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Ramblings

I’ve been rather busy the last few days.

On Friday, I left work early so that the family could travel to Ft. Myers to Florida Gulf Coast University.  It was Jr Recruiting Weekend, and Soccer Chick was invited to attend.

We arrived in time to watch the second half of the women’s soccer game.  The team is good, although the tied score did not reflect it.  Afterward, Soccer Chick was introduced to her host for the weekend, and we were invited to attend a team dinner.  The players’ parents were very welcoming, and the girls seemed to get along well.

Soccer Chick stayed with her host while we played house at a local hotel, returning the next morning for a talk with the coaches and a tour of the college.  We love the coaches.  The team is only in its second season, but it’s apparent that they have high aspirations.  The college itself is very small for a D1 school, but it has a great feel to it.  It has its own beach (can you believe it?!), and the athletes reside in apartments on campus.  We loved hearing about the way academics are stressed.  It is clear that their priorities are in the right order.

One of the neat things is that everything is almost brand new.  The team has a new field and its own building with a fabulous locker room and lounge area (see the windows on the second floor…that’s where we ate dinner on Friday night).

The only downside is that the school is a solid day’s drive away from home.  Of course, Soccer Chick likes this fact.  Duh!  She’s a teenager.

We ended the weekend by attending the women’s game on Sunday.  They won.  They looked good.  We thanked the coach, who told us he would love to have Chicky become part of the program.  Talk about making us feel good!

During Sunday’s game, I decided to start a new knitting project.  I had taken along my Knotty or Knice socks, but the pattern was too complicated for the car ride.  Thankfully, I had packed my Malabrigo and the pattern for the Palindrome Scarf.  What a great pattern!  If you’re looking for an easy cable project, this is it.  I completed 16 repeats before it got too dark.  The yarn is delicious too!

Malabrigo - Worsted - Water Green

So that takes us to Monday, which came way too fast after our late arrival home the night before.  After work, I washed a load of clothes and noticed water on the floor in the laundry room.

Uh oh.  Not good.  Last week, the same thing happened, but I attibuted it to hanging clothes up to dry above the washing machine.

Today I put on my grunge clothes and decided to investigate.  I couldn’t find water escaping from the hoses going to the machine.

I tried to get the cover off of the back.  No go.  I pride myself on being able to figure out how to take things apart.

Not today.

I did finally manage to get the front off of it.  Here’s what I’ve been looking at ever since:

Yeah.  A little intimidating.  At this point, I picked up the phone and called a repairman.  He’s coming on Thursday.

I’m still determined to fix this myself.  I have unplugged the machine after watching water drip inside it while the tub fills up.  I cannot figure out where the drip is coming from though.  Even my googling skills are not helping.

Grrr…

I hate spending the extra money.

Especially since I saved a whopping $55 last month by hanging up my clothes to dry on my new clothes lines in the garage.  My electric bill went down from $177 to $122.  Guess I’ll have to use the money to fix the washer.

Grrr.

Sorry for rambling.  It’s been a stressful few weeks, and my mind is jumping from one thing to another.  Maybe I’ll do another juice fast…pull myself back together.

Hmmm…

Oh, and one last thing.  I got a boost yesterday when I discovered that Knitting Rose had mentioned me on her podcast!  Woo Hoo!  I feel like I’ve won the lottery (minus the money)!  If you ever get the chance, listen to her podcast.  She’s easy on the ears and knows her knitting stuff!  She’s also got a group on Ravelry!

Thank Goodness for Podcasts

I traveled this weekend…which probably doesn’t surprise you by now. This is the busiest time of the season for us. With another round of state playoffs right around the corner, the team is taking every opportunity to practice. Living across state from most of the players has proven to be a challenge. The solution has been to practice in Jacksonville every other weekend. It’s a haul but well worth it.

So, it was my turn to take daughter to practice. I really don’t mind because I get in good knitting time without the responsibility of taking care of the house and pets.

I loaded up the yarn I bought for the the comfort throw along with the latest oddball baby blanket that I received in the mail on Thursday. I worked on it during daughter’s scrimmage. The name of the blanket is Rainbow Joy, with each knitter using the color, in order, in the rainbow. I used Caron Simply Soft, and the color is Limelight. Because it’s garter stitch, I was able to knit and watch the game without looking down much.

With this blanket done and ready to travel again, I felt like I could concentrate on the comfort throw for my friend. However, after completing the garter border and one row of the pattern, I discovered that the pattern has mistakes. Grrr…

So, I put the blanket away and planned to find a pattern online.

With that done, and two practice sessions still ahead of me, I decided to pull out my sock and continue working on it. I got two more rounds done. Pretty good!

After practice, we began our trip home. Thank goodness for podcasts! I had downloaded the latest editions of some that I had subscribed to, so I was all set. I have a power converter box with two outlets, so daughter and I could both plug in our laptops. My Macbook Pro came with a remote control that I’ve never used before. It’s the handiest little gadget!

I used it to get to my iTunes menu and play my podcasts! I caught up with Diva Knitting and Part 2 of her sock-along. She had some handy tips about short-row heels. Then, I listened to the KnitPicks podcast. Next was Ready, Set, Knit, which is the WEBS podcast. Guests were the Yarn Harlot and Melissa Morgan Oakes, the author of Two Socks at a Time! It was fabulous! I also listened to Knit Together, a wonderful Christian podcast in which practical knitting topics were addressed in this edition. Next was Stitch It. Meghan includes a lot of information about spinning.  Knitting Rose is always a must-listen. She’s such a doll! And last, but not least, was the weekend edition of Way of the Master.

I was in happy land! The hours flew by, and before I knew it, I was pulling into my driveway.

Well, I’m off to look for patterns for a simple, quick throw.

AuburnChick is a Sock Model

First of all, I must ask…WHAT HAPPENED TO MY WARM WEATHER???

You probably saw the sunburn I got on Saturday when I spent the afternoon outside in the 86-degree weather. Well, here’s what it looked like when we arrived at the soccer field on Sunday morning:

And it was cold!

Now, I have to brag a bit. Being the cold-natured person that I am, I was prepared. When loading up the car for the trip, Mr. AuburnChick expressed his annoyance at my insistence that we pack a few blankets. The AuburnChick family, with the exception of your’s truly, likes to keep things real cool in the car, and I usually freeze. So, snuggling up with a blanket keeps the peace. I also packed my sweater and sweatshirt.

So, while everyone was scrambling for something warm, this girl happily sat her hiney down in her soccer chair, pressed her blanket firmly around her body, and began knitting…warm and content.

Neener, neener, boo-boo. Who’s the dumb one now?

LOL

Unfortunately, the mist in the air dampened my yarn, making it impossible to knit during warm-ups. All was okay, though, because I still had a seven-hour drive home.

That time, along with a couple of hours last night as well as about thirty minutes this afternoon during my son’s swim practice allowed me the time I needed to finish my first Monkey Sock.

Here’s where the modeling thing comes in (bet you were wondering, eh?). I’m so proud of the sock, in addition to being proud of the pictures that actually came out okay, that I’m posting several.

Oh, and here is the info for the socks. The pattern is Monkey Socks, and the yarn is Tofutsies, color #798. I used size 2 needles on two circs…sizes 16″ and 24″.

I like the following shot because it shows off the pattern real well (at least I think it does)…

This view makes my foot look real big (according to my daughter, who’s always full of compliments).

This is a close-up of the stitch and yarn. The colors are so bright and cheery. Everyone who sees the yarn just loves it.

The following picture should be an advertisement for why you block socks (although I have never done so but probably should have before posting this). I don’t know if you can tell, but I did a slip stitch heel instead of the simple stockinette in the pattern. I made several tweaks to this pattern, going back and forth between this pattern and Cat Bordhi’s book Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles.

One last little bit…

Yesterday, on the way home, I downloaded several different knitting podcasts. I’m trying to find a few I like in the hopes that I can learn something new.

Well, I have to tell you that I found a gem! My favorite, by far, is Knitting Rose. You MUST listen to Episode 10 – “What is it like to live with a knitter?” I had to chuckle. It was light, cute, and humorous. And, I must say, you will fall in love with the person she interviewed. I will definitely be keeping up with her blog and podcast!

Well, I’m off to cast on for the second sock. Wouldn’t want the one to be lonely for too long.