Return of the memes

You Should Rule Saturn

Saturn is a mysterious planet that can rarely be seen with the naked eye. You are perfect to rule Saturn because like its rings, you don't always follow the rules of nature. And like Saturn, to really be able to understand you, someone delve beyond your appearance. You are not an easy person to befriend. However, once you enter a friendship, you'll be a friend for life. You think slowly but deeply. You only gain great understanding after a situation has past.

What Planet Should You Rule?

What's that bidness about rarely seen with the naked eye? I could look out the window right now and see Saturn. I must say, though, I never get tired of looking at it in a telescope.

In other news: Knightstar has the Peek of the Week at the Piker Press this week.

Teasers are starting to leak out for Script Frenzy, the upcoming script writing event from the fine folks who brought you NaNoWriMo. I hate to say it, but I'm thinking about doing it. It seems clear that novel writing is not my first, best destiny. Maybe scriptwriting is my calling. I am pretty good with dialogue, after all.

Pretties

My friend Amy went to Europe recently. Tonight at the KnitWits get-together, she announced, "I have presents," and pulled out four 1400 m/1533 yd skeins of merino/silk lace weight yarn. That's enough to make a large lace shawl.

I immediately pounced on the aqua skein.

It is very pettable, and the silk really makes it sparkle.

Thanks, Amy, for the beautiful gift!

Speaking of soft, pettable things, Miss Katie came home to live with us four years ago today.

The other cats at the Animal Rescue League that day were just lying around in their cages, but Katie was up at the front of her cage, chatting and working the crowd. She was a total salesperson, and I fell for her shtick completely.

I went cat shopping that day because my dad had died on this day the year before, and I thought a new cat would cheer me up. Or distract me, is more like it. And that she did.

Daddy professed not to like cats, but he shamelessly spoiled the cats that lived with family members. For one thing, he would turn on the tap so they could have fresh water from the sink. Darned if Katie didn't pick that up, even without him here to teach her. I have to think that he is somehow behind it.

A word of advice

Before you leave the cat home alone, put your shoes in the closet.

"I'm sure I don't know what you are talking about."

Hooky

Knightstar won tickets to today's Iowa Cubs day game, so I took the afternoon off and we went to the ballpark.

The forecast was for sunny and mid-60s. When I left work, it was cloudy, windy, and 49. And me in short sleeves, with no coat. Once at the stadium, my first stop was at the gift shop, where I bought a stadium blanket. It was easily the best purchase I have ever made at a game. It cost $30, but it was made out of heavy sweatshirt fleece, and covered us both comfortably. It appears to be about the size of a twin bed blanket.

We got to our seats just in time for the national anthem. You may not suspect this about me, particularly if you've ever heard me on a political rant, but I am a real softy for the national anthem. Singing it gives me a lump in my throat, and I like hearing it performed well - which, as we all know, is not so easy.

When I saw eight elderly people gathered around the mic, I got a little nervous. It was a group from a retirement home, and most of them looked old enough to have been on the business end of WWII. They jumped into the song with reverent gusto - no Metropolitan Opera chorus, but plenty good enough.

Then it happened: And the rocket's red glare...

Every person was singing a different note. I bit my lip. It's a hard note to hit, and they were just enthusiastic amateurs, but it tickled me. Then out of the corner of my eye I saw Knightstar, looking at me expectantly, wondering if I was going to react. I clenched my mouth shut to keep from laughing, but my shoulders were shaking and tears were running down my face from the effort.

It turned out to be a good game. The Cubs defeated the Albuquerque Isotopes, which has to be the best name for a sports team EVER. The sun came out. We went for a late lunch at a real restaurant. There was still time for a nap when we got home.

It was a pretty good day.

One for the knitters

Yeah, I've been slacking. We went on vacation, and then we went back to work... you know how it is.

However, while we were a-traveling, we could not resist having dinner at Two Frogs Grill in Ardmore, OK. We did it for the knitters.

Yarn emergency

Weird weather we've been having lately. It has turned cold and blustery all along the midsection of the country. There was snow last night in Kansas, enough to stick to the evergreens, the lilacs, and the wheat after the sun came up.

I found myself out and about, with a winter coat, but without a scarf. I procured some fat yarn (Rowan Big Wool Fusion) and fat needles (US19/15mm). About three hours later, I had a scarf. Since it was started and finished and will be worn within 24 hours of purchase, I say it does not count against the yarn diet.

Those other things in the picture? Sock yarn doesn't count, right? On the left, two skeins of the new Colinette Jitterbug sock yarn. The one in the middle is so brilliant I practically fell down when I saw it. On the right, Crystal Palace Panda Wool, a wool, bamboo, and nylon blend. Beyond that is a sampler package of Soak wool wash.

I also bought something up the street at a specialty fabric store, but that one is going to stay under wraps until I decide what to do with it. It may end up being a gift.

Yesterday I cashed in a Borders coupon and some gift cards, and bought "More Sensational Socks". Oh my, what an inspiring book. I want to sleep with it under my pillow. Anyway, the gal who checked me out said, "Do you really knit socks?" I assured her I did. She went on, "I tried to learn how to knit, but it never worked for me. When I shelved these books the other day, I couldn't imagine that anyone would actually knit socks!"

Maybe I should drop by that store again and show her the Jitterbug.

My largest work to date

Remember the peculiar little purple picture I teased you with a few weeks ago?

The full picture is on the cover of this week's Piker Press. I've always thought that much of modern art was less about skill and more about having the chutzpah to convince other people that you were an artist. Apparently, I possess a smidgen of that chutzpah.

I can pretty well guarantee that you've never seen anything like it.

My philosophy

I've been on a de-cluttering binge, and I found these two newspaper clippings that I have held onto for ages. I figure I can get rid of them without guilt if I share them with the world first.

I've been toting this episode from "Li'l Abner" around since the Nixon administration, it looks like. Even as a young teen, I understood what my future likely held. (Click on the picture to see it larger.)
This one came from Dear Abby or Ann Landers.

Mating season

T was right. There are two of 'em. And from the way they were squealing and waving their tails around a few moments before this picture was taken, I'm guessing one male and one female, and some courtship ritual going on.

The finches have also been chatty and posturing along the back fence, and snuggling up along the rain gutters. That's better than in the house, which seems to still be bird-free.

Katie is watching all this action intently, but she has already proven that she is a big sissy when faced with actual prey.

The aftermath

After they booted me out of the library, I drove home. The front door was wide open, and I could see T skulking around the living room with a flashlight, peering behind the curtains and under furniture.

He came out and told me, "I think it may be gone."

I came in, carry just my keys. No way was I going leave a wild bird in the house with my purse if it turned out he was wrong.

We found Katie. The fearsome huntress of shadows was hiding out in the basement. Fat lot of good SHE is in a crisis.

We cleaned up the plant that had been knocked over.

We went out for a sandwich. We came back. Still quiet.

We went to bed. Still quiet, although I don't mind telling you I slept with one eye open.

We got up. Still quiet.

T left for work. Every little noise I hear makes me jump.

Maybe I'll go to work early.

Live from the Public Library!

So it turns out I possess the latent Tippi Hedren gene.

As regular readers know, we have some finches that like to billet in the awning over the back door. Standard procedure is that when we open the door, they will fly over to the house next door and wait for us to stop disturbing the peace.

Today, instead of turning right, one of them turned left, and flew into the house. At 6:30 AM.

And I freaked the hell out.

T made a brief effort to direct the bird out. It flew near the ceiling fan, then dived toward the floor.

It was quiet. Too quiet.

And T had to go to work.

I slipped from room to room, closing doors behind me, hoping that if it wasn't gone, at least I could keep it away from me while I showered and dressed.

By the time I was ready, Katie crawled out from under the bed. She seemed calm enough, so I thought perhaps the bird actually had escaped.

When I got home from work, I didn't even have the key in the lock before I heard a thump on the kitchen window. And then another.

The bird was still there.

I went to Walmart, bought a fishing net, and delivered it to T at work. "Call me when you have it out of there," I said.

Now I'm waiting at the library up the street, and they are about to run me out. T's been home for 40 minutes. This can't be good.

One less excuse

Knightstar doesn't always keep up with my blog posts. (He's a tech geek, but doesn't even use RSS feeds. Go figure.)

Anyway, he just finally saw my little two-inch painting from a few posts back, and said, "I have primary colors."

"What do you mean, you have primary colors?"

"Out in the garage, in my mom's stuff. I'm pretty sure there are some acrylics."

So we went out to the garage, and what do you know?

10 little tubes, lightly used, and 14 big tubes, never used. It's an embarrassment of riches for someone who has been thinking, "It would be silly to invest a lot of money in paint when I may not like painting, or may not be any good." This is enough to play with, and experiment with, and not worry that I am wasting anything.

Your answers to the question, "I have the paint - NOW what do I do?" are eagerly sought.

(The non-obvious lesson here is "Take care of your niggling little health problems." His ma decided she could manage her blood pressure just fine without meds. It turned out she was wrong, but it took a few mini-strokes to prove it. Instead of spending her retirement traveling and painting, she spent it descending into dementia in a nursing home. So take your meds, and make your art, while you can.)

Signs of spring, part two

Chuckie is back!
Knightstar alerted me to the fact early this morning, while I was getting ready for work. He reports that Chuckie was out later in the day with a comrade. Bride of Chuckie? Chuckie, Jr.? We'll have to wait and see.

Also of note: a distinct green tint to the grass.

We drive through a flood plain on the way to our hiking trail. Parts of it are swampy right now, but there is one spot that has blossomed into a full-fledge pond, complete with geese.

I'm taking a few days off from knitting to see if I can get this knot worked out of my shoulder. In the meantime, I understand that there is this thing called "books" that some people enjoy. I thought I might take a look at one of those.

Spring!

Early Saturday morning, we had a brief, but dramatic, thunderstorm which left our finches homeless.

They are still hanging around, so I hope they intend to rebuild in the neighborhood. Maybe I should see about getting a FEMA grant for them.

The daylilies are starting to come up.

And the lilacs are budding.

I ripped out the sock from the previous post. My official excuse is that it was too small. But seriously? The brownish purple spot on the front looked just like the pictures you get if you do a Google Image search on "necrosis".

To replace it, I cast on the Rockin' Socks Club February project. The yarn color is Monsoon, although I still say it looks more like camouflage. The pattern is Inside Out, because the finished socks are reversible.
The foot is knit at a tight gauge for a snug fit. I had to go down to size 00 needles to get gauge. I usually knit socks on size 1, which is the diameter of a toothpick. Double oughts are about 25% smaller that that. Plus, these needles are about two inches longer than what I typically use for socks.

So the whole array is rather lethal, with sharp metal points sticking out every which way. It's also hard on the hands, knitting that tight, so these may be a slow process. At least I still have the Tofutsies for easy knitting. The pooling on those is starting to zigzag, which is sort of cute.

Katie is totally in favor of spring, and the open windows it brings.

You call that pooling?

This is pooling.

The pattern is Monkey, from Knitty. The yarn is hand dyed from the Lime & Violet Etsy shop. The needles are US 1/2.25 mm.

Here is the front.

And here is the back.
I could maybe excuse it if the pooling were moving around, but it is just sitting there. Also, it seems like it might be a wee bit on the small side. I haven't frogged it yet, but it seems likely. Maybe a different pattern and/or a different gauge would give more pleasing result than the gangrenous shin look, above.

Any knitters who stop by? Feel free to leave an opinion in the comments.

Gratuitous Katie cheesecake photo:

"White socks are always in fashion."

Tofutsies

I went to the yarn shop a couple of Saturdays ago, and could not resist the siren call of SWTC's Tofutsies sock yarn. It is a blend of wool, cotton, soysilk, and chitin (a seaweed shrimp and crab shell product.) I cast on last weekend.

The yarn has a really nice feel when knitted up - sort of soft and cottony, but with wool's sproinginess. I'm not crazy about how is is pooling, though. I like either side of it by itself, but as a big gash wrapping around my shin? Not so much.

One of my occasional blog readers asked me what Katie has been up to.

Not very darned much. Here, she is keeping Knightstar's chair warm while he is out with the telescope.

An Easter Egg Miracle

The Easter Egg Socks Are Finished!!!

I have been working on these socks for at least three springs, maybe longer. Earlier this year I ripped out one completed sock because it was ugly and ill-fitting. But today, at last, we have success - two, complete, almost-matching socks.

I would like to thank Trekking XXL for yarn (color 802) that, when I was much younger, caused me to say, "Oh, how cute." I would like to thank Wendy for publishing her pattern for Feather and Fan toe-up socks, which it turns out is what this yarn longed to become. And I would like to thank the Lime & Violet Sock Marathon 2007 for inspiring me, at long last, to get the darned things off the needles.

It feels so good to be done, I may read tonight instead of knitting.

First hint of Spring

It was 76 degrees when I got off work. 76, people! At 10:00 PM, it is still 60. The window is staying open tonight.

We went for a walk again today, on the same trail where we walked Sunday. I wore capri pants, which are a surer sign of impending spring than robins. All of the slush is gone from the trail, although we did see a couple of ice floes moving down the river.

It's not going to last, not yet, but I'm glad I got to enjoy it today.

Creativity in small bites

A few weeks ago, I found some tiny two- and three-inch canvases at The Art Store. They were only a buck, so I bought a few. A couple of weeks ago, after I finished the still-veiled art project for the Press, I pulled out one of the little canvases and started painting on it.

Considering I was using paints from a paint-by-number set, and considering all of the darker paints had dried out (the figure in the foreground was drawn in with a PITT artist pen), and considering it is my first time painting with acrylics ever, I thought it was not too shabby. I'm especially proud of how I screwed up one of the stars, and managed to turn it into a nebula.

Who knows what might happen if I get my hands on some primary colors?

In other news:

The Piker Press has been saved. We found a new web host (don't forget, Infinology sucks), and Josh spent the week moving everything over. There may be some glitches yet in the archives, but there is an old issue up now and another one on the way Monday.

Early this morning, I finished one of the Pastel Easter Egg socks of Doom. It's cute. I have about four pattern repeats left on the second sock. The end is near... and I already have two new projects waiting to step up to the plate.

It warmed up to 60 today. Knightstar and I went for a walk along the river this afternoon, without coats. We still had to tromp through patches of icy leftover snow. Ah, spring. He just put a lot of pictures on his blog, some of the aftermath of our recent snowstorms, and others of the local wildlife.

Now in our third year!

Yesterday was the two year anniversary of this blog. Break out the bubbly. Make mine a double.

Yesterday was also my brother's birthday (which is why I can remember my blogiversary, or whatever they call it.) Happy birthday, bubba.

The past few days have been full of petty annoyances, most of which are not worth recounting in detail. Suffice it to say that today was better. Things are working better, and there was time for fun, too.

We just got word tonight that they have found a new webhost for the Piker Press, which has been MIA for a week and a half now. It's still down, but we are getting new error messages as Josh moves everything over to the new host. Maybe in another day or two, we will be back in business.

Let me say a few words about our previous host, Infinology (aka Inf'nology or InfinHellogy). Their service sucks, in that they do not provide any customer support whatsoever. They do not answer the phone. They do not answer e-mails. For all we can tell, they just have some computers sitting in a room, whirring away mindlessly, like the unattended ham radio by the window in "On The Beach", which incidentally, is the most depressing book I ever read. Good, but depressing.

I'd wrap this up more wittily, but it's late and I'm tired. Some weeks are like that.

Sometimes I surprise myself

Remember how I've been kvetching forever about how I hate knitting the stupid pastel socks? Hated them so much that I made knitting on them a Lenten discipline this year?


They are now my favorite project! I always thought the leg should be lacy, but didn't like the other lace pattern I had tried. Then Wendy published her instructions for Toe-Up Feather and Fan socks. Yes! It's cute, it's easy, and it doesn't hide the striping of the yarn. The identical-twin stripes got out of sync about mid-foot when there was a knot in the yarn, but that's life. Or fate, or kismet. Anyway, it's gonna stay that way. If anyone is that concerned about my ankles, let them knit me some socks.

Sad news:


The Jaywalker has gone paws up. It was way, way too big. The leg was just a smidge spacious, but the foot was shaping up to be enormous. It was never going to work. So...


Here is a sock laid to rest, awaiting it's next incarnation. This is the second time I frogged a sock just this year. I'm amazed that I can do it so calmly.

One of the reasons, I think, is that I am now comfortable enough with sock knitting that none of it requires steely concentration and total solitude. I've been turning heels and kitchenering in public, which pretty much makes me think I can take on the world.

Since I can never have just one sock on the needles, I started this.


The pattern is Monkey, and the yarn is Violet's Lemon Cake. Everyone says it is a really quick knit. I can't imagine how, with an eleven-row pattern repeat, but okay.

You'll have to wait

The purple mystery picture I posted a couple of days ago was planned as an illustration for an article in this week's Piker Press. However, West Coast editor and doyenne of art Sand was so taken with it that she rescheduled the article so that my art can be on the cover. Squee!

You are going to have to wait a month for the unveiling. Sorry. But then again, Squee!

Backyard

I went out in the afternoon to do some snowblowing, and I also knocked some of the snow off of the lilacs. It looks like we lost a limb or two, but all in all, they held up remarkably well.

The snow plows have been by, the snowblowers have been out, and the snow is no longer picturesque. It's always nice while it lasts, though.

Daybreak

Since I took the picture a couple of hours ago, the snow has picked up again. The footprints and the tire tracks at the bottom of the picture are being filled in.

Just before midnight

My friend Wendy wrote a few days ago about how they finally, in February, had snow. Her beautiful winter wonderland has just arrived in the Midwest. Starting last night, we had rain, hail, and thunderstorms. Today, the rain changed to sleet and freezing rain.

Frozen, see?

And before I could get the pictures posted, sleet and blowing snow.

I worked on an art project today, about which, more later. As in Monday.

I blame the bad weather on Terry and his new toy.

Lent 2007

What I'm giving up: Potatoes. Last year it was potato chips. This year it is potatoes in all forms. This one was an issue even before I got out of bed this morning. A few days ago for breakfast, we had one of those meat - veg - potato things that you scramble up with eggs. It serves 4, and we always have leftovers. I was lying in bed at 5:32 this morning when I thought, "Mmm, that would be good for breakfast." Shortly followed by, "Oh, crap."

For discipline: The Easter Egg socks. Work on them every day. Half an inch a day should be more than enough to have them finished by Easter. Once I realized I couldn't have potatoes for breakfast, I got up and knit.

So far, so good.

Three cheers

It warmed up above freezing today. Terry and I went to Gray's Lake and walked the full circuit - about two miles, I think.

The KnitWits gathered today for an emergency "Holy cow, let's go knitting" session. It was quite productive for me.

First, I finished the Nebula socks.


It was notable because this is the first time I have ever Kitchenered in public. (Non-knitters: Kitchener stitch is a way of grafting a seam closed so it looks like knitting. It is sort of like darning.)

I struggled with Kitchener for a long time, until I finally rewrote the instructions in a way I could understand. The "insert needle as if to knit/purl" required WAY too much thinking. My version cuts it down to "from left to right" and "from right to left". It works for me.


The third cheer was for turning the heel on the Jaywalker sock.

Yes, you see both wood and metal needles in there. The heel flap and gusset are too long for the 5" Brittanys, so I put the long parts on 7" Boyes.

Meanwhile at home, Katie made her bed, and is now lying in it.

Turn off the lights

That was my Valentine's Day gift from KnightStar. It's without a doubt the cutest bar of dark chocolate I have ever seen.

The sun came out today, which was enough to initiate some melting of snow. We didn't do a darned thing worthwhile all day, unless you consider knitting and hanging out at bookstores to be worthwhile. We took our cue from Katie, who found a sunny spot on the kitchen counter this morning and plopped herself down in it.

Art and science

I went to the eye doctor this morning, and am spending a little time at home waiting for the dilation to settle down before going to work.

(Everything was fine. I don't have to go back for six months.)

When Sand and I talked about making 2007 the "Year of Art", I was eager to learn about drawing and painting. I got a pocket-sized Moleskine for my purse... and then ignored it. Drawing in public still seems somehow dangerous to me. I'm not a "real" artist, just a scribbler, I tell myself.

But we were early enough for church Sunday that I pulled out the notebook and sketched the lectern.

And now I'm showing it to you. There. One scary fear smacked on the nose.

Happy Valentine's Day, y'all

To those who stop by faithfully, and to those who just check in once in awhile - thank you. It tickles me to see the same folks showing up on the hit counter time and time again.

To those who come looking for more information about Cesar Rodney, I'm sorry I can't be of more help, but I wish you luck in your search.

Happy Valentine's Day to all of you.

(Heart courtesy of http://www.cryptogram.com/hearts/ )

Eat, Sleep, and Knit

It's been cold, really cold, here. Temperature never above freezing cold. Wind chill of -20 cold. Who wants to go out when it is like that? Days (and nights) like that are made for knitting.

Here's what has been happening. The good news is, the colors are much truer than the ones a couple of posts back. My sad old bedspread seems to do the trick as a background for yarn photos.

The Easter Egg socks: After frogging the first sock, I kept knitting on the second sock until I got to the place to do the heel. Then I cast on the first sock (or third sock, depending on how you count), and am working my way up the foot. I want to knit the legs more or less concurrently, to keep track of the amount of yarn I have available.


The Nebula socks: I'm not convinced that socks are the best use for this yarn, but they are so pretty, I could use them as art objects. If I ever cave in and get a wheel, I am definitely getting some of this roving.


Socks That Rock Jaywalkers: I still can't believe I bought this colorway. An astronomy teacher saw me knitting on it last weekend and asked, "Are you making a worm hole?" Dude, don't say "worm" and "hole" around a woman with wool.


And so to bed.

Back to the frog pond

The two socks in the first picture of the last post? History. I ripped them out, and put the circs back in storage.

The first Nebula handpun sock is done. The Jaywalker continues, as does the pastel sock that would not die.

But not today. Today was adventures in dentistry. Doc is interested in my socks, though, so I wore the Cherry Tree Hill Fish Scales socks for his amusement.