My favorite hibernation

And now... Here it is, the moment we've all been waiting for, the first bind off edge of the Estonian Garden Stole:


Dun, dun, DUN!!!!

I know it's silly, but part of me considers this half-a-stole to be a finished object. I'm ignoring the fact that I have to create another half just like this one. That's just inconceivable to me right now. In other words, I took a picture of my pretty half-a-stole and shoved it into the closet for an indefinite period of hibernation. I will finish it, but I want to work on something else... something more triangular in nature... something I'll be using this yarn for:


THE SWALLOWTAIL SHAWL!!!! So far, so good. I'm not sure about my needle size to yarn ratio as of yet. I'll knit a few more repeats and then decide where to take it from there. I think it is going quite nicely as it is.

Right this instant, I am sitting at Bread Co. (what is also called Panera everywhere but my place of origin. I insist on calling it Bread Co. because I am quite stubborn). I am supposed to be working on the great novel, but I'm having problems...which I am about to share with you. Aren't you excited??

By midnight of November 30th, I am supposed to have accumulated a minimum of 50,000 words on my novel. Now, that will not necessarily mean that the novel is finished, so to speak, but in order to "win," I must at least have that much. Today is the 27th and I have a total of 39,584 words. Now, there is no reason to panic upon simply reading these numbers and doing the appropriate subtraction. I am perfectly capable of pounding out the required 2,604 words a day for the next four days to reach my goal.

Usually...

Right now, however, I am struggling. I know exactly what I need to do. I have a very clear climax in mind as well as a nice little dreamed up plot leading up to it. So, why am I not able to just sit my butt in this chair and pound out the rest of my story, a story I love and have great hopes for in the future? I have a few theories.

One: I am doubting myself and my ability. For some reason, I do this all the time, with everything I do, no matter how great I know I am at the task at hand. I do it when I brush my teeth in the morning (maybe not really, but I do it quite a bit). I have reached the point in my story where things need to turn a bit more sinister. My character has to change...the entire mood of the story needs to shift away from the woe-is-me and more towards the oh-fuck-what's-going-on. Usually, I'm pretty good at the darkness, but something is holding me back from it this time. I think it is the filler. I am bored with their lives, but their lives are so valuable because of how regular they are. These people aren't necessarily special in any way, which is something I appreciate. I am normal. I am regular. There isn't much to me, which I think is a good thing. However, it's difficult to write it. I need to get the story rolling, but I'm having a bit of trouble getting it to the point where the writing just pours out of me. I need to reach the approaching threshold so that I can pull this off.

Two: I feel that this is the most important part of the book and I need to be careful in how I deal with it. I know that I can always edit it later, but I want to edit the thing NOT rewrite it entirely. I am bothered by the time limit and part of me wants to just forget about the 50,000 words and go about this in such a way that would make me more comfortable. Part of me wants to take my time with this and not just write to write. That being said, I need to get over it. If I can't write it now, what makes me think that I will be able to write it any better later on? It's fresh in my mind and I'm very excited about it. I don't want that excitement to go away because I'm trying to be an artist or something ridiculous like that. Still, each time I scold myself, I come back to these thoughts and have difficulty getting words on "paper."

So, there you have it. I have writer's block, but not really. It's a strange phenomenon.

Does anyone commiserate? Please, feel free to tell me your writing horror stories! lol :p

I just needed to show you...

I have been slowly working on my well past-due wedding stole on the sidelines. I will finish it eventually.


I just needed to show it to you. I have finished one repeat with the nupps (a new technique I learned with this neverending project) and I am so proud of myself. This stole will be so beautiful...someday...when it's older.

In an attempt to avoid working on my novel, today I played with one of my birthday gifts. Max bought me Phantom Hourglass for the DS, and while I wasn't goofing off on Ravelry, I was playing it. SO FUN! I just love Zelda. Have any readers played it yet?? I'm just curious.

I need to make something for Thanksgivng, but I haven't decided what. A large chunk of my afternoon will be spent grappling with that decision. I want to bake and I know I want to make a pie of some kind for dessert, but I don't know what I'll make to eat with dinner. It needs to be good. Last night, I made this for dinner:


mmmm...Yaki Soba...easy and good.

Why do corporate craft stores insist upon SUCKING?

I'm just wondering. I walk into Micheal's or Joann's looking for needles when I can't get to my LYS (because they close at 4, which is ridiculous in my opinion), but I don't know why I do it. They never have what I need even if what I need seems to be a common need held by most knitters. A few months or so ago, I needed DPNs in smaller sizes for socks. They only had enormous ones. I shook my head and said, "Yes, people like to make bulky hats and such." I understood. However, last night, I was looking for DPN's in larger sizes (9, to be exact) and I was very disappointed to find that they only had two sizes: 8 and 10 1/2!

OK, first of all, WTF? I can't imagine that the client base would want a size 8 and size 10 1/2, and not want a size 9 (or just a regular old 10) to go along with it. It wasn't that they had run out of the size I needed. That wall was packed to capacity, with nothing I would ever buy. I keep telling myself that I will never go back there again for my knitting purposes, but I always do. I always do because with a new project comes a glimmer of hope for that project. "Maybe they'll have it and I can cast on for it tomorrow instead of waiting until Saturday for a chance to go to my LYS when they're actually open at a time most people are able to come." That excitement of starting something new is what keeps bringing me back, but I'm going to say it again. I'm not getting my hopes up again! Those huge, corporate craft stores can kiss my needy little butt! And that's all I have to say about that.

Phew, that felt good! Now for socks:


Max's sock is well on the way to socky nirvana (which really only means Max's feet). I'm ready for it, let me tell you. I want so badly to finish these monsters. MONSTERS!


My socks are sitting still, as they should be. They aren't really important to me...I'm only making them to make them and I have two pairs for myself already. So, I'm not feeling the desperate need to knit them like I felt with Breeze and Child's First Sock in Shell Pattern. Still, these will be obnoxious socks, to say the least. They are the Yarrow Ribbed Sock from Knitting Vintage Socks, knit in Socks That Rock Medium-weight Farmhouse colorway.

Remember the movie Rockadoodle? I sure do.


I'm almost half-way done with my Estonian Garden Stole. I've gotten 26 repeats of the center lace pattern completed. The pattern says to do 42, but I'm shortening that to 30. I'm petite and, by looking at it, it will be plenty long after 30 repeats. We'll see how I feel once I actually reach 30. I may decide to keep going after that, but I doubt it. I know that this stole will be beautiful when it's done, but I have to say, It's sort of a boring knit now. 42 repeats is just too much for me, I guess.


My Lace Blouse is coming along. I have finished the arm increases for both fronts and have started decreasing for the neckline. I do have one worry here. It seems like the number of rows it will take me to finish the neckline is going to be more than the number of rows I had knit on the back before I started the shoulder shaping. This is really irritating me because there would be no problem if I had knit the fronts first. It might still be ok, but I'll not be a happy camper if I have to rip out the back of the blouse because of something so stupid. It's not even a real mistake, you know?? It's all because of the order of the pattern. Note to self: When you start designing cardigans with a similar sleeve construction, write it such that the fronts are knit before the back. Really now, come on...I'm getting sick of learning lessons here, :)

Now that you've gotten the run down on my WIPs, I'm going to tell you about how and why I'm not going to be working on any of them for a while. Once I get my hands on the needles (which will probably be Thursday) I am casting on for this. I'm hoping to finish Max's sock on Thursday (probably won't happen, but I'm hoping) so I can start this new project completely guilt free! I got some cheapo, Vanna's Choice from-a corporate craft store-and really need to get going on it if it's going to be done in time for Helloween. Actually, I need to get my costume together (as well as the rest of this one) too. Oh yeah, this is for Max, not me. I think mine will require sewing up a dress and doing something else which will be completely out of character for me...

On a completely unrelated note, I think I have decided to sign up for National Novel Writing Month. It seems like it might be a lot of wack-ass crazy fun!

How was that for a proper post? I know that I've not really been good about giving "proper posts" lately. I'm not sure why.

The thing about today

It's funny. I am near the end on two of my UFOs: the Breeze Socks and Rusted Root. Now, all I can think about is just getting...them...done. I woke up at 8am for the sole purpose of working on them both today. Great. Fine. Good. That's wonderful.

But what about your wedding stole? OK...tomorrow is September 1st. I'm not even halfway finished. I'm still planning on working on the thing, I'm just not planning on getting my hopes up. The possibility that it will not be finished in time is not one that is nagging on me, but it is certainly the most probable of all the possibilities regarding the subject. It's OK. I knew when I started it that it most likely wasn't going to happen. No harm, no foul. I can just find a nice wrap of sorts the new-fashioned way: buy it at the store.

It is quite pretty, though, and I will finish it. I will continue to work on it up until the day, but that day is no longer a deadline. If it isn't done in time for my wedding, I will trudge onward and wrap this luscious draping fabric around myself throughout the fall and winter seasons. Again, no harm, no foul.

On the personal front, I have finally decided that I can no longer put off going in for an eye exam. My contact lenses have been driving me absolutely insane. I can hardly get through the day without them feeling all dry. I have glasses, but because I am headache prone and they are thick, black, and heavy (not to mention all bent out of shape), I do not like to wear them when I'm out and about. I need glasses that I can wear out in public for prolonged periods of time. I need to give my eyes a break because they are yelling at me to do so! This really sucks too because I now have to spend my money on it, but I've decided to not be a princess about the whole thing. The exam is free, I'll choose cheap lightweight frames. This is my resolve. I only hope that the fancy lenses I need (because they are light and thin...really bad eyes here, I don't want goggles) aren't incredibly expensive. We shall see. Wish me luck...I'm sort of nervous. I hate going to doctor's offices.

T. O. Let's Go! (I mean...with an E at the end...)

My Breeze socks will be finishing themselves soon enough. I'm at the toe now, and I'm actually pretty excited to work it. There is a continuation of the pattern onto the toe, which I've never done before. Yay for new things! Not that it will be difficult or anything...


Oh, stole...please...pretty, pretty please...knit yourself by my wedding day. Yes, it is slow moving. I know I said I'd work on solely the stole for awhile, but I am only human. There is only so much stole I can handle at a time. Maybe it's the pressure...

On the Rusted Root front, I have started to work the ribbing around the bottom edge of the sweater. I've been reading EZ's Knitting Without Tears on the sidelines, and have decided to use twisted knit stitches in the ribbing. I chose (at the suggestion of a wise ravelry-ite) to NOT go down a needle size as the pattern specifies. Apparently, some people have found it to be too tight. I knit very tightly, so I didn't want to take any chances. However, I didn't feel completely comfortable with the idea. So, EZ saves the day. It will naturally be a bit tighter than the rest of the garment due to the twisted stitches, but maybe not as horribly tight as it would be if I had gone down a needle size. Get it? We shall see.

Oh, and the twisted stitches make for a nice effect in the ribbing and really set it off from the rest of the garment:


See?

I got my yarn from Knit Picks for the two hats I'll be starting as projects leave my needles. I'll start Max's We Call Them Pirates hat first, because he deserves it (every 7 projects I cast on for myself, I only cast on half of one for him...see Gentleman's Fancy Sock...half finished pair of socks....boo). I love him, I should knit for him.

I have some serious, big news...but I'm not ready to talk about it yet...

Verly Interlesting

So, I was reading a thread on Ravelry about Rusted Root. One girl said that one shouldn't switch to smaller needles for the ribbing and edges because a lot of people have found it to be too tight around the arm and neck holes.

Super tight knitter, here. Point well taken.

Since I sort of don't plan on sleeping tonight, I think it is going to be a knitting marathon tonight. I know that I said I would only work on Estonian Garden when I'm at home, but I'm only human. Besides, the more I think about it the less I believe it will actually be finished in time.

That isn't to say that I shouldn't keep going. I'm seven repeats in on this section. That means I have 34 more repeats to go (for a total of 41) until the next section. Then, I undo my provisional cast-on and do the same thing for the other side. So, really, I've not made much progress. And, really, my wedding is September 29th. I'm not giving up yet, though!! I will work on this thing right up until the night before, if I have to!!!! I think I'll probably take out a few repeats, maybe a total of 30 instead of 40. I'll just see how long it looks when I get to that point and decide then if I want to knit further.

But since tonight is so empty and I don't have to wake up at any particular time tomorrow morning, I can work on more than one thing tonight. Although, I DO need to make time to watch Arsenic and Old Lace. God, I love that movie...and no, I don't love it because of the knitting reference in the title even though I now realize the hilarity and the appropriateness of it now.

Speaking of old movies, I love them. What happened to that nice, light-hearted energy that used to exist in film? Granted, I love me a great dark as night comedy bordering on depressing, but I also appreciate the simplicity of films like Harvey. Man, is Harvey good! I guess what I'm saying is, this world is too difficult and that difficulty is definitely being transferred over to film and even music too. Not to say that the masterpieces of great composers and filmmakers were not complex. Difficulty and complexity are two different things and I'll go out on a limb and say that one is certainly better than the other.

I'm cutting in on my knitting marathon time, here. So, I'll bring it to a close. What are your thoughts?

Ye Olde Faire!

The whole of Saturday was spent at the Renaissance Faire!!


Tyler was not happy with us for subjecting him to this photo-op!! Get over it!! Madame Crazy and her happy banana "loves a redhead."


That's the group...doing that whole group posing thing.


Max and Jim ate turkey legs...like real men. Oh, and by the way, NEITHER OF THEM FINISHED!! How's that for masculinity? hehehee...


Jim and Kate...and Leggie.


Andrew and I...and Leggie.


Max and I at the Joust. Whatever happened to awesome spectacles like jousts?? I mean seriously, it's totally different from sporting events today...

The faire was a great time with our friends and I was really excited about it!

I took a sock with me...My Child's First Sock in Shell Pattern. I am on the foot and it is getting really close to being finished, finito! I can't wait to finish my first real pair of socks...my fingers are itching to work on more.

But today I am to work on my Rusted Root. Socks are a tomorrow thing, as much as I might want to work on them today.

On Sunday, I got a haircut:



Went to the flea market...bought a cute bike with a fantastic wicker basket for 42 bucks:


Went to Max's parents house to find that they had left for Indiana...stayed a while to hang with Max's brother for a bit...and came home to watch a BBC documentary hosted by the one and only Michio Kaku. I think there's a part two...we have to catch it!

And even though my weekend was pretty full, I still managed to cast on for my wedding shawl! I didn't get very far though:


Oh, and stitches is TOTALLY next weekend...which means it doesn't fall on a payday weekend...which means...well...you know what it means. I'll still go, but I probably won't buy much. One ("one," that's funny) thing that I want to be sure to find is needle felting supplies and fiber for needle felting with. I have a few ideas for some things to make for my etsy shoppe (I'll spell it that way for a while, OK? ^.^). I almost bought all the supplies I needed at RenFaire, but ultimately decided not to do it. Of course, in the car the first thing I said was "you know when I get home I'll be scouring the interwebs for the stuff I decided not to buy today." It's a sickness...I'm a hobby-aholic.