Rippit Rippit ... just a little bit

Is it a real blog post if it's without pictures?

2008-07-27T13:25:00.002-04:00

Last week I had my first vacation, vacation since oh ... I can't remember when. Either my trip to New Orleans that was pre-Katrina, or my family's last trip to the Outer Banks maybe four years ago.

Generally my vacations include 1) staying home to get caught up on all the things I can't get done in the normal course of life, or 2) going to my parent's house. Which, while I enjoy visiting, it's not exactly vacation. (No offense, Mom!)

My sister, niece, and I went to the Stonewall Resort that sits on the Stonewall Jackson Lake. This lake is the reservoir of the dam built to prevent the annual flooding of Weston, WV. It was a fabulous break from the daily grind where we hiked, swam, kayaked, paddle-boated, plus a lot of lying around and staring at the clouds, stars, and the back of our eyelids.

I would show you pictures of all the fun we had, but Item No 1 that I accomplished on this vacation was breaking my camera.

While hiking to an overlook to have a picnic lunch, the trail crossed a meadow that sloped downhill, packed full of wildflowers, and all I could think of was the opening to Little House on the Prairie with Gracie (was it Gracie?) running down the meadow. I wasn't so committed to the role that I threw myself to the ground, but I did throw my camera to the ground.

Actually, I lost my grip and it went soaring, remarkably high!, before it came crashing back to Earth. Something bent in the lens mechanism because it doesn't open/focus anymore. So sad. But also exciting because...new camera! But until then the only pictures I can offer will be those taken with my cell phone.

Still no yarn and only slightly less rain

2008-07-13T17:07:00.011-04:00

After I washed the mud off from the previous day's arts and crafting, my sister and I went to the West Virginia State Capitol grounds.

Fun Fact: While growing up in Charleston, WV, my family would often go to the state capitol grounds. I must have seen enough because I've never been to another one. I lived in Raleigh, NC for almost three years I never saw the NC state capitol. Never even drove by. Ditto for the OH state capitol for the six years I've lived in Columbus. Maybe that should be one of my summer places to go. Anybody know where it is? Want to come with me?

The first thing we did was escape the rain (Rain, Rain, Go Away!) into the WV Cultural Center where we poked around and I covertly took pictures of some of the coolest quilts I have ever seen! It makes me want to learn to sew. Because, you know, I don't have enough going on.

These were my two favorites... I love their motion. I wish I hadn't put them in the same picture, covert photography can be tricky. Both were sold. (See red dots.)

Clicky clicky to see bigger. Can you imagine piecing this together? It was Not For Sale. I wouldn't sell it either. I wish they said how long it took to make.

During a brief rain lull, we made our way to the capitol building. Here Senior Democratic Senator Robert C. Byrd and I reenact a scene from E.T.

Phone home, Sen Byrd, phone home.

Then we went to see State's Attorney General Darrel McGraw, but were frightened off by bears. Seriously.

WTF? This reminds me of how we used to saran wrap our professor's office doors in college. Are practical jokes allowed in the state government?

Apparently my sister likes to taunt bears by picking their nose.

Finally there was a wee bit o' sunshine and we got to walk around the grounds. The magnolia trees were in bloom, and it dawned on me...I don't think we have magnolia trees in Ohio. Do we? I can't recall ever seeing one here. They are my absolutely my favorite, and I'd completely forgotten about them.

Much prettier than corn.

And certainly more pretty than strip malls. Ohio, take note.

My sister says I look pregnant in this photo. I am not.

Although I do think maybe it's about time I joined a gym.

Rainy Yarn Days

2008-07-13T11:10:00.014-04:00

Over the Fourth of July weekend, I visited my fambly in West Virginia.

One of the things I, personally, looked forward to do over the holiday was visit the Mountain State Art & Craft Fair. And I brought my mom and sister along. Did they particularly want to come? Who cares! It's amazingly easy how fast "me" turns into "we".

One of the things I, personally, did not want to do was spend my vacation trudging through the mud and rain. But evidently I do not control the weather.

Evidence of trudging.

There was tons to see and buy and eat (and eat and eat) but surprisingly little in the fiber fields. Or perhaps I've just been to too many fiber festivals that leave me with skewed expectations.

There was one booth that I made a bee-line towards, perhaps knocking one or two little old ladies out of the way.

You'll notice there is no picture of me fondling yarn or a final yarn line-up after purchase. "Why?" one might ask. "Were you ill?" Well no, I wasn't. It just seemed like the little old ladies got the last laugh.

While holding a hank of particularly pretty greeny-yellow wool, and trying to decide if I should buy one or two, I hear a raspy, old lady voice off to my side, "Well, maybe I should buy her the green since that's the color she has in her living room." And she takes the hank out of my hand - Out! Of! My! Hand! - and walks off. She walks off!

And you might wonder, "Why did you not throw this old lady yarn stealer to the ground and take it back?" Because generally that would be my first reaction. But see, my mom was right there. And there were so many other pretty yarns, and sometimes you just have to let the old lady walk away, you know? But the yarn buying mood had passed. My mom did score some lovely, just lovely, golden merino that I somehow failed to take a picture of. Perhaps she'll put it on her Ravelry page?

(Mom, now you'll have to update your Ravelry page because everyone will be coming to see. Well, everyone being about three people. One of which is you.)

My mom, putting on a brave face in the rain.

My sister, wondering how long one person could possibly look at yarn.

Dough. Lovely, lovely, dough.

Frustration

2008-05-18T09:52:00.010-04:00

My whole life has been an exercise in frustration lately. One big, fat, frustrating event after another. I've never particularly handled frustration well, I was one of those children who cried over their homework if I didn't understand, instead of just taking a deep breath and figuring it out.

(Mom, remember when I had to draw the phases of the moon? If I haven't before, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for totally doing that assignment for me.)

I decided to take apart my bird feeder and clean it, which I have never done in the oh...five years I've owned it. It was quite moldy and gross, and I had noticed the birds throwing most of the seed out and about rather than eating it. Maybe because it was moldy and gross? It was very easy to get apart (yay!) and to clean (double yay!) but I couldn't get it back together. It was really frustrating, and I do believe I called my mom at some point, but eventually I muscled it back together.

FAIL!!1!

Maybe that's why I like knitting so much. Things start to go awry, the flush of frustration starts to creep up, just when you're about to FAIL, you do better. You FROG!!1!

P.S. Cath, yes I *do* have a problem with laddering when I knit a sock using magic loop!

I vehemently denied it in knitting group (which sounds like a 12-step program...and well, I guess it kind of is) because I don't have a laddering problem using DPNs and that's how I usually knit socks. But yes, later I realized what you were saying. I should re-try magic loop and rotate the stitches round the bend. I've denied magic loop for a looong time, because it puts so much tension on the stitches on the bend and that bothers me. It must be very frustrating for such a fabulous new technique to be denied.

And P.P.S. I did finally dump all the seed out of the birdfeeder into my new tugtrub and put it back together correctly. It was much easier than the way I did it wrong. I think there's another lesson in there somewhere.

How Square!

2008-05-10T21:43:00.006-04:00

Something I was excited to do while visiting my parents was to go through all my mom's inherited knit and crochet projects and help her frog the ones she didn't want to finish. I think my mom was excited too ... the first thing she said (after hi) was "Did you bring your ball winder?" Of course I did.

I wish I had taken a picture of my mom's yarn room. Yes, room. I have a yarn corner, she has a room. However, I'm not *too* jealous because most of the yarn and UFOs she has are not her own. Some of the projects date from a great aunt who died when I was in high school in the 1990s. They date from the last millennium! Some families pass down jewelry or priceless heirlooms, we pass down yarn. And acrylic yarn at that. Not that there's anything wrong with acrylic ... as long as I don't have to knit with it.

My mom didn't want to complete most of the projects, as most were knitted and she prefers to crochet ... not to mention a lot of them were funky, so they got frogged. Except for one bin, where I hit the jackpot:

110 SQUARES! Already knit! Not by me!

Now I get to do the fun part of blanket planning and plotting without having to knit the squares. I'd like to carry the same shade along diagonal lines with clear warm and cool color sides. I may try an i-cord edge made famous by the Mason-Dixon ladies. Or I may choose another from their fabulous first book. (The second is on its way!)

And if I do need a few more squares, I know where there's a room full of yarn.

I Marched for Babies!

2008-05-07T22:17:00.006-04:00

On April 27th, I was one of 4,300 people who marched for babies as part of the March of Dimes March for Babies. Four thousand three hundred people! Forty-three hundred people! That's amazing!

Thank you so much to everyone who sponsored me. I set a crazy goal for myself of $500, knowing I could drop it at any time if I wasn't close ... because we all have to meet our goal, right ... but totally not necessary. I kicked that goal's ass and then some raising $637! That just amazes me, thank you so much.

And I would also like to say thank you to the other four thousand two hundred and ninety nine people who walked with me to help raise $450,000!

Yay! Five miles for $637! ... that's more than $100 per mile. As a matter of fact, I can do basic math (with a calculator) and tell you that's $127.40 per mile. Yay!

Sorry that picture's blurry ... it was five miles people. Everything was a little blurry.

Happy Birthday to Meeee!

2008-04-20T12:15:00.001-04:00

While I was home for my birthday - or I guess I should say at my parent's since I haven't lived there for quite a few years - I went to the LYS, Kanawha City Yarn Co. They don't have a website, but it's at 310 53rd St in the K.C. It is an adorable shop, well stocked with lovely yarns and even more lovely people.

Looky at what I got:

Fall 2006 Knitscene with the Molly Ringwald pattern that mollylouhoo turned me on to. Mollys Unite! And enough Classic Elite Yarns Provence in a really pretty grey-brown to make it.

Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn in colors "Life's a Beach", the greens, blues, golds, and "Gypsy Rose", the blues, purples, greys, and maroons.

My sister and niece gave me the book Knitting for Peace by Betty Christiansen for a wonderful, well-rounded knitty birthday. I also got a big garden flag and other books from my parents, and of course a birthday cake.

So all in all, with enough gifts, reaching the big Three-Oh-No isn't so bad. And thankfully I'll never have to do it again.

Tech Support

2008-04-02T22:56:00.004-04:00

Is there anyone techie out there who knows how to edit the code of this template to give me a little more horizontal room? I feel my blog is confining. I want to streeeeetch ooooout!

How fired do you think I would be if I submitted this as an IT Work Order? I feel it would greatly enhance my work performance if I had a little more room on my personal knit blog ...

Updated: Aaaaah. I have streeeeetched.

Storage Solutions

2008-03-31T12:40:00.005-04:00

The snow has turned to rain (for the most part) and that can only mean one thing: Spring Cleaning!

Since I started knitting waaay back when, I've stored all my notions in old shoe boxes under my couch. Classy, right? I've looked for other storage solutions but never really found anything I liked or wanted to afford. I came across these while shopping for a friend's birthday at Global Gallery.

They were $8 each (I bought three) and remind me of the grass baskets women wove while waiting for customers at the roadside fruit stands in North Carolina. They're woven tight and smooth with no snags to grab the yarn, and they even smell a little bit like seagrass! There were several sizes and shapes, from trashcans to little fingerbowls, and why am I telling you all this?

Because I was chatting with the manager and business has not been great, which I'm sure is not unique with the downturn in the economy. But I think stores like the Global Gallery, "a non-profit volunteer run organization dedicated to promoting fair trade and cultural enrichment in the Columbus community" should get our business. Aside from all the socio-political reasons, which I don't know enough to talk about intelligently, their products are unique, well made, and fairly priced. In the era of the big box stores, this is rare indeed.

I can dooo eeet! But should I?

2008-03-31T11:38:00.008-04:00

While knitting my Noro Striped Scarf I paid a lot of attention to the slipped stitch edges since that's how the color changed for the stripes. Also I thought that little detail made a big difference in the finished look of the scarf, perhaps slightly less homemade. I was very happy with how it turned out!

However, it made me realize I've been knitting the slipped stitch edge on my Trellis scarf wrong. But just one edge.

Here is the correctly slipped edge (shown from the wrong side due to not having blocked yet):

And the other slipped incorrectly:

And both for comparison (can you see it?):

The pattern instructions "slip first stitch purl-wise with yarn in front on both right side and wrong side" make a nice edge on the wrong side since the following stitch is a purl, but not so much on the right side where the following stitch is a knit, requiring you to wrap the yarn to the back for the knit. The stitch should have been slipped purl-wise with the yarn in back ready to knit.

And really I don't mind the look of the "wrong edge", it's actually kind of interesting and I'll make a note for future reference, but it bothers me that the two edges don't match.

So I got to thinking ... always a bad idea, I know ... could I drop the "wrong edge" stitch all the way down, and pick it all the way back up correctly? Could I? Is this a crazy idea? Craz-eee?

The current consensus from the Wed Night Knitting Group is yes, yes this is most definitely a crazy idea. Do not dooo eeet! For one the difference in the edging is not very noticeable, and for two with blocking (or lack thereof) I could make the edge stitches sit toward the wrong side of the scarf and let the first row of (matching) knit stitches be the edging. And for three, after doing all those knit 7 togethers do I really want to mess with this?

But then I keep thinking, if I pin the first row of knit stitches down so they don't stretch out, could I unravel and pull up the edge slip 1, knit 1, all the way up? Everyone agrees if I am going to try this I need to do a test run on a swatch. Because I would be inconsolable if all those knit 7's were for nothing.

What time is it?

2008-03-30T11:28:00.000-04:00

It is the end! The end of time!

That always freaks me out ...

Echo gets adopted!

2008-03-12T22:07:00.003-04:00

Edited to add: Okay ... maybe not everyone watches as much teee-veee as I do. Here's the link to the first Echo commercial.

Look at that smile! Breaks my heart every! time!

Yay ... he's home!

Noro Striped Scarf

2008-03-08T17:31:00.008-05:00

I bought the yarn for this project two seconds after I saw this project. Who could resist?!

This was a thrill to knit, k1p1 all the way through, but never boring thanks to the magic of Noro!

Tubular cast on and bind off ... 40 cast on and 38 bound off. On purpose.

Overall there were 39 stitches allowing for a slipped stitch edging.

And as always, a kitty to supervise.

So what's the catch?

I'm not sure I like it. The colors just don't speak to me. They kind of just say blah blah blah. Maybe we just need some time apart. Noro definitely needs a good soak to soften up a bit and for the stitches mellow into place.

In like a lion ... RAWR!

2008-03-08T17:20:00.005-05:00

I think I'll have my dinner on the lanai ...

Or maybe not. The birdies won't be getting their dinner at all ...

Sorry!

I'm lame.

2008-03-05T23:12:00.003-05:00

I really hate when bloggers apologize about being too busy to write. (Hee hee -- the first time I typed that I wrote too busty to write.) Well, neither of these apply to me ... I just don't feel the urge to blog. Or I didn't anyway, until I got hooked on the Ravelry.

Now I want to have a blog. A good blog. So new content is coming! You know ... as soon as I knit some.

Ball Band Dishcloths from M-D Knitting

2007-10-21T19:09:00.007-04:00

Little Projects = Big Fun!

And a doily too ...

Um...Hi!

2007-07-18T23:53:00.000-04:00

So after my big computer crash of oh...2003 thru 2006, I've finally gotten a new computer! Yay! And after trying to log in to my little bloggy here for oh...three months (with my old email address that no longer exists -- what was my user name? what was my password? how do you change your personal settings? help! help! help!) I'm back!

I'm! Back!

Hopefully I'll get my camera software loaded sometime before next year so I can show you what I've been up to. Hints: here and here.

So what's so inspired me? Tonight I finally got to a knitting meet-up where other people showed up! It was really nice to knit and chat and chat and chat. I tend to get a little chatty in slightly stressful situations, not that SnBs are stressful but walking into a new group is. Slightly. Oh well, hopefully I didn't say anything that will get me kicked out. (Like Laurie and her porn! I love Laurie!) Hi ladies! Please don't kick me out because I'm a nervous chatter-er.

Sooo over fur

2006-04-16T10:01:00.000-04:00

You know...it's hard out here for a blogger!* Especially on dial-up! By the time I get my photos uploaded I completely forget the witty banter to accompany.

Meet Buster, my Build-a-Cow, who be modeling the fun fur fiesta.

Stacy's Scarf: Moss stitch with keyhole detailing. I made this wide and short to lay flat under a jacket. Or hood, if one likes the Eskimo effect.

Amby's Scarf: Double knit garter stitch. Twice the fur, twice the fun.

Mom's Scarf: knitty.com's Embrace. Or, in a pinch, a muppet...I think it'd look great with googly-eyes.

P.S. Oops! I forgot to turn off my webccelerator while uploading...I hope the pics look better on your screen than mine. *And no, this joke will never be old for me...

But is it furry enough?

2006-01-09T20:28:00.000-05:00

Hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving! And Christmas/Whatevermas! And New Year!

Um yeah, so I won't be winning Blogger of the Year...but doesn't that just make it more special when I do update?

While visiting my parents in WV (Hi Mom! Hi Dad!) I went to Tamarack with my sister and niece (Hi Stacy! Hi Ambria!). I was all about the pottery and wooden kitchen stuffs, while my niece went crazy over...Fun Fur scarves! And guess what they were charging for them? Twelve Freakin' Frosties! So of course, being even the meager knitter that I am, you know what I said...

"Oh, I can make you one of those!"

JoAnn's had Fun Fur on sale, so I was grooving on that, but my scarf just doesn't seem to be as furry and soft as the ones we saw. I found two patterns on the Lions Brand website: one was garter stitch, size 10 needles over 24 stitches single strand, the other was garter stitch, size 15 needles over 15 stitches double strand.

The final dimensions are about the same, do you think the extra strand of furry makes a notable difference? Do you think a larger needles/gauge is needed to let all the furry funness through?

But of course I used neither and went for the pattern on the back of the label, moss stitch, size 10 1/2 needles over 30 stitches single strand. I was hoping moss stitch would give the scarf more of a backbone over garter stitch but still be open enough to let all the fuzz fly free. Any opinions? Please?

Alpacapalooza

2005-11-14T21:42:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was Alpacapalooza Ohio!* I had so! much! fun! And I bought so! much! yarn! A good mix of huacaya (warm and wooly) and suri (soft and silky) yarns, both processed and natural colors.

Gotta get a little pretty in pink!

I love grey. I once heard highly gifted people are drawn toward grey because it calms their super crazy-smart minds. I'm sure that's why...

Or it could be because I'm just a tad bit colorblind. A friend called this colorway "teal". It so is not! Cadet blueish perhaps...but not teal!

And then there was this lady who had just piles and piles of yarn, all natural alpaca colors, and I looked and I pondered and I wished *desperately* that I had won the lottery on my way over so I could buy it all...but I hadn't so I finally setted on brown tweed and charcoal. (I actually came back later and she was sold out. Sold out of her mountains upon mountains of yarn!!)

These are llama, wonder what they had to do to smuggle them into Alpacafest? So pretty, the first two bunches I've balled. Balled? Made into balls... With which to knit...

*No, that was not what it was actually called...

Fuzzy Feet: Finis!

2005-11-14T20:21:00.000-05:00

Bring it on Winter...me and my fuzzy feet are ready!

The obligatory wear it on your head shot:

Perhaps I added a tad too much detergent:

All done!

I worried from the start about compensating for my chicken-little ankles but was afraid to push my (non) knitting abilities in modifying the pattern...I think the pie crust effect looks quite cute:

And they fit! Kitty Caz thinks they're quite dashing:

I felted until they were slightly small, then wore them *alot* while damp to mold them to my feet. Mmm,mmm! Wet wooly feet! Then in a fit of genius (or happy coincidence) I tucked them into my drying rack so the arch bent around the rod while they dried...built in arch support baby! (Sorry for the dark pictures, welcome to Ohio.)

The Funky Feet, they call to me...

2005-11-09T20:43:00.001-05:00

Will someone please *pretty please* tell me that those funky stitches will felt out okay and everything will be just fine in Fuzzy Feet Land?! Because I'm having serious issues forgetting about them and even more serious issues knitting past them.

Must...frog...must...frog...

Pucker up baby

2005-11-07T21:53:00.000-05:00

...because I'm picking up stitches!

This is what happens when I multi-task -- knitting while watching tee-vee and talking on the phone with my sister, holding the phone between my shoulder and ear of course! Maybe that's why everything's just a little bit tilted.

You know, this side really doesn't look too bad...

...but rut-roh! I hope y'all aren't kidding about felting healing all.

Got Gauge? Hell no!

2005-11-03T19:56:00.000-05:00

Okay all you Socktober knitters, I have one question: What the f*** happened???

This is a picture of my first knitted sock (aka Papa Sock: dark blue) compared to a heavy boot-sock (aka Mama Sock: perwinkle blue with design) compared to an actual sock I wear every day (aka Baby Sock: light blue). Sorry it's so dark but I think you can get the idea...obviously I had a gauge problem. I admit it. **Fine!** But this is what I don't understand, the stitch gauge was on at 12 st/2" but my row gauge was too big at 10 rows/2". Why does this happen, and how do you fix it? Go down a needle size? If so, how do I keep my stitch gauge?

Why did my toe come out so pointy? Did I decrease too much too fast? Should I have stopped the toe earlier, binding off with more stitches? Even with my super-long alien second toe, I still don't need this triangular of a toe.

I think the heel came out quite nicely, I mean for a giant, but still...

Anyway, I knit my first sock, turned my first heel, and made my first triangle-toe. Mission Accomplished. The sock is now a pretty center-pull ball waiting to be fingerless mitts.

It's official, I'm a joiner!

2005-11-01T23:26:00.000-05:00

I have obtained stuff to make Fuzzy Feet! Granted some people are already finished, but me, I feel accomplished because I bought the damn yarn. That's right, I said it, DAMN YARN.

Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride in Raspberry, a very warm color to inspire very warm feet. And I'll be knitting on Clover Bamboo 10 1/2 DPNs.

Everybody needs a little MeMe!

2005-10-04T17:11:00.000-04:00

I have a confession…I love meme’s! They’re fun, flirty, and make you think of things that you never think about. Together, anyway.

Ten Years Ago
(Note: Whenever I have to remember what I was doing in the past, or where I was during historical events, I immediately think of who I was dating. I do not know why I do this, and don’t call me co-dependent.)

Ten years ago I was a senior in high school. I was dating Jeremy Toler, whom I liked much more than he liked me. He ran track. I might have actually been dating this other guy who I ended up really hating later and will never speak his name again. But let’s stick with Toler, he was nice.

I had really long permed hair and was probably excited about my senior year, future college plans, getting out of my hometown…all the fun 17-year old stuff. My parents bought me my first car around this time, which was a manual, so I learned to drive stick.

Five Years Ago
It was *The Year 2000*! I graduated college that May, then moved to Raleigh NC where I got my first job. (Aw!) Even more exciting I had my first apartment! I loved being in a new town, a young town!, but I didn’t know many people and (gasp!) was single! I met one of my best friends and favorite traveling companions that year, Tara.

One year ago
Last year…what was I doing?? I really wish I hadn’t thrown away that planner. As I get older the years kind of smoosh together. I had picked up knitting somewhere in there and was working on my Simple Ripple (aka Never-ending) Scarf, and had just started attending Stitch n’ Bitch meetings. I probably had just discovered knitting blogs, so that was a good year!

Five Snacks
1. Amy’s Organic White Cheddar Mac n Cheese (Yes that is a snack…those bags are small.)
2. Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
3. The Balsamic Vinegar & Sea Salt Organic Potato Chips that come in the purple bag
4. White Cheddar Natural Cheetos
5. Strawberries. I had to have at least one non-processed food!
But really, Amy’s Organic frozen burritos. (Also a snack…a large snack granted.)

Five songs I know all the words to
(Ha ha ha ha ha! How about five songs I always sing along to whether I know the words or not.)
1. “Demons” by Guster
2. “You Look Wonderful Tonight” by Eric Clapton
3. “Adia” by Sarah McLachlan
4. “Falling” by Alicia Keys
5. “Unbreak My Heart” by Toni Braxtion
(P.S. Please note that this list does not reflect my actual musical tastes. At least not that I will admit.)

Five things I would do with $100 million
1. Quit my job. Seriously. The very *second* I won! Actually I probably wouldn’t even call and quit, I’d just never show up again.
2. Move to a city on the water and buy a house.
3. Buy a horse.
4. Buy a hammock.
5. Set up the hammock overlooking the water, make a stiff drink, lie down and smile.
5a. Oh yeah, end world hunger.

Five places to run away
1. Nags Head, NC for total isolation
2. Key West for total relaxation
3. Carmel, CA for a whole new perspective
4. Boston, MA for a quaint big city (with really bad drivers -- cheez people, where’s the fire!)
5. NYC because I’ve never been

Five things I would never wear
1. Fur. Fun fur included.
2. Uggs (UGG!)
3. An outfit matching the person I’m with. *Especially* if we’re a couple! People…it’s not cute!
4. Belly shirts. Trust me, you don’t want to see it.
5. A muff. Not that I don’t think they’re cool, I just don’t ever seeing myself with one. In public anyway.

Five favorite TV shows (of all time)
1. “Buffy” I’ll admit it. I have the entire life of the show on DVD.
2. “Mash” I was too young to watch it when it was on the first time around, thank god for syndication.
3. “Sex and the City” How can anyone *not* love this show? Seriously, I want to know!
4. “The Sopranos” An insiders guide to living with Italians. (Actually “Growing up Gotti” is more my family, you know…without the money.)
5. “Veronica Mars” After I broke my OC addiction, I promised myself that I’d never watch another high school drama. I am a bit old for that now. But this show kicked that sh*t out of the water. I *love* this show!

Five biggest joys
1. My kitties. They’re so cool!
2. My family. Separately. Together, not so much.
3. Yoga. I’m such a yoga junkie.
4. Automatic coffeepots. How did anyone wake up before these were invented?
5. Yarn! YARN! YARRRRRRN!

Five people to pass this on to
Oh, I think everyone’s got this already. If you haven’t, take it.

There will be no knitting today. Try again soon.

2005-10-02T17:13:00.000-04:00

Oh those tricky dpns!

2005-09-20T10:01:00.000-04:00

In a newfound desire to never seam my knits ever again (Ever! Again!) I've decided to knit socks. Or die trying.

So I got a book, a major step in my self-realization that I need help! (In so many ways, but we'll just stick to the knitting.) And although I've done circular knitting on double-points before, I was excited to read about how it's actually supposed to be done, not just let's put this here needle in here and this one here and look at me, I'm knitting! Oh, my eye! My eye!

But see, I'm no good at the book-learning, and I'm even less good at the whole clockwise/counterclockwise thing because my clocks are digital. I like pictures. I like pictures that move and have commentary even better. So I googled like I knew what that meant and found this, my new knitting best friend. The videos are slightly matrix-esque, perhaps due to my (gasp!) dial-up internet connection, but still exceedingly helpful. Check them out. Tell them I sent you.

And for reading this far, I'll let you in on a little secret...I have a finished object. Picture to come soon. Maybe a whole *gallery* of finished objects to come soon. We'll see...

knit knit knit

2005-07-10T13:29:00.000-04:00

Sorry there haven't been many posts lately. Not only am I not a very good knitter-er, I'm not a very fast knitter-er either. I suppose I could post in-progress pics: Look...knitting! Oops, frogging. Here's some kinky yarn for you. Look...knitting! Oops...

I'm also hitting a lot of patterns points where I just have not clue. No freaking clue whatsoever...

And in sort-of knitting news, I'm now down to just two visits to the chiropractor a week, Mons and Fris. So hopefully my knitting will pick back up now that I can make my Wed night Stitch n' Bitch! I've also put in a vaycayday for our Stitching in the Park adventure too. Let's just hope I can make them without being rear-ended...

At least I don't hunt and peck...oh I so do!

2005-06-15T14:44:00.000-04:00

I was recently starstruck when Crazy Aunt Purl emailed me! If you don't know about her blog (um...how could you not?) go check it out. Like right now. It's fabulous.

Besides saying a lot of really nice things, she let me in on the secret that only registered blog users could comment on my site. (I just thought everyone hated me.) So I wrote her back saying really mean things about Blogspot and their capitalistic tendencies, plans for world domination, etc. and as soon as I had time I was going to learn how to write code, and all this other 'Net stuff, and take over to liberate my comments. Let them be free!

Yeah, under the Settings tab on my Blog Page, there's this little box called Comments, and there's the option of who to allow to comment, and there's an "anyone" option...

Internet Domination will be mine!

To frog or not to frog...

2005-06-12T17:19:00.000-04:00

I have a cardigan from Ann Taylor Loft (100% cotton) that I like, but I don't like like. I mean it's cute and all, but I think it could be cuter. A little more form-fitting. A little more bolero-esque.

So after checking out a few sites around the 'Net, I've discovered that it has the "good seams" for ripping. I really like the texture of the yarn and the color, and since it fits big and baggy now, I'm guessing there's plenty of yarn to make a cute little girly sweater. Or bolero. Or shrug.

So, to frog or not to frog...that is my question. Or a more accurate question, am I a good enough knitter-er to do this...

2005-06-12T17:18:00.000-04:00

It's cute...but could it be cuter?

Well, Hell's Bells!

2005-05-31T14:48:00.000-04:00

(My mom used to say that all the time, I never really thought about how that phrase would be punctuated until just now...)

It's official! I have my first big loser of a project! Stitch n Bitch Nation, the "Om Yoga Mat Bag". Loooooooooser!

I, however, will take at least partial responsibility because I did substitute the yarn from Lion Brand 100% cotton (of which I could find very little locally and in no color that would coordinate my mat or rug, which were both thoughtfully purchased to coordinate...because I'm like that.) for Lion Brand Cotton-Ease 50/50 Cotton/Acrylic.

And I also didn't check gauge, well...I did, but with the diagonal lace stitch I couldn't figure out what a "stitch" was or if I made gauge or not, and I figured it wouldn't matter since it was just a damn bag!

And also my measurements are off, but purposefully! I have an extra cushy mat and a rug, so added width! And because it's a diagonal stretch, added length to get the added width. It's all proportional! I think...

It's also not blocked yet, or really completely finished (still have to buy some string and figure out what in the hell you're supposed to do with the bottom of the bag...just seaming it closed would be too simple I guess. I also couldn't figure out how to do a mattress stitch, per se, on CO to BO edges. I think the pattern should have had you knit 2 rows beginning and end so there was a substantial strip of something other than diagonal lace to mattress stitch together. And also so I could just follow the directions on how to mattress stitch garter rows together, which is in every single book I have. No mention of how to mattress stitch CO and BO edges...maybe I'll google that today. And can I just say mattress stitch one more time? MATTRESS STITCH!

(I'll put a pic up as soon as I get my computer back...got a nasty little virus over the weekend that took down my firewall! I didn't know they could do that. Then my non-technical self tried to restore to an earlier date which f*ed everything up. The Geek Squad has it right now, and it's still under warranty. Which I could actually find for once, don't you just love that!)

Gratuitous Cat Post

2005-05-29T10:12:00.000-04:00

What's a knit blog without cat stories!

Friday night I planted my flowerpots on the back deck, hoping that by the 27th of May, Ohio would *finally* be over the frost. Really now. I didn't account for the spring gully-washer (yes...I live in a gully, it even has a crick) that would blow through Friday night unplanting all my flowerpots.

So Saturday morning, when I woke up about the time I was supposed to be leaving for work, I took an extra 30 seconds to clean it up and rushed off. And made it on time...yay!

I came home a little early because, with the first horseshow of the season this weekend, a lot of kids had cancelled their lessons. And it was *so hot* upstairs... So first thing I opened the deck doors and got plowed over by Miss Sasha running back in! Poor little kitty must have been outside all day! Without her food! And one thing Sasha loves is her food!

Thankfully the Saturday spring gully-washer came about ten minutes later or I would have had one royally p*ed off kitty.

2005-05-29T10:11:00.000-04:00

Miss Sasha slowly being buried in leaves.

2005-05-25T23:00:00.000-04:00

Gahhhh....Cascade Sierra! (wipes drool) Pima Cotton / Wool 80 / 20. Colors 10 and 16...I don't remember which is which. They are both *beautiful*!

2005-05-25T22:54:00.000-04:00

HelloKnitty.com "Play Date" wristlet pattern. My first dpn project! And I still have both eyes!

2005-05-25T22:51:00.000-04:00

It's really hard to take a picture of your own arm. And no, my arm usually *doesn't* look that hairy. No Photoshop here!

The Never-Ending Scarf...Finished!

2005-05-25T22:20:00.000-04:00

Finally! A finished object!

The Simple Ripple Shawl, a *free pattern* from Lion's Brand website. (I would put in a link, if I knew how, but I don't. That's why there's Google.) Made in Lion's Brand Microfiber, 100% *microspun* acrylic, color 153 (black) on either US 7 or 10. I don't remember which but at the time that's all I owned. Oh how things have changed...

This was my first big project and it took me about a year to finish. It should not have taken me a year to finish. I had no idea what I was doing but all too soon learned what a dropped stitch was. And again, and again, and again...

That's also why I decreased the width to half, casting on only 60 stitches. If I had cast on the full 120...let's just say I wouldn't even own knitting needles right now. I also called it finished with the third skein so it's also a little short. I really like it though! It works well as either a scarf or a stole, which is how I premiered it at Emeril's Restaurant in N'awlins! I used a metal bracelet to hold it together and buena!

None of the pictures show it's true glory. I would model it, really I would, but I've been going through Haircut Hell and now have the Recovery Cut. You know the one, we all get it eventually. Way too short, way too spiky, trying to convince yourself it's way cute and hipster, but everyone sees it for what it truly is...The Recovery Cut.

2005-05-25T22:10:00.000-04:00

Lion's Brand *free pattern* Simple Ripple shawl.

2005-05-25T22:06:00.000-04:00

Close up of the Simple Ripple.

2005-05-25T22:01:00.000-04:00

It was too soft to resist! Lion's Brand "Micro Spun" microfiber 100% acrylic. But the good acrylic...

2005-05-25T22:00:00.000-04:00

I got it in purple too!

No surprises here...y'all

2005-05-20T10:33:00.000-04:00

Well, this was certainly right on mark. Where's the fun in that?

Growing up in WV, right on the Mason-Dixon line, then moving south (VA then on to NC) for six years, then back up to Ohio for the past three. I guess I picked up a bit of local culture at every stop.

Your Linguistic Profile:

60% General American English

15% Dixie

15% Yankee

10% Upper Midwestern

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Live, Learn, I need knitting Love

2005-04-29T00:23:00.000-04:00

Ah, like so many new to the needles, I was so naive. I think my exact words were "I don't need no stinking ball winder!"

It became very obvious, very quick, that I was very mistaken. Whoever said you could make a center-pull ball with a toilet paper roll had to be smoking. And I mean smoking out of an apple smoking! I can't even describe just the *mess* of yarn I had. Knots, loops-in-loops, just general yarn...turds. Not the Cascade 220!

THREE HOURS and a ball winder later I finally had workable yarn.

However, I still hold strong that I don't need no stinking swift! (Unless someone wants to buy me one...)

Note about the three balls: I didn't actually have to cut the yarn; my cats were remarkably restrained for most of the yarn winding escapade...then they just couldn't take it anymore. String! Winding! We must attack!

2005-04-29T00:05:00.000-04:00

I don't need no ball winder!

2005-04-29T00:04:00.000-04:00

Three hours later...

My first post! Ooot! Ooot!

2005-04-28T23:58:00.000-04:00

Like so many, when I first learned to knit I started with a swatch. It was lovely, greatly admired and absolutely useless. Loved it, left it, went on with life. Read: went to the barn.

Horse people are, among other things, fanatical. We pay inordinate amounts of money for things that really should be cheap, but see...they put a horse on it, and then we...must...buy...

My second knitting endeavor was going to be a garter stitch scarf. But it was summer, I was hot, and eh...I got scarves. I ran across that swatch again and realized that if I made one really big, folded it over, sewed it up, crocheted a cute little chain handle *Bam!* I'd have a wash mitt. It was so much fun that I did it again in stockinette.

And 2x2 ribbing. And seed. I did not, however, learn how to properly sew up seams. As a matter of fact, I still haven't...

2005-04-28T23:55:00.000-04:00

Wash Mitt: This was the second prototype in stockinette stitch. Sugar n' Cream 100% Cotton.