Since I'm a slacker

It's been a while, so let me begin with the biggest event of the last few months, my trip to Comic-con.
Thank goodness that I now like to knit, as it kept me from wanting to kill people. Seriously. But in addition to the joys of knitting in public, I learned the following very important lessons:

1. Knitting is a great way to keep open seats around you in a crowded room. People will either not sit next to you or, in one case, a guy GOT UP AND MOVED when I pulled out the WIP. And it wasn't even scary little pointy needles. It was chunky yarn on bamboo 15s. What did he think, I was going to gouge his eyes out? And ruin the lovely wool? In either case, a giant thanks to the knitting gods, for knitting is nearly as useful as earphones to keep people from talking to you (unless they are other knitters, which is ok).

2. Knitting dark-ish yarn in near darkness while distracted by the faces of Neil Patrick Harris and Nathan Finion leads to a very wonky scarf.

3. Trying to knit a pattern while distracted by Harold and Kumar leads to realizing when you get home a week later that you you completely and hopelessly screwed up the pattern and the project requires full frontal frogging.

4. Trying to knit a pattern while distracted by Kevin Smith leads to not even bothering to rip back the disaster and just hoping it works out.

5. Realizing you might run out of yarn before you run out of convention leads to panicked phone calls to SO to find a yarn store on a bus/trolley route so you can get more yarn. Better to miss a couple hours of convention than go yarn-less. Note: I should've gone to the other store, but I completely forgot that rather than take the hour+ bus trip to get there, I could've taken the 35 minute trolley trip. Oh well. I got yarn, which is all that mattered, and it is a Lamb's Pride Worsted brown varigated colorway that has everyone around me slobbering. Jealousy yarn = bonus! And pink Silky Wool for ridiculously cheap - double bonus.

6. Knitters are everywhere, even at the World's Biggest Gathering of Scificomicbookvideogameanimepopculture geeks.

Count: projects started and completed - 1; project brought with nearly completed, but back burnered because of the thought it required - 1; project started and later frogged due to John Cho and Kal Penn - 1

Time Management

Ok, for the record, I have way too many creative things to do (is there such a thing?:) )...so this is my record in case something happens to my notebook.

by 7/19 Mail Rav ATCs (completed, ready to fly)
by 8/6 Mail Rav Cardmakers (completed, ready to fly)
by 7/18 Mail Rav Knit Treasures
by 8/1 Mail Rav Scarf Exchange
by 8/29 Mail Rav Swap on a Budget
by 7/23 Mail YG ATC Pinup Girls (6)
by 7/23 Mail YG ATC Cuppa Joe (6) (bases done, needs embellishment)
by 8/27 Mail YG ATC Pink/Orange (3)
by 7/28 Mail Rav Oddball Stash Busters
by any Mail YG ATC Newbie (5)

New Place

So our Monday night knitting group moved fro mthe old BN to the new BN. Apparently, the powers that be at BN did not see fit to stay in their small location with the big cafe so we could knit happily. The inconsiderate bums decided to move into the chi chi new shopping center. The store is larger the cafe is smaller, the tables are round (not so easy to push together to accomodate a herd of people and I can't weave on them), and the chairs are decidedly more uncomfortable. I'm pretty sure we'll stay there for a while, but it's just not the same. The old BN has slightly worn wooden tables and chairs, the sort you expect to see in a bookstore cafe that caters to students with books and laptops and the need for caffeine. This one has "retro" tables and chairs, not conducive to hours of sitting. We were also quieter than usual, and I doubt that this BN will put up with the sort of adult language that you'd expect from a group that calls themselves Skanky Knitters. So we'll see.

In other news, besides some minor hyperventilating with regards to tinking part of a scarf I am working on, I got several inches done, and Boku in stockingette is just gorgeous. Worth the thought it takes me to purl.

gone roving

Ok, so the last blue-and-green is off the loom, replaced with another blue-and-green, with a subtle color change yarn. Problem is that the transitions are very slow and long, and the green was lookinga bit monotonous. Thankfully, the LYS we were at is mostly a fiber store, and I found a great sample bag with a ton of rope roving in colors that would look lovely in current project.

So for the first time I am incorporating roving into a woven piece, and it looks wonderful. And it's a dirt cheap was to dress up something dull, because I am using pinches of roving each time. And I mean little pinches. This bag-o-soft-and-lovely-dyed-wool will last fo-evah. I need to do this more.

I love some of the funky and/or lovely double stranded stuff I've been doing, but this is waaay faster and easier. I'm just hoping this one doesn't go weird on me, or I'm going to consider this project cursed.

gone wonky

Ok, so the project I was working on got cut-off early. It was just not working. I unrolled it to check the length, and low and behold found big gaping holes where there was once nice tight weaving. The cool part is when I slid the yarn around, it made some really groovy ripples and holes. The bad part is that it was completely impractical to wear, and I really did not want to deal with another 5 feet...plus a piece that is loose early on gets worse over length. So I decided to stop and cut my losses. I decided to wet it and throw it in the dryer to see what would happen. All I got was a fuzzy rippled creased thing. I'm going to block it and put it away until I find a use of a home for it.

Oh, and GF once again said she liked it and it was nice, and I asked her if she liked it enough to put it in her closet, because that's probably where it would land. She did the uh...uh...uh... stutter stall. I told her not to tell me she liked something if she would not want it in her closet. I think that will put a stop to the polite approval of items.

Nothing breeds honesty like threatening to put in a UGH in someone's closet because they (politely) say they like it.

Officer, git that goat offen mah mercedes

Heard on WLRH (local public radio) and seen in Huntsville Times:

(some paraphrasing-WLRH) Tuesday: In Limestone County [where we live], a dog and goat were taken into police custody last night. It happened on Hwy72 and East Limestone Road. A person saw the animals and got out of their car to help them. They called the sheriff when the goat jumped up on the hood of her mercedes. The sheriff loaded the goat into this patrol car and when he opened the back door, the dog jumped in. Anyone missing a dog and a goat should contact the Limestone County Sherrif's Department.

and the follow up in the Huntsville Times-apparently, the sheriff who is holdingthe goat has get-togethers for goat stew. He is asking for someone to claim the animals. People have asked to adopt the goat, and so far it has a stay of execution.

Stay tuned for the continuing adventures of Dog and Goat...

Darn Distractions

I meant to get more weaving done last night. Really I did. But the lure of the last night of 50% off sale at a book store proved to be too much, so I got somewhat less done. I also got postcards and cards I don't really need, and which I will most likely return, much to the irritation of people around me.

So back to the fiber at hand. I love the colors I am working with, but did not give myself enough variation in texture to keep it from getting repetitive. Repetitive is not bad, just not what I was intending. It may or may not go to its intended recipient. But as always, I have a backup plan. Stash is our friend. Stash allows for last minute changes in plans or backups in case a YUM turns into an UGH! Stash allows us creative freedom. Stash allows us to have a wide variety of resources at our fingertips, so we can be ready for any fiber arts emergency. Stash may not always cooperate, and certain parts of it might go into hiding at the worst possible moment, but at least it gives us options. And really, what bad day can't be made better by pawing through stash to fondle the fibers? Can we file cost of stash under mental health aid?