Exception

I'm still not blogging, but I was so impressed with this post that I want everyone to read it and the accompanying comments.

I'm Done

I'm not done with blogging, but I am going to take a break from the pressure of it. Things are too full, too heavy in my heart and head right now to worry about anything else. I will blog when I feel like I have something to say, and the time to write about it.

Since I wrote last a lot has happened. A friend died. You can learn more about it at Perry's blog. Perry is writing so elegantly and eloquently about it all, in spite of his closeness to James and James's death, that I will leave it to the words he's already used. A couple days after that I had to go off to a conference, which was fun and educational, but overcast with the thought that I couldn't be with my Elko friends, mourning and supporting. The day I left Kentucky and the conference, I got a call telling me my grandma, my Nana, had died (my other grandma, Babci, died in September). I flew all the way to Salt Lake City just to turn around and fly to Detroit (I traveled a total of 20 hours that day). I was very close with my Nana, so this was especially hard to take. There was all sorts of family stuff to deal with while home, too, which only added to my worry and sadness. The day after I returned from Detroit, I drove with friends to Salt Lake City to attend James's memorial. It was beautiful and heartbreaking.

Nana and Me. Isn't she beautiful?

While I was gone, I was neglecting a major deadline at work and now I'm behind much more than I'd lilke.

So I'm taking a break from blogging. I've been knitting, but nothing's done and nothing's new, so this seems like a good time to take a break. Please continue to email me. I need a push now and then to keep in touch.

And I declare this: I'm done with Death. That's it. I'm done.

August 22, 2008. Nana and Papa were finally wed in the Catholic Church, after 50 years of marriage.

Sheep in Idaho

Sheep Camp at Trailing of the Sheep

Early tomorrow, too early for me (though I'm trying not to complain since all my friends are geologists and such who have to catch a bus at 4:30 am to travel an hour or more to work a full day), I'm leaving for Idaho. The Western Folklife Center is participating in the Trailing of the Sheep festival. I've created an interactive component to the exhibition that we bring to the historical museum in Ketchum. People are asked to weigh themselves and then compare it to the weight of a wool bag. They can also get inside the wool bag to get an idea of how much room 20 fleece take up. And they can write a poem about sheep. We're all about the poetry at the WFC. On Friday I'll be leading a knitting circle and conducting interviews, two of the things I do best. I'm hoping knitters and other fiber artists will come and knit and chat. I'll simply ask leading questions and record the whole thing, and knit, of course. Here's more information about what we're doing. If you're in Ketchum or Hailey, please stop by and say hello.

I've got three projects going and I don't know which to take. I'm not very into this sock, but I think the Druid Mittens are too complicated for travel. The other project is also too complicated. Both of those have something going on on each row. I've already messed up the Druid Mittens by incorrectly anticipating the chart. I'll fix some of it, but the rest will just have to be a mistake. Gotta have one, right?

I'm hoping to buy some handspun yarn while at the festival. I didn't last year because I didn't have the money and felt overwhelmed by it all. I did pick up a skein of something in Ketchum, and will probably do the same this year. It's good to support the stores in places I visit, I think.

Progress!

I've wanted progress bars forever. Thanks to Ravelry and a very informative forum, I followed some directions and made them work! I even changed the color to match my color scheme. Hurrah. Then I had to go into my Ravelry projects page to change the title of the gift so its recipient won't know what it is (until she checks Ravelry. Oh well).

UP!

It's so hard to get back into the swing of things after spending almost a week in a place as beautiful as this:

But I'm back, and back at it. I woke up at 4:30 am EST last Tuesday to catch my early flight out of Traverse City. My plane was delayed in Detroit, so I didn't get into Salt Lake City until around 1:30 pm MST. I forgot to grab my bag getting off the parking lot shuttle, so I had to wait for the bus to come back around. I didn't get out of the parking lot until almost 2:30. Then I drove back to Elko, arriving at 5:00 pm PST. I dropped off my stuff and went right to Frisbee. I just didn't want to be at home yet, even after such a long travel day. In fact, I didn't get into bed until after 10:30 pm PST (or 1:30 am EST). Then on Wednesday I worked then went climbing and rappelling (my first time!). I stayed out late that night, too. I was surprised to feel so jet-lagged on Thursday.


I've been busy, but it's been fun to be back, even though I'd rather still be in the woods. A bunch of us went to the Indian restaurant last night to celebrate some August birthdays. They had belly dancing, which turned into Bhangra dancing. Everyone was dancing: the belly dancers, the waiters, the owner, a few kids, and some of us. Afterwards a couple of us got a quick lesson from the owner's son. I was quite tired leaving the restaurant. That's the best thing about Elko, in my opinion. It's possible to be surprised with something extraordinarily fun at any time.

So, knitting. I haven't knit much since getting back, but I finished the Endpaper Mitts while in Northwoods. They are really small because my gauge was waaaaaay off. I gave them to one of the caretakers who also plays the viola. I love the viola and she said she'd use them when practicing. Since they didn't have an intended recipient, she was the perfect giftee.


I liked knitting these. You can see that I screwed up a couple times. I'd start to get confident that I knew the pattern without checking the chart and then I'd mess up. I didn't notice this huge mistake until it was really too late to go back without much irritation. I also had trouble with the purl stitch. It was always really loose and I couldn't seem to tighten it up, especially on the thumb. I have a ton of of yarn left. I think I might just add them back into the Panda Silk stash for something with lots of color.

I'm working on the second sock for my sister. I'll see her next year at my grandparents' wedding. They have been married for fifty years, but have always wanted to get married in the church. The priest they have been working with told them they can finally get married because after fifty years it's obvious that their marriage is blessed. I can't wait. I hope my brother will be able to get leave from the Army for this, because we should all really be there. I'll also get a chance to see Jen and family, so that's a huge bonus.

I may not have anything to blog about for another couple weeks because of the wedding and other travel coming up (I'm going to Burning Man, too). I'm thinking of entering the February Sweater in the fair, so cross your fingers.

Nevada Weekend

I don't have any knitting progress to show. My only knitting news is that I'm headed to Chicago tomorrow, so I'm going to get a lot of knitting done; buy a lot of yarn (I'm sure); and hang with my knitting friends.

Last weekend was a constant reminder that I'm not in Kansas (or anywhere in the Midwest) anymore. I went to a dinner party where we mostly talked about rocks--both mining rocks (gold) and climbing rocks. I went to a ranch where I fed a leppy (warning: opens in QuickTime. Watch it. It's short. And good) and played with barn cats. I went to the quietest parade ever (while parades are not unique to the West, Elko seems to have a parade every month). Then I finished the weekend at the Basque festival, where I watched Basque dancers and the weightlifting competitions. I also went to the picnic, but I didn't eat anything because the Basque only eat meat.

The most frightening thing I saw this weekend was the road to the ranch covered in Mormon Crickets (don't follow this link if you don't like big, ugly bugs). I'll post a picture soon, but let me just say this. Eeew. At first I thought they were frogs. They are almost as big as frogs, and they jump. I stayed in the car.

Summertime

I finished the Something Red sweater on June 15, but it's taken me this long to find a good button for it. This was an easy, fun, fast knit. Very satisfying. I didn't see that wonky bit in the raglan part until I posted this picture. Darn. I'm not ripping back now.


Last weekend I went camping with friends at Diamond Fork in the Uinta National Forest, in Utah. There are some hot springs there, which we visited. It was a fun, and much needed, weekend away.


Then, to brag a little about how great my job is, I stayed in Salt Lake City for a meeting with colleagues about the programs we do. Basically, we got together to talk. Just talk. That's about all we did. We talked about where things are going, how we're feeling about things now, and ideas for the future. On Monday we're having a staff retreat, where everyone on staff is going to talk about these same things (and more). I do like it here.

It's good to say that, because the week before was the worst. Things are on the upswing, though. A new program that I developed, Play Your Hand, is really fun. I think when the word gets out there will be a good turn out. We had a few folks to learn poker and blackjack, and I think they had fun. Next week is La Loteria, and families are encouraged to come to all future game nights (kids couldn't come to this past one because those are licensed games in Nevada and minors can't be in the same room, even though we weren't gambling--or so the gaming board told me). So if you're in Elko on Wednesday, please come play some games at the Folklife Center.

I'm working on a February Sweater and the partner to a sock I made a while ago. I'll write more about those someday.

The Sweetest Smell

You know how in the springtime you catch a whiff of the most amazing scent, usually lilac, that just stops you in your tracks? This happened to me last week, but not much is blooming yet, so I was startled by the smell. It wasn't lilac, it wasn't a smell I've smelled. It was sagebrush. I was out walking and smelling and smiling at the smell. Incredible. All of Elko smelled so sweet that day. There have been moments, when the wind is right, since then, but that day smelled sweeter than any I've experienced.

The last couple weekends have been full of adventure. I went rock climbing for the first time yesterday. I enjoyed it very much. I was surprised that I wasn't scared. Rock climbing is more of a puzzle than a thrill, at least at the level I was climbing. I hope to get the chance to do more soon.

Knitting-wise I haven't done much. I made a slouchy hat from the Noro Matsuri I got in Seattle. I like it. I'll try wearing it, but the 13% wool might make my head itch. Since it's a slouchy hat and won't touch my skin directly, I might not notice the wool. It's a great hat, if I do say so myself.


I've made some progress on the Dollar and a Half sweater. I'm wishing I'd blocked my swatch. I'm worried that the arms are going to be too long. I think I might steam block them to get an indication of how much they'll grow. If the sweater is too big for my sister, I might just have to keep it. It's cute.

I'm also working on a secret project that should be finished and mailed in the next couple weeks. Here are some pictures of other secret projects that have finally made it to their recipients.

Ravelry

I just found out that Ravelry sent my invitation way back in October. I've been too preoccupied to check. I guess my spam filter worked this time. It's too late to play now, but I'm so relieved to be able to look at the references that everyone else makes to their Ravelry lists. Oh, find me at "everywhereknit."

Unfinished

I have three unfinished projects. The bottom two (Everlasting Bagstopper and Bas Relief hat) in the picture are unfinished because I ran out of yarn and don't have the funds to buy more (anyone want to buy a wonderful condo in Chicago?). The other (Drops dress) I needed to put down after ripping back about five inches. I was worried about running out of yarn on this, too, but perhaps I have gained some yardage in correcting my mistake.

So I'm working on socks. I finished this sock (Anastasia, from Pepperknit. I'm having trouble linking to it) the other night and have started on the second, but I'm itchy to work on something else, too. I have more socks I want to make, but what I really want is something fast and stash-busting. Nothing is jumping out.


I haven't had much time for knitting--the Gathering is in 14 days. I've been working long hours. Luckily, somehow, I've also been able to get out and enjoy the snow. I love the snow. My roommate and I made a snow lady. (I made the hat and a friend's aunt made the scarf).

Today we went cross-country skiing (my second time ever), and we're going again tomorrow. I've joined the group doing the Vagina Monologues on Valentine's Day, and knitting on Thursdays has started up again. I've learned this about Elko: people get out and do things. I think it's to compensate for having so little good entertainment provided. Everyone has to make her own fun. It has been fun. As busy as I am, I'm grateful to be able to enjoy the snow and to make new friends, even at the expense of knitting time.

Worn Out

Moving to a completely new place is hard. Starting a new job is hard. I have to learn something new every day. Not just something, but lots of things. Lots of important things. If I'm not learning something new then I'm figuring something out. I'm beat. I'm looking forward to the holidays and hanging with family and friends just for the familiarity of it all.

I'm still super busy. I've been working on We Call Them Pirates and another Everlasting Bagstopper. Both are for gifts, so I don't want to tell too much. I've finished one round of skulls on the hat and have only just started the bag.

I can't believe I haven't posted in so long! I miss it. I didn't realize it had been so long. Well, I finished the mittens and made a hat to go with them. I didn't take pictures, but my cousin says they are great. I ran out of yarn for the Bas Relief hat, since I was using the leftovers from the mittens. I might finish it with the multicolor just so I can have it finished.

My roommate and a few people have started meeting on Thursdays to knit. I haven't yet emailed the people who I met more than a month ago. I can't go to the group they've started because I don't have a car so I can't get there. If I don't get around to emailing them and they read this, I hope they will come to the Duncan Little Creek on Thursdays after work hours.

I stocked up on yarn while in San Rafael (sorry, Carrie, that I didn't let you know. I'll be back in the area for New Year's). Of note are some Pagewood Farm sock yarn died especially for Marin Fiber Arts in Bird of Paradise (mostly greens) and some Chasing Rainbows Dyeworks Kona Superwash in Brooks Browns. I'm not usually a scarf knitter, but I think this is destined for a cozy scarf. I also bought some yarn on sale: GGH Savanna in a sagey green; GGH Davos in white, brown, and blue; and Lana Grossa Royal Tweed in a tweed green. For some reason I only bought one of those. I'm sure I had a reason, but it's a pretty soft tweed so I'm wishing I'd bought more. I haven't taken pictures (yes, that busy, new job excuse again--I'm going to use this until after the Gathering, you know) of the yarn, but I'm sure I'll knit with the hand-dyed stuff very soon.

Since I have no knitting pictures, I'm going to leave you with images from my weekend moving cattle. That's right. I was on horseback (for the first time in very many years). On a real, working ranch, moving cattle from one grazing area to another. It was a blast. You can click the pictures to make them bigger.

That's me on the horse.


My new pal.

Sunday morning I fed some bulls off the back of the truck. That was pretty fun, too. I'm amazed at how shy the cows and bulls are. This was my first ranch experience and I hope the ranchers need help again because it was a great adventure.

Elko Sky

Today is rough. I don't know what to do. I'm bored. This is the major drawback of a small town. There aren't even any movies I want to see. There was a craft get together, but it started at ten and I was still in my jammies. I was going to go for a walk, but it's hailing (afternoon update: now it's snowing), so that's out. I like my job, but the jury is still out on Elko itself. I guess I could do things around the house, but it's not my house, so I don't quite know what to do (my roommate is in Québec City at a conference I decided to skip because I didn't want to take time off my second week of work). I will say this for Elko: it has beautiful skies, especially at sunset. Here are few pictures from last night.



I'm thinking of starting a photo blog called Elko Sky. Every night I've been stunned by the sky. I don't have the skills for a photo blog, really, and I doubt I'd keep it up, especially daily, but I feel the need to share this sky. I guess since there aren't any trees to block the view, the sky is more notable.

Knitting? I'm still loving the Suri Merino. It is the softest yarn I've used. Here's the hat I made for Dan, still unblocked (I guess I can do that today), which is why the brim is rolling.

Pause

I have loaded up on stash sock yarn, have two sizes of circular needles stowed away, and have packed a suitcase with clothes and such to last two weeks. I will be headed to Michigan tomorrow so I can become a godmother on Saturday. Monday I'm off to California to join DG on another road trip.

I'll email with sock pictures the minute I get back, I promise.

I Am

Where to begin? Disaster, adventure, inspiration, or gratitude? Best to always start with gratitude, I think.

Gratitude

Thank you to my dear friend Aimee, who made me another much-needed knitting log. I was going to copy the picture from her blog, but you should just go there. That way, you can also see how great she is for taking the time to make me this book. I'll be sad to see her leave.

Thank you to DG for a marvelous weekend in the Bay Area. I love and miss the ocean, especially on cold days. I walked more than I have all month, but every step was more enjoyable than the one before. Thank you for taking me to Artfibers (where I bought a great Kira K pattern--I would have bought yarn for it, but they didn't have a color I wanted) and Marin Fiber Arts (where I bought Claudia Hand Painted sock yarn in Caribbean Blue).

Thank you to AF, for lunch at Herbivore and inspirational conversation. Which leads me to . . .

Inspiration

AF is a friend from college. We were very close for two years. She and my sister were roommates for a semester, and have stayed in touch. Somehow, though, AF and I had lost touch over the years. It had been over eight years since I'd seen her. Since she's also friends with DG, we all got together on Friday in San Francisco and walked the entire city twice over, I'm sure. AF moved out to SF for grad school, but realized that the program wouldn't satisfy her desire to change the world. So she's working on a business plan to do just that. I admire her tenacity, her bravery, her charm, and her easy laughter. If I could have one of those things in the dose that AF carries, I'd be a better person. I'm going to work on having more tenacity, being braver, nicer, and laughing more.

Adventure

I was in San Francisco and Marin County last weekend to visit DG. With everything that has been promising to change in my life, it was so nice to spend a weekend with people who knew me in college. They live lives that I am envious of, but admire greatly. We walked everywhere, went to the beach in the rain, watched egrets doing their mating rituals, and ate delicious food (some of the best was cooked by DG). There was laughing, and hugging, and discussing, and enjoying. Oh, and knitting. DG learned to cable and took to it like a fish to water. He was even comfortable enough to rip out the few rows he'd knit because he wanted the scarf to be wider. He's definitely one of my best students ever. He learned how to cable while watching "Lady in the Water" with a room full of people, and only made one mistake. I'm so proud.

I've been working on Isabella. After all that pining for it, I decided I should just make it. Plus, I got the yarn on sale. I am definitely enjoying this knit, even though it's for me. I do feel like I should be working on Joseph's sweater or Renée's dress, but there's no rush on any of it, so I'm just going to work on what I want to work on. Tonight it will be the sweater or dress because I unintentionally left Isabella at work.

Disaster

You may notice that I haven't mentioned the somewhat secret project for DG. That's because it all ended in disaster. I was able to find another skein of the grey color, and the hardware I needed came in time to assemble the project. Then I felted it. What was supposed to be a messenger bag turned into a useless glob.

I should have known better. I should have been a better knitter and knit and felt a test swatch. I should have realized that the grey would felt at a different rate than the blue. I'd made an oven mitt from the Lamb's Pride Bulky (also for DG, picture above) so I thought I knew how the yarn would felt. Stupid, stupid, stupid. So, I may cut it down into a lumpy cat bed or into squares for pot holders. Maybe both. I think I'll leave felting to the experts for a while.

After the felting disaster, I was working on Joseph's sweater and knit a good three inches of 1x1 ribbing before I realized I hadn't changed the needle size. So I ripped back and decided that night just wasn't a night for knitting. I think I'll finish that tonight, just to put the disaster behind me.

Cowboys

First, to set the record straight, I did not meet any cowboys.* I did however, fall in love. I bought my first pair of cowboy boots (the cognac/mint--the cognac looks more like cherry wood than in the picture). Boy, are they pretty.

You can see some videos from the Gathering at the Western Folklife Center's website. There are links to the videos that were filmed during the day and then edited at night. There are also some videos and audio of some of the sessions. It will give you an idea of all the fun I had over the week. I haven't had this much fun in a long time. Plus, it's always revitalizing for me to be around folklorists.

I made the Dream Swatch head wrap from a ball of Madil Eden, which is 100% bamboo. It wasn't as long as I'd have liked, but it was a fun pattern and easy enough to carry around. I didn't get too many looks while knitting, but DG did when he pulled out the napkin he's making. We were waiting for a session to start, so he started knitting (like the good knitter he is). This started a conversation with the couple who sat next to us. Everyone out West is so nice. We could tell they thought it was strange, but they didn't think it was wrong or anything. Our conversation turned out to be pretty pleasant. The session was incredible (DG put away the knitting during the session).

I'm working on the something for Jen, which takes more concentration, so I didn't work on it as much as I'd have liked. I'm also going to start something for our host at the Gathering. She provided a bed and a very warm eiderdown for us. She's moving this weekend so the gift will be both a thank you and a housewarming.

I got my Options needles! I can't wait to start. It is so cold today that I can barely type. Time to curl up with some knitting, I think.

*I met cowboys, and a lot of ranchers, and sheep shearers, and cityfolk who dressed the part, but I did not go to the gathering to find one to date, in spite of everyone's suggestions.

Sheep, Sheep Everywhere

But not a yarn to knit. Lots of yarns being spun here in Elko, Nevada, where I'm hanging out for the week. I'm working as a folklorist at the 23rd National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, so don't expect to hear from me until next week. I'll be listening to Cowboy Poetry, herding kids, and interviewing folks at the Sheep Camp. I've been helping in the gallery, which has some great videos and a working jukebox full of cowboy songs. I'm a little tired of cleaning glass and plexi, but the cases are going to shine tomorrow when the gallery is open. Things get into full swing on Tuesday, I think. I can't wait. I've seen more cowboy hats than I ever imagined I would. I can't imagine how many I'll see by the time the week is over. I may even splurge on some fitted-for-me cowboy boots, if I can find the time.

I'm working on the something for Jen, and a Dream Swatch in some bamboo that I bought for the trip. I hope something will be finished by the time I'm back in the city. Until then, please visit the Western Folklife Center's website and virtually join me at the Gathering (there are even a few blogs you can visit).