Finished Object Dance

Franklin is getting ready to take a trip, and Dolores is supervising his packing. My problem with packing is that I can never be sure I won't need a something, and therefore many somethings get taken with me. I forgot the punchline last night -- the object of the (packing) exercise is not to see how much the suitcase will hold.

This weekend's trip will be complicated by needing to be able to lug it all by myself the 1/4 mile from the subway station. Normally, Himself and I would drive up and back together, but this time, before he heads into Nova Scotia, he'll be dropping me off at the Downeaster in Portland, to make my way home by trains and then foot. The teaching box was severely edited over the weekend and the weekend wardrobe will be similarly curtailed.

The question comes of which backpack should I use? The cute little one on the left that holds essentials but not much more, and masquerades as a purse for going to restaurants, or the big red backpack that holds alot of stuff, but is, well, bulkier. If space and weight were no object, they would both come along on the trip, but see previous paragraph about needing to be able to carry everything myself. Weight will be an issue by 5:30 on Sunday.

Which brings to mind the question of what project to work on while 1. riding in the car for a few hours on Friday, and during knitting moments that day/evening, 2. listening to the program at the Granite State Knit-In on Saturday afternoon, 3. Saturday evening and 4. Sunday, traveling to Portland and then home on the train. There's lots of potential knitting time during this weekend, of varying degrees of concentration, but not much room for packing.

I was thinking about starting something new for the trip, but then remembered last fall I had tucked away a project thinking that it would make an excellent need long stretches of not too difficult project. One one-ounce skein is in use and two more are pre-wound. Do I take all three along? Refer to paragraph 2.
The commuting Baby Surprize Jacket is making progress. Yesterday was yellow, today was dark green and I'll know tomorrow's color by 8:15 in the morning. This yarn spit splices very easily, so I've been able to keep to my intention of changing colors each day no matter where in the row the previous day's commute ended.

The commuting fairies seem to be in cahoots with the exercising fairies. Tonight the Porter Square station had one escalator under repair, one going down and one stopped. The stairs on either side are nine flights of thirteen steps each. Hike-a, hike-a.

Alls well that ends well, and the Mind's Eye annual sale is just getting underway tonight. It runs through Sunday...... I've got what I had my eye on, so now everyone else is free to shop.

The 4th expected triplet baby sweater got finished, though not finished, if you know what I mean. It fits better with the other two, and the 3rd will go to another baby sometime.

The companion flamingo got as far as the part where you attach the black to make the beak, at which point I discovered I had forgotten to bring the black with me.

We pretty much laid low on Saturday, given that Himself was sick enough to cancel our going to my folks that day for lunch.

Sunday, we didn't get to do a mountain a month, but we did go to the Lynn Wood Reservation. It was a bit tough, but it felt good when it was done.
Monday afternoon Himself went to a gathering of his card playing friends and I spent the afternoon by myself with my projects. You can see the other progress made above, and then I got started organizing my box of teaching for the Granite State Knit-In this coming weekend. I have two classes of 6 students each for Entrelac, and so far 4 for applied I-cord. Left is one of my "here's what you can do" examples. I want to have it not done, so I can use it as teaching example of how to apply twisted I-cord.


On the right is the box of teaching packed for this year. Yeah!

And last, but not least, what to do for commute knitting, now that the expected triplet sweaters are done? Item #3 of March, 2006 new moon starting has been resurrected. The object of the exercise is to use up the J&S Shetland JumperWeight bought (mostly) during 1991 Camp. So, each day, I'm going to change color. We had two days with (brief) travel during the weekend, so you can see the gray and the pink. Now I need to go choose a new color for today, and we'll have a visual demostration of how the commuting fairies are feeling.

Just sayin'. And, as of yesterday, it's 4 months to the Boston Knit Out and Crochet Too 2006 gathering on the Common. Lucy is reporting our Articles of Incorporation have been accepted by the Commonwealth, which is another step on the way to non-profit status.

At knitting group last night I worked on the sleeves of the 3rd expected triplet sweater and finished the knitting when I got home. Finishing, finishing, like sewing in ends and all that, well, that's another issue.

Shown on the left in the company of the other expected triplet sweaters, one of these things is not like the other. I'm going to set this one aside and hold it for a future baby. Odds are someone of my acquaintence will have progeny before I lose track of where I put this away.

Shown on the right is the 4th expected triplet sweater which, while not in the same palette as the other two, at least carries on with the short color length theme. I wish I could have found another color of Sockotta that had the variety of colors (especially the red variants) in the other two, but this will do.

Finishing finishing will probably take place when the companion flamingo is taking the magic ride in the dryer. At the moment the flamingo is mid-way through the body. More progress should get made over the long weekend.

The new moon is coming up on Saturday and for once I don't have plans for massive casting on. There's enough around the place already to be working on, and no projects with deadlines, that I don't need to start anything new this month.

The theme of the Knit-Out fashion show this year is going to be embellishments. Come June I'll be ready to get going on my plans. Expect a hot, muggy summer, because there'll be felting.

Over at Franklin's blog I've been reading about Knit In Public day coming up in cities all over the place on Saturday June 10th. As it so happens, I'm free and by myself that day. I might just buy the t-shirt and wander over.

That is, if I knew where to wander to. Anyone heard if there's a Boston (Boston area?) gathering already set up to go join? Or do I need to start something?

It sounds like it wants to be somewhere other than a yarn shop, but if there was one close by, that might be handy. Do we want an outdoor or indoor site? Do we want to just ride the subways for the day and witness to the curious?

Big news from the Boston Knit-Out and Crochet Too meeting tonight: The date will be Sunday, September 24, 2006.

Then I came home and started dealing with my entrelac handouts. I'm trying to add pictures, and next need to print it out to see how well it works in B&W.

I find it amazing when I think I'm using standard terms, spoken clearly, and folks will interpret them many ways. I'm hoping the pictures will help. I'm quite proud of this one, showing, having purled one stitch, how to turn the work to the right side and perform a make 1 (M1) increase on the knit side, with strand to be picked up and knitted highlighted.

I've done all the photos in greyscale, which means I had to do some testing first. My orange and purple were pretty close to the same tone (or is it value?) when viewed in greyscale, so the two colors pictured above are hot pink (dark) and very light yellow (light).

Over the years, I find a number of knitters take my classes at the Knit-In just to get validation. They know what they're doing, they just want "an expert" to tell them its right. Okay, for one day I can stroke a few egos and pass out praise and kind words. If I'm lucky, they'll help the person next to them when I'm on the other side of the table. If I'm really lucky, they won't not read the directions as they go forging ahead of everyone else and then get huffy that they missed a vital step. One does have to be careful about undoing someone else's work, even if it has to go back to a prior step to be done correctly.

First off, must remember to go to the Boston Knit-Out organizational meeting at the Borders in Downtown Crossing tonight at 6:30, around the back.

Shown here is the 4th of the expected triplet sweaters. The third reached the point of stay-at home, so this is now going around with me. The commuting fairies were good on Friday and then we did some driving around this weekend.

Saturday we did the Brookline Open Studios and wandered around for about 3 3/4 hours. Long walk, some interesting things. Those folks need to take a page from the Somerville people though about their website. No way to look up artists by media, and the map sections are quite small, so it's hard to see how to get from one place to the next.

Saturday morning I was at Himself's house intending to pick up and work on the Etherial Fischu last seen in early January (2006). Then I discovered I'd picked up the directions for a different project when I was packing on Friday morning. Saturday afternoon we stopped back at my place and the Fischu directions were no where to be found. We went out to the store where I think I bought it, which didn't have a copy. So we went back to Himself's house and I started surfing the web for a new pattern. Long story short, and the Knitting Zone had the Diamond Fantasy pattern for download.

And I'll note that Lucy's sock yarn frogs and reknits very well. This is for the best, since I was not really happy with the shape of the Fischu -- the triangle was to long to the point with a not wide enough base, so it didn't quite fit around the shoulders.

This is the progress after an evening and an afternoon of working on this. Course we all know how shawls are like puppies and just start growing until they become big projects that then need work.

And since the pattern has an I-cord edging, hmmm, can I get to that point and have something else to demo with in my I-cord class at the Granite State Knit-In?

A quick post since I just spent time sending readings to the endo. The 3rd triplet baby sweater is on the last round before it becomes a stay-at-home object, so the goods for the 4th sweater will be heading in my bag with me today.

Let's hope the commuting fairies have gotten the memo.....

Gotta love the morning light. The florida-headed flamingo went to knitting group last night and this morning is one row away from putting in markers for future leg placement. Upcoming are all those W&T rows, which might not be the best thing to take out in company. We'll see what heads to knitting group next week.

My plans for the Granite State Knit-In are coming together. Himself will be heading to Atlantic Canada the next day, so it's looking like I'll be getting home via the Downeaster out of Portland on his way through.

Which means I now need to look at what I'm bringing to the day. It's about time to do my own homework(s) prep. for class, given that I need to have the sample piece for entrelac in several stages of progression ready to go when the class reaches that stage. And figure out what about I-cord, in what order, I'll be saying and demoing to my students. It's fun, but it's a challenge. It's like that favorite essay question: Discuss. Doesn't say where to start, what to cover, how much the audience already knows on background, just Discuss.

And then I need to figure out what I'm getting at the Mind's Eye annual sale. This year it's all week, so those of us with an annual prior committment that weekend can still participate.

not a 5 mm needle, but a standard of care. Normals' A1c measurement are 4.6 - 6.4. One standard of care says I should be under 7 to be in "good control", though I've also heard someone is putting around that diabetics should be aiming for normal range rather than just under 7.

I've never been able to get myself under an 8 before, but, at yesterday's meeting with the endocrinologist she told me that my lastest reading was 7.9. The goal is still to get under 7, but having been 8.3 and 8.1 in July and October last year and then 8.6 in January (after a badly managed December), this is real progress.

Having the new 522 pump with RT glucose sensor will help more, but that's July. I'm just waiting until June 19th to find out whether I need to shell out a grand for it and then a few hundred a month for supplies then hope my insurance will think it's a good idea and reimburse me, or whether Minimed will by then be prepared to bill insurance companies directly. It's happening one way or the other, even if I have to pay for it all myself.

2nd expected triplet baby nalgar progress happened last night. The knitting was finished, even if the finishing wasn't. The first picture is the 2nd sweater. The second picture is the first and second together, to show how the colorways work.

And then you get the 3rd expected triplet baby naglar, which, doesn't quite seem to fit with the other two, given the length of the color repeats. I'll be saving this one for future gifting and do a 4th to complete the current set. I've got my choice of two other yarns and I'm thinking of going with the one on the right. It won't have the yellow/blue/red of the other two, but it has enough of the same tones that I think it will work. The other looks a tad too pale.

Himself is now planning to head to Atlantic Canada on the Sunday after the Knit-In, heading from Loon Mountain, dropping me off at the train in Portland on his way north, for me to make my way home via North Station. I normally bring baggage anywhere I go, so this will be an exercise in how little I can discipline myself to bring since I'll have to lug it back across the river either by T or pay for a taxi.

I started getting the hot/cold chills, sore throat, energy sucking thing on Friday afternoon, and the cold rain all weekend didn't really help any.

Resting alot and drinking lots of tea did, though. It's now turned into a cough.

Not much knitting got done, but since Thursday evening's needing to frog the flamingo's leg when it was found to be only 11 stitches wide rather than 12, that leg, a foot and another leg and foot have been made. The body is started. And the 3rd triplet sweater is up in the increases.

I wonder if the T tunnels are collecting water......

Made decent progress on the third triplet sweater on the train yesterday. This colorway has long repeats, so it's really stiping, rather than the short repeats of the other two that made little blips.

Hmmm. have to see how this goes, particularly when it gets to the increase part at the arms. It's going to be a more different looking sweater than the other two. I may have to tuck this one away for a future baby and go back and get a short repeat colorway.

We'll see.

All three expected triplet sweaters are in play today. Last night I realized the 2nd sweater was getting to the point where it would need the extra circs. aleady in use in the first sweater. Time to finish the first! (okay, finished as in the knitting is finished but no ends sewn in or anything really finished like that.) So, instead of the flamingo's foot and next leg, I worked on this at knitting group last night.

The second sweater is on the left, reaching the point where it might not last through a commute before the increases get finished. Once the increases are finished you can either 1. do the sleeves, then weave the shoulders and do the neck or, 2. weave the shoulders and do the neck, then do the sleeves. Neither of these processes are really best done in a crowded moving subway car.

The third sweater is about to get started. Yes, its yarn turned up out of the cultch. Colorway is 5613, lot #3. It's more different than the first two than they are different from each other, so it will be interesting how it goes in the "similar but different" theme I have going.

Meanwhile, also at knitting group, Kimberly realized she, Lucy and I were all wearing the same Regia colorway in our socks. Ankle pictures will be up here (it is a Full Service Yarn Shop) later this morning.

Lucy is thinking of later this year having another massive preorder sale of Regia sock yarn like she had (how many?) years ago. While you're over there, let her know if you would be interested. There were deep discounts to be had, the color card was there for choosing and it was a chance to get the colorways you haven't seen on store shelves.

even if it lacks a foot. Last night's entertainment in front of the TV, double-stranded stockinette for 64 rows. I'm thinking the foot and the second leg will be tonight's project for Wednesday night knitting at Mind's Eye.*

The commuting fairies were slightly better yesterday, only in regard to seating. There were still seats at Porter, but then we had 2 schedule corrections before Charles making me ten minutes late. And on the way to Par's last night, the bus hit every light. So the baby nalgar made a lot of progress up its increasing part.

Note to commuting fairies -- the ideal commute has both seating and speed. I can deal with not having quite so much knitting time between points A and B.

Of course, standing in the drizzle on the porch to take the photo, I can easily see the increases. I think I've circled them here, otherwise, I've just been playing with the pencil tool in Photoshop.

I'm being amused by the growing collection of things to use to download into the machine. The new one in the middle hooks into the Precision Xtra meter and gets me readings. I'll probably be sticking with the GlucoPilot in the old Palm for now, for one thing because Abbott's software seems to be for a doctor's office to collect multiple patients' data there, rather than patient download and email numbers in.

*Petronella the chicken will be going to knitting group tonight as well.

Go see her over here! Though, it was working last night and this morning all I'm seeing is HTML. I'll try from work to see if it's me, or if something went screwy overnight in her template.

The second expected triplet sweater made some progress, though the commuting fairies weren't overly kind. Well, we all got to where we needed to go, but there was a long wait first and a very full car resulting. No subway seat karma working.

The thought with these triplet sweaters is to do the same shape in different colorways. The yarn is Sockotta, a cotton/wool machine wash blend, which I hope is good for Florida. Yesterday's almost finished sweater has handwritten on the label 15 under color and lot #991. The above's label is printed, color 12 and lot 991. The third is, um, here somewhere.

We had a great day with the Somerville Open Studios walking around for about 3 1/2 hours all told. Didn't do them all, but made a wide route that took us past some that friends recommended and some we picked because I wanted to focus on beads and glass -- for color.

When we got back, I finished the knitting of the Moebius scarf that will be my I-cord teaching aid at the Granite State Knit-In. It feels good to have that done. The next part will be to get the twisted bi-color I-cord started on this, but I don't need much done.
On the left, midrow shot of kitchenering garter stitch. Yes, I got out Knitting Around for the instructions at the back of how to weave garter to garter. Then I discoveredt that this stripe is one ridge shorter than the rest. And this will be noticed on a prancing pony?

Lastly, the first of the expected triplet Nalgars had its sleeves done and the shoulders are being kitchenered together. I always have to guess how wide of a neckline to leave -- this is slightly less than half of the right side kitchenered.

I have a meeting tonight along with two commutes, so the 2nd expected triplet Nalger should have major progress up the increases done by tomorrow morning.

I was having sudden won't finish in time worries on these projects, which is why I dropped the other things I was working on and got back to them. The tripets' flamingo did not make progress this weekend, but.....

Lucy at Mind's Eye Yarns now has an on-line presence for her hand-dyed sock yarns. There are a few postings now and more to come in the next week.

In other news, I got most of the needed-for-the-first-Saturday-in-June scarf done yesterday while doing glucose testing every half hour on the new Symlin. Photos to come when I get to download them.

This afternoon, Himself and I will be traipsing around Somerville, doing the open studios tour.

This was over on Obsession du Jour this morning. I'm not so sure about the nullification and fighting, but it's diverting.





They can be found here.

Having the insulin pump go wacky on me was almost indescribable yesterday. There's an essay in me about it, but it's not ready to come out yet. However, the new pump showed up (at 1 p.m. rather than 10:30 or noon), was swapped out and the first is ready for the UPS call tag to come take it back to the factory for diagnosis.

Tonight we're going dancing and I can only hope that the real dunce from NEFFA (Mr. Red Pants) who lives in that town will be refused admission at the door. He had no business being in the Medley not knowing how to do basic skills and, based on what I saw, he won't learn. Not that I'm a little strident on the subject of either building your skills or staying out of what's reserved for those skill levels.

Knitting -- since the first baby Nalgar for the triplets was getting to the point where it needs to stay home, the second one got started.

There'll be alot of computer time tomorrow. I'm starting a new something and need to stay close to the email with the endo and test alot. Maybe I'll listen to some podcasts as well.

Is enough to wrack up a day and an evening. All I can say is keep your powder dry and your correspondence about warranty dates handy.

Later.

Helps to look in all the pockets of your carrybags when searching for a missing camera.

So, progress on the things started last Thursday: an embryonic flamingo leg. Not sure when I'm going to work on this one, but sometime soon.

On the left, the first baby Nalgar for the cousin's expected triplets. This one is still a few commutes away from being able to weave the shoulders and do the sleeves -- the commuting fairies have not been kind lately. Of course, it helps that Miss Julia was ready to be picked up at the Library last night, so there was no knitting on the Green or Red Lines by me on the way home. Miss Julia is like that, but she's fun company.

And, lastly, the thing that will not photograph, particularly in rainy light. Trust me, it's growing slowly. I make both sleeves at the same time side by side since it makes it easier to make them match, and there's less chance that one will lanquish undone.

Himself is thinking of a driving vacation for the last half of the month around the southern part of Nova Scotia. Part camping, part B&B, part cooking for himself, part hoping to find vegetarian-friendly eateries that don't ask, not fish?! Any suggestions? We've already stayed in Halifax last time through, and he's looking to get out into countryside.

So I'm hoping it's at Himself's house.

If there were pictures, you would see: 1. A short flamingo leg, about 2 inches long for the expected triplets.

2. The sleeves of Himself's dark blue sweater (or maybe not, given how well this yarn doesn't photograph) done at the same time, up to row 24 above the ribbing, about to cross the cables, with the addition to the written out rows of pattern of circles around which rows get the increases on either end.

3. The first of the expected triplet sweaters, well into the increases and hopefully just a few commutes away from starting the sleeves (when it will probably stay home for an evening or two and just get finished).

There's not much news from last night's Boston Knit-Out meeting. The City has not confirmed our requested date yet, though we are apparently the only ones so far to apply for the last Sunday in September. The Knit-Out website will be updated soon, and we hope to have credit card/paypal options for purchasing bags and t-shirts on-line when the bags and t-shirts are ready to order. Graphics need to be designed before then, though.

Not much knitting happened this weekend. Sleeves got started on Himself's sweater, and then one had to be fixed because the multiple was wrong.

Pictues sometime soon. Knit-Out meeting tonight, 6:30, Borders at Downtown Crossing.