More on the Badgerlicious Sock

So you can't see Mister Badger (Señor Hufflepuff) yet, but you can see progress.


















And beyond the progress (I'm going to do these on two circs, so I'm starting both on dpns, then I'll switch) I've finished the designs. I think I'm going to have to increase the guage on these though, as the stitches per inch are more than I thought. But aside from that, here are my plans.


k4, p2 rib across the instep.
When I turn the heel, I'll put the badger on the heel flap.










The leg I'll use the houndstooth pattern for, I think, keeping the k4, p2, putting the houndstooth pattern in the k4.











Then, I MIGHT break the houndstooth and put Hufflepuff on the cuff, starting at the back. It should fit...still not sure. Might be too busy...






Then I'll do more of the k4, p2 ribbing around the cuff. Maybe in black...I'm not sure. More to come on that one.

Right before working on the Badger sock, I finished a pair of the Horcrux Socks for The Six_Sox_Knit_A_Long. It uses a dutch heel, which I think was too narrow on this particular pattern. There are 60 stitches total, the heel used 30 and went down to 8 at the turn.

That's all well and good, but I found myself having a hard time "seeing" the heel structure before I actually did it...which makes planning a heel (as I'm doing with the Hufflepuff sock) a little harder.
http://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif
So...for my own record-keeping and without further ado, I give you—a Dutch Heel turn.

Here's the start of the heel flap. Normally I don't knit top down. Normally I don't move stitches to waste yarn. Something in me said "do it...it's a new heel...you'll be happier".

I was.

















Inside the heel flap (I didn't do slip stitches).





And outside the heel flap.












Then we start the bitchen' heel turn. My sister was sitting next to me when I did this and I told her how even the Yarn Harlot gets all jazzed about how cool it is to turn a heel.

Here's pics of the beginning.

Again, for newbies, you just do knit and purl rows, adding a K2tog or a p2tog at the end of each row, connecting the middle of the heel (this one is 8 stitches across) with the edges of the heel flap, in effect, wrapping the heel flap around the unsuspecting heel. Enfolding it ina casing of yarn love.

Yeah, yeah...here's what it looks like, in two steps.

First


Then

Psych!

So...here I am at 5:53am. I'm exhausted, Andrew's leaving today, I loathe this...yet...the birds are singing, the trees are lovely, the pool is still as glass...if only it weren't for the dreams.

HAMLET
O God, I could be bounded in a nut shell and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams.

GUILDENSTERN
Which dreams indeed are ambition, for the very substance of the ambitious is merely the shadow of a dream.

HAMLET
A dream itself is but a shadow.

ROSENCRANTZ
Truly, and I hold ambition of so airy and light a quality that it is but a shadow's shadow.

HAMLET
Then are our beggars bodies, and our monarchs and outstretched heroes the beggars' shadows.

I know nothing of ambition, but I had many many bad dreams last night--and knowing they're shadows doesn't help...in fact, it kinda makes it worse... They're the kind of dreams that make me not want to be alone in the house with the kids when Andrew's gone. Those horrible 'almost us, almost here' alternate reality dreams that relentlessly roll by, changing into something worse and worse, that make you panic in the middle of the night. Maybe I'll ask Mom if she'd mind spending the night tonight...

On the up side, I got sick of working on the hoodie last night and cast on for the Hufflepuff sock. If I can ever figure out how to manipulate the chart I made into a jpg I'll post it here. For now, though, this is the beginning of the pattern (I'll post it all at once and neatly when I'm done, using this incredible site to generate charts for my fun patterns).

Cast on in contrasting toe color using the awesome Knitty Cast-on for toe-up socks. After a number of socks I've found that I like to have at least 7-8 stitches on each needle (14-16 per side of the cast on, 28-32 sts total). Less makes for too pointy a toe, and I'm not sure what my secret pal's feet look like, so I thought I'd rely on the socks to stretch into pointy-ness if necessary. I was rather limited in sock yarn choice, though (bright yellow was easy to find, but a matching weight in black was a little tough this time of year), so my toe is less stretchy than I'd like...at least it is now.

I'll alternate knit-only rounds with
Needle 1: k2, right increase, knit across
Needle 2: knit across until there are two sts left, left increase, k 2
Needles 3-4: repeat 1 and 2

Continue increasing until 60 sts are reached. The sock will be knit in a continuous patterned ribbed stitch, so unless the foot is huge, 60 sts should be fine.

Enough for now. I have to get my son's schoolwork ready.

Oh!
And look. Here he is! Ridiculously early for him. We'll both need naps today.

Tomorrow we demonstrate spinning (and he'll be doing...stuff) at the Pima County Fair! We'll need our beauty sleep tomorrow...maybe I should call mom.

Another Attempt

To lose weight.
Scroll to very bottom of blog page...

Socks and Shirts

I promised pics.
I now have them.
; )

These are my Six Sox KAL Sprintime in Paris Socks.














One of my Horcrux Socks
















And my Craftlit T-Shirt= WWMDfK? (What Would Madame Defarge Knit?)

Pain: Two Kinds

First: Oral Surgery. Ouch.
Drugs—Niiiiiice.

But enough of that.

My mind is with Virginia now, not in some sappy "I feel your pain" way, but more like, "the horror...the horror..."

Having lived through my little corner of 9/11 and the aftermath, I can honestly say how sorry I am that these kids will forever measure their days by this moment. This blip on an otherwise lovely life. This is their own little corner of hell, and many, too many of them are going to wrestle with survivor's guilt and "what if" and "if only" and there's a huge part of me that wishes I could take that away from them.

Then there's Keith Olberman...

Last night Olberman talked about the disconnect between mourning the kids who died at VT and (the lack of mourning for) the kids who died in the last ten days in Iraq and he made me think...

There are too many of us who think, "well, the kids in Iraq knew what they were signing up for. They KNEW they might die...I mean, they're in the Millitary fer chrissake."

But that isn't true. I mean, they know they're WILLING to die for their country. But I cannot believe any of them signed up TO die. Nor did they sign up for this war. Rememeber what we of the hubris said back in the '90s?

The next war will be all buttons.

There won't be another war.

You should join the military! You'll get some discipline and some good training and think of what you can do with all that experience.

I think we're jaded these days in some really ugly ways.

Jaded and mean.

And I'm including myself in there. I've gone there too.

WWMDfK?

Makes me sick...

And So It Goes...

Rest in Peace, Kurt Vonnegut.
I miss you already.

Sorting-hat.com says you're in Ravenclaw!

Sorting-hat.com says you're in Ravenclaw! For the Harry Potter Sock Swap!



I'm a Ravenclaw! My first swap ever!

Oooh! And look

Sort Me!

A DIFFERENT sorting hat said Ravenclaw!

A third said I was tied Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff (at least I'm not in Slytherin!)

---

And my questionnaire:

Hogwarts Sock Swap Questionnaire

1. What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?

Lo, unto me has been given the honor of the house of Ravenclaw. (Thank God it's not Slytherin...)

2. Shoe size?

My shoe could kick a Basilisk's butt--it's a 10 women's.

3. Foot Length?

A sprightly 10 inches (that's not always true, is it?--size same as length)

4. Foot Circumference?

REDONE MEASUREMENT: A svelte (for a size 10) 9.25".

5. List your three favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length.

a. I am a sucker for Lantern Moon anything, and I'm a sock knitter, so anything size 2 or smaller.
b. Inox, 8", steel, size 000 (not only killer for fine sock yarn, but killer needles in general!)
c. size 0, 00, 000 any brand circs longer than 20" (I know, they're not DPNs, but I often do two socks at once...)

6. Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length?

I am always up for adventure (as anyone from Ravenclaw should be) and therefore, I'm thrilled with a surprise...or challenge...or...anything. I've been good in DAtheDAs.
; )

7. If you are a RAVENCLAW, do you prefer the colors in the film or the book? Do you have a strong preference?

Blue/Bronze (book) and Blue/Silver (films) are both lovely. No preference at all. Just...you know...no woosie powder blue...I'm in Ravenclaw for goodness sake! What would Rowena say???

8. Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?

Heck yeah! Bring it on!

And evidently my HP name is:

Everyone see here,
Heather Anne Hutchinson Ordover done it! Splendid!

You have succesfully transfigurated yourself into
Lavender Caerphilly

According to the Random HP Name Generator!

In Love with a cell cozy

Untitled Page

O how I love thee, Ron Weasley (and Molly too!)

La Disneylandia

While my ambivalence to all things Feature Animation is legendary by now (at least to me) my love of Disneyland is hard to crush. I got to spend the weekend there with my sons and had the lovliest of times. We were there for two days in a row (a first for me) so we were able to take our time, relax, poke around...lovely. My DH was dear enough to let me go back solo at night to go on a fast ride.

I tried to get onto Space Mountain to see what they'd changed. It said there was a 75 minute wait, but all the waits had been much faster than posted that day so I didn't dispair.

Rennovations notwithstanding, Space Mountain lived up to my childhood recollection of it--after 15 minutes in line, it broke.

I left.

But not before proving that I was there:




So...no Space Mountain (I'm just not that devoted to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers) so instead I walked on to the Matterhorn (okay, five minutes)...enough of a line to get this:






Lordy.
Nice manicure though, don'tcha think? They're my Bismarck nails. It's important. Trust me. And the second pic is a little blurry b/c I had to do a night shot, while not blocking riders getting off, while not slowing the line down too much (I didn't really want to hear "crazy knitter" spat at me), yada yada yada. It all equals "blurry picture".

The other piece of the weekend that I found deeply amusing, Ted and Terry have outdone themselves...or given La Disney a reason to outdo its...self? Johnny Depp/Cap'n Jack Sparrow is ALL OVER Pirates of the Carribean. Did I say "all over"--what I really meant is that the film has more or less consumed the entire ride. Not that it's a bad thing...it's not like they inserted him into the jail cell bit, but the pirate on the boat that's bombarding the fort looks and sounds more like Barbosa AND IS ASKING FOR SPARROW. Johnny's likeness him...its...self shows up three times. Very clever (not a bad likeness if you want to know...) and very very good for Ted and Terry. May they make millions more. They deserve it. Great guys. Great writers. They don't need me to tell them that.

What I like about Bismarck

Even in the winter, you can tell how pretty it is.

The people in the Midwest--even when they're mad at you--are wonderful.

There's a firm belief in automatic/motion sensor...everything...soap dispensers, handtowel dispensers...the list grows.

Bismarck Teachers ROCK!

The guys at the Raddison in downtown Bismarck SO make up for the Raddison dopes in Denver that it's almost not worth mentioning...almost.

Key Concepts and Inside Jokes:
"He was a HOT pilot...maybe he's staying here!"

"...They had CANS of whipped CREAM! Seriously! What were they thinking?"

"...And there was a COW!"

Bismarck, ND

First impressions:

WOW! Everyone's really REALLY nice!

WOW! It's not as flat as I thought...um...yes it is...no it's not.

WOW! It's WAY smaller than I thought and WAY more industrial!

WOW! The steak is really really good!

So, I got in on the same flight as my NYC compatriots--though we didn't figure that out until baggage claim--and rode the little Radisson shuttle in (piloted by Mike).

Checking in was like checking into a ghost town. Dunno if it was a Sunday or if the Radisson is in danger of going under, but...

They have all the pilots stay here, so I GUESS they're okay.

The other thing that's amazing is...they have Sleep Number Beds. Go figure! I'm in HEAVEN.

We had a lovely dinner where we were able to go over our presentation for tomorrow over dinner and wine (God Bless the interpretation of their Blue Laws) and shared dessert. It was a great time...and it's been a long time since I've had a work experience like this. A nice visit to the old days. And very, very good to see Rebecca who is our Professional Development Guru. She's (to quote Vera) a Rock Star.

So, unless disaster strikes, tomorrow should be fine. (I won't let myself get more effusive than that.)

Ah! I can hear the train rumbling by...

ND is a different world. Literally, the tundra was outside our plane windows. I had no idea...

I'm nearly finished with my Six Sox KAL sock (Springtime in Paris sock) which is a very nice place to be. Almost done with the gusset! Whoo hooo!

6:30am breakfast with Rebecca so I'm very very in need of sleep.

Until the morrow...

Never too late for a resolution

So, here's my not-so-New Year's Resolution: I'm going to blog more.

Already in Arizona life is as hectic as it ever was in NY. I'm a homeschooling parent now (though luckily with my husband often working from home with me, we're able to share the burden), my kids are each struggling with their own issues, my parents are still overworked, my sister's off finishing the research for her PhD...and it's clear that's never going to end.

So fine.

I'll blog.

I'll carve out the time.

Like now...now I'm in the Minneapolis/St Paul Airport at the Northwest Airlines World Club ($45 for a day-pass...not exactly worth it, but I've been able to get a lot of work done!) and it's a day away from normal responsibilities. It's a nice break.

Last night Mom came over and we barbequed chicken and hot dogs and ate fruit salad and grilled veggies and sat on the back porch and watched the kids play. It was 88° yesterday last I looked.

It's about 30° in Minnesota right now...but it'll be warmer (go figure) in Bismarck, ND. Go figure.

I get to go and introduce curriculum to the English teachers there! Who hoo! And that's not sarcastic; I really am rather excited to do this. It's been a very interesting project. I hope the teachers like it as much as I do.

And soon I get to get on another plane. Head out for the not-so-frozen not-quite-tundra.

More when I get there.
H

Reign Over Me

I have no idea if this will be good or not, but I love these guys. I'd watch Don Cheadle read the phone book...maybe even a VCR manual.

Too much Junk Mail? | How Do I Stop It | Stop Junk Mail Now with greendimes

Too much Junk Mail? | How Do I Stop It | Stop Junk Mail Now with greendimes

Okay, but this helps.

Is the new IPCC report conservative? Optimistic? Misleading? Inquiring minds... | Global warming, Climate change, IPCC report, IPCC report | TerraPass

Is the new IPCC report conservative? Optimistic? Misleading? Inquiring minds... | Global warming, Climate change, IPCC report, IPCC report | TerraPass: Fight global warming, promote alte

I knew it was too good to be true...I was suspicious...

How am I going to knit and spin if it gets even HOTTER!?!

It Is Finished

I have finished my Rogue Hoodie. I will post pics of it when I can get my DH to take a pic. However, let me for a moment demonstrate how close I came to total disaster:




That's how much yarn I had left.

I knitted both sleeves at the same time, and the pile on the right is the right hand sleeve's yarn, the pile on the left for the left.

Now, I HAVE more yarn, but that yarn was at my AZ home and I was in CA when I was finishing. I had (foolishly?!) packed in such a way so as to need to WEAR the sweater home if I was to fit everything in the suitcase.

So.

There was a little pressure.

The fates were with me, though. I had enough yarn to finish the knitting AND the seaming.




With a little left for fixing holes/tears/snags.

Allelu...

I'm Ursula!

I am: Ursula K. LeGuin Perhaps the most admired writing talent in the science fiction field.

Which science fiction writer are you?

In love with a blog

So I just found a blog I love. I was drawn to it for the title, "Oceania has ALWAYS been at war with East Asia" a phrase I've been using a bit too much lately. But then I start reading her (very random) thoughts and realize: SHE IS A KNITTER!
Go figure. The world is small.

She had two nifty gifs on her site though.

The first is this:


The second is this:


There are some days when static says it all.

I've Been Tagged!

Liana at SewIntriguing just tagged me at my Craftlit page. I moved it here just to keep the shownotes uncluttered...which is odd for me as I revel in clutter.

Here are the Rules:

* Someone Tags you
* You post 5 things about yourself that you haven't already mentioned on your blog
* You tag 5 people about whom you'd like to know more


So...five things about me that I haven't posted...

1) When I met my husband back at UCLA I called my mom to tell her I was dating the man I was going to marry. Her response was something like, "and how's the weather...?"
We broke up (I wrote a vindictive play, had it produced at school--which he came to see--and miraculously we stayed friends). That was 1989. In 1994 one of my students gave me a little stone box made from the same stone as the Temple in Jerusalem. She told me it was a little wish box. I was to write a wish down on a piece of paper, put it in the box and it would come true. That night I wrote, "I want to be happy, laughing, and in love for the rest of my life." I'd never made a wish like that before (usually I would have mentioned someone's name...). Now the legend part:

That night in New York, a breeze blew into Andrew's room overlooking Christopher Street and rustled the pages of his address book. It opened to my name.

He realized I was still in LA and he would be there in a month to watch rehersals of one of his plays. On a whim he called me. Asked if I would like to come see a rehersal.
Understand, I had NEVER gotten over him. At all. I'd dated, but there was never anyone quite as perfect for me as he. So, duh, I made plans to see him in a month. I spent that month deciding what to wear...So...we saw each other, we tried to spend every waking moment with each other, he went back to NY and...six months later we were engaged; seven months later on July 7, 1995 I arrived in NY...
Never looked back.

2) The "legend" block quote above is the only part of the story that isn't literally true.

3) I read Tarot with uncanny accuracy. My mom and great grandmother "know things" though they never give it any creedance.

4) I have never planned my future. Everything in my life that's worked out has been a complete surprise. My husband, my home, my kids...it's all a glorious serendipitous melange. There are certainly things I've worked for (my degrees, my jobs, my writing, my marriage) but I was never the type to sit down and say, plan my wedding when I was fifteen. I guess that's why I'm rarely diappointed. Lots of happy accidents...and some not so happy accidents too.

5) I've lived through many potential disasters. Between 1967 and 1994 I lived through every SoCal earthquake. I left CA for AZ—they stopped. I moved back to UCLA, they started again. I was about four blocks away from the LA riots in the wake of the Rodney King verdict (living alone in a ground floor apartment with HUGE picture windows in the front. FUN!). Then 9/11. I look at this as a positive: I'm still here. But some of my friends have noted that being NEAR me might not be so safe.

There it is. Now I have to tag five people, and I choose:

Accordion Girl (my Squidster, though it'll probably take her a bit to answer back)
Mrs. Pilkington (NY Blogging/fiber friend)
NapTimeKnitter (and Kate has the Most Gorgeous baby girl for whom she also has a blog)
Yarn-a-Go-Go (SOAR buddie)
MissyB (SOAR buddie)
And a bonus!
Spinneret (Craftlit listener who's Blog I love)

The world is a very small place

Read
and
this.

It's NOT a Matter of Opinion!

Listen to this. Listen to ALL of it, no matter how painful.

And I'm not good at math. Figuring out decreases is about the hardest math I've done for ages...but I knew enough to know that this is a very, very bad sign.

Have your children listen...for the future of the planet...listen and learn.

I'm A-Murican

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Midland "You have a Midland accent" is just another way of saying "you don't have an accent." You probably are from the Midland (Pennsylvania, southern Ohio, southern Indiana, southern Illinois, and Missouri) but then for all we know you could be from Florida or Charleston or one of those big southern cities like Atlanta or Dallas. You have a good voice for TV and radio.
The West
Boston
North Central
Philadelphia
The Northeast
The South
The Inland North
What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes

O It's Been Too Long...

I'm in the process of finally finding/buying/acquiring a home.

You?

Hahahah

No, really. DH will be here in less than two weeks, the boys are beyond excited. I am too.

But all the work and house work is cutting into my knitting/spinning time. I'm making some progress on my precious Rogue Hoodie, which I may never be able to wear here in Tucson. I've divided and nearly finished the back.

I'm stillhttp://beta.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif plodding along on my Pomatomus sock in Lorna's Laces (Purple Iris #48) (which I'm getting fonder of. It splits a bit so it wasn't fun for awhile). I'm nearly done with the first. My second sock syndrome may kick in and I'll switch to finishing Andrew's Maple Leaf Socks for Xmas.

I was going to try to make some Socks that Rock for my sister...not sure what's going to happen there.

Mostly, the world is looking a bit brighter...or it will if we can keep some moderation in the Nation's politics. Herm.

I have spent the last two weeks completly gobsmacked by my podcast listeners. I've received not one, but FOUR gifts in the last 2-1/2 weeks. I have the most wonderful people joining me on my little literary journey.

I
Am
Blessed.

I'm still VERY MUCH missing my NY friends and knitters. It's just not the same out here. It's still freakin' 85 degrees outside, so how could it be?!?! It's November 19th! What gives?!

Of course, it's 40 degrees at night, so that 40-degree-variable does give you SOME sense of Fall.

I'm off to take the boys to Grandpa Charlie and Gammy Jan's for dinner.

oooh--and look at the cool thing my sister did!

O Dear Lord

I just signed up for NaNoWriMo.
What have I done.

SOARing's been fun. Look!

SOARing in Tahoe City

Haven't I said before that Fiber Folk were the best people?
Well, now there's definitive proof. I've spend a little over 24 hours in the company of (almost entirely) women and have yet to see/experience any of the catty, icky, high-school stuff that occasionally happens in groups like this.

EVERYone is wonderful. I've not eaten with the same people twice. And it doesn't matter. Everyone seems to know everyone else from previous SOARs and if they don't know you, they make you feel like they WANT to know you.

It's lovely.

Pics to come...

A New Rant

Okay.

Having spent much of my adult live immersed in and teaching American Lit (and, importantly, having cynically disparaged it and a lot of other things during my misspent yute) I feel I can say with some credibility that Young Jefferson felt it was important to criticize a standing president WHEN HE DESERVED IT but Older President Jefferson didn't think so much of the whole mishegas. I think Franklin thought EVERYone was fair game (including himself) and I think that John Adams was so used to being vilified that he SHOULD have been insensitive to it...but wasn't.

That being said, there is nothing more UN-American than censorship. There's a reason that freedom of speech is our FIRST Amendment. There's a lot of debate on the Second. I have my point of view (and it hovers around the words "well-regulated militia") but that's another rant.

The Dixie Chicks, aside from being an AWESOME band, have had their share of the unfortunate end of the stick being unceremoniously...ummm...you know the metaphor, I think. Now, the real horror: read then watch this.

It's bad enough that our president doesn't get it. It's FAR FAR WORSE that NBC doesn't. Remember WE pay for their airwave license. It's appalling that they don't give free air time to politicians (so the little guys might have a shot) but now that they're censoring something critical of CENSORSHIP!?!?! You've gotta be kidding me.

I like the first comment to this post: "Anyone who still talks about “the liberal media” should be sterilized. They are clearly too stupid to breed."

And better yet is the second: “To announce there must be no criticism of the President, and to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, it is morally treasonous to the American public.”
– President Theodore Roosevelt

I love it when past presidents can make my case for me so nicely.

And Off Rant:
I'm homesick.

Post-dye/Post-knit

some update pics

The Faroese dyed:


The Faroese drying:

I think I'm going to overdye it with a very weak black/grey solution to try to mitigate some of the brightness. This IS what I was going for, but it didn't bleed/blend as well as the test strip I made.





The front of Jim's baby sweater:



And the glorious back:

That ugly carpet is courtesy of the Dallas-Ft. Worth Airport.

I got the pattern here, but had to play with it a bit to get it to fit the baby sweater.

A sign who's time has come

My DH sent me this link. Too good not to share.

The Shawl: Pre Dye

NEW!
The Shawl!





The skull sweater!



The Night Blooming Cirrus (which only blooms once a year and is gone by noon)!

What Kind of Yarn Are YOU?

What kind of yarn are you?

You are Mohair.You are a warm and fuzzy type who works well with others, doing your share without being too weighty. You can be stubborn and absolutely refuse to change your position once it is set, but that's okay since you are good at covering up your mistakes.
Take this quiz!








Quizilla |
Join

| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

And beyond the goofy quizzes, I've been finishing things at a remarkable rate for someone who doesn't have much knitting time. I finished the Faroese (whoo hoo!). Now I have to dye it. And, the cool thing is that the lump of goo that I knit
now takes up an entire twin bed. YEAH!


Then I finished socks for Thing One. And am 1/2 way through a sock for me (no really) a Pomotomus sock (love Knitty!).

Test run Heather

Test run
Heather

SSS--CONQUERED!

First--Second Sock Syndrome, conquered!

Here are some pics to prove it.

First, the pic of my sweet 2-1/2 year old, wearing his new socks (that rock!).




Note the detail on the toe.







This kid has the squarest toes I've ever seen on a human. So I have to knit his toes especially boxy. I love that I can do that. I used the magic cast on from Knitty's Widdershins pattern, then I used the Sock-u-Lator V which is great.

Now, on pair II for my 6 year old, look at that turned heel.






I know I didn't get into a slip stitch heel, but could YOU tell that this nice turned heel-wtih-flap didn't get created from the top down? No, I didn't think so.



Nice to be able to do this when you're not sure how many socks a skein will make.


And on a completely different topic:

I heard something so ludicrous, I just had to post. There is a Navy Chaplain who is in trouble because, as a Naval Chaplain it is incumbent upon him to serve his constituency--which would include Muslims and Jews, not to mention Unitarians. Anyhoo, the problem was he kept adding, "In Jesus' Name" to all of his egalitarian prayers...thus making them more than a little NOT egalitarian.

He claims he's being persecuted and excluded and that this is an attack on Christianity.

Now, I have no problem with him praying in anyone's name...when he's not on the job. But when he represents the entire US Navy (which he does when he's in uniform) then he needs to represent all of them. That means adding a "Jesus" here or there won't fly. It's not that Jews or Muslims don't "believe" that Jesus lived, or that he did and said some really good things while he was here. It's that their religions specifically state there is only one God, and that would be...well...God. To pray in someone else's name is...well, it just isn't done.

I find this as spurious an argument as I do the attacks on churches for not allowing Gay Marriage. If a Church doesn't want to marry Gay folks, which is an eccumenical decision, then...well...that's it's decision. Marriage is, after all, a religious institution. However, if a city or county or state decides to legalize Gay Civil Unions, well that's just GREAT and I'm very happy they were sane enough to recognize how important committed relationships are to the stability of our culture. Not to mention how wonderful it would be for all of my Gay friends.

Marriage is between you, your clergy, and God. Civil Unions are, definitionally, part of the world of Civics and decided by your government.

Bit of a rant, but BOY did that irk me this morning!

I swear...I'll take the pics in a second...

I have to get to my camera.

I beleive I have conquered my Second Sock Syndrome. Since most of my knitting tools are in boxes far, far from me (about 2,710 miles to be precise, though it was more when we drove it), I've had to use DPNs. Something I've not done in over a year.

Don't get me wrong. This isn't a bad thing. Esthetically I MUCH prefer lovely wooden DPNs. But I have this ADD thing...which I just learned about (how nice to know there's a reason for my being the way I am!)...and I'm a sufferer of Second Sock Syndrome to prove it.

But! I just finished a pair of socks for my 2-1/2 year old, and am moments away from finishing the pair for the 6 year old. I used the Soc-u-lator. She finally made one for toe-up-with-a-flap (my fave way, and since Queen Kahuna's in a box too...). I love it. It's brilliant, the math makes sense, the patern works, and I'm a happy camper.

And did I mention the socks are made with Socks That Rock, purchased from Toni at the Fold? Here's a pic of Toni actually writing out the slip.

I love that.

Well, back to work.
Tra la la...

Finally!

Time, place, and photos have all aligned to allow me to post.

My sister sits, blogging, next to me.

Ain't we the geek twins?

So what's new?

I'm in Tucson. I miss my husband and friends terribly. It's hot. I mean, HOT. And sadly, it's NOT a dry heat because there's a hurricane in Baja and the clouds are all up here.

But.

(There's always a but, isn't there?)

I've got a new wheel,





(Majacraft Gem II, don'tcha know)
some roving I got from Toni at The Fold on my drive out here (roving that Thing One picked out--a little like this colorway, but more purples and yellows).







Spinning in Tucson is...well...honestly, it can be depressing, as I love spinning wool. But...sigh...I guess I'll make due. I imagine we'll be taking many trips up to colder climes for skiing.

Hell, maybe we can afford some skiing now that we'll be here.

The worst worst worst part, though, is being away from my husband. I simply can't get used to the ol' pueblo without him. After 11 years it's just wrong not to have him with me.

Ah well...soon...

OTN:

• I just finished a pair of socks for the baby (socks that rock, of course)
  
• I am about to embark on socks for the older boy.
  
• I'm still plodding along on socks for Andrew (Jeannie Townsend's Maple Leaf Pattern)
  
• Not to mention the Faroese I want to finish, dye, and take to SOAR.
  Pics Pending.

Humbled

There is much in the Village Knittiot to appreciate. Much I am humbled by. Read it, if you haven't before.

Have Charka, Will Travel.

There are SPINNERS IN TUCSON!
And wonderful ones to boot!

I went to Kiwi Knitting and met up with the Tucson Handspinners Guild folks at their monthly spin-in.
Lovely.

I felt right at home, right away. Some of the folks are going to SOAR too, which is great. I'll know some folks that way.

Mostly, it was just good to find people.

Adult people.

Phew!

Just had to post...

...because this is too amazing.

I saw the WTC movie (go! It's not what you think...well...most of it isn't...) and was shocked b/c my high school is IN THE MOVIE. (And we thought everyone forgot about us). Well, it IS my school, and it isn't.

They photographed downtown with 8mpx shots, then green-screened them into the live action.

like this:





Amazing, no?

You can read the whole article here.

Too, too long....

It has been FAR far too long since I last posted. My only defense is that for the last two weeks I've had no internet service to speak of. To find out why, visit my travel blog.

More when I can get the pics downloaded!

H

Fun Gizmo

You Are 55% American

Most times you are proud to be an American. Though sometimes the good ole US of A makes you cringe Still, you know there's no place better suited to be your home. You love your freedom and no one's going to take it away from you!

How American Are You?