Thawing

after several weeks of way below average temperatures, we might actually see 35 today!

(Picture heavy post. Click on any photo to 'embiggen'!)

It doesn't really matter too much what the temperature is for a collie dog. Tawny just enjoys lying in the shade and in the snow. He'll take his trek around the yard, but he won't lie in the sun.





The top peak is melting faster than the snow-covered downspouts can carry the runoff. And these icicles are growing today. When I was a child the icicles actually reached the ground a couple times. The north and east roof is still totally snow covered with no icicles.



Along the River Road, the water runs through the rocks at all times of the year to drain into the Kiski River, as shown in these three shots.







Just north of the ice is this barn with its Mail Pouch tobacco ad still barely visible. It is one of the few of this Americana left around here.


And finally, a bit of knitting content!

The last three swatches for Basics, Basics, Basics Lesson #1 are blocking. Just because these are blocking doesn't mean that one or more won't be redone. What do you think?

Grumpy

Continuing the saga...Saturday morning was the coldest in 15 years with official Minus 10. Then the temperature warmed throughout the day and night to 33 this morning and currently.



This shot was taken at 10 AM...4 inches of new snow. At 1 PM there is an additional inch. Snow is to taper off sometime tonight.

We are not happy campers.

I'm not grumpy over this shot, though. This is the antique table in the living room with my reference books, lesson and current swatch.

We want green grass, warm temperatures and sunshine.

Go Steelers! What a day to play football! Here we go, Steelers, here we go!

Fibery Day

It's the coldest day in 15 years. The official temperature at Pittsburgh International was Minus 8. Windchills are from -10 to -35. The school district was actually smart to cancel classes today about 9:30 last night. Of course now everyone has to follow the school calendar and use Monday (MLK Day) as a snow day. Actually, that beats taking a day from Spring Break.



Looking out one of the upper hallway windows, we see Jack Frost at work on the window and the snowy landscape. Despite the cold we are still receiving 1-3 inches of snow per day/night. This morning we watched frozen frost falling. Frozen frost is jewel-like frost that blows like snow or mist when there is a sunny, blue sky.



Yesterday, I finished plying some gifted roving from several years ago. Because there isn't all that much of it, it dried overnight. Perhaps this vibrant, warm color will warm us this white day.

Now it's time to block some swatches....

Beginnings

Eclectic and procrastinating as I am, it has begun.



What has begun? The swatches are started for the Basics course I'm taking.

When I was studying journalism even in Junior High, I memorized the UP and AP stylebooks as well as my grammar in school;so, there were three different constructions running around my brain for whichever application I needed. When I taught secondary English, I knew five different grammars that were then being taught in elementary schools so that I could help the students who were coming into the merged district and who were totally confused as to what was happening in their courses because yet another grammar was being taught to them.




Knitting is much the same. There are no standard chart symbols. There are no standard names for the same stitch. Each person has one's own knitting styles and construction methods. That is both confusing and liberating.

Here are two versions of Swatch#1. I using Lion Brand Fishermen's Aran yarn. (The top picture is closer to the real color.) The ball band suggests a #9 needle. Knowing that I knit loosely, I first tried a #7 (really a 6.5) 16" circular. That is the finished but ends not woven in nor dressed swatch. Next I have 'resurrected' a pair of Susan Bates short 8's. This beginning swatch is the third try because it has been so long since I used straights! I am really curious how differently the swatch appears on the different needles. The ribbing already has morphed as it is on the flat swatch as opposed to how it develops in circular knitting.

Change from last Saturday

It's a Winter Wonderland right now.


Quite a difference from last Saturday's clear blue skies, isn't it?

The snow started about 5 last night as a snow mist and continued that way for hours. This morning we had about two inches and DH got the snow blower out. Poor snow blower wasn't used all last winter at all. But it worked just fine this morning. The Township came through several times and our road was bare until this snow started about half an hour ago. The radar shows this snow may well turn to freezing rain as the temperature has risen from 28 to 30.

Just an excellent day for knitting, it is.

Procrastination is Waning.

We really don't want to talk about how long these skeins have been in the making on the spinning wheel.

I finally finished these Romney cross skeins Monday night and Tuesday.

One was washed in the kitchen sink and one in the bathroom sink, same detergent. They are from the same bobbins. But they do appear to be different shades.



Weather has not been conducive for taking pictures. Lots of icing yesterday and downpours today with more icing then snow in sight.



Bella Coola Sock#1 was also finished yesterday! Sock#2 was cast on immediately!

There has been an intriguing discussion on the TKGA board on Ravelry about getting 'wonky stitches' when knitting a 1x1 rib. Lots of manipulation of yarns, needles, techniques by many are attempting to discover what is causing the misshapen stitches.

Changing weather and such

That clear blue sky yesterday? It's gone. Most of today was Winter grey and then the mist moved in, followed closely by fog. Visibility is about 1/4 mile.

So, I'd said we'd gotten a 13" TV. It's a Magnavox with an internal DVD player. The first attempt at making the DVD work was a success. I tried out The "Knitting Glossary" DVD and it was purr-fect. I was purring a bit about it, myself! Note the innovative antenna stand. It's a bottle containing white sand. Clever, no? Well, heck, the antenna won't fall over with that much weight in the bottle!

Then there's the 7-drawer Sterlite chest. Currently its abode is in the hallway behind me. But the best part is...its contents. That's an antique dresser drawer and a half of J&S 2 ply jumperweight yarn you see there! Giggle.

1st 2009 Saturday Sky

Today brought a beautiful clear sky but temperatures in the low 30's.

It ended up being an afternoon to run over to the nearest Wally World to check out the items in their circular. Sure enough, they did still have a couple 7-drawer chests and plastic Christmas tree boxes. The 7-drawer chest will be the first of 'more'. DH saw them first at Linda's and thinks they would be a perfect design feature for my yarn stash. We dragged one of each around the store while also purchasing a new 13" TV for the bedroom and then over to the Produce department for some apples, oranges and avocados.

Sockin'

We're just sockin' around lately. Here is the progress on the Bella Coola Sock#1. It's about 2/3 of the way down the foot toward the toes.

Other than that, I've been getting my bibliography listing together a bit and started on my knitting history for Basics.

Today is DH's last official day of vacation and he's been busy doing all kinds of things;so, no time to be bored! Several school districts in the area went back today. Talk about a short Christmas break!

What're ya doin'...

On this New Year's Day, I wish you a fiber-filled, energetic year complete with learning, joy and happiness.

Although I don't make a list of resolutions or goals or anything like that, I have found it intriguing that I am not the only one to feel energized as New Year approaches and sort and clean some, even before decorations are down!

This year my learning will be to finally stop procrastinating and to work on the TKGA courses. Santa brought the Basics course. I wanted this one first as it will program me for the Levels and I will be in sync with the program. We Virgos need to have a handle on things. (Go ahead, make all the Virgo jokes, I'll wait....) Yarn Elf will be working on it, too! Camp registration is the first full week of February. Ravelry makes the knitting world like a knitting group.

Still there are a couple of WIPs awaiting. The Bella Coola Sock#1 is growing. More on her later.

...better go check the sauerkraut and ribs....

This is a good time to be

"Hooked on Knitting"

"Snowbabies"
---found on eBay at a very good price after Maria got one this Christmas. This one is retired, so not always available with the other "Snowbabies" displays.

The Fourth Day

of Christmas is bringing the barometer dropping like a rock (after a high of 66 yesterday with totally warm, glorious sunshine) and temperatures paralleling the process. It rained early as our temperature was rising with daybreak and frontal passage from 48. At the same time, just up the turnpike in Cleveland it was 32.

One of the squirrels and the doves don't mind the weather. Yes, one of the squirrels. We have two grey ones, one is darker and fatter (well-fed on daily birdseed rations). S/he has brought a friend a couple days. Before Christmas, two days a little very red, very mean squirrel half the size of the Greys came to visit. It chattered and chased everything in sight that it could scare away with the exception of the grey squirrel. Oh, it tried very hard to chase away Mr/s Grey but without success. It was well-fed for two days, but hasn't reappeared since. It is intriguing to watch the squirrels interacting with everything else. They aren't afraid of any of the birds, or even me. But just let Tawny appear and ---WHOOSH--- off to the hedge and up and over tree limbs at full speed!



Can you just imagine this calm, gentle, fuzzy fellow being the bane of the squirrels' existence? He's just off for a good chase! This morning Tawny is still chewing at part of his Christmas present. The first time I tried him on these chews he had one eaten and swallowed in 5 hours. This one is getting more and more unappetizing-looking as he savors each and every chew time.




Under the big Christmas tree the presents are breathing in unwrapped oxygen. Santa was very good to me, including more Fisherman's Aran yarn and other yarn and blocking pins and Tpins and noisy hard candy for rattling from Yarn Elf and Yarn Vixen. I thank you very much. The present was crafted to help in the classwork I will be attempting come January 1st. Yarn Elf will be taking the same coursework, so we have a course KAL over the miles. DH bought me the course, books (all can be found at the SHP website) like "It Itches" cartoons by Franklin Habit, a Mathematical knitting book, Gladys Amedro's "Shetland Lace" and Barbara Walker's "Knitting Lace" and some wonderful turtlenecks in my colors and a pair of matching jeans and a dressy sweatsuit and a funky large pendant and earrings that will match with all the above and then some! Good stocking stuffers, too! Love my "Golden Voice".



This year I actually found all three of the wooden Scandinavian Christmas trees! Sometimes I put things away in safe places for protection from the elements, but they end up being protected from being found, as well. The one in front is the one my Great Aunt Syster in Sweden had sent one year at Christmas. My Dad made the other two but without the candle holders. One of them traveled all over the West with me. The other two stayed here.

And, lastly, the newest knitting project!



I had thought about going back to the Round-The-Bend jacket but since I have an issue with it that I haven't solved, I've left it in its tote. I thought about the Bohus, but once I get back to that colorwork, I won't want to stop. The only solution is to start a new sock! Since the brown pair I didn't have a sock on the needle for traveling or for 'down time'.

Enter a skein of STR "Bella Coola" that was just waiting for me on the desk in the back bedroom, totally apart from all other skeins. Waiting no more, it is being knit on size 0 circular and dpns and inspired by the socks bowerbird (see pics on her Ravelry projects page) is creating.

Oh, and tomorrow is OKC's "Knit Addict"'s birthday... Happy Birthday, Grrlfriend!

KWB

Stephanie Pearl-McPhee has put out "an unreasonable goal" of One Million Dollars donated to Doctors Without Borders by all of us Knitters Without Borders. That's just the impetus I needed to donate tonight, how about you?

We've been dreaming of a Green/Brown Christmas

and it looks like we are receiving our wish!

Merry Christmas!

My Christmas present to you is this . Hope you enjoy it!

Alpaca Mittens Are Good.

Do you remember the alpaca stranded mittens from Halloween 2007? This morning is a layered alpaca morning. Wind chill is -21. Yes, Minus 21. The school district finally called with a two hour delay at 5:17 AM. Pittsburgh Public Schools had a two hour delay, then changed it to being closed. That doesn't happen very often.



Just one of the smaller divided light panels in a bedroom window this morning shows how cold it is. In the same bedroom, the east facing window is totally frosted over.

And, wanna read something amazing? It's to be 50 on Wednesday, Christmas Eve. (Shakes head and heads off toward the coffee pot.)

We are grateful for water and power and strong truck batteries.

Guernsey!

It's not the best weather day for photos, as you can see from the current radar.


We are, however, getting rain. We are blessed. Originally the prediction was for hours of freezing rain and then snow. Watching the Weather Channel this morning, the overnight was not kind to many areas and the day today will not be kind to many others. All that snow and ice from the Pacific to the Atlantic! Just to get these pictures, the overhead lights were on full-force ay 9:45 AM!



The buttons were last night's guernsey work. I decided not to back them until I saw how they set on the button band. So, I put the first two top ones on and then tried the Guernsey vest on. They were fragile, but working! Yeah! So, continuing onward, the other 7 buttons were attached. In all reality, I may still attach the steek facings to the button band. I haven't made that decision yet. Doing that would give more stability. Since the vest has already been blocked with a washing, there shouldn't be shrinking. The other possibility is to steam all the facings, and I most probably will do that.


Ta Da! The modeling shots come next under artificial light and flash. Shots are by DH, pre-nap.



The Back




The Front



A Side

As we all know, I'm not thrilled with getting my picture taken. I did want to show that this does, indeed, fit. I am pretty proud that it does with all my calculations and changes to the original.

The Statistics:

Cast On: September 1, 2008 (119 stitches plus 7 for steek)
Finished: December 18, 2008 (There was a Pansy Shawl in a great part of this time!)

Source: "Wool Gathering #76" plus DVD

This has been a KAL with the Gansey Yahoo List, led by Terry Morris.

Yarn: J&S 2 ply jumperweight, color #30 Lovat (now discontinued)

Needle: #3 circular 24" and #2 circular 40"

Buttons: KnitPicks Harmony

Finished gauge: 8 sts/in.

The Gansey KAL, being based on the WG, was for the Guernsey Pullover. In the WG, Meg shows a picture of her daughter Liesl in a vest version. Although Meg used Quebecoise, she stated that she had used J&S 2 ply shetland for guernseys in the past. I just so happen to have one and a half dresser drawers of 2 ply Shetland. The vest has no instructions for the alteration from pullover to vest. Being a 'thinking knitter', I needed to work through all calculations for my gauge, patterning, armhole size and shape, neckline shaping, buttonband type and shaping, choice of and number of buttons and their placement.

Happy Nikki Cat

Nikki the knitting guard cat was extremely happy yesterday to employ his talents with the guernsey vest.


He'd been sleeping in another room when I took the initial vest pictures for yesterday's post. But I just had to take another photo to share his talents with everyone!



Then last night I made his Christmas gift, all except for the filling since Nikki was on my lap at the time. This morning I filled the piece of saved-especially-for-catnip-mice pantyhose and finished this year's mouse.



Uh...he smelled the catnip and came downstairs to sit up in his begging position. I let him smell it, but the present went in Nikki's stocking on the fireplace.




And, not to be left out, Tawny was a very good boy this year. Here's his package including two different kinds of treats. He'll enjoy unwrapping it on Christmas morning!

She's all-most finished...

OK, so I decided that although I'd been working a little on the guernsey each night, I really was procrastinating.

(Click on the picture for better stitch definition. And, yes, she's yet another totally different color when wet.)



Hey, at 8 stitches to the inch, she took a lot longer than she would have at 5 stitches to the inch, which was using a DK or worsted weight wool. That's what happens when I changed the pattern to be a vest from a pullover in Jamieson and Smith 2 ply shetland instead of Quebecoise or Frangipani (guernsey wool).

I have coiless pins through the buttonholes, just to help align the dressing. There are no other pins in the vest for blocking. She's just laying on towels and smoothed and resmoothed into shape. I'll keep messing with her. I always do

Winter Wonderland

I finally succumbed. Russ really wanted me to see and photograph how beautiful it is out on his bus route after our storm. (Click to embiggen!)



Ash Road.








Ridge Road.









Ridge Road.









Chesnut Road.









Chesnut Road.









Airport Road.






It is beautiful.

The only road of these that is even half paved is Airport Road. None of these is more than a modern lane and a half wide. Originally these "turkey trails" were Indian trails and wagon trails. They were simply paved over with macadam. DH drives his 72 passenger bus on these roads several times daily. You know that the roads are in much better condition today than they were the last two days. And, yes, what is seen is ice ruts with bits of pavement or dirt showing through.

Friday's Freezings

Being grateful for electric service today and that the school buses had no problems on their own this morning other than other people's accidents, I submit the Winter Wonderland outside the back bedroom window this morning.

We've had ice covered electric and phone lines the last 19 hours. Yesterday's radar lied. It rained then 10 minutes of snow, then hours of rain, then finally an inch of snow settled on top the slush. Roads are pretty well taken care of this morning and DH said that the country roads were even plowed this morning and it was the in-town roads that were nasty. This time of year I dream of citrus groves with their fragrances wafting with the thermals.



What are fellas to do in weather like this? A nap sounds good.

Oh, the guernsey? We're now finishing the second arm opening.

A Different Tuesday

Can't say I've ever seen rabbit prints defrosting in the fish pond before.



With the turkey carcass deboning itself in the stock/pasta pot, the whole house is becoming laced with holiday spirit. True to form, though, this will be the warmest day in a long while, with an expected high of 54, and what will dinner be? Turkey soup.

For a little knitting, the guernsey vest's front band has the button holes and is now being bound off in icord for stability.

Ornaments

From "Major Knitter's" blog was a link to "Canadian Living" magazine which had the pattern for these ornaments. They used the pattern with permission from Melanie Falick's Handknit Holidays. Should you get the chance to check out "Canadian Living", it's knit and craft friendly with beautiful photography.


I'm using some of the yarn stash to create these in the smaller size and with much smaller needles than the pattern calls for. They can be knit in any pattern or in a single color or all in stripes or anything one's knitterly heart desires!




I used size 1 double points and a small crochet hook for the ornnament hanger. Crochet hooks are always just 'hanging around' in the gansey pincushion on the oak commode to be used for various knitting projects. Although crocheting is not particularly one of my crafts these days, there are many crochet hooks in the 'tool drawer' from my grandmother's, mother's and my projects throughout the decades.