Finished CTH sock #1

For those of you who are not sock knitters, I've finished the first sock of a pair knitted in Cherry Tree Hill yarn. Who knows what I've done with the label. It's probably in the big bin of sock yarn. And here it is....

The lighting isn't what it should be, but the colors are very close to reality. This one was knitted toe up, and I used a variation of Wendy's Russian bind-off. I realized that I was knitting 2 together through the back loop, and I decided I liked the way it looked.

On to the sweater...It's knit in Galway Wool by Plymouth. It's a tweedy charcoal grey. The pattern calls for black, but I liked this a lot better. After all, one must enjoy what she's knitting. As you can see, I've almost finished with the first ball of yarn. You must also remember that one round has 238 stitches, so when I do 6 rounds, I've knit 1428 stitches. I worked on this for awhile last night, but finally put is aside to finish the sock. Sock # 2 is already started.

The fall sweater drive is still going on at work. I helped steer a woman away from the acrylic to the Silky Wool, which is a lovely blend of wool and silk. I recently purchased 7 balls of it myself for a raglan cardigan knit from the neck down. I think her husband will be happier with the pattern and the yarn I suggested instead of beige acrylic.

We collect community service knitting at the store. Since I've been there we've been working with first Chemochic and now Chemoflage. We knit and collect chemo caps for women. Of the many other charities out there is one called the Red Scarf Project. Scarves are knitted for young adults who are orphans. They are distributed at Valentine's Day. I've seen other bloggers who are involved with this, so I'm somewhat familiar with it. I've not participated before since most of my charity knitting last year was for Chemoflage ( I knitted 7 hats last year) or for the Atlanta Knitting Guild (I knitted some parts for the teddy bear sweaters.) I have in the past sent items to Afghans for Afghans also. This will be the first time I've been involved in the Red Scarf Project. I think it's a great thing to do - I just really dislike knitting scarves. They are soooo boring. I shall be spending some time looking for an interesting pattern so I don't mind knitting 5 feet of bulky yarn. I'll probably do a cable, a pattern I've not done before so I can learn something new. If you want to check out the charity, here's the link... Red Scarf Project

That's all the news. Ok, one more bit. Some of you know that I spend Saturday nights watching the Britcoms and knitting. (Both of these drive Keith crazy sometimes.) GPTV has changed the lineup once again and added something called Supernova. It's about Australian astrophysicists in the bush at the Royal Australian Observatory. It is hilarious, and quite honestly when I was in college I seriously thought about astronomy instead of biology as a major. That's why I love this man almost as much as I loved Carl Sagan.

Gotta go. The belt on the dryer broke yesterday, and there are halfway dried clothes in there. I've got to hang them on the drying rack outside before they get sour.

It's here!

September, that is. The days are getting shorter, and boy! People are buying wool in mass quantities again. I was all alone at work yesterday, my co-worker having to attend a funeral, and people are in sweater knitting mode again. I helped with the makin's of 4 sweaters yesterday. Sure, there were sockknitters too, but like I said, sweater knitters buy in mass quantities. You have to when making a sweater. (We won't talk about the 12 balls of Plymouth Galway for Keith's sweater or the 12 balls of Silk Garden languishing in the closet for me to make the sweater on the back of Cornelia's book from this past winter.)

Anyway, we've had rain almost every day this week and cooler temps. Thank goodness the dog days of August are over.

I've got to grab breakfast before heading to the wool mines. The Jojoland trunk show came yesterday. It has some luscious cashmere and a gorgeous lace shawl. Arlene is ordering the shawl pattern and perhaps more cashmere. The cashmere colors we have right now are either all pastels (yuck) or not-for-me jewel brights. I have lots of restocking to do also since 3 of the sweaters were sold after 4:00 p.m. yesterday.

Rain, rain

I can't begin to tell you how pleased I am. It is now our 4th or 5th day with temps below 90 F, and we've been having rain almost every afternoon. This is what summer in the south is supposed to be like. I remember the summer I went to Auburn to catch up on some classes since I changed my major, and it rained just about every afternoon around 3. Here the bottom drops out between 4:30 and 5, just in time for rush hour traffic. I'm not complaining. We have a rain deficit between 16 - 18 inches for the year. I would prefer not to make it all up with a hurricane or two since that leads to basement flooding.

I haven't had any desire to design much since I started knitting. I've been fine knitting other people's patterns and tweaking them some to make them more to my liking. That said, I had an idea for an intarsia and textured sweater this morning that I really want to make. No mentions of it here other than some of you may be asked to give opinions on some odd dishclothes over the next few months as I start to work on samples. Be prepared. I'll post things once I've finished, and since this is in the mere inkling stages, it will be awhile. And Beth, this won't have any skull motifs, but it still falls into the somewhat macabre category. For those of you who like Alice Cooper, I'll give you this hint. It was the subject of one of his songs. I hope that's no help!

Have a great evening. I'm off to make a tasty chicken salad for dinner.

Careless in Red

I know, it's cryptic. It's not meant to be. It's the title of the next book by Elizabeth George which I found on her site. This is what happens to Inspector Lynley and company after the tragic events of With No One As Witness.

Sure, it doesn't have the same sort of anticipation that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows had, but I really can't wait to read it.

Tonight I got to knit on the big sock. A woman in England has started this giant sock that is going to knitting groups all over in an attempt for entry into the Guiness Book of World Records. Honestly, I could care less, but when I asked Keith he said when else would I have a chance to do anything like this? So I knitted with very plasticky acrylic yarn on this very large circle for some time tonight. Woohoo. (and why does this make me think of Bender saying "Bite my shiny metal ass?")

In other news I'm yearning for a vacation. A real vacation where we go away for rest and relaxation, preferably with a spa on the premises. I could use a pedicure, massage and waxing. Of course this isn't going to happen anytime soon. We've discussed what to do with old kitties, specifically Brownie. She doesn't leave the kitchen. She sleeps, eats and potties. Mostly sleeps. Most importantly, she needs her medicine. Looking at her is just so sad. She's a furry skeleton who doesn't even groom herself anymore. She feels brittle when I pet her (which isn't much since she rarely moves out from under the curio cabinet where she sleeps 23.5 hours/day). And Pixel has taken to staying out all the time. She was out for a little less than 48 hours earlier this week. I think she's too old to be sleeping out all night. She still seems spry and quite vocal when it comes to demanding some of my half and half in the morning, but she also seems thinner. I think it's time to get her in to get her thryroid tested too. Let's see, medicating two ancient kitties daily will limit my possible vacation escapes even more. Even so, I dread the day when I have to load Brownie and Pixel into the cat carriers for that final trip to the vet. As long as they are both eating and not in pain, I'll put off vacation. There's always the Natural Body Day Spa. Maybe half a day there will seem like a vacation.

Keith's sweater is slowly coming along. That's one thing I love about socks is that you can see progress. Knitting on a sweater you don't always see the progress, especially a man size sweater. Thankfully he's slim and not carrying a beer gut.

Back to vacation. It's really too bad that Keith didn't qualify for the trip to Switzerland again. The Badrutt's Palace had a spa downstairs near the pool area. I did get a pedicure and massage while there. Now that was a vacation. All of this has me thinking about what to do next year for our 20th wedding anniversary. My little grey cells are furiously working. I just don't know if I can give up buying yarn long enough for the idea I've been tossing about. I have much research to do.

Countdown, part 2

Ah yes, the Autumnal Equinox. I've found the official date and time for fall to begin here in the northern hemisphere. September 23, 2007, at 5:51 a.m. EDT.

Since today is August 26, and if I'm adding correctly, that means we have 29 days (that's including today) until fall starts.

Friday and yesterday we had rain. Glorious rain, along with a LOT of lightning and rumbles of thunder. At least now the trees have had some relief from the unending heat and drought. I've been watching the leaves turn yellow and fall off to crunch underfoot. I don't expect much color this fall. I figure the leaves will just fall off unless we get more rain soon.

Anyway, enough rambles about the weather. It's just been on everyone's mind with the unbearable heat. Yes, August should be hot, but not like this.

I've made progress on Keith's sweater. I took it out again to add some ribbing to the bottom of it. It's slow going since there are 238 stitches in a round. I knitted for several hours last night, and I think I only did 4-5 rounds. There's not enough of it to look like anything, so I'll take pictures later this week.

I just received the newest issue of Health magazine on Friday, and it has the second article that I've seen since the doctor's visit that recommends 1 hour of cardio a day to lose weight. This article is based on NBC's the Biggest Loser. Now I have no interest in watching the show, but reading about how they did it can be useful. It's too bad that changing bad habits is not nearly as easy as acquiring them. And the things that are good for you aren't always as fun.

However, as the earth spins along in it's orbit, and the days get shorter, it's time for new beginnings. I've always felt September to be the time for starting new things. I'm sure this goes back to the school year beginning in September, but I think too that as the cool air starts to filter in I perk up after the oppressive heat of summer. The humidity levels drop as dryer air flows down from the arctic.

As for Brownie, she's still hanging in there. She actually went outside a few days ago. That was the first time she's left the kitchen in quite some time. Keith and I have joked about the oldies going out and baking their bones for awhile. Pixel has gone out today, and I don't expect her back in until maybe Tuesday, unless it rains a lot today. Then she'll have to come back in since all her hiding places will be too wet. Keith has wanted me to knit cat beds, but I think instead I'll go to the thrift store and buy some towels for the old girls. Towels are much easier to clean, especially if there are any accidents. Besides, I still have MS3, Keith's second sock, my toe up sock, Honi's present and Keith's sweater. I'm not adding another project to the list right now. Cat beds can wait a bit.

I've got to work today, so I'm off to do a few Sunday chores before I go.

This one's for you, Honi

Hi Honi,

I read your comments about the fawn, and how you wanted to stop and save it. You're probably right. The other car was probably going too fast to stop, even if the driver wanted to.

Our neighborhood has always had feral cats move through it. We have a creek and a floodplain just a few lots away. We have a huge abundance of squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits and probably woodrats. We have some resident hawks and owls that pass through. And how does this relate? Well, I've always been a softy who feeds the birds, squirrels and to a much lesser extent those feral cats. Last fall there were a couple of gorgeous orange ones living across the street. One of them is Momcat, who has been spayed & rabies vaccinated. As I headed off to work on one of the few very cold days we had this past winter, I saw one of the other orange cats dead in the road. I hate seeing roadkill, and I especially hate seeing them on my street. I went to work in a more subdued state of mind. Now remember, this was a very cold day. As I drove home that night, I saw the cat was still in the road, and luckily no one else had run over it. (You know how gross roadkill can get.) I stopped. Just what would I do? I had a box in the car, and I picked up the poor guy. He was frozen solid. It would have been like a cartoon except for the fact he was a very real, great looking, very dead cat. I took him home. When Keith got home, I told him what I had done. He said he had seen the cat also on his way out that morning, and hadn't wanted to tell me. He said he would bury him just as soon as the ground thawed out enough.

I've had to learn the hard way I can't save every animal that I would like to. Even if I won the lottery, there are too many out there that need help. However, if everyone made an effort, even a small one, we can make a difference. That may mean not going 20 miles over the speed limit in an area were there a deer. It may mean get your pet spayed or neutered. And donate to your local no-kill shelter. Even if it's only a small amount it will help.

Need some ideas? Check out Alley Cat Allies on the sidebar, and they can direct you to a local shelter in your area.

Crazy from the heat

Oh yes, we're all a bit wierd here right now. My lovely digital thermometer shows a high today of 103.1 F. No wonder we're all going nuts.

Pixel, Brownie's sister, is a very spry 18 years old. She went outside on Monday with apparently no intention of coming back into the house. I saw her briefly on Monday when she showed up for dinner, then disappeared again. She was outside at breakfast yesterday, then vanished until dinner. Now, to be honest, I have tried to catch her, but she is not a cooperative cat. She doesn't like to be held, and has clawed the heck out of me on more than one occasion. So this morning I fed her breakfast and left to go to work. However, this evening I had more time to fool with the cat. She also appeared while it was still daylight, a major factor in catching things. I gave her some kibble which it looks like she barely nibbled. What she wanted were treats. While plying her with kitty treats I was able to manuever between her and the van. I made the lightning fast snatch and had her. She's meowing and wriggling and trying to claw me while I'm trying to hold her fast and grab her back feet before I'm horribly wounded. (I currently have some long claw marks that I think may scar on my right forearm. One is about 3" long). She's inside again now, but only until she escapes over the weekend. I asked Keith if he thought maybe the house is too cold for her old bones. At an average of 78 F it doesn't ever feel cold to me, but to a cat who has been basking in over 100 degree temps for the past 3 days, maybe that is cold.

Next is my knitting error. I'm having to fiddle around with the pattern for the sweater for Keith. Last night I cast on 238 stitches, joined and started knitting the pattern for 4 rows. Yeah! The count is correct. However, I totally forgot to do the rows of ribbing I had planned to do at the bottom! Let's see. 4 rows X 238 stitches = 952 stitches that I get to undo. I plan to put another needle around the bottom row and rip back to the cast on. I am not pleased about this. I wonder if my brain hadn't been roasting all day for the past several weeks if I would have remembered to do my edge ribbing.

One of our customers mentioned that her son lives in Pennsylvania. He said their temp was 47 degrees the other night and it was raining. That sounds like bliss right now. I could wear a sweater. Heck, at 47 degrees I'd be tempted to sleep with the window open. It's been so bloody hot here!

That's really about all. I wanted to vent about the heat and the sweater, and just think about Pixel on virtual paper. I do know that sometimes pets go off when it's time to die, but since Pixel is showing up for meals I don't think that's the issue. One of the younger, more active kitties has been feeling cabin feverish and wild, so maybe there's just been too much goin's on for Pixel.

Hurry up autumn! The days are getting shorter! Drop our temps soon!