Knitting stocking-stitch in the round has given me ample time to think about future projects. Look, I've even drawn up a list:

1. Finish Retro-Prep.
2. Knit the last sleeve of Consuelo.
3. Knit up the 26 balls of green Patons DK for a button-up cardigan (Miriam from Rowan 28) and a hooded zippy (Mariah from Knitty).
4. Knit up the 17 balls of light green Garnstudio tweed. I'm thinking Foxy and Palm from Rowan 27.
5. Legwarmers from Mission Falls Decade booklet.
6. More Gifted mittens but using a tighter gauge.
7. A hat with earflaps.
8. Clapotis.

This is a very fluid listing - the order has changed between writing it in a notebook and writing it in the blog. I realised that I was hankering after my bamboo needles (of which I only have 2 pairs) so the Patons has got bumped up the list.
This list uses all stash yarn that I bought with no specific project in mind. Once I clear this lot I'm aiming to revert back to just buying yarn for a specific project.

The blob that is my Retro-Prep:

Not very exciting to look at.

In recognition of Burn's Night:

SCOTS, wha hae wi’ WALLACE bled,
Scots, wham BRUCE has aften led,
Welcome to your gory bed,
Or to Victorie!

Now’s the day, and now’s the hour;
See the front o’ battle lour;
See approach proud EDWARD’S power—
Chains and Slaverie!

Wha will be a traitor knave?
Wha can fill a coward’s grave?
Wha sae base as be a Slave?
Let him turn and flee!

Wha, for Scotland’s King and Law,
Freedom’s sword will strongly draw,
FREE-MAN stand, or FREE-MAN fa’,
Let him on wi’ me!

By Oppression’s woes and pains!
By your Sons in servile chains!
We will drain our dearest veins,
But they shall be free!

Lay the proud Usurpers low!
Tyrants fall in every foe!
LIBERTY’S in every blow!—
Let us Do or Die!

Robert Burns born January 25th, 1759

That's my 2nd favourite Burn's poem. My favourite is too long to be included here. It includes the very truthful lines:

(Auld Ayr, wham ne’er a town surpasses,
For honest men and bonie lasses).

Being born and bred in Ayr I like to think of myself as a bonnie lass.

Anyways the first person to name my favourite Burn's poem and to make it more difficult you've also got to name one other poem by Burns that mention's Ayr (can be the river or the town) gets a wee collection of Scottish sweeties.

Fellow Scots are not allowed to enter.

I had enough yarn.....just

I was just casting off the second sleeves and had about 10 stitches left to cast off when I run out of yarn. Just as well that I leave long tails when I cast on. I was able to use them to cast off those last 10 stitches. Luckily I had already done the neckband as I had done that before I had knitted the sleeves. I hadn't wanted to compromise on the height of the neckband so I got it out of the way as early as possible so I wouldn't be tempted to skimp on it.
Bit fed up of knitting with red so I won't be finishing that last sleeve on Consuelo yet.

I think we're going to make it. I've got 100g left for the rest of the Bond sleeves. I'm 6 rows from the last increase on the first sleeve and then have about 7 cm before the armhole shaping. I'm not 100% confident I'll make it but it's looking promising. While all this knitting has been going on there's not been much reading going on. Instead the DVD player is in overtime. Watched "Monster" and "Taking Sides". I was impressed by Charlize Theron in "Monster" - I never realised she was so tall.

The back of Bond is finished and I'm finished the waist-shaping decreasing on the front. I'm nearly half way through the yarn that I've got and I still can't decide if I've enough yarn for three-quarter sleeves. I usually follow one third for the back ; one third for the front and one third for the 2 sleeves but how much less does three-quarter length sleeves take?
DVD watchhing has healped me do so much knitting. I watched "The Stepford Wives" one night (an okay movie glad I didn't pay to see it at the cinema) and then last night I watched "One Hour Photo" (good film starring a very creepy Robin Williams).

Got some advertising blurb in the mail yesterday from Liz Earle about skincare. One of the points it raised was - get enough sleep and to remember the golden rule "An hour before midnight is worth two after". Never heard of this - is it true? Guess I'll have to start heading off to bed earlier if I want to eradicate the bags under my eyes.

The "These can not possibly be the same dyelot Tank" has been ripped back, put in a bag and hidden in the bottom of the yarn basket. I finished the Consuelo front and should have started the final sleeve but I decided I needed a stocking stitch project ro knit while watching DVDs. I've got 400g of a red 5ply wool so I may or may not have enough for three quarter sleeves. If not, it'll be a tank. The pattern I'm using is Bond from Rowan 28. The guage is out but I'm just knitting a smaller size so it should fit. I've decided on the other plain sweaters I'm going to knit - the Retro Prep from IK (it's got raglan sleeves); the Grand Plan Sweater from IK (it's got set-in sleeves and no waistshaping) and Bond has set-in sleeves and waist-shaping. They may all be plain but they all look different from one another.
Watched a good film on Saturday night "Finding Forrester" - though it could have done with less basketball.
Also, finiashed a book over the weekend "The Girls of Slender Means" by Muriel Spark. This was my first book by Muriel Spark and it may be my last. I didn't like her writing style and didn't think much of the story, I'll still give "The Prime of Miss Brodie" a chance. One of my 40 things to do while I'm 40 is to read more Scottish authors so I'm doing quite well on that Robin Jenkins, Andrew Greig and now Muriel Spark.

I've been feeling a bit down these past few days and I'd put it down to PMT but it just struck me at lunchtime that it's the book I'm reading. "The Stone Garden" by Molly Moynahan. It's all about the effect of death on the people left behind, told from a 17 years old perspective. It's well written but definitely depressing

I'm not a happy bunny:


and they were supposed to be from the same dyelot. Next time I'm going to knit under a bright light instead of in my usual gloomy half-lit corner. I guess I'd bet get ripping and next time alternate between the two skeins. Serves me right for not finishing Conseulo before diving in for a quickie project.

I've done my good deed for the day. I used to carry an Organ Donor card but I lost it along the way some years back and I've been meaning to get another one for quite awhile but it's just one of those things that you never get around to doing. Today I sign up to the NHS Organ Donor Register. You can do it to online here.
Rebecca posted a great post yesterday - 30 things to do while she's 30. I may just have to create my own list. I turned 40 in September so I could do a 40 things while I'm 40 list. Becoming an organ donor can be No. 1 in the list.

What I did over the holidays:


I finished the sleeve and am about 20 rows away from finishing the front of Consuelo. I knit the back of a tank - the colours show up darker than they really are but when I used the flash you couldn't see the cables on Consuelo. I finished one parquet sock and read one book. Not bad but I was hoping to get more reading done than I actually achieved.

Every so often I regret deleting my old blog when I took what turned out to be a non-permanent break from blogging. I've been thinking about what my resolutions/goals for 2005 are and it would have been nice to look back at the 2004 goals I'd set (and failed at completing).

2005 Goals are:

1. Become tidier and more organised - I'm sure this was a 2004 goal. Hopefully this year I'll make some progress on it.

2. Knit my stash. Luckily, I don't have a large stash. What I do have is alot of eBay purchases in quantities that are probably a couple of balls short of what I'd need to knit the projects I have in mind. The quickest way to knit through the stash is stocking-stitch. So in 2005 I see alot of plain nd simple knitting. Thankfully, I don't mind knitting yards of stocking stitch.

3. Become more environmentally-friendly. The first step is to switch from moisturisers and cleansers containing synthetic chemicals. The products I'm currently testing are from Love The Planet and Green People. Greenpeace has an interesting section on chemicals in the body.

New Year, New Socks

Yeah, I finally managed to get my secret swap socks picked up from the DHL depot. Aren't they great? They were knitted by Michelle. It's great to get something knitted by someone else. Thanks Michelle.