Knits

Holy moses. I finished something. The first sock went so quick and the second one, well it took about two months. They’re done and probably the best fitting socks yet. The foot is maybe a wee bit tight and the first one a wee bit too long, but I improved on those things on the second one.

I love this colourway — MadelineTosh Glazed Sock in Ginger — and I’m totally not into orange. I think the pattern is a bit obscured, but in some ways it’s quite nice that a closer inspection reveals little wheat ears.

Brief details:
Pattern: Kansas harvest by Jeanie Townsend (you need to sign up to the Yahoo! group to get the pattern) [Rav link]
Yarn: MadelineTosh Glazed Sock in Ginger - I used EXACTLY 57g for each sock. I had about 5g left over.
Needles: I start all my socks on a 2mm Addi from the toe up then move to DPNs. I used 2mm and 2.5mm DPNs
Mods: Well I worked this toe up so to make the wheat ears not be upside down, I simply reversed the order of the cables. It was something I couldn’t figure out how I’d do it until I just did it and saw how things turned out. I just can’t ever remember which direction cables take (same goes for decreases) until I do it. Also, as I learned with some other socks, I knit socks pretty tightly and I tend to ignore whatever the pattern stitch counts are. I increase the foot until it fits and then after the heel turn I decrease until it fits — this tends to mean that the foot and cuff stitch counts are very different. It’s odd since I do have very skinny ankles so I’m guessing it has something to do with my very high instep.

The colour in the close up is washed out, but the colour in the above is pretty accurate.
[Rav link for my project]

That’s Randy the Ninja visiting Edinburgh. He’s pointing out the Scott Monument. I love that I can now visit Edinburgh as a day trip. It takes about as long to get from my flat to Edinburgh as it did to get from Oxford to London and it’s about 2.5 times as far. And the scenery is approximately a million times nicer. I’ve already planned some day trips to locations between here and Edinburgh for some walks.

I went up overnight actually to take in some of the annual Edinburgh Festivals which includes the most famous of them all, the Fringe Festival. I just wandered around taking in the sites and sounds, people watching. My weekend was somewhat ruined by some bureaucratic bullshit, but also, returning to Edinburgh on my own was probably not wise. It just reminded me of being there in May 2007 with my mom and Kristal knowing that at that time Kristal was holding onto a secret, but never let on. I hope I’ll return again soon and be able to have happier memories there.

The weather was stunning as you can see. I had no intentions of seeking out any yarn shops, but I did accidentally stumble across k1 Yarns where Ysolda works. The shop was already closed, but I spied Ysolda behind the counter tidying up some hanks of yarn. It was like celebrity sighting hehe.

I haven’t finished the socks, but I have cast-on for a scarf. A lightweight, lacy scarf that is going to be giant if I use the whole skein. I’m knitting the Strangling Vine scarf (Rav link), but have skipped the garter edge and will do something along the lines of the Flutter scarf (Rav link) for the ends. I’m using the yarn I got in my pirate/ninja swap — J. Knits Superwash Me Sock — it’s a light fingering weight. There’s no way I could’ve knit socks with this as I knit my socks REALLY tightly and I’d need really, really small needles for this (and considering I tend to knit socks on really small needles already — 2 - 2.5mm — I couldn’t do it). The skein was about 113g and so far I’ve used about 17g and it’s 14″ long unstretched. This thing might be a giant.

It’s just about to go noon and I’m still in my pyjamas. I might actually head back to bed for a wee snooze and then get up to do the domestic things that need doing. Oh it’s a bank holiday here today; I’m not skivving from work.

Hey, guess what? It’s raining! Yes! Rain! In England! Loads of it! I hate to talk about the weather, but it has just been totally bizarre. It starts out damp and grey and, well, typically British, then it will clear up, become bright and sunny and actually be hot (it’s all relative), and then the clouds roll back in and the heavens just open right up and spew forth massive amounts of water. It’s rather incredible. Just now it rained so hard and fast that it looked a lot like a snow shower. And, no, it wasn’t hail.

Knitting-fu is beginning to return. I missed our monthly weekend meetup last Saturday which was bad luck since I had hoped to steal some of the knitting mojo those ladies had on offer. I picked up the same damn sock I’ve been working on for months now and knit a bit of it. I know if I just sit down and do it I’ll be done by the end of the week (I get so distracted and I’m so slow with the knitting). But Jillian’s gorgeous Flutter scarf totally helped to reinspire me and I spent awhile browsing patterns last night in which to make something a bit similar. I will try to work on the sock tonight because I just want it done (it’s getting so close!), but I will also wind the yarn for my scarf so that I can start it soon. Actually I did notice that the lack of knitting has caused me to lose my knitting muscles in my hand hahaha. They got really tired, really quick the other night.

What else is going on, eh? Well, I finally got a washing machine at home again. I’m way more excited about this one should be. The other week when I sent my washing out with the laundry service it turned out to be a disaster. I had a feeling it might be this time because from the get go it was a mess. I sent my clothes and two duvets. One duvet is really more of a blanket since it is so lightweight, but it is my absolute favourite thing to sleep with and I actually do miss it when I’m away from home for more than a day or two. Take a guess as to what has happened. Come on, guess.

They lost it. How do you lose a Queen (UK King) size duvet? I am very sad and extremely annoyed. The owner of this business has been on holiday and is back on Friday so I will talk to him about fixing this mess up. I brought this duvet from the US and I have yet to see anything similar.

On the work front I had an incredibly frustrating day yesterday (nothing to do with my workplace), but it seems to be fixing itself. I know what I have to do so it’s fine really. I’m also scheduled to give a talk in the very near future. To a lot of people. In a foreign country. This is both exciting and absolutely frightening. The week after that I’m participating in another talk sort of thing, but that’s not so scary because it’s very casual and I know a lot of the people already.

I am also meant to be moving come sometime in September. I have to make these arrangements yet, but it’s difficult since I am away so much already in September. I will take some time off at the end of the month around my birthday to have some days to breathe and finish my moving (the unpacking bit really).

And just to bring this back to knitting… one of the groups I’m in on Ravelry had a swap (for no reason) with a pirate and/or ninja theme. I received a rather cool parcel of goodies from blogfree (?) dizzybea (Rav link). It included a crocheted ninja! How cool is that?! And iron-ons. Clicking on the picture will take you to a bigger one with notes of all the loot.

Top picture is the Selfridge’s department store in Birmingham. More pictures if you click on that one. The other is also in Birmingham and I think it’s the courthouse…

Meh. I am having one of those periods in my life where I have no mojo for the things that I normally really enjoy — photography, blogging, knitting. I really haven’t knit much in the last 2-3 weeks. I’m working on the same pair of socks and they don’t even have that much further to go, but I just haven’t been interested in knitting.

I can’t really say what I have been doing. Listening to music a lot. Chatting to friends on line (reconnecting with some friends). Watching various things — Ashes to Ashes, movies, things on YouTube. I’ve been being quite social lately too. I’ve also been really busy with work and really tired.

So yeah, not really a great deal going on. Trying to keep up with blogs, but failing. I’m not disappointed with anything going on in my life right now so I’m just taking it for what it is and expect I’ll find my mojo again.

Er, hello. I really have no idea how a fortnight three weeks has have passed without me posting. I even had other posts to post in that fury of posts, but thought I’d hold back because it was a bit overwhelming with daily ones. And now I’ve forgotten what those other posts are…

Uhm, I’ve been busy with work — not been in the office a full week in weeks and won’t have one for several more weeks. Tomorrow morning I’m off for a conference that starts Monday morning. I need to sort out what knitting I’m taking with me as I’ve got an extra long train journey tomorrow since there is engineering works and things are being diverted. [I've been and gone on THAT trip -- it was to Cardiff. I didn't see Doctor Who. Nor Torchwood. And I don't have any pictures to show you of Cardiff because frankly, it was disgusting.]

I tried knitting the Seduction Socks for the Interweave KAL, but they were coming out giant so I put them away and may try again later. I’m on the cuff of the second Harvest sock so I am knitting, just not much and not fast (but then I never knit fast).

Er so… the pictures above is from the annual Miners Gala which is held the second Saturday in July every year. It is AMAZING. I mean there are far too many people out on the piss ALL DAY LONG, but to see all these old unions and the brass bands and to hear the music is fantastic. Party at my house next year. Most of the month of July has seen brass bands from around the world playing at organised events around the city or busking after the organised bits are over. It was fantastic to walk into town and stumble upon some band just playing their hearts out to the smallest of crowds and having fun.

I’m having a short week at work as I’m taking a few days off to go visit my friends in The South. I need to organise some stuff yet… I better do that. Otherwise not much is really going on outside of being busy w/ work so I’m just not doing much of anything when I have my own time (this is by choice). I’m having one of those periods where I’m a bit bored with the internet and while I’m reading fairly often still, I’m just not totally engaged. Maybe it’s bad to admit that, but there it is. So, I’m alive and well. Looking forward to some time off however brief, and eventually moving in September. Woohoo.

I know, I should be spacing this posts out so not to have great big gaps, but I’m all chatty from being cooped up I guess.

Actually, I’ve got a few thoughts on how my year is going. One word to sum it up is Crap. I know there were almost 4 months of the year before my sister died, but really only about two of those happened without the life events starting up so I have sort of forgotten about January and February — can’t really tell you a single thing that happened other than a couple of work-related meetings.

The start of March was all a bit weird with trying to figure out if I was going to the US and when, getting my new visa and passport back, packing up my life and storing it, and then leaving. It was a blur. Once I arrived in the US, well as I said previously, the time went dreadfully slow, especially in the beginning, but also at light speed. It was and always will be a weird moment of time. My year began in May when I returned to the UK.

I’m confused that it’s already July — I somehow missed the spring and the various markers in the calendar to let me know the year was progressing. I’m in a new job in a new city and feeling very unsettled. Just when I was beginning to feel a bit more secure in my job and get caught up I missed a week of work (combination of 2 days vacation and 3 days sick) which makes me feel very anxious and like I won’t catch up. I just feel like so much is slipping through the cracks right now.

I have so many emails I haven’t returned, projects I want to work on (knitting and otherwise), but some how I have no time. I come home and I piss around on the internet and then I realise it’s 8pm and I haven’t started dinner so I do that or I eat a bowl of cereal. Then I piss around a bit more and suddenly it’s 1130 and I should really be getting into bed. Too many of my nights go like this right now. I just lose track of time doing NOTHING. Seriously, nothing.

I know part of it is that some of the projects require me to sit and not necessarily concentrate, but be more work-like yet my current set up at home does not allow for that; it’s uncomfortable and inconvenient. There are so many things I want to be knitting. I want to finish a pair of freakin’ socks! I hate seeing all those WIPs in my Ravelry notebook. (A few aren’t going to get touched until I move and can unearth them.) Yet, I signed myself up for a KAL and it’s not like the sun will fall from the sky if I don’t start or complete said object this month, but I’d really like to give it a try. I’d also like to get my cardigan underway. And my mom’s blanket.

I think I need to do what I do best and make a list of all the things I want to do or need to do. It will actually make me feel less stressed about it, but then I am also likely to forgot things unless I keep that list visible as I taught myself years ago to write things down or else I’d get stressed out trying to remember too much. Now I have the problem that I barely remember anything if I don’t write it down.

I’m actually taking full advantage of all the personal and professional development courses my new employer offers. There are some things I’m required to take (things on annual appraisals and participating in interview panels), but there is a slew of other things I’ve signed up for: speed reading, memory and mind mapping, and I may sign up for the time management one if it’s not all about making Gantt charts.

Much of this post has been brewing for awhile now, but Debbie’s recent post on her Summer Wish List inspired me to put it out there — make myself accountable really. I want to do other things OUTSIDE the house like take an art or photography course, volunteer some time some where, but I am being lazy about it in some ways. I have found some courses I’d love to take, but they are not local and would require 90 minutes on the bus each way on a Saturday morning. I honestly don’t think I want to sign up to that. I want to start swimming again (I have been saying this for 2 years) especially since I don’t cycle daily now.

I really hope I can start living a life I want to live instead of just floating through it doing the bare minimum required of me…

All photos from Brussels.

I am clearly on the mend. Appetite is mostly back, I am craving chocolate and sweets again (before the thought of such things made me feel sick to my stomach), and I am feeling less tired. Hurrah. I did lose a few pounds thanks to mostly not eating for five days. Also, plain, boiled potatoes? BLAND. SO BLAND. Maybe tonight I can eat something with a wee bit of flavour. I’m even trying a small cup of coffee…

I have another blanket question totally unrelated to the one about my mom’s potential blanket… In November 2006 Kristal wanted me to show her how to knit. I went and bought her some yarn and needles and showed her. She was working on it, but never got very far. When I was cleaning up her room I found the yarn and needles and two teeny rectangles she’d made. Combine this with all the remnants of yarn from hats I made her and I’ve got a decent amount - not enough for a whole blanket, but a good starting point. My question is, being inexperienced as I am, these yarns are a variety of weights and fibres — acrylic mixes, alpaca, silk wool blends, etc — would it just be silly to try to make a blanket or something out of such a motley mix of weights and fibres? I’m okay w/ the handwashing bit (she says now). I think a log cabin may be the best way to go on this.

I made it out to the knitting group last night. We tried out a new venue that was nicer in terms of lighting, but it felt a bit anti-social because of the set up and very loud music. We will give it another go, but choose a different seating area.

This weekend I will spend knitting and relaxing. I hope to finish up a sock so I can have yet another lone sock. I signed up for a Interweave Sock-a-long (Rav Group) which is what it says on the tin — knit one of 3 chosen patterns this month (two of them are freely available). I want to get started on this so I can maybe actually knit a pair of socks in a month. God I am so slow.

I leave you with something good and something weird:

All photos are from Ghent. There are a few more in my Flickr set.

And that is almost the entire extent of knitting content for this post; hanks of Richard Wernekinck Garens Franse Landwol hung outside Stoffenidee in Ghent. I bought some to make cushion covers out of. The shop has a good range of yarn and fabrics.

The rest of the knitting content involves the blanket I’ve been considering for my mom. I asked her to go have a look at the Noro and she came back with four colourways she likes none of which are the natural one. I kind of wanted to keep the thing a surprise by saying “I’m knitting you something” and not tell her what or how big, but maybe I need to let her in on it and ask if she’d want a technicolour blanket that would require handwashing. There just doesn’t seem to be a good machine-washable substitute out there…

Regarding Trigger, thanks for all the sentiments. As of right now I do not plan on getting another cat (cats is more like it) until October at the earliest when I’ve moved into a new place. Even then I may wait until after the new year as I expect I will go to the US for Christmas and it’s a bit of a hassle to find someone to look after the cats or put them into a kennel.

So Belgium… I’ve been once before (I’m not going to count the overnight stay once even if it did involve going to the bar with inflated animal bladders hanging from the ceiling). This time it was a girls weekend - just me and A. We went out and drank beers, ate some food, wandered around, laughed and laughed and laughed, until she tried to kill me with the poisoned food, but then we still laughed some.

We headed to Ghent on Saturday. We woke up late, managed to catch the slow train, and then I had to work out how to get us into the town centre since she speaks French, but couldn’t figure out the pictures haha. We made it and right away we stumbled into a craft fair. I’m not talking the hokey craft fair of old where people sell toilet paper cosies and things made out of popsicle sticks. This was like Etsy. IT WAS AWESOME.

Luckily most of the stuff on display was geared towards children (clothing) and the other stuff was way out of my budget even though I saw some very cool things and appreciate the craftsmanship. I did come away with a couple of funky brooches which I haven’t taken a picture of yet, but I will.

We wandered around the city and snapped pictures, sampled beers and food, and well that’s about it. It was meant to be a do-nothing-much weekend and that’s what we did. I’ll be uploading my pictures a bit slowly so I can post them here so get ready for some picture heavy posts.

Welcome to the bad news blog…

I went away to Brussels, had a great time until late-Sunday night when I came down with the worst case of food poisoning I have ever had. I was sick the entire night and next day. I was stable enough to travel home Monday afternoon, but it was a miserable journey. I managed to sleep between Brussels and London, but the train from London to home was rather crowded and I couldn’t do anything but stare out to the horizon so as not to feel like I’d puke into the lap of the man sat next to me. I had a big meeting yesterday morning so I attended that, but took the afternoon off to get some rest. I woke up this morning with a bit of relapse so I took today off too.

Before I left I had made an appointment to take Trigger in first thing on Tuesday as I could see her tumour had rapidly grown in the last couple of weeks. It was clearly bothering her a lot as she pawed at it so much that she made it raw and was acting very skittish — something she never did before. When I made the appointment I said I think she will need sedation so they can do X-rays and a proper exam since her last one was back in November or something.

When the vet saw her he agreed and asked me in what order I noticed the change in symptoms and behaviour. He said what I already knew — that the cancer was in such a place that there was little to do surgically or even with aggressive therapies like chemo or laser. He said that it may be likely that they’d sedate her and see that the cancer was at such a stage as the best course would be to let her go…

I had to let my little kitty go yesterday. The tumour had spread so much and there was nothing they could do. She’d only get worse and any treatments they could give her wouldn’t really help.

I knew this was coming so I am not as devastated as I was with losing Dakota so unexpectedly last year which actually makes me feel like a bit of an arse. It’s very lonely not having a kitty here to headbutt me and tell me when it’s time to go to bed or insist that she come in the bathroom with me so she can have a drink out of the tap. I don’t need to be careful about kicking the water bowl…

I’m ready for this part of my life to move forward. I have had way too much loss in the last 12 months; way too much upheaval.

RIP Trigger kitty.