Dainty Kitty

Sunday Synopsis

A quick post before I head out to Night and Day Cafe for the only knit night I've attended more than once - this is my third Sunday!

Today was so nice.  Granted, it started crappy because I had to go into work for a bit (well, actually it started good because I watched a bit of season two of Black Books - my newest BBC television series addiction but more on that later) but I went to The Stitching Post on my way home because they're having an anniversary sale and all of their yarn is 40% off.  They don't have much but I picked up some Cascade Cotton Rich to crochet a head kerchief out of Vintage Crochet as well as some Panda Cotton in great citrusy colors because I'm determined to finish a pair of socks! 

The Panda Cotton is, I just realized, actually called Kiwi-Mango.  So even though I might be making Jaywalkers or something out of them, I'll have to call them my Jemaine Socks.  Flight of the Conchords again...you know, New Zealand...kiwi....And it's not really that bright in real life - yikes. 

And then when I got home I talked to my parents and they're going to buy my Fleurs de Fete tickets - woo-hoo!  I wanted to go - it's wine and food from all of the great local restaurants - but that would be $60 I don't need to spend.   Hooray!    I gave them my Dragons tickets (our local baseball team) for that night.  Not a completely fair trade but they are really good tickets behind first base.

Ack!  Gotta run!  I still have to get gas before I pick Ginny up at seven!  I do love Sunday night knit nights, though!  Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Edit later that same night:  I just pressed "save" and pretty much ran out the door without proofreading which was a mistake.  The typos were quite funny.  I actually typed "knit knight" - although, I have to admit that I almost always have to stop myself from typing that.  It just works so much better than "knit night."  :-)

Clippings and Hiphopopotamus

A blogger that I read posted her binder collection of magazine clippings and inspired me to go through seven years of Real Simple (not constant but I do have a stupi amount of past issues) and clipping only things that are inspiring or that I could reference if they were organized properly.   That'll give me something sorting of like packing to do when I can't actually pack. I went through seven issues last night and came out with about a quarter of an issue.  It felt pretty good.

And - yaay - the napkins I won from Big Girl Feet came yesterday!  They're super cute. 

I want to post about my trip to IKEA but I'm still at work, waiting for late paperwork.  There's beer and we're listening to Flight of the Conchords (I'M OBSESSED) so my mind isn't exactly functioning as it should.  :-)

A Lunch Ruined

I had big plans for my lunch hour.  A cup of tea, a Kinder Happy Hippo biscuit, a page turner (Heart Shaped Box by Joe Hill - I love that Stephen King's son decided to use my dad's name as his pseudonym), the park, a chair and a rock to put my feet up on.

I parked in my usual spot and found that a family was fishing off my rock which was okay - the kid was cute with his little fishing pole.  I thought a picnic table would do just as well as a footrest but as I put my stuff down I heard something strange.  Drumming.  Insistent, consistent drumming. 

I wandered to the other side of the pond, trying to escape it.  Nope.  So I got into my car and drove to the other side of the park where, for some reason, it was louder.  And it was echoing.

Finally I just gave up which was just terrible and frustrating.   I love my lunch hours at the park.  When the weather is dryer and warmer, I like to spread out a blanket because for some reason a picnic lunch just seems to feel like it lasts longer than an hour.  Some days I can't even read because the squirrels or the frogs or the blue jays are just too entertaining but it's always quiet.  People strolling with their kids or walking their dogs, people planted here and there with a book in hand...it's lovely.

As I left the park I found the source of the noise.  A man had set up FOUR DRUM SETS at the top of a hill overlooking the amphitheater.  FOUR!  FOUR SETS OF FOUR DRUMS EACH!  I realize it's a public place but, really, who brings FOUR DRUM SETS to a park on a Wednesday afternoon, for Pete's sake?!  Okay, maybe one set...no, not even one.  A set of bongos to play in your lap, sure, but not four sets of four drums.  I just don't get it.

To top it off, all of the searching for a quiet place to read caused me to forget about my tea which had steeped a bit too much and turned bitter.  Yeah, bitter like me and my ruined lunch hour.

It may have been juvenile and only adding to the issue but...I laid on the horn as I drove by.  Of course, I was paid back for this by the song that was on the radio, 32 Flavors by Ani DiFranco, the end of which sounded vaguely like the annoying guy and his four sets of drums.  Nice.

Judge & Jury

Please help me.  My friend offered to look at photos of my sock and let me know whether or not she thought I should start the wheat pattern.  Then I thought, Heck why not just post them because I could use as many opinions as possible.  After taking the photos and really looking at the sock in the light I think I'm going ot rip it out and start over but a little feedback would still be helpful, I think.  I'm also thinking I might just forgo the whole non-eyelet friendly pattern using the tedious (p1 k1 p1 k1 p1) into one stitch stitch and just use the yarn overs. 

Anyway.  Exhibit A.  The pattern on larger needles with worsted weight yarn.  Note there are indeed holes (hence the crappy back lit photo):

Now for Exhibit B - one of the better of the four repeats of the wheat pattern.  It's holey but a little less so than Exhibit A.

And finally...Exhibit C which really should be Exhibit M for Messy.  Lots of holes and general loose knitting.  Looking at it, though, I'm wondering what would happen if I knit it in the middle of the needle rather than the beginning.  That might be worth a try although, really, the knots aren't that pretty up close. 

Yuck.  When I compare B and C here, though, I don't see as much difference as I do in real life. 

So what do you think? 

A.) Start over and try the pattern in the middle of each needle?
B.) Give up on the reverse Irish knots and use the yo pattern?
C.) Keep going (gasp)?

THANK YOU!

Two Fs

1. Frustration.  The Oktoberfest Sock is killing me.  I'm frustrated to the point where I'm just going to say I'm frustrated and leave it at that.  I'm not going to think about it for the night.

2. Fun. Last night I went to a new knitting group at a great little coffee shop near downtown.  I'd been emailing a fellow Ravelerer (!?) for a few days and found out that she lives about close enough for me to throw a rock at someone who could throw a rock at her apartment so we rode down together which was really great.  Hooray for new friends!  Hey, that's like THREE Fs!

Okay, now to go read and not think about my sock.      

A Very Unexciting Post

I got my hair trimmed today to make the growing process a little less painful.  My aunt works at a salon and cuts my hair for a song but she always styles it a little...big.  But I thought I would post a photo anyway because this is the longest it's been in a long time.

I bought the first season of Flight of the Conchords last night because I am so in love with that show - especially Jemaine.  They're in Bust this month (as well as Maxim which I'm also going to have to pick up) and I'm tempted to buy a second copy so that I can cut out and frame the two Tiger Beat-type photo posters.  'Cause, you know, I can't cut up the actual interview and I save all of my issues of Bust.

I knitted the Oktoberfest sock pattern on bigger needles with worsted weight yarn and found that the holes I was worried about are just part of the pattern.  I thought since I was using the non-eyelet friendly pattern it would be sans holes.   Ah well.

One of my cats must have just been up on the coffee table, rubbing her scent on an empty pint glass that was sitting there, because she knocked it off and broke it so I should probably go vacuum to make sure I got everything.

Ack, what a boring post. 

Apartments, Decorating, Yadda Yadda Yadda

Sock update: the embossed barley corn pattern = a pain in the ass.  I'm going to have to try it on straight needles with regular yarn because as it is, I'm ending up with giant holes and am now in the midst of backing up four rows because it just looks terrible.  Grrr.   At least my  second attempt at the heel turned out much better.

Tonight I also baked peanut butter chocolate chip cookies from this recipe by Pink of Perfection and highly recommend it.   They were perfectly tasty...although I'm going to add more chocolate chips next time.  I like a bit of chocolate in every bite.

I'm going to eat one more and take my grumpy ass to bed with Water for Elephants which I just picked up today....

And I couldn't take another post without a photo so here's some graffiti from Charleston, SC.    

SNL & the Googly Eyes

I rarely ever watch Saturday Night Live - I can't stay up to see it through - but I made a special effort to watch last night because Christopher Walken was the host and I love him.  Unfortunately, his performance was pretty awful - he didn't even try to hide the fact that he was reading every line straight from a cue card - but I had to laugh at "Indoor Gardening Tips from A Man Who's Very Scared of Plants" about a man who put googly eyes on all of his plants so that he could make eye contact with them and feel more comfortable.  It seemed awfully familiar....I think the SNL writers found my Googly Eye Caper photos! ;-)

Cleaning and Knitting

Holy cow, you can see the floor of my craft room!  I just spent about two hours getting it in good enough shape to leave the door open.  There's still stuff to organize and find places for but the stacks look neat enough for now.

I have a lot of stuff/junk.

I got just past the heel on my first Oktoberfest sock but, on my third row of the leg pattern, a stitch slipped off and - poof - there went one of Reverse Irish Knots from the first row.  I ripped it back to the beginning but I'm thinking I might go back further and redo the heel.  One side turned out perfect but I think I blanked out on one purl row or something because the other side looks a little funny.  The socks are going quick enough that I think I have time to really make them look good.  Not that I'm looking forward to tearing out an entire heel...yuck.

I'm going to go reward my cleaning with leftover chicken soft tacos and American Gangster.  Hope every one had a lovely weekend! 

Short Row Toe - Second Attempt

Thanks to my friend Mary, who recommended this tutorial, I was able to conquer the short row toe!  Well, maybe not conquer it exactly but get around it.  The tutorial shows you how to make it without wraps which is a-ok by me.  No wraps = no stress.  And no holes!

And now I have some mindless knitting to do this weekend.  Although, a lot of Saturday is going to be dedicated to housekeeping (and maybe Sunday, too, because I've got to get that craft room back in order...at least that's what I keep telling myself).  I borrowed Mom and Dad's carpet cleaner and have started to clean the couch but have only finished one side of the three cushions.  It's hard work!