That proverbial silver lining

Before I even get into the madness that is going to be my end of month..

I got a phonecall from my mother a few minutes ago, to say that my father had opened his eyes. Just for a few seconds, but still.

To most people, even those seriously ill in hospital, the act of opening eyes is second nature. For my dad, however, it's the equivilant of climbing Everest. It's the first time in almost 6 weeks that we've seen him open his eyes. He's finally starting to come around. I don't know whether I want to cry and throw up, or run out into the street and hug every-damn-person in the world.

The next few days are gonna be interesting, and exhausting. I'm heading to Cork this evening, and will be back in Dublin on Sunday. Then, dear readers, the move is on!
This girl is heading to Belfast!

Sure, it's only for 3 days this week, and I'll be going up at the crack of dawn with a couple of changes of clothing, my laptop and some yarn, but still.
Oh, and did I mention that my house is a leisurely stroll from Jean's Wool Shop? I managed to connect with the Stitch N Bitchers over the last week as well, so in a couple of weeks, I'll be heading to a meetup.

There shall be many, many, many photos and so much yarn porn that your google will block me! Or that's the plan.

In spite of going to vote last night, and the vast amounts of stress I found myself under in general, I still managed to get the first repeat on my wrap done. It's a very simple design, but I think it will look well.

For once, I exercised some restraint when getting into something new (A lacework shawl? In mohair?!) so didn't go for some of the more challenging patterns. I do have to make 2 of these after all, and quite quickly, so the chances of me being reduced to a sobbing wreck need to be kept to a minimum.

Ok, next post will have lots of photo's, I promise!
Please don't get too bored with me in the meantime!


Have a great weekend everyone, wherever it takes you.

Those 3am moments of clarity

So, another weekend spend on a train and in a hospital has passed, and it's Monday again. Bah and humbug.

I got sod all knitting done this weekend. Didn't want to cast on a new project on the train (new project is lace) and risk a sudden bump or stop resulting in me flushing my yarn. Cardigan is now too big and annoying to bring on public transport.

Instead of knitting, I read some Harry Potter. Order of the Phoenix. I've had it since the day it was released, and never managed to finish it, due to moving house and classes and other real life (tm) stuff. My next problem is that my copy of Half-Blood Prince is in storage. Gah.

Well I should have some proper pics for you again tomorrow - I'm bringing home the lappy tonight, which means that I can do some uploading. Huzzah!

I do have many, many plans at the moment though, some even involve yarn. Yes, I'm remaining cryptic for now. I think I've decided that I need to retrain (as opposed to thinking and then dismissing said thoughts), and in what.

Since the age of 4, I've been studying drama. I even spent 2 years going to a professional acting school. Somehow, I managed to end up in a desk job, where my unofficial title is CS manager/office manager/I.T. manager. It is a strange evolution.

Don't get me wrong - as office jobs go, this one rocks. I really like the people I work with. They're nice, friendly people, and when we have nights out we have a blast. The work is challenging enough to keep me on my toes, but not so challenging that I'm pulling out my hair in frustration.

Despite this, I'm setting myself up to leave. It won't be until next year, but I will be leaving this job, in the hope that my creative endevours will work out.
There is about 4% chance of me ever being a working and bill paying actor. The two sides of that equation only meet in those lucky few that grace our screens on a regular basis.

I'm not giving up though. I'm just...expanding.
Hopefully my waistline won't follow suit as well!

.....watch this space....

Mission accomplished

Wahoo! Scarf done!

I'll see what I can do about getting some pics up tonight or tomorrow.
I think it looks rather funky, but I may be slightly biased.

This means that I'm back to one on-the-needles project, which is the cardigan.
Now don't get me wrong, I'm still as enthusiastic as ever about the wonderfulness of Twilleys yarn, and the pattern is something that even I can manage without too much trouble.

I was actually doing really well with it until I ran out of yarn and cast on the scarf.
I love the cardigan, even though it involves endless rows of moss stitch, the sloooooowest stitch in the world, ever. I don't mind that it's going to be weeks upon weeks before I get it done, because it's going to be really nice - I hope.
The thing is that the scarf was just so damn fast (once I actually got some knitting time sorted)!! Probably 10 hours from cast on to finished product, including weaving in the ends. It's ginormous, and shiny, and I now have "completed project buzz". If I had a caramel machiato right now, things would be pretty perfect.

I guess the poor cardigan is destined to be on the back burner for a bit, destined to be ignored apart from weekends and train journeys and other times when I have a couple of hours of potentially uninterrupted knitting time available. It's just too damn big for carrying around in my handbag like other projects, waiting for me to do a few lines while I'm on the bus, having coffee or waiting for a movie to start.

Next up then should, if I use the rational part of my brain (as opposed to the bit that makes the squeeeeee noise around yarn) is to get the first of the wedding wraps cast on.

This is the yarn I have for them, except they'll be black. The whole lot is currently in two ziploc bags in my knitting "tidy". I can't remember whether the pattern calls for 5mm or 5.5mm needles. I don't think it matters that much, it being a wrap and all, but I'm sure my lack of 5's would be the perfect procrastination tool. Should I be so inclined....and stuff....

Apart from ordering the rings, I haven't been doing anything wedding-related of late. I'm not consiously avoiding things, I just always seem to find something else to do instead. I guess there's just a little part of me that's completely terrified that my dad won't be able to walk me up the aisle come autumn.

So should I remain in denial (it's not just a river in Egypt, folks!) and possibly end up blocking the wraps the day before the wedding, and start on something else now, or should I get over it and start them, hoping that by the time I get them done that all will be right with the world once more?

I have to admit, that "something else" is looking awfully tempting right about now.

Let the great clearout commence

....just slowly. Very slowly. Most of my stuff, junk and all, is in storage at my parents house, and heavens know when I'll be back there again. So I'm clearing out what I have in the fabled box room.

I'm flogging a few bits on eBay (selling stuff on eBay = money for yarn), and FreeCycling some other stuff at the moment. Don't worry, nothing knitting related. Mostly unwanted gifts and things that have accumulated in my room even though I've been doing my best to avoid said "things" accumulating.

Tonight will involve finishing off the scarf for dad. Only a few more rows to do, and then weave in the ends and block it. I'll bring it down to Cork at the weekend then.

Pity he isn't awake to see it.
Soon, soon...

Hrmmm....

Well it appears that my darling other half took those useful connect-camera-to-pc cables to Belfast with him when he moved the pc. So I lugged my laptop home for pretty much zero result last night.

I did find a handy pic of the yarn I'm using for the cardigan though, just to inject a little colour in here - ain't I thinky?


It's Twilleys of Stamford. Spirit in Air. Gorgeous, gorgeous yarn to knit with. So much so that 2 of the 4 scarves I knitted as Christmas gifts were made from it. Different colourways, though. Can't have us all in matching knits. Far too Brady Bunch for my liking. The yarn itself is so soft, it feels like clouds. Or how I imagine that clouds would feel, if I were 5 again and hadn't reached that bit in the science book yet.

In other news, my dad is still in hospital. The chest infection is refusing to go without a fight, which is completely killing his recovery time.
Still, we knew our mantra for this month would be "baby steps", and we have to remember that.

Wedding bands have been picked and quoted for, and will be ordered tomorrow.
I must admit to being more than a little excited about that.
They match my engagement ring, which is a bonus, considering I have teeeeny fingers and thought it would be a nightmare to get something that fitted and that we both liked.
Here's my one:


Pretty, no?