Tidbit

The grand events in the Porpoise household this morning:

Boo rolled over (all by herself! That's almost as good as finding her toes), and Devil rode her tricycle across the living room successfully (instead of just pushing with her feet along the floor as she usually does). They're growing up too fast!

FO: Padded bag

Pattern for padded hard drive bag - this easy bag uses the same stitch pattern as a sock heel flap to create a thick sturdy fabric that will cushion your valuables against the hard knocks of everday life (such as being unceremoniously tossed in your bag on your way out the door in the morning).

Yarn: worsted weight left over from a sweater for my MIL many seasons back

Needles: ? US size 7 I think

Gauge: 5.5 sts/9 rows per inch

Dimensions: ~3.5x5.25 inches

Pattern: Row 1 - sl1, k1, repeat to end

Row 2 - sl1, purl to end

Cast on 20 sts (or number needed for desired width, just make sure it's an even number). Work in pattern for desired length, ending with a WS row.

You'll now work the back of the bag by knitting the first and last stitches on the needle with one of the slipped stitches along the side of the bag front as follows:

Row 1: pick up slipped stitch at right edge of bag front (when WS is facing you) and k2tog with the first stitch on the needle. k1, *sl1, k1*, repeat * to * to last stitch. Pick up slipped stitch on left side of bag and ssk with the last stitch on the needle.

Row 2: purl all stitches

Work these two rows until all slipped stitches along the side of the bag front have been worked. Continue in pattern until bag flap is desired length.

Bind off 9 sts, k2, bind off 9 sts. Reattach yarn and work a 2 stitch i-cord tie to desired length. Bind off 2 sts. On bag front, pickup and knit 2 sts. Work 2 stitch i-cord tie to desired length and bind off. Weave in all ends, slip in portable hard drive, and enjoy!

ETA: how about that new countertop?

Fiber Friday

It's raining here. Again. In fact, it's been raining here for approximately 47 gazillion days. In a row. And not just a little drizzle either - this is full on thunderstorm, lightening and hail type of rain*.

So...in order to brighten up this grey friday, here's a look at my first adventure in dyeing roving and then spinning it up.

I bought 8 oz of Corriedale roving from Woodland Woolworks a few months back, and spun up some of it . Then I decided to play around a little bit with the Wilton's and see what I could cook up. I mixed up a bunch of dye, tore of some hunks of roving (~1 oz each) and Boo and I had a lovely little while out on the back patio making a mess. Wrapped everything up in plastic wrap, threw it into the pot on a steamer and let it sit over boiling water for a bit. And this is what came out:

I'm pretty happy with how they came out - nice and bright and fun. The middle one especially makes me smile. The rovings got a little bit felted in the process, but not too badly, so I spun up the blue/purple/pink one into this:

1 oz, 82 yds, 11 wpi. It was lots of fun to see how the colors came together while I was plying. It's going to take quite a bit of experimentation to get to the point where I can take a roving and spin it so the colors come out the way I want them to (or even get to the point where I have an idea of how the colors will come out), but it is fun to do. I also wasn't prepared for how much the color varied in intensity between the roving and the yarn - the roving was much brighter! The next time I dye I'll try to leave some white sections and see how those come out. And I'll have to see how many different combinations I can get out of the Wiltons I've got in the pantry.

* southeast Texas has rainstorms like I've never seen anywhere else, i.e. dumping 6-8 inches of rain in 4 hours. And when the majority of the drainage is paved over or built on, that means only one thing, the thing that strikes fear into the heart of every homeowner - flooding! Good times I tell you.

Progress

OK, a quick update on the stuff in progress.

1) The all important Peapod - thanks to an almost 2 hour bus ride home on Monday night (we sat in the HOV lane without moving for one. whole. hour.) and a day sick at home on Tuesday, I have finished the body and moved on to the sleeves. It's a pretty quick knit - aren't baby sweaters great for that? - and it's intended recipient is still ensconced in his Mama's tummy, so I'm hopeful it will get done before he arrives. Or only very shortly after his arrival.

2) The bus socks, which have been neglected horribly while I've been on a Peapod binge, are past the heel on the first sock and well into the ankle. These may have to go on hold until I can measure Dad's huge honkin' feet next weekend on his fly-by visit.

3) Last week I started a little bag to put my fancy new portable hard drive in - finished today on the ride home, but it really only took me about four hours total. There was a lot of ripping out at the beginning. When I get a free moment over the weekend, I'll write up the pattern for anyone who might be interested.

Other things that have not seen any progress include Coachella (Peapod priority) and the spinning of Hello Yarn's fiber club shipment for May. Hopefully those things will be up and running soon.

Back to the races

Yesterday was my triumphant return to the world of triathlon post-Boo. I am glad to be back, even in a slower, larger version then a few years ago. And it went much better then my first race back after Devil was born (where I landed on the pavement 6 miles into the bike and was laid up with road rash and a pulled back muscle for about a month).

The day did not start auspiciously – our drive down to Pearland was very dark, punctuated with brilliant flashes of lightening and the proverbial Ark-floating downpour. It’s always a bit of a concern when the place you’re headed for is completely hidden by the Black Cloud of Doom. The transition area was very wet, the thunder was booming, and I was pretty sure this race wasn’t going to happen at all. But eventually we all got lined up for a hop into the pool. The first racers started just as the thunder started up again. But they kept going (and got through the swim without mishap thankfully). Most sprint races in this part of Texas have pool swims, there being few appropriate (and clean) bodies of water for swimming in and loads of pools. Somehow there was a mix up on my swim time (swim is self-seeded, so you send in a predicted swim time when you enter and you start with people who swim about the same as you) and I ended up passing six or seven people in 300 meters. Hauled out of the water (only two seconds slower then the time I’d sent in) and ran off to transition.

My transitions were just a wee bit rusty after more then a year off, but I finally got out onto the bike course. It was very wet and slick, although the rain had tapered off quite a bit. The road was about as good as they get down here – fairly smooth, no major expansion joints or potholes. I felt pretty good on the bike, although I had no idea how fast I was going since my computer crapped out on me (maybe it doesn’t like the rain?), but I finished about when I thought I would. And then it was off on the run.

The usual M.O. for my triathlon experience is this: kick butt on the swim, fly on the bike, and then watch all those people I just passed speed by on the run. I am not a small person. I do not run quickly. In fact, I run quite slowly. Mr. Iron Man runs about twice as fast as I do at his race pace and my easy pace. So I knew what was to come. I decided as I headed out (legs aching and thinking to myself “Whose bright idea was this anyway?) that my goal for the run was no walking. Given the problems I’ve been having with my feet (@(#&$)^% plantar fasciitis), this seemed like a reasonable goal. No walking and passing the two very large guys I could see ahead of me. The run course started off through the park and then turned onto a gravel path for about half a mile. As soon as I hit the path, the sky opened up and the deluge commenced again in earnest. My first thought was “I’m glad I’m not still riding!” and the second was “My feet are getting really wet, but hey – it’s not four bazillion degrees out!” As suspected the run was slow. Very slow. But I didn’t stop and I did pass the Clydesdales I’d marked at the start, as well as some other folks. Came to the finish line and there was the family cheering away. Well, Iron Man was cheering, while Boo drooled and Devil watched, thumb firmly in mouth.

The best part of the day (other then finishing the bike upright and road rash-free)? Walking in the rain over to the transition area holding hands with Devil, and having her look up at me and say “Yay Mama!” I was tired, my feet were killing me, but my daughter was excited to be out there, even with the crappy weather. There’s not much more I could ask for.