Froggin' Socks

Last night I decided to work on my swap socks. Arrrggghhh I was at the right length, ready to decrease for the toe when I discovered that the foot of the sock was looking a little odd. So I counted. 1, 2, 3, 4,......39????? How did I get 8 extra stitches on the third needle???? I wish that I could show you what they looked like but pictures ruin surprises that and it's nice to keep photographic evidence of my embarrassments to a minimum. So I frogged about one inch.

Oh wait.. I know how this happened....looks like I can't tell DH Tink's cure for baldness and knit at the same time. BTW DH has a full head of hair...wink wink!

This weekend is full of wonderful things and I'm looking forward to it. Saturday we have a wedding to attend. It's a fancy affair that will probably turn into a wild and crazy event. We lent the groom to be our copy of My Big Fat Greek Wedding as a training aid. This event will likely take up all Saturday.

On Sunday we are taking the kids to something that will blow them away. The Canadian touring company of Phantom of the Opera is in Ottawa until Sept. 9th. DH and I are taking the kids and can't wait to see their reaction to a stage presentation as grandiose as this one. DH and I saw Phantom twice in Montreal about 15 years ago.

All three of the kids love the music to Phantom. My oldest even knows all the words (and even does the voices) to the soundtrack. We bought the movie a couple years ago and after the first time, seeing the movie, they played Phantom for about 2 weeks. It will be interesting to see how the stage production does to and for them.

ME: Hmmm I wonder if I should bring any knitting to work on while watching Phantom?

DH: I don't see why not? (yah gotta love this guy)

ME: I could work on a sock but I think that I should work on something a bit more fancy.

DH: You should bring Woolworth and get a picture of him watching the performance. (the man deserves another sweater just for suggesting this)

I don't know if Woolworth is able to sit still for Phantom. Maybe I'll appease him and take him to the wedding. If the wine flows freely enough, no one will notice his antics.

I told DH that he's taking me out tonight...not sure what we're doing but after yesterday, I deserve it. I took the kids school supply shopping. Need I say more? (If I do then you are obviously not a parent)

So until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

I Don't Want

To whom it may concern:

I don't know who gave you my email address but I wish that you would stop bothering me. Maybe I signed up for something I shouldn't have or visited the wrong web site, but enough is enough. Perhaps it is some computer program you have that generates email addresses and hit pay dirt with mine but I just don't care what you have to offer.

I'm sure that I could make tonnes of money by working from home by filling in forms, but there's no guarantee I'd get paid. I'm sure that I could get my nursing degree online through your bogus school, but let's face it, the only doctor who who hire me is the Doc from the Simpsons.

I am surprised at the number of you who want to loan me money. You've never met me. But when I borrow so much money and get so far into debt because of your astronomical interest rates, I'll just contact all the debt support people. They tell me that I can consolidate and that they'll also get the interest rate, that I was stupid to agree to, reduced.

While I would love to spend 2 nights on your Las Vegas hotel, I was wondering if you had a plan to get me there. I would like to eat while I'm there but perhaps I'll just try out the free samples of the diet drink someone is offering.

I understand that I must verify email address in order to qualify for a $500 credit for your airline, but there are a few things that concern me. How far will $500 get me and will I want to go to any place that you fly to. I want to thank you for being concerned about my welfare by not wanting me to be lonely. I'm sure that you get 1000 new singles on your website an hour, but I'm just not interested.

I was under the impression that "Ellen" was a popular show. If this is the case why you need to send random emails to give away tickets. Also see my above complaint about the free hotel room. I don't think that Oprah ever had a problem filling her studio audience, maybe she gives away better stuff.

I don't want your free computer that needs hundreds of dollars of extras to do more than play solitaire. I don't need to take Viagra and I don't have a "you know what" so it doesn't need to be enlarged.

However.....your offer to teach me about hypnosis does sound promising. DH would always agree with me (plus do laundry) and my kids would be perfect angels. Yes, Yes, Yes.....sign me up....I want to know....I want your product...I don't care what it costs.

Yours truly,
An Internet Patsy

Sigh...you notice that no one want to offer me free school supplies.....why can't SPAM offer me something I need to spend money on????? DUH!!! Then it wouldn't be SPAM.

Until next time.
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Seven More Sleeps

AHHHH I can see light at the end of the tunnel. My vacation will start as soon as the yellow monster comes to swallow my kids and take them away. My first day of freedom will be planned down to the very last second. I'll do all kinds of fun things......go shopping......go to a movie....start some fabulous and intricate knitting project????? Maybe I'll just go back to bed and sleep the morning away.

It's not that my kids are too much of a handful. There are no diapers, there is no getting up in the middle of the night (other than the occasional sleep walking episode of DS when his bladder is full....but he has the courtesy to only have these episodes before 11 pm.), they are starting to make simple meals themselves for breakfast and lunch and can generally entertain themselves. But heaven help me..... the whining, complaining and fighting are enough to drive anyone over the edge.

Personally, I think the only way to keep your sanity in tact, when you have older children is to let them know you have ways to embarrass them. Does wanting and looking for ways to get even with my kids make me a bad mother? Probably, but I'm not giving up the video of my oldest making fart bubbles, in the tub, when she was little. You just never know when you need that kind of ammo.

When I'm not thinking evil thoughts and planning revenge on my offspring, I look for other ways to relieve stress. Introducing the not so well thought out sweater.

This photo is looking a little orange. The yarn is a lot more red with flecks of other colours that change throughout. So the darker section you see is not my camera or lighting...etc (my regular excuses), but a section in the yarn where the flecks tend to be on the blue side. What I did with this sweater was cast on the number of stitches the pattern called for then put the pattern aside . This is a lace stitch that has some potential as it is starting to be dual purpose with the texture it's creating. When I get more of it done, I'll show you what the lace will look like when blocked.

But for now, I'll knit up to the armpit in pattern then decide what to do. Not sure what type of sleeve to do, but I have time to decide. After armhole shaping then I'll think about a neckline. No need to make all these decisions all at once.

In the meantime, I've got a pair of trigger mitts to knit. The guy at the feed store saw me knitting while he loaded up our van.

Feed Store Guy: Should I congratulate you? (I was knitting on a baby project commission)

DH: No, she is working on a commission for someone. She's a professional knitter.

So feed store guy proceeds to tell me that he needs wool mittens for inserts to his leather hunting mitts. His MIL used to make them but as she is no longer with us, he needs to find someone who knits.

Now I should tell you that I HATE to knit mittens. My kids wear mittens that my SIL's mother knit for her grand kids. So I figure that if I ask a ridiculous price for a pair of mitts then I'll get out of it. No...he doesn't blink and eye and agrees. This was last Spring......so I figure that maybe he'll forget about it over the summer. The last time I went to pick up chicken feed...

Feed Store Guy: I'm going to need my mittens soon. (Fall is right around the corner in my neck of the woods)

I'm sunk......can't get out of it now as I agreed to make them last Spring. Better get to work on them as procrastination will only make this project more detestable.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn

The Fibreholic

Sept. 24

I live in the country....there I said it. It's quiet and not a lot happens except for vast amounts of knitting. So life isn't all that bad.

What I mean to say is that I'll never have amusing stories of wacky people I've met on the bus or subways. I live far out enough that I even have to drive to the nearest village. The nearest city is 40 minutes away but it doesn't have a wool shop. In the other direction for 50 minutes is Ottawa and it does have all a crafter could want. All my wacky people stories (other than those of my own family) will have to come from there.

So why do we live out here????? DH is part hermit and couldn't stand the thought of living in the burbs with neighbours close enough to hear you sneeze if your windows were open. The skies are dark, unlike the city, which make perfect stargazing opportunities for DH who is an amateur astronomer. So here we are......and this is what I see from my front deck. This year my neighbour is growing canola, next year who knows??? But so far nothing as exciting as pot plants between rows of corn. This guy owns the land on the other side of the road and lives north of us. You've already seen my neighbour's pig. They live just next door and own the property on the other side of our back fence. They have a son the same age as my DS. Since the boys treat the properties like one big back yard it stands to reason that some of her animals would as well.
Now you'll notice that not one of these chicks looks like mom. (DD apparently looks a bit like me though). One of my leghorns has gone free roaming (DH like to remind me that the word is feral and not fair isle). So I suspect that the brown chicken was forced to brood a few of my white chicken's egg. While the horse has never been in my back yard, Ruby will eagerly come to the back fence looking for a treat. Ruby is 9 and her son Blaine is 3 (not in the pix obviously). There is a plan to eventually ride them ......we'll wait and see.

I did go into Ottawa not long ago for a chance to do some shopping. At one stop I went to unlock my van and get back in. When I slid back the side door I did a double take. This wasn't my van, same make, model and colour but I don't have a baby seat and my van has only been that clean twice in the time I've owned it. I figured that the owners must have left it unlocked. I close the door, put my key in the lock and sure enough, my key locked and unlocked their doors. I wait around for a bit hoping the owners will show up so that I may inform them of my discovery...that and I'm dying to know if my key will fit in their ignition. Wait wait wait wait....forget it....but if I had found out who they were, at least I'd know who to call if ever I locked myself out of my van.

On that same trip, on the way home, I see some guy carrying a handmade sign. All I can read, as I drive by, is Sept. 24. So I guess that it is a case of we'll wait and see what that day brings. I hope it's a sale on some fabulous sock yarn.

Until next time,
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Silence of the Lamingtons

First let me say this. My DH was in the military for just over 20 years and currently works for the Department of National Defence as a civilian. In this work environment, when you get a promotion, you have a beer call. But not my DH!

DH recently got hired by another federal agency (remember we are in Ottawa) and decided to do something better than a beer call. It was a invite a ton of people to your house for a BBQ and provide all the food for them kind of call. Remember the sandwiches to feed an army????? That's how much food he bought, but that's not how many people came. It was a BYOB, but DH HAD to buy lots of beer and coolers in case someone forgot.

So now we are going to spend the rest of the week eating leftovers...potato salad and beer anyone????

Okay so who gets to volunteer for making desserts, salads and cleaning the house to make it presentable????? Yeah, you guessed it even though the BBQ is outside, the house has to be clean. I'm fine with the cooking stuff...but cleaning.....

I made cookies, squares and lamingtons....

ME: (bringing out trays of goodies)
Wife of DH's co-worker: What do we have here?
ME: (I name all the goodies on the tray)
Wife: Lamingtons????
ME: It's something I discovered in Australia. Butter cake dipped in chocolate icing then rolled in coconut.
Wife: (Well let's say that woman beat my kids to the dessert trays)

I quickly had to replenish the lamingtons and when it was time to clean up a guest discovered that I had left a container with a few more lamingtons under the table.

One of the guests brought in the container: We found more so we ate the rest.
ME (to myself): They couldn't have filled up on potato salad could they?????

On the yarn front, DH came home one day and told me that I have to see this..... it's a knitted Ferrari. Clearly, both times I went to college and got a diploma, I chose the wrong area of study.

Until next time,
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Thank You Debbie Stoller

Those of you with teenagers understand what a heart break they can be.

Teen DD: I'm bored.

ME: Why don't you knit something.

Teen DD: Knitting is boring, besides it takes too long.

See what I mean....Why dosen't she just shave my eyebrows while I sleep, draw a mustache with permanent ink while I sleep, shave my head or stab me with my needles in the back. These would not hurt as much. I ask myself where did I go wrong. Did they replace her with a changling at the hospital?

Something changed yesterday that made me believe in DNA sharing between mother and daughter. The kids have been on a media fast for the past several days. (Actually it's worked out so well (less fights) ....they may be grounded from TV until Christmas) My teen, without a TV to entertain her, picked up Debbie Stoller's book Stitch n' Bitch Nation and found a pattern.

She has a set of my 16" circulars and some blue yarn and started to knit herself legwarmers.

Sniff Sniff...it makes a mother proud.....

Thank You Debbie Stoller for giving me back my knitter.

Until Next Time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

My Sock Obsession

I've decided to come clean and show you how this sock in progress is taking over. Let me introduce you to my socks.

1. The white one with stripes is a cotton/wool blend that I started so I would have something to knit while watching Harry Potter #5. (Yes I knit during the movies, in the dark)

2. The pair at the bottom right hand corner is a pair made with Patons Kroy for my sister. With any luck she'll get them this Christmas.

3. The sock at the bottom in the middle has an intricate cable pattern so it is unsuitable for movie watching or while driving over speed bumps and pot holes. One day I'll get to it.

4. The unusual sock at the top is what happens when your teen DD tells you that mismatched socks at the in thing at school. Remember all that small ball of sock yarn left over from knitting a pair? I told DD that I'd make her a pair that was really mismatched. This is the second pair of socks from the left overs. I call them my memory socks as I remember each pair of sock that I knit with the leftovers.

5. The blue and gray sock sticking out is part my Ravenclaw Socks that I'm making for my swap pal. Gotta keep it hush hush :) But I will say that the rest of the sock is MUCH nicer than the bottom of the foot.

6. The bright sock, on the left, some of you may remember as my official traveling sock. I started her while in Aus this past May. I finished her yesterday so now I'll need another traveling sock....problem is... I don't travel that often.....

I've given up expecting socks made from hand painted yarns to be identical. Perfection is only a matter of perception and true beauty in is individualism. That and next time I use hand paint yarns from 50g skeins, I'll be sure to cast on both socks at once.

Okay, I've got 6 socks on the go.....5 really since you remember I finished a pair. So do I have a problem? Should I seek help? Has reading the Yarn Harlot's blog on a regular basis done something to me? Do I just have a bad case of startitis? Is this normal??? I ask myself all these questions then I remember........

Yes....you are not imagining this....two more pairs of socks in progress. AND if I'm really honest, somewhere in this house there are two pairs of socks that I started for DH. This list doesn't even include non sock WIPs......... I blame Georgie for this need to reveal my WIP....I really hope that DH doesn't read this entry......cause he'll be looking for those socks of his.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic