Knitting Socks

Recently, I've been experiencing an intense craving to knit socks. I usually spend my lunch break surfing the web, and a couple of weeks ago I found myself at Silver's Sock Class. A while back I bought some cheap sock yarn and size 2 double pointed needles. I never got to trying out socks partly because I had other projects lined up, and partly because I wasn't as "learned" about knitting back then. Anyway, I now want to knit socks. Lots of them. I even picked out some sock yarn from KnitPicks and put it on my Christmas list. Whether or not I get the yarn is a different story. I've never actually knit in the round before, but it can't be too hard, right? I have a hat (more like ski mask) pattern picked out to make Kai for his birthday, so I'm going to use that to practice knitting on double pointed needles. That pattern calls for size 7 and 8 double pointed needles, which are probably easier to learn on than size 2.

I wish I could knit on the train. Socks would be nice for train knitting. Unfortunately, I get car sick (train sick?) on the train if I don't face forward and stare out the front. I have a 30 minute commute to work, which gets INCREDIBLY boring. An mp3 player would help. In fact, I bought one just for the train, but I had to return it due to defectiveness. It took 13 hours to charge, and it would only play for an hour before it needed to be charged again! This is so going off topic...

As it stands now, I probably won't be able to attempt socks until all of the Christmas projects are done, the baby sweater is complete, and I've made a decent amount of items to put in my Etsy shop. I guesstimate February or March-ish. Ugh. Too long. I'm so impatient!

Getting Ahead of Myself, Again

Well folks, it looks like there's going to be another baby shower in my future. I secretly love making baby items because they equal instant gratification. I was my intention to start making items for my future Etsy shop after Christmas ends, but it seems like every time I think the obligatory knitting (which I love to do!) will be finished, something else comes up.

I think searching for the perfect pattern is half the fun. Today, during my lunch break, I hit up Ravelry full force in search of a baby sweater pattern appropriate for a male baby. I think I found "The Sweater," but since the baby shower isn't until next January (hence the "getting ahead of myself"), the possibility of me changing my mind is quite great. I have no baby yarn (at least I think I don't) in "male" colors, so I'm going to have to go yarn shopping (yay!) with money I don't have (aww). I think I'll opt for the Simply Soft yarn by Caron. That line usually comes in nice dark colors (Why does baby yarn have to be pastel?) while fulfilling the utmost requirement of all baby yarns: softness. And, of course, it's decently priced! I can't imagine that I'd have to use more than 2 skeins.

On an unrelated note, I discovered I am allergic to alpaca yarn. This is my completely unscientific opinion, though. I'm using this new found allergy as incentive to finish the three alpaca cardigans in queue. I'm a bit miffed by this discovery, as I would have liked to make myself an alpaca sweater. ::tear::

Pictures?

I realize I haven't been posting pictures of my knitting progress. A while back I mentioned that I finished the left front of the Bristow Cardigan, and since then I've finished the right front. I've been religiously updating my Facebook with WIP pictures, but for some reason, I've been unfair to my blog. Unfortunately, last Friday I went through all of my pictures and deleted everything I knew I wouldn't put in a tangible photo album. All of my WIP pictures went into the recycle bin. I never took a picture of the completed right front, mainly because I didn't bother blocking it. I've decided that I'm going to wait and block all of the remaining pieces (and reblock the ones I've already blocked) at once. That way I'll be able to see how everything fits together and make sure that the pieces are blocked evenly. Rest assured, I will photographically document this major blocking event.

I've made decent progress on the left sleeve. I'm past all of the increases and about an inch from starting to shape the sleeve cap. I'm getting close!

I thought I'd leave you with some silly pictures of my doggies, since they do, after all, take up 90% of my time:

Here's Darby after she "crashed and burned." She often falls asleep soon after she partakes in hardcore play sessions with Xerxes.

Here's Xerxes after same said hardcore play session. He likes to retire on the loveseat. It's much higher class.

As I've mentioned in former blog entries, Xerxes suffers from separation anxiety. In this picture he can be seen cuddling with my work sweater. My scent makes him happy.

Christmas Gift Progress (Or Lack Thereof)

I'm tantalizingly close to finishing the right front of the Bristow Cardigan. Unfortunately, I've come down with a cold, which is impeding my progress. My mother came over on Saturday for dinner, and I compared the back piece to her back. Alas, it appears the cardigan will be too small. I'm not losing hope just yet, though. I'm going to try some aggressive blocking first. There's no reason for the cardigan to be too small. I swatched and my gauge came out fine!

I haven't been putting pictures in my posts lately. This is due to laziness. I've been blogging at work during my lunch break, instead of at home where all of my pictures are. It's probably more important to post the finished product, so I don't feel too bad.

I've sort of had a change of heart regarding my grandmother's cardigan-to-be. At first I wanted to do the Stella Cardigan, but now I've committed myself to doing a double moss stitch cardigan with cabled edging. (The pattern is called "Cari / Palmikkoreunainen jakku" on Ravelry.) My grandmother is an extremely tiny woman, and I was scared she'd end up swimming in the finished Stella Cardigan. The new cardigan I picked comes in a smaller size, which I think I'll try. I pretty much HAVE to knit the new cardigan I picked since I just put in an order for the yarn. I had to buy new yarn since the yarn I originally bought is worsted weight, and this new cardigan calls for DK. I love the old yarn, so I think I'll use it when I make something for myself.

I'm starting to feel the crunch, even though it's still September. Perhaps this weekend I'll start working on some dish cloths, or that Reversible Cable Scarf that I've been eyeing up. I need something to break up the monotony of the Bristow Cardigan. It's a great pattern, but a girl needs variety!

In dog related news, I'm starting to lose patience with Xerxes' bladder. This weekend, when my mom came to visit, he acted atrociously. (And of course, all of this happened soon after I finished telling my mom that he's been such a good boy lately.) First, upon her arrival, he started hyperventilating due to the excitement. Ok. We can deal with that. A little quiet petting remedied that situation quickly. Then, as she was offering Darby a treat (Xerxes had already had his), Xerxes walked right over to my mom, lifted his leg, and PEED ON HER! I was mortified. After that fiasco (and a quick wardrobe change), Xerxes proceeded to grab my mother's leg and hump it while she was sitting on the couch. Xerxes is not a "humpy" dog. He humped Darby once when he first met her. After that, no humping. I don't know what got into him! When it was time to say our goodbyes, Xerxes became visibly upset. He stood in the doorway, put his ears and head down, hunched his back, made the most pathetic face, and emptied his entire bladder on the floor. Any emotion trumps bladder control when it comes to him. I love his puppy-ness, but sometimes I can't wait for him to grow up!

The Plan

I have a plan. Yup, I do. I've been biting my nails, cracking my knuckles, twisting my hair, and generally freaking out for the past 8 or so months. The reason? STUDENT DEBT. I think college is overrated. All during high school I received enormous amounts of pressure from my parents, teachers, and other outside sources about applying to colleges, what my major should be, and which college I should attend. With a newly minted high school diploma, I signed up for tons of loans that I was assured I'd be able to pay back when I got my inevitable "high paying job."

NEWS FLASH: It doesn't work that way. No one told me that upon graduation from college I'd have to spend months sending out resumes. No one told me that a 50k+ education would most likely net me a ~30k/yr job. No one mentioned that I'd have to seriously consider flipping burgers. No one warned me that the cost of a college education would soar, while employment compensation for recent graduates would halt or decline. No one was honest about the corruption that exists within the collegiate system.

So, here I am with all of this debt. It's not all bad, though. I was lucky enough to secure a decent paying job during bad economic times. It pays quite a bit more than 30k. However, the job wasn't handed to me. I spent the better part of 6 months consistently sending out applications and resumes. Every bit of free time I had was spent job hunting. I called, e-mailed, and inquired. I wrote countless cover letters. To assure you that I am not exaggerating, I lost count at about 500.

My plan is to put more than half of my income on my student loans. I've already worked out all of the bugs, and if I stick to my budget, I'll be out from under private debt in about 2 years. If I get a raise (please!), I'll be able cut down the time frame. I'll still have the government loans because I intend on consolidating and only paying the minimum monthly payment. But, the government offers a few attractive options (such as income based payment) that I plan on using. For two years I will have no life, but I think it'll be worth it.

As a word of caution to others (and I plan on preaching this to all that will listen), DO NOT GO TO COLLEGE UNLESS YOU CAN PAY FOR ALL OF IT UP FRONT. It's not worth it. There are tons of things that I'd like to do with my life, but I can't because of my student loans. I envy my friends that didn't get caught up in the whole "college thing." Their freedom makes me jealous. You'll hear people say, "well those without degrees make X amount of dollars less than their counterparts with degrees." I say to them, "is that before or after you figure in the $1100 monthly student loan payment?" Hm? Even if I managed to succeed with my 2 year plan, I'll still have a mountain of government loan debt that will forever affect my credit rating and eligibility to buy a house or car. I'll be paying these loans until I retire. If I even get to... ::stupid loan payments eating up all of my retirement contributions::

Possessing a bachelor's degree does not make you special. To stand out, you need at least a master's, and almost always a PhD. Nobody told me that when I was signing my life away. To those that managed to get through college without any debt, my hat is off to you. To those who haven't, good luck.



**And in case you were wondering, I have a BS in Mathematics. I majored in one of the "useful" disciplines as the call it. I'm not one of those kids complaining that their remote degree in folding paper planes or licking envelopes is getting them nowhere.

Success

I completed the left front of the Bristow Cardigan today. I had wanted to make some decent progress on the right front this weekend, but unfortunately I've been feeling a bit under the weather. I had a headache for most of yesterday, and that headache carried through to today. The headache is pretty much gone at this point, but I still feel kind of off. It's kind of like a slight motion sickness feeling.

I'm going to relax for the rest of the night, and possibly start the right front tomorrow. It would be nice if I could finish this cardigan by the time October rolls around, but I doubt I'll be able to. I have two more cardigans planned, although they are much less involved (I think). One is the Stella Cardigan listed on the Berroco website. I would like to make it for my grandmother, who is quite petite. Thus, alterations are in order. Mainly, I think I'm going to make the sleeves skinnier and taper them a bit at the ends. I'd like to add some ribbing to the edges of the sleeves and probably to the bottom of the body as well. I bought some beautiful dark red yarn from KnitPicks especially for this piece. It's Shine Worsted in Hollyberry.

The other cardigan I plan to make is the Chevron Lace Cardigan. I am making this for my boyfriend's mother. He told me she likes blue, so I bought some Andean Silk yarn from KnitPicks in Merlin. I am hoping (and crossing my fingers) that this cardigan goes fast. It looks like it'll be a lot quicker to complete than the knit cardigans. I'm particularly excited about buying the button for this cardigan. I have a secret button fetish, and the thought of being able to pick out a large fancy button makes me very happy.

Aside from the cardigans I have various scarves, hats, and dishcloths planned out for gifts. I might even throw a shrug in there if I have time. I'm also going to try my hand at charting Star Wars paraphernalia since Kai's brother is quite a Stars Wars fanatic.

So much to do so little time!

It's Been a While...

It's been a while since I've blogged. I think I'll blame it on being busy with work, a new puppy, and mounds of Christmas knitting. Below is a picture of my new puppy Xerxes (left) sleeping with his "sister" Darby. He's a boxer/lab mix, which I believe they call a boxador. He's quite a handful. He came to us with numerous problems including severe separation anxiety and infantile bladder control. We've been working with him slowly, and he was prescribed prozac a few weeks ago to help the process along. Darby is also on prozac, but for entirely different reasons. We believe she was abused, and as a result she would hide and/or freeze in fear when approached. It got to the point that she wouldn't eat, walk, or move. She was terrified of feet and doors. Whatever the case, both have made great progress with the help of prozac.




I finished the Boogie Vest I was blogging about earlier. My gracious boyfriend agreed to model the vest. To be honest, it looks a lot better on him than it does on me. It's a tad big when I wear it. I'm pleased with my first attempt at cabling.



Since I was successful in completing the Boogie Vest, I decided to move on to some complicated Christmas projects I had planned. I have begun knitting the Bristow Cardigan for my mother.



Here is the back piece being wet blocked (the wetness caused blotchiness that cleared up when dry). After looking at pictures of other peoples' Bristows blocking, I can see that I didn't stretch mine into the "correct" shape. The waist should be curvier, and it is, but I didn't stretch and pin mine at those parts. Oh well.


This is the beginning of the left front panel. Since this picture was taken, I've made more progress on this piece. The extra couple inches didn't warrant another photo session, so you're stuck looking at this. I omitted the eyelets that the pattern calls for on the sides of the cables per my mother's request.

That's all for now folks!