Well, it's been a while. I haven't stopped knitting, but I've been at a loss for what to say. Well, more accurately, I haven't wanted to put everything out there. The last time I wrote was the day before Nick shocked me and everyone who knows us by ending our relationship. I've been through a lot, and I won't put it all down here. Bottom line: I've moved back to the Bay Area. I live a couple of towns away from where I grew up. I have my own place, and I have my Ruby-dog with me. Of course, I quit my job in New Orleans, leaving me jobless here. I am searching for a new job, but the hardest part is that I don't know what I really want. I've been trying to get a nanny job, because there are people here who pay well enough for me to live on my own, and I'm not sure what else I can do. I've been doing temporary nanny jobs through an agency to make money, but I'm really not sure what comes next. It's been three months. I've experienced all kinds of emotions, and at this point, I'm exhausted at having so many things be so up in the air. Alas, through it all, there has been knitting.

The project I started in April, before all this, was my first lace pattern. I was inspired by Meg, who picked up knitting in February, and immediately churned out several complex, beautiful accessories. I had been knitting for six years, and had gotten as far as cabling. Meg started with lace patterns. She made a Noble Cowl that blew my mind. I was impressed, and felt jealous just looking at it. She said, "you can do that too! You just follow a pattern!" OK, so I did. My mom had asked me if I could knit a little black blanket for their cat, so it wouldn't show the fur so much. This cat likes to sit at the window on top of a blanket, and my mom felt she deserved her very own. So, I figured this was a good opportunity to try something complicated and different for me. I bought cheap, washable yarn since the final product would be, you know, for a cat. I chose the Baby Chalice Blanket. I had worked a couple of the pattern rows, and had to keep un-knitting (or tink-ing) rows at a time because I would realize that I messed up somewhere back a few rows. Knitting this little blanket was a comfort to me. I knitted on the plane to LA to stay with my best friend Erika, I knitted that first week while Erika and her husband were at work and I had no idea what the hell I was doing. I knitted when I got up to the Bay Area and still didn't know what the hell I was doing. I watched a lot of The Office on Netflix instant watch (OK, the first 5 seasons) while I knitted. The knitting has been complete for some time now, but I finally soaked it and spread it out to dry (yeah, that's about the closest I've gotten to blocking) last night. Here it is before (kinda scrunchy):

And then after (not the biggest transformation, but there's a difference):

And folded:
Clearly, I need to work on photography/lighting (might actually take a class in the fall), but you get the idea. Not too bad for my first stab at it.

Knitting this helped keep me sane (well, as sane as one can be in the situation), and I am grateful for that. I know that I am not the first to receive comfort from making row after row of little stitches, but I am glad that I have. This pattern was certainly difficult for me, but it also showed me that with some determination, I can figure it out and get through.

OK, maybe I've seen too many episodes of Doogie Howser, M.D. lately. I apologize. But really, it's true.

I promise, more color in the next post. Well, here's a little: Ruby's first trip to the Pacific coast.

A Few Updates

Pup update: We gave Mama and the pups up last weekend. Another Zeus' Place employee took them in, which is probably better for the mama anyway, since her house is quieter. Mama was getting to be a bit much with all her whining (read: screaming!) and bullying our Ruby. Also, Ruby took it upon herself to become second mom to the pups (I can see it now: a children's book- Puppies Have Two Mommies). Unfortunately, this involved a lot of obsessive licking. Also, this last week was the week before Nick took Step One of the Boards. Our house has been much quieter and more peaceful since the pups and Mama have left, but I'd love to see how the pups are doing. They got so big in the two weeks we had them!

I've had some time to knit, so I knitted up a hat that is similar to the base of the devil horns/kitty ears hat from Stitch 'N Bitch. I plan on knitting up some fingerless mittens to go with, and decorating with something pretty. I used Lamb's Pride Worsted in Brite Blue, and I think some purple or green embellishments are in order at some point (when I get the motivation). Here's a look for now (our beer growler was so happy to pose with such fine stitchery).

I also knitted up yet another set of baby booties and a hat for a friend whose boyfriend's sister had a baby. I had to do them in a short amount of time, including yarn purchasing, so I was limited to Michael's. I found some 100% mercerized cotton, and decided to try that. It's a different look than what I've used before, but I like it. I guess they'll be good in summer.
I have embarked on a new project, but I'm not quite ready to post anything yet. Soon!

Distractions

Well, I haven't been very productive with knitting this last week. Here are a few reasons:
We are fostering a mama dog and her puppies. The puppies were born Saturday, March 27, so as I'm writing, they are just over two weeks old. We had a sad day on Sunday when the runt died from respiratory problems. There was much effort to save her (by the wonderful woman who owns/runs Zeus' Place and her connections in the pet/vet world), but Runty just couldn't make it. The other three pups and Mama are doing well. All are eating plenty and the pups are growing everyday. It's interesting to watch the changes in the pups, as well as the changes in the relationship between our dog Ruby and the Mama and the relationship between Ruby and the pups. She has gotten so interested in them, and wants to sniff them all the time! More pics to come soon!

Also, there will be knitting once again.

CaChing!

I sold my first two sets of baby booties and hats yesterday! I'm excited to knit up some "inventory" so I can set up an Etsy shop! Still looking for name ideas...

Baby Sets

Here is the pink booties and hat set:



I can't decide which photos I like best, so I'll show several.
The turquoise set with hat in progress:
Just the booties (gotta work on making them more uniform):

Just the hat in progress:
Hmm, perhaps I need a baby model. Still, it's fun to work on taking photos.

Knitting Lessons!

Wednesday night brought wine, yummy food, and knitting lessons! I went over to the house of a couple of friends who are also knitters, and a few others received some knitting lessons!

Rachel, the person who originally inspired me to knit hats, taught a few of her friends to knit. She did a great job teaching, and two of the four caught the knitting bug, and even bought their own needles and yarn the next day! It's always fun to see people learn and then realize that yes, they are actually knitting. Also, because knitting is such a traditionally gendered activity, it's so great to see guys want to learn. One of the two who bought their own supplies is a guy!
The guy who doesn't plan on continuing to knit made this:
Nice effort! (And not really very fair to give him huge needles to start with.)

Soon to come: my first sets of booties & hats to sell!

Old Hat

Here's one of the hats I made in late December that got me excited about knitting again.
It's the Brother-in-Law Basket-Weave Hat, which is appropriate for Jeff, who is like a brother to the man I'm going to marry. Jeff picked out the cashmere blend brown yarn, and Nick picked out the sock yarn I doubled it with. Both yarns were purchased at Fengari, a beautiful yarn shop in Half Moon Bay, California.

Happy Birthday, Jeff! You are now immortalized in my blog. Lucky you.