Did you know

That they tax you on your tax return? Doesn't that rather defeat the point. Oh, well, thank God for schooling credits, or I would be getting back almost nothing. As it is, I will be getting about $600.00 from state and federal together. I plan to pay off a few outstanding debts (like paying Cindy for the yarn I have in layaway) and will sit on the rest to supplement my income when things fall short on payday. You'd think with two jobs, I would not have this problem! But, I don't work full time at either job, so that is not the case. I just need to hold out until my lease expires in July and find a cheaper apartment. Hopefully, cheaper will not equal rat-trap!

In fibery news, my February socks are going good. They are two-by-two rib in two striped white and green. Will be great for St. Patrick's day and Marshall games. I was doing them in stockinette stitch, and had already turned the heel, when I realized that they would be too big. So, I frogged them and started again. They should fit fine. The striping made picking the gusset stitches a bit tricky and at one point the stripes are off, but no one but me could really tell. I will post pics when the first sock is finished.

Tomorrow is the birthday of both Jon, and my great-grandmother, Mamaw Crow. Jon will be 26 and Mamaw will be 100. Mine and Jon's second anniversary will be later this month. I don't know what to get Jon, except for more art supplies. His drawing skillz are amazing!

Late Christmas Post

I can't believe I forgot to post the drama around my boyfriend's scarf. At the October meeting of the River Cities Fiber Guild, one of the guild members, Beth, brought in some remnants of yarn she had sitting around. I liked a skein and ball of a blue/purple/pink variegated yarn and a plain light blue yarn. I had already decided to make a scarf for my boyfriend, Jon, and this yarn was perfect. I am a very lucky knitter, in that Jon loves vibrant colors, mostly in blue and purple.

The only problem was, I didn't know how much of the yarn I had. Of the variegated, there was a good-sized yarn cake and a small hand wound ball. I cast on 28 stitches in garter stitch. I thought at first to use 2x2 rib, but had just finished a 2x2 rib for my aunt, and was about sick of it.

I worked diligently on the scarf, around other projects until December 23. The days preceding this had been unusually warm and rainy, but that night the temperature dropped drastically and the although the rain had stopped, the roads were icy. I was on I-64, having just left my grandmother's, when I became stuck in a massive traffic jam.

It turned out that a cherry-picker truck had overturned on a bridge and was blocking all 4 lanes. I didn't know that then, but after sitting for about 20 minutes, I fished Jon's scarf out of my knitting bag. I figured it would be best because the other projects I was working on all required counting and it was to dark to see well. So, this is what I did:

I ended up stuck in that traffic jam for two hours! Still, I got a lot done. After I finally got home I stretched out the scarf to measure it. I had only about 2 yards of the variegated yarn left and only 40 inches. After an initial bit of panicking and use of language unbecoming a knitter, I figured out what to do. I took the blue yarn I received from Beth and continued on the cast off end for 5 inches. I then undid the cast on edge and added the blue yarn for an additional five inches. I didn't have much time to add the extra inches. I was due to meet Jon and go to my parents for Christmas morning at 9:00. I ended up finishing at 6:30.

I could not believe how good it looked! It looked like I had actually planned that from the beginning. I told Jon about it and he didn't believe it either.

More Finished Christmas Gifts

I was looking at the blog and realized that I am a bit behind in posting pics of my finished knitted Christmas gifts. Also I plan to make a list on here and actually keep track of what I have both made and bought. So here goes:

1. Mommy-two dishcloths: Frog and Hummingbirds; two pairs of jeans=done
2. Daddy- two pairs of jeans=done
3. Bruce (DB)-shirt=done
4. Kristen (SIL)-one knitted dishcloth, one crocheted dishcloth=done
5. Kira (DN)-teddy bear=done
6. Hunter (DN)-game=needs wrapped
7. Mamaw Mary-Ladybug dishcloth=done
8. Charlene (DA)-scarf=done
9. Kara-scarf=done
10. Mamaw and Papaw Rose-Solid Bee Skep dishcloth and chipped in on gift certificate to Golden Corral=done
11. Jon (DBF)-scarf=60%; shirts-need to buy
12. Jen (D nephew's mom)-need to buy shirt
13. Kim (Jon's mom)-Lighthouse dishcloth; lighthouse calender

So that is my list. And here are the missing pictures of some of this stuff:

This is the Hummingbird and Vine dishcloth for my mom.

And this is the Frog dishcloth, also for my mom.

The Bee Skep (who named this thing) is for my Mamaw Rose.

This last one is Jon's scarf. I just need about 25 more inches and it should be done.

Is anybody there?

I was starting to wonder if anyone was reading this, since there have been no comments left. Now I know at least Nadine has been, since she told me on Thursday. She told me I needed to update more, so here you go!

I am still working on the dishcloths. I recently finished one intended for my boyfriends mother. She loves lighthouses, so I searched Ravelry for a lighthouse dishcloth pattern, and lo and behold, I found one. God, I love Ravelry! The pattern was designed by Rhonda White. It and tons of other free dishcloth patterns can be found at Knitting Knonsense.

It was a bit tricky, because it uses yarn overs to make the holes for the beams, then you immediately k2tog to keep the stitch count the same. On the other side, you psso then yo. It made for a few headaches, especially when I made the mistake of trying to knit it at the Stitch and Bitch. After frogging twice, I finally decided home would be a better place to work on it and got another project.

That other project is a scarf for my boyfriend, Jon. I was talking about his mom's dishcloth and he said he would like a scarf. I had some yarn I got from a fellow member of the River Cities Fiber Guild in blue/purple variegated. It is plain garter stitch, because after that 2x2 rib scarf for Char, I think anymore ribbing would drive me a bit nuts (more than I already am that is).

I know it is wool and I know it is worsted weight and I am knitting it in US 10 needles. Beyond that, your guess is as good as mine. And, while I am on the subject of scarves and because I haven't posted pic of them yet, here is Char's scarf:

It is the 2x2 rib, knit out of Red Heart Super Saver on US 13 needles.

Also, here is Kara's scarf:

Kara's was knit from Cascade 220. I would tell you the color names, but to be honest, I don't know what they are! I could never find them on the ball band. It was knit on US 10 needles. The pattern is a cool on called 'Wavy Rib'. It was good for the color changes, because it repeats every 24 rows. So, when the repeat came, I changed colors, easy as pie.

Ooh, I just remembered. The local Lions Club is holding a Arts and Crafts fair this weekend at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena. I went at about 10:00 this morning. I didn't have long to look, because, I had to be at work at 12:00. While wandering around I encountered one of the members of the fiber guild selling yarn and roving. Her name is Cindy Bolt, and she dyes the most gorgeous yarns. I have been coveting a cotton/rayon mix for a tank-top for months. It is called 'Grass and Violets.

And today when I told Cindy this, she said she could put it on layaway. So, four payments in four months and I will get my yarn just in time to make a summer tank-top. If not for the fact I was in public, I would have been doing the happy knitter dance ;-).

Well, that is a good long post, so as a parting gift, I will post one more picture. It was a happy accident from fiddling with my digital camera.

Not bad, huh? I was fooling with the various setting. There are options for background and nighttime pictures. I took three, but they were all blurry or to dark. I set my camera on top of my truck, which is a light blue in color and got the reflection as pure coincidence. Looks like water, doesn't it? I now have this as the background on my computer.

Changing thing around, things to be thankful for.

I decided I didn't care for my old blog provider and changed to this one. If anyone cares to check out the old blog, the address is http://jenram.blog.com/. I will have to load my projects and my boyfriend's artwork onto this blog, but I am currently at work, so I will do that later.

I had planned to write this for a few days, but held off because it never comes out on the screen like it is in my head. So, here goes.

I am thankful for my boyfriend, Jon. He is just right for me, because as I am addicted to knitting, he is addicted to artwork. He draws what is known as Furry art. It is very unusual. I have been going through some financial troubles lately, and he has helped all he can, despite not being much better off than I am. I know I can be myself with Jon. He is unpretentious and very accepting of people. We have some different tastes, especially in music, but I know that no matter what I do, he will be there.

I am thankful for a family I can turn to when needed. My dad's parents paid 2,000 dollars out of pocket for my tuition last year. I am also having trouble keeping my apt. due to a lose of hours at work, and both my parents and my maternal grandmother have said I am welcome to come back home for as long as I need to. They are also good for a laugh. Early this afternoon, Jon and I went to their house for Thanksgiving dinner. Jon fit right in with my very odd, crazy family.

It was interesting. My mom overcooked the turkey in the roaster oven. It was the first time she used it, and she thought the turkey was not brown enough. When my dad finally convinced her it was fine, the turkey literally fell apart when they lifted it out. It was the first time I ever ate a drumstick without the bone; it came out when I picked it up.

I am thankful that my 99 year old great-grandmother, Mamaw Crow, was able to come home. She fell and broke her hip about a month ago. It was surgically repaired and she was in a nursing home for therapy until last night. She is nearly blind, almost stone deaf, and ever since she fell, her mental state has deteriorated. Therefore, I was very thankful when I went up to her and she recognized me. Two of her primary care givers, my grandmother and great aunt were surprised. Mamaw Rose told me that at times, she didn't even recognize them.

I am thankful I finally figured out what for get the majority of my family for Christmas. I am a knitter and was trying to come with a way to give presents out of the stash when a much better idea was presented to me. I am a member of the River Cities Fiber Guild, and we had our monthly meeting this past Monday. While there, I got into a discussion about knitting gifts. One of the other guild members mentioned dishcloths.

Eureka! I already had a book of dishcloth patterns and a cone of Peaches and Creme variegated cotton yarn. I cast on and finished the dishcloth the next day. The only problem was the variegated yarn does not show the pattern well. So, I went and bought some 122yd balls at Walmart. They are only $1.50 apiece, so I bought4 balls: 2 light blue, one ecru and one red. I started on the first one on 11/25/08 and should have it finished tonight. Also my cousin Kara is getting a scarf, my great-aunt Char is also, and my neice, Kira is getting a crib quilt if I ever finish it.

So, that went better than I thought it would. Oh, just a side note, I am a member of Ravelry and my member name is WVrambler.