gray days and other distractions

i kid you not—this week we had at least two days, maybe three, where it got darker as the morning progressed.

the weather patterns have been the hardest thing to get used to since we moved to ohio. weather just sticks here, good or bad. when it rains, it rains for many consecutive days. same with nice weather, but let’s face it, you can almost never get too much of that.

it’s the many consecutive days of gray that stick in one’s mind, especially at this time of year, when the days are so short. in NYC, the weather seems to change hourly, a condition of island life (though, not that kind of island, for sure). the winds come at the island from all directions and the ocean changes it’s rhythems every twelve hours, so the weather is a continual source of inspiration—even entertainment. i never felt down about bad weather, because i knew it would change soon. umbrellas and rain gear are purchased in multiples and kept both at work and at home, because one never knows—it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.

the weather here promotes huddling indoors for days at a time—good for knitting, yes, but bad for keeping one’s body in high spirits, and by extension, one’s mind. oh sure, getting some extra knitting done when i would normally be out riding is good

but eventually, my too-static body rebels and begins whining and crying to move. i mean, i still ride my bike back and forth to classes all through the winter, but that’s only two days per week, weather permitting. i do have a solution, though.

david set up my trainer last weekend. it’s WAY cheaper than the gym (i hate going to the gym). and it’s really good for my summer riding. when i use the trainer, i can do patterns and intervals that i can’t really do on the road, which help me when i get back outside in summer. the only thing i can’t do on it is knit and blog. but i have that partially covered.

i feel SO much better when i’m riding regularly, that i have more energy to get up a little early and i’ve been knitting before work in the morning. see my sweater?

i’m about 2 inches (maybe three!) into the yoke. i’ve established the cables along the raglan decreases. i am on my way. and, i am not cutting into any of my nighttime knitting either.

obstacles is heading into the homestretch—i’m beginning to think i might even have it done for our anniversary next weekend.
i thought i would need two more hanks of cashmere, but i may only need one of them.
a matching pair of mitts might be in my future.

i’m pretty sure the blogging will be back to normal for a while now that my recent work crisis seems to have been put back on even keel. for at least the next week, there should not be too many fires to put out. i am deeply sorry for myself (not to mention the peevishness) when i can’t write.

[(pause) boy, i just had the BEST dish of macaroni—our summer garden at work, yum]

i realized today that i bet everybody was going crazy trying to push work through because the holidays are coming. this is the time of year when everyone has a last chance to take unused vacation time and the office is a ghost town. gotta get us off-site people saddled with plenty to do while the cats are away.

i’ve been working away at the socks-which-are-to-be-gifts. the brother socks are longer, but still at the rather boring stage.

however, the heel shall commence soon, and the party will begin. meanwhile laceyLegsSox are looking might, mighty fine

i turned the heel and am starting up the leg, but you can’t see that part in this photo. i am continuing with stockinette until i am up near the ankle, when i will then add a matching lace panel to the back of the leg. these would probably make be-yoo-tee-ful stockings in a fine yarn that turned more sheer on the leg. hmm. maybe trouser socks?

i started to take a good hard look at my holiday knitting this week . i know—it’s about time, right? i always think i will start earlier and i never do. it just doesn’t seem right to start before thanksgiving. ever since that one year i made 5 sweaters for my brother’s kids between thanksgiving and christmas, i think i can pull off that kind of thing every year.

of course i have a boxful of stuff i’ve knitted throughout the year that i was never sure who it would eventually belong to—that box even has surplus from other years. samples from pattern development, experiments, etc. things that were never intended to be for me. heh. but you’d be surprised how few things i can glean from that box for actual gift giving.

it doesn’t cover my list by any means. my other brother wants slipppers for all his kids, and of course, for him. that’s a lotta slippers. if you promise not to think my brother is a freak, i’ll tell you how many—9 pair total for the whole family. and i’d really like to make the littlest one another dress.
and then there is the woman who cuts my hair, and the mail carrier (she’s easy—sox, right?), and various friends.

and then there is david. i don’t even know what the heck i’m going to make him this year. he could use a new lightweight sweater, but i made him one for each of the last two or three years. he’s probably tired of getting that. (hee-hee).
maybe i’ll think about that later—after all, there’s plenty of time. christmas is quite a ways off yet . . .