Finally, some knitting

This is the reason I haven't posted anything about knitting (or anything else, for that matter) in the past couple weeks. I had been feverishly knitting on this Big Bad Baby Blanket (in Berroco Comfort) for Mazhalai. I don't know why I thought I could finish it in a week and a half, with after work commitments most nights, and cooking to do for the Saturday evening baby shower as well.

But right up until Saturday morning, I was convinced I'd find a way to do it. I was even knitting the borders and the knit stitch sections in continental style to make it go faster (I would have done it all in continental, but I realized early on in the project that my gauge is really really inconsistent when I purl in continental). Anyway, at some point as I was knitting furiously while getting my 9am pedicure, I saw the light. After my pedicure I went to the mall and bought some onesies and other baby clothes, and when I came home all I did was cook the unda curry I had committed to bring (recipe from this Madhur Jaffrey book).

But at the shower, I showed Mazhalai my progress, so the cat is out of the bag now, and all I have to do is actually finish the blanket sometime before, or at least very soon after, the baby comes. And best of all, I cam finally stop hiding from my own blog.

Not ready to say goodbye

I love this yarn and this sweater sooo much, I almost don't want the joy to end (which might be why it's nearly 6 months late). I'm almost done seaming Taz's sweater. I might even finish it before his birthday on Cinco de Mayo, but he won't get it until my next visit to Spain--I'm not entrusting this to any postal or delivery service!

More soon on MDSW, including pics of my treasures and maybe some cute animals.

Lucky 7

A month and a half. Yikes. I could claim holiday madness, or the fact that I got a cold over the holidays that I'm only just now getting over, or that I've been so busy learning how to do my new (yet alomst-over) three-week job while interviewing for other ones, or that I hurt my back last weekend and couldn't sit up long enough to blog.

And all of that would be true. But the real reason I haven't blogged is because there haven't been any FO's. Not only have there not been any FO's recently, but if I think about it, the "newest" of my WIPs was cast on in June. All the rest are more than a year old, and it's just sad. I was so excited that I was going to finish Samus and cast on for Autumn Rose, but the ribbon placket for Samus has been the bane of my existence. One side went in fine, but I am currently re-sewing the second one for the third time, since I can never seem to get it to be the same length as the other one, no matter how carefully I measure. I am nowhere near being ready to install the zipper itself.

Finally, on Wednesday, just before I went to Late Night at my LYS, I cracked. The hat I was wearing totally did not match my scarf, and it wasn't handknit either! This is because before the holidays, I very sadly lost a lovely hat that my future sister-in-law knit for me last year. And the other hat I had knit for myself two years before has not been seen since we moved. I was desperately in need of a new hat! At least, that's what I told myself. But what I really needed was a new project, that I could finish quickly and use right away. Enter Knitgirl and the rest of the Late Night gang. KG recommended some Malabrigo worsted, and while everyone was helping me pick a color, she went onto Ravelry and quickly found me a perfect pattern: the Lucky 7 Hat by Knittywhipped.


"Lucky 7" hat in Malabrigo worsted (Damask Rose colorway), using magic loop on US #8 42" Addi Turbos

This hat was a dream come true. I cast on at the shop on Wednesday night, knit a bit on the bus ride home, a bit on my morning commute Thursday, and both my commutes on Friday. After another couple hours in front of Law and Order and the Australian Open women's final, I had my wonderful, perfect hat. There were no errors in the pattern, and it was very easy to follow. The only problem I encountered is that Knittywhipped definitely has a smaller head than me, so I wasn't able to don my new hat as soon as I wove in the last end. However, a good blocking seems to have taken care of any size issues, and I feel like a million bucks for finally having finished something. Who knows? Maybe this was the boost of confidence I needed to finally (dare I say it?) finish Samus. I am feeling pretty lucky!

Reasons to be happy

Top ten reasons I am happy today:

10. The headache I woke up with this morning, although still with me, is not a migraine.
9. The snow that fell yesterday has not completely melted yet.
8. Because our intern at work has her last day tomorrow (sad), we took her out for coffee this afternoon (happy) and congratulated her on her new, paying job (happy).
7. Even though every single one of my WIPs seems to be plotting my demise, at least I have yarn. And I do still love the WIPs and can't wait to finish them, even if they are misbehaving right now (more on them in the next post).
6. I am at work at all today. (My last day was supposed to be Nov. 30th, but I was given a stay of execution an extension until the end of the year).
5. There is a happy hour after work today, and I plan on attending, headache or not. After all, yesterday was Repeal Day.
4. I just got my 15th "bingo" in the Facebook version of Scrabulous. It was SCHEMERS fo 82 points, thank you very much. Who, me, addicted?
3. We're going to put up the holiday decorations this weekend. There will also be baking, and possibly singing. The only thing that could make it better would be snow and a fireplace.
2. I get to see my husband tomorrow.
1. I'm alive, employed (for now), healthy, and loved. And I have yarn and books.

Unbloggable

I think Samus is afraid of me. This is as far as he's peeked out of his bag all week. How, you ask, can I be sooo close to the end of a project and yet seem unable to finish it? I scared him off, that's the only possible explanation. Hopefully I'll coax him out of his bag and onto the blocking board by the end of the week.

Meanwhile, with Samus cowering in his bag, I've been plenty busy: the VA Fall Fiber Festival with Sangeeta, finally getting on Facebook and rediscovering old friends, a 7 mile hike with Taz, several dinners and lunches with friends, a TON of work at my "real" (paid) job, and an unblogable surprise project that I didn't take pictures of and can't tell you about until next week.

So, USB cable gods willing, I should have some good knitting and stash growth pics for you then. Until then, I'm taking suggestions on how to sweet talk an almost-finished cardigan into taking a bath.

Sooo close!

Ok, so it didn't get done in time for the Harlot (photos of a room full of knitter's clapping for me when I finished seaming it forthcoming upon discovery of USB cable), but I am so close to finishing Samus, I can taste it! The i-cord edging is done except for the cuffs, and the ends are all woven in, so tonight I went to the store to buy the ribbon I need when I install the zipper. A huge craft store, with aisle upon aisle of posterboard, fake flowers, glue guns, and beads, and this was the only ribbon I could find that even came close to matching the yarn or the zipper. Think it'll work?

Incentives

This is Samus. I started it as my Knitting Olympics project (the personal challenge was tackling cables for the first time). Yes, it has been on the needles that long. But now I have two incentives to finish it ASAP. First, as you know, is Autumn Rose--I'm not allowed to cast on for my new obsession until I finish this. The second is that the Yarn Harlot is coming to town on Thursday. The Harlot herself, founder of the Knitting Olympics. Think I can sew on the other sleeve, knit approximately 57 miles of i-cord edging, install my first zipper, block, and dry this in under 48 hours?

Late to the party

I'm sure I'm the last person on earth to discover and listen to a Lime 'n' Violet podcast, but Oh. My. God. are they hilarious! I first learned about them from Holly, but immediately thereafter became so busy that I'm amazed I had time to breathe, much less download a podcast. This past weekend I finally got around to downloading one, and yesterday I listened to it on my metro ride from work to Late Night. I think my fellow metro riders must have thought I was deranged the way I was laughing to myself. And humming along to a very weird song about Harry Potter. It was soooo good to see the Late Night gang again after more than two months. Wine, cookies, knitting, cute dogs, and witty company--the perfect way to spend a Wednesday evening!

In other news, no pics yet, but I am finally working on the heel of the first Snicket sock, and the sleeve caps for Samus. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel! I am absolutely determined to get done with Samus so I can focus on Autumn Rose.

My wonderful mother-in-law arrives tomorrow from India, and we can't wait to see her. So tonight, I have to finish getting the house as ready as I possibly can (which, alas, will not mean being 100% unpacked and organized, but oh well). My brother is also arriving from Japan late today. So much family excitement in so little time! Somewhere during all this 90% of my Autumn Rose yarn should be arriving. Woo hoo!!

Random Friday

Busy, busy, busy! I know, I say that every time. But seriously, in less than a month, my 6-person department at work has lost three people (to fabulous new jobs for them, not layoffs). So I am now officially doing the job of two people. And it's only going to get worse, since I am the only person left out of the three who doesn't get any paid vacation, and both of the other two are taking their summer vacations in the next month. So I'd better blog while I still can. Here's the run-down of non-work stuff I've been up to:

1. First and foremost, moving. There are still sooo many boxes to unpack, so much stuff to organize, and the new place needs a thorough cleaning before my mother-in-law arrives next week. But I think I promised to post some photos of the new place, so here are the ones I've managed to snap so far:


Our new dining area, with a pass-through window to our spacious kitchen.
There is a door in the kitchen that leads to the stairs down to the finished
basement (with unfinished storage area as well)--oh the glorious space!!!


A small portion of our books, and the stairs to the second floor.


Our living room area, complete with Ivy breaking in the new futon.

2. An outdoor concert:


While Chris Isaak played at Wolftrap, my friends and I shared wine,
bread, cheese, and more than a few laughs.

3. Knitting. Believe it or not, I have actually managed to get a little bit of knitting done throughout the craziness. Not enough to warrant photographing, but I'm almost to the heel of Snicket, and I'm nearly done with the sleeves for Samus (and my amazing mother gave me a zipper that matches the yarn almost perfectly, so I no longer have the "but I can't find a good zipper" excuse for not getting it D-O-N-E). When my folks stopped by the other day, Taz saw the sock that my mom was knitting for my dad, and suddenly realized that he is not totally against variegated yarn. So you can bet that at the very next opportunity, I got me to the LYS and picked some up. Still fairly subdued, but light years more interesting to knit than plain charcoal gray:


Lorna's Laces in Black Watch colorway.

4. More knitting. I swear, I'm not just making stuff up so my list will look longer. This deserves its own spot. Months and months ago, I was reading Eunny's blog, and I saw a glimpse of a design she had just completed and sent off to Jamieson's for their next pattern book. Well, that book finally came out, and I have already ordered it. Simply Shetland 4 is hopefully already on its way to my anxious little hands. And as soon as I get it, I am going to buy the yarn for the Autumn Rose Pullover. It is the only fair isle sweater I have ever felt compelled to knit--it has a scoop neck, 3/4 sleeves, and waist shaping!! Finally, a fair isle I can actually wear! Anyone want to join me?

A thousand splendid socks

Yeah, right. It'll be a long time before I knit 1000 socks. The yarn
and pattern on this one is quite splendid, though. It may not look
like I've made much progress since I last showed you Snickett
(especially since this is still the first sock), but I am actually not
far from the heel. If I can tear myself away from this
heartwrenchingly beautiful book long enough to do a few more rows
tonight, I'll be starting sock #2 by the weekend for sure. Now that
I've put that in writing, it's guaranteed not to happen, of course...

Getting snickety!

I am happy to say that I have finally started my Summer of Socks project (note that I don't say "first," because I know myself and my schedule better than to imagine there will be more than one pair of socks this summer). Darn overcast day and no flash on my iPhone camera made for a dark picture, but here it is:


Claudia's Hand Painted, in Walk in the Woods colorway, on US #1 dpns.

I was worried that the stitch pattern in Snicket wouldn't show up well in this variegated yarn, but so far the ribbing seems very well-defined, probably because of the twisted stitches. I have been waiting and waiting to use this yarn, and I love the pattern I chose. My only concern is if one ball per sock will be enough. I'm using smaller needles than the pattern calls for, and making a larger size than I normally would because I liked my tighter gauge. I'll still make the foot the right length for me, but I never know if I'm going to have enough yardage. Fingers crossed, because I got this yarn so long ago, I'm sure there's no more of this dye lot left!

Busy busy car car

That's basically been the monologue in my head this week. With bits of "Hindi Hindi" and "free time, what's that?" thrown in.

A typical day: Wake up, eat, shower, bike 12 miles to work, workworkwork, bike 3 miles to Hindi class, act like a sponge for 3 hours, navigate home via metro and bus with bike in tow, feed cats, call Taz, fall into bed and sleep upon contact with the pillow. So that's the "busy busy" part.

The "car car" part is because our dear little '97 Honda Civic has finally reached the point where repairing her transmission will cost way more than we could sell her for. So for the past couple weekends, Taz and I have been doing a lot of car shopping (yay for test drives! boo for clueless salespeople!). We have narrowed it down to the Honda Civic Hybrid and the Toyota Prius. I think we are leaning toward the Prius for a number of reasons (mileage, cargo space, leg room, available extras), but I'd love to get some feedback from all of you, if you have personal experience with hybrids. What hybrid do you have? What do you love and hate about it? What made you choose the one you did? Would you choose the same one if you could do it again? With luck, we'll be able to figure out the money part and make a decision within the next week or two.

In knitting news (I know, it's been a while, hasn't it?) I am now officially within two rounds of being ready to bind off Taz's second sock. Nice dark wool socks, just in time for the hottest part of the summer. Do I have good timing or what?

p.s. Sorry for the dearth of pictures lately. There are pictures, I swear. They're even on my computer. At some point they will actually make it onto the blog.