Why is Counting to 8 So Difficult?

Hello:

We keep getting these wisps of clouds that hint at rain... but then aren't rain.  On Friday, the sky over the Cascade Mountains looked like this:

 and I couldn't decide if those were clouds headed our way, or if that was smoke from the fire in Ellensburg.  We didn't get any rain, though, so maybe it was smoke.  It was hot all weekend, and is supposed to get back to 90 F (32.2 C) tomorrow.  I guess I should be happy that I am working until 5, and then tutoring 2 students at 6 and 7.  Ugh!  Well, I will have to hit the gym before I leave for work for a biking workout.

So, I have finished the 20 squares that make up the 4 rows of 5 for the wedding afghan.  The wedding is this coming Saturday, so we need to put this thing together and hook the border.  My rows are all put together.  I finished hooking the four rows together tonight as I watched The Killing, a Netflix original crime drama set in Seattle.  The show is pretty good, but the best part is watching how they portray Seattle, and looking for mistakes.  One funny thing is that it is always raining.  And, by raining, I mean it is pouring.  There are lots of scenes in the first few episodes with people standing under umbrellas.  Ha ha ha!  that is a big mistake.  Locals rarely use umbrellas.  Also, at one point, one of the characters tell another who is hungry to stop at Del Taco.  Ha ha ha we don't have Del Taco's here.  I know they have them in Southern California.  Also, the politics is all weird and wrong.  And you see people running, well some, but there are hardly any people riding bikes.  One other funny thing is that the woman detective is always wearing jeans and a yoke colorwork sweater, like a scandinavian design.  Also, she wears a raincoat most of the time.  I don't own a raincoat.

ok, Back to the afghan. 

I hooked the last two squares using my 99 Little Doilies book by Patricia Kristofferson.  In the above "square" you can see that in the VERY FIRST ROUND I miscounted and made 9 popcorns instead of 8.  This threw the whole square off without my noticing it until I was "squaring the circle."  Of course, instead of squaring the circle, it became a sort of oddly shaped star.  So, maybe I was "starring" the circle.  Anyway, I had to frog that back to the very beginning and re-hook it.

When I showed the finished square to Himes he said (I am not kidding), "I really like that stripe in the different color around the outside."

I responded, "you mean the simple round of double crochets in taupe?  that is your favorite part of this square?"

He looked at my wild eyes and backed quickly out of the kitchen.

The other square that I based on a doily pattern from the book is this one:

As this pattern was a round doily, I had to stop with the pattern earlier, and use my own stitches to square it, then make some interesting border.  I was just about out of the dark brown espresso yarn, so had to use it only in the final two rounds.

I also designed yet another type of "woven" crochet square.

This "weaving" uses front post triple crochets (and double triples).  It is more of an illusion of weaving that actual weaving like the other squares.

The last square I made is a very plain series of single crochet rounds in beige, followed by half-double crochet rounds in taupe, and some double crochet rounds in espresso, with the last framing double crochet round in beige (because I was running out of espresso).  If I gave this square a name, I would call it, "Jane."

As I was hooking the rows together, with the afghan draped across my lap, I was wondering why I am always making afghans in August... I don't have photos of my finished part, as it was too late to get decent ones, but wow, this afghan looks good.  I am really sick of these three colors (yes, Wireknitter, I might scream if I have to use them again soon) since this is the third afghan in a little over a year I have made with them, but they really go together nicely.  And, the afghan, with all the different squares, is very striking.

Ok, off to bed.  I need to make it to the gym tomorrow before heading out to Northgate.

Peace,
f1bercat
shaping the planet with an afghan in August.