Happy Late Birthday To Me!

Granted, it's very late, but the package my sister and my parents put together for me is well worth waiting for. This isn't all of it, either. There was chocolate, and a really cute mug-with-cozy and tiny warm water bottle thingie... but here are the highlights.

Merlin got really excited as soon as the package arrived. Tape, glorious tape! This cat has a serious glue-sniffing problem. Of course I had to immediately open up the package and dispose of the tape. You know, to keep the cat from poisoning himself.


Inside... well, my sister may not be a knitter, but she sure knows how to pick yarn. This would be some gorgeous Tausendschoen sock yarn. There was even a booklet with patterns. I'm really excited about this. Had I chosen my own colors, I couldn't have done better. I keep ogling the yarn. It's so pretty.


Then, there are these gorgeous socks. They are soft and squooshy, and my sister brought them back for me from her trip to Ecuador! Special socks, indeed. I'll have warm feet all winter long.


And... my parents got me this little guy. They saw a stall with stuffed animals at a Christmas market, and discovered this adorable bat. He's soft and cuddly and has the cutest face. I'm so happy!


I have to go ogle my new sock yarn some more. Today was going to be FO Friday, but... I'm sure you understand.

Madhouse: Shoes

I have been remiss in my Wednesday posting, but when the topic of shoes came up, I just had to write something.
You see, as a woman, I am supposed to be obsessed with them. Designer shoes -- expensive objects d'art for a lady's feet. Most of them have heels, so if the wearer happens to be an Average Jane rather than a lady who gets out of the limo, walks into the restaurant, then repeats the same process in reverse... I'm sorry. Have some ice for those blisters.
Anyhow, as I was saying, we're supposed to be obsessed with shoes. One pair won't do, mind you. You need shoes to go with different outfits. Shoes in spring colors for spring, shoes to go with your fall wardrobe, sandals for summer, and boots to keep your toes from freezing off in winter. Shoes for work, date shoes, workout shoes, Sunday afternoon but only until 2 pm shoes, but they better not be white unless it's... wait, was that before or after Labor Day?

The rules go on and on. The cost goes up and up. And before you know it, woman has "invested" herself out of her paycheck, whereas the retailer is taking money to the bank. And all of this because I'm not supposed to be wearing white shoes in January. Yeah.
So forgive me if I don't get on the shoe bandwagon. They have to be comfy, they have to show off a pair of hand-knit socks, and they have to last. I'll just learn to live with the idea of being a bad consumer.

Snow... and Goodies!

You may have heard of it on TV... but we had snow again! This time, it was a real blizzard. Mr. Batty and I both worked from home and took turns shoveling our deck. By the time one half was clear, the other was snowed in again. Talk about Sysiphean labor!


It's gotten warmer now and the snow has begun to melt. But it sure was pretty while it lasted. I was lucky enough to be able to work from home, and even a day or two of staying out of the office tends to spoil a person.

As if I weren't spoiled enough, I got my package from the knitty holiday swap. And I have to say, I was absolutely blown away by my sp's generosity. Fiber -- in gorgeous reds and grays and ALPACA!!! -- one of those fun knit kits with stitch markers, a tape measure, and other useful stuff inside, patters... the list just keeps going. And something tells me those postcards aren't just store-bought, either. Nessa, I knew from your blog that your photography was superb, but they are stunning!


And... then there was the applesauce. The jar made it intact, it was briefly mentioned, then quickly squirreled away in the fridge. I have plans for that applesauce. It involves me, myself, and a spoon.
Thank you so much for your gift and for your kind words. You really made my day.

By Popular Demand

I present to you: The hat that looks... Freudian. Focus on the cable crossings with the unfortunate-looking purl stitches. Where I messed up. The purl stitches are the "head" and the object itself is shown in its natural position, hanging down.


Yeah. I'm not wearing that in public.

No Hat Today

I was going to post pictures of this hat I'm knitting. I'm 2/3 done. Or rather, I was, until Mr. Batty took one look at it and said, "This cable looks like a penis!"
I am so not wearing a penis hat.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!

What does a knitter do at the beginning of a new year? Check the stash. What does this knitter do at the beginning of the new year? Realize that she needs to knit more -- and faster. So I joined the 11 Sweaters in 2011 group on rav, because sweaters are bigger than socks and take up more stash yarn. Maybe that would make a real dent in my tubs of yarn.
First sweater project is going to be Slinky Ribs, which I started in 2009 but frogged because I didn't like how the provisional caston made the ribbing not quite match at the shoulders. I think I'm less picky now.

I also realize that I haven't posted any cat pictures in a while. This is Merlin, vegging out next to me on a work-from-home day.


You can't see his paws, but he's also doing the Supercat pose. Not a dignified sleeper or lounger-abouter, this one.