Hope chests, WIP wrestling & secret agent man

I've been crafty since I was pretty little, and when I was young and feeling unappreciated, I used to dream about making a hope chest for my (hypothetical) wedding. I swore I'd fill it with gorgeously stitched linens, a handmade veil and wedding dress, those fancy lace wedding hankies that you convert into christening caps for babies, etc. etc. ad nauseum. (Kindly ignore the fact that I have never seen a table cloth without spilling something on it. I was darn well going to make them anyhow.) Of course I wasn't expecting to meet Tejas and get married...so at my wedding I had NOTHING handmade, not a single stitch (except a hankie with an edging my grandma's grandma made. Nothing made by me, anyhow). I have no handstitched linens, not so much as a kitchen towel or pillowcase. Until this year, I had only a couple of handknit items. (What is wrong with me? I give everything away when I make it, that's what.)

When Tejas heard about the tradition of hope chests, he got all excited and thought I should start one...not for a wedding but for kidlets. (Don't anybody get excited. We do want them, but don't hold your breath.) So I did! Well, I haven't got a chest yet, but I do have stuff to go in it, and to whit: one very fancy stranded baby hat, one cabley baby jacket (needs a few more buttons sewn on), one soft and snuggly cotton baby blanket (needs ends woven in). I'm determined that by the time we get around to having kidlets, I'll have at least one sweater in every size, plus some hats and socks and pants and stuff. And lots of blankies, because I loved my blankies when I was little. This'll give me a chance to make really nice baby things, since we all know how long I take to knit anything complicated.

On the subject of slow knitting...not that I committed to anything, but I'm following along in the spirit of WIP wrestling, for a while at least. (I'm ornery enough that if I commit to it, I'll immediately lust after some new project.) In the spirit of full disclosure, I'll list my sad and sorry litany of WIPS in the sidebar (some are barely started, some just need ends woven in). But this weekend, I made a good start! I finished finished FINISHED Kashmir and finished knitting the crayon blankie (still needs ends woven in, blah), and made a big dent in a second sock that's been lingering for a couple years. Next up: more socks. Socks for all! (Socks for Christmas, anyway. I want some Christmas gifts done so I can go knit myself another sweater, hehehe. This knitting-for-me business is fun!)



In other news, we have a neighbor who likes to practice "Secret Agent Man" on his electric guitar. I have nothing against practicing. I also have played the same song 20,000 times in an attempt to get the darn thing to sound right. However, I did NOT play it 20,000 times using an amplifier cranked up to high so the entire city could hear me. (Also, when I sing, I generally try to sing in tune. Or at least, if I sing out of tune, I try not to do it on the microphone. Who practices on a live mike, anyhow? Crazy.)