Apparently you have to open the bag

I haven't knit much the past few days. Ok, not at all. I take the knitting with me, but don't make any progress. Apparently, you have to take the knitting out of the bag and actually knit on it. Little gremlins don't knit for me when I am not looking. I have just been too tired to knit the last couple days.

Last night, I came home to find I was hosting a small dinner party. "Look honey, I invited Dave and Joyce to dinner. What will you be making?" So much for grocery shopping, resting and early sleep. That was about as welcome as my sweetie waking me up at 1 am, for really no reason except that he was awake.

Meanwhile, I am the (temporary) owner of a Redneck bathroom. My sweetie is putting ceramic tile in the bathroom, so the toilet is currently in the shower. "You can shower, shave and shit all at the same time!" I am so proud.

In the positive department, I did work on Pomotomus a little over the weekend. Every time I dig this sock out of the knitting bag, I wonder why I stayed away so long. I love the pattern. I love the colors of the yarn. I have no explanation. I finished the last three rows of the pattern repeat, and started the heel flap. Noticeable progress! I am nearly at the halfway mark of the second sock! Why was I not knitting on this before? We won't talk about how long this sock has been in progress. We will only talk of how far I have gotten.

Today, it is all about the bathroom.

Has anyone seen a ball of yarn?

The usual Thursday night at the American Legion. Except that when I got home, I found this:

Ok, when I LEFT the Legion, there was a ball of yarn attached to this half-finished sock. Obviously, I dropped it as I put baby etc in the car. Sock went into the car, door closed, yarn fell to the ground, car drove off.

So where is the yarn? How long did I drive before the yarn broke?

I had only one hope. The next day, on the way home from work. I stopped at the church parking lot (next door to the Legion) where I had parked. I felt a little silly, but I timidly walked into the church, looking for a random person that was there on a Friday afternoon. "I have a silly question. Has anyone found a ball of yarn?"

Miracle of miracles! My ball was rescued from the parking lot and was waiting for me. No worse for wear other than a little bits of plant debris. Thank you to whomever found it. I would have cried if I had to rip out the slow progress on my sock.

Today, it is all about what was lost being found.

Patience is a virtue

A funny thing happened at the courthouse yesterday. I had a 1:15 hearing, so I was there just a little before 1. I like to arrive early, so I am not rushed, and have a chance to talk to my client. There I was, growing more and more impatient, with my nose pressed up against the locked door to the courtroom, growing more and more impatient, waiting for everyone who was late getting back from lunch. I was standing there, so I couldn't really knit. Did I mention that I was growing more and more impatient?

When they finally arrived, I scolded the court staff for being late. The judge was 45 minutes late herself, but sometimes it is good to be queen. By that time, I was sitting in the jury box, happily knitting away. If patience is a virtue, and knitting gives me patient, does that mean that knitting is a virtue?

One of the court reporters showed me her favorite black sweater. Mostly ribbing, with some openwork in a stitch pattern I didn't recognize. Obviously a well-worn and well-loved sweater. She said that she has looked all over and can't find a new one to replace it. She asked how hard it would be to replace. I examined, commenting that most of the pattern was pretty basic and wouldn't be difficult to replicate, especially if she wasn't set on the exact openwork at the bottom. . . . Oh, you mean by me? I have two sweaters in progress as it is. I gave her the number of the LYS, but I think she will be unpleasantly shocked to find out how much a hand-knit sweater will cost. I suggested that she either learn to knit, or find someone who knits and loves her.

Or, someone who loves to knit, but can't afford yarn. My first project in law school was an aphgan for my roommate. She bought the yarn, and paid me $20. I used that money to buy yarn to make myself the same aphgan.

Today, it is all about being virtuous.

The search continues

Have you ever had a particular yarn in mind, but had trouble finding it? I know what I want. I know the thickness: sock yarn. I am flexible on the content: wool preferred, but cotton blend or some other blend would be considered. I know the colors: shades of red. I know all of these things, but cannot locate the yarn I see in my head.

Are the colors that unique? I already have a finished object in the colors I want. It is a Collinette mohair that I made into a moebius scarf a few years ago. The reds range from bright watermelon, to vivid cherry, to a dark black raspberry. I love the scarf, and I would love a pair of sock in the same colors. In my quest to have matching sock and clothes, this colorway would be perfect. It would match every shade of red/burgandy.

For that matter, in my searches, I have noticed a dearth of reddish sock yarn. I want a true red. Not leaning towards oranges and browns. Not skipping towards hit pink. Not flirting with purple. Red. Lipstick red. Cherry red. Red red. Do people not wear red anymore?

Am I really going to have to learn to dye my own sock yarn just so I can have a shades of red pair of socks?

Today, it is all about the search.

Multiple updates

"It will take a while before I can borrow Daddy''s hoodie."

I am finally doing something different on the hoodie. Since I am knitting it in the round (instead of pieces on straights. All that joining avoided), it is time to split for the sleeves. So no instead of knitting round and round in stockinette, I am knitting back and forth in two pieces. It is like a whole new sweater.

Meanwhile, I have been working hard on my current sock. Twisted Tweed in Trekking. I just love trekking. I love watching the colors gradually change, and seeing what will come next. You can never have truly identical socks, but I don't mind fraternal socks.

And in lace news, I am about 7 rows into the Celtic Stole. 488 rows to go. But I can't help but notice the size. The measurements are supposed to be 36 inches across. Mine measures 13 inches. Even allowing for blocking, loosening from needle removal, and the margin of error in the tape measure, I think my stole will be considerably smaller than originally intended. I am obviously knitting with cobweb yarn, instead of laceweight. Who knew? It is incredibly thin yarn. Once you get smaller than sock yarn, the gradations of thick and thin become somewhat blurred.

I commented on the problem to my sweetie, and he asked "won't the holes be bigger then?" I was floored. That was a very knitterly insightful question. That is indeed my dilemna in deciding whether to continue. I started a test swatch, so I can see how the yarn behaves post blocking. Stay tuned for that progress.

Today, it is all about the updates and the adorable model.