Socks, Sewing, & not much more

Hello again. There isn't a lot going on here these days - I'm still working on the Mystery Stole, have a pair of TomSocks on the needles, and am making way too many shawl pins.

Things that I've made over the past few weeks include a matching purse and wallet (no photos yet), four shawl pins (again with the no photos), and a pair of LoganSocks.

The socks are DK weight Colinette Cadenza, in the colour Castagna, worked on 2.75mm needles. This is my own pattern, toe up, with padding under the ball of the foot, under the heel, and at the back of the heel as well. I tried a different finish, and love it - purl a round, knit a round, three rounds of moss stitch, a knit round, a purl round, and cast off in the lace manner.

I will try to get a shot of the shawl pins over the next day or so, and post them soon.

I'm boring myself, so am going off to feed the critters. Sigh.

Happy 8th to Us!

We had our 8th wedding anniversary on Tuesday, but celebrated Monday as well (grin).

On Monday we spent a pleasant day together at home, as (hold your breath) Tom had taken a few days off work! I made brunch for us, then we putzed around the house, periodically reading aloud recipes from the Nigella Lawson cookbook he bought me (I love her - so much less serious than most TV cooks).

By dinner time we were both of a mind to try some of her Asian influenced dishes, so Tom went off on a grocery expedition while I tidied up a bit around the house.

He came home with some of what he wanted, and woggled together something similar to one of her recipes. It was a fine meal, and made finer by the company (awwww). After that, an episode of Firefly on DVD, some MS3 knitting, then bed.

On Tuesday we slept in again (this time with the dog and two cats on the bed, the buggers), then went OUT! If you know me, you know that I'm not one for going out - I prefer the consistency, predictability, and comforts of home. But, in the interest of satisfying Tom's request for a fun day out, we hit Churchill Square for the Taste of Edmonton festival and stuffed ourselves silly.

It was cooler than it has been in weeks, but still more than warm for me (yup, I was the only adult in the huge reflecting/wading pool). Floppy hat and all.

We had parked just through the gate to Edmonton's Chinatown area, and I snapped some pics of decorative details of the gate. I'm thinking applique potential, or at least influence for a quilting pattern. Hmmm.


After all the sun and stuffing, we stopped at River City Yarns (Best. Husband. In. World.) for some acquisition and discussion. Cynthia was terrific, and the store, while small, was full of fun things generally only found on-line. As such a connoisseur of on-line shopping and blog following myself, I was recognizing and oohing and ahhing immediately - and she knew a serious knitter when she heard some of my comments. She immediately cleared off a comfortable chair for Tom, but he had other ideas!

By the time I was done, he had chosen a skein of sock wool Trekking XXL in the charcoal and grey fleck (colour 62) and a skein of Hand Maiden 4 Ply 100% Cashmere (in the mineral colourway) for the pattern on the label - the Devin's Toque. It is a Thomas design, so I think it is appropriate. But jeez, a cashmere toque for a guy who up until now has resisted all my attempts to clothe him in knitted things, except for socks and fingerless gloves?

My choices were a Lantern Moon circular needle holder in a lovely gingery orange silk and a crimson Lantern Moon sock project bag. Oh, and a teeny little three sided silk covered squeezy thing, perfect for holding stitch markers (modeled by Emo, who is hiding his face as he appears to be having a bad face life, not just bad face days).



I also bought the Virginia Van Santen Globe Bowl pattern - they had one made up in the store, and it just looked so neat!

Next we went to one of those enormous Cineplex Odeon theatres and saw an afternoon showing of Hairspray 2007 - which was fun, fun, fun. I so want the sound track!

Of course, the best part about the anniversary was the time with my beloved, and the fact that even after eight years and many pounds, we're still having fun together. Tom, I love you. Happy anniversary, and here's hoping for many, many more.
Us and our parents, July 24th, 1999. It feels like yesterday.

Why I Don't Get Much Knitting Done

I try to get knitting done, really. I settle in the knitting chair, with everything I need on the TV tray table on my right, and a glass of water on the end table on my left. I turn on the two daylight bulbs above and to my left, which are arranged so that one shines on my knitting while the other shines on my lap (where the pattern for MS3 generally rests).

Then, just as I'm ready to begin, this happens.

Not sure what you're seeing? How about another view?

I'm joined by Fae (blonde dog) and Emo (grey boy-cat). The fuzzy buggers. Yep, it is hot, I am sweaty, and the two critters on my lap don't help a bit. Not. At. All.

But, with that much cuteness at hand, how can I be annoyed? So, instead of getting knitting done, I'm spending a lot of time giving out the critter loving. Sigh.

Man Socks

Why is it that even the size large sock blockers aren't large enough to block man socks? Tom doesn't even have huge feet! Even so, socks that fit him snugly (about 15% negative ease) still swim around my size L blockers. Must search web for size XL.

Anyway, grumbling aside, here are the latest man socks, LLSS in Cedar. They don't look nearly this, umm, striped, in real life - just a camera thingy. Note the padding under the forward part of the heel, where his sock-wearing history has shown the first signs of serious wear damage. Also, the back part of the heel and ankle are free from patterning, to prevent him from having irritation at the top of his shoes. I live to serve.

Tom thinks they are a bit more stripey than he's comfortable with, but likes the texture and will certainly wear them. However, for future reference, could I please make him socks that are just one colour? Okie dokie Dude. No more Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Nearly Solids for you.

Maybe Trekking Pro Natura sock yarn - nice fingering weight yarn, great hand (25% bamboo content), and solid. In plain, manly colours. I'll start with Chocolate, the only one I have. Then maybe my Shelridge Farms sock yarn in charcoal.

Ugh. I see a lot of cables and texture in my future, just to keep me from going insane with the boring Man Sock knitting.

Mystery Stole 3 KAL Update - Clue 2

I love Mystery Stole-ing Along! Not only am I part of what is probably the largest knit-along in web history, but it is also a really interesting project. I download the clues as soon as they come out (yes, I have stayed up all night just to get the clue in the early morning hours, Melanie (the designer/brilliant KAL hostess) having posted at a reasonable time on the East Coast), then get right on with the knitting.

I'm using hand painted Merino Lace Weight from RubySapphire Yarns, in the colour "Cody", which I purchased a year ago with no particular plans in mind. The true colour is richer and has less of the stripe and contrast than that shown in the photo - when it's finished I'll have to take daylight photos.
Instead of using only one colour of beads, I'm using translucent red with a bronze coating for the border, and a cut opaque brown lustre within the patterned portion of the stole.

I having so much fun with the beading that I admit to having gone back and revisited all of the still-virtual (I design in Excel) shawls and stoles I've designed, and adding beads to the patterns. Oy.

So far, I've finished knitting each of the two clues within a few days of them coming out, then spent the rest of the week impatient and not really able to focus on other projects. To alleviate this problem, I've joined another KAL - Goddess Knits' Mystery Shawl Along (version 3). I'm doing this one with heavy yarn and big needles as a break from lace weight, and also because I want a large, enveloping shawl for chilly mornings.

The beer is in the shot for scale, although it was popped and drained shortly after the photo session (it was over 30C in here, and I was thirsty). This is part way through the second clue. The Mystery Shawl 3 KAL is actually finished, so I downloaded all of the clues at the same time.

I'm knitting with 8.0mm (US size 11) needles, using a custom yarn purchased from an E-Bay vendor (SPINCITYARNS), in the gold'n copper colourway. It consists of three different yarns skeined together: a cotton flake yarn, a textured rayon, and a mohair blend. Yummy!

Also on the needles is the second of a pair of socks for Tom. I'm using Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport 100% wool in Cedar, and putting a simple knit/purl texture pattern on the upper foot and leg. I'll post photo when they're done.

In the other in-process que: finishing placemats for Dad and Marion, and finishing commissioned wallhanging pattern and sample for local quilt store.

I'm busy. Maybe I should leave the beer out from now on.

On Gifting the Unknown (or, while I'll never be a Secret Pal)

While I was on blog-hiatus, my brother-in-law and his wife had their first child. During the pregnancy, I really wanted to make some gifts for the baby, but found myself unable to do anything more than buy patterns and supplies. After many false starts and lots of frustration, I finally figured out what was wrong: I hadn't met the child yet! I simply could not make a present for someone I didn't know.

So, instead, I made gifts for the people I did know - the parents.

For her, I knitted up my adaptation of two items from Louisa Harding's great book Natural Knits for Babies and Moms: Beautiful Designs Using Organic Yarns. I made the wrap from organic cotton chenille (to provide privacy while breastfeeding in public), and a no-hearts version of the organic cotton nursing sweater. No expense was spared (sorry Tom) - I got the yarns specified in the book. Both projects turned out really well, but of course I don't have photos (duh!).

In addition, I wanted to make a special quilt for the baby. Again, I ran into the same problem - we hadn't met yet. What I did in the end (and I think it was the right decision, based on how well the gifts were received) was make a lap sized quilt for each Mom and Dad, so they could snuggle with the baby with a quilt of their own.

Rhea's quilt is a split nine-patch, with a variety of colours setting out a central design. I chose the border fabric (the check) first, then collected the 12 other fabrics plus the border stripe afterward. This is the first quilt I've ever finished with a lot of different fabrics (14 is really high for me).

I quilted it with two patterns: my points and curls stipple in the center and the wide border, and a fine pebbled texture in both narrow striped borders.

Chris's quilt was made using only two fabrics (excluding backing flannel - the back of both quilts are the same moss green flannel, which goes very well with the colours in their living room). I chose mossy green/gold for him, as it was child-gender-neautral, and as he likes earthy tones. His is a two-block quilt, and was very straightforward to make.

I quilted a gentle curving line cluster filling stitch in the center, leaves in the wide border, and rope in the 1" narrow borders.

The baby was born healthy, happy, and male. He made his arrival at 1:52am on June 3rd, 2007, and weighed in at 7 pounds 1 ounce. Tom and I were there at the birth - not in the room but just outside, so we heard his first cries. He has his Dad's lungs (he's a talker!).

We fell in love immediately, and see him as often as possible. I hope to be a large part of his life, and enjoy just knowing he exists. Personally, I think he is the most beautiful child alive, but I may be a tad biased. Just a bit.

If I get permission from his parents, I will reference him by name, and maybe post his photo, but until then he will simply be referred to as Nephew. Auntie loves him!

Back at it

It's apparently time for me to start blogging again. Life has changed a lot since I left off - we moved from Grande Cache to Stony Plain, added a dog (Fae) and a cat (Emo) to the family, and were blessed with a nephew (on June 3rd, 2007). The spouse formerly known as DH is now revealed as Tom, and it was his promotion to Project Manager that required our move (he works in the Edmonton office of his company, now).

I miss my friends from Grande Cache, especially Edie, who was not only the best neighbour in the world, but also a loving and supportive friend. Wednesday afternoons seem lonely to me now - they used to be spent in the company of The Quitters (our "used to quilt, but now we're knitting" group). However, I see my parents more often, and spend a lot of Fridays doing quilt-y things with Mom.

We have a great new house in a pretty neighbourhood, and the Town of Stony Plain is a nice place to live. The view isn't nearly as good, but we could only be so lucky so long. Now instead of looking out on mountains, we have a nice back yard with a great wooden privacy fence, and I can watch the dog gallop about while admiring the enormous peonies (that required no work whatsoever on my part).

Over the next little while I will blog some of the things I've done for the past year or so, but will leave off for now, with a few photos of the new critters. Gotta love them.

She looks so innocent when she's sleeping . . .

Yes, Emo was having a bad face day in this shot. Poor little bugger.

The Stunt Appendage

I'd like to introduce you to The Stunt Appendage. Its jobs are pretty clear: preventing Second Sock Syndrome by modeling the current Single Sock; stand-in for try ons when my feet are comfortably encased in sock/quilt/cat or combination thereof; and displaying lace patterns well enough that I can decide whether or not they work, without requiring awe inspiring contortions on my part. Big sentence, eh?

The spouse was a bit dismayed when I told him my Stunt Appendage had arrived via E-Bay, but was okay once they met.

In other news, the new meds are making me wonky, and I'm down to one sleeve and countless button bars, cuffs, collars, etc on the lace cardigan. Plus, I've started another lace shawl.

Nuts, that's me.

Oh, and I really (really really really) need to vacuum.

Huckleberry Trout

First things first: Happy Birthday to my Darling (Hot) Husband!

In the usual low key style of Casa de Logan, we're celebrating with food, laziness, and maybe some sex in the kitchen. Too much information? Sorry, just pretend I didn't say that.

And, as his birthday falls on a Saturday, DH is getting the birthday treatment for extra time this year. In fact, this morning over breakfast (a bowl of Cornflakes for me, seven pancakes with maple syrup, two sunny-side-up eggs, two slices of whole wheat toast, and home-made blackberry jam for him) he laid out the menu for the weekend. Yes, he had advised me the night before what he wanted for breakfast this morning (and got exactly what he asked for, thank you very much).

So, I went out for groceries and Scotch (picked up something scary called "The Peat Monster", a traditional vatted Scotch whiskey). I expect to spend pretty much the entire weekend in the kitchen (thus moving the "other" activities in there, with me - a time saver, and practical too, as the whipped cream is right there in the fridge...).

Oy. If nothing else stops my Dad from ready my blog, that paragraph ought to have done it. Sorry! ;-)

Okay, aside from eating and getting laid, this weekend is about sun (really, painfully bright) and snow (it's -20C here). DH shoveled the driveway and walk this morning, because he actually enjoys shoveling. I don't know, I think it has something to do with finally owning a home, instead of living in an apartment or a condominium.

I came back from grocery shopping mildly snowblind, and with a massive headache from the brightness - then proceeded to finish another pair of socks that positively screamed out to be photographed against the snow. Please excuse the poor colour resolution - again, I was blinded by the freaking sun bouncing off the freaking snow.

For some obscure reason I named them Huckleberry Trout. I don't know why. Maybe all the kitchen sex and snow blindness went to my head? Anyway, they are Huckleberry Trout.

Now, please excuse me, as I'm going to go and take an Advil so I can continue with the cooking and the putting out. Because I want to enjoy this weekend, too.

More of the New-ness

Remember my new Super-Birkis? Since I've had them for outdoor wear, I've noticed a lessening in the stiffness and discomfort of my lower back and my knees. Coincidence? I think not.

So, I searched around until I found the ultimate source for Birkis: an E-Bay seller in Germany, where Birkenstocks are made. I looked, I hummed, I hawed, and I ordered. And, of course, I chose the lime green. Then, just over a week later, my new Fun-Birkis arrived.

So, without further ado, I give you a peak at my new INDOOR Birkis. Note the really cool grip pattern on the bottom of the shoe (great for "aerating" the carpet), the great shaping for my high arches and insteps, the decent width for my ginormous feetsies, with room for hand knit socks. Since I've been wearing these indoors, my lower back issue has virtually vanished.

Plus, they are clogs, so slip on and off really easily, and are extremely lightweight. When I recline in my comfy chair (my naturally occurring position) I kick off the Birkis and admire my hand knit socks. When I'm upright and moving about (hey, it happens now and then - and usually involves the kitchen) I'm properly shod and supported, and minimize wear on the socks. Great all around.

For the sharp-of-eye, yes, those are new socks. Details in the usual place.

Two Stupid Things

In the past two weeks, I have done two stupid things. One of them has been public - I designed and am knitting, from scratch, a lace cardigan. In Rowanspun 4-Ply, which is an extremely light fingering weight, felted style wool. On 3mm needles.

For those of you that aren't regularly knitters, just know that this is a stupid, stupid thing to do. More than 89,000 stitches, NOT including collar, button bands, cuffs, and bottom border. Stupid, stupid, stupid. But, I love how it is looking so far, so will keep going. Plus, if I blog it, I kind of have to finish it, right?

Blah, blah - now onto the second of the Two Stupid Things. You know that hand-made king-sized wool-batted quilt I made for our bed? Yeah, the really big one. You know, the one I made in large pieces, quilted on my home machine, then attached together? With miles and miles and miles of hand binding? That one.



I washed it. In the washing machine. Even though it has a wool batt, shipped all the way here from Australia. A king-sized wool batt. Yup.

Okay, take a minute to recover. Breathe.

Then, I put it in the dryer. Yup. I was having a fit of "what the hell, I can always make another". I know, not logical from a primarily-knitting-now-former-quilter. But, again, what the hell.

Oh, you want to know what happened?





It's clean, has a lot less cat fur on it, and smells all fresh and Bounce-y. What, you thought I'd killed it? Geez, so did I. But, I guess the Goddess of all things lovingly Quilted was smiling down on my pure audacity. And, Bean has been using it as a sneak-attack-launch-tent for the last two days, while I had it hanging over the inside stairwell railing to allow for extra drying time (removed from dryer while still slightly damp - I'm stupid, but not idiotic).

Sometimes stupid works itself out. Hunh.

The Under-Rated Art of the Block

AKA "Dressing - Really, Really Important"

It's the Knitting Olympics. We're halfway through our knitting time. I've fallen behind, and was beginning to panic. So, I did what any self-flagellating lace knitter will do for reassurance - I blocked.

The photo shows the two fronts of my lace cardigan: one blocked, one unblocked. I was hating this piece, and feeling all "woe is me" until I dressed/blocked one of the fronts. Boy, do I feel better now. All my math? All my measurements and calculations? Paid off, baby!

When I was designing the thing, I swatched my potential lace patterns, then washed and blocked each swatch to the same gauge (6 stitches and 8 rows per inch). This just made the planning easier. Now that the chosen designs have been knit together, I see that the Arrowhead Lace blocks a bit more openly than the Rose Leaf Insertion, but that's okay - I can still block it to my exact desired end dimensions. And it's purty!

Lace knitting is continuing, although this may be an end-of-February-beginning-of-March project. I calculated I'll be knitting just over 89,000 stitches, so I'm not terribly concerned about deadlines. Plus, I'm making a pair of comfy socks as well. Happy place socks, for when the lace is kicking my arse.

But now that I've blocked that one front, I'm all about the lace again.

Almost Ready...

The training yesterday went really well. Many different lace stitch patterns were swatched, washed, and blocked, and the final decision was made as to which patterns would be featured in my cardigan. The winners are the Rose Leaf Insertion (from a Barbara Abbey book), and Arrowhead Lace (from a Barbara G. Walker book).

I swatched plain stocking stitch, too, to see how it looks stretched out to the stitch and row count I want from the lace - not so hot. However, the stocking stitch regions are relatively small, and not in obvious locations (under the arms to incorporate shaping increases, and under the collar to take it from a square neckline to a round neck).

I haven't nailed down the collar design yet, nor the button bands, cuff and bottom edging, but will work on that today.

The winning buttons (a number auditioned, but the winner stood out immediately) were chosen, and required some mathematics to fit only six buttons along a 22" button bar. Skeins of yarn were wound into cakes, and I really feel on track, timewise.

The only thing I see causing calamity at this point is Ojo. She's here for the day again (I'm a reliable dog-sitter), and is in a chewing/exploring/destruction mode. Already she has shredded one glove (too small for anyone in this house, so not a loss), three sheets of paper (including one of my calculations - Doh!), and one skein of Socks that Rock in Pebble Beach. That last one has me REALLY steamed, so the dog is in the garage right now on a time out. Oh, and she did some damage to me as well, with a nifty scratch/bruise combo.

However, she is making sure I get plenty of fresh air and exercise, as I've already taken her for three walks today (small dog, small bladder, don't want to clean up a mess).

Olympic Training

I'm a little behind.

A few weeks ago, when I first signed up for the Knitting Olympics, I picked a project for which I already had appropriate yarn, ordered the pattern, swatched in both stocking stitch and the pattern, test washed and blocked my swatches, and figured I was ready to go. So, I stopped training.

Today, I stroked and cuddled the swatches, then gave the pattern a thorough read through. WTF? The sexy, curvy, feminine shaped cardigan I had fallen in love with online is actually knitted completely without any shaping! The curvy lines shown on the photo were artificially arranged for the photo session! Apparently there is some sort of tie or clip on the back pulling the waist in and giving the illusion of tailoring.

Well, sh!t, I could have designed the thing (all one lace pattern, extremely simple, and only two pattern rows to remember). The whole reason I bought it was because it looked shaped! I was suckered by a sneaky photo stylist!

There is no way I'm wasting my Olympic Knitting time on a shapeless, simple, and extremely repetitive knit. Nope. This is supposed to be a challenge of Olympic proportions! I want to stretch my knitting muscles, and try something new.

With only two and a half days left to the starting pistol, I need to find something else, right now! So, every knitting book, magazine and pamphlet in the house is strewn around my work space. Piles of crumpled paper entertain the cats. Needles in assorted sized threaten to skewer me whenever I turn around.

I've swatched about nine different lace patterns, and a few cables as well. Over a dozen yarns have been pulled out, test knitted, then tossed across the room with despair. But, I've finally chosen my yarn, swatched a few stitch patterns, and selected needle size and type.

So now, I need to narrow down the item to be knitted, and design details thereof. I definitely want lace, but would like to see a number of different but coordinating lace patterns put together. But what lacey thing to knit? It's a neck and neck race between a cardigan and a rectangular stole, with occasional thoughts of a Faroese style shawl. But I need to decide, and decide now!

After re-reading the Design section of Sharon Miller's Heirloom knitting, and spending hours pouring through every stitch pattern book I own, I ended up with a page listing nearly two dozen stitch patterns I really want to try. Then I sorted them by row repeat count, stitch repeat count, and garter versus stocking stitch lace. Oy. I whittled the list down to about a dozen, then charted them all in Excel to make the actual knitting process more intuitive.


Then, I pulled out the sweater that fits me the best both length and ease-wise, and measured it laying flat. From that, I drew a scale model of a cardigan, with dimensions. I already knew what size of rectangular stole I would knit if I went that way, so decided my decision would be made based on the number of square inches of knitting (brilliant, eh?).

As the scan shows, um, ah, my cardigan design is EXACTLY THE SAME number of square inches of knitting as a 24" by 72" stole. How friggin' freaky is that?

So, I'm putting together a pros and cons list for each item, and hoping that will narrow down the decision. Until I've decided, though, I think I'll swatch a few more of the lace patterns I like, to ensure they are reasonably knittable (ie - already dropped Germaine Stitch from the roster due to cables, thus the need for a cable needle, which I only have one of right now, and regularly loose).

The training continues. My goal is to have the decision (cardigan versus stole) made by the end of the day tomorrow. Crossing my fingers.

Later Edited to Add:
For those as mathematically inclined as me, I ran the numbers: 6 stitches per inch times 8 rows per inch = 48 stitches per square inch. At 1728 square inches (both the stole and the cardigan - again, very very very freaky), that means 82,944 stitches. I just did a little mouth vomit when that number came up on the calculator. Oy.

Another Weekend, Another Post

Happy Saturday!

The sun is shining, the Bean is napping, and all is well in the world. Well, kind of. Bean has apparently buried herself in the loveseat. See the mini-quilt on the back of the chair in the corner? That's her usual sleeping spot (the quilt can be removed if we have company, so making for super-quick cat hair cleanup). Today, however, she has chosen a different place. Hmmm - are we noisy? Smelly? Or does she just enjoy napping inside furniture?

On the nap count, here you can see that DH is busy doing his Saturday duty - relaxing after a long and stressful week at work. Oh, and holding up the Peanut while she naps. Just below his arm is the TV remote, but he has it set on The History Channel, as usual.

There is, however, a little deception going on here - it's only DH who is napping, while Peanut is giving me the evil eye, attempting to control me and my silly need to take photos. I'm pretty sure the message is something along the lines of "F*ck off, dammit! I only get him weekends and evenings, so don't you blow this for me!"

On the work front, I hate working. It's not so much the work (although that is rather frustrating in itself) as it is the whole spending time around people thing. Have I mentioned that I'm not good around people? Most people don't know it (I can cover really well for maybe four hours, tops) but I have pretty serious social anxiety. Even medicated (better living through chemistry) I start to melt down when forced to endure group activities (like working in a trailer with a bunch of other dedicated professionals).

It's kind of silly, because I used to only melt down when in the presence of large crowds or extreme idiots. Sadly, the melt down-ish-ness has spread to even small groups of decent folk. Sigh. So, after three days of work, I've chickened out. Whether or not I go back will depend on the visit to my doctor, Monday.

While I was hiding at home this past week, I socked some more. Behold a new and truly fabulous (if I may say so myself) pair of Butterscotch Curl socks! Details, as usual, in the gallery-o-socks. Note the use of a lace pattern on the back of the leg - now that I'm a clog wearing chick, I'm suddenly putting my focus behind me. Hmmm. That last phrase works on a lot of levels for me. ;-)

A New Job

Yup, I got a job. Who'da thunk it? I started work Thursday, and am expecting this project to continue for four to six months (although I hope it doesn't go that long).

I signed up to work part time, which with this company means around 40 hours a week (full time is 60+). So, I'm now up at 5:00am every weekday morning, insert caffeine drip, make a healthy lunch, lace up the steel toed boots, and away I go, up the mountain. It's a little bit wild.

Anyway, I now have significantly less knitting time, less blogging time, less blog-surfing time, and no nap time at all! What I will do for the almighty $. But, must pay for the stash enhancement...


Edited later to add: Um, good point DebR! The job is ... kind of fluffy / waffle-y ... a production operations streamlining consultant thing. Yeah, that's meaningful. And so very comprehensible.

I was confused, too, until I realized that my job at this particular site will be to look for holes or bottlenecks in the operation - basically find opportunities to improve production capacity and/or streamline the operations process, cutting costs in the process.

Hmm, still don't know what I'm doing? Uh, it has to do with a surface mining operation. I wear steel toed boots, a hard hat, safety glasses and a reflective vest. I come home really dirty, but get to spend the day on top of a mountain. And yes, full time is a minimum of 60 hours a week (most employees work 12 hour days, 10 days on, 4 days off, for 120 hours every two weeks). Woo hoo!

Who has new shoes?

Why, that would be me! And, they go with my new socks!

Those of you that have met me know that I have "a good, solid understanding" (what my Mom used to tell me when I complained about the size of my feet). They are large. They are rather flat at the ends (no pointy-toed shoes for me). They are REALLY wide. And, the instep of my left foot is so high that there are very few shoes I can wear.

Yesterday, in between being gifted with a brief moment of wisdom from our Endocrinologist and having 14 vials of blood pulled for testing, I went shoe shopping. Normally that activity results in emotions from disappointment to frustration, but yesterday was different.

Instead of going to "trendy" shoe shops, I went straight to the place where nurses and postal workers go. Yes, their shoes were more expensive than the "fashion" shoes I'm used to. Yes, they came in unfamiliar-to-me sizes. And yes, they had a couple of types that fit me!

I came away with Birkenstocks. Green plastic Super Birkis, to be exact. And they FIT REALLY WELL! My large square feet are in heaven, and that extra-high instep is just fine with its new confinement.

To celebrate, I finished my first pair of Red Hot Sizzling Socks. Details on the socks in ThatLoganChick's Socks (gallery). All you need to know is that my feet are some friggin' happy right now, and that any mud that gets on these shoes can be hosed off without doing any damage. Because I live in a town where it regularly snows then blows, creating mud all winter long. And 'cause I'm a dirty grrl. ;-)

Ear to Ear with the Grinning Today

Verklempt! By the email!

I had a few really nice (and interesting!) emails today from some blogosphere friends, and they have me feeling all warm and fuzzy. And, to boot, I got (my very first!!!) meme tag.

Now normally I am the end of the chain email. However, there is something about a meme that is so much more meaningful - it's a way to share tidbits about oneself without making readers wade through the usual babble (in my case - babbler extrordinaire). See? Massive and nasty sentences are the norm here at That Logan Chick Land.

Okay, I'll quit blathering and get meme-ing (it's the "Four Things" meme):

Four jobs you have had in your life:
1. Server Monkey at McDonalds (age 15)
2. Legal Secretary
3. Project researcher/writer for two University Professors
4. Project Engineer for a construction/mining contractor (favorite paid job of all time)

Four movies you could watch over and over:
1. Serenity (Joss Whedon's Firefly movie)
2. The Tall Guy (funniest sex sceen EVER)
3. Hellraiser (any of them)
4. House of 1000 Corpses (Rob Zombie movie)

Four places you have lived:
1. Lower Hutt, New Zealand (born there)
2. Near Elk Island Park, Alberta, Canada
3. Edmonton, Alberta
4. Fort McMurray, Alberta

Four TV shows you love to watch:
1. Daily Planet
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
3. Frontiers of Construction
4. Law and Order

Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Tucson, Arizona
2. Vancouver Island, BC
3. Jasper, Alberta
4. Banff, Alberta
I'm not so much for the travelling (it's not that I hate flying, it's that I hate taking off and landing). Also, I'm uncomfortable sleeping in strange beds, and using unfamiliar bathrooms. Oh, and also I get really BITCHY if I don't have my usual everyday surroundings around me EVERY DAY. And I miss my cats.

Four websites you visit (almost) daily:
1. Fibermania
2. Red Shoe Ramblings
3. Yarn Harlot
4. Zeneedle

Four of your favorite foods:
1. Dark chocolate
2. Cheese
3. Peanut butter
4. Pears

Four places you would rather be right now:
1. Willmore Wilderness Park, Alberta
2. The "beach" near Jasper, Alberta
3. In a (good) yarn store
4. Exactly where I am (home), but it's miraculously cleaner
Please note that numbers 1 and 2 are good weather dependent. Right now it's blowing snow outside, so 3 or 4 would do just fine.

Red Hot Sizzling Socks (Yum!)

Man-oh-man, I'm a joiner this year. I found this KAL (knit-along for those not used to knit-speak) on Margene's site, and considering that I had just completed the first of my Flirting with Pink socks, it seemed appropriate for me to join.

Plus, there's that skein of Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Rosehip heating up my sock yarn stash. And, if Felicia of Sweet Georgia gets another dye run in soon, I'm hoping there will be some "Slayer" superwash coming my way. Mmmm, red socks. Yup, they certainly will "spice up the sock drawer".



But what the heck is with my freakishly weird shaped foot? Yes, I have a very high arch, and yes, I have a tall instep, and yes, I have thick ankles, but they look WAY worse in the photo than in real life. Still, gotta love the hot sock. I wanted shorty socks in this yarn, and the picot edging worked out really cute. Loving the red sock (must cast on second sock immediately).

What is with me and pink lately?

I must be going through some sort of weird not-quite-mid-life crisis or something - I've gone from hating the pink (and a regular scoffer of those who like pink) to loving the pink. Really. I'm all about the pink these days.

After the orange socks were finished a few days ago, I immediately went to the stash-just-for-sock-yarn, sniffing around for which pair to begin next. Oh, and in case you're wondering, it is now official: I have four stashes. I have a stash for sock yarn, one for lace weight, one for other natural fibres, and one for whimsies (aka the embellishment stash). Wait, those are just my knitting stashes. I also have a large quilting stash. With sub-categories, too. Oy.

Okay, where was I ... oh yes, choosing the next pair of socks. I wanted to use something hand painted, and thought maybe green or brown would be nice. Short-row-toe-swatched a green, but didn't feel the love. Short-row-toe-swatched a brown, but again with the lacking of love. Pulled out a vibrant red, previously relegated to the back of the stack due to the pronounced presence of pink. Swatched (toe again) and I. AM. IN. LOVE.

How could anyone not love this pinky red goodness? And, with the aubergine? I'm currently fighting insane (yes, I can recognize insanity when I feel it) urges to lick this sock. Ugh, but oh so tempting. It's the pink - it has me all feverish in the noggin.


Or, maybe it's the yarn, which has 25% mohair in there with the merino superwash goodness (Schaefer Anne sock wool). The mohair gives it a firm, slightly slippery hand, and it feels shiney while knitting. I know, that sounds ridiculous - how can it "feel" shiney? But it does, trust me.

So far I have been able to avoid the urge to lick this sock, but I have caved in and rubbed it on my face. If I ever get another skein of Schaefer Anne, I think it will become a scarf. Yummmm!