Yesterday was another day
more plus than minus, by a narrow margin.
Your kind
and enormously helpful message came too late, Sarah. I’ve ripped the Relax and started
it again. In the cold light of yesterday morning, the main problem was not the
st st curl at the bottom, but the eight rows of reverse st st I had put in the
day before, which were pulling the whole thing up (of course) hideously. I'll file your suggestions where I can find them for future use.
So this
time I am doing it the designer’s way, starting with seven rows of broken rib.
Seven rounds, actually, because I have started again in the round. At least I
had the wit to keep hold of the starting point of the original cast-on and
double the length of the long-tail for the second attempt.
I’ve
started out in the dark shade only, as before, and this morning I am rather
taken with the idea of not putting stripes in at all but going with the
designer all the way, including those elegant little eyelets up the sides.
That’ll be something to think about during Mass.
I’ll do
those afterthought crocheted seams I did for Ed’s Gardening Sweater.
For the
agile of mind: Zite found me this interesting article in American Scientist, Adventures
in Mathematical Knitting. You can enjoy it without understanding entirely
what a Klein bottle or a manifold is. At least I did.
Surface
The next
problem is going to be establishing a decent wi-fi signal in the sitting room.
Our flat is long, like a railway carriage. The BT hub which connects us to the
world is at one end, attached to my desktop computer by cable and radiating
wi-fi for everyone else. The signal isn’t very reliable by the time it gets to
the sitting room, where my husband will want to sit with the Surface on his
lap.
I’ll go up
to Lewis’s tomorrow – the computer department should be quiet on Monday – and
try to talk to a Young Man about routers. I’d appreciate any advice.
Our family in Texas had exactly the same problem--the router in an office at the end of a long bedroom corridor and weak signal in the living room. Once everyone had ipads they needed a booster (I don't know it's technical name) which resides in the living room. It works fine.
ReplyDeleteI's also take along the details of the current router--we recently silenced a lot of complaints from the Young when we upgraded. The technology has improved over time. Helen (sister)
I have to say that I've never regretted starting again from scratch. Living with a compromise is never as satisfying.
ReplyDeleteRe the signal: you could look at http://devolo.co.uk (one of their wireless boosters). It works really well for us and they're installed in next to no time at all. You can get them at amazon. Good luck, Imke
Some time ago I downloaded a free pattern for a Klein bottle hat from the Schoolhouse website intending to knit it for my mathematician son but I haven't got round to it yet. I'm not sure he'd wear it if I did! The Woolly Thoughts website has lots of interesting mathematical knitting too.
ReplyDeleteIf you have an old router, you can turn it into a "repeater" installed in the sitting room. This site tells you how (some technical language, but the main idea is clear enough) - http://lifehacker.com/5563196/turn-your-old-router-into-a-range+boosting-wi+fi-repeater
ReplyDeleteIf you do not have an old router, you could take the details of your current router to the store and ask about turning it into the repeater; a newer, faster router would replace it as the principle modem. In any event, do take down all the details on your current modem when you go to the store - model, serial number, all that information on the plate usually on the back. It will speed the process along.
Good luck!
We had a problem like that with odd 'dead spots' in the house. A new router solved it. Ours was rather old and not powerful enough, I guess. I just ripped out a weekend worth of knitting, but I knew I wouldn't be happy with it. Isn't wool wonderful, though? It looks just a nice as before I used it.
ReplyDeleteIf you have a BT Home Hub/Router and you are paying for a BT service either look online for BT help, they have technical pages and help forums, or phone them for advice. There is likely to be an easy answer from BT whereas a new router or booster bought from John Lewis may not be compatible with the BT Home Hub.
ReplyDeleteRecently I told you about ordering yarn and pattern for the shawl on the back cover of the new IK. That purchase was funded by the payment for playing organ for a wedding (last-minute call when the church organist was a no-show). Today, the bride stopped me as I waited to greet Fr. Chad, saying she had a gift for me. Oh, boy, did she! It was a gift basket with everything knitting she could find: needle assortments, knitting accessories, scissors, a tote bag, and....ta da, Quivit! She had asked Fr. Chad if that was something I might be interested in, and he had replied that I might have to be forcibly restrained! Wow - is it ok to indulge in Quivit in Lent? Heh!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the link to Sarah-Marie Belcastro's article. I have followed her on Ravelry, and like her work very much. I may try the Klein bottle in a weak moment.
ReplyDeleteI also like the link provided by Anonymous to the life-hacker site. I also have had problems installing a repeater,and given up on it. I will try again. The internal walls in our house were constructed with a wire mesh as the support for plaster, and it interferes with the wireless.
Hi, Jean, I've been enjoying your blog, and asked Techno-hubby about your wifi signal. He says an Ethernet Over Powerline will do the trick - it uses the electric lines to run the signal, and is what we are using to get the wireless signal from one end of the house to the other. Amazon UK has these listed... http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=ethernet+av
ReplyDeleteWow, Meezermeowmy! What a delightful thank you gift! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteI knitted a Klein bottle hat for my nephew in law who is involved in nanotechnology for Christmas one year. He was delighted by the geekiness.