My Muse scarf

Books I've Read 2010

* denotes CHS library book

*1) Undiscovered Country--Lin Enger (1/1/10)
*2) Wintergirls--Laurie Halse Anderson (1/3/10)
3) The Center of the Universe--Anita Liberty (1/3/10)
*4) Blood Brothers--SA Harazin (1/11/10)
5) Taken by the Night--Kathryn Smith (1/12/10)
6) My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon--PN Elrod (1/13/10)
*7) Identical--Ellen Hopkins (1/17/10)
*8) Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen--Susan Gregg Gilmore (1/23/10)
9) Let the Night Begin--Kathryn Smith (1/24/10)
10) Generation Dead--Daniel Waters (1/27/10)

Modifications to the Alpaca Earflap Hat

Modifications to the Alpaca Earflap Hat--Be warned--this is my first time writing instructions out.

 

1. I reversed the design on one earflap so that the open part of the "claws" or whatever you call the design would both be toward the face.

 

2. I double knitted the earflaps.  Based on previous experience, I knew the earflaps would stick out like Pippi Longstocking's hair in just plain stockinette, so I decided to try double knitting them.  I had never double knit before.  The process itself wasn't so hard, but when I threw in the reversal of the design and the whole thing gave me fits.  It took two days to knit the two earflaps.

 

This is a chart of the right earflap in double knitting.  I can't figure out how to number the rows beside the boxes.  The bottom row is Row 1 and so on like usual.  I increased the black on its knit side by knitting in the front and back of the stitch.  I increased the gray on its knit side by casting one on using backwards loop.  The right side is the black side.

 

        KB=Knit Black

        PB=Purl Black

        KG=Knit Gray

        PG=Purl Gray

 

 

 

K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog
KG/PB	KG/PB	KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG	KG/PB
KB/PG	KG/PB	KG/PB	KB/PG	KG/PB	KB/PG
KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG	KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB
KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB
KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG
KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB	KB/PG	KB/PG	KB/PG
KG/PB	KB/PG	KB/PG	KG/PB	KB/PG	KG/PB
KB/PG	KB/PG	KG/PB	KG/PB	KG/PB	KB/PG

 

 

 This is the left earflap. The black side is the right side here, too.  I hope this is right.  The "claw" is facing the other way.  Reversing this and double knitting is one of the hardest knitting things I've ever done. 

 

K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog	K2tog
PB/KG	PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB	PB/KG	PB/KG
PG/KB	PB/KG	PG/KB	PB/KG	PB/KG	PG/KB
PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG	PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB
PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG
PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB
PG/KB	PG/KB	PG/KB	PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG
PB/KG	PG/KB	PB/KG	PG/KB	PG/KB	PB/KG
PG/KB	PB/KG	PB/KG	PB/KG	PG/KB	PG/KB

 

3.  I changed the arrangement of the cast-on stitches.  18 stitches for the front was REALLY not enough.  I ended up casting on 38 stitches for the front and 32 for the back.

 

4.  I changed the top decreases and added an I-cord top.  In black only:

        Round 1: Knit even

        Round 2: Knit even

        Rounds 3 and every odd row thru 17: [K4 K2tog] repeat to end

        Rounds 4 and every even row thru 18: Knit even   

        Rounds 19 and 20: [K2tog] repeat to end  

 

5.  To stop the front and back from curling, I picked up stitches, knitted in garter stitch for 2 rows, and then bound off.

 

IF/WHEN I knit this hat again, I will make the following changes:

 

1.  Knit first 2 or 3 rows in 1x1 rib to stop the stockinette curl.

 

2.  Use size 7 needles after the earflaps because the hat is a tad too tight.

    
 

Another Meme

1. What time did you get up this morning?4:15 am

2. How do you like your steak? Very rare. The bloodier the better.

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Bandslam

4. What is your favorite TV show? True Blood & Hell's Kitchen

5. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? I'd have to say England.

6. What did you have for breakfast? Diet Coke

7. What is your favorite cuisine? Mexican

8. What foods do you dislike? Fish

9. Favorite Place to Eat?Lately it's been Quaker Steak and Lube

10. Favorite dressing? Honey Mustard

11. What kind of vehicle do you drive? Honda Pilot

12. What are your favorite clothes? Jeans and t-shirts

13. Where would you visit if you had the chance? Australia, to visit where I was born

14. Cup 1/2 empty or 1/2 full? 1/2 Empty

15. Where would you want to retire? Somewhere near family

16. Favorite time of day? Early morning before anyone else is awake

17. Where were you born? Exmouth, Australia

18. What is your favorite sport to watch? I don't watch sports.

19. Bird watcher? No

20. Are you a morning person or a night person? Definitely morning

21. Do you have any pets? 1 dog Kacie

22. Any new and exciting news you’d like to share? I'm starting my new position this week.

23. What is your favorite childhood memory?My grandma baking gingerbread at Thanksgiving just for me

24. Always wear your seat belt? Most of the time

25. Been in a car accident? Yes, a guy hit me on an icy freeway.

26. Any pet peeves? When someone puts a new roll of toilet paper upside down. It's supposed to come over the top. That's why the design is on that side, people!

27. Favorite pizza toppings? Pepperoni & green olive

28. Favorite Flower? Lilies

29. Favorite ice cream?Anything coffee flavored

30. Favorite fast food restaurant? Chipotle

31. How many times did you fail your driver’s test? None

32. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? Barnes and Noble

33. Do anything spontaneous lately? No.

34. Broccoli? Yes. I love broccoli.

35. What was your favorite vacation? San Francisco. I'm a big sightseer.

36. Last person you went out to dinner with? Hubby and the kids

37. What are you listening to right now? Muse's new song Uprising

38. What is your favorite color? Black or green

39. How many tattoos do you have? Two

40. Coffee Drinker? Oh yes. The darker the better!

Food Meme

I saw this food meme at Chez Shoes and thought I'd do it.

Sweet or salty?

I'm definitely a salty person (no pun intended). I prefer cheese and olives and all that rather than a dessert of some kind.

Chocolate or vanilla?

Vanilla most of the time, especially in my coffee.

Hot or mild?

I never used to like very spicy food until a few years ago. Now as more time goes on, I prefer food spicier and spicier. Maybe my taste buds are dying.

What won't you eat?

I'm not afraid to try new things usually. I give most everything a chance. I have tried but won't ever eat again: limburger cheese, beets, brussel sprouts, and lima beans. I will never try anything made of insects.

Most memorable meal?

One of my best meals was when I was around 13 and my dad took me to a nice restaurant where I ordered King crab legs. They were delicious.
One of my worst meals was when I lived in France and my French "mother" made a dinner of what I THINK was oxtail. She wouldn't tell us exactly what it was. I remember picking what seemed like 100 little bones out of each bite I took. I was disgusted. I will never forget that meal ever.

Favorite object in the kitchen?

It would probably our toaster oven. It very versatile. We use it every day.

What are you scared of in the kitchen?

I'm reluctant to try new things because I don't want to have wasted the effort. I want to know beforehand that I'll like it.

I'm afraid to try new fruits and vegetables because sometimes I have no clue what to do with them.

Do you prefer to cook alone or with others?

Graham loves to help in the kitchen, so if I'm doing something pretty easy, I'll let him do it.

What country would you move to for the food?

This is a hard one. There are foods in almost every culture that I wouldn't want to live without. If I had to pick one, I'd say Greece.

If you were to come back as a fruit or vegetable, which would it be?

Probably a coconut. I'd put up a good fight before someone ate me.

What's for dinner?

I'm trying a new recipe tonight in spite of my above answer. We're having these chicken roll-up things with stuffing. Not too adventurous.

The boys and I decided to go to Marietta yesterday. No particular reason. Just wanted to go somewhere and see some things. We walked around the downtown area and along the Ohio River.

We saw that the river had flooded as high as 48 feet one year, which is nearly to the top of the brown pole behind the boys. I imagine most all of Marietta would have been underwater, too.

Then we went to the Ohio River Museum and saw lots of replicas of riverboats and items like silverware and clothing from the mid to late 1800s. We toured the riverboat that's moored (not sure if that's the right word) there. This is the oldest surviving pilothouse on display at the museum.

We drove around Marietta to see some of the historic old homes. They are so pretty with columns and huge wraparound front porches.

The surprising highlight of our trip back home was the Big Muskie Bucket, which I've heard a little about but never have been too interested in seeing. I"ll just say WOW!

The Big Muskie was a crane used for mining. It was built on site due to its immense size. It no longer survives, but here are the boys are standing inside just the scooper which was attached to the crane. Just the scooper. Can you imagine how huge the crane had to be that used that scooper? I don't know if you can read this, but I took a picture of the Big Muskie facts from a board at the park. It weighed 27 million pounds and was 1 1/2 times the length of a football field. It could scoop enough dirt at one time to fill a two-story house.

Here's a link with a few pix of the Big Muskie being built. The bottom picture shows the crane holding the bucket that the boys are standing in the above picture. The bucket looks tiny compared to the crane.

Doing some catching up

So I got on Dustina's blog tonight and saw that (haha) I haven't posted anything for 5 months. 5 months. I've thought about posting but thought "Nah. I'm not in the mood right now." I finally feel caught up with everything else in my life that I can take some time to post.


There are some big changes in our household. First of all, I am changing careers in a way. I'm moving from the classroom to the library. This means lots more schooling for me, but I think it will all be worth it. I'm excited and nervous for the change and am looking forward to the start of the next school year.


Second, Gavin spent his first week away from home at Boy Scout Camp. He was a little homesick but stuck it out and made it through the week.

We spent a fun week at Poppo and Nana's house. The 2 G's loved spending time with their cousin R, who is so cute singing "Lady" by the Little River Band. Why my brother teaches him weird songs like that I'll never know, but it cracks us up.


Katie and I are getting so excited for the Muse/U2 concert in October in Raleigh. We're making a whole weekend out of it.

The 2 G's have football camp to look forward to next week.



I've been knitting and reading up a storm. I've finished 7 projects since school's been out and have 3 more on the needles right now. One of my favorites was my Amanda hat.

I'm also in the 52 Books in 52 Weeks group on Ravelry and am on book 60 right now.

Whew.