Christmas knitting is frantically getting knitted. Or something like that. The thing is, however, that I really only have until next Friday because of travel plans. Yikes!

My Kitty Toy Swap partner sent me a lovely package the other day - great toys for the babies and a supremely lovely sock/lace-weight yarn for me. Love it. My package for my recipient(s) went into the mail today. I hope they like it! :D

My Traveling Scarf Swap person, ever so lovely, sent me tea! And not just any tea, a Harney and Sons sampler pack. The English Breakfast and Apricot were lovely. The peppermint is 'okay'. Not something I'd purchase separately, but I wouldn't turn it down if it came in a sampler pack.

The Garden Variety shawl patterns are on sale right now. So far I have them and the pumpkin patch scarf in my cart for just $24. I'm trying to decide if I want to add Leaves of Grass and/or Sherwood. 

Forgot my regular glasses at home today, so I've been wearing the spare set (2 prescriptions old). My vision is okay enough I can get out of the house with them, but my astigmatism is bad enough I can't spend the day on the computer without them and remain headache free. Even with the old glasses I had a headache by 10:30. Ugh.

*whew*

My dimply car has returned from the dead and it wasn't even half the cost of the lowest estimate I was originally given. Thank goodness. Of course, I found out after test driving this wonderful little Corolla that I would have happily walked off the lot with (it was even within my budget!). But that saved me money! And this was the motivation I needed to get off my duff and start up that emergency fund everyone should have.

In other good news,  we won a plane ticket lotto (or at least it seemed like it) and ended up with free tickets to visit the grandparents over Christmas. Part of it sucks because I didn't get to see the local family last Christmas and won't again this Christmas. At the same time, said grandparents were up for a cousin's wedding and the traveling was so rough on them they don't plan to return any time soon. If ever. (I was offered money to elope when it comes time for me to get married.) The most I'll have to pay for this trip is to board the cats for over a week - and that'll be half the price per night that was quoted to me by the old vet before the move. 

I'm already starting my trip packing list:

• nightgown (always forget that)
• knitting
• laptop
• traveling sock for plane knitting
• iPod
• knitting yarn wishlist
• jeans (2 pair + wearing on plane)
• tops (5 days worth, we'll do laundry)
• layers (5 days worth)
• more knitting

Knitting news: I was super lucky and won a 'you finished the shop hop' prize and a door prize for the yarn tour.  The 'you finished the shop hop' prize was a Berroco sock pattern book and two skeins of their sock yarn (awesome colors, one navy and the other jewel toned self striping). The door prize was the Louisa Harding Gathering Roses: The Design Collection book. Lovely book. And it even has a pattern very similar to a cabled sweater I'd planned to try to design for myself (boatneck, cable up the sleeve, split to go in front of and in back of neck, down other sleeve). Her version is knit sideways and the cable is at the neck and cuffs, so it isn't it exactly. But I've never done a knit sideways pattern, and I always try to learn something knew with each pattern I do. I'm not certain if the yarn I have is the right weight for this sweater (it calls for a worsted weight ribbon yarn), but at least one person has done it in malabrigo and that looks lovely. I think any worsted weight wool would be great.

The shop were I won the Louisa Harding pattern finally got the new Linie/On Linie cabled sweater pattern for Outland yarn. I picked it out during the yarn tour, but didn't buy since the pattern wasn't in. And who decided (after telling me she wasn't going to buy yarn when we stopped to pick stuff up) to buy the yarn for it Saturday? Mom. Of course, she got the color I wanted too. So, unless we want to look like twinkies I probably won't be making that any time soon. 

We finally found (online) green fun fur for the bag I'm to make for Mom for Christmas. I'll start the back tonight (have a blue ton of TV to watch that I missed last week) and will hopefully have it done fairly quickly. Not certain when the yarn will arrive, but I'll start on the front when it does. I'd really like to have it finished/felted well before Christmas. (Seriously, if the yarn arrives this week my goal is to finish it this weekend. We'll see how that works, that wrap I was going to finish by the 22nd? Still only just past the half way point.)

Also got the afghan I made for Grandma back. It is not, however, a feather and fan stitch. Very similar, but the YOs are stretched out over three RS rows. I'm tempted to rip and start over. And for good reason. Callie!girl got a little too interested in my knitting last week while I was at work. And I arrived home to find that the start of the afghan was no longer attached to the skeins. *facepalm* The afghan for Grandma also has six stripes, which kinda makes me want to go back and get three other colors. I have ecru, so actually it'd only be two other colors. I just don't know which to go for. It is meant to go with my bedspread which is dark brown and a light blue/aqua. Not a lot of colors there to match. Need to think about it. And come up with a good reason NOT to go to Hobby Lobby.

I take back everything I said about the cats not caring for catnip. I came across a bag last night and gave them a new try at it. OMG, I thought Grady was going to try to burrow himself into the carpet. And even though I put it out in two different spots, he wouldn't let Callie near it. At all (there was growling involved). I had to put him in time out (their cat carrier) so the poor girl could have a shot. Very funny considering that not too long ago they couldn't care less if it was right under their noses.

The car will go in to the shop tomorrow. I had several talks with my parents this weekend. Dad is worried that there might be damage to the engine since it was out of oil when it went in last time. Mom was looking for used cars for me online. Which is sincerely depressing, as even if I find a car in my price range, with insurance it may be total payments of $300 a month. Technically, I have that money - I'm just using it to pay more on other bills than the minimum payments required. Basically, I won't get everything paid off as quickly as I'd like. Here's to hoping that whatever is wrong is fixable. :S

On to less depressing news: knitting! Worked some of the striped afghan for myself. I did all of two rows. Yeah, I know. My excuse is that the kittehs were super clingy and snuggly this weekend. It's hard enough to knit with just Grady (the Velcro kitteh) on my lap, but add Callie to the mix and it's near impossible. (The only knitting I got done was when just Callie was up there, but then she was having fun playing with my yarn and since this is the kitteh who ATE through a strand of acrylic (yeah, I don't know), I figured it'd be safest to set things aside.) I was super surprised about the super clingyness. Callie is not a snuggly kitteh, she's not a lap kitteh either. She's a 'I'll be close to you but not touching, unless I'm using your dominany wrist as a pillow and then you'd better not even think of moving' kitteh. Last weekend she experimented with laying on my legs( (up on the ottoman) while Grady snuggled on my lap. Saturday she ventured into 'let me climb up to the back of your chair' territory. Color me surprised when, Saturday afternoon, she decided to puppy pile on top of Grady on my lap. And stuck around when he jumped down. Wow.

I really need to stop cruising Ravelry over my lunch (there's a reason my favorites is as huge as it is). Otherwise I wouldn't have noticed that the Poinsettia Scarf is almost ready to go on sale. I love what I've seen of it so far, but it is a free gift for everyone who purchased all the Garden Variety patterns so far. I adore Iris, and think it might be good with my Knit Picks Grape Hyacinth Shimmer (a bit different than the sample Iris, but something stashed that I can't figure out what to do with and it's purple, white and green all the colors of Irises, plus Iris is rectangular and the reason I'm having a hard time finding something to make out of the shimmer is because I don't like the way it pools in circular or triangle shawls), Zinnia is gorgeous, as is Hydrangea (though I actually prefer the stole to the shawl). The only one I don't really are for is Crocus Pocus, but that may because I'm not fond of the colors the sample is knit in, but since I adore Poinsettia I could tell myself that I was buying it and getting Crocus Pocus free. Not that I need to be buying any patterns (see above re: car and money).

Still, I adore Susan's designs. Arabian Nights is my big goal project: I'll make it some day when my skill level has reached that point (hence the working on easier lace and beaded knitting now). I've thought about getting/making Magic Carpet Ride (the smaller scarf version) as a prep project. I'd love to try either Leaves of Grass or Sherwood. And Pumpkin Patch has been calling my name since Halloween (that said, I don't think I'll ever afford the Camelspin for the fingering version - I do not love orange but I love the russets in that scarf). It's fun to look at her designs and make wishes. But I really need to finish a few things before I even think of buying.

(I also really love the looks of The Blues Jazzed Up, but as she hasn't released that one yet I don't feel so guilty drooling over it.)

Tonight my goal is to do at least two more rows of the afghan or a few rows on Versatility.

Monday Monday

Walked to work today, if nothing else being carless will be good exercise. However, it also means that Versatility (which I brought with me) is probably going to become a work only project - my knitting bag and regular bag and lunch were just more than I wanted to carry. This means I'm less likely to make my Nov 22 anticipated deadline, but I'll still try.

I started on a new afghan this weekend. It is feather and fan, but not in the round. It's based on an afghan I made years ago for my grandmother - this would be the yarn I just exchanged. I swatched, figured out how many repeats to make and got started. Even on size 17 needles it'll be slow going - these rows are 270+ stitches. But that's okay, because it is mindless knitting without being boring - having a pattern stitch row every 4th row helps with that. 

Oh! My first gift Traveling Scarf Swap swapee went out. Not necessarily today, or Saturday or Friday. Definitely not yesterday (Sunday). But I'll never tell. :> It's a little starter gift, I have more plans for greater spoiling later on. Mwahahahaha.

Ultimately, in true Monday fashion, I'm rather boring today. But since my week is crazy, here's to hoping tomorrow isn't more exciting. ;)

...

My poor car is old. A teenager. And while I've had the fortune to live in areas where I can do a lot of my travel (work, shopping, etc) via public transportation, this is not one of them.

I've had a slow oil leak for a long time. I'll check the oil, add extra and things will be fine. Not now. Last night I noticed my car making a strange grinding noise and turning hard on the way home from work. I hoped it was a one time thing, parked it in the garage and waited until morning. This morning I took it out again. Still making noise, still grinding. Not good at all.

Off to Sears we went, where the manager of the auto department helped me out. We took a short ride through the parking lot, he said it was the engine and not a bearing like he thought. We discussed the oil leak I'd had for a while. He took a look at it. The plan was to fill the oil, clean the engine off and then go back next weekend for them to look and see if they could tell where the leak was coming from.

Instead, he called me and informed me that I have a 'massive' leak. The quart of oil he put in before driving the car into their garage - gone by the time they were done. And it's big enough and in an awkward place, so it isn't something they can repair. So I have a referral to a place that isn't open on the weekend and my poor car is back in the garage. I don't even know if I have enough oil to get to this other place - I may have to go and get some to top off before I head out.

I'm lucky enough that I live within walking distance to work (just under a mile) and there is a grocery store about a mile away as well. Walgreens is just over half a mile away. Wal-Mart a bit further, though it's across a very busy highway that I'm not certain I'd want to cross even though it does have a cross-walk.

On top of all this I've been very moody this week, I screwed up a short-row heel (how is it I can't count properly on a SR heel?), one of the cats threw up last night and I forgot to get my swapee's first card in the mail. Also, I've been under a lot of stress lately - semester is nearly over, the search committee's I'm on, deadlines coming up on stuff, colleague leaving, etc. All this resulted in me having a major meltdown on the phone with my Mom.

Now, however, I'm feeling much better. I have a bad tendency to internalize stress and internalize more stress until I fall apart. I'm certain that the long bath, hot cocoa and raspberry chipolte black bean and cream cheese dip I'm having helps. It's going to be a no knitting night - or if I do knit it'll be something new/different. The sock needs to frog and I'm not liking the yarn, Versatility is not something to knit while trying to veg. I may work on the striped feather and fan afghan I wanted to make for my bedroom. Or I'll pull out the other sock I have somewhere - except I think I'm to the heel on that too. Oi. I'd start Ice Queen, but it requires a provisional cast on which is more intense that I want to deal with right now. :(

Versatilely Versatile, afghans and oooh pretty

Finished 4th cable panel repeat. This thing is 35+ inches long and, unfortunately, I'm getting tired of it. Not tired of it in the sense of 'I don't like this any more', more of a 'I really want this to be done now so I can work on other stuff' sense.

I've reached the point I can knit a row without screwing up. As long as I'm not watching one of my shows like I was last night (I LOVE Criminal Minds and CSI: NY). Instead, last night, I perfected the lost art of 'picking up a YO wrap from the row above upon realizing I missed one yet again'. I'm getting good at that.

I'm rethinking Hemlock Ring. I found someone's Feather and Fan afghan on Ravelry, based on the Feather and Fan shawl in Gathering of Lace (I love that book. I have a personal rule that I can't buy a book unless I've checked it out from the library more than twice - I've checked this out enough I should have a gazillion copies.) I love Feather and Fan stitch, adore that shawl and (while I do have some Knit Picks Gossamer in Sweet Pea to make the shawl) realized that I prefer the center point of this to the center of Hemlock Ring. On the flip side? I'll likely have to go get more yarn from the LYS.

Which is a nice seque for my plans for this afternoon - stopped at Hobby Lobby yesterday for some stitch markers and blocking pins and decided to check out the yarn they have. I have 3 balls each of four colors to make a Feather and Fan afghan like I made 10 years ago for my grandmother (purchased this summer). But I no longer have the pattern (well, I can no longer find it - it's somewhere), so I'm going from memory and not certain I have enough yarn. Of the four colors, they still had the same dyelot of two. So I'm taking the other two back to exchange for the dyelot they currently have and then I'll get extra of all four colors. I want to find out their exchange policy - I'm thinking of getting three extra of each. I have a queen-sized bed and I'd like for this to be able to cover it when I get cold. I have no clue how much yarn I'll need or how much I used and I can't find this pattern on Ravelry. Hopefully I can just get as much as possible and return what I don't use for store credit (I'm positive I didn't have more than 6 skeins each when I made the other - but I'm planning to make this larger). And if I run out, well, I'll decide then what to do.

Hobby Lobby is also having a sale on jewelry making stuff. Normally I'd ignore that. I've made stitch markers, but I'm not always all about handmade jewelry. BUT, earlier this week a colleague and I went to the gift shop off campus for me to get a postcard for my TSG swapee. And she found these wonderful earrings. I held off. They were $7, not bad, but I was there to get something for my swapee, not me. Then I get to Hobby Lobby last night, decide to use the 40% off coupon I found for a bead spinner (they've been talking about it in the Moroccan Days/Arabian Nights group and how much it helps when you're threading 3000+ beads and since I do want to eventually make that, it seemed like a good idea). So I headed that direction. And found the pendants used to make those awesome earrings. In PINK. I also grabbed some lobster claw earring findings that I decided last night I don't like. So I'll look for different (I'm thinking posts - and possibly see if they restocked the pendants, I adored the teal which would have looked awesome with the dress I'm wearing today) when I exchange the yarn.

But really, the moral of the story? No more yarn for, oh, ever. Or at least until I finish a few things. And don't knit complicated stuff while trying to bite your fingernails in suspense over your TV shows.

Mwahahahaha

I have my TSG Swap Partner. :>

I already have plans of how to start. :>

Been a while...

Been a long while. There was a new job and move in there somewhere. And an addiction to Ravelry. And yarn. And...

Ah well, current knitting queue (Rav links):

Versatility - love this. Can't wait to finish it. Have pretty much reached the halfway point. My goal is to finish this by the 22nd.

Traveling Scarves - I'm in the Ravelry Traveling Scarf group and currently have two at home. The first is finished, the second I'm waiting for the book to catch up to it. My scarf is out there somewhere - but I was told by the last person to knit on it that it was beautiful. Whee!

Noni bags - I love Noni bags. I love knitting them up and felting them. I do not love lining them, adding decorations and handles. As such, I have two almost finished Noni bags somewhere in my house. (I was recently trying to remember where they are - I'm not certain.)

Special Olympics Scarves - 1 finished, I plan to do another. This is actually crochet. *gasp* I know. Me, crocheting. Who'd a thunk. The first scarf just needs to have ends tucked and fringe added. The second will wait until after some other knitting is finished.

Chemo Cap - *facepalm* It just needs a button. Yeah. I know. This is a goal to get finished this week.

Coming up:

Christmas present - felted bag. Yeah, I don't know what I get myself into either.

Ice Queen - My first beaded lace project. Since I know Feather and fan to the point I can do it in my sleep, I figured this would be a good way to try something new.

Twist + Shout - LOVE this. Scored some excellent sale yarn at Elann.com for this. Can't wait to start. Think it is going to be a bit tricksy, so it may wait until the new year.

Hemlock Ring Blanket - the Lace KAL for November. Got some great Encore at the LYS yesterday - and double stamps on my pink card!

Cosima - Local yarn shop tour netted some beautiful Silky Flamme and this pattern book. I can't wait to get started. I just have a few other things to do first.

Flower Basket Shawl - This may be knit out of either some Noro Kureyon Sock or my Knit Picks Shimmer. I may have something else to use the Shimmer on, but I do love the pattern.

February Lady Sweater - Nearly bought the yarn for this over the weekend. Only problem, the day the online shop had it on sale all the colors I wanted were sold out. Next day? Everything fully in stock. While I understand that it is hard to keep a real time update of everything in an online stock, especially if you get new stock in, it still feels like a let down. I think that now I'll wait until one of the LYS's from the yarn tour gets it in (they're looking into it).