(mis)adventures of spindlerose

9. Seattle Weekend

The weekend started poorly. I arrived at National Airport about 90 minutes before my flight and discovered that US Airways had cancelled my ticket. I checked in on-line Thursday afternoon, but Friday I had no valid ticket. After several phone calls and a 45 minute wait, I had a ticket again and a crummy middle seat for the Philadelphia to Seattle flight. In Philadelphia, we sat on the ground in a massive queue of planes trying take off into the crowded Northeast US airspace. We finally took off 2-1/2 hours late and made it to Seattle at about 11:45 instead of 9:00.

As I said last week, I was more excited about spending the weekend with Paul than I was about Sock Camp. We've been friends since middle school. He was my first crush and first boyfriend. We were debate partners and orchestra stand-mates. He stood up in my wedding. Even though we haven't seen each other for 6 or 7 years, we caught up on the essentials in just a few minutes. As you can see, we've both changed a bit in the last 20 years (top: French IV class, spring 1988, bottom: last night). We had a fabulous time seeing Seattle, eating, cooking, sharing photos of our lives, and catching up.

Saturday, we joined 55,000 people at Safeco Field for Seeds of Compassion. His Holiness the Dali Lama was humble, insightful, and surprisingly funny. After the event, we enjoyed the sunshine and walked to downtown where we visited the public library and Pike's Place Market. Yum—snacks of squeaky cheese curds and Chinese buns, wild salmon for dinner and a glorious bunch of tulips for the table. I shared a picture of the Koolhaus hat I knit in December as part of explaining my glee at seeing the building that inspired a popular knitting project.

Sunday, Paul took me on a driving tour of his favorite Seattle places. We saw the University of Washington, the Fremont Troll, the arboretum, the 501st Legion in Gasworks Park, the Sip Canal Locks, boats, and rain. Paul cooked Saturday's wild salmon for dinner. Before dinner, we ate fabulous cheese and drank champagne.

After dinner we drove to St. Mark’s Cathedral for Compline. The service was a lovely contemplative end to a great weekend. After the service we took in a few more sights—the view from Queen Anne Hill and the Frank Ghery building at Seattle Center. Then we talked much to late since we had to wake up early this morning for Paul to go to work and me to catch the seaplane to Camp.

Edited April 15, 2008 to fix a few place names.

8. Good news, bad news

Good News
I finally looked at Canon's Web site and found out that they published a service bulletin promising free repair of my broken camera. Why didn't I make the 2 minute Web search in February? All reports are that Canon does a quick repair and gets the camera back to you within a couple of weeks. Until then, I'm still camera-less unless the Earth moves and D agrees that it's time for a serious camera upgrade (very unlikely—see Bad News below). Maybe I'll be able to find a loaner to take on vacation next Friday.

That vacation next week is Camp Crow's Feet. I still have to knit my secret homework, but I have a plan, a husband-less weekend (see Bad News again), and a long flight between me and the deadline. Before camp, I'm spending a weekend with one of my oldest friends. As excited as I am about camp, I think I'm even more excited to spend two days seeing Seattle and catching up with him.

I'm probably going to get to both MD and NH S&W. MD for sure, and NH if it fits into my whirlwind weekend in Boston plans for May 10-11.

Bad News
We did our taxes. We sent a really big check to the IRS this week.

Law widowhood continues. D actually had a day off last weekend. We tried to go to the Air and Space Museum, but got stuck in the crazy traffic around the Kite Festival. We gave up and went grocery shopping instead. Tomorrow, he flies to CA for a Sunday (!) deposition. If there are cherry blossoms left next week, we'll get together for a picnic lunch at the Tidal Basin on Wednesday.

My work is almost as crazy as D's, but not in the fun, we're about to release a new product way. It's in the we're down a few members of the sales team and Rosemary is picking up a lot of the slack and our annual summer conference is a month earlier than usual way. I truly love my job, and that's probably all that will keep me going for the next 6 weeks.

7. How did it get to be March?

I'm sitting on the sofa tonight listening to the wind howl outside and wondering what happened to February. It flew by in a rush of travel, the mini-trip to Hawaii, post vacation catching up, and a stack of excellent novels.* And frantically trying to finish two Wonderful Wallabies in time for the twins' birthday last week. I finished the knitting in time but haven't found my way to the Post Office yet. That errand is on my list of things to do tomorrow (along with laundry, cleaning, and packing for the next round of travel).

D has been buried by the firm since just before Christmas with no let up expected until sometime in May. I'm doing my best to entertain myself, but I do miss him. He had a brief reprieve on Leap Day; I was working on a new demo at home when the garage door rumbled at about 3:00. We spent the late afternoon sitting in front of the fire playing British Rails and snuggling with the kitties. After that brief reprieve, his Blackberry rattled early Saturday morning. We haven't both been home and awake for more than an hour straight since.

Like others in the greater DC area, I found a few irresistible deals at the Hanami on Wednesday. If I'm quick, I will be able to wear it to see the Cherry Blossom Festival. If I'm not quick, or I'm out of town for the whole festival, at least I will have had the enjoyment of knitting cherry blossoms this spring.

* Books (without links because I'm feeling lazy and you know how to search Amazon or your local public library's on line catalog)

• Pride and Prejudice
• Kushiel's Scion and Kushiel's Justice but Jacqueline Carey
• Mr. Darcy's Daughters, The Exploits and Adventures of Miss Althea Darcy, The True Darcy Spirit, and The Second Mrs. Darcy by Elizabeth Aston
• A handful of historicals by Eloisa James

6. Happy Birthday Mom!

I am a dreadful daughter. I remembered to buy a card last night, but forgot to mail it this morning as we were dashing to the airport.

I hope you and Dad had a lovely day on the golf course in sunny Phoenix. Travel home safe.

5. Sunshine, finally, but no pictures

I was all set to take advantage of the beautiful sunshine this afternoon to photograph my recent knitting production—and recent yarn acquisitions—but my trusty digicam refuses to read any of the memory cards in the house. Something tells me I will have delayed photographic gratification from our quick trip to Hawaii next weekend. The trusty Nikon 35mm takes great pictures, but then we have to wait for processing and digitizing. Maybe D will agree to go camera shopping before we leave on Friday. Or I'll suck it up and use the camera in the iPhone for unsatisfying knitting and vacation photos.

Unfortunately, I can't show you the adorable pink and green Wonderful Wallaby I finished for Miss M's 7th birthday yesterday. Or the pile of hunter green and tan Dark Horse Fantasy that will become her twin B's birthday Wallaby. Or the stunning Waving Lace socks (from the cover of Favorite Socks) in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Red Rover I finished while I was in Ohio last month. Or my finally complete Mr. Greenjeans. Or the two new pairs of socks I started last week.

I'm not doing so well on the no new yarn resolution lately. First, I cheered myself up after the awful day with yarn for Miss M's birthday sweater. Then, when I visited Shannon at Stitch Cleveland two weeks ago, she lightened my mood with a lovely hank of pink wool she dyed with the end of a dyepot. It is absolutely perfect for Hanami. When I arrived home from Ohio, I found the lovely Rockin' Sock Club skein in my mailbox. Last weekend I was hanging out at Knit Happens when Mama E delivered a bunch of sock yarn; two balls of Merino-Tencel Sock Yarn—Gregory and Chocolate—followed me home. Last Monday, the mailman delivered Lucy's stunning January 2008 Sock Club installment.

I was so looking forward to sharing photos of the finished stuff and the lovely new yarn. For now, use your imagination and send happy electronics thoughts my way.

4. I was sick, but I'm finally on the mend

For the 3rd annual Bloggers silent poetry reading (Margene reminded me), I offer the poem I memorized and recited in 7th grade English class.

Sick
Shel Silverstein

"I cannot go to school today,"
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
"I have the measles and the mumps,
A gash, a rash and purple bumps.
My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,
I'm going blind in my right eye.
My tonsils are as big as rocks,
I've counted sixteen chicken pox
And there's one more--that's seventeen,
And don't you think my face looks green?
My leg is cut--my eyes are blue--
It might be instamatic flu.
I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,
I'm sure that my left leg is broke--
My hip hurts when I move my chin,
My belly button's caving in,
My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,
My 'pendix pains each time it rains.
My nose is cold, my toes are numb.
I have a sliver in my thumb.
My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,
I hardly whisper when I speak.
My tongue is filling up my mouth,
I think my hair is falling out.
My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,
My temperature is one-o-eight.
My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear,
There is a hole inside my ear.
I have a hangnail, and my heart is--what?
What's that? What's that you say?
You say today is. . .Saturday?
G'bye, I'm going out to play!"

from poetry.org

In my case, I'm going out to vote since I'll be traveling for work on February 12. Luckily, Alexandria offers extended Saturday absentee ballot hours during the weeks before election day. I'll probably swing by Knit Happens for a bit after I vote since I'll be in the neighborhood.

Finally, thank you to everyone who sent condolences, thoughts, and prayers last week. D, his extended family, and I all appreciate the support. The trip was very sad, but we're both happy we went. We are going to work at staying more connected to that part of D's family so that we see them at events other than funerals. One of his cousins is planning a family trip to Washington, DC, in March, and another cousin is getting married in August. I'm looking forward to those happy occasions.

3. No words

One of D's young relatives died suddenly yesterday. I do not have words to express my feelings today, so I give you CJ's. Part of me will always remember this young man as the 3 year old boy who charmed the guests at our wedding by catching my garter. It is one of my favorite wedding reception memories.

Yesterday reminded me how important it is to hold our children close. I want to reach across the world and gather in my niece and nephews and all my honorary nieces and nephews and tell them I will always love them and be proud of them no matter what happens. Please reach out to the young people in your life this week and do the same.

2. The Last Socks of 2007 and the First Socks of 2008

I'm once again struggling with blog procrastination. Travel and late meetings are good reasons for not posting; uncovering the fruit fly breeding ground in my kitchen and the complete chaos in my digital photo storage are just excuses for blog avoidance. Once I don't post for a while, I find it incredibly difficult to post again. Stop laughing Dad. Right now, I've got notes for a handful of posts scribbled out either on paper or as drafts in TypePad, no travel planned for the next two weeks, and a husband who will be stuck at the office for the rest of the month. Expect every other day posts for the rest of January. Feel free to nudge me if I fall off of that schedule.

There were no posts last week because I was in California for a sales team meeting. Those meetings always include team dinners—late nights with too much wine—and early mornings. When I'm on the West Coast for meetings, the only time I have to respond to email is before our meetings start at 8:30 or 9:00. Waking up really early and working from 6:00 to 8:00 am reduces the inbox backlog and helps me avoid jet lag after the trip, but 10:00 pm bedtimes, 5:00 am wakeup calls, and coast to coast travel take a toll. I finally felt human late Saturday afternoon. I searched for the notebook in which I had scribbled out notes for a few posts but couldn't find it anywhere. I finally found it on my desk when I arrived at the office this morning.

One thing that those California meetings are good for is sock production. In November, I knit most of a pair during my last California adventure. I almost finished that pair—the Provençal Socks—while I was on my holiday trip to Wisconsin. I declared this pair finished on December 27 even though I had one hem to stitch down. Last week, I finished my first pair of 2008. Two cross country flights, 3 days of training, a sick day, and the NFL playoffs create a lot of knitting time. Knitting short socks helps, too.

Provençal Socks
Pattern: The toe up sock pattern in my head.
Yarn: Regia Jaquard, discontinued color 5270 Provence.
Notions: 2.25 mm short Clover Bamboo dpns.
Time: November 11 to December 27, 2007.
Comments: This is my last short row heel. I know I've said that before, and I'm sure I'll finish the lingering incomplete pairs with short row heels, but after that no more for my own socks. Flap and gusset heels "pop" onto my foot so much better.

CJ's Socks
Pattern: Cast on 60 stitches, work K2P2 ribbing for 15 or 20 rows, make a heel flap, turn the heel, decrease back to 60 stitches, knit until long enough, do 4 point decreases for the toe with 2 rows between each decrease for the first half, then 1 row between for the rest. Kitchener when there are 24 stitches left. Or something like that. I've got more complete notes in Ravelry so I can make more socks for her.
Yarn: Plymouth Sockotta Jaquard color 505 (I think).
Notions: 2.25 mm short Clover Bamboo dpns.
Time: January 6 to 13, 2008.
Comments: I'm sure I'll be making more socks for CJ. Her feet are as wide as mine, but even smaller. Here are her comments on receiving custom knit socks.

Thanks to Sandy and Norma for the idea to number my 2008 posts so I can keep track of my progress to 200.

1. New Year, New Goals

Happy New Year!

I'm a day late because my lovely trip to Wisconsin got extended by a full day thanks to fog related flight delays. When given the choice of crashing my parents' New Years Eve party or risking a lonely night in the Detroit airport, I chose the party with laughter, bubbly, stuffed tenderloin, salad, and crème brûlée over TV in a crummy hotel room and whatever room service would deliver at 11:00 pm. The snow in Wisconsin was beautiful. I truly enjoyed the cold weather. I saw my grandmas. The four kids were a hoot; after opening an overwhelming pile of gifts, they chose to play with the empty boxes instead of all their new toys. I helped create three new knitters (my sister's kids) and one new sock knitter (my mom).

I arrived home last night with enough time to unpack and crash. As a result, my public goals for this year are a day late. Here they are with specific, measurable details.

1. Be healthier, or exercise more and eat less junk. My short term goal for this is be bikini-presentable for the "you made your quota so you get a mini-vacation" trip to Hawaii in mid-February. The long term goal is to weight 20 pounds less than I do now.
2. Spin every day. Ten minutes with a spindle or a longer stretch at the wheel.
3. Knit twice as much yarn as I buy. I did not do as well as I wanted to on the 2007 Knit from Stash challenge. This year I will keep track of yards used and yards purchased and try to only buy yarn that I truly love.
4. Eliminate 6 UFOs by finishing, transforming, or frogging.
5. Finish 6 sweaters. I finished many small projects, but only one sweater, in 2007. There are at least 5 sweaters in the wool room that are more than half finished. They belong in my wardrobe and not in the wool closet.
6. Post to the blog instead of just thinking about it. I would rather knit, spin, and sleep, than spend many of my few spare hours on the Blog 365 challenge. My goal for 2008 is 200 posts that include all the knitting projects I start, finish, or frog; details about the interesting and uninteresting places I visit; more kitty cuteness; and re-publishing some highlights from the first 4 years of my misadventures. You know you are not posting enough when your spouse complains that he doesn't know what you're up to because you haven't posted anything in over a week. Is that a comment on my crazy travel schedule or his insane trial schedule?

That's it for now. It's time to go spin something and then settle in with a sock for tonight's new Project Runway episode.

'Tis the night before Christmas

And 2 of 3 handknit gifts are finished. Unfortunately, I am still half a scarf short. I do have some knitting time left before the gift deadline on Wednesday afternoon: the flight to Wausau, Wisconsin tomorrow, hanging out after dinner tomorrow, and a likely 3 hours in the car on Wednesday. On my work trip to Atlanta last week, I managed to sell four skeins of Silk Garden just by knitting and chatting a bit with the woman sitting next to me on the flight home. She admired my scarf, so I shared the pattern and sent her to Knit Happens for yarn. She stopped in on Wednesday and bought colors 47 and 204 so she could make one just like mine.

Here are the details for the finished holiday gifts

Striped scarf for Chris
Pattern: Inspired by Norma and Jared, I cast on 42 stitches and worked K1P1 ribbing, slipping the first stitch of each row. Yarn: Silk Garden, 2 skeins each of colors 86 and 267.
Notions: 4.5 mm Addi Turbos.
Time: December 8 to 16, 2007.

Red Hat for Heather
Pattern: >Koolhaas from Interweave's Holiday Knits 2007. Yarn: Classic Wool in color 206. I used less than 100 grams.
Notions: 4.5 mm bamboo circular needle and DPNs. Cable needle. Usually, I cable without a cable needle, but the k/p crosses while knitting through the back loop required me to use a cable needle for this project.
Time: December 4 to 7, 2007
Mods: none. I will knit another version for me sometime later this winter.

Tonight, D and I enjoyed our traditional Christmas dinner since I'll be flying tomorrow. We also opened our stack of gifts since we would rather sleep in tomorrow morning than wake up extra early to open the presents. I still have to stuff the smaller stack (of unwrapped gifts) into my HUGE suitcase with enough warm clothes for a week in northern Wisconsin. If I had been thinking, I would have shipped everything I ordered to my parents' house to save on the hauling. But I guess I wasn't really thinking the night D and I sat on the sofa and did our Christmas shopping.

There were three splendid knitterly gifts in my pile: a Blue Moon Fiber Arts gift certificate, a Knit Picks gift certificate, and options Harmony tips in all the sizes I use with some extra cables. I will be knitting for D's parents and sisters since they were so generous with the knitting presents this year.

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate. And Happy Tuesday to those who do not.