September, Friday 22

With a freshly charged MP3 player in hand, along with copious amounts of caffine, I'm ready to face the day. Stayed up until 8:30 last night watching Grey's Anatomy. We had the VCR set, yes we live in the stone age. We have a VCR, not a DVR and go to bed before the sun sets. Anyway, by 9:00, I was dead to the world. Which was the time for ER, I don't think I could have kept my eyes open at all.

I spoke too soon. My MP3 player is dying. I turned it off to listen to messages, was trying to turn it back on and all I'm getting is the splash screen with clicky noises. AUGHHH!! Can't turn it off. Can't reset it. Just have to wait for the battery to die.

I'm now working on the Shaker Ribbing, here called the Brioche Stitch. I don't get why it's called something different. The Big Book of Knitting, calls it Shaker, so I, call it Shaker. Pretty simple. Now I want to figure out how to do it in two colors. Yes, it's at home in the Big Book, but I don't have it here with me.

This day is getting better and better. My new blue socks, worn maybe four times have a hole in them. Not at the heel or at the toes, but up in the leg. I showed my husband, who said, it looks like a dropped stitch. ( I'm so proud of him...) It might be, now I'll have to fix his bio-hazard socks to practice to fix my sock. Or should that be the other way around?

September, Thursday 21

I should have charged my MP3 player last night while I was charging my phone. But if I did that, then I would have left both the player and phone at home, instead of just the phone. I did manage to get about 6 minutes of music before it just shut itself off.

I finished the washcloth last night. Its tucked in the drawer ready for use. So now I have three balls of yarn: black, yellow, and off white (partials), size 6 straights, and measurements for a teddy bear who needs a sweater.

Well, on the plus side, I've taught myself how to double knit. Must say, it's easier then I had been making it out to be. On the down side, I'm not getting the desired effect I want. It should be simple: yellow knits with off white purls in the ribbing. Not hard at all, right? Then why am I having such a hard time with it? After a little research, turns out it is harder then I thought.

I'll just do the ribbing in yellow, then move to the snowflakes in off white. It should look adorable. Okay, so the off white is completely muted by the bright yellow. I've taken it part and started with the off white as the main color, with yellow snowflakes. I missed a stitch and ripped it all out. I think I'm going to going take it home and knit it in the round. I'll need to figure out a better design anyway.

Wednesday, September 20

I really hate it when I go to people's blogs and they haven't updated them. I understand life gets in the way and they don't have time to post. Since I’ve started my new job, my posting has been intermittent and I hate that. So I have to take the time to post.

I've finished a couple of the Graterlac washcloths. I gave the first one to my trainer. Did most of the knitting in her class. Figured, she earned it. I've made three more since then, I can do it from memory now. Which will help greatly when I do an interlac sweater for Grilltech. If I can figure out the colors, he likes dark greens. I'm thinking a cardigan would be nice. Also, not sure if I want to use acrylic or wool. We're both pretty lazy, so wool would bad.

The Dragon Scale scarf is coming along quite nicely. I'm about 50% done. The end of the month is coming up, I need to figure out the modified part for Grilltech’s socks. He thinks the YO's are too girly. (Read: he grunted something in my direction...) I can do a M1 instead, just need to sit down and try it. Instead I spend my time reading, not knitting, I'll get back into the swing of things. Anyway, I need to get it figured out in time for the Sock Hop at Romancing the Yarn blog.

Tuesday, September 12

I finished the sock a few days ago. I was really worried I wouldn't have enough yarn to finish the second sock. I started the second one and ran out about half way through the gusset. There is no way I'm going to go purchase more of t his yarn. So I started knitting from the first sock, figure I'll knit until both are at the same length and just use a different color. In this case a solid green.

Grilltech was annoyed because I said, "... and he just grunted in my direction." For the record, he really didn't just grunt at me. He did say something, but I couldn't remember what he said.

I'm in training, so I'm getting a quite a bit of knitting done. Half the time I don't understand what is being talked about. I end up asking one of my co-workers. Who does explain it to me using small words. Of course, it doesn’t help the trainer standing up bitching “they should only send people who are trained to the class.” Really makes me feel good.

I haven’t been going to karate, but I have been working out. Small trade off. I don’t think I can take another person telling me, I’m screwing up. No matter how nicely it’s put.

Friday, September 8th

I'm a good knitter. Fearless at times even. Cables? No problem. Lost my needle? Just figure out another way to do it. Adapt and over come, not just the motto of the Marines. Enterlac? Please, I've made a cute little baby hat. I know how to do to it. I'm a good little drone, I can follow directions. But for the life of me, I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong when it comes to the Garterlac Dishcloth. I finish the second square like the directions tell me to do so. Then there is no where to pick up stitches.

Okay, so pictures do help. I picked up stitches along the end of the triangle. It worked, go figure. Don't know why my mind wouldn’t see what was going to what happen. I've got it figured out and am knitting along quite merrily. I'm about two rows away from being done.

Monday that wasn't, September 5

It's just been one of those days. 'enuff said.

Finished the first sock. Pulled out the skein, and I don't have enough to finish. ACK!! I'll have to do a quick search to see if I can find another skein. (I bought it for half price, turns out to have a crappy dye job and now I'm going to have to pay full price for the freakin' thing.) Figured one skein makes one sock. I'm making anklets, I should be able to get two out it. I just might be over reacting, but I don't have a scale to weight it to see if I have enough to even bother starting on the second one.

We watched The Lost Worlds of... Dracula, last night. They had interviewed several of the locals. A woman was hand winding a ball of yarn from a swift. I thought it was so neat. I even pointed it out to Grilltech, who looked up long enough to grunt something in my general direction. Guess he wasn't as impressed as I was.

I’m about 40% done with one of the men’s scarves. Ended up doing a simple basket weave, because it didn’t annoy me while trying to figure out which stitch to use.

Tuesday, August 29

I finished my socks. My new job is really cutting into my knitting time. I think I'm okay with less knitting time, as long as I'm off the phones.

My head hurts something awful. It’s been going on for the past week; I thought it was the smoke from all the fires. The air was so bad, couldn't even see the foot hills because visibility was very poor.

I don't like the yarn I'm using to make these new anklets. The dye job was done very poorly and there are large splats of color. There is blue in the yellows. The pinks have long strips of white. I would be very upset if I had paid full price for the skein. Half price sales are wonderful, but there are times.

Sock:
20 rows for the heel
Eight stitches left after the first turn on each side
Continue the heel pattern to the end of the turn

Monday, August 28

It's Monday and school will be starting in three hours. I'm sure we'll hear something about it when we get home. I didn't charge my walkman - yes, I know it's really not a walkman, but that's what they were called in the 80's - so no music for me all day today. Just hope the music lasts until the start of my shift and the hour afterwards would be nice as well.

Finally decided on a scarf pattern for the guy’s. It's a rip off of a wash cloth pattern, but it works just fine.

CO: 30, Knit 4 rows
Row 1: K2, P2, *YB slip 1, P2*, K2
Row 2: K4, *P1, K2*, K2

I've started the heel of my sock. I don't understand how so many people complain about second sock syndrome. The second sock practically jumps off the needles. Maybe the complaint is goes to fast.

Work heel?! That's all I said? Yes, but normally I put down how many rows I do of worked heel. If I don’t keep track of what I’m doing, I forget. Now I have to go count on the first sock. I'll bet I didn't even put down how many stitches I need to keep before I turn the heel either. Nope. I'm going to be walking around with two different heels. Good thing most people don't look at socks. Hmm looks like 20 (or is that 21) rows.

Saturday, August 26

It has been a busy week for me. On Wednesday, I belted up. I'm not sure I'm ready to have color yet. They must know what they're doing, because I sure don't. Grilltech has promised to clean out the weight room, so we can start weight training again. I want to stop feeling so drained after work outs.

I still don't have a major project going on in knitting. Not sure why, just don't. I'm thinking I should start a quick scarf and get it knocked out. Maybe I'll feel better about knitting once the project is done.

My new job is going well. I don't quite have the time to blog as much anymore. I'm sure when I'm done training; I'll be able to get back to writing more.

Tuesday, August 22

Last night I ripped out the scarf and casted on with 40 stitches. Now the scarf is wide enough, but some how I couldn't get the number of stitches on the purl side to come out correctly. So I just put the knitting down and watched TV last night. I'll try again tonight.

I didn't even make it to karate. Yes, I know I should have gone. I just didn't. I’ll make it to class on Wednesday and Friday. Plus, the walking on days I don't have class does help.

I finished my sock today. Knit to 7.5, and then leave two at the end of the needle for the toe. Should be ready to cast on here in a few minutes.

Monday, August 21

From a few days ago:
Not much to talk about today. I didn't knit last night, I finished my smut book. Towards the end, it just was well, gross. I ended up skipping whole pages. I did work out. Wasn't to my projected goal time, but it was a start. I'll get better as time goes on.

From today:
I finished Lesiel last night. I'm not sure it's long enough, it does fit around my neck with some left over, and so it can be. I've started another scarf. I don't think one is wide enough. It's 30 stitches and I'm just not happy with. The pattern is very easy:

Row 1: Knit 1, * slip 1, knit 1, PSSO, before sliding off, needle, knit one between the two stitches *, knit 1
Row 2: *Purl 2 together, before sliding off needle, purl one between the two stitches

I've only completed about six rows, so will most likely rip it back and start over with 40 stitches, instead of the 30. I've finished the gusset on my sock. I’m now working on the long foot part. The way the reports are crawling along this morning, I might get it done today. Quite the scary thought.

Today is the first day I'm working without a safety net. I'm feeling quite a bit frustrated because the system is running so slowly. I'm not going to get today's AM report done on time, really, I don't think anyone is going to get it out on time, but it bothers me. I just want to scream at the screen, "hurry up!" but it's not going to help. I just keep working on the sock and check to see if the screen has turned blue, instead of grey. Maybe today wasn't the day to drink some caffeine.

Wednesday, August 16

Tuesday was a busy day for me and the youngest. We started off with getting her registered for school. She's a senior and didn't want to go by herself. So I skipped work and went with her. She's all signed up and got a sweatshirt out of the deal as well. We went to bank then went and picked up new cell phones. The youngest is all sorts of happy because she now has a real cell phone instead of the pay as you go type. She was forever running out of minutes. On the plus side, she now has 1000 text messages she can send out.

The highlight of the day was the Red Hot Chili Pepper's concert. All I can say is W-O-W! Today my ears are still ringing, I'm dead tired, but it was great. It was amazing to listen to the crowd. The chords of a song would start and people would just go crazy. Anthony (or the future son-in-law according to my youngest) would start singing and the crowd would just about drown him out.

I also brought my sock knitting with me. Since I carry the knitting around in a Crown Royal bag, I was asked to open the bag. The nice officer seriously looked in the bag with his flashlight, and then looked at me with a what-the-frag expression. I told him, it's my knitting. He was fighting to keep a straight face. If there hadn't been people behind me, I might have shown him. I'm such an uber-knitter. I did manage to get in about an hour and a half worth of knitting done.

I also spent about the first half of the concert trying to figure out Anthony's gloves. The youngest had to tell me what the design on the other glove was. She says it’s a broken heart. It's something I think I can make.

Monday, August 14

Starting today, I can no longer be officially called Knittech. Instead, I should be known as KnitWFM. Will I change my name? Of course not, I like how it looks. I started my new job today. Spent a lot of day, waiting - which really means, knitting while waiting - for reports. They're starting me out pretty slowly, don't want to overwhelm the newbie. For which, I'm extremely greatful. I guess the guy I'm replacing is leaving on Friday. Friday! Will I have time to learn everything?

I've finished the tube top. I showed it C, who laughed and said, "Can't remember ever being that small." Yeah, me neither. I've started working on my sock. I'm using the Lana Grossa Meilenweit Fun, but the color way is wrong. Mine is blues and greys, not the rainbow colors.

I think I'm going to teach sock knitting for some friends, when they open their shop. It should be a lot of fun. I'll need to write my patterns down, so I'm prepaired for the process. I need to do some some thinking about the number of classes and how much it will cost. Don't want to overly pricey, but I want to be fair.

Sock stats:

CO 80
(Ktbl 2, P2) for two inches.
Knit for four inches.
Work heel.

Tuesday, August 8

It was just way to hot knit last night. I didn't even go to karate either. Yes, I know, I should have gone, but it was hard enough just sitting there and breathing. Tonight the air conditioning comes on so the house will be cool enough to sleep. I'll also practice. October is coming up fast, which means belt testing. I never really thought about advancing, it’s just something I want to do.

Still haven't heard anything about the WFM job. I've put in for another job also, I'm not sure what it is about, but it requires access. PHB is talking about applying for the job also. Yeah, competing with the PHB; doesn’t seem like a smart idea. But darn it, I want off the phones.

I have two and half more inches to go before I start the decreases for the tube top. By the end of the day I have one and a half left. It’s hard to say at this point in the morning.

It's the end of the day and I have one and half inches left. Pretty good estimate. I'll be happy to get this project finished. It's August and I'm starting to have Christmas nightmares. Sure I have plenty of time, but I like to be ahead of the game.

Monday, August 7

I finished Grilltech's socks. I finished the second sock with the main color, so there was a green stripe at the toe. I went and cut back the first sock and finished it with the main color so they match. Well as much as fraternal twins can match. They look pretty good. He's wearing them today, to show how much he enjoys the hard work I put into his socks.

I'm back to working on the tube top. I've added the second ball of fixation. I was knitting along and realized I was coming to the end of the string. Oops, I had grabbed a loose end and was using it to knit with. Thankfully I only had about six stitches to tink back. I wove in the ends so that little mistake won't happen again. I only need to knit about three more inches on the top before it's done. I'm thinking about adding some cabled straps, so they can be tied behind the neck. I must be an old prude.

I'm so tired, my vision is blurring. It must be time to knit some more. I'm just happy I'm doing a mindless pattern.

Saturday, August 5

Day 1 (Friday)
I didn't go to coffee on Thursday night, instead I stayed home and worked on pet square. I think I managed to get four or five rows done. Played Diablo for two hours also. By the end of the game, I just turned it off because I couldn't reach my dead body. Oh well. I'll just have to get it when I play again.

Day 2 (Saturday)
It was night of phone calls and it wasn't even friends calling, well the Eledest called about 8:20. By about nine when I went to bed, I put the phone on do not distrub. Gotta love those people from India who are calling to sell something then when asked about the product, they have to go ask. I just hung up on the guy. No reason to hang out and chat.

I'm working overtime and it's not boring in the least. Sure it's call after, after call, after call, but I am managing to get some knitting done. I finished the gussett on Grilltech's sock. Now it's the plain sock until the toes, about four inches away. I might even get up to the toe!

I did manage to get to start on the toe for Grilltech of the sock. I switched to the dark green I used on the other sock to help ensure I wouldn't run out of main color. I managed to get eight rows done before I ran out of the contrasting color. Sigh. So I just switched back to the main color and finished the sock.

Friday Eve, August 3

After the visit to the dentist yesterday, I went home and worked on the scarf. Many rows later, it was time to run to the store and get a few things for dinner. I think I got a few more rows done, then it was time to go boot some head. Where would the world be now if it wasn't for The Frantics? I did manage to stay for the whole night, wasn't able to do everything, but made the effort.

It's suppose to be coffee night, don't know if I'll make it or not. I didn't get to bed until 9:45 last night. I dozed off and on until Grilltech came to bed about 10:20, then I was out for the most part. I kept waking up during the night. I know the youngest didn't get to bed until three am. She'll need to start getting to bed earlier after registration.

I stepped on the kitten last night. I tried hard not to stomp on her, so I fell forward and caught myself on the door jam. I have bruise on the palm of my hand. I have a fun time typing at times.

I still haven’t heard anything about the job I interviewed for. GRRR!! They need to hurry up and say, I start on Monday. Speaking of which, I’m working on Saturday, which should be a lot of fun. No, really. F-U-N!

Wednesday, August 2

I think I've figured out how to do the Log Cabin pattern without the pattern. Will put the book on the list for Christmas, because I've seen some of the other items other knitters have built. Looks pretty good!

We went for a walk last night, left before five and were home by six. We also stopped for dinner, so part of that hour doesn't count. I still have sore muscles. I've been using Tiger Balm and Bengay on them, which helps quite a bit.

I did manage to knit 30 rows last night on the scarf. Hope to have it done by the end of the month. I’ve started on Grilltech’s heel; hope to have them done by next week. Then I can get started on my socks.

Tuesday, August 1

I went to karate last night. I didn't stay the entire two hours, left about 30 minutes early. I did well for not doing anything for the past four months. I'll need to start walking to build endurance and drag Grilltech with me. Grilltech has agreed to start learning with me in a few weeks. So he'll need the endurance as well. My shoulders hurt more then any thing else on my body, I think it was the naka-uke. Overall, I feel much better then I have in weeks. Maybe there is something to this whole exercise thing.

I didn't knit last night. We ended up taking the eldest some gas then picking up dinner at the store. Sure it was fried chicken and salad, but it was good. Not sure what we're going to do for dinner tonight; didn't think far enough ahead to pull anything out.

I have about five inches done on Grilltech's second sock. I have two more inches to go, then I can get started on the heel.

On my daily reading of knitting blogs, I posted! You can see it on Peristent Illusion's site. From her site I found Criminy Jickets blog. He has some beautiful dish clothes I will have to try! He was nice enough to have the address on his site as well. It's just amazing how far I can go just by reading.

I'm thinking for the guys, when I make their scarves this year, of using Not Quite Straight Scarf. It looks quite interesting and I'm sure it would knit up pretty quickly. Of course I'm way too cheap (cheep, cheep) to use the Andean Silk, Carbon worst weight is what will be used.

Monday, July 31

I had quite a bit of fun over the weekend. Saturday night we went star gazing. Friday night was the peak of the meteor shower, but it was a good showing when we were out watching. Don't remember the total count, but as we were packing up to go, a large one fell. The tail was very bright and long, about three or four seconds.

On Sunday we went and saw My Super Ex-girlfriend. Funny! It reminded me of a friend of ours and his ex-wife, one seriously dysfunctional relationship.

I finished the purple tank on Saturday. I didn't get pictures of the finished product. I gave it to the eldest to give to one of her in-laws. I'll get around to starting another one in a while. I’m still kicking around an idea for the youngest.

I've started the scarf. I had to rip it back once. I used stitch markers, now I'm off and running. Liesel is a simple ten row repeat, hope to have it finished in a month or less. I’ll need to finish the tube top I’ve been working on as well. It’s to the point I need to add another ball of yarn, and I’m being lazy. Figure I’ll get it finished and maybe give it to the eldest for Christmas. I may make a bottom from the book Sexy Little Knits. I got the book, might as well use it.

I received the new Interweave. There are some beautiful projects I hope to get around to knitting. I think I need to have a progress bar for projects to keep me honest.