Friday, June 17, 2005

Just Shoot Me Now

Knitting happily away on the Highland Triangle Shawl, I came to the end of one row and found the stitch count was off by one. It's a very easy pattern and if you look at the knitting you can tell if it's working out right (or not). Therefore, I have not knitted a whole row with the pattern off by one stitch. Therefore, I may have forgotten to do the backward loop increase that we do at the beginning of every row. Easily solved - just pick up the loop in the relevant place, twist it, knit it - no problem.

In fact, this was not the problem. The problem was that I had knitted the "plain" (ie non-pattern row), turned the work, and knitted another "plain" row. What is wrong with me? I have been saying all along this pattern is so easy you could knit it with your eyes closed. Wrong! Why do you think you have those two things on the front of your head? Yes, it's so you can use them. I had to tink the whole row and that did not please me. We are back on track now, however, though we are coming to the place where I will have to decide which is the private side and which the public. I think I know what I like but everyone I ask says the other side is the "right" side. There is not a knitter among them. I do feel like that salmon, swimming against the tide, but this is not unusual for me.

If you are reading this blog, you are probably a knitter - you may be a blog junkie; you may be an incurable insomniac, clicking your way through the night, but you are probably a knitter. So what do you think?

Is this:



the public side?

OR is this:



I know what I think.

Leave a comment, drop me a line - I want to know if I really am a salmon.

Side note: I opened a Kit-Kat the other day and printed on it, right there in the chocolate, was: "Remember you are not a salmon". What?

Yesterday I took my sister-in-law (sister of 'im indoors, recipient of the blue buttonhole bag and not a Barbie) to Moreton-in-Marsh to take the train to London. On the way back I popped into Shipston Needlecrafts and had a coffee with Nicky. I didn't buy anything, I thought about it but I didn't do it. I feel very proud and I'm not even on a yarn diet, not like Lixie.

As I neared home I saw the postman's little red van, just down the road from my house. In that split second, I just knew that he had brought my books, on order from the wonderful Marsha at the Needlearts Bookshop in Canada. I knew that he had brought me books, found me absent and left that little yellow card (the one that they leave even when you are in the house, sitting on the doormat, waiting for the post) which means you have to trail off to the back end of nowhere, at dead of night, because that's the only time they are open, retrieve the item (after filling in inumerable forms AND presenting a copy of your "long" birth certificate to prove you are who you say you are). I knew he'd done that and I thought, "Oh no you don't, matey!" I knew that if I ran in the house; grabbed the yellow card that was surely lying on the doormat; chased off down the road; I'd be able to catch him and make him give me the books, even though I didn't have my "long" birth certificate to hand.

I rushed into the house. I fought my way past the famous "small storage solution" hanging in the hall. I whisked away the curtain behind the door. To be greeted with? NOTHING. Zilch, niente, zero, a big fat blank. Obviously, my telepathic powers are on the wane.

It was only at 5.30, when 'im indoors went into the outhouse



for some arcane reason, that the truth was revealed.

Sitting on the freezer was the box and inside were the books:



I'm so excited, I'm going to read.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think the bottom pic is the public one. I'm glad you got your books, it looks like you have a lovely weekend of reading ahead of you. I own Folk Socks, but none of the others. Folk Socks is such a pleasure to read, but I admit I've never tried any of the patterns. Some of the heels seem like they'd be uncomfortable or impractical - Balbriggin and such - but who knows. :) (PS - lovely out house!)

Anonymous said...

The shawl is a classic - and IMO, it's fully reversible!

Heather said...

Hmm...I think it is totally reversable. But, if I had to choose I'd pick the side shown on the bottom pic. Lovely shawl!

Jennie said...

Reversible, but bottom pic if you have to choose a public side.

Also, when I lived in Manchester, the postman used to hide our packages in the bushes so we didn't have to deal with such nonsense. Of course, then he'd go on vacation, and the other postman would send every package back to sender saying invalid recipient! What?!

Anonymous said...

I think it is reversible but I like the bottom one better personally...
Glad you got your books from our wonderful country...! that is a great book store isn't it?
You will enjoy the Knitting Harlot's book for sure..!

blueadt said...

I'd vote for the bottom pic as the 'public' side. I ordered a under cupboard stereo from a catalogue & the delivery person threw it over the garden wall. I noticed it when I let the dogs out & they ran to it. It fell onto paving stones so could have easily smashed. BTW - we're in a mid terrace - the delivery person had to go into my neighbours garden to lob it over the wall.

Daisy said...

I think the bottom pic.

At least the books weren't in a green wheelie bin crawling with ants as happened to my Hip Knits parcel!

Anonymous said...

Oh I love the Viking Patterns Book. It's so much fun to just look at, and pull stitch designs from. it's where the cable for my Irish Purse came from.

Heather said...

I like the bottom one too, but its your shawl so you are the only one whose opinion really matters.

I caught our postie in the act of leaving my parcels piled against the front door this morning. The front door opens outwards and the parcels were heavy so if he hadn't have moved them I would have had to go out the backdoor to retrieve them from from in front of the front door.

Better than the time the postie left my Elann parcel by the side of the bins on a day we were both out, and by the time I got home the neighbour's cat had peed on it, not nice.