So, how's the kntting going?

The Andy Hunting Socks are getting there:

I started the second one without finishing the first b/c I can’t decide how I want to finish them… should I put a (skinny) blue stripe at the top and finish off the little bit of blue yarn that I have or just stick to the gray? How far can I rib before I run out of yarn? etc. etc.

The grandma cherry blossom shawl has grown a (very) little:

But I only have one more repeat before the edging!

Yeah... I'm trying real hard to finish at least one of these before I cast on for anything else.... I'll let you know how that works out. Heh.

Gone but not forgotten (I hope!)

So yeah… I’ve been gone. Truth is I haven’t been much in the mood for knitting/blogging these past few weeks… I think it’s because well – ya know how after you finish a big project that feeling of just being done? Of being completely spent and exhausted and just over it? I’m not sure if this is a normal thing for most people or something I picked up in Architecture school but that’s how I felt after I finished the Tempting II. Done. Done with knitting, done with blogging, Done with all of it. Which is a horrible, horrible thing to say about something as wonderful as knitting/blogging but that’s kindof where I was at.

Add that to a death cold that LB was nice enough to pass on to me... and some crazy busy/deadlines at work…. and suddenly two weeks go by with no blog.

I did, however, found myself circling my bead table…. Picking things up… opening containers to see what’s inside… finding things I forgot I had. It’s a pretty impressive stash.

I am a fickle thing and easily distracted by shiny objects. But at least I’m back.

Stitch ‘n pitch Cleveland

First off – thanks so much for all of your compliments on the Tempting II! I never would have finished it without this wonderful knitting support system!

The socks had fun at Stitch ‘n pitch:


And so did we:

It didn’t rain at all – it was pouring while we were eating dinner but then it cleared up just in time for the game. I had a great time - the knitters were pretty spread out, though….I did get to meet Amy from I Heart Knitting – check out her blog she’s working on some fantastic twisted rib socks. Yeah for knitting in public!

I also had a ball this past weekend visiting some (non-knitting) friends in Columbus... but sadly I have no good pictures... oh well...

Victory is Mine!

Tempting II you could not defeat me.


Pattern: Tempting II
Yarn: Cascade Fixation (cotton/elastic blend) in color 9210. Size 6 needles.
Timeline: This was my Olympic Project and even travelled with me on vacation, but then I crashed..… It was finally resurrected on August 27 and finished just in time to wear to Stitch 'n Pitch.


Modifications: A lot. I knit the whole thing at a much smaller gauge and did a lot of math … then I added a bunch of waist shaping … then I changed needles to a size 5 at the neckline, did k2tog’s around on the last row, and connected the band at every stitch.
The verdict: If I ever think it’s a good idea to knit an entire sweater in ribbing out of sock yarn again someone please end me.

Tempting the Tribe

First off thanks for all of your advice on the dropped stitch! I think I'm going to ladder it back up to where I already turned the heel... then sew it down with sewing thread.

I will be at Stitch ‘n Pitch Cleveland to see the Indians play tonight… hope to see you there!

You should be able to easily recognize me… I’ll be the one wearing a brand new Tempting II.

Wine + Knitting = BAD

Well I guess I’m not very good at this knitting thing since I keep making silly mistakes…

Like this dropped stitch:


Which is totally from the knit night with the girls… we were all knitting… but I’m pretty sure that at least Jill had the sense to stop once we opened our 4th bottle (there were 4 of us)… I, however, was determined to work on the sock until the pizza got there. And I’m this is the result….which of course I didn’t notice until two weeks, several inches, and a heel turn later.
So now what? I know I should just squeeze the stitch up the ladder between the other two using a crochet hook… but then what happens when I get to the heel turn? Plus this sock is knit TIGHT… so I’m not even sure it’s possible to carry the stitch up. Ripping is not an option.

Help?

Dogs in a Pool!!

So last night Dexter and I met Jennifer and Guinness at the Annual Lakewood Dog Swim… Guinness loved it… Dexter… well...

Get to the point

So yesterday Matt, Me, Osam and Alyson all went to Cedar Point. We had a wonderful time – just a great day. I actually took lots of pictures but on a disposable camera so that I wouldn’t be worried about losing it – I’ll share some once I get them developed.

Anyways I wanted to write down my thoughts on each coaster so that next year we’re prepared…I’m warning you this is long (and probably boring) but it’s really just a way for me to remember:

Cedar Point Thrill Rides (in the order we rode them):

Raptor –1994- 45 min in line
I love this ride. We waited for the first car which was totally worth it. There were a few seconds there when I wasn’t quite sure my stomach was going to be cooperative for the day but all in all it’s a fun twisty turny flippy ride.

Blue Streak –1964- 15 min in line
I love this ride, too. Classic wooden coaster – the oldest at the park. Love the little bump hill after the big one – makes my stomach flip every time. So much fun.

Iron Dragon – 1987- 5 min in line
This is a fun little coaster. It’s a hanging one and Matt really liked that it felt like you were flying through the woods. Plus there was no line so that’s a big bonus.

Millenium Force – 2000 - 1.5 hours in line
BEST RIDE EVER. Oh my god. This is exactly what I think a coaster should be. AMAZING first hill, smooth, and fast. 93MPH to be exact. No flips, but I’m more than fine with that. I love that there is stadium seating so that every seat gets a view of the drop, I love that the sides of the car are open so you don’t feel so restrained…. Seriously, this was worth every second of the wait.

Sky Hawk –2006- didn’t ride
Yeah… we got into line for this and realized that if every single line in the park was this long (1.5 hours) we weren’t going to be able to ride very many other things… so we moved on. I’m bummed we missed it but I think we made a good decision. It looked really fun, though!

Cedar Creek Mine Ride – 1969 - didn’t ride
This is also a fun little coaster…and my childhood (meaning before I was big enough to ride everything) fav…. but we were real worried about time at this point so sadly, we skipped it.

Mean Streak –1991- 0 min in line
Ugh. We got on it talking about riding again… halfway through the ride I turned to Matt and said – “I’m so not going on again”. It’s a wooden rollercoaster so it’s rickety. Not like a little rickety (like the Blue Streak or the classics at Kennywood)… No It’s more like put your whole body in a cocktail shaker rickety. It’s fun ‘cause it’s long and it all twists around itself… but the shaking made me hurt. I guess I’m more of a stirred kind of gal.

Gemini – 1978 - 10 min in line.
I have such fond memories of this ride. It never has a long ride b/c there are two cars… and it was always so fun with me and my dad in one car across from my mom and brother in the other. We’d always try to hit hands but we were kids so it never worked… it was fun to try, though! Yesterday something was off in their timing… the cars didn’t line up at all… it’s not nearly as fun when you’re not racing. This is still a classic, though and a good ride.

Magnum XL 200 – 1989 - 20 min in line (twice)
I love this ride… and 20 min?! That’s nothing!!! I’ve waited for the magnum for 3 hours before! We totally rode it twice… It’s another great rollercoaster with a big first hill and a smooth, fun ride (and no flips). The boys didn’t like the pretzel turn – they whined about hanging outside of the car the turn happens so fast… but I still love, love, love this ride.

Corkscrew – 1976 - 10 min in line
I sat this one out. It’s an inversion ride but it’s an old inversion ride so the restraints don’t adjust for height. Because I’m short I end up banging my head back and forth between them (even when I push my head back as everyone constantly tells me… I’ve tried it… on this ride it doesn’t work.). It always gives me a headache – even as a kid. Matt really liked that flips are classic, simple forms, though – it goes through one perfect loop and two spiraling corkscrews. It’s a good ride, just not for me.

Top Thrill Dragster –2003 - CLOSED
WTF?! The sign offered no explanation other than “this ride will not open today, we offer our apologies” Um. That sucks. But whatev.

Power Tower –1998- 20 min in line
I’ll admit… the last time I was at Cedar Point (1998 physics school field trip) I wussed out on this one. Something about the rides that are free falls really freak me out. But this time I figured that if I could handle the ride at the top of the Stratosphere in ‘Vegas I could totally handle this. We were shot up (you have a choice of being shot up or down) b/c the line was shorter. I was really, really nervous. Like people in line were watching me freak out nervous… but it was so, SO much fun. They hold you there for awhile before they shoot you up… so you don’t know when it’s going to happen…. Great anticipation, great rush, great ride.

Mantis – 1996 - 50 min line
Worst. Ride. Ever. And we even took the time to wait for the first car! I knew it going in… it’s a standup coaster and the last time I rode it it just banged my head around – I thought it was because I’m short. Turns out it’s just the way the restraints are designed. They go waaay above your head on everyone – so you actually feel pretty alone in the ride. Well the boys wanted to do it and I was up for anything after conquering the Power Tower… so yeah… while riding it I was thinking “ugh, why did I do this, this is worse than I remember, OUCH, so not fun” but I didn’t say anything… then the ride banged our heads to one side, held them there for awhile, and then flipped them back to the other side, hard… and I hear Alyson next to me say “This is AWFUL.” I wasn’t the only one! We should have known it was going to be bad when everyone getting off the ride wasn’t cheering and screaming but more trying to get back to right... I will not be riding this one again.

Wicked Twister–2002- 20 min in line (twice)
So I didn’t expect much on this one. I figured with the twists it would probably not be so great… plus it just goes back and forth so it’s pretty plain….It was SOOO much fun. So much fun. Totally unexpected fun. And the twists are great – smooth with no banging head. This ride is all about FAST… and I think it made my stomach flip more times than any other ride of the day. We got off of it and immediately got back in line again – it was that fun.

Avalanche Run/Disaster Transport – 1985 - did not ride
It’s an indoor coaster that’s trying to be themed… we would have ridden had there been time but from what I remember it’s not that great.

MaxAir – 2005 - 40 min in line
Whoah, dude. I was a little hesitant on this one because of the spinning… It was fun – when it gets to the top of its pendulum swing it’s pretty insane and a great thrill… but then it keeps spinning. I was sooo dizzy when I got off… A fun ride and I would do it again – but I would plan for a little down time afterwards.

Demon Drop – 1983 - did not ride
We missed this one by seconds… they closed the line as we were running up to it. I’m bummed we missed it. The Demon Drop and I have some history – when I was a little kid I literally got on, got strapped in, and turned white. The operator asked me if I wanted out… and I said yes. Well the next year I was determined… there was a t-shirt about riding all of the coasters and I wanted it… so I conquered my fear and made it onto the ride…. It was so scary…but I was so proud afterwards. Now the ride looks tiny compared to what else is in the park… but it’s still a thrill and I hope Cedar Point keeps it for next year.

All in all it was a wonderful day – going in Sept. is great. Cool weather and short lines.
Sorry for the long and rambling blog… I’ll post some knitting pics and content tomorrow!

Andy Hunting.

So. My brother (who I’m hoping doesn’t read this) has asked me for a pair of wool socks to wear hunting. This is a huuuge responsibility because:

1. My brother is picky. Real picky. Like he buys his jeans at full price and doesn’t even wait for a sale or a trip to the outlet store picky.
2. That being said he’s still a guy… and I can’t imagine any guy I know hand washing their socks.
3. He’s going to wear these in the woods in the winter. I don’t want him losing a toe to frostbite b/c I chose yarn poorly or used bigger needles so it would go faster.
4. He actually requested a handknit – and I dunno about you but when a friend/relative actually wants me to knit them something I have to go all out. They must be perfect.
5. These will be my Christmas gift to him so this is deadline knitting. I know it seems like it’s a long way away but there are a lot of stitches in socks.
6. I want to knit them toe-up because it’s super fun to complicate a large project that’s on a deadline.

I’ve been stalking yarn and sock patterns to come up with the perfect Andy Hunting Socks for awhile now… I wanted wool that was thicker than typical socks but not as thick as worseted, that was unbearably soft but also machine washable, and that was in manly colors. I think I’ve found it all in Dalegarn Falk… yeah ok so it was expensive… but he’s my only brother. I even knit a swatch.

From there finding a pattern was pretty easy – I’m just going to use the Sockulator (which is one of the coolest knitting tools I’ve seen) and go from there… yeah for toe-up socks!

And don’t worry – I haven’t forgotten about the Tempting II – I just need to get something portable back on the needles for bus knitting….

Air Show!

We had a great, relaxing weekend. Here’s some pics from the Cleveland Air Show taken from my dad’s boat out on Lake Erie…. More on the photoblog!

Sailboat race off of Edgewater:


Cleveland from out by the crib:


Blue Angels buzzing the city:





Blue Angel turning around over the western coast:


Getting into formation:


All 6 Blue Angles flying together:


We even caught a few perch while we were out there...

They're small but they're tasty!
Hope you all had a great weekend, too!

Friday before a long weekend.

This is random but it’s the Friday before a long weekend...

My SP8 revealed herself to me via letter:

One Girl Trying

Hi SP8! Thanks for all of the goodies!

Last Friday I sent back 3 of my Denise cables that have all broken in the past year… well yesterday I got a nice letter from them along with a completely new set of replacement cords. They replaced my entire set! Supposedly it’s rare for that many to break on one set – they think mine was faulty…I think perhaps I may have been tugging on them a little too hard but whatever - I love companies with good customer service.

And finally what the hell happened to Jordan Catalano?
He used to be so sexy in a brooding teenaged bad boy in flannel sort of way. It’s sad to see turn out like this.

Have a great long weekend!

So don’t worry I haven’t given up on the Tempting II again… but I have to pause on it briefly because….

I finished the Matt Socks!!! Yeah!!!

Pattern: Cuff-down simple men’s sock pattern –

64 stitches, 10.5" from heel flap to cuff - size 2 needles Yarn: Regia color Basalt– 2 balls (with very, very little leftover)
Timeline: Mid-July through end of Aug. There are a lot of stitches in socks.

Now that those are done I have nothing to knit on the bus (the horror!)… Oh but I will soon….I'll try to post about that at lunch...