switcheroo

Time to make the switch. Find the new Knit & Nosh here.

simple is good

After a morning of research my brain is numb. It has occurred to me that I have spent the past 6 months cramming by brain full of new knowledge. Colleges, International Study, Non-Dairy Cooking, Computers, Blogs, Writing...no wonder all I want to do is knit simple things.

The latest simple thing









Sock Pixie, #1 DP’s. One sock all done, the second at the heel.


We in our household are not good consumers. The living room chairs and sofa are hand me downs. The dining room furniture too. Come to think of it, everything but the mattress’ are probably second hand. We do not replace things, we fix them. We are conscious of the resources used to make things and we usually decide we can do without.

So how did it happen that we are about to have 5 laptops in a 6 person household? The last holdout being only 9 years old. And how crazy is it that we all need to work on computers just to get our stuff done? The kids for school, Husband for work, me for writing.

I know not everyone reading this blog is of my age, but the fact that I am sitting in bed, typing to a world connected by the internet is amazing. I remember the first time I saw a computer. It was housed in a 10’ by 20’ climate controlled room and it did not do squat. 30 years later and everyone has a computer that slips into a backpack. Wow.

alpaca and silk

This is what the best mailman in the whole world brought to me Thursday.





Dragon fibers March Fiber O The Month Club.





2oz 70/30 Fawn Alpaca/Tussah Silk. You can not imagine the softness of this fiber. It makes butter feel grainy.




2oz Tussah Silk. Shiny, subtle, amazing.

I think both of these fibers will be spun and knit into a Kata scarf. I am saving them. They will be the first project I spin on my wheel. I do not know when the wheel will arrive, or when I will feel confident enough to spin for a project, but this stuff will happily wait for that day.





My little friend says, "yes".

oh canada

When Husband left for work this morning it was not snowing. 30 minutes later when I rolled out of bed, it was not snowing. 2 hours later when Oldest Daughter came upstairs, it was not snowing. We decided to go for it.

First stop, the grocery store for road trip supplies. You know the ones I am talking about, chips and red vines and the like. Second stop, the gas station. As we are leaving the gas station is begins to rain, there is a bit of snow mixed in, but just a bit. We make a decision to get on the freeway and see what happens. If it starts snowing we can always turn around.

There is a lot of rain/snow mix, this does not worry me. Once we get north of Everett the rain stops and it is just snow. It snows lightly for a few miles then stops. I am fine. 15 minutes later it snows again for a few miles and then stops. I am OK with all of this.

We drive right through Bellingham, all is well. 2 miles out of Bellingham the snow starts. Real snow. After a few miles it does not stop, in fact it gets heavier. I can hardly see. At some point we realize we are driving along side the ocean, but can not see it. This is bad. We find a diner and have some lunch.

Lunch is spent looking out the window and wondering what the hell is going on. It is the end of March and we are right next to the water, how can it still be snowing. It is too late to turn around, we are practically at the border. We eat our lunch very slowly and hope for the best.

The best happens! The snow lets up, we travel on to the UBC. We take a walking tour of the campus and remain dry! Cold, but dry.

It snowed again on the way home. At some point I thought about stopping and grabbing a hotel for the night. Talked myself right out of that. I was going home, no matter what.

While in Canada I realized that I am an American Idiot. I used to think only the Hummer driving, bomb dropping, Bush lovers were American Idiots. I am afraid I had more than my share of head shaking moments today.

First, we are waiting to cross the border and I see a construction sign for the Douglas Crossing. Douglas Crossing? That sign must have been erected by mistake. Turn the corner and there is another sign for the Douglas Crossing construction. What is the Douglas Crossing? This is the Blaine Crossing? Duh! It is only the Blaine crossing if you are from America. I felt so stupid.

We cross the border and see a sign that says Vancouver 50 km. This means nothing to me. 50 km could be around the next corner or 2 hours away. I felt so stupid.

About 10 miles later I realize that I have entered a foreign country, with a cell phone that may not work, with only a vague idea of where I am going, and it did not even occur to me to bring map. Oh yeah, I am that kind of idiot.

not yet

Earlier I tried a post at Typepad. I was happy up until the final spell check. The spell check made my pictues and typing all wonky. More work needs to be done.

I moved over to Wordpress to try the same post and was immediatley stymied by the photo link. I guess I need to use Flickr with Wordpress, not a bad thing, just an unexpected thing. More work needs to be done.

Tomorrow - Friday - Oldest Daughter, Youngest Son and I have planned to drive up to UBC. We made these plans before the weather decided to snow, in Seattle, at the end of March. In case you skimmed right over that last sentence. Snow, Seattle, March. If it is snowing when I wake up, I am not driving anywhere! Which really is a shame because I authorized Oldest Son and Youngest Daughter to host a Rock Band party while I was scheduled to be gone. If I am here, I have to listen. OY!

Today Youngest Daughter informed me that Passover begins April 19th. I had not even thought about Passover. Considering that we have a dinner for 18+ to plan, I had better get busy.

Blogger's spell check seems to be down, again. I will not swear, OK, I did swear, but I will not share my swear with you. Please be kind with my spelling.

einy meenie miny mo

Thank you for your advice. I have registered Knit & Nosh with both Wordpress and Typepad. I will play with them both and see what happens. Whichever is easier and has the best Help section will probably win out.

edit to add

I spent about half an hour setting up Typepad. Pretty painless. The hardest part was learning the lingo. Lingo I should already know, but have managed to avoid.

I then moved over to Wordpress, but did not spend too much time clicking around. I am having issues with the word Blogroll. Yea, its stupid, but the word bugs me. I will head back over later in the day.

Meanwhile there is work to be done. So pesky.

wordpress

About a month ago I had reached the boiling over point with Blogger. If you were up late reading blogs you may have been subjected to my rant. I deleted the post the next day, it was SO not in keeping with the "not too much swearing" part of my blog title.

Right now my biggest issue is being able to respond to comments. Blogger does not give me an email address for people leaving comments. I would like to acknowledge them and answer questions. It may be time to leave Blogger and move to Wordpress.

I have registered Knit & Nosh over there, but am wondering if it will be a wise move. What do y'all think? Your personal dealings, anecdotes and advice about Wordpress is much appreciated.

peace

Baby Surprise Jacket has been frogged. I know a million and one people have knit the darn thing, but it just does not work for me. If I had a schematic I would feel better about trying to guess what she means with her instructions. As I was reskeining the yarn I learned something important.

I am past the point of knitting for a challenge, or because I feel guilty about not finishing what I start. I knit to relax, to focus, to be at peace. I am at a point where anything remotely stressful, knit wise, will not be tolerated. Life is hard, knitting should not be.

happy purim

I was looking for a particularly funny Purim link to post and came across this. Big sigh.




This is my first Baby Surprise Sweater. I know I am probably the last person on the planet to make this particular pattern. I purchased the original pattern from Schoolhouse Press and am having a hard time with Zimmermann’s intuition type knitting. I am all for making things up as you go along, but my intuition does not match hers.

I am using Louet Gems Sportwieght. This yarn is spun so tight that it feels like cotton. It is washer/dryer safe, which is good for a baby sweater, but I do not imagine I will purchase it again.

We do not celebrate Easter, but the kids have always enjoyed an egg hunt. Yes, they are WAY too old to be hunting eggs, but they enjoy it and Husband enjoys hiding them in dastardly places. Tomorrow you will find the kids in the yard and Husband and I on the deck drinking Mimosas. Ah spring.

Happy Easter to all of you doing the Easter thing this Sunday.

stoic guilt

I was on the phone with my Mom this afternoon. She began the conversation like this.

Mom-“What does a person who knows about spinning wheels know about a distaff? Or, would a person who knows about spinning need a distaff?”

I explain what I think a distaff is for.

Mom – “So maybe this person could afford to purchase the $25.00 distaff at some point in the future?”

Yes

Mom – “Now, what would a person who knows about spinning think about the color choices of clear, maple or mahogany?”

I am laughing pretty hard at this point.

Mom – “No wait, let’s talk about your house remodeling. You put in a wall of built in bookshelves. What color did you stain the shelves?”

I painted them red.

Mom- “Perhaps a spinning person could be surprised?”

Perhaps.


Oh my. I do not know what to think. A month or so ago she asked if I had purchased a wheel. I explained that it was more of a “some day” type of goal. She replied that I should talk to my Grandma about it, because my birthday is coming up. Before you start to think that I am a youngster because I can ask my Grandma for things, let me inform you that not only do I have one Grandma knocking on 100, I have two!! Anyway, I would never ask my Grandma for such an extravagant gift. Especially after she said she would be gifting Oldest Daughter a laptop to take to University. Looks like my Mom took the spinning wheel and ran with it. I am torn by feelings of unworthiness and guilt. It is the specialness of growing up Norwegian AND Jewish.

a winner!

amysue is the winner of the 2000 anniversary skein. Miss amysue, I do not have an email for you, can you please email me with your address? If you would rather not send that info via email, I am dandelion on Ravelry. Congratulations to amysue and THANK YOU to everyone who checks in from time to time and keeps me typing.

What am I doing tonight? First, I am going to do a little writing, I have something in my head that I need to type out. Then, then I am going to put all my stash up on Ravelry. Husband is out of town. I had planned to do this the last time Husband was out of town, but he took my laptop. This time, he has his own laptop. So late tonight, or tomorrow, you will be able to see my stash, in all its glory. I have to admit that there is not too much of it, but it is all good.

bind off & cast on

Usually I start off my day by bringing a cup of tea and my laptop to bed, then I write before Youngest Son wakes up. I did not realize how much I enjoyed my little routine until yesterday. Yesterday is the day I broke the outlet next to the bed. My laptop’s battery will last less than 30 minutes. That only gives me time to deal with the email, read a couple of favorite blogs, (yh & sq) and do a quick blog post of my own. Then I will need to move to my desk. Don’t get me wrong, I like my desk, there is just something about typing away in bed, in my own little world.

Husband’s socks were finished yesterday.


Diagonal Rib Socks. Louet Gems Merino. Size 2 needles.

Before bed I cast on a plain ol’sock

Well, the pattern is plain ol’, the yarn is SockPixie’s, Merino, Love Letters. I could write a love letter to this yarn. You may recall that this is my February Sock Club yarn. It has been such a long time since I knit a plain sock. Not only does the flat fabric let the colors do all the talking, but it is so relaxing.

The design for March’s Sock Club has net been written. I will probably do that and then cast on this weekend. That will be more of a challenge.

Don’t forget to enter the contest. Scroll down to “2000” to see the yarny goodness I am giving away , then leave a comment to enter.

Happy Purim!!!!

What's wrong with this picture?

I have an ñ in my last name. To get Word to insert this character I use a keyboard shortcut. Fn and Alt the whole time, then 0241. When you lift up your fingers the ñ magically appears. Unless you inadvertently hit another key at the same time. In that case your display goes all sideways on you. The hardest part about your screen being sideways is that your touchpad mouse will not do what you want it to do. After 20 minutes of holding my computer sideways while trying to make the mouse work so that I could fix the problem I was getting a little nauseous. Now that the problem is fixed my brain is still having mouse issues.

Ah, technology.

i love bluebirds

Please join me on a mental visual. Picture a path, a glowing, silver path with sparkly purple edges. This is the path of writing a book. Now put me on the path, I am happily skipping along, my hair is shiny and swinging from side to side. As I move down the path I turn my head to gaze upon a sweet little bluebird perched in a tree, SLAM! That slam is me receiving a full body check from the publishing industry. It seems I have a little work to do. A great book is all well and good, but I need to provide a "platform". Sheesh, I thought that was the publishers job.

2000

I can not believe it has been a whole week since the last post. Have I ever gone a whole week between posts?

My beans had to be moved outside. They were so tall they had begun to spiral around each other and the “colortop icicles” hanging over the kitchen sink.

They now have a permanent home out on the deck, complete with a colorful wire to climb.

Saturday Oldest Daughter and I went to an International Recruiting event for UBC. They sounded very positive, which is good because today she received a rejection notice from St. Olaf. UBC is her first choice, but it would be nice to have a back up plan. Right now she is a few classes short of an AA. It would be OK with me if she sticks around another semester and tries again as a transfer student. There is a downside to that plan. #1: She is REALLY looking forward to going away and living in a dorm. #2: We have invested almost $500.00 in application fees. That is something I do not want to do again.

The blog counter is very close to 2000,that means it is time for a contest! Leave a comment before Saturday and I will draw a name from a hat for some yarny goodness.

Socks That Rock, Pink Granite. This skein is from the first year of the Rockin’ Sock Club. Yeah, the colorway is now available to the public, but this one has the cool sock club band.

not smarter than yarn

Here is a cone (and bobbin) of Habu silk wrapped stainless. It is fairly generic. A gray lace weight. I have a design, and I thought this may be the perfect yarn. I did not write anything down, just an idea in my head. My idea calls for this yarn to be knitted double. No big deal, I will make half of the cone a center pull ball and get to work.

WARNING!! Do NOT take this yarn off the cone for any reason other than immediate and permanate knitting. This yarn is not really yarn. It is thread, with memory. You know how thread makes itself into a little knot? You pull gently and the knot undoes itself, you pull hard and the knot will never come out? Well, with this stuff the knot says "screw you!" and all hope is lost.

I spent a large portion of my afternoon trying to unravel a swatch that did not quite work. Thinking the whole time...I am smarter than yarn! At the end? I had to cut it and say uncle. I am not smarter than the yarn.

The worst part of this whole thing is that I still feel this is the right fiber for the project, so I will cast on and try again. I did not realize I was a masochist.

Send Karma.

today's mail

This is what Mailman brought today.

Spunky Eclectic Club, February's colorway. This is so not my color. In fact this is the third shipment I have received that is so not my color. I loved the colors she dyed last fall, and I love being exposed to different fibers, but I am done. This is the third bag of fiber that I will not be spinning. I have cancelled my membership. She has TONS of people in the club, she will not miss me one bit. If this is your color then I recommend the club. Very affordable and a wide variety of fibers.

Then there is this

This is the March instalment of my sock club. This is by Sanguine Gryphon. I new yarn for me, as per club rules. It is lovely. The base yarn feels very much like Fleece Artist. The color is Phardo. When I ordered it, my monitor showed it as a steely gray. When I opened the package, in bright sunlight, the yarn was surprisingly green. The next day it was sitting on my dresser, deep gray. Even when I held it and turned it over I could not find a trace of green. This is very tricky yarn indeed. I am looking forward to knitting it up. I will design something Celtic and cabled to match the moody sea colors of this yarn.

a perfectly nerdy evening

Tonight, Husband and Oldest Son are battling it out in a game of Axis And Allies, They have been at it for hours.

Oldest Daughter returned from her shift volunteering at the local museum, to meet a schoolmate. They are using the garage to make arrows for their Archery class.

The whole crew convenes around the dinner table and proceeds to have a conversation about Lord of The Rings that is truly amazing. Truly amazing. These people know their stuff and they are having a great time talking, and talking, and talking...

It is nerd central at The Rockin' P.

i love the mailman

I just ordered the sock yarn for my March sock club. I think the waiting is harder when you know what is coming than when it is an actual surprise.

We have a great mailman, he has watched the kids grow and delivered an untold number of birthday packages for them. He brings packages to the door a few times a week and never complains. He has never suggested we get a bigger mailbox. From time to time he will ask what is in the box. Today was a good day. Today he brought this

Dragon Fibers fiber club Merino Bamboo.

It feels like cotton candy. I do not need to spin or knit it, just wrap the whole braid around my neck.


Webs Skein of the Month. This is Merino and silk. It is so soft, perfect for a scarf. No way it would ever even think about being scratchy.


The color is deep and wonderful and not me. My Mom will love it. I have stashed it away in the present drawer for her.

The package also included a pattern and a nifty surprise. This yarn retails for $35.00, lasts month's yarn would have cost me $24.00. The cost of the club is just over $100 a year. Totally worth it! If you join now the cost is prorated. You should join.

its a seattle thing

Emma, this one is for you.

catch up & laundry

The past few days have been very productive. I have done a ton of writing and feel really good about what I have accomplished. I have been writing for the book so much that I have been completely spent when it comes time for a blog post. I do not know how Stephanie does it. She writes book after book AND lengthy blog posts.

Time for a little catch up. This is what is on the spindle

Emma calls it Secret Garden, but I am calling it Crab Apple. The green does not show on my monitor, I hope it does on yours. I spun about 2 ounces this morning. As I spin, I think of the crab apple tree my Grandma had in her backyard. To this day, crab apple jelly is my hands down favorite. I come across a jar every few years and treasure the flavors.

This is what a couple of days of dance classes and doctor appointments will get you

Louet Gems, Diagonal Rib #2’s. Husband has worn these socks before. He put them through the washer and dryer and was so upset when he realized they no longer fit. I am making him a new pair. This pair is going very slowly, there is so much other stuff on my plate right now.

I spent today sorting toys. When our friend asked if we would help I was expecting to spend a couple of hours dealing with toys, it turned into 5+ hours! I should have brought a camera, because this pile of toys was HUGE!. A friend of mine, had a friend of hers, give her a PILE of toys and clothes. This pile of toys and clothes belonged to her two sons. After going through the toys I imagine the sons are now off to college. The kids and I sorted through 100s of pounds of Legos and Star Wars action figures and army guys. After the sorting they were put into gallon size Ziplocs and then into totes for a specific charity. The kids on the receiving end are going to love the bags!

Part of the deal with having my kids sort toys was their ability to tell the difference between Lego and Playmobil and Papo and Star Wars...and their reward was being able to cherry pick the things that wanted most. I am so proud of them. They understood that the toys were going to kids that did not have Lego and Playmobil buckets stacked high in the closet. They chose carefully, and well.

The one extravagance they gave themselves was a Nintendo DS and some games. The family that donated the toys had an embarrassing amount of game systems. Truly, embarrassing. I allowed the kids to choose one to bring home. Again, they chose wisely.

For the past couple of months our washing machine has been letting us know that it is at the end of its lifespan. This thing has worked like a champ through 3 kids in diapers (the 4th was disposable all they way!) and 17 years of washing a family of 6's clothes. It is time to replace it with one of those water efficient front load models. Do you have one? What would you recommend?

shiny, shiny

While waiting to leave for my Physical Therapy appointment I pulled out the concertina. I do not think I have posted photos of my new sweetie

She is old and shiny and I love her.

I have been a musician my whole life, so me picking up a new instrument is not really that big a deal. But what I want from this experience is different. I am a classically trained musician and have always played from written music. With this concertina my goal is to learn to play by ear. I can’t wait to see what happens.

My Physical Therapist was so mean to me today. More reps, more weights, new exercises. If I can get out of bed in the morning I will be surprised.

My concertina needs a name. Do you have any suggestions?

3 stars

Is anyone out there Jewish? A friend asked me why the Sabbath ends on Saturday when you can see 3 stars in the sky. After pouring through most of the Jewish reference books on my shelves, and a couple of hours of internet searching, I have come up empty. If there is someone out there who knows the answer and can point me to a reference/resource, I will be oh, so, grateful. Until then, I will put on another pot of tea and return to the books.

1800?

A few days ago my blog counter rolled over 1700. This took almost a year. Today, before I even mailed out the package for the lucky #1700, the counter has rolled over 1800. OMG! I will keep posting, y'all keep reading, as we get close to 2000 I will rummage through the stash for another yarny goodness giveaway. I have very little stash, and it is all good.

I spent most of yesterday trying to reinvent the wheel. After a long day I am back where I started. But fresh and with rested eyes. Truth be told, I make a little progress everyday, and feel really great about the whole process.

Today Youngest Son has a dentist appointment, last one for a while. I cancelled his tap lesson this week. Good thing becasue both daughters see Ortodontist today. Then there is the after dinner dance class. I so dislike having to bundle up and head out after dinner. I prefert to have wine with dinner and change into my jammies. What about you? What time is your time to feel like you are "in for the day"?

No knitting progress. Yesterday I knit and ripped and knit and ripped and knit and ripped. See the whole reinventing the wheel from above. Good news, Oceanwind Knits holds up well to such torture.

My bean grew a whole inch



I love my bean!

I need to start a small project to take with me. What will it be? A soon as I am done with this post I will go stash diving. Knitting progress to follow.

Please, let me know, at what time of day do you say NO, it is too late.

sprouts

Spring has arrived here in Seattle. We are having a bright beautiful weekend. There will be rain all week, but temperatures around 50 and no more night time freezing. It feels so wonderful to be sitting in the sun. The next non-rainy weekend will be spent preparing the deck, bringing out the furniture and potting new plants. That is one of my favorite weekends of the year, full of anticipation.

Look what else has arrived


my intentional bean. It is very appropriate because I plan to spend the whole day writing.

edit-
I had planned to spend the whole day writing, Husband through a wrench in my plan. He is at work and I need to make arrangement to go pick up some plants and drop off some baby stuff. Before I pick up the plants, which are being rescued from a co-workers yard, I have to go to the nursery to buy pots and dirt. Of course I can not lift anything, so I have to wrangle kids into helping. This is going to take hours, so much for writing all day. I am mad because I have to do this and guilty for feeling mad because of the long hours Husband has been working.

flowers?

Our local Trader Joe's has a large pillar in front of the main door that is circled by potted flowers. Cut flowers are piled deep on either side of the entrance. This morning as I walked in to pick up a few things I actually laughed outloud at the site before me. 5, count 'em, 5 men standing in front of the flowers, hands in pockets, looking more than a little shell shocked. I could not help but laugh.

I had a great Physical Therapy session this morning. I am going to put that whole usgly Epidural Cortesone Injection idea right out of my head. I see light at the end of the tunnel for the first time in almost 2 months.

Time to get cooking. Happy Valentine's Day to you all!!!!

too busy

Too busy to post yesterday, but the first Flap Mitten is done

Malabrigo, #4 needles, 48 stitches around. This mitten is perfect! It is soft and thick and my design came out just right. I am anxious to see how much yarn it will take to make the pair. I do not have a scale and my fingers are totally crossed that one skein will be enough for 2 mittens. Now that we are coming to the end of mitten weather, (sorry Steph, our spring will appear MUCH sooner than yours), I think I will squirrel these away for Youngest Daughter and Hanukkah 2008. I am not a last minute kind of gal.

This afternoon I returned home and found this

It is a valentine present from my aunt. She is so wonderful. One of the truly good people of the world.

Last Sunday's Writer's Group was moved to this Sunday. Too many of us were sick and unable to attend. At the time I thought, "Yipee, I will be able to get so much more done before next Sunday." My continued optimism continues to amaze me. This week has been crazy busy. I have not had time to do much more than order some reference books. I came across a gem of a list. The books are all out of print, but available through the magic of the internet. I suppose I could count that as work. Searching for all those titles, pulling the debit card in and out of the wallet...

Kim is having a book contest on her blog, check it out.

a prize

To the first person who reads this entry,
Please leave a comment and I will send you some yarny goodness.

i could use an Alfred today

Holy algorithms Batman! The counter on this here blog is about to hit 1700. I rememebr when it turned over 100, I was so surprised. 1700? I am floored!

There will be much knitting done today. Why? Well...yesterday the girls and I were walking around Seattle Center trying to find the Emerald City Feish. Just as we realized we were coming up on the right place, the pavement slipped out from under my left foot and I completely bent my ankle sideways. Sideways! We were far away from the car, so decided to watch the competition and deal with the ankle later. We did eventually make it back to the car. Once home I took off my sock and OMG. There was swelling and dark colors and red lines. Nothing that should be associated with an ankle. So today I sit and deal with the Sciatica in my right leg while tyring to rest the left ankle. OY.

Looky, first FO of the day


Dandelions in Summertime. Rio de la Plata, size 1 needles, plenty of yarn left.

Now its onto Flap Mittens


I have 2 meetings tonight. Will I be able to finish the first mitten? Tune in tomorrow. Same bat time, same bat channel.

more yarn

Here is a project that was finished a few weeks ago. Oldest Daughter put it right into service and I did not have a chance to take a picture. Last night I found it lying on the table and I grabbed the camera.

It is a Nintendo DS cozy! When I saw the pattern I could not decide if the idea was cute or dorky. Oldest Daughter assured me it was so dorky that she had to have one. Stash diving brought up a skein of MMMMalabrigo. You can kinda see the cables. There are simple alternate cables on either side and more intricate cabling in the center panel. The pattern is from the Stich N Bitch page a day calendar. I altered it by working about 20 fewer rows and I did not add the hole for the strap. A quick knit received with a very satisfiing squeel.

The mailman is so good to me

Loveletters by SockPixie. 100% Merino. Lovely to look at, delightful to hold. You could practically lick it.

fiber, finally

Here is a good old fashioned fiber post.



Up first, Youngest Daughter's 3rd pair of socks.

Do not know the specs. It is good yarn, worsted, with her first cable.

She will soon be making an identical pair for her best friend. She did this with her first/second pairs as well.



Banded Iguana.



I have not measured the WPI, but it looks very Fingering. This is a Merino /Tencle blend from Dragon Fibers. I LOVE Dragon Fibers. It is the first time I have spun this blend and I was surprised that it did not fluff up much in the soak. The finished skein is displayed on the CD wall. I do not have a clue of the yardage. I aslo do not have a clue what I will do with it. My brain has been working for process, not product. For now, it is beautiful on the CD wall.


One sock of Dandelions in Summertime is done. The heel of the second sock is in progress. Oops, I thought this was a picture of a finished sock, oh well, you get the idea.

As soon as this pair is finished I will start on my February Sock Club yarn. The yarn is not actually here yet, but on its way. Loveletters.

are you serious?

Specialist said, “epidural cortisone injections”. He also said that if it did not work it would be time to call Neurologist. I do not know how I feel. I want the pain to stop. I want to be a whole person again. I do not want someone sticking needles into my spine. It has been an emotional morning. Too early for wine, I guess it will have to be tea.

no one told me it is personal

Writing is so much more personal than I ever imagined. It makes me feel open and vunerable in a way that I am not used to feeling. It has me wondering if I want to continue with this whole blog thing.

I have a couple of friends who are far away, and they enjoy reading the blog to see what I am up to. I have a couple more people I have met through knitting adventures on line, and we enjoy each others daily blog posts. What I am not ready for are people who read the blog and then see me, face to face.

This has happened 2 times at local yarn shops. "Are you the Terri that....?" "Yes, that is me." And then again yesterday. I posted a comment on a blog, not realizing my blog was linked to the comment. When I saw this person she mentioned that she had taken a quick peek. I was mortified. What had I written? Nothing mean or spiteful, but what about quality and spelling and dangling participles? What about wine consumption and swearing? Then there is the whole revealing aspect of it all. What have I revealed online that I would be uncomfotable revealing in a casual conversation?

The truth is I need to get over it. Writing is personal. People I meet through writing are going to know me in ways I am not comfortable with. The same thing is probably true in reverse. It is a courageous stretch we make, to meet people and make art and trust we will not be hurt. I am still not comfortable with it, but I am willing to try.

show me the money

Well, Oldest Daughter has applied to 4 colleges. She has one more on her list and should get that application finished up this weekend. Now for the really hard part. You guessed it, the money. So the scholarship search begins. It is all so much work. I do not remember it being this much work when I was looking for a school, &*&*years ago. I took the SATs (aced them, thank you very much), and I applied to one school. I do not think I had to pay an application fee. Soon after I applied I got a fat envelope in the mail asking me to chose a dorm. Painless.

Oldest Daughter's experience is VERY different. She chose 5 schools based on a couple of college fairs and a small forest's worth of solicitations. She had to get references from 3 teachers. Those references had to be in sealed envelopes and the teacher had to sign across the seal. Then there were transcripts from her high school and 2 colleges. Her high school credits are mostly homeschool credits, which makes for a whole new set of forms. She had to submit personal statements as well as essays. On top of all this there were application fees for each college ranging from $55-$100! Holy crap.

4 of her college choices send out acceptance letters in March. The one she wants to attend the most, sends their letters out in May. I am praying to God that she does not have to accept anything before the May letter arrives.

I need another glass of wine.

Sorry about the spell check.

smack

I have hit a wall with the second chapter. I need more research materials and will be heading out to the bookstore as soon as they open. I can only do so much research on line. In the end I like to hold paper in my hands while I am reading.

Is anyone else having problems using the blogger spell check? Apolagies all around for the spelling in the last few posts.

Many Doc appointments and dance classes this weeek. Here is what my first Dandelions In Summer look like after a week in the wating room

I am very pleased. The colors are much brighter in real life. It is pretty cloudy here today, I will try another picture once the sun arrives. The pattern would be perfect if I would have knit it toe up. But me, toe up? No thank you. You may remember that I pulled out one whole sock (size 11 men's) and the second sock up to the heel becasue I could not bear to do another short row heel. The ends had been woven and everything. I hate short row heels that much.

all is well

Youngest Son is fine. It is amazing the difference this current dentist has made. I am grateful we found him. If your need a referral for a Pediatric Dentist in the Seattle area, I can help.

I have spent the past two hours sitting on the couch knitting the Faux Russian Stole. I made myself stop to write a little. I do have a dealine approaching. The Writer's Group meets on the 10th and I would like to get a first draft of 2 chapters to them by the middle of the week. One chapter is done, the second has a good start. If I am going to be able to finish the second chapter I need to put the knitting aside and concentrate. "Stay on target."

Posting to the blog is not goofing off, it is actually helpful. It gets me sitting at my desk, focused on putting words to paper.

Speaking of blogs...here is a new favorite. Do not click if you are hungry, or if you should be thinking about work, not the warm & gooy things that could be coming out of your oven.

open wide

Youngest Son has a dental appointment this morning. He is going to have some worok done, for the first time. He is very nervous. I am going to give him some medicine before his appointment that will make him sleepy. Dentist will give him the gas at the office. With any luck he will fall asleep. This appointment will be followed by 2 others. A lot rides on how well things go this morning. Send good thoughts this way.

so much

On any given day my desk looks like this

neat, tidy, void of all the crap the family tries to put here.

Those of you that have been reading the blog for a while know that I can not function in clutter. Here is my desk today

OMG! It is a mess, even if you can not see the glass of wine hiding behind the computer. There is so much to do. The funny thing? I do not mind at all. I look to the right and see Youngest Son and I drawing comics about his upcoming dental appointment. I look left and up and see all the numbers I need to keep handy as I muddle through this whole Sciatica thing. I look left and see writing. Books for my research and a second chapter from a member of the Writer's Group. This is not clutter, this is work in progress. It is all good. I am not sure if I could live with this for more than 24 hours, but right now, if feels very productive. Who knew?

For the first part of the month I blogged everyday. The past few days have been silent. Not because there is nothing in my brain, but because there is so much. I am overflowing with energy. Too much for one post. I will back up a bit and try to keep it small.

First, and furthest past. Writer's Group. You may recall that I was practically nauseous at the prospect of attending this group. At the same time, I was trying to be strong and courageous. So I attended. I went into this meeting nervous about sitting down with real writers. As we went around the table for introductions the nervousness turned to terror. The friend that invited me to join this group is a well known published author. The members of her group are multi-published, VERY respected authors. I felt a little shaky. As the afternoon wore on the shakes calmed, and I was struck by how welcoming and genuine and just plain wonderful these women are. Wow. I left feeling confident and included and energized. A truly amazing afternoon.

Not only have I been working on my non-fiction piece, which is at the top of the pile, but I have also done a bit with the fiction. It flowed so naturally. I have heard interviews with writers where they talk about how things pour out and characters take shapes of their own. I did not believe it was true. It is true. The fiction is spilling onto the page and I am amazed at the events unfolding.

Our next Writer's Group meeting is fast approaching, and I need to get all my notes together and turn them into paragraphs, so that I have something to present at the next meeting. In the meantime there is an Inbolc party and I am invited. How cool is that? What will I plant? I am not sure if it is suppose to be a secret. Can you guess?

update

Bee Fields will remain on the up next next list. Instead I chose to start Morning Glory Wrap. In thinking about colors for this wrap I was leaning towards an indogo. I checked the pattern for yarn requirements and was happily surprised to see I needed 700 yards of DK. A trip to the cupboard produced this.

I love this yarn with all my heart. Instead of indigo for the flowers, it will be green for the vines. I am very happy. Please excuse me while I set up the ball winder.

I am off to camp this weekend. See y'all on Monday.

details, details

I had planned to make the Invisibility Shawl my next project, I spun the yarn a couple of months ago. Now I am bored with that idea. Maybe as Halloween nears I will be in the mood? So what next? I am thinking Bee Fields. I do not have the yarn, so a search begins.

A couple of people asked about the sock club. The Sound Socks club is of my own making, just for me. It works like this. Once a month I find a sock yarn I have never tried before, in a colorway that I love, and make arrangements for it to come to my house. Sometimes the mailman will bring then, sometimes they will be chosen from a LYS. When I purchase this yarn, it is only this yarn, not part of a larger stash enhancement purchase. That keeps it special. Choosing colors I love means I do not have to feel guilty about not knitting up the variegated neons. I also do not need to spend a lot of time knitting the purple yarns only to have them end up in my give away pile. It helps if the color I chose gives me a good pattern idea. From time to time I may include a doo dad, cause that is always fun. I realize as the year rolls on that it may become more difficult to find yarns I have not knit in colors that I like. I will find a creative way to deal with that when it happens.

Now you have all the information you need to start your own Sock Club For One. Knit on!

shawl part 2

It is true, I am a bed blocker

close up of the leaf pattern

au natural

I am VERY pleased with this project. Oceanwind Knits, merino sock yarn, Vancouver Island, 4 skeins (I had most of one skein left) size 5 needles.

music and lace

I just placed a bid on a concertina. You may remember that one of my New Year's Goals is to learn to play. There are actually 2 on ebay that I am looking at. I will be at camp this weekend when the auctions close. I hope I do not lose it at the last minute. Maybe I will get one of the kids to deal with it while I am away.

There is a set budget for this new toy. If all goes well I will be able to buy this musical toy AND a fiber toy. Cross those fingers.

What am I doing to day? Packing for camp, a little house cleaning, a trip to the grocery store and blocking a lace shawl! Yep, I finished last night and will commence blocking as soon as I finish breakfast. Pictures this afternoon.

sound socks

Here it is, the first installment of my very own monthly sock club.

Rio de la Plata sock yarn, in a color I am calling Dandelions. Also included in my club are a pattern, written by me, called Dandelions in Summertime. Lastly, a set a beautiful abalone stitch markers.

I wish the picture were better. There are 4 abalone and 2 jade markers in the set. They have been handcrafted by SeeJanyeKnit and are quite beautiful.

I am very pleased with my first club installment. I had planned to bring a pair of flap mittens to knit while at camp this weekend. This may have to go first. They will be my first socks of the year.

My club needs a name....well, since I spend so much of my day gazing out at the waters of the Puget Sound, I think Sound Socks is appropriate. Yep, I am loving this. You too should make a sock club for yourself.

I wonder what February will bring?

you make my day award

Gosh, Tan is so nice. She has given me a "You make my day" award. There are rules to be followed...


"Give the award to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times."

Here are my top ten faves:

Vortex of Chaos

slowknitter

Yarn Harlot yes, we all read her, but if we all do not chose her, thinking someone else will, that would be bad.

Wendy Knits, see above

Sheri at The Loopy Ewe

KnittingKitty

Rose Kim Knits

That is so queer

Crazy Aunt Purl

Knit Like A Man

Thank you to all of the bloggers who make me laugh and try new things and think.