What I got for ya...

...is a whole lotta nuthin'. Man. DANG. Most of last month I was visiting friends on the weekends - even spent a week out in Denver, CO. Aaaand not a lot of knittin' happened, which has been the case for a while now. Aaaaand now I'm having some serious trouble kick-starting my knits. But hey - its Fall: my favorite seasonal kick in the arse! Time to make a Marked For Knittin' (M.F.K.) list and get ta crackin'!

Need to assess a few things:
First, some of the M.F.K.s need to happen more badly than the others, for one of two reasons: 1. fresh babies are getting squeezed into the world continuously or 2. I saddled myself with a favor (aka. boring side project) agreed to months'n'months ago, but procrastinated (aka. tried to spare myself for as long as possible).

Second, every project I have lined up lacks two very essential things - creativity and planning; I may have creative ideas, but I don't plan them well - or even worse, I have a plan, but its not creative. Right now, I've got a sock cuff which doesn't fit, the start of a sleeve which definitely doesn't fit, and am wonderin' if the body of the pullover will have a wonky shape... Fail to plan, plan to fail.

Third, the whole 'fail to plan' thing is screwing up more than just my knitting. Ouch.

So here's the M.F.K. list:

1. Baby blanket for a kid arriving first week of January (fun times)
2. Hat for a friend (the new kid's father - also fun times)
3. 4 pairs of minuture mittens (gag!) as a favor (they are gonna owe me Big Time for this one...)
   
   and at this point, I'm realizing the stuff I had hoped to finish by now is getting relegated to the bottom of the list... (depression).
   
4. EZ seamless Hybrid pullover (done with the body, but not sure of fit/shaping)
5. a classic Rowan pullover or cardigan (got the yarn/not even gauged yet)
6. tri-color vest (got the yarn/no plan)
7. green socks (do-over!)
8. thick winter socks (easy)

I am getting a notebook and planning each one of these projects from start to finish - no more muckin' up half-baked ideas or instructions. Every project has inertia; I'm tired of hitting points where I have to put 'em down and figure it out - it breaks my stride (apparently for weeeeeks at a time lol). Need to hit my knits running again - startin' with momentum I can build on.

Jotting down a few rules while I'm at it wouldn't hurt, either; worked in Zombieland!

Rule #1: Cardigans.
Rule #2: Guage Matters.
Rule #3: Fail to plan, plan to fail.
Rule #4: If it doesn't fit, you must unknit.
Rule #5: Do the sleeves first.

Okay, time to start knockin' out the M.F.K.in' list.

I have returned.

Ya got that right. I am bloggin' 'bout knittin'. Word.

The long and short of it was that I had another surgery. An anterior ulnar nerve transposition. It is loads better - no problems, I am good to go. As soon as I could pick up the sticks and bust out some knit, I did. And here was what happened:

I finished the copper socks and gave them to my brother as a birthday present.

I finished the Jared Flood Habitat hat. I used Malabrigo (always the right choice); I knit it on US 8's to make the larger size, and it fits me noggin perfectly. I did skip a few plain knit rows here and there in the crown of it, so as to make it close up quicker, or else it would have been deeper than I prefer. (Thanks for taking the below pics, Kristen and T).

I also finished the striped vest (which I had not worked on for three months). I used Cascade on US 8 cir following Ann Budd's handy book. I really like this vest. Ya know, vests have a lot going for them: they keep you warm (but not too warm), they are incredibly easy to knit (80% of which can, and probably ought to be, done in the round), and they are economical (about half as much yarn as a sweater). There will definitely be more vests in the future (I already have the yarn for the next one).

I am very excited to have begun Elizabeth Zimmerman's seamless Hybrid sweater, from Knitting Workshop. I came across Stephen's Hybrid back in the spring when looking for sweater ideas; I wanted a basic, easily modified pattern (to allow for wider shoulders) - which is what E.Z.'s patterns are all about. I bought the yarn (an intense blue Cascade) for the Hybrid just before my elbow was cut on; I wanted something to look forward to, for when I got better - with the hope that it would be better. You know how it is:

"Knit on with confidence and hope, through all crises." - E.Z.

P.S. Here are some pics from the State Fair.

The striped vest - normal pose



Feelin' good about being finished - Hulk pose



Cool pose


No comment.


The Habitat

Tuesday sucked. Friday rocked!

I came home Tuesday after a plain 'ol stupidly awful day. Only one thing for it:





Beer bread (used Bluegrass Brewing Co. Nut Brown Ale)





The sock is much farther along by now than what is shown above - I'm already past the gussets. I wanted to finish this weekend. I still may, but then, I'm having second thoughts about the kind of toe I put on the first sock, and may end up redoing it. I'll need to decide soon, before its time to do the toe of the second sock.

I'd debated showing a pic of the red and brown striped vest I'm working on - I'd actually thought, "If I don't write about it, it will get done faster. I'll hurry up and finish it, and then write one post about it, instead of a slew of 'not quite there' entries." Eh, here it is - the torso. It was a bit inspired by this vest here; stripes are just cool. I'm using Ann Bud's handy book for the basics. I cheated and did the trunk in the round. I'm using Cascade, a great yarn. I like the colors a lot.

Also, I'm knitting the vest Continental style; that's right, I have expanded my knitjutsu to include this fast, high-economy-of-motion, knitting technique (I've been watching too much Naruto while knitting lately lol). Really, if you are doing stockinette in-the-round, continental is faster, once you get the hang of it.

Tuesday may have sucked, but Friday was awesome. It was... kinda perfect. A rare day. I had Friday off from work, so my coworker L and I went to WFPK's Live lunch to see the Cold War Kids - it was just awesome. We got there early - by a few hours lol - we were the first in line; I knitted on my sock, and L read to pass the time. The show was a great time - I sure hope they come back to Louisville soon! We even got to meet Laura Shine - the best damn DJ in Louisville and a super-nice lady. Afterward, I went to Ear Xtacy, got the new albums from Neko Case and Cold War Kids, and spent the remainder of the day listening to music and knitting. What a day.

Yawn! O man, its bed time.