Elizabeth Moon's Blog, page 40
April 28, 2011
From Twitter 04-27-2011
07:46:52: #Knitting is proceeding, one 180 stitch row at a time. Color-coded needle tips have kept me from knitting wrong direction again. But...
07:48:59: ...I can make other categories of error, you betcha. Fixing one problem can create new ones. Typical of life, actually. #knitting.
08:35:07: RT @NatureNews: RT @edyong209: Smash moons together rip Saturn's rings off destroy universes yeeaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh RT: @astrojenny: http:/ ...
09:31:00: New post up at http://e-moon60.livejournal.com/411251.html with pictures of knitting project's infancy. #knitting
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 27, 2011
Adventures in Knitting: The Project
Though once I was a pretty decent knitter, it's been decades, and I'm back to "inexperienced" (though experience is rushing in, as I make novice blunders and have to fix them.) I picked a large First Project, for several reasons, one of them the conviction that knitting and purling long, uninterrupted rows would help me get back my rhythm, which lay behind my (formerly) very even stitches. Lots of just plain knitting, garter stitch and stockinette, I thought, would be just the ticket for retraining my hands, now used to a lot of little up and down and slightly sideways movements of typing.
It might have been wiser not to change all the variables at once.
I have made a number of mistakes. I have fixed them, more or less. This is not the most beautiful, even, perfect stretch of knit you'll ever see. Tough. It's coming along.
Things I didn't know going in: the color variation in this yarn coincides with variations in the yarn's feel and behavior on the needles. The dark blue feels soft, well-spun, and flows nicely on the needle tips. The yellowish feels harsher, the twist opens up making it very easy to split the yarn, and "wants" to widen out stitches. In between the other colors (and the blends between them) have each their specific behaviors. On a circular needle, the work likes to inhabit the cable, where it's got more room to slide (the cable being of much smaller diameter than the needle points.) It has no desire to climb up onto the left hand needle (I'm a right-handed knitter--this is the needle whose stitches I knit into) and put itself in the comfortable spot to be worked. So instead of being able to knit nonstop across a row, I'm constantly (every 10 stitches or so) having to stop and move the work forward (until near the end of that row, when the weight of the work isn't on the cable pulling stitches back.) That doesn't allow me to build up the long rhythm I was hoping to, but I'm developing better tension and rhythm anyway. The cable is also naturally curly (the manufacturer of mine claims its cable doesn't have a memory and thus doesn't curl up, but...yes, it does. Maybe less, but it does.) Its ability (and desire) to curl in 3 dimensions leads to interesting topological forms, but also wildly twisting work and (at times) a tendency to get in my way. I may be crazy, but I think a limp, more cord-like cable would be easier to work with. And if asked, I'd prefer needle tips about an inch and a half longer. I have big hands; I would like to feel the back end of the needle (where it joins the cable) with the heel of my hand, because it would let me keep the yarn on the needle tip from slithereing back onto the cable when I don't want it to.
Still: it's coming. I'm now over a thousand stitches into it, and the thing is an inch long. It's looking less like a mess and more like something that might turn into its intended end--a 40 inch wide fabric of some sort (ultimately a small, child-sized blanket of ~40" x 48". I have relearned (or invented) some creative ways to fix mistakes, using a crochet hook, a spare double-ended needle and intense concentration. Some of these are, no doubt, unorthodox....faced with the need to rip off 160 stitches to "properly" fix one, I looked at it repeatedly for a couple of days and instead did something else. Then fixed the mess that made. Don't ask--I'm not telling.
Current images of the project: first is of the whole project on its needle and the yarn (note pink "stopper" on end of one needle point (near yarn ball); you can't really see the green stopper point on the other end in this shot. In the close-up image, it's the confusing bit of green on the other one, underneath the bit of knitting. That loose end of sage-green yarn is from the long-tail cast on. Yes, I should have pulled it straight for the picture. And turned the yarn ball so you could see the label. Sorry... The needle is KnitPicks Harmony wood. Love the feel and the little wood-on-wood click. The yarn is Berella Comfort, a nylon/acrylic blend, knitting worsted weight, and I'm using size 7 (US) needle tips. The white stitch markers are set where I'll want them for the design I've planned (20 stitch garter-stitch border throughout, 35 stitch alternating sections of garter and stockinette for the interior.
It might have been wiser not to change all the variables at once.
I have made a number of mistakes. I have fixed them, more or less. This is not the most beautiful, even, perfect stretch of knit you'll ever see. Tough. It's coming along.
Things I didn't know going in: the color variation in this yarn coincides with variations in the yarn's feel and behavior on the needles. The dark blue feels soft, well-spun, and flows nicely on the needle tips. The yellowish feels harsher, the twist opens up making it very easy to split the yarn, and "wants" to widen out stitches. In between the other colors (and the blends between them) have each their specific behaviors. On a circular needle, the work likes to inhabit the cable, where it's got more room to slide (the cable being of much smaller diameter than the needle points.) It has no desire to climb up onto the left hand needle (I'm a right-handed knitter--this is the needle whose stitches I knit into) and put itself in the comfortable spot to be worked. So instead of being able to knit nonstop across a row, I'm constantly (every 10 stitches or so) having to stop and move the work forward (until near the end of that row, when the weight of the work isn't on the cable pulling stitches back.) That doesn't allow me to build up the long rhythm I was hoping to, but I'm developing better tension and rhythm anyway. The cable is also naturally curly (the manufacturer of mine claims its cable doesn't have a memory and thus doesn't curl up, but...yes, it does. Maybe less, but it does.) Its ability (and desire) to curl in 3 dimensions leads to interesting topological forms, but also wildly twisting work and (at times) a tendency to get in my way. I may be crazy, but I think a limp, more cord-like cable would be easier to work with. And if asked, I'd prefer needle tips about an inch and a half longer. I have big hands; I would like to feel the back end of the needle (where it joins the cable) with the heel of my hand, because it would let me keep the yarn on the needle tip from slithereing back onto the cable when I don't want it to.
Still: it's coming. I'm now over a thousand stitches into it, and the thing is an inch long. It's looking less like a mess and more like something that might turn into its intended end--a 40 inch wide fabric of some sort (ultimately a small, child-sized blanket of ~40" x 48". I have relearned (or invented) some creative ways to fix mistakes, using a crochet hook, a spare double-ended needle and intense concentration. Some of these are, no doubt, unorthodox....faced with the need to rip off 160 stitches to "properly" fix one, I looked at it repeatedly for a couple of days and instead did something else. Then fixed the mess that made. Don't ask--I'm not telling.
Current images of the project: first is of the whole project on its needle and the yarn (note pink "stopper" on end of one needle point (near yarn ball); you can't really see the green stopper point on the other end in this shot. In the close-up image, it's the confusing bit of green on the other one, underneath the bit of knitting. That loose end of sage-green yarn is from the long-tail cast on. Yes, I should have pulled it straight for the picture. And turned the yarn ball so you could see the label. Sorry... The needle is KnitPicks Harmony wood. Love the feel and the little wood-on-wood click. The yarn is Berella Comfort, a nylon/acrylic blend, knitting worsted weight, and I'm using size 7 (US) needle tips. The white stitch markers are set where I'll want them for the design I've planned (20 stitch garter-stitch border throughout, 35 stitch alternating sections of garter and stockinette for the interior.
From Twitter 04-26-2011
14:40:09: Rock House fire in West TX (Davis Mtns) spread another 10K acres yesterday.
http://tinyurl.com/5u6j383 Expected to burn faster today.
21:57:38: It is possible to eat too many fresh raw peas. Alas.
21:59:32: RT @BacklisteBooks: RT @dorannadurgin: $.99: A FERAL DARKNESS: Fantasy, romance, suspense, "expertly written with wonderful characters." ...
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 26, 2011
From Twitter 04-25-2011
07:23:46: Eagerness to go out and feed & muck out is less than optimal.
09:04:17: Read about State Department's proposed plan to make getting passport harder: http://tinyurl.com/4xgtuvs and then comment today.
10:34:04: Waiting for farrier. It's windy, cloudy, and Mac-horse is being a PITA today. Two brief "training sessions" have made small dent in sulks
10:35:15: I like to have horses mellow and cooperative for farrier, but Mac is channeling his few TB racehorse ancestors today. Goes w/his TB hooves.
10:37:35: We have at least established that sticking your head in a corner and threatening owner with hunched butt does not lead to joy.
12:38:58: The horses have been trimmed. Illusion was calm, cooperative, patient. Mac was a brat. Consequences resulted.
12:39:48: RT @anncrispin: Authors: Know the difference between copyright and publishing rights? New blogpost, "Copyright 101" RT, plz? http://accr ...
12:44:40: Now for the rest of the day's work. Lots to do and a strong desire (after arguing with horse) to faceplant in the bed for a nap.
13:06:33: Swallows have a nest in the barn...finally! Love to watch them fly in and out.
13:53:14: A yellow water lily's blooming. We sat by the pond for almost an hour, without realizing time had gone by.
17:40:44: RT @NASA: Want to see a typical day in the life of America's airspace? Look here http://go.nasa.gov/f2Rac6
17:59:49: Terms now agreed for the next two Paksworld books (this will complete Paladin's Legacy.) When published, that'll be 10 fantasy, 16 SF.
18:01:41: Baby blue-jay on (prob.) first flight just landed on window-screen & took off again. Made it back into tree (low limb.)
18:11:42: More egoboo: Editor Marty Halpern bought a story of mine for _Alien Contact_. He blogs about anthology here: http://tinyurl.com/3qcdwb9
18:32:55: Picked peas today. Ate some before they made it into the bowl, let alone house. Eating peas off the vine is a treat.
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 25, 2011
From Twitter 04-24-2011
20:02:01: Drought prediction for next few months: http://tinyurl.com/yo8cow No good news for us.
20:10:34: Farrier coming tomorrow. All other plans for morning (tractor, mowing) now put off to Tuesday, to be sure horses are up, clean, calm.
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 24, 2011
From Twitter 04-23-2011
09:37:09: Difficult writing days often produce the best passages in the work. Doesn't mean I enjoy them. #amwriting
10:59:47: Fixed the knit-mess from yesterday. Progress is being made, though interrupted by phone calls. #knitting.
11:17:03: To prevent recurrence of the problem, I'm using different colored needle-guards when I pause in a row: green for GO: new stitches go here.
11:18:49: Current scene: Midwife has opinions on how pregnant soldiers (incl. queen) should train in the salle. #amwriting.
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 23, 2011
From Twitter 04-22-2011
07:07:41: RT @anncrispin: New blog post up: "Foreshadowing and Serendipity in Stories." RT, Please? http://tinyurl.com/3hvsnx4
07:10:52: RT @anncrispin: Should I be doing Twitter and FB? Or writing my novels? Author MJ Rose discusses social networks&authors. http://tiny ...
15:10:40: Needle acquisition report: Knit-pick harmony wood size 7 interchangeable points w/ 40 inch cable. Now about to cast on lots of stitches.
22:17:11: I have now created a lumpy mess...not yet capable of having TV on and knitting.
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 22, 2011
Needle, Yarn, and a Creeping Start
Today I found the posh (or maybe only one of the posh) yarn shops in Austin, Gauge. As I (and the entire alto section) had totally blown an entrance to one of the pieces we sang during the Good Friday service, I was determined to make something come right...and finding Gauge and buying a circular needle did the trick. I had been looking online at many kinds of needles: bamboo, wood, plastic, metal. I don't have a problem with aluminum needles and I've used wood (very old wooden needles in the family, which I can't now find, just like I can't find my mother's circular needles. But Gauge carried KnitPicks brand of wooden needles, rather garishly colored (think of "pick up sticks" colors) but very smooth...and interchangeable on the ends of their matching cables.
That's what I got--a pair of #7 tips and a 40 inch cable and some little ring-shaped stitch markers. I carefully avoided the yarns. (They have gorgeous yarn. Of course.) Came home and started casting on for my project, 180 stitches. Despite checking again how long a "tail" you're supposed to have for long-tail cast-on, my almost-10 feet of tail was not enough. But lo...I joined it to yarn from another ball, and continued on. (Yes, there's a messy bit. Too bad.) I put stitch markers where I'm going to change the pattern, and went on and knit a row. I like the new needles, but I'm not used to working flat on a cable...something new learned...and I'm not yet used to exactly how much slip/grip the surface is, having been practicing basic stitches on aluminum needles (much more slippery.) Altogether a good side trip on the way home after church. I may knit another row before bed.
That's what I got--a pair of #7 tips and a 40 inch cable and some little ring-shaped stitch markers. I carefully avoided the yarns. (They have gorgeous yarn. Of course.) Came home and started casting on for my project, 180 stitches. Despite checking again how long a "tail" you're supposed to have for long-tail cast-on, my almost-10 feet of tail was not enough. But lo...I joined it to yarn from another ball, and continued on. (Yes, there's a messy bit. Too bad.) I put stitch markers where I'm going to change the pattern, and went on and knit a row. I like the new needles, but I'm not used to working flat on a cable...something new learned...and I'm not yet used to exactly how much slip/grip the surface is, having been practicing basic stitches on aluminum needles (much more slippery.) Altogether a good side trip on the way home after church. I may knit another row before bed.
From Twitter 04-21-2011
06:28:21: RT @NatureNews: Oil spills underreported in Mexican Gulf http://goo.gl/fb/b5T8P
06:30:14: RT @USGS: [VIDEO] Launching first episode of a new series called Climate Connections this morning. For now, a preview: http://1.usa.gov/ ...
07:33:00: RT @gbrumfiel: VIDEO The Fukushima nuclear crisis explained in under 5 minutes: http://j.mp/g5oU4L
10:05:40: Misty-moisty morning--no rain in forecast but about 80 and humid, so went out and mowed in the field for more fire prevention (we hope.)
10:06:11: Then the sun came out, it got distinctly warmer, and a brisk breeze came up--came back in.
10:46:50: Still can't find my mother's circular needles. Or any 8s or 9s. Need to visit a shop or order online. #knitting
11:26:22: Knitting needle preferences: bamboo, wood, plastic, metal??? I've used wood, plastic, & aluminum, never bamboo...opinions? #knitting
11:55:24: I started with v. old wooden needles, loved 'em. Can't find that old pair now. :-( Then used aluminum. W'd love to have wood again.
22:15:57: How do you figure how long a cable you need on circular needles? #knitting
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
April 21, 2011
From Twitter 04-20-2011
08:38:10: WHY did I register so I could comment at http://www.guardian.co.uk/books ? I know better. Hours have passed....
09:18:04: RT @GloriaOliver: Beautiful letter from Tom Baker remembering Elizabeth Sladen http://www.tom-baker.co.uk/pages/content/index.asp?PageID ...
09:45:03: RT @NASA: Texas Wildfires: A collection of the latest images from our Earth-observing satellites. http://go.usa.gov/T6h
09:52:52: Fire near MacDonald Observatory in Davis Mtns, W. Texas: http://tinyurl.com/3snehm7 Observatory visible in lower right against flames.
13:17:37: RT @NYTimeskrugman: Those Elusive Bond Vigilantes http://nyti.ms/e2fKMd
22:50:44: New posts on http://e-moon60.livejournal.com/ New title for Book III, and returning to knitting (w/ 2 pictures.) #writing, #knitting
22:54:06: Big honkin' long choir rehearsal of "easy" (HA!!) music. Rutter, Bach, Palestrina, Durufle are not "easy." Fun, though.
23:33:00: RT @NYTimeskrugman: Patients Are Not Consumers http://nyti.ms/fdpnzk
23:35:49: RT @melaniemf: Ya know, it's times like this that I'm kinda glad I don't have an iPhone, after all. http://bit.ly/ghZoc7
23:39:10: RT @NatGeoSociety: #Texas Wildfire Photos: Crews Fight Statewide Blaze
http://on.natgeo.com/h2klSL #drought #wildfire
Tweets copied by twittinesis.com
Elizabeth Moon's Blog
- Elizabeth Moon's profile
- 2621 followers
Elizabeth Moon isn't a Goodreads Author
(yet),
but they
do have a blog,
so here are some recent posts imported from
their feed.
