BAMBOO WILL WEAR OUT

Bamboo needles wear out. I should have been prepared. I bought my first pair very reluctantly, thinking that the shafts would not be sturdy enough, and they soon became my favorites. Metal knitting needles have become my absolutely, avoided-whenever-possible, last choice, and plastic needles are hardly any better.

Sadly, I've now discovered, the points will eventually show some wear. The erosion is visible, as the points are now misshapen, but even worse, the new irregular shape creates an inaudible click at every stitch. ("Inaudible click" might be an oxymoron, but you knitters know what I mean.)

On a website about recycling I once read that any clever person could find a new use for the chopsticks they received at an oriental restaurant by converting them into knitting needles. Shaping the points was the hardest part, it was admitted, and the resulting needles might be a tad shorter, but after all, the motivation was recycling, not knitting.

The next question is, how does one recycle used bamboo knitting needles? Put them aside for the moment. Sooner or later someone, perhaps a child, will express an interest in learning to knit. Start them out with the the less-than-perfect bamboo needles, but point out that they will want to get a new pair of their own as soon as they get the hang of the craft.

OBSTINATE YARN

All you knitters know what uncooperative yarn is -- it's a curse and an abomination. If it's goat yarn, you could blame the source. Or camel yarn -- I had some of that yarn one time. But acrylic stuff? I've used other yarns of this brand before, and had no trouble, but this particular skein has been a trouble-maker from the start. Non-knitters never seem to understand knitting from the inside out, where you pull the yarn from the center of the skein. Some manufacturers make it easy to find that inside end of the skein, others like to turn it into a game of hide-and-seek. This elusive end didn't reveal itself until I had pulled out nearly half of the yarn from the center. Your immediate goal becomes knitting up all those loose strands until you reach that satisfying moment when you can neatly pull the yarn from the center. I had almost finished the hat before I reached that point.

I expected smooth going, uninterrupted ease. But no way. That stubborn skein still refused to let go of its yarn. Every little tug to get enough length to continue knitting met with fierce resistence. I'm three-quarters through the skein now -- how long will it continue to fight me back?

KNITTING AND THE INTERNET

It's amazing how much knitting I can finish while sitting in front of my computer screen. And I'm not just looking up new knitting patterns.

Just got my computer back from the repair shop, but drat, it's no faster than it was before. Still takes an incredible amount of time to switch to the next screen.

While I wait, I'm churning out hats in several sizes, some blue baby caps, and some red and blue (think KU) and mixed purple (think K-State) hats for both kids and adults. Not to mention the old tried and true ankle warmers, legwarmers, boot toppers.

We are facing changes in the way television, telephone, and internet services are provided for this household. If the speed is improved, it sure will eat into my knitting time.

I GOT CARRIED AWAY . . . .

The muse did it. The writer's muse. You know how you get to thinking about one thing while you're doing another. The last few days I've been deep into thoughts about my current WIP, my cozy Leavenworth mystery, "It's Scary, Going Back Home," (www.leavenworthmysteries.blogspot.com) and just kept knitting . . . and knitting . . . and knitting . . . and . . .

Those ankle warmers are almost leg warmers. Not to worry, there will be some long-legged person who will think long ankle warmers are the cat's meow.

Early Start on Winter

I'm getting an early start on winter. Found a bag of stash in the closet, and I'm now working on a pair of blue wool ankle warmers. I think I've still got a bag of ankle warmers in the car, so if you encounter me at the postoffice or farmer's market, and you're feeling a spring chill, I can take care of you.

Most of my ankle warmers are made of synthetic threads, acrylics, but a few pairs are knit with wool yarn. Wool demands special care in washing, so if you'd rather not bother, stick with a synthetic thread. Some folks are allergic to wool, but if you are, you probably already know it.

Knitting as Fast as I Can

I'm knitting as fast as I can, and can hardly keep up. The warmers in "Aspen Print," a muted camouflage, are more popular than I would have imagined. I'm getting better about sewing up the finished knitted warmers.

I like the knitting, because my fingers go on automatic pilot and my brain is spinning up another chapter in my current book project. Knitting is fun, sewing is tedious.

It's All in the Name

It's all in the name. Next season, I'm going to offer "boot toppers" to my writing friends. Men get cold ankles, too, but they are loathe to don anything so sissy-sounding as ankle warmers.

Gotta educate those guys.

My Newest Poem

I sit
and knit.

Lots of ankle warmers. Last month I went to hear Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, who has made an astonishing writing career about knitting. She has written several books about knitting. Not how to knit. Not how-to books with patterns and instructions, but about what sets knitters apart from non-knitters.

I knit. A lot. I knit with a writing pad on my lap. If a stray thought about the book I'm trying to write comes into my head, I hasten to get it down on paper. While waiting for stray thoughts, I knit.

Sadly, I must be getting more knitting than writing done. Why else would I have bushel baskets full of ankle warmers? And I've only gotten to page ten on the novel I'm writing.

THE MAN IN YOUR LIFE HAS COLD FEET?

He needs a pair of camouflage ankle warmers.

These are fun to knit. It's fascinating to watch the greens and tans and browns and blacks meld into a pair of cool (no, not cool, but warm) ankle warmers.

If the guy in your life has cold feet, maybe he needs a pair of camouflage ankle warmers.