WIP Wednesday, Spring Is In The Air And In My Head

...and it's making me feel a bit like this. Clouds, cotton buds, (snot) filtering everything going in and coming out, so it's all a bit fuzzy around the edges. I believe every tree in a 10 mile radius around my head is doing its pollen thing right now, and boy, it's hitting me hard. I've already keeled over twice this evening, and it's not even 9.30pm yet.

You may have noticed that there also wasn't a Scottish Sunday. I have one prepared, but I don't think I'll put it up here. Karma keeps trying to kick my butt, and this time it came armed with an administrative person with little common sense or sense of duty. You know the types, they sit and put in just enough effort to keep the job, but do little towards thinking *with* the client (i.e. me).

Well, they did enough to pull the rug of progression out from under my feet (very abridged version of original post) but I Shall Not Be Defeated by the powers (or lack thereof) of the (insert very nasty name-calling which shall not be repeated to the unwitting public) person who is in a way a colleague in another office.

I sincerely pity the people who do not have the wit, the ability or the knowledge to stand up for themselves. This is a bureaucratic beast in which are many dis-functional little cogs which don't stop it from running but make it unloved by the general public nonetheless.

Combine the rug-pulling with the copious amounts of snot being produced in my head, and there you have it, no WIP Wednesday pictures. However, I shall be going to the Breidag (Joyous Day of Knitting) and I shall be Learning New Things! and possibly find a few cheapeaux things to bring home. No more Yarn, spinning fibre only. I can make my own yarns, thankyouverymuchindeed.

Lets hope I catch me some of that wind to blow out the cobwebs so I won't forget to take pictures of our Estonian Knitting course!

Finally, for your entertainment (and mine), please listen to Louise Hunt's CaithnessCraftCollective, because her podcasts are Scottish Sundays and WIP Wednesdays all rolled into one! (and then some).

I'll report back soon, promise, with new pictures of pretty knitting?

WIP Wednesday, onwards and upwards

I don't know what to tell you about the missing Scottish Sunday. I had ideas to write about, but then they made my head 'splode and now they scare me a bit. Don't worry, I'll tame them soon enough, one way or another.
In the mean time, lists are being tackled, jobs are not lost (yet) and old projects are picked up again.

I've been spinning one of the Dutch Wool Diva batts, but it wanted to be a lace single, so I've been going for weeks now and the end isn't near yet.

Through no fault of its own I'm not too happy spinning it, as it's slow going and the colour doesn't quite meet my lust for greens and blues. It is very nice, so I'm trying to rush it so I can put something green on the bobbins instead and come back to it when I feel better about it. As a single, it has a tweedy feel to it, adding shades of pink, magenta and pale blue to the charcoal base. I actually have some Harris tweed waiting to be sewn in the same shade of magenta. Next winter will be colourful!

Manu, sleeve 2

As you can tell, more Magenta-ish for next winter. It's rather nice these days, so I don't foresee a return to woollen cardigans any time soon. Or maybe for those chilly mornings. Anyway, I returned some attention back to Manu, which is at least halfway done, with one sleeve already attached to the body. It requires a lot of finishing so as far as time goes, I might not be on the home stretch yet. At least it'll be more interesting than the large stretches of stockinette I've already finished.

It'll be so worth it in the end...

In short term knitting, I'm working on this scarf-ish creature. It has an unexpectedly nice cast on which needs some re-doing to make it perfect, but for now I'm hurrying along so I might wear it to the Breidag in Nieuwegein next week. It also needs a name...

I also need to attend to working out the pattern for the secret knitting. It's been getting s few oooh's and aaah's from the few people who've seen it. Unfortunately, they all love me, so their judgement might be tainted ;)

First, I have to clear some space on this computer before I can install the software. I'm sure I've said that before...

** as the camera is out with its rightful owner, pictures are taken on my phone. Not bad, but not great either, I know **

WIP Wednesday, on a positive note

Since my last post, nothing much has changed in the Tokyo-having-my-brother-in-it situation. He is now with his boss and some others from work, and even though they briefly toyed with the idea of leaving, they haven't and won't if things stay the same.

I know a lot of people have left, and I am glad for them and their loved ones at home (quick wave to Annie Bee's sister, who is about to touch down). I understand that enough is enough and you just want to get home. However this is not something I want for my brother, who has really come into his own during the last few days. Starting out panicky on the phone during the weekend, he gave a sublimely down to earth interview on the Wereldomroep, a Dutch radio station that broadcasts worldwide. He gets that from me, by the way. Ahem. I think we're all clear on one thing: if he were to flee now, it would be very difficult to return. The risk of an earthquake is always there in Tokyo, nothing has changed that, even with the nasty powerstation-thing. No, he's made a decision which wasn't the easiest one, but the best one for him.

If I were a sentimental person I would start a weepy story about how proud I am of my little brother, but I'm not (a sentimental person, proud I very much am). This is WIP Wednesday after all!

Unfortunately, I have nothing to show you!
Peaks Island only needs a few ends tucked in, and the secret knitting is blocked and ready to be written up. It's still a secret, so no pictures yet!

I've started and am about to frog what I knit of a silky scarf, because I'm still not quite liking the cast on yet. It has Estonian flowers and shiny beads though. I have a few bad pictures on my phone, but for some reason they won't find their way unto this blog. It will have to hold... and either way, it's about to be frogged.

So instead, for your delectation and delight, some happy pictures of a happy place.

SCOTLAND, I WILL BE IN YOU ONE DAY!

So now that you've looked at the pretty pictures, tell me, have you donated yet?

Scottish Sundays, suspended

As you may or may not know, my brother lives in Tokyo. He is doing fine, or as much as anyone can be doing under the current circumstances. As far as I know, his friends are safe. There's something to be grateful for. It could've been much different.

You can read about his experiences here if you read Dutch.

Many, many people are not so lucky. They've lost their house, maybe their relatives and friends as well. They need our help.

Please donate what you can miss to the International Red Cross or organisations like Shelterbox who provide basic provisions like tents, cooking gear and items which are specifically needed in the current situation.

When you've done that, stop, breathe and think about what would be the worst thing that could happen if you were in Japan at the time of the quake. Cherish whatever you come up with, because you were lucky enough not to have lost it.

Please give with your heart.

WIP Wednesday, feeling blue

Hahaa!

fooled you!

i'm not blue, i'm just detecting a theme in there pictures here. i may be just a little inspired by these blue skies we've had. they're gone now, but there's no harm in recreating blue skies on the wheel or the needles, is there?

leftovers

this is what is left of the yarn that made the secret project. i got a little nervous towards the end as i-cord is a yarn-consuming way to bind off, but it's so worth it in the end. i'm blocking the project this weekend and cleaning up the laptop to make room for some software that will help me do the pattern. much anticipation towards that...

stormy skies*

this is the first yarn i spun from a (3) bat and i'm so sorry it's finished. there's a lot of enjoyment in finding out which colour is next and what the combinations will make of it. again, a fairly thin yarn, so apparently that's my natural size. i'm thinking of investing in a magazine, Spin Off, which i keep hearing about. any thoughts?

leftover storm

as usual, the two kinds of bats didn't give me the same length, so i plied the leftover bits of the storm single on itself, creating a small skein. it makes me happy i plied it with clouds as i like that final yarn a lot better with the white in it.

i've been staring at it every time my eyes catch it sitting around somewhere. it gets moved with the light that plays off the angelina in the clouds part of the ply and i know it made me late(r) for work at least once this week. it's also very nice to come home to as it catches the last of the sun at the end of the afternoon. i think i'm having a little crush on it....

to get myself away i'm playing with the angel yarn i got at the Handwerkbeurs the other week. i've had a ling skinny scarf idea in my head for a while now, and this might be it. not like i don't have other things to do than play with baby alpaca, cashmere and silk...

*bats by Storm op Zolder

Scottish Sundays, WIP wednesday's pictures

This week hasn't been a great week for dreaming.

Two big events had quite a bit of impact, even though neither actually touch me in the current situation. DH had a serious bereavement at work and our step-son managed to throw in the towel before even getting started at his last real chance of making something of himself.

There's no better way to realise the distance between me and home (aprox. 5000 miles as the KLM flies). My brain took the week off to deal with that.

In between that mayhem, I did manage to send out a job application to the RSPB to most likely no effect. Before Tuesday, I need to send out another. No, I didn't actually work on that this weekend because I was too busy being tired while having sushi on Saturday and mom's birthday party today. Lucky me, I got to explain the situation once (twice) more to my cousins and other various guests at the party. Just what I needed.

Anyway, not to complain, we're all still alive and in (questionably) good health. That has to count for something. The glass being half full and such things.

In my last sorry-excuse-for-a-blog-post I did mention the absence of pictures. Well, here are some.

Storm Clouds

Because that's what the colours of the bat reminded me of. Both bats had greens, blues, whites and grey in them, making for a stormy outlook. It's plying quite interestingly, more on that on Wednesday.... (fingers crossed)

Suikerspin

The final object, not quite. But this is what I gifted, so it's no longer up to me what it becomes. It sure is sugary sweet though...

Eventually, this part of the blog will become less gloomy, promise. I tire myself out.

Glass. Half. Full.

WIP Wednesday, No Milk Today

My love is... well, you know.

There's something about meeting a deadline applying for a job you're not going to get that makes time slip away from you like milk through your fingers. (har har)

Between work, voting, trying to write a half-decent current job description and staying awake, I didn't have enough computing power to remember to offer some pictures of Works In Progress.

Maybe later. I need natural light this week.