Boredom Can Get You In Trouble

As any parent knows, you don't want your kids to get too bored. A little boredom is fine...too much can lead to trouble. So I am knitting along on Kaethe's 2x2 ribbing and I think to myself, "Myself, this is kind of dull. What can you do to make it a little more interesting?"

Well, I briefly considered doing a little cabling detail but I was afraid that might pull the sock in too much and make it a little constricting. What I finally decided to do was to reverse the ribbing. So we have 4 1/2" of k2, p2 and now I've stitched to p2, k2. And after an inch or an inch and a half, I'll switch back again. Just to give the leg a little interest.

Then again, I may decide that it looks awful and rip it back. Who knows?

Rachel's roommate has moved out. She was supposed to wait a week after the mediation, to try to work things out, but she had her father call the college and push them to let her move out right away. (This got Mr. Pointy Sticks rather annoyed...he was all ready to call the college himself, but Rachel talked him out of it.)

The good side? Rachel may end up with a single for the rest of the semester at the least.

Thems The Berries!

So I am chugging along on Kaethe's socks. Here's a picture so far, though really the colors are deeper, darker, and more blended than they look here.

I am wishing that I had done something a little fancier than just 2x2 ribbing. I may play around with some ideas.

Hope you're not disappointed, Kaethe.

Poor old Rachel is having roommate problems and it looks as though her roommate may be moving out. Roommate says she can't put into words what's wrong...she says Rachel gives out "negative vibes." And left Rachel a note saying she was moving out...but if Rachel would rather she, Rachel, could move out. I told her to stay put. That if her roommate had problems, then she should be the one to move out. (Turns out, that's what the college rules are. The one with the grievance has to be the one to move.)

I know I shouldn't talk...I'm her mom. But I not only love this kid, I like her an awful lot. Yes, she's acerbic and she doesn't suffer fools gladly. And yes, her mood this semester probably has been rough since she's in pretty much constant pain from a pinched nerve and is unhappy with her classes. But she's smart and funny and a true and loyal friend. I think her roommate is an idiot.

So there.

Current Reading

Well, I already mentioned Nation and Toy Dance Party. The good reading continues with Miriam Toews' The Flying Troutmans. It's a good'un.

Nose To Grindstone, Shoulder To Wheel

Back to work. I stayed up much too late last night finishing Terry Pratchett's latest, Nation. Well, not much too late. But late enough that I am feeling it this morning. I have more than the usual Monday sleepies. But man, the book is so good. I am afraid it is being marketed as a YA book but really, everyone should read it. A look at gods and the role they play; what makes a man a man; science and faith. Anyway, it was just fantastic.

I also read, this weekend, Toy Dance Party, the follow-up to Toys Go Out. What can I say? I love Lumphy, the toughy little buffalo, and Stingray and Plastic. And Frank, the washer, is back in this second book. And the illustrations, as before, are adorable.

Rachel and I had a wonderful time with S. at Sugarloaf. Rachel got some presents for friends...I bought her some new earrings and I think she bought herself some. And I bought some for me. (Quelle suprise!) I love looking at all the pretties, even if I can't afford them. It seemed somewhat smaller this October than it usually is.

I started Kaethe's socks Sunday, on the way to Fredericksburg to take Rachel back. Got just about half an inch done and then found a spot in the yarn (Lorna's Laces! I'm ashamed of you!!) where one of the plies had broken. And I had no scissors with me with which to cut out the bad spot. But they are started. I decided not to do toe-up. Apparently doing them that way is really good for letting the recipient try them on during the knitting for the perfect fit but since Kaethe is a couple of states away, that's not going to work. So I decided I'd rather do them the way I'm used to. I think they'll go faster.

That Old Rachel 7

We always had trouble getting Rachel to bed...she was a night owl in her early years. Still would be, I guess, except that she has self-discipline and an 8:00 class. But we used to hear her talking to herself long after she should have been asleep. One night, when she was 2 and a couple of months, we lay in bed and listened to her as she said, "If I lie down, I fall asleep and if I sit up I don't. And if I look this way I see....a door! And if I look this way I see....a wall!"

She hated going to sleep at night and she hated getting up in the morning.
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And she's home with us for the weekend, this weekend. She's having some room-mate issues and thought it good to be out of the way or a couple of days. We're going to go to Sugarloaf for a little while today but she has a lot of work to do, too.

Halfway Through The Week

I think Gizmo is feeling better. He ate his dinner tonight and was very demanding about having his tum rubbed for a while this evening, before settling down for his evening nap.



I'm thinking that the eleven fishes I sent to Kris will probably be it. I knit these two and had a little idea. So I sewed them together this evening, leaving the tails open, and I'm going to felt them and stuff them with catnip and make a little present for Giz and Duncan.

I apologize for the blurriness of the picture. I am sleepy and too tired to take it over again.