Jen Clodius

It’s been a more-or-less normal week: work included hectic - but amazingly effective - preparation for multi-school participation in a web cast from one of our Big Science Machines. My colleague and I are thrilled that it went well, are glad it’s over, and are beginning to prep for the next one.

I did manage to get all of my Rhinebeck loot sorted, tagged with its intended project (when I actually have a plan for the yarn), photographed, and stashed on Ravelry. After concentrating so hard on The Unworn Sweater, I’m puttering along on a simple scarf.

Not that it mattered… temperatures were well into the 70s both days that my friend, Susan, and I were at Rhinebeck. The Sweater went along for the ride, but spent the entire weekend in the back seat of my car.

Figures, doesn’t it? I get home from a week of business travel, start a load of laundry, finish mattress-stitching the side/arm seams, then figure out the collar’s tricky join, sew the collar on, find buttons and attach them, then gloat in having a Finished Object to wear to Rhinebeck… and we all end up wishing we’d brought shorts.

Sweater pictures to follow, I promise!

On a separate note, I got my baseball swap quilt squares mailed off today. I’m delighted (and VERY relieved) to be confident that I’ll make the deadline. It’s one thing if I mess myself up; it’s another, entirely different thing if I mess up an obligation to a group — especially a group of people that I respect and care about!

Per request (and with big smiles), Jess says:

Well, the pieces are knit and blocked (photo on camera at home… and I’m not at home!), so all that remains is to sew up the sweater and wear it to Rhinebeck.

Just to complicate things, I’ll get home from this current out-of-town jaunt on Friday afternoon, and my friend, Susan, and I leave for Rhinebeck on Saturday morning. The buttons are selected and waiting, so the only question is how quickly I can mattress stitch.

On the griping hand, even if I don’t get the sweater finished, I’ll get to meet Ravelry folk. AND I get to go to Ravelry (and Webs on Monday) with a fellow wool/yarn/knit pal. Yay, hooray!

Knitting for Rhinebeck (Rhinebeck!) is a what’s keeping me occupied whilst not at work. There’s not a snowball’s chance that I’m going to get this sweater (closer look) finished before Rhinebeck, even with two weeks to go, because I’ll be on travel the entire week before.

Of course, that doesn’t prevent me from trying! Back and sleeves are done, and I’m a quarter sixth of the way done on the fronts. There’s still the collar to knit, and all of the blocking and sewing together — and exactly one weekend between now and Rhinebeck.

Optimism, thy name is Jen!