O is for

OFF the needles



and ON the floor.

I've Been Working on the Railroad

This song has been going through my head for the past few days--only with different words:

I've been knitting on the railroad
All the live-long day.
I've been knitting on the railroad
Just to pass the time away.

Don't you hear the whistle blowing,
Rise up so early in the morn;
Don't you hear the captain shouting,
"Mary, knit your shawl!"

I'll be spending a long weekend in Boston. The Marathon. My niece is running. It's her 4th. I'm getting there via Amtrak and have the shawl packed and ready to go.

Run. Run. Run. Knit. Knit. Knit.

Half n' Half

Was it only a month ago that I was sitting in a knitting abyss and making lofty goals for March?

I must have been thinking with only half a brain when I thought I would finish the North Sea Shawl by April 1. I had forgotten that life often has other plans for us.

March was a month with lots of rollercoaster moments and very little knitting.

The North Sea Shawl is now half done:



And, no promises, but it might be finished half-way through April. Life, you hear me?

Today, I'm doing the Happy Dance because it's the NY Yankee Opening Day and the hubster and I will be there!

And I don't care that'll it be cold and rainy this afternoon for the first pitch. I was born a Yankee fan and it's Yankee Opening Day! No half-love there!

Nothing Much

I don't have much to show around here--

Since it's gonna be a while till I have a FO to show, you're just going to have to bear with the North Sea Shawl creeping along:



I really love the boring repetition of this pattern. Perfect for American Idol watching.

It's also going to be a while till I have some snow photos to show--maybe not until next year. This winter has been so dreary and snow-free. An upstate gal like me likes a blizzard or two. And this is about all the snow we've had in NYC this year so far:



Meanwhile, I've been enjoying all the blog recommendations from the blogiversary contest. Here's a few:

K.Anne recommended bubblesknits (Stop over and say "hi"-she's got a case of the winter blahs). And Bubbleknits recommended Cass.

All three blogs are terrific and have been added to my new love bloglines. How did I not know about this before?

C is for. . . .

CHANGING my mind.

I used to think that knitting lace had to fry my brain. Till I discovered the North Sea Shawl.



I've frogged the Honeybee Stole. Two sided lace of various stitch patterns requires quiet and solitude. And I've discovered that I like to knit while watching American Idol, talking with the hubster and reading blogs. Um. . . yeah, sometimes I do all at the same time.

The North Sea Shawl is a pretty lace pattern. A 12 row repeat. 4 rows are garter. 4 rows are the stitch pattern--it doesn't vary. 4 rows are purl back rows. I can get wired on chocolate and drink wine while knitting this. And the only thing fried are the sausage and onions I'm cooking for dinner.

Don't I get bored doing such a repetitive sitch?
Nope. Not me. Between my short attention span and lousy memory--it's all new and exciting to me.

Today, I even worked on it while in Starbucks. Behind me was kid and her tutor solving revolutions per minute in physics. By the window were two teens chatting, ". . . and then she goes. . . and so then he went. . . " Next to me was a guy on his cell reminding friends that he's going to be seen on Lipstick Jungle tonight.

I just kept knitting and eavesdropping. Didn't drop a stitch or forget a yo. And didn't fry any brains either.