Sunday, Woolly Sunday

There are a LOT of footnotes on this post.

It appears I'm partial to goats. I think it's the horns. I've always been partial to horns, which explains my lifelong big band fixation.†

Now, Red has these same goats on her blog. Probably the *exact* same goats. But while she calls them by their proper names, I prefer to think of them as curly goats and sleek goats.

Curly goat - my people! Um... my goats!

Sleek goat... verrrrry suspicious of your dear ol' AntiM

Alpacas have a lot of neck.

Vampire dreams and fibre things

While it looks like the 'paca on the right is giving the 'paca on the left a kiss, we should restrain ourselves from anthropomorphising too much; he's actually eating his pen-mate's chin strap.

Tell me you love me

You can anthropomorphise on this one, though. The goat on the left is *clearly* whispering to the goat on the right about the quality of spectators at this year's market.‡

If can't say anything nice, come sit by me

Turns out that, much like my new-found jones for Latino men, I have a thing for spotted animals. If anyone is getting me a pony for my birthday, I'd really like a pinto.

I will love him and feed him and name him Spot

[SUMMARY: Going to the dogs... er, sheep. Um, GOATS.]

Yes, I did buy some yarn. Going to the Market on Sunday rather than Saturday was really good for my budget, as there were several yarns I would have bought by the caseload for sweater patterns I have lined up, but there wasn't enough of any single dye lot to make a sweater. Yea, bank account!§

Remember how in the last couple of weeks I've purchased my own weight in yarn? Well, I've lumped all the stash enhancement at the end of the post. But let's continue with Sunday, shall we?

After all, Sunday wasn't just about curly sheep and dusty feet... Sunday was about my sister-in-law abandoning me to single-handedly feed and fete the fathers in my life while she cavorted in Cancun at Math Dorks in Paradise.

Question: why do math dorks have to go to Cancun to talk about imaginary numbers? Couldn't they pretty much email each other and say, "Hey! I nuzzled¶ the best imaginary number today! Guess what it is...?#"

[SUMMARY: Math Dorks in Paradise. I crack me up.]

Anyway, while I basically just threw money at dinner,†† I spared no personal comfort on the cherry pie$ I baked on the 94-degree day in the already-84-degree house. I love my father and my brother (and, apparently, my sis-in-law) THAT much.

After dinner‡‡ we opened presents. And cards. And really enjoyed the musical card that played Johnny Cash. Over and over and over and over and over again.§§

Dr. Doom meets The Man in Black

Dad opened his lovely pair of knit-with-love socks.¶¶

- Size: Men's 13

- Needle: US5
- Yarn: Plymouth something-or-other I bought three years ago and lost the ball band. Superwash, though, and green, yellow, navy and white.

- Method: toe up, two circulars, two socks at once (and I can't express how cool that two-at-once thing is)

- Socks are for: Dad (Father's Day)- Finished: June 17, 2007

FO!

There's a funny story about Brother's present.

See, one day, Brother was doing his pre-workout regimen (stretch, hydrate, put a DVD in to watch while you ride the bike) and as the previews came on to Shaun of the Dead, he heard a familiar voice. Minutes later, he was on the phone to me.

"Tell me there's a good reason you didn't tell me Hans starred in a movie called Drunken Jackass: the Quest."

I did have a good reason. I didn't know.

Brother and I work## with Hans. We like Hans. And we feel comfortable enough with Hans that we would surely dish out a ration of shit for this little piece of his near-past. You can imdb.com this movie if you 1) don't believe me, or 2) want more information.

The problem with Drunken Jackass (other than the obvious) is that it has never been released in the US. Like David Hasselehoff, Hans is very big in Europe. So way back in May I started my own quest to find a copy for Brother for his birthday.

Birthday came and went.

So I tried for Father's Day.

Last week, Hans informed me that there were no strings to pull, it just isn't available in American coding.

[SUMMARY: Sometimes it pays to know people in high places, sometimes, not so much.]

I was left without a Father's Day present for my brother.

I gutted up and did the noble thing: I let him loose in my sock yarn stash (NO GREATER LOVE HATH A SISTER) and told him I would knit ANY OF MY SOCK YARN (even the stuff I was saving for Cookie A) into socks for him. I let him loose in the silk, I let him loose in the wool. I let him loose in the Rabbitch hand-painted, which means I let him loose among the rare and wonderful one-of-a-kind yarn.

So there's this giant bag of yarn. Paralysed by indecision, overwhelmed by choice, he began to separate the yarn into yes and no.†††

[SUMMARY: I let him TRAIPSE through my STASH. *breatheintothebag*]

The discerning fiber palate...

...gives way to the mine!mine!mine! mindset

Brother has expressed the following:

1. This is very cool and he would just as soon I do the same thing for him for Christmas.
2. Silk is very tempting.
3. It's still no to lace socks
4. He may come and steal some sock yarn.

Yeah, that last one is going to earn him a poke with a sharp stick... and I got sharp sticks, baby.‡‡‡

[SUMMARY: Fibre obsession: Nature? Nurture?]

So are you ready for some quality Yarn P0rn?

Huh. I've somehow misplaced the big picture of the stuff I bought at the Wool Market. Here are the close-ups, though.

100% alpaca, shot through with glittery stuff that makes it look rainbowy-coppery

The cream-coloured sister of the yarn above. The glittery stuff gives this one a delicate pastel sheen I just wish you could see. And it's not nearly this green.

Brooks Farm Yarn's Acero, 60% Super Wash Wool / 20% Silk / 20% Viscose -- totally glowy-slinky

Brooks Farm Yarn's Duet, 55% kid mohair / 45% fine wool

And all this came in the mail last week (along with my Louets dye kit from Purl Soho and a complete fuckload of undyed yarn of varying weights and varying fibres from varying sources):

Knit Picks Gloss in burgundy and woodland sage, Knit Picks Essential in African violet and dusk and Cherry Tree Hill in peacock

Let's take a closer look at that Cherry Tree Hill, shall we?

And this is all my Noro for the Lizard Ridge. I think I may even have someone to knit the Lizard Ridge for, which is comforting.

I had one skein of vintage Noro in my personal stash (I think the colourway has been discontinued), I got four skeins at Sylvia's House of Fuzzy Crack and the rest is mail order, mostly courtesy of poor, Noro-allergic Hazel (a moment of silence, please).

You may now cease your silence and do the happy dance with me.

I still need one skein...

When I checked the mail this morning (the mail man is coming really, really late, but as one of the Drunken Knitters pointed out, at least it's not a male lady), I had two skeins of Shibui sock yarn (if you get Knitter's Review, you want it too) from Knit Purl§§§ in Pagoda and Blossom. I also had my nice dye kit from Hello Yarn.§§§

There. I think I almost qualify as a knitblog again.

Tomorrow I may even be able to show you another FO, in the form of the Green Gables -- I bound off the body part last night and tried it on (form-fitting, oh yes, but the decrease under the boobs was magical -- thanks for the encouragement, Juno!). All it needs now is sleeves, and I'm guessing that won't take too long.

[SUMMARY: Let there be knitting!]

Katzen in Himmel, I'm down below the 14-project mark. I must cast on something new, and quick!

†FOOTNOTE (crossed): *rimshot* I think I'm funny!

‡FOOTNOTE (double-crossed): Is it paranoid to think the little monster is whispering about my outfit? Note to goat: it was hot. And dusty. I was going for comfort and washability. At least I didn't have alfalfa hay in my hair. So there.

§FOOTNOTE (swerved): Who the hell do I think I'm kidding? If Kelley had let me know she was blowing me off for Saturday, I could have had my nosed pressed to the... to the... well, the split-rail fence around the fairgrounds when the Market opened and I could have HAD MY WAY WITH THE YARN. I did save money, though. I'm a lucky, lucky girl... just keep telling yourself that, Marin. I'm a lucky, lucky girl. There are children in Third World countries with no four-ply alpaca... I'm a lucky, lucky girl.

¶FOOTNOTE (paragraphed): I have no idea how math dorks express their love of their numbers. I'm just assuming it looks a lot like fibre geeks at a yarn festival. Nuzzle, nuzzle, nuzzle.

#FOOTNOTE (pounded): 1) isn't it funny (not funny ha-ha so much as funny coincidence) that one of the math dork footnotes comes after the number symbol? and 2) I think it's wildly funny (totally funny ha-ha) for math dorks to play guess-the-imaginary-number.

††FOOTNOTE (doubble-crossssed): Cheese and crackers and fruits and vegtables and hummus... cold, finger-ready and already cut up at the store.

$FOOTNOTE (moneyed): By the by, I promised Susie, the Naughty Librarian I'd bake her a cherry pie for her birthday. Brother would like to join Knit Therapy, if only for a day.

‡‡FOOTNOTE (ddouble-ccrossed): Much to Dr. Doom's chagrin. Dr. Doom is firmly in the camp of opening presents -- anyone's presents -- as soon as possible. In fact, he tried to get me to open several of Dad's presents as soon as I walked in the door.

§§FOOTNOTE (too, too curvy): Dad tried to sneak out of the house without taking the musical card. Brother tackled him on the front walk and shoved the thing in his gift bag.

¶¶FOOTNOTE (two turntables and a microphone): Do the cuffs look short to you? I think the cuffs may be too short, partially a function of my inability to judge what 10 inches actually looks like (and I hold the men in my life -- though not my father and brother... that would be icky -- personally responsible for that spatial failing) and partially a function of madly k1p1 while the cherry pie cooled and just hoping the get them *finished* by the deadline.

##FOOTNOTE (totally pounded): Did I ever mention my brother and I work together? Well, the same guy signs our paychecks in any case -- we're rarely traipsing about Wyoming together.

†††FOOTNOTE (the judges give it a perfect three crosses!): The pile on the table in front of him represents only the yes pile. Did you think I had that little sock yarn? Silly wabbits...

‡‡‡FOOTNOTE (triple-double!): For those of you scoring at home, Brother has selected the Arrrgyle in blue, grey and purple. I charted it out last night and will cast on... soon. After Green Gables. Just 'cause Green Gables is *thisclose* to done. This should in no way reflect a propensity for procrastination or a measure of how much I love my brother.

§§§FOOTNOTE (so, so curvy): Knit Purl was lovely. The yarn was neatly wrapped in tissue, sealed with a Knit Purl sticker and there was a personal note inside not only wishing me happy knitting, but telling me the Pagoda is a great colour that looks good on a bunch of people. I love personal service, don't you?

Hello Yarn also put in a handwritten thank you note and some very pretty yarn postcards. With all the grungy customer service I get, little things like that totally suck me in and keep me coming back.

p.s. -- go back and check out the pictures of Dr. Doom and Brother. Further proof that cute skips a generation.

My brother is flipping me off even as we speak...

[SUMMARY: Holy fucking cats, that's an assload of footnotes!]