Knitting Update

Been working on Ella and I really love the softness of the yarn and the pattern. It's so easy to get into a rhythm while knitting it.

The sock on DNPs is done, so that is another pair that I've completed. The only issue I'm having with socks in general is the fit. I can't seem to get them to fit properly and not be all slouchy. I don't mind the slouch too much, but even my broadripple socks slouch and you can't see the lacy pattern. Yes, I have checked gauge. I suppose since socks are always tight on me, I'm over compensating. Believe me, the completed socks are wearable and I love them. But they could stand to be a wee bit snugglier.

The Viking costumes still continue to glare at me with a hatred I've never felt from any other knitting project. That's the way Vikings are supposed to be, I guess.

And I cast on another sock. This one is a cotton/wool self striping yarn by Regia. I like working with this yarn. It's soft and springy and feels "cool". So I think they'll be a fabulous pair of spring/summer socks.

I'm getting ready for "Flash your Stash". By getting ready I mean I have it in my head how I want to compose and set up my entry. I just need to take the photos and get them uploaded.

The weather is much nicer here and I think I may be going through that 2 to 3 weeks of restlessness that I always seem to have in the first weeks of spring. Restlessness isn't really the best description either. There is a bit of that, but during the week I am so tired and lethargic. Last night I knit a gauge swatch, and did the math for the "Mata Hari" sock I found on this blog. But no real progress on any of the WIPs.

This morning I got on a roll and started planning my days off next week. I'm getting my hair cut on Thursday. Friday my car goes to the mechanic for an oil change, a/c charge up, and a new windshield. Saturday my knitting pal and I are going to see The Yarn Harlot at a bookstore that is way closer than the place I originally mentioned. Sunday will be preparation for my first day at my new job. I was going to get a new top or something to wear, but after the new windshield, I think I may wait on that for a little while.

The past few mornings Nikki has decided that because it is light out, it's time for her to eat. She's been waking me up at 5:30. I know this will all be remedied Sunday morning since we move the clocks forward. But it's annoying now. OK - so maybe that's why I'm tired. Asleep at 11 and up at 5:30 doesn't make for a happy Buttercup.

Which is also why are no photos. I'm too pooooopppppped to deal with setting everything up on something that looks good, snapping, uploading, uploading and posting. Wow, that's pathetic!

Rambling

There's no turning back now. I signed all my paperwork for my new job and will be hand delivering it tomorrow morning. There has been no counter offer, which actually surprises and disappoints me. They were pretty quick to arrange to have a temp come in so I can train her the last three days I'm here. Don't let the door hit you on the way out Buttercup.

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I've heard from my Mr. Big a lot this last week. He is no longer working for the same company as I am. He started his new job last Monday. I got a couple phone calls and a bunch of IM messages from him. In one of those messages he was telling me that he has been having a lot of memories/fantasies about me. Then he asks me what I'm looking for in a guy (like he doesn't know). I told him I wanted someone who loved me and wanted to be a part of my life. Someone who was monogamous and who know when I needed my space. He said that he thought it would be really hard to find a guy like that, that it was a "tall order".

Excuse me????

I am so pissed off at him for saying that. Just because he thinks what he wants is an "open relationship" doesn't mean that he is in the majority. I told him he was a liar. I've not heard from him since that conversation, so we'll see what happens next. I KNOW he won't leave me alone, so I'm sure there will be more to tell of this tale.

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It’s official… My mom is a Guinness World Record holder. She called me on the way home to let me know that her group received verification and certificates from the UK saying that their documentation and proof of their accomplishment met their standards and was accepted. I am still so very proud of her. You can read about it here in my other journal.

My Inner Dork...

I just signed up to see the Yarn Harlot while she is on her book tour. I'll have to drive about an hour and a 1/2 each way to get there, but it will be worth it. If she is half as funny in person as she writes, it's well worth the cost!

Which is $0.00 So it's way beyond worth it. It's PRICELESS.

Do you think she'll sign my book?

New Job!

I finally got my offer letter on Tuesday afternoon via e-mail, and yesterday via express shipping. Every thing we talked about and I was expecting was in there. I love it when that happens. I accepted the offer (naturally) and then I tried to give my notice.

That's right - I tried. The following is a prime example of why I needed to find something else.

Early last year, the Executive Admin Assistants were shifted around so that they reported to the most senior person they supported. We all reported to someone different, and they a were all Executive VPs. The guy I reported to resigned at the end of last year. No one ever told me who I was reporting to in the interim.

As the month of January went on, I discovered that the most senior person I was supporting at that time was the one who was approving my time sheets (I work in a company that bills clients for EVERYTHING - so I have to report my time). I sort of decided that since he was approving my time, he was the one that I'd call out sick to or ask to approve vacation time, until they hired a new EVP. It's been like this since January.

I get my offer letter and write up a brief letter of resignation and take the original over to my "boss". After the string of curses and "Oh No"s and "You're killing me"s he said he wasn't the one who I would give the letter to. We had a whole discussion about who exactly I would give the letter to. I said that I had a copy for HR, but that since I didn't work for HR, I didn't think I'd resign to them. All they needed to know was that I had resigned. His position was that since he wasn't my boss he shouldn't accept the letter. He had a point.

So I went to HR, and naturally they were all gone for the day (at 3PM - Sheesh!). So I sent an e-mail to the two HR people who work in my building asking who I reported to. No reply.
The next morning I went into the HR person's office and gave her my letter and told her that the guy I thought I reported to had a copy of the letter. She said that I DID in fact report to him. Then she said very matter of fact-ly "I guess we never told him you reported to him."

Huh? WTF?!?

Don't you think that's a little bit of a problem? You have someone reporting to a manager and neither of them knows it?

I can't get out of here soon enough.

Here she is...

My little old girl. She is almost 19 in people years.

I thought I had a better pic of her uploaded, but this is the only one there. I have pics of my knitting where you'll see the tip of an ear or a whisker getting in the way. I promise a better kitty pic later.

ALL HAIL... me

I did it! I conquered the dasterdly DPNs. I cast on for sock #2 last night, figuring it didn't really matter if there was a slight difference in gauge from sock 1 to sock 2 just from knitting on 2 circs vs 4 dnps.

See - look how far I got.

I'm embarassed to tell you WHY I gave it another go and stuck with it. I cast the sock onto the 2 circs and knit the first round. I kept getting dirty looks from my kitty who was sleeping on my lap. She is not a fan of the 2 circ method because the ones not in use keep dangling on her and annoying her. Far be it for me to annoy her.

My knitting buddy came to my cube first thing this morning and asked me to help her wind a ball of yarn. She hasn't perfected the two feet method I used to use pre ball winder purchase. So it was a nice, unexpected hour of fondling some Alpaca Cloud Bulky and then knitting for a while. I showed her my sock on DPNs and she ooohhhhed and aaaahhhhed and attagirl'ed appropriately. Although she isn't a cat person, she completely understood my reasoning.

So I don't totally feel like a crazy cat lady.

Pictures!

I'm still trying to take better pictures of my knitting.

Here is the finished sock. 2nd still hasn't been cast on yet. I'll more than likely get to it tonight.

I was only able to work on Ella a little bit last night. I only did 3 rows, which is making me mental. I was going great guns on it over the weekend, but for some reason I wasn't able to get much done last night.

OK - I know the reason. I'm way too excited over a new job. I am going in for a final meeting on Friday afternoon when they should be offering me a job. This job was pretty much created for me, and so they want to make sure that what they came up with is what I want to do. I also have to bring in examples of my work, which is a first for me. I know they want to make sure that I can do all that I said I can do, but still it's a little odd.

My boss is mad at me. Before he was my boss I asked if he would be a reference for me and he agreed. Since this company I'm meeting with on Friday has an automated questionaire reference thingy that is done on-line, I asked him if he would still be willing to be a reference for me. He is not happy - but he knew I was looking.

More socks and Ella and Viking helmet horns will make me forget about how annoyed he is at me. I know it will!

Long overdue Knitting Adventures...

The Viking hats are coming along. I have the horns to make (yeah - 4 of them!) My SIL seems to think the hats will be enough, but if I know my nephew, he'll be very disapointed that he doesn't get the "costume" part of it too.

I skipped ahead to the finishing instructions for the hats and you have to felt everything, which means the hats will shrink. That's great, except if everything shrinks at the same rate I'll still have the problem of all the pieces not fitting. I may felt the hats first and see where they end up. I may not felt the bands (for embellishment) since they are much smaller than the hat is right now.

Ella continues along at a good pace. It is really beautiful and I love the yarn. It's knitting up much faster than I thought it would. Photos to come.

I finished a sock last night. I was going to rip this one out and start over, but then I put it on my foot and it is so soft and warm and yummy that I decided to keep going. Before I knew it, I was grafting the toe closed. I'll cast on the other sock later or tonight. This photo is from a couple days ago, but you can the cool funky colors.

Then there is the sock I decided to start so I could try the Knit Picks 100% Merino sock yarn. I think it is yummmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeeee to knit with. Unfortunately, they're hand wash only. I don't care. They're lovely, soft, and the colors are beautiful. I have a hand wash setting on my wash machine and I can lay them out on top of the dryer while other stuff is drying. It works well with sweaters so I'm sure it will with the socks too. Photos soon.

I still haven't swatched for the Cinxia sweater I want to knit. This is the cardigan that I mentioned in a previous post. Maybe when I get Ella done I'll move on to that.

Then there is this:

Those of you who are knitters and who can see past my not so professional photo can see what the problem is here. The stitches are twisted. No this is not mine.

This belongs to a woman I work with. She is a knitter and was having a horrible time joining the cast on so it didn't twist. I talked her through my method of joining and she took it back home and brought it back a couple days later and handed it to me. "I give up. You do it."

I never offered but all of a sudden it was my job to cast on and join. How did that happen? Next time I'm telling her there's a fee.

Toe Sucka

I've done the online dating site thing. I've run into my share of scary, freaky stuff. A friend of mine gets even worse then I do, but she is still on all the sites and then some.

Anyway, I subscribed to MySpace. I don't have a blog there or anything. I entered minimal information (only what was required) to get the account. The only reason I even subscribed was so that I could read and post comments to my friend Roberta's blog.

Her best friend is Eric. He is a very talented up and coming singer/dancer/actor. So imagine my surprise when I opened my e-mail account (via my ISP not MyS) and saw I had a message at MyS from Eric.

Huh? I've never met him.

So I click on the link, log in and what do my horrified eyes see but...

A photo of someone named Eric who is so obviously NOT the Eric I thought it was. This Eric is African American. I can't tell much about his features other than that because he has a white woman's toe in his mouth. Ewwwww. A TOE SUCKER! The photo was taken from the vantage point of the suckee. Holy CRAP!

Included with the photo was a message that consisted of two very long paragraphs. I didn't read them because - EWWWWWWWWWWW!

What in my meager profile indicated that I would be opened to this man sucking my toe/foot? Single and 44 years old doesn't mean I'm THAT desperate.

Disclaimer... I am not a bigot. I also have nothing against people who like to suck toes or have their toes sucked. Whatever makes you happy. I don't have anything against feet either.

Startitis

I don't know what's wrong with me... I started Ella last night. With the yarn I had purchased for my Clapotis. This was actually an alternate yarn (who can resist a S!A!L!E!) to what I purchased originally for the project. Oddly enough it was the exact yarn that the pattern called for. But the original yarn I purchased called to me so this one went into the stash pile to call to me when something came up.

Who knew it would be so soon?

I was looking over the pattern for Ella and the yarn that was used was a 50% silk/50% Merino blend. Hummmmm. Wow. I can start that RIGHT NOW.

So, I did.

Before I put Ella down for the night I messed up somewhere. So I'll have to tink and see what happened. I'm sure I missed a yarn over somewhere. That's always been a problem for me. Makes me crazy. Not to mention that 10 PM is not the best time to look for errors. There aren't that many stitches on the needles at this point, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem.

I broke down and bought a ball winder. My kitty is fascinated and a little afraid of it. She sits on the couch in front of the coffee table where I attach the winder and she stares at my hand turning the handle. Some times she sees what is left of a ball or hank on the floor and she totally gets this freaked out look and slinks away. I suppose she's allowed to be afraid of any new fangled contraptions I bring into the house. She is like 130 in cat years.

I've not touched the Viking Costumes since Sunday. There is just something about that pattern that isn't making sense. I need to read the finishing details to see if there are parts of the hat that are felted and some that are not because all the pieces parts aren't fitting together at all. The only thing I can think is that the hat itself is felted and the pieces are put onto the hat and either not felted at all or are needle felted. No idea. I think that's why I'm having such a time at knitting the things. I can't see how I'll get the finished product out of the pieces I have.

I know this blog isn't any fun without pictures. I did take photos of Ella, my socks in progress, and something else I'll be blogging about shortly, but my home computer farted and the pictures didn't burn to the CD I was going to use. Better then using the space up on my pen drive.

DPN Hell

I learned how to knit socks on two circular needles. I love that method, but you can't always find the smaller sized needles. I've only been able to find size 1's. So, I purchased Double Pointed Needles. They were packeged as a set of "sock needles" which started at 000 and went up to 1's and you got 5 of each which is way better then just getting 4.

So last night I decided to take these puppies out for a test run. I cast on the required amount of stitches on the size 1 needles (yeah - another pair of socks on the go), split them onto 4 of the 5 needles and then started to knit in a 2x2 rib. I think it took me 20 minutes to knit those 56 stitches.

I resisted the urge to pick up my circulars and knit onto them and off the DPNs. This is a learning experience I told myself. You've never done this before. I put the DPNs down and tended to the laundry. I went back to my knitting when that chore was done. I picked up the meager one row I knit on the DPNs and started row 2.

This one will be easier. The stitches will be easier to knit into because they aren't the cast on stitches. There will be a little more give.

And there was a little more give, but I had all these needles in the way. Poking at me and slipping in between the needles I needed to use. I was getting extra wraps around the needles I didn't need. I had to slow down to a crawl to make sure I wasn't messing up.

It's all part of the process. This is new to you.

Geeze, I would have had at least an inch knit on my circs.

So I braved on. I kept knitting on the DPNs. Then it happened. I put the empty needle in my left hand and shifted the knitting so I could knit on the next needle. I pulled the empty needle out of my hand and in a moment of horror realized that I pulled out one of the needles with live stitches.

I took it as an omen, frogged and cast back onto the 2 circs. At least the set of DPNs was only $10. I'll try again. Eventually.

Knitting Olympics Hang-over

The Olympics are over and it's been about three weeks since I finished my Knitting Olympic project. The Yarn Harlot posed a good question on her blog, asking what you learned over the 16 days and if there were any after-effects.

I noticed last Sunday that there were a couple of things going on. First, I really didn't want to work on a project that previously I was excited to get started on; Viking Costumes for my nephews. They consist of a viking hat and a jerkin type thing. I decided that everything should be done in twos instead of completing one and then starting the other. I'd lose interest too fast and they would never get done. But doing two of everything also has it's downfalls. I can't say "Ok, part 3 is done." I still have my second part 3 to complete.

Maybe I'm being a little rough on myself. It's not that bad. They are kid sized hats so they're not that big. The horns that will be attached to the helmet can't be that big so even tho I have to make 4 of them, it shouldn't be that big of a deal.

What I think is going on is that I was so excited about starting my KO project and so thrilled with the result, that I need something that will equal the excitement of knitting that. I need to make something that is all for me - and not just socks (which I have a pair going right now and will more than likely cast on another tonight).

A quick word about knitting socks... I learned how to knit socks about 4 months ago and I've made 5 pair since. The last three pair have been made in the last month. A pair takes about a week so it's kind of instant gratification. Today at lunch I turned the heel on a sock and picked up stitches for the gussett/instep. Then it's just 4 short inches or so till I get to the toe.

I have all the yarn for a sweater that I've been eyeing for a while. It may be time for me to start in on it. It will be a challange because I'll have to alter the pattern to include short rows in the bust area to insure the front and back of the sweater will fall at the same place at my hips. I've never altered a pattern before, so this is a first and will be a challange. I'm the type of person who wants to just pick up the pattern and knit the darn thing. No fudging the measurments or recalculating.

With that in mind I found this cardigan on Knitty. I think I'll use the yarn I got for the sweater mentioned above for this. So I'll swatch at some point in the next couple of weeks and see if its a viable soultion.

But I'm not excited about any of it. It's all just "eh". Although I would rather be knitting than doing anything else (like work. heh) Maybe it was the challange.

Two blogs...

I have another blog which I've been using for some time. But today I decided that I really should give Blogger another go. It seems to be more flexible than the other one.

So I'll be posting at both sites for a while. I do like the other site and there is almost a year of entries there. So until such time as I decide to migrate over from one to the other - or not - I'll either double post or bounce back and forth.

Decision making is not my forte.