If these be showers

then I don't want to see your thunderstorms. It was pouring this morning when I got up. Showers were predicted. That was a bit of an understatement. But now, four hours later, the sun is shining and the clouds seems to be moving away. Although there were warnings that there'd most likely be more rain later today and into tomorrow.

I finished the Iceland Scarf last night. It's a little wider than I thought it would be but it's certainly going to keep someone warm. Lisa was taken with it when she saw it last Saturday so it'll probably be hers.

Now that the sun is out I'm going to be going to Studio City to work with my private student. We had agreed that if it was raining I would skip this week. I haven't heard from him so I guess he's expecting me. Once that's done I'll come home and work some on my Dulaan sweater. Haven't touched that in months. I have some new yarn that I got last Saturday but I really need to get caught up first. Like that's going to happen.

Who needs the Oscars?

My cat is enough entertainment. Patrick never gets up on tables. At least he didn't until now. I don't know what possessed him to climb up here and sit in the very middle of the current jigsaw puzzle. He seemed quite pleased with himself though. And he hasn't tried to get up there again. Unless it's while I'm not here.

I don't watch the Oscars. I almost never go to movies nor do I follow what is going on with all the hype and gossip about the so-called stars. So I don't much care who wins or loses.

Instead I started a new Kureyon Zigzag scarf. One of the ladies I work with at Stitch in Time saw Mendy's Zigzag scarf last week and asked me to show her how to do it. I'm not sure Kureyon is the best yarn for this project. The color changes are a bit too long so you don't get the full zigzag impact. But it's what I have on hand and will the fine for now.

Quick shift

After doing all those hats (I finished another one on Wednesday night) and struggling with the tinyness of stitches on dpns, while trying to look alert, I succumbed to the impulse to start something else.

The problem, if you want to call it that, was that I didn't have anything with me that I could switch to. Happily I was on my way to Unraveled where I knew there'd be lots of things from which to choose. They have a bunch of needles on sale. That's good since I haven't been able to find my US13s. Got some Britanny for about $7.00. Then found some yarn with an appropriate gauge. Not, unfortunately, on sale.

It was raining and cold so I thought another scarf would come in handy. And there it is. Worked this bit up last night at knitting group. A 9 stitch braid cable centered between two opposing 4 stitch rope cables. And a little ribbing to fill it out a bit. I'd have more done except we were also celebrating a birthday so we had to stop for cake. (Good, but not chocolate.)

A little more filler

Yesterday's gig with the new knitter went well. At least after I found the correct gate to enter. I don't feel entirely dumb. The gates don't really match the houses that they're in front of. I had to drive back down the hill to find a pay phone since I don't have a cell phone. I called the guy and he cleared up the mystery.

I never know what a new knitter's expectations are. Many times I think they're envisioning a sweater or something large scale. I think that might have been what this guy was planning. Until he got the needles in his hands and started his first knit row. Before it was all over he was talking about just practicing the knit stitch for the balance of the week. We'll take up the purl stitch next week. Once in a while I get a student who can move quickly through the basics but just getting the knit stitch is where most of them get by the end of the first hour.

I knit another hat for Dulaan last night so I'm averaging one a day. I have to switch for the next couple of days though in order to knit something for someone's birthday gift. Unless I find a good alternative before then.

I have a couple of friends who are going to Stitches West. I'm only moderately envious. I'd like to take some classes but we all know that I'm not buying any more yarn. So what's the point in going?

Filler

A couple of days ago it was 90F here. Today it might get up to 65. Very erratic weather this winter. When I leave for my morning walk I'm usually wearing a hat, a scarf, gloves and a heavy coat. By the time I get back I'm usually carrying at least part of it. I've been trying to go out a bit later so I don't have to wrap up quite so much. But today I don't have time to wait.

I'm giving a private knitting lesson today. I have to leave Pasadena by 10 in order to get to the guy's house by 11. Somewhere on Mulholland Drive. I haven't been to that part of town for over twenty years. Way before it became the chic address it is now. It could be interesting. I forgot to buy the supplies he will need so I have to stop at Skein on the way to pick up needles and yarn.

Yesterday was one of the busiest Mondays I've had since I started at Stitch in Time. Several people came in that had the holiday off. Hooray for holidays on Monday! So I didn't do much personal knitting, maybe two rounds on some socks. And then in the evening I had a call from my older brother. That's always good for an hour or so. And another call from a Chinese friend I haven't talked with for more than two years. That was another hour. So very little knitting yesterday. I did finish another hat for Dulaan. It's drying right now. You don't really need another picture of another Dulaan do you?

The rest of this week will be pretty busy. I'm working on Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, covering for the other knitting instructor who's going to Stitches West. So, if you're close enough and want a lesson or just want to come and visit I'll be at Stitch in Time from one to five in addition to my ten to five on Friday.

I also have three knitting nights this week and a yarn shop hop on Saturday. I am home tomorrow evening, at least for now.

Hats Aplenty

There are lots more hats in the works. These are the ones I completed this weekend. I didn't get much else done though. Some yarn sorting. I found more sock yarn, enough to fill one of the new storage boxes that I got for my birthday. And a lot of Tahki Cotton Classic that's already wound into center pull cakes. I don't remember doing that or what I was going to do with all that cotton. I know I have enough other Cotton Classic that I can combine with this and make one of the Mason-Dixon Log Cabin Blankets.

So today's a holiday. For most people anyway. Unless you're in retail. A Stitch in Time is open today. I'm hoping that some of the people I don't usually get to see will come in and say hello. But it's also raining today. That's another cause for celebrating. Our rainfall this year is way below normal so rain, even on a holiday, is a welcome change.

End of the day

So, the Cloud Hat is finished and I'm just about ready to start the top shaping on this Canadian Hat. My camera just doesn't do red. Not that this is a bad colorway; it's just not anywhere near accurate.

I've made several of these hats over the past few years. The pattern is from Sally Melville's The Purl Stitch and can easily be made for children or adults with a change in needle and yarn size. No change to the instructions. I'm using a Zitron yarn called Loft. I've forgotten where I got it. Maybe it's from Handmade in Burbank. The price sticker looks kind of like theirs.

I'm using a needle four sizes smaller than the suggested size. I made a hat from this yarn last year and it was fine for Southern California but no where dense enough for the Mongolian climate. I expect to finish this tomorrow or over the weekend.

So what else did I do today? Stood in line for half an hour at the Kaiser Pharmacy to pick up my gluscose test strips. Went to meet some friends at Unraveled for an hour or so. And went to my Thursday night knitting group. Now it's time to play with the cat. He sleeps all day and is ready for some string chasing usually around eleven o'clock.

Happy Valentine's Day

to those who observe it. And for the rest of us, better luck next year. Actually I did get a sweet card from Lisa. It has been a nice day though. Had a chance to catch up some on my sleep and managed to get my laundry done a day earlier than expected. So tomorrow will be an open day for me.

Here's my latest completed Dulaan hat. I used some Calmer (Rowan) and some Paris Rainbow (Plymouth) that I had in stash. The yarns are both cotton but there's enough synthetic and it's a very tight knit that I think it will still be a warm hat.

And I've started another one. This is the celebrated Cloud Hat from Ryan's pattern list. This one uses one strand of Plymouth Encore and one strand of a very fuzzy mohair that I recycled from a less than successful shrug I knit a few years ago. I should be able to finish this tonight. Especially since I have no Valentine's committments or opportunities.

Thanks

Thanks for all the good wishes on my recent birthday. I'm doing my best to respond to everyone individually but there's a slight problem. Blogger's Comments doesn't work the same way as my YACCS comments did so I don't always get an email address. But I do appreciate each and every one.

It has been a terrific event. And it still continues with a few more dinner invitations and the promise of more to come. It's a balancing act to keep my glucose levels anywhere near what the doctor wants given how far away from my diet regimen I've been. Not complaining, just commenting. And walking as much as I can stand.

No new knitting to report. I did finish the first of the mock rib socks and have done the ribbing and one pattern repeat of the second. I meant to do more last night but everytime I sat down to knit I went to sleep. So I gave it up and went to bed. A whole eight hours worth.

Today is Dulaan knitting. I'll work on a hat or two and maybe another square for the afghan we're putting together. We weren't going to get together this week since Mendy is out of town but one of the other members of the group volunteered to host so there should be at least a few of us.

BDFO

I finished the Goal Color socks while I was waiting for Lisa to come over to celebrate my birthday. The yarn has been very popular with people who've seen the socks in progress. This is the sock yarn that I discovered I had purchased three times. So I have plenty in case I want to make another pair. It's Regia #5399 in case you're looking for some.





So, after I finished that I pair, I picked up this sock that I had abandoned a couple of months ago because I had lost the second ball. I found the missing skein a couple of weeks ago. It's amazing what you find when you clear off the dining table. I've just begun the toe shaping. Should get that done today and get the second sock started.

I found another abandoned sock. I think it's a couple of years old. No picture yet. I've just ripped a few rows and picked up the messed up dropped stitches. I'll have to check the pattern before I continue. I think I remember but I've learned, the hard wy, that I need to check first.

Happy Birthday to me, almost

So that's what 68 looks like. I always wondered. I would swear I'm closer to 50. Well, except for the aches and pains, the wobbly memory and the row of pills I take everyday.

The Thursday night group turned out in almost full force tonight to celebrate my birthday. I hadn't actually thought much about it until I got to Mendy's. I should have been tipped off when the owner of Unraveled wished me a happy birthday. Turns out two people had purchased gift certificates there for me. In addition to the gift certificates I received four bottles of wine, a gift certificate to Trader Joe's (and a dinner with margaritas), lunch tomorrow and a new Walkman and a portable CD player. Plus some great cards.

When Mendy purchased the Walkman the salesperson tried to get her to get an IPOD. She explained that I would never download music. "He's a very 20th century person." I suppose that's true. I'm not really into media. Rarely watch TV. I don't usually know what people are talking about when they get onto the subject of any of the popular TV programs. Almost never go to movies. I listen to classical music, I knit and I spend time with friends. It's more than enough.

Sorting yarn, sorta

If I never buy any more sock yarn it will be too soon. I spent part of yesterday going through all the cubicles in my living room, pulling out sock yarn. Some of it is is already in balls, ready to work. Others, like what's on the second shelf, mostly still needs to be wound into cakes. This doesn't include the three plastic bins that are in another room. I took a picture of them but I haven't yet figured out how to post more than one photo on new Blogger. I thought I had it figured out but I was wrong.

So I decided it would be a good time to change my blog template. What do you think?

It's back to more sorting of yarn, all kinds. I think I'll focus on getting all the novelty yarns separated. I'm also editing. Anything that I can tell I'll never use is going into plastic bags to be used for Dulaan projects or donated. I discovered yesterday that I had bought the same sock yarn at least three times.

Joey's Natural Color Farm Yarn. American grown wool, made in USA by Farmhouse Yarns, LLC. I got it at Unraveled a couple of weeks ago. I'm sort of in to tweed yarns this year and am really tickled with this one. It's a bit rough in the hand but it's already a little softer just from being wound. I got two hanks. Enough for a decently sized scarf. I still have to decide which pattern I'll use. Probably something with a cable or two.

I did knit a hat last night for Dulaan. No picture because I didn't remember my camera. But it's just a stocking cap, some beige Jo Sharp cashmere blend and some blue stripes to make sure I had enough of the cashmere to finish the hat. I had maybe a yard left over. We're not going to meet next week but I'll try to do my weekly Dulaan from home.

I took some pictures of the yarn I bought on Sunday but I'm still not sure how to post more than one photo. And they were pretty blurry. I'm sure you've all seen Cascade anyway.

Still having problems using the new Blogger. I'm over here on Mozilla right now and I can at least log in. I don't understand what the problem is but apparently it's something to do with my browser. Blogger suggested that I try using Mozilla. I don't have time right now to set everything up on Mozilla (email, bookmarks etc.) but I'll spend some time tomorrow and see what I can do.

Very little knitting since yesterday. Tonight is for Dulaan knitting so there'll be something. Another hat most likely.

What was that!? All weekend long, and on Friday too, I've been trying to log in to Blogger. I wrote and got no actual reply. But, here, just because I decided to try one more time, all without warning, I'm getting to actually post. Because I couldn't access my blog for the past three days I still haven't played with any of the new toys and I don't have time this morning. But maybe I'll be able to over the next few days. Hope I don't break it.

One of the first things I'll need to figure out is how to move photos to where I want them. Like the photo above. I have finished that sock since I took the photo. Finished it last night after sort of watching the Super Bowl. (I say sort of because my TV doesn't get decent reception so really I was just listening to the play-by-play.) But, about the sock. It's some Regia sock yarn in a color called Goal Color. Don't know what that means but the sock is nice. I used my new Crystal Palace (2.5mm, 1.5 US) and made them very dense. The pattern is just K6, P2. Enough to keep things from getting too boring but now too demanding. I started the second sock last night and will be working on it today at Stitch in Time.

Judy and I went to the anti-Super Bowl sale at Unwind. There was a long line of people already waiting when we got there. We got our extra 10% discount tickets for being there before opening and were able to get into the back room where all the 50% off stuff was. The line to get in there was tremendous by the time we got back on the main salesfloor. I haven't taken any photos yet but maybe I'll have some tomorrow. I should have been better prepared. I wasn't planning on buying anything. But I did. Now I have to figure out what and why.

It was fun to see so many people that I know from other shops. It was too crowded to spend much time chatting though. I keep thinking about that Karabella Breeze I bought and wondering what to do with it.