Fancy terrible...

"This wasn't just plain terrible, this was Fancy terrible. It was terrible with raisins in it." -Dorothy Parker.

It's not good when the most fitting description of your week comes from Dorothy Parker. There must be some type of cosmic disturbance this week. Every single simple thing has been endlessly complicated, derailed, backwards, missing or just broken. If I'm in good form and have both feet under me, the little oddities of life come and go and I vent and move on (I know I vent and vent and vent but still I eventually move on) but the weirdness has been coming so fast and thick this week, I'm losing my balance.

This disturbance has mostly manifested itself at work. Now, usually, work is odd. I work with the public and people can and will do ANYTHING, and they seem to find their way to my workplace to do it. Working with the public is always interesting, sometimes rewarding and often downright strange. I'm here to tell you there is no ONE reality, there are lots of them, and some are plenty interesting to visit.

But this week it's not the people, (well it's always the people, people) but even more than that it's the stuff... gadgets, computers, tools, malfunctioning weirdly and in impossible ways. Add the regular irregularities on top of that and it's been a helluva long week already and it ain't over.

Maybe it's the weird weather. From 95 one day, tornado sirens, hail, rain and blasting winds to 41 degrees the next. Even Scout got caught out in the thunderstorms. Ever seen a long haired cat soaking wet? I didn't take pictures, she would have been humiliated. Fortunately Scout doesn't mind the blowdryer, and felt just as pretty as you please, once it was all over. I wish the rest of the world would bounce back like her. She is unsinkable, that Scoutie.

So I'm home thinking of ways to blot out the weirdness and get something done. I'm working on a piece for the TAC 5x5 show. Not sure how it will turn out yet... it's due Sat. (Lots o' time!) I haven't done this show before but I love the idea and it's wildly popular, so what the heck.
I need to do more stuff like this for balance.

Before the fancy terrible week started, my book group met at Chez Fanniepie and watched Capote. Very interesting and enlightening after reading In Cold Blood. I loved the peek into Capote and Harper Lee's relationship, tiny as it was. Next month it's In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant. Should be quite a change from In Cold Blood, dwarves and courtesans, quite a change.

I gave up on reading The Number One Ladies Detective Agency. I think too many people raved about it to me, so the expectations were high. I might have enjoyed it if I had stumbled on it when I hadn't heard anything about it... but as it is, I'm putting it away for now. It's cute, but I'm not in the mood for cute.

So I'm in search of a good book. Something quirky, befitting my odd week. Until I find it I'll be knitting on my TAC project, Rogue and assorted socks ( how did I get so many socks going at once? ) and listening to Coutesan on my ipod and thinking about next month when we'll be off to Alma and then on to my favorite place on the planet. ( see below)

Where do I knit?

Where don't I knit might be easier to answer....

Kat asked so here is my list...

1. In a cow pasture in Salado Tx. (Salado highland games)

2. At various meetings for work..

3. In a van on the road to tribal libraries around NM (for information in society class)

4. waiting rooms ( robertson tire, cable volkswagon, petosky hospital, dentist, etc.)

5. Reader's Advisory Class, Organization of Information class, Theory of library administration class, Archives... etc.

Not that unusual... but with the working and all, I just knit where I am.

It's been fun to see everyone's list, go over to Kat's and check them out.

Stash Enhancement

I've finished the springy socks, which is a good thing, since spring weather is long gone here. In the 90's today. In April. Ick. We just blew past my favorite time of year, right into Sweatuary. Yuck. Not exactly wool sock weather.... so I've temporarily abandon my lovely lace socks and somewhat picky aqua rib socks.

Did I move on to something summery? Linen? Cotton? Nope, I've gone back to Rogue. I am loving this pattern. It's a fun knit, even considering I had to go back and rip out the throat. twice. I, somehow, in a feat I wouldn't have considered possible for even my dyslexic self, I knit the cable pattern on the inside of the sweater. Perfectly, but on the INSIDE of the sweater. I took no pictures, but trust me, I wasn't hallucinating, I really did this.

But now having tinked and re-knit my way up the throat, I'm working on the neck/hood and it's very cool. Here's the best part.... IT FITS. really well.

(I have made three sweaters that are/have been gifted because they didn't fit me, as intended. So the fitting thing is a big bonus, especially since I really love this sweater. )

I've also been working on my stash enhancement. I won't run out of stuff to work on for a bit.. or maybe ever. First, I have some lovely Classic Elite Premiere in the color Gourd.

I'm thinking of making this sweater from Boathouse. This will probably be my next knit because it's lovely cotton blend, just right for summer. I also have this....

For this sweater that I fell in love with before the book even came out.... although I'm making it in a slightly darker color. ( I must like this color... same as the color I picked for Rogue.)

Also, more sock yarn than you can shake a stick at....

Ok, well maybe you could shake two sticks at it... Emma could whip these into some lovely socks in a heartbeat. She's got a new blog where you can see some of her beautiful socks... go have a look!

It was a knitting and taxes weekend with a slightly scarry interruption by Fannie the bleeding cat. She isn't saying exactly what happened, but she had a puncture wound on her back leg and although she wouldn't even dream of boasting about it, I think the neighbors little terrier went home with some nasty scratches. The Dr. cleaned her up and sent her home with some pink stuff she rather likes. She's doing pretty good, if we could just convince the stinkerbell to give her a little break from the monstering......

socks and more socks!

I've got a little case of startitis. I've started a third pair of socks. I can't decide if these are obnoxious, or just relentlessly cheerful. Either way, it's a blustery, sunny day after the storms of the past couple days, and the sunshine and the flowers in my yard made me want to knit something bright and springy.

I did some stash diving and came up with this yarn I bought on a yarn jaunt with E, who just finished her first ever socks, woohoo! ( If I've got my days correct, the second sock of the pair she made in 4 days, that with taking time to go visit a yarn shop for... you guessed it, more sock yarn! ) I think she's hooked. Now she just needs a blog so everyone can see her cute socks!




Here's another shot of the spring socks. The yarn is Regia crazy color. They are resting on another project I'm working on, a new quilt. It was time, I've neglected my fabric stash too long. I decided to just wing it, grab some fabric I loved and just put stuff together and see how it feels. Anthing that makes me smile gets stitched up, no smile... set it aside or try it with something else, mo pattern, no measuring, just random happy pieces. Not the most orderly of methods ( my cutting table looks like a years worth of laundry just out of the dryer) but the results are charming.

I'm going to get back to my socks and tidying up my house before I go out to the ballet and an opening tonight. Wonderful day all around, ah spring.

Progress....

After finishing the most boring socks in the world (that seemed to take forever) I have started two other pairs of socks. One pair half done, the other just started... both seem to be going much faster than the boring socks!

It's not just me, a couple friends have finished their socks too!

And there's been some progress on Rogue too.... front and back divided and working the armhole shaping on the back is coming along nicely. I just love the way the shaping takes place in the cables on the side. Even though I just noticed I made a little goof early on.. can you see it? It's there to stay so I'm learning to love it, luckily I did the same thing on both sides!
Here's a close up of the cable detail under the arm, starting right above the goof. Pretty, no?

Back to my knitting!