Rember my adventures in knitting the Vogue Knitting V-neck Vest? Well, the fun has not ended, my friends. I casted off the back, and quickly decided that the look of the square back piece was "off". This would be so much better with some neck shaping..more tank-like. Rip. Rip. Rip.
So here is the nearly finished product.

Which is not exactly moving me either. The rolling of the cast off edge is about to send me over one. I have doubts hopes that blocking will sort it out.

I need direction. Guidance. Thus, the vest will be taken (rather than worn)to Yarn Central's First Friday. There, I will throw msyelf to the whims of my fellow knitters and their ideas/suggestions about this vest.

I am basking in the glow of a week of relative unemployment. I have two weeks before I fly to North Carolina for a trade show, but I should try to pick up some hours at {insert name of major department store here} next week. No matter how many dinners and sexual favors I offer up, Joe will tolerate only so much of me sitting on my arse -- glued to Knitty Gritty/What Not to Wear (BBC)/America's Next Top Model -- and knitting.

To that end, I did a bit of organizing. My yarn has been moved from large Tupperware bins to those Sterlilite drawars. I found them on sale at CVS, so how could I resist two two-drawar carts for the price of one? I could not. The Christas decorations that have been sitting in rotting boxes in the middle of the computer room are now safely stored in the former yarn bins.

Two things organized? I think it is time for some tea and knitting.

In the very early hours of the morning, I stumbled out of bed with that impending sense of doom...something was wrong with my stomach. Seriously wrong. Thankfully, the ordeal was pretty much over around 9:30am -- just before Kevin and Lukas awoke (lazy teenagers, Spring Break). Vomtitting is humiliating enough without having it be overheard by two teenaged boys.

I slept the bulk of the day away, largely ignoring Ginger. In spite of having very little left to knit on the V-neck Vest, I had to start something new yesterday. A peak at some of my languishing knitting projects, coupled with an earlier conversation at Yarn Central about Rowan's Summer Tweed, led me to rethink the Sage pattern I had started in September 2003.

Actually, barely started would be more to the point, given that little progress was made beyond knitting a few inches of the waistband. I could feel in my heart that poor Sage would never make it beyond her current state, so I ripped out, did another gauge swatch, and then cast on for Ginger.

The color of Summer Tweed that I am using is the golden curry shade feaured in the photo. It is alarming how flattering to my skin these sort of horrid colors are.

Thus far, I have finished the front of Ginger, and I am at the waist increases on the back piece. If I had not spent the greater part of the day "losing my dinner" and sleeping it off (no this was not alcohol-induced), I might have been able to show you a worthwhile shot of my progress. To be honest, the pattern front is somewhat boring, so the picture would have to be of the back of the finished garment to be of even slight interest to anyone -- including me.

Not working and travelling has created a strange time warp for me. So convinced was I that today was Sunday, that I experienced a pang of Back-to-Work Blues. Strange, considering that I do not have work to return to Monday.

Joe and I dashed around town gathering groceries from local markets, bakers, and farms. Grocery shopping with Joe is one errand that I deeply enjoy. We both love to cook and eat, so it is a pleasure discovering new places to eat or patronize for food we will cook ourselves. The highlight was a trip to Sprout Creek Farm for Ricotta and Ouray cheeses.

Last week's trip to Pittsburgh was a bit disappointing on the yarn front. Downtown Pittsburgh's, Ewe Can Knit, was part of a stationary shop transformed (somewhat) in order to capitalize on the hot trend. The staff was nice enough, but I was given a cross-eyed look when I inquired about lace weight yarn.

Dyed in the Wool, a hyped-up shop, had a nice selection of yarns, however, the lack of greeting, offering of help, or general awareness of my presence by the shop workers had me marching out of there in minutes. I had intended to purchase some Lorna's Laces yarn, but why should I give my $48 to people who cannot even muster up a weak smile or a hello for a potential customer?

Yarns Unlimited in Sewickley was a pleasure. The staff was friendly, and the selection was impressive. The customers were pleasant and helpful as well -- a great atmosphere. I purchased the two skeins of Misti Alpaca in Lilac and a set of bamboo needles, and I will eventually get to work on the Flower Basket Shawl from Interweave Knits Fall 2004.


I also found this great button for the needle holder Theresa made me.


And how could I resist these little coffee beans from Bead Mine in Southside? Cute earrings waiting to happen!

After two weeks of missing Joe and computer access, I returned home to enjoy a thrilling ride from LaGuardia airport to the White Plains Metro-North station in the shittiest weather thus far. Actually, it was probably less shitty than the storm two weeks prior, but it hurts more the later into March we get.

Tired, hungry, and cold, my heart was warmed to find this upon my return to the apartment.

What you see is the peel-y paint under the shelf, but what I see are towels. Towels which are neatly folded and stacked -- without ranting direction from me. I do not know about your experiences and beliefs, but I can only interpret this voluntary folding and stacking towels as a clear indication that the world as we know it is coming to an end.

My time away was broken into two parts: The first week was working a trade show in Manhattan, and the second was spent visiting family and friends in Pittsburgh. I worked quickly and easily through the V-neck Vest in Vogue Knitting's latest edition. As I neared the end of the second piece -- the front -- I looked at the fabric. Something looked amiss. I looked at the back piece, and again, something looked off.

What was it? I checked the pattern, and I did not find a glaring error. So, I flipped back to the photo of of the pattern, and that is when it hit me -- after the last bit of stripe work at the waist area, I had failed to switch from the rib pattern to stockinette!

I watched my mother's eyes flicker with horror (note: she is not a knitter) as I ripped back both pieces to the waist and started again. I ripped out and re-knitted the front section first, and as I re-worked the back on my flight home, I discovered a minor imperfection. The last stripe section of the waist was five rows (instead of four) wide.

Only the fear of breaking some FAA and Homeland Security rules -- resulting in a loss of my Denise Needle Kit -- kept me from screaming and jabbing my needles into my own eyes. I pondered my options. Leave it be; no one will notice one small row in a melange of color. True. But, I will know the mistake is there, and it will haunt me each time I wear the vest. Quitely and without tears, I ripped out the back again.

The damn vest has been knitted, ripped, and re-knitted so many times that a more concious and aware knitter could have produced two or three vests in the time that it has taken me to come this far.

Vision Expo is the convention for the eye industry, covering every capcity: frames, optometry equipment, gadgets, cases, etc. The industry is predominately male -- from the doctors to the sales reps -- so the celebrity appearances are either sports figures or surgically-enhanced faux blondes.

This year's bimbo was Nicolette Sheridan, so altered by the knife that she looks more like Jocelyn Wildenstein than Nicolette Sheridan.

The fashions of V.E. are utterly spectacular. As with any international event the clothing gamut is wide: Eurotrash, Eurochic, ex-jock salesdude in ill-fitting suit, the khaki-ed tourist, women in either outfits or get-ups.

My favorite fashions are those of the plump Mid-Westerner ladies who make a special trip to the Mall of America for their New York Outfit -- the overly coordinated pieces topped with a spackling of cosmetics and a suger-whipped confection of huge hair coutesy of Aquanet. Outfits are too coordinated and applique heavy to be something that anyone who lives in New York City would wear on a daily basis.

Get-ups are really outfits with a more urban, hip, and funky edge. Purple hair, purple leather bustier, lilac mini, and knee-high (or higher) purple leather boots. Lil Kim is the embodiment of "get-up".

It is the sort of rich sartorial pagent that words cannot completely capture. I yearn for the ability to make my eyes fuction as either a digital camera or a videocamera.

Last night, I had the sad misfortunre to catch the dismal Dour PoweR Girls. This is mTv's latest contribution to the lame-ass celebrity reality show, featuring the surgically enhanced criminal, Lizzy Grubman and four women with nothing to offer other than family connections and money -- which is the heart and soul of PR.

Watching the show was paramount to watching the edited scenes of The Real World -- the ones of someone washing the dishes, sneezing, or reading. Yes, it was that interesting. Who remembers the screen shown during the test fo the Emergency Broadcast System? More compelling than PoweR Girls. I kid you not.

Far more interesting is the special needle case that Theresa of Yarn Central made for me.

I am forever holding a cup of coffee at the yarn shop,even though I am quite a teatottler, so the fabric is absolutely fitting.

A full spread:

Dear Kate Gilbert,

Allow me to express my sincerest apologies.

Previously, I was rather irked and bored by your Clapotis pattern (which is so renowned and beloved that no link is needed).

Well, my dear Kate, I am shamed and humbled.

The twelve row repeat in the Increase Section was my albatross. Due to a blunder on the part of a poor-sighted dunce (me), the rows were repeated twelve times, rather than the required six. Which makes me wonder if my eyesight is still 20/20. Maybe a visit with an optometrist would prevent future cock-ups such as this.

At any rate, I frogged. I persevered. Yesterday, I finished (during a car ride back from central Connecticut in a horrible snow storm). Even with a mess of dangling ends, Clapotis is breath-taking and glorious.


My dear Kate, can you find forgiveness in your heart for my transgression? I spoke out of turn. I spoke without knowing. But, now I know. Such a goddess are you that I would cover a puddle in the streets of Paris with my Clapotis to insure that your lovely green suede shoes suffer no harm.

I humbly remain your devoted fan.
Gina


Clapotis
~7-1/2 skeins of Noro Silk Garden, # 34
US #8 circular needle
guage: ?

More Snow!
The most irksome thing about Winter Weather is how new stations will interrupt programming to announce that it is snowing. Now, that would be news in New Orleans, LA in the middle of July, however, it is not news in the Northeast from November/December-April.

Enough Winter Vegetables!
Root vegetables are fine and dandy, but enough already...Just like two other knit-bloggers, I long for a tomato (and cucumber) that tastes of more than slushy/mushy water. My tap water has more body and flavor that "hot house" vegetables.

Knitting Progress!
Finally, I have cast off Clapotis. I would include a photo, but I think my camera is locked in the trunk of my car, which is snow-bound at the Park and Ride. All that is left is unravelling those dropped stitches and weaving in those ends.

Happy Anniversary, Darling!
Today, Joe and I celebrate three years of insanity, bliss, love, and laughter.

Monday is typically a day of rest for most yarn stores, which afforded me the luxury of a road trip to Woodstock with Theresa (a Yarn Central worker) and Celeste (a Yarn Central regular).

It speaks volumes that Theresa is willing and able to make a 90-minute trip to visit an other yarn shop -- given that she spends five or six days working in one. I never had the urge to check out other malls and other cosmetics counters on my days off, so it is hard to conprehend. Although, I understand what a strange affliction this knitting is, so on that level, I can understand that Theresa may not be able to fully survive a Day without Yarn.

We had grand plans to visit both yarn shops, the quilting shop, and the beading shop; however, that did not come to pass. Between an unusual amount of time pawing around at Woodstock Wool and lingering over falafel at Joshua's (the oldest restaurant in Woodstock), we had about ten minutes to zip through Rock City Yarn.

In spite of the time devoted to circling the yarns in Woodstock Wool, I came away with one stinking ball of yarn. GGH Stars. Normally, I am not drawn to novelty yarns or the skinny scarves that one knits with them, but there was something about the store sample that called out to me.

This exercise confirms my fear of novelty yarns. There is little (ok, maybe no) pleasure in this project. Basically, eye candy equals hand cramps.

What a glorious weekend! The weather was gorgeous, I did not have to work, and I did a good amount of knitting.

Friday night was the knitting party at Yarn Central, my local yarn shop of choice. We gabbed and knitted until nearly midnight. Topics were the standard fare: work, love, and bikini waxing.

Saturday was devoted to Joe. We drove to Poughkeepsie for Vietnamese lunch, and then on to New Paltz for provisions -- wine and cheese. Later, we opted for a light dinner (cheese and bread) before heading to see A Very Long Engagement. Typical Juenet: gorgeous cinematography, interesting story, and a the voice-over narration.

Sunday afternoon was more time with Joe -- plant and food shopping -- and more time with the gals at Yarn Central. There is something so uniquely satisfying about food shopping with your mate. Maybe it is residual from years of shopping single and wishing that I had someone with whom to share my love of food.

Snow Day

Today, I awoke at the tender hour of 4:30am to haul my tired arse into a retail hell of ringing the pre-orders for a certain larger cosmetic company's free gift. You know you really need money when you are willing to leave the house before anyone (including the cat and your insomniac mother-in-law) has even stirred.

Alas, Mother Nature had other plans for me today. The deck was clear prior to the storm.

This Winter/Snow thing is starting to wear thin. It is so dismal that I cannot muster the wit to make complaining remotely interesting to me or anyone else.

Either last winter was far more merciful, or I have the best selective memory around. I honestly do not remember feeling so utterly "over" winter before. I grew up in Western Pennsylvania, and I attended university in Central Pennsylvania -- both of which demanded slogging through feet of snow in subzero weather to get anywhere. In my four years at Penn State, I think classes were cancelled once -- the temperature had fallen below -20F/-29C.

If only I had been inspired to to photograph me in snowboots (which were below the "snow line") and a skirt cleaning my buried car at 5:15am, you could laugh at what a silly girl I am. However, at that moment (pre-coffee or tea), I was not up to farting around with the flash and the self-timer.

It is difficult to feel pretty and fashionable in a foot of snow, but even in my skirt, I am certain I looked far less foolish than any of the die-hard Manhattan fashionistas prancing through the slushy streets in their stilettos and cream-colored coats. Such a sight always tickled a small mean streak within me. I wanted to see them go down!