WIPs, fiber and snakes

Eric and I took a trip out to Fibrefest International in Abbotsford on Saturday. Given how often I've gone to car shows with him, he was incredibly impatient. And I think upset that he was one of a very few men there. On the upside, he's promised not to drag me to car shows this season. Except maybe the hot rod meetup in North Van, where I can go hang out in Michaels while he ogles cars.

I did some light purchasing at Fibrefest. I got myself some silk hankies, inspired by Knitty and Zib. I also scored some pretty dyed Corriedale and some wool for my SP, Trillian.

After the little time we spent at Fibrefest, we proceeded over to Eric's friend Brad's house. Brad has snakes. Lots of them. In fact, he supplies snakes, spiders and other creepy crawlies for the movies. He's also into breeding them for different traits. We talked about the genetics behind the different varities of snakes that he had. I learned a lot in that trip. Like did you know, pound for pound, centipedes are the most vicious predators in the world? Neither did I. And did you know that tarantulas can lose a leg no problem? During the next molt, they just come out of their exoskeleton with all eight legs! And I got to hold snakes! For the first time! If you need a snake, let me know. We'll see if we can hook you up. ;) (Excuse the hair, I need a haircut.)

In knitting news, I'm progressing on my Jaywalkers. In Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock, the Irving Park colourway. I started the larger size this time after reading about people having trouble putting them on. So now I can get them over my foot but I am concerned about the foot. I have a feeling they will be too large. I might decrease down to the smaller size when I get to the foot. Has anyone tried that yet?

Muahahaha! Go go go SP! (And some FOs too.)

Why did that title remind me of the Wizard of Oz? Maybe it was the evil laugh. Maybe the 'And some...' part was similar enough to 'And your little dog too!' to trigger the memory. Maybe it was because I just visited the blog of my lovely downstream SP, who just happens to love the Wizard of Oz. Who knows? But enough with this. I have good things to show you (and more stories from my crazy life).

I was sooo excited to come home yesterday to an SP package! Oh my lordie it was so perfect for me! Thankies thankies thankies, upstream SP! She put in a Moosewood cookbook (yummy yummy yummy - you must be psychic! I just ordered a Moosewood cookbook - thankfully a different one, but one all the same!), some chocolate for real hot chocolate (I haven't had real hot chocolate since Mexico, almost two years ago!) and to go with the general yumminess theme, a hank of Cherry Tree Hill Supersock in Country Garden, such a beautiful colourway (swoon). Lookie lookie lookie!

Thanks again! I will admit it, I was NOSY. So I looked at the return address. And I know your name now (unless you're one of those highly deceptive types... are you?) and I know your general area, but I am STUMPED. I have no idea who you are!

I haven't been totally slacking on the knitting front either. I do have some FOs to show for my time unaccounted for. (Yes yes yes it's been a week since I last posted - see? Commitment issues!) I finished my socks! See?

Pattern: Socks from Ann Budd's The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns
Yarn: Most of a ball of OnLine Supersocke in colour ?
Needles: 2.00 mm Brittany birch DPNs for most of it, 2.25 mm Brittany birch DPNs for the ribbing

As I mentioned before, this is such a soothing knit. It was nothing but miles of knit knit knit. This was my first heel flap too (I've only ever done short-row heels before) and no holes! Yay!

Next up, my finished Flower Basket Shawl! (Click for big)

Note the pile of dirty clothes. I know Eric will be horrified to see this.

Pattern: Flower Basket Shawl from Interweave Knits (can't remember the issue)
Yarn: 2 balls Misti Alpaca Lace
Needles: Good lord I don't remember

This was one of the objects I knit while in Hong Kong. I realise it's been over a month since I was in Hong Kong but it hasn't been posted because I haven't been bothered to block it since a week ago. It's a great pattern, and easy but not so easy it gets boring. I'm highly pleased with the colour and it's not too big (one of these days I'll get a pic of me wearing it). I just need a shawl pin now!

Soundtrack for blocking? Rezillos. I love them. Everyone should listen to them. Poppy British punk band from the 80's. No one does it that good nowadays.

In the WIP pile I've got an almost finished pair of socks (they just need to be bound off and ends woven in, but I cannot for the life of me find my tapestry needles), a Spiderweb Capelet from SNBN missing the pom poms (I hate making pom poms, they make me stressy) and the LL's from my previous post is becoming a pair of Jaywalkers.

And I did promise a crazy story or two, right? My life is nuts - I don't need to make this up folks, it's all real.

A few days ago, Eric got woken up at 3:30 in the morning to lots of shouting, a huge bang, and lights flashing outside. Apparently I sleep like a brick (you will agree once you hear about the source of the bang). Background? The neighbours are a PITA (hee hee... see Eric? I use that expression with more people than just you!). Loud thumping music all night, often enough that I curse their names (or would if I knew them) every night I hear them partying.

The story stars a few hours previous. Neighbours were at a bar drinking and they apparently got into a fight with some other guys. They leave the bar and the fight continues to our apartment building (conveniently downtown). Neighbours go upstairs. People they were fighting with go up to the concierge. They tell him to call the cops. "Those guys have guns!" Cops come and break down the door. Thus the loud bang. Their door was a piece of plywood for a day, before they finally got someone to fix it. Yes folks, you could probably break my door down and I'd sleep through it.

Yesterday, we wake up and hmm, weird. Turn the hot water on and all you get is a cold trickle. Few minutes later, Eric gets up and turns the water on. Nothing's coming on.

Eric: Grrr. I'm grumpy. I'm grumpy man. I don't like not having a shower in the morning. Grr.
Brittany: I love you dear. Call me and tell me why there's no water if there's a note in the elevator.
Exit Eric.
Phone rings.
Brittany: Hello?
Eric: I know why there's no water. There's no note in the elevator. You should get dressed and come down.
Brittany: Mfghpp? Huh? Why?
Eric: I'm standing in about 6 inches of water right now. The lobby's flooded. Water's coming through the ceiling.
Brittany: Oh.

Nutso.

We're going to Fiberfest today! Yay! And then we visit Brad and see his snakes! Update later!

(This was waaaay longer than intended. Sorry!)

Uh oh...

----- Original Message -----
From: Brittany
To: Eric
Sent: Friday, March 24, 2006 8:15 PM
Subject: Awww look look look look look!

http://www.knittyboard.com/viewtopic.php?t=22659&start=675

hahahahahhahaha

Okay break over. Introduction is finis! Just the discussion (ugh boring), then the abstract (which should take all of 2 secs).

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On 3/24/06, Eric wrote:
Get back to work, you Bean!

"See how in the loop you can get when you avoid paper writing by blog-stalking and knittyboarding?"

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----- Original Message -----
From: Brittany
To: Eric
Sent: Friday, March 24, 2006 8:19 PM
Subject: Re: Awww look look look look look!

Ooops. Busted.

:(

Busted!

Before the second package even arrived, my lovely downstream SP, Trillian from the Knitty Coffeeshop busted me. She's on the ball, that lady. And a prolific knitter too (Bloom shawl finished in 3 days? Whaaaa?).

I also have a confession to make. I've fallen hard (dear SO will be upset by this). I think I'm in love... with Patrick McGoohan... or perhaps more so his "Danger Man" persona, John Drake. *sigh* It's all I've been watching these days, when Eric is not home and I need something to watch while knitting. Ahhh John Drake. Think James Bond. But smarter - he rarely ever uses a gun, and not a *cough cough* slut like Bond. If you've never watched it before, I highly recommend it. But beware. You may experience lightheadedness and find your heart fluttering. Be still my beating heart.

In knitting news, those blasted stockinette socks are driving me mental. Starting at the same spot in the pattern repeat is NOT helping me get identical socks. Boo. I should be finished in a day or so. I'll show you then.

Back to John Drake... *swoon*

At war with the whole commitment thing

I thought I might have a problem with this whole commitment thing and apparently I do. Two weeks and no update! Honestly! If some of the people whose blogs I stalk were not to update in two weeks, I'd be having a fit by now!

On a related note, commitment issues are showing up elsewhere... I had been good for a while, after my last post I had no WIPs. Can you imagine? No WIPs. (Of course there are those that still need to be blocked, but we will ignore that miniscule detail.) I had frogged the ones that weren't making me happy. I had woven in all ends. I was free to start a new project. So I did. I cast on for my faroese shawl (pattern from Heartstrings) using my ColourMartUK fingering weight cashmere. I progressed well. It was the only thing that I knit for the first few days. Then the garter sections started getting longer. And they got longer. And longer. Progress has stalled.

I got an order in from Red Bird Knits. They had 1.5mm DPNs and 1.75mm DPNs in stock! Yay! All I was getting when I knit my Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock with 2.00mm DPNs was 28 sts/4 in. Floppy. Not sturdy enough for socks. But my new needles came in (and is Robyn from Red Bird Knits fantastic or what?) and I happily cast on my Lorna's Laces. But I had issues. Oh did I have issues. I cast on 74 sts for Grumperina's Jaywalker socks. The Lorna's Laces split into one side pink and purple, the other orange. Yuck. Rip rip rip... I cast on 72 sts for Knitty's Pomatomus (why do I feel compelled to say Potatomous?). The difference in number of stitches wasn't enough to save it. Grrr. As punishment, Irving Park is sitting in a time out until it behaves or the inept user finds an interesting sock pattern that will work for it, whichever comes first - don't hold your breath folks. (And yeees... the author is open to suggestions.)

Because of troubles with those socks, I decided a change of pace was needed, hence:

Ahhhh miles of numbingly boring stockinette. Who needs sedatives when you have stockinette?