Like another hole in my head

As in, I need another WIP like ... Well, actually after the past week with the cold from HELL, that doesn't seem all bad, but I digress...

Temptation came my way in the form of the winter Interweave Knits in Friday's mail, specifically the Pfeiffer Falls Hooded Scarf, and since I was finally starting to feel like I'm back among the living, I trotted off with the issue and my travel-size bottle of hand sanitizer to my LYS in search of yarn. (Funny how the stash seldom has the right yarn at times like these.)

And here's what called out to me:

Classic Elite's Portland Tweed in a gorgeous dark teal.

Everything else just got demoted in priority. I'm hoping this project will get me through Thanksgiving with Egg's family. This year I've been delegated to make the cole slaw.

Just when you think...

Sunday things were starting to get back to normal - no more visiting relatives, we set the corner of the house down on its lovely new concrete footing, I finished the Trampoline socks, I met the girls for a sip-n-knit at Starbuck's - and then I got smacked with cold from HELL on Sunday night. So I've been coughing, sniffling and nursing an on-and-off fever for the last three days, and I've reached the grumpy/whiny stage.

The socks are pretty cool, though. The colorway is sort of an underwater camouflage. There's a green fleck in it that doesn't come through in the picture. Too bad the yarn (Trampoline from Skacel) is discontinued. Skacel seems to introduce and discontinue yarns as fast as Mikasa does china patterns. If I had to do them over again, I'd go down a needle size, from US 2 to US1.

I also made a little progress on the top-down cardi before the plague struck. The sleeves are done, and that's where I blended in the new yarn with the old and harvested as much old yarn as possible for finishing out the body. The colorway has changed a bit in the last 4-5 years (no surprise there), but I think it'll be ok having it concentrated in the sleeves and probably some attached i-cord edging.

Having finished the Trampoline socks, I needed a next portable project. Taking a little break from socks, I cast on for the Scotch Thistle Lace Stole using the skein of Schaefer Yarns "Anne" in a lovely autumny colorway. It was a gift from my friend and almost-neighbor Barbara - so thoughtful! Not that you can really tell much from the picture (unblocked lace looks more like a dishrag than anything else), but even this little bit is working up so prettily that I'm forgiving the yarn for having been such a bitch to wind.

Back in a little knitting slump

Fiber is taking a wee bit of a back seat to other stuff lately - mostly family stuff and an unexpected major house project. I can't really call it "home improvement" in the traditional sense, although preventing the corner of the house from sagging to the point of collapse does qualify as as a significant improvement. We spent the last two weekends of demolition of the screened porch and an attached greenhouse to get access to the supposedly load-bearing corner post that the previous owners damaged beyond function during their poorly conceived and executed installation of the greenhouse. Luckily we had my step-father's help with jacking up the corner of the house and pouring new concrete footings last week, and that corner of the house is nicely supported now while the concrete cures. Whenever we get into one of these projects undoing something stupid that the previous owners did, and this is far from the first time, I have to admire the strength built into this 1970s house; otherwise it wouldn't have survived their ownership. They did cover up their messes nicely though. No, I'm not feeling very charitable toward them. But anyway, we took this weekend off from home maintenance projects, other than my rearranging the guest room furniture. That helps clear my head - what can I say?!!?

On a fibery note, Tonni brought me some goodies back from her trip to SAFF! (Check out her pictures of the fun and fiber.) Two skeins of Mountain Colors Bearfoot - my absolute favorite sock yarn now, in lupine and teal - and the superwash merino pin roving on the upper left. She also generously gave me the ends of some of the rovings she spun up on her wheel. Those are the two on the right. The rovings are for learning to spin on the drop spindle. I bought the spindel at Maryland Sheep & Wool, but I stupidly didn't buy any learning fiber; everything I bought there is too pretty to mess up while I'm on the learning curve. So Tonni to the rescue! That girl is going to get me to spin!

I know, I'm already not getting much knitting done, my house is a wreck, and here I go, planning to add something new to the mix. It'll all work out... I do have Trampoline socks almost done, and the latest never-ending WIP, the top-down cardi, is progressing somewhat now that I got over myself and started blending in the new skeins. I still don't want to photograph it though. Gotta have at least one hang-up...