Sunday, September 28, 2008

Another Knitpick Needle breaks

Friday night while I was watching the debates yet another of my cables from my knitpicks set broke. This time the cable separated from the connector that joins it to the needle. I have also had the cable break while still attached to the needle, the needle tips separate from the metal part and also received several broken wooden needles still sealed in the shipping bags!

Now, I will acknowledge that watching a certain person involved in the debate makes me want to pull out my hair, so I might have been yanking my needles with a little more force then usual. I love using these Knitpick needles but so far I'm concerned about their durability! I've had mixed results with customer service. They need to find you in their customer service logs to replace the needles. They could not find records of several of my needle purchases and foolish me I didn't keep copies so they would not replace my sock needles even if I mailed them back in. Sat. morning they did find the record of my set and are sending me a replacement but I was asked "How old my set was?" so now I'm wondering if the replacements will be time limited. I have other needles that are years and years old. Occasionally I break a needle, not often. I stopped using Brittany Birch dpns because although they were willing to replace them I realized that I bent them too much the way I used them. I have used circular needles for years and NEVER had a problem except with Knitpicks. SO I guess the moral of this is that in the long run you get what you pay for.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Another Sat Gone!

Where has September gone? I feel like it was just August! Well not really, I do feel like I've been back to work for at least 5 months!

Today, my son came home from a work trip. He is working as a generator tech and went out of state to do a series of jobs. This was the first time he worked alone and because of excessive rain , and equipment decisions made by other people he had some VERY stressful times and I had a few when there were terrible winds and rain where he was working and I could not get in touch with him. So today I went to the airport to pick him up and spend a little time with him. It was so good to see him. I cannot imagine how people have their children go off to war and manage not to go insane with worry! While we were waiting for his bag, two older women were near us. Steven must have heard them say something, because he reached out and just picked up their huge bag with one hand off the baggage carousel and settled it on floor for them. They were so surprised and grateful and I just felt so good about my son to see him do something kind so naturally. It really felt nice to be his mother then!

I'm up to the underarm gusset part of my gansey so soon I'll be doing some more interesting knitting. Now, I'm finished with the Sat. chores and dinner so I'm going to knit and try to stay up to watch at least a little TV!

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Greetings from the Shore

Yesterday, my grandmother, mother, sister, daughter, nephew and I went to see a movie filmed in the town where we have spent all our summers and where my mother and grandmother now live year round. The plot of the movie barely existed and the ending was sweet, pat and totally unrealistic BUT what a trip to see Lavallette on the big screen. All the little cliches of summer love at the beach were trotted out and it was totally fun to remember each one. My grandmother in her late 90's is getting increasingly frail and it is harder and herder for her to get around so I don't know how many more outings like this we will have.

Today, I started visiting hospice patients in a local nursing home. Up to now I visited people at home and they were younger and more alert. Sitting with these older people today made me so grateful that so far my grandmother has been able to stay at home and that my husband was able to spend his last time in our house. The nursing home is clean, nicely decorated and seems to be staffed with lovely people but....

I have knit 12 and a half inches on my gansey and now is when I can mess up. In my boredom with just going around I can start the sleeve gusset and interesting yolk part to early. I am going to measure my favorite sweater and FORCE myself to knit the body long enough. I need some behind coverage with this sweater! So now that I've already done the cleaning and cooking I have planned, I'm going to put comfortable clothes on and quilt and knit the afternoon away.

Saturday, September 20, 2008

Sept 20

Just a lazy Sat so far. Go up, had lots of coffee, went for a pedicure now I'm going out for an early dinner / late lunch then most of the women in my family are going to see a movie, "Greeting from the Shore" which mentions the little town where we have our beach house. After this I plan to come home and continue the relaxing theme by knitting on my acres of boring gansey sweater body knitting until I fall asleep.

Not bad after a week of 12 hour plus days.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Back to Work Again!

This Summer I was doing well with blogging frequently then I went to California to visit my sister and her family and I had a really wonderful time BUT I got back to NJ the night before I had to go back to work. I usually go back to work a week before I have to be there SO work has been very hectic but really OK.

I'm working on a gansey and right now I'm in the acres of plain stitch body so it is a bit boring. I can't get myself going to finish the Lady Feb sweater or to do the hour of finishing on the pinwheel sweater or the twenty other little jobs I need to do. Work is interfering with my life!