On a Finishing Streak

I'm all over this knitting thing.  Not "over it" as in done, but "all over it" as in I-so-got-this-and-I'm-going-to-finish-everything-in-site-AND-start-some-new stuff.

Finished:  Watermelon Slice Socks

Love. Them.  And they are mostly comfy.  The biggest question I get is "Won't those beads hurt your feet when you wear shoes?".  Answer:  Only the one bead on the very edge of my left foot.

Finished:  (Actually, started and finished since you haven't heard about them yet)  Campout Mitts

These are one of each pair since the others are at The Spinning Room as a sample for the class I'm going to teach in them.  Very quick to knit and very comfy, especially the blue ones since they are made with Plymouth Yarns Aerie (100% baby alpaca).  Sooooooooo soft.

Finished:  Echo Flowers Shawl

That's it blocking.  I am mostly happy with it.  I'm not sure I chose the best yarn.  A little too tightly twisted and a little heavier than it should be.  Also the color.  Makes it hard to see the pattern.  What I'm most happy about is that it is finished.  This was a long-languishing unfinished project.  I started it 9/7/2010!  That's the oldest of my currently unfinished projects.

Started and then started over:  A slip stitch cowl that doesn't have a name.  Started over = cast on, but haven't knitted any of it yet.  So, no picture.

Resumed Knitting: A plain sock that I started at least two years ago.

And now I'm on the gusset decreases of the second sock, heading toward the foot.  But.... what's wrong with this picture:

(aside from the flash making it a crappy picture)  It's probably hard to tell, but the heel on the left sock is half the height of the heel on the right sock!  I have no idea what I was thinking when I knit that.  It's clearly NOT right.  But.  It's staying that way.  No way I'm ripping out half a sock, when it fits me just fine.  Let's be honest.... even if it fit me weird, I wouldn't rip it out.

Started and Finished: The Spellman Files: A Novel by Lisa Lutz (click there to purchase on Amazon).   Ok, so it's not knitting, but still qualifies as something finished.  I got this book on a whim at the Border's going out of business sale.  I started out not liking it very much.  It was a little difficult to keep track of the way the author was laying out the story.  But, then, once I got it figured out, I really got drawn into the story and the characters.  What characters!  The Spellmans are a family of private investigators, including the youngest sibling (who is currently 14) and not including the oldest (who is a lawyer and doesn't want anything to do with the family business).  This is the first book in a series (not sure how many), so there is a lot of family background to be told and this somewhat adds to the confusion in the beginning.  Woven into this is a current investigation that the main character Izzy (one of the siblings) is assigned by her parents, as well as some family drama that develops.  Lots of humor mixed into the drama as well.  I'm glad I stuck with it, since it became quite engrossing - not just the story but the way the characters and their personalities unfold.

Meanwhile, there's this:

That is a hole in the roof, letting water leak into the ceiling in our bathroom.  Yay!  Paul had to climb up into the attic through a tiny hole in the bedroom closet.  Ok, the hole seemed tiny, but it's probably normal-sized and trying to get up there was a task and a tight squeeze --- holding a flashlight and the camera.  And a screwdriver.  Because you never know if you'll need a screwdriver when you are trying to find a leak.   On the plus side, we've discovered a VHF antenna, installed in the attic.  The kind that used to be seen on top of your roof (not under it). The mysteries of the people that lived here before us never cease to amaze us.

But with all the money-pit like stuff inside, we get pretty autumn leaf views outside: