Lookit!

I made a new sweater!


Okay, so the green one is new; I made the other one over a year ago. This new one will be a gift. Making the gift sweater gave me the impetus to "read" last year's sweater and take notes this time (I swear I had notes the first time, but who knows where they went) and turn it into a very easy and enjoyable pattern, now available for $5.



Huge thanks go out to my friend Amy, who is modeling the brown/orange original World Series Sweater... it was so cold outside when we took these photos. I am wearing the green new World Series Sweater since I like the fact that it looks cool with a lot of ease (I am wearing the 36 inch bust size, and the sizes are meant to have about 3-4 inches of positive ease - so it actually measures 40 inches across the bust, and I am a 32 inch bust). The brown/orange sweater is the 32 inch size, and Amy is somewhere between a 32 and 34 inch bust, and I like the way the sweaters are so flattering on both of us. I don't think you can mess this one up, flattering-wise.

I don't think I've ever made such an easy sweater, and the color possibilities are endless. And it has a Missoni vibe to it, but it's not make out of whatever synthetic blend Missoni sweaters tend to use... it's all wool, baby.

Enjoy!

One year in review

Last Wednesday was my one-year anniversary at my current Job, which was actually more emotional than I expected as I joked about it (throughout the year... "look... 4 months!.... 8 months and 3 days!.... In two days it will be 10 months, which is 5/6 of one year!").

I know a lot of you work jobs that don't use your talents, cubicle jobs, "support staff" jobs to pay the bills (barely) and for health insurance. I know I do. When I think about where I "fit" into the world of employment, there is no easy answer, certainly no answer that really makes me happy. But every day we go do it, don't we? How do you do it? Here's me celebrating one year at Bukowski Tavern downtown:


We pulled out the warm blanket this week, and I realized that I've never photographed it. I made it during the cold winter of 2001-2002, the first year of my PhD program, when boxes of Lopi arrived one after another at my tiny apartment and I slept under the blanket on my tiny twin bed as I crocheted it together.
I have two designs coming out very soon, one of which will be available for free, and the other of which will be a download (remember this? I'm making another for a gift in a different size than mine, so I've decided to write out the pattern and make it available here), which explains the low knitting content lately. However, I'm also doing a lot of boring but lovely Holiday knitting, including a Minimalist Cardigan made of Reynolds Soft Sea Wool. What a yarn! A tightly-coiled yarn, springy, so textural, and, for some reason, I've found it super-fast to knit with. This is the second sleeve. I mean, check out that yarn!


Soon much will be revealed. I'm off to work on that!

Cowl-O-Rama!

Here are a few of the cowls prepared for the Bead and Fiber Holiday show sale! If you don't knit, you can purchase one. If you do knit, get some inspiration and whip one up! These range from about 6 ounces to 1 pound of fiber.

It was a lot of fun selecting and preparing the rovings, then choosing the right vintage button for each from my collection.



After biking into Boston to drop off the cowls at the gallery, we got in our fancy dress for Chris' dad's retirement party. Chris is rocking a jacket we got from a street vendor in New York on the Lower East side, and I'm representing the handknits!

Proud

Biked to the polls as soon as they opened here after waking up at 4:30 am and being unable to go back to sleep.

I wanted to get a more dramatic photo from today, but this is the one I have, so it will do.

In honor of Studs Terkel

Who died Friday at age 96. His book, Working, has been both an inspiration to get to work every day, no matter how ridiculous the job, and a reminder about the inherent unfairness and often soul-crushing nature of said job. Chris and I drank martinis in his honor for most of Saturday afternoon while waiting for an appointment at the Apple Genius Bar to get our Mac Book fixed.

All the martinis and Studs Terkel discussion helped soften the news that our hard drive had died and that the new one was going to be $200.

So the computer is working again, and I must say that Apple customer service is AMAZING. We went from dead computer to live computer in 5 hours, and most of that was spent waiting for our appointment, since it was Saturday afternoon and the mall was packed. Oh, did I say MALL? Yes, that's right, we did the "Real American" thing Saturday and drove our - currently bug free knock wood - car to the mall. God Bless the USA.

Knitting? Yep! Two pairs of Christmas socks done.

Spinning? You got it... that's about 650 yards of my very own handspun.

Can you tell I'm having trouble focusing on larger projects? Only soothing things until tomorrow night. I'll be up until it's over. Let's get out there and make it happen!

Totally Out of Control

I had a pretty ugly bike tip-over Saturday while riding to get our "new car" (remember the car shown a month or so ago? Yes? Well, it failed inspection and had to go back to the dealer three times because the "Check Engine" light was on. Luckily in Massachusetts we have a Lemon Law, which means that used cars must pass inspection; if not, it is the dealer's responsibility to fix any problems that come up within the first month of ownership). While at a stop light, in front of a mess of traffic, I leaned over to roll up my left pant leg that was catching on my water bottle cage, lost my balance, and brought myself and my bike crashing to the ground.

I was tired, not feeling well, not up for any of it. Here I am behind 777 Auto, the dealership that sold us New Mulva, with that "my husband is a jerk for suggesting we ride our bikes to get the car" look.

In other news, Fiber is taking over the house. This was my side of the couch Sunday morning.

Ouch. Note the handknit socks, however. It looks a lot worse than this now.

FIBAH! I'm doing a lot of spinning, and am also creating a few super-bulky scarves and cowls from roving for a holiday show and sale at a new gallery and shop called Bead & Fiber. Is there a market out there for such things? The owner of Bead & Fiber seems to think so. Why not.

The "Check Engine" light has been off for two days now. Think positive thoughts for us.

Checks and Balances

Problem? Fury over the McCain "Health Care Plan." When Cindy McCain goes to a walk-in clinic, increased use of which is one of McCain's "solution" to the problem, for her pelvic exam, I'll be more inclined to listen. Not that I would agree, but I might listen a little bit. Or not.

Solution? Soothing sock knitting. Here's another Christmas recipient pair, from the Bloody Mary pattern (free!) and made in the discontinued KnitPicks Sock Garden, color Pansy.

When I left my State job a few years ago, I had to take COBRA benefits for a few months, and paid $450 a month for them. That's the monthly payment cost for a single person on a reasonable HMO, not one of the "Cadillac" health plans McCain says are the ones that cost more than $5,000 a year PER FAMILY. I worked in health care (first for the State, then as a hospital administrator) and have never, in my life, heard of a health plan that cost $5,000 per year per family. Triple that and I might listen. For a minute.

Solution? Spinning! Some of the brown fleece that was such a wonderful gift from my parents' neighbor, Ann. My spinning is getting more and more even and becoming a more and more calming experience. I see more of it in the near future, despite knitting deadlines. Besides, my right hand is cramping up from all my working for The Man.

Then I would think of my Dud and wonder what would happen if he lost his job. He's a paraplegic. His medical costs are through the roof. I absolutley could not imagine health plans "competing" to cover him, or even covering him at all. So I guess I wouldn't listen, unless the McCain's started getting their check-ups at walk-in clinics (probably wouldn't have caught that melanoma so quickly), raise the tax credit they suggest to three times the amount, and demostrate how someone in a wheelchair can get insurance for $5,000 a year. Or any insurance at all.

Solution:

I splurged. Meet my new yarn for the next few months. Color group 1, extra small. I had to consult one of my friends with exceptional taste to reassure me about my choice... I don't tend toward pastels, but these are rich, multi-faced colors, even though they are lighter than my usual choices. I think it will make for more adventurous knitting.

Hope all of you are coping, too.