The Knitting Pirate

I ended up skipping SnB last night because of the weather. After choosing to work from home and spending the day in my pajamas, I couldn’t get motivated to get dressed, scrape off my car, and navigate the icy roads. This morning I knew I’d made the right decision – the parking lot was a lumped-up sheet of ice. I’m not scared to drive in the snow, and I know I can handle the car on ice, but I do prefer to limit my driving to the absolute necessities on it. So I did go to work today.

As a result of not going to SnB, I’ve made no progress on anything. Maybe tonight will be a knitting night. (Maybe Pirate-Husband and I will enjoy dinner and a movie together, then do all our holiday shopping online instead.)

It’s here, it’s here! The last piece of my WEBS order is here! There’s only one thing that disappoints me – they charged me full price for this one ball of yarn, even though I ordered them all together and should have gotten the 20% discount. I guess that only applies to yarn that goes into one shipment? Ah well, at least it’s all here now.

I really miss SnB, after two weeks without it, and I’m so looking forward to tomorrow night! I’ll bring the Trekking Sock, still in progress, and see how far I can get on it. It’s the only project I have that’s really able to travel. Tonight, before dinner, I am going to work on the Ostrich Plumes Scarf. Someone pointed out to me that I haven’t made any progress on that in a while, and it’s true – I’ve been sorely neglecting my lace.

No house news from the bank yet. Keep your fingers crossed for me! :)

The great thing about having SnB at Cosi is that they serve wine. I had a glass of a pretty good Shiraz with my sock knitting last night. Now, I’m not sure if it was the wine or if it was the talking and not paying attention to my knitting, but I came around to the ribbed portion of my sock and noticed that I’d knit right across two purl stitches on the round before. It was getting towards the end of the evening, so I put the whole thing away. I’ve learned that I can’t fix stitches at SnB, but I can do it just fine at home the next day when I stop being angry at them for being backwards.

We did have a bit of a sour note to the SnB, unfortunately. The subject of photocopying patterns came up. Not just borrowing a book from the library and making a copy for yourself, but making lots of copies for friends from a pattern you bought. Some people believed that it was okay to make a copy of a friend’s pattern, because there’s nothing wrong with borrowing the friend’s book. Some people said that they would copy a friend’s pattern, but not a friend’s CD. Where is the line drawn? Anyway, there was a big disagreement and eventually (I hope) it was settled that there was an official condemnation of the practice, but obviously whatever people do on their own time away from the SnB is their own business, legal or not.

I’m in the process of working out a deal with an indie yarn-dyer, in which she would provide me with sock yarn and I would design patterns which she would sell on her website and give me 50% of the profits from the sales. I’d retain copyright and could sell the patterns on my own as well. Sounds good to me! Now I just have to come up with some design ideas.

There are two pieces of news on the home front. One is that our offer has been submitted but no one has gotten back to us either way, and we got a pretty darned good rate on a mortgage app. We knew the process would take a while, so we’re just being patient. The other piece of news is that my grandma (Dad’s mom) is having abdominal surgery tomorrow to repair a previous hernia operation’s failure. They expect her to come through just fine, so I’m not very worried, but it’s on my mind.

I hate to end an entry on a downer, so I will say this: THANKSGIVING. I love Thanksgiving. It is my favorite holiday of all time. I can’t wait to see (most of) my family, catch up with everyone, throw a football around in the street, drink beer with my cousins and scotch with my uncles, eat food until I explode, and fall asleep surrounded by people I love. Of course I will be bringing the sock along with me. It’s funny, when I was a kid I always brought a stuffed animal on trips. Now I bring socks. There’s little difference, really!

P.S. Wow, 35 people have queued up my armwarmers!

I love my SnB, I really do. But I never get very much knitting done there, especially when I’m working on a sock. There’s so much laughter and talking and looking at other people’s projects, it leaves no time to work on my own! I should cast on a worsted-weight baby hat for next week, and I might get somewhere with it. On the other hand, there is so much knowledge there, and everyone’s willing to share. The first meetup of every month includes a Show-and-Tell; last night’s theme was favorite yarns.

I brought the silk and cashmere blend and we determined that it’s actually gossamer weight, not cobweb. Addi Lace circulars only go down to size 1, but I’m wondering if that will work for this. It might be too large – and yes, it feels very strange to say that size 1 needles might be too large! I also brought a two pound hank of brown cotton yarn. Everyone agreed that it’s got a great feel, and it’s very good yarn, but no one came up with any ideas as to what to do with the stuff. The only suggestion I like was to bring it to a dyeing evening, try to lighten it with bleach or something, and then redye it a better color. But still, what does one do with two pounds of fine, dark brown cotton?

Tonight’s SnB was held at Cosi, a small cafe, instead of the Panera we usually go to – and I think we may be switching venues. It was decently lit and much quieter, and the food… when I arrived, there was brie, bread, strawberries and grapes at each end of the table. I got a glass of wine to go with it. Later on, we ordered s’mores and had too much fun roasting marshmallows at the table. I’m not sure any of us got very much knitting done, but what a fantastic time we had!

I started the second Pomatomus yesterday and I’m about 20 rounds in. This sock looks so funny at the beginning before the pattern is really established, like there are just random holes here and there. I remember this from the first sock and I know it will start making sense of itself in another fifteen rounds or so. Tomorrow I will focus on it and make some serious progress.

The Trekking Ribbed Sock came with me to SnB and I think I’m about up to where the heel should start. I need to measure it against another sock that’s a good height just to be sure. The heel, I think, I’m going to have to work on at home, even though it’s a traveling sock, because I will be sure to mess it up otherwise. Either that, or I can deliberately go out and knit somewhere quietly by myself. In general, it’s going very quickly and I’m thrilled! The more socks, the better.

Pirate-Husband got the call from the radiologist that only one rib is actually very broken. There is a second that might be cracked but might only be seriously bruised. Either way, he’s not letting the pain stop him; he got on a plane to Iceland this afternoon and should be arriving soon, if I have the time zones right. I sent him with my camera, so there won’t be any new pictures in here until at least Monday.

I’ve been wearing the Stripey Striped Scarf to work, because it’s finally been cold enough. There was frost on my windshield the other day! People have been complimenting me on it and I get such a thrill out of saying “thank you; I made it myself!” There’s at least one other person in the office who knits, but she doesn’t sit near me so I don’t know if she’s seen it yet.

Last night I got through the heel flap on Jaywalker #2, but decided to go to bed rather than turn the heel. That’s the kind of thing I prefer to do all in one go, so I don’t lose my place and have to start over. I was right, the stripes are off by two rows, but I’m going to ignore that. They’re close enough that I’ll consider them matching!

I also spun up another section of orange roving. Man, pre-drafting makes that go so much smoother! I kept having to stop and pick out little bits of straw and crap, which was a little annoying. I’m happy that I seem to be gaining a little bit of speed with the spindle. Pirate-Husband wants to know what I’m going to make with this yarn once it’s done. I’m really not sure at all – guess I’ll have to see how thick it turns out after plying, what kind of yardage I get, that kind of thing.

I haven’t worked on the Stripey Striped Scarf since last week’s SnB, so I’m going to bring it with me tonight as it’s the only current WIP that’s simple enough for me to work on while I chat. Though I said I was going to end it when this ball of yarn is done, I found some leftover Kureyon from a Booga Bag I made, and I’m thinking of extending the scarf a little. This thing will never be done at this rate, or it will be as long as a Doctor Who scarf! The theme of tonight’s SnB is “Show and Tell”; I’m looking forward to seeing what people bring!

I finally got back to SnB last night for the first time in a while. Seeing my fellow knitters at Borders last week reminded me of how much fun we have when we all get together! So after work I took a nap and was well-rested for the evening of yarniness. And then I spent more time talking than knitting! I brought the Stripey Striped Scarf with me and probably only knit eight rows on it. But it was worth it – I had a great time!

There was some talk about starting up theme nights. The first theme is next week; it’s going to be a “Show and Tell” evening in which we bring FOs and talk about the pattern. Someone mentioned wanting to make a So-Called Scarf out of either Manos or Malabrigo, I forget, so I’m going to bring mine (and the matching hat) to show. I think I’ll also bring the armwarmers! Hm, and maybe some yarn deserves showing off as well.

We also discussed doing a dyeing night, if we can get a volunteer to host it, and I’d like to have a spinning night as well.

Speaking of spinning, I’m considering that the green wool might be best if I spun it into something fine, lace- or fingering-weight, and then made a shawl of it. I want to make it into something that will show it off near my face, but I already have two green scarves, and I don’t need another hat. What I *don’t* have is a shawl…

On Wednesday, I took my scarf to the Stitch ‘n Bitch and had a much easier time multitasking. Other women were also commenting that they find it difficult to knit and converse at the same time, especially given the involved sorts of conversations that we often have. I found a few mistakes on the Jaywalker. Though I didn’t think they were worth going back for, I didn’t want to make more mistakes, so I brought the scarf. I’m about halfway through the second two balls now, and everyone loved the thing.

There’s another SnB scheduled for this coming Wednesday, but I’m not sure if I’m going to go. Pirate-Husband will be out for the evening, which gives me a chance to sit and curse at the sewing machine. I started this miniature quilt experiment, see, which was meant to become a pillow, see, since our couch pillow recently split along one seam… but I’ve never quilted before, and while I can use a sewing machine, I do tend to get incredibly frustrated and no fun to be around while I’m using it. Therefore, sewing is something I prefer to do alone. Very, very alone. With the music turned up. And lots of cursing. I do want this thing to be finished before my two-week electricity-free vacation.

Today I brought my sock down to my parents’ house and knit while visiting with family. I’ve finished the gusset! Actual progress has been made! A milestone reached! Just the foot and toe remain… and, oh yeah, the second sock of the pair. I wore my first pair of Jaywalkers with my new paisley skirt and received lots of grandmotherly compliments on the construction, the softness of the wool, the beauty of the colors, etc. etc. etc. She was amazed that my handknit socks are machine washable. Ahh, the wonders of modern yarn technology.

Pictures soon, really!

I only got a few rounds past the point at which this picture was taken when my hands started seriously complaining about two straight hours of sock knitting. That being said, tonight’s SnB was fun as usual! We had about fifteen people at the most crowded. Some crocheters and some needlepointers, but mostly knitters. I really enjoy talking to everyone, and showing the sock around. I demonstrated Continental knitting (“that looks weird, doesn’t it?”) and talked up the ease of flap heels to someone who’s just getting into the idea of socks. Also, I came home with a bonus copy of “Knit ‘N Style” magazine. I may not knit anything from it, but I love looking at the pictures and seeing what crazy ideas people come up with!

The other cool thing about the SnB, I may have mentioned, is that we’re working together on a charity blanket. I got the yarn for my four squares today, as well as the one border square that Pirate-Husband agreed to knit. My size 6 needles are free, so I can get started on my squares right away. Pirate-Husband is away on business… but when he gets back, I’m putting him to work!

Now, because the subtitle of the blog is “A Knitter and Her Day Job,” I feel that it is very important for me to share this next bit of news: I have joined the ranks of the re-employed. Yes, my days of bumming around are over as of July 9th. I had an interview yesterday and one today – and both places made offers. I took the one from yesterday. The commute is going to be rough, but I plan to get books and French lessons on CD to help me pass the time in the car. I am very excited about this; I think it’s blah blah great opportunity blah blah buzzword drone drone… the important thing is, I wasn’t out of work for very long and I haven’t forgotten how. I’m eager. Just think of all the yarn I can buy, now that I’ll have income again! Mmmm, celebratory yarn…

What a great time I had tonight at the SnB! There were less people than last time; I think the area is still recovering from the major storms we had last weekend. I’ve been hearing horror stories of flooding and downed trees. Fortunately, my neighborhood seems to have been spared from the worst of the damage. We had the lashing rain and high winds, but we didn’t even lose power – that’s a first for a major storm in the four years that we’ve lived here.

Progress on the so-called scarf: I finished the second ball of yarn and went on to the third and final ball, putting about five inches on. It will eventually be six feet long, which I think is the perfect length for a scarf. I also shared the pattern with a woman who was joining us for the first time, and showed her the trick of purling into two stitches, then the first one again, for the WS of the scarf. She mentioned that she used to belong to a needlecrafts club when she lived in India, and next time is going to bring some of the publications and brochures that they used to hand out there. I’m really looking forward to seeing them! I hope she will let me borrow one if I like the pattern.

Then the organizer of the group said something very dangerous(1) to me: “Are you going to go to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival?” So now, of course, I am. Even though I already have enough yarn to keep me occupied for a year. Even though I’m supposed to be watching my wallet. Even though — oh, who am I kidding, it’s going to be awesome!

Right now each of us brings her own project to work on(2), but we are considering starting a project to make blankets for charity. We would all knit squares of the same size, and some lucky volunteer would seam them all together. Then we would donate the blankets to a shelter or a hospital. I really like the idea! We also talked about meeting more often than twice a month, and I think we’re going to make the move to every Wednesday. That will be great!

(1) I am beginning to notice that there are many such dangerous sentences in this hobby. “Sock yarn almost doesn’t count as stash.” “Are you going to the Sheep and Wool Festival.” How can such an innocent, feminine pastime be so dangerous?

(2) We have no men in our SnB. It was one of tonight’s conversational topics – would a man join a knitting group, or is knitting too slow for most men?