Sometimes, Life Isn't Fair, So I Knit

I've been away from the blog for a bit. Life got too real. Fresh from the news that Jo's friend does not have cancer and will happily regrow her hair and live a good, long life, I received completely the opposite news about one of my friends. One of my work friends is now home recovering from brain surgery and heading down a long, scary road. As Jo will tell you, if you have the choice of brain tumors, the one that you do not want is a glioblastoma multiforme. This villain sneaks in and reaches its tentacles into the brain. Left untreated, the prognosis is three months. Treated, the outlook improves to 6 to 12 months. The friend who is now wrestling with this demon had two tumors. One was removed (or as much of it as could be reached was removed) and the other was firmly entrenched around his optic nerve. My friend has started treatments and his family has a firm support structure and excellent health insurance. Still, it stinks. This friend has two young sons, one of whom is almost exactly the same age as Young Man. I can't think too hard about this or I will not function.

What I am doing instead is knitting. More compulsive knitting. Durrow is now almost 50% complete. The back and one sleeve look really good. I'm still getting used to the idea that Rowan Denim will shrink in length and this will all fit perfectly. I've made two swatches for FLAK. The Baruffa 7 Settembre just won't do. It is too thin even with US5 needles. I then got the idea from one of the FLAK members to try Cotton Fleece. This may fit the bill. The last thing I need is another wool sweater so this may be a good choice.

In my sock knitting, I have finished Whitby just under the wire. I knit most of these while watching lacrosse games. The other parents get a kick out of me knitting and cheering. It mostly works.

I used Lambs Pride Superwash worsted and US2 dpns. The color is Peacock and it is lovely!

They are a bit tight to get on and off, but they are really comfortable and warm when on. If I were to do it again, I would probably go up to US3s, but I am happy with them.


What is this? Why, yes, I am Jaywalking!

It took three cast ons to get going. After hearing so many people whine about how tight these socks are in the heal, I started out with the larger size. Two inches in, I could tell that these were way too big. Then I tried going to the smaller size, but with US2 needles. Not only were these too big, but the yarn (Wildfoote handpaint) was showing some unpleasant pooling.

I finally went down to the original pattern and the original needle size (US1) and I think I have it.

The other thing that I am doing is looking at the world, enjoying every day and hugging my family even more than before. Sunsets are especially striking. Enjoy every one.