Winner!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!  I hope your days were filled with joy and good food for Christmas and it will be filled with wine and song to welcome the New Year.  Just don't drink and drive!

I was on Ravelry, minding my own business and everyone else's (as usual), and I came across a forum that mentioned contests.  So I decided to pop in for a peek.  Just a peek.

Now, I'm not one to enter contests.  I kind of feel like I have about as much chance of winning a knitting contest as I do of winning the lottery.  But that day, the topic was send us your knitting/spinning goofs, mess ups, disasters and mishaps.  Because I won a drop spindle earlier this year (Tour de Fleece), I thought maybe my lucky streak would carry over just one more time.  So I entered the contest here, and - wait for it - I won!!

Look at what I got:

Now I can knit Christmas balls!  And make i-cord, as well as sip from the wine glass that says "Knit 1, Sip 1".  LOL!  Does that mean I won't have to drink wine out of a grape jelly jar? I can break out my new Takumi interlocking needle set (best gift yet!) and knit up the two kits I got.  Merry Christmas, eh?!  I've was so lucky!  Woo hoo!

Did I mention that I finished the Hootenanny socks?

I fudged* a bit, but the socks came out just right.  The little bit of blue showing through the brown toe is the sock blocker showing through.  The little owls are the cutest things!  If I could change one thing, I think I'd make the heel brown.  Overall, I'm quite happy with the results.

Pattern: Hootenanny / US #2 needle / Cascade Heritage in blue and brown.

I've got enough yarn to make the socks again only switching the colors.  Of course, my son asked for a pair ... he doesn't care what color socks he wears.

I also blocked my Holden Shawl which was so beautiful that the ONLY reason I was able to give it as a holiday gift is because it went to my mother:

The yarn comes from Spring Tree Road in Slope, which is blue/green .  I used US #3 needles and I had plenty of yarn left over.  I should have measured the shawl, but I have more Spring Tree yarn (which is so soft) and I'll make another for myself - one day.

Normally I only make New Year's resolutions that I plan to break/not start.  This year I'm going to get my life under control - and to that end I've started organizing my knitting system and I've got yarn and fiber hidden in every bag, box and container in every corner and cabinet of my house.

I've resolved to use stash that's been hanging around here since the time of Moses.  Some of the yarn has me puzzled, as in 'why did I buy that?', but it's getting out of here one way or another.  That's my resolution.  Good luck to me.
__________________
* fudged - a polite way of saying I screwed up, but not much.

Aftermath

Here's hoping that everyone enjoyed their holiday, no matter how you spent it.  The weather where I was couldn't have been better; cool and sunny - almost warm, considering how close I was to Canada.

I got a chance to talk with family members I haven't seen in a while, and learned something that made me happy.  Several years ago I made a poncho for my Aunt Joan (at her request, I might add).  I can't remember the colorway, but I used the Baby Loop yarn and it turned out pretty good.  Fast forward to Thanksgiving Day and she told me that she had gotten all the use out of the poncho and put it in an auction to support breast cancer - and got $75 for it.  Well bust my buttons, I was tickled beyond reason!

She said the ladies at the auction knew the value of a hand knit item and paid top dollar for it, but the part that had me pleased beyond reason is the fact that the shawl will be enjoyed by someone else and the money will support a really good cause.  I hope the next person that gets it uses it and, if it lasts long enough to get passed on again, then that would be icing on the cake.

Next, I finished the Holden Shawl - except for the blocking.  I'm pleased with it and I think my mother will love it.  The part that makes the shawl, in my opinion, is the picot edge.  It's a pain to do, but it makes such a pretty effect.

I'll have better pictures of the shawl after blocking.

While on my mini vacation I also started the Hootenanny Socks.

The instructions are imprecise and her numbers don't exactly add up starting with the heel flap, but if you know how to make socks and the theory of working the heel, you should be fine.  I'm using Heritage Sock Yarn (Cascade) that I bought at Knitty City and this yarn is perfect for summer weight socks.  Almost feels like cotton, but softer.

Now that Thanksgiving is done, it's time to get with the holiday knitting.  There, it's out there - as much as I wanted to keep it to myself.

Yes, I'm going to get something done between now and Christmas.  I've decided to take the pressure off myself by not declaring who will get and who won't since I always (and I mean always) fall short of the mark.  This year I'm going to make what I make and that will be the end of it.  No pressure.  Maybe.

Thanksgiving

The Thanksgiving holiday is this week and I have so much to be thankful for, not the least of which is my knitting circle of friends.

This weekend we had a potluck dinner at the library and Junior (who is a staunch advocate of the knitting circle and especially of the NY Sheep & Wool Festival aka Rhinebeck).  He showed up at the potluck wearing the 2 year sweater that his wife made him.  Wow!

It only took his wife, Maria, 2 years to finish and it was well worth the wait!  Doesn't he look stunning?!  What's more, he brought his pineapple upside down cake which is world famous and a circle favorite. Thank you, Junior for showing up all decked out (and for the cake).

And right there, between chicken and baked ziti, Yvonne finished her Hello Kitty hat!

Isn't it adorable?  It's even cuter in person.  I'm all for finished objects - even if it's not one of mine. Some lucky little girl is going to be very, very happy and very cute too.

I'm only 5 rows away from finishing my Holden Shawlette.  All I have to do is tink back three rows, then go forward for 5.  It's such an easy little shawl and it's pretty too.  It's a holiday gift and probably one of the few I will finish between now and the due date.  Pictures to come.

What's next?  Well, I'm leaving town on Wednesday to spend time with the family in Wayland, NY.  It's been a while since the family got together - we all live so far apart, so I'm expecting the usual family things: good food, lots of laughter and some quality together time.  It'll be wonderful.

In case I don't make it back in time, Happy Thanksgiving to all.

Heap O Green

This is a fly by blog for Tracey aka Anonymous T.  I know you think I've been slacking on my Holden shawl, but I have been working on it.

My brain must be muddled because for every 4 rows I knit, I have to rip back 3.  Oy!  At any rate, progress is being made.
 
Tonight, however, is a bust because I've been watching (geek alert) The Lord of the Rings.  Turns out I can't watch the movie and read the chart at the same time!  Duh!

Anyway, here's the heap:

P.S.  Thanks to Shameka for mentioning that blogging from my phone was possible and to Sojourn Knitter for making me do it.

Learned A Few Things

I learned that if you don't know how to buy fleece, then you should meet someone who does know.  I bought a small bag of fleece at Rhinebeck and figured it would be good 'learning' fleece since it was such a small amount:

I washed a handful of it without really separating locks and got:

What the heck?!  The staple length is just over an inch and I'm sure is came from the sheep's (pardon me) ass.  Is this fiber the 'skirt'?   I think so.  Now I know what second cut means.  It smelled like I don't know what (I expected that), it was greasy (I expected that, too) and it was disappointing (I didn't expect that).

Live and learn.  Since this is throw away fiber, I separated the locks for the rest of the batch, put it in the lingerie bag and sent it to soak.  I'll have pictures of it if I ever spin it - which I will attempt, because that was the point.

I also learned that I like making socks, but I'm no match for the folks knitting with the Tour de Sock on Ravelry.  Oy!  The first pair of socks for the contest was Calable (available on Ravelry only) and instead of concentrating on the socks, I went to SOAR.  No regrets.

It was a 'no-brainer' that I would knit on the overnight train to New Hampshire.  Yep.  I worked a 10 hour day that day, got no sleep before departing and got to the train station at 1:00 a.m.  Was there a chance in HECK that I was going to stay awake for the ride?  Nope.

Ultimately, four weeks later, I finished sock pattern #1:

To have finished at all was a miracle, and I like the socks (don't love them).  Too much work, too little time.

Needless to say, I'm out of the contest, but I wouldn't have made the socks otherwise.  The  money I paid to join the Tour de Sock is going to Doctors Without Borders so it's not a total loss.  Thank goodness.

I also learned that Sock Pixie has given up the Sock Pixie blog and is now The Color Alchemist.  She's been dyeing fiber with natural ingredients and getting the prettiest results.  I would recommend that you go to her old blog to see why she's starting a new blog.  My best to you and your family, Caroline!

Lastly, I learned where Sticks and Strings in Scarsdale, NY is located - thank you Nicole and Joanne!  If I ever dreamed of opening a yarn shop it would be that place.  It's bright, filled with yummy yarns and patterns and the store owner was delightful.  Their web page is under construction right now, but if you're ever in the area (45 Spencer Place, Scarsdale) you should drop in.

Until next time ...

25 Years

Me and Oprah Winfrey have something in common.  We both completed 25 years of service.  Of course, she has made more money than me, but 25 years of anything is a lot of time and dedication to doing the same thing over and over.

I believe it was Einstein who said "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting something different".  Well, I never expected to be at the same job for 25 years, but I did it and it was, at times, insanity.  Still, I am grateful.

Everyone knows where the 'blue box' comes from (Tiffany & Co.), and I was sure glad to get my box. It means that I earned my car, my house, and my yarn/fiber stash, and all of my lovely spinning wheels.  It means I earned what I needed to get me where I am.

It also means that if I put my mind to a thing, I can stick it out in both good times and bad.  It makes me appreciate more than I can say that I kept a job when lots of other folks did not.  I am so grateful.

Yes, hard work pays off.  So does dedication.  And well, the recognition is icing on the cake.

Rhinebeck 2011

This year I went to Rhinebeck on Sunday instead of Saturday.  The fairgrounds were half full and it was so much easier to get around - to see where you were going instead of being directed by the crowd.  It was overcast and the wind made it chilly, but I sure appreciated the space to walk.

We kept hearing music in the park, almost haunting music but we couldn't tell where it came from.  We found them playing Andean flute music.  It was so beautiful (which I couldn't catch here, but I tried):

I didn't shop much, this is the first year I didn't have a shopping list.  I know I wanted to buy some scour for my raw fiber (I heard at SOAR that it was pretty good), but then I saw the booth next door and also bought a 'sample'.

The sample was a 2 ounce bag of Jacob fiber.  I saw it, tried to ignore it, but I just couldn't pass it up.  It's only a sample, what could be the harm?  It was the color that got me.  It's Jacob that is softer (and more greasy) than anything else I touched there.

The vendor told me that I should leave some of the lanolin in washing it out would lessen the amount of fiber I would end up with.  I didn't understand that, and I plan to wash as much of the lanolin out as I can.  I don't want any stains on my clothes when I make my scarf!

Then I shopped for Tracey.  Sorry, but Jennie the Potter had no cups or yarn bowls.  What she did have was a pad for taking orders.  So, instead of coming home empty handed, I did score some of this:

So there you have it.  A day at the fair that ended happy.

The sheep in the back sure was scared of us!

SOAR

I've wanted to attend the SOAR annual retreat for years and I finally went.  Yay!  I can now cross that off my bucket list.  Woo hoo!

The event was lovely - and huge!  There were so many people there, knitting celebrities that I've admired and whose books I own and whose work I admire.  I met my idol, Maggie Casey and we spoke!  I was in heaven!

Janel Laidman sat at my table for breakfast one day, and I could name drop all day and it wouldn't give you a clue about how awestruck I was!  Linda Ligon of Interweave Knits sat at my table for lunch and we actually had a conversation!  Wow!

I went to a rigid heddle weaving class with Sara Lamb (below wearing her handwoven vest):

There I learned that there is absolutely nothing wrong with making plain weave dishtowels.  I don't need a bigger, better loom because I don't want to do anything but what I'm doing now.  Great class, and I wish I'd taken pictures of her work - stunning!

I took a cotton spinning class with Stephanie Gaustad - what a wonderful teacher and lady!  She did a lot of show and then she explained everything so clearly that I actually believed I could spin this pound of cotton I've had in the fiber cabinet for years.

We could have watched her all day, but she wouldn't let us.  It's amazing how fast she spins the fiber and how well hers holds together.  All through class all you could hear was the tinkle of everyone's spindle flying across the table.

I took a couple of other classes too: Beth Smith owner of the The Spinning Loft showed us how to use combs to comb fiber locks.  If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it.  I never used combs before and they were expensive, but now I know I can spin the two pounds of shetland I bought.  Woo hoo!

My last class was with Michelle Boyd who taught us about spinning an even yarn.  Everything she said made sense, and when she had us do the exercises in the class, we saw what she was talking about.  It worked for me.  I just might be able to change my style up a bit to get what I want.

I wish I could show you everything I bought and tell you everything I did, but I don't want to bore you.  Suffice it to say I had a really good time.

There was a downside, though.  I signed up to participate in the Tour de Sock and, guess what?  No time to knit socks - every minute was taken up at the tour.  This is all I got done on my Calable (available on Ravelry only, I think):

I didn't get far, and I feel like I let my team down and I'm certainly out of the race, but I still get the sock patterns and my donation will still go to Doctors Without Borders.  That makes it not a total loss.

To get to SOAR I had to take an overnight train there and back - and believe me when I tell you, women of a certain age should not sleep on an Amtrak train and expect to feel normal when the ride is over.  Not to mention what didn't hurt when I got there.

Lastly, so you don't think I'm a total slacker, I did finish the Hap Blanket:

I'm not overly impressed with the yarn, but the blanket turned out well and it will serve it's purpose for my great nephew.  I made it with huge needles so it would go quick, and it did.  The pattern is by Ysolde Teague, and I used size 13 needles with Red Heart yarn.

It's going to be hard to get back to my so-called normal life after SOAR, but with everything I learned the event will be a gift that keeps on giving.

What To Do

My great nephew Tai was born on August 18, and shamefully, I haven't been to see the little tyke.

 I didn't want to visit with my hands unladen with nothing but booties and a hat.  My mother told me he needs heavier blankets than the receiving blankets my niece is using now.  The dilemma, it has to be machine wash and dry.  The other dilemma, superwash I don't have enough of to make a blanket with, but I have mountains of Red Heart acrylic.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with acrylic yarn.  It comes in many wonderful colors, it's softer than it was way back when they called orlon, and it is completely machine washable.  The colors above from Red Heart are called blue (darker) and Turqua (lighter).

I got my hands on the Ysolda Teague pattern for the Hap Blanket from Noble Knits.  I went online and saw all the blankets made and figured it would be an easy knit and nothing in the world is easier and faster than garter stitch.

It's really hard for you to figure how far I've gotten since I cast on on Saturday.  I'm up to the border.  My biggest problem is where to pick up 61 stitches when there are only 59 rows.  It's about the hardest thing since in involves math - and you know how I feel about that!  Oy!

The biggest disappointment is the needles.  They're Addi clicks lace.  These points don't look that pointy to me!  I'm disappointed in the needles and my Hiya Hiya's have better points.  Not that it matters for this project, but do these look like lace tips to you?

I hope to have this blanket finished by this weekend and I hope to work with some wool and really pointy needles immediately after.

Good Night Irene!

Hurricane Irene was all over the news and any program I watched on TV was interrupted by someone saying I was in the flood zone.  Yikes!  Sure, it was raining hard, but no wind.  Was it possible I could get off so easy.  When I went to sleep last night I figured my area would be surrounded by dirty water.

This morning I was not surrounded by water, but I was so scared.  Scared to open the basement door where I was sure all my junk would be to the top step floating on 12 feet of water.  I braced myself and put on my rain boots - just in case.  No water.  Yay!

My heart goes out to all the folks who are suffering through flooded houses, flooded cars and had a tree fall on their house and/or car.  I swear, if that was me, I'd want to pack my bags and move to the desert.  It's very costly damage that water does and I am thankful it wasn't me, but I wish it wasn't them either.

With relief in my heart, I took to the wheel today and did a little spinning on some FatCatKnits merino in Seaside Cottage that was left over from the Tour de Fleece:

It's way prettier in person, and if the sun had shone today I'd have a better picture.  I'm almost done spinning it up, maybe by tomorrow, and then I plan to make myself something nice.

I also had time to knit up some mittens from fiber I purchased from Will-Ewe Farm:

The pattern is called Feminine Mittens which I pulled of the Knitting Daily website.  I think you have to sign up to get the pattern, though.

These mittens won't keep my hands warm in winter, but they will keep them kind of warm in the fall.  There was so little fiber that there was nothing I could make other than mittens, and I like the pattern.  Too bad I'm not in love with the color, but I could always dye them, right?

My son starts classes tomorrow.  He called tonight to see if I was OK and to make sure that the house was still standing.  Wasn't that sweet?

What Will You Do?

My friends were asking me what I will do now that my son is off to college.  Will I be bored? Lonely? Depressed?  I miss my son, but I've talked and or exchanged text messages with him every day since Thursday.  When he was home he never answered my text messages.

So since he's been gone, the only thing I have to do is housework (and once it's clean, it'll stay clean) and  anything else I want to do, whenever I want to do it.

Today was a good day.  Mail brought me this Abstract Fiber, BFL in Hopworks purchased from Webs:

And the micro trindle I won for spinning with Team Trindle in the Tour de Fleece:

Wow!  Skull heads?  I have other 'arms' for the trindle which I can use when my son is home.  I think he'll make some wise crack about the Crypt Keeper (me) spinning with skulls!  The freebie that came with it is silk hankies from Gale's Art.  I couldn't resist working just one.  So I separated one hankie (easier said than done):

And I spun it up:

Yesterday I washed this fiber of unknown origin purchased at Rhinebeck last year from Will-Ewe Farm, they don't have a website.  It kind of feels like coopworth but softer, and if I remember correctly, the lady at the booth told me it was angora and something:

These were spun up on my regular Trindle and both skeins are singles.  I was going to ply them, but it's kind of scratchy, so I think the best thing to do would be to make a pair of mittens, I found the perfect pattern for them.

Hurricane Irene is here in the Bronx.  Mercifully the rain is coming down, but there is no thunder or wind. All mass transit if cancelled, and some of the Con Edison transformers were shut off to avoid them from shorting out, so some folks may end up with no electricity.  Hopefully I won't be one of them!

My son said it's not raining where he is.  My mother is in Maryland and the south has been really hard hit.  Lots of flooding there.  She's not due home until Monday, and only if Peter Pan bus is running, but she's safe with family so I'm not worried.

Anyway, for you experienced New York knitters, most of you know you can knit by candlelight and some of you can knit in complete darkness so have at it.

Stay dry.

My New Life

I may have mentioned already (about 600 times) that my son is leaving for college soon.  It's not that I'm overly excited about his leaving, but I knew this day was coming and that I'd be a swinging single again, and I prepared for it.

Talking with the ladies in knitting class I announced what I know is going to be my new life.  Like on television when the folks come home and pour themselves a glass of wine while they prepare dinner, that is going to be me.  With variations, of course.

I will come home from work, head for the shower and slip into something more comfortable (the $12.99 K Mart cotton house dress).  I'll slip into my comfortable slippers (flip flops from the 99 cent store) and I will sail downstairs to make myself a fancy dinner (Chunky Soup).  I will pour my glass (grape jelly jar) of (Boone's Farm Pink) wine and I will settle in my (rarely used by me) living room on the sofa with my (rot gut) wine,  some knitting and watch television while my dinner cooks.

And when the fire department shows up at 10p to put the fire out (soup burned), they will find me clutching the bottle of wine and muttering about my 'new life'.

In real life, I don't drink and my bedtime is 10p.  I've been a shining example of a parent for the past 18 years and college is the turning point.  For my son it's that place in between living home and visiting home, between parenting and and being a parent.  I'm going to have to adjust.

And truly, when you have only one child and 99% of your existence is mothering what do you do?  I think I might start following the cat around the house trying to figure out how I can mother her.  I might be reduced to putting her every move on video and forcing her to wear clothes I made just for her.  I'd better prepare Miss Kitty for her new life as well.

Some new life, eh?

I'd better start arranging to have people come check on me.  Yikes!  If I don't start defining myself in some other way because if no one does, someone will catch me trying to rig the TV antenna in the window to see if I can communicate with alien life.

Score!

I did something the other day that I never thought I'd do in a yarn store.  It happens so rarely that it's worth mentioning here because I am proof that it can and does happen.

You would be impressed by my restraint (it was miraculous!) considering it was my intention to go in the store and buy 12 skeins of sock yarn because I 'accidentally' signed up for the Tour de Sock on Ravelry.  Oy!  Like the Tour de Fleece wasn't maddening enough!  But I'm a sucker for a cause and the registration fee was a mere $7.50 and $6 f it is going to Doctors Without Borders.

Like I said, I'm a sucker for a cause.

In the face of all that yarn at Seaport Yarns (it truly is a 'yarn candy store'), and the wall of sock yarn staring me in the face (Koigu, Malabrigo, Jitterbug) I only purchased five things and not one skein was sock yarn.

The color isn't true on my monitor, but it's Plymouth Yarn's Ampato (baby alpaca) in green.  It's actually gray/green and it's going to be just what I need to make this hat.  I'm not used to using yarn in aran weight, but I bet the hat will be done in no time.

Since I was on a roll with 'fat' yarn that is phat (pretty hot and tempting), I picked up these two lovey skeins:

This is Rowan big wool fusion (as if you couldn't read the label), in gray.  I don't know what I'm going to make with it, but when I saw the color, I couldn't resist.  It's like gray mist, it's mostly soft and why shouldn't it live at my house with it's other yarn cousins?

Lastly, I couldn't resist helping out the breast cancer cause so I bought this:

These ChiaoGoo needles sport a cute pink ribbon and a fine sentiment, 'Find a Cure' for breast cancer.  I wish they could:

I adore the pink glass beads on top.

And that was it.  I managed to get out of the store without spending my usual huge sum.  Yay!

Fake Isle Done

I finished the Fake Isle hat yesterday.  I love this hat!  I can see myself making a few more of these.  The black yarn is Classic Elite's Bam Boo and the multi is my own.

This hat is up there with my all time favorites because the pattern is simple, but the effect is great.  I see myself making this hat in various colors and sizes in the near future.  Someone is going to have a warm head this winter.

Recently I purchased Autobahn from the Twist Collective site (if you haven't been to their site, take a peek).  They have such great patterns - all stuff I wish I had the time to make for myself.  Autobahn calls for thick yarn, and I don't have any that isn't acrylic.  Not that there's anything wrong with acrylic, it's just that I'd prefer Cascade 220.

I also cast on for a pair of mittens, and last night I finished one:

There's a few wonky stitches which I believe means that a needle came out and I just stuck it back in and kept going.  Not good, but not disastrous.  What's not good is the boring color.  These mittens were intended for a boy, but when I think about it, I've never seen a boy over the age of 6 wearing mittens.

Today when I opened the mailbox I saw a package there and thought it was the micro trindle I'm waiting for.  Instead it's the new arms for my regular trindle.  Yay!  I've been waiting for those too.

The ones on the left which aren't photographed very well are called 'root beer' and the ones on the right are called 'purple chalcedony'.  Sadly, they are not nearly as pretty as my old beads, but I'm happy with them and besides, I've got to adapt and move on.

Anyone thinking about holiday knitting?  What's on your list of things to make?

Victory at Last!

After a few false starts and lots of frustration, Winnie finally did it.  She made her Nutkin Socks (yay!) and presented them in class on Saturday.  It was a beautiful sight to behold.

The satisfaction that one gets when any project is finished is doubled when that project is for yourself.  Congratulations, Miss Winnie.  You did good, gal!

I finished a pair of socks too.  They're for my son who requested I spin this yarn up just for these socks (remember the Frabjous Fibers in high tide?):

The picture shows the striping much better than the real socks.  They are fraternal twins for sure.  There was no way for me to figure out how to make them match because the colors were all over the place.  I still have about 300 yards of it left over, but I'm sure I'll figure out something to do with it.

Lastly, I'm working on the Fake Isle Hat which I tried to make the hat 'jogless', but my attempt failed miserably.  Maybe you will have better luck.:

The black yarn is store bought merino/bamboo, I think since the ball band has been lost to history.  The multi-color is Louet wool I scored from Sojourn Knitter after I offered (read begged) to help her reduce her stash.  I have a nerve to offer help with destashing when I can't even make a dent in my own stash (unless it's during the Tour de Fleece, of course).

One of the knitting ladies, Carol, asked the class if they would knit matching hats/scarves/mittens to donate.  It's due on Saturday 8/27 and so far all I've gotten done is one mitten.  Shame on me!  I'll post my set when is done.

Then & Now

Knitting is happening, but posting pictures is not because Blogger is having some issues tonight and while I can't be sure, I think it's aimed at me.  Yesterdaywas one of those up and down days that skid into neutral by the end of the day.

For instance, I got dressed up in my suit for work, thought I was looking hotter than lava until I saw my reflection in a glass store front. My, how my opinion of cute has changed.

Back then my jeans couldn't be snug enough.  Right now, I'm wondering if I can buy jeans that look like the real McCoy but have an elastic waistband.

Back then, I saw and heard everything with my own eyes and ears.  Now, I don't hear crap, but I can lip read (if I have my glasses on).  And in a few years, I'm wondering how many times I can say "Huh?" before someone starts using sign language to talk to me.

Back then, I could tell you what I wore on April 21, 1985.  Now I can't remember what I ate for lunch an hour after I've eaten.

Back then, I did everything at hyperspeed and multi-tasking was my way of life.  Now I need a nap after every chore.

Back then I could go up and down the stairs a million times to get what I want or need, now I have to make a list before I go in either direction because I don't have to go more than one step before I have forgotten why I was going anywhere in the first place.

Enough of that.

My son leaves for college on August 25.  The common sentiment I'm getting from everyone is that I'll be sad and/or lonely.  I don't know if that's true because I swear on a bag of rocks that I will miss him, but sad?  I don't think so.*

It means that he is on the way to becoming an independent adult with all of the best teaching I had to offer.  It means that all of my hooping and hollering  is going to stick or fail and he now has the opportunity to implement or discard what he's learned from me and apply it to the life he is going to make for himself.  He is on the way to becoming an adult.

I'm sad to see the 'baby' go, but I'm going to enjoy going through this process with him as he becomes a smart, independent young man.

*Check back in a few weeks.  I might be on the news for trying to move onto campus and have to be forcibly removed.

Tour de What?

Just when you thought it was over, the spinning starts all over again.  While the tour is over (and I repeat 'over'), the spinning continues.  That hard little stool is hard to resist.

During the tour I committed to spinning 4 ounces of FatCatKnits merino & bamboo in Seaside Cottage on my trindle.  Remember this fiber?:

Well, the trindle took a little trip across town my room and got a little boo-boo.  Then at the office, an arm fell off and the bead cracked and now the trindle is wobbly - which is a bad thing.  As a result of  several little 'trips' that caused it to malfunction, I only got this far:

My poor trindle had so many accidents it was like the real Tour de France!  I was derailed!  It is a sad sight seeing my trindle wobble like that.  Now that the tour is over, I'm spinning up the rest of this braid on my Golding spindle.

The second braid still has this much to be spun up:

But now that I'm not in a 'contest' anymore, I cheated:

Today I ordered two new sets of arms for my trindle, and then ... today I went on Ravelry and into the Trindle room and learned that I (the same "I" that never wins a darned thing) won a micro trindle from Team Trindle!  Yay!  I'm a winner!  Never again can I say, my chances of winning are somewhere between 'not a chance' and 'never'.   Woo hoo!  Pics to follow when the new trindle arrives.

My DS picked some fiber for me to spin (Frabjous Fibers BFL in High Tide) so that I could make him some socks with it.  Yesterday I cast on for a pair of no frills short socks (he dislikes socks with 'designs').  Who knew he'd follow in my footsteps with cankles?  LOL

No doubt these socks will be fraternal.  And I'm looking at the colors and thinking to myself, this fiber doesn't look anything like it did when it was singles.  All plied up it became a different animal altogether.  I'm still happy with it.

Joyce's socks got finished during the tour also, Dragonfly Socks from Cavyshops on Ravelry, made with Liberty Fibers merino in Forest Walk:

I did not continue the pattern down to the toes because I was lazy, but the pattern is easier than pie to memorize.  (Don't ask me what's wrong with this picture.  My camera does whatever it wants.  Anything to punish me.)

And finally, I used the leftover merino/silk sock yarn to make a basic preemie hat, and when socks and hat were done, I still had a lot of yarn left over.

How does it feel to be knitting again?  Wonderful!