Random update (Must read knit-speak to understand this one)

A tease, if you will...

Rainbow socks are being knit in a modified version of the "Fallen Leaves" pattern from Knitty. The original pattern is far too wide for my feet, so I cut 12 stitches off the sock. I started with Judy's Magic Cast-On, and increased to 30 stitches per needle (magic loop method). For the pattern, I centered two repeats of the pattern in the middle. Had 60 stitches total on the needles, 32 on instep and 28 on foot. I took the 4 stitches on each side of the pattern to do a mini cable/twist type stitch (k2tog, k through first stitch again, slip off needle) with a purl on either side. It looks very cool, and basically outlines the sides of my feet.

I made a mini-gusset sort of, adding 4 stitches to each side so the bottom of the foot had 36 stitches on the needles (original pattern number) before I started the short row heel. That way, I could knit the heel exactly as stated in the pattern. It was def. a different sort of short row heel, using YO's instead of the usual W&T method I'm used to. It worked, was interesting, but don't know if I'd do it again. Once I finished the heel, I decreased 2 stitches per row (k2tog on one side, ssk on other) at row ends until I was back to my 60 stitches. By this point I'd stopped knitting the leaf pattern, but kept the mini cable on each side. Now I'm working essentially stockinette stitch around, and adding the mini-twist in two spots in the middle. Then once I have about an inch or so of leg, I will do the cuff in the mini-twist pattern (p1, twist, p1). The twist is a 4-row pattern (twist row 1, knit the stitches for next 3 rows, repeat) so I figure I'll do a 12-row cuff. I plan on a sewn bind-off.

And now that you're trying to wrap your brain around all that, I'm going upstairs to finish knitting the sock so I can take a picture of it to share.

Awww... I feel guilty...

Here's the start to give you an idea.



Those are Entrelac Stitch Markers there, by the way. Itty bitty ones I'm testing for Ana. I love them. They're pretty and don't get in the way. I hope she decides to make them for sale. I may ask her for more to use on some of the other stuff I'm working on. Only work up to 2.5mm needles (which is what these are). Awesome.

Now I'm really going.

Yay hooray!

I will now be able to blog much more easily, as my favorite blog-posting software (Semagic) works with blogger. Yippee yahoo! (no, not Yahoo!, just yahoo). Um, knitting related news...

I finished the first Anastasia sock. I'm going to finish Rainbow of Falling Leaves before I cast on the second, and my Father and Son socks that were for my step-dad are now for my step-dad-in-law since I found out step-dad is allergic to wool. Which reminds me, I need to call around and find Wick yarn.

Okay. I should knit. I have fuzzy feet to work on too. And my son's slippers. Yeah.

I found the *best* lighting this morning...

So I've been feeling generally cruddy lately. Betcha couldn't tell *that* from my blog post yesterday, could you? Well, it culminated this morning at about 3:40am when I woke up feeling major pressure in my chest and had a huge coughing fit. And there was some blood in the phlegm. Ick. Not a lot, mind you, but enough to concern me. Because, well, I had a step-uncle who died because a blood clot from his lung passed to his heart when we all figured he just had a nasty cold. So I'm a little paranoid about these things.

So I got myself around, remembered to grab the insurance card, woke hubby up enough to tell him where I was going, grabbed my rainbow sock in progress, and headed to the Emergency Room of my preferred hospital. Which, oddly enough, I pass 3-4 other hospitals to get to. But this is the one I like, and it's actually the Brand New hospital, open for maybe a month now. Great opportunity to check the place out. I got to the hospital, loving the new easy access from the highway and such, headed in, past security, and towards the triage area when I was stopped and it was pointed out to me that I was leaving a trail of yarn behind me. The ball had fallen out of my purse, and the sock was still in it... so I follow the trail all the way out to the parking lot where I picked it up, helped an innocent bystander get untangled, and re-wound it back through the lobby and ER waiting area. (Don't worry - the yarn was unharmed)

We get through everything, get chest x-rays, and as I was waiting for the doctor to return, I knit at the sock a bit. Then I tried it on my foot. And held the foot up in the air to look at it a bit. Because hey, there is a MASSIVELY bright light in the room. And you know what? I didn't like it. At all. I love the pattern, love the yarn, they just were not meant to be together. So, then and there, I frogged it and re-wound the ball. Tucked my DPN's away in my wallet and was happy to see they fit. About then the nurse came back with an inhaler, a couple prescriptions (steroids and antibiotics - woohoo!), and my discharge instructions. And then I was on my merry way. I have a sinus infection and viral bronchitis. Lovely.

So I got my prescriptions at a 24-hour pharmacy on the way home (was still roughly 6am) and got back in time for house to wake up. Ugh. Haven't been able/allowed to go back to bed either. Because if I slept all day, I wouldn't sleep at night. But hubby has been forcing me to knit, so it's not all that bad. 2 1/2 rounds of Monkey pattern plus a toe, and I'm done with the pair! I even managed to save what was pulled out without losing my mind, and knit it back up in record time.

So if I seem a bit more off than usual in my posts for the next week, I swear, it's the meds. And also, thank you to those who read my blog and commented on my last post. It did make me feel a bit better to know I'm not the only one. Zyllah - honestly, when I get on here and post, I kinda just type what I'm thinking, let it all out. I do a bit of self-censoring (many things that do *not* need to be shared) but I think the strong emotions I felt yesterday had to be let out to an open audience. Thanks for reading. Sometimes I almost forget that people look at what I type here. :)

Oh, if you're wondering about the future of the Rainbow Yarn, I'm considering being daring and knitting the Rainbow Socks out of October's MagKnits with it. Fee says it's her pattern, but her yarn is still on my desk. :) At least until next week. Okeys. Enough for today.