Saturday, May 31, 2008

Are You Jonsin' for Ravelry?

Yesterday I received my invitation for ravelry. OMG. I can't stop visiting this site. I will be trying to write therapy notes and I will decide that I need to add a project to my queue. I will be trying to prepare for a lab meeting and I will decide that I need to upload pictures. This site feeds my OCD tendencies. I literally spent about 2-3 hours recording my yarn into the stash folder. I am planning to take pictures of my yarn, so my stash section will have pictures. My name on ravelry is silverarrowknits.

I am sure you have been wanting some pictures. My camera hasn't been working, but I think it is fixed (and by fixed I mean actually charge the battery), so I will have new pictures for my next post. For today, here is a picture of Argosy as it was about 1 year ago. In fact this is longer than what it will be come Sunday. Remember how the stitch count wasn't working? Well, I thought I had forgotten to cast on 8 stitches within the past couple of days. This was not the case. About 12 inches ago, I forgot to cast on 8 stitches. I wasn't going to rip back, but I might. I will know I forgot a pattern repeat, even though no one would ever notice. I am using Noro Garden Lite and I figure if I am going to use the good stuff, I should get the pattern as perfect as I can.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

I Should Have Paid Better Attention in 1st Grade...

So I have been working on Argosy for the past two days and I have been spending more time tinking than knitting. At first I was just tinking to fix a slip up on a row (I missed one pattern row and made a row of squares into rectangles). After I got to the right row and was all set to starting kniting (and not tinking) but then I counted the number of stitches. I had 33. This was a problem. I was supposed to have either 41 or 49. So then I proceeded to keep tinking. I tinked and tinked. I tinked for 45 minutes waiting to a late supervisor. I tinked while watching episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I tinked while just sitting on my futon. No matter how much I tinked, I kept getting 33 stitches. I was about to throw this project to the knitting gods when I thought to add. After so many rows, I am supposed to cast on 8 stitches. 8+ 33 = 41. Yeah. Exactly. I have been tinking for no good reason.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

How Do I Do That Again?

While waiting for a meeting to start, I pulled out my knitting today. Even though I really want to start a new project, Argosy called to me. The Noro Silk Garden Lite kept yelling at me to finish the scarf so I can wear it next winter. The colors and scarf shape are just so sexy that I got distracted by it and couldn't see another skein of yarn or another pattern.

Anyway, I was sitting in a nice shady spot outside and I was enjoying the fresh air (I had spent the day in the basement of the hospital doing a psych assessment with the cutest kid ever), when I pulled out the pattern. At the end of the row, I was going to need to cast on 8 stitches. I couldn't remember how to cast on. I took a breath put the knitting away and pulled out a book. When I got home, I sat down with Argosy. I looked up how to do the proper cast on for the patter (cable cast on) and journeyed on...for about 6ish stitches. I need to do a ssk. Again I had to look it up. By the way, I used The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques for my memory lapses. I love Ms. Wiseman.

Two hours later, I had tinked back more than I had knit (I did remember how to tink like it was yesterday), but ended up with more knit scarf. I would have rejoiced; however, I had managed to miss a vital row or two. It doesn't look horrible or anything. I just turned a row of squares into rectangles. Oh well, this setback gives me something to do tomorrow. :)

Hello Again

Hello. Hi. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, and good night.

It's been a while huh? Almost one year. You were probably surprised to see me pop up on your bloglines account. Where has she been? She hasn't been posting. Did she fall off the face of the earth? Well...sort of...not exactly...but yeah...I did.

Let me explain, please...won't you let me? I can understand if you don't. I just walked out of your life with no warning. One minute I was promising to write and the next I was on the next train to Wonderland. The truth of the matter is that I got stressed. I was working on my Master's degree, starting to seeing therapy patients, and was still trying to keep my life going, and so I got stressed and...you won't believe this...I stopped knitting. Did I mention it is ridiculously hot here in Florida?

Anyway, things have changed recently, really...I am not just saying this. I recently received my Master's degree, so some of my stress has dissipated. I switched mentors, so the majority of my stress dissipated. She was a very nice woman, but our personality styles were just a wee bit different. Also, my clinic requirements have finally slowed down. You must be saying to yourselves, "But most of these things have already occurred, why now?" I can't really say. This weekend, I started rereading the Yarn Harlot website and I realized I missed knitting and the community. I realized that I missed knitting scarves and hats (I really love hats) and Mason-Dixon washcloths (I can't believe I knit about 25 of those for the holidays a couple years ago). I missed having something to do, while I watched television. I ended up reading all of my Stephanie Pearl-McPhee books this weekend. I also started brainstorming new projects to do, because my previous projects should remain works in progress for the moment. I need a fresh start.Oh, I also ordered yarn and some knitting books that I had been wanting. BTW, I can't believe which knitting books have been discontinued and which knitting books are soon to be on the market.

I promise I really am back. I am willing to commit, really. No weekends only type of dating. I am willing to go all the way. How can I show my love to you? How can I reassure you that I am back for the long haul? I can prove it to you, because I did something crazy. I keep telling myself it is an investment in my knitting education and has no time limit. I can keep trying until I die. You guessed it. Why I do these things to myself I have no idea. Okay, I do. I need a goal. I need something to push me to the next level. I requested the Level 1 material for the Master Knitting Program.