but in vastly different things. Wilkinson managed to lead England to a victory over France in today’s World Cup Rugby match. It was a low scoring, frustrating game to watch. Both sides had brilliant moments, but each had a hard time finishing. I’m by no means a hardcore England fan, but I do think that Wilkinson is one of the most handsome men in world-class rugby…

My victory is much smaller: I’ve figured out how to format photos so they look pretty when I press “publish” here at wordpress. Because my entry point into this community (which, on day one, is still very one-sided and awkward-feeling) is knitting, it seems only fitting to share a bit.

Here is Fetching, from Knitty. This project made me feel like a Knitter (capital K). Directions were easy to follow, and the payoff was close to immediate. I remember taking this to a coffee shop and just knitting row after row, happy as a clam to be displaying my newfound addiction. (Coffee is my first, though I prefer to think about my coffee intake as directly proportionate to my personal happiness level. It has nothing to do with caffeine. That is bad for you. Happiness, on the other hand, cannot be bad.) Back to Fetching.

I don’t have any pictures of the finished object, but these were on my wrists every morning this summer as I watched the sunrise, hands clasped around a delicious cup of coffee on the back porch. Early risers get press-pot coffee. Late risers get cowboy coffee. Sadly, Boh (who is both snoring AND dreaming right now) managed to grab one and gnaw apart the bind off and a few rows of my hard work, so they are in the “learn to repair” pile. As a relatively new knitter, I have a burgeoning love affair with color. There is definitely a bright pair of Fetching in my future.

Here is a pair I made on request for a friend. (Yarn for both: as recommended, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, needles: US 6) This pair went even faster! See Pam model:

Discovering Knitty was a momentous occasion — I think I looked at every single pattern, including Calorimetry, which blew me away. The concept is cool, and I remembering thinking I might actually wear it, but that wasn’t it. The model in the pictures — I know her! From college! What was she doing, here in the internet pages of my brand new, all consuming addiction? Apparently, a lot of people knit. Or know people who knit. That made it feel even more accessible. (I did, actually, make Calorimetry, but was lazy and did not swatch. I know, I’ve learned my lesson. It is very pretty, but also just a bit too large. It may work as a neck warmer. I will be making another, maybe in Malabrigo — saw the one over at tentenknits and it is beautiful. I have my first skein, which is destined to be Foliage, from the Fall Knitty, but right now I just get it out and touch it.)

One more Knitty picture: Manresa. These leg warmers are awesome. I am still surprised that I just decided I could make these. I started them right after Fetching, a week into learning. Most of my summer knitting was happening by headlamp, in my sleeping bag, so I decided to leave the chart and colorwork here in my teeny tiny house. The last time I snapped a picture, here’s where I was. Fall is finally here, and these will be very toasty when I finish them. I should pick them up again.

That’s all for now — I have to save a few pictures for when I run out of things to tell you all!