My daughter called me to say she had taken on a contract to crochet a king sized afghan, and was afraid she wouldn't get it done. In one of my rare ventures in good mom-hood (or else temporary insanity), I told her I'd subcontract it.
Well . . . I started with a yarn I had a lot too much of, got one panel done, and realized that crocheting the darn thing would render me without the use of my right hand in very short order. So I switched to knitting. And realized that I would probably knitting this darned thing until well after I retired. So away went the yarn I had much too much of, and out came the Lion Brand Thick and Quick. And at that, I've been working on the thing since November 2008. Finally, two weeks ago, it is finished! And now the guy that commissioned it has decided that maybe he doesn't want it! So I'm out the cost of the yarn, and in possession of a custom made King Sized Afghan (and I sleep in a twin bed).
There is some kind of message in this, but I'll be darned if I know what it is.
So I was looking for a cat . . . sort of. I don't exactly need another cat, but I went looking and when I walked in the door, this incredibly large meathook extended from a kennel cage (attached, I might add, to an incredibly large buff colored tabby, and grabbed me. The cat announced he would like to be petted right now! thank you very much. And it was all over.
He's been with me since February, and he is amazing. He has learned how to play fetch -- staring with pens and finally graduating to bizzy balls. He'd like to knit, but since he doesn't have thumbs he generally contents himself with diving into my knitting bag, or occupying most of the kitchen table when I sit and knit.
He is either a Maine Coon or a Norwegian Forest Cat. He weighs 15 pounds (he hasn't lost weight, but has gained muscle since his release from the kennel cage). He has a furred pads typical of either breed . . . watching him run on linoleum is hilarious. He slides -- too much fur for effective traction. He has an amazing tiny voice for such a large cat.
He also likes to help me make the bed . . .
So, I finished the cable scarf, and it is sitting in the stash of finished goods, awaiting washing and blocking. Now, I have never blocked anything in my life, but I've seen it done, and I think I know how it should work. At least I have the "T" pins . . .
I thought I might, having completed the scarf, get serious about working on THE AFGHAN. That would be the one my daughter yelled for help about. And I did make some progress, to be strictly fair. I am almost done with the 1st of seven panels, so I think that qualifies as something. (I'm just not sure what.)
But to keep to my goal path, I must be unfaithful to the afghan. So, venturing bravely forth, I got out Cat Bordhi's Treasury of Magical Knitting book, my harmony wood cable needle set, and cast on a Moebius scarf. The cast on is strange, but not hard. The knitting is actually kind of fun. But Friday night I decided to be done with the width, and started the I-cord bind off. I thought, okay . . . I've practiced the I-cord bind off . . . no biggie.
THREE HOURS LATER I was done with the bind off, done with the scarf, and just plain done.
(Note to self: allow three days for an I-cord bind off on a Moebius scarf. Rome was not built . . . etc.)
I guess I can say that I'm not really new to knitting. My mother tried to teach me forty plus years ago, but she got frustrated and so did I, and it all unravelled smartly. My grandmother then taught me how to crochet and do embroidery -- that worked quite a bit better. After mother died, I inherited her needles and the will to knit, and got started with a basic "I taught myself to knit" book. I won't say I knit well -- my first sweater took six months, and looked -- when it was done -- like something designed by Omar the Tentmaker. It did eventually end up fitting someone, and the less said about that, the better. So I confined myself to simple scarves (seed stitch, four strands, sz 13 bamboo needles) and all was well!
This last year, I've been doing online school as required for the new job that I love, and haven't had much time to do anything other than work and school (and ride my horse on weekends . . . totally necessary for my sanity).
School finished in December. All the loose ends tidied up and woven in, so to speak . . . so now to knitting.
I'm not much for New Year's Resolutions (they don't seem to last too well for me). I am a fan of decisions. When I buy clothing, I buy the best quality I can and take care of it. When I buy horse tack, ditto. So why have I been torturing myself with cut rate needles? HMMMMM.
I ordered a set of Harmony Wood interchangeable needles from KnitPicks, and they are gorgeous. Not to mention the incredibly nice, lightweight feel (even lighter than the bamboo I adore). And the cables are like butter (which I no longer eat after emergency gall bladder surgery -- but that, too, is another story)! Smooth, slick, yummy.
So now to the New Year's goals for knitting:- Mastery learning of one new pattern stitch per week
- Mastery learning of one new technique per week
This week I worked on cable stitch, which really intimidated me in the past as my new pattern stitch. Pleased to note that I have completed almost one-half of a scarf that I plan to donate for the Employee Action Committee raffle at work (along with a matching hat). I also learned how to knit on two circular needles, and how to apply an I-cord binding.
Yay! I'm ahead of schedule.
