Knits With Benefits

A Very Big Thing happened last night. Luke and I closed on our very first house! This means that we are now homeowners, which is crazy!

Since we’ve got at least 5 more years here in this city, and because the housing market here is MUCH more affordable than back home, we decided that buying would be better than renting for those five years. So we did! It’s not a huge house, but it’s on a good-sized lot for this city, and in a neighborhood that is close in distance to where our apartment now is, but miles away in terms of safety, quietness, etc. We’re moving to a good neighborhood!

Now, to finish out the semester, go on a research trip and move all in the next two weeks? Sure, no problem. On that note, I better get back to work.

And to leave you with: A video of Webster. I’m clearly trying to get some work done, and all he’s concerned with is killing the string on my hoodie. Typical.

There are approximately 1.5 weeks until the end of the semester. 1.5 weeks until Another Very Big Thing (blog post forthcoming). 2 weeks until I take a research trip to an Ivy League Institution a few hours away, 4.5 weeks until my dad comes to visit and 5.5 weeks until I leave for the summer. Holy freaking cow.

So… in the meantime.

I’m soaking up all the time I can with these two (and Luke too, but I have many fewer pictures of him than I do of these cats!)

I’ve been knitting a bit (although admittedly not a lot, and not at all complicated). Here’s a sample:

Yes those are TARDIS socks. My wonderful husband gave me TARDIS striping sock yarn for Christmas. Because he’s awesome. He made a cool card too.

I had to go to a day-long pseudo-conference on campus, and knit a hat out of my very own handspun:(Ignore our messy apartment. We’re getting ready to move. Again).

I’ve been doing some cross-stitching as well, because that’s just a step above stockinette socks in the mindless project department.

And mostly writing. And research. And avoiding writing and doing research. And having as much family time as possible. That’s what I’ve been up to lately. What about everyone else out there in internet-land?

Oh Man. It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything. It’s not for lack of events happening…

Let’s start with this. Blogging will likely continue to be sparse until the fall. Why? Because I’m going to Central Asia this summer on a government-funded learning adventure. Woo Hoo! Part of the reason that I’ve been so crazy this year (other than the fact that the first two years of PhD programs are just crazy as a rule of thumb), is that on top of the regular insane workload, I’ve been taking one additional class. It’s an intro-level Persian (Farsi) language class. This has been super fun, but quite frankly, there’s no way that I can keep up this schedule without completely going off the deep end. So… I’m headed to Tajikistan for two months this summer to participate in an immersion program. It’s going to be rough to leave these guys:

But… hopefully very worth it in the long run (did I mention I’m not paying for this excursion?!).

I’ve been knitting, a little bit, but have not a single picture of knitting so… pretend?

But they’re so adorable! How can I leave them behind for two months? They’re finally starting to get along much better, so that makes me feel a little better about leaving them. But I won’t be said to be leaving this:

This was a delightful long cowl, in a cashmere blend yarn. Apparently Miss Hela has good taste- because she’s completely broken the yarn. So… I guess that I will be ripping/re-knitting?

I finally knit the skein of yarn that I’d been hoarding for three years, and the cowl lasted approximately three days. Nothing is safe.

I’ve also been spinning a little. Not a lot, but it’s helping quite a bit with my sanity levels which are dangerously low much of the time. I got some really pretty fiber from my in-laws for Christmas, and some super pretty fiber from Luke as well that I can’t wait to get to! Unfortunately, it appears that I won’t be doing much spinning this summer, as I certainly will not be packing my wheel or even fiber for my cross-global trip.

So. Speaking of cross-global travel. Knitting ideas? I’ll be gone for two months, with long plane rides, and I have no idea how much knitting time during the regular days. But… no way to restock my yarn supply while I’m there (I don’t think. I’m not positive, there might be some sort of yarn at bazaars, but… I’m not counting on it). Ideas? I’m thinking laceweight will be my friend- for packing space and long-knitting project purposes. I’ve got enough stash to take a laceweight shawl project along with perhaps a laceweight cardigan.

That’s it for now, although that’s not even the end of the exciting things happening around here. Stay tuned, folks!

This last weekend was interesting. I’ve been getting headaches which have increased steadily in frequency since school started last August (and didn’t happen much at all during the break). These headaches are worse when I’ve been reading or on the computer (hello- that’s ALL THE TIME!), and have gotten to be pretty debilitating. So I went to the eye doctor and… drumroll, please…

I need BIFOCALS! I have never been so happy to find out that something is wrong with me! Hopefully glasses will help the headaches and allow me to actually *d0* the work I’m supposed to do.

The downside to all of this is that I have to wait two weeks for the glasses. Two weeks in which my normal workload (reading about 300 pages/day, + computer work) is still expected. And now that I know what’s going on with my eyes, I can feel them get fatigued so much more keenly… so I’m just taking lots of reading breaks and trying to take it easy on myself.

Other happenings this weekend: Walking home through the snow with freshly dilated eyes : not fun. Don’t try it if you enjoy seeing where you’re going.

Walking through the grocery store with sunglasses on at 7pm on a Friday night because of the aforementioned dilated eyes: also strange, because people give you strange looks. L says this is because I looked hungover, but I would have had to start drinking at 6am to be hungover at 7pm? Or something?

A little knitting! I’m sticking with the “finish it up” theme for January:

No big thing, just my in-class knitting, started in January. But now the ends are woven in (plus two extras, because Hela absconded with the ball in the middle of the night and chewed through the yarn…) and I have a new pair of socks.

Here’s the biggie:

My hair isn’t normally that uh… voluminous. I started this sweater back in February of 2011!! I had all the pieces done and then got stalled out with seaming. I’m glad I waited though, because those set-in shoulders are darn good, if I do say so myself! (and they likely would not have been 1.5 years ago…). It’s the Birthstone Cardigan out of some Webs yarn. I’m happy with it.

I actually finished a couple more projects yesterday too (and this should give you, dear reader, a glimpse into just how much ‘finishing’ these projects needed…)- more on them later.

In the meantime: some kitty pictures:

(Yes, Webster is about as happy with this arrangement as he looks…)

Here’s my latest knitting problem:

She’s at least as in love with yarn and fiber as I am… maybe even a little more. I didn’t start knitting until Webster was at least a year, maybe even two years old, so he was past the kitten stage. And I didn’t really, really start knitting all the time until even later than that. So he had time to ease into the “don’t eat yarn” thing. Hela… not so much. If she can find anything wooly at all, she takes it and runs. Literally. In fact, her preference for yarn even extends to finished objects. Lately she’s been taking gloves, shawls, and hats out of the winter clothes bin at night and they end up several rooms away, under our bed while we sleep. So far she hasn’t harmed a finished object, but I fear it’s only a matter of time.

Knitting projects must be *closed* in a bag (she’ll pull yarn out of drawstring bags that aren’t cinched up…), the fiber has to get locked in the closet and large projects are placed on high shelves. oh man. Webster has never looked like such a good cat!

One of the first things I did after finishing the non-bloggable project was start working on WIPs that languished in the wake of school and knitting deadlines.

Here’s my Raglan Heather:

While I realize that this is not the most flattering sweater in the world- I love it! It is so cold in Pittsburgh, and I’ve never lived anywhere truly cold before (hello… PNW? Hawaii? Georgia? temperate to tropical…). So my knitting focus has been on wool, and lots of it, to keep my body warm! I knit this sweater to (1) use up scraps in my stash, these are leftovers from sweaters, (2) be warm. It delivered on both accounts, and I like it quite a lot to boot. I’ve been wearing it often and will continue to do so.

I also wound my yarn for the coming semester:

This is for my next easy, straightforward but warm pullover, Tea with Jam and Bread:

I cast on last night, it’s a pretty typical raglan with some stripes and minimal shaping, so hopefully it will go relatively quickly. As long as I keep it away from Hela. More on that next week….

Student life is kind of odd. You work like crazy most of the time- 12-14 hours a day, 7 days a week- and then, all of a sudden you’re done for the semester, and you spend three weeks without working at all.

And of course, all the while, this is staring at you:

This week marked the beginning of the new semester, and the end of my lovely break. It was also the first time that I’ve not been excited about going back to school, ever, in my whole life… but let’s focus on how nice the break was, positive is good!

The big thing that I was working on was a pretty large, but non-bloggable knitting project. If anyone is going to TNNA next month- let me know, and I’d love to see a picture of the project in its ‘natural environment.’ So… most of what I did I can’t talk about.

I had most of my Christmas knitting done before the break even started. This is due to a combination of (a) we’re poor, so it’s not like we can afford to go out and buy things- we’re saving all of our pennies for a down payment on a house soon! and (b) often the best way for me to make it through seminars is by knitting. So, I knitted vanilla socks for pretty much everyone. I believe my total for stockinette socks was at least 14 pairs last year, possibly more that I forgot to take pictures of. Not too shabby. Mostly out of sale knitpicks felici, so the christmas presents were lovely, personalized and affordable (as long as my labor isn’t included).

I also did some sewing and embroidery over the break, and watched a ton of movies/tv while doing all of the aforementioned crafting. Mostly, it was movies in Persian (that way I didn’t feel like too much of a slacker) and Christmas movies. It was fun to hang out with the cats and relax for once! All I have for now are cat pictures.

More later on actual knitting, etc.

Down to one final (tonight!) and one final paper due tomorrow and then it is the end of the semester. This last paper is about Japanese internment and the topic, combined with the crazy stress that is always the end of the semester means that I need some serious cheerfulness in my life. Enter this blog post, reminding me of the things I love: (hopefully you love them too!)

I took this picture of the Web-Master the other night while I was working on a different paper and he was sitting next to me on the couch. I love this picture because his little thumb is so visible!

I love this picture of him because he just looks so cozy. curled up on flannel sheets, probably in the warm spot where I had just been sitting.

I doubt anyone has been paying close enough attention to this blog (or, I guess, the old one)… but this is the cat bed that I got for Webster 8 years ago when he was a kitten and he has always steadfastly refused to use it. Until about 2 months ago. Now he loves it. Goof ball cat!

And speaking of goofy cats:

This is one of her favorite places. Or maybe it’s a situation. Someone picks her up, and she lays in their arms, flat on her back. She loves it, and it’s hilarious… but not very lady like.

Finally:

Some Christmas knitting that is likely not going to be done by Christmas. But it’s okay. They will be done by next Christmas, and that’s going to have to be good enough.

Anybody else have some fun cheerfulness to share?

Finally got someone to take pictures of my new sweaters.

This is my favorite. I tried to get one with Webster too, but he didn’t cooperate. It’s probably just as well, because he’s so big that it would be difficult to see the sweater underneath him. On a related note, Webster hates Mondays more than any person I have ever known. He loves the weekends because his people are home and he isn’t alone. When we leave on Monday, he gets very lonely… and on Monday night he is very, very clingy.

L’s favorite:

After taking this picture, he told me that I keep getting prettier the older that I get. Wtf? I’m old now? Not as old as him!

The Abalone:

And, just so we’re all clear… I’m not pregnant. Yes, I realize these sweaters would be good for that- but I’ve got more than enough on my plate right now without growing a human.

Surprise! I finished a hat too! The Ruche Beret from Weekend Hats. The best thing about Pittsburgh is the public library system- there are tons of knitting books and cookbooks!

Back to my crazy week, and trying not to get washed away in the hurricane.

We’ve been doing a lot of this lately:

Webster has been pretty clingy, as the Weather is changing and it is now a bit colder. Hela, on the other hand, seems to have gotten over whatever growth spurt that was causing her to be quiet and sedate for a few weeks. She is back to (quite literally) trying to climb the walls at every chance she gets.

So Webster has been hanging out with me while I read several thousand pages per week.

But, I managed to do a bit of knitting! (but… no time for real pictures. Crap iphone pictures must suffice for a while)

Abalone Sweater. Finished at the beginning of last month, and not blocked until last weekend.

Perla Sweater, by Joji Locatelli. I am in LOVE with this sweater. Seriously and for reals. I throw it on almost every day when I’m lounging around the house. It is warm and soft and comfy and not even blocked yet because that would mean that I couldn’t wear it for a while and I can’t bear to part with it.

Note a trend in this knitting… largely mindless. My brain is fried most of the time, so there probably are no cables, lace or even much shaping in my future. I also have finished a boat-load of stockinette socks, but I’ll wait to show them all at once (because… not so exciting). Socks are the only thing that I knit in class, so I’ve been cranking out Christmas presents like crazy.

One more picture to leave you with:

The man and his princess kitten.