Can't. resist. casting. on. new. project....

Okay, I've made some progress on the wedding favors front, but I still have very many of those little flowers that need making. The thing is, I really want to cast on a new project!

There are some that I have in the works that I want to, or need to, wait to start. Such as my future hubby's sweater. The blanket for the new house. I really should be focusing on the flowers. Wedding stuff. Yes, I have a sock on the needles, but we all know that socks don't count as a WIP.

So I really want to cast on a different project. A small one that I won't mind if it doesn't get finished for years.

So I decided to make a bikini top. Since it may never actually see the light of day once finished anyway, who cares if it gets done, right? But I will at least have a break from the flowers when I want to kick them under the couch. :)

Life in the Wilds of Frederick County, VA

That Spot in the distance is a Hot air balloon. It looks so far away in the photo, But I assure you in person it was much closer. Enough for me to wonder if the pilot saw the trees at all.

But in the evening, one of the greatest show in the area can be seen from my deck. In my back yard and the woods. Bats doing their nightly aerobatics show, fireflies flashing all around, deer cruising by, squirrels, rabbits, cats, turtles and ground hogs.

I have recently had 2 run ins with the wildlife in my backyard. The first I was out mowing the area that I am reclaiming for the forest and a sea of honey suckle vines (I've dumped enough commercial strength round up that the ground should be fallow.). So I was pushing the mower when what I thought was a rock flew out the back. When I realized it went far and was lighter, I went to check it out. Not a rock. I had just shot a turtle over 25 feet with the lawn mower.

The turtle was fine, I cried for 1/2 and hour. Then I started looking and discovered that there were a good few turtles out there. The pictures here are NOT the one I mowed. As I said, he was fine.




These were taken on a different day and this turtle was larger that the astroturtle.





My second incident involved Bob and Charlotte. Grounds hogs which pictures appear in a previous post. Bob charged me. I was standing on the top of the slope by the deck about to go to the shed. One was inside the den underneath. I stopped and we were just looking at each other. After all, I didn't want to scare it off. Then I here this crash from the undergrowth below the second terrace. And there he is. Charging out of the forest and up the slope. Where I thought he would stop. He didn't. He passed the shed running at top ground hog speed heading right for me. It became clear that at that moment, he was not afraid of me one bit. I ran into the house.

I attempted another foray to the shed to get the electrical cord I needed, and was again thwarted. So with out the cord for that night's project, I had to settle with knitting. (shucks! ;)_ )

But some how this week, never coming in to contact with anything, as I completely ignored yard work, I now have poison ivy/sumac. Yup. First time. I am trying really hard not to scratch and am using the stuff the doc gave me and taking Benadryl. But really, I think I might have to were those little mittens that they put on babies to keep them from scratching, because I really want to itch it.

One Day more..

One day more..
One day more and I will be able to start moving somethings over to the new house.
One day more and I will have no more excuse to leave out yarn and roving for petting.
One day more and I will be drawing out schematics for the yarn lab.
One day more and I will have a thermostat-climate controlled environment.
One day more and I will have more than 1 bathroom for guests.
One day more and I will have a dish-washer.
One day more and I will have room for my stash.
One day more and I will have to face the fact of packing the basement.
One day more and I will be officially broke but will have a yard to stay-cation in.
One day more and I will have a ton of work to do with will take up all my time and energy.
One day more and I will have to put away my spinning and knitting for a while.
One day more...

Put not today. I think I'll knit.

Frustration

Frustration is wanting to do multiple things at once that each exclude you from being able to do any of the others at the same time.

Wet nails and knitting don't mix.

Wet nails and spinning REALLY don't mix.

Spinning and reading don't mix.

Reading and candle making don't mix.

Cats and any of the above don't mix. (Especially with the hot wax on the stove while nails are wet)

The Socks have it!

I am taking a short break from my continous sock knitting to write a few lines. I have now completed 2 pairs of socks and have a third pair well under way. I have also picked up a fictional dime store novel on knttting which has sucked me in.

Now the issue, I can't seem to read and knit at the same time. I use a cookbook stand that my fater made me to hold the book, bt I get so engrossed in one or the other that I loose my spot/stitch count.

I've also taken to doing both these in bed, because of lack of heat, the down blanket seems to be the best place to hang out in my home. So now I am waking up with needles in my hair and yarn balls covered in droll. I' ll get it all worked out eventually. I just need more hands.

Knitting Nutter on the Road

I went to our knit night Holiday party last night. And received some interesting looks. You see, it all started yesterday morning when I realized that I didn't have anything on the needles that was a no-brainer. All of my current projects require attention, and that just doesn't work at a social event where there are things going on other than my knitting. Must be nice to people. So, I needed something I could work on and chat at the same time. So I started casting on a hat to be felted that I've been planning. It's felted right? Covers a multitude of sins. But I had to leave for work. So I continued casting on while driving to work. This is where my friends and fellow knitters turn and look at me in horror.

I'm not sure if it was because driving while knitting is admittedly dangerous or because I couldn't pay enough attention to cast on the proper amount in a non-sloppy way. I have a feeling that it had nothing to do with safety issues.

So driving home tonight in the rain, I concentrated on only driving. Occasionally, I would reach over to the passenger seat and pet the wool for comfort. That doesn't count as a distraction. Everyone knows that yarn calms knitters down. Its like a relaxation reflex. Like a child sucking his thumb. Pet the wool. Finger the alpaca. Other knitters will understand this. Good fibers running through our hands acts like Valium, instantly transporting us into a "happy" state of mind. Trance states.

Really, I'm not alone in this. I'm not nuts. And if I am, well, the yarn doesn't seem to mind.

Knit & Knot- A great day at sea!

Can it really get any better than this? I mean, without chocolate?