Of Mice and Men

Well you know what they say about best laid plans.... Mine have changed! Still moving, only to a different place. I think I am going to hang out a shingle that says "1 Nice Person and 1 Great Sheltie live here! - Crabby People need not apply"

11 days and counting.....

Men... they can be such babies at times. However much they claim to not be playing games, turning off the Internet, turning off the front porch lights when you're coming home late and canceling one's email is game playing and very childish!! And where do they get off with this "It's my way or the highway" crap. Ever hear of something called a compromise?? NO? Guess not!...So guess what, I am taking my "ugly boobs" ( I didn't know boobs could be ugly) and my "fat butt" and I'll be "very single" and hitting the highway!

I am sure all of you ladies would agree with me on that score.

With all that turmoil going on you can probably guess I haven't knit shit! I am darn near completely packed however, due to game playing, I will have limited Internet for a few days, and my email access is sporatic. However, I waste no time in re-spinning my web ;) ! Utilities and Internet will be ready when I move in, or rather shortly there after, being there is a holiday to contend with.

I have spent some time surfing the Internet for a "new look". I love vintage... I am not talking 1960's or 70's type vintage. I'm talking old world early 1900's turn of the century stuff. Technically I guess that is called antique but I like to call it vintage.

I have an antique folding rocker that had a causality a few years ago and is in need of repair, but I did find someone who might be able to repair it. I also found a twin to my chair on EBay...and won it of course. Purchased a dry sink and am now looking for a wash basin to go with it. Along with the 130 year old humidor from my dad. Now that is what I call vintage :)

I have a few odds and ends that have been passed down through my mom. And I will finally be able to hang the very special painting of my brother's in my home in a public place.

OK- so maybe still life's aren't everybody cup of tea. But this one is very special to me, my brother Gary painted it in art class and it is 38 years old. Ok, and maybe it is kinda an ugly picture, but I think it must have grown on me after all these years. Or maybe I always liked it. It is as much a part of me as my red hair.

Anyway, everybody tells me it is ugly and I was never allowed to hang it in a prominent part of the house. So now, I am thinkin' since it is a picture of food, it should go in the dining room.

Tell me what do you think. I am thinking maybe some cool 3d pictures or something like that to compliment it in a grouping???

Any suggestions?? Maybe I will check out Hobby Lobby and see what they have going on.

I did start on my second Loopy sock (BTW- My first pair of Loopy's made the Feature Photo on Ravelry, it is my third feature photo ;) ). I have to start over again tho because somewhere along the line I got one of my loopys on the needle and botched the whole thing up. Since I have less than an inch knit I may as well start over and save myself the aggravation. That is pretty much all I have gotten done in the way of knitting. It is kinda frustrating but every time I sit down to knit, I think of a dozen things that need to be packed.

Brodie is growing by leaps and bounds it seems. And we have hit the puppy terrible two's! He is in that nippy stage, and the more I correct him the nipper he gets. Kids! Really - he sounds more like my daughter as a teen...LOL



Poor Bingo, he is so tolerant! Brodie just walks where ever he wants to to get to where he wants to.

The Summer Slump

What is it about knitting that makes us compulsive? Is it the actual rhythmic process or is it satisfaction of the finished project? To have something we have made with our own two hands, something unique? The satisfaction of completion?  

I personally, love all of it! I love the soothing rhythm of knitting and crocheting. I find it relaxing as well as a challenge. I suppose that is why most crafters have more than one project going at a time. I need to have the no nonsense project always at hand for the stressed mind to be soothed. But I am finding more and more that I need to have a challenge nearby as well. I get a small thrill of satisfaction form having the ability to knit or crochet in the dark. 

Ok, so maybe that is a little weird, but think about all the times your family is asleep and you have the urge to knit. Or, say when your boyfriend decides you have been up late enough and turns out the light so you can't knit, and you can still continue to knit without them (that would be the thrill of defiance...LOL)!

I also love the admiration from other people (and who doesn't), the ability to give a unique gift to someone that over shadows the appreciation of a purchased gift. It tells a story of love when you give something that is hand made. Anyone can go to the store and buy something, but it takes a special kind of love to make a gift for someone. 

So then, since all of these things are important to me, why then do I always have that annual summer knitting slow down? Naturally, the lack of air conditioning in my home says a lot. It is difficult to work on a large project when you're feeling smothered by the weight of it and it increase your body temperature by 20 degrees. So...problem solved right? Work on something small and light! Well- that is not happening either. I have two pairs of socks as well as a scarf and hat that I could be working on. I can't blame it all on Brodie, since this is really a seasonal slump for me, more so than because I have a new puppy demanding a lot of my time.  Maybe it is because I am spending more time outside (playing), or maybe it is because I am busier at work, but that usually makes me knit more. Or is it just too hard to think about making wintery type items when it is 90 degrees and the humidity is 150 percent? 

Yah, that must be it- all of the above.

Here is a shot of what I did Sunday morning at the CRACK of DAWN! No sillies, I did not run, as if...I took the pictures of the police officers running in the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics. These courageous cops also got up at the crack of dawn to pass the torch from Winthrop Harbor, IL town to town all the way to Lincolnwood, IL to signal the beginning of the Special Olympics which take place this coming weekend.

Bless them, for sure I could not have run even the shortest leg of the trip.

Look at that sweet face!! Who would have ever guessed that that sweet little baby could harbor the soul of a terrorist!!! 

Clearly we have our work cut out for us!!!  Brodie has not yet learned you do not touch Momma's knitting basket! (note the chew marks on the needle).

HEY!!! THAT'S MY TOE!!!!!

Oh Boy!!! Here we go again.... Apparently Brodie also likes Momma's shoes! And will take them right off her foot!  

, 

Clearly thinking, "Hmmmmm..... What else can I get into...."

Well, I did manage to salvage my TOFUtsie sock, if not the needles. It took me a good ten minutes to untangle the mess Brodie put it in, then I figured that should be my cue to get off my fat butt and graft the toe.  THAT was when I discovered my first puppy causality. My little terrorist bit off a quarter inch of one of my needles. I might be able to sand down the tip for a repair, but it was not the same needle with the chew marks on the tip, Oh Boy!  When you have such a well behaved older dog in the house for so many years, you tend to forget about the baby proofing part of puppydom.

We did get lucky with finding a place, right next door the a pair of out-laws!! A/C in the summer and Heat in the winter...what a concept!! Built in doggie- sitters right next door. My niece Emily is very excited about walking Bingo and Brodie (now there is a visual, Bings doesn't exactly do leash very well, and Emily is 7) and Raine is ecstatic about Mimi living next door to Emily!

I won't miss this house at all! It served it's purpose I guess, but it is too high maintenance. Too big for the four of us and too damn hard to keep clean for the one of us. Especially with the kind of hours I keep.  I think we will all miss this yard though. Especially my babies, they love the open space and having 4 acres means no poop patrol, at least as far a Bingo is concerned. He is  very considerate that way. Moving to a duplex definitely means poop patrol! YUK! And, no off leash playing in the yard. I think we will be making lots of trips to the forest preserve and the dog park.

And as you can see, Brodie really loves to run, and run and run, literally circles around Bingo, and anything else he sees.

It will be an interesting move for sure.

For the Love of Brodie

I realized it has been a very long time since my last post. Part of the reason is because I haven't really been knitting much. I am still working on my tofutsie sock (yes singular) I am at the toe, but not had the ambition to finish. I did start the Koolhaas which is turning out very Kool indeed! But that is as far as I have gotten. 

Something very exciting has come into my life and I have been more than a little bit distracted by it...or rather him. Meet Brodie, the new love of my life. Isn't he beautiful!!!

Last week, after scouring the Internet for a Sheltie pup, I finally found THE ONE. This little man has a face that reminds me of my old Sheltie Kashmir, and the has some of the same personality traits of the older one Eros.  In fact, he looked just enough like Kaz that it prompted me drive 700 miles on Saturday to pick him up. So Raine and hopped into my truck and took off to pick him up, we arrived back home at 4 am Sunday morning with our little bundle of joy. Little Brodie and Raine were both troopers during the long drive, no complaints out of either one of them.

The other exciting thing is that we have decided to move to a smaller, more energy efficient house. This house (rental) is waaaay to big for me to upkeep, and way too hard to heat! Our winter utilities are astronomical! We have been spoiled for so so many years here, with the large 3K house and the 4 acres of land that it will be a hard move for us, but it makes sense. So I have been spending a good deal of my off work time packing. Not one to wait til the last minute for something like that, ya know. This is a great time to get rid of crap that has been sitting around in boxes or on the shelf for the last six years. (deadables not included). 

A large garage sale is in the making ;)

So with all that going on, is it any wonder I haven't picked up a set of needles?

Summer of Socks? Maybe

Ever notice how shopping can make you feel better when your down? Ok, so maybe it is only a temporary fix, but sometimes you just need to indulge yourself. The Internet has been my friend this week. I immediately went to my favorite Lorna's supplier on Ebay (emtnstr) and located three colors I have been musing over. Red White and Blue, for some patriotic 4th of July socks. I found a couple of patterns through Ravely that just might suit. 

I wanted to make the Girls Best Friend Socks too, but had a little problem... they were GINORMOUS! Apparently my kankles are not as big as some.

So I had to shelf that project while I waited for some smaller needles. I naturally ordered the new Harmony double point set. These are awesome needles. So so smooth and silky. I love that they come in sets of six, I will inevitably break one, and in a nice little case to keep them all together.  

Of course I immediately cast on a sock, Loopy- one of my favorites, in some Tofuties that I picked up last year at Stitches.  Since I have so much sock yarn, I figure this should be my summer o' socks.

 I already have my days off scheduled for Stitches in August, and I need to make room in the closet for a new batch of yarn. Maybe some more kits this year too.

I couldn't very well pay shipping just for some needles, so I ordered Artic Lace. I have been wanting this book for a while, I probably should have just gone to the library for the one pattern I wanted out of it, but what the heck, maybe I'll find something else in it I like.

Here are the fingerless mitts I started on my Vegas trip. My hand looks like a big ole' meat hook in these...good thing they are for a boy ;) I think I will be putting these away until Christmas.

Then there is the red white and blue plaid that I started, was it last year or maybe the year before. I actually crocheted a few rows on this the other night. Good project for chilly weather.  Once the body is crocheted I will weave the yarn in the opposite direction to create the plaid effect. Poor Sarah has been waiting for this one for a while. I am making this one bigger than the one I made for myself, and I really have no clue how big yet. I plan to just keep crocheting until it looks right to me.

I will be helping the kids move on my days off this week. So I don't expected to get much of anything recreational accomplished. But I would like to get this afghan done this year to give to them, hopefully before the 4th. We'll see how that goes.

Knitisiums

I think I might need this shirt.

Is that even a word? Knitisiums? Oh well, it is now. I have been browsing the net tonite looking for something to buy. Very bad I know but I figured I have enough overtime in the last two weeks to make up any shopping I do tonite. I can remember not to very long ago that I could not even find one t-shirt or one coffee mug with any type of knitisium on it. Tonite I have found page after page of them. So many in fact that I cannot decide.

Decisions, decisions.


What I did find that I could buy tonite was this....from realmofredheads.com

This shirt along with a few others that celebrate my belonging to the top 4% ;) of the population.

My natural born redheadedness has been causing some dissension in my peace of mind lately.

Ever feel like you are nearing your boiling point? That your level of tolerance for ignorance and stupidity is being reached? I have recently been feeling like a volcano ready to erupt. Quite likely to erupt at work and at home. I am thinking that somebody is going to be the recipient of a tongue lashing and it is not going to be pretty! I try hard not to lose my temper, but sometimes...ok.. It is not even one particular thing that is causing this feeling, but a series of events, rude and whining remarks that is bringing me to this point.

Plus the fact that I am overwhelmed with work, my house is a mess and I can't seem to find the time or energy to put it right, I am working too many hours and my favorite police officer went to a busier department. :(

Top that off with a shitty vacation (I know my butt is fat, and I do not need anyone to remind me, thank you very much!) and there you have it... a volcanic explosion just waiting to happen!

Perhaps it is the reason I felt the need to buy a t-shirt that says "Consider the hair a warning"

On a knitting side note, I did finish the fingerless gloves for that spousal-type-person who does not deserve them (picture to come at a later date). And I discovered that my own fingerless gloves are great for wearing outside and in that cold ass work out room at work, but they are not so good for typing. Way too bulky, I kept hitting the wrong keys. I shall have to make another fingerless - fingerless glove to cover cold hands for typing.

I am having a bit of a knitting slump as well Dawn, don't feel too bad.

I'd rather be Knitting!

Vegas was a pretty good time, and it was pretty good to me. Four days and four nights only cost me $300 in gambling...not too shabby. That means they gave me way more than I gave back since I came away with almost as much as I took with me.

(shopping not included-that is an entirely separate fund of course).

We stayed and played at the Big Apple (NY NY)

Then played at the MGM Grand and watched the men play with the big kitties.
(not on your life would I ever get inside there!!)

POWER WALKED our fat butts all the way to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch one day (and more shopping of course). Then we found out there was a shuttle that could take us the three flippin' miles back to the strip!
The lunch and shopping was well worth the long walk tho, (at least us girls thought it was).
My crazy brother-in-law-type-person (A fellow hillbilly) decided he wanted to ride the XScream at the top of the Stratosphere (insane). So we all dutifully watched him take his ride from the very windy observation deck at the top, with our hearts in our throats. I don't think these pictures do the height of the building and the rides justice.

We were waaaaaaay up there!

Here is Tuck (third one from the front with his hands in the air- crazy fool) Mind you this patricular ride throws you over the edge of the building and suspends you there. Towards the end of the ride we all heard Tuck yell out that he could not feel a certain part of his anatomy that is better left unmentioned. Altho it did generate a hearty chuckle out of the onlookers on the deck. ;)Our last full day we went about in an nice easy stroll. (That power walking spousal-type apparently decided he had enough and spent the entire day in bed- so much the better for the rest of us).

We stopped at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. The figures were so real looking it was totally creepy. Creepy but very cool. There was also a surprise in the museum, which I won't spoil for anyone who might go there. I highly recommend taking a camera to the museum and making sure you make a pit stop prior to the surprise show!!

(Note the Caution sign above)

Tuck and Twig with the Blue Man Group

Tuck bumping it up with erm- somebody or other.

I'll just bet you never saw a Twig pole dance before...LOL
We were worried that he might throw a branch or something.
( I think this was Britney Ho - I mean Spears)

Tuck and Stevie singing Ebony and Ivory... ok -so Tuck was singing, Stevie just sat there.



And here is the result of my airplane knitting. Fingerless glove #1 for that boy who probably won't even wear them if he runs true to form. I slept the entire way home so I really only knit on the way there.

Quite frankly, I was so exhausted after the trip that I could not wait to get back to work and the two 12 hour shifts waiting for me this week!! I think I truly would have rather have stayed home and knit on my vacation.

Viva Baby!

My Baby Surprise Jacket is all done, barring sewing the seams, of course. I had a much better understanding the second time round. Putting it together was like a Chinese puzzle. I twisted it this way and that way, and the finally - I figured out how it went. Thank goodness for that little neck line dip or I would have stuffed it in a drawer.  Since I have lots of this baby yarn I think I will make the little hat too that matches. I will stash it away for a future occasion when I finish. 

I also finished my Hooray for Me gloves. My very first time making fingers I will have you know! I did say I was going to challenge myself this year, didn't I. To some it may seem like baby steps, but for me I am breaking away from my comfortable norm.  Altho, once I get the hang of a pattern, I make it again and again and again, thus making it my new norm. 

My next pair will be for that boy. In a manly dark sagey color. Altho why I don't know, because I am sure he really doesn't deserve it, he has a definite evil side for sure! 

 I think I mentioned last time that we were planning a Vegas trip this week end. I was planning on getting myself a nice little base tan before I left because , I know, once out in that Nevada sun, I will be toast! 

So I take myself off to my friend's tanning salon, and have a very successful 10 min session. (red head, ya know) I am feeling pretty comfortable about it (having burnt myself badly last year) and decide I can handle the normal 20 minutes (seriously, I used to go almost daily). 

Well I left the shop on Sunday feeling life was good, however, by Sunday night my backside was burnt to a crisp! Talk about frying the fat!! It is really too bad you can't loose weight that way.

I break out the Solarcaine because I can no longer stand the pain late Sunday and realize  am never going to sleep without it. Ask my (evil) spousal type person to kindly spray my back. Which he did, along with my backside! Ok, thank you, I could reached that part myself, but he seemed to get a big kick out if it. So much so, that as I stand waiting for it to dry so I can re-dress, that evil person thought how funny to take sneaky pictures of my red backside with his damn Iphone!!

Worse yet, he had me convinced he put it on You Tube!!!  (no, don't go looking for it, he was just teasing) Men! Unfortunately he also seem to find it funny to show people at his work... oh and please did we have to magnify the dimples??

You're probably wondering why  I am making him a pair of fingerless gloves after that??? Because I stupidly do not hold grudges. Besides, it gives me a safe airplane project. I intend to forget about that horrible incident and plug my ears into my Ipod and knit my way across the country!

Finally- as I sit here waiting for my sheets to dry, I have finished my other slouchy sock, and will be styling at O'hare Airport. 

By Jove, I think I've got it!

Not too much happening in the knitting world for me last week. I had to attend a CTO class, (that is "Communications Training Officer" to the non-police world.) I felt like I was back in High School cramming for a test on Wednesday night. When the instructor announced that it was not an open book test, I started to panic!! My memory is like a sieve nowadays, lack of oxygen or something I'm sure! So naturally on the last day of my class, the day of the test, I brought my knitting and knitted in class right before my test to calm my nerves. Musta worked because I only got two wrong! Woo Hoo!  I am now fully certified :) We also had to give an impromptu demonstration in front of the class during the week, in which I naturally taught knitting... and ladies, I taught it to a man with two pens and a tie from a classmates hoodie. LOL

Since I was stalling the grafting of my beaded scarf now for well over a week. I finally got out my  Knitters Handbook and followed it step by step. I am not completely happy with the final product. It seems like this scarf was doomed from the start. Not being able to get all the beads I needed in a timely manner, then to top things off, I was a stitch off, somewhere along the line I increased and did not realize it until I started grafting, WTF. The original pattern called for a 3 needle bind off, which leaves a big ugly seem. I kinda wanted to try to graft with the beads included so there wasn't an empty row, but that wasn't working out either.

You can see my big boo boo here. I broke all my personal rules about leaving in a mistake, but I just did not have the heart to start all over again. So I left in the glaring mistake and fudged it. Not so great at the garter stitch grafting either. This is what I call a fk it project! At least is not a gift and nobody probably notice when I wear it, at least I hope nobody notices. Design feature..yah that's it design feature.

Remember that toe up sock that went nowhere? Isn't it funny how quickly a project can go when you enjoy the process? Well I got back into my sock groove, and managed to get the first slouchy one finished (top down of course) and I am determined to get the hang of the Kitchener's stitch. It has been eluding me forever. Every sock I do I have had trouble with it. FINALLY I think I've got it! I got out my handy dandy book and talked my self through it (yet again) and this toe turned out perfect!! Even better, I think I actually grasp the stitch!!! 

(note the impressive balancing act on one foot while taking photos - yoga does have some unusual benefits)

Having a smooth toe was really the only thing that prompted me to try a toe up in the first place. I like the way normal sock knitting flows, and altho I am not confident that I can do it again without the book, this was the first time I had the "Ah ha" moment.  

I love this yarn (Felici) it is very soft and comfy, much much nicer than any of Knit Picks previous sock yarns, I predict a long and happy relationship with this pair of socks, even though it makes me look like I have some really fugly kankles.

I think I had the "Ah ha" moment with the Baby Surprise Jacket too. I re cast on the other night and now realize that I had been making a major mistake, like, oh you know, like following the directions!  I think I get it now, and it is starting to look like everyone else's :)  Funny how a little thing like following directions can make such a big difference!

We are still counting down- 9 more days to Vegas.... hmmm what knitting to take on the plane with me.