This is why you should read the newspaper

It's Saturday, and I was trying to clean, as my area in the living room has been overflowing for a while. What with all my knitting projects that are currently on the needles, plus things that are not-quite finished, mail, magazines, and newspapers, the couch, coffee table, and floor around said furniture are all covered with stuff. I am (was) trying to address that issue this morning. Shifted some yarn around, and started trying to remove the easily-removed sections of newspaper.

Okay, maybe I should explain. Anyone who knows my family, knows that my dad is a newspaper hoarder. So that runs in the family. I have a hard time just dropping an unread newspaper into the recycle bag. Hence, when I get my Sunday paper, if it isn't read immediately, it is stacked until I get a chance to glance through it. Today was a day that I was glancing through old papers. In the November 4th PD, a headline in the Driving section caught my eye. Ever since the Auto Show this summer, they have been running "My First Car" stories. (They first solicited stories in May? June? and response was so high they have kept up with it since.) Well, the headline read, "1986 Honda Accord." My first thought was that I wasn't the only one with such a car as my first. Then I saw the picture. It was Holly!

I'd submitted a story back at the original deadline, I think in June. Anyway, if I had read the newspaper on the day it was published, I would have been able to get an additional copy or two, because I know my dad would love to add the article to his stack of papers.

So now, when you google my name, the second link is Holly's story, as told by me in under 300 words. It was printed three days before I got my new Corolla (which now has over 1500 miles on the odometer).

Anyway, since I haven't posted in a week, I should provide an update on the project front. The NaKniSweMo Sweater is missing only a sleeve (and buttons), so I should be finished in the next few days. The second (and first official Christmas) pair of clogs are almost ready to be felted, the Foliage hat is ready to have the body done (although it will wait until after Christmas, unless I need my size 7 DPNs before then), and I am starting the colorwork of the second Eesti Trail sock. Still need to frog the toe of the first, but figured I'd do the second before I did that, so the third toe (heh) will be the last thing I do. Six days to complete the pair. It can be done.

What else? Oh! I wanted to post a few days ago about the valiant hunter in the house. Little kitty was pawing at the sliding glass door. I opened the door, thinking that the cold would scare her away. The screen wasn't closed, like I thought it would be, and when I opened the door, kitty tried to go out, and a big moth flew in. I prevented kitty's escape, and closed both the screen and the glass. The moth, as moths are wont to do, flew up towards the lights in the kitchen ceiling. Zuzu was tracking it, looking up, meowing, running around, and climbing on the recliner to get as close to the ceiling (and moth) as she could.

I decided to enable the hunt, and turned off the kitchen light, turned on the living room light (a tall lamp next to the sofa), and watched the moth meander towards the light. Zuzu tracked the moth, and immediately jumped onto the back of the sofa. Moth fluttered around, near the ceiling, as Zuzu stood up and pawed the wall. Moth dipped down just low enough, and Zuzu pounced. There was a six-inch smear of moth across the wall, and enough moth remnant made it to the floor for a kitty appetizer. The Amazing Mothkiller munched on the moth, and then got settled on the back of the recliner to await the refill of her food dish. Mike was outside brewing, and came in to see the moth smear. He went back to the garage, and I looked at our kitty's face. She looked very smug, but had something dangling from her mouth. I grabbed a paper towel, and cleaned Zuzu's face. She'd missed a leg.

Later, I decided to take a picture of the moth smear before I cleaned it. Zuzu hopped up on the back of the sofa, as if to show off her trophy. What do you think?
Anything else? Not sure, but I should probably get back to cleaning. Then knitting. I have deadlines! But the next few weeks don't look too tremendously busy (at least not yet), and most of my outings are knitting-friendly, so I should be able to get a lot done. And I work the weekends up until Christmas, so that's even more knitting time. But I should get started now. I hope everyone had a lovely Tofurky Day!

Odd sighting

This morning, on the way to work, I saw a deer on a railroad trestle. Standing up there, looking down at the road underneath. I really wanted to take a picture, but you know, traffic, plus my cell phone was in my pocket and not totally easy to access. The deer was perfectly centered, and looked like a classic deer portrait, except that she was above the road, on a cement trestle. Not the usual setting, which is why it would have made a great photo. Oh well.

Zuzu woke me at 4AM, as usual. I fed her, and dozed off again on the couch. Had some weird dreams. First was being chased by scary people in huge SUVs, then I was in a university building where someone kept offering a full-time job working for Yahoo. I wanted that job, I think, but wasn't sure that it would save me from the scary SUV people.

Started yet another project last night (two, actually, three if you count the sock I started that afternoon, although it is the second sock in a series rather than a new set). Started Foliage in fuschia Malabrigo. Did the crown, and am ready to move to circular needles and start the body. It will probably go straight into hibernation, though, as I started it as part of Malabrigo Junkies' Cast On Week.

Also started a clog. Cast on and did the sole's foundation row. Would have done more if Ravelry hadn't been so distracting. I have lots more to do (see!)


That's right, the holiday yarn has arrived! I was half hoping to get the sweater done before the clog yarn reached me, but that's okay. I should also get my Yarn Pirate Booty sometime soon, as it shipped yesterday. I've been saving sock yarn until after Christmas, mostly. I will then have a ball winder and swift, to make winding the yarn a lot easier. Then I can start knitting fun socks for me. Although I think I will do another sweater in January, just because. Call it stashbusting, or making room for more stash. Oh! I need to find my Miss Chickpea coupons, as the knitting group is making an excursion tomorrow. So I should also focus on my sweater, so I have enough done to justify buying enough Malabrigo for a sweater (at 10% off). And maybe some sock yarn, just because I love it.

Anyway, must get to work!

Oh, for those of you not on Ravelry, enjoy! (You can see that Zuzu does)


Sweater

Sock

Clogs

Cookie Monster Scarf

Unintentional horniness

So I got a new car, right? (676 miles after a week - I've only driven 670 miles in 7 days...) Well, the horn is in the center of the steering wheel, rather than on the side of the center bit. I'd gotten used to avoiding the horn buttons on my old car (only had it for eight years), and would occasionally press my forearm against the center of the wheel when turning or something, get a bit more leverage, eh? Well, I can't do that any more, because when I do, the car beeps. I've actually beeped a few times unintentionally that way, some of which might have annoyed other drivers. They did nothing to deserve a severe honking, yet they got one anyway. As soon as I realized what was going on (and was out of the turn), I threw up my arms in apology, but for all I know they might have thought I threw up my arms in fury, for reasons unknown. Oh well. I will try harder to stay away from the center of the wheel.

This is also the first time in my life that I have had a car with a remote control. I've always had to walk up to my car to unlock it. Until now. Which is kinda cool. Except it is far too easy to accidentally hit the panic button. I always have a ton of stuff in my hands, and have hit the button a few times now while juggling my keys in the mix. So then I have to fumble with everything else to find the unlock key. And then lock the thing again (I think).

Nearly finished Mike's sock last night at the SAAZ meeting. Well, I did finish it (except for the Weaving of Ends), but when I forced him to try it on, he decided that the toe was a bit too snuggly. After first trying to convince me that the sock was waaaaay too big. (I don't know, it looks awfully big. No, dear, I measured your foot. Well, maybe it isn't too big, compared to my current store-bought sock.) So I get to frog the tip of the toe, and redo it a bit wider. It won't be quite as pretty of a decrease, but hey, it's a sock. No one should see the toe except Mike, so it ought to be comfortable.

Did just a bit of the sweater yesterday, and have 1400 stitches to do today to stay current. Might bring it with me to North End tonight. Mike is reviewing a beer with another Mike. I plan on going to Jo-Ann's, as I want more circular needles for the clogs, and I think I heard a rumor that needles are 30% off. (I forgot to order some from knitpicks, and my order has shipped.) Plus I need non-sticky-puffy-paint for the bottom of the clogs. See, I'm being eco-conscious, as rather than stop by after work, I went home and planned to combine errands, since J0-Ann is not far from North End. And yes, I could go to Miss Chickpea's, and support my local yarn store, but I don't think I could resist buying some yarn. I am saving up for after my sweater is finished. Plus our knitting group is going on Sunday. I might give in and buy some mmmmmmMalabrigo then, even if I haven't finished NaKniSweMo. And I really need to get my camera fixed/get a new camera so I can share pictures. I really like the sweater, and even though it's bluish-purple, it might not actually make me look green, so I probably could almost actually wear it. It even fits so far! It's snug around the waist, but that's really just the cable on the needle.

What else? Zuzu wants attention. Nothing new. She's still the cutest kitty ever. Oh well. I should get ready to go run errands.

Miscalculations and Meows

I think I totally miscalculated the number of rows that I need for my sweater. The number that I'd arbitrarily decided that I needed for the back was not based on measurements of my swatch, or anything really, just what it would take to get me 50,000 stitches. If I actually did all of the rows I claimed I'd need, I'd have more of a sweater dress than than just a sweater, and as it's a cardigan, it's not so appropriate for a dress. Are sweater dresses in fashion again? I know they were trendy once upon a time, but have no clue when exactly that was, or if it's now. No clue. Anyway, my sweater will require far fewer rows than I thought, which means that I'm just a few inches from the bottom. If my new number of stitches is correct, really I'm 75% done rather than 50%. Patti took a picture last night, which I will repost here/there/everywhere, as my camera is still misbehaving.

Zuzu woke me right at 4 this morning. She has learned a new trick. I was trying to snooze on the couch for a while, because she shouldn't really have breakfast before 5:00 (don't want to encourage her!) but she would not leave me alone. Anyone who has a cat knows that when they want you awake they might gently paw your face. Zuzu did this to me today. With a wet paw. Yes, kitty, you got my attention. No, kitty, please don't do it again. *sigh* She did get her breakfast a bit early, though.

Nothing else really to post on the knitting front; still working on the Eesti Trail sock, although Mike reports that it does fit. It continues to be my portable project. I have about 5" to go on the foot, including the toe. Debated making the toe green, but decided to stick with the yarn that matches the reinforcing thread. Mike, as usual, does not care. Looking forward to starting the second sock, which is also due before the end of November. Need to figure out what my November Sockdown pair will be.

Oh - may take a double-knitting class on Wednesday. It won't show me exactly how to knit two socks at once on the same set of needles, one inside the other, but it will give me more of an idea. Tonight is SAAZ, at th Hoppin' Frog. Must make more chocolate chip cookie pie.

So now I have a kitty sprawled out on my lap, across the non-keyboard part of the laptop, head on my right wrist. Hard to type. Will stop and snuggle. Can't click. Kitty on touchpad buttons. Must tab. Somehow.

My pantyhose problem

I can never find pantyhose when I want them. I buy them (rarely, but it does happen), but then I never wear them because I can never find them when I need them. I was going to wear a skirt (gasp, gasp!) to the museum event tonight, and I'd swear that I saw a packet of nylons earlier this week, but today they are nowhere to be found. Yes, I should have stopped by Target and bought more, but instead decided to just wear pants. It's easier. Oh well.

While searching for the pantyhose, I found a packet of Cup'O'Soup under the bed. Don't ask - I have no idea either. Mmmmm, Spring Vegetable. Mmmmm, MSG.

Got a decent bit of my sweater done today, for the first time since Tuesday. I'm still just under 1000 stitches behind, but hey, what's Sunday for, right? Well, doing a newsletter, and perhaps trying to get some work done, too. But hopefully I can squeeze in some knitting, too. No cider pressing this weekend, so I will at least be home.

Finished the second Cookie Monster scarf. Brought the wrong needle to work last night, so no luck on the sweater yesterday. Today was actually busy, what with resetting passwords, creating new accounts, solving printer problems and an NTLDR error. So again, I would have liked to do more on the sweater, but still. I did split off the sleeves. It's amazing how short a row with 200 stitches feels after doing several rows with 350.

Working on the foot of the Eesti Trail sock; want Mike to try it on. I think it will fit, but as he says, I always think he is bigger than he is. His hat is slightly large. So might the sock be. He's been complaining that somehow the hat alpaca fibers are finding their way into his beard. I never knew that alpacas were migratory. Maybe just the Ultra ones.

Anyway, I should run - must get ready for event. 20 minutes should be enough, right? Plenty...

Why do I want nachos for breakfast?

Dunno, but when I walked into the kitchen to feed me (not Kitty), I wanted nachos. Ended up making a protein shake (you know, the ones that I keep hoping will help me lose weight, that aren't necessarily working, but at least they're keeping me from eating nachos for breakfast), but really wanted something non-breakfasty.

So the car has over 150 miles on it now. I was enjoying the sound system yesterday. Oh, and we saw David Dye in Akron. Decent event put on by 91.3 WAPS, and I am grateful that they condensed the schedule a bit. 75 minutes for a buffet dinner is a bit much. WAPS staff was wonderful; not so the bartenders. Well, they might have liked me better had I been male. I stood and waited for what felt like forever simply to get some water, while they served every male in sight. Only when I was the only one left did I get my water. Anyway, David Dye is always great to hear, and he shared some fun stories about people he's interviewed. Enjoyed the audio clips he brought as well. Half tempted to go to Pittsburgh next Thursday for the similar event. Just because.

I've been thinking road trip lately. The clouds lately have been making me think of mountains, so I want to go somewhere that has them. Too bad it's November, as that makes driving to the mountains a bit more precarious than usual.

Finished the Alpaca hat. Trying to decide if it needs slightly felted/shrunk. Mike thinks it's too long. Working on the foot of the first Eesti Trail sock, as I finished the gusset decreases last night. Will get to do more today, as it's a video-editing morning. I need to find my WOTA color card so I can order yarn for the clogs, too. Would like to look now, but Zuzu climbed into my arms, so it's a struggle to type. Thank goodness for two shift keys. Although this has happened before, so I can type decently well with one hand, even if I do have a habit of getting ahead of myself and typing the end of the word before I start it. I am officially 1,114 stitches behind on my sweater. Will hopefully catch up (and then some) this weekend. At any rate, it's about time for me to split off the sleeves, so the rows will get a lot shorter. I should probably read the pattern again so I can pretend to know what I am doing.

Okay, Kitty just left me. While I enjoy snuggling with the purrmonster, I really should do more productive things. And that does not include posting here, even though I can type *much* faster when I'm allowed to use all of my fingers. Anything else that I feel compelled to share? Nah, not now. I should get moving before Zuzu takes up residence again. Happy Friday!

Quickly, before I fall asleep

Picked up my new car tonight. Yay! It had 6 miles on the odometer when it became mine. I am no longer driving an 11-year-old Accord.

Cleaned out my old car this afternoon. I discovered where all of the pens in the house went. Do not ask me how many pens were in my car. Lots. And then some more.

Felted the test clogs yesterday. The designer really means it when she says not to use long stitches to tack the soles together. Oh well, they will still keep Mike's feet warm. Felted the tote bag, too. Washer got a workout. Need to figure out what yarn I need for the many many many clogs to be made before Christmas, and order it.

Finished Mike's hat tonight, with the exception of weaving in the ends. I love Ultra Alpaca!

Working on NaKniSweMo sweater; nearly done with the yoke. Pretty soon I will split off the sleeves and work on the body. About according to schedule, if my calculations are right. If my calculations are right, it will take more yarn than the pattern calls for. But that's okay, as I bought more than I expected to need. Hopefully I will not need 600 yards more than planned.

Zuzu is telling me that it is either bedtime, or time for her to eat again. Since she just had dinner, I am guessing that it is bedtime. Good, as I am sleepy.

Glug glug says the kitty fountain, meow meow (meow meow!) says the kitty, zzz zzz zzz zzz zzz zzz zzz zzz says me.

Winter is definitely approaching

...and it's not just because they're calling for snow flurries later this week. I am making my yearly transformation into a reptile. My skin is drying out, particularly my hands, the backs if which are developing scales as my fingers are cracking and bleeding. Bring on the lotion!

Went to a cider pressing yesterday, and realized that Mike is an enabler. As part of the Ravelry group So much to knit, so little time, I was trying to stick to a 3 WIP project diet. Was making progress on my sweater, the test clogs and the Eesti socks, when Mike mentioned that he's waiting to cut his hair until I make him a skullcap. Huh. So, before we left, I cast on for his Halfdome. Probably not too bad, as I'm at thinking knitting for the footwear (turning heel and adding outer sole) and refuse to work on NaKniSweMo Sweater around a bonfire or flying apple pieces. We sat in traffic forever on the way home while an accident was cleared, so I have about two inches done on the hat. It will be pulled out next time I need mindless knitting, probably Wednesday if I go to the museum lecture. (Oh, and I should probably mention that I didn't really tell Mike about the project diet, but I'm blaming him anyway. It's more fun that way.)

Props and Curses to Fred Karm of Hoppin' Frog Brewery for bringing his Black and Tan (and additives) to the pressing. He brought an infusion tower, and ran the beer through coffee beans before it was served. Yummy!!! Loved the coffee aroma and flavor, but did not appreciate the caffeine. We were drinking out of 6-oz plastic cups, so I really didn't have much (also it's hard to knit when you have a glass in your hand, and there weren't all that many chairs or places to set cups) but I was still up later than Mike was last night.

Never did get my felting done yesterday - the pressing interfered with laundry, and laundry was more important. Pressing also interfered with the finishing work on the clogs, as noted above. Oh well. Will get some stuff done at knitting group tonight. Should be able to finish the clogs and turn the heel of the sock. Will then maybe work on sweater. I only have to do 200 stitches today to average 1900 sts every day, which means a 57,000 stitch sweater. (I'm guessing on the number of stitches, but I'm trying to overestimate a bit, too. Needs to be 50,000 stitches to qualify.) Anyway, my point is that I've been averaging a bit more than necessary so far this month, but that won't last long. (Part of the reason I haven't been posting - been too busy knitting!)

Anyway, I should get ready for work. Need to pack up all my stuff in case I don't get home before knitting group. It's really sad how much I have to bring. Oh well - if I finish some stuff tonight, I'll have less to bring next week.