Mondays are not ALL blue.

I came home from a late day and look what was waiting on me! This is a surprise gift from Marina. Thanks so much! I adore the stitch markers and of course the chocolate and look at the little skein. All will be put to very good use-immediately in some cases. (chocolate) tee hee heee Love it.


I also had this wonderful spindle waiting on me. Of course I had to try it out immediately. Spins great and I think I will try some lace-weight on it.
















I am making some headway on *The Socks*. Unravelled miles of the first sock this morning and am about to start the second heel. I think it will actually look better than feared at first. I was really worried about it, but the more I get to secretly know my sock pal through her blog, the more I think she will like it. (fingers crossed here)

It's a race against time

to finish my sockapalooza socks this round. Do you remember my sock tragedy? I wasn't able to find any more of this apparently ancient colorway, so I have been searching for something to replace the heels and toes to stretch it. Luckily, I went out to play in Tyler this week and I found this great blue at Rose Path Weaving. I can't drive near Lindale without stopping and I never come away empty handed. ;0) So what do you think? Will it work? I have to finish in just a few days and I still have sock #2 to go from the heel down. Ugh!! I hope she likes them!











I had a little down time this weekend between the rehearsals, so I was able to get a little done on my Luskentyre. I have about 10 more rows than this picture. This pic is just after the armhole steeks.
I also got some spinning done and this is my first plying from a spindle. Pretty cool, eh? I am thoroughly addicted. I have ordered another spindle and am considering another ebony beauty. It is what my instrument is made of and I have a special love for that type of wood.


I also recently decided to join Warming Grace over at Two Wooden Sticks and a Ball of Wool. Cynthia's niece, Grace, has been diagnosed with leukemia and she has asked for squares to make a blanket for Grace. She has had such an outpouring that she will make blankets for other children at Alberta Children's Hospital in the oncology ward. Go Cynthia!! What a beautiful gift of love Grace will receive.

Weird places I have knit...

Kat is having a contest to see where people knit...so here goes.


1. In Dallas traffic during rush hour. (Yes, I was driving. No it wasn't moving. Does it ever?)

2. On stage with the symphony during rehearsal.

3. In the audience while a band was performing.... (I like rock and jazz music, too, ya know.)

4. At a swimming pool while sunbathing.

5. In my car stranded while waiting for someone to come and fix it or get me! :0)

A is for April Madness

April is always a busy time for me. I am finishing the school year, finishing symphony seasons, and the dreaded TAXES. This year I boxed it up, threw it at my CPA and ran away. I haven't heard from her yet. I am pretending it is a good omen. I am very good at denial.

I have even gotten some knitting in this week. Stolen time. Stolen from should be, should have, better do's...you name it. I can procrastinate it. :0) Even my knitting. I have been diligently working on my Luskentyre as per the gentle nudging from Marina. Thank you, Marina! She is also working on it and surpassing me in a fraction of the time. She is amazingly fast. I am just about two rows short of starting the armhole steeks and will make that this weekend,. Yea!







I have also started the unraveling of my Sockapalooza sock and a matching navy is on the way for the heels and toes so I can stretch the multi yarn as far as I need. I actually think it will look nice after much wringing of hands and midnight pondering. There was no hope in finding this yarn still available. My mother in law checked it all out for me in Germany. Thank you, Hedwig!! And I have also started the Embossed Leaves Socks by Mona Schmidt from Interweave Press Winter 2005. I am making them in the Flickering Flame from Brooklyn Handspun. It is a really nice colorway.




And lest I forget my Red Hot Sizzling Socks....I will have more updates in a week or so. I have a beautiful yarn on the way for them. Yipppeeee!

Now for a story.

My friend, who will remain nameless, (you know who you are), swears by waxing her legs. After listening to how wonderfully smooth my legs will be and how I won't have to shave for weeks...I decided to give it a try. The last wax disaster had completely been forgotten, or at least blocked. So, I went merrily on my way to the beauty supply store with good intentions and money. Never doing anything half-assed, I bought the supplies: a warmer, wax, sticks for applying the wax, and cloth (there is a name, I forget) to rip the hair from your body. I went home and began. All was going painfully fine. I ripped as much hair from my legs as I could stand for one afternoon and time was growing near for me to get ready for a big concert I was playing. I started cleaning the wax drippings from the floor and counters. Hmmm, it wasn't coming off very well. Nothing seemed to work. Soap, water, towels. I began to panic. Fine, I can get the wax off the house later, AFTER the ever approaching concert. My legs! My hands! I began to furiously wipe the wax off my hands with a towel! It wasn't coming off. My God, the towel was now stuck to me! Why wasn't it coming off? My fingers were sticking together. How could I play a concert with my fingers sticking together? No one said anything about wax remover! How can you sell a novice this equipment and not sell wax remover? It was a conspiracy. I imagined them now at their little desk laughing at what they knew I must be going through. My God! I am going to be stuck to my oboe! How will I even turn pages? Get dressed? Even shower, for God's sake? I began to run through the house with my hands held high screaming. (no one was home) Gasoline? Turpentine? I had none of these short of siphoning gas from my tank. Then a thought. Could I burn it off? No, no, never have been good with fire. What was I thinking? Baby oil? I ran back to the bathroom screaming hands still raised above my head. It must work. It had to work. I had to at least get the black towel fuzz removed so I didn't appear to have hair growing from my palms. ( I needed to be asked back to play this gig, ya know) I poured the baby oil on. Slathered it. Rubbed in a frenzy. Slowly the fuzz began to lose its grip and I was able to at least scrape the wax off enough to keep my fingers from sticking together. More oil. Less stick. There is a God.

What I did this weekend.

Look what we have here....



finished Pomatumuses...or would that be a couple of Pomatomi? Whooohooo, I love the fit. I love the yarn! I finished them in the car this morning while I waited for my first concert of the day at 8:30. Yes...that would be am. Blinding sunshine, not enough coffee in the world and nasty people already on the road at 8am. Actually, those a#$^%les on the road were not ALREADY on the road, but probably STILL on the road. heh heh Anyway, they are done. Now back to my scheduled unraveling of the green sockapalooza socks...because this IS unraveled AGAIN! And I have heels and toes to make!

Want to see pics from the show? What we have here folks is an Easter pagent. I know it looks like a Styx concert (Domo arigato, Mr. Roboto), but I promise it is Pontius Pilate.......or at least that's what I picked up between the muffled snickers (mine, of course). I think this may qualify for the "only in Texas file". What do you think?

I also got to meet this little sweetheart. I'm in love. I think the only thing that will keep me from running away with him is the fear that he might relieve himself on my living room floor like he did on stage this morning. heh heh heh






I also went to Mount Vernon with my friend Elvan. We saw this on the way into town. I don't know why she is there. I just know it was marvelously entertaining to us. We were there to do a little fundraising for Mount Vernon Music by selling beautiful flowers donated by Elvan's husband. Our friends, Mark and Ute have started Mount Vernon Music in an effort to provide the area with fantastic musicians and music. We wish you the best success!!!!!

Have I ever shown this to you?

This is my spindle from Cascabeles Handspindles. It is such a wonderful and gorgeous spindle. I am making some sock yarn out of an undetermined long wool. Very easy spin and the spindle makes it even easier because of the great balance. I think I am going to make myself a wrist distaff pretty soon. Any of you out there ever tried one?

I am almost done with my Pomatomus socks. I will most likely finish them today or tomorrow. I can't wait to wear them. I have several friends that want a pair...so I just may have to oblige.......ummm, after I make a certain hat and wrist warmers for an artist I know.

Sundays... Sunday..lala..lalalala

This is where it all happens. The seventh level of Reed Hell. Scraping, gouging, filing, and much gnashing of teeth. I have about 30 reeds I need to make between now and the next opening of the post office..T minus about 20 hours or so. They said it couldn't be done. They were right...because I have knitting to attend to. Looks like the German yarn is a bust. I will have to do a little frogging and reknitting. Oh dread.



Here is a little stash acquisition to tide me over the rough spot. This is Berry Smash from Brooklyn Handspun and Cheryl from Mama E . Nice, eh? Pardon the disheveled look of the Berry Smash, as someone in the house tried to abscond with it.
I won't mention any names, but she has an affinity for good yarn. Last antic was a ball of pink Kidsilk Haze I caught sight of as it went flying past me in a blur. It was rescued and now the stash has to stay locked up. Not to mention the time 25 feet of reed thread was surgically removed from her intestine to the tune of $700.00....but that is something we don't talk about 'round here very much. Oh, and lest I forget, the Fall 2003 Vittadini book so I can make this.

Spring has sprung

...at least in my backyard. Tomorrow it will be over as summer begins. :0) Ok, not really, but this is the south where spring FEELS less than a week long. Look at that oregano and thyme! Yippeee! Grow baby, grow.

I went to Victoria's yesterday because I received this in the mail (Happy Birthday to me!), and bought these along with other goodies I WON'T show. But I will tell you that the girl that sold them to me said that these undies are like a party in your pants. Aaaahhahaha. She DID say that. You think I am lying, don't you? A party in your pants. Michele, you listenin, girl?

Cute, aren't they? I can't wear them around my pets. They are all afraid of these pants. I am NOT kidding. My parrot is so afraid of them she won't come near me if I have them on. ....Could it be that I need to buy more colors besides black? It IS slimming, you know.

I finished one Pomatomus with Sunshine Yarn in Violets and am starting the other in a few minutes. I am sure I will do more of these little beauties. They are really fun and a great fit. I just can't take a good photo because of the tree trunk effect I always get photograhing my own leg. It is just too horrifying. You see that too many times and start believing.....oooh. Gives me shivers.