Since last we met....

I still haven't taken pictures of two complete projects. I gave Mom the Big Yellow Taxi yarn when she was here this last weekend, so I'll have to bug her to get pictures of it. And the Monkey socks in STR Rockstar are done, and have been worn, but not photographed. That'll be this afternoon after I get up. Here's the state of things right now.

Mystic Light shawl - Four rows into the final part of the pattern. I'm hoping to get this done this weekend and blocked sometime during the week.

Seastone Monkey socks - Started these right on the heels of finishing up the Rockstar Monkeys. I'm just two pattern repeats into the first sock since this is what I knit during work.

Leafling socks - Were frogged. I just didn't like how the pattern was working, or wasn't working as the case was. Planning on making RPMs from this doing two at a time on magic loop.

Spinning - I have started nothing on the wheel since I've been obsessed with keeping up with the ML shawl and not getting behind on the weekly clues. But the llama roving is still next in line when I finally get a chance to start it.

In a 36-hour time period this week, I did get a little letterbox obsessed and found 17 local boxes plus a hitchhiker. I need to slow that down a little or I'll have to start traveling further to find boxes. *sigh* Off to bed.

no cookie!

I've been a bad blogger. Obviously, I haven't posted the pictures that I promised. They're still on my camera and I'll be taking a few more pictures to add to them this weekend.

Let's see. Where to start? How about with knitting!

Over the weekend at work, I cast on for the March RSC Leafling socks. I've got the ribbing done for the first sock on magic loop, but I got distracted. You see, E and I had done a joint order from Blue Moon together and my 5 skeins of STR had arrived. I've pretty much decided to make Monkey socks out of all the yarn so those were cast on Friday night at work in the Rockstar (aka Cotton Candy on Acid) colorway. I finished the first sock on Tuesday morning before I went to bed and I'm 2 repeats into the second sock. This is also a bit of an experiment, since I don't know if the lightweight STR has enough yardage to complete a pair of Monkey socks for my ski feet. I've got high hopes that it will since I had a decent amount of yarn leftover from by Lenore socks.

However, both socks have been put on hold since the 4th part of the Mystic Lights shawl pattern came out today. I've been working on that tonight, but it's progressing slowly since there is now patterning on the right and wrong sides of the fabric. I can't just mindlessly purl back on the wrong-sided rows.

I haven't started spinning anything since I finished the CMF Big Yellow Taxi. I'm planning on starting in on some llama roving from a lady in my hometown. I've got 3 different shades, so I think I'm going to three-ply it and make a tweedy yarn. Should be fun!

Letterboxing will also happen this weekend. I've sucked my dad into the hobby and even carved him his own signature stamp so when he finds a box he can stamp in. We'll probably have a 10-box day this weekend while my parents are visiting. Yay for increasing the F count!

And now it's back to the grindstone. I need to finish laundry so I have something to wear to work tonight.

busy weekend

It's been a busy weekend around here.

My friend, Sarah, who I visited last April out in Virginia has since moved back to Minnesota and drove down to visit me. She got here on Wednesday and she'll be leaving this afternoon. We've had fun just bumming around the house and watching movies.

And then Saturday I took her letterboxing. Managed to find three boxes at two different locations and the letterboxing bug that had lain dormant in my system during the winter reared its ugly head. I've got the clues for three more boxes printed out to be found later this week. I might add to that pile since I've got today (Sunday) off and then three days off this week before working the weekend again.

I've also been knitting and spinning like crazy. The Big Yellow Taxi/Hawkeye yarn is done. I just have to set the twist before I send it off to Mom. I also finished the second Monkey sock out of my handspun CMF I've Got You Babe. I do have pictures, but they're on my camera so you'll see them later. And I've been knitting like a fiend on the Mystic Lights shawl. I am actually managing to keep up with the clues. I finished the last few rows of clue one on Thursday night, but since the second clue had only come out on Wednesday, I didn't feel too bad about being slightly behind. I'm currently six rows into the second clue. Since Sarah's in bed, I'm planning on putting on a couple episodes of Voyager and seeing if I can get a couple more rows done before I hit the sack.

Oh! I also picked up the Yarn Harlot's latest book. I'm only 20 pages in or so, but it's already made me laugh at several different points. And I tried baking a chocolate-covered cherry cookie, and they came out sooooo good!

note to self

Dear Self,
Remember to braid and/or put your hair up in a ponytail when you go letterboxing. Then you won't have your hair in your face while you're crawling through the woods in a snowstorm.
Sincerely,
Yourself

Seriously though. Found the other letterbox at Standing Bear that we missed. It would have been so much easier if it wasn't SNOWING!!!! Man...have I got it bad.

letterboxing

So Eliza has sucked me into a new hobby called letterboxing. Basically, using a list of clues you find boxes people have hidden that contain stamps. You stamp your own journal using the stamp in the box, then stamp the logbook in the box with your own personal stamp. It usually involves a hike and some thinking to solve the clues. Well, we found one by my house, but messed up reading the rest of the clue and missed the second one. Tried another area where there are 4 planted, but the whole park is closed until next June. Tried to hit one more spot and the box was missing. So kind of a dud of a day, but tomorrow promises to be better.

Before I sleep tomorrow, I'm going to run back to the one we missed and try to find it. I know where we went wrong now. Gah!! I need another obsessive hobby like I need a hole in my head.

Back to knitting and spinning for the night.