The Castoffs met at my house today and LOOK AT ME!  I’m actually posting the blog before the last glass of wine is empty in my little knitter’s hand.  Well, OK, maybe I did pour one more after everyone left, but who’s counting?  My talented son Eli made bruschetta and tapanade for us to eat and we did him proud.  Thank you Eli!  The Castoffs love your food.

A Feast

We all trickled in; first Leslie and Michele, then Carol and Julie, next Mary and Deb.  Almost everyone was excited to have only one day left of work before spring break – Julie works for the County library and I’m gloriously retired (although I’m subbing in the high school library tomorrow).  Francy and Marylane are still traveling.  We miss them.  Please come home!

Eli, we really liked the bruschetta and tapanade!

Michele must have really liked knitting my sock last week, because she started on a pair of her own with beautiful, soft cotton/silk/rayon yarn.  I love the feel of this yarn and I love that she decided to skip the cable pattern and just knit a rib pattern all the way up the sock.  I’ll have to remember that in future sock patterns.

Love this yarn!!

I haven’t knitted anymore on my sock, but I will hopefully work on it this week.  I am knitting a boucle top-down sweater but today I noticed that I have dropped a stitch…about three inches ago…sh*t.  I’ll try to pick it up, I guess.  It’s very irritating.

Aaaeeewww! A fatal flaw!

Leslie suggested that I sew a butterfly over the HOLE made by my dropped stitch.  Mary suggested that I put a pin over it but only if it’s in the front.  I think I’ll just sew it up and pretend it never happened.

Julie has two projects going – a vest with the most wonderful, soft yarn (Natura).  Michele was giving her some advice although I wasn’t sure why – Julie is a very experienced ‘garment’ knitter.

If we lean a little more to the left...it might look okey-dokey

Julie is also knitting a pillow cover with some linen yarn in a great looking lattice pattern.  I love it!  I’m beginning to wonder if I have enough life left in this old bod to knit all the things I want to knit and read all the books I want to read.  Nah.  Probably not.  But I’m planning to have a lot of fun trying until I go to that great knitting store in the sky.  Uh, knitting store/bookstore…that’s my idea of paradise.

Hey, recline on this, envy-mongers

Leslie was knitting ‘thick and thin’ scarf #4 for her daughter’s bridesmaids.  Keeping with the bhurka theme, here is Leslita with the black and gray number.

Leslita with scarf #4. Get that needle out of her hand, quick!

I took a closeup of this scarf, but like a chameleon, it took on the coloration of the table.  Gee, I wish I could do that.  But not with yellow.

Wait, I thought it was black...

I made the fatal mistake of showing my FRIENDS the yarn that I’m using for my sis-in-law’s afghan.  Well, it’s not a good idea to mix wine, vivid imagination and oddly colored yarn with the Castoffs, as I found out.  Oh, yeah, documentation AND availability to a blog doesn’t help either.  The yarn is an unfortunate color that lends itself to a whole lot of sight gags.  This is the best I’ve seen lately.

Uh, afghan #2

Deb was especially creative with the pooooooooop jokes.  Thank you, Castoffs.  I’ll be knitting this afghan for a long time.  And thinking about it a lot longer.

Michele was knitting a belt using some shiny, pretty, unforgivingly non-stretchy yarn.  I love, love, love the colors.

Great yarn for a belt

Deb is a tennis coach for the next six weeks, so she came straight from the court and didn’t bring her knitting.  I think she had just as much fun, though, watching us knit…and commenting on the poopy colored yarn.   Mary had her polar bear scarf project, but her head is in Arizona where she is going for spring break in a few days.  Bon voyage, Mary.  We’ll miss you for a couple of weeks.  Have fun!

Hello, is that Arizona calling? Somebody needs a vacation

Next week, we may not…sob, sob…meet because a lot of us will be out of town.  However, I am willing to meet anyway because I’ll be here!  So, if any of you Castoffs want to get together, give me a call.  The week after next, April 8, we meet at Julie’s house.  I can’t wait to see what you all have been up to in the meantime.  And, no Mary, I probably won’t have the afghan done…or even started.  You’ll just have to put up with weeks and weeks and weeks of me knitting it.  Have a great spring break, Castoffs!

The Castoffs met on a blustery day at Carol’s house.  When I say blustery, I mean it.  At one point we looked out her dining room glass doors and saw her patio chair scudding along at a rapid pace across the deck.  Snow was blowing around and I felt for a minute that I might be Dorothy (or Toto) bracing to blow away to OZ.

We remained in Kalispell, however, although strange things were afoot.  Carol was knitting her baby blanket which is an adorable ball-band pattern.  Her ball of yarn was SO BIG that it came with its own Bobble-head instructor.

Cute blanket for Grandbaby #1

You, too, could have your own Bobble-head instructor!

I hope Ms. Bobble-head goes away before the babies are born.  That could scar a kid’s psyche.  I was a little scared myself.

Michele rushed to the meeting after another meeting and didn’t bring her knitting.  Whew!  Good thing I brought two projects!  Michele knitted some of my sock pattern that happened to be one that she had used before.  She had fun and I have less to knit on that sock now.

Thanks for the help, Michele! Say, are you sitting in a pine bower?

Michele was sitting in front of an ENORMOUS plant of Carols that framed her perfectly.  Looks very springy, doesn’t it?

Carol’s friend Jackie, her college roommate from Spokane, was visiting and we enjoyed talking to her.  Carol’s cat liked her a lot too.

Cat loves Jackie!

Carol made yummy strawberry shortcake for us and I didn’t get over there for a photo until a lot was already gobbled up.  Thanks, Carol for the tea and shortcake.  We fell on it like starvelings.

Hey, did you say that there's shortcake?

Mary was working on her daughter’s polar bear scarf which is coming along nicely.  And Larissa is much better – feeling well enough to teach part of her yoga class.  We were glad to hear it.

Polar bear scarf. Surrogate for grandbaby?

I was knitting my boucle top-down sweater while Michele was knitting my sock.  I think I was the big winner here.

Maybe I can find somebody to knit this sweater, too

Julie was at the meeting long enough to scarf down (no pun intended) some shortcake and then rushed off to a library fundraiser.  She was moving so fast that I caught her with her eyes closed.  Hope she opened them up on the drive home.

I think Leslie disapproved of Julie's haste in leaving. Or maybe she was just afraid that the Bobble-head would come back

My husband, Lucky, clipped an interesting article that I thought I would include in the blog.  It’s about a ‘Midnight Knitter’ that is terrorizing Cape May, NJ.

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www.facebook.com

West Cape May authorities and residents are on the lookout for an unknown person, dubbed The Midnight Knitter, according to The Press of Atlantic City.

When darkness falls, the mystery knitter takes to the streets of the shore town and covers tree branches and lampposts with little sweaters.

Yes, you read that right, little sweaters.

And the knitter (or knitters) are displaying their wooly work on Facebook and a Web site.

Although residents and the town’s mayor agree that the colorful patterns are captivating and better than graffiti, the handiwork is illegal.

“We don’t know who it is,” Mayor Pam Kaithern told The Press. “Technically, they shouldn’t be doing it. The police are asking about it, but it’s fun and it’s a mystery.”

The town’s main concern? That when the yarn becomes faded, the cozy creations be taken down.

Wow, if this is West Cape May’s most pressing unsolved mystery, we’re thinking it’s time to move there.

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Hmmm.  Perhaps we could tackle Kalispell’s dying elm trees for ‘Knit in Public Day’ this year.  Whaddya say, knitters?

Next week the meeting is at Marsha’s house at the regular time.  See you all then!  And think about clothing a tree, won’t you?

Ahhh!  It was great to be home and at a Castoffs meeting again.  Florida was fun but…chilly.  I think I’ve been warmer since I’ve been home.  Or maybe it’s just that I can go to my own closet and pull out warm sweaters.

We met at Michele’s house and from the moment I walked in, I felt at home.  Michele was sooo excited about her newest project – a cell phone cover that looks like a kitty.  She and Leslie challenged Carol and me ( the first arrivals) to find the latest without telling us what it was.  Well, Carol and I looked around, clueless, and finally Carol picked the little kitty cover up by one ear and said, “It’s not THIS, is it?”  Uh, yes, it was.  We had to backtrack and gush a little to make Michele feel better.  It is very cute.

What's new, pussycat?

Michele gave us great treats and tea and we showed our appreciation by eating non-stop.

The cell phone kitty is not above a little begging for food

Carol’s legwarmers that she finished are just left of the cheese platter.  They turned out great.

Some of us knitted and some of us helped unravel a baby blanket that Carol started.  She made a little boo-boo so we jumped into the breach to help out.  We Castoffs are full of advice.

Cute blanket in a cotton ball-band pattern

Michele and Leslie stretched the blanket on the floor, took the circular needle out of the worked rows, and ripped out until they were past the mistake.  Then we took turns carefully placing the stitches back on the needle.

Or...you could just start over

I dutifully helped out but after a while, I realized that my fingers were stuck in a claw-like position.  Ah, growing older really sucks.

Okay, where's the Aleve?

We finally got it all done, ready for Carol to begin again.  I’ll be curious to see if she decides to just bag it and start over again.  That’s what I’d do, but then, I’m the one with the claw.

Julie came in her cardigan that she just finished and we insisted that she model it a la runway fashion.  Julie obliged.  I just love giving directions.

Work it, girl!

When she took off the cardigan, we noticed her nametag that she forgot to take off after work.  Uh, Jules, we do remember who you are.  But thanks for being considerate of our advanced age and mental lapses.

Julie who?

Leslie looked out the window and noticed Mary standing in Michele’s driveway looking toward the street.  What could she be doing?  Waiting for a bus?  Bird-watching?  Turning into a stalker?  Turns out that she was wondering if she lost Kerrie, who was supposed to be right behind her.  We had fun though, playing our little fantasy games.  Middle age is all about fantasies, isn’t it?

Just waiting for the crosstown #7

After Kerrie and Mary came inside, we got to see Larissa’s hat before it gets sent to Italy, and we saw the polar bear scarf – yes, I did say polar bear scarf – not FOR a polar bear, but in the SHAPE of a polar bear.  Just hope he gets eyes soon – he’s a little creepy as a shadow bear.

Larissa's hat - looks great!

Polar bear scarf. NOT the letter M

After the excitement of greeting each other, getting food, exclaiming over everyone’s knitting and giving advice, the Castoffs settled down to the real work of the day — knitting.  We all are working on different projects: Leslie on bridesmaid ‘thick and thin’ scarf number 3; Deb on her daughter’s scarf; Michele on her pretty blue sweater; Julie on a very cool top-down vest; Mary on the polar bear scarf; Carol on the blankie; Kerrie on a dishcloth, and Marsha on her top-down boucle sweater.  It grew quiet and peaceful, or as quiet and peaceful as it ever gets at a Castoffs meeting.  It was so good to be home with my friends.  Thanks everyone.

Kerrie's crocheted dishcloth

Bridesmaid #3 scarf

Deb looking very focused

Julie knitting a vest that I covet, and Leslie, we LIKE the colors!

Happy knitters

While we were gathered, Michele got a call from her son, Jason, to tell her that he broke his ankle playing soccer.  And Mary’s daughter Larissa is very sick with a respiratory infection over in Italy.  I know that all of us are concerned with these two children of Castoffs and we hope that they feel better and recover from their ailments.  And if Mary has to go over to Italy to take care of Larissa, well…it’s a mother’s duty to suffer for her child, isn’t it?  But we kinda hope she doesn’t go.  It would make the rest of us wish our kids were sick in Italy, too.  And we don’t want that – at least not the ‘sick’ part.

Next week we’ll be meeting at Carol’s house and I’ll try to email the correct directions (unlike last time when Michele and Leslie were wandering around the wrong part of town.  Sorry.) so we will all be together again.  We missed Francy and Marylane this week and hope to see them soon.  Hope you’re having fun in Arizona, Marylane, and that it is warmer than Florida was!

Until next week, enjoy the sunshine and keep on knittin’!

The Castoffs met at Leslie’s house, minus Marsha (who is still in chilly Florida), Marylane (working), Linda (gone back to Denver) and I think, Michelle.  I received the photos with no backstory – just my wits to imagine what went on without me.  It has been fun doing the blog from long distance but I MISS MY KNITTING PALS.  Thank goodness, I’ll be back next time.  I hope I can remember how to knit.  I haven’t knitted in two weeks now and it seems very strange – like I’m forgetting something in the evening.  Now what is that?  Missing limb syndrome?

First of all, I’d like to say how proud of Deb I am.  She went through quite a knitting trauma last week, what with the bloodletting initiation and all.  It looks like she took it to heart, because LOOK WHAT SHE KNITTED THIS WEEK!!

Wow. Was one initiation enough for ya, Deb?

Good job.  I hinted that perhaps Julie needed some, ah, motivation since she slept through our group last week (at home, not at Marylane’s house.  That would have been an impossibility with all the pointy needles in the Castoffs’ hands).  When asked about the ceremony, I assume she responded in this fashion:

Uh, no thanks, youse guys. Live long and prosper!

It does look like she started a new project.  Nothing like peer pressure, eh Juliet?

Mary was there hiding in plain sight.  First she hid behind Larissa’s hat which, by the way, is stunning!  Mary, you look like you’re hiding from the law – all you need is a black bar across your eyes like you’re in a police lineup.  C’mon, give us a smile.

aka Bugsy

Then, she hid behind a polar bear pattern.  Wait.  A polar bear pattern?  Eeks.  I hope spring comes soon.

Who squished dat bear?

Grandma Francy (sorry, I’ll quit soon) was there with a darling hat for her baby.  Cute hat.  I sure hope that this is Francy’s work, remember, I’m writing this under a handicap.  I suppose it COULD be Carol’s hat for her baby(s).

Ahhh, adorable little hat for an adorable little head

Francy has really been working hard on Betsy’s sweater.  I love the cable work and the sunshine looks sooo warm.  It’s been unseasonably cool in Florida.

Great job, Francy!

STRETCH! STRETCH!

Now, this next photo may have been a red herring.  I don’t know of anyone who was working on a blanket like this.  I like it.  It looks like a pulled stitch pattern; a sort of Dow-Jones up-and-down pattern with a slight Native American slant.  I got nothin’.

Hmmm, a mystery project. But I like it!

Big, bulky yarn.  A rug, maybe?  I sense something that Michele could have made.  Guess I’ll just have to ask on Thursday when I’LL BE BAAACK!!!

The last photo that I got looks to have a Flathead High theme – black and orange.  Ah, takes me back to my working days – so long ago in a school far, far away.  Well, not that far away.

Mary, are you making another hat?

I wonder if Mary is making another hat?  Don’t know why she’s using these colors.  What about the polar bear scarf?  I’m so confused.  I guess I’ll just have to wait until Thursday at…uh, Castoffs, you didn’t mention where the next meeting is.  Is this a hint that you prefer my blogging at a distance?  Wahh!  I want to see your faces!  Hopefully, I’ll find out before Thursday or I’ll be cut adrift on a sea of emails.  Keep those needles flashing and I’ll be home soon.

Hello from sunny Florida!  My Castoffs met without me, but today in the post I received photos from the meeting at Marylane’s house.  Very interesting photos.  Most of them were fairly normal and it was great to seen my pals in their natural habitat – eating, drinking wine and knitting.  A couple of photos were obviously taken under the heady influence of trickery (or wine).  This is what I think happened:

Wonderful food and drink are the mainstay of our Castoffs meeting.  Here is what looks like the delicious pesto and cream cheese that our friend Lisa makes alongside crackers and red Zin.  Yum.  Sorry I missed the goodies.

Good eats!

I’m glad to see that Kerrie joined the Castoffs and it looks like her crocheted scarf is done!  Looks great Kerrie.  She and Mary were very seriously working on their projects.

Ooh, so serious. Give Mary another glass of wine

Beautiful scarf, Kerrie!

It was fun to see how far Mary has come with her hat for Larissa.  I love this yarn!  The colors and blends are absolutely fabulous.  Bring it to the meeting when I get home, Mary!

Larissa is going to LOVE this, Mary!

Just look at this face, y’all.  (Forgive my accent.  Being in the south again brings it out in me.  And so does the gin & tonic that I’m using to spur on my imagination).   Is this a grandmother’s face, or what?  Francy’s first baby gift for her first grandchild is sooooo cute.  One of many, I think.

Gramma Francy, you are going to be a wonderful role model

I am assuming that this is a photo of the sweater that Francy is knitting her daughter, Betsy.  I remember that the sweater that Michele is knitting is blue.  Hope I’m right, but even if I’m not, this is a beautiful cable pattern!  I love it.

Great cable pattern

Ok, I’m thinking that this is bhurka #2 for the bridesmaid brigade.  I am so disappointed that Leslie didn’t model it like the first one, giving a peace sign.  C’mon, Leslie, I want to see you chin!  Nice glass of wine, though.

Bhurka #2?

Ok, I’m afraid that this is where the meeting got ugly.  By the look on Deb’s face, our sweet Michele is beginning to snap.  Perhaps Deb isn’t casting off appropriately.  Perhaps she never did a gauge swatch.  Or perhaps it was just a bad day in French class.  Whatever the trouble, the next few photos show a disturbing initiation rite that only the most secret knitters indulge in for their meetings.  Gulp.  Deb, RUN!

Dum dum, dum dum, dum dum dum. Wait for it...

Just before the bloodletting

Yes, some knitting cults demand blood from their members.  Break one rule of knitting and, beware, blood will be spilt.  We do use tasteful and colorful catchment bowls for the liquid that drives the needles, however, as shown in the photo.  I know it sounds vulgar and somewhat harsh, but knitting is a serious pastime and NOT FOR SISSIES!!  So be prepared to shed precious bodily fluids for your craft, knitters.  Blood, sweat, tears.  (weren’t they a rock band in the 60’s?)  Anyway, if you survive the initiation, you will receive a lovely silver momento for your pains.

At the end of the rite, a lovely momento

I am sorry that I missed the heartwrenching moment of little Deb’s passage into knitting womanhood, but I was doing important things in Florida like this:

Going to the Circus! Meeting a clown!

Yes, I went to the circus.  A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants.  We went to a one-ring circus and saw the Flying Wallendas!!  But no knitting, sorry.  I hope my transgression won’t call for the bloodletting plate…please.  There are two knitting shops in Venice that I’m going to check out later in the week.  I’ll be suffering from yarn withdrawal by then.

I understand that another of our members missed the meeting…JULIE, WAKE UP!!  Perhaps Julie should face the music next week, eh?  I loved seeing the meeting vicariously, so let me have more, more, more for this week.  In the meantime, keep those needles flying…or else.