Now I know why he is my ex !

My ex husband called around today to see how I was and ask about the impending operation. He did plant the Hibiscus for me that Eadaoin had bought me and cut the top of the hedge that I couldn't quite reach but then started his usual rant about how my house was cluttered. He used to like the house with everything in it's place and when we were married and I spent years running around constantly tidying and cleaning to try to please his exacting standards. I was a nervous wreck every time he came home as he would always find something he didn't like and criticize. But hang on this is now my house and I can have it the way I want. I can't do the housework even to my usual standards at the moment so telling me that every surface is cluttered and I should get rid of a pile of stuff does not come under the heading of cheering up the depressed. I did clear him a small space in the middle of my knitting and crochet on the coffee table to put his beaker of coffee down so what more does he want?

The last straw was when he said he couldn't see the point of hand knitting socks. I had just tipped out my sock wool pile onto the table just before he arrived so that didn't sit well either! Not seeing the point of hand knitting socks? Now I truly know that we were never suited. Keeping my knitting and crochet neatly in a basket? No - I am creative I like my stuff around me so I can switch projects at a moment's notice. Arghh. I am glad I made him cut the hedge now! Wish it had been the whole hedge and not just the top. I hope he doesn't call around for another couple of months although next time the house will be worse as I will be in my 3 months no housework at all after my operation period! If he doesn't like it then he can just get the hoover out and do it for me!!! On second thoughts no - I would wind up with everything he thought unnecessary in the bin. You can imagine how many rows we used to have about my knitting pattern collection! Thank God I never caved in over those. Ya Boo Alan I still have most of those - all 4 storage boxes of them!

Rant over. Aren't these socks just simply gorgeous. I have almost managed to pair them up colourwise. They have been a joy to knit and so fast. Less than a week which isn't bad for me as I have been doing crochet also. They are definitely a house or boot sock as they are thicker than any other sock I have knitted. They are in Regia 6ply Crazy Colour 5404 if anyone wants to know the specifics and I just LOVE the colours. I have thinner sock wool to knit her other pair in but I think I am already using the needles for the socks for myself that I started a week ago and left to do Vic's socks. Maybe I will finish mine off first or maybe I will put them onto bamboo needles just to store them as I love knitting with my shiny Knit Picks needles. Knitting just flows off then and I knit so much faster - well except with lace where if I drop a stitch then it unravels a mile a minute. Then I do fall out with them slightly.

I will definitely buy some of the Regia yarn for myself but as I have all the balls and skeins in the last photo to knit I think I had better curb my buying instinct for a while. I have won a £5 voucher for Amazon books so I will no doubt be browsing on there very shortly to see which book that will go towards.

I went to the Salford Arms knit out last night. The knitted chandelier is now taking shape and one of the girls has a machine that knits i cord at a remarkable rate and so was churning out miles of the stuff. She just cranks a little handle and out churns i cord. There is even a mini weight to hold the right tension as it flows ever downwards. It's quite a neat gadget but not something that most knitters would ever really need on a daily basis. Perhaps if a club bought one for communal use it would be OK.

Today is lovely and sunny but a little windy. I am off to walk Buster in the sunshine before deciding which socks to knit next. I have finished the body of Jewel and just have the bottoms of the sleeves to crochet next. I think I will have to narrow them slightly otherwise they might be a bit wide at the cuff. I can see another try on necessary before I continue with those. That's the beauty of top down crochet. not only is there no seaming but trying on at every stage makes the garment so easily adapted to fit different body shapes. I can really see her point in that. I just wish the penny would drop with her instructions.