Light at the end of the tunnel

It's been a long old year.

It's been almost a whole one since I got my promotion, and one in which I don't think I've done as well as I could. I've felt more and more wretched at my lack of innovation in G&T since I got the job, and as time has gone on it's just got worse and worse. Trying to juggle that with the Aim Higher stuff, and teaching, and the ski trip, has been an impossible task. I was so happy to be giving up the Aim Higher and delaying the ski trip by a couple of months.

But this weekend, as I scribbled down idea after idea for G&T next year, I realised that I had been too hard on myself. I never allowed for the fact that it might take me a while to get going. I couldn't pick it up and be amazing from day 1. I really feel now that I've got a good understanding of the expectations and rigours of the job, and I can actually start getting on with it.

Yeyyyy!

Serious part over. Fun part beginning. The weekend is a good example of that fun. We went on the annual Murder Mystery weekend with 36 key stage three pupils, and they were lovely. Lovely, lovely children. Didn't stop making an effort for the whole weekend, and coped very well with the changes to the program we had to make, thanks to the weather.

If only the same could be said for all the staff (return to the not so fun bit). They were, in the vast majority, as enthusiastic and hard-working as the kids. Unfortunately, one in particular seemed to be unhappy with pretty much everything we did. On one point her complaints were valid, though she went about complaining about them in a very over-the-top way - really throwing her weight about and not giving me a great deal of opportunity to explain that she was basing a lot of her complaints upon something that wasn't true. I stayed calm and didn't argue back. No point. I was even more pleased I'd taken this course when, after that was over, that evening she had another row about not understanding what was going on or who she was supposed to be. Since she wrote the bloody story, with me and another, this came as something of a shock, and I don't think it was strictly the case. She also complained that our costumes were rubbish - when she'd been delegated to collect the costumes from our resident wardrobe mistress, and had said the day before that she'd kept forgetting. Le sigh.

I'm trying to remind myself that she had a very stresseful week, and hasn't been very well, and then I found out she was at a very low ebb on Friday afternoon, and it didn't help that I was poorly organised with the paperwork. Still, I think there are ways and ways of dealing with stress, and taking it out on your colleagues, who are giving up a weekend of their time to do an enrichment activity, is a bit low.

It makes me sad. Normally, the end of the Murder Mystery is a really happy, positive time - and I can look at it like that, if I think about the kids and how well they got on and enjoyed it. But it's left a bad taste in my mouth, and I hope I don't have to invite her next year. I can really do without that sort of negativity.

Onto more pleasant things, like my newest knitting project. I found a pattern for a knitted digestive system some time ago and Phillipa (head of science) commissioned me to knit on, so I got that started on Saturday afternoon at the Murder Mystery. It was a fiendishly difficult beginning - a provisional cast on and join in the round. I'd never done provisional cast on before, and with only 10 stitches it was difficult to keep my needles in the stitches and get it into a circle. In the end I did it on a circular and pulled the thread very tightly as I knitted it onto DPNs. Since the end of the knitting is turned inwards to make a nice puckered anus (there are three words bound to get my blog googled as a porn site...) it didn't really matter that I didn't do a great job of it. It's looking good so far, but knitting 15 feet of small intestine might get old quickly.

I have been wearing my CPH all over the place. It is warm and lovely and I get lots of nice comments. It isn't strictly finished yet (ssshhh!) because I wanted to wear it, and I know it will take me ages an ages to make myself pick up the stitches for a button band, or get a zip for it. It desn't look too shabby without either, but I am going to make myself do it in the summer, when it's too hot to wear it. I did the hood with a three-needle bind off and carried the cable up the back, and because I messed with the stitch pattern I have two little points on the hood, but I am not particularly fussed - I think they make a nice feature.

I have several knitting irons in the fire now, since the CPH is off the needles for present. I am all ready to cast on for Annie Modesitt's Corset Top - I have some royal blue soy silk that's just the thing. I swatched it two weeks ago and then, in spite of advice given to me at knitting club, washed it and let it dry - thank goodness I did! The swatch stretched to almost double its original width, and if I'd made the top it would have come out too big even for me. I don't know what to do now though - I want to drop from 4mm needles to 3.5mms without swatching again and hope it'll be alright, because I'm too lazy to swatch again and too impatient to let it dry - I want to make a good start with it over Easter weekend because I'd like to wear it to a wedding in May.

I don't know why I'm saying this - I know I'll swatch it again. I'm not a rebel, really.

In addition to this, I have yarn for a Noni Cherry Blossom Bag, and for Dahlia from Knitty, and a couple of skeins of chunky to knit some headwear with. I don't know what headwear yet, but I am aware that March is drawing rapidly to a close and I have yet to knit a hat. Shock horror! That's no good for knittahattamonth. I will have to cast on the bag instead, so at least I've done something for knittabaggamonth.

Then, next month, I'm going to knit a tricorner hat for felting - because next year's Murder Mystery theme is pirates, and I'd like to get ahead *grin*

Knittahattamonth

Life is busy. I leave to ski tomorrow. I have been frantically juggling the paperwork for that with the pressure to do something amazing for G&T, trying to teach without a whiteboard (thank you VERY much, Acer, for refusing to replace my HD for a SECOND time in spite of the fact it was the SAME error and it's under warranty, you cheap bastards - as if I can't do a system restore myself), catching up on the marking (formidable), organising several Aim Higher events, mentoring the GTP student, reining in my contempt for my tutor group (some, not all), teaching at the dry slope (and then driving one girl to Salisbury hospital with a bad sprain and living on tenterhooks for 2 weeks in case she was too damaged to come on the real trip), applying for courses, taking up tap dancing, knitting sharks, playing Scrabulous, reading novels instead of magazines and visiting Mother Hand. When the Head told me last week that if I were to organise the annual sixth form federation G&T conference in Malaysia in October, he would grace me with his presence, I actually managed to say, "I'll think about it" instead of just a straight yes. I'm getting there. Saying no straight out has got to come soon.

Tap dancing is fun. It took all my courage to go for the first time, and then I was told I couldn't just watch and I wasn't able to take part thanks to dire underpreparedness (no socks, shoes or money), so I had to do it all over again a week later, and it was not the regular instructor and the sub had no idea I was new, so asked me some quite difficult questions about steps which I couldn't answer. "What have you done before?" he enquired. "Er...well I stopped classes about 15 years ago, when I was 10," I stuttered back (note: managed to shave nearly 5 years off my age, but I think it was written all over my face). This alienated most of the other class members (apart from the very irritating tattooed hard-looking bloke who turned out to have a Fred Astaire complex and tap around freestyling in every pause we gals took for breath) who were amazed I had been recommended that class "because we're so advanced!" Ha, yes, well, I managed to keep up with that shim sham we did, better than some others, so evidently my muscles have some memory. It wasn't so good this week, I have a problem doing pick ups, which might be solved if I buy a pair of tap shoes and, yknow, PRACTISE. I think I'll stick at it. Friend Parpy Jo wants to do ballet. That'll be a hoot. I can barely manage 45 minutes of studiously ignoring myself dancing in the mirrors in sweats, let alone a pair of pink tights and a leotard.

Some of those women do that tap class in JEANS. Miss Barnes would never have allowed that.

Anyway...on with some knitting. I joined the Knittabaggamonth on Ravelry but then I messed up my January string bag project and so I think I have to leave the group now. I have knitted a hat every month so far, though. Here is January's...



Pattern: Hannah from Magknits
Yarn: Rowan Scottish Tweed in Bulky Herring...I love this colour. It's grey woven with what seem to bebits that someones swept up off the Rowan factory floor. I want to knit a whole big thing in it soon.
Mods: I knit it to pattern the first time without swatching and it was MAHOOSIVE. So I ripped it out and started again, with less stitches, and did one less decrease per round. I can't remember how many I decreased by, I think it was 10. I did some maths that made sense at the time and worked. It's still a bit too big but I am happy enough with it. I love the buttons. I hauled out the huge box of buttons I inherited from my last London rental and found, amongst the vintage buttons, a cool row counter and a lot of retro stitch holders, which is handy, since I didn't have any. (The picture is the original biggy).
Fun. It only took a couple of hours. I am speedy now, dontchaknow.

And for February....



Pattern: Shark Hat by KnittingNinja
Yarn: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky in Heritage Blue, with some 220 held double for the mouth, and LP worsted for the teeth.
Mods: Another one I didn't swatch for properly (LEARN dammit!) but I was getting more stitches per inch than the pattern and was concerned it looked too big, so I did decreases after COn the fin, and ended up with a pot bellied shark. I found the pattern really confusing, especially over the body increases and the teeth, but I did a good job I think.
I was so happy the project came out just in time for the ski trip. I had been checking compulsively for weeks. I'm going to look great sharking it down the slopes in it, and it only took me 3 days, and that was working around work commitments and the CPH.


Ah yes, the hoody. It's looking SO NEARLY FINISHED. It's driving me a bit mental. I have seamed the sides and put on both the sleeves, and I am halfway finished with the hood. It's a good length, but wider than I expected so it's not a figure-hugger like I hoped it would be. However, I think it might look a bit odd as a figure-hugger, being the length it is. I also might put a zip on it instead of picking up the 6 million stitches for the button band, depending on how neat the edges look - then the front cables will meet and sort of match the back...it would be a perfect match if I hadn't read the pattern backwards.

It's exciting, though. An actual garment. Something that took more than two skeins. And I've only been knitting it for two months! I'm like, a proper knitter now. My seams suck and I am too slap-dash to do proper Kitchener so it will never look like it was shop bought, but it is snuggly warm and a lovely colour - the variations in the yarn have become a real feature.

Better go and pack.

Happy New Year! - And Further CPH Whinging

Nearly time to start work for 2008. I turn the big 3-0 this year, it's exciting, but I could still do with it being LAST weekend so I had another week off before work. I feel thoroughly rested and I've done the bare minimum amount of work necessary to ensure I don't get to the end of Monday and have to cry all way home due to the stress, but I could do more. I suppose I could always do more. If I'm making one new year's resolution, it's to Know My Limits (Woman).

I have finished the left front of my Central Park Hoody, and I knitted the short row shoulders and did the three-needle bind-off with the back piece, without event. I phased in a second ball every 2 rows and so the colour difference isn't too bad (I hope). However, after reading a lot about the project I realised I knitted the doucle central cable on the back piece....well, backwards. I cabled front and then back, instead of the other way around. This was because I read the chart from left to right, like any dumb western scholar. I am really irritated by this, because I wanted this sweater to be perfect - but, in all honesty, I like it better that way. It's just that it's wrong. Anyway, I'm glad I learned the trick of chart reading on a project where the mistake doesn't mess up the whole thing. I have a far more ambitious cable project in mind (once I get my hands on this bookful of cable patterns) and it's good to get the practice in.

I am joining in with this bag-a-month project on Ravelry. I am charmed by the idea - who doesn't need more bags? I have an excellent project in mind for the cables, from Drops, and there is a cable and moss stitch bag I was planning to make with my leftover Maya, but since I'm not planning on forking over for the pattern that will be of my own design. I also have a great idea for a beaded bag, which will also be my own design. The felting may be a little tougher, I don't mich like felting; since the washing machine consumed a piece of my last felted project, I know I'm going to have to hand-felt and I am much too lazy for that. I still need a laptop bag, though.

January's project will have to be quick and simple. I'm thinking a string bag. I have a bunch of Lily Sugar'n'Cream that is begging to be used.

A small CPH woe

I am motoring along with the Central Park Hoodie. Concerted knitting on the back piece since I finished the Christmas knits meant that I finished it on Boxing Day; I short-rowed the shoulders and will connect them with the main piece with the three-needle bind-off. I read few tutorials on this and decided it was not going to be difficult and was definitely the way to go, but unfortunately I didn't bargain on reaching the short rows at the same time as a cable row, and this led to quite a lot of head-scratching. Then I had a problem picking up the wrap with the stitch but I think it's OK. I'll have to wait until I attach the fronts to be certain, though.

I was slightly concerned about the back being all the same colour, since I used nearly 3 balls and the joins between them are obvious to me (the 2nd ball had greater variegation than the others). I consoled myself with the fact that, to the untrained eye, it wouldn't notice. I checked the labels for dyelots but there were none - it must be a kettle-dyed thing, sadly I'm too ignorant of such things to be sure.

Then I cast on for the left front. I am 4 cable repeats in. As you can see from the picture, this piece is quite considerably darker than the back. I am fairly worried about seaming it and it looking like I used two different colours of wool; I am very worried about joining a second ball which is the same colour as the back, and it looking just terrible. But, I guess there isn't anything that I can do. Boo. I am sort of hoping that when I finish the whole sweater and wash it, gently, that the colour will even out a bit.

It's sod's law that the first time I break my own rules and try and knit a whole garment, something like this happens.

But, check out my swanky new Knitpicks Harmony needles! I LOVE them - so smooth and lovely to knit with. Unfortunately one of the 4mm tips won't screw into any of the cable ends, but I am hoping a trip to Get Knitted will sort this out toot sweet, as they say.

More quickies

I am barrelling along with my Central Park Hoody and managed to finish my first ball of wool on a trip to London a couple of weeks back, but then it occurred to me that Christmas was almost upon me and I should get on with some gift knitting.

So here it all is....

A cupcake for Pam at work for secret Santa...Pam is the staffroom mummy and always nagging us to bring in cakes for Friday breaktime, so I knitted her this. Well, I knitted her another one after this because I made several fairly serious mistakes with my first attempt (pictured) and I wasn't happy.

In the course of this, I discovered that the local Poundland stocks soft acrylic in DK and a wide range of colours, for only £1 per 100g. How exciting! This means I can buy some pale lemon balls to knit Mother Hand a sweater she wants and can't find to buy.

Then, I bought some suede lacing and made my friend Kath a whip...


...it's not quite finished because I needed cable ties and I only just got some. This was really fun to make and super easy; the 30m I bought made 2 with a bit leftover, although that doesn't really add up because the tails account for 12m and then there's a knitted bit, and with 7m left over....well, you don't have to be great at maths to work out that perhaps Jillybead sent me too much.



Finally, I knitted Ali a beaded cuff bracelet...

SO. Pretty. I love it! It was really fiddly to start with, and I couldn't do the tapered end I wanted to, but happily the project takes to shaping and wiring together at the end, so I was happy with it in the end.

I have now cast on for Mr Z's binary scarf: I was putting it off, since I've never done Fairisle and have no desire to. But I think it will be OK. I'd like to finish Binary and CPH over the Christmas break; you never know. I also need to find something for friend Jo, who I don't want to feel excluded when I dole out knitted gifts to Ali and Kath. I think I will make her some reusable facial pads and a little mesh bag to wash them in. Time is running out, though.

It's the last day of term for the kids today. We finish in about 1 hour and 19 minutes. Roughly. It can't come quick enough. Last night I took my tutor group out on a trip, where I was almost thwarted at every turn by incompetents at both Pizza Hut and Bowlplex (if only I could find the time/energy to write a letter of complaint), and spent much of my time trying to prevent the boys from feeding all their money into the fruit machines. Now they're back. I will come back and add to this later today, after I've consumed a bottle of chenin blanc in the bath.

Edit: I was in such a hurry I forgot to add the pictures, even!

When I got home, I had a 2 hour bath and a 3 hour nap, and I'm now coddled in a duvet watching Die Hard and thinking every day should be like this one. I have been feeling positively inhuman for the past couple of weeks; to quote Bilbo Baggins, "Like butter spread over too much bread." I couldn't catch up on everything by the end of term and this put me in an even worse mood. Plus, on Monday I had to drive down to Calshot for a one-hour course to refresh my knowledge of ski bindings. This utterly pointless waste of time involved a 4-hour round trip and when I arrived and the instructor said, "Wow! You've come along way - do you have to come all the way down here?" I had to restrain myself. I tell you, sometimes it feels like I've had more training in the name of this damn ski trip than I did to become a teacher. Hopefully it will all be worth it, and I won't end up having 2 weeks off with an ear infection afterwards, like last year. With 6 staff members to 32 kids we should have enough leeway for some evenings off.

Anyway. Tomorrow is TD day and I managed to avoid fire extinguisher training (the story goes, that the head didn't put anybody in History on that list because we're in mobiles and they'll go up so quickly if they catch alight that we won't be able to use an extinguisher; how comforting) and first aid training, so I have an entire day of faculty time stretching ahead of me, a prospect that I find disturbingly thrilling. Ian doesn't seem to have a great deal planned, so I am hoping to get some reports written and some marking done, and then slope off a little early to the Limpley Stoke hotel for the Christmas party. I'm even more thrilled at this. For the first time, I'll be stopping over in the hotel, and not even driving home the next day. I feel a very drunken night coming on.

Also tomorrow, in my absence, we can expect the arrival of Mother Hand's latest silly purchase. Now, I don't really think it's silly - I just think she is. When I went to see her in London for her birthday a couple of weeks back (note to self: never again - London on a Saturday in December = NOT FUN) she handed me an envelope wrapped in wedding paper and was barely able to contain herself as I opened it to reveal....delivery instructions fo a pink Smeg fridge freezer. I'm rarely speechless, but on this occasion, I didn't know what to say. How exciting! We've been putting off doing the kitchen since we got married, but may have to move on that soon, since the new fridge freezer will not fit neatly into the space left by the old one.

I *heart* quick projects

I love things that knit up quickly.

A couple of weeks ago, somebody on one of the fora I frequent asked if someone would have a go at knitting a marine coloured snood she had been bidding on, but had lost. I offered to oblige - I quite like a challenge. I had to order the yarn because they didn't have the right colours in Get Knitted last weekend. The yarn arrived yesterday, and by the end of the evening the snood was done. How was that for speedy?



Speedy Snood
Pattern: I made it up.
Yarn: Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride bulky in Jaded Dreams and Aztec Turquoise (2 strands held together). I JUST had enough.
Needles: 12mm straight
How I did it: I knit the whole thing in garter stitch. I cast on 50 stitches, knit 2 rows, did a row of YO,k2tog, knit 10 rows, another yo row, knit 6 rows, another yo row, knit 10 rows, YO row, knit 2 rows, cast off.
I wanted to knit it with a moebius cast on, but I wasn't sure what needle size I would need and didn't want to fork out for more circs than I required. So, I knitted it back and forth and added a twist to the rectangle when I sewed it up.
I got about 2 stitches per inch, but the first time I cast on 70 stitches and after 8 rows decided it was much too wide and frogged it. Even with that it only took about 3 hours, and that was with distractions; also my hands were very mariney when I'd finished.

Babushka will sit on her own and make you feel guilty.

We colour corrected the last one because it is a very tealy colour, not as blue as the pictures made it. But it's too green in the last one - the telltale sign is that my eyes are green, too - my eyes are not green, at all.
I REALLY like it. I am only sorry it is not for me.

Finally, Ester pictures! Here we go -

Very warm! But definitely going in the wardrobe until the spring.

Don't worry - I can't see myself wearing it closed very often...

I have quite a lot of the silk left, so I am thinking of knitting Lelah (a patterned boob tube type garment) to go with it.

And I also swatched for Central Park this weekend, since the extra Maya arrived with the yarn for the snood. I was bang-on with the suggested needle size, both horizontally and vertically. I am slightly gutted that I didn't manage to cast the thing on this weekend, but it just got too late today and I had too much work to do. I am going to aim to have it finished by the end of the Christmas holidays. We'll see.