I just have to be starting something

Instead of starting all the things I really need to do before I leave on Thursday morning, I've spent a good part of the day on this...

...a nice little scarf in my pansy-colored Brooks Farm yarn.

I began by thinking how efficient I'd be if I wound a few skeins of yarn into balls before I put the swift and winder away. Good idea, but several skeins later I was still winding, not cleaning or laundering or doing anything that's on my mile-long list.

I really, really wanted to start knitting with this yarn, and I've been thinking about what I'd like it to look like for about a week. None of my ideas worked, though. Too fussy, not enough stitch definition, too open...

This isn't the easiest yarn to choose a stitch for, because even though it's soft as can be, it's still mohair, it's long-stapled and inelastic, and each stitch seems to be poised to slip off the needles if I'm not careful. So I ended up casting on for another Here and There Cables scarf, like the one I made with my handspun last month. It looks completely different, and the pattern fits my requirements for a semi-mindless knit that lets the yarn and the pattern complement each other, just as they should.

Then I found this in a drawer...

...some yarn I spun a looooong time ago!

On the left is "Amethyst," a Moonflower Studios blend from oh, back in 1991 or so. On the right is yarn from my Favorite Fleece of All Time, a Lincoln-Corriedale ram named Bomfit. Imagine that -- they have been in a bag in that drawer for six years, just hanging out with nothing to do! I'll have to do something with them now, won't I?

It's almost time to choose the road music, pack the trail mix, and gas up the old CRV for the trip to the Retreat. I can't believe that I'm taking actual vacation days! For a Road Trip! To meet KR Friends! I'd say I'm beside myself, but I'm really not. I am just eager and happy and looking forward to everything. I'm taking Wednesday off, too, so I can have a day to get ready without rushing.

Finished...and with yards to spare!

Heeeere's Carbon! All done. I took a picture of a damp sock because I don't know what the weather is planning to do later today, and I didn't want to miss out on the good light. The pair matches pretty well (practically self-striping, Amie!), and they are very, very comfortable (not when damp, of course). I've been knitting lots of not-plain-jane socks lately, and having these simple stockinette stitches to work on soothed my funked-up brain for a few days.

The first Nor'Easter of the season blew through yesterday, along with the remnants of Wilma. All that barometric activity is like an electric charge to my brain, which doesn't know what to do with itself, so it makes its Jane just plain crazy. I pulled books right and left for most of the day, and there are five or six healthy piles ready to be boxed up tomorrow. My hands were aching by the time I got home, but finishing the socks actually made them feel better.

I'm feeling better in general after spending a little time on the phone with my dear friend V. I'll stay with her next week on my way to the Retreat, and she and I will figure out a way to cram months and months of girl-time into less than 24 hours together. We've done it before. We're pros. We're not like J and me, who talk a mile a minute and finish each other's sentences and jump around from thought to thought, like sisters who have known each other forever. V and I do something different with our communicating, something that I can't quite name, but that involves eliminating the small talk and getting right to the essence of things. There we stay, until our time together is ending. We're sisters, too, of the heart.

I am also looking forward to spending a little time in V's studio, which is one of the most wonderful places in the world to me. It is filled with yarn and fleece and looms and wheels and actual work in progress, and it smells wooly and sweet. It's on the second floor of her house, overlooking a steep hill and a creek below. The light is magic. She would say that her studio is nothing more than a mess, but I always fine peace and comfort there.

Now that the Socks That Really Do Rock are done, I'm actually feeling a little aimless. I have another pair on the needles (the Rib and Cable socks that I was working on before I was seduced by the Carbon), and a scarf to finish (the one I will have to Kitchener eventually). There's always the Manos Wildflower Michelin Woman sweater...

Instead, I think I'll go to the PO and see if I have any interesting mail!

What to do, what to do

The KR Retreat is just around the corner. I have major work to do at the store before I leave (returns: you love them or you hate them, but you still have to pull them). My apartment is, well, it's just a mess. My head is in the same state (migraine, migraine go away...). I haven't gotten in touch with the people I need to so that I will have a place to sleep before and after the Retreat. Last week was a hard one, stressful and draining, but it's over now. So?

I don't know what is going on here. Will I pull it all together before the last minute? Yes, of course I will. I feel a bit overwhelmed, and the lurking headache is no help. It, too, will move on.

At least I have been having Knitting Success. The Carbon socks are a blast to knit. I finished one and I'm turning the heel of its mate. This yarn is an absolute joy. It's almost self-striping, with an ikat vibe. I love the way the colors flow. I had a little panic when I read Cara's blog and realized/remembered that there are only 325 yards to a skein of Socks That Rock, which could mean... I won't even think about it. I knit the legs shorter than usual, just in case. I could have measured and divided the yarn, but that would mean I'd have to measure and divide the yarn when I'd rather knit. I'm putting it in the hands of the Yarn Goddesses. I'll post a picture when I get the pair finished.

After the socks, there's a beautiful skein of Brooks Farm Primero waiting for me to find just the right scarf design. I think I'll make one up, with a basketweave thing and maybe a reversible cable on each edge. Either that, or I'll make "Peacock's Pride" from Lavish Lace. I want a take-along project that isn't socks. I'll bring socks, too, of course, but it's all about having choices.

I think I've almost talked myself out of this funk. It's about time. In twelve short days I will be having a wonderful time with NewOld friends!

These socks do rock

Carbon, baby...

I just had to start them. The yarn was calling to me, in a muffled, pleading little voice, from the bottom of the bag. This just might be the nicest sock yarn I've ever worked with -- no wonder it's legendary. The fabric is soft and smooth on US 1 needles, and my gauge is working out to about 8 stitches to the inch. It's not splitty, either. The colors flow without pooling so far (four inches is hardly a good sample) but I won't mind if they do. I'm making a plain pair of socks this time, just because I am loving the knitting with this yarn. Socks That Rock rocks.

~:~:~

Okay, it's meme time:

Ten years ago… I had just begun working at the bookstore, after spending two years working at this and that, living here and there. I’d always loved books, but I had no idea that I’d take to it so quickly, or that my brain was made for this work, or that I would find as much satisfaction in it as I had in weaving and spinning. My home was a little basement apartment, but I spent much of my time at J’s house, helping her run her husband’s landscaping business and hanging out with J and the wonderful babyR’s and their equally wonderful big brother M. I was still in the process of finding my way in the world. My fur companion was little Emma, who’d accompanied me on my long journey to this place by the sea, and made sure I was safe and sound.

Five years ago… I’d become the manager of the Southampton store and had navigated most of the way through a really rocky stretch of road. I’d found a sweet studio apartment close to the store, which I share to this day with my cat Annabelle (who was sent to me, I believe, so that the road would seem less treacherous).

One year ago… I was still basking in the glow of my trip to Italy. It changed and fortified me, and even now I have a deep sense of contentment when I remember that week.

Five snacks… Crisp, crunchy apples; Chocolate; Peanut butter-filled pretzels; Cheese (the sharper the better); A big Starbucks Frappuchino.

Five songs I know all the words to: “Angel from Montgomery” (the Bonnie Raitt version, please); “Boulder to Birmingham” by Emmylou Harris; “Lay Lady Lay” and just about every song on Nashville Skyline; “This Shirt” by Mary-Chapin Carpenter; “You Are My Sunshine”.

Five things I would do with $100 million… Build or buy a house somewhere where I could live forever; ensure that all my nieces and nephews could go to college or start a career; make sure my mom is comfortable and that she doesn’t want for anything; travel, and take my time about it; save some, give the rest away.

Five places to run away to… The ocean (does that count, since it’s practically down the road?);Italy; the movies; my old home in Virginia (hey, I could buy it back with some of that $100 mil!); the Southwest.

Five things I would never wear… High heels; fur; neon anything; a bikini (this is so laughable that it shouldn’t even count); novelty-yarn sweater in any way, shape or form (scarves are okay); lots of flashy diamonds (though one would be nice).

Five Favorite TV shows… Lost (what time is it?); ER (the old ones are the best); I adored the Loretta Young show when I was little; early Masterpiece Theater; House Hunters (so corny it’s good).

Five biggest joys… Knitting, Knitters Review, my dear friends (including Miss Annabelle), my far-flung family, the smell of the ocean.

Five favorite toys… My computer and the internet, my sheepy tape measure, all my knitting and spinning stuff, my Treo 650 PDA/phone/MP3 player; and my digital camera.

Five people to pass this on to… This might be impossible, since I’m so late posting this. Okay. Vi, who counts as all five because she has all those cats and chickens.