Finally Some Knitting

 In attempt to accomplish something -- you can't do a whole lot in a neck brace -- I picked up this Zick Zack scarf that's been languishing for a few years.  I'm using left-over yarns from other projects, and it's been fun deciding when to change colors.

I love the way it is coming out, but I will not make another one. It's a one-row repeat that requires counting, so it is tedious. I think I'm almost done -- I'll have to try it on when I take off my neck brace to wash today -- and then I can move onto something new.

Some Finished Objects

When I started my ZickZack scarf, I was sure it wouldn't be ready until the winter of 2018-19. Fingering-weight yarn, small needles, and long rows made it feel like it would be long-term project.

But I had forgotten the seduction of the Chevron stitch pattern. It became a comfort to knit a few rows every day. And now I'm wearing it!

I made mine longer than the pattern calls for. I like a scarf I can wrap around my neck and still have dangling ends, so I bought an extra ball of each color -- though I did not use all of the 3rd balls.

For the first time in a while, I have finished jewelry project.

I can't claim that this is an original pattern -- I got it from a book -- but I love it nonetheless. It's a bit tricky, but totally worth it. I think I know what my sisters-in-law will be getting for their next birthdays!

Mid-Week Musings

Another hectic week at school is under way. I am still experiencing quite a bit of pain where my tooth used to be, but the discharge papers say that's normal. I do think it makes me more tired.

I have been trying to knit a few rows every day or two on my ZickZack scarf. It is slow-going, but I'm not minding that.

There are always new color combinations, which keeps it interesting.

Reading has been going slowly. I like to read before I fall asleep and lately sleep has been rushing in. I'm just beginning Lyndall Gordon's biography of Virginia Woolf. 

I picked up The Illustrated Life, which shows sketchbooks from artists around the world, at used book sale sponsored by my local library. I started checking out these sales a year or so ago, and I have stumbled on amazing finds. This book was just $3, far less than the $19.99 it would have cost me new. And it's full of great art and interviews.

Joining with Kat for Unraveled Wednesday.

Happy New Year!

It's been a while, but starting school and getting through the High Holy Days is just exhausting!

As always, I enjoyed the holidays. I try to make them peaceful and reflective, which would be easier if I didn't host the Break Fast that ends Yom Kippur. I fed around 35 people this year -- some of whom had fasted for 25 hours.

My friend Richard makes the most beautiful -- and delicious -- challahs.

We are having a gorgeous fall -- thanks, no doubt -- to global warming. The most exciting part is that I can bike again, now that the scar from my surgery is healed. And the fall flowers are stunning.

I know I swore not to buy any yarn or cast on any new projects, but I have finished a few things, so I gave in when I saw a sample of a ZickZack Scarf at an LYS. Here's my new beginning:

Besides, it seems only right to start a new project at the beginning of the new year! The yarn is Lang Mille Colori Baby. It feels like it's very thin sock yarn, almost lace. This is going to take FOREVER, but I think it will be worth it.

I hope to get back in the blogging groove. Work has just been overwhelming! Many days I'm at school from 7:30 to 5:30 without even a break for lunch. I feel really lucky to work at a great school where the staff is amazing and the students are diverse and interesting. I like my work -- there's just too much of it!

Farewell to Yarn Along

I was sad this morning to read that Ginny has retired Yarn Along, a Wednesday link-up she has hosted since 2010. Of course, I totally understand her readiness to move on, and I'm sure many of us with continue with Tuesday's Keep Calm and Craft On with Nicole. Still, I will miss the reading element that Ginny brought into our world.

So, it is with bit of sorrow that I post my last Yarn Along, which includes both a new knit and a new book.

Summer Camp is a shallow and long shawl designed by Laura Aylor. The solid sections are Sun Fiber Valley yarn, and the speckled yarn is from Hedgehog Fibres. Both are yummy and fun to work with. It's designed to be a mindless knit, and it is quite easy.

Everyone Brave Is Forgiven follows three fictional Londoners through World War II. Chris Cleave, who wrote Little Bee, takes on a narrative voice that has the ring of history, but I'm not far enough into the book to say if it works. The dialogue sparkles with dry British wit, so I'm encouraged by the first few chapters.

Joining up with Ginny to Yarn Along.

Books and Knitting

It's been so long since I had a fever, that I totally forgot what it felt like. Thus, I was shocked at Urgent Care Monday, when they told me I had a temperature of 101.5. In case you, too, have forgotten: Just walking across a room in a major effort!

I've mostly slept the last two days and when I was awake, I wasn't up for any difficult knitting. So I cast on for one of the patterns I've been wanting to make from Island by Jane Richmond.

This is a super simple scarf knit from linen. I'd picked up some Rowen Pure Linen on sale at an LYS. The pattern calls for fingering weight yarn, but this yarn is aran. What the heck? I just went ahead and cast on. It's just a scarf.

In my febrile state, it did not occur to me that I should use larger needles. However, I am liking it so far.

I'm still working my way through It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis. It's interesting, but not as good as his classic works. So I also started another novel: A Hologram for the King by Dave Eggers.

It's about a failing middle-aged businessman who heads to Saudi Arabia for the deal that will turn everything around in his life. Of course, nothing is that easy. I loved Eggers' The Circle, about a young woman who is hired by a Google-type company.  I often like workplace novels; My favorite TV show of all time is The Office. I'm finding Hologram reasonably entertaining.  (I think it was made into a movie with Tom Hanks.)

I'll be linking up with Ginny at Small Things to Yarn Along.

Snow Day: The Good and the Bad Yarn Along

My phone rang at 6:10 this morning -- usually not a good thing. I always think something happened to my parents. But this was a robo-call from the school district informing me that the schools are closed! I would have gone back to sleep except a very hungry cat was licking my face.

So here's the good and the bad:

A snow day is a good thing. Shoveling is not. Keith is skiing all week in British Columbia, so the pleasure is all mine. I generally enjoy doing the sidewalks, but this is very wet and heavy snow. Oh well. I need the exercise! (He arranged for service to plow the driveway -- thank goodness!)

I finished my quilt 10 minutes before last night's meeting, so I was able to deliver it. I'm looking forward to making some progress on my Brickless:

And I need to prepare for the Sun Valley January Thaw, which is coming up tomorrow night!  What is more fun than packing knitting? Not much!

I'm having trouble finding a book that will hold my attention, so I'm taking a chance on Mischling by Affinity Konar.

I don't usually read Holocaust fiction because I often feel that the quality of the fiction doesn't live up to the seriousness of the topic. This has gotten very good reviews and was on the new-books shelf at the library. It's about twin girls (fictional) who are plucked out of the masses at Auschwitz to be "treated" by Dr. Mengele. It might be too painful to read, but I'll give it a try.

On this snowy day, I'll be linking up with Ginny to Yarn Along.

A Finish, A Start, and Work

The second Robson has been cast off and worn a few times. I have to say that I love this pattern. The fabric it makes is so squishy and feels great against my neck, especially on days like today when the temperature is 1 degree above 0.

I'm really excited about the 1 Year of Stitches, an embroidery stitch-along coordinated by  Sara Barnes of Brown Paper Bag. You just hoop a piece of fabric into the hoop size of your choice and embroider at least one stitch a day. Any type of stitching, thread, or fabric is allowed. You're supposed to take a photo  every day, but that's hard to do with such short days here.

Here's mine so far:

 It's not too late to join. You can find all the information here.

I went back to work on Wednesday, and I cannot believe it was only a three-day week. It's Saturday morning and I am exhausted! I really do enjoy my job. High school students are great and my co-workers could not be more supportive. But you say "teen" and I say "crisis." A few of our students are going through terrible times, and I spent more time feeling like a social worker than a teacher. We need more community supports for families! As much as I want to fix everything, I don't have that much power.

And the "best" news of all: Over winter break, the state added more required paperwork for special ed teachers. Really? My new saying is: "Why do I have to deal with students? They just get in the way of paperwork!"

Still, I don't want to end on a downer. I am lucky to work in a great high school that is known for its quality teaching. Moreover, I still genuinely enjoy hanging out with teen-agers. They are smart and funny and provocative. You have to count your blessings, right?

A Winner and a UFO

Let's get to the exciting part first: who won the Think Summer Give-Away? The random number generator (also known as my dear daughter) chose number 7, which would be Gracie Saylor! Congratulations! If you can send your address to deborah.kades@gmail.com, I'll get your package into the mail!

Instead of indulging myself in casting on yesterday, I pulled this out of my closet:

It's a Brickless scarf that I started last year with Miss Babs Yowsa. Isn't the color gorgeous?  I don't know why I dropped the ball on this, so to speak. It is a great pattern -- and a useful one for Wisconsin weather!

Miss Babbs doesn't call this yarn Yowsa for nothing. In addition to being beautiful, it comes with an enormous yardage: 560 yards of worsted weight. Has anyone make a Brickless out of Yowza? If so, did you use the entire skein? I'm afraid I could end up with a scarf that is too long -- if there is such a thing.

It's back to school on Wednesday, so I'm savoring these last few days!

On the Needles and the Nightstand

Well, we have come to that time of year when I have to rely on some flash photos, so excuse the less-than-attractive photo ...

I have a feeling that I could use this photo every week for a while:

I have started on my second Robson. It is quite different from the first, but I like it. These scarves take two full skeins of sock yarns, so they are not exactly quick knits -- but the final product is worth it!

I'm working my way through the classic Victorian novel Middlemarch by George Eliot. It took me a bit of effort to get into it, but I am thoroughly enjoying it now.

I'll be joining up with Ginny to Yarn Along.

Crafty Weekend

It was a good weekend to putter around the house because winter temperatures arrived abruptly. On Thursday, the highs were in the 70's; but on Friday, the high was about 35 degrees. Not enough time to acclimate!

I'm almost done with my Robson scarf, from the Sequence Knitting book. This picture doesn't do it justice. The colors are much more subtle than they look here. I had some issues with dropped stitches, as you can see from the little stitch holder at the left. Once I get everything woven in, it is going to be an awesome scarf.

I found some time to work on embroidery:

I did get out a few times. Friday night we had fish fry for my husband's birthday with my parents. Saturday night, some friends who just visited Italy had an Italian-themed party, complete with a slide show and an Italian trivia game. And I met up with my drawing group at a local art museum:

In between, I tried to get organized for our Thanksgiving travels. We're celebrating in Washington, D.C, with my parents and brothers. Both my kids will be there, so I'm pretty excited. Plus, only two work days this week!

Hope your weekend was what you wanted!

More Gift Knitting

I am almost done with this scarf. I love to wear scarves, and I love to give them as gifts. I feel like they are likely to be worn by the giftee. Fingering-weight scarves have always appealed to me. They are so pretty and light-weight enough to wear comfortably. But, few things are as tedious as a fingering-weight scarf!

I'm nearing the finish line with this, and I will be glad to cast-off! But I still think it's pretty and I know the exact person to appreciate it!

Now I Get It

I caught the Zauberball bug in Charlottesville.

Not only did I buy a skein, but I also had to buy needles so I could cast on immediately! And it isn't as though I didn't bring enough knitting. This stuff is so gorgeous and the color changes keep you going -- even on this simple one-row pattern.

Sorry format linking to the pattern. I can't figure up how to do that on my iPhone.

The End Of Monogamy

Seeing as I'm almost done with a pair of socks -- and I'm over the halfway point with my Garland Shawl -- I decided it was time to cast on something new.

This is the Ericka Scarf from Sock Yarn One-Skein Wonders, a book I just happen to own. It's an easy 2-row pattern -- perfect for traveling. I chose this pattern because it's portable and it can be done on circular needles. In a couple weeks I'll be heading for Spain, and I don't want TSA to take away my knitting!

I spent quite a while on Ravelry, reading about other people's experiences with flying to Europe. It sounds like the folk in the EU are stricter than in the US. If anyone has any advice for me, feel free! I haven't been to Europe since 1985. (Yes, I am that old.)

The yarn, which is so yummy, is Manos Del Uruguay Alegria. It was an impulse buy at a LYS. I hope it doesn't pool, but the colors are so beautiful that I'm not sure pooling would ruin it!