Penelope Spins, Knits, & Changes Her Ways...A Bit

Willpower and Knit-Alongs

2012-02-12T08:55:00.001-05:00

Pointelle Sock #1

Despite the apparent lack of it, I am making progress in my knitting. Sock #2 is on the needles, and the cuff is already almost done. I really enjoyed knitting the first sock - the pattern is complicated but easily accomplished IF I concentrate. The photo above makes the yarn look like it has blue in it but that's just the color of the sock blocker.

After this pair I'll knit some vanilla socks, or perhaps a pair of yoga socks (toe-less, heel-less) to make up for lost time!

Feeling tempted this morning, after listening to Paula's Knitting Pipeline podcast, to break my yarn diet and go purchase 3 skeins of Quince Chickadee in the apricot colorway for Paula's Piper's Journey KAL (knit-along). Total cost with shipping is about $30.00 Will I?

Not if I take to heart the suggestions in the first chapter of The Willpower Instinct - a book that Zig and I are reading. This promises to be a life-changing book, meant to be read at the rate of one chapter/week.

As for the KAL, my birthday is coming up...perhaps there is someone out there who would give me the pattern and the yarn? Hint, hint. I know, I'm shameless. SHAMELESS!!!

Common Cold by Ogden Nash

Go hang yourself, you old M.D,! You shall not sneer at me. Pick up your hat and stethoscope, Go wash your mouth with laundry soap; I contemplate a joy exquisite In not paying you for your visit. I did not call you to be told My malady is a common cold.			By pounding brow and swollen lip; By fever's hot and scaly grip; By those two red redundant eyes That weep like woeful April skies; By racking snuffle, snort, and sniff; By handkerchief after handkerchief; This cold you wave away as naught Is the damnedest cold man ever caught! Give ear, you scientific fossil! Here is the genuine Cold Colossal; The Cold of which researchers dream, The Perfect Cold, the Cold Supreme. This honored system humbly holds The Super-cold to end all colds; The Cold Crusading for Democracy; The Führer of the Streptococcracy. Bacilli swarm within my portals Such as were ne'er conceived by mortals, But bred by scientists wise and hoary In some Olympic laboratory; Bacteria as large as mice, With feet of fire and heads of ice Who never interrupt for slumber Their stamping elephantine rumba. A common cold, gadzooks, forsooth! Ah, yes. And Lincoln was jostled by Booth; Don Juan was a budding gallant, And Shakespeare's plays show signs of talent; The Arctic winter is fairly coolish, And your diagnosis is fairly foolish. Oh what a derision history holds For the man who belittled the Cold of Colds!

A Dusting of Snow

2012-02-11T10:03:00.001-05:00

Mona Lisa - completed

Cookie A's Pointelle #1

Typical 2-week exercise record

Dust of Snow

Robert Frost

The way a crow

Shook down on me

The dust of snow

From a hemlock tree

Has given my heart

A change of mood

And saved some part

Of a day I had rued.

The trees outside are dusted with powdered sugar. The promised (threatened) 2 to 4 inches of snow is only the lightest of coatings, sure to be gone by mid-day.

Typical Saturday here on the homefront - Zig's out running errands, I'm doing laundry before going out on my own errands.

Progress on all fronts except handspinning. Down another .2 lbs for the week. Not the threshold breaker I'd hoped for but I'll take it. Heel flap on Pointelle #1 is a welcome break from charted knitting. I don't know if I'll finish the sock by the end of the day tomorrow but I'll try. Upped some of my weights from 15 to 20 pounds.

The School Play

2012-02-09T14:49:00.000-05:00

No poem today - I am too overwhelmed by the absolute EXCELLENCE of my school's production of "Joust! A Might Medieval Musical". The play 's dress rehearsal was held this afternoon and it was a hoot! Our resident comedian-on-staff, Cece, augmented the dialog with hilarious references to current commercials and other YouTube videos, much to the delight of the adults in the audience. The actors, ranging in age from nine to fourteen, were all confident and comfortable on the stage. They sang with gusto, accompanied by able pit musicians - many of them even younger.

Our school is lucky to have a trio of energetic teachers who, every year without fail, manage to pull a production together. A lot of blood (well, maybe not), sweat (definitely), and tears (yes, even those) goes into a play. My colleagues are, quite simply, amazing.

On another note, weigh-in day is tomorrow. Fingers crossed about crossing a major milestone.

Winter Trees

2012-02-08T14:03:00.001-05:00

Winter Trees

By William Carlos Williams

All the complicated details

of the attiring and

the disattiring are completed!

A liquid moon

moves gently among

the long branches.

Thus having prepared their buds

against a sure winter

the wise trees

stand sleeping in the cold.

Exercise: Weight lifting and cycling yesterday; just cycling today.

Knitting: Working on Pointelle - it requires following a chart, so I can't fly on it like I do with vanilla socks. It will need to be washed and blocked when I'm done.

Spinning: Maybe tonight?

Food/Water: Okay, but I could do better. There's no dessert in the house. The trick is to substitute a cup of tea for a glass of wine.

To sleep the night through

2012-02-07T19:35:00.004-05:00

Rock Me to Sleep (excerpt)

By Elizabeth Akers Allen

Backward, turn backward, O Time, in your flight,

Make me a child again just for tonight!

Mother, come back from the echoless shore,

Take me again to your heart as of yore;

Kiss from my forehead the furrows of care,

Smooth the few silver threads out of my hair;

Over my slumbers your loving watch keep;—

Rock me to sleep, mother, – rock me to sleep!

You guessed it - I'm the victim of insomnia. I'm not really sure if I can call it that, because I DO get back to sleep in fairly short order, but I'm used to sleeping the night through. Lately I wake up at 2 or 3 in the morning, and, if I'm not careful, I can end up lying there with thoughts (not creative or constructive) spinning through my head.

Exercise, knitting, and diet all proceed swimmingly. As usual, I haven't spun since the weekend.

No real post today

2012-02-06T19:47:00.001-05:00

It's Monday and I'm very tired. Tough day, but I did exercise, and healthy turkey vegetable soup awaits.

I won't be watching

2012-02-05T14:32:00.000-05:00

Football

By Louis Jenkins

I take the snap from the center, fake to the right, fade back...

I've got protection. I've got a receiver open downfield...

What the hell is this? This isn't a football, it's a shoe, a man's

brown leather oxford. A cousin to a football maybe, the same

skin, but not the same, a thing made for the earth, not the air.

I realize that this is a world where anything is possible and I

understand, also, that one often has to make do with what one

has. I have eaten pancakes, for instance, with that clear corn

syrup on them because there was no maple syrup and they

weren't very good. Well, anyway, this is different. (My man

downfield is waving his arms.) One has certain responsibilities,

one has to make choices. This isn't right and I'm not going

to throw it.

Spinning: I finished the second bump! Two bobbins down, one to go. I hope to get in an hour or so today. Weekends really are the only time I have for sitting at the wheel. Which means I'll never catch up.

Churchmouse Yarns' Welted Fingerless Gloves - not much yarn left!

Knitting: Want a quick project? The Welted Fingerless Gloves are just the thing. It probably took less than three hours. Next up - Cookie A's Pointelle socks.

Exercise: Cycling only yesterday, with weight and cycling today.

Food/Water: Very healthy and hydrated. Maple/mustard-glazed salmon with roasted brussels sprouts and red onions for dinner last night. Crock pot chili today.

Third Pair

2012-02-04T14:48:00.001-05:00

Canopy Socks - check!

The sock on the right LOOKS narrower than the one on the left, but they're truly the same size. I'd say I used about 300 yards of the 360 in the skein.
I'm taking a break (well-deserved, methinks) from sock knitting to work up a pair of fingerless gloves, using Louisa Harding Grace Hand-Dyed and Churchmouse Yarns' Welted Fingerless Glove pattern. A dear friend gave me a skein of this yarn, in gorgeous, soft grey, green, and blue:

Grace Hand-Dyed for Welted Fingerless Gloves

I've already got 1/2 of the first glove done. Things move along much more quickly when using size 6 needles (most of my socks are knit using either size 0, 1, or 1 1/2 double-points.

This yarn is luscious.

They don't look like socks yet, but that is their destiny.

Abe helped me figure out how to use the yarn meter I purchased - it took a few fits and starts but I tried it out by dividing a 437-yard skein of Cascade Heritage Silk Paints into 2 balls for a pair of socks. The meter measures in feet, not yards, so my math skills were sorely tested, but I still remember how to divide by 3, so all turned out well. I now have two cheery red yarn cakes ready to be transformed into Cookie A.'s Pointelle socks.

Today's poem made me laugh out loud when I read it. It's a bit crude, but knitters will get it.

Fib to a Knit Dweeb

By Mary Roberts

spend

my days

wondering

if Lion Brand Fun Fur

will make a nice pair of undies.

Almost There

2012-02-03T18:08:00.001-05:00

Spinning: None at all.
Knitting:The heel is turned, the gusset is complete, and only the foot and toe remain. Just goes to show you what getting up 15 minutes earlier can do for your knitting.

Canopy Socks 80% complete

Exercise: Weights and cycling. Abe's upping my time on the bike.
Weight: Down a whopping 1/4 of a pound. Thinking of it as a stick of butter makes it seem like more.

Today's poem isn't really a poem, but I love it. Thanks to Paula at Knitting Pipeline, who included this quotation in her podcast. She also talked a bit about James Gates Percival, who sounds like an intriguing individual.

~James Gates Percival
The work will wait while you show the child the rainbow, but the rainbow won't wait while you do the work.

That Mona Lisa smile

Working on a 1000-piece puzzle of Mona Lisa. All the interesting bits are complete; now I just have about 300 pieces of black.

Ground Hog or Woodchuck?

2012-02-02T17:43:00.000-05:00

“How much wood could a woodchuck chuck ... ”

By Mother Goose

How much wood could a woodchuck chuck

If a woodchuck could chuck wood?

As much wood as a woodchuck could chuck,

If a woodchuck could chuck wood.

Happy Ground Hog Day! Punxatawney Phil says we've got to hold on for six more weeks, but I heard that our local Connecticut 'chuck predicts that spring is on its way. Which rodent to believe? It's looking an awful lot like mud season in our driveway.

Thursday is my day off from exercising - more time to finish the heel flap of Canopy Sock #2!

TG that T is F! This seemed like a VERY long week. I think I need some Vitamin D in the form of real sunshine.

Can You Tell I Am A Teacher?

2012-02-01T18:25:00.001-05:00

My Doggy Ate My Homework

By Dave Crawley

“My doggy ate my homework.

He chewed it up,” I said.

But when I offered my excuse

My teacher shook her head.

I saw this wasn’t going well.

I didn’t want to fail.

Before she had a chance to talk,

I added to the tale:

“Before he ate, he took my work

And tossed it in a pot.

He simmered it with succotash

Till it was piping hot.

“He scrambled up my science notes

With eggs and bacon strips,

Along with sautéed spelling words

And baked potato chips.

“He then took my arithmetic

And had it gently fried.

He broiled both my book reports

With pickles on the side.

“He wore a doggy apron

As he cooked a notebook stew.

He barked when I objected.

There was nothing I could do.”

“Did he wear a doggy chef hat?”

She asked me with a scowl.

“He did,” I said. “And taking it

Would only make him growl.”

My teacher frowned, but then I said

As quickly as I could,

“He covered it with ketchup,

And he said it tasted good.”

“A talking dog who likes to cook?”

My teacher had a fit.

She sent me to the office,

And that is where I sit.

I guess I made a big mistake

In telling her all that.

’Cause I don’t have a doggy.

It was eaten by my cat.

It's pretty obvious that I am a teacher (well, technically a media specialist). Have been since 1984. Sometimes, that's a bit hard to fathom - that I have been in this profession since I was 25 years old. I'm almost 53 now. This is my 28th year, and I still LOVE/ADORE/YEARN to read to children.

Even the chattiest, most sociable group of five-year-olds will hush when they hear the rainstick (my ritual start to storytime) because they don't want to miss a good story. That's not to say that all the books I read are hits - some are resounding flops. And it's funny - a picture book can be absolutely loved by one class, and another class (same age) might say, "meh". There's a lot of chemistry at play during storytime.

I haven't posted any photos in awhile. Here's one:

These are REAL women.

We Grow Tubby Without Exercise

2012-01-31T19:02:00.000-05:00

(excerpted from)Teddy Bear

By A. A. Milne

A bear, however hard he tries,

Grows tubby without exercise.

Our Teddy Bear is short and fat

Which is not to be wondered at;

He gets what exercise he can

By falling off the ottoman,

But generally seems to lack

The energy to clamber back.

This is an excerpt from a very long poem about a teddy bear's efforts to get slim. Today, I was lucky to have a dear friend come exercise with me! Abe got her all set with lifting - there's just enough room for two women to flail about with free weights. We had a fine time, and my friend is coming back on Friday. With any luck, we'll be sylphs by summer.

Zig left for Tucson this evening - he hopes to have the house ready to go on the market by the end of the week. He works so hard...and I miss him badly when he's gone.

No spinning, four rounds on Canopy Sock #2. Excellent day for food and water.

I finished Jamrach's Menagerie last night. Wonderful book; resonating with me all day today. Now I'm starting Stone Arabia - no opinion yet.

January, 2012

2012-01-30T18:24:00.000-05:00

January, 1795

By Mary Robinson

Pavement slipp’ry, people sneezing,

Lords in ermine, beggars freezing;

Titled gluttons dainties carving,

Genius in a garret starving.

Lofty mansions, warm and spacious;

Courtiers cringing and voracious;

Misers scarce the wretched heeding;

Gallant soldiers fighting, bleeding.

Wives who laugh at passive spouses;

Theatres, and meeting-houses;

Balls, where simp’ring misses languish;

Hospitals, and groans of anguish.

Arts and sciences bewailing;

Commerce drooping, credit failing;

Placemen mocking subjects loyal;

Separations, weddings royal.

Authors who can’t earn a dinner;

Many a subtle rogue a winner;

Fugitives for shelter seeking;

Misers hoarding, tradesmen breaking.

Taste and talents quite deserted;

All the laws of truth perverted;

Arrogance o’er merit soaring;

Merit silently deploring.

Ladies gambling night and morning;

Fools the works of genius scorning;

Ancient dames for girls mistaken,

Youthful damsels quite forsaken.

Some in luxury delighting;

Pinned!

2012-01-29T13:00:00.001-05:00

winter bare branches

hold tattered cups of summer

empty nests trail twigs

from Haiku Journey

By Kimberly Blaeser

We had a bird's nest in our Christmas tree this past December. That has happened a number of times. We always save the nests and put them in the next year's tree. At this point we have four or five little nests that I hide in the branches each year.

Today we're having a small party to celebrate Abe's pinning ceremony. About ten of us will be eating lasagna and salad and cake and ice cream. He (Abe) was given the "Outstanding PTA Student" Award at the ceremony yesterday - he had no idea (nor did we) that he was being given any sort of recognition. His speech at the close of the ceremony was FANTASTIC - full of humor and wit and greatly appreciated by his fellow graduates. He OWNED that podium - he was the master of the pause! Go, Abe!

Not much knitting or spinning time this weekend - too much going on. Just finished cleaning the house in preparation for our guests. Now it's time to exercise.

Abe receiving his Physical Therapy Assistant pin and certificate

Pinning Ceremony

2012-01-28T11:29:00.001-05:00

Canopy Sock #1

I Am Offering this Poem

By Jimmy Santiago Baca

I am offering this poem to you,

since I have nothing else to give.

Keep it like a warm coat

when winter comes to cover you,

or like a pair of thick socks

the cold cannot bite through,

I love you,

I have nothing else to give you,

so it is a pot full of yellow corn

to warm your belly in winter,

it is a scarf for your head, to wear

over your hair, to tie up around your face,

I love you,

Keep it, treasure this as you would

if you were lost, needing direction,

in the wilderness life becomes when mature;

and in the corner of your drawer,

tucked away like a cabin or hogan

in dense trees, come knocking,

and I will answer, give you directions,

and let you warm yourself by this fire,

rest by this fire, and make you feel safe

I love you,

It’s all I have to give,

and all anyone needs to live,

and to go on living inside,

when the world outside

no longer cares if you live or die;

remember,

I love you.

It's not snowing, so we will all see Abe "get pinned" at today's ceremony. He is the speaker - says his speech is about 8 minutes long. We are very very happy for him.

Going to a comedy show at Infinity tonight, with dinner at the Bistro before. We need to laugh - in late January, EVERYONE in the northern hemisphere could use a laugh.

Canopy Sock #1 is off the needles; Sock #2 is still just yarn, but not for long!

2012-01-27T07:35:00.002-05:00

And everyone's favorite...

Jabberwocky

By Lewis Carroll

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

“Beware the Jabberwock, my son!

The jaws that bite, the claws that catch!

Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun

The frumious Bandersnatch!”

He took his vorpal sword in hand;

Long time the manxome foe he sought—

So rested he by the Tumtum tree

And stood awhile in thought.

And, as in uffish thought he stood,

The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame,

Came whiffling through the tulgey wood,

And burbled as it came!

One, two! One, two! And through and through

The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!

He left it dead, and with its head

He went galumphing back.

“And hast thou slain the Jabberwock?

Come to my arms, my beamish boy!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”

He chortled in his joy.

’Twas brillig, and the slithy toves

Did gyre and gimble in the wabe:

All mimsy were the borogoves,

And the mome raths outgrabe.

I remember this poem so well. We studied it in sixth grade English.

Our teacher didn't do much with it, that I recall, but I

rediscovered it when my own two boys were little, in The Random

House Book of Poetry For Children. We loved that book!

Down 1.2 pounds for the week! Woohoo! Slow and steady....

Peas...with honey?

2012-01-26T18:16:00.001-05:00

I Eat My Peas with Honey

By Anonymous

I eat my peas with honey;

I've done it all my life.

It makes the peas taste funny,

But it keeps them on the knife.

No news today - just plugging along, at work and at home. January is wearing thin. It's my least favorite month - I think I've mentioned that before...

Green Tea

2012-01-25T18:47:00.001-05:00

What is it, you ask? Why, it's a Yarn Meter, a Nancy's Knit Knacks product, purchased via Knitpicks. Why a yarn meter, you ask? Because I'm tired of trying to visually estimate the yardage in a ball of yarn when I need to divide it into two, for socks or mittens, say. This isn't a great photo, but basically you slide yarn into the two wooden slots on either side of the meter unit (not yet calibrated, obviously), then put the yarn into that slot as well, and start winding. Et voila! Accurate measurement.

I have always been DELIGHTED with any NKK product - they are well-made, thoughtfully designed, easy to use, and very competitively priced. Knitpicks, too, is an excellent place to shop, although I do try to patronize small, local yarn shops as much as possible.

Spinning: No change.
Knitting: Turned the heel of Canopy Sock #1. Working on gusset decreases tonight.
Exercise: 30 minutes of cycling. Abe made me. He said I would be "happy" if I didn't skip a day. He's right.
Food/Water: Doing well. Drank lots of tea, including a cup of "Cherry Marzipan" green tea, which sounds much sweeter than it tastes. It gives a wonderful aroma of cherries and almonds, but there is no sweetness. In reading the latest issue of O, I decided to give green teas a try, and have ordered several different kinds. Two arrived today. Also ordered, per Dr. Oz, a Republic of Tea blend called "Get Some zzz's" in my quest to sleep soundly all night. I'm far from insomnia, but I almost always wake up at about 2:00 in the morning. I lie there for awhile, and usually get back to sleep in a few minutes, but sometimes I'm awake for much longer.

Speaking of green tea...

Green Tea

By Dale Ritterbusch

There is this tea

I have sometimes,

Pan Long Ying Hao,

so tightly curled

it looks like tiny roots

gnarled, a greenish-gray.

When it steeps, it opens

the way you woke this morning,

stretching, your hands behind

your head, back arched,

toes pointing, a smile steeped

in ceremony, a celebration,

the reaching of your arms.

Canopy Progress

2012-01-24T19:47:00.000-05:00

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

By Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.

His house is in the village though;

He will not see me stopping here

To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer

To stop without a farmhouse near

Between the woods and frozen lake

The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake

To ask if there is some mistake.

The only other sound’s the sweep

Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.

But I have promises to keep,

And miles to go before I sleep,

And miles to go before I sleep.

A classic - is there anyone (caucasian, American) who does NOT know

this poem? Our woods are lovely, dark, and deep, and I often hear

owls calling of an evening. Owls always remind me of Jane

Yolen's/John Schoenherr's 1988 Caldecott Medal book, Owl Moon. I

remember Zig finding that book at Huntington's in Hartford, and

commenting on the beauty of Schoenherr's illustrations. I remember

being impressed that a Project Operations Manager would notice the

quality of the art in a children's picture book! We bought the book

for Stuart's first Christmas, and have it still.

Speaking of the Caldecott Medal, the 2012 winner was announced

yesterday. Chris Raschka's A Ball For Daisy is everything a

children's librarian hopes for. I shared the book with 1st, 2nd, and

3rd grade students today, and they all LOVED it. It's always fun to

"read" wordless picture books to kids - some of them want me to make

up a verbal story that coincides with the illustrations; others just

want to look at the pictures and tell their own story to themselves.

Raschka's ability to portray emotion through watercolor, gouache,

and ink is stunning - not just for the adult (children's librarian)

viewer, but for rambunctious little kids who, when confronted with

the tragedy of the (SPOILER ALERT) popped ball, are struck dumb with

sadness for poor Daisy. Based on today's reaction, I'm certain that

not only will my Kindergarten students embrace the book - 4th, 5th,

6th, 7th, and 8th graders will as well. WELL DONE, Mr. Raschka!

Caldecott Honor winners this year were also well received by

students in my tiny town - Blackout, Grandpa Green, and Me-Jane

pleased all.

Spinning:

Second bobbin of Night Owl merino

Knitting:


Canopy Sock #1 - weird lighting

Exercise: Continuing with weights and bicycling.

WWW

2012-01-23T17:20:00.004-05:00

Snow Day

By Billy Collins

Today we woke up to a revolution of snow,

its white flag waving over everything,

the landscape vanished,

not a single mouse to punctuate the blankness,

and beyond these windows

the government buildings smothered,

schools and libraries buried, the post office lost

under the noiseless drift,

the paths of trains softly blocked,

the world fallen under this falling.

In a while, I will put on some boots

and step out like someone walking in water,

and the dog will porpoise through the drifts,

and I will shake a laden branch

sending a cold shower down on us both.

But for now I am a willing prisoner in this house,

a sympathizer with the anarchic cause of snow.

I will make a pot of tea

and listen to the plastic radio on the counter,

as glad as anyone to hear the news

that the Kiddie Corner School is closed,

the Ding-Dong School, closed.

the All Aboard Children’s School, closed,

the Hi-Ho Nursery School, closed,

along with—some will be delighted to hear—

the Toadstool School, the Little School,

Little Sparrows Nursery School,

Little Stars Pre-School, Peas-and-Carrots Day School

the Tom Thumb Child Center, all closed,

and—clap your hands—the Peanuts Play School.

So this is where the children hide all day,

These are the nests where they letter and draw,

where they put on their bright miniature jackets,

all darting and climbing and sliding,

all but the few girls whispering by the fence.

And now I am listening hard

in the grandiose silence of the snow,

trying to hear what those three girls are plotting,

what riot is afoot,

which small queen is about to be brought down.

It wasn't quite a "revolution of snow", but we did have a late opening due to freezing sleet. And the world IS all white, after Saturday's snow.
A group of about 10 of us at work began the first day of Weight Watchers - we all weighed in and paid $5 - in a month we'll see how much weight we lost. Should be fun.

Four in Three

2012-01-22T11:24:00.001-05:00

Nightfall Socks - Check!

They're done. Four socks in three weeks. Not bad. I've already chosen the next sock project - yarn and pattern that I've had since 2009, when I was part of the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club. The yarn color is "The Skein With No Name", a lovely blend of rust, rose, and lavender, and the pattern is "Canopy". These will be a bit more challenging to knit than the past two pairs.

The Skein With No Name from Blue Moon Fiber Arts

Those Winter Sundays

By Robert Hayden

Sundays too my father got up early

and put his clothes on in the blueblack cold,

then with cracked hands that ached

from labor in the weekday weather made

banked fires blaze. No one ever thanked him.

I’d wake and hear the cold splintering, breaking.

When the rooms were warm, he’d call,

and slowly I would rise and dress,

fearing the chronic angers of that house,

Speaking indifferently to him,

who had driven out the cold

and polished my good shoes as well.

What did I know, what did I know

of love’s austere and lonely offices?

Saturday

2012-01-21T13:01:00.005-05:00

My dear on the eve of his 55th trip around the sun.

Winter solitude--
in a world of one color
the sound of wind.

Matsuo Basho

Well, we were all set to go to Abe's PTA Pinning Ceremony this afternoon, but the snow had the audacity to interfere. I had just finished assembling the spinach lasagna, and was starting in on a vegetable dip, when the phone rang and Abe learned of the school's closing. The ceremony will take place next Saturday, same time, same place. We debated whether to have the party tonight, and eventually decided to have it next Sunday afternoon, thinking that folks might not like to venture out tonight. So the lasagna will go in the freezer, the spinach dip will get eaten, and the cake that Zig's out picking up will, hopefully, get commandeered by Abe. Yellow cake, buttercream frosting...scary. I don't even want to open the box.

We had a perfect evening for Zig's birthday. The only hitch was that he had to finish up some work, so we didn't eat until 9:00. Grilled tuna, roasted sweet potatoes, baked acorn squash. And Abe made apricot-pistachio biscotti for dessert!

Zig managed to blow out all the candles.

Presents and cards rounded out the evening - an old copy of Nausea, in French, that Stu found in Chicago, some delicious pecan bars baked by Jess, a notepad with a floppy disk for a cover (also from S & J), socks knitted by me,

Left Bank Book money from Dad and Jean, and FIVE POUNDS OF BRAZIL NUTS. Yes, that's right - 5 pounds of Brazil Nuts. Just what every guy needs. Oh, the "big" present was the new bowler hat (see Zig above) that we found in Cambridge a few weeks ago. I am married to a most dapper gentleman.


Zig gave me this orchid for Valentine's Day last year. It just opened up last week.

You can't see them, but the Burning Bush is full of Juncos.

Did you notice the white stuff in the background? Yes, it's wintry, at last. We've gotten about four inches. Dry and fluffy snow - easy to shovel, thankfully.

Spinning: I expect to finish the second bobbin today, but here's a photo of it as of noon today. This is going to be a beautiful color when it's plied.

Knitting: More work on the sock AND the shawl. These socks WILL be done by the end of the day tomorrow. Otherwise I will have to hang my head in shame. I'm almost to the heel flap! Why does it feel like such a marathon???

The shawl is coming along - I like it more and more as the colors appear.

Exercise: 30 minutes of cycling - the middle 20 were 1-minute intervals of fast-as-I-could-go and easy pedaling.
Food/Water: Doing well. Now, if I can just stay away from that cake...

Friday is a good day for a Birthday

2012-01-20T18:23:00.001-05:00

A Birthday

By Christina Rossetti

My heart is like a singing bird

Whose nest is in a water'd shoot;

My heart is like an apple-tree

Whose boughs are bent with thickset fruit;

My heart is like a rainbow shell

That paddles in a halcyon sea;

My heart is gladder than all these

Because my love is come to me.

Raise me a dais of silk and down;

Hang it with vair and purple dyes;

Carve it in doves and pomegranates,

And peacocks with a hundred eyes;

Work it in gold and silver grapes,

In leaves and silver fleurs-de-lys;

Because the birthday of my life

Is come, my love is come to me.

Zig is 54 years old today! The day started off in a questionable fashion - one of his windshield wipers broke off as he was chipping ice off his car this morning, so he had to go to the Toyota place to get a replacement, which made him late for work. I'm writing this at about 6:00 pm, and he's on his way home now, for a quiet evening with Abe and me. We have a few presents and cards for him to open, and a delicious, healthy dinner planned. We're not going out, because we're having a small party here tomorrow evening to celebrate Abe's PTA pinning ceremony. I guess that, once you're in your fifties, the prospect of TWO busy weekend nights is just too daunting.

Spinning: Still plugging away on the second of three bobbins. I'd say the finished yarn will end up as a light worsted - we'll see.

Knitting: It's pretty funny to think back to the beginning of 2012 (all of 19 days ago) and realize that I actually had hopes of knitting a pair of socks EACH WEEK. I'm still working on the leg of Nightfall Sock #2. I hope to finish it this weekend. Then I can claim that I'm knitting 4 socks in 3 weeks. Not too shabby.

Exercise: Free weights and cycling - total of an hour. I took yesterday off.

Food/Water: Okay. Not enough water. I take a large stainless steel jug with me every day, and try to drink two large cups of tea while at work, but it didn't happen - not even one! - today. I did drink about half the jug - maybe 3 cups?

Friday Weigh-In: Lost 1.4 pounds this week. Woot! Slow and steady. A group of us are going to follow Weight Watchers at work (WWW!). We all put $5 into a pool, and our school nurse will weigh us each Monday (numbers are strictly confidential). At the end of each week (maybe longer; I'm unsure), the biggest loser will win the cash - or we might have a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place prize depending on the number of entrants.

Snow tomorrow - we hope that Abe's ceremony isn't postponed, but we'll have the party regardless.

Snow tonight?

2012-01-19T17:27:00.001-05:00

The Esquimos Have No Word for "War"
Mary Oliver

Trying to explain it to them
Leaves one feeling ridiculous and obscene.
Their houses, like white bowls,
Sit on a prairie of ancient snowfalls
Caught beyond thaw or the swift changes
Of night and day.
They listen politely, and stride away

With spears and sleds and barking dogs
To hunt for food. The women wait
Chewing on skins or singing songs,
Knowing that they have hours to spend,
That the luck of the hunter is often late.

Later, by fires and boiling bones
In steaming kettles, they welcome me,
Far kin, pale brother,
To share what they have in a hungry time
In a difficult land. While I talk on
Of the southern kingdoms, cannon, armies,
Shifting alliances, airplanes, power,
They chew their bones, and smile at one another.

It's cold out. 5 degrees this morning. My poor little car, with its stiff suspension, stumbles and bumps over the ice. How I love the heated seat!

Just got home from work, and have decided that today is my one day off from exercising for the week. Tonight I need the feel of fiber and yarn in my hands more than I need an accelerated heart rate.

Tomorrow is Zig's 54th birthday. I think he will like the gifts that wait for him. They (the gifts) make me smile when I think of them.

It's as cold as...January

2012-01-18T17:38:00.002-05:00

Cool braids. From the 2009 Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club

where we are
Gerald Locklin

(for edward field)

i envy those

who live in two places:
new york, say, and london;
wales and spain;
l.a. and paris;
hawaii and switzerland.

there is always the anticipation

of the change, the chance that what is wrong
is the result of where you are. i have
always loved both the freshness of
arriving and the relief of leaving. with
two homes every move would be a homecoming.
i am not even considering the weather, hot
or cold, dry or wet: i am talking about hope.

This is one of those days wherein I wish I could fly off to a place of sun and warmth and flower-scented breezes. Alas, it is not to be.

I should be grateful for the fact that there is only 1 inch of snow on the ground, as compared with last year's Siberia. But it is pretty cold out, and the lack of snow makes the world seem harder - almost like iron.

Spinning: very little progress, but a little is better than none at all.

Knitting: plugging away on the Malthese Flowers shawl when at home, knitting about 2 rounds a day on the sock during lunch at work.

Exercise: free weights and 20 minutes of cycling. I'm now warming up for 5 minutes, then doing 1-minute intervals of "fast-as-I-can-go" and "just-let-me-catch-my-breath" pedaling. It's harder, but it goes faster.

Food/Water: Doing well with both. I mean that in the weight-loss sense, not the "boy, there's so much excellent food/I want it all right NOW!" sense. Slow and steady. If I shed an average of 1 pound per week, I'm happy, and that's the average thus far since the start in early December.


There's no reason to post this photo - I knitted these last winter, but I like them.

Back to Work!

2012-01-17T08:16:00.001-05:00

Merino "Night Owl" - First of three bobbins

Malthese Flowers Shawl - Four of twelve rows of flowers but only 20% complete

Back to school today. A late opening due to a light snowfall overnight. Yesterday was completely relaxing - spinning, knitting, reading, watching the first four episodes of Season 1 of Downton Abbey. Enjoying it immensely - Bates is my favorite character by far.
Spinning: Finished the first bump of merino and began (just barely) the second. I love the subtle blend of gray, gold, brown, yellow, and even some blue. The 3-ply will be stunning, I hope.
Knitting: Significant progress on the Malthese Flowers shawl. The stitches are now on the longer cable needle. I just hope that the finished piece will block so that the bumpiness disappears. As for Nightfall sock #2, I'm about 40 rows in on the leg.

Nightfall Sock #2- 30+ rows in

Exercise: Good weight-lifting session on Monday, followed by cycling. I've increased the weight on most of the exercises. Abe's my trainer - he has a routine worked out for me, and he tweaks it now and then. Right now it's fewer reps and heavier weights, to build strength. Later it'll be more reps and slightly lighter weights, for toning (I think).
Food/Water: Good all around. Down .4 from yesterday!

And here's today's selection:

Routine
Arthur Guiterman

No matter what we are and who,
Some duties everyone must do:

A Poet puts aside his wreath
To wash his face and brush his teeth,

   And even Earls
     Must comb their curls,
     And even Kings
     Have underthings.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

2012-01-16T11:04:00.002-05:00

I, Too, Sing America

Langston Hughes

I, too, sing America.
I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I'll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody'll dare
Say to me,
"Eat in the kitchen,"
Then.

Besides,
They'll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed--
I, too, am America.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is another holiday that might be better spent in school. Like Veterans' Day, if children have the day off, they might miss the chance to learn about what this day means to all Americans. I say "might" because I hope that families take the time to talk about courage and dignity and what it means to be truly free. I know that there are many observances, speeches, vigils, and the like, but we all need to spend at least a few moments thinking about how one man's bravery and dedication to truth brought about such huge change. Not saying that it's perfect - not even close - but when I was born, in 1959, Langston Hughes was still being sent to the kitchen. Has the "tomorrow" in his poem arrived?

Speaking of courage, here's some one I know who is the embodiment of the word.

Look at the spirit in her eyes!

No more today - it's a bit silly and vain to discuss spinning and knitting, I think.

Family

2012-01-15T17:33:00.002-05:00


Bodycoat, Carpenter, Coffin, McClurkin, Russo-Savage, Savage, and Ziarnik - January 14, 2012 in Stockton Springs, Maine

What a spectacular day we had! The girls outnumbered the boys, 13-6, AND the girls tromped on the boys in all things ping-pong. We can't, however, declare utter and complete and permanent victory, because SOME of the men were reluctant (afraid???) to play. On another (more digital) front, "Words With Friends" seemed more like "Words With Enemies", particularly where siblings were involved...

A huge thank-you to Freeland and Jean for hosting us all, providing breakfast, lunch, and a fabulous dinner of lobsters and steamers for us shellfish-avores, and stew (beef and sans beef) for the shellfish-averse. Salad, bread, cake, ice cream, wine, beer, not to mention all the yummy appetizer-y objects floating around - oh, my! Thank you, too, to Nancy, for organizing us all.

Why were 19 of us together on the second Saturday in January 2012, you ask? Two reasons - to celebrate 1) the 85th anniversary of Freeland Arthur Savage's birth, and 2) the close of a hellacious year for my sister Suzy, who endured surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and all the myriad troubles attendant thereon, in her 12-month battle with breast cancer. What better reasons to have a party?

I am so glad to be in THIS family.

Speaking of family, here's today's poem. I hope no one in MY family sees themselves in these lines:

Talented Family

By Kenn Nesbitt

My family’s very talented,

I’m certain you’ll agree.

We each possess a special skill

that anyone can see.

My brother’s good at burying

his finger up his nose.

My sister’s good at covering

her room with dirty clothes.

My father’s good at eating soup

in big, disgusting slurps.

My mother’s good at cutting loose

with world-record burps.

Our dog is good at piddling

in the back seat of the car.

The baby’s good at putting

Pop-Tarts in the VCR.

Myself I’m good at sleeping late

and making lots of noise,

and cluttering the living room

with comic books and toys.

So though we’re very talented,

I’m sad to say it’s true:

We’re only good at doing things

we’re not supposed to do.

No spinning, lots of car knitting on the Malthese Flowers shawl. No

exercise, but very good with food and water.

Stockton Springs, Maine

2012-01-14T14:36:00.001-05:00

Snow-flakes

By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Out of the bosom of the Air,

Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken,

Over the woodlands brown and bare,

Over the harvest-fields forsaken,

Silent, and soft, and slow

Descends the snow.

Even as our cloudy fancies take

Suddenly shape in some divine expression,

Even as the troubled heart doth make

In the white countenance confession,

The troubled sky reveals

The grief it feels.

This is the poem of the air,

Slowly in silent syllables recorded;

This is the secret of despair,

Long in its cloudy bosom hoarded,

Now whispered and revealed

To wood and field.

In Maine, where winter has arrived and isn't leaving anytime soon.

We were propelled through the streets of Portland last night by a

biting wind,on our way to dinner at Fore Street. Excellent arctic

char, black sea bass, sardines, and hake. A most welcome break on

the long road to Stockton Springs.

Surprise, surprise - Jeff and Wendy are here, all the way from

Gresham, Oregon! What a thrill to see them in the lobby of the hotel

this morning. That makes 19 of us here, in Dad and Jean's house,

hailing from Florida, Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine,

and Oregon. As predicted, much talk and laughter. Zig, Abe, and I

had breakfast at Chase's Daily in Belfast, then stopped at Left Bank

Books in Searsport to pick up several books we'd ordered.

Spinning: None

Knitting: 15% of Nightfall Sock #2 is done, PLUS a tiny bit of

progress on the Malthese Flowers shawl.

Exercise: Nope, other than violent shivering in the brutally cold

streets of Portland last night.

Diet/Water: No desserts, a very light lunch. Need more water,

though.

My Father's 85th birthday

2012-01-13T12:25:00.003-05:00

Wild Geese
Mary Oliver

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
For a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
love what it loves.
Tell me about your despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting --
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

Today is my father's 85th birthday. January 13, 1927 was the day he was born, at home, in Kingfield, Maine, to Augusta Barnjum Savage and Freeland Arthur Savage. I wonder, was there a midwife, or a doctor, or both, or none? I am going to Maine today to see my father, along with 16 other people who are all converging on the little town of Stockton Springs for a weekend of lobster, steamers, wine, pingpong, walking, laughing, and, I imagine, some tears. My sister Suzy will be there, and she is celebrating the end of a horrific year of breast cancer treatment, involving surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. We will all be so glad to be together. I want to be there NOW.

Spinning: I started the first bump of Spunky Eclectic "Night Owl" and am about 1/3 done. I don't quite know how I feel about spinning merino. Let's just say that I enjoyed the Norwegian Longwool much more than this...I LOVE the colors, though. What will this become?

Merino Fiber in "Night Owl" colorway from Spunky Eclectic

Knitting: Nightfall Sock #1 is done!!! Sock #2 will be cast on this evening during the trip north.

Nightfall Sock #1 - I like it!

Exercise: Catching up on yesterday and today: I cycled for 30 minutes yesterday evening, 20 of those minutes at a very (for me) fast pace). Today I did 30 minutes of free weights, some crunches, and 20 minutes of cycling.
Food/Water: Doing well on both counts. Sushi last night for dinner - oh, how I love it.
Weight: Friday is weigh-in day and I'm happy to report that I'm down .6 lbs from last week. That's not much, but it is a decrease. Have lost a bit more than a pound a week in the six weeks that I've been keeping track - and that includes Christmas. Not too shabby...

Manufacturing Time

2012-01-12T08:33:00.002-05:00

A Teacher’s Lament

By Kalli Dakos

Don’t tell me the cat ate your math sheet,

And your spelling words went down the drain,

And you couldn’t decipher your homework,

Because it was soaked in the rain.

Don’t tell me you slaved for hours

On the project that’s due today,

And you would have had it finished

If your snake hadn’t run away.

Don’t tell me you lost your eraser,

And your worksheets and pencils, too,

And your papers are stuck together

With a great big glob of glue.

I’m tired of all your excuses;

They are really a terrible bore.

Besides, I forgot my own work,

At home in my study drawer.

Last night's inch or two of snow carved out a piece of extra time

manufactured time - for me to blog this morning instead of this

evening. It's raining now, and the wet, congealed snow is plopping,

with squelchy thuds from the trees onto the ground, the cars, and

the roof. My oatmeal steams in its bowl, topped by walnuts and dried

cherries. I'm dressed and ready to go but reveling in the fact that

I can stay home for another half-hour.

Spinning: Decided to go for a 3-ply, and split the fiber vertically into 3 lengths. It took awhile to get the weight of the three bats the same, but they're ready to go. Problem is, I'm going to Maine this weekend and don't really want to lug the wheel.

"Night Owl" Merino bumps

Knitting: Twenty rows into the foot. Twenty rows to go before toe shaping.

Almost there!

Exercise: As promised yesterday, I lifted weights, increasing some to 15 pounds, and cycled. Today I will be home late from school but I plan to do 30 minutes of cycling or "boxing". Quotation marks are a must.

Food/Water: Tomorrow is a weigh-in day - I will keep that in mind.

Snow tonight?

2012-01-11T16:20:00.001-05:00

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

— Wendell Berry

Alas, I could not (and did not want to) lie down where the wood drake rests today, but my drive home from work each day never fails to provide visual rest. Today it was the lavender-gray of the January sky, overlain by the lace of the maples and oaks, as I drove through Hartland Hollow. I am very lucky to have such a drive to and from school. Sometime I'll write about the wildlife I've spotted...

This will be a quick entry - the knitters in my knitting group are arriving shortly for an hour or so of knitting and conversation.

No news on spinning, but I am going to figure out how I want to divide up the fiber - either for a 2- or a 3-ply, maybe split vertically.
Knitting: The heel on Nightfall Sock #1 has been turned and the gusset decreases are coming along.

Nightfall Sock #1

Exercise: I will lift weights and cycle AFTER the knitting. I promise!
Food/Water: On target for the first, and above target for the second, having had several large mugs of herbal tea at work.

First Day I Missed

2012-01-11T07:25:00.001-05:00

Far too much going on yesterday - a full day of work plus a UCONN Women's basketball game in Hartford last night. Does that mean I post TWICE today? Hmmm.

Spinning: NONE
Knitting: On the first heel flap
Exercise: NONE
Food/Water: Too much of the former, not enough of the latter

Second Pair is on the Needles

2012-01-09T19:16:00.002-05:00

Song to Onions
Roy Blount, Jr.

They improve everything, pork chops to soup,
And not only that but each onion's a group.

Peel back the skin, delve into tissue
And see how an onion has been blessed with issue.

Every layer produces an ovum:
You think you've got three then you find you've got fovum.

Onion on on—
Ion on onion they run,
Each but the smallest one some onion's mother:
An onion comprises a half-dozen other.

In sum then an onion you could say is less
Than the sum of its parts.
But then I like things that more are than profess—
In food and the arts.

Things pungent, not tony.
I'll take Damon Runyon
Over Antonioni—
Who if an i wanders becomes Anti-onion.
I'm anti-baloney.

Although a baloney sandwich would
Right now, with onions, be right good.

And so would sliced onions,
Chewed with cheese,
Or onions chopped and sprinkled
Over black-eyed peas:

Black-eyed,
grey-gravied,
absorbent of essences,
eaten on New Year's Eve
peas.

We're having onions tonight, in Chicken Tikka Masala. The house smells marvelous - I dumped everything into the crockpot this morning, and Abe plugged it in at 10:00.
Spinning: nothing to report
Knitting: Cast on and began knitting a pair of vanilla socks using Nightfall yarn from FibroFibers. Sky blue darkening to black. The yarn is a joy to knit with, and with size 1 1/2 Signature Needles, the sock is flying along. No picture yet, but here is the yarn:

Exercise: Weights for 30 minutes; bicycling for 20. Didn't want to, AT ALL, as I didn't get home until 6:00, but Abe "encouraged" me to suck it up.

They're Done!

2012-01-08T18:06:00.001-05:00

6:05 pm:

Noro Socks

Colder

2012-01-08T15:30:00.001-05:00

A Haiku by Hai-Stu
Stuart Ziarnik

A steaming patty
Hamburger, oh, hamburger!
No need for ketchup.

It's only in the high 30's today - by normal standards that would be warm for early January, but it feels chilly compared to yesterday.

Norwegian Longwool 2-ply

Spinning: Photo above is the Norwegian Longwool 2-ply. Approximately 246 yards of fingering weight yarn. What will it become? No idea yet, but after washing and flicking it'll join the other handspun. Another goal of mine for 2012 is to knit up some of this yarn. I did manage to make several projects last year using my handspun, but not enough.

Handspun wool awaiting its fate

Just to stay honest, I'm posting some photos I took today of fiber received from Spunky Eclectic during the autumn of 2011.

"Tartan" superwash Corriedale

Romney Sheepswool

50/50 blend of fine wool and soysilk in "Tossed Salad" colorway

"Peace on Earth" South African Fine

Knitting: almost done with Noro Sock #2. It's difficult to knit when my fingers are crossed that the yarn will suffice.

Exercise: 40 minutes of "boxing" using "Gold's Gym Cardio Workout" for Wii.

Food: I made delicious braised red cabbage with apples and onions last night - served with roasted pork chops. Magnifique! The recipe came from a book that my dear sister gave me for Christmas - Cooking From the Farmers' Market. Williams-Sonoma does an excellent job with photography.

50 Degrees on January 7

2012-01-07T15:00:00.002-05:00

Just back from a 2+ mile walk to Riverton and back. No coats, hats, mittens, gloves, or scarves. Simply fabulous. Right now I am actually sitting OUTSIDE to write this. Wow.
Spinning: completed the remaining 2 ounces - the bobbins are now resting. Will ply them tomorrow.

4 ounces of Norwegian Longwool enjoying the mild and sunny outdoors

Spunky Eclectic's "Night Owl" Merino

Next up: 4 ounces of merino, from Spunky Eclectic in a gorgeous mix of gray, brown, yellow, and copper, called "Night Owl". This is the June 2011 shipment - I'm gaining ground!!! I did, however, just sign up for the 2012 club, so it won't be long before the fiber stash starts growing once again...sigh.

Information Label for S. Eclectic fiber

Knitting: Noro Sock #2 continues apace - the heel flap is done, the heel is turned, and the gusset is taking shape. But do you see how tiny the yarn ball is??? Noooooooo.....


Noro Sock and 1/2

Exercise: The brisk 2-mile walk was my cardio - the last 1/2 mile is uphill. My elevated heartrate is what allowed me to sit outside to write! I will be doing 30 minutes of free weights after I post this.

Oh, were you wondering about today's poem? Wonder no longer:

The Sixth of January
David Budbill

The cat sits on the back of the sofa looking
out the window through the softly falling snow
at the last bit of gray light.

I can't say the sun is going down.
We haven't seen the sun for two months.
Who cares?

I am sitting in the blue chair listening to this stillness.
The only sound: the occasional gurgle of tea
coming out of the pot and into the cup.

How can this be?
Such calm, such peace, such solitude
in this world of woe.

I know, I know - this should have been yesterday's poem.

The Twelfth Day of Christmas

2012-01-06T18:25:00.002-05:00

The Three Goals

David Budbill

The first goal is to see the thing itself

in and for itself, to see it simply and clearly

for what it is.

No symbolism, please.

The second goal is to see each individual thing

as unified, as one, with all the other

ten thousand things.

In this regard, a little wine helps a lot.

The third goal is to grasp the first and second goals,

to see the universal and the particular,

simultaneously.

Regarding this one, call me when you get it.

It's good to laugh at one's attempts to understand.

Friday, January 6, 2012 - Three King's Day aka Ephiphany aka the Twelfth Day of Christmas. Still nary a snowflake in sight; in fact, the temperature got into the 40's this afternoon. It would seem that putting snow tires on the Mini was for nothing. Ah, but statements like that tempt fate...

After almost a week of daily blathering, I'm realizing that my weekday entries are going to lack visuals - for two reasons: 1) no time, and 2) no discernable progress on projects.

Nevertheless, the second sock continues to grow, as does my fear of insufficient "yarnage". I even went so far as to make the second sock's leg 10 rows shorter than the first. And I'm actually admitting that shocking fact in writing. Necessity is the mother of bad knitting decisions.

I boxed today! Not packing things in containers, but physical boxing. Yes, it's "only" Gold's Gym Cardio Workout for the Wii, but 45 minutes of jabbing, hooking, and ducking was enough to counter the winter blahs.

The BIG news is that I'm down 1.8 pounds since last Friday, Friday being my official weigh-in day. Notice I'm not indicating a starting weight. That number is unimportant.

More tomorrow, with the added bonus of photos!

Poetry

2012-01-05T18:28:00.004-05:00

On the Grasshopper and Cricket

By John Keats

The Poetry of earth is never dead:

When all the birds are faint with the hot sun,

And hide in cooling trees, a voice will run

From hedge to hedge about the new-mown mead;

That is the Grasshopper’s—he takes the lead

In summer luxury,—he has never done

With his delights; for when tired out with fun

He rests at ease beneath some pleasant weed.

The poetry of earth is ceasing never:

On a lone winter evening, when the frost

Has wrought a silence, from the stove there shrills

The Cricket’s song, in warmth increasing ever,

And seems to one in drowsiness half lost,

The Grasshopper’s among some grassy hills.

That line - "The poetry of earth is ceasing never:" reminds me that

the gray, iron-hard lack of life is only a deep repose, and that we

will again hear spring peepers trilling in our woods.

I asked myself why I've been including a poem each day - at first I

had no answer, but then I realized that it is a way to express

my state of mind, as well as to share beautifully written and

juxtaposed words. I earned a BA in English Literature...some people

might think that a waste of time, but I'm grateful for the love of

words I found.

Spinning: No progress today...

Knitting: Still plugging away on Noro Sock #2. Getting increasingly

worried about running short on yarn...

Exercise: 30 minutes of free weights; 20 minutes of bicycling

Ten Degrees Fahrenheit

2012-01-04T16:07:00.000-05:00

Welcome Morning

There is joy
in all:
in the hair I brush each morning,
in the Cannon towel, newly washed,
that I rub my body with each morning,
in the chapel of eggs I cook
each morning,
in the outcry from the kettle
that heats my coffee
each morning,
in the spoon and the chair
that cry "hello there, Anne"
each morning,
in the godhead of the table
that I set my silver, plate, cup upon
each morning.

All this is God,
right here in my pea-green house
each morning
and I mean,
though often forget,
to give thanks,
to faint down by the kitchen table
in a prayer of rejoicing
as the holy birds at the kitchen window
peck into their marriage of seeds.

So while I think of it,
let me paint a thank-you on my palm
for this God, this laughter of the morning,
lest it go unspoken.

The Joy that isn't shared, I've heard,
dies young.

~ Anne Sexton ~

I am not religious, but I do love this poem. It helps me to focus on what truly matters.

A very short entry today - I am leaving shortly to go to a UCONN Women's Basketball game in Hartford, prefaced by dinner at Trumbull Kitchen.

No progress on spinning, but I hope to get a significant amount of sock work (why do I call it "work"? It's pure pleasure!) during the game.

Still no snow in Connecticut, but the ground is hard as iron and it's very still outside. Quite different from last year:

January 2011

Back to Work

2012-01-03T18:27:00.000-05:00

Furry Bear

By A. A. Milne

If I were a bear,

And a big bear too,

I shouldn’t much care

If it froze or snew;

I shouldn’t much mind

If it snowed or friz—

I’d be all fur-lined

With a coat like his!

For I’d have fur boots and a brown fur wrap,

And brown fur knickers and a big fur cap.

I’d have a fur muffle-ruff to cover my jaws,

And brown fur mittens on my big brown paws.

With a big brown furry-down up to my head,

I’d sleep all the winter in a big fur bed.

I was wishing for a bear's warmth when I went out to my car this morning. Brrrrr. The first real cold we've had. My car thermometer registered 14 degrees on the way to work.

Noro Sock #1 - Complete!

Noro Sock #2 - barely begun

Norwegian Longwool - Bobbin #1 complete and resting

Norwegian Longwool - Bobbin #2 barely begun

Sock Quest 2012: Noro Sock #1 is done and blocking. Sock #2 was cast on last night and I've begun the 3x1 leg. A bit of concern about the amount of yarn that's left...
Handspinning: I spun up the rest of the 2 ounces of Norwegian Longwool and am pretty pleased with the results.
After an hour of annoying wheel noise and movement, I realized that an Allen wrench would eliminate most of the problems. Who knew? Now my wheel is almost silent, but for the knocking of the two conrods - I still can't figure out how to tighten them.
Exercise: 30 minutes on the stationary bike.
Food/Water: Tea and soup and carrots and hummus and quite a lot of water and a delicious pasta/spinach/tomato/ricotta dish that Zig discovered in his "Staying Thin" French cookbook. The latter has not yet been prepared - alas, I cannot cook it until he (Zig) gets home, as it's written in French and I might mess up. If I acted like a grown-up, I'd use my rudimentary French to figure it out, but it only takes 30 minutes to prepare and cook, so I'll just wait.

A Poem For You

2012-01-02T14:07:00.008-05:00

Sock Quest 2012: Noro Sock #1 is about 85% complete!

Spinning Status: 1 oz of Norwegian Longwool spun - fairly finely

The Red Wheelbarrow
William Carlos Williams

So much depends
upon
a red wheel
barrow
glazed with rain
water
beside the white
chickens.

It's pretty easy to blog daily when work has not yet resumed. Making hay while the sun shines - here are my updates on a variety of fronts.

Sock Quest 2012: About 85% of the first sock is complete. I hope to finish it today, and cast on the second sock. I have so much sock yarn in my stash...I could easily knit nothing but socks for all of 2012 and still have more. MUCH more. Just ordered Clara Parkes' new book The Knitter's Book of Socks because all my favorite knitting podcasters say that I can't live without it. With that, and Cookie A. and Cat Bordhi, I should be all set for ideas.

Ounce #2 of Norwegian Longwool waits patiently

Handspinning: About 1 ounce (of 4 ounces) of Norwegian Longwool is spun. This is the May 2011 fiber shipment from Spunky Eclectic in Lisbon Maine. The wheel is an Ashford Traveller. I am ignorant as to ratios - just trying to spin this as finely as I can for a (hopefully) fingering weight 2-ply. We'll see. I am (obviously) playing catch-up with Spunky's monthly shipments. This particular fiber's colorway is "Angkor Wat". Very easy and pleasant to spin.

Other Knitting: I splurged (that's putting it mildly) at Stitches East 2011 in Hartford this past October - bought the kit from Ruhama's for Christel Seyfarth's Malthese Flowers Shawl. The first bit was tricky because I was working back and forth in fair isle, which meant purling on the wrong side, but once I had enough stitches on the needle I was able to make a steek and continue knitting in the round. I think this will be lovely when cut, finished, washed, and blocked. Right now it looks pretty lumpy.

Malthese Flowers (yes, the spelling is weird) Shawl

Shetland wool for Malthese Flowers Shawl

Exercise: Today was a weight lifting day, which means approximately 30 minutes of free weights (5 and 10 pound) for biceps curls, military presses, wrist flexion and extension, and "rowing" with an exercise band. This is followed by 20 minutes on the stationary bike (5 minute warmup, 10 minutes fairly fast, 5 minute cool down). Add to that the 2.2 mile brisk walk to Riverton and back (with Zig), and you get a fairly active day!

Food/Water: Healthy breakfast of steel cut oats, walnuts, banana. Lunch of chicken barley soup. Supper of homemade squash soup. Water and tea and vitamins - check.

Reading: Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James. Not one of my favorites, but pretty good. It's on my iPad.

Sock Quest 2012

2012-01-01T12:55:00.000-05:00

First Pair of 2012 - begun on 1/1/12.
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden Sock Yarn
Needles: Signature 2.5mm (US 1 1/2)
Stitches: 64
Pattern: 10 rows 1x1 rib, 60 rows 3x1 rib. 32 row heel flap. 45 rows between end of gusset and beginning of toe shaping.

Hmm...this almost looks like some sort of weird cultish altar.

Cycling

2012-01-01T12:51:00.001-05:00

Another entry on the first day of the year...just to log my exercise time. 30 minutes on a stationary bike - it's Abe's bike, mounted on an indoor trainer.

On 30 minute days, I warm up at speed 3/3 for 5 minutes, then pedal fast at speed 3/1 for 20 minutes, then cool down at speed 3/8 for 5 minutes. Listening to podcasts (today was This American Life) helps pass the time.

So, there it is!

A New Year

2012-01-01T11:14:00.010-05:00

January 1, 2012.
Aspirations:

Spin more fiber
Knit more sock yarn into socks
Exercise
Drink more water
Eat healthily
Blog more

Zig and I are spending spring break in Paris - a celebration of 30-plus years together. I want to show off my arms as we saunter the streets of the Marais. I want to wear a lace shawl with Tour Eiffel motifs on the edges. I want to weigh less - significantly less, as I climb the steps of Montmartre.

Perhaps this blog will help keep me on track. Perhaps Abe's strength training regimen, custom designed for me, will help keep me on track. Perhaps a count down - departure date of Friday, April 13, 2012...

So much for frequent posting

2011-07-11T19:06:00.000-04:00

Estelle Cardigan from Quince & Co. in "Twig" Colorway

Hedera Socks (Cookie A.) from Knit. Sock. Love. Pine Star Studio yarn.

Son Stuart ready to take on Chicago with 3 Euroflax Linen string bags

Stephen West's "Daybreak" for my brother Stuart's 50th birthday

Polyphylla Cowl knit in my handspun AVFKW BFL "The Peacock's Wild Plume"


Malabrigo Silky Merino "Cloudy Sky" knit into	Churchmouse Yarns English Mesh Lace Scarf (beaded)

Multnomah knit with Auracania yarn

Cookie A's BFF socks knit with Pinestar Studio Merino

Berroco "Seduce" in color 4493 (discontinue) to become Norah Gaughan's "Flow" tank

Okay, besides meeting a bunch of terrific, salt-of-the-earth knitters today, here's a bit of what I've been knitting:

Who Knew?

2011-07-11T17:01:00.000-04:00

I just had a fantastic time at the Bristol (Maine) Area Public Library. I'm here in New Harbor for five weeks, and Zig saw in the Lincoln County Times newspaper that there are "Knitting Lessons" held every Monday afternoon from 2-4pm at the Bristol Library. So off I went, armed with my latest project, Norah Gaughan's "Flow", which I'm knitting with Berroco Seduce in a GORGEOUS discontinued colorway (4493).

But enough about the project - the cool part was the knitting group itself. Led by Judy, a former school media specialist from Hebron, CT (synchronicity, anyone?), the group meets in the children's room of the most excellent Bristol Area Library - a happening place in its own right, but that's another story. Judy greeted me warmly, and immediately introduced to Bunny (another Connectikite - from West Hartford) and Penny (!) originally from Newburyport, MA. Judy and Penny have retired and live right here in Bristol, and Bunny is retired and owns land near Pemaquid Lighthouse - she and her husband plan to build here.

In addition to being an expert knitter and former children's librarian, Judy is also an avid quilter and the mother of one of the managers at Rising Tide Food Co-op in Damariscotta. We are members there. And I quilt!

Okay, it gets better (or, more synchronized?)...another woman arrived (actually there were about 15 women there at one point - I didn't get to meet all of them), and introduced herself to me as Marlene. Turns out she's Marlene Loznicka, an artist who owns (and lives at) the Schoolhouse Gallery not 1/10 of a mile up Huddle Road from our cottage. We have always admired her paintings (sort of dark, with lovely golden light) of the Maine landscape, and have visited her gallery before.

Bunny was talking of her desire for a classic Maine cape house - Penny lives in one. Bunny is picking me up at 10:00 tomorrow morning to go visit Penny at her Cape house. !!!!!!!!!

I am most definitely going back to Bristol Area Library next Monday - maybe my mom will want to go, too!

What I Do For Fun In Winter

2011-02-06T15:55:00.001-05:00

Besides knitting, of course.

Every summer we spend at least one month on the Maine coast. What does this have to do with winter fun, you ask? Well, we always make sure to visit "I'm Puzzled" in Nobleboro, Maine during our summer vacation, to stock up on jigsaw puzzles. It's a tiny little place on Route 1 not too far from Damariscotta, owned by Bob Havenstein, a thoroughly charming gentleman who also sells kites and lobster. The first time we stopped there, we were astounded by the sheer number of jigsaw puzzles - thousands of puzzles ranging from easy children's puzzles to 10,000 piece juggernauts.

Half a year later, there comes a day when I start to come down with cabin fever: I've done all the laundry, read for 4 hours, knitted for 7, and finished cooking. What to do but go to the puzzle closet?

Here's van Gogh's "Sunflowers" - a 1,000 piece puzzle I just finished a few days ago:

van Gogh's Sunflowers

"Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase, 1845" by Franz Xaver Petter

Just started this lovely still life - another 1,000 pieces. It seems easier than the sunflowers - more color variation, I guess. It's funny - I'm doing these puzzles on the living room floor, which could never have happened when Owain the Corgi was still alive - he would have come trundling over and stretched out contentedly right on top of the pieces!

Ada Lovelace sock detail

Of course, there has been some progress on the knitting front. I started the first of a pair of "Ada Lovelace" socks from a Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club kit I received last May. Finished the first sock on Tuesday, but only after deciding I really didn't like the fancy lace cuff - thus the simply 2 x 2 rib. Haven't started the second sock, because my guilty conscience caught up with me and forced me to recommence knitting on "Brea", Rowan's cabled pullover. Almost done - just one more sleeve to go!

Ada Lovelace sock #1

Brea Pullover - just one more sleeve to go!

Snow Day

2011-02-01T09:06:00.000-05:00

Bright Socks for a Winter Day

February 1, 2011 - the sixth snow day of the school year - all since returning from holiday break. It looks like tomorrow, Ground Hog Day, may be the seventh. Sigh. One can only hope that it doesn't turn to ice. Roofs are sagging, icicles are nearing the ground.

Bright Socks for a Dark Winter

But all this snow does provide time for knitting, thus another pair of socks - the 3rd pair in 2011 - has been finished. I call these "Bright Socks for a Dark Winter", because the colors, and the fact that they seem to be mismatched, cheer me up. Plus, they're stash-busters! What could be better?

Speaking of stash busting, I've joined several "Stash Control/Stash Knit Down" groups, in an effort to get a handle on just how much yarn is upstairs, waiting for me to knit it into something. Or things. And I would have been, until 2 days ago, PROUD to claim that I haven't added new yarn to the stash this year. But.

On Sunday, January 30, 2011, I purchased 1608 yards (8 skeins total) of Quince & Co. yarn from the KnitWit yarn shop in Portland, Maine. Listening to Paula, of the Knitting Pipeline podcast, sing the praises of this new yarn line, started by Pam Allen, I simply couldn't resist. So, I bought 4 skeins of Chickadee, a sport weight wool, in "Petal", a gorgeous pale pink. It will become the Kilkenny Cowl (a Quince pattern). I also succumbed to the temptation of Tern, a wool/silk fingering weight blend. 4 skeins of Tern, in "Seaweed" will turn into the Bellefleur Shawl. Kudos to KnitWit for being the first (and only) yarn shop to carry Quince & Co. yarns - and to the very friendly woman there who helped me with my purchase.

Quince & Co. Tern

Quince & Co. Chicadee

Bonnie Bishoff Shawl Pin

I also purchased, because I could not resist the loveliness of it - a shawl pin made by Bonnie Bishoff.

The good news - not that acquisition of more yarn is "bad", exactly - I've used up 3122 yards of stash yarn so far this year. That number will continue to rise, as I forge ahead on "Brea", a Rowan cabled pullover (I'm almost half done!), and I cast on today for a new pair of socks. I'm thinking I'll start one of the kits from BMFA Rockin' Sock Club. I subscribed to the club last year, but have not renewed my membership - I simply cannot justify a second year of shipments when I knitted only 2 of the 6 kits I received in 2010.

Now - off to cast on some socks!

I Love Saturday Mornings

2011-01-22T10:26:00.000-05:00

The sun streams in through the front window, so brightly that I have to shade my eyes when I look outside. Icicles sparkle, snow gleams, and stray snowflakes drift by. I can hear a junco calling - one of the few animals brave enough to be out and about. I'm certainly not going out there: the deck pops and groans in the cold, so why should I risk it? I'd much rather sit here in the sunshine with my laptop warming my - what else? - lap!

Zig's on the couch under the afghan I knitted for his 40th birthday. That afghan is now 13 years old (Zig's 53rd birthday was the day before yesterday), but still keeps whomever it covers toasty and safe. "Weekend Edition" beams sanity into the living room, and I'm about to resume work on the first of a pair of stripey socks, using Koigu and Shibui Sock yarns. The socks are part of my effort to use up stash yarn - I've got enough sock yarn to knit up AT LEAST two dozen pairs of socks, whether they be top-down, vanilla, stockinette workhorse editions or toe-up, Cookie A./Cat Bordhi nouveau-construction-technique works of art. I have, after all, been a subscriber to several years' worth of Redbird Knits SOTM club (12 kits each year), and last year I subscribed to Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club (6 kits) AND Crown Mountain Farms "Knitting For Fun" Club (another 6 kits). Rather than assiduously keeping up with each shipment, I've allowed the kits to accumulate, unknit, to such a degree that I've lost count.

Yesterday afternoon, in between spates of shoveling, I started, but quickly frogged, the "Bunny Hop" sock pattern from Redbird Knits. I didn't care for the angora fuzziness, although the base yarn, Casbah Sock from Handmaiden Fine Yarn, is gorgeous. I'm thinking I'll save it for one of Romi Hill's small shawls - it's much too pretty to be hidden under jeans.

Handmaiden Casbah Sock Yarn

Also finished and blocked the "South Seas Table Runner" from Knit 2 Together by Tracey Ullman and Mel Clark. I used Elsebeth Lavold's Hempathy yarn rather than Euroflax Linen as called for, and I'm happy with the result, although I made some mistakes in the piece, so it's not good enough to give to anyone. I'm thinking I'll sew some beads to the four corners to give it some weight...

South Seas Table Runner

South Seas Table Runner detail

January 18, 2011

2011-01-21T09:55:00.000-05:00

What should have been just another day at work morphed into a summer vacation day, courtesy of snow followed by sleet followed by freezing rain, followed by rain. Seems like the entire state of Connecticut had the day off; at least the public schools did. What's a woman to do, but stay at home, where it's safe and relatively un-slippery, and knit?

Husband's new Market Bag

This safe, dry knitter finished the second of two market (aka string) bags, using up virtually all of some unidentified hand-dyed cotton boucle´ for which there is no other aesthetically pleasing purpose. The first of these bags is going to the safe, dry knitter's husband, who is in dire need of a new (well, replacement) string bag, as he (the husband) trashed another string bag (just how does he DO this? how do you unravel a string bag with grocery items?) that the safe dry knitter had graciously knitted for him last year.

The second string bag is going to the safe dry knitter's father for his 84th birthday. The safe dry knitter is not quite sure that the octogenarian dad will know what to do with the string bag, but the octogenarian's wife will, so that's okay.

Dad's Market Bag

Now to summarize the other knitting that's happened since the Tucson post. After finishing the Pimpelliese scarf, I cast on for the famous "Citron", using Sanguine Gryphon's Sappho I lace yarn. I finished that on the plane from Tucson to Chicago. I'm please with the finished product, and look forward to wearing it one of these chilly winter days.

Citron Shawlette on the blocking board


Detail of Citron Shawlette

After casting off Citron, I began Romi Hill's Merope, the first in her 7 Small Shawls to Knit booklet. I used Swan's Island Sock Yarn in a lovely, subtle ice blue color. That shawl screamed on the needles, at first (it starts with 3 stitches, so of course it's fast!), knitting up so quickly that I was on Row 70 before I knew it. The finished shawlette gave me my first experience at blocking lace, and just as every lace knitter has ever explained, the process seems magical - you start with a lumpy bunch of stitches and end up with a crisp, defined piece of art!

Merope on the blocking board - pinned to within an inch of its life!

Detail of Merope

Merope

Merope after blocking

Merope Shawlette

Edge detail of Merope

Interior of Merope shawlette

After finishing Merope, I cast on a pair of vanilla socks for Zig's birthday. Yes, he's already gotten several pairs of socks from me, but you can never have TOO many pairs of socks, right? Right?

Horned Lizard and Sock

Zig's Vanilla Socks knit in Opal yarn

Well, I began this post 3 days ago, but life interrupted, so I'm posting on January 21st, 2011. And guess what? It's ANOTHER snow day (which is why I have time to write) here in northwestern Connecticut. It's lovely as it falls, covering the old, dirty snow with a layer of lacy white, but shoveling awaits, when and if the storm stops.

What's next for knitting? I just finished the South Seas Table Runner - it's soaking before I block it on the board. Still working on Rowan's "Brea", a pair of "Tree of Life" mittens, and Robyn Gallimore's "Bunny Hop" socks. More soon on all of these projects!

Tucson Knitting, So Far

2010-12-30T13:37:00.000-05:00

It's pretty obvious that I have more time than is usual. It's a rainy day here - VERY rainy for the desert - and we're all just hanging out for awhile before venturing out and about.

Pimpelliese looking purple

I cast on for Pimpelliese last Thursday at Bradley Airport while waiting for my flight to Chicago's Midway en route to Tucson. At the time, I was battling (and losing) an attack of stomach flu, so I didn't get very far. But I've since gotten better and have completed this lovely, simple, easy-to-memorize shawlette. It used less than 1 skein (100g) of YarnAddict Easy Care Merino sock yarn (sorry, it's been discontinued) that I received as a prize from Rachel of the Knitcents podcast. Thanks, Rachel! The color is a lovely variegated orchid, but it has a way of looking either very pink or very purple in these photos.

Pimpelliese looking pink

After completing that shawlette, I immediately cast on for the previously-viral pattern, Citron (from Knitty) using Sanguine Gryphon's Sappho I lace yarn in the "Bright-Voiced Nightingale" colorway, purchase in October at Stitches East in Hartford. I'm about 25% done - seems like more, but it grows exponentially as it's knitted. Never thought I'd succumb to the virus...I still haven't knitted a Clapotis, and it seems like I'm the only Raveler who hasn't!

Citron in Sappho I (sorry for the blur)


Citron in Sappho I - what is it with these weird color differences? I'm not changing any lighting or camera settings!

When (if) I finish the Citron while still away from home, no worries - I brought yarn and the pattern for Romi Hill's Merope shawlette from her Seven Small Shawls To Knit booklet. Here's the yarn - it's Swan's Island Sock Yarn in a lovely ice blue.

Swan's Island Sock Yarn for Romi Hill's "Merope" shawlette

That's it for now. No plans to visit any Tucson LYS's while here - there's no room in the suitcase for any stash enhancements.

The Christmas Season

2010-12-29T11:59:00.000-05:00

It's been a tough - and very weird - autumn. My sister was dangerously ill in October (thankfully, she's much better now), and ever since then I've been under the weather myself, hit by a variety of ailments, the latest being a nasty stomach flu that I fell prey to on the very day I was scheduled to fly to Tucson for the holidays. Needless to say, the flight was a horror. But that's all over now, and all I'm contending with today is a chest cold.

Christmas has come and gone, and with it, a plethora of knitted gifts. As always, some were appreciated more than others. That's why I find myself knitting fewer gifts each year - if they don't get it, they don't get it! Get it?

Here are a few of the things I knitted:

Ornaments

I downloaded a pattern for Christmas ornaments knitted with sock yarn. Dug out scraps of sock yarn - mostly Koigu - and found some sparkly silver novelty yarn for the "sockets". These came out pretty well, and I gave them to friends.

The trick is stuffing them evenly so they don't look all lumpy.

The biggest Christmas project was a tree skirt that I designed myself. I had intended to surprise Zig with it, but it was too big a project to work on only when he wasn't home. I hoped that he would be his usual unobservant self, but one evening he asked me what I was working on, so I told him. He was really pleased, and loved what I'd done thus far. I finished it with time to spare, and it looks fantastic under the tree, even if I do say so myself!


Fair Isle Christmas Tree Skirt - not a great photo, but our old laptop (the one with all the good pics of the skirt) - was stolen.

Jess and her stocking along with a horrible pic of Stu - nice shorts, son.

I knitted Stu's girlfriend Jess a stocking this year. She was really happy about it. I also gave her a pair of self-striping socks, and the "Lena" scarf knit from yarn purchased at Stitches East this year from Kitchen Sink Dyeworks.

Jess and Penelope with the Lena scarf!

Johanna's Coffee Press Cozy

I gave both of my dear friends Pam and Johanna a French coffee press with a "snuggly" or cozy:


Pam's Coffee Press Cozy					Pam's was knitted from String Theory sock yarn; Johanna's from Lollipop Cabin sock yarn (both with doubled strands).

There was other stuff, too - I used Mason-Dixon's pattern for felted Christmas trees and knitted a small forest to surround my cottage tea cozy - but again, the pics were on the stolen laptop. I do have them on CD, I think, but that's back in Connecticut.

"Snotlings" Stitch Markers. The name belies their incredible cuteness.

Last but not least, my son Abe presented me with the world's coolest and most unique (uniquest???) stitch markers!

Hedgehog Puppet

2010-10-18T20:33:00.000-04:00

Here he is. I am in love.


Hedgehog Puppet

The Day After

2010-10-17T13:24:00.003-04:00

As promised, photos of the haul.

Needle-Felted Pumpkin Kit.

Cashmere Fingerless Mitts Pattern Springtide Farm

2-ply Cashmere from Springtide Farm

Yarn Bowl from Jennie The Potter

Yarn Bowl - interior

Yarn Bowl - exterior

Yep - it's a genuine Jennie The Potter item!

Soho Hat pattern from Springtide Farm

Deep Ruby 3-ply cashmere for Soho Hat. Yarn (or should I say treasure, from Springtide Farm.

Okay, this is NOT from Rhinebeck. But I just got around to taking the photos, okay? Crown Mountain Sock yarn "Apollo" in "Locomotive Breath" colorway. Remember? Jethro Tull?

Apollo label


More details from the Apollo label. This information could save someone's life someday.

And the cutest for last. Fiber Craft Studio's Hedgehog puppet kit. I think I'm going to go knit this RIGHT NOW.

Hanging With The Rock Stars

2010-10-16T18:29:00.002-04:00

The 2010 New York Sheep & Wool Festival is in full swing. Well, it might not be swinging as I write, since it's probably closed up for the day, but it WAS fully a-swing earlier today. Son Abe, friend Pam, and I drove over early today. We cruised through ALL of the barns, ate lamb ravioli, lamb chops, and lamb crisp. Only kidding - the latter was actually made with apples. Hmmm...lamb crisp....

Sorry. Where were we? Oh, yes, the fest! I haven't kept strict count, but I'd say this is at least the 10th year I've gone. But this year saw a number of firsts:

Pam bought tickets online so we cruised through the entrance gates. Go, Pam!
Materials purchased were more ceramic in form than woolly.
I couldn't finish all of my apple crisp.
I went to the Ravelry meetup! I went Ravelry meetup!
I went to the Ravelry meetup!

Here I am with Ravelry Bob, the canine boss of Ravelry.

Now, you might think that this is Ravelry Bob icognito, but it's really Ysolda Teague! I know, I know, THE Ysolda Teague. Now that's who I'm talking about when I say rock-star!

But that wasn't all, not by a long shot. Here I am with Granny G from Crafternoon Tea With Granny G, one of my favorite podcasts. How I love her voice, her knowledge, and her baking. It was truly a thrill to see and hug her.

Pam and I had a fine time hanging out with the several hundred other Ravelry enthusiasts.

Abe snuck off to the side to grab a photo of the official photo.

He is a fine son - when I chickened out on asking Rainy Day Goods for a photo, he tapped her on the shoulder as I was wandering away, and dang if he didn't get the shot.

6. Yes we're still talking about firsts. We stopped at the Fork in the Road.

More later on acquisitions, which include but are not limited to: cashmere, roving, and hedgehog makings.

Hedgehog makings???

A Paradox Wrapped Inside a Conundrum

2010-09-30T18:01:00.000-04:00

Okay! They're done! And they fit! And I love them! Yahoo! And the best part? I still have 2/3 of the main color skeins, and 85% of the mitten lining color skein!

Now I'm starting "Brea", a Rowan pattern designed by Marie Wallin. I'm not using Rowan Lima (WAY too pricey) - instead I'm using my favorite workhorse (but still lovely) Cascade 220, in a heather gold shade. Beautiful. Not too far in yet, but it's easy (idiot?) knitting, perfect for TV viewing.

No New Knitting

2010-09-26T19:48:00.001-04:00

No knitting progress today. Spent hours (literally? 6 1/2 hours) sorting through bins of leftover yarn. I now have two large bags of yarn ready to take to the thrift shop, and another large bag that went into the trash. I have a much clearer vision of what I have and what I can/want to do with it. I didn't get done with this task until almost 5:00, just in time to sit and finish a hilarious YA novel from school, Josh Berk's The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin, recommended by 7th-grade student Hannah. It was a hoot! Now I'm starting The Doom Machine by Mark Teague. Yes, it's that time of year again, when I find myself reading nothing but YA novels. How else to recommend them to my middle school readers? It's a bit daunting to think of the 150+/- young adult books that arrived recently. They're ready to go, but don't I first need to read them? ALL OF THEM? I need a clone. No, I need 10 clones, minimum, to keep up with all the reading.

I love my job.

New Stuff

2010-09-25T13:14:00.001-04:00

Felted Flower Tea Cosy

Where does the time go? I think I need to follow the protocol to establish a habit - blog every day for 28 days. Um, maybe not.

Paradoxical Mitten #1

School began on August 30, and it's starting to feel as though we never left. I'm involved in contract negotiations, which means a number of late nights trying to hammer out an agreement that both parties will find acceptable.

Haven't spun any fiber since the summer. I have two pounds of undyed merino fiber, but I want to hold off until I've attended an all-day spinning workshop in October.

Felted Christmas Stocking with Needle-Felted Stars

Meanwhile, knitting continues apace. I've finished several things in the past week or so. The Riverton Fair is coming up (October 9) and I'll be exhibiting a variety of things. I don't care if I win ribbons - I just want to support the fair by exhibiting at least a few items every year.

Ribbed Raglan Pullover

"Strider" Cowl

Red Fox Socks

Face Cloth

3 out of 4 Christmas Stockings knit for the friend of a friend

"Faux is Fair" Socks

Handspun

The Best Yet

2010-07-13T07:10:00.000-04:00

I plied the first skein skein of my merino/tussah silk yarn yesterday, and I am in love with it. This is a 3-ply, worsted weight yarn, soft and relaxed. And the colors! Silvery gray with hints of pale pink and green, with occasional bits of white and camel brown. The skein has 182 yards of loveliness. I'm in the middle of plying a second skein, and still have approximately 4 ounces left to spin. That's probably NOT best practice - plying before spinning all the fiber, but I simply couldn't wait.

Here's a closeup of the finished yarn:

And here's what the fiber looks like before spinning:

I purchased one pound of the fiber from Sheepshed Studio/Mountain View Farm at the New York Sheep & Wool Festival last October. The subtlety of the colors, their sheen, and the softness of the fiber drew me in, and that settled it. I was a bit worried that the silk would present a severe shedding problem, but it was not much of a issue at all.

Still using my trusty Louet S15, purchased way back in 1983 or so! It's a simple (some might say unsophisticated and limited) wheel, and sometimes I am tempted to abandon it for a better one. But what would/should that be? Kromski, Ashford, Schacht, Majacraft? What I really need to do is take some lessons, preferably with someone who can provide a number of different wheels to test drive. Perhaps Halcyon Yarn in Bath.

But I do love my plain old S15, which is no longer in production. I'll be lugging it up to Maine on Friday, along with a big basket of fiber!

Catching Up To Myself

2010-07-11T09:24:00.004-04:00

I started an intricately cabled sweater in August of 2008. Yes, that's almost 2 years ago - thank you for pointing that out. It was the second iteration - I gave the first one to my sister Debbie. "Cropped Denim Aran Pullover" by Susan Mills, it's a Classic Elite pattern, but for this version, I chose Rowan Denim, an indigo-dyed cotton. Not for the faint of heart, this sweater has three different cable panels on front and back, two of which have an 18-row repeat. The central panel has a 28-row repeat. Keeping track of rows? Priceless. Oh, and it helps to have MANY stitch markers to hand.

I began the sweater, confident that I would finish it quickly - I had, after all, already knitted one, and the second of anything always goes faster than the first. Somehow, however, I only finished about 1/3 of the back before putting it aside for something else. (Oh, bigamous me.) I had every good intention of getting back to it, but it went from project #2, to #3, to #14...,

Well, this summer I pulled it out from a basket that was buried under more recent projects. Its unfinished state had been pestering me, and I knew I could no longer ignore it. As I write, on Sunday, July 11, 2010, the sweater is nearer to completion than before, though it still has a long way to go before I can wear it. I've finished the back, and have cast on both sleeves, which are approximately 50% done.

These photos don't do the sweater justice - the back looks much too wide, but it's a drop shoulder style, so the width will be mitigated when I put the pieces together. The sleeves will also look ridiculously short before sewing.

Okay, that's enough of that. There's lots more catching up to myself that needs doing (socks, a fair isles swing coat I began in 2006, a twinset [not sure WHEN that was launched], a cotton cardigan [also 2006], another pair of socks, ANOTHER pair of socks), but tomorrow is another day.

And now for something completely different, a photo of the orchid given to me by Abe, in its second flowering of the year:

Oh, you should know that I don't spend ALL my time knitting (or spinning). I read, too! Just finished Laura Simonson's Major Pettigrew's Last Stand which was absolutely delightful. A sweet story, but not drivel - the book challenges racial stereotyping, protests greed and avarice, and renounces progress for progress' sake. And the setting? A small village in Southern England. Can't get much better than that! Now I'm reading Katherine Howe's The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane. I think I'm about a year behind - apparently this was last summer's "cool read". Better late than never.

Golf Socks, Anyone?

2010-06-26T10:21:00.008-04:00

Mice attacked Zig's golf club socks. I know, mice in MY HOUSE??? How dare they??? However, their incessant nibbling provided the perfect opportunity for some stash-busting. I went into the closet, pulled out some charcoal gray and cherry red alpaca (hmmm...reminds me of my high school....) and started knitting. Working from the old socks (what was left of them), I worked up my own pattern, with the "feet" being much smaller than the originals. Technically, these won't be complete until I finish the 3-stitch i-cord, but who cares? Zig doesn't leave for his golf/business trip until tomorrow. Plenty of time, right? Right?

Now that summer vacation is here (YAY!!!!!), I have even more time for spinning...witness the two (count 'em) TWO skeins of yarn pictured here. The pink/white/gray is "Istanbul Sunset" from - you guessed it - Spunky Eclectic.

The green/pink/purple is also from Spunky Eclectic, in the lovely colorway "Field of Screams". Love that name...Amy King, S. E.'s dyeing genius, explains that the colors reminded her of a field of Venus Fly Traps!

Next up in the spinning arena is a full pound of a GORGEOUS merino/tussah silk blend, purchased last October at Rhinebeck. Silvery gray, pale pink, chartreuse green. I'm already in love, and I haven't even met the yarn!

More Handspun

2010-06-20T10:53:00.004-04:00

This is a closeup of a skein of Organic Merino I just finished plying...the fiber came from Spunky Eclectic in Lisbon, Maine. When I received the package, I wasn't too happy with the colorway - "Storms of Jupiter" - a mix of red, blue, brown, and white. Not my favorites, at all. But spinning it was a delight, and once I started plying it, I loved the subtlety of the colors. I think this is meant to be a scarf - just not sure what pattern it wants.

Here's the entire skein. So soft. 222 yards in all, sport weight.

Here's another Spunky Eclectic skein, SWBFL, in the colorway "Ooh-La-La Tropi-Cal". This fiber didn't please me either, but I like the finished product a little better. This is a 3-ply, worsted weight. I thought the barber-pole effect would diminish through a 3-ply, but that, obviously, is not the case.

Now I'm working on yet another Spunky Eclectic - wool top I received way back in October 2009. The colorway is "Ribbons" - yup, lots and lots of red, with some blue thrown in for variety. I don't like the color, but it's pleasant to spin.

By the way, Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!

Where Did The Time Go?

2010-06-13T15:22:00.015-04:00

Wow...almost four months have passed since my last post. Bad me. But it's not for lack of activity - rather, too MUCH activity. I've been knitting and spinning quite a lot, and then there's the job, the family, the house, travel....

Here's some 2-ply Polwarth I just finished spinning up. The fiber came from FatCatKnits . It was a joy to work with, and the colorway, "Lotus", delighted my eye. I managed to eke out 446 yards from 8 ounces.
The blue handspun seen to the right is a 2-ply from fiber purchased last October at the fabulous New York Sheep & Wool Festival in Rhinebeck. The booth was Carolina Homespun, and the fiber is from A Verb For Keeping Warm. I wish I'd had the foresight to purchase more - the 4 ounces yielded just 160 yards. This fiber is Blue Faced Leicester.

My first attempt at a 3-ply came out rather well, or at least I THINK it did, looking at it from my novice perspective. I have just 3 bobbins, so I filled all three and then wound off one of them into a center-pull ball. Yield was 610 yards of a DK/light worsted weight. I purchased the fiber last October from the Tintagel Farm booth at New York Sheep & Wool. I love the finished product, a 50/50 wool-mohair blend, in the "Tide Pool" colorway.

As for knitting, socks have been the focus, with the occasional bolero and tank thrown in to alleviate boredom. Not that socks ever bore me! I've been trying some toe-up patterns from the Rockin' Sock Club at Blue Moon Fiber Arts, as well as some stellar Janel Laidman treasures, inspired by epic fantasy, legend, and folklore.
To the left, Tristan and Isolde by Janel Laidman. To the right, a not-very-good photo of Laidman's Secret Garden socks, the March 2010 Rockin' Sock Club shipment. The close-up does a better job at doing justice to the colors - pinks, greens, and soft blue.

More socks! Yes, I know they are my addiction. This is a photo of Nancy Bush's Canada sock. I've been wanting to knit these for YEARS...finally got to it this May. Well, that's it for now - thought I had photos of my Lothlorien socks, but they're on another computer. Next time! And the next time will be sooner than this was, for sure!

Alpaka Tunic

2010-02-21T18:21:00.003-05:00

It's done! I started Deborah Newton's Alpaka Tunic (sp.) back in January, but other projects pulled me away. I'm pretty pleased with the result - a lightweight but very warm tunic to wear over a turtleneck or long-sleeved tee.

I guess I really like Berocco's Ultra Alpaca yarn - this is the third or fourth project I've completed using this yarn.

Now I'm reverting to sock knitting - I reorganized my sock stash bin yesterday. I have about 20 pairs to knit - a lot of Robyn Gallimore's Redbird Knits kits as well as a bunch of Blue Moon and String Theory yarns. I'm thinking of knitting some things from Cat Bordhi, Cookie A., Janel Laidman, and Nancy Bush. Specifically:

Canada - Nancy Bush
Atlantis - Janel Laidman
Rivendell - Janel Laidman
Pomatomus - Cookie A.
Bavarian Twisted - Cat Bordhi

Being a member of the "Lotsafos10" group on Ravelry, it would be GREAT if I could empty the sock bin this year!

Ravelympics Update

2010-02-18T18:51:00.005-05:00

Here are my finished mittens! The pattern is Jared Flood's "Grove". I used my own handspun, a lovely 2-ply deep red wool. The fiber was purchased at Rhinebeck in October 2009 and spun in November 2009.

I'm very happy with the finished mittens - they fit my hand perfectly. I went down one needle size, but other than that, I made no changes to the pattern.

Crown Mountain Knits for Fun!

2010-02-13T17:10:00.003-05:00

I joined the Crown Mountain "Knitting For Fun" Club this year. The first project to be mailed out was Linda Ellis' Shorty Tam, knitted with 2 strands of hand-dyed yarn. I chose their Artemis yarn in the "Dance of the Dervish" colorway, which matches my winter coat. It was a fairly quick knit, and the resulting hat is warm, yet lightweight. It sits rather far back on my head, but my ears are covered.

Here it is!

Ravelympics!

2010-01-25T11:29:00.010-05:00

Believe it or not, I've yet to participate in a Ravelympics. That's all about to change. This year, I've committed to knitting Jared Flood's "Grove" mittens, from a cherry red yarn I spun myself. I've joined Team Knitmore and have been carefully following their training tips, including winding the skein into a ball and swatching. I'm fairly confident that the yarn will work with the pattern, and who doesn't need another pair of mittens???

I attempted to add a Ravelympics countdown clock to the blog, but for whatever reason, it just reads zero hours, zero minutes, and zero seconds no matter how many times I set the end date. Oh, well...

Right now I'm trying to knit Deborah Newton's Alpaka Tunic, using Berroco Ultra Alpaca in a similar charcoal gray, more or less successfully, depending on my level of optimism. I'm on the front, having worked the back already, but with each stitch on the front, I'm realizing the ugly truth - I have to frog the back. Groan. It (the back) is simply too big. I've gone down a needle size (from a 10 to a 9), and I'm knitting the front in the smallest size, rather than the medium I did for the back. Bummer. Nobody to blame, however, but myself!

The Snow Queen wears cozy socks

2010-01-19T20:07:00.003-05:00

Way too long since the last post. 16 pairs of gloves were knitted and given away to friends and family. Still have enough for 3 or 4 more pairs, but that can wait a bit.

I finished "Unity", a Berroco sweater design, and I like it very much - warm but lightweight and soft.

Can't seem to keep away from sock knitting - I don't quite know why, given the fact that there are always two to make. Maybe it's the portability, but I think it's more because of the beauty of sock yarn and the huge variety of patterns available, many of which expand my knitting "envelope".

These latest socks are called "Snow Queen" from the book Enchanted Sole by Janel Laidman. I used the yarn suggested, Blue Moon Fiber Arts Lightweight in the "Winter Solstice" colorway. Had to go down a needle size to get gauge, but that's okay. The finished socks are, on my short calves, kneesock length - perfect for cold gray winter days.