Stripes! Socks! Acedia!

Nothing like a yarn along to get you posting! I have several blog posts in draft stage, half of which will probably be abandoned because I find that post drafts don't age well. Sigh. 

But I started my stripey socks! 

I am using the Fish Lips Kiss heel and have high hopes for a good fit. I have weird feet (short, wide at the toes, with a narrow heel) and really want to learn how to knit socks that fit well. I think I will make the next foot just a few stitches smaller, but otherwise I am pleased with the foot. On to calf shaping!

The book is Acedia & Me by Kathleen Norris. It's been on my to-read list for several years and finally I ordered it from Amazon. I am not very far yet, but it is really good. I think the idea of acedia--a sort of soul-weariness that leads to indifference or laziness--is especially relevant for homemakers, as we take part in work that is very repetitive and made to be undone (cleaning the dishes, washing the laundry, scrubbing the floors, all so that it can be made dirty again). The fact that acedia can express itself in both listlessness--not wanting to do anything--and active escapism I think makes it spiritually lethal for us who are by things that enable both urges at the same time (namely, portals to the internet--smart phones and tablets and the computer in the living room).

I hope to write about this more as I read the book--always an intention I have, seldom fulfilled--but in case I don't get around to it, this book is well worth your time!

(And maybe my blog posting habits are suffering from acedia as well ...)

Socks!

It's that time of year ... I am knitting my birthday socks. And once again I am cutting it pretty close. Hoping to finish the first sock today so that I can have three days to knit the second!

The pattern is Cadence, which I've admired for a long time and am enjoying immensely; the yarn is Madeline Tosh in a lovely, rich color called Oxblood; the book is Home by Marilynne Robinson. Her latest is coming out on Tuesday, and I thought I'd get caught up.

Linking up with Ginny's yarn along.

Puffing (and still settling ...)

I finished my birthday socks--not quite in time for my birthday, alas. I was about ten rounds short. But they are complete and I am wearing them now. I would post pictures but socks are remarkably hard to photograph when they're on your own feet. ;) 

I am waiting for yarn to come in for a sweater for Michael, and have finished a sweater and blanket apiece for the twins, so for the past few days I've been knitting hexipuffs from the leftover sock yarn.

Surprisingly, I am still reading Anna Karenina. Perhaps I will stick with it after all. I didn't want to be in the middle of a massive Russian novel when the twins were born, but who knows? Maybe I'll finish it before then. (Probably not.) The other two books are These Beautiful Bones  by Emily Stimpson and Small Steps for Catholic Moms by Danielle Bean and Elizabeth Foss. I won both of these in giveaways--one on Goodreads, one through Ginny's blog--and am excited about both of them, particularly since I probably would have bought These Beautiful Bones anyway.

Both those skeins are Tosh DK--one in Antler, one in Betty Draper's Blues--and I am not sure what to do with them. Originally they were intended for a Milo for Michael. Now I am wondering if they should go into Milos or Puerperiums for the twins. What do you think?

In case you're wondering why that last picture was blurry ... I had to work fast.

 My stash is officially unpacked, as are all the books that will fit on our bookshelf, so our little reading/knitting nook is complete. We are getting new couches tonight, so when the room is more together I will show you pictures.

Linking up with Ginny for her yarn along!

Birthday Socks

Last year, I knit myself a pair of birthday socks out of Koigu yarn. They were beautiful (although a bit baggy about the ankles), and I decided that knitting myself a pair of new socks to wear on my birthday each year would be a fine tradition. So yesterday, after jumping the car battery (AGAIN), Michael and I drove to Knit One and met up with a friend, and I bought myself some yarn. 

This yarn is by Richard Devrieze, who used to work for Koigu. It's called "Oz Opal," a fitting name. I just love the speckles.

Recently I won a copy of Big Foot Knits and I was excited to use it to knit my birthday socks. I figured this yarn was pretty enough to be knit into a nice "vanilla" sock that fit perfectly, and all that stockinette would fly by so I could wear these on my birthday (Saturday).

So! Last night Keith helped me take all my measurements and determine my foot shape. Then I started reading the directions ... and as of now, I don't really have the time or energy to knit and measure two swatches (one of ribbing, one of stockinette) and do the math. It's not all that hard, really; but I just ... can't.

So I am casting on for a pair of Froot Loop socks instead. (I think Katie suggested this pattern to me?) Whether or not I will finish them by Saturday is anybody's guess ... maybe I'll just walk around wearing one sock all day. ;)

Still reading Dappled Things, just one more issue to go! The books are packed away (still ... sigh), so I started reading Anna Karenina a few days ago because it was what I had on my Kindle. I'm not sure a massive Russian novel is appropriate reading at the moment for me, but we'll see!