It was a typical Thursday night...

I dropped the teen off at home after work/school and went to the Haus of Yarn for a bit of knitting and catching up. Everything seemed typical when I walked in. The usual suspects were at the front table knitting and chatting, while some were wondering about doing a bit of shopping. It seemed very...well...Thursday.

Then it hit me.

Something was different. Something was very, very different and not as it was last Thursday. They should have warned me. On the other hand I should have been expecting it. I just wasn't totally prepared.

EEEK!!!!

My hats and patterns on display at a yarn shop!

This is So! Dang! Cool!

Many thanks to Liana who had her camera phone handy and was kind enough to snap a couple photos for me.

The White Death, January 2010

Coming out of the North, the White Death reached the borders of Tennessee in the winter of 2010 unleashing a rampage of terror and panic across the state – unprecedented in recorded history. By the time the disaster played itself out less than twenty-four hours later, anywhere between 78% and 94% of the region’s milk and bread supply was depleted. The residents of Nashville had fallen victim to the calamity.

White Death Variants:
The White Death presents itself in three interrelated forms. The Minaccia Variant (the most common) derives its name from the Italian word for threat. This “threat variant” is the most severe of the White Death variants forcing a vast percentage of the populace to run to the nearest grocery store to purchase bread and milk. A majority of the work force abandon their jobs and flee for the perceived safety of home. This “run for your life, but don’t forget the bread and milk” mentality can cause irreparable harm to southern society by invoking amused scorn and ridicule from residents of northern climes.

A second variation – Schnee Tag, which is a derivative of the German word for snow day – has been known to cause overwhelming joy and giddiness in children while simultaneously striking terror in the hearts of all adults, especially parents. This variant manifests itself in entire school systems ceasing to operate for days at a time. Having no defense or understanding of the cause of the Schnee Tag, parents caught in the onslaught of sledding and building human likenesses out of snow are bewildered, panicked and finally devastated. Children, however, experience an unnatural exhilaration and lose all ability to know when to come in from the cold. Currently, Swedish scientists are studying how neglecting to complete school assignments for the following day may incapacitate this variant. Results are inconclusive.

The Glace Noir variant, perhaps the most deadly of all the variants, presents itself in the form of a very thin layer of ice on the roads and bridges in the impacted area. Nothing can overcome or alleviate this deadly variant except for the spraying of thousands of gallons of saltwater substance on highly traveled routes. Ignoring the pleadings of meteorologists and transportation officials, an enormous number of ignorant men and women take to their automobiles and consequently end up plummeting off the roadway. Thus, causing automobile towing professionals to risk life and limb to assist in recovering vehicles that succumbed to the Glace Noir variant. In most cases very few automobiles escape without permanent damage in the appearance of dents and scrapes.

Cure for the White Death:
The violence of the White Death is such that the diseased quickly communicate it to the healthy who come near them. To speak to, go near, or read an e-mail from the afflicted quickly brings infection and a common terror to the living (i.e., herd mentality). With each return of the White Death the variants mutate, growing stronger and manifesting themselves at a quicker and more expansive rate than before. At this time there is no known cure for the White Death. However, insolated sectors of the region’s populace have survived unscathed by forgoing the diet of bread and milk and replacing it with beer and wine. Modern science has yet to validate this correlation.

Now, that's more like it!

Still no snow, but that's a mere technicality.

Not cool

The light blue counties have not closed schools for tomorrow. Dark blue counties have already called a snow day. Davidson County is the light blue one in the middle.

"You have GOT to be kidding!"

Have I mentioned that the first flake has not fallen?

Pure torture

When do you think it will start?
How much do you think we'll get?
The people at the weather channel don't know what they're talking about.
I'll bet we won't get any at all.
How much do you think we'll get?
Will we have school tomorrow?
I'm not even going to think about it anymore.

Issued by The National Weather Service
Nashville, TN
12:27 pm CST, Wed.,
Jan. 6, 2010

... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 3 AM TO
6 PM CST THURSDAY...

* TIMING... 3 AM CST THURSDAY TO 6 PM CST THURSDAY

* MAIN IMPACT... 1 TO 3 INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATION. THE SNOWFALL WILL STICK TO ROAD SURFACES WITH NO MELTING... AND STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS WILL CAUSE A PERIOD OF BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. THIS WILL CAUSE TRAVEL PROBLEMS OR DELAYS ACROSS THE MID STATE.

* OTHER IMPACTS... A SURGE OF ARCTIC AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE MID STATE IN THE WAKE OF THE SYSTEM AND WILL DRIVE TEMPERATURES INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS FRIDAY NIGHT... WITH WIND CHILL READINGS BELOW ZERO.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF SNOW WILL CAUSE TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR SLIPPERY ROADS AND LIMITED VISIBILITIES... AND USE CAUTION WHILE DRIVING.

&&

More Information
... SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL LIKELY TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON...

A STRONG WINTER STORM SYSTEM WILL SPREAD SNOW ACROSS MIDDLE TENNESSEE BEGINNING LATE TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON.

When do you think it will start?



This is worse than waiting for Santa Claus.

Hot for teacher

Yea, that's a strange title for a blog post, but it's the first thing that popped into my head when thought of something to do with teacher.

Here are the classes I'm teaching at Haus of Yarn this year. Give the shop a call if you want to sign up for any (or all) of them. All dates are 2010.

Some Assembly Required
Experience: Must be able to knit, purl, cast on, bind off, follow a simple pattern
Techniques learned: Quick and painless finishing techniques! Invisible side and shoulder seams, picking up stitches for button bands and necklines, button holes, weaving in ends. If you have a finishing problem, bring your project and we’ll figure it out.
Materials: Swatch yarns in worsted weight preferably wool or wool blend, 24” or longer circular needle 2 sizes smaller than the needles used for swatches, tapestry needle, scissors
Homework required (instructions will be given when student signs-up)
Class Cost: $45 for two 2-hour sessions with Chris
Scheduled Dates:
Wednesday February 17, 24 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Thursday April 22, 29 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm

Got Gauge?
Experience: all levels
Techniques learned: Why is gauge so important? If you’ve ever wondered, you should probably come to this class. We will walk you through yarn substitutions, as well as the math involved in calculating gauge and size. We will also learn a fun way to swatch.
Materials: Solid worsted weight wool (enough for swatching), several sets of needles sizes US 6 – 9. Scratch paper, pencil, and calculator
Class Cost: $25 for 1 two-hour session with Chris
Scheduled Dates: Monday January 11 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Thursday February 18 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Monday April 5 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm

Great Beginnings (Ways to Cast On)
Experience: Must be able to knit and purl
Techniques learned: Expand your knitting repertoire with more ways to cast on! We’ll explore knitted and cable cast-on, continental or “long-tail” cast-on, Norwegian cast-on, tubular (extra stretchy) cast-on, decorative Channel Island cast-on, crochet chain provisional cast-on.
Materials: Two or three contrasting colors of worsted weight wool or wool blend yarn in light, solid colors. Straight or circular needles and crochet hook in size appropriate for yarn. Additional needles in various sizes (slightly smaller or larger) may be helpful for experimenting.
Class Cost: $30 for 1 two-hour session with Chris
Scheduled Dates: Monday February 8 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Monday April 12 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm

Quick and Chunky Ear Flap Hat
Experience: Must be able to cast on, knit, purl, follow a simple pattern
Techniques learned: The ear flap hat is hot, hot, HOT with skiers and snowboarders. Knit this super cozy hat using Lamb’s Pride Bulky yarn. This hat is knit in the round with circular needles and double-pointed needles. Knit in a solid color or customize with a simple Fair Isle pattern.
Materials: Lamb’s Pride Bulky yarn*, pattern, size US 13 DPNs and 16” circular, size J or K crochet hook
Class Cost: $30 for 1 two-hour session with Chris
Scheduled Dates: Monday January 18, 25 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Monday February 22, March 1 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm

Super Simple Intarsia Scarf
Experience: Must be able to knit and purl
Techniques learned: This is the perfect class for beginners who want to try the Intarsia technique but have been afraid of all that tangled yarn. We will get you started on a simple vertical-striped scarf using 2 or 3 different colors of bulky yarn. Learn tricks that will make this technique as easy as it is beautiful!
Materials: Pattern, appropriate yarns*, locking stitch markers, darning needle, appropriate hook Class Cost: $30 for 1 two-hour session with Chris
Scheduled Dates: Thursday January 14 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Thursday April 8 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm
Wednesday May 5 time: 5:30 - 7:30pm

New year, new ramblings

Happy New Year, dear reader(s)!

Last night I was out with friends and someone brought up resolutions. They were surprised that I don't make them. I've made them before and for the life of me can't remember what they were or if I stuck to them. No resolutions for me this year. However, I do have a list of things I'd like to accomplish. The biggie this year is to get the garage organized into useable space. I plan on setting up my dying studio out there, complete with running water... (and what color is the sky in my world?) I also want to organize the guest room and get rid of stuff I don't use any longer. It's easy to talk big right now, but we'll see how it goes when it comes down to the actual "doing". Yes, we shall see...

But I have made a bit of a start. I listed some of the stuff on Craigslist. This will be interesting....there are some weird-ass strange folks out there. For those who are interested:
Igloo style dog house
HP photosmart 7350 color printer
Critter Trail II hamster cage/habitat plus expansion pieces
2-Bike Carrier/Rack for car trunk
...more to come...
And I will not drive to Murfreesboro, nor will I deliver an item to a hospital room. I want to get rid of these things, but seriously.

On to knitting news! This winter I've taken on more classes at Haus of Yarn. I'm teaching the finishing class again and have added 4 other classes--simple intarsia scarf, quick and chunky ear flap hat, different ways to cast on, and a class on understanding gauge. The shop has a great selection of classes and teachers this season. I still can't believe I'm part of their line-up! Pinch me!!

The ear flap hat class has me the most excited. The class is a result of the hat I made for Zack last year. Here's the pink version which can easily be knit in a weekend.

This pattern will be available at Haus of Yarn in the next week or so. I will also post it to Ravelry. It's a super fun pattern!

Another goal of mine is to post more info on my blog. I've gotten rather sporadic lately and hope to change that. I have enough projects going that finding material to write about should not be an issue. It's finding the time to write, take/upload/crop photos, but heck, who needs sleep?

Best wishes for 2010!!