Ignore the upside-down cushion...

and check out the inverted cat. She has been power-hogging my fav chair for days now and I've decided that I'm going to stop being so accommodating. There are an estimated ('cuz I'm not counting attic furniture) six beds, three sofas, and three other cushy chairs... oops... and an ottoman in this domicile for her royal fuzziness to lounge upon. So, listen up, Fancy Lucy Poofart LaSalle Snickers Becher... you'd better just haul your furry behind outta there if you see my caboose looming large on the horizon. I'm not kidding. Cute only mashes so far down, then I have to start hanging out at the grocery store for another free cat.



Lookie here... Bill fixed the washer. He had a difficult time finding the 'spare part' he needed to trip the loose switch, but in the end he stuck with the tried and true 'jam it and swear' technique which continues to have amazing results. It sure beats having to shell out for another new 'appliance' right now, what with the mower eating it's own belts and my (ick-ick-ick) oral surgery on (ugh, ack, arrgh) Monday. Okay, now I feel sick. I'm going to go knit, because Maddie's making dinner... it's out of a box. Tres chic, non?

Meet 'matt'

This wasn't the best picture I got of 'matt', but it's the only one I can get to publish. The three cones of crap-cotton wanted their basket brought out from under my desk and moved into the kitchen. The whiney little punk on the left made a point to shiver every time the a/c kicked on today, and the darker cone, back-right, was bitterly dissappointed that I didn't leave him on top of the AGA, where the photo-op began. You can't hear it, but they are discussing amongst themselves the idea of a protest, by way of entanglement, for getting pulled off the cooker. That sassy one in the back even tried to wrap himself around the hob rail in front... quite a little mess I had, sorting them out. All this because of a forced venture into Walmart, waiting on my contact lenses to be found. Bored, wandering, deciding to see what'sup in the world of cheap yarn. Well, that, and I'd just gotten the Mason/Dixon book. Ugh. Why even bring it up? Because I'm still trying to sponge cool looking t-shirts off people to try the 'calamari' knitting. I've even dug out those nasty size 17 Boye needles in anticipation... I'm a knitting vulture...that's way worse than being a yarn ho.

In other, unrelated (okay, yes, it is still knitting related... isn't everything?) news, I may have gotten my little prob with Louet sorted out, so I can begin ordering. So far, my first order is up to $3105.00 - does that seem whack? I love the 'fantasy' part of the shopping experience; what sucks wind is them being out of all the colors you really wanted, and trying to get up to your minimum with just the crap colors/yarns left to chose from. Not that Louet has crap colors... We'll find out after TNNA, when everyone has returned to work next week. Hope you have fun and step in something stinky if you're going. I am bitterly jealous. Next year it's in Cali, so that's possibly NOT possible, either.

Now, it is late, so I'm putting away my knitting for the night, and rocking little mister Eli to sleep in front of some BBC. Sounds like Dragonfly had a successful trip to 'Loop Yarn Shop' today. I'm mailing you cotton tomorrow, doll... hope you can use it. I have some soysilk lace-weight too, for the next package... if you don't mind watermelon-y colors. Night, all you knitters (and Christie, my favorite lurker... say "hi" to Christie, everybody)... Cami

Dragonfly's 'cheater' socks

I wanted to have a really intense discussion about variegated yarns, blah, blah... we've all knit them and gotten pissed at the pooling/flashing effects. This project is different, and thereby excluded from all ridicule, however, because these are first socks and as such they are to be cooed at and coddled, and made over like a fat baby in a shopping cart... they are cute. A big thanks to Dragonfly (the knitter formerly/briefly known as Miss V) for sending out the pic so quickly. Run, do not walk, to get your next project on needles. I vote for something with heels, though with a wool allergy (do we believe this, or am I going to knit secret test swatches for Dragonfly to wear in her bra?) most of the cutie sock yarns are out of the question. Hey, e-mail me your address and I'll destash that cotton for you to try, Sock Knitter... er knitter. You get the capitol K when you turn a heel. My blog, my rules. *wink*

In other news, I was taken out for a 'knit night' with a certain towering redhead, who just yesterday uncovered evidence of a knitting circle on Indy's south side. I was terribly excited... who would we meet? Would they be knitting painfully cool stuff? Would I be the freaky knitting nerd (I was, btw) who would suffer diarrhea of the mouth in front of strangers? (I did) In a happy twist of fate (or not, it's all perspective) only ONE other knitter showed up for the knitting thing... so, 'bigred' and 'squat' accounted for 2/3 of the 'group'. Not stressful at all. Noooo pressure. My mouth ran magnificantly. That poor woman will probably run screaming if I show up next time. 'Sugar', we didn't mean ya no harm, c'mon back... we can play nice, really. Rhonda is knitting my favorite yarn to drool over, STR 'Lucy', in the cover sock from the IK's new sock book... which I still do not own yet. The socks are freaking beautiful, and if she didn't have such longer feet than me, I would totally try to knock her down and steal them. Alas, I know they will not fit me. I also know she could kick my a##. So, I'll settle for a 'grope' when the 'Lucies' are done. It is so late. Bill made me watch these dumb you tube videos of something called 'Gorgeous Tiny Chicken Machine' show... google it and find the 'juicy' song... I nearly peed myself. Too tired... must sleep. Cami

The Morning Meltdown

I knew it was coming. I mean, when you have to rig up the washer with half a clothespin just to get it to go into the spin cycle, you know trouble is on the horizon, right? So, it's not like I shouldn't have been ready for it. I came downstairs to the last bleach load of the night still waiting to spin out. It's about 6:30 am now and I do not have the coping skills for this; I'm just going to quietly get ready to go out into the world and prepare for the sticker shock of a new washer. I've been wanting one of those front-loading jobbies anyway.

In yesterday's news... I found two, count 'em... two, cupboard/shelve-y things at the 'antique' store (junk store, though it mostly is really old junk... just not pristine, good junk, like you'd find down in Louisville, but I think they import theirs from Europe...)Anyhow, two yarn and fabric displays for a REALLY good price. It almost makes up for not being able to purchase any more of the 'Shabby Chic' bookcases from Target. I love the one I got, but it's still off-gassing paint fumes. One of the pieces is very primitive, with an old eight light storm window for a door. Once I make certain it's pest free it'll be great to keep yarns dust free, but on display. Just for the really expensive stuff. I'll take pictures of them later... it's just now getting light outside.

Lastly, this morning, I think a moment of prayer is required for my husband. For strength, for patience, and mostly, for overtime. That last one is to cover the new washer, the other two are because redrhonda has begun cataloging her stash. When she told me she now has 28 pairs of socks to knit in the queue, it instantly piqued my interest (and I like words with q in them). A thorough search was made, and in fairness... meaning I did not count the giant gobs of leftover yarn from previous socks, nor any of the store stock... at all... I have 32 pair awaiting my attention. The look of dismay on that man's face when we had made a final tally was priceless, but I don't think I'll ever call his attention to 'the stash' again. Some things are better left alone.

Later today I'm hoping to post a pic of dragonfly's (code name Miss V) FIRST pair of socks. She claims heels are next... she knows not what a slippery slope she's descending... (60 pairs in the queue, just me & redrhonda... what's in your stash?) Take a tally and let me know... more later.

This is the coolest thing to happen at the Becher haus today, as everyone else spent it barfing or gagging, or otherwise making an unholy mess of themselves. Five sick kids, reader... ugh. That's about all I can say, oh, and send chocolate. Or at least chocolate wishes. Pure sugar is what I live on at times like these. Mostly because it does not look like barf. This blog is acting up today, so I'm going to just post another pic:

This is 'old Kaffe' waiting for 'new Kaffe' to show up, though I'm not expecting the Westminster order to show up for a few weeks. After the holiday I'll be placing multiple orders for far more yarn and fabric that I can possibly display at this time. If the children are much improved tomorrow, I can ditch them on daddy and go out 'fixture hunting' at a few of my favorite junque stores. I'm hoping to find just a few sturdy, not too ugly, old bookcases to slap some white paint on (or not, if they have character) to line the room with.

Lastly, I purchased the mother of all travel cases for the Wisconsin adventure, and couldn't wait to get it home to convert it into a knitting bag. All those keen pockets and zippered openings and handy elastics to restrain errant gew-gaws and such. Well, as I lay contemplating the move from all my little bag-ettes into the grande dame, I began to worry. If all of my tools and circular needles are in one place, I stand to lose a lot if it's misplaced or *gasp* kidnapped. So, dear reader, what would you do? Rhonda, I know you're hyperventilating and getting all hivey at the horrific query I just made... put your head down till you feel better. Okay now? Good. Here's the Grande Dame herself...

Isn't she gi-nor-mous? Like a big, pink hippopotamus. One who is fully capable of carrying a goodly amount of knitting without complaint, (there is room in Main Compartment for a baby's sweater-full of yarn, plus a few socks in progress, which I shall call SIP from now on.) but I shudder to think what I'd do if I lost it. or if she burped out a favorite gadget somewhere along our travels. Anyhow, I'm going to go bleach down the kitchen now, and wash some more laundry... and get 2nd sock off the needles and onto Eli's feet, the poor, sick baby. Knit on.

Miscellaneous ramblings...and a camel

We went to the Racine zoo and I met this creature who ate alfalfa pellets from my hand, and then proceeded to bite me as I attempted to pour more food into my hand. It makes me marvel at the first person who decided to comb a camel for fiber to knit... a desperate person who was probably really happy to (I hope) discover sheep or goats later on. There was also a terribly aggressive long-horn cow, or possibly a steer... it was bovine for sure, at the petting zoo. A good idea? I think not. It would not let me feed the llamas it was penned in with, and in trying to save my own eyes my finger got mashed between the stupid cow's horn and the fence post. There was blood. Mine. It stung like the dickens. So, Racine zoo people, wtf with the giant horned beast in the 'petting' zoo?

In other travel news, I did a very limited stash enhancement and explored (or attempted to) some of the Milwaukee area yarn shops. Here's the haul, with 2nd Kiogu sock still on the needles(today has been hellish):

First, to the owner of Barbara's Yarn Garden... oops, ya missed out on a huge sale. Hope your lunch run was as satisfying as it was long. I had more fun shopping the next day at 'Loop Yarn Shop' in Bayview. It's tiny and funky and the subway tiles and vintage mosaic floor just add to it's charm. There is a massive felted bag hanging way up high which is Olympic knitting if I've ever seen it, and the yarns span the color and price spectrum, so there's something for everybody. She's also savvy to the 'magic loop' technique, so, Loop-yarn-chick... you rock. My second shop of that day was Ruhama's in Whitefish Bay. I have always loved the selection there. It was there that I discovered Kiogu yarn for the first time, which cemented my fate as a knitter of socks. It was there that I first heard of EZ's passing, and can remember the painful stinging behind my eyes, the choking lump of sorrow in my throat, at the passing of knitting's greatest champion. In that shop. My knitting life history is tied up with that shop, which makes it all the more galling at how cold and disinterested the staff were. People, get a clue. You sell yarn, customers have the cash. Make an effort... look alive. Geesh, the biddies at the table debating 'gladiola' colors were more entertianing... at least they had a pulse... or pacemakers, at the very least. So, I bought, but may not go back for quite some time. End rant. Now a screeching toddler needs a bit of attention and Mommy needs a Xanax. Have a good night, y'all.

Did I do that?

A little bit of yarn may have climbed aboard the good ship Becher as we sailed through Chicago. The people at 'Lorna's Laces' were extremely fun and very welcoming and helpful as I successfully navigated my first purchase in the yarn biz. It was overwhelming, stepping into a gigantic (yes, the Pixies song was playing in my brain) concrete warehouse, with scary, open stairs and noisy industrial fans and tools... there is a lot going on in those warehouse districts... and suddenly a terribly cute girl shows up to lead me into what is basically a humongous dye kitchen, full of people in spotty clothes, busily painting wool. I nearly passed out from the coolness they were exuding, all these funky, artsy people getting paid to play with yarn. How did I not know about these career choices as a kid? I mean, my mom was a potter, for crying out loud.

I finally lept over the edge and can say with absolute certainty that my last shy bone has broken. Our first evening in Milwaukee, my husband took me to a bookstore, as I've been hunting a certain Kaffe Fassett book, and we'd passed a Borders en route to dinner. I popped in whilst everyone else digested in the car. Instead of Kaffe, I found Vicki. (Hey girl... how's the sock coming along?) I just plopped myself down and started chatting yarn and stuff. She had this way cool knitting tote, and as I didn't think I'd be able to sneak it past her with the toe of my shoe, I had to finally ask where she'd found it. It came with a magazine which I've never seen before... a tall number titled "Simply Knitting" from across the pond. And, apparently every issue comes with some sort of goodie for knitters. Thanks for the head's up, Miss V, and for not freaking out and running for security when a strange, knitterly woman approached you. It was a bit out of character for me... Rhonda, quit snorting derisively, I was really nervous... what if I'd scared her? It was just so wonderful to be out and about and to spot one of my own kind.

Now, I will close with what happens when there is a new skein of Koigu and grandparents to watch over the children...

Tomorrow I will share the 'stash enhancement' from the Milwaukee trip, plus what's hot and what's NOT about yarn shops. Also, I have a story about a long-horn cow and a camel... but you'll have to come back tomorrow, reader. For now, go knit. Cami

Enough, already...geesh

I'm so terribly tired that all I want to do is sit on the floor and sob into my knitting. There is so much to do in getting seven people all ready to road trip. My husband has upped the ante to keep me moving forward, though... because between here and there lay the land of 'Lorna's Laces' and the jam on this bitter, travel-hell of a pill is that I get to go inside and buy my first yarn order for the shop... just like that. A stop at the outlet mall in Kenosha has also been discussed, as we have the matter of the missing "good" ice cream spoon to attend to. (Dansk, and a spoon for tots, but I digress.)

I will leave you with some pictures. Some are old-ish, for the reader who did not play hooky to go stalk Harlot with me, and some were taken today, in poor light, in my dirty kitchen after I rounded everybody up for 'group photo-op'. One of the "participants" insisted on staying behind a sock book, as that particular ball of yarn is to be a birthday gift for a certain compulsive knitter who deserves yummy handpainted socks for her big day... weeks away... okay, here's the gang:

so, ignoring the ball behind the book, we have the winning little green Kroy socks, then there are the 'groupie' socks and in front we have (on the left) the gonna-be-lace-if-it-kills-me socks for a certain mother-in-law and the very adorable Koigu socks with the firefly green heels/toes. That chartreuse yarn flew to me in Susan's shop. I knew instantly it would go with stashed yarn from (at least) five years ago... all for a new babe, the grandson of the only woman I let near my teeth.
Speaking of teeth, here are some pretty ones, attached to one very lovely Yarn Harlot, as she appeared April 21st at the book festival in KY. The 'groupie' socks, seen here, were and remain awestruck by this most powerful force of knitting. (The woman was soooo ill... can you tell it? I thought not.) Bye for now... when next we meet I shall be a knitter afoot in the wilds of Wisconsin, remote-blogging. Till then, keep your sticks in the yarn. Cami

Who knew?

Apparently not me... about pop-up blockers and the like. With the advent of our new "air card" came an odd noise, especially every time I tried to get pics onto this blog. So, duh, already...not rocket science, but it did take someone other than moi to puzzle it out. Thank you, Bill. He's the brains behind the chaos. And here are the first of the twin, as in knit simultaneously, socks. They are 'Lucky Stripe' from Lorna's Laces and I love them. It is, however, very late in the day and I just suffered through watching"Catch and Release"... that poor Jennifer Garner... she never gets a decent script. "Bless her heart". (in the south, that's really insulting, btw)

Tomorrow, I will post a pic or two (like how I just assume that this fluke is re-creatable?) and pehaps even show my reader a pic of the Harlot at a podium... knitting. There is a strong possibility that I now love the italics button. Learning curve... it's a good thing.

Grouchy ranting and stuff

It's just a few days until I have to have a quilt top finished, and I can't get even one hour's quiet to sew it together. I've played at getting it cut out, played at readying the sewing room for the flurry of activity that has to happen... I've even gotten the machine serviced and bought fancy threads for it to cough up into balls on the seams, though presumably this won't happen because I got it cleaned and bought it new needles. Yeah, hard to tell when NO ONE will let their mother SEW. So, I knit. The groupie socks are done, with the exception of casting off in pattern, which will give them a nice ruffled edge. They are calling it a lettuce edge, because Harlot's LYS is the 'Lettuce Knit'... good grief those socks are annoying. They have also informed me that they'd really prefer not to be worn so as not to have to be washed... I guess this is a variation of "ooh, Elvis touched my hand... I'll never wash it again!" I suppose I could humor them over the summer, but Maddie really wants those socks (to wear in her Crocs) and I have four other sets of kid-feet to keep knitting for before her turn rolls around again. I feel an intense desire for coffee now, and perhaps another go at the 'Sock Monkey' quilt... and some donuts... I'm gonna get sugared up and go play with my rotary cutter. Later y'all... Cami (who thinks this blogspot place sucks, but who will again try to post a pic of something knitted before she flips out and gets a real blog space) Yeah, you knew it couldn't happen, right?

"Missy is on the roof, Mom"

Happy Mothers Day, all you motherly knitters. For the non-maternal amongst you, satisfy yourselves in the knowledge that YOU have the ability to knit intricate lace patterns in fragile and dry-cleanable only yarns with little or no interruption... something today's celebrants' can only daydream about. But back to me, and how my brood greeted ME on this holiest of maternal holidays... by telling me (the queen of Xanax-land) that our adopted terror of a tortoise-shell cat was...on the ROOF. She apparently let herself out Lillian's window, the one with the bent screen from last year's near tornado we withstood. Easy to push out. If the bottom sash is up. Which I declared off limits last MONTH when I noticed how crappy it fit in the window opening. And to which no one has heeded my decree/safety warning. By the time I got up there to aid the cat in a safe return via the window, she had decided the five kids ogling her were a threat and had traversed the roof peak over to Madeleine's window. I went in alone and she and I came to an agreement about how this was NOT my idea of fun and how miserable she was going to be if I left her out there to 'teach her a lesson' for the rest of the morning... I still had to get her by her scruff. As she weighs about four pounds this wasn't a big problem... just inconvenient and a bit creepy... in the "jeesh, glad it wasn't the baby finding his way onto the roof" kind of way. In other (knitting related) news, I have (curse you , crafty 'Mason-Dixon knitters) about two square feet of knitted bathmat. Yep, you heard me... me and 'Matt' have been seen hanging out around the house together for the past two days. I'm even putting in a reverse stockinette monogram. The three strands of super-cheap "Peaches&Cream" cotton are varigated enough to keep things interesting, and the 10.5 addi Turbos are keeping me from having to use a vise-grips to move the yarn along... though I do have a cramp in my right shoulder from time to time. And there's the burning arthritis pain in my hands from the weight of the ever-growing 'Matt'... I haven't decided if I'll use all three pounds of yarn... might have to knit some of those tres manifique 'warshrags' from the book as well... Ann and Kay, you rock the cheap yarn scene... as for the rest of y'all... go have a coffee... or a 'vanilla-caramel' Pepsi jazz... and for the love of sheep, knit something fabulous this Mother's Day. Camilla

MY walk on the wild tide

I was given an inexplicably beautiful gift yesterday... it's so gorgeous I've been carrying it around the house like a little furry bunny/kitten/sleeping baby. It nestles in the crook of my arm and I stroke it's silken strands and coo soft words to it. This is a gift not to be trifled with... this is a gift of yarn. A 'club member's only' yarn, from a club that shall remain unnamed, but those of you who know the crazy that is me also know my not-so-secret heartache about 'the sock club'. Rhonda, you are a lovely, yarn loving friend, and the most understanding, when secret stash enhancement maneuvers are called for. I may go to knitter's hell (you know, the place where all the yarn is cheap 70's acrylic and you knit the same dishcloth over and over, Sisyphus-style, for all eternity) for the last adventure, but it was totally worth it, and I'd do it again... heck, I'd even WALK there. The silkie-yarn is so soft and luminous... that's really the only word that I can think of. Thank you, generous knitter. I am not worthy of the fibers bestowed upon me, but I'm sure going to have one bodacious pair of socks out of it. Yummy.

Ugly mug

You know when someone's wielding a camera and you really aren't the 'photographic' type, so you do some stupid, goofy face (because there's just not a paper bag right handy) to hide behind... well, thanks to Megan-the-wonder-geek, there is my best "pulling my face sideways" look. I am so ashamed. It so sucks because I'm capable of looking totally human. Just not when there's a camera around. I made one and 1/2 really cute Koigu socks for my dental hygienist's new grandson yesterday. Today I'll finish it up. Tomorrow I will deliver them, even though we in Indiana are heading into the hellish, humid summer months and it'll be a good five months before his mother will even consider pulling them onto his baby toes... luckily I sized them accordingly, having had five babies of my own. I'm down with the details. Gotta get back to the sock... tomorrow involves a super-secret mission, for which I need to prepare. It involves yarn. And coffee, for one of the parties involved. The other one is bringing her bev of choice... she also doesn't like chocolate. I'm not saying it's a personality flaw, because I totally stand to benefit here... we will never have to quarrel over the last truffle... last skein of yarn though, and she's likely got me beat. Especially if it's on a high shelf... than I'm pretty s.o.l. More later, Cami

Just a little bit more

on the gift slippers. They aren't eating as much wool as I thought they would, even though it's three strands of worsted weight instead of two. I'm using Paton's which I know from experience is too soft for felted clog soles, but I'm hoping the extra strand buys me some strength. Besides, my mom's pal Carol is a little popcorn fart of a gal... how quick can a peanut like that wear out a pair of slippers? The color of the wool is pretty fun. Initially I planned a sweater for one of the girls, but couldn't get too excited about the short color runs. On socks I bet there'd be some striping, but on my standard-issue sweater in the round? Blagh. Everyone here in this house today is conspiring to make me crazy, which isn't that unusual, except after spending yesterday in a narcotic-induced stupor (owing to a severe neck/back cramp/strain) I'm having some re-entry blues. This afternoon will be taken up with mundane chores... silly family... always expecting to be fed/clothed/entertained/fed some more. After they go to bed the fun begins... I am prepping for May 17th's stitch-in with 'Imoan'. She's working on a quilt that is already cut out... me, well... let's just say I'll be introducing her to "free-range" quilting. I just gotta get all the goodies in one place, to see what I have to work with. With the new fabrics I'll be ordering I'll have to do a lot of structured sample blocks... this is sort of a last hurrah, before I become a conformist quilter. Okay, so we know that's a lie... I just don't want to freak any potential customers out, so I thought I'd make some nice, simple, not too 'challenging' blocks for display. Kind of ease people into my way make and do. Well, I'm off to see WHY math is taking so long today. I fear it has something to do with the children's hot chocolate consumption. Grrr. Cami

Black cloud of death

Yep. And it was all voluntary, too. The cloud to which I am referring is the Terminix guy and his (and I do not mean this in any sort of naughty context) "magic wand of death". Today was the day and I am so glad we ordered up this little dose of death . Can you imagine the disaster it would have been if, say, a fleet of carpet beetles or an army of moth larvae had moved in on my investment? Do you have ANY clue how much Xanax I would've had to consume to make that infestation seem barely survivable? Ugh. I'm pretty sure there are Federal safety regulations against doses of that magnitude, and at least the chemicals being used here as a sanity preservative are tested and approved for my households safety... only the bugs need worry. (and die... I'd like them to die, also... money was paid, a contract was signed... there had better be some six and eight-leggeds belly-up by tomorrow.) Wow, I feel like a mob boss. Oh, the power, the rush of all-controlling power. Like the great and powerful Oz, except MY curtain would be knitted of a lovely pink lace weight, with thousands of tiny glass aurora beads all over it that made a shimmery, tinkle-y noise when the breeze ruffled it. Huh, who knew I had a fantasy Oz-curtain in my subconscious? (I'm shocked as well.) In other news, we have a successful double chocolate cupcake experiment to report, as well as some gorgeous brioche dough waiting to raise and become cinnamon buns. They will be sporting the coffee buttercream icing, so I'm thinking neighbor Ron will be doing my bidding for quite a little while. I might want him to bring over the dozer and push the chicken house into the ravine... how fun does that sound? Ya-hoo. I'd use an exclamation mark, but the blog does not allow them. Okay, so I'm about done here and I really should get back to the inhumane short-row heels I was turning on the groupie socks earlier. They just loved meeting the Yarn Harlot and are still gushing about it every single time I let them out of their knitting bag. Honestly, some people ,er, socks, never recover from brushing up against that kind of knitting brilliance. I'm just hoping to perfect this two-at-a-time sock stuff, because I'm sick to death of having gauge changes between individual socks... it happened on the Meilenweit socks and the Kroys I did, you know, when I crushingly defeated "Imoan" in the sock contest. (heh,heh...) So, back to the ol' knitting board... um, needles. Type at you later, blog-gator. Camilla

All sugared up...

and nowhere to go. I need to brew some decaf to take the edge off the very pink, very iced sugar cookies that apparently I have zero ability to avoid, and to which all of my offspring are drawn to in the grocery like moths to a flame. Blagh. In other pink news, I frogged (yes, apparently I'm still suffering rippit-itis) the beginning of the lace socks in the Claudia's handpainted yarn... I did , however,put some very nice Russian joins in it, as it was a bit disappointing to discover both skeins of 'peony' were in need of splicing. Yarn with such dire personality flaws should be cheaper. So, I'm off to get that coffee going. Rese, if you're reading, the glider is on it's merry way, though thanks to some peoples' near-phobic cleaning frenzy and intolerance of even one stinking piece of paper, I had to google poor ol' Harry to find his store. Sock ennui continues, so I'll be taking the next few hours of "free time" to knock a quilt top out, seeing as how there are several babies in the que for blankies. Baby is being scary-quiet, so must go for now... farewell my bloggy-buddy... I shall miss your shining screen. Camilla

Sock ennui

I have started and frogged eight freaking socks in the past two days. This is due partly to the fact that my little 'sock competition' with Imoan (name changed to protect the innocent) flamed me out... I DID win, however, though the other competitor believes that, as she frogged her sock to reincarnate the yarn as a hat, the competition is nullified. Bah. The blue/green Kroy socks are ever so cute, though it is my considered opinion that the little hoss I knit them for will not be in them very long.
Now, to overcome my sock ennui that is sucking the joy of socks right out of me, I will knit the Sheri's Lace socks from Sockbug. If there is no improvement after I've created those lush lovelies, I will move on to the Falling Leaves socks from knitty.com . Big plans coming from one who is currently more frogger than knitter, but none of the socks felt right. I really want to get needles into "little bunny foo-foo" also... but the yarn calls for something special... crazy, even... like maybe the "pomatomus" sock? I'm not sure I have brain cells left to devote to that, but I printed out the pattern for it and now can gaze at it fondly.
Some niggling part of my brain keeps begging me to dip into the Koigu stash as well. The deeply plum and olive yarn is practically throwing itself at me every time I walk through the craft room. Shameless flirt. As if I would know what to do with those colors now... silly autumnal yarn. The tropical colorway stands a much better chance. Oh, and Maddie baked a glorious double chocolate cake this evening... and tasted the bitterness of regret when said cake tumbled out of her grasp as she went to check it. For the record, it was only half-baked and made an incredible mess. Tomorrow we're doing it over, and baking cinnamon rolls for the neighbor who graded the driveway for us the other day. So, until then, knit on, if you're knitting. If you're not knitting, what the heck were you doing here? Camilla (frogger of socks)