WIPS Stash and a Little Gift

WIPS:
Adamas Shawl in Zephyr Main Line 2/8 Peacock on US Size 5 Addi Turbo Lace Needles

Shi Bui Socks on Knit Picks US Size 2 (2.75 mm)

Rockin Sock Club Lucky Leafling Socks on US Size 3 Knit Picks











STASH:


Schaefer Anne Mint


Yarn Chef Chalcedony and Cool Mint


Rocking Sock Club Shrinking Violet

Not Good

I had a bad day yesterday. I had to deal with several people that were just plain stuck on stupid. Then there were two never-ending meetings. . . and so on and so on. When I have days like this I call my sister and whine to her, or rant, or vent - whatever you want to call it. But, my sister was having issues of her own - so much so that her blood pressure was 200+ over 170. CRAZY numbers. So she had a headache and could hardly talk, which meant I could not dump on her. So, heavy sigh, I got very depressed. Since I have been van pooling I have been cut off from my usual resource of new friends - public transportation. My best bud cheap chick Peggy moved to Las Vegas, then Florida. Miss her loads. My best bud handbag fairie queen Kendall hates computers and I no longer ride BART with her. My best bud my-twin-separated-from-me-at-birth Jenn JUST started a new job in Palo Alto, so we can no longer meet for lunch in SF. The topic of my whining was not appropriate for any of my extended family members. I suffered alone and went silently crazy hashing and rehashing the madness of the day to myself. Happily I was able to contain it enough that I did not start talking to myself out loud about it. Which has been known to happen in the past - anyone having worked in a law firm can probably relate to that.

Well, today, never one to just let go - I told my sister all about my day yesterday and compared myself to one of our extended family members who has only my sister to call a friend. And she said - oh no way, don't compare yourself to her, you have so much more going on for you. You have (she listed all of the above) and then she said AND YOU HAVE YOUR BLOG AND YOUR KNITTING FRIENDS. OH MY GOD, being stuck on stupid must rub off. What was I (not) thinking? I could have whined to y'all yesterday and had a good night's sleep!!!! so - now y'all are back in the loop. SO THERE, thanks for listening/reading.

Hi Amy - waving up the street - I hope you like your new job!!!! I might take you up on your offer, this iPod Touch has about a bazillion features. I got the AV Cable TV hookup yesterday, now I can watch Lost Season 4 on my television. I can even watch Cat's "Let's Knit Together" video podcast on TV. I am loving it.

Funny story. For some non-sensical reason if you are under the age of 50, you must have a pregnancy test before you have surgery. The lab sheet I received at my pre-op appt had the WRONG hours on it, the lab no longer closes at 7:00 p.m. (for those of us who work for a living) - it now closes at 5:30 p.m. Yep this is one of the "and so ons" from yesterday. We rush from the vanpool and get to the Lab at 6:15 p.m. to find it closed. My ever ready Mom says "don't worry. I have a container - my doctor gave me an extra one to keep on hand to monitor diabetes. You can use that and I will drop it off for you." Cool. She takes the package to the lab for me today and she says the receptionist swiped my med card and looked up at her and says, Mame do you know this is for a pregnancy test? My Mom says, yes that's what it's for. My Mom is 72 years old with glorious gray hair and could not possibly be pregnant without a bunch of scientific help. And she did not explain to the poor girl, she just left her completely confused as to why this old chick was being checked to see if she was pregnant. Gotta love her.

I am on the 10th (out of 14) repeat on my Adamas Shawl. I have got to get a photo up, it is really pretty. I would love to get to the 14th repeat this weekend, but I am not gonna stress about it.

Awwww, I am feeling much better now. Blog Therapy, there is nothing like it!! Cheers.

Touchy Touchy

My birthday present this year is the iPod Touch. I bought it a little early so I can use it during recovery - no mouse ;D - pretty smart huh?!? I also bought the TV Cable Adapter so I can watch the TV Shows, Video Podcasts and Movies I download to iTunes on my "real" TV. Coolness squared!

Still loving Adamas too !!!

Focus Focus Focus

Oh my goodness gracious. Why can't I focus? I do realize I have a birthday coming up next month that is knocking soundly on the door to 50, but geez.

I did not finish my socks.
I put the Mystic Waters Shawl away again.
I cast on Adamas, where did that come from???

Out of the blue I decided that I wanted to find a simple shawl pattern that I could possibly finish before surgery.

Why???

I love the Forest Canopy shawl and I have two more skeins of Puck's Mischief. I gave the first FC Shawl away as a gift because I want to make a larger size and I already have the yarn. Did I cast on the Forest Canopy shawl - which I know I can knit in about a week???? NOPE!

Why not????

Instead I log into Ravelry and look at all the lace group forums and pull Adamas out of my queue. Hmmm, 48 going on 5 - I have the attention span of a knat. So anyway I am on the 6th repeat of the body aka Chart 2 of the Adamas pattern. The knitting goes surprisingly well with the I Am Legend Audiobook, Netflix picks, National Treasure 2, and the Deadliest Catch marathon. Yay!!! Multi-tasking, or just more lack of focus - you be the judge. I shall add yet another shawl icon to the sidebar projects list.

Oh, and I did not take the pictures I was supposed to take either. But I did order more Addi Turbo Lace needles with my Loopy Ewe Credit, so I can have yet another lace project on the needles soon. I cannot wait to be on pain meds after my surgery so I have something to blame my lack of focus on. 8-P

Ouch! Shocking!!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH to ALL Our VETERANS.
Including my Daddy who served in the Army during the Korean War and my Uncle G who served in the Marine's during the Korean War and my Cousins who have served and are currently serving in the armed forces.

I am short two stitches on Clue D row 207 of my Schaefer Anne version of the Mystic Waters Shawl. Ugh!!! I have to tink back to the extra decrease I have done somewhere along the way. I completed the heel and part of the foot of one of my Shi Bui Rapids socks and I added another 10 rows to my Felice Clay socks. I will be taking some photos over the 3-Day weekend. My poor little WIP page has not been updated this month.

Oh the pain, I had my nerve conduction study yesterday and IT REALLY HURT!!! 8~{

I have carpal tunnel to the max in my right hand, and symptoms starting in the left hand. Three of my sensory nerves and three of my motor nerves are damaged. So it is confirmed - I will be having carpal tunnel surgery the same time I have the tumor removed. Oh - Joy 8-\ The test showed that the nerves in my right hand have degenerated. So I will be out of service for a few weeks. I don't plan to stay home after the first week though - day time television makes my skin crawl. I will come to work and blissfully delegate my work to others. It's good to have a great support team!! However, I cannot ask them to type entries for my blog! I will have a big long gap in blog entries after June 8th. What will I do without knitting and the computer? I just don't know. If the pain wasn't so bad and the tumor so big I would just ignore the whole thing.

Almost Over

Whew, this is the last day of the conference. So far the sessions were the best part. The last session we got to ask for enhancements to the software and the two my firm asked for look like they are a go. Yay!! The Rumble in the Jungle Night at the San Diego Zoo was a bit disappointing - the few animals we saw were asleep or immobile. Most were missing in action in their habitats. I don't know - do they all look depressed to you when you go to a zoo? The cougars, mountain lions and sunrise bear that were awake were so lack luster and sad looking. The habitats are so small, they just do not look like they are having a good life. The food was inadequate, most people had to go out to dinner when we got back downtown. But I guess for people who have never been to the US, of CA it was an experience. For me - not so much.

I have packed all of my session materials and vendor give aways to be Fedexed home. I even managed to pre code two large invoices for one of my Coordinators. I still have some writing to do tonight, I am revising a manual.

I watched the DVDs I brought and I was able to get through the first leaf repeat on my Leafling socks. I made the cuff a full two inches instead of the 1 1/4 inch called for in the pattern. I dropped all the way down to the small size sock - 60 sts. I have knit many socks with this weight yarn and I usually only cast on 56 sts. So we'll see. I can always give them as a gift if they are too tight. I love knitting. Some times I enjoy it more than other times, this sock is really a fun knit.

I read through all of the new Ravelry Forum postings for my groups. Now I need to catch up on my podcasts. I listened to Knit Science, and Bean Knits and watched Lets Knit Together, Deadliest Catch and Lion Brands Ruffle Scarf video podcasts. I still have Knitting Uncensored and Sticks and String and a few new ones to listen to this afternoon.

Thank You SO MUCH!!

I want to thank you all for the well wishes. I will be glad to get my hand back to normal!!

I am in San Diego this week, so far the weather has been chilly. I cannot believe it, San Francisco has better weather than San Diego at this time of year. The Conference kicks off today. I am glad I came in a day early, this foggy drizzly weather may cause airport delays. The Hard Rock Hotel is not what I expected. The room is nothing spectacular, it is comfortable though. The turn down service was excellent. But $8.00 for a bottle of water - and I thought the $2.45 at the airport was absurd. I must get out more - I am suffering from sticker shock!! I went to Ralph's and bought a gallon of water and some soft drinks - there are no vending machines and the 10 oz soft drinks are $4.00 from the in room frig. The cab ride from the airport took me past the Cruise ship dock, so I actually got to see where we will be departing from for our cruise in October.

I am waiting for my Fedex from work, I sent myself some work. I had no room in my suitcase and did not want to bring a second bag so I Fedexed some invoices and documents I need to work on. I packed return Fedex packing inside the box. Our San Diego office is about 20 blocks from here, but right now I am not planning a visit. I may change my mind.

I brought my Leafling socks to work on. Based on the Ravelry forum discussion about sizing I am going to make the Medium sized socks instead of the Large. I had only knit the cuff so I don't have much to rip out. I had planned to rip them out several weeks ago, but waited since I chose them for the project for this trip. I love this yarn, again the colorway reminds me of County Clare. I will also probably be using this cuff stitch on some of my future pairs of plain stockinette socks. There is a slight twist to the ribbing with a very pretty result. I cannot really say much more since it is a Rockin Sock Club pattern and yarn, which are for club members only. There has also been a forum discussion on Ravelry about members breaking the club rules. I don't want to be one of those. Thousands of people paid for the privilege of getting these patterns and yarn a year before their commercial release. Members should honor that agreement, and not be selling exclusive sock club patterns and yarn on EBay!! Jusy Saying . . .

Have you seen the KnitPicks lace yarn samplers? Oh my goodness. I want all four, but so far I have fought the temptation. What a great idea, making up color palettes of the various lace weight yarns.

Pictorial Review

I finally posted the pictures of my Laci yarn and the Rockin' Sock Club Kit and 2008 Year of Lace kit. My Sister's latest pair of socks, Sassy Self Striping yarn creates a very nice pattern and the socks are nice and thick. My new toy, I finally have a web cam, dangerous!!! I lost my Yarn Chef and Schaefer Anne pics somewhere along the way, hmmm. I will check flicker and ravelry and see if I managed to get them up there before I deleted them from the memory stick. I am in love with my Mystic Waters Shawl again. So pretty and the pattern is not really hard to read - thank goodness.

All Set

I have been scheduled for surgery on my tumor - yay! May 21 is the pre-op exam and June 9 I go under the knife. I am almost finished with Clue D of the Mystic Waters Shawl. It is the one I chose to finish for the cruise. I will get as far as I can before surgery. Unfortunately this sucker is still growing and I cannot do simple things like blow dry my hair or write with a pen for long. Luckily I have the conference coming up which will give me a mouse free week - my laptop has a touch pad. I am really looking forward to the conference. I have received two cocktail party invitations, one for the Skybar at the top of the Hard Rock Hotel. Whohoo.

Sad news, the Mystery Lace KAL went offline. After the first clue the designer was so overwhelmed with whiners and complainers that she did not get an opportunity to post the second clue. Then she was in a car accident. Now that she is ready to proceed she has announced that to continue with the KAL we must Paypal her $10.00 because the time she is spending answering questions is cutting into her real life income. SO, I have removed myself from the Ravelry group and unsubscribed from the Yahoo group. I don't object to paid Mystery KALs, I am doing two of the Knit Goddesses Mystery Shawls. But the group is so negative and the designer so overwrought, I don't need the drama. I knit to RELAX!!!!

Today is my nephew's birthday - Mr. Lebron "Boomie" Cross is 4 years old today. Isn't he lovely? His cousin Indy sent him a birthday card and his Auntie bought him a box full of Dingos. If y'all have never bought Dingos for your dogs - DON'T. It is doggie crack. My pup checks the counter for the Dingo bag and we get no peace until we give him one. Granted they do eliminate doggie breath - but they are so ADDICTIVE. Happy Birthday Boom Boom!!!

She's BAAACCCKKKKKKK

Yeah, Socks in The City Podcast is BACK!!!!!

Adrift

I have been adrift waiting for the next Knit Along to begin. Our Mystery Lace KAL is in a holding pattern for the time being. I have been working half-heartedly on my socks. Miss Laura Perry of Crazy Aunt Purl blog fame is to blame for that - I have been watching the Deadliest Catch. I cannot knit and watch the Deadliest Catch because I want to see if someone is going overboard, going to be rescued and how many crabs are in each pot. Then there is the torturing of the Greenhorns. I am riveted, so no knitting gets done. My tumor is still growing, but it is not a factor because it does not bother me when I am knitting.

Best Place to Work in the SF Bay Area. Our firm won this honor for the 4th time. It is Staff Appreciation week. Monday we were served Breakfast. Tuesday we received 2 Golden AMC Theater Passes each. Wednesday we had Make-Your-Own-Sundaes Ice Cream Bar. Thursday we received $25 VISA Gift Cards. Today we are being served Dim Sum from the best dim sum restaurant in the city, Yank Sing.

Booked. I was shocked when I booked our cruise to the Panama Canal. There were only 6 cabins with windows available above the 4th deck. OMG, we are 6 months out. I have always booked our cruises six months before sailing and never had any problem with availability. Geez, what goes on????? I got THE last cabin on deck 8 with a balcony. My Mom will be 73 this year and our vacations together are getting fewer and farther apart so we NEED this time. That probably sounds wierd since we live together. But I leave for work at 5: 30 am and get home at 6:30 pm. I eat and go to my room to do mail, computer stuff, maybe watch one TV program and knit for maybe one hour, then it is bed time. On Saturday and Sunday I do chores, laundry, cleaning, filing, dusting, etc. and rub the dog for about an hour. So even though we live together, we don't get to enjoy each other's company for more than a hour or so here or there. Our vacations we get caught up on family gossip, and world events and watch golf together. So we are off to the Panama Canal, Costa Rica and Mexico for 14 days in October on the RCCL Radiance of the Seas.

14 Night Eastbound Panama Canal Cruise Ship Name: Radiance Of The Seas Departure Port: San Diego, California Ports of Call: San Diego, California; Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; Acapulco, Mexico; Huatulco, Mexico; Puntarenas, Costa Rica; Panama Canal (Cruising Canal); Cristobal Pier, Panama; Cartagena, Colombia; Fort Lauderdale, Florida 2008 Date(s): Oct 26

We have lots of cruising days, or days at sea. I am trying to decide which knitting project to take with me. On our last cruise to Alaska I finished my Mom's ribbed Cardigan and the back and one front panel of my vest. She got to wear her Cardigan off the ship on her birthday. I have read some Ravelry and travel blog entries that it is very humid on this cruise and that the wool starts smelling a little funny. Also, that it might get a little damp if stored in plastic. I am thinking I should choose a project which calls for silk or bamboo yarn instead of something made of wool. There are a gazillion shawl/stole projects in my queue. I have several hanks of silk yarn I bought in the Marketplace at the last TKGA/CGOA Conference in Oakland. I don't think I have enough Bamboo yarn in my collection for a Shawl, but maybe a lace scarf.

I am also trying to pick a project to take to the Conference in San Diego week after next. I need so much stuff to do lace - I use rulers, and post-tape and highlighters, and pencils, and tons of stitchmarkers and most of my lace yarn is cones. I have my two non-lace projects in hibernation. Maybe I should take one of them. There's always socks, but my love of socks has twindled since I did not meet my 52 pair plunge goal. Maybe I can rekindle the joy - I really like the Rocking Sock Club pattern I am working on. But I have to rip it all out and start over. The gauge is all wrong, the cuff is HUGE. I could restart them and work on them during my stay in San Diego. That sounds, good.

My cough is finally gone. No more headaches and sore throat or ears. The guy in the Vanpool who sits behind me is still sick though, I hope he does not give it to me again!!!!! Mom's cough is back and has worsened. We have had a death in the family and we also lost a very good family friend. Glynda Oliver-Allen was a superior educator, loving sister and wife and one of the best friends you could ever hope for. I will miss her. My Uncle Earsel Neal was the last of the family historians. He was married to my Aunt Jurestine who was the oldest of my Mother's Sisters. When my Grandmother lost her eye sight due to diabetes and glaucoma I went to Arkansas to take care of her until we could arrange to move her to California. My Uncle Earsel drove down from Minnesota to help out because I was too young to drive. He was a wonderful man, he remembered all of our names and interests. He knew every branch of the family tree. When we had our family reunion in Minnesota he had 5 generations represented at the picnic, he being the oldest and my Cousin Sylvester's 3 week old great-great- grandaughter being the youngest.
I cannot tell you what a loss this is to our family. Minnesota was planning to host next year's family reunion because he could no longer travel. He was not able to attend the reunion in Las Vegas and it really bothered him. So we were all going to him next time. I miss him already . . .

Trying to Focus

I have been under the weather. I could barely raise my head from the bed for four days straight. Such a waste of good knitting time!!! But before the plague hit I did finish a ball of yarn on my Dimple Shale scarf and got started on ball 3, it is a 4 ball scarf. The yarn is so soft and the pattern is a four row repeat. I am trying to focus on one pair of socks and one lace project at a time. I did not get to finish the Sassy Socks as planned because I fell over and could not get up. I really don't know why people take drugs when they don't have to!!! I hate being incapacitated by cold "remedies". I made it to work today, but I still feel puny and cotton-headed. Geez, I hope I don't look as bad as I feel 8-/

Well at least I got good yarn love in the mail. Five skeins from the Yarn Chef and two of Schafer Anne from the Loopy Ewe. Don't know when the next photo shoot will be, but I will get to it eventually.

Ick

Well I saw the Orthopaedic Specialist and what I have is a Giant Cell Tumor on my thumb bone. Surgery will be required. It is non-cancerous and can be removed while awake. I opted for being put to sleep because the one I have is so large it is pressing against two nerves - hence the pain and discomfort. It is best if there is zero movement when they are cutting around the nerves. The surgical waiting list is 2 weeks to 2 months long, which is common in our area. I am still waiting for an appointment for the nerve conduction study regarding my carpal tunnel. These are two separate ailments but Dr. L says they can probably do both surgeries at once. A ray of light at the end of the tunnel :/

Anywho, I can still knit for awhile. I almost finished my Sister's socks. I need to do the toe decreases. Then I am going to pick one of my Lace WIPS and work it until it is done. I have learned a lesson with the Mystery Shawl/Stole KALS. I am not going to be concerned with keeping up with the clues each week. I just ripped out two of them Sunday because I did not like the finished piece(s). I lost a little Zephyr on one of them, got entangled just at the end. I also had some major problems with some Wollmeise, trying to wind it into a ball. I got about 2/3 of it in a nice perfect cake, the rest looks like my hair after swimming when I was a little girl still wearing a press and curl (sorry if you don't get the reference).

I have informed my cast and crew at work that they will be called upon to do high-click tasks for me, cause it hurts to mouse!!! Now who can I get to cast on The Bad Nauheim shawl for me, hmmm?

Thumb-el-ina

The knot on my thumb has grown some more and was sore and red on Tuesday. I iced it which helped a bit. I have not knit since Monday night. I did cast on my 2008 Year of Lace Fire Brick Red Shawl and the Mystic Lights Mystery Shawl. I am using Schaefer Heather Rapids for the Mystic Lights shawl. I have an appointment with an Orthopaedic Specialist Monday and hopefully he can fix me!! Michael has taken to calling me Thumbelina :/ I swear if the man did not give me Coach, Louis Vuitton and Chanel I don't think I would put up with such things.

I am almost done with my taxes. I usually mail them out in February, this is very unusual timing for me. I just wasn't in the mood this year. The amounts don't change much year to year. I still have to plug in my cost basis for some stocks I bought and sold and my expenses for my home based business. Easy peasy, I already printed out my MS Money report, I just need to plug in the numbers. I am going to e-file again this year.

I am representing today!!! We have some students coming to the firm from James Lick Middle School. They are learning about civics and how laws are made. I am on the brief tour of the law firm representing the Accounting Dept. I like these types of programs, I was in Junior Achievement and the mentoring and good experiences were helpful in my plans for my future.

Month-end again. I have reports to do and a few recurring payments - boring. At least I have a good book to listen to.

HSKS4 Kit

Happy Happy Joy Joy. I got my HSKS4 swap pal package from the coolest Cassandra Hopkirk aka Nadine. She sent me not one but two bags in Slytherin Green and Silver. She made me a needle holder binder and included - DIG THIS ADDI TURBO needles. I am so excited. I love me some Addis. Okay then the real screaming began, not one but two bars of CADBURY Carmello chocolate. There are some Harry Potter goodies, stitchmarkers and row counters and lots of yarn. I will take lots of pictures and make sure I did not miss anything this weekend. WHOOOOHOOOOO!!!

BTW the yarn is called Leprechaun and since I got yarn called Lucky a couple of days ago I dare say I am a very LUCKY girl.











From Nadine aka Cassandra Hopkirk

I must take pictures of my Sock WIP, my new Blue Moon Fiber Arts Laci yarn in the colorways Valkyrie and Haida, and my new laptop in Midnight Blue. I wish wish wish I could take pictures of the BMFA Lucky yarn that I just received in the latest Sock Club package but I don't want to be a spoiler. However, since I am no longer under any time constraints to get to 52 pairs, I will be knitting the sock pattern that came with this yarn. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!!! This is another sock club yarn colorway that I will be buying in all weights, it is gorgeous. I am pretty sure the peach USPS "attempted delivery" card I got was for my first 2008 Year of Lace kit from Canada. I hope so, I am really looking forward to starting that shawl. I have read the word SILK all over Ravelry in regards to the first kit. I have not tried knitting with 100% silk before, I do love silk/wool blends though. So I am anxious to see this first lace kit.

OMG, the book I started reading yesterday was horrible, complete gibberish. I am now reading a book that had me hooked from the first paragraph. I am enjoying this audiobook too (see sidebar for titles), it is like listening to people play a Role Playing game. They travel the tunnels, they pick up power items and spells, they meet monsters and thieves and vanquish them. A nice diversion while I do endless month end processing, lots of processing left to do.

I feel guilty - I don't "love" the finished shawls for a couple of the KALs I signed up for. My original plan was to do the KAL, trying to keep up and watch the shawls/stoles develop along with everyone else. I fell behind, then eventually set them all aside to knit socks. Now I am seeing everyone else's knitted shawls/stoles and a couple of them are not to my liking at all. I never would have purchased the patterns if I had seen them completed and modeled. I see a frog pond in my near future. My hands are in too bad of condition to knit items I will never wear or enjoy. One of them would be okay as a gift, but the other one - nope, I don't think so. I am going to finish the other two lace knit alongs though. The shawls/stoles are beautiful and I cannot wait to get them done. I picture myself wearing them on our Panama Cruise!!! More on lace later. . . much to do in that area!!!

Last bit to do - I must see the Orthopaedic specialist about the knot growing under my thumb. My cousin just had one removed from her hand. Relatively painless, they did it with a laser. First I need to find out the nature of mine, fibroid or ganglian cyst or whatever. My appointment is April 7th, a must do.

Looks like all of the little Slytherins have lost interest in the games for the HSKS4, no one has posted answers to the last quiz. Looks like I will have some pretty Slytherin stitchmarkers to add to my collection. No grading to do Sat. More time to do knitting.

Carpe Lanum

Socking Along

I completed one of the Moda Dea Sassy Socks. I love the pattern and thickness of this yarn, it is an 8 ply. The progress on the Koigu, Shi Bui and Felice is much slower going because the yarn is so fine and the needles much smaller. But I have started the legs of all three pairs. I received the first clue of the Bad Nauheim KAL and the first 2008 Lace KAL kit is being mailed to the US on Monday or Tuesday. So much yarny goodness going on. I am typing this by the way on my new laptop. I finally have a webcam, although I am scared to use it. LOL at myself. I am waiting for my Valkyrie Laci so I can cast on the Icarus shawl for the Arkansas Icarus Shawl KAL.

I have a half dozen Easter baskets to put together. We are having the fam and friends over Sunday. Some of my Cousins and my friends have littluns, so I bought a bunch of goodies for them. I am going to make a German Chocolate Cake and Mac and Cheese (yes, both from scratch - cause that's how I roll).

I received a delivery confirmation from Fedex so I know my HSKS4 pal received her Bag and Kit, I hope she's a happy little Gryffindor. The last trivia challenge for the Slytherins goes out tomorrow. The final prize is a set of stitchmarkers. The theme of the last challenge is Charms and Potions.

I sent out some rescue yarn to a Ravelry friend - I had the dye lot she needed to finish the gorgeous blanket she is making. She was two rows and a bind off from finishing her gift. I popped 10 yards in the mail to her, she only asked for 3 but I prefer to have too much than just enough, you know?!? She also has me craving the J hook, I want to start an afghan so bad!!! It is national crochet month after all!!!! Maybe I'll make a scarf tomorrow while my cake is in the oven. I have some Wollmeise Zenzi Medium that I plan to make a nice long scarf out of. Hmmm, we'll see. Trying to be faithful to the sock Goddess.

MARCH is National Crochet Month

I must whip up a scarf or something. Maybe a hat, if I can find that darned hat pattern that's been illuding me.

Mystery Sock Bags Revisited

I pulled four more Mystery Sock Yarn Bags last night and cast on four socks. The winners were:
1. Knit Picks Felice in Clay - US size 2 /2.75mm KP Harmony Needles
2. Moda Dea Sassy Stripes - US size 3 / 3.25mm KP Harmony Needles
3. Koigu KPPPM in Purples - US size 1 /2.50mm KP Harmony Needles
4. Shi Bui Knits in Rapids - US size 2 /3.00mm KP Harmony Needles

I have chosen some pretty ToFutsies yarn for my HSKS4 swap Pal. I picked up my shipping box today. I have lots of wrapping to do.

Off to update my Ravelry project list.

Again

I am a bit behind in my posts, I have been interviewing and I finally hired a new AP Coordinator - again. This one was a temp that I hired permanently. My previous new hire had some truly bad luck and only held the position for a week.

I completed the Gryffindor bag and took an inventory of the goodies I am sending with it. Okay I went a bit overboard, I confess, and I have not even decided which yarn I am giving her.

The Bag:




Tools & Accessories:



Sweets and Things:


Hand and Wool Care:


Reading and Writing Materials:

Isn't this knitted owl journal cover the cutest thing ever?? I really want to keep him but now that the blogosphere knows he is supposed to be going to my little Gryffindor Pal, I will have to part with him.


As we all know De-Nial is not just a place along a river. None of the baby sock patterns I picked are any faster than the regular stockinette socks I was already knitting. Heels still have to be turned and gussets have to be picked up - and the needles are tiny. There is a tube sock, but it's UGLY!! So I will finish the 52 Pair Plunge, but probably not on April 1st - foolish to think I could make shawls, scarves, afghans and get all of my sockies done. Heavy sigh. Onward. . .

GWHS Class 77 and 78 Reunion Party

Damn I am old!!! Saturday August 16, 2008 at the Kubuki (previously the Miyako Hotel) in Japan Town there will be a GWHS 31/30 Year Class Reunion. Wow! I know a few people that will be there for sure - GiGi, Bonnie, Jenny, Baron, David, Denise, they never miss one. I better forward the e-mail to Carin and Bernie and make sure they know about it. Oh Washington to thee I pledge my faith and all my loyalty. Hail Washington Hail. (I was a letter girl ;} )

I am almost finished with the Gryffindor bag. I am working on the flap. I then need to add a strap and put in a lining. I definitely have time to add a few pockets. I love pockets myself, so I will stitch a few onto the lining and maybe one on the outside. I was thinking about a velcro dot for the closure of the flap but then I remembered the dragon buttons I have. I will use one of those instead. I will definitely be able to box this package up this weekend and get it in the mail. I have to take pictures though. I have had some non-posting downstream swap pals in the past, so I will be posting my own photo of my package. Voila the HSKS4 is almost done. This week is the Magical Objects Trivia Challenge for my Slytherin Housemates, the prize is a set of Knit Picks Harmony DPNs.

Then it's socks until April 1st. I replaced the bed sock pattern in my repertoire with some really cute baby socks.

Next

I think I am going to focus on my Gryffindor bag now. I have all of my kit goodies already. I went a little crazy, but in my own defense, I thought I should include everything I have needed while knitting. Needles, stitchmarkers, point protectors, row counter, measuring tape, notebook, pattern, yarn, needle sizer, crochet hook and case (the case was on my swap pal's wishlist), wool soak, hand cream, candy, knitting/crochet yarn guidelines, knitting book, yarn/darning needle, scissors, and safety pins. So all I need to do is finish the bag and get it all off in the mail. The bag is my EE KCAL project which needs to be done by March 15th. That will be perfect timing. I have 16 mosaic pattern rows to complete then it's all stockinette from there. I have to make the strap and sew in the lining to finish it off. If I have any time left at all (doubtful) I want to put a few pockets in and on it.











I am working on the bed sock. Okay, the plan was to make smaller socks so I can finish off the 52 PP. But I just don't like this pattern. I think it is way too small and it looks kinda funny. I will finish this pair, and definitely give them away. But I have to come up with something else to reach my sock goal. I will cast on the baby sock tonight and see how that goes. I need to hit the Ravelry pattern directory and see if there are some quick and easy socks patterns, I must find a replacement for this bed sock.

More Socks Done

Three more pairs done. Now I will be switching to the bed sock and baby sock patterns. I have one month to get the rest of the 52 pairs done. Starting to get anxious. But smaller socks have got to go faster. We'll see. . .


#36 Regia Multi Color Effekt Atlantik









#37 Seacoast Handpainted Panda Surf










#38 Jubilee Ocean Wave






Bev aka paletpc
http://newbhs.blogspot.com

A Little of This a Little of That

Three more pairs half way there.



























Perchance to Knit Socks pair 35 of 52













Amazing Gryffindor Bag

Vaccination Successful

The Earthlink Protection team finally found the proper vaccination for the virus my laptop contracted a few weeks ago - ABOUT TIME!!!!! I can now access Ravelry again and I am not getting those stupid blank screens with a status of DONE.

I finished a third sock. One sock completed the Perchance to Knit pair, the other two are the first Jubilee and Seacoast socks in the pairs, I will cast on the second socks tomorrow. I am going to spend the rest of the day on my Gryffindor bag and the Regia Self Striping socks.

I had lots of Lace KAL charts to print out yesterday. Two of my KALs publish the current hints on the same day, and another KAL started. Yay! I went ahead and enlarged and color coded the first clue for the 2008 Mystery Shawl. The Secret of The Stole ii is giving out some great prizes that I am missing out on because I am behind on hints. That's okay, what would I do with more yarn anyway?!? I cannot wait to get back to these projects though.

I have snapped some photos of my bag, I need to take some shots of my sock progress. I will post those tomorrow. I am flirting with the idea of doing my taxes tomorrow. We'll see. First I need to get through the Passport renewal paperwork with/for my Mom. I am taking her on a cruise to the Panama Canal in October. It's always something - cutting into my knitting time, and my Netflix just came . . . :~}

Mental Health Day

I stayed home from work and took a mental health, golf and knitting day. Nothing better than having golf on the TV while listening to an audiobook and knitting. I finished two more socks and the first pattern repeat of my Gryffindor bag. It is storming and our vanpool was not running today. I like the rain, when I am inside looking out. I don't mind taking BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit), I have been commuting on BART since 1975. But rain and BART combined?? Not so much!!! I need to stop torturing myself reading my Lace Knit Alongs Yahoo dispatches. Everyone is knitting right along and I have sworn off lace until the socklettes have all been done. I found the Baby Socks and Bed Socks patterns I have been looking for in my pattern stash/collection. They are both quicker knits than the full sized socks I am currently knitting. I will be using left over yarns from the previous pairs I have knit. That should pump up my numbers considerably. I am desperate to get back to my lace knitting. Socks are practical and almost instant gratification, I have on a pair right now keeping my toes nice and toasty. But lace knitting is BEAUTIFUL and AWE inspiring. Every time I finish a hint/clue in one of the mystery shawl/stole KALs I am just amazed that I have produced something so lovely. It is a completely different feeling than just completing a UFO.

Ravelry is still not accessible through my Earthlink Protection Center Firewalls. I have to turn off the firewalls to login then I can turn the firewalls back on. I have contracted two deadly viruses since this problem started. I will stick to accessing Ravelry at work, which means Ravelry free weekends!!! That should go a long way towards getting some knits off the needles. I won an E-Bay auction for 20 audiobooks, there were two or three in the set that I really wanted and some new authors I have never read. I have a couple I am giving away. But I ended up paying less than two dollars per book. So I will have lots to listen to as I knit through my Ravelry-less weekends.

Computer network problems abound. Have you noticed? It seems like everyone I have talked to has either gone into a store or bank lately and THE COMPUTERS WERE DOWN. A virus made it through our massive firewall protection at work Wednesday. What goes on??? I love conspiracy theories, as a matter of fact it was one of my favorite movies. The Bay Area is also having too many unexplained power surges and outages. I tell ya, there is more to this than meets the eye.

Knit Simple is one of my favorite magazines. I have knit 2 shrugs, and 2 sweaters from them since I started my subscription. The current Spring/Summer 2008 is the best one yet. There are simple tunics and short sleeved tops that are flattering on anyone. The sizes range from XS-3x. Somebody out there is listening. Most knitters, especially experienced knitters probably won't like the patterns because they are either stockinette or reverse stockinette with patterning only on sleeves or edgings. That is what I LOVE about the patterns. I like the knit stitch, I like the purl stitch. Sweaters in my size take a lot of stitches per row, if I never have to do another 100+ stitch row in the MOSS stitch it will not be too soon. I am a multi-tasker, I don't like only being able to do one thing at a time. I want to be able to knit a sweater AND watch a movie or TV program at the same time. These patterns are exactly what I want. Funny too, this was the last issue in my subscription. I had decided not to renew any of my Knitting or Crocheting magazines because I don't have time to read them. BUT , they made a lier out of me with this issue. I want more of this. They have convinced me to keep subscribing.

Well I am approaching the toe decreases of another sock, got to go get my knit on.