So… no sweat!

Materials

• 1 ball Cascade Fixation 2706
• 1 ball Cascade Fixation 3794
• set of 4 US size 5 DPN (or 40″ circ for magic loop)

Note: I used about half the blue, and way less of the red. I’m sorry I didn’t figure out exact yardage.

Gauge

Approximately 5 sts + 10 rows = 1″ relaxed (unstretched) on US size 5 needles

I had a bit of a time with gauge on this project, because I’d never worked with yarn so stretchy before! Must be all the elastic in the Fixation. I’m a tight knitter, so keeping the yarn slack and relaxed was quite a chore.

If you knit this pattern, find your gauge and use this pattern as a guide. Work with the guage that works for you, remembering to not tighten up that yarn!

Sizes

Stretchy enough to fit one medium sized head—mine is 21″ around.

Directions

Cast on very loosely 75 stitches and join in round.

Knit all arounds in the following color pattern:

• Rnd 1-12: Color A
• Rnd 13-14: Color B
• Rnd 15: Color A
• Rnd 16-17: Color B
• Rnd 18-23: Color A
• Rnd 24-25: Color B
• Rnd 26: Color A
• Rnd 27-28: Color B
• Rnd 29-40: Color A

Finishing

BO all stitches very loosely; I followed Wendy’s variation on a Russian bind off. Weave in ends. Leave a very long tail, about 6-8 times the length of the band, to use to seam the piece. Your piece should look something like this:

Now fold the cast-on and bind-off ends together, and seam together:

Adjust the folds on the band so the seam is in the middle of the inside, and the stripes at the top and bottom of the front/outside:

You may want to block lightly; check Knitty’s reference on blocking cotton. Wear proudly and worry-free!

I’ve found it best to put the cozy on the cup before filling it with coffee. I may modify the pattern to accommodate this issue.

Materials

• KnitPicks Swish Lemongrass Heather
• set of 4 US size 6 DPN (or 40″ circ for magic loop)

Gauge

6 sts + 9 rows = 1″ on US size 6 needles

Sizes

Stretchy enough to fit one to-go coffee/tea cup

Directions

Cast on 46 stitches and join in round.

Knit 4 rounds in K1P1 rib.

Knit 2 rounds.

Next round: K1 K2tog [K to last 3] SSK K1
Next 3 rounds: K

Repeat the above 4 rounds 4 more times.
(There should now be 36 stitches on the needles.)

Knit 1 more round.

Knit 4 rounds in K1P1 rib.

Finishing

BO all stitches and weave in ends. Enjoy your coffee!

This song, “Car for Sale”, is one of my favorites. Go see them! They’re in NYC and have another show in April.

1. “Victory” (Bad Religion)
2. “Walkaways” (Counting Crows)
3. “Flipside” (the Breeders)
4. “Magic Johnson” (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
5. “True Blue” (Madonna)
6. “In the Springtime of His Voodoo” (Tori Amos)
7. “Too Well” (Syd)
8. “Heart Attack Man” (Beastie Boys)
9. “Quadret Im Kreis” (Wizo)
10. “Free Tibet (Remix)” Astral Projection)

1. “3×5″ (John Mayer)
2. “Daniel” (Elton John)
3. “Length of Love” (Interpol)
4. “Punch In Punh Out” (Seven Mary Three)
5. “Selling the Drama” (Live)
6. “Starhunter” (Moon School)
7. “Staying Power” (Barry White)
8. “The Weasle (Live)” (Harry and the Potters)
9. “Offbeat Bare Ass” 311)
10. “The Arrow Flies Close” (Elf Power)

I’d like to change the format of the most/least favorite section, plus figure out how to change the “seen live”, because some bands (like the Potters today) I’ve seen many many times. More on this another week!

What the…? is my first thought. A mere few hours earlier I’d filed away my latest receipt of payment—my account is automatically charged monthly, around the 9th, and January is my account and domain renewal month. I knew my account wasn’t past due, and I wondered if something in my panel got screwy, making Dreamhost think I’d be paying yearly from now on.

But hold on… this says:

You also have $170.00 past due (owed since 2008-11-09), and if by 2009-01-09 you do not pay at least the $170.00 part, your account will be automatically suspended until payment is received.

Past due since November 2008? That’s in the future!

I try logging in to my web panel. Web panel is down. Yarg. I check their status blog and find this post about billing issues. It’s not just me! However, some people have been charged way way more money than I have, and many customers now have overdrawn bank accounts or overlimit credit cards.

I’m sorry, former customers. A lot of comments made in the status blog post are not very nice (really, publicly calling Dreamhost dipshits on their blog?), and I lost count of the number of people closing their accounts, or at least threatening to do so.

Maybe I’m more forgiving because I haven’t been erroneously charged over $3000. Maybe it’s because I can feel the embarrassment and fear oozing off the DH employees—yes, it’s spanned the continent and I can feel it all the way here on the East Coast!

Many people realize the magnitude of the mistake, calling this a serious issue of high emergency. It is, don’t get me wrong. It’s hugely important. But an issue with this much at stake takes a lot of work and care, a lot of running around trying to solve the problem. It’s not going to be fixed in a couple hours.

Whatever the reason for the error, I can tell that DH is working very hard on this issue, and I’m going to give them the courtesy of not screaming at them for refunds immediately, not threatening to close my account, and not reporting them to VISA for fraud.

Some notes:
If you have DH and have been charged huge amounts of money, Shakadoo makes a good point about bounced checks for rent and mortgage payments. Banks should be very understanding in cases of merchant billing errors. If your checks have bounced, or you’ve been charged overdrawn or overlimit fees, please call your banks ASAP and explain the situation to them!

1. “Illumination” (Gogol Bordello)
2. “I Do Not Want This” (Nine Inch Nails)
3. “Broomstick” (Draco and the Malfoys)
4. “Spider in My Room” (Barenaked Ladies)
5. “Small Town” (Eve 6)
6. “Rhinoceros Song” (Skursula)
7. “Cocaine Lights” (Phosphorescent)
8. “Movie Stars” (Cairo)
9. “Why Can’t I Have You” (the Cars)
10. “1.2.X.U.” (Wire)

Most Favorite: Draco and the Malfoy’s “Broomstick” from their self-titled debut

Least Favorite: “Why Can’t I Have You” from the Cars

Seen Live: Barenaked Ladies (6 Dec 1996), Draco and the Malfoys (17 Aug 2006, 2 Dec 2006, 10 Dec 2006, 10 Feb 2007, 23 Feb 2007, 6 May 2007, 2 Aug 2007), Gogol Bordello (14 Apr 2006, 6 Aug 2006, 20 Dec 2006)

Other FRTers: Later!

Discreet enough to keep on your nightstand or dresser, large enough to hold Chloe or G-Swirl, or anything in between. (Please note, those links are probably NSFW!)

Materials

• 1 skein Artful Yarns Candy Sweet Tart
• 1 skein Lion Brand Yarn Fun Fur Violet (optional)
• 1 set US size 8 double-pointed knitting needles

Sizing

Gauge: 20 sts + 32 rows = 4″ on size 8 needles
Dimensions: 4″ x 10″ without fun fur

Directions

CO 42 st, divide evenly across 3 DPN (14 sts on each).

Rnd 1: P
Rnd 2: K
Rnd 3: P
Rnd 4: K
Rnd 5: K

Rnd 6: [K5 YO K2Tog] to end

Knit next 70 rounds.

Begin decrease

Rnd 1: [K4 SSK K2 K2Tog K4] to end
Rnd 2: [K3 SSK K2 K2Tog K3] to end
Rnd 3: [K2 SSK K2 K2Tog K2] to end
Rnd 4: [K1 SSK K2 K2Tog K1] to end
Rnd 5: [SSK K2 K2Tog] to end
Rnd 6: K2Tog to end

Finishing

Pull yarn through remaining stitches. Turn inside-out and weave in ends. Turn right-side-out and thread a ribbon through the YOs.

To add fun fur, pick up all stitches on the cast-on edge. K 1 round, BO and weave in ends.

You know what day it is! Time to put your digital music player on shuffle (iPod this week), click play, and list the first ten songs that show up. You must resist the temptation to click past the bad or embarrassing songs.

1. “How Cool” (Matthew Sweet)
2. “Optimistic” (Radiohead)
3. “Pretty Good Year” (Tori Amos)
4. “The Princess of Hollywood Way” (Gary Jules)
5. “Ireland” (Tori Amos)
6. “Looking for Trouble” (the Remus Lupins)
7. “Genocide” (the Offspring)
8. “It Won’t Let Us Leave” (from Evil Dead: the Musical)
9. “Virtual Insanity” (Jamiroquai
10. “Antarctic Excursion pt. II” (Math the Band)

Most Favorite: “Antarctic Excursion pt. II” from Math the Band’s Nature EP

Least Favorite: the Offspring’s “Genocide”—the punk threw off the flow of the rest of the list!

Seen Live: Evil Dead: the Musical (9 Feb 2007, 16 Feb 2007), Math the Band (21 Apr 2007, 18 Jul 2007), Matthew Sweet (1 Jun 1997), the Remus Lupins (6 Dec 2006, 10 Dec 2006, 17 Feb 2007, 23 Feb 2007, 2 Aug 2007, 3 Aug 2007), Tori Amos (15 Nov 2002)