1. I felt a little better, took a look around and realized that I am way, way behind on errands and laundry and email and phone calls and that there are no groceries. (I have talked Joe into fixing that.) Further to those problems, today was the last possible day I could go to the passport office and still get Sam’s passport in time for her trip. (She has a babysitting gig in Mexico. How is it that all of my babysitting gigs were on my block?)
2. All time record line up at the passport office. Just over three hours. Probably has something to do with this, (I’m positive it does, actually.) but still…Dudes. Three whole hours? (I have never resented the “no food or drink” rule in the office more. That is a long coffee/water free period for a knitter recovering from the flu.)
This is three hours of a Jaywalker. (Vesper sock yarn, in Tartan.)
For that matter:
2b. Starting a Jaywalker. That sock pattern has wicked mojo on it or something. The minute your resistance is low…There you are. I shouldn’t be surprised that a bout with the flu has resulted in this sock turning up again. I think it’s a viral pattern.
3. Bead stores. The new Sivia Harding sock pattern that came with the STR sock club calls for beads. (You can see a wonderful example here, on Pink Tea.) I thought about putting them on there, and then I got a hold of myself. I don’t even know where a Toronto bead store is. Answer….Queen Street West. I was taking the streetcar home from the passport place and all of a sudden there were a million beadstores all over the place. I had some sort of involuntary twitch, pulled the bell and the next thing I knew…
Yeah. Whoops.
4. Bead stores are not for the weak, recovering, or anyone with a single magpie gene in their bodies. It was only that I was tuckered out by the Passport office and couldn’t stand for very long that I only came home with hundreds and hundreds instead of millions and millions. Bead stores are wonderful little shimmering dens of temptation.
5. Beads are CHEAP.
See that? Less than two dollars, and it’s enough to do a pair or two of socks. (Note: There were other beads, beads that were not for knitting. Those beads cost a lot more money. I averted my eyes from the burning glory of the beads that were not for knitting and thanked my lucky stars that I am a knitter and that I don’t know what the seven dollar bead was for. If you do not have a one track knitting mind, you should maybe not go to the bead store.)
6. Almost thirteen year old daughters in bead stores is a bad idea. They make that high pitched shriek thing that means they want you to spend all of your money on something shiny. Go alone. Go strong. Go without a credit card. Wear garlic.
7. I asked the lady if these were 8/0 seed beads like the pattern says, and she (without looking at me or the beads) said “Sure. Why not.” (Apparently customer service in bead stores is as touch and go as is is everywhere else. I thought the tiny glass art would purify their souls.)
8. I didn’t get very far with the eggs.
These have been brought to room temp, washed with water and vinegar and had any little lumps or bumps carefully pared off with an X-acto knife. (Almost. I can see one I missed.) Any idea what comes next?
9. This was less than 1/4 of what I usually get done in a day and I am so absolutely tired I could go cross eyed.
10. This makes me want to figure out how to get beads onto yarn anyway. (Threading it like a needle doesn’t work. My yarn is too…flaccid. ) Sivia recommends dental floss threaders, which I don’t have, and all reasonable (and unreasonable) attempts to substitute dental tape has failed.
Perhaps I need to cut back on the passport office and the decongestants.