Love me some Leelou Blogginess

If you're ready for a really sharp-looking blog, c'mon over and see the great ones Leelou has designed.  (And I'm working on a how-to to make the templates strech.)

So Appropos.

"You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you odd." Flannery O'Connor

Did you know . . .

Red Heart makes sock yarn?????

I almost bought a skein just to be sure I didn't imagine it . . .

So many posts, so little time.

Blogging To Do:

Mason-Dixon Signing
Spindling progress
Making Spindles
Grandchildren photo shoot for my Mom.
Going Raw

I know there are more . . . I had at least three others in mind as I was doing a quick grocery stop tonight . . . I'm sure they'll come to me.

But for now, you'll all just have to be appeased with the knowledge that I'm doing well. (Camera disconnect, or I'd have photos.)

G'night!

Guess where I'm going tonight . . .

To see these knitters, and get them to sign me one of these.

Woot!

A Rare Sighting

After publishing that last post, I caught sight of something in the library . . .



Hold on a second, I thought. What could that be? Knitting? Actual blog fodder???

Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a wad of lace. Would you like to see?



Well, like it or not, you get to. ;o) Dear blog reader, may I introduce you to the Old Shale Scarf?



(She's charmed.)

I'm not sure if I was influenced subconsciously by all of the Clap knitting that has been going on, but I cast on for this about a month ago. I wanted to knit up this gorgeous wool/silk blend from Sheep Shop yarns, and I wanted something for me to ward off the coming chilly, wet winter. (But please remember--I'm thrilled down to the bottom of my little knitter's heart that it's not a freezing, snowy one!)

I've been wanting to knit something in Old Shale for a while . . . my grandmother, who passed away just over two years ago, knit a baby blanket for me in a garter variation of Old Shale. (Knit every row instead of making row four purl.) My daughters now love that blanket, and I wanted to make something for me to carry around, too. ;o) I miss my grandmother, and I find myself wanting to have things around me that remind me of her.



I'm just over halfway through . . . unless it turns out that I'm really just over a third through. I may made it a little too wide to get enough length out of the two skeins of Sheep Shop Three I bought at Apple Yarns in Bellingham, so I've got to decide if I:

1. Rip the entire thing out and start again with 1/3 fewer stitches (more thrifty, but waaaaaay more work, and not as smooshy and luxuriant a scarf at the end), or

2. Call Andrea and have her send me another skein from the same dyelot, if she has any more. (I surely hope she does, because otherwise I'm a stuck knitter, aren't I?)

And I want you to know I'm totally open to suggestions. Please do fire away . . .

Full Circle

Isn't it funny how one event can suddenly make you see things in a different way? Open your eyes to a realization of what has happened, and make you appreciate it more?

For nearly the entire 15 years I've used the internet, there has been one overarching theme: the internet provides what my IRL experiences did not. From chat rooms in college to discussion forums on breast feeding and cloth diapering, healthy eating and alternative medicine, economics and politics, the internet has provided a wealth of information and a venue for expression simply unavailable anywhere else.

Blogging made the experience more personal, where family members and friends could visit and respond. I'll never forget the first few online encounters with people whose faces I actually knew. Since those first few emails and blog comments, it the real-life utility of the web has continued to grow.

Today I posted a fairly "poor me" rant over at the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival group on Ravelry. I was feeling lonely, left-out, and confused over why I couldn't seem to find any knitters. Here I am, close to one of the more notable cities for all things fibery (can you say Grafton Fibers? Dublin Bay? Yarnies all over the place?) and they were all hiding. I joined a couple of groups on Ravelry for local knitters, but the most I could find that wasn't straight downtown was a once-a-month meeting 25 minutes from home.

So, I whined. (Sorry, everyone.)

And, it worked. (Please don't tell my kids!)

I've since been invited to a Yahoo group for the PDX Knit Bloggers of Yarn Harlot fame, and told how to start my own knit night by someone who has actually accomplished that feat. (I know, it sounds simple . . . but I was just too timid to try it until someone said: "Hey you! It's stupid simple. You just do this . . . " Except the Raveler who told me was way, way nicer. ;o)

Now, to go make good on some of this great info . . .

Just for Fun

This is too cute:



And hold on to your sides, because this is too funny:

Americans are just weird.

I don't recommend the rest of the site, but that post is hilarious.