Hagrid's Emergency, Back-Up Dog

Miz Knotty once mentioned, she thought our Barkely looked exactly like the type of magical beastie you might find living with Hagrid of my beloved series. Once I got over my delight ("my dog! A Harry Potter dog! Where to start? I'd like to thank the Humane Society of the Tennessee Valley, Dr. Brott who told us Barkley's glaring overbite did not require him 'breaking Barkley's jaw and re-setting it, where we'd have to blend up his doggy food and feed him through a straw' as The Hubba first suggested, Barkley's biological parents wherever they may be, the Academy, of course..."), I thought "hmm, there's a double meaning in that." (I also blatantly plagiarized Shakespeare- sorry about that). Still, I knew there would come a time, Barkley and his mystical Harry-ness would be important.

That time. Is now. I present you, Barkley Potter!





I'm overly delighted, to the point of subjecting our dog to photo shoots, to have finished this scarf, for several reasons: 1) It's been number one on my UFO list for, oh, about ten months now, since I started it last July (and reminding myself I was knitting it slowly on purpose did little to assuage my Virgo self- "unfinished project, must finish, Type A brain about... to... explode) and so crossing it off (metaphorically) is great; 2) I knew, eventually, I would get to the bit where I had to fringe it and I really didn't want to do it, which only dragged out the last few rectangles; and 3) now that it's fringed, I will never have to fringe it again.

Not that this wasn't a fun project. It was and I really enjoyed it, and as I pointed out to Knitty Yoda it is a scarf to last you a lifetime. I could get stuck in Alaska, during the coldest point in the year, in a bathing suit, flip-flops, and this scarf and be warm. It's that kind of a scarf. In fact, not to brag or anything, it's nearly, fringe and all, nine feet long. 8.8333 feet to be exact. Ahem.

My scarf, my scarf, my Harry Potter scarf. I really might compose a song in this scarf's honor. It is a glorious day in this week (and a half) of finishing, to have a completed Harry Potter scarf. And a dog who was docile enough to let me wrap it around him and take pictures. Though, I would be lying if I said meaty biscuits weren't involved.

Project One- Finished!

Haha. My scarf for my grandmother is done. Lalala.



When I finished last night, I questioned to fringe or not to fringe. The yarn is Lion Brand Homespun and while a) beautiful colors and b) surprisingly soft, it did not recommend itself to fringing. The ends-to-be-sewn-in had that raggedy fraying look. Fringing would be a bad decision, I insisted. There was no way to do it. Even when Miz Knotty suggested adding knots at the end of each fringe to keep it from fraying. But... I hate fringing. So I did not fringe. It looks nice anyway, yes?

Part of my no-love-lost-for-fringe leads me to finish the baby hat (to go with the gawjus baby blanket, if I do say so myself and I do, 'cause I just did) tonight, instead of leaping into the still-to-be-seamed-and-fringed Harry Potter scarf. Tho' I know it must be done. Really. It must be. By my hands. Unless there is some lovely knitter out there with a hankerin' to fringe... yes? No. Huh.

I realize I am technically a day behind as I didn't finish my first project until last night. Still, I am no longer taking pictures of toilet paper rolls, so I regard that as improvement.

Finishing School

I've decided to call this my Week of Finishing. Yes, it's starting on a Tuesday but it has to start somewhere, right? In honor of last week, when I finished my book-cue wild, slightly hysterical laughter- I thought it would be the perfect time to apply the same idea to my knitting. Not quite as extreme though. Last week, I barricaded myself in our house and did not: chat on the phone, email, blog (you might have noticed), grocery shop, or clean. It was, as I was telling Knitty Yoda and Miz Knotty, a bit desperate towards the end of the week (think Ramen noodles lunches and a single roll of toilet paper split between three bathrooms). But it worked and I finished. We went home to Knoxville for Mother's Day, which was great, exhausting, and a good time for all involved. So today is my first opportunity to right the severe imbalance set in our lives last week- more toilet paper being a good start, I think.
Taking stock of my UFOs, I've come up with:

1) my Harry Potter scarf (seven and a half feet long sans fringe- it's alright if you've got scarf-envy) that needs to be seamed together and have fringe added,



2) a baby hat from the leftover baby blanket (did I show you the baby blanket?)





3) a lace stole which really ends when I decide or I run out of yarn




4) a sweater for The Hubba, with its rather shapeless, "feed me, Seymour" quality, which I will either a) make great inroads into or b) frog entirely and find a new, simple sweater pattern that requires less of my personal "adjustments" and uses a worsted weight yarn



5) a garter-stitch scarf I started this weekend for my grandmother (who turns 87 on May 20th).



The plan? I will finish one item each day and, in the case of the pile of sweater, make a decision one way or the other. And it turns out, starting Tuesday, with five days left in the week (I rest on Sundays), is perfect timing as I have five projects. Perfectly planned, eh? Much like the Charmin. We never ran out.



Perhaps posting that last picture is a sign I've been out of society a little too long, huh?