Knitcore

When I got home from work yesterday, a box was waiting on the front porch. I opened it to find this:



**squee!** It's the box from my caffeine swap pal!!

Here's what was in it:


A pattern that was in my Ravelry "things I want to make" queue,


2 skeins of Red Wool-Ease, my most frequently used yarn,


Super cute japanese stationary - it's thin plastic rather than paper, how cool,


A handmade mug from a local artist - it's beautiful and huge and actually holds an entire French Press' worth of coffee,


Five (!!!) balls of Sugar n Cream in super yummy colors,


2 skeins of salmon-colored Cotton-Ease, enough to make the bolero in the pattern,


A pound of super yummy extra bold coffee from a local roaster, to which I am now officially addicted,


A bag of never-before-seen Ghirardelli dark chocolates with extra-fine ground espresso in them,

AND


A glass candleholder and layered candle with three different coffee scents.

Whew! I can't believe how much awesome stuff was in that box! I feel so spoiled!!

The only disappointment is that she didn't tell me who she is, so I can't thank her properly yet! C'mon pal, out yourself!!

Last Friday was officially the final Summer Hours Day Off. I took advantage of my four day weekend to visit the family up North. It was the perfect weekend for it, with temps in the high 70's to mid 80's, light breeze, and plenty of sun. I couldn't have planned it better. I had a great visit with my parents and sister, and the folks had all the aunts and grandparents to dinner on Sunday, so I got to see everyone except my uncle Jim, who was out in the woods for the weekend.

The secondary purpose of the trip was to have another final run-through of the stuff at my grandmother's house - post-estate sale and pre-goodwill. I was finally able to go through the books (those that were left), and managed to snag a box full of art books. There was also some stemware that I couldn't bear to see go to goodwill. Here I was, thinking I was getting away light this time, right? Yeah, no. Back at my parents' house, they had saved out a ton of stuff for me that they had found right before the sale. Not that I'm complaining, it's great stuff and I'm glad to have it, but it was like "Surprise! More crap!" It really IS good stuff though, including my grandfather's mint condition beaver fur top hat (MUCH nicer condition than the one I already have), a bunch of records, and my grandmother's 1960's-ish freaking VIKING sewing machine! Unfortunately, it's so heavy that I can't carry it into the apartment.

So I noticed last week that my work pants looked absolutely ridiculous on me, and I could put them on and take them off without undoing the button or zipper. While I was up there, my mom and I went to Target and I did some pants shopping. I got four new pairs of work pants, and get this - they are THREE SIZES SMALLER than the last pair of pants I bought!! **Happy Dance** I'm feeling really good about myself, and it's making the pain of changing my lifestyle a little more palatable.

Speaking of lifestyle changes, my Summer Hours at work were 6:00 - 4:30 Monday - Thursday, and I LOVED it. I told my boss how much I liked coming in so early (alone on the floor, no phone ringing!), and he asked if I wanted to try a 6:00 - 2:30 schedule regularly. It. Is. Awesome. I can't believe how much I get done between 6:00 and 7:00 without any distractions or interruptions! The only drawback to this is that I've been going to bed at 8:00 every night and getting up at 4:00 every morning. So far, getting home before 3:30 has been completely worth it though. We'll see if I love it when winter comes and I'm standing at the bus stop at 5:00 in the freezing cold.

Thursday afternoon, we had a HUGE storm here. "They" recorded sustained wind speeds of 78 MPH at Wrigley Field, with heavy rains and serious flooding. After the storm ended, I walked to the bar down the street to meet Leah (4 blocks down the street) and I counted 13 trees down. It was the biggest non-snow storm I've ever seen. My street was blocked in 2 places by downed trees, and two of the three cross-streets I went by were also blocked. The city crews worked the chainsaws and claw trucks all night on the cleanup, and as soon as it was light enough outside, I walked around taking some photos.

My street:



One cross street:



Another cross street:



And a couple of the downed power/phone/cable/somethingorother lines:





Ugh, look at these cars:













Here is another blog with some fantastic photos outside of my neighborhood.

Luckily, my power stayed (mostly) on, but the cable (and therefore, internet) went kaplooie and just came back this morning. Oh intartoobs, how I've missed you so!

On Friday, Kathy and Emmy drove in from Cincinnati for the weekend. We had a great girly visit - Saturday morning we had mimosas and got mani/pedis, then Saturday night we went to the Roller Derby. I hadn't been before, and it was really interesting. I learned the rules and took blurry photos (those girls are moving FAST!):







Unfortunately, during the third match, a girl was very seriously injured - she couldn't feel or move her arms or legs. They stopped the game so her teammates could go to the hospital with her. The latest update I've heard is that she was in surgery all night, and they won't know for a while whether the paralysis will be permanent. We were all very shaken up, and she is in all of our thoughts. If you could keep her and her family in your thoughts as well, I'm sure it would be appreciated.

Kathy and Emmy left on Sunday morning, and Sunday afternoon Dan came over with his very well behaved kids for a knitting lesson. They both already knew the knit stitch, and N (11 year old boy) already knew how to cast on, bind off, and purl as well. I worked with L (7 year old girl) on casting on and purling, and taught N yarn overs - both with the k2tog and as dropped stitches. It was really nice to feel so very useful, and those kids are just great. I'm hoping they will come back for more lessons.

Yesterday I heard from my downstream Secret Pal - she got the postcard and gushed about it! I am positively beaming.

Ok, I think that's a long enough post for now, and it's past my bedtime. I'm sure I'll talk (type?) your ear (eye?) off again soon.

So I have a few presents ready for my swap pals, and took some photos.

For my Caffeine swap pal, still need to get some yarn and actual knitting stuff. The caffeine is taken care of though:



In addition to what I described in this post, there is a tote in that photo that I made out of fabric from Japan.

A close-up of the candy:



Also, I've been thinking about switching that mug to my SP11 pal, because I saw this one that I thought my Caffeine pal would like, since she is a bioengineer:



and to be honest, I kinda want one too.

For my SP11 pal, I have not yet bought anything, but I have three things I've made for her. First up, to be sent on its own as a teaser, I did a watercolor painting of the Chicago skyline on a postcard:



Yes, I took some liberties with the building placement, but I'm pretty proud of it.

Next up, a tote bag that folds into its own pocket and a silk scarf that I dyed in the colors she says she likes (please ignore the wrinklyness):



The scarf is not as depressing looking as it is in the photo - it's really a steely blue with some aqua and magenta. It looks like the ocean when you're far enough out that you can't see land:



Oh! And I bought a book for each of them as well, and forgot to photograph them. I also have plans to make one more thing for my SP11 pal - a roll-up needle case. She said she's keeping her straight needles in a vase because she doesn't have any other place to put them, and this seems like something I can sew up in an afternoon.

So I just realized that I never blogged the so-called Stitch-N-Pitch (non)event. Stitch-N-Pitch is supposed to be an event where knitters/crocheters/needlepointers/etc. get together and go to a baseball game, sit together, pretend to watch the game, drink beer, stitch, and get goody bags. Here at the White Sox game? Notsomuch.

I was really looking forward to it, the whole meeting new people thing, plus I like baseball, etc. I didn't want to ride the Red Line alone after dark, what with the Lakeview rapist and whatnot, so I convinced Leah to go with me, even though she is not a stitcher of any kind. I faxed in the order form with my debit card number, and headed down to the park on Saturday the 11th.

When I got to Will Call, they had no record of my order, and the ticket window dude was the rudest "customer service" person I have ever encountered. He sighed heavily and rolled his eyes every time I asked a question, and when I finally got snippy back at him, he went OFF on me. I was livid. But, we had come all that way so we decided to buy tickets anyway and hope that we could sit with the other knitters. Just AFTER we got into the park, we noticed that the ticket window douchebag gave us OBSTRUCTED VIEW seats and didn't even tell us. GAH! We were so high up in the nosebleeds that Leah, who is not normally afraid of heights, totally freaked out at the steep grade. We kept going lower and sitting in empty seats, then the real seat owners would come and kick us out, so we'd move down again, etc.

The other thing with this (non)event was that THEY DID NOT SEAT ALL OF THE STITCHERS TOGETHER, even though they had a very early deadline for ordering tickets. The stitchers were spread out all over the place, so we never did find any other knitters to sit with. We ended up going into the concourse to get some food, sat down at a picnic table inside, and never went back out. No camaraderie, no hot dog and soda (which was supposed to be included), no goodie bag, no fun. I'm glad I got some vagina time (aka girl talk time) with Leah, but that was a long way to go for an expensive chat and a $7 margarita. It seems like it works out really well in other cities, what the hell is wrong with the White Sox? Oh, wait.

I'm sure all this "swap" talk is super exciting to those of you who don't knit (I know, I don't really have any readers, but it's fun to pretend), but it's a bright spot in my life right now that I desperately need.

So, y'all know I'm a joiner. I have joined Secret Pal 11 (see the 2 related entries below). The deal with this is that something like 600 knitbloggers sign up for this thing, a few people generously donate their time to match people up, and everyone sends and receives gifts. I have two pals - an "upstream" pal, who is secretive and sends me presents based on my blog, and the questionnaires I've filled out, and whatever questions they feel like asking me anonymously. I have already heard from my upstream pal a couple times and provided as much info on myself as I thought of at the time. I'm a tad wordy. My other pal is my "downstream" pal. I know her name, address, and blog address, and I need to investigate what she's interested in and send her presents. I am totally stalking her and already have some present ideas for her. The Secret Pal swap lasts 3 months, so that's a lot of little packages, postcards, etc. and I'm excited.

I have also joined a Ravelry-based-group swap. The group is the caffeinated knitters, and it's a coffee/tea/mug/yarn/etc. swap with upstream and downstream pals, but it's just 1 month (most folks seem to be sending a single package). Well, I did my coffee shopping for my downstream caffeine pal today, and I am so proud of what I got for her! 1 lb. of El Salvadoran coffee beans, medium-dark roast, direct trade (paid 25% more than fair trade, straight to the farmer rather than a co-op), shade grown, etc.; 4 oz. of lovely green tea; "make your own" teabags (they're empty and you put your own tea in them and steep as usual), lots of different tiny chocolate bars, and a great Intelligentsia Coffee Co. mug with the Municipal Flag of Chicago on the reverse:



Now I just need to stalk what kind of knitting she does and find some nice yarn to go along with it. I may also sew a needle case for her, and I am definitely including one of my self-storing tote bags.

I am also GETTING MY SORRY ASS OUT OF THE HOUSE TONIGHT. I found out yesterday about a Stitch 'n' Bitch group that meets at Black Rock, a mere 1/4 mile from my house, each first and third Tuesday of the month. What awesome timing, since I need to STOP FEELING SORRY FOR MYSELF AND SITTING AROUND IN MY EMPTY APARTMENT. I'm going to re-start the Cabled Newsboy Cap, this time with less shiny yarn. Wish me luck in making some new (i.e. "local") friends!

My Secret Pal hostess is having a contest with some extra questions here, and we all know how much I love to win stuff. Here are my Q&As:

Here are the questions:

1. What is the one knitting accessory you could not live without?
A row counter - I use them for counting rows (duh), tracking repeats, and as a ghetto calculator on those days when my brain just won't do math.

2. If you're heading on vacation, do you take knitting with you? If so, how much and what type of project?
Absolutely! I need it in the car or on the plane, and for any downtime. I usually take a complicated project (i.e. taking a long time and/or need to pay close attention) and a mindless project like a dishrag.

3. Where have you travelled to that you'd consider your favorite spot?
New York City, baby! I go there fairly regularly (when funds allow), and I find new and exciting things every time I go.

4. What is your favorite knitting book at the moment? Do you own it?
Two of them - Domiknitrix (which I do own) and Naughty Needles (which I don't). I'm also very curious to see Punk Knits.

5. Do you listen to podcasts? Which is your favorite(s)?
Nope. I listen mostly to my iPod and XM Radio. My favorite music genres are late 70s punk, classic rock, hair metal, new wave, and old twangy country.

I hope this helps my upstream pal get to know me a little better!

They left about 10 minutes ago, and I can't stop crying. I feel so alone.

I joined Secret Pal 11 (and will put the button over there ---> as soon as I figure out how to do that). Hey upstream pal! Here's my questionnaire!

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely not like?
Ideally, cashmere, heh. Nothing I don't like so far though.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?
Straights go into a zippered straight case, circs have a plastic expandable check file, and dpns have one too.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?
I've been knitting since April of 2006 - I taught myself using a book, and keep teaching myself just by following patterns and trial-and-error. I'd actually consider myself advanced even though I've never finished a sweater. I can do lace, cables, stranding, intarsia, short rows, shaping, and garment construction.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
Indeed!



The Things I Want Portable Wishlist


5. What's your favorite scent?
Oranges, Bacon, Campfire, Vanilla Frosting, Coffee

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?
YES! The two adjectives M uses to describe me are "cute" and "candy-filled". I love nearly all candy (no coconut, please). Fruit-flavored? Check. Chocolate? Check. Caramel? Check. Licorice? Check. Nuts? Check. Hard candy, gummies, jelly beans, chocolate bars, I like it all.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?
I dye fabric (fiber-reactive process), sew, paint, draw, etc. I don't spin yet, and I'm not really sure that I need another expensive hobby.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
I like everything except new country and techno/trance/electronica/jungle/blah. My favorites are late 70's punk, classic rock, and hair metal. I can definitely rock the MP3s.

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?
I love purple, orange, greeny-blues, red, black, pink, grey. Not a big fan of yellow or brown though.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
I'm living with my fella (though he's gone for a while) and a diva of a kitty (she's a plus-size model in her secret life).

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?
Scarves, hats, mittens, gloves - it's COLD in Chicago! Not a big poncho fan.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
I like to knit new things all the time, but seem to fall back on dishrags as my public transportation projects.

13. What are you knitting right now?
Cabled Newsboy Cap, a skinny version of Calorimetry to wear as a headband, and Knucks.

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?
YES!!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
Bamboo circs for the win.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?
Both - thanks Grandma!

17. How old is your oldest UFO?
Hm, maybe since last August?

18. What is your favorite holiday?
Halloween, for sure.

19. Is there anything that you collect?
Antique barware and records (the kind made of shellac, wax, or vinyl - you know, those big round black things we old-timers used to listen to music on).

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
I don't have any subscriptions - do I need one? Books I'm dying for are on the Amazon wishlist.
ETA: Dur, I didn't even see the word "needles" up there. For some reason, I am severely lacking in dpns. I prefer a 7- or 8" length, and I have sizes 1, 2, 4, 8, and 10. Of course, I have exquisite taste, so my favorites are Crystal Palace bamboo.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?
I'd like to try socks one of these days.

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?
Not yet, see above. I don't know what measurements are required for a foot. If you need them, email me which parts need to be measured, I guess.

23. When is your birthday?
May 8

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?
I am! I'm SillyPutty.

Whew! Hooray for Secret Pals! If you need more info on me, let me know, I'm an open book.

So you may have noticed that I have been doing A LOT of knitting. Witness:









etc. I actually made 2 of the Pop Tarts, and I'm about halfway through a cabled newsboy cap. I also made a little progress on my Knucks (but not much - too hard to concentrate). I find knitting very meditative and serene. It's my "Serenity NOW!" chant. And right now, I need it.

Things have not been going well in my personal life lately. On June 3rd, M told me that he had a substance abuse problem. I was completely taken aback - first by the fact that he had been living for the last 6 months without being sober, and secondly that I hadn't known. I knew he wasn't acting "normal", but he was out of work and stressed, etc. None of that makes up for the fact that he had this huge problem, and I just flat out didn't notice. [I'm working on the guilt thing.] Since then he's been "dry" and using online message boards and telephone helplines to help him through. He's been asking me for help and support, and I've been giving him all I'm able to, but it seems that whatever I do hurts rather than helping. Being around me is making it harder for him to get better, so I've asked him to stay with his parents for a while. Asking him to leave is one of the hardest things I've ever done, but I know that if he stays here and we continue to have the same circular conversation twice a day, we will wind up hating each other. We are not breaking up - he's only taking his clothes and the laptop with him - he is just going to stay with his parents until he gets some real help and gets on the road to recovery.

I am feeling completely overwhelmed and alone and I have no idea what to do about it. I don't really have anyone here in Chicago that I can lean on, and I'm working so much, and so stressed out that I just can't keep up with cooking and cleaning that I've lost 15 pounds unintentionally and am living in a pigsty.

So I knit.

Since I got back from Tulsa, things have been relatively quiet around here.

I made another trip up North to see my folks and do a final run-through at my Grandmother's house. The estate sale will be held over two weekends, and this was my last opportunity to stake a claim to anything I wanted. I still can't believe how much stuff was in that house! I spent almost a whole day there, and my mom and I were still discovering things we'd never seen before. Of course, I came home with another carload of memories. I did get some more knitting stuff, including a metric assload of needles and a ballwinder, and a lot of the Japanese china and stoneware. I also went to two art fairs while I was there and of course got a couple of things there too - a new spoonrest for the stove, a hand-turned wooden spoon, a beautiful clay serving bowl, and a SUPERCOOL plasma-cut steel garden stake in the shape of a skull, with wrenches welded on as the crossbones. Awesome.

I finished the shrunken head! It looks a little like Hermes from Futurama, totally unintentionally.





I also finished the hotpad for my sister - I felted it at my parent's house because we don't have hot water in our laundry room. It came out a little less than rectangular, more hourglass-shaped, but it still works and she still likes it.

My sad news is that I ripped out the sweater. 25 hours of work, reduced to nothing. Le sigh. I don't think I'll re-start it again right away, ripping it out was really depressing, and if I screw it up again, I want a little time to have passed.

Before:



After:



Thank goodness for that ballwinder from my Grandmother - 25 hours of knitting, 5 minutes of ripping it out. If I'd had to wind all that up by hand, I never would have ripped it out. Ugh.

Dude. I am in Oklahoma. Tulsa, to be exact. Tulsa is a really cute little town, but holy crap, downtown is barren. I've been here since Sunday, and I have never eaten better.

Sunday night: The Hideaway for pizza. They make a pizza with a different topping on each slice. Best. Idea. EVAR:



I apologize, by the time I remembered to take a picture, the Pepperoni and Onion/Pepper slices had already been claimed. Rest assured, they looked as good as the rest.

Monday for lunch, we went to Ron's Hamburgers & Chili for burgers. I have no idea what I was thinking - I got a burger and tots, but they have a burger made with 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 breakfast sausage. Why, oh why, did I not get the sausage burger? I am regretting this, even though the regular burger was awesome.

Monday night, my friend Sarah (who lives here) picked me up and took me out to dinner at the Avalon Steakhouse. Delicious spinach and artichoke dip, tender filet, and the waitress asked me if I wanted cheese, butter, or garlic on my broccoli - I said yes. They also have those shakers, you know, the ones that normally house parmesean or red pepper flakes? Yeah, those. Theirs was full of BACON:



How could I possibly not make this my new favorite restaurant?

Today for lunch, we just started driving and wound up at The Full Moon Cafe. I had Margarita Chicken, served on top of Texas Toast with garlic mashed potatoes. YUM.

Then, when I thought it couldn't get better, we went to the wrong restaurant tonight (we were referred to a specific one, but couldn't find it). We happened upon Fleming's and decided to give it a try. I love it when the company pays for dinner - for the three of us, the bill was $250!!! I had a DELICIOUS filet (again), broccoli (again), and cheesy jalapeno scalloped potatoes with a lovely glass of Sangiovese. Then we all got desserts to go - I'm eating my Tahitian Vanilla Creme Brulee with Summer Berries as I type. It's so good that I am making noises as I eat it - I'm glad I didn't eat this in the restaurant! It's chock full of vanilla seeds, has a lovely crust, and the berries are perfect.

I still have to pack tonight - I'm heading back tomorrow, but I'm too busy savoring this dessert...