Since I have joined the Knit Mitt Kit Swap, it's time to talk mittens!  For the most part, I have been on a fingerless mittens and gloves kick for some time now.  I am one of those people who struggles with mittens and gloves.  Usually shortly after putting on mittens or gloves because my hands are cold, they get overheated and I start pulling the mitts or gloves off.  Then my hands get cold again and so back and forth and back and forth and back we go . . . Then came the concept of fingerless.  It was a miracle.  I've knit two pairs of fingerless mitts, one from a pattern and one of my own design.  Recently, I pulled gads of free patterns for fingerless mitts and gloves off the Internet.  There is a plethora of wonderful designs out there -- all for FREE!  We love FREE!  So I have all kinds of plans for fingerless items this winter.  The Knitty fingerless mitts, fingerless gloves using self-striping sock yarn, fingerless gloves in a silk-wool combo possibly with beads on the backs . . . Very ambitious, I know.

This summer, though, I had an experience that pushed my mitten and glove knitting in yet another direction.  While visiting Minnesota, we went to a great living museum called Iron World where they are preserving the history of the people who came from all over the world to work in the iron mines.  While we visited the preserved boarding house, we found this woman in one of the main rooms. 

I am embarrassed to say I have forgotten her name but she lives in Ely, Minnesota though she was originally from Kentucky.  She has one of those southern names like Anna Mae.  She is doing a special project in which she is knitting a pair of mittens representing each country from where people came to northern Minnesota to work in the iron mines.  Thee are Greek mittens as well as Latvian, Norwegian, Finnish, etc.  This list is some 40 - 50 countries long.  She researches knitted mittens from each country and knits a representative pair.

When I walked in the room and saw these mittens, I could not remember my friend Idella's name as I tried to call her to come and look.  It was truly breathtaking and I was deeply affected by what I saw and learned that day. 

The white sheet in the photo is a list of the countries the knitted mittens represent so far.

Being completely inspired, I walked into Sisu Designs the next day, the yarn shop in Ely, and purchased a pattern and yarn and began knitting this:

I was obsessed with this knitting through the entire vacation and I plan to finish these this winter.  I've learned a lot about fair isle knitting with the project which I had done before but not perfected or thoroughly explored.  My niche has been lace more than color knitting.  So this is some challenge knitting and I quite proud of it, not to mention the fact that I love these northern European designs.

Now on to the Knit Mitt Kit Swap questionnaire.  Here are my answers:

Are you allergic to any fibers?  No, but I am sensitive to most fiber.  I cannot wear most wools against my skin except merino, some alpaca, some angoras, some cashmeres.  Only the softest fibers for me, baby!

What is your favorite color?  You mean one?  I have to choose one?  But there are so many and they are all so lovely!  Okay, the fall back is always purple but I am not stuck on that.  I tend to be drawn to darker and richer or jewel tone colorways as opposed to light pastels but for lace knitting that's not always true.  So good luck trying to pin me down!

Are you a new mitt knitter? How long have you been knitting mittens?  I started knitting my first mittens in a hotel room in Denver in 1986 or 1987.  I have not knit a lot of them, though.  I think the next time I knit mittens or the like was 2004!

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn?  Depends on the pattern.  I like both.

What fibers do you prefer in mitten yarn?  Soft merino, soft alpaca, sock yarn, soft is key.

Where do you usually knit mittens? As with all knitting -- anywhere, any time.

How do you usually carry/store small projects?  I am a bag ho.  I like individual small bags for small projects.

What are your favorite mitten patterns?  All the fingerless mitts and glove patterns that are popular right now and Scandinavian designs.

What are your favorite mitten knitting techniques?  Fingerless, fingerless, fingerless.  Color knitting and lace, too.

What new techniques would you like to try?  I have never actually knit gloves before so the finger part is interesting to me.  I also like the idea of doing more color work.

What are your favorite needles for knitting mittens?  Depends on the yarn.  I usually love Inox double points (metal) but for some slippery yarns I like smooth wood or bamboo yarns.

What are some of your favorite yarns?  Alpaca and wool blends, wool and silk blends, blends with a tiny bit of mohair or angora.  There are so many to love . . .

What yarn do you totally covet?  Cashmere.

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object?  The new lace fingerless mitts in the latest Interweave Knits.

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)?  See above.

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be?  Lisa Souza variegated -- some rich colorway.

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack?  Chocolate.  No fruit filling or fruit cream centers.

What’s your favorite animal?  Dogs and casts but I collect figurines of ducks and birds.

Would you prefer super warm mittens or something more like fingerless mitts?  Fingerless.

If you were a color what color would you be?  Purple please.

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature?  The landscape at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu, New Mexico.

Do you have a wishlist?  Ebony needles and I love knitting earrings and beaded stitch markers.

Anything else you’d like to share with the group today? I read somewhere that one of the causes of dry skin on the hands is exposure to cold temperatures.  The writer advised that the hands never be exposed to the cold, that you put gloves or mittens on before going outside and have them on the entire time.  I wonder if this is true.

Have a great day.  Knit some mittens!

Did you hear about what these college students have done?  Good for them.  How many of you out there knew that the phrase "under God" was inserted into the pledge of allegiance during the McCarthy era?  Go figure -- a pesky little separation of church and state problem courtesy of McCarthy.  I support this move by these students because I think we forget that a great part of the philosophy underlying the creation of the United States was allowing differing points of view, including the opinion that the government should be changed radically or even replaced.  Another important principle was that no one would be required to pledge loyalty to the government or a certain religion or any particular group or belief.  So how did that little pledge end up in our elementary schools?  Why is it not limited to appropriate places like the military?

Okay, I'll get off my soap box and leave you with this:

I pledge allegiance to the yarn of the fiber universe and to the fiber animal from which it came, one universe under the fiber goddess [or insert -- existing as it does in the grand scheme of things], indivisible, with exquisite colors and softness (and a large drain on our bank accounts) for all fiber addicts.

How about that election and Rumsfeld getting the -- ahem -- stepping down?  What a week!  On post-election morning I discovered Stephanie Miller.  OMG that woman is hysterical.  If you are an irreverent Democrat, Independent, or leftie, you will love her, too.  I am now turning her on every morning in the car.

Tune in later for actual knitting content when we will talk mittens!

Here she is.  I don't think I could pull off the model shot that Brooklyn Tweed did in his version of this so I only photographed the sweater.

The EZ recipe calls for hemmed edges with a knit facing.  After I chose the Lorna Laces Worsted in the watercolor colorway, it quickly became apparent, however, that this yarn needed to show off and could not be hidden underneath the purple.  So I changed it up and I'm quite pleased. 

Isn't it a sweet edge?

Here's a sleeve.

And here is the detail on the back.  I really like the design created by the saddle shoulder shaping.

What I also love about this sweater is the fact that EZ was right!  Following a very basic formula creates a perfectly fitting sweater.  It reminds me of the formula I learned for knitting socks from Susan Lupton at Village Wools.  The recipe is basically add body measurements and gauge and a few basic instructions, knit steadily, and voila you have socks or a sweater. 

Because the wool was nearly crunchy -- a dense, strong wool from a dairy farm in upstate New York -- I washed it in a wool wash and then put it through an extra rinse with hair conditioner.  That was a miracle worker.  The wool bloomed and softened and now has some very nice drape.  You can view a full collection of photos here.

Meet Elvis and Granola!

Can you guess who is who?

Here is the techno hair shot!

They are in their post-felting, pre-eye stage.  They are stuffed with plastic grocery bags for the drying process.  Now that they are dry, the next step is to sew their eyes, then stuff them with poly fluffy stuff.  I think that pink Elvis should have some cute little pink lips but my son (it is his) says it's not a girl hedgehog.  And as to the intellectual hedgehog on the left in the photo, she was supposed to be for my daughter but she's already complaining to her friends, etc. that this is not how she wants "her" hedgehog.  I'm tired.

But I have good news on the regular knitting front.  I have finished the EZ sweater except for the blocking and I am trying to finish socks I started earlier in the summer in Fleece Artist merino sock yarn from Knit Happens in Alexandria, Virginia outside Washington D.C.  More pics later.

I was slowed down a bit on the way to the Taos Wool Festival.

Things got a little tight at one point.  See below:

Then I think Lime and Violet's mascot came on the scene:

And everything was just fine again.

And does this ever happen at your local gas station?

The balloons flew north this morning, travelling along the west side of the Interstate.  Only in New Mexico does Interstate traffic slow down so that everyone can gaze at the hot air balloons floating by.  It was the perfect beginning to my short journey.

On my way, I saw this.

It is fall in northern New Mexico.  The leaves are turning and the light is, as usual, exceptional.  Clouds can make the light magical, as it was this evening.

I met my friends Paula and Barry at the festival.  She and I were best friends in college and she and Barry now live in Seattle.  In a way we were surprised when we discovered that we purchased the exact same bag for knitting in two different states.  But in a way it was no surprise -- great minds and all.

Tomorrow, I'll have all the news and images from the fesitval.

P.S. Paula only bought one skein of silk at La Lana and I didn't buy anything at Taos Sunflower, YET.

Tomorrow morning I'll be on the road at 7:30 a.m.

At 9:30 I'll be at the Brooks Farm booth. 

At 10:00 I'll be at a booth fondling angora yarn and angora bunnies.

At 10:30 I'll be at the cashmere booth.

At 11:00 I'll be at the Henderson Farms booth.

At 11:30 I'll be buying alpaca yarn and hopefully some fabulous sock yarn.

At noon I'll be at  La Lana Wools supposedly helping my friend Paula from Seattle control her spending urges when she sees the silk yarn. The question is, who's going to control my spending urges?

At 1:00 I'll be having lunch next door to the Taos Sunflower.

At 2:00 I'll be at the Taos Sunflower opening my checkbook -- AGAIN -- and hoping the owner Marty is there so I can say hello.

At 4:00 I'll be meeting Leslie and her mom for the first time.

At 5:00 I'll be back at my room at the Fechin Inn exhausted and broke.  But it will be my room and mine alone!  No kids, no pets -- just me and a martini and some (I know this will shock you) some knitting!

On Sunday at 9:00 a.m. I'll be back at the Wool Festival with a sign saying something like, "Will practice law for yarn!"

So I leave you now.  I must go be with the yarn.

Here would be nice . . .

Or here . . .  The lake in Minnesota just keeps calling.  Sigh . . .

But it's a great day when we get to watch one of these:  The Last Knit video.  All I can say is friends, don't let this happen to you and friends, don't let friends knit with their own hair! =)  Enjoy.  (And send your thanks for the laugh to the Red Scarf Project blog and to Saralyn of Seattle.)

If fall feels like a new beginning then, of course, it is time for a new project.  Logical, que no?  Which brings me to thinking about that saying, "I need xxx like I need a hole in the head."  I wouldn't quite insert "new knitting project" into that phrase because, well, it sounds so violent.  No, it would be more accurate to say, I need a new knitting project like I need a new TV or a new car or *gasp* like I need more yarn!  Okay, forget that!  Let's go back to the old saying.  I need a new knitting project like I need a hole in my head but I STARTED ONE ANYWAY!!!

Right now, it just looks like a tube of stockinette but it is actually the beginning of an Elizabeth Zimmerman seamless sweater with saddle shoulders.  I was completely inspired by BrooklynTweed and I have been wanting a basic weekend, lay around, keep warm sweater.  I also have always wanted to try one of the EZ "knitting recipes."  What better time than now?  Especially with Zimmermania starting tomorrow.  

Notice the difference in the color in each photo?  It's really a cross between the two. Not as blue as the first photo but darker than the second.  Those photos are a result of it being so overcast here that the flash went off!  You must understand this is highly unusual in my world!  In Albuquerque, it is almost ALWAYS sunny!  My nine year old son is a BMX racer and I about froze my ass off at Friday night racing -- cold, wind, and at the end it began to rain!  I am a BMX mother, I am tired.

It's fall in New Mexico!

This is the fruit market up the road from my house where they roast chile every year.  These are red chile ristras that are usually hung outside (homes, businesses, etc.) for decoration.  These are not roasted.  They are freshly picked and dry over time and they are the most brilliant red with a sheen something like that on tencel yarn.

Fall is my favorite time of year here and while it comes at the end of the year, it has a feeling of a new beginning to me.  Perhaps this is so because, in the desert, there is a sense that one survives the heat of summer and comes out the other side into the glorious cooling that is autumn.  This must be how northerners feel about their winters finally ending and moving into spring.  When the temperatures cool here, I feel a sense of anticipation for fall and winter, perhaps also because our winters are mild and just don't require the fortitude that Minnesota, east coast or Canada winters demand.  Instead, the relief from the heat is a godsend and the smells of autumn, like roasting chile and pinon, are a welcome change.  Hope you enjoy autumn wherever you are.

My friend, Idella, besides being one of the most talented and interesting knitters I know, also is one of the most generous.  For two years in a row she and her husband, Mark, one of the loveliest men I know, have had my little family to their cabin at the lake in Minnesota for five days just because . . .  Their cabin on Lake Vermilion is an idyllic setting rich with the sounds of the loons and the lap of the water.  Each year we were blessed with splendid weather (for the most part, at least) which consisted of warm sunny days and cool night and the water was great for swimming - a little on the cool side for desert rats but nothing like the September lake temperatures that had me swimming in another Minnesota lake in a wet suit (but that's another story for another day -- just remind me to tell the story about the Vickie Square workshop when the lake was so cold I had to take my earrings out to swim -- they were so cold from the water they hurt my ears.)

On the boat on nearly our last afternoon with her, Idella observed, "You and your children are clearly water people.  What are you doing out there in the desert?"

She has something of a point there, except for the fact that we love the desert and mountains, too.

Perhaps I need to knit a water bag to go with this desert bag I designed and knitted in 2002 (with inspiration and some color charts from Susan Sari of Sisu Designs in Ely, Minnesota).

My only regret about this bag was having it lined by a seamstress who used a machine rather than sewing it in by hand myself.  I was intimidated by the "regular sewing" back then.  Making the bag for the KSKS swap helped a lot with that as you hopefully will soon see when it makes its way out of the country again and hopefully to where it is supposed to end up!  Goddess willing and the U.S. Post Office doesn't tazer me with bad mail karma again!  Here are a couple closer shots of the bag.

It was knit with many yarns -- some now discontinued.  One of my favorites was the Brown Sheep Handpaint for the mountains.  Here's that lining.  Looks intimidating wouldn't you say?  Well, it scared ME!

And I'll bid you farewell with one last shot of a sunset at the lake.

Here's to a great week.

After its very long journey, my KSKS package from Norway has arrived!  And it's a gem!  First, we present an overall view.

Anne of Strikkegal was my swap partner and she created the most ingenius bag!  Take a look at this.

  Any idea what it is? 

Guessed yet?  Oh, I can't wait.  It's a sock!  Yes, a sock!  See?

Click here and scroll down to the entry entitled, "KSK-Kit" to see its origins and its unfelted state.

And there is another bag -- a needle case that Anne made in bright colored fabric.  I love it!

As you saw above there was also yarn -- a lovely red, blue and green variegated colorway.

There were also a set of double point needles, tiny scissors, stitch markers and point protectors or, as they call them in Germany, "stitch stoppers."  I especially like the german translation:  "maschen-stopper."  I like the sound of that "maschen" word.  No mashing around here!   All stitches are under control!  Finally, there was Norwegian chocolate and yes, I confess, it's not all in the photo because one bar has been consumed -- the milk chocolate.

Oh alright!  I admit it, the dark chocolate bar has been opened.  Ok, ok, yes, some has been eaten!  And it is wonderful and it's mine, not yours! 

Finally, finally, Anne sent her own pattern for lace socks customized to my foot measurements.  Instead of knitting it in the dark yarn she sent, I am going to knit it up in a solid, light colored yarn so I can see (and enjoy) the lace pattern.  The pattern is toe up which will be a new sock journey for me and one I've been wanting to embark on for some time now.

Thank you Anne for such a lovely and thoughtful package all the way from Norway.  I really love the idea that probably no one will have the same bag as me!  Thanks again.

P.S. My swap partner has not received her package because, get this!  it came back in the mail. for. no. apparent. reason.  When you think of all those postal employees who start shooting do you ever wonder where all the disgruntled post office customers are who were sent over the edge by the line at the post office or the customer service unlike any other?  Have you wondered where thos customers' guns are?  Don't worry, the knitter in the desert remains calm and will not be deterred.  I went to Santa Fe and had my chakra adjusted so that I can handle the postal stress.  And I'm resending the package!  I have not posted photos of it because I want my partner to have the privilege of the world premier! How big of me.

Dear Blog:

Can you forgive me? I know I have neglected you. I’ve been knitting too much to blog, and working and taking care of my kids on summer break and going on vacation and – What’s that? You don’t care for my lame excuses? Well, I can understand, but this process of posting photos and incorporating them into a blog entry also can be very time consuming – You don’t care? Well, you’re pretty damn demanding for a blog, aren’t you? What? What’s so demanding about wanting some regular posting? Every few days or even just once a week? Well, it’s hard! Knitting is hard, you say, and I do that all the time? Well, that’s different. If I cared enough I would give up a little knitting time for you? No, if I had more time I could give up a little for you. Dear Blog, you’re glaring. It does not look very appealing on you. My mother would say you better watch out, your face could freeze that way. You don’t care, you’re a blog? But you’re a blog that’s talking as though you are human. Am I suggesting that you are less important, less relevant and that your feelings are less real because you are a blog? Well, kind of . . . But c’mon blog, we’ve been at this for awhile now. Couldn’t you forgive me? Just this once?

Yes, that's a Jordana Paige and no, it did not cost $8.98 but it is MINE!  All MINE!  It actually was a Mother's Day present from my sweet family and I have neglected to post about it.  I let other women at Stich n Bitch sit next to it and even touch it and look inside!  Aren't I generous?

But this did cost only $8.89:

Yup, it was on clearance at Target.  My lucky day.  It has a nice muslin feel lining and a little zipper pocket not visible in the photo.  I've been showing everyone.  "Wanna see my new bag that only $8.98?"

Um, yes, I gave a bag issue.

But now for the Knit Sock Kit Swap Questioannaire that my poor secret swapper has been waiting for since Sunday!  It's all about me.  Rah.

What are your favorite colors? Purple and . . . purple and . . . let's see . . . PURPLE! Oh! and green and red and blue and brown and cranberry and turquoise and chartreuse and teal and black and periwinkle blue and mauve and some yellows and some oranges and some greys . . . =)

Are you a new sock knitter? How long have you been knitting socks? I am not a new sock knitter. I knit socks for the first time about seven years ago but did not begin knitting them until about two years ago. I have taken a beginning and an advanced class.

Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn? I am a promiscuous knitter and a color ho (see above) so anything goes. I love it all!

What fibers do you prefer in sock yarn? Any wool or cotton or silk is fine. I just prefer it to be truly sock/fingering/lace weight and to have some softness and a little nylon or the like for stretch.

Where do you usually knit socks? I knit everywhere (including stoplights and the grocery store line). I tend to knit on more difficult patterns like lace or color work at home or somewhere without a lot of disruption.

How do you usually carry/store small projects? As you can see from my blog I have a bag problem (read as FETISH) so a small bag, of course!

What are your favorite sock knitting patterns? I loved the Jaywalker, I am enjoying Ann Budd's slanted rib pattern from the Interweave website (sorry I can't remember the name right now), I like Nancy Bush's patterns, and I like having a formula that allows me to develop my own designs and make up my sock as I go along.

What are your favorite sock knitting techniques? Dutch heel, slip stitch heel flap and eye of the partridge.

What new techniques would you like to try? Socks on circular needles and toe up.

Do you prefer circulars or dpns for sock knitting? Either are fine but I am wanting to try two circs.

What are some of your favorite yarns? For socks -- Cherry Tree Hill, Mountain Colors Bearfoot, Koigu, Sockotta, Trekking.

What yarn do you totally covet? Cashmere and alpaca, of course.  But on areality scale, I've been wanting to try Socks that Rock.

Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object? A lace sock pattern with a cashmere/silk blend.

Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)? Mostly metal dpns or circs. Inox dpns (6 inch) and Addi Turbo circs.

If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be? A Great Adirondacks alpaca multi-color or a cashmere in deep eggplant.

Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack? Chocolate and chocolate and chocolate.

What’s your favorite animal? Dogs, cats, sheep, alpacas, pygora goats.

Do you have pets? What are their species/names/ages? Pug named Gracie (1 1/2 yrs), two cats named Patti (2 yrs) and Napolean (1 yr) and three big old dogs in the back -- Brutus (chocolate lab), Zorra (sheperd mix rescue), and Gabe (chow mix rescue).

If you were a color what color would you be? Purple!

Describe your favorite shirt (yours or someone else’s).. The Chics with Stix knitting t-shirt with yarn and needles in a martini glass and the t-shirt that says "Eat, knit and be merry!"

What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature? Multi-colored cliffs like those found in northern New Mexico, Utah, Arizona.

Tell me the best quote you’ve ever heard or read. "One still must have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star." -- Nietzsche

"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening, that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost. The world will not have it." Martha Graham

Do you have a wishlist? Probably in my head somewhere.

Anything else you’d like to share with the group today? Well, I'm beginning to think that the pile of clutter in my dining room is related to resentment I hold towards my mother and that -- oh, this isn't group therapy? Never mind.

My selection for Poetry Thursday free day.  Lorna Crozier of Canada, one of my favorite poets.  There are several good poems are on the site.

And heeeere's Gracie! 

I have been inspired to share her story because of the sad events at Scout's house over the past several days.  They had to get rid of their dog after he bit their pre-school age daughter.  It was heart breaking for the kids.  They are trying to find a new dog.

In February of this year, I had to put down my nearly 16 year old little dog, Tiva.  She had been sick over the past year so we were prepared to let go of her but we were not prepared for the emptiness of the house after her death.  About a month later, I felt ready to start looking for a new dog.  My kids have had a thing for pugs for awhile and insisted that we get one.  I had a strong feeling that we needed to be open to whoever our new dog might be, that this was not to be a process of us picking out an animal and purchasing it like a new toy or peice of furniture.  I sensed that the dog was coming to us and perhaps needed us -- or that we needed the dog!  So I told the kids we were not going to pick a particular breed except "small."

So, one Sunday in March I announced that after going to Target I was going to go by PetSmart and PetCo and see what dogs were up for adoption and "start looking."  In the parking lot at Target, another car pulled up next to ours and my daughter and I noticed a pug sitting on a man in the front passenger seat.  As we got out of the car, we began visiting with the man and the pug and my daughter instantly fell in love.  (But was she the only one?)  Within a few minutes we had learned that the people in the car were from Pug Rescue, that they had just picked the dog up from the people who were relinquishing her, and that her name was Gracie.  A few days later, she came home to live with us! 

And she is the best dog.  Well, except for a few problems like her potty training problems that we are still working on . . . but she is still the best dog!  Luckily, she had been pretty well treated by her previous owners.  They gave her up because they were a working couple with no children who worked too many hours and could not give Gracie enough attention.  She was clearly very lonely and has needed lots of togetherness and closeness but, as you can imagine, my children have been more than happy to oblige.  So there is no question in my mind -- we found the dog we were meant to have.

I hope that posting this will send some positive energy out into the universe and perhaps help Scout's family find the next dog they are meant to have.  Good luck guys!

I think I may have a case of Jaywalker rebellion.  I wonder if anyone else has experienced this in their relationship with their Jaywalkers?  The first sock knit up nearly without incident.  It was a good little sock -- except for a few problems getting the right gauge and needle size at the beginning it proved to be compliant, obedient, a rule follower. This second sock was the same.  We had a few coughs in the beginning finding the right spot in the color sequence in the yarn for a starting point but once we got that we flew right along, turned the heel, knit the gusset, knit the foot.  We worked togother well.  There was harmony in sockville.  Until four days ago when it was time to begin shaping the toe.  Yes, four days. 

For four days, I have knit and ripped and knit and ripped and knit and ripped.  First, I began knitting the toe and discovered when I did the decreases that I had made a mistake somewhere and now had two extra sitches in the pattern area.  I figured it was an error a couple rows back and ripped back to find it.  Not there.  Oh it must be back just a little further.  Well, maybe a little further.  Damn, even further?  The next thing I knew I had ripped out at least three inches and it was begining to look like the mistake must have occurred way back near the gusset.  I drew the line there.  I was NOT going all the way back to the gusset.  So I did what I should have three inches of ripping earlier and skipped a couple increases.  Voila.  Right number of stitches. 

So I thought to myself, ok, now we'll finish up this toe right quick and have a lovely paid of finished socks.  I started the toe shaping and was knitting merrily along and suddenly, I have the wrong stitch count AGAIN!  and AGAIN and AGAIN.    The first time, the problem seems to have arisen at the very beginning of the toe shaping!  So drum roll please.  AND THE PROBLEM IS:  I did an increase instead of slipping the first stitch on needle number 4 about an inch before the toe shaping begins.   (Later, on another journal backward, I found I had stopped drinking juice whatessoeverthis sweater again is very clearly a labels of love but

I had a talk with myself and told myself to just go back to the beginning of needle number 4 at the beginning of the toe shaping and K2tog.  The knitting police in my head must have been listening, as usual, because my response was, "Oh, it's just an inch.  It won't take long to knit it again.  I'll just rip back so it's perfect."  I look at the sock.  I know the k2tog won't show [-- much -- , the knitting police interject] and the improper increase an inch below doesn't show [ -- much -- they interject again].  I blame these imaginery people in my head (are you worried about me yet?) but I have to admit that the perfectionist in me (oh another person in your head -- that makes the psych nurses reading this feel much better).  OK, my perfecionist tendencies just will not allow me to let this go.  Let's just say this attention to [read as "obsession with"] detail is what makes me a great lace knitter and forget the psychoanalysis.  Mmm.  Good rationale.  Works for me.  Back to the one inch plus of knitting before we begin the toe shaping.  Perhaps in another year or so I'll be able to present you with a photo of the finished socks!

I'm sure thousands of knitting blog readers around the globe are asking this question and waiting with baited breath for my return.  Unfortunately I don't have anything exotic to report like a trip to Africa that kept me out of Internet range for weeks.  No, it's the just the beginning a blog process.  I thought that I was going to quickly restyle the blog environment and change bloghosts to one that will allow comments and I have been VERY busy at work so thought I would hold off on posting until those steps were completed.  Well, of course, since I have been very busy at work I have not had time to make the changes on the blog . . . And here we are weeks later with no posts!  So I've given up on that plan and I'll just keep posting and the changes will happen when they happen.  Thanks for your patience if there is even anyone reading this!