Give A Little Bit

So give a little bit
Give a little bit of my life for you
So give a little bit
Give a little bit of your time to me
Now’s the time that we need to share
So send a smile, we’re on our way back home

-- Give a Little Bit by Supertramp


I'm a sucker for children's charities.

Actually, I'm pretty much a sucker for charities in general. I suppose I know how very lucky I have it. And, I know how very lucky my children have it. I watch movies like Hotel Rwanda, The Constant Gardener, and Blood Diamond in absolute horror. I can't imagine, in even my darkest moments, what the quality of life must be like for the people who live in these conditions. As a result, I'm often lead to action. If I were single and childless, I'd probably BE a relief worker. Perhaps in another incarnation later in life, I will be. At this time, I have responsibilities to the children I brought into the world, but I can't live in denial of what happens in other places.

There are a lot of very worthy charities out there, but I seem to be drawn to those that help children. Save the Children is a personal favorite of mine. They have a nice balance of political action with service that I like. Earlier in the year, I was involved in the Caps to the Capital campaign, and I knitted several and donated them in honor of my children's teachers and various family members. As a matter of fact, that was one of the gifts given during the Christmas season.

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about what more I could do right now. And, with the opening of my Etsy shop, I decided that I would donate a portion of the profits to Save the Children. I don't know how much, at this point. I've been thinking in the 25% range. That seems fair, and allows me to have some money to reinvest in materials. I may up the percentage later, depending on how that works.

I went to Six Degrees.org (nice tie in, no?) which is Kevin Bacon's site partnered with Network for Good and set up my badge. You can see it to the right. You can donate directly by clicking on the donate button. One of the things I like about this, in particular, is you can use Paypal, but add the processing fee, so the charity gets the full amount of your donation. When I donated the first $10, one of the pages asked if I would like to pay the processing fee. It was 47 cents. I added the 47 cents to my 'bill', so Save the Children got all of my 10 bucks. You can also donate with a credit card. You can do a one time donation, or set up a series of donations. You can even set up your own charity badge.

So, I challenge you. If you don't wish to donate to my selected charity, that's fine. Go to Network for Good and check out their list. I know there's got to be at least ONE charity you're interested in. Donate.

Give a little bit.

First Impression, Part 2

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends

We're so glad you could attend

Come inside! come inside!

- Emerson, Lake and Palmer; Karn Evil 9



The Shawl was a big hit. Dion was most pleased, and immediately began wearing it. Like many elderly, Dion is often cold and she was most happy to have something, even inside on a hot and muggy day in July.

Lot of 'ooohs' and 'ahs' were to be heard. I now have several offers for my next projects, should I need victims volunteers. Which leads me to the next thing on the plate.

There are many, many times I make things not for my own use, but just to see if I can do it. Every so often, Nec asks me if I'm going to sell it, and I usually flinch when he does. Letting go of art, even a small little booklet or a carved stamp for letterboxing, is very difficult for me. It's very much like letting go of a child or a limb. It's difficult to let the things I create go out of the door. As a result, I've collected quite a collection of handmade things for which I have no audience. I decided to bite the bullet and join Etsy.com and list my things. Etsy's a little like eBay, but also different. It's a commerce listing site, like eBay, but unlike eBay, it's more about handmade items, arts, crafts and the like. Non artists are encouraged (highly!) to visit and buy, but the listings are of a particular vein.

My particular "shop" is called SixDegreesArts, and you can find the my shop here. I also have a banner over on the right that you can click on as well. Right now, there's only a few things, but I'll continue to list over time. It will be ever-changing and quite the eclectic group of items in one place.

Summertime, and the livin' is easy

Summertime and the livin’ is easy

Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high

Oh your daddy’s rich and your ma is good lookin’

So hush little baby, don’t you cry

One of these mornings

You’re goin’ to rise up singing

Then you’ll spread your wings And you’ll take the sky

But till that morning There’s a nothin’ can harm you

With daddy and mammy standin’ by

Crossroads

Dion's shawl is washed, blocked and set out to dry. It took two and a piece of a skein (about 330 yards) of Blue Sky Alpaca and silk. The knitting gauge was about 5 stitches per inch on stockinette, but I haven't measured the blocked shawl, except to know it's roughly 65 inches across at the top. Here are some photos of the completed shawl in various stages.


Unblocked.



Wet, and ready for blocking.


Blocked.



If this post seems less than my normal verbose self, you'd be right. There are a couple of reasons for that. The first is, I've had about 4 hours sleep in the last 36 hours. I'm beat. I got the shawl finished, washed, blocked out and completed at about 6 a.m. this morning, just about the time Nec was getting up to go to work.

The second reason for the more somber mood is nostalgia. While knitting madly on the shawl, I sat in our computer room and listened to playlists of songs I created ages ago. These are the tunes that keep me company while painting, sewing, or whatever creative process I might be involved with in our bonus room. While knitting along, "Melissa", by The Allman Brothers started playing. I couldn't help by be swamped with memories of a friend of mine, Ron, who died last October of cancer. Ron was a friend and a musician, and there are certain songs that remind me of him so strongly, at times I can't separate the original version of the song from the version Ron sang. Steppenwolf's "Magic Carpet Ride", Pure Prairie League's "Amie", and several others, including an unlikely but very endearing rendition of "Rainbow Connection", which Ron would segue into Drivin' and Cryin's "Straight to Hell". When Ron sang these songs, he lived them. You believed him while he sang. "Melissa" was also one of those songs, probably in no small part due to his wife being named Melissa as well.

I think I'm going to keep tweaking this shawl. I may even actually make a pattern for it. I plan to name it "Sweet Melissa".

Crossroads, seem to come and go, yeah.
The gypsy flies from coast to coast

Knowing many, loving none,
Bearing sorrow havin fun,
But back home he"ll always run
To sweet Melissa... mmm...

Freight train, each car looks the same, all the same.
And no one knows the gypsy's name
No one hears his lonely sigh,
There are no blankets where he lies.
In all his deepest dreams the gypsy flies
With sweet Melissa... mmm...

Again the mornings come,
Again he's on the run,
Sunbeams shining through his hair,
Appearing not to have a care.
Well, pick up your gear and gypsy roll on, roll on.

Crossroads, will you ever let him go? (lord, lord)
Will you hide the dead man's ghost,
Or will he lie, beneath the clay,
Or will his spirit roll away?

But I know that he won't stay without Melissa.

Yes I know that he won't stay without Melissa.

Suicide is Painless

Attention all personnel!

At 2:30 a.m., after posting about the shawl for Dion, I decided I really didn't like it. Actually, I decided it was quite ugly, and I didn't want to knit another stitch of it. By the light of late night TV, I frogged and began reknitting in a slightly different configuration. I was up until 5, when my eyelids refused to cooperate any further.

Lucked out at the LYS, where they had some of the Blue Sky Alpaca and Silk in the same dye lot as the skein I have. Someone up there is looking out for me.

It's 9:45 p.m., and I will NOT go to sleep until this thing is complete. Tomorrow is reserved for soaking and blocking.

More details and photos tomorrow, if all goes well.

That is all.

The Tide Is High, but I'm Holding On (barely)

Saturday, we have to go down south a bit. Nec's family is having a birthday celebration for his Aunt Dion. I can't remember right now which birthday this is for her, exactly, but I seem to remember something in the neighborhood of 80. I'll have to clarify at a later point. At any rate, I have been busy cleaning and getting a few projects of my own ready, knowing we had this upcoming event, and Necropolis had his own idea of what he wanted to do regarding a gift. That left me off the hook, and truthfully, I haven't thought another thing about it. Tonight, when he arrived home from work, I was informed this idea had fallen through, and I'm asked, "So, can you KNIT a shawl or something?"

Of course, I think. I'll just wiggle my nose and presto, a beautiful cobweb shawl will magically appear.

Where has this man been while I've been cursing and complaining and generally being maniacal about The Stoli? Is this the same man who complains, LOUDLY, every morning about the two dozen tote bags around my side of the bed, each containing a different knitting project? These things take TIME, people, not to mention it's been well documented over the past couple of weeks I am unable to knit complicated patterns and mother at the same time. I'm unable to knit complicated patterns and BREATHE at the same time. And, he wants, "...a shawl or something."

I can the sarcasm (barely) and give the honest response: I truly don't think I have enough of the appropriate yarn in my stash to complete a last minute project for someone of Dion's maturity and sensibilities. My response was met with the 9 most beautiful word in the English language to a fiber-holic:

"You can go to the yarn store right now."

I kid you not. The man who, in the past, couldn't understand what I could possibly need with so much yarn at one time (and believe me, my stash is really small) was actually asking about yarn and even offered me a "Go to the Yarn Store Free" card. Naturally, given my luck, this conversation took place more than 2 hours *after* my LYS had closed for the day.

Did I cave and start knitting something for this?

Yes.

I'm a total sucker.

I did have one lone skein of Blue Sky Alpaca and Silk in ecru. I started knitting up a generic type shawl, and I figure I can pick up another couple of skeins tomorrow. It's ecru, so hopefully, color lots won't matter too terribly much. I finished the one skein in about three and a half hours, which included one false start and necessary frogging at about 10 rows and various stop-and-starts due to Things 1 and 2. Here are a couple of pictures. Given I can't really spread this one out at this point, you'll have to use your imagination a little.

Because it usually looks like this: Blue Sky Ramen

I had some company while I was knitting. She didn't make a sound and didn't say I was singing Blondie or Cake too loudly (unlike Things 1 and 2). Good thing her coat is white. It blends right in with the shawl while I knit.

Oh, and that cleaning I was doing. Totally necessary. Really.

Splendor in the Grass

Yesterday, I decided the grass MUST be cut. Immediately. Do not stop, do not pass go, do not collect $200. Why, you ask? Here's a representative photo of MUC assisting. I think you'll understand my reasoning when you see it.

I know what you're thinking. You're saying to yourself, "yeah, but he's a little kid." Here's a shot of the adult, grown-up, DC-10 style push mower we use. In the grass. That came to my waist.

In our defense, only one section of the backyard grows like this, and the front has seen some blade action recently. All our vacation going has made cutting the back yard fall far down on the priority list, you know, past sleeping, and knitting, and watching Pirates of the Caribbean for the sixty ga-jillionth time.

Any way, it didn't take long before MUC complained of boredom. I gave him permission to take the POS camera (if he drops it, I get a *new* one....a *better* one) and shoot pictures while we were outside. I had no idea what he took pictures of until I downloaded my photos for my post on The Legacy. There were some headless bodies, weird angles and blurry shots, but he also got some pretty clear shots at times. So, here's my backyard through MUC's eyes. The bluebird box, the birdbath (notice the pine straw in it) and the dog. All fairly normal shots for a kid with a camera, I'd say.

But then, the kid gets avant-garde on me. Check out these that followed in fairly rapid succession.

'Cause even weeds need love.

Run, GLB, Run

Pancake fungi

And, my favorite of the bunch: Shoes.

The Legacy

I come from a long line of fiber crafts females.

My paternal grandmother was a big afghan crochet artist. To my knowledge, she only made them for family, and they all follow the same basic pattern. Memories of huge piles of fugly Red Heart acrylic yarn and my Grandmama sitting in her recliner crocheting while watching Lawrence Welk or Hee Haw are a small part of my childhood fiber memories. At one point, I asked Grandmama to teach me, and she somewhat did. I could make a single crochet like no one's business, and if there were a need for said creation, I could have made a fortune. Ask me to actually crochet through the loops and MAKE something? Abysmal. It didn't take long for me to tire of the failure, and all I have of this part of my childhood are a couple of the afghans and a lone picture of me crocheting on the sofa at Grandmama's house. And the hair? It was Beauty Parlor day, and I got to tag along. I'll spare you the details.

The multi-colored afghan was given to me, personally. It's smaller, but much loved. You can see where some poorly constructed surgery was performed as the yarn gave and started to unravel. This piece of history stays in a Rubbermaid container these days. I can't bring myself to actually use or display it. Things 1 and 2 would have it in a pile of recycled yarn in 4.269 seconds flat.

The brown afghan is more in keeping with what I remember her working on. I have this one as well, but I'm not sure who its intended recipient was. It is in much better shape than the multi, but also spends most of its time in the Rubbermaid.

On the maternal side of my family, the family myths and legends abound. I distinctly remember stories of one of my great-grandmothers crocheting (or knitting) through The Depression. The story goes that she would knit table runners and doilies from string saved from wrapped meats from the local butcher. At this point, it's all hearsay, and there is no one still living to validate it. I do have something from this era though, whether by accident or design. The Mother (that would be mine) has some of this family fiber history, and I have this:

I thought, for a time, that it might be part of the family history, but I'm not so sure any longer. Better knowledge of the construction of fiber crafts as well as the sewn on fringe on this piece lead me to believe that this may be a hand made item, but not of the era I'm thinking. I'll have to confer with The Mother on this at some point.

The Mother, while never learning to crochet or knit, is an accomplished crossstitcher. I have some of her things in my home, and every time she visits, she tells me how poorly they look and I need to have them re-blocked. Never mind. Another topic for another post.

Which brings me to The Legacy. Granny (The Mother's mother) is a crocheter and tatter from WAY back. I don't know that I ever watched her create anything, but there was always something lying around half completed in a mirage of colors. I remember, during the Avocado appliance era (I know...I'm dating myself here), delicate tatting in shades of mint and lemon not found in nature. The Mother probably has some of this as well. I should ask.

Granny, however, is definitely her own person. I could fill this blog with the various stories that include Granny that have nothing to do with fiber. Dr. Lucy's favorite story is Granny arriving at my Bridesmaid luncheon, nearly parking the front of her Toyota in an old pine, Old Fashioned glass filled to the brim on the dash and not spilling a drop. It's Dr. Lucy's favorite because she witnessed it. I couldn't make this stuff up. Granny also worked crossword puzzles in ink. My departed Grandfather used to refer to it as 'the height of conceit'. I could go on, but I think you've probably clued in at this point. Granny does things her way and isn't exactly what I would refer to as maternal or interested in family heritage. Unfortunately, time and arthritis have take away Granny's ability to hold a crochet needle. And, Granny has no interest in passing on the knowledge or doing much of anything these days. Of course, she's older than Iraq (I"m not kidding...check the dates. And we want a sovereign, democratic Iraq?) and has somewhat earned the right to sit in a wheelchair and soil herself in a fit a pique (can't make that one up either).

So, Enter The Legacy. The Legacy is a afghan composed of crocheted granny squares (Hah! I couldn't invent a pun that ironic!) loosely stitched together. I had thought, when The Mother bestowed The Legacy upon me, that it was an incomplete afghan. My original understanding was the afghan needed to be completed. I was a bit intimidated by the whole thing, so The Legacy stayed in its plastic zippered bag that once contained The Mother's Croscill sheets while I worked up the courage determined a potential plan of completion.

Today was the day for the unbagging. I was wrong, oh so wrong, about the needs of The Legacy. It's coming apart, it's filthy, I don't know how to crochet, and it's been given to me.

My initial instinct is to take the thing apart, square by square, and wash the squares carefully. Some of them have 'stuff' on them. (Granny isn't known for her housekeeping abilities) 'Stuff' of a color and consistancy I haven't witnessed since my children were eating strained peas at the table of Gerber. 'Stuff' I couldn't, in good conscience, post a picture of on this page. And, if that were all there were to this, I'd do it. I'd take it apart, hand wash the squares, and stitch it back together. But no, it could not be that simple of a project for me.

Some of the squares are beginning to unravel. I have NO idea how to fix this and there is no spare yarn. Matching yarn, at this point, would very likely be impossible. I have no idea how old the yarn is, but it's very likely to be as old, if not older than me (which would be older than...say....Aerosmith).

Here lies my fiber legacy.

And as you pray in your darkness
For wings to set you free
You are bound to your silent legacy

Silent Legacy by Melissa Etheridge

On Becoming The Stoli Svengali

When we last left our intrepid heroine, she was have a slight difference of opinion with The Stoli. Never one to let something as inconsequential as string get the better of her, our heroine regrouped, formed a new plan of attack (very similar to Napoleon’s famed three pronged attack at Waterloo), and began her assault on Clue 3. I am happy to report it was a success. Sorry, the picture isn't better. We all know my camera woes.

I finally decided that I have to knit The Stoli my way. I still follow the pattern and all that, but I came to realized that like most things in my life, I process knitting charts differently. Working it row by row is a recipe for disaster tinking. I have to break it down into more reasonable mathematical components to make sense. This isn’t unusual for me. I’ve always been a whole to part thinker. Here’s what I did:

Divide each row into 5 parts. The two border sections have 21 stitches in them, leaving 57 stitches in the middle portion. Generally, this wouldn’t be a problem, except this particular portion of the pattern is symmetrical. That means you knit 28 stitches, hit the middle stitch, then knit the remaining 28 stitches in the reverse of the pattern for the first 28. Are you totally confused yet? Yeah, it was having that effect on me as well, and I decided that trying to think in 57 stitches, much less a whole row of 99 stitches, was beyond what my logical sequential brain could handle. So, I broke it up into 5 portions. The two 21 stitch edges, the two 28 stitch ‘innards’ and the 1 middle stitch.

R21 + R28 + M1 + L28 + L21 = 99 Total

Works for me.

I put stitch markers on the needles in the appropriate places.

Yes, that means I do have one stitch with a stitch marker on either side in the middle of the work. And, yes, it means there’s some fiddling with the markers when I have to do a K2tog or S1 K2tog PSSO in the middle. But, the number of stitches stay consistent. I double check my numbers when I’m doing the wrong side purl stitches.

I also put in life lines (dental floss, in this case) every 25 rows. I leave them in until I complete the clue to ensure I’ve gotten the pattern correct.

Once I’m sure I’ve completed the clue correctly, I slide the life lines out, place a new one at the beginning of the new clue and as EZ would say, “Knit on”. The rest of chart 3 was completed with little bloodshed.

As for the chart, I’ve OCD’ed it as well. With 3 different colored highlight markers by my side, I color the bead stitches pink, the row to be knitted yellow, and as I complete it, I mark it off in green. I've used a red Sharpie to draw vertical lines for my 5 sections. You can also see my own writing where I write in the number of knit stitches. This may seem like a lot of work up front, but I'm knitting much faster and with fewer mistakes, so it can't be all bad.

I have to say, with this more OCD defined system, I’ve been less likely to make mistakes, and the ones I have made (usually a missed or dropped yarn over), I can pick up much more quickly. At this point, I’ve not had to tink back at all, but could correct my mistakes when knitting the WS row.

I also made some executive decisions about some things on the needles. I had an EZ Pi shawl I was almost ready to knit the edge on, and decided I didn’t like it. I had made a ton of mistakes while knitting it, and knitted with doubled yarn at first, only to decide about 1/3 of the way through I didn’t like that and abandoned it for single strand. The patterns were off, I’m not sure there were the right number of stitches, and I had no plan while I was knitting it. As a result, it was a truly fugly piece of work. The only thing I did like about it was the yarn and colorway, which was Ironstone flake cotton. I decided to start over.

The Pi Jellyfish and Pi, unblocked and waiting to be frogged

MUC assist with the frogging

And, Frog Pi.

And, now on to something completely different....Friday was my birthday. We'll not discuss the year. I'd just as soon not bother, but it's important to Things 1 and 2. Here are a few of the things I received, and yes, I'm that weird that these are all things that I enjoy. And, yeah, Dr. Lucy, I got my urine colored roses.