by Kat | Jan 26, 2008 | General
… a Franklin Habit
Yes, that is correct – The Panopticon was at Mecca today doing a photo shoot for his 1000 Knitters Project. And was it busy!!
I pulled in the parking lot shortly after noon and it was packed.
There had to be 500 knitters vehicles in the lot.
So, I parked and made my way inside Mecca got my number and began the wait to knit on the scarf and spend a few minutes with Franklin.
It was so enjoyable – Franklin is brilliant. And, it was his birthday. Even better!
I spent the afternoon knitting with friends. Of course Rob and Matt were there. And, when I was walking around I stumbled into Christy and she led me to Marcia and Sharon and Dirty Sue. With much laughter and general merriment I waited for my number to be called. Before long Ewe-niss and 2 of her lovely daughters showed up. It was an amazing afternoon and before it was over Laurie rounded out the fun!
I cannot think of a better way to spend an afternoon – or with a better group of people!
I even managed to knit a row or two! And, I watched the most amazing, fastest, ENGLISH knitter in all of North America. I think we should have a little Knitting Throw Down… I am telling you. This knitter would whoop the Yarn Harlot (sorry Stephanie) needles down! I am hoping one of you Lansing Knitters will share with me the name of this most agile of knitters! And, in advance, I apologize to this Mystery Knitter for not paying attention when her name was said.
I am headed off to soak in the bathtub and then I am crawling in bed.
Too much excitement for this girl today!!
by Kat | Jan 25, 2008 | General
So, I had orientation for school today and when I left there I headed over to pick up my text book.
Why?
Because I have 5 chapters to read by class time on Monday. Yes – you read that right, 5 chapters!
We can say good bye to knitting this weekend… it was nice while it lasted!!
So, I am now armed with my “scrubs” for my clinicals, a stethoscope and a blood pressure cuff, and my text book. I have gotten as far as rectal temperature taking – I needed a break and my kids did not want me to practice on them!! Even after I reminded them I had done this to them before…
Yes, you can imagine the reaction that got around here!!!!! Ahhh, motherly revenge is so amazing!! The power!!
Well… they deserved a bit of motherly revenge for their behavior and attitudes lately. Teenagers!
There have been many a time when my mind goes back to a lovely presentation that I had the privilege to attend when my children were very small. The speaker was a wise woman with a great amount of sage advice. I remember her talking about a time when her husband was traveling and she had a colicky baby that would not stop crying. In utter desperation, she laid the screaming baby safely in it’s bed and went and laid on her bed, crying herself. The only words she could find to utter were from the Kyrie. Truly simple and beautiful words – Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy. She said when she was at her wits end, these words helped.
I was so fortunate to not have colicky babies – but, I do have teenagers with an advanced case of teenage-itis.
Those words have become my mantra some days!
And, today was one of them!!
Heidi sent me a text message this afternoon – a very interesting text message. “I need to talk to you about signing something. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox” (the number of x’s and o’s sent off warning bells… )
So, she shows up after school with this instruction from her ‘boyfriend’. You need to type something up that says you give permission for me to date him – he turned 18 today.
Silly kids, Heidi is 17 – not 16. Hmmm, the plans they concoct huh?
Needless to say I did not sign anything…. And, Heidi is not speaking to me.
Teenagers – Lord have mercy on me!
by Kat | Jan 24, 2008 | General
head to West Michigan!
Without sun it is truly a grey and white world… and yes that is about 2 feet of snow on top of the “hibernating” hot tub….
Add some sunshine, it is not much more colorful. My grill is burried under that snow mound.
It snowed like mad most of yesterday afternoon and it looks like it continued for a good sum of the night.
No school for the kids today – funny how teenagers get all giddy like they did in grade school with a day off of school.
A good day to stay indoors and knit!
by Kat | Jan 23, 2008 | General
The knitting continues … all that is left is to pick up stitches at the bottom and knit the box stitch border and the applied i-cord trim. I thought I had a longer addi – but alas, I do not. So, I will start with the arm hole i-cords and work on getting a longer needle to pick up stitches around the bottom. I love how this is turning out – and yes, in the infamous words of Kramer “… I am lovin’ every minute of it!!”
I had a conversation with a friend today that was so uplifting. She is an incredibly positive person – even in the face of adversity. Conversation with her always leaves me feeling optimistic and upbeat, and I told her so. After I spoke with her, I called my father – who has been having some serious health issues recently. My call was two-fold – to find out how he was feeling today and to just spend some time talking with him. As we hung up he thanked me for my call. He wanted to share with me how much he looked forward to my calls. I realized that I was as important to him as my friend was to me. Now, don’t get me wrong – I know that my dad loves me. But, it was nice to hear that my calls were a bright spot for his day.
For the past several months, I have been working through being unemployed in a very dismal Michigan market – and there have been times when it would have been so easy to slide down the slippery slope of “poor pitiful me”. Now, I am not saying I did not slip there a few times – but, I tried not to go there.
In this journey I have found that I need to avoid some situations as they seem to push me down into the “Poor Pitiful Me Abyss”. That was a revelation moment for me – negativity breeds negativity. It becomes all to easy to complain. I was becoming a person I did not like very much – at all. And, I found myself attracting more negativity! Ugghh! How unattractive. And, how utterly unproductive!
So, with a fresh reminder that each day my attitude is my choice to make – like the fresh fallen snow outside my door – each day I have a clean slate to make all my own. And, with a positive attitude and joy in the day I am moving forward.
How easy it is to miss the blessings that surround us when we are focused all that is negative.
So, gentle readers, I challenge you – are you a positive, inspiring influence on those around you?
Go be that today where you live!
by Kat | Jan 22, 2008 | General
Hello Everyone! My knitting frenzy is paying off – I am in the home stretch of the “Outside the Box Vest”. I managed to get a good sum of knitting done last night whilst the Idiot Box talked to me. What was on, you ask? I have not a clue. Nothing note worthy, that is for sure.
We are having a bit of a heat wave here today – it is a whopping 25 degrees outside! After the frigid weather we have been having this feels downright balmy!
Although – we did get about 12 inches of snow between yesterday afternoon and this morning…. and I think more is on the way! But, the sun managed to peek out today and spread a little light on my corner of the world. I savored every minute of it – because the sun has gone back into hiding – cloud cover has replaced the sunny brightness.
Okay – back to the home stretch of knitting – have a good evening all!
by Kat | Jan 21, 2008 | General
Oh boy – so, I am just a knitting fool.
And, as I was a such knitting fool last night, I measured – in bed people, yes – in bed.
Yeah.
It seems that everything looks bigger in bed! No pun intended – truly. I measured and it was 9 inches – but in the cold light of the morning and measuring on a flat surface – it was a mere 7 inches.
Yeah… my thoughts exactly.
I will spare you all the foul language that was floating around here this morning as I was frogging back to knit those 2 more inches.
But, I am back on track now. I have just the left front to finish – then I can do the shoulder bands.
I am climbing in bed to knit and watch some of the idiot box… and I will not be measuring anything!!
by Kat | Jan 20, 2008 | General
I am knitting frantically on the vest. Each row completed is one closer to finish. Not saying it is a race, but I do feel compelled to finish this – and soon! I want to see if what is in my mind’s eye will be what the finished product looks like.
I feel a bit like Kramer from Seinfeld – remember the boxers or briefs episode? Well…. I am feeling a bit like Kramer right now and soon we will find out if I can come sliding in here on Monday letting you all know that I am “lovin’ every minute of it”!
I am not an adventurous knitter – oh, I knit things that are adventurous, but I knit them as the pattern tells me to. With little or no variation. Yep, I am an “in the box” kind of knitter.
That is strange, because if you know me at all – you’d say that I was an “out of the box” kind of person.
Now, don’t get me wrong – I will pick up an extra stitch or two from the heel flap when I am making socks (to get rid of the hole, right?) and an extra stitch or two when knitting mittens (same hole!). But, I don’t vary much more than that from a designer’s pattern. I figure that they know immensely more than I do – especially about knitting!
I mean, truthfully gentle readers, I just figured out gauge swatches! I know – duh!
And, there is still all the mystery of positive and negative ease.
So, I am knitting away on this vest – from this picture I have in my mind… scary stuff, I am telling you.
It is a good thing I am a process knitter – rather than a product knitter.
That way if I have to head to the Frog Pond I won’t be devastated!
Okay – that is enough of a break for me – back to the needles!
by Kat | Jan 19, 2008 | General
It has been less than 24 hours since I enabled another knitter in casting on something new….
It is a good day to stay indoors – being as it got to a whopping 11 degrees outside today!
I think it is even too cold to take photo’s to show you all the snow we have been getting.
So, I stayed in and knit.
Except I have knit nothing that I said I was going to….
I have to blame all this on my friend Marie who cast on this on Friday.
Yes, you guessed it – it was not long and I had found some lovely Classic Elite Gatsby that I had purchased on sale last year sometime. I bought all the skeins they had left – 8 lovely skeins of gray slubby yarn.
Now the pattern required a gauge swatch – and some math. None of this is a daunting task – especially when you are knitting on a 10 1/2! Quick, right?
So, I am knitting away – knitting and knitting and knitting away. And, I am not loving the pattern – I think the sleeves will be incredibly bulky with this yarn. And, being that this is knit sideways – I am thinking that the arm holes are not deep enough. And, I am really not loving how the neckline is looking, or how the shoulders will join. And, I don’t really think the sweater is going to be long enough – it is hitting me at the “wrong” spot. So, as I am knitting – I am making all kinds of changes – and I am going to add a placket at the shoulder – a much nicer way to join the shoulders. And, no sleeves – a vest. With i-cord around the edges. And, I am adding a border to the bottom….
I think this is turning the knitting corner for me. A big corner!!!
Stay tuned for Monday – I am sure I will have it done…
And, I think that this is totally fair since I passed the “cast-on bug” to Chris – I am ready for a 12 step stitch program….
by Kat | Jan 18, 2008 | General
BRRRRRR! It is cold outside, gentle readers! And, we have even colder weather headed this way for the weekend!
Temperature currently 22 degrees Fahrenheit – wind chill 5.
Yeah – cold!
Usually Lake Michigan keeps us a bit warmer in our winter months, but our fabulous friends to the north in Canada have sent this delightful blast of winter on to us. Now, I am all for sharing – but frigidy cold weather – not so much!
A good weekend to stay indoors, knitting and spinning!
On my plate – finishing up some lingering projects – hopefully I will have some FO photos for your enjoyment on Monday.
Oh – and I am in the process of doing a bit of redecorating around the blog. Stay tuned for more changes and updates!
Stay warm and have a good weekend all!
by Kat | Jan 17, 2008 | General
But, I do have a Tudora obsession!
A knitting lesson for you all … when you cannot sleep Tudora is the answer!
Insomnia + Elizabethan Brilliance (add in some Aurora 8 Italian Merino from Karabella yarns for good measure) and the outcome will be one that is most pleasing! I love the color, it is so soft and snugly around my neck, and I am casting on another one tonight. Sleep will hopefully not be as elusive as it was last night! I love this – althougth for the next one I am using some Donegal Tweed that I have in my stash.
It was Knit Nite – stubborn as I am – I brought my wheel. NaSpiMoMo is half over and I am finding my spinning skills are improving with my daily ritual! I have almost a full bobbin of some lovely blue/green/purple wool spun up!
I purchased the button and modeled Tudora for the group and Blogless Sue was less than impressed. She wanted it to be symmetrical – the asymmetrical beauty of it was lost on her. She tried all evening to “fix it” and complained about my penchance for lopsidedness. I shared with her how truly lopsided my life was and that this somehow was the perfect balance for it! We all laughed and lopsided comments kept the laughter going.
The laughter was a good fit for my week, a much needed commodity.
Taking a page from Chris, it is truly a blessing to get together with women during the week. Their warmth, love, and laughter are a balm for my soul.
Have a peaceful evening everyone!
