No Respect

"No respect, I tells ya!  I am getting no respect for my position on this Iknitarod team.  If it weren't for my pristine, shiny white curls, she wouldn't be liking the yarn so well.  I can promise you that! And has she told any stories about me?  Didn't think so!  No respect..."

Oh Buddy, you are one of the most important sheep on the farm!  And your stories are so good that I don't want to try to tell them when I'm tired, like right now.  And you are right, even though it's hard to believe, looking at you, your pretty white curls really did make the yarn super nice.  Just hang in there for a little while longer.

I finally made it off the river (the cable and lace portion).  Too tired to chance doing the next part wrong, so I'm going to "take an eight".

No Matter How You Look At It

My original concern that the row gauge was off and it was getting too long...who the heck knows... I'm headed for the full 12 repeats and back to being a little bit nervous about getting it done before the Red Lantern.  Will someone please stop me from taking on too big a challenge next year?!?

These pictures are a bit confusing.  The part I'm working on now is actually going to curve around the bottom of the shawl.  I just have it laid out here like this to make sure (in my math challenged brain) that the shawl is going to be a little bit bigger than the first one.  There are also variables like the gray shawl has been blocked and the white one not...just to further confuse things.  

Try not to think about it too much.  I'll go back to posting sheep and Hank pictures tomorrow ;-D.

Interview From The Trail

One of the best parts of the Iditarod Insider is watching all the musher interviews.  20 thought it would be fun to do an interview from the Iknitarod Trail.  He promised I wouldn't have to actually be on camera,so I agreed to answer a few questions.  

20:  So how's the race going so far?

TCSL:  It's going pretty well.  I'm not as far along as I thought I'd be at this point, but we're doing okay.  The weather's been really nice. 

20:  Are you liking your project?

TCSL:  Yeah, I am actually!  Well, I assumed I'd like it before I started or I wouldn't have started it,  you know, but yeah.  I'm really liking the yarn, too, so that's especially fun.

20:  Any surprises on the trail?

TCSL:  Well, not really a surprise at this point, but I've had some gauge issues.  Not sure what's going on with that, but it's plagued me for several projects lately, so in anticipation of that I picked a project where that wouldn't be incredibly important.  Definitely something to work on for next year's race, but at this point I'm running the course I'm on and trying to not worry too much.  There will be some adjustments to make later on once I've made it up the coastline, but I've got a good team.  We'll figure it out.

20:  Do you think Liddy knows what you are doing?

TCSL:  Liddy is an interesting sheep.  I think she knows more about what's going on all the time than anyone would believe and probably knows more about what's going on than a lot of sheep.  All sheep are smarter than people give them credit for, but Liddy is exceptionally smart.  She has been since she was a tiny lamb.

20:  I see you are wearing your Maisie sweater.  Can you tell us a little bit about why you like to do these individual projects?

TCSL:  Well, I think it's neat to raise a lamb, or any sheep really, and watch their wool grow and then when they are sheared, use that wool to make something useful and enjoyable.  And it can also be sort of memorial to those special friends.  Like the Ford sweater you are wearing.  

20:  Who's your favorite sweater?

TCSL:  I don't have a favorite.  I have some I wear more than others, but I wouldn't call them favorites.  I like pullovers more than cardigans, so for example, my Elizabeth sweater doesn't get worn as much as say, Maisie or B. Willard.  

20:  What is your favorite part of the Iditarod and Iknitarod?

TCSL:  You know, I really like a lot of it, both races.  I think part of why I really like following along with the Iditarod back stories, like watching the musher interviews as they are getting their dogs settled in for a rest, is because I take care of animals here.  So while I don't know exactly how hard it is to take care of that many dogs in subfreezing conditions, I do know what it's like to take care of animals.  How they are partners on my team and not just for the two weeks of the race, but all year, just like the sled dogs.  I walk up to check on everyone at night or set out some fresh straw in the barn and I think, you know, there is probably a musher in Alaska doing the very same thing right now.

The Iknitarod, again, I like a lot about that, too.  The group on Ravelry is really fun.  Lots of support and encouragement for the knitting, but also updates on what's going on with the race that I can't keep up with during the day, answering questions...    Like yesterday.  I had to work the lamb barn and someone was texting me about who was coming through the checkpoint they were watching.  I feel like I've missed a lot of the coverage so far and that really helped.

I had hoped I'd picked an easier project this year so I wouldn't have to push so hard to get it finished and could enjoy more of the coverage and watching the live feed as mushers come in or even just participate in the online chats.  That hasn't really worked out so far, but I'm hoping between maybe being able to eliminate a pattern repeat or maybe even two that I'm going to feel a little less stressed.  Once I get off the coast (the lace and cable border) and into the interior, as long as my body holds up, that's a lot of nearly mindless mushing so I can probably do that while I watch and catch up on the podcasts.  The podcasts are really good.  In the meantime, I'm doing the best I can and when I'm tired or sore or having to rethink my strategy...it's sort of like taking care of the dogs.  I get a tiny feel of what it is like to take on that long race.

20:  So how is your body holding up?

TCSL:  Could be worse.  I know that.  Could be a lot better, too.  My back and my right shoulder is a bit achy and my right hand, especially my thumb, is kinda sorer than I'd like.  Heck, I'd like to not be sore at all, but the only thing that's sort of worrying me is my right elbow.  Feels okay right now, but it hurt some last night.  Taking the morning off to do chores and this interview gives everything a little break.  I hope.

You know, back to the actual race, it sort of goes without saying that beauty of Alaska just can't be beat.  It just so incredibly beautiful that I usually start crying when I watch the Run Dog Run updates where they take a few minutes to show the surroundings, the teams, the dogs close up, aerial footage of teams, the sun setting...add some slow motion shots and cue some beautiful music and you better get me a box of tissues.

20:  What you'd better get is back to knitting!  It's been fun chatting though.  I may have some more questions for you further down the trail.

TCSL:  Okay.  Yeah, I'd better keep moving.  

*     *      *      *      *

If you have any questions you'd like 20 to ask, leave them in the comments.  It's been fun posting a blog during the day before my brain is completely shot and my eyes crossed.  

Solar Heat Lamp

Also known as sun shining through a window :-).  It's really not that dark in the barn.  I had the camera just meter off the sunbeam lamb so the rest is just underexposed.  I took some with a more balanced meter, but like this one the best.

Have made it into the #6 check point and am stopping for the night.  The pattern calls for 6 more repeats for the cable and lace edge.  My row gauge (the height of the stitches) is off though so I may not want to do all twelve.  I guess it won't break my heart if I have to skip one or two ;-).

I tried to knit in the lambing barn this afternoon, but kept getting too distracted by So Much Cuteness and had to go to timeout in the car so I could focus...a little better.

Yarn Along - The Iknitarod Is Underway

Gotta love an Amelia and Kate photobomb :-).

So I'm one ball into the Stories From Snoqualmie Valley/Equinox Farm shawl.  At this point I'm almost to the end of the fourth repeat.  I thought about trying to do the math to see if that seems about right, but that's a whole 'nother hole to drop into, so I'm just going to "knit on with confidence".

Here's an interesting technique you can use with wool yarn.  Most knitters are familiar with the "spit splice", but for anyone following along that doesn't know what that is, it's an invisible way to join two pieces of (wool) yarn together.  

You can do this on any project, but it's most handy for lace (knitting with holes in it) where it would be hard to weave in (secure and hide) the loose ends of the two strands.  

Disclaimer:  This is the redneck method that I use.  There is probably a more correct way to do this ;-).

I like to untwist the ends of both yarns, but I don't think you have to do that.  One of these ends has a thick spot due to inconsistent spinning.  Normally I'd move up the strand to find a thinner spot, but I got carried away by picture taking...

To try to keep the doubled/joined yarn pretty similar to the individual yarns I just pulled that thick fuzzy end off.  Now, instead of four loose ends there are only three.  That will be fine.

Next you take the two ends and stick them in your mouth to soak them with...spit.  Bet you didn't think you'd be reading that today, eh?  ;-D

You then roll the spitty spot back and forth between your hands and it felts together and you are ready to knit on.  Wool rocks :-).

Some scenes from the trail:

I originally set up on the Grahaminator, but it was pretty breezy so I moved down to the yard.

Sitting under one of me and Liddy's favorite knitting trees (the grammar here is killing me - my and Liddy's?).  I wish she was sitting there all curled up next to me, chewing on my needles.  I could see her out in the field though.  The next best thing.  Or, as Farside posted in comments, why not let her out in the yard with me?  Duh...  

I think it's important to get babies out on the grass as much as possible so they have as normal a life as they can ;-).

I am 8 rows shy of finishing two repeats today.  I am super tired and bleary, but I think I can do it. I'm going to do the night check and walk the dogs and hopefully that will wake me up a little.  It's a mental game at this point.  Those eight rows could wait until morning...but I'll feel better knowing I did it and it feels a little like the real Iditarod.

I listened to a good book while I was spinning last week, but I can't think of the title right now.  

If you are looking for interesting information and updates about the Iditarod, Alaskan Public Radio has a podcast called Iditapod and it's really good.  I'll try to come back in the morning and insert a link. I tried to find a computer link to the Iditapod, but am challenged.  I found it going to podcasts on my iPhone...

Yaaaaaawn :-o  Still yawning.  I did finish the 8 rows...and it feels like it :-o.