Projects on my plate

I started this post yesterday (Thursday, as the date above shows), a few hours before we got hit with one of the scariest thunderstorms to hit the Pittsburgh area in my recent memory. Around 3pm, round two of severe storms for the day moved over the West Virginia/Pennsylvania border, moving southeast but north of downtown Pittsburgh, and blossomed into a huge severe storm, complete with a tornado warning. (We very rarely see tornado warnings, let alone an actual tornado) It was as dark as night outside, very windy with heavy, heavy rain. The industrial park where I work was in the direct path of this storm, so they herded us all downstairs to the manufacturing floor just to be safe. I hate thunderstorms as it is, so this was not a fun day.

I'm not sure if there actually was a tornado (and if there was, we don't see much more than an F0). There were lots of trees and branches and debris everywhere. The typical locations were flooded. Thankfully, there were just minor injuries and, as far as I've heard, no fatalities. It took almost two hours to get home (usually 35-40min). Some traffic lights were working, and some were out, some roads were flooded, some had a lot of debris, and the occasional fender bender, all of which made traffic terrible. (Pittsburgh doesn't have a highway beltway system like other cities, just a handful or so of main thoroughfares spoking outward from the city and lots of back roads, which, when something like this happens, makes traffic very difficult).

Once we got closer to home, it was like being in a different country. No debris, no flooding, all traffic lights working. The worst of the storm skimmed a bit south of our house. We did get a lot of rain, and we must have lost power at some point, because my coffeemaker was blinking 12:00 and the microwave was asking to be RESET. I could tell it had been a long day for Itchey - she likes thunderstorms as much as I do! :o)
Abner just wanted his dinner.


Onto more fun subject matter:

This week is Santa of the Forest's turn on the Xstitch rotation. I did some fill in on Mr. Bear's paw and arm, and I want to get a little more done on Santa's cape in the bottom right of the picture.




Lots of knitting content to follow!

1. I picked up one of my 'Forgotten Socks'. The first sock was done maybe a year ago, and I only put the starting stitches in on the cuff. To clean up those skeletons in my knitting basket, I'm going to get that 2nd sock done. I'm using Lion Brand Microspun (on US#3 DPNs), and I'm making these to be slipper socks because they're so soft and cushy.




2. My pair of Jaywalkers for the KAL are underway. I opted for the Austermann yarn (over the Trekking XXL - pics in a previous post) because it's self-striping, and from some of the finished Jaywalkers I've seen, the stripes tend to enhance the zig-zag pattern of the sock.




3. I also cast on a cardigan similar to Mum's, but this one is for me. It's a Knitting Pure and Simple Vneck cardigan (I really like their patterns), while Mum's has a rounded neckline. It's actually in the same yarn that I used for Mum's Cardi, but in a deep red (like a Maple leaf in fall, but a little lighter than what my picture shows). I'm using US#9 needles so it won't be as densely knit as Mum's sweater.




After all the wild weather we've had this week, this weekend is supposed to be lovely - sunny with low humidity. If you bet, put your money on that part of my weekend will include stitching out on the deck. :o)