AnotherPurl :: a knitter's life

Urk - ravelry!

I haven't done nearly as much with Ravelry as I would like (that little thing about no happy computer), but it took me a ridiculous amount of time to log in.  It's not their fault.  I have two standard user names (well, there are more, but they are work-like rather than fun) and about 10 standard passwords.  I kept trying different combinations, and eventually I got in!

I'm looking for something to do once I have finished the Fiery Bolero, which if I find some stitch holders should be next week, but if I don't will be mid-July.  There are a lot of other projects which I need to find some time to work on, but that (and Sockapaloooza) is the big one.  I need to pull my sock pal yarn off the tall shelf and start the intended socks.  They won't be Bakerloos, because I'm pretty sure that even making them to foot circumference (rather than smaller than foot circumference like you normally would for socks) will make them hard to put on.  I will take a picture with the sock on my foot (minus heel and toe, which I was going to do at the end for both socks), so I can demonstrate how much fun it would be to put these on for someone else.  Urk!

Of course, brainylady is talking about the Josephine Top, and I can feel this desire to move it up the queue.  Not that it is the only project I want to do.  I'll see when I finish one of my older projects.  Yum!  (I also got a gift certificate for Windsor Button - in case I want to do another attempt at Bakerloos or buy enough yarn for either the Keyhole or Josephine tops).

Speeding along

Imagine here the Fiery Bolero, the left front done and the right front about to begin.  See draped over it a pink scarf, blocked out and gorgeous.  Over that, visualize a couple pairs of socks and a finished top.

Yeah, I have finished (or nearly so) some knitting projects, but I'm working on 3 or 4 projects in a day (yesterday it was the bolero, Argosy, and a little vine lace scarflet thingie).  I'm losing a lot of knitting time though to books!

Harry Potter is out like tomorrow (not actually that soon, but it feels like it), and I finished book 6 last week.  I immediately started rereading the Circle Books by Tamora Pierce.  It is about a book a day, which definitely isn't getting any of my other projects finished.  That's OK, because the wedding is in about 10 days and the best man has more tats than I do.  I'm still hoping to finish, but that is mostly because there is July 4 in which to get some quality knitting time.

Because I had a meeting today (and it was even a good, productive meeting), I thought of this.

Like a ninja...

Sunday I returned a book I already had gotten, and got Favorite Socks in exchange.  While I don't plan on changing my mind for the sockapaloooza socks (though I still haven't kitchenered... just gotta do it), I still need to get out some yarn and start a pair from the books. 

I love solid colored socks, so it is just great seeing all of the pictures of these solid and near solid socks.  Makes me so happy, even if picking up the book made me late for a meeting later that day.

I got from work a gift certificate for Amazon (there are advantages to being a birthday gal), and I went online that very same day and ordered a copy of Charmed Knits.  It's already shipped, and I should have it later this week!  I'll have to be strict with myself, because I should be working on the Fiery Bolero.

(Enter a huge parenthetical aside: I said I should be working on the FB, which implies that I am not working on it at all.  Not completely true, but I definitely haven't been working on it enough.  I did a fair amount on Saturday, but most of the time I've just tossed it aside for Argosy.  I'm on my second ball of yarn for Argosy, so I might even be finished by next week if I can get enough knitting time together.  Otherwise, I'll finish it next month if I am a good gal and work on the deadline project instead.)

There are no pictures

I left the memory card for the camera at work for a week.  It was a fairly crucial week too. 

Saturday I dug through my potential boxes and things that should be Dulaan knits, and put together a package for FIRE.  I'm glad that I was smart enough to print the form on Friday.  On Saturday, June 16 (this makes it sound so much more official doesn't it?) I sent a box containing 13 items.  Of these, there were 2 hats, a pair of socks, and a walloping 10 scarves.  I had cabled scarves, ribbed scarves, striped scarves, basketweave scarves.  Apparently 2006-2007 was a time when I would randomly buy 1 or 2 balls of yarn and make a Dulaan scarf.  Some of them appeared here, but most of them were just part of the knitting I did in between more interesting projects. 

I'll do it again for 2008, but I think it will have to be the year of something else.  Maybe the year of the worsted weight slipper sock?  Or maybe the year of I buy the smallest thing of really nice fiber and see how many projects I can add it to (not that I think I can actually afford to make that many Dulaan items out of quiviut).  Even possibly the year that I finish the vest I started the first year I did the Dulaan project.  Now, there would be a miracle.

Heck, I have 2 and a half projects ready to go to Dulaan (they needed weaving in of ends, which is why I copped out and just sent the 13) already.  Maybe 2007-2008 will be a banner year for me.  Maybe I'll get to send 23 projects.

Doing everything all at once

Wednesday, I worked on the Fiery Bolero.  I am on the left shoulder area, and am hoping to square away a decent portion of Saturday to work on the bolero. 

Thursday, I worked on Argosy in the leftover pink yarn from the thong, and made quite a bit of decent progress by being too tired to go to the gym.  I also started a hat for Dulaan, which is bulky enough that I should be able to finish by Saturday (when I bring all of my goodies to the post and then have my teeth cleaned).

Today I knit on Argosy over lunch.  It has progressed from the I am not sure I'm doing this right stage to the this is crazy nifty, come look at this stage of knitting.  You know, those projects that are just a touch unusual and so you have to show them off to everyone and their cousin who comes by.  Hey, look at this.  Can you believe this?  I'm sort of knitting it sideways!

Tonight (or rather in 3 or so hours after this goes up), I will be taking inventory of my Dulaan items and prepping the box to go out on Saturday.  After I've done that, I will have a lot more space for completed knitting projects.  I think next Dulaan will be the year of the socks.  I finished one (or did I finish two pairs?) pair for Dulaan this year and I like the idea that they need under layers as well.  Of course, now I'm picturing pairs of frighteningly thrummed knitted pants.  I bet they'd be warm.

Into everyone's life...

It's ice cream season in the Boston area.  Granted, I'm kind of a year round ice cream girl, but from June to about September, I make a lot more ice cream.  Spicy ice cream, chocolatey ice cream, tea-based ice cream, pumpkin, cadbury cream egg.  Pretty much everything is fair game.

The other day, I made my normal chocolate ice cream from this recipe in 1000 (or maybe 1001) chocolate recipes.  It uses cocoa, so it has a rich chocolately thick feel despite being made mostly with milk.  I boost it a bit by adding Godiva Liqueur.  I probably could have added more, but adding alcohol can be pretty touchy in ice cream, because it lowers the freezing point. 

I have a few Coptic friends.  The Coptic religion practices fasting.  Most of the time, this means no meat (easy enough with ice cream), no dairy and no egg (not so easy).  I've been investigating ideas for fast-friendly ice cream for the summer months.  It has to be good enough that dairy addicts will find it acceptable, and ice cream afficionados like myself will have seconds.  Maybe I'm being too picky, but I've made ice cream for forever... or at least as long as I've been knitting, and I'm sure I can do this.

This weekend is my first attempt.  Spicy vegan cupcakes, fast-friendly frosting, and fast-friendly ice cream for Sunday. 

Spicy Fast-Friendly Cupcakes
(makes a dozen)

Ingredients:
1.5 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
0.75 cups of liquid sugar (I used a mix of maple, agave nectar and honey)
2 tsp baking powder
dash of salt
0.5 cups mandarin orange tea, steaped strong
0.25 cups vanilla rice milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
0.25 cups vegetable oil
1 tbsp arrowroot powder with 1 tbsp water

Almost like Instructions:
Mix the dry ingredients (or if you are like me, toss them into a medium size mixing bowl and wave a whisk through the ingredients for a couple seconds). 

Steap the tea (I used 2 tea bags) with about a half cup of hot water until it is dark and then press the tea bags.  Add rice milk until you have 0.75 cups of liquid.  Add the arrowroot and the additional tablespoon of water to the liquid and mix well.  Pour right over the dry ingredients.  Measure out the liquid sugars (I find the flavor evens out if you use a mix, otherwise the recipe tastes strongly of either maple or honey) and pour into the dry ingredients.  Add vanilla and oil and mix for about a minute. 

I cooked these for about 16 minutes in muffin tins and let them cool for a few hours before frosting.  These seem to age well (aka, they tasted better the next day than they did the day of baking).

Recipe heavily influenced by the White Cake recipe.  I love Veg Web, and I love this recipe.  However, making it as the original recipe called for makes the cupcakes taste strongly of cereal and maple - much more like breakfast than dessert. 

As for the vegan 'ice cream,' it was pronounced tasty by one of the fasters, but she was consuming it in mostly liquid form.  Being outside without enough ice in the cooler meant the ice cream was really more like ice drink.  It would have been terrific with a glug of vodka in it.

Fiery Bolero, revisited

A few months ago (re: March), I started the Fiery Bolero using the deliciously soft Karabella Margrite.  I got to the divide for the shoulders, left the bag inadequately protected, and the cat tried to incur death by yarn.

It was an ugly night.  My honey helped me untangle the yarn and I decided to knit the smaller size (gosh this pattern makes it difficult to choose a size).  I just got to the divide for the shoulders again.  I need to finish this before July 7th (when I attend wedding the second). 

The divide for the shoulders, at least by the schematic, is about a third of the way through the project.  If there is a lack of posting here, it is because I'm trying to be a superwoman - a one woman running, cooking, baking (mostly baking actually), knitting force of nature, trying to finish this and a slew of other projects in under four short packed weeks.

Wish me luck?

Happy Birthday to me!

Happy birthday to me (I won't actually post a wav file of my singing, because Happy Birthday is the song I have traditionally butchered at a number of auditions)!

Tonight I bring my computer in for repair (boo! stupid video card), and will have to chuck another $250 out the window to make it all pretty and works good again (and yes, I'm using that particularly appalling bit of grammar on purpose).  My video card decided to go kaput kaput (I leave my laptop on nearly all the time, which I think is part of the problem), so if I get it repaired again I believe I'm going to need set up my energy saver settings to automatically shut down at 10:30 each night.  Fun!

Today, the Dulaan project gave me extra cute pictures!  Heck, read the entire post!  Of course, I need to get a box large enough to mail everything this weekend and I'm still trying to cram a few hours of quality hat knitting in for the mix.  I love reading about all of the wonderful stuff knit for the Dulaan project, but I haven't managed to get nearly as many items done as I'd like to this time around (though it is over 5).

Of course, with my computer on the fritz, I don't have access to any useful or interesting pictures (and my honey does not seem to have any pictures of the cupcakes I made over the weekend). 

Blogging from the interstices

My computer sort of died on Saturday.  It isn't the very serious death, but I think my computer runs hot and tends to fry video cards.  Umm to the tune of one every 1.5 years or so.  I can't seem to find my records of when it happened last, but it was sometime after moving to Braintree (heck, I didn't have this computer until after moving to Braintree).

It was a background feature to the entire weekend.  I would reach towards the computer as an adjunct to other things we were doing (between cooking or while watching a video), and stop.  I need have the computer repaired, but I want to know for certain how long the repair worked first.  If it is really that frequent, then I probably should look into other solutions to my daily computing (non-work) fix.

...

I'm sure that some people are tired of hearing about Ravelry (well, except my husband, who has probably heard about it for the first time just now).  A few weeks ago I signed up, having seen a few reviews (read: raves) about the website and how neat and useful it all was.  I didn't expect an invite.  I didn't know if it was a strict date-wise beta or only the cool kids are doing it or anything.

Umm, I got my invite.

I haven't played with it much, because I had work and then a meeting with friends, but I love that I can put in my books super easy.  If I bothered to tag my knitting books in Library Thing it would have been even easier!  I've been exploring the different patterns that are out there... mostly trying to find something to do with my single skein of Sea Silk.

My only problem is I'm not much of a photographer.  I love blogs with photos, so I want my blog to have pictures too.  I usually make my husband take the pictures, but it seems unfair to make him take tons of pictures of yarn (rather than finished or partially finished objects) even if I bribe him with homemade ice cream (I'm making chocolate ice cream right now with a Lactaid Milk base... I love knowing that my lactose intolerant friends can eat it). 

I also don't have a Flickr account (needed for the pictures).  Does anyone know if there is a way to make Flickr import all of your pictures straight from Typepad?  I can pull them all from my thumb drive, but it would be faster to just pull from my already uploaded pictures.

Things I love:
Seeing finished and in progress pictures in so many different yarns!
The queue - I love being able to tag the patterns I'm interested in (which at this point reminds me that I have bought yarn for some things nearly a year ago...)
Lace - I'm a huge lace fanatic, so seeing so much lace (even more than the finished and in progress pictures) is completely thrilling!

Things that frighten me:
Do I really want to know how much yarn I have and when I bought it?
How many projects do I have all of the yarn for?
Do I really need a Flickr account, a blog, and... and... and... (see the pattern)?
My pictures completely stink!  These are all so pretty!

Mostly stupid insecurities that I don't truly have time enough to think about (welcome to my month of June is being booked for me all over the place, so there is no relaxation time for knitting and Ravelry any more than there is for the birthday present I requested - a nap) anything other than adding more parentheses to things, because that is what I do when I write with stream of consciousness.