Phew!

Yesterday was the last day of September. This is normally a pretty quiet time around here, but this year? What a whirlwind!

Since posting has been a little sparse except for raffle updates, I thought I’d post a few pictures and notes to document this month that has just passed.

• Finished Sweet Caroline’s sweater, though delivery hasn’t taken place yet - so no pictures for a few more days!
• Hosted a great raffle fundraiser for my 3Day walk (a few more prizes yet to be posted tonight or tomorrow before we leave!)
• Celebrated 10 great years with Tad and had some great time off. Already blogged, but here’s a few pictures from our adventures. We enjoyed the time off so much we thought we’d do it again in a couple weeks (in the middle of another month that’s approaching whirlwind status before it’s even begun!

 Rising Meadow Farm

Sera Cahoone

The Cloud Chamber

This is one of my favorite places in Raleigh (it’s a pinhole camera that you walk into and close the door, letting your eyes adjust until you see the trees overhead projected on the walls and floor - I could hang out in here for hours).

Pilot Mountain

The Goats of Humbug Farm

• Between the first of September and Sunday evening, I somehow knit 106,110 stitches (a bit more than that actually, if you count swatches and the first inch or so that I ripped back after a stressed-out-too-tight cast on). I’ve never recorded the number of stitches in a project before, but it was necessary to closely estimate yarn needs so as not to repeat a recent mistake. And it was rather fun - That’s a LOT of stitches! I say this with amazement really rather than pride. I knew I could do it - I planned it all out. But even still, it was a pleasant surprise. On the list of things I love about knitting - feeling a little bit of wonder even when what you accomplish is exactly what you set out to do.  I knit in my house, on various long & short roadtrips, in coffeeshops and restaurants and waiting rooms…

And Monday, I wrapped it up and shipped it out - my first project for print publication (”first” being an optimistic statement of course!) I hate to talk about something that I can’t actually show you for a few months, but this project has absorbed so much energy over the last month that it seems strange not to document it in some way. I’m both nervous and excited. But mostly, satisfied. As design processes go, it was very enjoyable and came out just as I’d envisioned - I’ll blog about it a bit more when it finally comes out (March-ish).

A few rows in…

• Mathias rallies - that poor boy has been through some tough times, but he is hanging in there! He’s a really special pup and we’re so relieved. Funny that I’m more willing to mention it here when he’s improving - things were pretty bleak for a couple weeks there, but they’ve been bleak before and here he still is. Dogs are amazingly resilient creatures.

Mathias

• Had a super-quick trip to Atlanta & back this weekend for my cousin’s wedding, this guy flew into RDU from the west coast Friday night & drove down with us. We spent some great time with my cousins and their lovely wives, saw some other family members we don’t see often enough, and I somehow dropped the ball and left the camera in the car (crap!)…

My awesome older brother

• Last night I had a fair-isle class with Nancy Shroyer (designer of the Tidewater Wrap and owner of Nancy’s KnitKnacks), we worked through corrugated ribbing, steeks, steek covers, buttonholes, etc. - a great experience and capper to the month - we have a little homework remaining, I’ll show my little project when it’s complete.

• And it’s officially Autumn (my favorite time of year, without a doubt) - the weather is getting cooler and so pleasant and the leaves are beginning to change.

I’m not sure how in the world October could possibly top September…. but we will see…. We thought we’d kick off the month with a light 60 mile walk, follow it up with some great music, another big family event, and round it all out with a fiber festival and some hiking…  And of course, some knitting!

Happy Fall everyone! Have you all been just as crazy?

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Now playing: Rogue Wave - Everyday
via FoxyTunes

One great remake - it’ll make you happy, I bet! Check it out!

Raleigh, Meymandi Concert Hall, May 15.

Cat’s Cradle schedule

Tad’s review of Once. Suffice it to say we loved it and are so looking forward to this show!

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Now playing: Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova - Falling Slowly
via FoxyTunes

Clapotis had her debut at the Billy Joel concert on Saturday night - there we are, having a ball! But you probably aren’t here to read about Billy - For more pics of the show & videos, click on over to tadandmel.com.

My little Clapotis would be the first “Official” FO of 2007 - and she’s a winner, thank goodness! Three others to date have met with frustrating ends. For any new readers since the old blog died, the first (unofficial) FO was during the early part of January. It was my first pair of socks. Unfortunately, as I was doing some finish work on one, Sweeter Sweeter Sock Eater (well, I guess you can tell by the name, can’t you?) yes, I apparently left my knitting within reach while she was unattended for a few minutes. No longer than that, I assure you! Once the suspected fate of the sock was confirmed, I knew exactly when it had occurred. And she truely had a window of about 2 minutes. The girl works fast. The moral of the story is that I should have known better (No, this was not the first sock ever to be consumed by the Sweeter, just the first handknit one). My own darn fault of course, and thank goodness she was ok.

The second unofficial FO of 2007 was my Anemoi Mittens. This was my first foray into colorwork and I had so much fun! I really enjoyed knitting them and although I did have a tension issue which made the second mitten come out slightly larger, they blocked out to about the same size and I was so pleased with them, not to mention how much I learned in the process. I never had the opportunity to post about them - they were worn a total of 3 times. I had not had a chance to take the “finished” pictures yet, when they disappeared at work This during the same week that the original blog died. BOOO!

So, of course, mel has resolved to be MUCH MORE careful with her knits as there is a sad trend here! It should be noted, however, that this is a totally new trend. Up until this point, I had never had this sort of problem with my knits.

The third project of 2007 involved a sizing debacle which I posted on recently. Itwas necessary to take a break and move on to something “unsized” and quick to knit. I had recently discovered my in-progress Clapotis in a stash drawer - I’m not even sure why this project was left by the wayside. It had been a little over a year since I’d touched it and to be honest, I had forgotten all about it until I was going through my stash. I vowed to come back to it soon and finish it up (little did I know how soon it would be!). After the sizing issue I dug through my stash again to come up with a few options for instant grat knits, and this was the obvious choice since it was already a little over halfway done. The talented Shannon is working on this now too (and taking some gorgeous pics!), and that’s where I learned about purling the stitches that are intended to be dropped - which saved me some time and lost stitch markers. My Clapotis is scarf-sized and perfect for our lovely NC spring weather, and the colors were a great antidote to the knitting blues as well. I’m loving the finished length - it is long enough to hang elegantly to my waist when wrapped once and tied or folded and looped, and also long enough to wrap twice or three times for extra warmth. She’s also long enough for some additional wearing options, which I probably won’t actually use, but I was having fun!

So, the very basic stats - I won’t elaborate as there are a wealth of these beauties and notes about them already out there:

Pattern: Clapotis, of course.

Yarn: Knitpicks Shimmer in Turquoise Splendor, Doubled throughout

Needles: US4

I can see exactly why so many people have made (and loved) this pattern. It is simple and elegant and versatile; enough going on in the pattern to make it fun, but generally a very relaxing knit. The laceweight made this a very lightweight and floaty scarf, but I would love to try it as a real wrap in something more substantial.

Ok, so this entire post is ganked directly from a promo email that I got from the Avett Brothers list, but although it’s a promo, it’s so well written and hits home with me (It doesn’t hurt that I LOVE their music, and am so looking forward to this new album!) Check them out. They are great (and their live shows make their albums pale in comparison). BTW, speaking of shows, we’ve got some good ones coming up in March - woo-hoo!! And one from last week that I need to update you on. Stay Tuned.

Now for the copyrighted section of this post (complete credit goes to the Avetts for the image and the words):

“This is a time where playing it cool is the way to be. It is a time where people are taught to hold back, to keep their best tricks up their tightly-buttoned sleeves, to guard their love. The days of sonnets spoken to girls in unreachable balconies are behind us, replaced with the new coldness; maybe I’ll call you, maybe I won’t. In a modern setting where even the satire is satirized, love becomes weakness, tears become a punch line, real laughter a vulnerability, marriage a surrender.

The Avett Brothers introduce ‘Emotionalism’ today in this very time; a record that marks their position in a livid stance against such mentality. It is a first step in an effort to name and strengthen a procession already in motion; one that wants to write a sonnet, wants to truly laugh, one that says so when it hurts, one that wants to fall in love and above all, wants to admit it with the true excitement that only such a state of heart and mind can create. This spirit rises up against the coldness, against the sarcasm, against the detachment.

The American Heritage Dictionary describes emotionalism as “an inclination to rely on or place too much value on emotion/(or an) undue display of emotion”. The structure of the word itself echoes the excessive nature of other terms: alcoholism, narcissism, etc. These words too, offer the image of one that has gone too far. To this end, the terms are the same. Here however, going too far is purposefully done-for a common balance, for something good. The Avett Brothers present the idea that in this era, such display of emotion is entirely due. This is said with an album of songs that mirror the thought. They truly laugh, they love, they say so when it hurts. They stand beneath the balcony and say the best poem they can think of, in hopes that whoever is up there will care to hear.

Emotionalism is a weakness. It is a presentation of a heart-lucid reality to those who do not seek it. It can be mocked. It can be ignored. This record and the group that executed it take part in a voice, singing to the guarded, the scared, the damaged, the emotionless. They will choose whether or not to listen.

The Avett Brothers introduce Emotionalism — New Album in Stores May 15, 2007 ”

I will listen!!!