Summer

Tanglewood last weekend was not quite the concert I expected it to be. The idea was to spread a nice, wide blanket on the thick lawn, drink a few glasses of wine, eat a little, knit a little, lay back as the sun goes down, wait for the stars to materialize as the sky grows blacker, and get lost in sad, morbid fantasies as if Mozart's Requiem was the soundtrack to my own funeral.

Either I misread or the web site information was incorrect, but the Requiem was not playing that night.

And I couldn't knit in the dark.

There was however the scent of citronella candles to keep mosquitos at bay. There was the soft blue night, the blinking stars and satellites, the flash of a few meteors, music floating by from somewhere over there, a warm hand in mine. Nestled in this familiar backdrop, long quiet feelings stirred and stretched, slinked and swelled into that space between my lungs.

There was a two-week road trip exactly ten summers ago that took us from our hometown of Atlanta up to Quebec City and back, with numerous stops in between that included the soft square of a lawn I was laying on tonight. We were taking a break from driving, we were trying to slow the time. We were 1,000 miles away from home, me with the boy I fantasized about one day marrying, not knowing that ten miles away lived the boy I would.

I gave that warm hand a squeeze. Things turned out the way they should have, but man, sometimes...Those two weeks on the road ten years ago just did not seem like enough.

That was a good, good summer.

Comments [3]
Filed Under: Life

Finished (400th?) Jaywalkers

Pattern: Duh
Yarn: "Three Rivers" by Yarntini, sport weight
Needles: US3 dpns

These socks are for wife of brother-in-law, who made it a point to tell me the last time I saw her that she is a "big fan of socks" and that she "always wears socks, even in summer." Well, maybe she didn't make it a point to tell me, but I flattered myself into thinking so, so that I would have a good excuse to buy more sock yarn to knit another pair.

I modified the pattern so there were 13 stitches on each of the 4 needles = 52 sts total. I probably could have done 15 stitches per needles as these socks fit me pretty well, but they're destined for feet much bigger than mine...I'm counting on them to stretch to fit.

After knitting many pairs of socks toe-up/short row heel, I finally thought I'd give the ole cuffdown/heel flap number a revisit. And you know, knitting the heel flaps/short row/gusset takes three times as long, and three times more yarn, as it does to just do a short row heel, but guess what, I think I DO like the construction of heel flaps better.

The yarn is great, soft and perfectly stripey. I've never finished a pair of socks so quickly - thank you sport-weight yarn!

...But now instead of feeling satisfied and fulfilled from the instant gratification, I feel empty and lost. What do I knit next, yet another pair of socks? I squint and look into the knitting horizon and see...nothing. Nothing! I need a break from socks, but I don't want to finish Rose of England, I don't want to restart my mom's sweater, I don't want to finish Cate (remember her? No? Me neither), don't want to do nothin.

I'll feel better if these socks are grumperina's 400th finished Jaywalkers, heh.

I feel a sudden attack of the Knitting Slumps.

I just want to go swimming.

Comments [11]
Filed Under: Completed Projects | Socks | Jaywalkers

J-walkers in 3 rivers

I have to knit socks with sport weight yarn more often. Only a few hours and I'm nearly done with an entire sock. Woooo.

Taking off soon to western Mass. again for a concert tonight at Tanglewood with the siblings-in-law. Mozart's Requiem is on the menu, as are deviled eggs, grapes, cheese, and wine that we're going to chow while out on the lawn. It's the perfect venue for knitting too, to be relaxing outdoors under the stars with your family, surrounded by music and fireflies, drinking your wine, knitting your sock. So many enjoyable activities to do, all at the same time.

Comments [9]
Filed Under: Socks | Jaywalkers

Pomatomus anklets

Pattern: Pomatomus, modified for anklets
Yarn: Koigu KPM, Dye code P823, one skein, plus just a tiny few yards of a second. So close to keeping it at just one!
Needles: US2 dpns

Shake your love. I just can't shake your love. Shake your love. I just can't shake. Your love.

I tried several times to knit something other than Pomatomus. Started various sock patterns, experimented with different stitches, only to rip them out and return to Poma. Why mess around when you've got something that works? Poma's beautiful shells flatter any yarn, and pair that with perfect levels of ribbiness and you've got socks the whole family can enjoy.

But WHO in the family will be receiving this? That is to be determined... 

Again I knit this toe-up with the Sherman short row method. Same approach as for this pair, except this time I knit on US2 instead of 1. 

I didn't like how the holes looked at the edge of the instep, so this time I replaced all the beginning YO's in Chart B with a ktfb (for the first YO on the first row I did a M1).

After working the toe, I did two repeats of Chart B, knit the heel, then did half a repeat of Chart A (rows 1-12 only), then knit 3 rows of 1x1 ribbing, then did the knit1-purl1 cast off with a tapestry needle.

So fast, so satisfying! I've knit Pomatomus so many times now that I can finally spell it correctly the first time around without having to look it up!

Thanks so much for the advice on how to neatly join a round. I will try this out later when I cast on for Jaywalkers. YAY!

Comments [2]
Filed Under: Completed Projects | Socks | Pomatomus

Latest mid-season acquisitions

On the left: GEMS Opal merino yarn in teal, bought at a lovely yarn store (Loop) in Philadelphia. They stocked a variety of colors but this one was the only I came away with. When faced with so much variety, I freeze instantly with indecision, until of course I get home, 500 miles away, and then do I think, Oh why didn't I get that or that or that when I had the chance? I'm wishing I picked up a skein of red to make my Boston Red Socks. This is some nice yarn.

On the right: Self-striping sport-weight yarn from yarntini in colorway "Three Rivers." Yay! I've been coveting yarntini's goods for awhile, admiring from afar...Finally broke down and asked her to dye me up some in sport-weight when all the stock from her store and pureknits were gone. That's of course when I wanted it the most. What a pretty, pretty skein, so pretty I could eat it.

So now that I have more than enough inventory (including these yarn here that I haven't yet touched - except for the blue Koigu) for Christmas socks, I have to go through the task of determining WHO is worthy of receiving socks made from which yarn. The obvious answer is ME, but me is not the right answer.

I started knitting another Pomatomus with the Opal, and since it's sport-weight, I had to adjust gauge and rewrote the chart to be a 8-stitch by 14-row pattern repeat (as opposed to a 12x22 pattern repeat). I decided I would finally do this one cuffdown for once.

Help me.

But look how ugly it is. I always have a problem joining the round after casting on. I can't avoid the little gap or a having a sort of tier form between the first and last stitch on the cast-on round. Usually I go back with a tapestry needle and sort of tighten it shut, but it still doesn't look clean, and this tier here is particularly bad and annoying. Waah.

I cast on long-tail, and usually doublestrand with the long tail for the first two stitches when joining the round...what else can I do neatly join a round?

Comments [11]
Filed Under: General Knitting | Socks

How to make a Sidecar

Because it's just too damn hot to make with the knitting.

Comments [12]
Filed Under: Cocktails | Life

Buy me some Koigu and D-P-N's...

The scene from last night:

I knitted for the first time at Fenway! I'm bashful about a lot of things but for some reason I'm not bashful about knitting in public. (I do draw the line at taking pictures of myself knitting in public though, especially at a jam-packed Red Sox game. How cooky would that have looked?)

I was knitting the mate to this:

YES it is the Pomatomus again and again and again, but now in anklet form. I bought the yarn while in Lenox a few weekends ago, and yes I said I wanted to take a break from the multicolored but I just could not say no to this purple and gold-flecked Mardi Gras colorway. I knit this anklet while on the train to and from Philly, and while sitting out waiting for the fireworks. Love the quick knits. This will be a Christmas gift.

So pleased to be starting the Christmas gifts early. Might as well put my sock craze to good use. Everyone's getting a pair!

It occurred to me while at the game, staring at the Red Sox logo on the wall, that I should knit that. Red socks with the white toes and heels (pointed toes and gusset heels, see!). There are plenty of fans in the family who I think would get a kick out of Boston Red Socks - including my cousin in Taipei who is the BIGGEST Sox fan you'll ever meet. As is his new baby. Just not by choice at this point. Poor thing.

Comments [9]
Filed Under: Life | Socks | Pomatomus

Philly recap

Did you know Benjamin Franklin is one of our nation's Founding Fathers?

Of course you did, but if you were somehow able to get away from that fact in school, Philly is here to remind you. Over and over.

But I bet you didn't know that he invented the glass harmonica? (I didn't know such a thing even existed)

And, the urinary CATHETER? (Shudder)

Me, I'm just happy to be able to knit a sock toe-up and cuff-down, and here he is being all nation-founding and glass-blowing and musical and medical and electrical within the same week. Show-off.

But clearly Philly loves him. For he is everywhere.

I like Philly. It is so diverse and informative, and their City Hall looks like the Hotel de Ville in Paris. It doesn't compare to Boston's City Hall, the ugliness of which is so obvious to anyone with vision that babies throw up when they see it.

Left: Philly's City Hall
Right: Boston's Eyesore

Here is but a small snippet of what I did and saw last week.

1. Newly minted treasonists all hot and stuffy on this July 4th. Yes on July 4th 2006, Chrusty (my high school BFF (not real name)) and I did July 4th appropriate activities like visiting Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, drinking ale, and listening to Lionel Richie and Fantasia perform live before the fireworks. It was fun! I love freedom!

2. Elfreth's Alley, the oldest residential street in America. I compare this to Acorn Street in Boston's Beacon Hill. I did a lot of comparisons and analogies between Philly and Boston. Like, "Isn't it interesting that Ben Franklin was born in Boston but died in Philly, and now I live in Boston and you live in Philly?" etc. etc.

Chrusty and I then did a lot of Philly vs. Atlanta and Boston vs. Atlanta comparisons. After points were made on both sides, the conclusion was always "Yeah Atlanta blows, can't believe we grew up there" and we'd give each other self-satisfied props for living in such cute cities now.

3. The Liberty Bell. There are some funny shots of Chrusty and me taking self-portraits in front of the bell, and no matter how we positioned ourselves, each time our heads got perfectly in the way as to obscure the bell completely. I think we spent more time trying to take pictures, laughing at the results, taking more pictures, laughing some more, than we actually did admiring the bell.

It's got a huge crack in it anyway.

4. Assembly Room in Independence Hall. Some really important stuff happened here.

5. The Big Colon on display in the Mütter Museum, which showcases shelves upon shelves of medical "anomolies," or possibly "X-Men." In the case of The Big Colon, I would say "big" is a bit of an understatement. Colossal doesn't even do it justice. You could see this thing from space. It is horrifying.

You might think that this giant colon belonged to a proportionally giant man, so maybe life for this dude wasn't so bad, but instead it belonged to a wretched average-sized, skinny man who could never find a proper-fitting leotard. His colon just kept growing and growing...I sort of wish that had happened to my chest. When he finally expired, doctors extricated 40 (that's forty) lbs of poo from his colon. Luckily, that part was not available for display.

There were many equally if not more horrifying things on display at this museum, like babies in jars in various stages of malformation and mutation. My favorite (not an appropriate word, but can't think of one) anamoly is of a skeleton belonging to this poor chap who had a mutation that caused bone to grow in places of muscles, tendons, and ligaments. BONE. In place of MUSCLE. And you could SEE it.

If you visit this museum, bring a friend. And maybe a sick bag.

Other things I learned in Philadelphia:

• It is large.
• There are a lot of abandoned rowhouses/buildings in what I would consider prime real estate location, like near all the points of interest in the Old City. I don't get it.
• But they understand mojitos. Chrusty took me to this Cuban restaurant where they make their mojitos with pressed sugarcane.
• They understand mussels. Chrusty took me to a Belgian pub. We had a pot of plump juicy mussels in this Dijon, garlicky, lemony broth. Mmmm.
• They understand gelato. Chrusty took me here and I got the Lime and Cilantro sorbet. You are either in the camp that believes cilantro tastes like soap, or that it doesn't, and prior to this gelato I believed cilantro tastes good with everything. My hypothesis is now fact! And YAY! They have an online store!
• How to grill a pizza. Chrusty and I cooked dinner one night and she taught me how to make pizza dough and then grill it. I've made it twice now since I've been home.
• Chrusty is all grown up. Chrusty's one of those friends who you may not see or even hear from on a regular basis but when you do, it's as if you saw her yesterday. We've changed so little since high school that we're able to make each other laugh with the same antics, and yet we've changed so much that most of the usual or not-so-usual insecurities of high school have evaporated -- and now therefore, Chrusty is all fine with engaging in PDAs with her new boyfriend that I had to shield my eyes in case they caught fire from the blush that was rising from my cheeks. Chrusty, kissing a boy! In front of me! And other people! It's a big deal.

Now I wish Chrusty good luck and good research when she leaves for Africa next month. If I don't see you in a year, congrats on your doctorate! And see you at your wedding!

P.S. I did buy yarn while in Philly. It is for socks. Big surprise there.

Comments [10]
Filed Under: Life | Travel | Philly