Of Food and Yarn Shops

It's Spring (well, if feels like Summer today) and the best part is that our Farmers' Market is now open. Every Saturday from 9:00 to 1:00, farmers, bakers, and craftspeople sell their wares. When we moved to town almost nine years ago, there were very few vendors; now, there are folks selling everything from free-range beef to homemade salsa to cheese and yogurt to fleece and handspun yarn.

Liz, from Pocket Farm got me thinking about eating "local." So much of the food that we consume is imported and for a lot of people, highly processed. It's possible to get asparagus in the dead of winter, as well as strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. These fruits and veggies are imported from Central and South America. Think of the cost to transport them. Peaches can be had in March here in Virginia. Have you tasted one off-season? They are very un-peach-like. Think about the meals the average person eats--most likely it's a frozen meal, laden with sodium and preservatives.

There's a web site called Eat Local Challenge. Wander over there and read what the authors have to say. And if you aren't "eating local," think about ways you can incorporate more local food into your life. After you start getting food, especially produce, locally, at the peak of ripeness, you might never want to buy another peach from the regular grocery store again!

So what local food did we eat last night? Grilled green onions, grilled asparagus, and roasted new potatoes. We rounded out the meal with wild-caught grilled Alaskan salmon and halibut. That is definitely not local, but it is on the eco-friendly fish list.

Of Yarn Shops
Okay, so I'm going to do a little informal poll here. I've had this idea for about a year now to open my own yarn shop. And with every day that goes by, that idea gets stronger and stronger. If it comes to fruition, it's going to be more work than I can imagine, I'm going to take a huge cut in salary, and I won't have any time to knit or spin (and forget about picking up weaving again). And the business could fail. But still, that idea persists.

So, here are some questions that have been rolling around in my head and I need other knitters to provide the answers.

1. What do you like best about your favorite yarn shop?


2. What are the characteristics of your least favorite yarn shop?


3. What do you think about the idea of combining a yarn shop with say, a coffee shop or a wine bar?


4. Is there a particular yarn that you wish your yarn shop would carry?


5. Describe the yarn shop of your dreams

You can post the answers in the comments or send an email to me at tlhsimondsAT verizonDOTnet. And thanks for helping out!

Wild Weekend

It's been an exciting weekend, nay, week, chez nous. On Wednesday, there was a fun-filled picnic at work at which I got to try my hand at playing cricket. For those of us who aren't comfortable with team sports, cricket's the ticket, especially if the majority of people playing haven't played it before. It's mostly a lot of standing around, interspersed with some bowling (or pitching to us Americans) and maybe some batting. You don't run bases, you run between two wickets, which aren't placed that far apart. And if your fellow batsman hits the ball far enough, you don't even have to run; the team automatically scores four or six runs, depending on the distance hit. And the best part? When you bowl, you get to throw like a girl! And you get to bounce the ball on the ground! How cool is that?

Yesterday morning was spent knitting and running some errands. Run of the mill stuff. However, after I got home, pandemonium ensued. Somehow a wren managed to get into the house. That in itself was not a problem. The problem was the cat was also in the house and doing her best to prove that she was a mighty huntress. I was yelling, the bird was fluttering, Jez was pouncing, and Tom was trying to get Jez away from bird. Feathers and fur were flying! Tom grabbed Jez and took her into another room. The poor wren was huddled on the floor underneath a table, trying to be very small. I gently picked it up in a towel (it didn't even move) and took it outside to the garden and examined it. The wings didn't look broken, there wasn't any damage other than most of its tailfeathers were gone. It simply sat in my hand, beak opening and closing. Its eyes slowly closed and I thought it was dying. Then, after a few minutes, it flew away, despite its missing tail.

The rest of the day was spent visiting wineries in Rappahannock County with our friend, Leigh. We visited Farfelu, Unicorn, Rappahannock Cellars, and Gray Ghost. All the wines we tasted were quite tasty, even some of the reds. Virginia is not known for high quality red wines, but they are getting much better. I found them to be undrinkable ten years ago, but now I could probably drink a glass of some of the reds. The terroir in the reds comes throug loud and clear for me; the reds have a very mineral or chemical characteristic. For some reason, it is not noticeable in the white wines. A couple of the vineyards had some excellent local musicians playing. It was a wonderful way to spend an absolutely gorgeous day.

Before we headed back to Leesburg, we had dinner at Four and Twenty Blackbirds, which specializes in food using local ingredients. The menu changes frequently and the food was excellent. At first glance, the menu is expensive, but the portions are large (leftovers!), giving you a good value. The wine list is small, but good, and very reasonable. I don't think there was a wine that was priced over $50. And that is very unusual in these parts. We would definitely go back.

I plan to spend today and tomorrow (gotta love a long weekend!) getting some chores done around the house. The dust buffalo are getting a little out of control. There will be knitting, of course. And if all goes well, maybe some spinning on the deck. Chris is inspiring me. Go check out her new wheel!

And finally, pictures!



The swatch for my Trek Along with Me socks...I definitely think Jaywalker will be a good match for this yarn.

And the blanket:


I just started the sixth ball this morning. You are looking at 158 rows, with at least that many more to go. To put a little more pressure on this knitting, the baby arrived Thursday a week ago, 11 days early. Ack!

Must knit fast!

Whew!

Okay, I think things are finally beginning to get back to normal. I'm home again and back at work. Mom continues to get better every day. And the best part? The final pathology showed her to be clear of cancer. We couldn't have hoped for more. The family is breathing a major sigh of relief.

So, what's on the agenda for this Libran? The never-ending baby blanket (I'm seeing the end of ball 5) is top priority. This effort involves a daily 5:30 a.m. knitting session (yawn!) and if I'm lucky, a little bit of knitting in the evening. The Blue Danube sock is cast aside again for the (you guessed it) never-ending baby blanket, and as of June 1, for a pair of Jaywalker socks, knit in Trekking XXL #100 for Margene's Trek Along with Me knit along. This picture doesn't really do the yarn justice (my swatch is much more subdued). I'm pretty excited about my new sock adventure. And best of all, it gives me a chance to get out and take a hike, assuming I can pry my husband away from his running persuade my husband to take a post-run hike some Saturday or Sunday. Hiking opportunities abound near my home--there's the Appalachian Trail, the W&OD Trail (quite nice for an urban/suburban/rural trail), and any number of trails at Great Falls National Park. Maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to get in a backpacking trip.

And I've decided to knit my mom a new boob. No, seriously! I read about it in the latest issue of Interweave Knits, which was delivered right after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. It's a great idea and it should be a fast, fun knit. Especially if I use a cashmere/silk blend or some other luxurious yarn. And if Mom decides to go with the reconstruction surgery, it will be a memorial boob. You can find the pattern here.

That's it for now. Hopefully I'll get a chance to take some pictures this weekend.

Happy knitting!

A Quick Update

I'm still at my parent's house and plan to go back home tomorrow. Mom came through the surgery fine on Thursday and came home from the hospital on Friday. The initial biopsy showed that the lymph nodes were clear; we'll get the final report on Tuesday. Mom is in pretty good spirits and with the help of Percocet, is not in a lot pain. I'm thinking that they should rename Percocet to "Perky-cet" because Mom has become quite chatty.

Thanks to everyone who kept Mom in their thoughts and prayers. We couldn't have hoped for a better outcome. Our circle of family and friends (which definitely includes my blogging acquaintences) is amazing. I'm deeply grateful and humbled.

I've been able to get a fair amount of knitting done this weekend. The Blue Danube sock has grown a little bit and I'm on the fifth ball (out of 12) for the blanket. I started swatching for my Trekking XXL socks for the Trek with Me knitalong, but quickly discovered that I can't knit and translate charts or instructions from knitting in the round to flat knitting. At least I've got an idea of gauge in stockinette. Does anyone have any suggestions for a pattern that would look good with color #100? It stripes very subtly.

And for my One Skein "Seekrit" Pal, here are my answers:

1. Which yarn is most like your personality (you can be specific or general with your answer- brand, type, color, fiber, whatever)?

Hmmm...some would say dishrag cotton! I think I would say cashmere/silk...elegant, but casual (okay, that's what I wannabe). Colors would be muted, earthy tones...(understated elegance?)


2. What is your favorite color yarn to knit/crochet with?

Given that most of my knitting recently has been for gifts, I don't really have a favorite. But when I'm in a yarn store, I gravitate to pinks, greens, purples, reds, and some others.


3. Have you ever used variegated, or magic, yarns?

Yes, with interesting results. The jury is still out, but I think I like them. They certainly are easy!


4. Do you tend to favor certain fibers when choosing yarns?

Natural fibers!!! I am a yarn snob, but mostly because I hate the way most synthetic fibers feel as they move through my hands. However, I do try to keep an open mind.


5. Do you prefer to work with center-pull or traditionally wound balls of yarn?

Either is fine; I have a swift and a ball winder.


6. Have you ever worked with organic yarns or are you interested in trying them?

I have not worked with them and I am definitely interested in trying them. I've had my eye on Blue Sky Alpacas Organic Cotton for the robe that was in a past issue of Interweave Knits.


7. How many and what projects have you made in the last year?

Oh goodness...several hats, some scarves, mittens, baby blankets, a couple pairs of socks...see the list of FOS on my blog (pay no attention to the UFOS).


8. Will you be knitting any gifts this year?

Absolutely. Some socks and a baby blanket. Maybe some more hats and a couple of children's sweaters.


9. What is your favorite one skein project?

Well, I haven't worked much with one skein projects, but I would say socks. I did knit a small scarf for my niece using one skein. It was extremely satisfying and relatively quick.


10. How much yarn do you have in your stash and how do you store it?

I don't know. I'll have to take an inventory. I've got one large flat Rubbermaid contain filled, and another one partially filled. As stashes go, mine is rather modest.


11. Do you have a yarn in your stash that you love so much you can never use it or part with it?

Not really, but I do have several yarns in my stash that are destined for something I design, after I get over my fear of failure.


12. Do you knit less or differently in the summer?

Not really. I might not be knitting with worsted anything (cotton is extremely sticky in the humidity). Maybe more socks?


13. Do you belong to any knitting groups (online or offline)?

I occasionally attend the Loudoun Knitters group, but mostly I knit solo.

GTB
GTB starts in 5 minutes! I wish we could be there. Maybe next year...

Mush Brain

I decided that I have had enough with the blanket. Oh, I'll continue to knit on it and it will be finished soon sometime after the baby is born. Knitnthings asked why not just leave off the French knots? Well, the couple for whom this blanket is intended is Greek and Tom thought it would be nice to make a blanket in the colors of the Greek flag. It's obvious that I wasn't thinking clearly ("Oh, what a pretty blanket. Aren't the French knots adorable!) and that I could have easily picked a blanket that didn't require embroidering over 500 French knots in Greek flag blue. Sigh...

So, I picked up the Blue Danube sock again. I had knit part of a round at the Knit Bloggers' Knoll at MDS&W and figured it would make good lunch time knitting or car knitting. I couldn't believe what I saw...the knitting was a mess. An absolute mess! The first pattern round is *sl3 purlwise, p3; repeat from *. Simple enough, right? Nope. I got the slippin' right, but seemed to get my knit and purl stitches mixed up (I think the whack of knit bloggers really freaked me out). So off to the frog pond on round 8. But my troubles were not over. I knit the one 12-round pattern repeat and and first half of the second repeat (which are the same). I managed to keep my knit and purl stitches straight, but got off on the count somewhere. The pattern was very off-kilter. I counted and counted and couldn't figure it out. So off the the frog pond again. This time I ripped back the whole thing and started over. The sock is looking much better.

Musings about Mother's Day
I didn't get a chance to visit my mother yesterday, but we did send flowers and I'll be making a trip down home on Wednesday to help out after her mastectomy. Mom has such a great attitude about the breast cancer. Actually Mom has a great attitude about almost everything. She's a very strong and determined woman and I admire her and love her a lot (don't get teary-eyed when you read this, Mom!). I suspect that she's doing much better with all this than I am.

But anyway, this the first year that I've noticed that pretty much all the cashiers in our local grocery stores kept telling me "Happy Mother's Day!" I'm not a mother and at this stage in my life, I'm probably not going to become one. How did I react? I smiled and said "Thank you, to you too." But that got me thinking. Is it because I'm clearly a woman of a certain age and wearing a wedding ring that people automatically think I have children? What do you think? Is it polite to wish a total stranger a happy "insert generic holiday here" when you don't have an inkling of their personal situation? I wasn't offended, but it did make feel rather odd.

We did get a chance to visit my mother-in-law. We cooked dinner and delivered it to her (she hates to cook, so cooked meals are alway a good gift). I made Rick Bayless' Grilled Salmon Vera Cruz with Lemon-and-Thyme-Scented Salsa, a spicy black bean and chile salad, Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream (from Everyday Italian). Fortunately, everything could be made ahead and didn't require an final cooking. All of these dishes would be perfect for a picnic. And it was all quite yummy. A good time was had by all.

My apologies for lack of pictures this post. The blanket looks much like it did last week except longer and the sock is almost ready to be photographed.

My next post will probably be from my parents' house. In the meantime, have a great week and for those of you in the Northeast, don't float away!

The Fleece That Got Away

It's time to reminisce (and do a little show-and-tell) about my trip last week to Maryland Sheep and Wool. As I've already mentioned, there was a lot of fiber and fiber-producing critters there. There were also knit bloggers in their natural habitat and it was a lot of fun to watch everyone and wonder if they blogged. I never did get up enough courage to approach someone and ask "Excuse me, do you have a blog?" But I did meet some very nice bloggers at the knit bloggers convergence on the grassy knoll.

So, on to fiber and the fleece that got away.

One of my goals for Maryland Sheep and Wool was to buy a whole fleece and clean, card, and spin it up. But as I was looking for a fleece, it became clear to me that that would be a whole lot of work and I had almost decided to buy a lot of roving. Almost, because I came to one booth that had the most gorgeous fleece I ever did see. It was silvery-grey Coopworth,very lustrous, with a nice long staple and crimp. The locks were soft and smooth and lanolin-y and very, very clean. The fleece weighed in at almost six pounds and seemed to be priced right. Should I buy it? Will I have the time to be able to do it justice? I was almost ready to commit when another woman stopped and admired it. She also wanted it. Oh what to do, what to do? I accepted reality and did the honourable thing...I let her have it. Regrets? Of course. But I wrote down the name of the sheep and the vendor. That fleece is mine next year!

So, what did I get last weekend? A little bit of yarn:



From left to right, Jade Sapphire Cashmere Silk (800 yards!) in Vintage Rose, some hand-dyed Spirit Trail sock yarn, and two skeins of Duet from Brooks Farm Fibers.

I also bought a little bit of fiber:



From left to right (my apologies for the fuzziness), some beautiful dark grey and brown Border Leicester wool (from the same vendor of the fleece that got away), a bit of merino/silk roving in reds from Shadyside Farm, and a hand-painted Clun Forest/Cormo roving from Spirit Trail. The pink reminds me of cotton candy. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it. If I can perfect my spinning, it might make an interesting pair of socks.

Of Secret Pals and Knit Alongs
The One Skein Secret Pal thingy has started. This is my first Secret Pal event and it should be fun. I already have some ideas for my secret pal, but I'll have to see what her yarn preferences are.

Margene and Norma are hosting a Trek Along which starts June 1st. It's simple, just grab some of the yummy Trekking XXL yarn hiding in your stash, start knitting a pair of socks, and take a hike (or two or three) with said socks-in-progress. This is my first knit along, too. I'm hoping that it will help get Tom and me back into hiking a little more (the Appalachian Trail is so close!) and that I'll be able to get some Extreme Knitting pictures.

And speaking of Extreme Knitting, I'm still accepting photos. You can find the details of Extreme Knitting here. Scroll down to the July 12th post.

Have a wonderful Saturday!

Just a Quickie

I probably won't post photos of the stash enhancement until this weekend. It seems like there isn't all that much time in the evenings after I get home from work. Plus, if I don't take the photos until the weekend, I'll be much less tempted to start working on a new project...say a new pair of socks or Clapotis?

Sigh...so much yarn, so little time.

All work on the current socks and the Jenna sweater has ceased. My focus is on the baby blanket, which is coming along oh so slowly. I've knit 75 rows so far and am on the third ball of yarn and the blanket barely measures 9-1/4 inches. The baby for which it is destined isn't due to make his grand entrance until the end of May, so I have a little time. What is beginning to worry me, though, is the fact that I have to embroider French knots in the center of each cable. There are 16 columns of cables and each cable is about an inch long. There are about 36 inches of blanket length which means that I need to make approximately 576 French knots (someone please tell me I did the math wrong!).

I think the baby is going to get the blanket late.

Like a Virgin

A Maryland Sheep and Wool virgin, that is. What can I say, other than "Oooohhhhh!"

It was good. It was beyond good. It was amazing. It was amazing on many levels.

First, there were a lot of sheep there. And goats. And bunnies. And llamas and alpacas. All were very cute. The sheep smelled, well, like sheep and that's a very good smell. Yes, I know, I'm weird. Most people think barnyards stink. I think they smell earthy and good.

Look at these guys:



Mohair goats (or more like mohair goat butts). Aren't they adorable? The sheep were too numerous to photograph, but they came in all shapes and sizes. And voices! Some sheep had deep base baaaa's while others had "normal" baaaa's. I had no idea that sheep had deep voices. It fascinated me to no end.

The other thing that was good was being amongst my own kind. I mean, where else can you see thousands of women (and men) fingering raw fleece and toting bags and bags of the stuff? Kindred spirits, we were. Not to mention all the yarn and roving and top.

And then there were these fine ladies:







A whack of knit bloggers. And that wasn't all of us. Wendy and her cadre were a bit to right of us so we all picked up and trooped over there. It was awesome. And because there were so many people around, the old shyness kicked in. You'd think that after being out of high school for say 30 years that I'd get over feeling like I was tagging along behind the popular folks. But I met these fine knitters from Dallas, who helped me get over that feeling:



From left to right, that's Nanc, Petra (of 200Sox fame), and Chris. They had their own t-shirts and blog business cards! I need to do that for next year.

I also met Jody and Linda, her mother (and, alas, blogless), OneCraftyBitch, Melanie, Maggi and Suzanne.

It felt so right to be with other knitters, since I knit solo most of the time. Everyone hung around on the grassy knoll for about an hour or so and drifted away for more stash enhancement.

And of course, there was stash enhancement on my part, too. But not in a big way. A little sock yarn, some Duet for Clapotis, some fleece for spinning, a bit of roving, a little bit of cashmere/silk. And then there was the fleece that got away (more on that next time). Stash pictures will be posted the next time we get some sun. I don't think the flash will do justice to all the different colors.

In the meantime, happy knitting!

Do You See What I See?

After my 5:30a.m. knitting session (wherein I did not have to tink, I think) and after my 7:00a.m. weight training session, I drove to work (after making the appropriate change in clothes and such). And wouldn't you know it, the car in front of me (a Chevy Subdivision) had this bumper sticker on it: MSWF. And this one: My other vehicle is a spinning wheel. And this one: www.spirit-trail.net.

I think a saw a vendor.

It's clearly a message. Must...go...to...Maryland...Sheep...and...Wool...

Even if I have to go by myself.

In knitting news, I knit another two rows on the blanket tonight. I got to the end of the purl row, turned and started working the next pattern row. Ruh roh...something is not right. Danged if I didn't forget another yarn over at the beginning of the last pattern row (this is getting old, very old). So I tinked back the purl row and assessed the situation. I didn't want to tink back a cable row; I really didn't. So I slipped the stitches onto another needle, picked up the yarn where the yarn over should have been and created a new yarn over in situ. A quick slip of the stitches back to the working needles, and I'm on my way. Woo hoo! I'm so proud of myself.

Tomorrow? Another 5:30a.m. knitting session, followed by a 2-mile walk at 6:15a.m. One day I'm going to start running again.

Better Now

Whew! I'm glad that's over. The Blue Funk, that is. I don't think I've been that blue for years. It wasn't a lot of fun.

But a little housecleaning, the return of my husband from his little climbing trip, and dinner with friends did a lot to lift my spirits. A return of hormonal balance didn't hurt, either. Thank you for your words of encouragement, and especially your thoughts for my mother. Those also contributed.

I didn't make it to Knit Happens yesterday. I didn't quite have the energy to make the trek to Alexandria. I'll catch Wendy next weekend at Maryland Sheep and Wool.

I'm making slow progress on the blanket, because I seem to be unable to knit a pattern row without making some kind of mistake. I forget yarnovers, I end up with extra stitches...fortunately, I haven't dropped another stitch during a cable (yet). But despite the slowness of the work, the Martina yarn continues to fascinate me. Have I mentioned how much I enjoy knitting with this yarn? I read the ball band again and discovered the source of the lustre...10% silk. That's why it looks like pearls. I can sit and stare at the lustre for hours. It grabs me and pulls me in. It's almost a shame to be knitting a baby blanket with it. And I feel really bad that the baby blankets knit for my niece and nephew were out of Lamb's Pride. Don't get me wrong, I really like Lamb's Pride. But it isn't Martina. Did I say how much I love this yarn?

Is anyone else going to be at Maryland Sheep and Wool on Saturday? (Well, yes, thousands of people will be. I meant knitting and spinning bloggers.) Last year at this time, the blog world was all abuzz about MDSW. Other than Melanie, I haven't heard much of anything about it. If you are going, would you like to try to meet up? Post a comment and let me know.

That's it for now. Time to finish some laundry and do some gardening and grocery shopping. Enjoy the day!

Weariness

I'm glad this week is over as it has been a rollercoaster of emotions, mostly down. Sometimes events just become too much and the defense is to roll up in a ball and pull the covers over your head. It isn't just my mother's cancer diagnosis that's causing me to feel like this. It's everything that's happening in the world--the conflicts, the environment, everything. It's our Administration and their extreme short-sightedness and cultural ignorance; it's the hatred that seems to be rife in the Middle East and Sudan, and elsewhere.

This feeling will eventually pass, but in the meantime, things are looking pretty bleak.

I need my flannel jammies and a warm blankie.

I stayed up until almost 11:30 last night reading Wendy Knits--My Never-Ending Adventures in Yarn. I just finished it (okay, I got sidetracked while writing this entry). It's a quick, entertaining read and is essentially an autobiography of a knitter. It's humorous (especially the Bad-Ass Knitters' Kitties' Manifesto). And the patterns provide inspiration. As does Wendy's blog. Wander on over there and check out her tiger socks. As Tony (the Tiger) would say "They're GRRRRREAT!"

I feel a stash enhancement coming on. I have been a tiger fan ever since I was a wee child when I was allowed to choose a toy for my first birthday. My choice? A stuffed sleeping tiger. It was the only thing in the entire toy store that I wanted. I still have it, too, but most of the fur has long been loved off and the stuffing is a bit...er...crunchy. But it's still my tiger. So clearly, the Opal Rainforest Tiger yarn is meant for me.

But wait, there's more. There Opal Rainforest Flamingo yarn. I love birds. And flamingos are special because of the Annual Goodtime Boogie. So clearly, the Opal Rainforest Flamingo yarn is meant for me, too!

Tom is off climbing this weekend; he'll be back tomorrow night. This would be a perfect time for a little stash acquisition. I could take a field trip to Knit Happens, get some yarn, meet Wendy (who's signing books from noon to 2pm)...or I could wait until Maryland Sheep and Wool next weekend. I think that's probably the better option.

Okay, I'm rambling. Time to sign off and get some tinking done. I'd close with a picture of my tiger, but it appears that Tom took the camera climbing with him.

We Interrupt This Blog

...to bring you an important public service announcement...

Okay, ladies. I have to ask you a very important question. When was your last mammogram? If it was last year, good for you. Be sure to get one this year, if you are at the "get a yearly mammogram" stage of life. If it's been two or more years? Call or visit your doctor and have her write an order for a mammogram, schedule it, and don't miss the appointment.

"Hmmm..." you are probably thinking, "This is isn't about knitting. What's up?"

You're right, today's blog is not about knitting. It's about breast cancer. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer last week. It's very early, very contained, and the prognosis is pretty good. They found it with a mammogram, which my mother has done every year.

It's scary that it's in my family. It's scary that my mom has it. But what is even scarier is the number of women I know who have had breast cancer. According to breastcancer.org, breast cancer incidence in women is one in seven. I know (or know of) more than a dozen women who have had breast cancer.

So please, stay current with the mammograms, learn what you can about breast cancer prevention, and take good care of you. After all, you want to be knitting for a really long time, right?

We now return you to the blog in progress...

A New Arrival
It arrived! It shipped yesterday and arrived today! Wendy's new book arrived. I'm on p. 35 (it's sitting here next to my computer). So far, it's a good read. It's not laugh-out-loud-funny (well, not yet, anyway), the way Yarn Harlot's bookbookbooks are. But it's chatty and engaging and a very pleasant read. And I've already gotten some ideas about One Skein (hee hee).

In knitting news? I'm afraid there hasn't been much activity this week. Mom's diagnosis (coupled with the wrong time of the month...or maybe it's the other way 'round) put me in a major funk. I'm climbing out and should be back to my normal knitting self soon. I tried knitting the Jenna sleeve on Monday and managed to complete four rows, but it was not a pleasant four rows. It was "tarry" and slow and I kept making mistakes. The baby blanket didn't fare well, either. I decided to tink and was doing right well until I got to a certain "sl 1, k2tog, psso." I tinked wrong and now I've got two weird stitches. I'm hoping they'll right themselves on the next row, as well as a third weird stitch that emerged when I picked up the dropped stitch. Sigh...

Click your heels together and repeat after me: There's nothing like the process, there's nothing like the process, there's nothing like the process...

Houston, We Have a Problem

Help! A stitch has fallen and it can't get up!



One of my greatest knitting fears has been realized. I dropped a stitch during a cable and kept going, blissfully unaware of it for a couple of rows. I figure I have a couple of options for fixing it, none of which thrill me. I could try to fix it in place. Or I could tink several rows. The problem with fixing it in place is that I don't have a clue how to bring up that stitch and rearrange all the yarn overs and decreases. The problem with tinking is that I have to deal with unknitting the yarn overs on the purl rows.

Can any of you more experienced knitters offer some advice before I mess this up beyond repair?

In happier news, on Friday my friend Keith told me a story that almost made me swoon. His wife had lunch with a friend who was helping clean out the house of one her relatives who had recently passed away and who was apparently a knitter. She had (you might want to sit down for this) 52 large black trash bags of yarn. There were also a number of unfinished projects, still on the needles, neatly stored in bags with the yarn and pattern. No, I don't know what kind of yarn it was. In my imagination, I think of the most beautiful yarn possible: soft wools in luscious colors, beautiful silk blends, luxurious novelties; in short, all the types of yarn I want to own and work with. In reality, all the yarn could have been bad acrylic. The family donated the entire stash to a charity, which I don't think I'd be able to do (unless all the yarn was bad acrylic).

Shrooming
The mushroom hunt today was a little less than successful. We found (thanks to Sunil and Susan) a grand total of four little morels:



Tom and I found zero morels; I found one false morel (which you don't want to eat because they are poisonous). Susan graciously let us keep the whole haul, and they are now soaking in salt water to get all of the tiny bugs out. Tonight's dinner will be grilled asparagus, chicken prepared in some way, sauteed morels, new potatoes, pain rustique, and a salad. And ice cream for dessert, of course.

Hunting morels is a lot about the process. If you want immediate gratification, morel hunting is not for you. But if you like taking a walk in the woods, slowing down, and really looking at what's in front of you, the process can be very rewarding. Box turtles, butterflies, birds, brightly colored centipedes, wood spiders, wild flowers, and maybe even the elusive morel reveal themselves. It's a time for slowing down, and being aware of nature, which we so often are not these days.

So, in the spirit of Earth Day (which was yesterday), try to get outside and take a walk in nature. It doesn't have to be in the wilds; go to your local park. Slow down and absorb your surroundings. See how many birds, wild flowers, trees, and animals you can identify. Revel in feeling the sun, or wind, or rain on your face. And above all, enjoy!

Smack Down!

I cast on for the new baby blanket last Sunday. The Martina continues to knit like a dream and the pattern is very easy. So easy, in fact, that I got a little cocky during the second pattern repeat and made a mental comment about how easy it was and how I hadn't made any mistakes.

The Knitting Goddess at that point performed a cosmic smack down.

I was coming up on the end of a 195-stitch row and decided to have a little look-see at my knitting. Hmmm...it looks a little weird, just slightly off. So I went back to the beginning of the row and compared it with the pattern. I made a one-stitch mistake at stitch 9. Gar! So I tinked and started again. Fortunately, the yarn is no worse for the wear.

The lesson? Never, ever get cocky about your ability to follow a pattern, no matter how easy you think it is. If you want to read more knitting lessons, visit Margene's blog. Her lessons are in the April 20 and 21 posts.

The blanket is progressing nicely. See?



That's 31 rows and roughly three inches and almost one ball of Martina. I'm not quite getting gauge, so the blanket will be a little smaller than what the pattern says.

The Lace-edged Cardigan sleeve is also progressing. I've only got one more increase row, then it's knitting until it's the right length. Henceforth, I'm going to call the Lace-edged Cardigan "Jenna." That's who it's for and Jenna is a whole lot easier to type than Lace-edged Cardigan.

What's on tap for the remainder of the weekend? The oft-postponed housecleaning and grocery shopping (the larder is getting a bit bare), the usual laundry. Tonight we'll have dinner at our favorite restaurant. I'm hoping that something on the menu will include fiddlehead ferns or morels. And tomorrow will be my first morel hunt. Yum, yum!

Never Say Never

A long time ago (okay, maybe not that long ago) when I first started knitting and began the stash acquisition, I was focused on reasonably-priced natural fibers. I'd read other knitter's blogs and they were using yarns that I never heard of...Rowan, Debbie Bliss, and so on. After I saw the prices of these yarns and how tiny the balls were, I swore that I'd never buy designer yarn. It's too expensive and too...trendy.

Never say never.

When I purchased the Rowan Cotton Glace for the Lace-edged Cardigan (can't Debbie Bliss come up with catchier names for her sweaters?), I started down the slippery slope, although I didn't know it at the time. I justified the Adrienne Vittadini yarn purchase because it was the right weight and color for the baby blanket and it was 40% off. But I swatched it on the way home today and I'm in love!

This yarn is an absolute dream to knit. It's soft and the resulting fabric is very lustrous, like pearls. I'm now having difficulty justifying using this yarn for a baby blanket, even though it is for a friend of my husband. I'm also wondering if I can find good deals on this yarn. I'm addicted, I'm afraid. Please keep me away from the cashmere and qiviut!

I finally took a picture of the kittens on the kitten blanket:



Pretty cute, eh?

Runner Down!

This weekend was the Fourth Annual Charlottesville Marathon and Half-Marathon. Tom and I signed up months ago. Unfortunately, I developed a problem with the IT band in my right knee and can't run much more than two or three miles without pain, so I knew a while ago that I wasn't going to be able to run. Tom, on the other hand, has been running regularly and was ready to set another PR. So yesterday, we packed up the car and headed to Charlottesville.

We met our friends, Jim and Lynda, had a cocktail and some shrimp and oysters, then headed over to Fellini's #9 for dinner. Dinner was quite good (I had fresh ravioli with roasted red peppers and carmelized onions). Then it was back to our hotel room for a good night's sleep before the race today.

But the sleep turned out to be not so good. Tom got that stomach virus that has been going around and spent the better part of the night in the bathroom. By the time race time rolled around, he was not quite feeling up to running 13.1 miles. That was a major disappointment for him.

I spent the morning knitting, or rather unknitting, the Blue Danube sock. At some point, I got confused and ended up decreasing in the middle of the bottom of the foot, not at the side. Later in the day, Lynda and I had lunch and shopped on the pedestrian mall near the hotel. I've been looking for the right yarn for another baby blanket and finally found it, at 40% off. It's Adrienne Vittadini's Martina, which is a nice sportweight merino and I got a lot of it. If you are looking for a decent sale on yarn, head to The Needle Lady in Charlottesville, Virginia.

As a result of not really being able to wander too far afield today, I was able to finish the Blue Danube sock, despite the decrease accident. And here it is:



The colors in the photo are washed out; in real life the second color ranges in color from light taupe to black, with rich plums and browns in between. This yarn is great to knit with. Despite it being merino and silk, it tinks well, not showing signs of abuse overuse. I hope that means it will wear well, too.

And as promised, a picture of the sleeve for the Lace-edged Cardigan:



I finally figured out the macro function on the camera (you'd think that someone who works in high-tech should have been able to figure it out sooner). This is the cable detail for the sleeve:



The picture is a little blurry, but shows the pattern nicely. The yarn is Rowan's Cotton Glace. It's a cotton, but it's easy on the hands. It knits well, even though the yarn kinks up quite a bit.

Tom is off to see the movie Thank You for Smoking with Jim and Lynda. He's finally feeling better and needed to get out. I'm taking this opportunity to update my blog and knit in the quiet of the hotel room. I'm undecided, though. Should I cast on the second Blue Danube sock, thus helping to avoid second sock syndrome? Perhaps I should try to make more progress on the cardigan sleeve. Or should I swatch the Martina? So many options, so little time!

Knit on, friends!

Organized (in spite of myself)

I spent another weekend with Miss Val, organizing my workroom. I'm happy to report that we're done! Yippee!

Here are some before pictures:





Now, I wouldn't describe myself as "unorganized." I would say, though, that my organization quickly devolves into disorganization or, as these pictures suggest, chaos. Really, it's much easier to leave things out if I know (or even think) that I'll be using them again.

After spending 19 hours working on this room, including the closets and filing cabinet, we ended up with one box and three large bags for charity, one large bag of trash, one large box of recyclables, and various piles that needed to go elsewhere in the house. And I was left with this:





Every time I walk past the room, I look in and say "Ahhh..." It feels more spacious, the energy flows better, and it's just good. But I did have to rein in Val a little bit. When it came time to organize the stash, she looked at my one stash box (and its overflow) and kept asking "Isn't there anything in there you can get rid of? Maybe some old yarn?" Nope, every bit of the stash stays. It took every ounce of my self-control to not pull out every skein, thrust it in her hands and say "Here, feel this. Isn't it wonderful?" (I only did it once or twice).

I must say, though, that it's rather sad that I couldn't do this organization project by myself. I think it was too overwhelming and I was only thinking along two lines: throw it out or give it away. For some things, particularly some of the things that came from my grandmother's house, I needed someone who understood the emotional attachment and who could gently detach me from that attachment and get me to realize that it was good to give it to someone who would get better use of the objects than I would. Thanks, Miss Val!

Because of the whirlwind of organization this weekend, not much knitting was accomplished. I started swatching for the next baby blanket. I'm considering using Indicieta, a sport weight alpaca yarn by Plymouth. I'm not sure that I like it...yet. The swatch needs to get bigger than one row. The sleeve to the Lace-edged Cardigan is slowly but surely growing. It's about six inches long right now and I've had no signficant cabling accidents. I think it will turn out rather well. I'll post pictures next time...after I replace the batteries in the camera.

Finito

It's done...the kittens blanket is totally finished. And here it is, for your viewing pleasure:



I tried to take a detail picture of the kittens, but as usual, the macro function created a blurry picture. I must read the camera user's guide sometime (but that means I'd have to find it first). It's really annoying to have blurry macro pictures.

I've finished the first full repeat of the Lace-edged Cardigan sleeve. It looks as if the gauge is working out, despite my stitch name translation accident. The sleeve at the cuff is supposed to be 8" and that's what I'm measuring. So far, so good.

In other news, Miss Val came over yesterday to help me get organized. One of my New Year's resolutions (with much prodding from Tom) was to de-clutter and organize. For a pack rat, this is pretty scary. But Val would like to become a professional organizer so I've offered up myself (and my stuff) as a guinea pig. It's exhausting work. Of course, it didn't help that I began with the most challenging room, the work room (aka the "fiber arts studio"). But we made good progress for one day. She'll be back next weekend and with any luck (and lots of work), we'll finish the job. I'll post before and after pictures when we finish.

And now? I'm off to knit a few rows on the sleeve.

Jacked Up

That's what happened to our house this week...literally. We live in a 1906 four-square that over the years has been modified. One of the modifications, probably done in the early 20th century, was to add a bump out to the dining room (which was probably the original kitchen) and upstairs bedroom. That little addition has slowly sunk about two inches, which caused some cracked plaster, slopey floors, and the windows to not close. We've debated for years whether or not to fix it; we suspected that it was still sinking.

This week, we went for it. The crew came on Monday and started digging. More digging ensued on Tuesday and they installed helical piers. Wednesday, they jacked. Let me tell you that hearing a house (or part of it) get raised is heart-wrenching. It makes the most hideous hissings, poppings, and crackings. The jacking only took about 90 minutes, but those were some of the most stressful 90 minutes of my life. There were a couple of times where I definitely felt like I needed a little lie-down. Either that or a good, stiff drink (at 8:00 in the morning).

Fortunately, nothing bad happened. In addition to raising the house, the workers also fixed the drainage on that side of the house and repaired the addition foundation where it had separated from the main foundation (it had never been tied in). So now we have a level floor, windows that close, an addition that will never sink again. And lots of cracked plaster to repair.

Knitting News
I finished knitting the blanket a week ago so it wasn't delivered to the wee babe, although I did show it to his proud parents. It's been washed and blocked and all that's left to do is the embroidery. I hope to finish that this weekend and mail it next week.

I started the Lace-edged Cardigan from Great Knits for Kids by Debbie Bliss. The sweater designs are gorgeous and this particular design, at least, will be challenging. It has five cable patterns, along with double moss stitch as filler. It's a bit frustrating that the she doesn't state up front just what double moss stitch is. I did a Google search on it and discovered that it is a four-row repeat of k2,p2; p2,k2; p2,k2; k2,p2. I happily swatched on the drive down to Rescue and got gauge, mostly. After starting the sleeve, I realized that her definition of double moss stitch is comprised of a single knit and purl stitch. So, I need to swatch again. But in the meantime, I'm merrily knitting the sleeve (attempt number three), realizing full well that I swatched the wrong stitch pattern and might need to start over again.

Can you tell that I'm in denial? Can you tell that I'm ignoring the fact that perhaps after three or repeats of five cable patterns that I might not feel so enamored of this sweater?

I keep telling myself: I love the process, I love the process, I love the process.

Where Does the Time Go?

Okay, so I posted right after the Knitting Olympics. And I look up and it's already March 20th. How did that happen? Maybe I've been immersed in my job. Maybe I've been heads down trying to get the baby blanket done before next weekend. Maybe I've just been lazy. It's probably a combination of all three.

I usually get home from work between 7:00 and 8:00 in the evening and after having worked on a computer all day, I don't quite feel like logging on at home. That means I'm woefully behind with reading my favorite blogs. But I have been managing to knit about an hour or so before I go to bed, which is wonderfully relaxing.

The baby blanket is almost finished. I've got about 40 rows of seed and stockinette stitch to go, then it's on to weaving in the ends and blocking. I'll post a picture of the blanket after I've finished it.

I've come to realize that I'm a process knitter, not a product knitter. There times, however, when the process drives me batty. I get bored easily, so doing row after long row of stockinette stitch has a tendency to be painful, at least initially. I feel like I'm fighting the knitting. What I found, though, is that at some point something else kicks in and I become fascinated with the way the yarn moves through my hands or the way the light catches and changes the colors. When that happens, the "conflict" goes away and the knitting just flows. My hands are more relaxed; my self is more relaxed. And I hate to see the project end.

Maybe it's because I'm a process knitter that I can't be faithful to only one project. It's taking every ounce of my self-control to not cast on yet another pair of socks (I've got two pairs going now) or the Debbie Bliss sweaters that I want to knit for my little nieces. A little voice in my head says "Just do a gauge swatch. You've got to do one anyway. It won't hurt." Ha! I know me. Once I feel the new yarn and start working on a new pattern, it's all over. The current project(s) will languish indefinitely (see the sidebar of WIPs...they've all been deserted for new projects). The feeling of waiting to start a new project is not unlike having a crush on someone unattainable. The anticipation is bittersweet because I know I can't knit it now. And when the "relationship" does start, there's a good chance it will be fraught with frustration and disappointment.

But then that's part of the process too, isn't it?