Thursday, June 5, 2014

Play the Field

I'm usually a very monogamous knitter...not because I think it's shameful to have two or even twenty projects on my needles; it's because I simply do not possess the ability to have two patterns in my head at once.  Every time I've tried to start multiple projects, I end up only working on one, and the other slowly drops further and further down in my knitting basket until it's been so long since I've worked on it that I have absolutely no clue where I left off (my Corona sweater is a prime example of this....haven't touched the thing in over 8 months).  The end result is me frogging the project and feeling guilty for my lack of ability to multi-task.  But....I'm trying again.

I was happily committed to my Monkey socks for Liz when I came across an old blog post by Audry over at Bear-Ears talking about her Rocky Coast Cardigan from Coastal Knits.  I took a look at the patterns in the book and WHAM!  I knew I had to have the Bayside Pullover...and I had to have it this summer.  I tried to convince myself to wait, but after a day of restraint, I knew I couldn't take it any more.  So I headed off to my LYS and bought two cakes of Anzula Breeze.


Now, I know the pattern calls for a fingering weight 4 ply yarn and this is a 2 ply laceweight so I was a good little knitter and knitted a gauge swatch.  Surprisingly, my gauge was too big on US 4 needles.  I stepped down to US 3, and it's still a little bit big (half a stitch).  Therefore, I'm knitting the XS and hoping for the best....there's no way all these decisions are going to bite me in the butt big time, right?  If anybody actually reads this and sees major problems (other than the obvious gauge danger) with my yarn choice, please feel free to point those out to me before it's too late.


All my gauge worries notwithstanding, I'm forging ahead.  Because of the yarn and the needle size, the stitches are very open which is exactly what I want - an open, breezy pullover that can show off a cute cami underneath.  I've been on the lookout for a pullover like this for awhile now - let's just hope it turns out the way I'm imagining it.  I'm a bit nervous, to tell the truth.


As for being a polygamous knitter, it's actually going well so far.  Both patterns are simple, easily memorized, and it's easy for me to spot where in the pattern I am.  I knit on the pullover until I can't take the stockinette anymore and then switch over to the Monkeys.  I'm going out of town for my cousin's wedding this weekend, so that's a great time to just work on the Monkeys and get those done since I don't want to lug the sweater with me (not that it's big enough yet to really qualify as being luggable).  We'll see how this goes in the weeks to come...

In theater news this week, we had our first production meeting for Journey to the West and I got to see the set model for the first time.  It's going to be absolutely epic....and I'm going to be glow taping it for an entire day (so many stairs!).

Designed by Peter Anthony
The production team is fantastic and I can't wait to start seeing the costume, makeup, and hair designs.   While at the warehouse for the meeting, I realized that I have committed myself to working in one of the worst possible locations this summer.  You see, I have an extreme and irrational fear of miller moths.  This summer in Colorado is supposed to be one of the worst moth seasons we've had in years - and I'm going to be in a porous warehouse that I already know is infested with these horrific things.  Ah, the things I do for the love of theater.  Hopefully I can make it through and still maintain the respect of my cast....

Lastly, I just have to mention my discovery this week.  My musicals station on Pandora has been playing songs from Next to Normal for a long time, but I finally decided I wanted to listen to all of them in order while following along with the synopsis on Wikipedia.  Let me tell you, I was practically crying at my desk by the end of it, I was so moved.  I've been listening to it pretty much nonstop ever since and I bought the script so I can read the whole thing.  It has definitely secured it's place as one of my favorite musicals.  I desperately hope that I can work on it someday.

Here's a clip of Aaron Tveit (Gabe) singing "I'm Alive" (one of my favorite songs) in the original Broadway production.  I tried to find a video for "Light" (the final song that almost made me cry at my desk) but couldn't find a legal good one.


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