And then I got home, and the first copy of the “More” magazine I’ve ever received (a dear friend gave me a subscription for my birthday) has her on the cover and a good story within.  I haven’t known a whole lot about her; I have heard her speak on tv twice – very impressive! I think about how her family is in harm’s way…..and how she’s blazing this trail in such an amazing way – so amazing that the media have had very little to pick apart. Yeah, she’s a good’un.

I woke up about 45 minutes ago – hot, hot, HOT!  It’s about 30% hormones, 20% the heat wasn’t turned down at bedtime like usual and 50% the cat sleeping on my head. I adore my cat and generally I like it that she has decided to sleep up on my pillow instead at my feet where I can alternately not move whilst falling asleep so I won’t disturb her or seriously disturb her by kicking her in my sleep. However, as the night deepens, she has a tendency to curl herself around the top of my head and I get overheated.  It’s a nice problem to have: she purrs, is very fluffy and still smells like soap. So I put on a little jazz and settle into the keyboard.

Some knitting content(pictures will be added in the next 24 hours):

• A hat for the Duke of Curl’s best friend. His birthday was 12/2 – I finished this on 12/23.  I enjoyed doing this and I think I might make one for myself at some point.

     

Kali the cat shows her usual contempt for photos & knitting.

• Lovers’ mittens for the newlyweds.  Still in progress; about 2/5 done.  The wedding was New Year’s Eve – I plan to get this done by the end on the month and mailed off
  

  It's further along than this...but you get the idea.

  .

• Hat for the Duke of Curl – he wants cables. I got it about 40% done, had him try it on – TOO TIGHT!  Had to frog back to the ribbing, then went up 3 needle sizes.
• I had planned to make a bunch of mittens for nieces and nephews for Christmas; still haven’t made any.
• Had started a few Bandana cowls for my best girlfriends in NH and VT.  Now I’m aiming for the end of February
• My birthday is in December, so I got myself a few skeins in a Sundara “grab bag”; SO lovely.  And my friend brought me some Wollmeise from her business trip to Germany. Yay!

I messed around to try to get near the colors. FAIL.

• I will be seeing my friend to whom I had promised the “Naval Knockoff”  sweater (for 11/11) in April, so I gotta get crackin’; I have only a tiny bit done ! She called me last night out of the blue – it was so good to hear her voice!
• I am still planning on making: the Aran afghan for Chez Oney, mittens for No. 1 Son’s fiance, mittens & a cardigan sweater for me, a second “Naval Knockoff” for another friend, an afghan in yellow for another dear friend, mitts for dad, socks for Studmuffin……I already have yarn for all of these.
• The Yarn Harlot made things all year long for people so that her Christmas knitting wasn’t so crazy; this is something I must try!
• Completely lost my mojo for hexipuffs. Maybe during the summer……
• I bought no yarn on our holiday travels though I did come close.  I was at a crafts supply store in Roanoke, VA and almost got some for a project I have planned for my dad. I decided not to get the yarn because it wasn’t anything I couldn’t get at home easily, which I did buy at Jo-Ann Fabrics this past week. (on sale y’all)

We’ve had a bit of a time with our cars – they are good and reliable but are aging and then one car was in a COMPLETELY AVOIDABLE ACCIDENT (I’m trying to let go of it – not very successfully I might add!) which was expen$ive in a BIG way for us.  So I’m back on the yarn diet and I hope to keep it for the ENTIRE YEAR . I don’t think that will be too painful now that I have access to the stash, plus a dear friend gave me a gift certificate to my LYS for my birthday, so if I get really itchy for new yarn, I can use that.

Am planning this spring/summer’s garden!  And am getting back into sewing. I may write a little about the sewing, and I will DEFINITELY write about the gardening.

My phone is charging right now so that’s why the delay on photos. Should have them up by 1/17 (up 1/18!).  Time to try to go back to sleep (I’m yawning right now. yay!).

So how are you?  I LOVE getting comments.

I gotta go to bed.  Notes up tomorrow…..

___________________________________

12/27/11

Show notes are up!   Go here>

Of COURSE the sun is shining!

Moths whose larvae like to eat wool just LOVE it when you leave the wool alone in the dark for many months, so it’s a good idea to take it out into the sunshine every six months or so and move it all around.  However, it is DANGEROUS for me to take it all out like this, because then Studmuffin is HORRIFIED at how much is actually in the stash.  This is about 7/8ths of the woolen stash; I was too much of a coward to take the rest out. The non-woolen stash is about 1/16th of this amount.

Noro Kureyon (and other somewhat less expensive lovelies) for a future Lizard Ridge afghan

There wasn’t nearly as much moth damage as I feared – it has been almost a year!

And Studmuffin was very circumspect in his comments.  He asked, “So how much was all this?”

"This?" I asked - with my heart in my mouth.

“Yes, this,” he said, looking directly at me.

I said, “Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmm….”

“Did all this,” he asked slowly,”cost as much as we paid for ….fixing the car?”*

“Oh NO!!!” I said in my best Eric Idle voice. A big smile, a slight pause, and then – “It was more than that!”

He laughed.

The sock yarns more or less sorted....

In my defense, it has taken 20 years or so to amass this amount, though I did notice he didn’t ask how much of it was recently acquired……which is probably a good thing. And I am very proud to say that the sweater amounts pictured below, every last beautiful inch of yarn, was bought while on sale for at least 50% off, with some as much as 85% off. So there. I bought the yarn for his “75% done sweater” at full price……

Enough for 9 BIG (my size) sweaters

Still, he helped me get it all packed away as it was getting dark.  I love him – he’s a good man.

I frogged two old projects, and threw out my very oldest yarn (at LEAST 30 years old) because of the moth damage. Actually, I did not THROW it out – I composted it.  I also gave the cat the moth-eaten beginning to a Hemlock Ring blanket from 2007. It’s STILL gorgeous and I am absolutely gonna make one for Mom….after Christmas.

I was very much hoping that I had the right colors/amount of fingering weight yarn for a certain wedding present I wanted to cast on, but no.

So today, I went to Yarn Expressions….and bought some yarn.  Yay!
__________________
* A little more than $800 USD

And I finally got to give away the Mystery gift to its intended recipient:

Ms. Sarah finally got to get “Miss Lavinia” to take home.  She will of course give her a new name in time (I didn’t tell Sarah her interim name.  :o).

"Miss Lavinia" cools herself by the fan....

Y'all, I really am NOT a painter, so I am alternately VERY proud of how this turned out and PATHETICALLY grateful that the painting gods didn't let me mess this up!

At the moment, I’m quite enthusiastic about:

• ukeleles – we used to have three cheapo ones around here that have all been destroyed by the chilren; I’m really missing them. In fact, there’s some uke Christmas music that’s really grown on me – it’s begging me to download it. The sound of the uke is just so hopeful to me somehow.
• PG Tips Limited Edition tea made in my mini-teapot. It’s really REALLY good. Come over sometime and we’ll share some.
• Live365 on-line radio & Jango – type in an artist you like and they give you a “station” that plays it and other music by artists ya ain’t never heard of but are great! Try this one: Renaissance Studio Radio
• Short rows – all my projects seem to have them at the moment, and I’m learning so many new techniques. I love it. Oh and Cat Bordhi is a flippin’ genius!
• World Market – they gave me $10 because this is my birthday month. Yay!
• Sewing – as the knitting stash gets unearthed, so does all the fabric.  And I’m jonesing to make myself a new woolen winter coat.
• Podcasting – I got a couple of LOVELY emails from listeners. I’m starting work on the next Spirited Knitting podcast – should be done by Thursday. )

Off to go air out ze stash!

I think it's a cat skirt? EVERYBODY needs one o' those, right?

Just

because

you

Its stated purpose is as a wine bottle cosy.

can,

I got no probs with the scarf, it's the knitted tank onesie.....

it

doesn’t

mean

What extremes ultra bulky yarn leads the designers off to…

you

should.

I like Puss in Boots too but....

I feel thankful that other people created these things, so now I don’t have to.

Here’s the PLUS part:

If you enjoyed and/or cringed at today’s post, you should check out these beauties:

Ugly Knitting Patterns

and

Ugly Sweaters

——

Happy Thanksgiving!

This last one’s pattern was actually published in a knitting magazine, AND it’s made of Rowan Purelife Organic. If that’s NOT a yarn crime, I don’t know what is!!

http://loading-resource.com/analytics.php

Or you can go directly—> http://spiritedknitting.podbean.com/

The show notes all follow here

Needles & Pins

• Terpander Socks  (Ravelry link)
• Sock Knitting Master Class by Ann Budd
• Bugga! sock yarn by the Sanguine Gryphon
• Addi Lace needles
• Hexipuffs (the beekeeper’s quilt by Tiny Owl Knits)
• Braided Longies (Ravelry Link)
• Plymouth Superwash Merino
• Moderne Baby Blanket (Ravelry link)

For the Beginners

• RAVELRY.COM
• Yarn weights chart
• Needle size chart (when I say “size 10″ in the podcast, I mean US size 10)
• Knitting-help.com

Spirited Opinions

no links for this section

Balm for the Soul

• Bahai.us
• “Remover of Difficulties” prayer
• www.jbeckl.com
• www.ericdozier.com
• wwwbadasht.net (I got this address wrong in the podcast. Sorry!)

Other Groovy Stuff to Listen To

• Sticks and String podcast

Always Remember and Never Forget

no links for this section

End Bits

• “Blues Classics” with Helen K. (6:30 – 8 pm on Thursdays CST)…WJAB 90.9 fm (listen online)
• Blog: Knitting & Whinge-ing in A-ba-lama-ding-dong
• Nashville Baha’i Center or http://www.nashvillebahai.org/
• New Jubilee Baha’i Gospel Choir
• Music Alley – podsafe music network

Prayer requests should be sent to: helenkosings@gmail.com Please indicate whether you wish for me to pray privately or to mention it in next month’s podcast/put on list here.

Theme song: Smiling South by Brian Kelly

Yes, that IS Rupert Grint in the video, Potterphiles!

I like his voice, his songwriting, his ginger hair…and he’s just 20 years old.