I went to San Francisco, and all I got was...

I went to San Francisco on business for a couple of days this week. The work I was going to do was a piece of cake; should be able to finish it up in a day. Then the second day I would go in, hang around for a while to make sure all was well, then slip out early and do a little sightseeing.

They say that no battle plan survives contact with the enemy. I think something similar applies to IT work. One of the computers I had shipped out earlier was damaged in transit, and was unsalvageable. No problem; they have a spare computer, I'll use that! The spare was dead, too; I suspect a failed video card. We managed to wrangle a third computer by the end of the first day, and most of the second was spent getting that ready and testing it.

So, no sightseeing, and the only picture I got was of this black squirrel I saw on my way to lunch on Day 1:

I had never seen a black squirrel before, so I guess the trip wasn't a total loss. Every time I look at this picture, I want to pick him up and pet him.

Last Time

This is the last time I'll have to twiddle my thumbs at work on the weekend because--drum roll, please--I got a new job! Someplace where I'll only have to work on the weekend if there is work that actually needs to be done on the weekend (what a concept). I start in two weeks. I'll be sorry to say goodbye to a lot of the people here, but I won't be sorry to leave behind some of the policies and rules they've come up with lately.

I'm celebrating with the cutest little bootie:



Sockpixie's Magic Slipper, made with unknown sock yarn given to me by Shelly Kang, when the Yarn Harlot encouraged everyone to bury her house with yarn. I've been looking for ideas on how to use all those little bits of lovely yarn, and this is an excellent method! It took me a few tries to get this right; I just couldn't seem to get the sole the right length so I could pick up the specified number of stitches. I found that if I start decreasing the sole when I have 21 ridges from the cast on edge (42 rows), I am able to pick up the right number of stitches. Or, at least, I think I will; I actually started decreasing after 22 ridges for this one, and I picked up 2 more stitches than planned (1 extra on each side). I didn't feel like ripping it out (again), so I just did one more decrease round. Works for me!

Hilfy pacing in front of the door this morning;
apparently, she thought she was coming to work with me.

Work and poetry

As planned, I'm working on my sleeve at work today. The office is as quiet as a tomb, so I should be able to get a nice bit done. After a while, I think I'll take a break and enter the reward codes from those Coke caps. That is, if the snow holds off. We got a little last night and this morning, just an inch or so. Nothing to give me any trouble driving to work. But we're supposed to get more today and tonight, with a total accumulation of 6-8 inches. If it starts snowing in earnest, I'm gonna blow this popsicle stand.

The b/f is, apparently, somewhat at loose ends today (poor man--he doesn't knit). When he finds himself with time to kill, he tends to clean. Usually the kitchen, and you can bet money there will be bleach involved (operating rooms should be as sanitized as our kitchen when he's done with it). The cats seem to like the smell of bleach for some reason; if he cleans up a spot on the floor with bleach, Hilfy and Yitzhak will roll around on that spot. All of which I share with you so you can understand the poem he sent me:

Where are you?
You're not here
Lost
Bleach the kitchen
The tang
Draws a cat to my feet
Maybe I'll boil out the coffeemaker

I love that man.

A Day Late

I'm afraid I didn't get my warm-up box out yesterday, which was the mailing deadline for the Warm-Up Box Challenge for Cheyenne River Reservation. It wasn't because I failed to finish up the last couple of items I wanted to include. I finished up the Little Sky Booties:

They only took about 32g of worsted, give or take a few g (since my postal scale isn't excrutiatingly accurate). Definitely a quick knit.

I finished a warm scarf for Mr. Teddy Bear:

I figure he can be counted on to warm up someone's heart.

It wasn't because I failed to fill the box; with the help of a few purchased items, it's nice and full of things to warm up a person inside and out:


No, I just couldn't get my chores finished on Saturday in time to get the box in the mail. So, it'll go out Monday. I guess, technically, that makes me two days late. Oh well, even if I missed the challenge, it will still be put to good use.

Now that that's done, I'm returning to knitting for me, since the weather is cold and I want more wool! I'm working today, but I brought along ILG Sock #2. I've downloaded a new audio book, Trent's Last Case by E.C. Bentley. If things continue as quiet as they have been so far, I should make some nice progress.

Wish me luck!

Radioactive Cat

Another hard day at work. I'm trying to finish a pair of socks for Afghans for Afghans in time for their shipment to children's rehabilitation and health centers in Kabul and Bamiyan. They have to receive the items by Oct 12, which means I need to get these in the mail soon. I'm using yarn sent to me by another knitter, and once I got the leg of the first sock done, I started worrying (natch) that I wouldn't have enough. So, I whipped out another set of size 5 DPNs, and started the second sock from the other end of the ball, which is why you see a forest of needles. I weighed the ball of yarn before starting and after completing the second leg, and I should be OK, especially since I'm using other yarn for heels and toes.

Speaking of heels, I decided to try the Sherman heel for this sock. I referred to instructions here, here, and here. I must say that this is my favorite short-row heel technique that I've tried. I do have a problem with the corners of the heel pulling at the adjacent stitch, though. I think you can see it in this pic.

If anyone else has experienced this and found a resolution, a post in the comments would be most appreciated.

I have another ball of yarn that is probably enough for a pair of socks, but I'm thinking that I'll do the next pair toe up, with Sherman heels & toes. Seems like a perfect time to learn a new technique, and maybe alleviate some anxiety I always seem to experience when using yarn of unknown yardage.

In other news, the b/f recently bought a Geiger counter. (Why? Who knows? But it seems to make him happy.) While roaming about the house with his new toy precision scientific instrument, he discovered that Hilfy is slightly radioactive. Theories include that she is actually a space alien, or perhaps an early Terminator prototype with poor shielding on the power supply.
Personally, I think if she was a Terminator, we'd be mincemeat by now, so I'm leaning towards radioactive space cat.

ILG - Ready to start the heel

Well, I'm ready to start the heel on my first I Love Gansey sock. I'm so excited! I decided to go with a basic heel-stitch heel, rather than carrying the pattern down the heel. I'm not so sure that I would like cables on my heels. I should make faster progress now, since the complicated cable is done. The moss stitch hearts (or, in my case, diamonds) and the 2 stitch cables continue down the instep, but the intricate cables stop here.

A week from today, we leave on vacation. At that time, I should be done or near done with this sock. I expect to have a lot of car-knitting time, but doing the cables on sock #2 would not be a good project for the car! Not sure yet what I'm going to take along. Other than the ILG socks, my current WIPs are pretty mindless knitting. Maybe a little too mindless for super-long stretches in the car. Maybe I should start something new, especially for the trip! Then, I could take along my ILG sock (for those times when I can work on it), and my special trip project, and one of my mindless knitting projects (should never be too far from one of them). My b/f would definitely go insane if I packed that much knitting.

Wish I could take this along:

I always miss the cats when we go on a trip. We're going to be gone longer than usual--9 whole days--hope they don't totally trash the house while we're gone.

9 down, 3 to go

I have just 3 more pattern repeats to go, then I start the toe. I hope to get at least two of those diamonds knocked out today. If work stays as quiet as it has been so far, shouldn't be a problem.

I am well fortified for a quiet Sunday @ work. I have my knitting, natch, and the book you see above (a Miss Silver mystery), as well as To Live and Let Die from Audible.com. I purchased the first James Bond novel (Casino Royale) on CD, and enjoyed it immensely. I decided to try downloading 007's second adventure to evaluate the Audible service. I do like the ability to "bookmark" my place when listening, but the sound quality isn't what I hoped for. I chose the format with the best sound quality, but there are occasional pops and snaps. I didn't have anything like that on the CD. Haven't decided yet if it bothers me enough that I'll dump Audible.com.

Apart from the quality of the recording, I'm finding these early James Bond novels so much fun! Originally published in the 50's, they are an interesting look into the attitudes of that era. When I read books or watch movies from the 60's and earlier, I often enjoy the sociological aspect as much or more than the plot. I love observing the fashions, manners, slang, racial stereotypes, gender roles--it's all so fascinating! It brings a place and time alive for me in a way that reading history never could, while helping me to understand and put into perspective historical events. So I get my horizons broadened through vintage escapism. It doesn't get any better than this.

Inching along

I actually have something to do at work today! Fortunately it requires lots of waiting, so it isn't reducing my knitting time much. Which is good, since I am inching along on GBF sock #2. I got in a couple of hours of quality knitting time (on the clock, no less) while I watched a technician try to fix the Internet connection at one of our stores. He worked a lot harder than I did, but I got more accomplished. I finished the ribbing on my sock; he replaced everything but the satellite dish. Still no Internet. Monday he returns with a replacement dish. I'll return with my sock.

Earlier this week, I found my Sz 3 circular needle, and was able to swatch for my Weekend Sweater. Recommended gauge for Telemark is 6 stitches/inch. With a Sz 3 needle, I got 11.5 stitches per two inches. Fortunately for me, this is an EZ pattern! I like the way the swatch looks at 11.5 stitches, so I'm set. Just plug my gauge into EPS, and I'm good to go. I love you, EZ. Tonight, while the b/f & I have a NetFlix evening, I'll be casting on 188 stitches to start my sweater. :)

This morning, as usual, Hilfy cried at the back door. As usual, I opened the door. Not as usual, she actually went outside and explored a little.

Ferocious beastie.

Hardly Working

Yesterday was a very busy day, which is why Caturday was postponed until today. First I had to pack up and ship a router than I sold on eBay, then I had to finish up some web site work for a client, then I had to get my auctions listed for club99 on eBay (if you want to go take a peek at them, go ahead; I won't mind. There's some knitting-related ones). Whew! I would have liked to have some time to work in the garden, but no luck.

This morning, I was up bright and early to get ready for my "day job" (as opposed to the consulting work I do on the side--see web site work mentioned above). It was a lovely cool morning, and when I opened the back door, all three cats went outside. First Daisy:

Who trotted down the back steps and started nibbling on the grass. She was slowly, cautiously follwed by Yitzhak and Hilfy:
Who pretty much stayed on the top step, wishing someone would let them back into the nice safe house. The bunnies who occasionally show up in the back yard are safe from this trio; their biggest worry seems to be overgrazing by Daisy.

Today, I'm working on my GBF sock at work. Doesn't seem to have grown much, does it?

I have about an inch to go before I start decreasing for the toe. I have been working on my other two projects, as well, but I think I'm just a slow knitter. It's a good thing I don't have a family relying on my production to keep them warm! If I did, we'd probably all be patched and darned from head to toe. :)

From li'l sprouts, mighty cornstalks grow

Yesterday I planted 22 corn sprouts; can you see 'em? They're hard to make out in that expanse of dirt. But if you look close, you should see a little blade of green in the middle of each of those depressions. Since I grow corn in small, closely planted blocks, I sprout the seeds first, then plant them in the garden. That way, I don't have any gaps where a seed failed to germinate. I also plant the sprouts a little deeper than I would seeds; this gets me corn stalks with deeper roots that better withstand the inevitable soaking rain followed by high winds we will get sometime during the summer. It's no fun trying to prop up full-grown corn stalks in a garden bed that is pure mud.

Today, of course, it's my turn to twiddle my thumbs at work. I've started the toe on Work Sock #2; I'm so excited! Unless something comes up and I have to do some actual work, I'll have a new pair of socks today! Woohoo! I also brought along Mittnz #3, so maybe I'll get to finish that today as well.

Hilfy was crying at the door this morning, and I thought maybe she wanted to repeat her bold excursion to "outside". This is as far as she got.

Apparently, just looking at "outside" is excitement enough for her today.

Another quiet day

Another quiet Sunday at work. I finally got around to grafting the toe of my Work Sock, and I've started on it's mate. I'm dividing my time between knitting, surfing, and reading, with the occasional check that no one has called in with any problems. We've been doing this for, what? Two months now? Three? No one's called yet.



Last night I tried the stretchy bind-off on one of the armholes of the Lopi Vest. Didn't like it; I suppose it might work well for socks, where the cuff is going to stay stretched when worn, but it doesn't spring back when relaxed. Not so good for a vest. Tonight I'll tink it and do the same tried-and-true bind-off I used on the neck. Soon, soon, I should have an FO to report!



When I get home, I seriously need to do some laundry. I am currently wearing navy socks with black jeans (eek). No black socks left in the sock drawer. I don't think I have any clean shirts to wear tomorrow, either; at least, no shirts I like.

Hilfy sez: Have you cleaned this lint screen lately?

Lopi Progress

So, here's what I've been up to at work today: a little Carl Hiaasen, a little Stuff on My Cat, and a little knitting. So far as I can tell, I'm still on gauge with my Lopi vest. I took it off the needles and checked after completing one skein; in between wrestling with it's attempts to roll into a tube, and the cats' attempts to "help", I calculated that the gauge was still spot-on--as best as I could tell, anyway, under less than ideal conditions. I'm just about done with skein 2, but I'm having to slow down a bit. Now that there is some weight on the needles, they're fighting me a little (don't want to bend as necessary to make a stitch). My wrists can only handle so much, so I've been working on it for short amounts of time only. Which is why I brought it to work instead of the work sock, to give me more opportunies for those short bouts. That, and the fact that work sock the first is done and waiting for its toe to be seamed, and work sock the second hasn't been cast on yet.

It's a sunshiney day today, nice and warm, so when I get off work, I'm heading straight for...the movies to see Spiderman. Doesn't an overchilled movie theater seem like the place to be on a warm spring day? I'm really looking forward to seeing Spidey, tho'. And ruining my dinner with greasy popcorn. Mmmmm...I love being a grown-up.

Since today is Caturday, I'll leave you with a pic of the b/f trying to correct the splotchy paint job on Princess Daisy. He never seems to make any progress, but Daisy seems to like it.

A fine day

I didn't have any compost in my hair yesterday, but I had plenty dirt under the fingernails; it was a very fine day.

The weather guessers were right last week when they predicted storms; we had several in the early part of the week. However, the last couple of days were clear and sunny, so on Saturday I got to play in the dirt again.

I planted peppers and tomatoes in the garden bed I prepared last week; red and yellow bell peppers in the foreground, Celebrity and Early Girl tomatoes in back.

Then I got another garden bed ready and planted a couple of jalapeno peppers. See that empty space behind the peppers? That's not just dirt; that's potential. What more will I plant? I haven't decided yet.

Today I'm at work, and as you can see, I'm working quite hard. I finished up a pair of socks for Afghans for Afghans. It's a good thing I decided to have contrast toes and that little stripe, because this is how much yarn I had left:

Next up, I'll be working some more on the Trekking XXL socks for me. I won't bore you with a picture, tho', since they look just like they did two weeks ago, just a little longer. However, first I'm going to lunch. My goodness, this pace at work, how will I ever maintain it?

Understanding begins to dawn

I've been working on the Baby Surprise Jacket, and I'm beginning to see how this comes together. Not understanding everything yet, but just beginning to get a glimmer.

Here is the odd-looking thing as it hangs off the needles (recently switched to circs; it was really getting much to big for the 14" straights I was using):

Look at it another way, and -- hey! This looks like it could actually be something someday!

As impressed as I am, though, about the way this jacket is constructed, I'm not finding it as easy to knit as others seem to. I have to carefully check and count on each right side row to make sure I'm doing the decreases and increases in the right place. Once I had to rip back several rows because one set of increases got off-course somehow. I've marked the appropriate stitches, but since they are at an angle, rather than straight down from the needle, I have to stop and peer closely as I near each one to make sure I'm staying on track. It is seriously slowing me down, but dang! This jacket is cute.

Today is my turn to twiddle my thumbs @ work, so I am fortified with knitting and reading material. This is my travel/kill time @ work sock. This one's for me; it's Trekking XXL in colorway 92; something to go with the ubiquitous khakis I wear for work. Rather appropriate, I think, that I'm knitting a sock for work at work. I think I'll go find some coffee now, then get back to work on my sock.

Happy Saturday, everybody!

Workin' hard

Here's what I've been doing at work today; a little knitting, a little reading, a little surfing. What's that you ask? What about work? Oh, there's no actual work for me to do. But the powers that be decided they want an IT person in the office on the weekends just in case there's a problem somewhere. *Sigh* I won't bore you with all the reasons why this is stupid, just take it from me that every other weekend I'm going to spend 8 hours in the office twiddling my thumbs. Oh, and working on the search for a new job.

On to more important matters--what about the sock? The overwhelming majority agreed that I needed to finish my CIC sock in a contrasting yarn, and ravel & reknit the other sock to match. Thank you to all who responded to my plea, both here & elsewhere; you helped me do what I really knew I needed to do, but was trying to avoid. I decided against the purple yarn I originally thought to use; it overwhelmed the purple in the sock and made it look muddy. I finally decided on this steely blue yarn, which I think coordinates nicely.

It's getting close to lunchtime, and I'm wondering how much green beer and revelry I'm going to run into in my search for a meal. The weather's turned cold again, which may be in my favor. I'm off to try my luck; if I don't make it back, I hereby bequeath my stash to the CIC-knit group. :)