And now for something completely different…

…actual knitting content and finished objects!

I am happy to present a finished peppermint twist:

And it only took me a year to finish… Oh well, I can blame it on the dark green yarn I ran out of shortly before finishing both the front and back pieces. I was going to take a picture of the leftover yarn (but this entry will already be picture-heavy) – there is very little left of any of the colors, except for the main color (the color of the arms). I must have at least 3 balls of that color left at home. I dunno how I miscalculated what I needed so badly, but from now on I will approach any yarn substitutions for patterns with stripes with more caution!

Here’s a before shot, taken earlier this week. I had sewn the second sleeve to the front and back, but had yet to sew up the side.

I am pleased with the fit of the sweater – I think it has a much better fit than my first effort, the chevron rib tank. It is snug, but I don’t like things loose, as I think they just make me look bigger. Perhaps some would think stripes on a large chest like mine is indecent, but to hell with it – if you’ve got it, you might as well flaunt it, I say.

Yesterday I visited Knit Happens and came away some great yarn:

I got seven skeins of Noro Silk Garden for a clapotis, which as you can tell, I have already started. I don’t think I’ll be able to put it down. I’m already hankering to start dropping stitches on purpose. Also pictured is one skein of Shepherd Sock, which will become as many pairs of baby socks as I can squeeze out of it. (Should be three at least.) I have to admit, after handling the yarn myself (it’s soooo soft!), I’d love to make a pair of socks myself in them! I also bought a copy of At Knit’s End and just forgot to include it. It’s sitting on the coffee table, as I happily peruse it whenever I get a chance. In summary, I love all my purchases – normally I would consider them extravagant, but isn’t this what birthdays are for?

Happy birthday to me…

Yes, it’s my birthday today, at least for another hour local time. It’s been a good day, even though I went to work. (No time off for me – birthdays just don’t seem worth making that much of a fuss over these days.) But tomorrow we’re going to Alexandria to visit the famous Knit Happens for birthday yarn purchases. So my next update (hopefully this weekend) will feature new yarn and *gasp* a finished peppermint twist! I just finished it tonight and it looks like it fits well, but I ought to save the final judgment for when I’m wearing a bra. (Sorry if that’s too much information for ya…)

Time to go to bed and rest up for my shopping weekend! I just had to squeeze an entry in. It’s been hard to find a chance to update mostly because of the lack of internet access at work. (Evenings are for unwinding and my only other chances are weekends or getting up early – ha!) I work on my laptop and could in theory use wireless, but to my disappointment, there is none. My only other option is the communal intern computer, but I only feel comfortable using that computer to quickly check my email. So updates may be brief or picture-heavy for the time being.

No knitting in sight

I haven’t knitted a single stitch lately. So instead, I can give an update on my arrival in D.C. Of course, it became cloudy on the day I decided to take some pictures, but I’m not complaining. As long as it stays below 90 degrees, I’ll be happy!

Our apartment here is pretty big (two bedroom, so we even have a pseudo-office) and nice. The only thing is that it seems like the previous occupant didn’t have the same standards of cleanliness as us… but since this is just a two-month sublet (and it’s not our deposit at stake), we just cleaned up as best we could. That will do for the summer. And the rental furniture is not bad either! The apartment has some pluses, including it’s own washer and dryer. (I couldn’t imagine schlepping laundry to the laundromat…) And we have one an extra half bath in the bedroom – it’s gonna be hard to go back to just one bath in Detroit!

My work here is going well and I’m pleased with the internship (technically a volunteership, but my job is research-oriented). Here’s what I see when I get out of the Metro station on the way to work:

Then it’s just a short walk to where I’m volunteering, the National Museum of National History (hereafter NMNH) at the Smithsonian:

I got a spiffy badge and everything. It’s fun to be able to get in the museum ahead of tourists and see all of the behind-the-scenes stuff. After a week of wandering around, I’m not even getting lost anymore. (The place is *huge*.) And every once in awhile I’ll stumble across something crazy, like a hallway full of storage for bones and more bones scattered on someone’s desk as s/he works on them. I’m in the Handbook of North American Indians offices, which doesn’t seem nearly as exotic, but there are more dictionaries/grammars of North American Indian languages piled around here than I’ve seen anywhere else.

I hope the pictures made up for the lack of knitting content. If I don’t poop out too early tonight, I may get to work some more on sewing up peppermint twist. (The never-ending project…) And there’ll be new yarn acquisitions this weekend for my birthday – yay!

Settling in

It’s hard to believe it’s almost been a week since we left Detroit. Obviously we made it to D.C. safely and are mostly settled in. I jumped right into my internship on Monday, however, and haven’t even touched my knitting. Plus it’s been so hot and miserable that I’m not sure I would’ve wanted to, had I had the time. Today we are supposed to have some relief from the heat with a high of only 83 (!) degrees.

I hope to have more knitting progress to report once things get back to normal. I’m really close to finishing peppermint twist, so that might be the next FO to report…

Road trip!

Just one quick entry before we leave to D.C. We’re almost packed and ready to go. I’m hot and tired though – I haven’t been sleeping well from nervousness (I am almost always nervous before a trip.) and the heat (for Michigan standards) has been brutal lately. But once we get there and get settled in, I’ll feel much better!

Packing has been difficult. Our car is small (plus we have two cats to transport!), so I haven’t been able to pack as much as I’d like. I’m sure we’ll be fine, since I usually overpack anyways. I really had to cut down on the knitting projects I could bring. I am consoling myself by remembering that I will be busy knitting this summer for my future nephew. (They just found out it will be a boy.) Because there are so many great yarn shops in the D.C. area, I can get the yarn for a baby blanket and baby socks there! Yay – new yarn purchases I can justify. My birthday is also coming up soon, so I am sure I justify some new yarn (a Clapotis finally?) for that as well….