Citron Part fourhundredeleventymillion

Ok, I'm still working on the Citron. I'm up to section 5 now, so there really isn't much left to do, but now that I'm at like 400+ stitches (or something like that, I can't bear to count that high) it takes ages to do like one row. Even more so if it's a purl row. I keep screwing the pattern up too with the increases so I know my stitch count is off but I can't really be arsed to rip it out and fix it. Not when it takes like a half hour for me to do a row. It still looks more or less the same as the picture so I'm even less inclined to fix it.

I only get snatches of time here and there to knit so that's the only project I'm really working on right now. I pick it up during 24 and get a row or two done. Then maybe I'll take it outside for a few minutes when Kev is brewing on the weekend and work on a row. I'm the type that hates to put a project down midrow too so I usually only work on it when I know I have a decent chunk of free time.

I'm concerned about the size of it though. It still seems rather small even though I'm on section 5. My ball is getting small, but I've probably got 1 or 2 hundred yards left to work with so I can finish it but it may be tiny. I guess I'll finally get to try some blocking magic once it's done.

Hopefully once my class is done this semester I'll have more time to knit and be inspired. Though I am taking on a few spring time projects (scraping, cleaning and repainting the bathroom walls and ceiling) and starting a container garden for fresh herbs and vegetables.

So that's all I have going on now. Eventually, one day, maybe, this Citron will get finished. It does discourage me a bit from thinking about tackling a larger shawl. Maybe I am meant to stick with just sock knitting.

Knitting lull...

I worked through the mess that I created in my Citron. I think it was just a stitch that was pulled really taunt that created one big loop. It's still a little messy looking there but not so much that I care enough to rip it out and redo it.

But I haven't worked on it much lately. I've had a lot of outside forces taking me away from my knitting time. My Dad had a mild heart attack last week so I was distracted then. There was a movie night out with friends. Mom and my niece came up for a visit and didn't leave me much free time this weekend.

Then my poor, dear cat Frodo was hit by a car on Sunday and I had to put him down last night. I spent Sunday night and all day yesterday torn to pieces and trying to hold myself together while trying to figure out what to do for him. I feel kind of silly being so upset over the loss of a cat, but Frodo was pretty special. He was the nicest cat I've ever known, and he never met a stranger. He loved people and he loved being the center of attention. He was friendly and playful and enjoyed playing with children. He tolerated being held and carried around in all sorts of crazy manners. He slept at my feet every night and drank the milk out of my cereal bowl. He was just a fantastically awesome cat.

I've got loads of homework to do today that I put off during all of this and then there's class tomorrow night so knitting will still have to wait a bit before I can get back to it. Which is ok, I guess. I'm still having a hard time feeling inspired by anything.

The perils of urban knitting.

So Kevin and I went to Boston for a long weekend. Just a quick trip up to visit his family and see my friend Manda (and I didn't even get to see her in her scarf! Stupid warm weather!).

I decided to get in some urban knitting on my T ride into the city. I took the Citron since it's basic and straight stockinette right now. Things went swell until my needle came unscrewed a little from the cable and my stitches got caught in the thread. I tried getting it unstuck and screwed back in but there was a snag I had trouble getting loose. I was left with this mess once I got it all cleared up.



Honestly, I don't know what that is or how it happened. It almost looks like a stitch that was pulled super tight and now has a lot of slack on top. I'm concerned and worried this is going to cause a massive frogging of the Citron.

Arg.

I'm swearing off urban knitting.

Many projects = little progress

The problem with working on a lot of different projects is that all of your progress is spread out in a bunch of different directions making it hard to judge and keep track of (it also makes for very boring photographs). I'm most of the way through section 3 of my Citron. I'm halfway down the leg of my first Hedera sock. I gave up on the Riply and just started making a striped beanie instead. That's 3/4 of the way finished. I've even worked on my poor little neglected brown sock and it's halfway down my foot now. I tried it on the other night.  I'm not sure if I love it. So that has me stymied.

I'm feeling uninspired still and not very motivated to knit much. I may get in a hour or so most days, and I'm a slow knitter so I don't see much progress in that time. I think the biggest problem is that I'm not knitting With A Purpose like I was for Christmas gifts. Therefore I tend to slack off and get distracted and start lots of little projects. I need to Focus Danielsan.

I need some sort of Instant Gratification project that is also challenging and interesting. The hat I started was supposed to be IG, but it's boring (stockinette w/stripes. Blah!). Things take so long in fingering so even small projects like socks take forever. I need something small but in worsted weight that will work up quickly and give me something to show off to people. Any ideas?