Good Morning friends, and it is a very good morning, full of hope and possibility - or maybe it just feels that way because I'm in beautiful Vancouver drinking a cup of coffee and looking at the North Shore Mountains, instead of out riding a bike. (Don't worry, I'm still training. I'm headed to the stationary bike in the gym in a few minutes. At least I've never fallen off one of those.)
It must be how beautifully yesterday went that's got me in such a great mood, because I'm not even totally stressed out about the knitting pickle I find myself in, and make no mistake, I should be. Yesterday morning I got up and surveyed all that is in the works around here, and I made a big pile of knitting, I packed Omelet, and Lizette, and the stuff to start Flow, and then a sock and then another skein of sock yarn, and then thought something like "Oh right, that sweater for Marlowe" and started to add more yarn, and then wondered if I should bring my wheel, because it is the Tour de Fleece.
Then I stepped back, looked at that, and I can't really explain what happened next. I suppose that I overthought it. I suppose I looked at the last eighty-seven thousand times that I've packed way, way more yarn than I needed, and I thought about the last week, where I thought I was going to get so much knitting done and didn't hardly get any, and I looked at my itinerary and thought "You're busy doofus" and then I did something that in retrospect makes me wonder if I hit my head harder than I thought on that last ride.
I took out the baby sweater yarn. I took out the sock - I forgot about the wheel, and only packed Omelet, Lizette, and Flow. (I did put a package of sock needles in my purse just in case there was some sort of emergency. I am still somewhat myself.) I've been trying to finish those three things for weeks, and despite my best effors, they've been un-finishable. Heck, Flow was un-startable. It was more than enough I told myself. Don't overpack, I said.
I zipped the bag, and left.
About an hour later, having been through security and posted to the blog, I sat in the airport waiting to board my flight, and I took out my knitting. I realized instantly that I'd made a mistake. First of all, I thought there was another chart to do on Omelet. I don't know why I thought that, there isn't. There's never been. I had only about ten rows and a cast off to go - and knitters, it was a 5 hour flight, and- I realized with horror, It was the only knitting I had in my bag. Panic swept over me like a wave before I got a hold of myself.
There was nothing for it, and somehow it all worked out anyway. I finished the knitting on the plane - the last few stitches as I landed in Vancouver, the cast off as I arrived at my hotel. 
Obviously it needs a proper blocking, but I'll worry about that when I get home. I was right smug with how it all worked out, and I turned to pick up Flow and make a start on it.
Flow's that cool tank from Norah Gaughan, and I love it. It's a simple knit, making it a really good foil for Lizette, which is sort of at a fussy part. I thought it would be a great thing to have to just churn away on - and I took it out of my suitcase, cast on, immediately realized my needle size was wrong-ish, and did a little gauge swatch. Totally wrong. I had 5mm, I need 4.5mm, and I can't believe someone who's been shafted a million times by this an experienced knitter like me didn't pack a range of needles - or swatch first, but that's another affliction. I tried not to panic. In my teaching stuff there's a pile of needles for students to borrow if they're stuck. Surely one set was 4.5mm? Nope. I resolved to worry about it the next day, and went to give my talk at the Vancouver Library. They look like this, and a big high five to Amanda and Fiona of Knit Social for doing an amazing job. (They seem like the kind of women who would always pack a range of needles.) 
I had a very nice time giving the talk - and then went back to the hotel and knit for a tiny bit. Since I coudn't start Flow, I worked on Lizette. I knew I had a million repeats of a chart to do before something else happened, and then two whole sleeves, so that was enough knitting to hold me.
Wrong. I have only a few repeats of a chart to go, and the sleeves are tiny, and I have all day today to get through and not only that but tomorrow is a travel day and Lizette is not going to cut it, and now that I think about it, I think that Flow isn't either, not when you think about coming home again, and really, why didn't I think about that? I'm trying not to panic, since there's a craft store near the hotel, and after I go to the gym I'm going to walk over and try to get some needles, and tomorrow I land at A Verb for Keeping Warm, and I'm pretty freakin' sure I can get a backup skein there to take on the plane home, in case I finish all of this.
The crazy thing is that as I typed that, I know what's really going to happen. I'm going to be so worried that I'll run out of knitting that I'll buy more knitting, but then I won't run out of knitting after all, because I have been doing this for a while and I'm probably right, and then ....
I guess I don't have to ever really wonder why the stash doesn't shrink.