I Can't Knit

I'm dying, here. Not with pretty colors and wool, but of absolute frustration. I can't knit. I overdid it big time with the heavy duty knitting, and now the carpal tunnel in my left arm has kicked in. Bummer.

On the brighter, not physically knitting side, I taped two really interesting podcasts for Knit-A-Yarn. Saturday, the crew drove out to WEBS to tape Cat Brodhi. We sat down to talk after she had been teaching all day. People, her energy is boundless. she was funny, concise, and extremely interesting. I was so inspired that I went home and worked up an idea for a sock, using her techniques (I had read New Pathways for Sock Knitters and knit up two of her try-it socks).

Then, today I met Pat Ashforth and Steve Plummer (Woolly Thoughts, No Pattern Knitting, and Toilet Roll Covers). These tapings are so interesting that the non-knitting film crew at Knit-A-Yarn is being insidiously recruited into the knitting camp. Pat and Steve tell a great story, and bring a sense of humor and whimsy to knitting, but also their ability to take mathematical concepts and clarify them with knitting is just amazing.

Got to go take more Ibuprofen for the carpal tunnel.

Okay, so I've been busy...

I just finished these socks. I knit them for the Knitted Sock Pentathlon 2008. It took me a little over 24-almost-sleepless-hours (I grabbed about 4-hrs of sleep when the pattern started to get blurry). I am not normally a competitive person, but there is something about a time-trial that brings my competitive instincts to the fore. The plus is that I really like the way the lacy pattern looks (sock pattern is called Berlin). This was my first attempt at 'cotton' socks. Actually, they're made out of Panda Cotton, a bamboo, cotton, elastic blend. I don't yet know how they feel on, but I do know that they're drying more slowly than my wool socks.

Then there was the road trip to WEBS with my SnB buddies for the appearance of the Yarn Harlot. Road trip is definitely the way to go. We had a great time going and returning, yakking at 65 mph. Had two great meals in Northampton, and to top it all, got to listen to Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, along with about 1000 other knitters at the Calvin Theatre. Stephanie is always funny, philosophical, and real. I am amazed at her composure. She signed hundreds of books at WEBS, before and after her talk, and she never appeared cranky or bored. Of course, I got a signed book! She even 'remembered' me as a 'repeat offender' at book signings. As you can see, I got to hold the Sock.

Lest you think I'm having too much fun, I also knit this toilet roll cover with gauge issues for the Fun Fur Smackdown on Ravelry. It looked even funnier when I put it over a jar full of tiny Christmas lights...