Wednesday, July 29, 2009

WIP Wrestlemania - I think I'm Down for the Count

There's a "competition" of sorts going on on Ravelry right now - WIP Wrestlemania. Competitors are supposed to devote the month of July to finishing up works in progress. I don't know if there are prizes other than bragging rights, but it's fun nonetheless. And it means I can clean up some WIPS, not that I'm one to have too many WIPs languishing about the house.

So far, I've finished the PoisonIsh:


the Aestlight Shawl:


and the Skandalous socks:


This means that the only remaining WIP that I have, not counting the Tilted Duster, which is too hot to work on, is the Alpine Frost (crochet) scarf. So I picked it back up and crocheted and crocheted and crocheted. This scarf goes reaaaallllllyyyy slowly. Every time I finish a few rows, I look at the scarf and realize I've gone maybe 1/4 of an inch. So after much crocheting, here's where I stand:


I hope this blocks out much lacier than it looks, because right now I'm thinking I should have used a bigger hook.

Worse than that, however, is that crocheting hurts my arm in a worrying way. I'm having some pains that shoot up my left forearm from my wrist to my elbow. Yes, I've stopped. I don't want to hurt myself! But this means that I may not complete this on time to count in WWM '09.

So, although I sort of vowed to myself that I wouldn't start anything new until August 1st, I spend this morning winding up some yarn for a new sweater. When I'm done with this, I'll start a swatch. Stay tuned.


The Flamethrower

We picked up Sr. Jr. from his week away at Adventure camp on Saturday. I fretted all week long, because we had no contact with him at all - no phone calls, emails, texts, nothing. We got one email from the camp on Friday, telling us what the kids had been up to, but we didn't know whether Sr. Jr. was having fun or not. It was really tough on me! Pickup time was at 11 am, and a picnic/barbecue lunch was scheduled for the parents and the kids.

When we got there, Sr. Jr. was laughing and having fun. He was wearing the shirt we dropped him off in, but he was smiling and happy. He had an awesome time. They camped, they canoed, they hiked. They slept in tents and under the stars. They saw bears and deer and all sorts of stuff. Sr. Jr. claims that a bear slept right near their tents one night, which made the middle of the night potty break nervewracking, but I don't know how much of that story is true ;) The counselors gave each kid an award and talked about them for a little bit. Apparently SJ got the "Flamethrower" award, for being very good at starting fires. He was the go-to guy for getting all the campfires started.

When I was signing him out and thanking the counselors, they told me that he was great, he remembered to pack everything up, he was helpful, and one said he was "noble." I didn't have a chance to follow up on that one, unfortunately, because it sounds interesting. Sometimes, when I spend my whole day yelling at the boys to stop fighting and picking on each other, when SJ spends all his energy on trying to make his little brother feel bad, it's hard to imagine him being called "noble."

When we unpacked his stuff, we found one pair of socks that were so muddy and gross that we just threw them away, but most of his other clothes were still folded up neatly, socks balled up and clean... clearly he hadn't worn very many clean clothes while he was away. He ran to take a hot shower as soon as we got home, and I don't blame him.

Here are some pics, with one mischievous Jr. Jr. one as well:




Little Stinker!

6 comments:

kippi said...

Noble! What a wonderful compliment to be given. Clearly he enjoyed himself. Just imagine how this week will be in his memories forever. Love the story.

Jr. Jr. is an adorable stinker.

You totally rocked WIP WM. If crochet hurts, then clearly you shouldn't do it. The lace is beautiful, but your other pieces just sing.

Scott T. said...

We will not let pain stop you. Take 2 advil, put some ice on it, and when I get home we'll tape you up and put you back in the game. George Hincapie crashed with 3 stages to go in the Tour de France. He refused to be checked by doctors because he knew he had broken his collarbone. He rode the last 3 stages with an untreated broken collarbone, including doing a monster last lead out for the sprint on les Champs Elysees -- on cobblestone streets! We won't let a little tendinitis slow you down. Don't you worry. You will crush those other people.

kippi said...

This isn't even an apples for apples comparison for two reasons:

1. G.H. is stupid.
2. His name is George. (see #1)

If LT is sidelined due to injury who will cook, clean and take care of the children?

Scott T. said...

Pain is merely weakness leaving the body. Nothing that an Advil and an ace bandage can't fix. To quote the Black Knight, "it's only a flesh wound."

I will pretend that you didn't say those things about George Hincapie.

The children can fend for themselves.

Loren will be back in the game by tonight.

Sharon said...

Well, the adage: "Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?" may apply to Le Tour, but not to knitting/crocheting. Believe me, the emotional fallout from a protracted knitting hiatus would not be pretty. This, I know. Take care Loren. I have a wonderful yoga pose that I do every night to keep my hands/arms limber for crocheting. I won't tell you what my husband's (lewd) characterization of it is, however.

Geez, those boys are adorable. I love the "clean clothes" story. For three years in a row, my son returned home from camp with the same bar of soap, engraved lettering intact. Yuk.

Loren T said...

Sharon - I didn't even bother to send soap with him! I had to fight just to get him to take his toothbrush and toothpaste, for goodness sake!

Yoga. I'm so sick of my complete lack of exercise right now. I feel fat and out of shape, just in time to go to the beach, yay.

And yes, knitting hiatuses are not pretty. Worse than PMS.