes we send them to each other (she has the "J" version of this mug at her house.)  Sometimes not (I have an "L" mug to use when I'm there visiting -- also my Evil Twin, who is also an "L" and she lives just around the corner from Jane.)

Color Choices

 One of the things that I did during the blog lapse was dye yarn professionally.  I was a part owner of a yarn shop, and I dyed yarn to be sold in the shop. 

I often heard from customers buying yarn that they didn't "know how to pick colors".  I would then tell them it was easy enough -- and give a little lecture while I pulled yarn for their project.  I'm using the example of my "Pumpkin Nice" cowl pictured above (it's coming along nicely, the skein join is not even noticeable as the color change matched perfectly [see the ends sticking out to the left in the yellow?]).  

Now, there's a lot about color theory which you can find and read if you're interested (which I am) but for someone who is just wondering what colors go together for their project -- here's a tip.  Let a professional do the work for you.  Find a multicolored object (and we'll use this yarn) and copy their colors.  That simple.  

You want a Fairisle yoke sweater?  Make the body that deep blue-violet and your yoke colors orange, yellow, and violet.  You want to pick colors for an afghan for your sister and her favorite color is orange?  Chose the rest of the colors in this combination to go with it.  Lay them out side by side and see if you like them.  

And you don't have to stick with just yarn for inspiration.  Look at wallpaper (they pay colorists to pick those colors) or art, or...anything.  One of the fun color games I've played in the past is to go to Pinterest  and just type in a color and search.  "Pink", "Aquamarine", "White".  Fabulous, inspiring images that you can pull the colors out of.  Just saying.   

Again With the Pumpkin Spice

Did you know that Pumpkin Spice items are available in the grocery now?  Maybe you did, but I don't get out much (or at all) anymore.  I think last year the guys were ready to stage and intervention for me and the Pumpkin Spice creamer (but it is so delicious and creamy!). I usually do my shopping online and pickup groceries curbside, but I had to go make an emergency milk run earlier this week and I found the Pumpkin Spice creamer and some Pumpkin Spice coffee.  Mmmm.  (The Pumpkin Pie Kit-Kats are ok as long as you're not expecting them to taste like a Kit Kat, because they don't.)  I went back to the store yesterday (because I needed ground coriander for dinner -- Don't look at me like that, I'm not making excuses) and got more Pumpkin Spice coffee and creamer (not pictured above is the box of Pumpkin Spice K-Cups which is almost empty and the first Pumpkin Spice creamer which is empty and in the recycling bin.)  What?  I live in dread of running out.  Younger Son was putting away the groceries and was all "Do we really need this much coffee creamer?"  Yes.  Yes we do.  

--Mom, step away from the creamer.

--No! It's my precious!  My preeeciousssss.

 

My current project is kinda Pumpkin Spice (Pumpkin Nice?  I like it!) as well.  Chroma yarn from Knit Picks in Sedona, 1x1 rib.  You can see the crochet provisional cast-on to the right.  I'll kitchener the ends together when I'm done.  This is not quite one ball (and gosh, that ball put-up is the worst) and it's a good length.  For awhile there last night it seemed that the ball was not being used up, it was like The Yarn Ball of Requirement.  The yarn itself is on the thin side to be called worsted, I'd generously call it a light worsted, but I think you might be able to get away with using it as a DK.  Also see the gradation blip?  I couldn't exactly throw away half the skein.  There was no knot in the yarn it looked like the spinning just didn't get the color.  There was a weird join -- like a spinner's join, not a knot.  Oh well, I won't have to worry about when I make the skein switch in the knitting.  It's not like it could show worse than that.

Also, on a personal note, my "Quarantine Fifteen" has been negative.  Yep, I've lost 15 pounds since the beginning of quarantine.  Do you think that says something about my cooking?😀

I'm Back! And Why

 I'm back to blogging.  Why?  Well, I realized as I was walking home yesterday that I still think of things like I have a blog.  All these years later.  So I thought I should be blogging again.  Also, I feel like there are things I want to say that I really can't say out loud.  Or maybe I just need to organize them like this.  Lots and lots of stuff has happened in the intervening decade (!).  We'll try to catch up in the next little bit.  But since this was a knitting blog, some knitting.  

Last night I started a cowl for my bff Michelle, since (I think) it's a big birthday for her in a month or so.  I made her a Decisiveness Scoop (picture later, but the color is named "Pumpkin") and I had gotten some Knit Picks Chroma (in the colorway "Sedona") for the cowl.  Michelle is a red head, these are her colors.  I thought and thought about what pattern to use in the cowl.  I knew I wanted the colors to stripe in chunks around the cowl, not on top of each other, so I knew I was going to knit flat and kitchener the ends together.  Here's my swatch:

Notice my YOs.  I swatched (since Chroma is a worsted weight) with a 7, 8, and 9 needle.  The YOs mark the transition of the needles.  My personal preference is for a reversible fabric for cowls (because the inside does show), so this is a 1x1 rib.  I know.  But I wanted something simple, and yesterday it just hit me that 1x1 that looks like stockinette on both sides was what I wanted to show off the color gradations.  But wait, the craziness doesn't end there (not at all) because the other project I have on the needles is this:

That's Cumberland Gap.  And I made it extra wide too.  Miles of 1x1 rib (it's reversible too) with the occasional interminable row of cabling.  This is a gift for another fabulous friend, Traci (we've been friends since Junior High).  I made no promise of when it would be done, I've been working on it for months now and I'm not even half way.

Re-Launch

I'm attempting a relaunch. Just a test to see if this is still working. I seem to have it. Next up to see if I can get back here tomorrow.

Cue Fanfare for the Common Man

Once again I am proud to say I'm an Olympian! Yes, I'm competing in the Knitting Olympics with Yarn Harlot. Also on Ravelry as part of Team PA (just because I had to pick a team to participate there. Whatever.) Anyways, my project is Rib Waist Cardigan in Waterlily (Rav link) from Curvy Knits Vol. 2. I'm knitting it in Knit Picks Wool of the Andes Kettle dyed in Soot (which has been discontinued). Here is my progress after the first half day of competition:


Can you see the snow on my knitting? It's still snowing here. Today the sun was shining and it was still snowing. I'm living in a giant snow globe!


This looks really big to me. I quadruple checked my gauge and I'm right on, the width is even what the pattern says it should be, but it still looks too big. I'm just going out on a limb and trusting Jillian Moreno here. I can always rip and reknit later (after I complete it for my gold medal, of course.) I know some of you out there are also competing -- I can't wait to see all the projects!

My Spidey Sense is Tingling

I had this conversation with Older Son recently:

OS: After putting on his glasses and waving his head from side to side This is really weird...
Me: What's weird?
OS: I have this kind of proximity alert thing going on that's somehow linked to the bridge of my nose and my glasses are setting it off.
Me: What?
OS: It's an alert that's telling me someone's close to me and it's going off because I'm wearing my glasses...
Me: You mean your glasses are setting off your Spidey Sense??
OS: Well, yeah....

I've been knitting footie socks (aka "No Show Socks") for me in brown (I have no brown socks) and tonight I spun up some Wensleydale from Spunky Eclectic in "Cold Front" (blues/greens) -- the December fiber club selection. I'm trying to perfect my low twist singles, but I think I'm overtwisted. Even w/ slooow treadling on my slowest whorl. Don't know what's up w/ that. No pics because everything (camera, knitting, spinning wheel) are all downstairs.

Needling and Snowmageddon

Remind me of this photo the next time you hear me whinging about how I can't find any of my knitting needles.





You say you can't find your size 6 double points, Laurie?







Yeah. I didn't put them away when I was done with them. There's a pair of 10-1/2 straights on the floor next to this couch right now, too. Notice my cool spinning bag, though? Spunky Eclectic.

Also, you may have experienced or heard on the news that we had a bit of snow here. I like the term Snowmageddon (stolen from Knitterly Things. Here's a picture of Older Son shoveling.






He's standing on a step up from the ground. That's 27" of snow.







We were snowed in over the weekend. Dave and Younger Son were camping (I know! They were in cabins, but still...Must be a guy thing.) The guys will have their third day of no classes tomorrow. I was told that if I don't go in to work tomorrow I will have to use a vacation day. I'm still undecided about going in or not. Monday my commute took 2 hours to work and 3 hours home. The roads in the city looked like they hadn't been cleared at all. Several inches of hard packed snow/ice. Today was better. I blame this on panic. I think the city panicked because there are several more inches of snow forecast for tonight and so finally cleared the roads today; and everyone else panicked about the threat of snow and left work early so that when I finally got out of work after 5:00 there was very little traffic and although it was snowing the roads were mostly just wet.

Belated Belated Roc Day

Several other beautiful fiberistas and I celebrated Roc Day belatedly on Sunday. Since Roc Day fell on Thursday this year and my employer doesn't acknowledge that day as a holiday (I know! Go figure), we celebrate on the closest Sunday. Heather hosted, as usual. We all brought our wheels and had a wonderful time, and I even managed to get some spinning done.



From left to right in this picture: Julia, KnitLust, Heather, and Celtic Queen. The empty wheel is mine, I was behind the camera.

This baby is sooo knit spoiled, we're always making something for her! But baby things -- who can resist? They're so little, so cute, so quick to make! Julia knit this most adorable bear for her.

Holiday Goodies

I didn't quite make the Epiphany deadline for my knitted gifts. Younger Son gets half a sock (or one quarter of a pair, which sounds even more depressing). But I'm cranking away on it.

It's a little more than half a sock now after I knit on it this evening.Yarn is a Wee Skeins kit from Knitterly Things




I received this Christmas a new Butterfly Girl spindle from my BiL's SO (she's a fiberista too). It's even Steeler Colors! I immediately started spinning some 100% Merino that I had got as a gift from Julia at Knitterly Things last year. The colorway is "For Laurie" (in case you can't see). Yummy! (This may have in some small way contributed to YS getting half a sock for Christmas.) I was so inspired by knitting Ishbel that I've decided I want to do a big shawl. I think this fiber when spun up to a 2-ply will be perfect, enough color variation to give it some texture, not enough to make it stripy or not show a pattern. Mmmmm. Stay posted.

What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate

Knitting -- I'm so totally in love with my Knitterly Things Wee Skeins Vesper Sock kit. I can't wait to get another one. LOVE.IT.

Non knitting, and really apropos of nothing much except that we're talking about men, can I just say that I had a big arm pump "Yeah!" moment yesterday when I heard a (male) psychologist say in an interview about James Ray and the deaths during his "motivational exercise" in October that he was "in a state of testoterone induced psychosis" at the time. We all knew testosterone poisoning makes you crazy, right?? But back to the knitting. I'm sitting next to Dave just a few minutes ago having the following conversation:
Dave: "Did you notice I found your babbaloo?"
Me: "Huh?"
Dave: "You know, your babbaloo." Waves arms about.
Me: "Wha??"
Dave: "Your babbaloo, your babbaloo, that thing you use." More waving of arms.
Me: "I have no idea what you're talking about."
Older Son: "Yeah Mom, your babbaloo!" He had no idea either, he was just making fun of us.
Dave: Still waving arms."That thing, you know, the babbaloo. I put it in the bedroom." (Have you figured out what it is yet?)
Me: (Having been in my bedroom and noticed the new addition) "You mean my niddy noddy? Yeah. Where's the rest of it?"

He didn't know, he'd dug it out of the attic (actually a finished fourth and fifth bedroom that we use for storage) while he was up there setting up a server for work.


Poor Babbaloo is missing a leg

Socks and Frustration

Knitting-wise I've finished a pair of socks (Knitterly Things Vesper Sock yarn, colorway "Hellfire")


and started another (Knitterly Things Vesper Sock yarn, Wee Skeins kit w/ Pavement, Stormy, Lumber Jack, and Twitterpated -- I wanted something manly.)

I'm cranky and frustrated. Last year we went through this thing with Older Son where he wouldn't register for classes. We went through all this aggravation w/ the insurance company threatening to cancel his health insurance and having to rush him out there to register at the last minute, it was a nightmare! And he did it not once, but twice! So I kept after him all this term. Register, I said. Remember to register before the end of the term. And he told me he did. Over and over and over he swore to me that he did. But I'm trying to pay his bill and there's no bill. Did you register? Yes. Well guess what? Finally it comes out that he's not registered. He still insists that he registered. I don't know what the problem is. All the kid has to do is register -- that's it!! Now he has to rush out there tomorrow (classes start and registration ends on Wednesday) and talk to his advisor and try to get things worked out. Arrrgghhh!!!

Epiphany

So I didn't get all my gifts knitted by Christmas. But I've decided -- and I'm making this a new rule, feel free to adopt it -- that a knitted Christmas gift isn't late if it's completed before the Epiphany. It's the Twelve Days of Knitting rule. So, want to see some of the things I DID get done for Christmas? Sure you do.
A Noro Striped Scarf for my sister (details on my Ravelry projects page).

Another scarf for my sister-in-law






along with Ishbel by Ysolda Teague. (That's Older Son holding it for me. I make my minions do the dirty work.)



Bella's Mittens and a matching neckwarmer for my boss -- she's a HUGE Twilight fan. Loved the pattern and the yarn (Knit Picks Cadena). Two thumbs up!A couple of other things too, that I'm waiting for someone else to blog. Check my Ravelry projects page for the full details.

Gleeful

I'm totally obsessed with Fox's new show Glee. I've watched both episodes (and the web exclusive clip) three times already. I even visited the fan site (I know!) I highly recommend it. Really funny, without being slapstick; and all the characters are totally over the top charicatures. I hope they don't ruin it by making them more "human" as time goes on. I don't know how long it will last, I imagine that it's got to be expensive to produce since every episode has 3 or 4 music videos in it. But I like it. So go watch the episodes and be prepared to discuss at knitting group on Friday night. Speaking of knitting, I'm knitting a toddler dress right now in some (truly) vintage (from like the early 60's) baby wool from my stash. 100% wool and I'm totally digging on the spit splice. Finally I'll leave you with this pic I snapped from my car. I was driving along crying and just looked up at the red light and saw it.

Lost in High School

I realized today when I saw his picture on the front page of the paper that I don't like the way Ben Bernanke looks. I think he looks entirely too smug and condescending. It's a pretty strong gut reaction. Obviously he resembles someone I've had a bad experience with.
Back to school today, and we didn't get off to a good start. Older Son called me at work at ~1:00 PM (college classes start for him next Monday) saying that the high school had called and Younger Son was absent. What?! I sent the kid off there this morning. Immediate panic set in as I frantically called the school to confirm whether he was really there or not. I told them I was ready to call the police. They found him. Turns out they'd just misplaced him. So now the homework wars start again. I hate school. I've been having nightmares about it for a solid week now.
But there has been some knitting. Unfortunately I can't show it to you because my camera and computer are having a failure to communicate. I want a new camera. I'll edit and add pics later if I can (they were cute baby pics, too!) I got pictures!
I finished this cute little romper for BabeE last week. Isn't it cute? (And not pink?) There's sparkly buttons for the butt too, but I didn't have thread to sew them on so her mom will have to. (Hey, it's not a free lunch, you know?) Pattern is "Florence" from Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Collection. Here's the front:

We liked the retro feel of this pattern, and mom's a big fan of the seed stitch. And there's this beauty too:
(I can only take full credit for the sweater. I'll take partial credit for the baby. It was my birthday celebration that put that glimmer in her mother's eye.) April Baby. I subbed out the Gull pattern as I'm wont to do. Can't remember the name of this one, only that it was a six stitch pattern so I had to do some math to make it work out right. And her mom dyed the yarn, so I guess I can give her partial credit on the sweater too.

Coming Back

First off -- thanks everyone for your condolences. It means alot to me. I'm trying to get back to the business of life. I told my sisters that I don't know what to do with myself. I've been taking care of my parents for the past 15 years. My sisters were in town until yesterday morning, so yesterday evening and today have been a little hard since it's the first I've been on my own. I talked to everyone today and none of us are sleeping well. Then there's the issues around any kind of gathering, good or bad. Can you believe that one of the visitors at the viewing for my dad gave a family member grief because she didn't feel that she was paid enough attention while she was there?! Just thinking about it boggles my mind. "I was at this funeral home and the grieving family just didn't pay enough attention to me. They're all snooty and stuck up." Sheesh. (For the record, everyone did talk to her, someone was talking to her the whole time she was there, and she left because she said she had to be somewhere else.) Work has been very good, and it's helpful to keep busy. Unfortunately, though, I now have no excuse for putting off the housework I've been neglecting. Well, I did today because it's eleven thousand degrees out, and I'm not moving from my bed because any movement at all makes me break out in a sweat. Maybe I'll get to it tomorrow...

Goodbye Pap

My dad passed away this morning. He slipped into unconsciousness yesterday morning and didn't wake back up.


I sat with him throughout the night and he never showed any signs of distress or discomfort. The last time I spoke to him was after a visit from Celtic Queen. His face lit up when he saw her and he was happier than I've seen him in weeks. It was a blessing.



We were very grateful that his end was peaceful. I imagine that he's enjoying a long-awaited reunion with his "Honey Bea" (his pet name for my mom) right now.



I was also fortunate that the nurse on call was a neighbor who knows me well, and so I knew he was in good hands.



As he himself said, he "lead a good long life and was really blessed."



He will be greatly missed by my sisters and I, (this is one of my sisters, not me in case you're wondering)



And all of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Everyone who met him liked him, and I've heard over and over "He was a really good man."