Insert cliche here

We had a new waiter at Knittervention last night.  He was mid-20's, adorable, bored, and kept calling us endearments.  We invited him to join us, but he admitted that his knitting skills were poor.  We were impressed that he had knitting skills at all.  A throwback from his 7th grade Home Ec class.  Knitting and cracking eggs.

We took turns quizzing him.  He was a student.  Hoping to go back to nursing school.  His roommate just graduated.  Blah, blah. . . .
 
I had a rare second beer.  I couldn't resist.  He smiled and called me "darlin'."

In spite of the masculine distraction, I accomplished quite a few inches on Spring Haven.

It wasn't until I was driving home that I realized we were a cliche.  A number of middle-aged women (though I hate to admit it, I have to confess entering that bracket of life after I turned 40) knitting and flirting with a cute waiter.

Cliches exist for a  reason, right?

Today, it is all about the cute waiter.

Has my yarn arrived yet?

I have ten inches of edge remaining.  I have 9 1/2 feet of yarn left.  I can now safely say that I will NOT have enough yarn. 

Which led to the email to my brother yesterday. . . Has my yarn arrived yet?  He hasn't responded to the first email, when I told him the yarn was coming.  Apparently, my brother is pulling his notorious silent treatment.  Not out of spite, just procrastination.  Hey, lazybones!  Check your e-mail, mail,  and let me know when my yarn is here!

Really, one would think he doesn't appreciate a yarn emergency.

In the meantime, I have Christmas knitting.  I bought the rest of the yarn for my Mother-in-Law's Christmas scarf, Spring Haven, so I can get back to work on that one.  And I bought the yarn for my Mother's scarf, so I can start that one.

Today, it is all about the emergency.  

Christmas in July

I have buy more yarn.  It isn't like I want to.  I HAVE to. 

I love it when I HAVE to buy yarn.  It is like having your child's birthday party in the middle of your diet.  The perfect, undeniable excuse to do what you really want to do, but no you really shouldn't. 

I have been working on Spring Haven at the office, and I have run out of yarn. The scarf is just under three feet long.  That is nowhere near an adult-sized scarf, so obviously, I have to buy more yarn.  It is a Christmas present for my Mother-in-law, so I have to buy yarn without delay. 

The next scarf will be a Christmas present for my mother, so maybe I should buy that yarn as well.  Why, yes, my oldest child does have a birthday coming up.  Why do you ask?

I did resist the temptation to bring the sage mohair yarn with me today, to have it wound into cakes or balls or something.  I will not start Jane until I finish two of my WIP's.  I am resolved.  And taking a step like winding the yarn into balls might prove my undoing.  There is too much fondling of yarn that takes place during that process. 

Today, it is all about the perfect excuses. 

   

Inch by inch

I am at the part of projects that make for boring blogging.  Inch by uneventful inch, I knit, but it doesn't leave me much to write. 

The beginning has the excitement and selection, and occasional mishaps that I can turn into self-depreciating humor.  The end has the "ta da" moments and photos.  But really, how many times can I post a picture that realistically looks exactly like the three photos before, with an extra inch or two that you have to use a tape measure to discern?

And yet, this is where I am, so here goes. 

Pretty in Pink: another row finished.  Four to go (including cast off).  Four ENDLESS rows.  Not unexpectedly, the giant cone of yarn is only marginally smaller, and not more portable, so this poor project is still banished to home. 

Spring Haven: 18 inches down, 54 inches to go.  I think I am going to need another ball of yarn.

Fuchsia Wave: 18 inches of the edge down, approximately 166 inches to go.  (I did some actual measuring to arrive at this number, so it has a closer resemblance to reality than the estimate-size-from-memory method that I normally use.)

Fuchsia Wave has some excitement around the corner.  Literally.  In about another repeat, I have to round the corner.  I am pretty sure there are special instructions for that.  I should check on that, preferably BEFORE I start the corner. (Though a major screw up from not bothering to read the instructions would make for good blog fodder.) 

Today, it is all about the inches that DO matter. 

Removing Temptation

To protect myself from any delusions that would lead me to talk myself into trying to have both scarves done by Mother's Day, nice a notion as that sounds, I ignored Spring Haven all weekend.  Didn't pick it up once.  Didn't even look at it.  I knew that I did another couple inches, I might not be able to avoiding trying, only to drive myself batty with an impossible deadline. 

The fact that I encountered some problems late last week, and am *almost* certain that I have straightened them out have NOTHING at all to do with that avoidance. 

Instead, I worked on Fuchsia Wave.  I only half of one long side of stitches to pick up, so I pulled it out of the the knitting bag.  Two hours later, I still had 120 stitches to go.  Apparently, merely taking it out of the bag is not good enough.   I did eventually finish the pick up row.  Then I finished the "place markers" row.  And I started the "Yarn Overs" row.  After that is the "knit" row, then the "mitered: row, then another "knit" row,  then I can finally start the border.  I think.  I don't have the pattern in front of me, so dollars to doughnuts I am forgetting something. 

Spring is finally arriving, and with it shawl weather.  I want to be able to wear both shawls soon.

Today, it is all about about being realistic. 

What a Knitter Needs

I love long-term knitting projects.  I enjoy seeing the different stages as the project progresses.  I love detail and intricacy.  I love showing off what I worked so hard to make to others.

And I especially love the milestones.  Using up the big glob of yarn that a new center pull skein pukes out that I have to wrap around the ball band.  Turning the heel.  Splitting for sleeve openings.  Starting a new chart.

But sometimes, a knitter needs a little instant gratification too.  One week on the needles, and Spring Haven is already 15 inches long.  It would have been an inch or two longer, but there was an, um, incident yesterday.  Nothing critical.  The pattern smacked me around a little, but I held my own. 

That started me re-thinking about Mother's Day as a goal for both scarves.  37 days (starting the count last Thursday), 12 feet of scarf (estimated), that requires four inches a day.  On a scarf that is totally doable!  Oh, wait, that means that I am already a foot behind schedule. 

(Small voice)  Never mind. 

Today, it is all about the need for speed. 

Then I started thinking. . .

Spring Haven is screaming right along at record pace.  A foot finished already, and that is in less than a week.  At this rate, I will be finished by Mother's Day. 

My Mother-in-Law requested that I knit her a yellow and pink scarf, which prompted Spring Haven.  She asked if I could be finished by Christmas, which I thought was a very realistic goal.

Then I started thinking that I might even have it finished by Mother's Day. 

Then I started thinking that while I was at it, I should make my mother the same scarf in the pretty blues Cascade that I saw at the LYS. 

Then I started thinking that Mother's Day is less than six weeks away, and I have now thought myself into a very stiff deadline. 

Then I started thinking that I don't do well with knitting deadlines. 

Then I started thinking that I could go back to the original Christmas deadline. 

Then I started thinking how much I am loving the pattern. 

Today, it is all about the thinking. 

Colors of spring

My spring fever reached a high pitch yesterday.  I went for a walk (it was at least warm enough for that), to the LYS, and bought new yarn in decidedly spring colors.  Within hours, I had cast on a new scarf.   Two child-free hours at the local American Legion, and I had finished one repeat. 

Winter Haven, in Cascade Superwash Handpaints.  A scarf on six 6 needles.  This puppy will be done in no time, even if the pattern is lacey in nature.  A nice contrast to the time-sucking, endless stitches projects to which I have subjected myself.  (Cough.  Black Rose, Fuchsia Wave, Pretty in Pink. Cough.)

Though I have heard others rave about Cascade, this is the first time I have actually used it myself.  It is a dream.  Soft, sturdy, smooth tight twist.  The first time certainly won't be the last. 

Today, it is all about the pink, yellow and peach.