Another FO for 2006

There you have it! My socks made from the recycled sweater!! I am ready to wear them to work with my pseudo mary janes. If you look closely, you'll see I made a goof...that's what I get for all the laughing and whooping it up at last week's knitting meet. I made a decision not to rip and redo. Why? Just because.
Here's the specs:
Pattern: Panorama socks from 2006 Knitting calendar a Day (July 21st?)
Needles: socks on 2 circs...first size 2 addis only 16 inch...then Susan Bates size 2 24"-much better
Start date: 3-12-06 Finish: 3-25-06
Cost: $1.94 for this nice 50% merino/50% acrylic
There's plenty of yarn left over, so for now it's banished into the ever burdgening stash.

In other news, I met one of my goals for 2006 knittingwise. Kim was kind enough to show me how to do magic loop. Uh...I hated it. I will never use this method. It's not that I don't want to become more efficient at production, because I do. I simply found it uncomfortable and more of a pain in the ...you know where.

And Kim, if you're reading this....yesterday at the LYS, she remarked how I flashed my sock yarn stash. She said "oh, I know you will never use all that yarn. Especially the LB magic stripes." I then pulled out the skein of LB magic stripes in "regatta blue stripe" to cast on for Yukon Leaves. BUSTED!!

And, yeah, I couldn't help myself. I bought a skein of Artyarns Ultramerino 8 in color 130-it's their version of neopolitan. I'm in love......but not with the price. Holy sheep poop! So, I'm waiting for Kim to become the expert I know she will be at dying yarn. She's taken 2 classes so far, and I gave her my recycled silk/cotton to work on. As Artie Johnson used to say..."verrryy
interesting."

I'm flashin' my sock stash!!

No, I am not doing this because I have no other blog fodder...(or am I?) I just thought it would be fun since I've seen others do it, and I have enjoyed the images. So, I'll start with vintage yarn...

ok, here's the list, but not in order by the photo:

1. 4-Bernat 50/50 -wish I could get more of this...ebay hasn't helped

2. 2-Plymouth Wool Ray

3. 1 Bear Brand Evermatch..the navy blue disappeared at photo time

4. 2-Filo D'Oro Filato Acrilico

5. 2- Lady Galt Kroy-...again, I'd love more in some other colors...this one's pretty dull

6. 1-unknown yarn "cake"...if you remember, I'm using this to make basketweave socks

7. 1- Junghans-Wolle Dralon Perle

8. 1- Junghans Fidelio

Now for the current stuff...

1. 6-Lion Brand Magic Stripes

2. 7-Bernat Sox

3. 1-Online

4. 2-Lang Jawoll Jacquard

5. 2-Regia Stretch

6. 2-Regia Silk

7. 2-Regia Fadig

8. 2-Patons Kroy

9. 1-Austermann Step

10. 2-Brown Sheep Wildfoote

11. 12-Cascade Fixation

12. 2-Plymouth Sockotta

13. 4-Lorna's Laces

I figure this is enough for 38 pair of socks! Unbelievable. I knew I stashed, so now I HAVE to knit it up. Part of the problem for me is finding a pattern I like. Any suggestions? I rarely like to use the same pattern once I've knit it ....the exception being Grumperina's Jaywalker. Probably the Fixation will be the hardest to find anything for, and yes, I do look at the ones on the sock knitter's webpage as well as Knitty, and other internet resources. I have been considering getting Vintage Socks by Nancy Bush(?) . I hope that's the right author. The other thing I might do is join the 6 sox along. I hear they post patterns there, too. Unfortunately, I'm gonna run...gotta make dinner-Oh, how I HATE to cook!! And, yes, I will be going on Saturday to sit and knit with Kim and A! I can hardly wait!

Debbie Stoller in Tampa!!

Remember my last post about getting Tampa on the knitting map? Well, when I went to the monthly knitting group, Wendy handed out this flyer. I couldn't believe it. Sure, it would be fun to go, but it's basically to promote her latest book on crochet, and I don't suppose she'd appreciate me bringing my knitting book for her to autograph. Not only that, but it's on a Wednesday at 3 pm, and I'll be at work. Kind of a bummer. On the up side, maybe this appearance will lead the way for other knitting celebs to make Tampa a stop--like the Yarn Harlot!

I did get an update on the Knit Out...first, I mentioned it at group, and of course everyone there hadn't heard a thing. I went back to the blog, and she had posted. She mentioned it would be at the Fresh Market, but no other details.

For a change of pace, I went to another yarn shop to knit with gal pals, Kim and A. I had been to this shop once before about 8 months ago, and thought I remembered it's location. What an idiot I am! I ended up driving around for an hour and a half...and then stumbled on it after I had given up! After I related my locational stupidity to the girls, it set off a series of directionally driving impaired stories from A and Kim! We laughed so hard and long that I'm surprised we didn't scare the customers away from the shop! And we were loud!! The tears were streaming down our faces...I needed that. I must say, that even though I didn't go on a spending spree for yarn, the owner was so gracious, and even joined us to sit down and knit when she could. I really enjoyed myself, and I definitely will go back.

And if you're wondering what's happening knittingwise...here's what I did Saturday morning.....oh, and March is for frogging, too!

Knit Out-Tampa?

Yesterday while knit blog surfin', I ran across a blog from a gal in Gainesville. In one of her posts she mentions a Knit Out here in Tampa scheduled for March 25th. I commented on her blog, but so far no response. I then went to the Ybor City Chamber of Commerce webpage, but no such event is listed. What's up? I think this is a fantastic idea, and when I read it, I thought..wow! Now maybe Tampa will be put on the knitting map!! Oh, and I also searched the Craft Yarn Council's page, but only old knit out dates were listed. I want a knit out!!!

Ok, so here's what's going on.. I went to the thrift store again. Sorry the photo quality sucks, but my camera battery is on it's last legs...this is a beautiful cable sweater by Kate Hill (Who is that?) made of merino wool and acrylic in a deep cranberry. I snatched that puppy right up and ran out of the store with it for $1.94. I've been dying to have a pair of socks in this color but wasn't able to find any yarn suitable in my last yarn stashing event. I've also been lurking the Rekal blog for a year...I think it's a super idea, and I've been wanting to try it out. I came home and frantically ripped the sweater apart...ok. I actually only got one sleeve done, but that's not the point. I washed and wound the former sleeve into a hank, and now it's drying. I couldn't get the yarn unkinked! I read that some others hung weights on the yarn, and even had used just another hangar at the bottom of the hank, but it didn't work. I'll bet it's because of the acrylic content! I've decided that I have to try it, and if the kinks make the socks look bad..oh well! However, if it turns out ok, then I'll have a new pair of socks for $1.94. Ya can't beat that! Think about how much you've spent on sock yarn.

Now a gripe. The second thrift store I went to had only 2 lonely skeins of vintage Fleisher's yarn. Aha! I cried. More socks!! But, no price tag. I take it to the counter where the guy at the register rudely said to me.."I'm in the middle of ringing up another customer." I said I only wanted to ask a question. He felt like a fool then. Ok, so he points out the mgr, and says to ask her if she'll price for it for me. Again I was encountered with a person of attitude. She gives me the song and dance about how it will have to go to the backroom to be priced, and then it won't come back on the floor until Monday. I thank her and walk off. She never took the skeins away from me "to be priced". In other words, this was all B.S. Here's why I'm soooo mad. The stuff is donated for free!!! What would it have taken for her to say..take 'em for a buck or what ever. They are in the business to make a profit to support homeless people and give re-education to those who may be unemployable by society's standards! WTF! I could see if I were asking her to price a sofa or something...but please! 2 skeins of yarn!! My rant could go on forever and ever about this since I've been in retail for over 20 years. Let me just say this...you get what you pay for...or in this case, what ya don't get, and what ya don't pay for.

I'm high on yarn!

First stop...the LYS that's not so L...here's what I got.

Six skeins of Cotton Fleece and some new sock yarn called Austermann "Step". I've never seen this around. It's a very generous 420 meters, but get this...it has aloe and jojoba oil in it so that when you knit, your hands become soft! Who could resist that? Not me, obviously. It was very pricey at $18.50, but I'm all about wanting to try something new. The color isn't the best, but basically there were only 2 colors left, so I chose the one with more browns and olives since I have a lot pants in olive. Oh, and the color of the cotton fleece is "pink diamond". Somehow the vintage knitting mag didn't get in the pic. Oh well...I'll stick to the yarn..

Next stop was Uncommon Threads.. how I love going there. I walk in and there are 2 people from the knitting group....a little while later, a 3rd showed up! I felt like it was old home week! The nice weather certainly brings out the shopper in us! Anyway, what ya see is 6 skeins of Encore for the Must Have Cardigan, 2 Lorna's Laces-colorways Sweetie and Safari- and Regia Silk! I've never tried Encore and I guess it will have to do for the MHC....see, I can't wear wool. Itch City! Sure, there were some other choices, much pricier, but I view this as an everyday type item, so I didn't want to go too crazy. (I was tempted with some soy silk and bamboo yarn at the far LYS). For the Lorna's, I will try very low sockees and see what happens. Get this. I'm even thinking of trying toe up....there's some trepidation here. And how could I pass up Regia Silk??? C'mon.

If you noticed in picture 1, there was a skein missing...yeah, I've started YET another new project!! Some one shoot me now! Those darn people at Rebecca. If only they could have ugly sweater patterns. I'm doing #20 from issue #31. Since I don't gauge swatch...the waistband is the swatch, and I got it dead on. I am having one dilemma, though. The difference in size is 4 inches on the waistband, and now I don't know what to do. I usually make the larger size when it comes to their patterns, but this one might be different. I don't want a saggy baggy cardi...I guess I want it to fit like the model. (Ha! If only I were her size!) And ya know what else? What a dope I am. I have been stashing cotton fleece-2 other yarn hauls-and never knitted it up. This stuff is like crack cocaine cotton! I'm lovin' it! Sorry cotton ease...I have found your replacement.

One last thought...no, I didn't sign up for Project Spectrum, but maybe I should have with those yarn choices! :)

Thank Goodness it's March!

February was all about the Frogging...so what will March be? I haven't made any progress knittingwise since I opted for overtime at work...and I plan to do it again next week if my body will let me. I'm pretty pooped and my arms are aching, so we'll see. The good news is that my income tax refund arrived on schedule, so you know what that means??? A trip to the LYS!!! Oh yeah, baby! There's a summer cardi in the latest Rebecca that I'm dying to start...also, a sock yarn stashing never hurts. This particular LYS isn't so L, and they are the only ones that stock Brown Sheep, so away I'll travel tomorrow! I can't wait.
Do you check out Anthropologie? Well, I do and here's one that I'd love to imitate.. It's the June Bug sweater! Seems like it could be done top down, no? I've never done one before....something to think about. Oh, and I was super disappointed in the latest patterns from Tahki-Stacey Charles. Sure, there were one or two goodies, but please...I'm not spending $12.00 to get a pattern book with only one good pattern in it. I think spring is officially here, so I need to start planning for those lighter weight knits!

Call Me Kermit.

Holy lily pad! All I have done this weekend is rip, rip, rip. Nothing is going my way. I was working on the pink bubblegum colored cardi, and realized I had forgotten to bind off 9 sts at the beginning of the armhole on the right side...uh, after I had gotten 4 inches along on the raglan decreases....RIP! So, I decide not to have second sock syndrome, and cast on for the matching sock to Jaywalker #3. Count the sts...everything is fine. Knit the row, doesn't work out. RIP! Repeat process. RIP! Oh yes, I was referring to my handwritten instructions all along....IT DOESN"T MATTER!!! RIP!!! RIP!! RIP!!
Phew! I needed that. Here's a knitting pic for you to enjoy. My girls always bring a smile to my face. (Knitting was done back in the 60's by my mom) Aren't they cute? I have started a doll blog....if you're interested...click on the sidebar. Happy rest of the weekend knitting!

Intarsia and I make strange bedfellows

Up for your perusal...This is what the back of my work looks like when I do intarsia. I love the motifs you can do, but my stranding sucks! I just don't see how everyone keeps it all untangled. Yeah, I probably shouldn't have stranded the pink across the white, but whatever! I'll still love my cardi and wear it...I've always wanted to try my hand at fair isle, but me thinks it ain't gonna happen. Isn't there a yarn out there that I could do a faux fair isle with?

For awhile now I have been lusting for these shoes.... These are my ideal Mary Jane, but I can't find them locally. Oh sure, I tried ebay and the etailers, but with shipping...too much $. After all, we are only talking about polyurethane! Not leather! I also resent the fact that they are considered "goth". I love a platform and I love cutesy shoes. Buying shoes has always been somewhat of a burden to me. I stand on my feet all day, so I'm looking for comfort but with cutsey thrown in. Tonight I stopped at the super budgety $9.99 and up shoe store and found these... Still pu, but at a reasonable price...with tax..$13.90. Sure beats over $50.00...still a platform, still a Mary Jane, and still with a velcro closure! And comfortable....YES! For some reason, expensive shoes never fit right. I usually have better luck with the cheapos! Call me crazy, but I gotta have comfort!


And in other news...it appears I have a lot today...I've thrown over the vintage cable cardi to do this intarsia. My cabling didn't resemble the pattern at all, and it gave me great dissatisfaction. I'm still concerned over the fit, too. I started knitting the sleeves, and then threw in the towel! I will come back to it, but I'm thinking I will frog the back and start over! Egads! Did I just type that out loud?? You read it here first. I've committed to a frogging party! BTW, can you guess what the pink number is going to be? One hint...Mary Maxim. I'm staying vintage!

Bon Jovi Rocked Tampa (and me)

OMG!!! What a night! I can't believe how fantastic they were! Ok, I'm getting a little ahead of myself. First off, I wasn't able to sleep. On Friday morning, I awoke at 5:30 am...yes, peeps..and that is WAY too early for anyone especially me. After all, it was my day off...then, since my sis was here visiting from CA, I went shopping. Red picked me up at 4 pm and we went to Carrabba's for some yummy Italian pasta. Got to the venue about 5:30-6:00 and thank goodness we did. The line at the merchandise booth was big! See, it's happened to me before that when you wait til after the show, all the really big sizes are what's left. So, to the right, you see my haul. Red surprised me with the Hello Kitty computer game (!) and then bought me a BJ Blinkie pin!! Isn't she the bestest??
Now, if Red reads this, I hope she won't kill me, but....I don't think at first she was excited to see the guys. I'm not saying she dislikes their music, but she's no fanatic like I am. That sneaky woman has been looking at their webpage, and she knew something I didn't know. At the start of the concert, Jon comes out and plays in the audience! We had great seats (Thanks, Red!!) and Jon was literally 8 rows away from us!! Let the swooning begin! (Did it ever stop?) And, later in the show, he popped up again in the mezzanine level crooning "Bed of Roses". If he had done that on our side, I would have lost my mind.
The local newspapers reviewed the concert, but not as highly as I would have. This was a standing through the entire show, clapping, singing, screaming event. When it was over, we looked like 2 drowned rats from all the sweat! I swear, you would have thought Red and I were the performers! Ha! I did wear the Bon Jovi half sweater that had to be ripped off as soon as the concert started! One side note, I was surprised when Jon made a statement regarding Ritchie and Heather's "situation". In fact, during "Dead or Alive", I thought Ritchie was crying...my bad! It was sweat!!
I felt like that was THE best concert I had ever been to...Jon is a mega performer who can work the crowd into a frenzy. The acoustics were right on, and the big screen they used behind the stage was mindblowing. Red said that it looked so good that one might think they were watching a dvd since the pic quality was excellent. The last word...phenomenal!!!!

One more night until....

Yep! That's who'll I'll be seeing tomorrow night! It's been a looong wait and I hope I can sleep tonight. Good news, though...Red was finally able to get Friday off so we'll be spending some time together before the show. The bummer is I received no paycheck today...due to the northerly blizzards. I may have to restrain myself at the merchandise booth--Ha!
And yes, I played hooky from work yesterday, too. I had a dental appt, and said to myself...go ahead. Take a paid day off! So, I went shopping and spent some time with my family. Then, if that wasn't enough, I went to knitting group that night! Ah....if only every day could be like that. However, I spent so much time yakking that I didn't do much knitting. Hey! I better go work on that vintage cardi!

Were women in the 1940's anorexic?

Here's where I'm at with the vintage cabled cardigan. Uh...I think there's going to be a problem. Since I rarely gauge swatch, I just cast on and went with it. I've used this yarn before, Cara Mia, and the item actually grew....so, I figured what the heck. But, if you look closely, this is the back and it's not even 13" across. Now, I'm not a big woman, but this looks like it may present a new design challenge for me.
Also, the pattern said to do a double cross cable. Huh? I looked in my VK reference book...nothing that even resembled the photo. I've never done a cable with 9 stitches. Then, I started thinking that maybe it was a European pattern...Drag out the Mon Tricot that I just got at the thrift store and ...voila! Cables are figured out, and I love the look of them. Now, there's one thing I neglected to say in my last post, and it also is happening here....I really don't much care for reverse st st. What about you? But, being the type A personality that I am, I'm going to just settle down and love it if it kills me. Do you think I'll need to go on a diet to fit into this?

Hello. My name is Earl...er Chibisan

Yea! The Bon Jovi half sweater is done!! And none too soon for me. I hate being on a deadline...that's why I could never participate in the Knitting Olympics (a very cool concept, though). Shoot. As slow as I am, I couldn't even be a pre-qualifier! Anyway, the specs are below:

Pattern book: Filatura Di Crosa Zara/Zara Plus
Yarn: Lion Brand cashmere blend-9 balls
Needles: size 7 Plymouth bamboos
Start date-1-29-06 and well, we know when I finished

I definitely recommend this book or any of the Tahki books. The patterns are staight forward, and so far no mistakes in the patterns I've used. Oh yes, and the Earl titled post...remember when I mentioned the knitting gods were working against me? Yeah, I finish the cashmere sweater and the weather for the day of the concert? 80 Degrees. Karma. I tell you it must be karma.

Baby, it's cold outside!

Well, I would say, "Greetings from Sunny Florida", but all we have to look forward to is cold, cold, cold! (Great for knitting, though). That photo you see was taken yesterday morning...that's ICE on the top of my car. This morning was worse....the back and front windshield was iced over....and come Monday...it's gonna get colder. Brrr...

But hey. You came here for knitting. I'm on sleeve island if you haven't guessed. The Lion cashmere is a joy to knit with. I have 2 balls left with the sleeve caps and the 60" I-cord belt to do. Will I have enough? I hope so cause I don't want to have to make an emergency run to Hancock's. (not the close one) You may recall, this is what I'll be wearing Friday night to see Bon Jovi! I also need a new pair of black pants for the event, but it looks like that's not going to happen either.
And yes, I have selected my next project. Originally, I wanted to do another pattern from the Filatura di Crosa booklet I showed on an earlier post. This was going to include me using up stash yarn. Ha! The yarn gods frowned displeasantly on me...I didn't have enough of any one kind of yarn in the 5 containers of stash! I was so frustrated I wanted to scream. I kept saying to myself, what's the sense in having a stash when you don't have enough to make ANYTHING!!! Ok, then I calmed down. I surfed and went to the vintage knitting blog (look on my sidebar) and found a link to a pattern I like. And the clencher...I have enough to make the project! Yea! Ya gotta love it when things come together like that.

I got yer vintage knitting right here, baby!

I'm a pattern ho...I admit it. And if it's vintage, I lose my mind. I went to the thrift store yet again and hit the mother lode! All 6 of these for $3.89...including tax! I practically squealed right there in the store, but quickly regained my composure. I was combing through ebay last night, and saw the Aran Fisherman knits book and was lusting for it...(I'm going through my Aran phase right now)....imagine my delight when I saw it for 44 cents!!! I'm still in a state of shock. I can't wait to make something from any or all of these! (I know. I'll never get to all of them, but a knitter can dream, can't she?)

And speaking of vintage knits, and I am....I can't believe I never posted about this sweater. Oh, the story. Back when I first learned how to knit, I saw this in Vogue Knitting and fell in love. My sister was visiting me in south FL and helped me do a yarn conversion. I immediately cast on with those size 2 Boye needles and began a long arduous journey. The only "yarn shop" available was a craft store called Poston's, and choices were limited. We figured out that I needed 10 skeins to make this, so I scooped up South Maid Cotton 8 in coral. Knitter's nightmare set in when I realized I didn't have enough yarn. I quit knitting completely until 1999. One day, several years later,
I found this old project and thought I'd finish it...uh oh! Not enough yarn. I frantically searched-almost daily- on ebay for 4 years!! Then one day, a seller had 1 skein in coral and I won the auction. This is one of the oldest ufos that actually became a fo.
Here are the specs....Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer 1990 pg.53
Yarn: South Maid Cotton 8 in coral 11 skeins (this stuff washes and dries in the dryer quite well. shame that it's discontinued)
Needles: size 2 Boye straights
start to finish-1990 to 3-18-04
Oh yes, and her name is "Coral Castle"......after the edifice located in Coral Gables, FL.

Last, but definitely not least...you must check this out if you love vintage knitting...
http://www.vintageknitting.net/ What beautiful work!

Automatic Aran

Last weekend I hit my favorite thrift store and found this little diamond in the rough...it was rather nastified-pilled. Brought her home, gave her a good spin in the washer and dryer and then proceeded to spend 3 hours cutting off all the pills. Oh yes, and a shave. Love those sweater shavers! Unfortunately, it was made from acrylic-and a bit scratchy to wear-but I love it! Some wonderful knitter spent hours making this...and I HAD to have it...after all, it only cost me 70 cents. But, why I loved it so much was it reminded me of a vintage Coats & Clark ad I saw in my grandma's mags from the 70's..... For whatever reason, that little red haired kid in the sweater intrigued me. --and of course, the idea of passing the sweater down several times also fascinated me. Yeah, I guess I am a weirdo. You may ask where all this is leading...


I have tried in vain to get this booklet...and finally I just spent the extra dough and bought it off of ebay. I think the hoodie is great, and I may do it first after the half sweater.
I've got time to decide....all the patterns in here are what I like to think of as "my style". I've never knit an aran, and I hope I'll be able to concentrate on the pattern. They certainly are works of art, aren't they?

Here's The Skinny

Oo la la! This cashmere blend is super soft on the hands. I'm almost ready for the armhole decreases. This is what I hope will be a quick knit because I do have a deadline...the Bon Jovi concert. Today I found a camisole which I hope will work with this....ok, back to my knitting!

Bloggin' Is Good For The Soul

I'm really not feeling any better after my most recent crisis, but have decided that I might as well join the ranks of the living...don't get me wrong. I still may have my boo hoo moments, but as is often said..."life goes on".

Here's the obligatory sock photo... On the left...Opal Jaywalkers completed. Can you stand it? The middle sock-if you remember-is from the vintage men's sock knitting book. Lastly, my spring colorway for the third set of Jaywalkers ala picot edged. I have a sneaking suspicion that those two are gonna be loners for awhile. I have also got another sock on the needles...but all this sock knitting with metal needles is killing my right arm.(I'm a thrower) So, what next?



I've been drooling over this booklet since my birthday last month, but had set it aside for socks. I think the time is right for a garment. I'll be making a shrug, or actually, it's more like a half sweater using Lion Brand cashmere. Yes, it's taken this long for my town to get this stuff, and I've been wanting to see how it works up. Ya figure Zara retails for about $9.99 a ball. This cashmere was on sale this week at Hancock's for $6.63 a ball...yeah, I like to save when I can and it gives me a chance to play around with some new yarn. I've surfed around and can't find any bloggers who have used this as well as discussed this book. There's some great patterns in there, peeps. At least in my oh so humble opinion. Getting the cashmere was an episode...had to go to 2 different ones. Let me just say that I will be sending an email to Hancock's....there are some different issues I've had with them, and I think it's time I spoke up.

And my last subject is...my most favorite vintage knitting advertisement. I would love to get my hands on one of these t shirts. I think it's adorable in a schlocky kind of way. Maybe I'll send Boye an email, too. Hey, check out that circular needle set! I'm thinking of regularly posting photos of these vintage adverts to spice things up around here. What do you think?




Before I forget...I want to give a public shout out to Purse Ho for the kind words. You were the only knitblogger to acknowledge my post, and it really does make a difference! :)

Absence Explained

In Memory Of "Mister Boo" 1-29-96 to 1-16-06

My Best Friend
My heart is broken and the grief is searing.

Music news

How could I even forget this? Red sent me an mp3 of Manilow's latest..."Unchained Melody". He is really in his element when he sings a love song!

Opal-y goodness aka Flamingoed in Florida

Yeah man, I'm lovin' Opal sock yarn albeit a bit pricey. I still find it to be splitty, but I still like the feel of it. As I've said, anything has to be an improvement over Wildfoote-dissin' 'em out again. I love this Jaywalker pattern....it's so perfect. I've decided to do yet another pair, but I will make a picot edging like I saw on Amelia Raitte's site.

And of course, sock knitting is like Lay's potato chips (you can't just eat one), I've started another pair of socks.... The pattern is from a 1952 Jack Frost men's knitting book. I love vintage. The yarn is a complete mystery. I got it over a year ago at a thrift store, and it was already wound into the "cake". I'm doubling it since I don't like a flimsy sock. I've been doing a lot of "mental" knitting these days. I'm seriously considering only knitting with something vintage...whether it's the yarn or the pattern. Think I can hold out for the year?


And last but certainly not least...I'm concerting again!!! Yea for entertainment! Sing us a song, you're the PIANO Man! These days, every concert is a sellout. Good thing Red talked me into this one. I've seen him twice before....once was in 1979, I think...6th row tix! Those were the days! Then I saw him with Elton John at the old "sombrero"-you Tampa folk know what I'm talkin' about! Boy, that last time, he really made Elton look like a reject from American Idol! Billy Joel can really work a crowd! Should be a great night with Red. I'll give me review later this week...until then..."A bottle of red...a bottle of white..." sheesh...the songs keep flowing!