Friday, February 25, 2005

Yes, we're back in snowy Michigan now.  Our Florida trip was fabulous.  My father-in-law and his wife are renting a house in Bonita Springs for a few months, and offered us free meals, free beds, and a big van.  All we had to do was arrange transportation there and back.  What a deal!  We had perfect weather -- upper 70s and lower 80s (F), without a cloud in the sky or a drop of rain. 

Sigh.

We had fresh grapefruit every day:

And I made a new friend:

Can you see that I'm holding my sleeve tight against my arm, and clenching my knees together?  That little bugger could move FAST! 

In addition to knitting my purple socks (with my purple fingernails!), which I'll show you another day (there's a little story that goes with those), I cranked out Cameron's Cap for a customer, using Plymouth Galway:

Back in Michigan, I tried to finish my Intro to Fair Isle pillow so I could open the steek along with my students, but I didn't quite make it:

No, that's not a steek gone wrong.  I originally had the blue/purple strip by the fuschia/purple strip, but the hot pink made the turquoise look too greeny, so I'm relocating it to the other end.  Cut and paste!

I also think I need to re-do one of the green/purple areas.  I'm shooting for a certain effect that didn't quite work there.  I'll elaborate later.

At class last night, I was thrilled to see what my students had accomplished:

Aren't those combinations fabulous?  And all three, after being presented with a variety of options, had enough confidence to cut their steeks without machine sewing or crocheting or anything -- aren't they brave?  I was VERY proud of them!

Here's an important lesson I learned on my vacation:

While it's fun to create new things:

Sometimes it's even more fun to destroy them.

True for sand castles, and true for knitting.

Words to live by.

Sarah

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

'nough said?

Sarah

Thursday, February 17, 2005

We're off to sunny Florida, to escape the dreary Michigan winter for a few days.  See you when we return! 

Sarah

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Well it's been a busy and fun-filled day here in Peasley-ville.

For starters, I pulled Son Number One out of the middle school to visit the elementary school with me.  Why?  Here's what we saw on the way in:

Son Number One had tried for years to get the elementary school to bring Johnathan Rand in for an author visit, but it didn't work out during his tenure there.  I thought he deserved a few hours away from his classes to see Mr. Rand's presentation, which was excellent.  Johnathan Rand (aka Christopher Knight) started with the Michigan Chillers series of books for young horror fans, and is now working his way through the fifty states in his American Chillers series.

My camera battery died just as Mr. Rand walked into the gymnasium, but I was able to borrow this picture from his website (with permission):

He's teaching the kids how to do "the spooky laugh", and you can see me and Son Number One in the foreground on the left -- see my two-toned hair?  Son Number Two is somewhere in that sea of kids.  You can see more photos on the American Chillers website, under the February 15th entry for the "Author Journal".  Some of you might recognize one of the children pictured with the author.

After everyone went back to their respective classrooms, I tooled on over to the Hope Borbas Library in Okemos to help set up a display for an upcoming series of beginning knitting workshops I'll be teaching there in March.  I would have taken a picture, but . . . my camera wasn't functioning.

Then I came home for a quick lunch (mmm -- leftovers!) and some work on the computer.  I updated my website with some additions to my class schedule, including a new teaching location!  Felt 'n Full, a yarn shop currently located in the Mid Michigan Mega Mall on Business 127, will be moving to the Frandor area and reopening in early April as Rae's Yarn Boutique.  I'll be teaching my Easy Beginner Scarves, Hats and Mittens classes there in April and May, as well as a Preventing/Fixing Mistakes class.  I'm eager to see what the new space looks like!

Let's see, what happened next?

Well, children came home from school, and homework was done, and snacks were had, and my husband came home from work, and then we all rushed off to a parent/teacher conference at the elementary school (following last night's parent/teacher conference at the middle school).  A nice relaxing gourmet meal was next (gah!), after which I hustled off to a parent orientation meeting for the high school (I don't want to talk about it) while the rest of the clan returned to the elementary school for basketball practice.

And then I sat down to write a blog entry.

And now I'm going to knit.

Oh -- and charge my camera battery.

Sarah

Monday, February 14, 2005

For reasons unbeknownst to anyone in my household, school was delayed two hours this morning.  We learned this after Son Number One, after waiting for the bus for an inordinately long time, decided that he had missed it, bummed a ride from my husband, and then found a note on the door of the school informing everyone of the delay.  It was announced on the local television stations, but we never would have thought to check.  The weather seems fine to us, and yet schools are delayed and closed all over lower Michigan.  There WAS freezing rain all night, but the roads are fine.  Perhaps there's something going on that I'm not aware of.  Whatever.

(update:  Son Number One left for the bus two hours later.  The bus was sitting at the corner waiting.  As Son Number One ran toward the bus, getting within about ten yards, the bus took off without him.  I'm not a big fan of the school this morning.)

My Revelation Cardigan is experiencing a time-out:

The body is done.  Two out of the three sleeves are done (yes, I said three -- doesn't everyone knit three sleeves per sweater?).  I love it!  The garter stitch button/buttonhole bands look really, really crappy.  I hate it!  I'm pondering a rolled stockinette stitch edge instead, but I'm also thinking there's a better solution I haven't thought of yet.

While waiting for that solution to make itself known to me, I'm swatching for a sock to knit along with my Basic Socks class:

And knitting along with my Introduction to Fair Isle class:

And here's what one skein of Diaketo Diadomina looks like knit up using the Multidirectional Scarf pattern:

Happy Valentines Day, everyone!

Sarah

Wednesday, February 9, 2005

I've posted an updated version of Phil's Kneewarmer pattern.  Mimi and Cecilia each found the same error and were kind enough to let me know about it.  THANK YOU!!! 

Here's a freaky small-world story.  I'll try to make it short.

Laura Lee, one of my very best friends from my childhood in Pennsylvania, moved from Boston to Cleveland a few months ago. 

Melinda, one of my very best friends from my adulthood in Michigan, moved from East Lansing to Cleveland a few years ago. 

I hadn't talked to either of them in a VERY long time (I'm not very good at keeping in touch), but Laura Lee called today to bring me up to date, and here's what we discovered:  Melinda and Laura Lee live in the same suburb of Cleveland.  Their kids go to the same school.  Their daughters are best friends.  They had no idea that they both knew me.

Isn't that freaky?  I think it's freaky.  It's very freaky, isn't it?

Small world.

Here's a blurry photo of Mica's daytime eyes:

And an in-focus photo of her alien eyes:

Freaky.

Pretty:

Sarah

Tuesday, February 8, 2005

I'm starting to get grossed out by that egg yolk, so I'd better write some more entries so I can hurry that thing into the archives.

Clarification for Linda:  Son Number One isn't really old enough to take the SATs, but doing so enables him to participate in summer academic programs that are put on by Ingham County and Michigan State University, and I strongly believe that the early exposure to these tests will give him a lot more confidence when he takes them for real.  I, for one, remember being terrified on test day.  There are sample questions on the website that I've been having fun with (hey -- I have a brain!).

Since you've all been so patient (or maybe you've just gone away) while I've appeared to be knit-less, here's one of the things I've been keeping from you:

That's my Revelation Cardigan, in the Amish colorway (not Uptown, Emma, that's more turquoise and magenta -- this is more blue and red).  Amish doesn't appear to be on the Lorna's Laces website.  What's up with that?  Anyway, when I find a longer U.S. 10 needle, I'll be able to finish the sleeves using the two circular technique (I am NOT getting a 16" size 10 -- my hands would fall off!) and can add the garter stitch border around the v-neck opening.  I'm hoping to snuggle into this sweater in the very near future.

I've also been messing around with a stockinette stitch scarf (wow) and with mates for the mittens from my Easy Beginner Mittens class (yowza).  I'm also getting caught up on a bunch of outstanding quotes and knitting-for-hire jobs, so I can get back to Cree.  If you had told me there would ever be a day that I would look forward to doing Intarsia, I would have called you a liar.  I'm amazed.  The next thing you know, I'll be asking everyone if I can weave their ends in!

My printer is experiencing some technical difficulties, which apparently are somewhat painful:

Poor thing!

Sarah

Sunday, February 6, 2005

Five teenagers, a younger child, and my husband (which adds up to seven teenagers, basically) are in the next room watching the Superbowl. They sat at the dining room table and played poker, ate junk food, and drank pop ("soda", for those of you in the East) until game time.  Now that the game has started, they've moved to the couch, set up a folding table to keep the junk food and pop within reach (rather than walking ten feet to the dining table, which would be out of sight of the television), and are currently applauding one of the commercials.  Pizza will be arriving shortly.

I'm trying to ignore all the hoopla by doing laundry, printing out notes for my classes next week, and putting the finishing touches on some knitting-for-hire jobs.  I'm trying REALLY REALLY hard to refrain from asking that the volume be turned down.  I'm not a football fan.

Still no progress on my own knitting (although I hope to have something to show you soon), but here's Annette's hat from the Easy Beginner Hats class:

She made a matching scarf, which I forgot to photograh, and is working on matching mittens.  Maybe I can get a photo of the whole ensemble when she's done.

And for Deb's benefit, here's an exciting little photo essay starring the furry critters.

Eye contact is made:

Keiko wants to show Mica who the alpha dog is:

Mica isn't amused . . .

. . . and goes away.

The end.

Cast of characters

Mica, the wonder kitty:

Mica has recovered from her eye surgeries and appears to have retained most of her eyesight.  In dim light she looks fine (like in this photo), but in sunlight, her pupils dilate to different sizes and she looks a little wacky.

Keiko, also known as "She looks just like a fox!":

Keiko is very happy that the snow is melting so she can find more places to go potty.

And for a totally unrelated chuckle, this is what I found after Son Number One left for the SAT test on Saturday morning:

Brain food?

Sarah

Thursday, February 3, 2005

I've got a whole lotta nuthin' to show you as far as my own knitting is concerned, but lookie at this here cutie patootie:

That's Lynette, who FINALLY got around to finishing her giant sweater from some previous issue of Vogue Knitting Magazine (I think it was Holiday 2003, but I'm not positive).  Isn't it the coolest thing?  The pattern was marked for beginners (Very Easy Very Vogue), and Lynette, who has been knitting for just over a year, confirms that the actual knitting was quite simple. 

The finishing, however, was for the birds.  Everything was fine until the collar-attaching part, which was very fussy, and which had very confusing directions.  Oh, and there was a little kitchener stitch and seaming of a back yoke piece that also weren't particularly VERY EASY.  I've been working with Lynette off and on for, oh, ALMOST A YEAR with the finishing of this sweater.  She FINALLY got her butt in gear and got it done (except for about a thousand ends to weave in, but we set a deadline of Saturday night for those).

Beautiful job, Lynette!

I've been knitting here and there, but have zilch to show for it.  

Sarah

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