Restless Knitter

Even though we don’t plan on moving for quite awhile, I’ve been thinking about it a lot. We know that if are going to have any chance at eating, we’ll have to get a smaller house. I have mixed feelings about this. Really, the house we’re in is too big for us but I love having all the hiding space for crap. There are several rooms that I consider spare rooms. I have crap in all but one of them, the “formal” dining room which sits totally empty. Why do we have all this crap? Because I’m a part-time packrat. Some things I’ll toss without a second thought, others I hold onto because I might need it someday. Like, those 5 1/4 floppy disks that have programs on them. Good grief, can you even buy a 5 1/4 floppy drive anymore? We probably have over a hundred 3.5″ disks too. I have somewhere around 120 music boxes because once upon a time, I collected them. Then there are boxes that have barely been opened since we moved here 4 years ago. Anyway, you get the idea. We have a lot of crap. So while I know we have to downsize to a smaller house and I’ll miss all this space, I’m somewhat relieved because it forces me to get rid of some of this useless stuff and I won’t have any empty rooms. I’ve been going through things a little at a time. I started with *gasp* yarn. Tossed it right into the garbage bin. Okay, it was one of those plastic grocery bags so there wasn’t much, but still, the horror of throwing away yarn. I went through some clothes and came out with some that I haven’t worn in years. One bag goes to Goodwill or some such place, another hits the garbage, another is old jeans that aren’t good enough for giving away but my daughter will cut up to make another jean quilt. But there’s also stuff that I can’t bring myself to toss. Most of them are things that belonged to the girls when they were little. Report cards, drawings, awards, favorite blankies and stuffed animals. Just can’t do it. Then there are things that are in fine shape but I don’t know what to do with. Dolls still in their original boxes, beach toys, a couple pairs of rollerblades, computer parts, etc etc. I hate organizing for yard sales but I may have to suck it up and do it anyway.

As for knitting, well there hasn’t been much. I did give the half circle shawl another shot, but I didn’t like it either so the yarn is in time out until I can figure out something else. I have un-startitis. It’s irritating, really. There are so many things that I want to make but I don’t want to start anything that I might not finish. And with my track record of actually finishing things, there’s a huge possibility that something isn’t going to get completed. I don’t even want to start a washcloth. Bleh. Maybe if I had different yarn….

The Man is out of town so no huge plans for the long weekend, other than staying in my jammies alot. I might go yarn shopping (not in my jammies) and see if that cures my un-startitis.

I don’t really have anything exciting to show, but I’ll post what I have anyway. I’m on a very big lace kick. That’s all I want to do. When I saw this pattern, I knew I had to have it.

I don’t know if I will ever actually knit it, but the pattern simply fascinates me so I bought it.

I’m still working on the Mystery Stole 2. If you can picture a purple blob, then you’ve just pictured what the stole looks like. I’ve seen pictures of ones that are finished. It’s pretty, but I don’t feel as motivated to finish it now. Instead I’ve been itching to use the CTH Merino Lace yarn I bought a bit ago. I love the way it looks wound up, almost like there’s an argyle design in there. You may have to squint your eyes to see it, it’s much more obvious in person.

A loong time ago, I made a half circle shawl out of some yarn that’s close to the same color. It’s a simple garter stitch shawl with sections made from short rows. I wanted the shawl a little larger than what it was supposed to be so I added stitches. After I blocked it, it was HUGE. I thought it would be like everything else I’ve made, stuck in a closet hardly seeing the light of day. I was wrong. Out of all the things I’ve actually finished, I think I’ve used that shawl the most. I now love how huge it is. It has a hole in it (caught it on a nail in the door) that I need to fix. Instead, I’ve been pouring through stitch treasuries planning a new one. While the garter stitch is easy and mindless, I want something a little different for my new one. Again, it will be a half circle. Triangle shawls don’t cover my arms like the half circle does, and I don’t want a round or square one that the pattern gets lost when it gets folded over. And this yarn didn’t want to be a Faroese shawl so to the drawing board I went.

This is the first stitch pattern I tried. It seemed too hole-y so I ripped it out.

This is the second attempt.

It’s funny. When I looked at these in person, they looked different than they do in pictures. I thought I liked the second one, but after seeing it in a picture, now I’m not so sure. I think it’s the yarnovers that separate the sections that I don’t like. When I was charting this out, some of the pattern yarnovers fell where the increase yarnovers needed to be and I thought that was a good thing. Somehow I thought it would make it flow better. Now, I think it does more distorting than it does flowing. I’m going to knit a couple more inches and if I still feel the same way, I’ll start over with different increases. For now, I’m enjoying the challenge of figuring out what works and doesn’t. But who knows, I may end up with another garter stitch short row half circle shawl.

I said I’d have pictures today, but I didn’t say they would all be knitting. The other night I was out watering my flowers and happened to see this little feller

The next day, I saw him again

Or maybe it’s a she. Whatever it was, it was a small one. We grow ‘em bigger than that in Small Town. When I was just a young thing, we’d play with them. They came to school with us in a jar for show and tell. Unless the boy on the bus took the lid off the jar so he could hold it, then they just got a free bus ride and heard a lot of screaming from the wimpy kids, and then the bus driver. What, you didn’t play with bugs when you were little?

Here’s a better detail shot of the Cat’s Cradle scarf.

When I have this around my neck, it reaches the top of my knees so I didn’t take a picture of the full thing. For one, you wouldn’t see the detail and for another, I still haven’t cut the tails off and I don’t want you all to know just how much I procrastinate. All it would take is 2 snips of the scissors, but have I clipped them yet? No. Anyhoo, if I were to do this again, and I think I will eventually, there are a few changes I’d make. I’d make it shorter, and I’d use laceweight yarn. The sock yarn is nice, but it doesn’t show off the stitches like it should.

The most recently completed project is a Garterlac washcloth.

I’ve never done anything in entrelac, which I know isn’t usually all garter stitch, and this looked like a good piece to learn on so off I went.
Pattern is here
Needle: US 7
Yarn: Sugar ‘n Cream
Color: Cherry Swirl
Started and finished: Aug 15, 06

Bella thinks we can’t see her when she lays down in this stuff.

And last, but certainly not least… I didn’t know I’d become obsessed with Chibis. I started out with the creamy colored one that had the blue/green top and point. I was so jealous when I found out that there had previously been a cream and pink one. There was no way I was going to pay $50 for one on Ebay so I knew I’d have to live without a pretty chibi. Then there came a clear blue one. I think I tossed the cream and green/blue one because I can’t find it now. And then, then they came out with an orange one. Orange is so not one of my colors but suddenly I felt myself craving the orange Chibi. Because, you know, what if they stop making it and then I’ve lost out?! Not long after that, La starts bragging about her green one. I check the stores around here and they’re still in the orange phase. Poo. No matter though, because lookie! La sent me a green one! Thanks La!

For all the complaining I do, I really do have a positive outlook on life. I was thinking today about how much I’ve been complaining lately. I have to admit that I’m a little ashamed. The things I have been complaining about have been piddly little things. Things that don’t really matter in the grand scheme of things. Things that are just minor nuisances in my little world. I have so much more to be thankful for than I have to complain about, but yet what comes out of my mouth is the moaning. So, in trying to speak the positive instead of the negative, today gives you what I’m thankful for.

I’m thankful for:

• my health, and the health of my husband and children
• my husband. He’s the best. You all think you have the best, but I know that mine is really the best.
• my pets. When one of the cats lays beside me and purrs, it’s so relaxing. Unfortunately, The Man is allergic to the kitties so he doesn’t get to experience this. The dog gives me great joy. I can’t begin to explain in one sentence how much fun she is. Someday I’m going to make a video of how she acts when we mention going for a w-a-l-k.
• a roof over my head, no explanation needed there.
• a refrigerator stocked with more than cheese, bologna, and bread. There’s nothing wrong with those things, but when that was all that could be afforded, it kind of sucked. Wish I’d known about Ramen noodles back then, would have added some variety to those sandwiches.
• my stash of yarn. Had to get that in there somewhere. Even though I do have a lot of stuff I no longer have an interest in, I’m thankful that I do have it in case I change my mind.
• friends. Okay, so no really close friends but I do know a few people that I can get along with.
• blog friends. You all get a line of your own. I’ve “met” so many people thru blogs and forums that I feel like I know some of you better than I know non-blog friends. Wish I could meet all of you
• things like blue skies, green grass, colorful flowers. That may sound silly but sometimes I look around and just look at the beauty of nature that most people take for granted. I guess I’m thankful that I notice those things.

Now there are some things that I’m not thankful for, like my inability to control my mouth at times. I don’t think I mentioned it on the blog but when we were at the dinner with the corporate dudes and their wives… I called the drunk chick sitting behind me that kept banging into my chair a bitch. Yes, right there in front of everyone I said the word bitch when I was supposed to be playing nice. I am so not thankful for that one. I’m not thankful that I hold grudges, or that sometimes I complain just a little too much. Others have much worse problems than I do and I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that I do that much complaining when I have it so good. I’m not saying I have to be totally sweet all the time (because for one thing, even I know that’s an impossible task for me) but maybe I should be a little more positive with a little less bitching. So if you catch me going on a long bitching streak, smack me around a little and wake me up.

Tomorrow, there will be actual pictures on this here blog.  Stay tuned.