Short Row Heel (Sort of)

My sock patterns have always incorporated afterthought heels, mostly because I was under the impression that short row heels required a lot of calculating and marking. But apparently it doesn't have to be so! (And this Eureka! moment may be mine alone; more experienced crochet sock enthusiasts saying, "DUH! You didn't know that?")

Anyway, at the point where it became necessary to create the heel, this sock measured 44 stitches around. I simply esc'd over to the stitch just before the center 6 stitches on the bottom of the sock and then did this:

Row 1: Sc in next 6 st. Ch 1, turn.

Row 2: Allowing the ch 1 to serve as the first st in this and all subsequent rows, sc in next 6 st. Ch 1 turn.

Row 3: Sc in next 7 st (the 6th sc being worked in the side of the ch 1 at the start of Row 2, and the 7th sc being made in the "next" esc of the body of the sock). Ch 1, turn.

Row 4: Sc in next 8 st (again, the 7th sc is worked in the side of the turning ch of the previous row; and the 8th sc again "anchors" the heel to the sock, being worked in the "next" esc).

Whew! This makes so much more sense when you're actually doing it, than when you're trying to write it down.

Continue in this pattern until you've worked over the 22 stitches (half the sock's diameter) across the bottom of the sock (ensuring that the final row is being worked right to left), and then simply continue in rounds of esc as before. So easy!

Dead Cat Inertia

Back in June, I had to take our feeble 19-year old cat to the vet for a tooth abcess. Not surprisingly, the doctor recommended putting her to sleep, determining that, in her already precarious health, she would be unable to survive the oral surgery necessary to treat the tooth. I agreed, and it was very sad, but when I came home without her, I was able to immediately get rid of her bed, bowls and litter box.

The empty cat carrier in the car was another matter, though.

We don't need the carrier, and since we're trying to sell our house and have moved many of the items we "want-to-keep-but-can-live-without-for now" into a storage unit, I can't really justify bringing it back into the house. And I'm not making the trip to the storage unit for just one item. But a well-built plastic pet carrier is one of those things that you really don't want to throw out, because you might possibly be able to use it someday.

So it has remained in my car for four months. And I move it out of the way to put groceries in the back, or when we want to put the seats up or down. I left it in the driveway for a couple of hours while helping my daughter move in August, but then I put it back in the car, where it sits -- utterly inert.

The worst part is that the cat carrier situation is just one example where I have become a victim of inertia. Usually so efficient, I still have a tendency to get paralyzed in a quandry over what to do with certain items. That is why incongruous items take up permanent residence in bizarre places in the house -- I just don't know what to do with them. I don't want to throw them out, but they really don't belong anywhere.

Which finally leads to the hideously-colored pile of yarn in the picture. Not at all in keeping with 2009's planning, patience and perserverance school of crafting, I bought this Paton's Classic Wool for some now-unremembered and, most likely, poorly considered project. Apparently in an attempt to assuage guilt, I started crocheting it into several different pieces, none of which got very far. And now it sits in the basket -- like the cat carrier -- utterly inert. Bothering me.

So I may not know what to do with the yarn (yet), but you know what? I'm going outside to get that cat carrier. Surely there's room in the attic.

Utilitarian Crochet Diversion

When my dear and wonderful mother needed a replacement Swiffer cloth, I tried to pick a color that would match her mostly tan and white kitchen.

But, well...look. Is it just me, or do these look already used? Bet you didn't know Sugar 'n Cream came in a color called "Dirty Dustcloth," did you? Sheesh.

Anyway, Happy...um...Swiffering, Mom! I Love You!

Salvaging a Gloomy Day

It's a wet, white, windy, cold day today. There was even some sleet mixed in with the rain this morning. Perhaps I've been spoiled with the relatively mild fall we've had, and that is making today especially dreary.

So, armed with a big mug of Mrs. Earl Grey (thanks to my oldest daughter who keeps me stocked with an exotic and delicious tea selection), while Vivaldi and Bach shuffle away on my iPod, I'll make a big pot of spaghetti sauce to simmer away the gloom.

And if you need a little treat on a drab day like today, take a peek here and check out the crochet category. You can't help but get a lift from the colors alone!

Stretching a Little Bit

This is my first project using Patons Stretch Socks yarn, incorporating it into my basic sock recipe -- the formulaic toe followed by rounds and rounds of extended single crochet, usually with an afterthought heel (but maybe not this time...we'll see when I get there). I'm cutting everything back by a couple of stitches/rows to accomodate the stretchiness.

So far, although it's a little difficult to see the stitches (especially using a size "C" hook instead of the recommended "D"), I'm enjoying the yarn and the subtle patterns it's creating.

You'll notice I'm being especially clever this time and working both socks at the same time to avoid the "second sock syndrome" to which I would be otherwise so prone. An example -- I was working on the first purple Intuitive Shell Sock back in August and didn't finish the second one until this past weekend!

Yeah. I Can Knit.

The pattern for my husband's sweater comes from this booklet by Fred Shapiro. The instructions looked easy -- an important criteria for my first knitting project, especially since it took me FOREVER just to learn to knit. I've already knit "Up the Back &" partially "Down the Front."

Here's the emerging problem, though. You know how in cartoons and movies, beginner knitting projects always come out lopsided or hugely oversized? Well, this thing is starting to look mighty big.

Political Wonkiness...

...or, how weird is it that Election Day is one of my favorite holidays?

I'm a little bit of a political junkie, as frustrating as politics and government can be, and I love to watch election returns even if I'm not particularly enamored of any of the candidates.

Despite the many flaws in our current system, I believe we're very fortunate to live in a democracy where voting is just one of the many ways to make our voices heard.

So I will, of course, get out and vote today. And whatever your political leaning, I hope you will, too! And that's my PSA for today.