Today's Lunar Eclipse

I had intended to blog about this before the event, but didn't realize it was this morning instead of tonight. But since it was best viewed from Asia, most people one the East coast wouldn't get a great view of it anyway.

You can see some spectacular photos of the event here, along with information about the eclipse including links to other sites. NASA's Lunar Eclipse page has more information about this and other eclipses as well as general eclipse information.

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Most of my time has been taken up lately by two things: Finishing the last three Christmas stockings for the commission I'm working on, and finishing the cover of the third Steve Canyon on DVD, plus the slipcover for all three DVDs for people who bought all three. You can see the art, and simulations of the art at the link.

But. I have been doing a little knitting for a new design. I showed this photo in my last post.

I have since finished the whole scarf, and even darned in the myriad ends, but haven't taken a photo yet. It turned out beautifully, though, and I'm reknitting it in a better yarn with a few small modifications, mostly in relationships of sizes and spaces of various parts of the scarf. It has a braided section near each end, making it look rich and gloriously understated. This cries out for cashmere or mohair for a luxurious scarf. It's not what you usually think of as a Celtic Braid, but it really is. And, being a scarf, it's reversible! I hate it when scarves aren't reversible!

And I finally got together the money for a newer computer, which is a nice little laptop iBook (G4). It's not new, but is a big upgrade from the computer I have. I also obtained the software I need to lay out and make PDF files of knitting patterns, so this pattern may be available soon. It's possible I'll also redo my free patterns as PDFs, too.

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Some people have been bemoaning the fact that the Home and Garden and the DIY Networks have pretty much stopped showing craft shows and are only showing home improvement. I can understand it for HGTV, but for DIY, it's inexcusable!

I recently discovered that one of the local PBS stations has more than their original UHF broadcast station and on one of the new, HD stations they broadcast, they show Knitting Daily and Beads, Baubles and Jewels.

A lot of Knitting Daily is stuff I already know, but there are some unexpected gems thrown in there, even for experienced, skilled knitters. One of those gems taught me to do a twisted German cast-on, which is a much stretchier cast on, and almost makes a small rolled edge that I think is very pretty, and so I'm using it for a lot of things. If you want to learn that, you'll have to record all the shows until it comes around again, and then play that part of the show, back and forth until you catch on to what they're doing. At least I did.

The other show, Beads, Baubles and Jewels, has reawakened my desire to make silver jewelry. I used to have a business (Maxwell's Silver Hammer) and made a meager living making silver jewelry. The show is great because although it shows the usual beading techniques, it also shows some very advanced and sophisticated silver work involving torches and other advanced equipment!

I want to buy some silver and a torch!

I've been restraining myself, but I have bought some jewelry pliers and some charms to make stitch markers from. They've been mailed to me and should arrive any day now. In fact, they could be downstairs waiting for me to pick them up on Monday. Packages can be delivered to my apartment building, but we can't pick them up except during office hours.

Anyway, I bought some good quality jewelry pliers at a highly discounted price. They're especially engineered to be ergonomic, and especially designed to fit women's hands, although I think they'd work fine for guys, too. The handles are longer to give you more leverage (like the really expensive ones), and therefore stress your hands less, and the handles are shaped to make the business end at a more ergonomic, comfortable angle to work with. And, on top of that, they're even pretty! I love good tools! They can make or break your work.

Here are photos of three that I ordered: First the round nose pliers .

And needlenose pliers . These also have a cutter in them!

And a pair of longnose pliers .

And if these turn out as great as I hope they do, I want to order the three-in-one pliers . This looks like it would be very handy. Sort of an improvement on rosary pliers.

They also have two different cutters that I can't decide between.

Supplies are important, and they wind up being the finished product, so if you skimp on them, you don't have as good a project as you otherwise might, but tools are forever. You'll use them over and over again and they have the power to make your projects shine, or make them look like they were made by someone who didn't know what they were doing.

I also ordered some charms, and some knitters I know may get some stitch markers for Christmas. If I can part with any of them. I'm even thinking about checking out the jewelry making magazines.

Well, all this hasn't even arrived yet, so there will be a lot more to write about.

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In the meantime, The Holiday is on, and it may be my favorite Christmas movie. I'm recording it, but I have so much to do that I haven't been doing that I need to stop writing and get something done so I can watch it again. It will be on again between now and Christmas if you want to catch it. Just check your local listings, and the 21st keeps running through my head as a date that it will be on. No guarantees, but you could start looking there.

Only 15 days until Christmas!

If you're making presents, better get moving!

Have a wonderful weekend!

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Happy December!

Happy December!

Here's a reminder: If you scroll down, there's a countdown to Christmas at the bottom of this page.You can find out how much time you have before those presents have to be ready.

I finally have a photo of a knitting project that I can actually post! In other words, it's not a Christmas present that the person it's for can see it and ruin the surprise, and it's not another Christmas stocking that's exactly like all the others except for the name and date on it.

This struck me as a good idea, and I've been knitting it in between all the other things I'm doing. The photo shows a project that still has ends to darn in, but I think you'll get the idea that it's going to be a really neat scarf.

In case you're curious, that scarf is actually braided.

I plan to write a pattern for it, and also for a hat and a set of mitts/mittens to match.

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I know I haven't been writing much lately, but that should improve a bit with the new year.

I've been working on a commission for Christmas stockings like the ones I did a few years ago. It's getting down to the wire on Christmas things and there's a lot to knit on them. They're all colorwork, and there are SO many ends to darn in! Not to mention having to consult a chart every few stitches! So, they're really slow going!

In addition to that, we're getting to the end of the Steve Canyon on TV DVDs, and there's suddenly the slipcase to do, and the third cover to finish. A lot of the work on the third cover was done a while ago, but I have a photo to colorize for it, and all the finishing touches (at this point) for the slipcase.

And now I have to get back to work on it all.

Have a great week!

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Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope your Thanksgiving is the best one ever!

If you haven't checked out the Panopticon, do so now! Franklin is always fun!

I've been thinking about all the things I have to be thankful for. I'm going to leave out a lot of them, because they sound too much like complaints, not thanksgiving.

But here are some things I can be unreservedly thankful for:

• New, 19 inch LCD TV this year!
• I got a Samsung Galaxy Tab this year!
• It looks like I'm going to be finished with the Steve Canyon on DVD covers and slipcase before the end of the year! It was fun to do, but I'll be glad when it's finished.
• I have a commission to knit Christmas stockings, and it looks like I'm going to have another commission to knit more stockings, which could earn me enough money to get a refurbished Mac laptop! This seems to be the year of technology.
• After three years of Social Security that hasn't gone up at all, while prices of the things I need soared, SS has decided to give me an increase of $4 per month. The thing that's good about that is that they made it retroactive to 2007, and they're giving me all the extra that I should have been getting in a lump sum of $240 in January along with my regular payment!
• I'm reasonably healthy, as long as I take care of myself, and can still walk around, even if it does hurt.
• I discovered a local yarn store in my area (Yarn Cloud), which had been there for a while, but I didn't know it. They have great stuff!
• I discovered Chiaogoo lace needles, the best ones in the world, and bought a batch of them!

I'm sure I'll think of more things to be thankful for!

I have to go. I want to finish up the current batch of stockings for tomorrow so that I can get paid for them!

Have a great weekend!

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Happy Veteran's Day!

 Happy Veteran's Day!

I hope you've been having a happy Veteran's Day! I intended to post something for it earlier in the day, but I've been so exhausted the past few weeks and especially yesterday.

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Since I live in HUD subsidized housing for senior citizens and disabled people, November is time for our yearly inspections.

Since I have some environmental allergies, I asked about air conditioning before signing my lease, and they lied, or at least made it sound like the apartment's environmental conditions were completely different than they actually are.

The result is that I was sick for about 50% of the first year I was here and the time I've spent sick has been longer every year. About a month ago, after four courses of antibiotics (this year), and an emergency room visit (which cost Medicare about $3,000!) I finally got to be reasonably well, about two weeks before they shut off the air conditioning again. I've had some high temperatures in my apartment and my choice was between heat stroke with the windows shut (it's been 110 degrees in my apartment with the windows open) or an allergic reaction that's likely to give me severe sinus congestion with a high probability of another infection that could have me taking antibiotics again for another year or more.

There are no good answers here, except getting a portable air conditioner, which the manager strictly forbids, no matter how sick it makes tenants.

So, I'm coming up on nearly two years of feeling like I have flu almost nonstop.

The result is that my apartment is not as neat as I would like it to be, so I've been cleaning.

Inspection was on Thursday, early in the morning (when I'm usually so sick I'm still asleep). I was really, really afraid that they'd evict me, but, to my great relief, I passed the inspection.

I don't want to talk about this anymore, though, because it's just too depressing.

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In the meantime, I'm doing some minor art to be printed for a friend who is actually going to pay me for it later in the month! And, as if that weren't good enough news, I also have a commission to knit some Christmas stockings, plus they're adding on a few extra, which will boost the total amount I get for that.

So, I've been pretty busy.

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Tuesday, I ached all over from my exposure to ragweed, but I went out and voted anyway. I felt like somebody had beaten me up by the time I got home! The bus stop I used is right next to a thrift store, and I went in because I had a long wait until the next bus.

One of the neat things they had was a small wing-back chair. Now that I know I'm not going to be evicted (at least not for another year), I plan to go back tomorrow to see if it's still there. I really hope so. It's comfy, and the arm rests don't bash my elbows like my current chair. I really hope nobody else has bought it before I get the chance!

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As far as knitting stuff is concerned, I've been knitting Christmas stockings on commission, and Christmas presents, which I can't show here. So, I'm very boring as far as knitting goes, and probably will be for a while.

But I hope you've been doing some great knitting and I wish you a fabulous weekend!

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Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

Boo!

You can't just knit a mitten and slap two eyes on it. It has to be looser than most mittens, and the part around the bottom has to flair out and be bigger.

But he's cute! Everybody who saw him today laughed.

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Yesterday, I went to the new yarn store that I just found. It's called Yarn Cloud, and it's nearby. Being nearby doesn't mean that it's easy to get there on the bus.

They have Chiaogoo lace needles, which are the best needles I've ever used! I like them even better than the Addi lace needles! The points are nicer, and they're stainless steel instead of the smelly, oxidizing brass. I got an assortment, and I'll be back for more on Friday.

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I'm Back

I'll bet you thought you'd gotten rid of me, but no such luck.

I've been attempting to do some housecleaning, with very little luck. What I've learned from this little exercise is that I'm really good at finding other things to do rather than doing what I should be doing.

I may skip around to a few different subjects while I catch up on what I didn't write.

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If you're reading this and it's still today, turn on the TV and tune in to AMC! They're having a Walking Dead marathon on today, ending with the last episode of last season, and following that with the first episode of the new Fall season! Do it now!

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This is really about socks, so keep reading, even if it doesn't sound like it at first. Or, if you're not a knitter, you can skip this part.

I watched the Graham Norton show on BBC in America the other night. I don't usually watch it, but he had David Tenent and Catherine Tate, so I watched it.

There was a big discussion about weird things that people do, and bizarre habits people have. Some of the guests revealed their strange likes and habits.

They eventually got around to David Tenent, and asked him if he had any odd habits. He said that he wears all-black socks, and because they're all the same color and dark, he can never find a pair. He opens the windows and turns on the lights and spreads socks out on the bed, and holds prospective pairs up to see if the ribbing matches, etc.

But he's found a solution to the problem! He pulled off his shoe, and revealed that his proper black socks had heels and toes that are PINK! He color-codes pairs of socks for easy match-up later!

Personally, I hate to lose one sock of a pair, and always make at least four pairs alike (from the same yarn in the same pattern) so I can still wear them if I lose one.

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In more knitting news, I have a commission to make five Christmas stockings. A couple of years ago, I did this for one member of a family. They had a relative who made Christmas stockings for each member of the family, but she's gone now, and they want matching socks for the newer members of the family (which they keep churning out), so two years ago, I made some stockings for them. This time, a different family member has asked for five more.

Here's what they look like:

Those are ones that I made in the last batch. I have an order in for the yarn, and new knitting needles because I can't find the ones I used before.

The part about the knitting needles will be interesting if you're a knitter.

I've been reading some knitting forums about different brands and types of knitting needles, and I'm trying something new this time. According to one review, the points on the Chiaogoo lace needles is almost exactly the same as the stiletto points on the Signature needles. So, I ordered two pair of circular needles in size 4. They should be here soon, and I can hardly wait to try them out.

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I'm going to go watch what's left of Walking Dead now, and I'll post again soon!

I hope you've been having a wonderful weekend!

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