Bothersome

Something happened at work today that is bothering me to no end. And I know what to do but it is just going to take some time to obtain resolve. The best analogy to what took place would be, I am driving down the freeway at 68 mph and the CHP pulls me over. Yes sir, I was going 68 in a 65 zone, I was speeding, where do you want me to sign? Oh, you are also sighting me because you don't like the way my turn signal flashes? Well where is that acceptable? I will sign the speeding ticket, but hell will freeze over if you think I am signing the other one. When you encounter people that have an elevated power over you and exercise their position of power because they have a personal issue with you, that is plain sad.


On to better subjects, I knitted, washed and blocked the Golf Vest swatch. I am using one of my favorite books, The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd, for the pattern. I am not getting fancy, a little ribbing edging and stockinette. Simple but useful. I am a fan of red as many of you already know, I am pushing on my loved ones too. This is the before mentioned Cascade that is going to get me shunned by my knitting friends. It is a brick heathered red, it will go well with Sensei's golf clubs :)

Obvious Stitches Rookie!

So I went to Stitches this past weekend and WOW I was not prepared! My co-worker Colleen went with me and we both were tired from the walking around. We saw more yarn and fiber than you could possibly imagine in one place. It was more than we could even look at! We ran into some knitting friends that introduced us to some fantastic yarns. Janice had to show me Sea Silk and what a fantastic yarn that was. It was begging me to buy it, but my Stitches budget was not large enough, rookie move number one. My Stitches budget was confined to purchasing a good yarn for Sensei's "golf vest." He is my biggest cheerleader when it comes to my knitting but there are only a few things that he would wear that I can knit for him. I am currently knitting a little navy blue vest for my nephew for his birthday and Sensei noticed a new project and immediately said, I would wear that, it would be my "golf" vest. You see ANY thing with the word golf associated with it is perfectly OK. Example, he has a couple pairs of Dockers pants, they are not his Dockers, they are his "golf pants." He has some sunglasses, they are his golfing glasses. Are you seeing my point? He is a bit obsessed with golf. I am pretty sure that at any given time he knows what town Tiger is located and I am sure that if had the time he would be stalking him too. So back to Stitches, I went there with what I know now was WAY too small of a budget to get some yarn for the "Golf Vest." I didn't think that the Sea Silk was a wise choice for the vest so sadly I had to pass on that. Then I found the Brooks Farm booth and I thought I was in Heaven. The yarns were so nice, BUT, they did not have enough of one color for me to knit the "golf vest." I was starting to run out of options. I believe if I would have been there Friday or Saturday I could have made my small budget purchase at Brooks Farm and it would have been fabulous. Live and learn for next year. Rookie move number two: You do not buy something that you can get readily purchase at your LYS. The only color that I found that would work for his vest and in a sufficient quantity was Cascade 220 Heathers. I know, I know, you don't got to Stitches and buy CASCADE!!!! Like Nita said on her blog about her Stitches moment, I should have my knitters card revoked! However I did come away with some organizational items for my needles and notions, so not all was lost, just nothing picture blog worthy.

I did get today in the mail my new book, Sensational Knitted Socks by Charlene Schurch, I could not be happier. I am excited to start socks, you have no idea. I have enough sock yarn to make at least 3 pair and I don't even know how to knit socks. I even still contemplated buying sock yarn at Stitches with my left over budget money because you know that the Cascade did not set me back that far. But I resisted since I don't have a clue as to what a gusset even looks like. Hello!

Mugsy update:
He is doing better and thank you to all that have sent your well wishes. We had to modify his containment to the crate/cage/jail, whatever you want to call it because he was having MAJOR panic attacks. He was over heating himself, panting and shaking badly. He has plenty of water to cool himself too. But the only thing that has stopped the episodes is to take him out of doggy jail. So during the day now instead of the cage, he is placed in the bathroom (a very little bathroom) with almost no room to turn himself around in with food and wee wee pads for the duration of his vet prescribed containment.

Happy Birthday Princess

Today is my niece C birthday, the princess is 5. She is going to Chucky Cheese for her birthday for pizza, games and large animatron stuffed mice playing instruments. I am sure that she will have a great time. So as you can tell, I am not making the drive to Bakersfield today. I spoke with my brother and they had planned on coming north for our Mimi's (paternal grandmother) birthday March 18th. She is turning 85 and does not travel that much anymore so she does not miss out on C's birthday they are going to have some cake for her to along with Mimi's birthday. In the effort to conserve gas, miles and time, we are going to kill two birds with one stone and see them all the same day March 17th St. Patty's Day (the day before Mimi's B-day.) And I will be armed with a new t-shirt for my niece C that is perfect for that day, it is pink with the word princess printed on the front out of little tinny metallic shamrocks. Which leads me to the best news off all......I now can go to Stitches!!!!! Sunday I will be there at 10am ready to get an eye full of fantastic yarns.



Also, I am so excited about the latest purchase via eBay. At the very highest recommendations from several talented knitters including Lori, I purchased Sensational Knitted Socks at a FANTASTIC price! It should be here any day now. And that is great timing because my Knit Picks order for 2 circulars size 2 and some sock yarn should be here today. I am so excited to join the world of sock knitting. Maybe I will find some sock yarn at Stitches that I can't live without. Oh, wait, I promised R that I would knit him a vest for golfing, oh shoot, I guess I am just going to have to buy more yarn! My list for Stitches will be some red sock yarn (for me, come on, its red right) and washable wool for R's golf vest and some notions that will make my knitting experiance better. I am going to make every effort to stick to the list. At the moment I have two projects for myself, Refined Raglan Interweave Winter 2006 and Lady Eleanor that is keeping quite busy. So I am bringing backup to keep me from buying stuff I don't need at the moment. Wish me luck!!

Back problems

Yesterday morning was not a great start to my day. As I was getting ready for work I noticed that my dog Mugsy was not hanging out as usual, in fact he was not to be seen at all. I went to the bathroom and I spotted him curled up in front of the sink shaking really bad. Shaking like when you have been so cold, chilled to the bone and your teeth chatter and you look like you are having a small seizure, shaking. I called him and he would not come he just stared at me. I went over picked him up and he was tense and shaking and yelped very loud. I placed him on the couch and he yelped even louder and then turned and nipped my hand. I knew that there was something pretty wrong, he never tries to bite anyone. Off to the Vet we went.

An examination and x-rays later the Vet informs me that my dog has 5 bulging discs in his back. He has short legs and a long body and he like to jump up on everything and then jump down, not great on his back for him. And as you can see, we have hardwood floors, not great traction for him either. The Vet gave him a Cortisone shot and then pills for me to feed him daily for a week. This is supposed to help the inflammation in his back. But the worst of his recovery for us is, he has to be in the crate 24 hours a day only to come out to potty 4 times a day and this is going to last 3 weeks.

He is really upset about this, but not as much as we are. But apparently his injuries are so bad the Vet says that he is close to being paralyzed. And his 3 week incarceration is to allow scar tissue to develop between his vertebrae and the spinal cord. So no more jumping on and off things for him.

On to the knitting...

I have casted on for my Refined Raglan from the Winter 2006 InterweaveKnits. This was a bit of a challenge for me because the pattern calls for a Crochet Chain Provisional Cast-on. I have never done that before and I had to pull out my book to learn how to do a crochet chain. But I figured it out and I am excited that I have learned a new technique. I did not do it correctly because when I was ready to pull out the waste yarn, it did not unravel like the directions said it would. I had to pick the yarn out of my live stitches. Well that is because I am an idiot and knitted in to the wrong loop on the crochet chain. I have almost 4" knitted so far, however I am going to make the sweater about 2 inches longer than the pattern calls for. Check out that red, it is THE RED. I am a huge fan of red, its my color. And lets not over look the hemmed bottom, this is the first time I have done that too. I love that edge, it has such a clean simple finish. I am going to try to get this done by the end of March so that I can wear it at least once before it gets to warm.

And I have ordered yarn to make the Log Cabin Blanket for a friend of ours that is having a baby. I just found out last night that she was pregnant and is having a boy in about 6 weeks. She hardly looks pregnant. But now I feel compelled to knit a blanket. I have been wanting to do the Log Cabin, this is a great excuse to start it now.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

It is the year of the pig or boar, it is my Chinese zodiac year. I prefer to say boar, I hate to think of myself as a pig. So let the good luck commence!

One More FO

I really can't believe that I forgot to post the felted clogs that I did for my paternal grandmother who we all call Mimi for Christmas 2006. I sweat over these things. I had never done short rows and a couple other techniques that I learned as I knitted these. I love to over all outcome and wow factor that these get but I have to say, I really did not like knitting these at all. And the worst part about that is both my brothers and their wives all want a pair. Not sure if I can handle that right now. The sad thing is that I want a pair myself, I am just trying to talk someone else into knitting them for me. I will felt them myself and provide the wool and pattern, I just hate knitting that pattern. Any takers?

Happy V-Day to Me!!

I know that it is not Yarn Porn Friday, but I had to share what I got on Valentines Day. My darling boyfriend bought me an Orchid for my desk, I LOVE Orchids. And I got an email from my LYS Purlescense to let me know that the yarn that I ordered with the gift certificate my darling gave me for my birthday came in. So two great things in one day, yea!! You are looking at the start of my first sweater for myself and since it is for me, it had to be red. I am going to knit this sweater from Interweave Knits Winter 2006

I ordered the same yarn that the pattern called for, Plymouth Suri Merino in red, 2055. It is very nice feeling, I can't wait until I cast on this weekend.

Don't Move To Murphy,TX

Let me first state that I am all for protesting when it is for a great cause, labor rights, civil rights, etc.  But to protest a law enforcement operation that is catching pedophiles is mind boggling to me.  I am an admitted TVholic.  I watch to much of it and last night was no exception.  The show Dateline: To Catch a Predator was on our NBC channel last night and from what the show stated it was their 9th operation with local law enforcement.  This is the first time that I have seen a community actually protest the apprehension of pedophiles.  Grown men chatting on the Internet with girls that they think are 12, 13 or 14 years old and in some cases they were looking for young boys show up to a home and are busted for their inappropriate behavior.  I don't know about you, but where can I sign up and offer my house as the base of operation?  Why would anyone have issue with getting these pedophiles off the street?  There is nothing alright about wanting to have sex with a 12-14 year old girl, no matter what age, especially when they are old enough to be their father and even worse, their grandfather.  Shame on the neighbors in Murphy TX, I am hoping that they did not have any children. 

 

But then there are the extreme opposite cases of over protecting your child like the man that I saw on the news last night.  His son was competing in a school wrestling match, he was not winning, his opponent had him pinned.  Then out from no where you see the father of the pinned boy come flying out on the mat and shove the other boy off his son.  What is wrong with you?  Yes, I am speaking to you Super Dad.  It is OK if your son loses.  It is a part of life. I was trying to do some more investigating on the incident prior to running my mouth with my opinion, but why start now? My attempt to find the video on You Tube was fruitless.  But there are still photos on the Internet if you are interested. The father is also a wrestling coach at another school and he along with the weirdos that I spoke of earlier, is no longer going to be allowed around children. 

 

So, this is a knitting blog mostly and I should make note of some knitting progress along with my social rants.  My niece is turning 5 towards the end of the month and I have completed her Turtleneck Shrug.  I will have photos for you after I give it to her.  But this morning I went to Target to get a cute little t-shirt to put under it when I give it to her.  I was circling the racks and came upon a little white shirt with cherries printed in the front in the exact color as the shrug, it was kismet.  When I was holding the shirt up with the shrug placed over it to get the full effect and debating on the size of the shirt and very nice lady was eyeballing my creation.  She had that look in her eye, she wanted to ask me something.  I decided to get the XS and placed the S back on the rack and started toward the check out when she locked eyes with me and asked, "Where did you get that?" I as humble as I possibly could be and full well knowing what she meant asked, "Get what?"  She replied earnestly, "The turtleneck thing."  I replied modestly,  "Oh, this, I knitted it myself."  "How cute", she exclaimed and I thanked her and proceeded to walk to the check out stand with what I thought felt like a little bounce in my step, I am sure for those of you that might have seen me in Target this morning you would claim that it was full blown skipping!

LL

Lions, Tigers, Bears and Colts? Oh My!!

Well the Bears came out strong, but they just couldn't pull it off. I could not care which team won the Super Bowl, honestly. They both had really good reasons to cheer for them. I am just glad that the team with the black coach won! (Just for those of you that don't know me personally, that was me joking and my boyfriend is black. So please save your comments!)

On to knitting... In the effort to journal all my finished objects, here is the bag that I made my sister-in-law Crystal for Christmas 2006. Yes, it is February and guess what, I will have one more once I can get to my friend Irene's to get the photo. I know, I know, you are supposed to take the photo before gifting. I was finishing the thing 10 minutes before I handed it to her. I just got caught up in the excitement. And since I had not made anything for myself as of yet, I decided to create this little number, Rick Rack Bag.
My co-worker Holly reluctantly modeled the bag. Can you see her enthusiasm? Oh and I have made myself a black scarf out of 100% Alpaca, that photo to come later on my FO page.

I went to Purlescense on Sunday for their Super Super Yarn Sale on Super Bowl Sunday. I took advantage of the 20% off and bought 3 Addi Turbo needles that I am going to need when my yarn that I ordered comes in for my first sweater. It is always a fun time when I go in there, it is one of my favorite places to go and knit. You can always see someone that you know and have the opportunity to meet new gifted knitters too! After my stint at the yarn store, I came home to care for my sick boyfriend Sensei. He was battling a really bad cold. I made some snack type food, Super Bowl food you know. We had mini pizzas, turkey sandwiches and homemade salsa. Yes, I made salsa and guess what I learned? A little orange habenarro pepper goes A LONG WAY!! I knew it was hot, but I didn't realize that it would take the skin off my lips. I had to add more and more tomatoes and such to thin out the fire that was brewing in the salsa. When it was all said and done, I had made a fantastic salsa, we'll be eating salsa with everything for a month. I had to have made about a gallon of salsa, no lie.

Backwards...magic!

I was at my usual knitting hang out, Purlescense on Wednesday night with big plans to get some serious knitting completed. One project that I had to get started was the Turtleneck Shrug in the Scarf Style book by Teva Durham. My niece is turning 5 this February and I thought that it would look adorable on her, smaller scale of course. So I had to buy some dpn's to start the sleeves, I am not proficient with dpn's at all!! So after the third time of trying to get that started I threw the yarn and needles in my bag and grumbled loudly. Absolutely frustrated with the situation, I picked up my Lady Eleanor to get more of that complete so I could show some progress. But the Lady Eleanor is not 100% fun to knit because you have to turn your work after every 8 stitches. After huffing every time I was turning my project, Nathania peeked up over her knitting and said that she could show me how to knit backward. Backward you say? I was intrigued, nervous but excited at the thought of not having to flip this thing back and forth. So of course I quickly gathered up my yarn and shuffled over to a seat next to her where she imparted her knowledge of backward knitting, and it was truly magical to me! Thanks Nathania, my needles and yarn thank you too for not getting tangled anymore.

I am not one to just give up easily, so when I got home and curled up in bed with my dog, yes that is him, isn't he cute? I tackled the dpns again and won this round. I finally got a few rows the sleeve knitted. This has been a challenge for my, but I think in the long run, it will be worth it. Besides, I think every 5 year old girl should have a bright pink turtleneck shrug!