Lot's o' Time

As I mentioned in an early post, one of my dearest friends is battling an aggressive form of lymphoma.  This situation brings with it many challenges including food prep, appointment scheduling and medication management.

It also provides some great opportunities to examine one's life, to sit quietly with the people you love and to commit time to those people/things that are important.  For me, it has also provided a lot of sitting around time, whether at the doctor's office, the oncology floor (or recently ER).  Usually I would knit during these intervals, but my knitting mojo and I are working through a very strained patch in our relationship (a bit of a seven-year itch).


I carry my Ishbel (ravelry link) shawl around with me and it is coming along nicely.  I think I missed a yarn-over a few rows back and I'm trying to decide if I care.  The vine pattern seems to be a bit forgiving and damnit, this is supposed to be fun.  Getting it "right" sucks all of the fun out.  Take a look-see, it's hard to tell anything and in order to spread it out I've gotta take 100+ stitches off the needles...that ain't happening...any thoughts?

Semi-solid dark sock weight yarn on size 6 needles...very hard to photograph.

Also, I have been plugging away on my hexies quilt.  Through the flickr group I have already agreed to swap 2.5" squares with several quilters even one in the UK.  I have purchased several bundles. I'm especially excited about this one.

Nevertheless, I have finished all of the squares in my possession.  I'll take some time to cut up my stash and continue.  It's my plan not to repeat any fabrics.  I never thought that I would be into hand-piecing, but I love it.  And all of the people who say that a hexie quilt is addictive, believe it.  I plowed through these in no time flat.

Behold hexies in progress.

I'm looking forward to continuing on the crafty path.  It's a welcome respite from my crazy work and personal lives. 

Switching Gears...*

Bonjour et amis bienvenus! This month I have the great fortune of combining two hobbies that I love very much...cycling and knitting...

Le 5 juillet le Tour De la France a commencé (this exhausts my knowledge of the French language...this blog post will continue in English...). It also marked the beginning of the 2008 Tour de France Knit Along!

I chose the "King of the Mountains" Polka Dot Jersey - Silence Lotto Team. Our fearless leader is Donna. In this group, each participant chooses a project that is a challenge. Most importantly, it does not need to be finished before the end of the Tour.

What's my challenge?...I am glad you asked... a stole using cobweb yarn.

What pattern are you going to use? You ask all the right questions; I'm using Eunny Jang's Print O' the Wave stole (Ravelry link). In this beautiful cob web Baruffa Fa Re in ice-blue...it's like a 1,400 yard tall glass of [Caribbean blue ocean] water.

While I've always been an avid cyclist, this year has marked more riding then I've done in a while. In addition to riding around the neighborhood for fun/exercise, in early May, my father and I completed the 2008 Bike New York - 5 borough ride...

Here is a picture of me sweating it out...rough, I know...

The ride was a bit stop-and-go and several people got hurt, but overall it was a good experience. That Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was horrible and it was at the END of the ride. Still, in total, it was not as miserable as my face suggests. This photo demonstrates that I was ill-prepared by not having sunglasses or sunblock (as evidence by the subsequent sunburn).

This was also the Sunday after I drove down to 2008 Maryland Sheep and Wool ...trying to get too much into one weekend...the story of my life.

*...pun intended.