Back in the Saddle

I'd first like to thank all the people that wrote to make sure I was fine and that I would be returning to blogland.  I am fine, thank you, and I'm here ... with next to nothing to show.  Sorry about that.  But before I go into it, let me tell you what happened today at Barnes & Noble, where I went at lunchtime.

The escalator was not working and I needed to get to the third floor, so I decided to wait for he elevator.  When I got to the elevators, there was me, another woman and a man who was pushing his 2 year old in a stroller.   There are two elevators there and one came, the indicator light said it was going down, so the lady and I stood our ground.  The man, however, used his stroller to stop the doors from closing.  The doors closed on his child's stroller with his child in it, and the doors bounced back open.  The man in the elevator said it was going DOWN so the man pulled the stroller out of the path of the elevator doors.  I'd rant if I had the energy, but is it just me?  Or is it New Yorkers in general?  I saw a woman try to use her stroller to stop cars so she could cross the street!  Holy moly, people! 

OK, onto other non-knitting related matters.  Did I mention that I have water and a new water saving faucet?

I did manage to finish David's socks (size 12), longest pair of socks I ever made.  After three attempts, two of them failed, I ended up with basic socks:

I used Lion Brand Sock Ease in whatever colorway that is, 1 skein and US #2 needles.  They took two weeks to make and I was grateful for the mindless knit.  More importantly, David likes the socks and he's already worn them.  Whew!

You may remember when I spun Dried Flowers and ended up being upset that I didn't have the yardage I needed to make the shawl I wanted:

Not that it isn't pretty yarn, but it wasn't the look I was going for.  So, to make sure that it goes far away I made another Multnomah with it:

The only difference between this one and the first one I made is that I blocked this one with points instead of scalloped edges.  This shawl is a cinch to make, if you watch your yarn overs and put your stitch markers where they belong.  I made this shawl with US #4 needles, and I used all 437 yards to make it, except for the last set of repeats because I ran out of yarn.  Still, it's a nice size and Mrs. Baker is going to like it, hopefully.

The shawl is #1 of 10 for my 10 shawls in 2010. Yay!  At least something got done during my hiatus!

I'm already looking for the next thing to cast on my needles. I have so much yarn and I'm thumbing through the new Interweave Knits magazine that came yesterday.  I'm going to cast on another shawl, but it's a secret.  I'll let you see it as I go.

Happy knitting to you all.