A Quick List

Just get a  semi-quick and random list for the blog today.

1. Daily blogging continues. However boring it may be.
2. My grandson, Little Farmer, is remaining in the womb, 34 weeks and counting.  No matter how anxious he is to be born, I am just as happy to wait a few more weeks to meet him.
3. We had snow in October.  Hoping for much more.
4. Knitting continues on the Green and White Jacket, as well as the Gray Spiral Blankie.  Both need a pattern around to refer to occasionally.  Dare I continue to look for a truly brainless pattern to work on?
5. I am tired of channel surfing.  I want my movie channel back.  Most of the more recent movies I have been able to stand to watch are either children's movies or so laden with profanity that I have to keep changing channels.  There is a LOT to be said for the old classic movies.  I miss them.
6. Cat picture, just because.
   

List: My Favorite Knitting Books

I have shared a lot here about how much I love (and need) knitting.  Some of the books that have helped me to grow in my knitting adventure are classics and others are newer.  I thought I would share some of them with whoever happens to actually read this drivel I write.

• Knitting Rules, by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.  I mentioned this one yesterday in my post.  I like this because while it doesn't have actually patterns it has recipes for different items:  hats, scarves, shawls and a great sock recipe. She follows the idea that there are not knitting police, and you are master of what you knit.
• Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmermann.  Actually anything by this great lady...Knitting Workshop, Knitting Around, and Knitter's Almanac.  But this book was the first that I read when I returned to knitting after many years.   EZ (as she is known by her fans) is another person who knit by formulas and not hard core patterns.  While her pithy directions may leave you wondering, they also give you lots of leeway for creativity.
• Victorian Lace Today byJane Sowerby.  This has actual patterns, but mostly I use this book for inspiration.  I did some commissioned knitting out of this book though and loved it. The patterns are beautiful.  And all the lace is charted.  I can't knit lace without a chart. 
• The Knitter's Handy Book of Sweater Patterns and The Knitter's Handy Book of Top-Down Sweater Patterns by Ann Budd.  I have made several sweaters using these books.  Again they are recipe or formula type books.   I also have her The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns.  Just have to make me a swatch and I can knit anything.
• A Treasury of Knitting Patterns and A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns by Barbara Walker.  What list is complete without these?  Not a regular knitting pattern but many many stitch patterns: lace, cables, knit/purl.  Any simple pattern can be stepped up with the addition of these stitch patterns.  Any new project from Ann Budds book also involves a stroll through these books.
•  Cast On Bind Off by Leslie Ann Bestor. Ironically two books came out at nearly the same time with this name.  This is the version with 54 methods, although I have both books.  I find the one with over 100 methods too overwhelming, and not that much difference between some of them.  This smaller book has come in very handy, when I was looking for provisional cast ons and stretchy ones.  There were several choice to go over and I could pick the one I liked best. 

While there are many other books that I have and love, these are some I wouldn't want to do without.  And I think any knitter could go far with just these.
What are some of your favorites?

Ideas for WIP Club

Possible projects for the WIP club I mentioned in the previous post

1. Linda's purple mittens--I need to finishe those soon anyway.
2. Pink mystery project (to be named later.)
3. Bigfoot Shaw, started in about 2008, and hardly touched recently
4. Even older, a black mohair shawl, from a class I took with Marla Mutch several years ago.
5. Reading Shawl, started this past year.
6. Featherweight sweater.
7. Silver Shrieks in the Night mobeius.
8. A really old feather and fan in the round, started maybe 5 years ago out of sock yarn?
9. Another lace weight shawl in a feather and fan pattern, that is also way before Ravelry.  I may just find and frog that one.  Its a made up design anyway.

Gosh, that's more than enough, at 2 months each, for an entire year!  And I haven't even scratched the surface.  There are 3 pairs of socks, only one with the first sock done.  One of them is a charted toe up pair. There is another pair of sock that I have to reknit from the ankle down.  Also my Burly yarn vest that I am frogging back about 4 or 5 inches, and then re-finishing.  Not to mention the recently purchased alpaca destined for a sweater, and more Lambs Pride for another sweater.  And if I dig, I could probably come up with at least one other shawl in progress, and other projects ready to go.
I have no right to even be thinking of starting anything else.  And yet......
We'll see.

Ten for '10, the New Decade

I guess maybe I could come up with some resolutions. Since I am not good at New Year’s Resolutions, maybe I can do better if I make them for a whole 10 years.

1 Live long enough to retire.
2 Get a job I can retire from.
3 Make a sweater or shawl—a big project--out of homespun yarn .
4 Make another.
5 Try to get Hubby into something hand-knit.
6 Blog faithfully, at least 2 weekly/8 times a month minimum.
7 For every project I buy yarn for, make another out of stash yarn—at least sometimes, until stash gets low. “Low” being determined by my own judgment.
8 Continue to use crock-pots for meals.
9 Spend time with yarn every day—knitting or spinning or both
10 Become a grandma. I think ten years should be enough time for the boys to find someone nice and settle down. I won’t hold my breath on this one though.

Well—that sounds like a doable list, especially if I stretch it out over ten years. No one will remember after that much time what I resolved.

Nine from '09

Here is a list of movies I discovered and loved this year. All old and mostly thanks to Turner Classic Movie channel. Nine from 2009.

1—Roberta. It’s a musical with Fred Astaire and Randolph Scott. You got to love a movie that has that macho cowboy as a romantic lead, and the owner of a Paris fashion shop.
2—Golddiggers of 1933. Again a musical. Ruby Keeler, Dick Powell and with Ginger Rogers singing “We’re in the Money” in Pig Latin. Hilarious, even in today’s economy. I especially love when a friend comes over to borrow the “good dress” and silk stockings for a job interview.
3—Wuthering Heights. I read the book years ago and had trouble understanding it. I understand it better now, and love Olivier in it. A perfect Heathcliff.
4—Now, Voyager. I generally am not a fan of Bette Davis. Too tough for me to enjoy. But in this role she is much more sympathic, and I love her transformation.
5—The Man Who Came to Dinner. What a romp! Again, a Bette Davis I can love. During the intro, they say that she is playing opposite the role she usually plays, and its true. No wonder I like her in this.
6—Dinner at Eight. Another old ensemble piece. The different guests with their own agendas. Such fun to watch.
7—Key Largo. Wasn’t what I expected, but loved every minute of it. A great surprise. I almost changed the channel, and am glad I didn’t.
8—The Private Live of Henry VIII. From 1933 and a great film. Elsa Lancaster tricking Henry to divorce her is a riot.
9—Captains Courageous. I was delighted with this one. I knew it starred Tracey as an Latin fisherman, but it wasn’t what I expected. Freddy Bartholomew almost made me change the channel early on, but I held on and loved the piece.

There they are, my favorite “new” discoveries from this past year. And not a new movie in the bunch.

List of Nines--Part 9—Favorite Knitting Patterns

End of the line, list wise. I think I saved a good one for the end. And I hope by now you have learned a little about me. Probably more than you wanted though, huh?

1. Referenced in previous lists, my favorite sock pattern is the Yarn Harlot’s basic plain vanilla sock pattern. Adaptable for different stitch patterns and gauges, it is still a mindless knit when working a basic pattern. A pattern staple.
2. Elizabeth Zimmermann’s February Baby Sweater. I made this for my long suffering great nephew. It was a quick knit and essential prequel to the February Lady Sweater that I also love. I promise, mine will be coming out of hibernation soon.
3. Cottage Creation is another of my favorite designers. Their Wonderful Wallaby, and hoodie sweatshirt type sweater is a great gift for children, and my own is warm and comfy. The designer recently added a top down garter wallaby type sweater you have recently read about here the Kyler’s Kardigan.
4. Another EZ pattern I love is the Pi Are Square shawl. A horseshoe design, a semi-circle with long tails in front is a combo of the round and the rectangle. The best of both worlds. I may be starting one in the near future.
5. Knit Picks Classic Line Cardigan. My recent Hot Rod Heather cardigan was made with this pattern. Using doubled lace weight yarn, it is light and comfortable. I love it and plan future sweaters in other colors.
6. Elizabeth Zimmermann comes through again with her EPS sweaters. Elizabeth’s Percentage System helps the knitter take their gauge, their measurements and knit a perfectly fitting sweater in the round. When she devised the method of decreasing the yoke it made “do it yourself” colorwork possible.
7. The Sheep Shawl by Evelyn A Clark. A charted triangle shawl with pictures of fields, trees, houses and of course sheep. I WILL make one some day.
8. The Sonoma Shawl. I made one for me and one for Sandy. This elbow length capelet is just the right size for hands-free wearing with the addition of a shawl pin.
9. One last EZ pattern. In the Knitting Almanac with the February Baby Sweater is a square shawl. I made one in wool worsted for my father. Very warm, very easy. The hardest part was managing the long needle cable.
   
   Well that’s it, the ninth list of nines.
   Glad that is done. Well, at least until Oct 10, 2010 anyway.

List of Nines--Part 8—My Most Interesting Family Members

I couldn’t resist this list, but have included both living relatives and those I have found while researching my family tree.

1. My Aunt Glenna. She is the one who had the cherry orchards when I was younger. Many times I also went to work at the farmers market with them. She is fun, crazy and in her mid 80s shows few signs of slowing down
2. Armenus Gilbert. My big genealogy breakthrough. While much of my fathers side had been done already, not much was know on my mother’s side. My discovery of Armenus, my great-great-grandfather and my Civil War vet was an exciting moment. He was the middle of three generations who lived to age 90 as well.
3. Mary Sitts. A distant cousin told me about her. She is rather famous, and there are a couple books about her as well as much on the internet. As a child she was captured by Indians in the Upper New York area and taken to Canada where she was raised by a childless couple. While there she learned the art of being a medicine mother from her adopted mother. Eventually she was ransomed, married the son of her rescuer and then eloped with my ancestor. Scandals are the breath of life to genealogists.
4. Gerald Ford. Yup, the president is in my family, we just haven’t been able to make the verified connection. At least through adoption. But as a child, he was at the same Ford family reunions as my grandma.
5. James Henry Samis. This is another great-great-grandmother on Mom’s side. He died in 1899 after losing a leg when hopping a train to find a job.
6. Gilbert Samis, not an actual ancestor, more of a double cousin, his parents being the siblings of both my great-grandpa and great-grandma. He was in the Spanish American War before dying near the end of WWI in France. He was the first fallen soldier of Osceola County in the Great War. Again I found many clippings about him online.
7. I can’t leave out my Older son. He is in a class by himself. Pure farmer. I have long been know as “B—‘s Mom”. And yes, it has been confirmed, he has sold the famous party bus.
8. Barring a grandchild of my own someday, my great-nephew Luke has to make the list. This accommodating child always wears what I knit him.
9. My Grandma Allen. She tried to teach me to crochet. She introduced me to Little Women and Little Men. She encouraged my creativity. And she survived my dad and his siblings.

List of Nines--Part 7—Books and Book Series I Love

1. My all time favorite is Gone With The Wind. I first checked it out in seventh grade because it was the only one I thought would be big enough to last over Christmas vacation. Loved it long before the movie.
2. Jan Karon’s Mitford books. Maybe being Episcopalian made this one especially interesting, but they touched my heart.
3. Any and all of Elizabeth Zimmermann’s books. From Knitting Workshop, Knitting Around, Knitting Almanac and Knitting Without Tears. These books have opened out new pathways in my knitting experience and have allowed me to know there are no Knitting Police. She also has some great videos based on some of these books.
4. Knitting Rules! By Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. Again, basic rules and no patterns. How liberating to knit this way.
5. Bible. Need I say anything here? Changed my life, and always comforting. My favorite is my New International Version, with the Message a close second for just plain reading.
6. Joy of Cooking. I love the recipes and the way it leads you to experiment and do things your way. After seeing Julie and Julia recently, I love it even more.
7. Any of Agatha Christies’ mysteries. Miss Marple and all are wonderful.
8. By Judith Viorst, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. A childrens book but fun and how I can relate to its theme that some days are like that, even in Australia.
9. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. This Christian novelist takes a rather obscure story from the Bible and translates it to the time of the gold rush and makes it a wonderful story of love.

List of Nines--Part 6—Interesting Jobs I’ve Had

Notice I said Jobs I’ve HAD, not necessarily jobs I’ve loved. But loved or not, they were interesting.

1. Cherry Picker. Now that was fun. From 6th grade until after High School, I spent two to three weeks every summer picking tart cherries on my aunt and uncles farm. To this day I avoid cherry drinks and jello. But what fun. Sometimes a cousin or two would be staying with me, sometimes not, but always fun. Beyond the job was lots of family fun and I loved it.
2. Cherry sorter. One summer while I was teaching part time, I needed a summer job and landed at a nearby canning factory. Sitting between two large and noisy cherry pitting machines may not seem to be ideal working conditions, but I did enjoy it. The job was mindless and I was able to make mental plans and lists and sing to my hearts content at the top of my lungs. No one could hear at all.
3. Waitress for a summer. Not so fun. I hate hot weather and this was at a nearby state park that is an area summer mecca. Rainy days were the worst when campers descended upon us. Only upside? The next door dune buggy business gave all the waitress’s free rides in lieu of tips. Whooo Hooo!
4. Teacher. Not so great. All my training had been with upper elementary. I was given lower elementary. Basically I ended up with the sweathogs (remember Welcome Back Kotter?) of the kindergarten. That is why I no longer teach.
5. Telephone Operator. That’s right, for several months, when I started working at “a local communication company” I was able to channel my inner Ernestine and be a telephone operator. I value the experience, as it was just before the new auto switchboards and we really did use cords to plug into customers and to make calls. Very fun.
6. Toll Investigator. I loved digging into to problems and tracking down who made calls. This was in the day before calling cards and not much automation. I had to research who made calls that were taken off bills when people called the phone company. Most involved simple errors, but I did enjoy tracking down the ones who actually were committing fraud. Maybe that’s why I enjoy CSI so much, only I had no blood.
7. Coder/Data Coordinator. Everyone hates those people to who to ask questions for surveys. While I never had to make the calls, I did at one point have to help design the questionnaires. I even scored a trip to New Orleans (Pre-Katrina) to attend a class on creating the surveys. Mostly I just took the results of the calls and prepared reports for the marketing department. Fun and Fascinating.
8. Local History Clerk. My current position, even if it is only a few hours a week. I get to help people research genealogy, as well as copy and enter info into our data base regarding births, deaths, marriages, anniversaries, and military information. I love it, even when the people—patrons and staff—are a little trying.
9. Dispatcher. I worked for a time as the second shift dispatcher for a local propane company one winter. Part advisor (No, I don’t think checking for a leak with a match is a good idea.), part service rep (Yes I can take a credit card payment over the phone), part ogre (Hi Ron. Sorry to wake you but I have a gas-out you need to go to right away.) Interesting indeed.
   

List of Nines--part 5 Vacation Spots I'll Never See

SInce I won't fly, much as I would love to see these places, barring an unexpected inheritance or lottery win that would finance a world cruise, I probably will never step foot in these places.

1. England. Besides all the historic places to visit, I could again look for ancestors.
2. Ireland. Great Granny Hurley's homeland will also be safe from my digging.
3. Hawaii. I probably would be too hot there anyway. I don't like weather much if it gets over 75 degrees.
4. California. I would be nervous the whole state would be on the verge of sliding into the ocean. And not much there that I would realy want to see anyway.
5. Mexico. Again the heat. And the only Spanish I know, I've learned from Sesame Street.
6. Taj Mahal. Probably would be awfully crowded there. But at least I could see where all our old jobs went.
7. Australia. That would be a really long boat ride to get there.
8. New Zealand, all those wooly sheep, all that wonder wool. The home of my spinning wheel.
9. Antartica--all that lovely snow and penguins.

List of Nines--part 4 Nine Vcation Spots I Love

Or at least Vacation Spots I would love to visit, and since I have sworn off flying, all accessible without a passport.

1. St. Ignace and Mackinac, best spot on earth to vacation, in my humble opinion. Not as touristy as the other side of the Bridge. We've always stayed at the north end of town, just before you get to the casinos. Of course the last trip was in 1996, so things just may have changed since then, but still, great place.
2. Soo Locks and the UP in general. If anyone is reading this and not from Michigan, that translates to the locks of Sault Ste Marie between Lake Superior and Lake Huron. And day trips to the falls and lakes and the wonderful winderness.
3. Western Rockies. I almost said Banff and the Canadian Rockies. But since I have no passport, and no real reason to get one, I can stay south of the border and still enjoy the mountains. This way I can include Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone.
4. Alaska. Ok, without flying this one may be a stretch, especially with no passport. I wouldn't be able to drive or take a bus trip. Maybe a cruise?
5. Northern Lower Michigan. Petoskey, Charlevoix, Traverse City--temps usually more breathable than home and wonderful scenery.
6. Washington DC--An urban change of pace, but I love the museums and monuments and all. I have been there 3 times, but all over 25 years ago. I loved it then and would love it again, if I can avoid all the political stuff.
7. Vermont. Trees, Green Mountain Boys, and a chance to explore my Allen roots. Can anyone spell GENEALOGY TRIP?
8. Wisconsin Dells, fun and close to home
9. Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island. If I can't get to St Ignace, this makes a good second choice. Lots of forts and the old lumber mill, parks and there is always the boat ride to the island. Like I said before, the best spot on earth for a vacation.

List of Nines--part 3 Nine Movies I Love

Continuing the series of Lists of Nines
A few of my favorite moves, by no means a complete list

1. Gone With the Wind, one of the 1939 classics. I still sigh the first time Clark Gable comes on screen.
2. My all time favorite--The Blob, with Steve McQueen. A group from college showed it 8 times over 2 weekends for a fund raiser. I used to be able to reside the dialogue, corny as it is. Love it.
3. Pride and Prejudice, the 1939 version with Greer Garson and Lawrence Olivier. Although the televised version (with Kiera Knightly I think it is) is beginning to gain a foothold with me. Both versions have delightful D'Arcys and such self-centered Mrs Bennets.
4. Another great 1939 film, The Women. I had to see it a second time to confirm there isn't a man involved, not even in the credits. How delightful. How catty.
5. The Gay Divorcee with Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. I love all their films but this one with them dancing to Night and Day remains my favorite. Love that flowing dress.
6. Holiday Inn, another with Fred Astaire, but with the added benefit of Bing Crosby. I've worn out 2 DVDs and before that a VHS tape. Watch it every year while wrapping presents.
7. White Christmas, see above but substitute Danny Kaye for Fred Astaire.
8. Wizard of Oz. Love this movie. Mom always said we've seen this and changed the channel. I was out of college and living on my own before I realized most of the movie was in color!
9. And another 1939 classic, Stagecoach, with a very youthful John Wayne.

List of Nines--part 2 Nine Favorite Sandwiches

Hey, I never claimed that this series of postings would be profound!
Anyway, my 9 favorite sandwiches are:

1. Subway's BMT, spicy with lots of veggies, everything but pink tomatoes ( I have to see what the selection looks like) and hot peppers. Plus I make sure they add spinach and shake some Parmesan cheese on it. Yum.
2. Home-made tuna salad with Miracle Whip and onions on toasted whole wheat.
3. Mancino's Roast Beef Club, hot and tasty.
4. A local cafe, the Koffee Kup's Chicken Caesar wrap.
5. Burger King's Whopper Junior. Too bad the local franchise has such a rude employee that I refuse to set foot on their property. I was moved to write a 2 page letter to corporate after a very unsatisfying conversation with the district manager. (I found the person who was rude to me was a MANAGER.) I finally used one of the coupons they sent, out of town, and burned the other. Dang, I do like that sandwich though.
6. Pork BBQ's, not the red kind but the spicy kind.
7. MickyDee's Sausage Egg and Cheese Muffin.
8. Samuel's BLT's. This local restaurant recently burned down and not sure if they will rebuild. Their BLT's were loaded with bacon and delicious.
9. And back to the Koffee Kup for their Pot Roast Dip. Messy but wonderful. And don't forget the pickle.