Toronto to Vancouver, five hours, and I know how to amuse myself.
I knit in the cab to the airport.
I knit while I watched a movie. (Mission Impossible nineteen, or whatever.)
I knit while I watched a show on my ipad. (Primeval .)

I knit while I read a book (The Golden Compass )
I'm only in Vancouver, so maybe there will be a whole sock today.
Instead of writing here, today I blogged at Cari's place, as part of her Writer: with kids series. Be sure and read the other authors too. It really is wonderful.
That is truly impressive.
Posted by: Darlene at April 18, 2012 5:33 PMHi Stephanie - Love the pictures of your sock knitting. I'm going to ask you a possibly crazy question - do you ever just get tired of knitting and want to put it down for awhile and do another craft?
Posted by: Judy at April 18, 2012 5:33 PMHee hee, I do the same thing. Restaurants, traveling, reading, I am normally knitting everywhere I go, lol.
Posted by: Hev at April 18, 2012 5:34 PMno one can say you don't make good use of your time.
I usually take lace because it takes so long.
BUT since it is sock camp
Have a GREAT trip
How is the scarf???
Lovely sock! I wish I could knit half as fast as you do. I'm one of those pokey, slow knitters & I carry the yarn in my left hand.
Posted by: Samina at April 18, 2012 5:36 PMI wish I could knit and read at the same time...
/sigh
Man, that is impressive. My time lapse for that much sock progress would be on the order of a week or so... Happy trails!
Posted by: Paula @ KnitandSeek at April 18, 2012 5:44 PMGotta love those ipads! My only complaint is that I have to stop watching netflix to look at my pdf patterns. But then I remember that I am watching a movie and reading a pattern on a tiny little thing no bigger than a magazine. The future is now!
Posted by: Caitlin at April 18, 2012 5:48 PMLove the "Writer: with Kids" blog post!
I'm actually not a writer OR a parent, yet I agree with the sentiment wholeheartedly. You see, I work from home--which must mean that I get to sleep in every morning, work as much or as little as I want to, wear my pajamas all day, and of course I'm free ANYtime to watch your kid/go out to lunch/drive you to the airport, right? (Admittedly, I do wear my pajamas most days. But the rest is all wrong!)
Posted by: Kandice at April 18, 2012 5:54 PMIsn't The Golden Compass great? That sock is zooming along. I'm so happy to be able to read and knit (stockinette). Really enjoyed your piece on Cari's blog - the same holds true for those of us trying to be knitwear designers: "You can knit anywhere! That's just great." Yes, but I can't grade a pattern across seven sizes with a bajillion cables running through it at the playground. Some days I dream of buying work clothes and going to an office again :) But then I wouldn't be so self-righteous about making home-made blondies at 10:00 the night before the bake sale. I'd buy the completely artificial cupcakes at the grocery that the kids are always begging for.
Posted by: Kathleen at April 18, 2012 5:55 PMI love it! What sock yarn are you using?
Posted by: Cat at April 18, 2012 5:59 PMThe flight to Vancouver always seems way longer than I expect it to be - must remember to bring my sock next time! (but alas, I have no iPad - must get on that. I'm a librarian - I should experiment with ALL forms of reading device:-B and if it facilitates knitting, that is just a side benefit:-B)
http://bronwenreads.wordpress.com
Posted by: Bronwen@Bronwenreads at April 18, 2012 6:01 PMHee! I do the same thing.
Just had vacation and had a lovely long train/flight/flight/train to hook up with my family. Showed them the sock with verbal footnotes. Train to Boston: toe, Boston to Amsterdam:foot & gusset increases, Amsterdam to Zurich: heel turn & decreases, Zurich to Lucerne: a bit of leg. It's a wonderful way to mark time!
Posted by: Sunidesus at April 18, 2012 6:06 PMThose self pattern sock yarns are so much fun, it also makes people do a double take, till they see that the yarn is doing all the work.
There is a BIG craft store chain in Australia called "Spotlight", they have about 7 different yarns like this with samples knitted up to show the result,so I am sure US and Cananda would have craft stores that have this.
Off topic, how are you enjoying the book? I, for one, loved the series and have been pressing my nephews and nieces to read them also.
*pets the sock and names it George*
Posted by: Joey B. at April 18, 2012 6:13 PMI'd been meaning to catch up with Primeval for quite a while. Finally dug into it about a month ago on netflix and positively inhaled the entire run!
Posted by: Caren at April 18, 2012 6:20 PMYou are amazing and I always refer to your cheat sheet for socks from " Knitting Rules". Enjoy Vancouver. I wish we were allowed to knit on planes !! Oh well.
Posted by: Aussie Maree at April 18, 2012 6:24 PMHoly crap you are fast. I bow to you. "I'm not worthy!"
Posted by: Sharon at April 18, 2012 6:26 PMI would also like to know what yarn that is :)
Posted by: melissa at April 18, 2012 6:29 PMThis is my first post to you. I've been reading your BLOG for a few weeks. I read your current post then have been going back to your first post in 2004 and am "catching up" I actually began purchasing your books before I found the blog. Love the books. I was chuckling while reading in bed and woke up my husband.
I want to thank you for making me laugh and sharing your humor and your life. I've only been knitting for a few months now (very late bloomer) but feel good to know that even a seasoned knitter still makes mistakes and needs to frog it.
Great article over on Cari's blog, love the perspective.
Love the socks.
Stephanie, I'm awed by how fast (and well) you knit. My inflight knitting would be around a third of that. My hand-knitted hat is off to you!
Posted by: Lark at April 18, 2012 6:35 PMWhat a lovely sock! All the stripey colors look wonderful. I am not nearly as fast...
On a totally unrelated note, I just finished Inheritance by Christopher Paolini, and all of the knitting references in the book made me really happy. Did you have something to do with that? :D
Posted by: Sunshine at April 18, 2012 6:36 PMwow, you knit fast. I also liked your Writer with kids blog post. I don't have kids, although i telecommute, so i get some of the same eye rolls. People think i laze around all day, eating bon-bons. Um, okay. So that would explain why i'm on a conference call at 2 a.m. my time because i'm the only person on the project who's not based in Europe...
Posted by: megan at April 18, 2012 6:39 PMI forgot to add that I LOVED the piece on writing with kids. It goes for all kinds of other work-from-home jobs, too.
Posted by: Lark at April 18, 2012 6:44 PMI loved the movie Golden Compass but my brother said it pales to the book series, I wish they would make another, but too many people got stuck on magic and daemons. I also desperately wish I could knit that fast.
Posted by: Jen at April 18, 2012 6:50 PMOMG, that's only 5 hours work? Seriously?
I knit WAY too slowly. I think my last pair of socks took about 24-30 hours total (if I add up all the time)
Posted by: Ann S. at April 18, 2012 6:55 PMMy dad worked from home, from when I was 9. We still had a nanny until I was 16 (my sibs were younger and I had too much to do myself to be childcare). Even after that, or on days that the nanny wasn't there, it was absolutely a Fixed Rule that you Did Not Bother Dad in his office unless there was copious vomit or blood or a broken bone (none of which ever happened, fortunately).
Posted by: ephemerella at April 18, 2012 7:05 PMI also covet that sock yarn. Is it Opal?
Posted by: Rebecca Mc. at April 18, 2012 7:12 PMHi are you able to post the pattern for the cute garter stitch baby sweater that was in you blog dec 2010 jan 2011? or do you have the name of pattern and ot the book? I would love to make it
Thanks so much!!!!!
Yay Primeval? Do you love Connor as much as I do?
Posted by: Christina at April 18, 2012 7:32 PMKandace @5:54 speaks for me! I left a post for you on the other blog. Bravo, Stephanie.
Posted by: JodyO at April 18, 2012 7:42 PMHow do you knit for so long without your hands hurting?? I can never manage to knit for more than thirty minutes before my hands start killing me. :(
Posted by: Mina at April 18, 2012 8:17 PMI loooove that yarn.
Hope you took a few glances out the window, too, at the Great Lakes, Prairies, Rockies and Coastline.
Posted by: Susan D at April 18, 2012 8:22 PMThis is why we think you warp time.
(I remember when you knit that sweater.)
Thanks for the thoughtful post of working at home. Very helpful to more mothers than you know.
Posted by: Juliet in Grand Rapids at April 18, 2012 8:44 PMI really wish you wouldn't do that to me. I feel like some paleolithic proto-knit-being, stuck in time. It takes me a MONTH to get that far, IF I dedicate every free second to a sock....
You're just disgusting. :)
ps..nice yarn :)
Posted by: onafixedincome at April 18, 2012 9:21 PMI love reading on my iPad so much. Between being backlit and staying open while I read, instead of flipping shut like regular books, I feel like it's been a missing piece of my life (until last Christmas, anyway). Nice sock :)
Posted by: Meredith at April 18, 2012 9:31 PMOh don't tell me... you came to Vancouver to cheer on the Canucks? ;-D
Posted by: Gaile at April 18, 2012 9:44 PMI LOVED THE GOLDEN COMPASS LOVED IT LOVED IT LOVED IT!!!
Posted by: MaryB in Richmond at April 18, 2012 10:12 PMYou are insanely fast!!!! I have definitely spent more than a day full of hours on these socks I am working on...and I am only starting the heel flap now!!!
What are you doing here in Van?! Are you doing a book signing or something that I could GO TO & MEET YOU!??! :)
Posted by: Michelle at April 18, 2012 10:34 PMOh, hell. Now you've got me depressed. If I even tried to knit that fast, for that long, with that size needles, I'd have to undergo emergency crappy tunnel surgery. So, do you also leap over buildings in a single bound?
Posted by: Anonymous, too at April 18, 2012 10:43 PMWhy do airplanes always look so clean in your photographs? It's quite surprising!
Posted by: Linda in Waterloo at April 18, 2012 11:22 PMIf there was a sock knitting olympic event, you would BLITZ it my friend! As is, I'm struggling away in the Knitted Dress marathon...
Posted by: Leisl at April 19, 2012 12:46 AMYou sock is pretty. What is the colorway?
Posted by: Brandi at April 19, 2012 7:01 AMBeautiful sock what yarn is that???
Posted by: Vickie Thomas at April 19, 2012 8:26 AMI LOVE the wool and oh yeah, you are a speed demon with those needles! I so appreciate your inspiration to knit at every chance you get...... I try but I get so fractured in my thoughts and organizational skills that I end up leaving my knitting bag by the door and not realize it till there is dead time and I reach for it and it is not there!
You are the woman of the hour!
Posted by: Kathy at April 19, 2012 8:29 AMAwesome photos. I love seeing the sock unfold.
Posted by: Seanna Lea at April 19, 2012 8:35 AMThe one thing I have long lamented was not being able to read and knit (two of my favorite things in the world) at the same time, because it is impossible to hold a book and turn pages while knitting. However, your use of an iPad just made me realize that I do have a Kindle now, and perhaps I could challenge myself to give it a try! Of course, I'm still I pretty amateur knitter, so I probably couldn't do anything other than stockinette, but it's worth a shot!
Also, I'm going on vacation next week and considering not brining my knitting because I'm only bringing a carry-on and was scared they might take away my needles at security, but I think you've convinced me to risk it!
Posted by: Kirra at April 19, 2012 8:39 AMbee-YOO-ti-ful sock! pattern name? enjoyed the other blog postings too... yours and some of the others i scanned are the type of writing that requires reflecting before posting a response. so much to mull over... That means it was good and meaningful writing! :)
Posted by: christine m. east of toronto at April 19, 2012 9:02 AMWoot woot on the yarn. I recognized it from the first picture before I scrolled down. My socks started in the same place. It knits up beautifully and looks great!! Cheers, you!
Posted by: Severin at April 19, 2012 9:15 AMYour speed truly impresses me. Completely amazed.
Posted by: Heather T at April 19, 2012 9:19 AMLot's to be said for travel/knitting time. What's the yarn? It's working up beautifully.
Your sock, your sock knitting prowess, and you are inspirational.
YikesImustcastonasockrightnow!
Wouldn't the wavy dot pattern on the seatback in your 2nd sock-in-progress photo make for an interesting knit project? waves of yarnovers in a field of garter stitch? or dotty waves in two shades of blue on stockinette? hmmmm . . .
Posted by: tiffanie at April 19, 2012 12:47 PMHow can you read and knit? Gosh, I wish I could do that! I hate having to make the decision between my two favorite things.
Posted by: Elena at April 19, 2012 4:16 PMI hope you're liking 'The Golden Compass', I thought it was a wonderful book and one I've read at least three times now.
Posted by: Awfulknitter at April 19, 2012 4:16 PMI love the socks and am insanely jelous that you are allowed to knit on planes, over here in Oz it is still banned and I sit twiddling my thumbs :o) Enjoy Sock Camp.
Posted by: jane C at April 19, 2012 6:37 PMSo I am travelling today (in Canada), and in the airport (Castlegar, BC, with Air Canada Jazz, after security) I saw a sign of "forbidden" articles (ie. articles to be checked). Along with scissors etc, they had a picture of knitting needles! Not sure what to make of it... Do you know anything about it?
Posted by: Louise at April 19, 2012 6:42 PMHello,
Lovely fast sock. About the work at home/parenting thing, as long as your spouse gets it, the rest of the world just needs to hear "No" when appropriate. I know the "No" thing is hard for you, but it is the real cure.
Hugs,
Julie in San Diego
To Elena at 4:16 - Audiobooks!! I read while I cook, weave, sort laundry and so forth. I do not read while I drive, however, as I discovered that I am just a slight amount distracted and I believe it is not safe. But if I am going to be in the car waiting for a ferry, or extra time between appointments, out comes the "book machine." There are lots of audiobooks out there both free and for a fee.
Posted by: Trish at April 19, 2012 8:50 PMBTW, The Golden Compass is GREAT as an audio book.
Posted by: Abby at April 19, 2012 9:40 PMKirra @8:38... Yes! Do give it a try! I've had an ebook reader for 3/4 years now and one of my favorite things about it is that I can knit while I read (other favorite thing is that it remembers where I was when I inevitably fall asleep reading). Only stockinette though, anything more complicated is TV knitting (at least for me).
Posted by: Sunidesus at April 19, 2012 10:44 PMWish i could knit that fast.
Lovely colorway.
Sunidesus- Haha I know what you mean about losing your spot when you fall asleep reading. I do that all the time. Good thing I don't fall asleep knitting!
Posted by: Kirra at April 20, 2012 1:35 PMAuntie just visited from Boise, airport confiscated crochet hook! I live in San Diego.
Posted by: Frizzielizzie at April 20, 2012 9:25 PMI love those needles. Are they wood?
Posted by: Kt at April 21, 2012 2:23 AMahhh.... a woman after my own heart. Primeval - LOVE IT! A great fun show to watch. The Golden Compass, I am such a geek that when the movie came out, I knew what it was 10 seconds into the trailer. My kids thought I was odd, but I love that series. May have to go back and read them again this summer.
Posted by: Pamela at April 23, 2012 12:02 PMGolden Compass is a wonderful book! Be sure to read the other 2....GC is really just a set up to the rest.
Posted by: alexis at April 23, 2012 4:45 PMLove Primeval AND your socks!
Posted by: Melissa at April 24, 2012 11:22 AMThe fact that you watch Primeval makes me unreasonably happy.
Posted by: stitchpunk at April 25, 2012 7:59 PMJust discovered your blog--though I've been reading your book on my kindle for a couple of days now and thoroughly enjoying it. This is totally inspiring me to start knitting again. I've got yarn, I've got needles, but I got bored making hats last winter and didn't finish the last one. Of course, that means I can't start a new project until it's done. However, I'm going to tackle it tonight so I can get back to socks and try out that lovely shawl. Yay!
Posted by: AkJane at April 26, 2012 6:30 PM"I knit while I read a book"
Seriously?!?
I bow to your superior knit-fu. I am not worthy.
Ooh, love that yarn, and Golden Compass!
(I'm A Little Behind on the blog...)
Posted by: ashpags at May 3, 2012 3:20 PM