Rosy goodness

What do I want to make in Project Spectrum hues? Socks, of course! This is the beginning of the pair I started last night. I like 'em! I tried a lacy pattern with YO's and stuff, but it was too fussy. This is perfect for the stripey yarn.

Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock, "Irving Park."

Pattern: Just your basic Ann Budd Sock Formula. K1P1 ribbing. Stitch pattern is "Stansfield #10" from Sensational Knitted Socks.

Needles: 2.25mm Gauge: about 9 st/in

The lace scarf is still sitting in the basket, but not because it's not going well. I've been too tired at night to do any knitting that requires concentration or sharp eyesight.

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There must be more knitting somewhere. Oh, right...there's a Dulaan scarf, whose picture just doesn't seem to want to appear despite several tries. Curses on Blogger! I just had to have a ball of frou-frou yarn (Patons Cha Cha, half off at Michael's!), and I just had to knit it up right away. I combined it with some leftover red Dale Sisik, so it's thick and warm. It's all pink and red and purple, sort of like the socks. I guess I have to ask you to use your imagination.

You'll also have to imagine the colorful photos I tried to post for Margene's Project Spectrum meme. Blogger ate them, too, when I tried to edit just now. I'm trying not to be cranky.

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I seem to be having one of those weeks. Where did the time go? I think work is beginning that slow acceleration as summer draws near; more books are arriving every week, there's more activity in the village, and I feel busy again after a few weeks of quiet.

I enjoyed my visits to all the back yards, and I'm flattered by all the nice comments on my snowy photograph. I think I'll print one up and give it to the S's (my landlords). They're some of the best folks around, and they take care of Herself when I'm out of town, to boot.

I'm beginning the mental preparation for a trip to visit my mother on the 19th; the physical prepararion (the laundry and cleaning) will commence soon. She's been having a difficult time, and I miss her.

I'll be meeting up with my niece R, who will be on spring break and is flying in from Chicago. I haven't seen her since last summer, and I can't wait to spend a few days catching up. She's the least gabby of my two Chicago nieces, but we'll end up hoarse anyway! I'm blessed to have two sets of R's in my life -- they have exactly the same names. The Big R's are in Chicago, and the Little R's are right here.

Knitting circle this afternoon -- must remember to take my Olympic sweater to show it off! It's probably too warm to wear it, though. That thing weighs a ton.

Back Yard Greetings

7:00 am, March 5, Southampton, NY

It's a beautiful morning -- there's not a cloud in the sky (and it's become bright blue now), it's crisp but not too cold (fine enough for an early-morning photo shoot), and Thursday's snow still conceals the end-of-winter dullness. The deer have been by this morning, and the chickadees have been making themselves heard. Annabelle has had her Sunday morning tour of the bottom of the stairs (yes, my cat is weird), and I'm back inside to warm up and have another cup of coffee. I'm glad you could stop by!

These are the stairs up to my apartment in a greener time of year (last September). I live in a sweet little place, which happens to be above the garage of my landlords' house (they are the best in the world -- D even shovels the snow off the stairs for me!). I've lived here for six years. Boy, does that sentence make me shiver. I've rarely lived in one house for six years! Does that mean I've settled here?

This is for Becky's virtual field trip, by the way. Check out her sidebar and join us!

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My lace scarf project is not the easy knitting I'd hoped. It's not that it's difficult, really, but that it requires my attention at all times. You lose one yarn-over, and there goes your evening. Here it is, in all its 293 stitches of rumpled glory, with cat toes for scale. It's not much to look at yet, is it?

I'm also knitting away on the second sock for that R. I'll finish the pair this week, and I'll finally have something new to report to Amie's 2000Socks count. Have you seen that ticker on her blog? It's at 1026 socks, and it's barely March!

It's time to get on with this beautiful day. It will involve a road trip to Target for supplies (cat toes must be fed), but I'm planning to visit a lot of back yards, too!

Field trip, anyone?

Want to join me? I'm going on a Knitblogger's Field Trip tomorrow. Becky at Knitting Interrupted had the idea -- on Sunday morning, March 5th, take a picture of your back yard (or find an old view that you like) and post it on your blog. Easy, no? Click on Becky's link for the full story. It will be fun to click around to see a lot of knitters' back yards (or in my case, front, back, and side, all at the same time). And at this time of the year, I could really use a little field trip, even a virtual one. Spring is always very slow to arrive on this little tip of the island, so I hope I'll get to see a few signs of it tomorrow!

And tomorrow morning I'll have more time to post about the progress I'm not making on my PS Diamond Lace scarf project. Right now, I have to get ready to go and tell people what to read.

If it's March...

... it must be time for Project Spectrum! This month the colors are red and pink. I think I have just the right yarn for a few knitting projects.

There's Lorna's Laces in a color called "Irving Park" and the lovely Schaeffer Anne in, well, a color with a lot of deep pink in it. I'm going to cast on for a scarf in the Anne -- Diamond Lace Dress-It-Up from Heartstrings.

The Lorna's might become some lacey socks, but not until I finish the ones I'm working on now -- the STR Moss Agate socks that have turned into a stripey pair for one of the exquisite R's. The other exquisite R will receive a pair of socks that I knitted a long time ago, with no particular feet in mind, but they are just her colors and just her size.

I have a few ideas for the Postcard Swap, too. I have a huge folder of pages I've ripped from magazines -- colors, photos, settings, miscellany -- and lots of bits and pieces of paper that I knew I'd want someday. I like to make collages, and I'm still very fond of the big one that I made when Judy and I did The Artist's Way together (we almost finished the whole thing, and it's had a huge influence on me nonetheless). My postcard will be a collage, then.

So it looks like I'm all ready to start this exciting month of projects. Thanks, Lolly!

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I wore my Olympic sweater to work on Monday. Not only was I proud and wanted to strut through the store all day, but it was really cold and I actually needed it. At one point I was in the office, and I heard my co-worker J saying to someone up front, "Sixteen days!" I knew just what he was talking about!

This was by far the most invigorating knitting experience I've ever had. Stephanie's February 28 blog post says it all.

And hey, I've made a head start on Project Spectrum, too -- my sweater is a full-spectrum extravaganza, don't you think?