TA DA!!!

Look! It's a mini-CD, no longer trapped in my iBook! I have no idea what's on it, but I'll bet it's not important.

My brother dug around on some message boards and found two messages suggesting the use of cardstock to retrieve mini-CDs from full-size slot-loading drives. One said that you could slide a card in the drive and trip the eject mechanism, while another said to fold the card and use it to snag the CD and pull it out.

So, I ripped a reply card out of the latest IK, folded it in half, and slid it into the drive. I inserted it and pulled it out four or five times before I heard a click and out popped the CD! Hurray!

Speaking of the latest IK, what do you think? There are a number patterns I like. I think my favorites are the Henley Perfected (which I really like!) and the Refined Aran Jacket. The Brushed Lace Cardigan also appeals to me -- I think it's the feather and fan detail. Not that I can actually imagine myself making any of those. Luckily, I also like the Celtic Tote, and I can see myself making it. And I think the Subway Mittens (no bonus photos, so scroll way down) and Kilim Gloves would come in handy (ha! no pun intended!) and the gloves might be a nice attempt at more complex colorwork.

FO - and Ready for Winter!

A couple days ago, I finally finished my Flared Lace Smoke Ring, which I first saw almost two years on Eunny's old blog and started a year ago. I really like it, and will need it -- maybe as soon as tomorrow morning!

If you click on the picture and go to Flickr, you'll see that my brother-in-law thinks I look like a turtle....

Details
Pattern: HeartStrings Flared Lace Smoke Ring by Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer
Yarn: Garnstudio Drops Alpaca in 3770, a deep raspberry. This is one of my favorite yarns to work with. I also used it for my mom's Forest Canopy Shawl.
Needles: US6 circs
Notes: This is a nice, easy pattern. I enjoyed it, but did get tired of the last eight-row pattern repeat, which was repeated over and over and over.....

I also got a box from Land's End today, with a real winter coat (in black) and these:

If I've got to wear warm boots, at least they can be pink!

Today's Project(s)

I had this post all planned -- I was going to show you the programmable thermostat I planned on installing today. I bought the thermostat, worked up a sweat getting it out of its packaging, and read the instructions. No problem. I was about to go flip some breakers (the better to not be electrocuted while playing with electricity) when I noticed that a mini-CD was included in the packaging. I slid it into the CD slot of my iBook.

Oops! So here's a picture of my first project of the day:

What was I thinking? The CD's size is "non-standard, " so it won't go all the way in, but it also can't be ejected. I've tried the eject button, I've tried tweezers, I've tried holding the iBook up and gently shaking. No luck. sigh.... How annoying will it be to have to my 3 1/2 year old iBook serviced for the first time just to get a stuck CD out?

At this point there was really no reason not to install the thermostat, but I decided to knit a bit instead. Knitting Relaxes Me, remember? Here's project number two:

That's a bit of the first 20 rows of the Honeybee Stole. Note that the first pale blue row is a provisional cast-on, not some sort of weird contrast edging!

And then I ran to the mall to get my perfume refilled, decided while I was there to see Michael Clayton (very good!), and came home after dark. I'm pretty sure that the thermostat will have to wait until next weekend, since it's definitely a daytime project.

Fall

Did you know that, until the 16th century, this season we're in now was called Harvest? As more people in England moved into cities and became less closely affiliated with farming, they began calling it Autumn (from the French word automne) or Fall. The word Fall fell out of common use in England, but those who came to America continued to use it. Or at least that's what Wikipedia says!

And Fall is really here. When I got into my car at about 8:45 this morning, I saw this

and this!

When I lived in San Antonio, I got homesick every Fall. I didn't miss Winter, but I really missed Fall. In San Antonio, Fall foliage is rare; in fact, the leaves of the native oak tend to turn brown in late Autumn, but don't fall off until late Winter or early Spring. (You think you hate raking leaves in November? Imagine doing it in March!) Not too far from San Antonio, there's a state park called Lost Maples. In good years, the maples there (truly "lost" because they shouldn't be growing that far south) change colors.

Now that I'm back in the Midwest, I've looked forward to Fall. This is not supposed to be a good year for leaves, but I've found some.

The first picture was taken between my library and the UI Hospitals and Clinics. The rest were taken at Iowa City's City Park, which is beautiful year-round. The river in the last picture is the Iowa. In the park, the banks are low. I don't know if that means that the park floods at times. On campus, the river banks are much steeper.

There were lots of ducks on the river today. When this group saw me, they came running. Obviously, they expect humans to bring food! As I walked back across the park road to my car, they followed me to the curb. The little fellow in the front was still standing there as I pulled away.

Tangles

If you read the comments to yesterday's post, you may have noticed that Susan and Steve (who both know me IRL) commented on my 'tangled yarn' issues. It's like I look at yarn, and it knots up. Everyone is familiar with yarn vomit -- when you pull on the center and a big hunk of yarn comes out. Well, this is pretty much an everyday occurance for me, especially if I've wound the yarn myself! And too often, there's a big old knot in the center.

On the left we have the yarn Steve referred to -- J. Knits Superwash Me Light Sock Yarn in Los Angeles (lavender). It's being knit up into a pair of Serpentine Mitts. On the right, is Scout's Swag 100% Superwash Merino in Illini (orange and blue). It's being knit into a pair of plain socks. As I'm sure you can see, both balls of yarn have vomited. They're both still usable, but I do spend a fair amount of time untying knots! (Kim, where are you when I need you???)

Here's the yarn for the Honeybee Stole (which is by Anne, not for Anne) -- 1800 yards of Wooly Wonka Laceweight Northern Lights. Notice there's one big yarn cake, one tiny yarn cake, and one cigar-shaped wad.

I had just begun to wind it last night, when the yarn broke. That's where the little cake came from. I slowly and carefully continued to wind. I was almost done, and thinking that I wasn't sure my ball winder could handle it all when, suddenly, the remaining yarn dropped off the swift! And of course, it didn't drop straight -- it dropped in a wad! That's where the yarn cigar came from -- I wound by hand from the other end, and worked for over two hours until I got down to one terrible knot. I cut it out, along with about two feet of yarn. I think there will be enough yarn in the big cake for the stole -- yay! no ends to weave in -- but this is pretty typical for me.

Just so you'll know that my knitting's not a complete disaster, here's one finished Serpentine Mitt.

I've got (almost) nothin'

I knew this day would come and, frankly, thought it might come earlier. Even though I have a sticky note stuck to my computer with a list of bloggable ideas (mostly non-knitting), I guess I'm not in the mood. So you're going to get some randomness.

Randomness #1:
I don't like reality TV. At all. I have reality all around me; why would I want to watch it on TV?

However, I'm addicted to both Dancing with the Stars and Project Runway. I'm always quick to explain how neither of those are really true reality show. They're both about professionals -- dancers and entertainment professionals (usually) on DWTS and designers on PR.

So, this week is pretty special -- DWTS is down to four couples and PR is starting up. At this point, I'd be happy for any of the remining DWTS couples to win, although I'll admit Marie Osmond is my favorite. She's not the best dancer on the show but her personality shines through. She really looks like a fun person.

Project Runway starts tomorrow night and, if it's like previous seasons, I will dislike every contestant. At first. Then a few will grow on me. And of course, Tim Gunn's presence will keep me watching until I warm up to some of the designers!

Randomness #2:
This quiz says I'm 49% Yankee -- more Yankee than I'd suppose after 23 years in Texas (and central Illinois, where I grew up, isn't all that Yankee, either). Iowa must be rubbing off on me, although soda will always be soda, not pop!


Randomness #3, and what passes for tonight's knitting content:

What Kind of Knitter Are You?

What Kind of Knitter Are You?

Nice Knitter. You would wear an acrylic puce pullover that comes to your knees, if someone knitted it for you. You manage to make lots of friends with your social skills, and often end up knitting things you don't like, for people you don't care about, because you don't stand up for yourself enough. Remember: knit for your own enjoyment, and have fun with all your many friends.
Take this quiz!








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Join

| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

And...... we're off!

So today is the first day of NaBloPoMo. Or as Courtney might say: NaBloBleeMeePooMoo. Yeah, I have trouble remembering what it's called, but it means I'll be posting every day in November. If you're lucky....

It's also the day I swore I'd begin my second (and last) Christmas knitting project, Anne's Honeybee Stole. Here's how far I've gotten:

That's 1800 yards of Wooly Wonka Laceweight in Northern Lights, impaled with the proscribed US5 Bolivian rosewood needles from Jenkins Woodworking. I'll get it wound up tonight and begin tomorrow. I've already practiced the bee pattern but might work on it a bit more before I actually have to knit it. You can see the bee pattern best in the 3rd and 5th picture of this post.

Actually, the winding may be almost as interesting as the bee pattern. I seem to be a little "winding challenged" lately. But -- that's a post for another day!

I'm in!

I've joined NaBloPoMo, which means you'll be hearing from me on a daily basis during November. I'm sure it won't be pretty, but I'm going to try anyway. And because of this -- you won't be hearing from me again until Thursday, November 1st!

Crazy Aunt Purl, Meet Peoria. Peoria -- Crazy Aunt Purl.

When Laurie announced her fairly-short book tour, I was first excited/disappointed to see that she was going to Houston. If I still lived in San Antonio, it would be an easy 3-hour drive to go to Houston. Then I realized that she was also coming to Peoria -- less than three hours from Iowa City! Peoria is also only about an hour from Mom's, so I visited Mom for a couple days after my Albuquerque conference, and drove up to Peoria on Saturday.

Laurie was appearing at the Women's Lifestyle Show, which meant an admission charge and that many in the audience weren't knitters. I decided that the importance of representing knitters was worth the $8 admission charge, and I'm really glad I did.

Laurie sounds just like you'd expect her to -- she has a Southern accent, but also speaks really fast. After reading a few passages from her book, she took questions. She's still learning the book-tour business, and admitted that she was nervous, but she was just so cute! She didn't even roll her eyes when someone asked why her blog was called "Crazy Aunt Purl." She also said she wouldn't be writing a book about dating -- too depressing! Considering the number of people standing in line to buy books for her to sign afterwards, I think she must have enchanted even the non-knitters in the crowd. When she signed my book (pre-ordered from Amazon), she recognized my name as a sometime-commenter, which surprised me -- sometimes, having an unusual name is a good thing! She also stood up and hugged every single person in line, and took pictures with most of us. I think most of us wanted to take her home to our mom's house for dinner! Or maybe wine...

Where's my picture? Well, my camera's battery had almost died by then, and a single picture was taking WAAAY too long, so someone took one of us with Laurie's camera. I'll be watching her flickr site for it!

Next time: actual knitting content, with pictures!

ETA: She's quicker than me -- here's our picture!

Busy, busy, busy!

I mentioned that I was going to be gone for a while. Well, technically, I'm still gone! I'm at my mom's through the weekend, then it's back to Iowa City.

Last Friday morning, I drove to Mom's (3 and a half hours) and dropped off Harley at "Camp Ninny." I kept promising her she would have fun! Then my brother drove me to St. Louis, so I could use my free Southwest Airlines ticket to fly to Albuquerque for the annual meeting of the South Central Chapter of the Medical Library Association. Technically, this is my "old" chapter, since I now live in the Midwest Chapter's region. However, there's nothing that says you can't belong to more than one chapter!

The meeting didn't offically begin until Sunday. For the past more-years-than-I-can-remember, I've had to be there on Saturday for pre-meeting meetings. But this year, due to my new "outsider" status, I had no meetings to attend! So a friend and I drove up to Santa Fe, and spent Saturday shopping. And not shopping for yarn, although this is the same friend that I dragged to a yarn shop in Phoenix.

Once we got to Albuquerque, there was not time for yarn-shopping, which is too bad -- a couple other knitter/conference-attendees got to Village Wools and loved it! However, I did see plenty of knitters and even some hand-knits!

Here's Steve wearing the beautiful sweater he knitted, steeked, and zippered, engaged in lively conversation with our friend Craig at the closing banquet.

The conference gave me the chance to almost-finish the first Serpentine Mitt. Unfortunately, I haven't taken a picture yet, and my camera battery is almost gone. Of course, the charger is in Iowa City. I promise a picture before both mitts are done!

FO, unB

That would be "Finished Object, Unblocked." And it definitely needs to be blocked! The color is all wrong, too. It's really gray, with the tiniest tinge of brown.

Details: Hemlock Ring Lap Blanket (adapted to lap blanket size here by Jared Flood)
Yarn: A little more than 1 and a half skeins of Cascade Ecological Wool in 8019 Antique
Needles: size US 10, starting with DPNs and moving through several lengths of circulars, until I ended up with my new 60" Harmonies.
Modifications: None!

My favorite part of this project was definitely the center. Isn't it pretty?

The center was also the most fun to knit. After that the rounds of feather and fan got a little boring. The scalloped bind-off was fun, too! There's a KAL for this pattern, and it was funny to read the comments -- many knitters just wanted to get through the center and onto the feather and fan, where 4 out of five rows were knit-knit-knit. Well, I've whined before about stockinette in the round, so you know I got tired of that fast!

I had never knit with Eco Wool before, but I really like it -- soft and squooshy, but with a nice body. It's also a good bargain, because it's about $15 for 478 yards (and I got it on sale, too!) I hear that it now comes in a range of "unnatural" colors now, too. I'll definitely be using it again.

Someone asked about the Harmony needles -- I love them, too! They're smooth without being slippery, which is good when you knit loose like I do. They're also pointy enough, although my perfect needles would be a little bit pointier -- I think I've mentioned how I like needles sharp enough to wound, and these aren't quite that sharp. The multi-colored wood is beautiful, the cords are skinny, and the joins are very, very smooth. If you like wood needles, I highly recommend these.

So -- one Christmas present almost done. It will be a while before I have a chance to block it, because I'm going to be gone -- a combination of conference and vacation -- for over a week. When I get back, I'll start on the second Christmas gift. While I'm gone, I'll work on the long-abandoned Flared Lace Smoke Ring, which I think I've been working on sporadically for about a year,and probably some socks. Because you can never have too many socks!

Red Scarf Finished and Sent!

There will be knitting content today, but first:

On the bus on the way to work this morning, I saw a young woman, maybe 19 or so, whose attire caused me to consider kinnearing her. However, there was no way I could do it without the entire bus seeing me take her picture -- I was in the front row of the back, higher part of the bus and would definitely have needed to hold my camera up in the air -- so you'll have to use your imaginations.

I first noticed her mittens and hat, which appeared to be hand-knit, and the fact that she was wearing a down vest. It was a little chilly this morning, but the outerwear seemed a little bit of overkill. Then I notice the rest of her outfit..... Under the down vest, she had a long-sleeved hooded tunic that hit her mid-thigh. Under the tunic were black-and-white dotted leggings. Over the leggings were pastel-striped leg warmers. I was so shocked that I didn't notice her shoes. It was like she was channeling the '80's, or had raided her mother's 'old clothes' closet. It was kind of shocking!

Now onto knitting --

Last night, I wove in the ends of the Red Balloon Scarf and ran it through the washer, since it's made of superwash wool. I laid it down on towels on the floor and "blocked" it by sort of evening out the edges. This morning, it was still a bit damp, so I draped it over the stair rail for the day. After work, I wrapped it up and sent it priority to the OFA.

Details
Pattern: Interlocking Balloons by Shirley Paden, in Scarf Style

Yarn: KnitPicks Swish Superwash (worsted weight) in Fired Brick

Needles: size US 6 Harmony interchangeables

Modifications: My row gauge was way off -- I always get more rows per inch than I'm supposed to, like I'm knitting tight, which doesn't make sense, since my stitches per inch are loose. So I just kept knitting until it was 6 feet long. I'm not sure how many repeats I did, but I finished half way through a repeat.

Thoughts:

• The scarf grew in the wash, so it was closer to 7 feet long when I packed it up.
• The yarn is nice and squooshy, although it's a little bit splitty. However, it's inexpensive and comes in lots and lots of pretty colors!
• The pattern was fun -- it's made of shifting 1x3 ribs, with a few cable crosses. It's kind of three-dimensional (well, even more so than most knitting!).

I needed a card to send along with it, so I dug out some stamps and punches. That made me realize that I really need to figure out a way to organize my stamping/scrapbooking stuff. Right now, most of it is still in various boxes from the move and stuffed into my yarn room closet. Sometimes I really miss my old house!

This photo captures the color best.

Miscellany

• The first bit of miscellany is the pronunciation of the word miscellany. I've always thought it was pronounced with the accent on the CELL, but then, how often do I actually say it out loud? A few nights ago, I heard someone much smarter than me (with a PhD and everything) pronounce it with the accent on the MIS, just like miscellaneous, without the -ous. Dictionary.com says we're both right, although my pronunciation is the British way. That makes sense: central Illinois + Texas = British accent!

• The high today here in Iowa City was 88º, exactly what it was in San Antonio. I thought one of the advantages of moving back to the Midwest was autumn.....

• I am knitting, still working on the Red Balloon Scarf, for the Red Scarf Project (and, yes, I'm using red, because I love red, but the fine print says you can use any color suitable for either a young man or a young woman -- which really means suitable for men, because women aren't nearly as picky about colors as men). I took a picture, but it's too dark to see much. This is a fun knit, but I hate deadline knitting, and I've got to finish this by the middle of the week. It's currently four feet long. I was hoping I only needed another repeat after the current one, but it looks like I'll definitely need at least two more.

• This evening, I cooked up a batch of Dave Daniels' grandmother's sauteed mushrooms for dinner. I had planned on having a veggie burger along with it, but the kitchen was about 100º, since I was also baking a loaf of banana bread. The mushrooms were really yummy on their own, and had the advantage of using up a half an onion that was languishing in the fridge.

• The banana bread was a disaster, which is weird, since I make this recipe all the time. I could blame it on my oven, which is old and not very well calibrated, but I've made it in the oven several times since I moved. (I use the second Banana Bread recipe from Beard on Bread, if you're interested.) When I took the loaf out of the oven, it looked a little too well-done. I'd tested it with a toothpick a few minutes before, when it was still bit wet, but it definitely looked done when I removed it. So, I immediately flipped the loaf pan over onto the rack like I alway do -- and out of the crack on top (which looked just like it always does!) oozed about a fifth of the batter, unbaked. Yuck. And how do you clean up 350º batter from the counter? Well, you don't -- you let it cool off and hope you remember to clean it up before you go to bed!

• And finally....
  

Harley has over come her temporary fear of the lower levels of the condo
and would like to tell you all hello!

Hello! Remember me?

Sorry for the delay between posts -- this week has been very, very busy, with not much time for knitting or blogging.

I'm still getting stuff in the mail, though! Here's a Mirror Yarn Ball from Bezzie's cleverly named Etsy shop, Random Meanderthings. It is now hanging from my rear view mirror, but I keep forgetting to take a picture of it.

And remember my box of goodies from KnitPicks? Well, they sent it to me twice! After the first thought of "Did they charge me twice?" and the second of "If they didn't, I'll give away the Harmony needle set in a contest!", I called them, and they sent me a return label to send it all back for free. Oh, well -- y'all missed a good contest! ;-)

For those of you who asked about the Harmony needles, I have to say I love them -- they're smooth without being slick and pointy without being painful. The join is great and I've no problems with the needle and cord disconnecting. They are also absolutely beautiful! If you like wood needles, I highly recommend these.

And now, I need to go work on my Red Scarf scarf -- I need to get it done!

New Stuff, part 2

This beautiful yarn is, technically, 434 yards of fingering weight wool/nylon Superwash Colonial Wool Blend. It is one of Jessie's beautiful hand-dyed yarns, in a colorway called Away. It is a very subtle blend of grey, perinwinkle, lavender, and even a very muted rose tone. It's absolutely gorgeous. If you haven't bought yarn from Jessie.... well, more for me!

And what's under the yarn? Yes, it's two copies of the Fall issue of Interweave Knits.

This was the first issue since my move and, when in hadn't arrived by September 1, I emailed them. I got a reply within 24 hours, apologizing and saying they would get it right in the mail. Yesterday, more than two weeks after that email, I bought a copy. Guess what came in the afternoon mail? sigh......

So -- if you'd like my extra copy, just let me know. First come, first served!

New Stuff

New stuff -- really, new needles! As you may remember (I always feel silly saying that -- does anyone actually pay that much attention?), I am planning on knitting Anne's Honeybee Stole as a Christmas gift, out of the suggested yarn, Wooly Wonka Merino Laceweight in Northern Lights. I figured I should use the suggested needles, too.

Here they are -- Jenkins circulars, US size 5 in Bolivian rosewood. I've never owned handmade needles before! They look perfect -- nice and pointy!

Not too long after I ordered these, KnitPicks came out with their Harmony set of interchangeable wooden needles. I had been whining (silently, of course) about the thickness of the cable on my Denises, and had even considered buying the KnitPicks Options metal needles -- even though I don't really like metal needles. The Harmony set solved my problem!

Here they are, working on my Hemlock Ring lap blanket -- which, by the way, is getting quite large, but the fact that 3 out of 4 rounds are now stockinette in the round really bores me. I miss the fun, large-scale lace in the center!

Oooh! Ignore the scaly-looking cuticle!

Along with the Harmony needles, I ordered yarn for my Red Scarf. Scarves are due October 15, so, as the world's slowest knitter, I need to get to work on it. I'm using Knitpicks Swish Superwash in Fired Brick (the color is WAAAY off in my photo) to make the Interlocking Balloons scarf from Scarf Style.

This is a fun pattern -- a few cable crossings among 1x3 ribbing, combined with increases and decreases, and it really does resemble balloons. It's a 44-row repeat, so I can't memorize it, but it really makes sense, so I don't get easily lost. Oh -- and it's full of the previously-dreaded purls-through-the-back-loop, which really aren't so bad, once you do 10 or 12 in an evening!

Did you hear the one about the goat?

Sunday evening I was driving from my mom's house back to Iowa City. Instead of taking I-74 through Peoria, I decided to take 474 through it (why? I don't know. It's not like Sunday evening traffic is heavy!) Just before I got to the Illinois River, I came up behind a pick-up truck. I could see a guy sitting in the back, leaning against the cab. And then I saw something standing next to him. I figured it was a big dog. But as I got next to the truck, I realized it was a goat, complete with horns! He was standing right next to the guy (who was probably in his 20s) and staring him in the face, like he was trying to say, "Hey! I'm a goat! I don't like this!" I laughed out loud, and the guy saw me. He smiled and waved, then patted the goat on the head. It was so funny -- I considered slowing down so I could pull out my camera and take a picture, but decided that would be embarrassing. But it was one of the funniest things I've seen in a while!

Speaking of cameras -- I decided my little red camera needed a sock of some sort to protect it in my purse, so I made it one. This has to be the fastest thing I've ever knit.

Specifics:
Yarn: Jojoland Cashmere (leftover from my sister's fingerless mitts)
Needles: Size 1 rosewood DPNs Patterns: I made this up as I went. I started with 9 rounds of stockinette over 56 stitches. In the 5th row, I made eyelets by knitting two together, then doing double yarnovers. I dropped the first yarnover in the next row, to make the eyelets larger.

I then used the pattern from the Whitewater mitts in the October 2006 Magknits to do the lace. I think I did 3 repeats. I finished up with 5 or 6 rounds of stockinette, then I did a three needle bind-off.

I made a length of i-cord to run through those double yarnover eyelets, but decided it was too high up, so I ended up using the first row of "lace holes" for the i-cord, instead.

I worked on these while waiting for the parade on Saturday. It was Riverfest in Riverton, Illinois, and members of my mom's church marched -- they were a "Drill Team." Can you see the drills?

And considering that I had staked out a space for me and my knitting all by myself, without any kids within at least a half block, I made out pretty well with the tossed candy. I didn't bring a bag for it, so it had to share with my knitting.

Does anyone else remember parades where they tossed more than candy? I can remember running to catch pencils, fly swatters, and, my favorite, yard sticks!

Good thing she's cute....

because obviously, she can't spell!

Recipe (or "receipe") box purchased at Wal-Mart

Seeing is Believing

After I whined about how I dislike casting on toe-up socks, Chris pointed me towards her favorite way. I tried it -- still fiddly, but not so bad. However, what really made it easier was pulling out the reading glasses (which I've used once before in the the three years or so I've been carrying them around) from my purse. I had LASIK almost 8 years ago. I knew it wouldn't slow down the deterioration of my close vision, but I've been lucky. Although maybe not as lucky as I thought!

At least they have pink rhinestones on them!

In other knitting news, I frogged Midwest Moonlight. I was only 11 rows in. I absolutely love the yarn, and I like the pattern, but not together.

The yarn is fantastic -- Brooks Farm Primero, which is 100% kid mohair. It's sport weight, I'd say, with a bit of a halo. But I only have one skein -- 500 yards. I'd like to make some sort of scarf with it. Does anyone have any ideas?

Random Saturday

This morning, while I was having my hair cut and colored, my stylist, Jodie, pulled out her camera to show me some pictures of her daughter. Her daughter is cute, but I loved the camera, a little Nikon Coolpix. I came home, did a little research, and off I went to Best Buy. I had a $10 gift card, so obviously, I needed to spend it!

I came home with this. (ETA: link to specs)



Isn't it cute? It's very small and very flat, not to mention very red! When I bought my Canon PowerShot A620 last fall, I considered something smaller, so I could carry it in my purse. I convinced myself I didn't need to do that -- and I've regretted that decision.

So now I own two digital cameras. This means I won't be upgrading my iPod! But hopefully it means that I'll actually have more pictures of day-to-day stuff.

***************************************

It's been a shopping kind of day. Did you see these? I seriously considered buying a set of Options, because the cord on my Denises frequently seems to fat for the needles. However, I don't really like metal needles (not even Addis -- really!) and decided that the Options weren't the best solution. But these beautiful wood needles seem perfect. I ordered a set, along with an extra 40" cord. While I was at it, I ordered 4 skeins of Swish Superwash in Fired Brick, for my Red Scarf. Red Scarves are due by October 15 this year, so I need to get knitting.

***************************************

Speaking of knitting, I've finally finished one Illini sock and started the second. And here's the reality: straight stockinette bores me to tears, unless I'm doing something else very interesting at the same time. And I mean, more interesting than your standard television. Also, I'm still not crazy about toe-up socks. As much as kitchenering frightens me, I find starting toe up just annoying. I think I'd rather be frightened than annoyed!

***************************************

This is my first home game weekend since moving to Iowa City. The game doesn't begin until 7:00 p.m., but when I was out at 8:30 this morning, there were already impromptu parking lots set up, and lots of people wandering around in gold and black. Last time I lived in a college town, I was in college, or fresh out. I lived within walking distance of the stadium. I don't think I ever thought about the traffic jams, parking problems, and other realities of Big Ten football! And speaking of the Big Ten -- since my cable company doesn't think we want the Big Ten Network, I won't be able to see either the Iowa or the Illinois game. (Minor rant: The Big Ten wants cable companies to carry the network on expanded basic cable. The cable company says that many of their customers wouldn't watch it. But really -- there are plenty of channels on my expanded basic I never watch. Why not give us this one, too? Oh -- it's because they want to include it in a sports package and make us pay extra!!! Of course!)

Progress

Obviously, this has been a long weekend!

Askew is almost finished. There are still some ends to to take care, and I think I'll reblock it. The straps are, weirdly enough, too wide set and there are a few wonky looking stitches. Maybe re-blocking will help. And possibly a different bra. (Insert rant about how men never have to figure out what underwear would work best with an outfit.)

But all in all, I'm happy with it. I do wish I'd noticed that one side is a lot more colorful than the other. Actually, I have so much yarn left over, I could have re-knit it. But -- no.....

I'm also making progress on the Hemlock Ring Lap Blanket. I've switched to my 40 inch Denise circ at this point, so obviously I'm getting somewhere. I'm well into the feather-and-fan chart. Four out of every five rows is straight stockinette in the round -- good for TV knitting.

I've also finished the back of Arwen (a large stockinette rectangle) and have begun the left front, but so far, there's not much to look at. And I'm back to working on the Illli toe-up plain stockinette socks. I've decided that I have to finish these before I begin another pair.

This post brought to you by the letter B

B is for Bananas and Bugs......

My friend (and one of the former co-workers I taught to knit) Melissa gave me this great "cupcake" pan for my birthday. It makes cakes in some of my favorite bug shapes.

Today, I made banana-nut muffins in it. I got a little carried away with flouring the pans before hand; I hope the excess flour will brush off!

B is for Bats....

No pictures, but we found three bats (two alive and one dead) in the library this week, and a friend had one in her house, too. Apparently it's Bat Season in Eastern Iowa, although the natives seem as surprised as I am.

B is for Blocking....

Look! It's Askew, blocking! (Doesn't it look like I was way up high when I took this?)

One of my goals for this long weekend is to get Askew all done. A top like this is year-round in Texas, but probably not in Iowa. I think it will work under a jacket during the fall, though.

I'm dreading the seaming, since this is the first adult-sized garment I've ever made (socks don't count). It doesn't seem to matter if baby sweaters don't end up quite the right size, since sooner or later it will more-or-less fit the child. But I'd like Askew to fit me. If you never see it again, you know why.

B is for Badges...

Have you seen the Knitting Scout badges? I first read about them over at JenLa; you can get your own from Cast On. There are more, including ones for those of who have had designs accepted (or rejected) by a knitting magazine.


The “Proselytize Knitting” Badge - A requirement for all Knitting Scouts, the recipient must do his or her bit to present knitting in a positive light, whilst at the same time avoiding all references to “hipness”, grandmothers, and yoga.

We've all earned this one, I think!

The “MacGyver” Badge (Level One) - The recipient must demonstrate clever use of a non-knitting tool in a knitting-related scenario. For instance, recipient has used paper clips as stitch markers, or successfully whittled and then utilized bamboo skewers

Hasn't everyone used a paper clip as a stitch marker? And I don't even know where my scissors are -- I always use nail clippers to cut my yarn.

The “MacGyver” Badge (Level Two) - The recipient must demonstrate clever use of a knitting tool in a non-knitting-related scenario. For instance, recipient has used a strand of Regia Bamboo to slice cheese, or repaired a small appliance with a metal knitting needle.

Pointy sticks are very handy, are they not?
(Be sure to check out McGyver Level 3!)

The “Knitting Whilst Under the Influence” Badge - This applies to both actual knitting under the influence, as well as achieving moments of stunning intellectual clarity about ones knitting under the influence. Presumes talking about knitting whilst under the influence a given.

Sunday afternoons spent knitting while eating cake and drinking wine -- I miss that!

The “I Will Impress You With My Math Prowess” Badge - The recipient is a whiz at substituting yarns and calculating gauge, can space increases and decreases evenly and is fully comfortable with the basic math encountered in all knitting projects.

Yes, I substitute yarn and knit loosely -- math is always at least peripherally involved in my knitting!

The “I’ve Knit Items With No Conceivable Practical Application” Badge - Recipients are those “special” campers who have knit items which somehow missed the mark of their intended application. There are probably more who are deserving of this badge than one would expect.

Well, I did once knit a baby bib solely to see how it would look on my cat. Someday, I'm sure someone I know will have a baby girl, and then I'll be able to say I was just knitting in advance. And really, I blame it all on Chris and her lovely model, Chaos!