Knitting, Sci-fi and other stuff...

    Just a quick update from me today.  Either my allergies are really kicking my butt or I caught whatever cold my son had.  My sinuses are plugged and I have a horrible headache.  I spent time outside a couple days in a row, so who knows.  I bought some plants on Thursday.  An eggplant, a couple zucchini, three peppers, a spaghetti squash and two more tomatoes.  I planted them Friday and then did some weeding yesterday and also strung up a line for the peas which are getting tall enough to flop over.  We also planted the lilac suckers I had taken from my parents house.  I'll have to take some pictures once the garden grows a little more.     I finally got around to trying on and taking a picture of my one  Shorty Heel Tab Sock .  It fits very well.  I'm really happy with how it turned out. I decided to knit a  Clean Hen Manou  for my second dishcloth.  I nearly did the whole thing in one sitting....

     Oops, looks like three weeks have gone by.  I've been very busy with work, my second job, outside tasks and some knitting, so it's not all bad.  It turns out planting my garden Mother's day was a bad idea.  Very few things actually came up.  I replanted the cucumbers, watermelons, zucchini, eggplant, and beans last weekend.  The lettuce and peas came up pretty decently.  I planted more of those, since I spaced out the peas too far and only one of the three varieties of lettuce grew.  I didn't replant the onions, I'll put pepper plants there if I ever manage to buy some.  The tomatoes are still alive and blooming.  It keeps raining here nearly everyday so if they pollinate and actually bear fruit it'll be a miracle.  I don't thinks it's going to be a good garden year, but oh well.  It's still fun seeing something grow.      My new second job is going well.  I worked my first 24hour shift yeste...

     Since I couldn't decide weather to continue Get A Shift On with yarn I have or buy different colors I set it aside this week.  Instead, I started a pair of socks.  I've been looking to try some different techniques, so I chose an ankle style with a heel tab and a short-row heel.  Bonus; it's a free pattern:  Shorty Heel Tab Socks  I tried on the sock last evening and it's fitting quite well.  I did a stretchy cast on then knit the cast on together with the active stitches when it came time, the pattern gave directions for this and also suggested a provisional cast on as an alternative.  I have a ridge of cast on stitches on the inside of the cuff; I was a little afraid this would feel uncomfortable.  I didn't even notice that ridge when I tried it on.  (Granted, I just tried on the sock in progress, so it may feel very different when I actually wear them.)  The seaming of that folded cuff, however, was pain to knit ...

      I finished Killer Queen Cowl and That Nice Stitch Bandana.  I trimmed the ends and got final pictures today. Killer Queen Cowl That Nice Stitch Bandana Both of these were made from Malabrigo Rios.  Killer Queen in the Pisces and Leo colorways and That Nice Stich in what I'm assuming is Indiecita.     I've also overcome my knitters block, sort of.  I've started another  Get a Shift On .  I have a multitude of Malabrigo Sock leftovers from several projects so I'm changing up several colors and doing another one.  When I took the progress photo today I realized its rather autumnal looking.  I'm debating my next color choices now.  I'm not sure if I should keep going as I had sort of planned or if I should stick to a more fall scheme.   This is Eggplant as the main color, Lettuce as the CC1, Cameleon as CC2 and Terrecotta as CC1.  The Cameleon blends a little too much with the Eggplant but works well with ...

      Its been an eventful two weeks, not in a good way either.  I'm not really ready to go into all the details but the job my husband was supposed to start fell through.  I had already given notice at my second job, but a really great opportunity dropped into my lap instead.  More on that later.  My full time job is keeping me extra busy with a ton of new tasks and projects.  I'll be starting the validation process for yet another new instrument later this week.  (That's number three if anyone is keeping score.)       Sadly, I've gotten a case of knitters block or executive disfunction, whatever it should probably be called.  I want to knit, I just have so many potential projects at my disposal I start none of them instead.  I did seam Killer Queen Cowl yesterday, finally.  I also washed, partially dried and blocked both Killer Queen and That Nice Stitch Bandana.  They are both still drying.  Fin...

    I finished knitting  That Nice Stitch Bandana .  I seamed it and got the ends woven in.  I need to wash and block it yet.  It looks snug in the neck area but it fits over my head fine and is cozy but not too tight around my neck.  This was a quick and fun knit, I highly recommend. I haven't made anymore progress with my  Killer Queen Cowl .  I'm going to seam it first then wash and block it, I think.  Then I can do both these cowls at the same time.     I'm not sure what to knit next.  I have the yarn ready for the Butterfly Papillion; I also have the yarn ready for the 2023 LYS Day shawl from Art Yarns and yarn ready for yet another shawl....  I may need to do a dishcloth or two to get over this startopenia.     The kids dyed eggs yesterday.  We used a "Superhero" kit and a "Galaxy" kit.  I've had these kits for a number of years now and the liquid dye that was in the Galaxy kit had crystalize...