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Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Finished: Little Monkey Foo Foo

Thank you for all of your good wishes for my speedy recovery! I think the positive thoughts of knitters are starting to pay off, because I'm feeling much better. I'm still nowhere near back to my old self (I'm still sore, tire easily, and have a bit of a buddha belly from the swelling), but tomorrow I should be able to spend the day out of bed and do things like get/cook food for myself. Today's big accomplishment was making it through the day without needing a nap. Granted, I did get 9 1/2 hours of sleep last night and spent pretty much the whole day in bed, but when you consider I needed a nap after a trip to the bathroom a couple of days ago, you can see what a big improvement that is.

If there's a plus side to being in the hospital and being (for lack of a better word) an invalid, it's that there's plenty of time to knit. This morning I finished up a pair of socks:

(Apologies for the crappy photos in this post; there's only so much I can do from bed with no natural light and very little flexibility.)

Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A. (winter '06 Knitty)
Yarn: Socks That Rock lightweight (100% superwash merino), colorway Little Bunny Foo Foo, one skein
Needles: one 36" US 1 (2.5 mm) Knit Picks circular, magic loop
Started/Completed: October 1/October 24
Mods: changed all the purls to knits in the stitch pattern and substituted a slip-stitch heel

Here's a closeup of the no-purl pattern that works so well with this yarn:


There's not much to say about this pattern that hasn't already been said. I'd been intending this colorway of STR specifically for this pattern; something about the name of the colorway asked to be knit into a pattern with an animal name, I guess. In any case, making these no purl was a great tactic for making this pattern an even faster knit. In truth, these did not take as long as it seems, because they were started just before we left for the trip and picked up again when we returned -- and I really wasn't able to knit until the end of my stay in the hospital. So these went quite quickly, and now that the weather has gotten a little cooler and more seasonal, I'm looking forward to wearing them.

Tomorrow I hope to be out of bed, albeit still home-bound. We are supposed to be going to a dinner party Friday night, so I'm using that as my goal for the initial stage of recuperation. Keep those positive thoughts coming!

P.S. Forgot to mention the surprise that made my day -- I made my first trip downstairs since getting home to pick up the package the mailman left in the door, which turned out to be my October Rockin' Sock Club shipment! I won't post any spoilers just yet; suffice it to say I hope I'm feeling well enough to get out my swift and ball winder tomorrow so I can get to knitting!

14 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:10 PM

    If you got your STR October that means mine must be around the corner, yeah!

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  2. Anonymous10:37 PM

    So now I'm excited to knit up my Bunny Foo Foo that I've been hoarding in my sock yarn stash...

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  3. Very glad to hear you're feeling better. Don't push it! This is what sick days are for!!! Those Monkeys look awesome. I'm totally gonna have to try that pattern.

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  4. Me likey the purl-free Monkeys. Obviously your knitting isn't suffering even if you are.

    Don't overdo it tomorrow. Baby steps!!

    Go ahead .. spoil it!!! I'm dying to see it!

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  5. Love your Monkey Foo Foo's! I'm glad you're feeling a little better.

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  6. Nicely done! And the name of that colorway always cracks me up. ;)

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  7. Glad to hear you're feeling better. You'll be back to your old self in no time. Meanwhile, enjoy the recuperating time and take advantage of the extra knitting time.

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  8. I'm actually sort of jealous, I would love a few days off from work to knit, declutter, play video games, whatever. Too bad you had to have surgery to get it!

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  9. I'm just catching up. Glad you're okay! I had an emergency appendectomy about 6 weeks after I got married--what a weird coincidence. Unfortunately I didn't knit then. Enjoy your extra time with yarn, and take it easy, and take full advantage of whatever sick leave plan you have. Rest up, and feel better soon! (And also, use this as an excuse for whatever you feel like for the next several months. I did!)

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  10. Anonymous8:53 AM

    ooo, I like the no-purl monkeys...I'm going to have to add them to my queue now!! I have some STR that's been marinating in the stash, and I think that the monkey pattern may be just what they call for!! Glad to know you're feeling better. Hope to see you in a couple of weeks...I'll bring my stuff from Rhinebeck to share! :)

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  11. Glad to know you are starting to feel a bit perky! And, as you said, the best thing about it all is guiltfree knitting!

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  12. Anonymous10:52 AM

    I'm still waiting on the Oct. kit, but I HAVE looked at the spoilers and it looks like a good one from the pics - Do you like it?? (I'm trying to finish my current socks, so I can be ready if it gets here today!)
    Glad you're recovering quickly.

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  13. Anonymous3:36 PM

    I got my STR package yesterday, too. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about the yarn and then I looked at the pattern and decided the yarn and pattern are perfect! Don't know when I'll get to mine, but this is one pair that I'm definitely going to knit.

    Glad to hear you're feeling a bit better; I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll be well enough to go to your dinner party.

    Love the Little Monkey Foo Foo's :)

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  14. This has been th eonly STR shipment in which I've loved th eyarn AND the pattern!

    Glad you're feeling better.

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