My contribution to Annie's blanket project in honor of Kerstin's brother-in-law. The square was knit using the "Ripple Pattern" from the 365 Knit Stitches Calendar and leftover Jaeger Baby Merino DK from B.'s blankie. The yarn has given him four years of warm, snuggly consolation and love and I hope that this square can do its part to bring some of that to another. Thanks Annie for taking on this huge and wonderful project!

She's all done! I only had time for some stick-your-arm-out-holding-the-camera shots, so you'll have to use your imagination.

a peek at the back!

She's even better than I had hoped. I have no idea what the original owner made, or was planning to make, with this yarn (and no idea why she put the remaining yarn in a bread bag!), but the colors are awesome together. And the green Classic Elite Bazic is totally cool. Since the acrylic hand-me-down yarn wasn't top quality, I wanted to snazz up the sweater with a tubular cast on. It gives it a nice finish and the coordinating kitchenered bind off for the neck was new to me.

Those of you who can't stand scratchy knits might want to stand back a little when you see me wearing this though, as she is super scratchy. I'm not that sensitive to it, but still I'm hoping that a soak in some Downy or Dreft or whatever I find in the closet will help soften her up. Otherwise, she's a real dream: the colors, the stripes, the retro style, and of course, the bread bag!

I've got weasley updates!

Amber has finished about a third of her Azkaban scarf
Andrea is doing the "A" on her sweater!
Anne finished her weasley - she used Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed and knit it top down using Cabin Fever's "Knit it from the Top" pattern #602 (she even did the intarsia in the round!)
Hayden would really love to make one of the sweaters Hermione wears in the upcoming Goblet of Fire movie (check her post for links to pics)
Janell, who already made a gorgeous weasley in Plymouth Encore for her son, has bought more to make another
Laura has been getting ready to start sweaters for her boys: she's using Felted Tweed and made a pattern with the Sweater Wizard and charted out the initials already!
Missy writes that she'll be ordering Felted Tweed in red and ginger for her kids' sweaters and she'd love to do a snitch sweater like Harry gets in the latest book - anyone else working on that?
Nathania is making great progress on her Slytherin house sweater
MA is working on her second weasley sweater, this one in Knitpics Andean Treasure yarn, and has just gotten her letter chart all ready
Patti is working on two weasleys for her sons using the basic pattern from Design your own Kids Knits and a Debbie Bliss basic sweater pattern
Ruth's son's Gryffindor scarf is almost as long as he is!

I'm working on the basic pattern, which will be a replica of the now-discontinued Rowan pattern and will include charts for the letter "H". I should be able to post it next week!

Next, a little HP knitting controversy. Have you seen the picture from the upcoming Goblet of Fire movie of Cho wearing her school scarf? There is some discussion that it looks like a 1x1 rib, instead of the stockinette that all the Prisoner of Azkaban patterns call for. I have to say, I'm not convinced. Just looks like machine-knit stockinette to me.

Now, settle a bet for me. Does this go with formal wear?

Meanwhile, my own HP knitting quandry remains. I'm still unsure about the color I want to use for my weasley. I'm thinking that the ginger is a little too orangey for me. I'm wondering if I shouldn't just order the Treacle and see what color it really is, since it sometimes looks black online and sometimes chocolatey. I think either would work for me. (Hey doesn't Harry love Treacle tart? It's okay to click - no spoilers, just food talk!) So, anyone seen the Treacle? Or eaten it?

Look what B made for me yesterday! Out of the whole coloring book, he picked out this page and colored it for me.

The other day we caught a quick video between episodes of Spongebob Squarepants called "How to Draw Plankton" (don't you just love Plankton?! The boys do.). The boys immediately turned off the tv (gasp!) and went to the table to try to draw Planktons. They made me do a few first, then I went upstairs for a minute. When I returned B had drawn this.

The first thing one of them has drawn that has actually looked like something. I was so proud that I got all teary-eyed. Awww. Plankton would hate that.

Nbat sleeve number two is done. And I am back in sleeve Hell.

Once again I was a little overzealous on the length. Oops! Oh well, no point in fixing it now since I still may have to rip both of them back. Until I finish the front and can sew in one of them, I am not going to swear by the length of either.

So it would seem that I have done about all the intarsia-avoidance that I can. Now I must finish that damn front panel!

First, fellow sockapal2zer, Kelly from New Orleans, who wrote to me to let me know that she won't be able to return to her home for many weeks and ask that her socks be sent to another address, added that she would urge everyone to give what they can to the relief effort for the victims and refugees of Katrina. You can join in with other knitters donating to the Red Cross through the Give a Little project.

On a happier note, remember that fabulous sock yarn I showed you last week that Dorothee sent me from Germany? Well, she's got one more skein of it and is having a contest to decide who to send it to. Go put in your guess!

Now, on to the socks....

Ashley's made some gorgeous blue cabled socks
Sydney's finished her stunning Laila's socks from Knitting in Estonia
Jennipurr reports that her zigzag eyelet lace socks are done and will be appearing soon on her Finished Objects page
Amber's ravishing red anklets are ready to go
Erin has finished her blue Koigu Rib and Cable socks
Em's pink waving lace socks are delightful
Jenn presents us with more lovely waving lace socks (and another 'first day of school' pic - awwwww....)
Cathy's rich green anklets have fun spiral fringe
Linz's pink and yellow socks are a riot!
Watch the lava flow in Amy's socks
After over 21,000 stitches, MA has finished her lilac cabled socks
Mandy's River Rapids socks are beautiful in green Bejeweled yarn
Teresa's Mountain Colors socks look so cozy
Spring's made totally rad anklets in Supermerino (I loves me the Supermerino!)
Cara's koigu ribbed socks match the morning glories in her garden
Kitty Kitty finished her Fixation Broadripples with the help of a little Knitty Gritty
Penny is all finished!
Lee's finished knitting her pal's Trekking socks and has been dyeing some beautiful wool for a fiber festival
Janine made fabulous firecracker socks
Shawna's pink Go with the Flow socks are so pretty
Wakana's Pansies in the Snow are as lovely as their name
Donna sent in a pic of her finished rainbow rippled socks
Hayley has posted a picture of her brown/blue ankle socks
we've finally got a good picture of Shari's red socks
and Diana finally has two Cascading Leaves socks that are made for each other
Blossom finished those gorgeous green Friday Harbor socks
Look at Jody's lilac lorna's laces lovelies!
Allena's richly colored cabled socks were finished on the way to the zoo
and Diane's orange anklets were finished by the sea

Renada has a couple pairs of near-finished socks - which should she send to her pal? go vote!
Christina is almost finished with her second sock
Carla has started over with a new sock pattern, Whitby from Knitting on the Road
Renee (thanks to her LYS's "Yak and Yarn") has nearly finished her blue lace socks
Lori reports that "Lori's Mandatory F___ Around Time" has now passed (her words - too funny!) and she's getting down to the knitty gritty with her socks
Christina has been knitting on her Conwy socks (check out her blog for the photographic evidence!)
Johanna is done with her first Koigu anklet (check out the cool cuff!)
Rebecca has her first Dancing sock well underway
Tonia has put together a fun travelog of her socks' progress and adventures
Annemarie has finished her first lovely lacy sock (and a heavenly hourglass sweater too!)
Lori's first Dublin Bay sock in Lorna's Laces Tuscany colorway is so pretty
Gina's Alpaca Country Girl sock looks soooooo soft
Pauline is just a few toes away from being done with her elegant feather and fan socks
Christine's red ribbed socks look very relaxing
Amy took her purple Socks Soar socks to camp!
Bethany's striped scallops are progressing despite the temptations of a big sweater project
Timothy has a good start on sock number one and is anxiously awaiting his next stats spike (go now!)
and Beth brings us a double update on her little red shell socks and Angela's beautiful blue waving lace socks

Don't know what Joanna's socks for her pal look like, but look at the green anklets she made for her secret pal (with parrot green toes!)
no pictures yet from Nina, but she has plans to make loads of progress on her next trip to the Department of Motor Vehicles!

And one more pair of finished socks for you today.... mine!

The Supermerino was fabulous, knitted up nice and even, as always. I did a short-row heel, but opted for a standard toe. Don't know why, just to be different. I hope they fit my pal. I'm pretty sure she'll like the color though. (Oooh, the hints! Who could it be?)

Remember, just over a week left to finish your socks! I'm still seeing a disturbing amount of blue on that participants list, so please let me know when you're done so I won't worry. Only one more update before we ship! No need to be at the post office on the 15th exactly - anytime between next Tuesday, the 14th, and the following Tuesday, the 20th, would be perfect. In fact, I'll be waiting until we arrive in Germany to send out my pal's socks. (Is that another hint? Hee, hee.)

I had a little homework for the store to finish up before we leave for Germany next week. First the Karabella side-to-side scarf that I was knitting while reading the last few hundred pages of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

Oh yeah, there's a matching hat! Isn't it cute?! The pattern ("Ring Hat and Scarf") is so clever, with simple patterning and lots of great colors. And the Aurora 8 is such a lovely yarn: yummy to knit with and blocked out soft and beautiful. Love it!

No, I didn't knit this one. Just a little finishing job for the store: a little seaming, a few edgings, and a good blocking. It's a cute design (the Tropical Tee from Oat Couture). It's one of those patterns that I like a lot more after seeing it in person than I ever would have thought from only seeing the pattern pic or schematic. Looks like a great, easy knitting project for beginners. Well, except for the finishing, apparently.

Pop is back! And I've finally settled on a neckline for her.

pop, almost done? way!

Yup, it's true. I've decided she's going to get a hood, a la the Under the Hoodie pattern from the first Stitch and Bitch book. I'll need at least one more ball of the pink yarn (from France!) to make the hood, so she won't be done for a bit, but as soon as I get that yarn....

can you picture it?

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!

Either way you look at it, I'm almost done with the last katy sleeve!

Weasley updates:

Patti reports that she has finished one weasley and the second is almost done
Deb has finished a Hermione hat and will be making the matching mittens next
Ina finished a bookscarf and is planning another
Julie finished a HiP scarf in Gryffindor colors - hooray!
and the mini-weasleys are back - Lisa just finished her first (check out her HP library!)

Andrea did an awesome job with the A on her sweater
Julie has joined the knitalong and has started a PoA scarf
Emily is working on a pattern for Ron's chullo hat in the latest movie ( I can't wait for her pattern. I may have to make these for the boys this winter!)
Cirilla has started the intarsia on her R
Martha is crusing along on her Gryffindor scarf
and Katia has posted two J charts for everyone

Speaking of charts, while I haven't finished the whole weasley sweater pattern yet, I have posted yarn/gauge/sizing info and three H charts (check out the free pattern page). Sorry to drag out the waiting. I've been doing a lot of knitting, cleaning out the project basket in preparation for our vacation next week. Never fear though, the weasley pattern is the last thing on the list to finish before I leave!

And when I get back, I can start on my own weasley, because, much to the relief of everyone at my LYS, I finally decided on the yarn! I'm going with the ginger colored Felted Tweed. (Erica says she also ordered the ginger, which she'll use with watery for her sweaters.) I decided I didn't want my weasley sweater to be too dark, so I managed to rule out brown and black, and then couldn't get the whole ginger/Ginny association out of my head. Do you want to know what really finally convinced me?

Well, a friend told me about a local band near me called Harry and the Potters. They're two brothers who kind look like Harry and they sing Harry Potter songs. Seriously, they have TWO cd's with Harry Potter themed songs like "My Teacher is a Werewolf," "Stick it to Dolores," and "Voldemort Can't Stop the Rock!" They are so funny! My favorite song by far is "We've Got to Save Ginny Weasley." It was listening to that song over and over that got me all Ginny-focused ("You can't take my best friend's sister and get away with it!"). You can listen to a few of the songs, including the Ginny song, here. And see if you can catch the weasley sweater reference in the "Wizard Chess" song. I can't stop singing the "Wrath of Hermione" song either. "Ri-ta Skee-ter bet-ter shut her mouth be-fore she incurs the wrath of Her-mione..."

Okay, go save Ginny Weasley and stop Voldemort and all that.

wanna see the BIG picture?

I followed the pattern exactly - the so-called "foolproof" feather and fan pattern - and, call me a fool, but when I got to the end it wasn't near long enough to reach from wrist to wrist. Doh! So I added a few more feather and fan repeats and another koigu garter stitch section (I ended up with about 6" of koigu left!) and am now blocking out the lace. I can't wait to see how it looks when it's dry.

Dry, shrug, dry!

Well, what do you know, it's a finished shrug! The lace blocked out quite a bit, so with the six inches or so that I added, the sleeves reach to about the base of my thumb. I would have been happy with anything from wrist to knuckles, so I'm thrilled with this length. And I so love that the whole thing is unsymmetrical and freeform. Especially in the back.

The lace pattern makes the shrug seem fancy but the irregularity of the pattern keeps it from being too serious. It's just a delightful piece.

When I put it on yesterday, the boys noticed it right away. S touched it lightly and said, "is that your new sweater? It's so pretty." Sweet boy. And B, holding his own feather and fan blankie, took one look and said, 'it's just like my blankie!" Smart boy.

The last sockapaltwoza update before the official deadline. Here are your final finished sockers.

Cindy's finished her gorgeous red striped socks in Koigu Kersti
Beth made blue retro ribs for her pal (must resist temptation to look on master list and see if these are for me!)
Purly has also knitted beautiful blue socks - she used the Go with the Flow pattern and Koigu (be still my heart!)
Dawn's pink and yellow lacy socks remind me of sherbet (yum!)
Kat has got some wicked pooling going on in her supermerino socks (for the non-Bostonians, wicked means good)
Ingrid and her mom Judy (aka, the knitter) have finished lovely "summer garden socks" and "friday harbor socks" (oh, there's some good knitting genes in that family, don't you know?!)
Sarah made purple and green anklets (I can't see these two colors together anymore without thinking of Harry Potter Book 6)
Kelly finished her Opal patterned socks (she brought them with her when she evacuated her home in New Orleans - what a good pal)
Stephanie got the stripes on her socks to match perfectly!
Nathalie made mermaid socks (doesn't self-striping yarn look soooo cool in that pattern?!)
Jacky's opal green (and folks, I mean green!) socks have already arrived
Liz's red variegated feather and fan socks are delightful
Carry knit pink and purple anklets (warning: get ready for another adorable first-day-of-school photo)
Jen's "Ellen's Stockings" are simply beautiful
Katie has finished the prettiest purple petticoat socks
Bethany's scalloped stripey socks are almost too good to give away
Sara had to knit new socks for her pal as her hubby claimed the first pair she started!
Johanna's fun bobble-y Koigu anklets are even lovlier in person
Kira's stunning orange and red socks were knit while visiting the UK
Suzie's wild cherry socks are only one pair of socks she's finished recently
Cathy finished her white Unst socks and then dyed them blue!
Christy also made Unst socks, in Lorna's Laces brick colorway
NYCMouse has made two fraternal Tangled Garden socks in blue and red (how fun!)
Marie-France's colorful ribbed socks have a sweet edging
Ann's made rainbow socks
Amysue has also made socks with the colors of the rainbow
and so did Christine!
Christina's finished her brilliant blue Conwy socks
Teresa's Koigu Traveler's Stockings look divine
Annemarie made her socks using a lace pattern by Marnie MacLean and Patons Grace
Krista shows us that knitting socks is next to godliness
Namita's beautiful anklets cured her of her dpn-phobia
Gaile's orange waving lace patterned socks are marvelous
Dena's awesome Silk Garden socks just need binding off (what the heck, let's call 'em finished!)
Donna's "holey" supermerino socks are a riot of pink
Wanda's clover lace rib socks will be in the mail tomorrow!
Keri's finished her walking away socks (Keri, is it possible that this pattern may be pool-proof? har har)
Tiffany's socks are pretty in pink (look at how neat the heel looks)
Linda's orange Koigu socks are absolutely fabulous
more Koigu socks from Carrie
and Elizabeth's lacy fixation socks are now appearing on her new blog!

No pics yet, but also finished are:
Orli
Amy
Jennifer
Jenny
Carla (pink fixations socks + dead camera = no pics)
Nina (she's written over 12,000 words to finish a dissertation this month, let's give her a break on the pictures)
Samantha (brown/grey Koigu socks)
Danielle (well, she was on the last toe last Wednesday)
Susanne
BGK (she's being very secretive - no pics until her pal opens the socks - I love it!)
Tara
Angela
Felicia
Pam (Pam says that the Pine Tree socks she made in Opal's green crocodile yarn look like "piney woods against a pale summer sky" - ooooooh!)
AB (here's a pic of her first finished Denmark Sock in Lorna's Laces)
Jen (Meilenweit socks - pics coming as soon as hubby brings back the camera)
Moze
Carla
Lori (who thankfully survived heel hell)
and Jenna

And still knitting as fast as they can are:

Joanna is being a good sock pal and working hard to finish her diamond patterned anklets
Rebecca is crocheting her socks in lovely blues and greens
Renee swears that her second sock is now almost done
Janine is crusing down to the toe of her second Broadripple
Stacey says she enjoys working under pressure, so she must be loving finishing up her top down socks! ;0)
Ina, or rather her sock, has been distracted reading Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Alison says she can whip up a pair of socks in a week - go, Alison!
Timothy is struggling with the vagaries of variegation
Jennifer is literally watching the clock
Helene is again making incredible patterned Norwegian socks (and you won't believe where the color is from!)
and then there's Lori, who started her socks on her honeymoon - no wonder they're not done yet! ;0) Congrats, Lori!

Those of you who aren't done yet, keep knitting! Send out your socks as soon as you can. If you need more time, it would be nice if you could (through an anonymous email account) send your sock pal a note letting him/her know that the socks will be a bit delayed. Most folks are excited about getting their socks and won't have a problem waiting once they know the situation. Just keep at it! But please let me know if you don't think you'll be able to finish your pal's socks at all.

Calling all knitters itching to make more socks or share some sock yarn from your stash! I'm looking for anyone willing to be a yarn donor or substitute knitter for pals who get left behind. Let me know if you're up for it, I'll compile the list of sock saviours, and as I hear of forgotten pals, I'll send out requests to the list and see who can best do the job. The donors last time really kept the few non-finishers from ruining the sockapalooza. I hope I can count on some of you again this time!

Up next for me - no my sockapalooza sock knitting isn't done yet! - are thank you socks for my two tech guys (hubby and my master webmaster) in some manly shades of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport.

And then there's also the fix-it job I promised to do on the incredible fair-isle socks that my sock pal from the first sockapalooza, Andrea, received. Unfortunately for Andrea, there's a strict no-intarsia and no-complex-stranding-on-US0's rule in effect for the vacation. That means that the tech guy yarn will be coming with but Andrea's socks will have to wait until I get back. (Since she's in North Carolina, I'm hoping she won't really need them before October anyway.)

(This will be the last extensive sockapaltwoza update until I'm back from vacation, as my in-laws have to pay for internet service by the minute and I can't be online for hours at a time. I'll be sure to open posts on Tuesdays though, so you all can announce finished socks and say thanks to your pals in the comments! I hope you all love your socks!!)

Katy.

This sweater was such hard work and yet a real surprise. After working so hard to bring in the neckline, set the sleeves in deeper, and narrow the sleeves, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the sleeves are nice and long and the body neatly cropped. I was also surprised by the chunky feel of the all-over cabling. It'll take a little getting used to, as I feel like I'm about five inches wider, but it's really just a more relaxed sort of fit than I'm used to. Of course the all seasons cotton is a delight to wear: soft, soft, soft. And the color is perfect for fall.

And I do so love those cables!

(Well, folks, I'm outie for now. See ya from the other side of the Atlantic in a few days!)

"I'm flying!"

"Ooh, is that our airplane?"

"What does this button do's?"

"Flugzeug" by B

Vacation knitting has been successful so far despite not being able to knit much on the plane (the sound wasn't working in our row for the in-flight entertainment, so I decided to try to sleep instead of knitting while trying to lip read Jimmy Fallon in "Fever Pitch"). I still managed enough knitting to complete the first tech guy sock yesterday night.

I can't say enough good things about this Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport! It is so soft and knits up so well. The solids are called "nearly solid" and have the slightest bit of color variation in them. It's subtle, but gives the color a little more depth and richness than a flat solid would. Hubby loves it too: yarn, color, and the short-rowed heel and toe. It's the first time I made a short-rowed sock for him. I think this may be the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Also up on the list of vacation knitting, is -- drumroll, please -- pop. Yes, I started pop on our vacation to Germany last year. And yes, I swore I wouldn't schlepp the thing across the Atlantic again. But right before we left, a package arrived from knitpal, Sharlyn, who just happened to have two extra balls of the exact yarn that I needed to finish it. So, I packed all the half-finished parts anyway. It should be cold enough here next week for me to even wear her once she's all done.

That's still not everything in the knitting bag. Oh and some yarn arrived at my in-laws too (heh, heh, don't know how that happened). I'll be a busy knitting bee this trip!

Meike is all done with her Gryffindor scarf
Janice wrote to tell me she knit a HiP scarf (I didn't see a pic of it on her blog, but I did find this awesome Azkaban scarf!)
Micky made a cute little bookscarf

Cristina has started a HiP scarf and is contemplating making a weasley (do it!)
Laura is flying along on her daughter's weasley (love the colors of Silky Tweed that she's using)
Mouse has got tons of WoolEase all ready to make a weasley sweater for her son and a HiP scarf for herself (that WoolEase looks good, don't it?)
Beth will be making some Azkaban scarves and has posted some color variations for everyone
Ruth reports that her Gryffindor scarf is over 60", or "about a preschooler-and-a-half", long (you've GOT to see the picture!)
and Anita tells me she's started something, but I've forgotten what it is (sorry)

And I've been busy too - the weasley pattern is all done. Accio sweater!

Well, that's what everyone here is trying to guess, because it's Voting Day! Looks like it could be a close one. Like I don't get enough of this kind of drama at home.

No idea who might be coming to Berlin in a few months, but I'm actually on my way to Berlin tomorrow. It's very nice here auf dem Land and all, but I'm a city gal. And I haven't visited Berlin in seven years. I can't imagine how much it's changed since then! Most important question: who knows of any good yarn stores in town?? (Wink, wink.)

look, the Himmel über Berlin is full of weasleys!

Update: The results are in and it seems that none of the parties is strong enough to take power and none wants to work with any of the others. Isn't parliament fun?

Don't know anything about German politics? Here's my version of the current parliamentary problem, illustrated through an actual fight between B and S. There is only one Kinder Bueno left (Kinder Bueno is a yummy chocolate bar, which is actually meant to be broken into pieces, like a Kit Kat). B says he wants it. S says he wants it. B has finished his dinner already, so he's sort of earned it more, but S will be done in just a minute or two. No problem.

Parents/Voters:"How 'bout you share the Kinder Bueno?"
B/(major party #1):"No!"
S/(major party #2):"No!"
Minor political parties (pointing in different directions):"We're not sharing with THEM! We are prepared to be in the opposition."

Sounds just like a four-year old, doesn't it: 'if I can't have it, then I just want to be able to complain about it.' My prognosis? Well, I can tell you this - B ended up getting the Kinder Bueno.

baby got back

baby needs blocking

Finished socks coming to you this week from:

Alexandra
Alison
Anna
Anna
Anne
Beth
Betsy
Carol
Cynthia
Deena
Felicia
Helene
Jackie
Jeanine
Jen
Jennifer
Joan
Katie
Katie
Laurie
Leanne
Lola Lee
Luanne
Medina
Mei
Melissa
Michelle
Nona
Orli
Pam
Paula
Renee
Ruth
Silke
Tonia

Like many of you, Gina is still knitting. She needs some support to finish. Go cheer her on. And all the others out there who are finishing as fast as they can!

And several pals wrote to tell me that they have already received their socks (check 'em out: Diane, Anna, Kim, Erika, Jenny (detail), Nina, and Marie-France). Have you? Give your pal a shout out in the comments!

I sent my sock pal package out late last week after we arrived, complete with a local postcards from home and from here and some of that fabulous German sock yarn from Ewa's Sockenwolle. Hope you like everything, sockpal!

These are all the updates I had before I left for Berlin. The rest will have to wait until I get back. Thanks for keeping me updated though! I´m so glad to see that everyone is finishing!

At the internet cafe....

The bear is a sort of mascot for Berlin and these painted bears are everywhere.

Gedächtnis Kirche ruins

The new glass dome above the German Reichstag. We stood in line for an hour and a half to go up and walk around the ramps inside the dome. The dome itself is absolutely beautiful and provides incredible views of the city as well as peeks into the parliamentary chamber.

And speaking of the German government, here's the latest on the he said-she said debacle that has resulted from the election. The various parties are trying to put together a coalition that would have a majority in parliament. Each party here is represented by a color, which gives the Germans the opportunity to come up with fun names for their government - for example, a Red/Yellow/Green coalition (sort of like the Democrats/ the Libertarians/and Greens) is called an Ampel, or stop light. The current debate is whether the possible Black/Yellow/Green (Republicans/Libertarian/Green) coalition should be called a Schwampel (a contraction for Schwarze Ampel or "black stop light") or, even funnier, a Jamaica coalition. I don't know if I'm really for that coalition, but I do like to say Schwampel.

That's meat. It spins. They cut some off for you, stick it in a pita pocket, and you eat it. The Döner.

In the Berliner U-Bahn: "We can shorten any wait." Romeo and Juliet summarized for the 3 minute subway wait, the 1 minute wait, and the 10 second wait: "Romeo meets Juliet. Love at first sight. Secret wedding. Adults make difficulties. Stupid misunderstanding. In the end, both dead."

Remnants of the Wall at Bernauer Strasse

Although most of the Wall is gone, it's path is now marked into the sidewalks. The diagonal marks here, leading up to a single wall segment, show where it cut through Potsdamer Platz.

An oversized foosball game. The Germans love Fußball!

On a building at Alexanderplatz, from Döblin's Alexanderplatz: "See you at Alex. Freezing cold. Next year, 1929, will be even colder."

Harry Potter fever is alive and well in Germany! In Hugendubel (the coolest name for a bookstore EVER!), they are counting down the days to the release of Book 6 in German.

And from our band of Harry Potter fans:

Katia finished her son's J weasley! Wow! If that doesn't sell you on the Yarn Warehouse pattern, then nothing will. And Micky finished the first of several mini weaselys. Soooo cute.

Elsewhere Mouse's weasley-in-the-works seems to have been hexed, but Erin's Ravenclaw scarf is crusing along nicely. And new knitalongers, Jen and Pixie, both plan to make scarves for opening night of Goblet of Fire. Who else is knitting for opening night?? I may have to add a countdown to the sidebar!!

Ah, yes, there was a little more to show you from Berlin. The yarn!

For the train ride to Berlin, I brought my Morehouse Merino shawl project. Casting on 250 stitches on a train with no stitch markers was a pain, but after that it was just knit, knit, knit, round and around and around. And since I've learned to knit and read at the same time, I could even plan a few sight-seeing trips for us. With all the excitement in Berlin, I didn't get any more knitting done on the shawl after the train ride though. Standing next to this woman at the Potsdamer Platz U-Bahn was as close as I got to knitting for the rest of the trip.

look, hubby's pretending I'm taking a picture of him!

I did make it to a few yarn stores though. First was La Laine by Savignyplatz.

What a lovely little neighborhood and a sweet yarn store. All the Lana Grossa yarn you'd ever need is here, along with some GGH, Anny Blatt (angora, yuuum!), and stocks of sock yarn like only the Germans can do. I liked this store so much, I went back before we caught the train to get more yarn!

For contrast, let me show you a little knitting/sewings shop we came across while looking for an ATM in the U-Bahn shopping area at Alexanderplatz. It was called Knopfloch ("buttonhole") and was full of lots of primary-colored, acrylic-y yarn and the smell of grandma. This is how the majority of knitting shops and department store knitting sections are here in Germany. Knitting is still pretty much an Oma activity here, so specialty yarn stores like we have in the states are really the exception. And, judging from the few I've seen, the specialty yarn shops tend to specialize in something else as well. La Laine (and the Wollkorb that I visited in Munich last year) both sold boutique-style clothes in addition to yarn. The ones at La Laine were knitted items with really impressive colorwork (see the suits in the window? they're knitted!).

A couple of days later, we made it out to Kreuzberg - hubby got a Döner and then I visited Fadeninsel. What a great yarn store! They had an incredible selection of GGH yarns - you know the ones you've only seen in online stores and the Rebecca magazine. They also had a mountain of Naturwolle (swoon!) and some lovely hanks of lambswool from which they'd made really cool chunky scarves - four strands of heavy worsted weight lambswool in bright coordinating colors knit together in fisherman's rib (a very popular stitch in Germany). By the way, big scarves are SO in here. I didn't see one poncho or capelet in Berlin, but every other woman practically had a giant wide scarf with tassles wrapped around her neck. (Why didn't I bring my clapotis?!)

The other thing that Fadeninsel specializes in and that made it so cool is socks. They had every kind of sock for sale: handknit socks, machine made socks, hiking socks, tights and loads of crazy striped knee socks. They all looked so fun that I had to get a pair.

for some reason, I was drawn to these same colors in both shops

We had way too much fun visiting my brother-in-law to see the other shops here (like Wollkontor and Loops), and I was way too sensible to buy very much. My Berlin knitting booty was limited to a few balls of Lana Grossa Mix-Up for a scarf, one ball Meilenweit Mega Boots Stretch sock yarn (when in Rome, right?), both from La Laine, and striped knee socks and leather soles for sock/slippers from Fadeninsel. I'm allowed a few knitty souvenirs, right?

In the evenings, I've been knitting along on my Morehouse Merino shawl. It's easy peasy to knit (stockinette in the round), but with over 250 stitches it's slow-going. Still, over a few quiet evenings talking with the in-laws, I have made some visible progress. The Germans have been very curious to hear what it is that I'm knitting that is so large and knit in the round. It's so exciting to explain how it's knit in the round and then cut at one point to make a scarf with fringe. Too cool!

Judging from the size of the remaining yarn ball, I'm probably between a quarter and a third done with the knitting. Can I finish it in two weeks?

A week past the official deadline and the finished sock reports keep on coming:

Alynda
Anita
Christine
Christine
Cori
Dawn (sent to Sharon)
Iris has posted pics of the socks Felicia sent her
Gina
Gina
Holly
Jenifer
Jenipurr has pics now
Karen (you can see the socks on Celia's blog)
Karen (received by Jeanine)
Karlie
Kathy
Kimberly (her socks can be seen on Grumperina's blog)
Laurie
Lindsey
Lou
Suzie posted pic of her socks from Robin
Shonnie
Timothy
and Tiffany finished earlier, but is now having a contest for the extra handpainted yarn that she used for her pal's socks - check it out!

I've heard from the beginners too:

Alison
Anita
Barbara
Carol (for Katherine)
Daniele
Joanna
Karla
Kate
Katie has pics now!
Kris
Louisa's socks can be seen on Heather's blog
Peggy
Rebecca (to Jacky)

And I got socks too! Not my official sock pal socks, 'cause they're probably at the post office at home waiting for me (I hope, I hope!), but Nicole sent me some socks here in Germany. What a great surprise! And they're America socks too - so fun!

it's been so chilly at night, I've already worn them twice

And the knitting is done on the first pair of tech guy socks. They're not completely finished - there are some special techy things still to be done on them - but hubby loves them so far!

I just adore the neat little short-row toes with the seam across the top

Hooray for happy feet!

(Be sure to use the comments to say thanks to the pal who sent you socks and see if the pal you sent socks to received them.)

Swam at the coolest pool ever. What a view! They had a heated outdoor pool too. (Look!)

Learned to ride a "big bike". With training wheels, versteht sich.

Got caught climbing a tree when no-one was looking. "Oh yeah, I can climb a tree. You didn't know that?"

Found our way through a corn maze.

Went down a mountain in a toboggan. Seriously, you had to take a ski lift to get back up to the top. (See the lift in the background?)

Drove go karts. And a tractor!

Did silly things for the camera. (Check out that old Pan Am hat!)

Finished pop. Hooray! (Pictures taken by S "all by myself".)

Notes from the trip:

1. A McDonald's Playspace in an airport is a good thing.

2. The extra security check at Frankfurt airport for those travelling to America is so disorganized, I can't believe that it's run by Germans.

3. Apparently rows 34 and 35 are some sort of Bermuda triangle for in-flight entertainment on Lufthansa planes. We had no sound on the flight over and had to wait 40 minutes for the sound to be reset on the flight back.

4. Watching Fever Pitch without sound is still better than watching Herbie Fully Loaded with sound.

5. The American Lufthansa kids meals are waaaaay better than the German Lufthansa kids meals.

6. Arriving late is awesome. No congestion at immigration. No wait for a taxi. Within one hour of landing, we were on our front doorstep. And an hour after that I was asleep.

I've been unpacking and cleaning non-stop since we woke up at the crack of dawn the next morning. And going to bed at 10pm. 10pm! That's just ridiculous. I mean that's my prime knitting time that I'm just sleeping away! If I ever manage to stay up later than the boys, I plan to work on my own version of these super-cool slippers that I found at the department store on our last day in Germany.

I got a pair for myself to use as a model and they are so crappily made that they barely fit. I can't wait to make a decent pair. What a clever idea for a fun little sock/slipper!

I must have slipper socks on the brain, because I also picked up this cute little book from Regia with all sorts of funky little sock patterns including instructions for making real slipper socks. Thank goodness, because, I had absolutely no idea how to use the slipper soles that I bought at Fadeninsel in Berlin!

Well, I'm off to do some laundry and then go to sleep. To dream of socks.