The love of inanimate objects

I am in love with a hunk of plastic. NO, no, not that. This is my new ball winder--- YARN ball winder--- and swift.

It's nicely made, easy to use, and best of all was a Christmas present from Phil. I've been winding like mad, including winding together yarns I want to knit together, or hold double; yarns I've already wound into clumsy hand-done balls-- must. stop. winding.

That colorful litter of stuff on the table is a WIP, a Noro vest I'm calling Joseph's Coat, knit in jigsaw pieces of different colorways to join together. It's a plot to get Noro out of my system for once and for all. I love the colors. I detest the feel of the yarn. I could support a sheep on the bits of hay and grass seed I pick out of the stuff. I keep buying it because of the colors. Do you see a circular argument developing here?

Finished a turquoise mohair scarf, pix later. It is just long enough to make it around my neck, saving me from having to find another skein of it. I'm all about finishing things at the moment; the ladder scarf is two inches away from being done, and then the vest is next, and then socks. Taking a sock class next week to spur me to make more socks, because I need them and refuse to buy any until I have made at least a few pairs for myself. There's also the burgundy sweater, and the blue raglan sweater, and if it's not summer by the time they're done, a few other things lurk in the stash--- not to mention the Afghan Which We Have Always With Us. [Eventually it will be long enough that it will serve the purpose of keeping me warm even as I knit it. By next winter it even might be finished.]

If it stays this cold, I might need to crawl under the afghan anyway. 21 degrees this morning. I was whining about how we live in the South and this shouldn't be happening and Phil reminded me that we live in North Carolina. Still. The birds are eating everything I put out, we've even had snow this week-- but hey, I'm getting to wear scarves and mits and things. And cook stew and soup in the slow cooker, and last night I justified a big pan of gooey bread pudding by saying it was cold and we needed the comfort. Can't beat bread pudding for comfort.

less than infinite wisdom

OK, so I'm having about 12 people over for brats and whatnot tonight-- something I foolishly volunteered myself for-- why do social interactions always seem more attractive in the abstract? Phil has a work thing going on with folks from out of town, and we've done this before, so I figured we should do it again. It's really very simple, except for the shopping, making of brownies and cookies and coleslaw, and oh yes, cleaning all three bathrooms. And the rest of the house. And relocating all the bits that have taken up residence in odd places all over the house. They will creep back out in the dead of night, probably within 48 hours, but one has to make an effort. Of course it will be fun in the end.
I had been working on making a wrap out of Noro Silk Garden, and I gave up yesterday. The yarn has seductive colors, but it's abysmally constructed. It had knots, bits of straw, places so thin they broke and places so thick I could hardly knit them. And it sheds. I took two skeins back to the LYS and actually threw out the one I'd been working on, and it wasn't cheap. Lesson learned. With the return credit ( and a few wee bucks more) I got some nice consistent soft soy- cotton and a little merino for later in the year. Both beautiful and well behaved, and cheaper than the Noro disaster.
It's a little cooler this week, a real relief since I seem to have been revisited by the Furnace Fairy, a creature that comes around to bother women of a certain age by heating their entire bodies to boiling at awkward moments. I thought I had gotten rid of the FF several years ago, but here she is again. Huh.
Only 3 weeks until I get to go see Andrea & Jeff and baby Cate again, whoo-hoo!! I'm looking forward to reading cate "The Piggy in the Puddle". Must practice.