Five Socks

Who is the Knittin' Fool? She be me. I brought my completed Beach Dwarf sock to Earth Mother to see if they'd fit her, 'cuz they're clearly way too big for me. I thought I might have to frog the toes and knit 'em smaller but I was in luck. (And so was she: free socks!) This gave me the impetus to knit the last inch or two on the second sock, so.... All done! (yay) The clips are there to show where the ends of my feet are. So glad we don't all have the same size feet!

And the Socks for Cutting Hair are done, too. The last of the knitting was completed on Main Street, Disneyland, so I think I knitted some fun into them. I wasn't able to get the Man of the Place to model them until last night, though. "Oh, the light's not good." "You want me to model now?"(shaking sudsy hands at me) "I'm working." Last night I ambushed him. "Put these on and pose!" He obeyed.

And I figured I had freedom to cast on a sock I've been wanting to try. The pattern is called Cabletini from Wendy Knits. Here's a pdf link that will immediately download the free pattern. I'm calling mine Cherrytini Jubilee. This is the second pair of two-ups I've tried. The designer has written a book of toe-up socks so I have hope that these will actually fit me.So I think this will be a no-stitch summer. The reasons are two-fold:

1. I don't want to sweat on my projects (hello, it's summer. duh.)
2. I want a chance to miss my cross-stitch. Then I can come back to it with happy-happy joy-joy attitude.

Sock it to Me!

Prideful and Prejudiced received some attention last night. The Man of the Place got a French movie with subtitles, A Secret. (If you'd like to see a French take on the holocaust, this is pretty interesting, but as my man said, "I guess there aren't any really happy holocaust movies.") Seeing as how I had to look at the screen almost constantly if I wanted to understand the conversations, I needed a sock in which the pattern would read:

*k, repeat from *

In other words, just knit. So I did. I'm not far off from my green toe now.Socks for Cutting Hair are moving right along. I finished reading Mansfield Park, and knit a lot on these socks during the reading. By the way, the whole book is slow until the last 50 pages. Then it picks up. I've now just started Emma: my goal of reading all six of Miss Austen's published novels this year is half done! And the Beach Dwarves are about to turn the second heel (a little further along than the picture shows). They require a bit more attention than the other two at this point. Non-investment, older TV works very well. Back in 1970, they still used a lot of verbal exposition, so I've been "watching" Alias Smith and Jones on Hulu to keep me company while I work on 'em.

I know. It's weird. All my socks are at about the same point.

Stash Enhancement

Sunday found me in Los Angeles with two of my knitting friends. We were on a quest: Stash Enhancement. We needed yarn. Lots of yarn. We got yarn. Lots of yarn. There was a sale. A really good sale. And Scout saw a TV star: Ron Livingston. (He starred in Office Space--and he'll be in The Time Traveller's Wife!) And I saw his back. Twice.

I've finished sock one in Socks for Cutting Hair. He tried it on and said it was a perfect fit. Oh, boy. Maybe someday sock two will be finished. Not today, though. I've been enamored of my first pair of toe-up socks! The pattern is called Red Dwarf Socks, so I'm calling 'em Beach Dwarf. Mom was having surgery yesterday, so I was knitting while waiting. (So wonderful to have something to pass the time!) I tried the heel twice and got so stuck. So I got online and found the Knitty Universal Toe-Up Sock Formula and it helped me right through the heel. Yay! (Mom's gonna be there a while, so I figure I'll get a lot of knitting done.)

I tried the exercise and knit thing today. I went for a walk and, after about an hour, pulled out my Pride and Prejudice socks. I really was able to get about 4 or 5 rows done. Cool, huh. Of course, I bet I got a few double-takes from the neighbors.

What is a Really Good Friend?

I was at a party with the Man of the Place, talking with a bunch of old improv buddies, when the subject of friends came up. "A good friend will help you move; a really good friend will help you move a body," I quipped. This provoked some thoughtful looks. We all started to wonder who our really good friends were. The Man of the Place couldn't help it. "Who would you call if you had to move a body?"
I looked at him. "You," I said. And I would. And this is how the phone call would go:

"Honey (sob), the man at the sewing machine repair shop said he couldn't fix
Molly. (another sob) And I kinda lost it. (pause) I'm gonna need a new
sewing machine... and there's something else..."

But no worries. Molly's fine. She's gonna be working later today. I've been putting off quilting Tiny's latest effort: a Fello Fitty (that's fake Hello Kitty to the Kitty-clueless) masterpiece.

The craziest thing I've done lately is join the 52 Pair Plunge. What's that, you ask? Sounds ominous, doesn't it? Here's the deal:

The Challenge
Knit or crochet 52 pairs of socks in one calendar year (midnight 1 June 2009 - midnight May 31, 2010) Socks may be any pattern, any yarn, any size (baby, child, adult) – leg warmers, knitted boots, slippers, etc. do not count because they are not socks!

And yes WIP’s count! (That's Works In Progress)
Anatomy of a sock: Socks have 3 parts, toes, heels and cuff. Yoga socks, pedicure socks, and tube socks will not count for this years plunge.

Do I honestly think I can knit 52 pairs of socks in one calendar year? Not without being institutionalized with only my knitting needles for company. But it's fun to try. Heck, if I make 12 pairs, I think I'll win (on a personal level). With this in mind, I headed out to Bucky's on the bike with knitting in tow. I stayed there for several hours, nursing my macchiato and listening to podcasts. Oh, and knitting. I really like this subtle basketweave pattern. These socks are for a friend from colder climes, who appreciates hand-knit wool socks. When he saw me knitting, he said, " Can you make me a pair of socks?" I laughed. This was about two or three years ago, when knitting a pair of socks--no, ONE sock--would have taken six months. Now, I'm up for it.