Yearly Archive: 2013

First, my plans today already shot, because I planned to sleep in later than 5:30 this morning. This should have worked, as I was up much of the night with my sinus / ear unhappiness. However, my body and brain appear to have missed the memo, and so it has been an early start to the day.

But, I will not be deterred! I have plans! (This is far more information that you want about my schedule for the next couple of weeks, and is recorded here mostly so I can have a record to go back and compare what I actually manage to do against what I planned to do.)

TL;DR: My plans for the next two weeks. Including a couple of open days in Seattle, if anyone wants to grab a bite.

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[ Yes, this is a Winter Holiday That Shall Remain Unnamed Post. If this is going to cause you trauma, please skip it. ]

I think the last time I tried to do this was about 15 years ago, and it was an utter failure. But, I may have recovered from the trauma, or I’ve just lost my mind (again, more, whatever), because I’m ready to give it another try.

If you would like to be on my Winter Holiday card recipient list, please privately message me your mailing address. I don’t promise much beyond a silly card, a pithy greeting, and a signature, but a girl’s gotta start somewhere, right? (Also, by sending me your address, you have promised to not be angry if I manage to completely fail at this venture once again.)

Having returned from a dentist appointment, and having had lunch, I’ve suddenly been overcome with rage at the state of my craft room / office. I had been really nice and neat and clean, thanks to Jer and Shamala’s efforts. But, inertia and meri-tendencies set in, and it’s starting to look like a storage room again.

So, I dive in.

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The process of choosing a new knitting project is always an interesting time. There’s so much potential there, especially when you aren’t knitting to some constraint or another (using up stash, only using the needles you have, to a deadline, etc.). I’ve spent dozens of hours poring over Ravelry looking for my next project. I’ve also had projects fall into my lap, via a variety of means.  (more…)

(Actually, even if you’re not a knitter, but you’re a dude (or someone who prefers unisex / masculine to the feminine) who would like a cowl, your input is appreciated as well.)

Those of you who follow me on Facebook know that I’ve been on something of a rampage when it comes to knitting cowls for folks. I think I’ve made 5 or 6 to date, and I’m having a ton of fun. However, the pattern that I’ve been using (Robin Ulrich’s Greyhaven Cowl) is decidedly feminine. I would love to have a go-to pattern for cowls for the men in my life. I would prefer that it be worsted weight, and use less than 200 yards of yarn. (Not because I’m a cheapskate, but because I’ve found that it’s the right balance of interest / yarn investment / time for a project that I’m going to repeat multiple times.)

I’m thinking that Melissa Beach’s Tom’s Crossed Cowl might be a good choice, particularly when loosened up a repeat or two, but I’m definitely open to suggestions.

Thoughts?

I know, I know. I’m far too predictable. Jenn and Jim move to Washington state, and here I am, hopping on a plane. What can I say? I’m a creature of habit. And if that means crossing the country to hang out with Jenn and Jim and their critters, then so be it.

I will be in the area from the evening of 11.25 (the Monday before Thanksgiving) to the evening of 12.04 (the Wednesday after Thanksgiving). Thanksgiving weekend itself is pretty full, but I suspect I will have a lot of free time to roam about the rest of my visit, as Jenn has that whole job thing to keep her busy.

I will be car-enabled. I will have a GPS. I will have gas money. I may even have yarn money. So, my questions are thus:

• I have friends in Seattle, Vancouver (both WA and Canada), and Portland. Do any of you want to get together? (Ideally, with the Vancouver(s) or Portland, a place to crash overnight would be available, but not absolutely necessary.)
• Keeping in mind my limitations, what are some things I absolutely must go see or do or places to eat?
• (You knew this was coming.) What yarn stores must I visit?
• Whatever else I’ve forgotten that you think I should know.

I’d love to see some folks, so long as everyone is ok with keeping it low-key. I’m going to have two straight weeks of people (Jer & Shama are arriving in the DC area the day I get back), and I’d like to see if I can manage it without collapsing for a week when it’s all over. 🙂 (And if you don’t want to see me, or times don’t work out, or you don’t live in the area any more, but still have some advice for what I should see / do, I’d love to hear from you, too!)

Ping me via whatever means is handy for you, and we’ll see if we can’t work something out.

Aloha!

It’s true. My phone has definitely developed an attitude since installing iOS 7. However, the greatest trouble I’m having of late is that I am unable to install anything from the App Store. Since this is, you know, the easiest way to get new things onto my phone, I’m kind of displeased.

I go to the App Store, and find something I want to buy. I press the little icon with the price, which then converts to “Buy.” I then press the “Buy” button. In the past, this has usually changed the little button into a swirling circle thing, then after a few seconds, I’ll get a password prompt. Once I enter my password correctly, the swirling circle thing starts to fill in, showing installation progress. At least, that’s how it *used* to work.

Now, I press the “Buy” button, and get the swirling circle thing and… that’s it. No password prompt, no filling circle, nothing. It just sits there, forever. (Or until the screen locks, but it’s in the same state once I unlock the screen.) (Or until I press the home button.)

I’ve done a couple of quick searches, and they mostly lead me to people who can’t type their password. I never even get that far.

This is on an iPhone 4S. Yes, I’ve rebooted the phone. No, I haven’t tried completely wiping it. I was hoping to avoid that.

Any thoughts?

At sit & knit last night, I was talking about an almost finished project of mine. With the weather changing, I’d really love to be wearing it. It’s the Clara cardigan by Versaci Knits. All of the knitting is done. All that’s left is to seam up the sides and sleeves. Unfortunately, I hate seaming. This resulting in me wondering if anyone knows of a service (or person!) out there who just loves finishing projects. At this point, I would happily pay someone to sew this cardigan up for me.

I received this mail from Adobe this morning, and thought I’d share, in case anyone has the mail going to the bit bucket. (more…)

I have reached a point in my knitting where I’m pretty pleased with my existing skills, but want to expand on to new things. I’ve noticed that most of the projects I’ve wanted to do but don’t have the skills to do are colorwork of one sort or another.

Do any of you have any recommendations for a beginning colorwork project?