KNITTING WITHOUT DOG HAIR IS NOT AN OPTION

Regia Silk Color in two colors

Three different kinds of Lana Grossa Meilenweit

Three balls of Lana Grossa Mondo (extremely soft) to knit the Very Terhi Mittens by Yarnissima

Yup - I did a little bit of shopping... Just a little bit...

I am leaving for Garmisch this morning and since I'm too lazy to schlep the laptop, there won't be daily posts while I am gone. I'll be back on Tuesday - Germany has another bank holiday on Monday, the day after Whitsunday (which is the Sunday of the feast of Whitsun or Pentecost in the Christian liturgical year, observed 7 weeks after Easter).

YAY for that! And so, the daily posts will be on vacation, too. :-)

Posted at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This is the view from my current office. It's on the sixth floor of an office building close to the Hauptbahnhof - the main train station in Munich. You see a very old building in the center of the picture - well, actually you see the top of it?

This is a better picture of the building called Propyläen. It is located at the Königsplatz in Munich. And here is a little history on this square:

The square was designed at the command of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria by Karl von Fischer and laid out by Leo von Klenze with the "Doric" Propylaea (Propyläen; created as memorial for the accession of Otto of Greece) and the "Ionic" Glyptothek. The "Corinthian" State Museum of Classical Art was erected by Georg Friedich Ziebland, on its back St. Boniface's Abbey is situated.

The Lenbachhaus is situated at the north-west side of the square. The area around Königsplatz is today the home to the Kunstareal, Munich's gallery and museum quarter.

I went on a field trip today to buy some yarn... Stay tuned for what I found - just one thing for Steve:

You are going to love this issue. I like every single sweater.. And I think there are 25+...

And last but not least - I finished another pair of socks on my way home from work. The Boot Socks are done:

Project Stats:
Made for Me
Size: 8
Needle: US 2 / 2.75 mm Addi Turbo (Magic Loop)
Yarn: Schachenmayr Nomotta Regia Polar Color 6-ply / 6-fädig
How much? 1 skeins = 410.0 yards (374.9m)
Colorway: Rainbow colors

Comment: I have quite a bit yarn left over. I need to weigh how much it is but I'm guessing I could knit hat, maybe...

Posted at 1:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

It had to happen eventually... Day 12 and I finally started a new project... I brought extra yarn to Germany - stash yarn, of course!!! 2 skeins of sea silk that I bought at SAFF last year, 2 skeins of Malabrigo lace yarn, and a skein of Wollmeise sock yarn. After chatting online with Jen a couple of days ago and some brainstorming on patterns with her, I remembered that I had the Spring Things Shawl. And the lace knitters last night inspired me some more...

I woke up this morning at 6am and couldn't go back to sleep. So, I pulled out the Malabrigo lace yarn, the pattern and circular needles, and started the shawl. Yeah, call me crazy, I know, but a fresh brain in the morning is the best thing to start a lace project. I got through the first pattern repeat:

Tonight, I'm cooking for 4 people. My roomie is having coworkers over and volunteered me to cook... They must have tried the leftover pasta she brought to work one time this week for lunch and thought it was quite edible...

Thanks y'all for reading my little entries every day. I'm enjoying this enormously...

Posted at 8:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This is one of the many fountains in Munich. I walked by there today on my way to my first German knitting outing. I hooked up with Victor and his Stitch 'N Bitch group at a nice bar/restaurant called Cafe Mondial. Too bad the place will close at the end of June. The knitters were a very interesting group. Lots of lace and sock knitting, and two sweater knitters. Sorry no pictures - I was too timid to ask. I'll try again next time. Victor and I chatted for quite a bit, and I'm planning to visit him on Friday at the yarn store where he works. They also have a knitting group there Friday nights. Good planning. ;-)

Knitting with the group made me realize how much I miss my homie knitting buddies in Atlanta. I just keep telling myself - I'll be home soon. In a little more than 8 weeks.

Munich is so pretty in spring... Look at the pretty flower bed next to the fountain. I love all the different colors:

Posted at 4:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Hanging out with my roomie is the nicest part of my being away from home, I have to say. I took the candle picture after dinner tonight. We sat on her balcony with a glass of Pinot Grigio, actually I think we killed the bottle... We finally had to go inside a little while ago because it got too cold - even with a fleece sweater and a blanket... May in Germany is still freakin' cold...

It seems like we have years to talk about to catch up on. I love to cook and she is happy that someone is feeding her - good combination, right? We met in 1990 through work, it almost instantly clicked, and we became best friends. She was with me through some rough times and knows me well. It's interesting to go back in time and remember all the people and things.

I am tired now - remember, it's 6 hours ahead of Georgia time, so it's after 11 pm - way past my usual bedtime... Good night!

Posted at 5:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This was our dinner tonight - my roomie and I cooked together. We had some light pasta with lots of veggies and no meat, a salad and some yummy red wine. A nice way to chill out after a stressful Monday.

Plus, we finally got lucky and the sun was still out when we got home from work. Not like last week when there was a rainstorm every time we attempted to have dinner outside.

I realized this morning - my first week in Germany zoomed by really fast. One down, nine to go. AND - Hubby is going to be here soon. Yes, we have a spousal visit coming up. YAY for that! I'm already making plans what to do when he gets here. Lots of sightseeing, There is so-o-o-o much to do. :-)

Posted at 5:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Dad, Mom, me, and my sister :-)

Sorry for the pix overload - but my hometown is too pretty not to show off!

Mom, Dad, my sister, my nephew and I went for a little hike. The weather was beautiful. And in the evening I knitted a little cell phone case for my new cell phone - using left over yarn from the Tigris Wyvern socks. YAY!

Sorry - not a written pattern - all in my head. And my Dad donated two "Bavarian"-style buttons - they're supposed to look like they're made from deer antlers. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr...

Posted at 5:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

I have the coolest niece. Ever. She just turned 2 and she knows how to charm you if she wants to. Mostly she is stubborn as a mule and ignores you, but is too cute to be mad at. ;-) I know she's going to break a lot of hearts in about 16 years. And I can see my bro buying a shotgun.

Her birthday gift from me - a sweep through the "Hello Kitty" store at Discover Mills Mall in Gwinnett - was a total success. My niece wore the backpack all afternoon.

I also got some knitting done while I spent Saturday at my brother's house, playing with my niece and chatting with my SIL. My bro and my parents were cutting wood and renewing some cover for a fence in the backyard and the three of us were banned from the chainsaw, etc. I wonder why...

So, voila - the Tigris Wyvern socks are finished. 2 FO's - 8 to go. Cha-ching...

Project Stats:
Size: 8
Needles: US 0 / 2.0 mm (Addi Turbo - Magic Loop)
Yarn: Zwerger Garn Opal Regenwald / Rainforest
How much? 1 skeins = 465.0 yards (425.2m)
Colorway: Tiger

The pattern is my own. I'm in the process of writing up the pattern. The repeat is already charted. Just gimme some time...

Posted at 4:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Dunkles Geplätscher aka Clapotis is growing as well. I made it past half of the length. I'm amazed how fast this knitting project knits up and what a pretty easy knit it is. I took this picture yesterday afternoon between two rainstorms. The weather in Munich is totally off at the moment - sunshine and warm one minute, black storm clouds and nasty rain the next. Oh well...

Oh, remember, I wanted to knit and watch a movie last night. Well, not so much... I thought I could go online to Netflix and watch anything to my little heart's content on the page that offers to play movies and TV series instantly. Nope - guess again... I got this nice message:

Watching Instantly Is Not Available Outside the US - Our systems indicate that the computer you are using is not located within the 50 United States or District of Columbia. Due to studio licensing reasons, movies are available to watch instantly only on computers in those locations.

DARNIT!!!!!!!!!!!! Well, instead I listened to a book on CD. Just as well...

I'll spend the weekend at my parents', and I left the laptop at my roomie's place since I already had two freakin' bags to visit my parents. One bag full of gifts for my niece and nephew... Geez. So this will be my last blog entry for the weekend. But no worries, I will blog for Saturday and Sunday and back-date the entries. ;-) You just won't be able to see them until Monday.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!

Posted at 8:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

This morning, I finished the first FO from my 10-item-project list. ;-) The Silky Aria is done and very pretty. See for yourself:

Project Stats:
Pattern: Aria by Lynne Barr Craft
Needles: US 5 / 3.75 mm Knitpicks Harmony
Yarn: Miss Babs Silk
How much? 1 skein = 270.0 yards (246.9m) - I had a few inches left after the bind-off.
Colorway: Greens and Purples
Scarf measurements: 55 inches long and 5 inches wide

My roomie and I met a few of her friends for brunch in town today. She lives outside of Munich. I take the subway to work and it is actually a very short ride. I "measured" yesterday and I was able to knit 6 rows on the second sock of the Tigris Wyvern Socks.

We had no luck with the weather today. It was windy and chilly. But no matter, we went for a walk after brunch anyway. See, I did manage to move around after all. I'm actually quite surprised that I'm not more sore from yesterday's move.

We walked along the Isar river, which run through Munich, and had a great time. I miss hubby and the pooches!!!! And it's only Day 5... I know they would have loved to go for a stroll along the river. There were lots of dogs for Hermione to meet. I say Hermione because Noah is not very good with other dogs. Most of the dogs ran loose and took spontaneous swims in the river. I'm wondering if there is a leash law in Germany... I have no idea - I never had a dog in Germany. The last 10 minutes of the walk were accompanied by a downpour, but luckily we brought a bunch of umbrellas and did not get too wet.

I swear the guys were gazing after every pretty female jogger they spotted - MEN!!!

My roomie just left to spend some time with her boyfriend. I have the apartment to myself and will get some knitting done and watch a movie. I'm enjoying the down time before a crazy weekend with the folks. I'll take the train to my parents tomorrow after work and I'll come back to Munich Monday morning.

Posted at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)