Knitting

The one where it felt like

April 21, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

her day was never going to end. I’ve had to be in a meeting for work starting at 9 a.m. yesterday, was there from 7:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. today and have to be back tomorrow a.m. at 7:30. For someone who has a real problem sitting still for any length of time over about 30 minutes, every minute feels like an hour. I usually knit to help me focus and not crawl out of my skin but not this time. My boss understands this and it’s no big deal, but others, not so much. It’s been a long, long two days.

Coupling socks nearly finished, but not in time for FO Friday. Dang.

Without a doubt, this is the absolutely worst of the worst of all the pics I’ve ever made but I’m worn out and just don’t feel like retaking it. So, I apologize.

Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Bible

Knitting

The one where she’s a

April 20, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

little ahead of the game. I took pics last night to post since I’m going to be in a meeting from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and I wanted to post a WIP Wednesday.

The Brittany Jumper so far

and just in case anyone missed it, a little stitch detail

Freedom is one of the deepest and noblest aspirations of the human spirit. Ronald Reagan (1911-2004)

Knitting

The one where the first

April 19, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

day at work after being under the weather goes smoothly. I was three days behind but have managed to catch up without too much trouble. Without jinxing myself, I think the Brittany Jumper has been beaten into submission (finally) and the eyelet border is behind me. Now, 6 1/2 inches of st st before the bodice.

I finished The Uncoupling today. Very interesting book, a takeoff on Lysistrata. Without spoiling it, the play is about ancient women who get tired of the men’s warring and go on a sex strike until peace is restored. Like I said, very interesting. The author is Meg Wolitzer. Good read.

Here’s some stitch detail on Brittany. Looks great if I do say so myself.

This is the eyelet picot pattern that nearly drove me batty last week. I think putting the whole project into time out did the trick.

Moral indignation is jealousy with a halo. H.G. Wells (1866-1946)

Knitting

The one where she has to take

April 18, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

another sick day. Up all night with a stomachache and all that goes with it. I felt really wrung out this morning and was strongly encouraged by Mr. Iknead to stay home. So, I did.

Being sick sucks.

Turn your face to the sun and the shadows fall behind you. Maori proverb

Knitting

The one where the Brittany

April 17, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

Jumper is cast on ONE LAST TIME. I mean it. This is the absolute last time. If I’m unsuccessful, I’m going to chalk it up to the knitting gods, who obviously don’t want me to knit this and move on. I mean, there are countless yarns and projects that I could be knitting, why do I keep beating my head against this particular wall?

The wireless is working again. Poor Mr. Iknead worked so hard yesterday to get it back up and running; his patience outshines mine pretty much all the time, but I could tell yesterday evening that even his patience was wearing thin. Hats off to you sweetie.

Here’s the obligatory photo, but the subject is anything but.

On Friday, we’re heading north to Fayetteville for Miss Susannah’s first Easter. I need me some Susannah love and chocolate bunnies. Mmmmmm..

I baked a new cake recipe yesterday, devil’s food with a macaroon filling and coconut frosting. Tastes just like an Almond Joy. Ugly as homemade sin, but really good.

Luck is like having a rice dumpling fly into your mouth. Japanese proverb

Knitting

The one where today

April 16, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

Has been a challenge because our wireless Internet has been on the blink. On the blink as in there is none. Mr. Iknead has been working to get it going again for hours but it’s still a no go. I’m pretty much computer illiterate so I’m no help at all. Thank heaven for my iPhone. Maybe we’ll get it going tomorrow. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.

The art of a people is a true mirror to their minds. Jawaharlel Nehru

Knitting

The one where Josie caves

April 15, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

to pressure and is convinced to model the FO Friday entry. Supermodels are such divas!

This FO is a skinny mistake rib scarf that I knitted on a road trip to Cleveland, Ohio, with my son, when he had a graduate school audition there. The name of the school escapes me at the moment, must be a senior moment. It didn’t work out, but he feels that he is exactly where he needs to be at this point in his life. We drove there, straight through from Little Rock and I’m here to tell you that that is one long car ride and in March, Cleveland is very, very cold and snowy. Would I do it again? In a New York minute. I wouldn’t trade that time with my baby boy for anything.

Blue’s her color, don’t you think?

If you can give your son or daughter only one gift, let it be enthusiasm. Bruce Barton

Knitting

The one where she finds

April 14, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

a photo of the first cables ever. I made the scarf for my DSIL, it was very long because I wasn’t sure how long it needed to be and just kept knitting until I ran out of yarn. It was a success, he said he loved it and it visited Europe with DD and DSIL.

I wish I had the picture of DSIL wearing it at the Eiffel Tower. I’m going to e-mail DD and she if she can’t send it to me. My scarf has turned out to be well travelled.

Off work tomorrow but have a to do list as long as my arm. Still, I won’t be at work.

He who never made a mistake never made a discovery. Samuel Smiles

Knitting

The one where it’s WIP

April 13, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

Wednesday with a haiku thrown in. Here’s what it’s all about:

Yep, you got it, the En Point sweater. It’s been languishing these past few weeks, while my attention has been directed toward other things. I promise it every time I pass it over for something more exciting projects that it’s next in line, but…….

Sad WIP

Passed over again.

What does it have that I don’t?

Won’t you rescue me?

Children speak in the field what they hear in the house. Scottish Proverb

Knitting

The one where blogging

April 12, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

is blogged about.

I took the challenge of blogging every day issued by WordPress the first of the year and have been more or less successful. I think I’ve missed two days posting and am pretty proud of myself. Admittedly, the first month or so of posts was like pulling teeth. I dreaded posting most of the time because it was hard for me to put my thoughts in order and it be halfway readable. Happily, I think I’ve gotten better at it, it seems to flow a lot easier and now I have trouble keeping my posts down to a reasonable length. I don’t dread it and some days it’s a little bit harder than others, but I like creating something with words, something that’s uniquely mine.

I was sorting through some photos earlier and found this one. It’s labeled random pretty and it’s both random and pretty.

Look with favour upon a bold beginning. Virgil (70 BC-19 BC)

Knitting

The one where a sense

April 11, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

of putting down a burden, a not so heavy burden but a burden nonetheless, is a welcome relief. My father came to LR yesterday and I went with him to see his cardiologist (he has a pacemaker) and besides needing to have the battery replaced sometime this summer, everything checked out. What makes this situation a little more difficult is that he lives in a small town, about three hours away from Little Rock. I was able a year or so ago to convince him that his just hopping in the car and bringing himself to his appointment was really not a great option, he’s 82, with arthritic joints, eyesight that’s not terrible, but not as good as it was and a very low freak out threshold. So, Mr. Iknead and I have to go down and pick him up, coordinate schedules and be available to be his wheels while he’s here. It’s really just an inconvenience that happens a couple of times a year, but I always feel relieved when he’s finished with everything and is safely back home. Mr. Iknead drove him home this time, it’s a six hour round trip and he’ll never know how much this means to me. Mr. Iknead rocks!! Did I mention that my Mom is in a nursing home with dementia? He’s always in a hurry to get back home, it’s hard for him to be away and she doesn’t understand why he’s not visiting.

The upside is that waiting rooms are perfect for working on a small project, keeps my mind focused and helps me with the antsy feelings that always come around when I have to sit and wait. The Coupling socks were the happy recipient of my (sort of) undivided attention today. Here’s where we stand at this moment –

I’m lacking in photo skills I think so I’m going to dig up the instruction book and hone the few skills I have.

You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)

Knitting

The one, after a deep breath,

April 10, 2011 mud&stringLeave a comment

the Brittany Jumper is no more. I decided I just couldn’t live with the crooked eyelets and in the end I’d be much happier just starting over. So that’s what I did.

DD and the Papoose got home to Fayetteville all in one piece. It sure was nice having them around and I wish I could have hidden Susannah away and kept her, but I knew that sooner or later her mom would figure it out. So it was a no go.

Here is the obligatory photo that every blog post must have. So there. Here’s my girls, DD and DDIL. DD is in pink. Aren’t they beautiful?