Whisper 2 Scarf complete!

The second Whisper scarf is done!

In this picture, you can see the bit of sheen that the silk gives to the Douceur et Soie yarn. 

Here's a bit of stitch detail:

This scarf, knitted as written, took 1 ball of Douceur et Soie with only inches left to spare.  I had a second ball in case I needed it, but who wants to use 1 yard out of a second ball??  I barely squeaked by with this one.

Again, kudos to Fiddlesticks Knitting for putting out an easy-to-read and well-designed pattern.  I'm spoiled now.  All other lace patterns look crude in comparison.

Speaking of other lace patterns, I'm now working on a lace stole made of the Skacel merino yarn.  You know, that really fine stuff that comes in the great big skeins that take forever to wind into balls?  Here's a bit of it pinned out so you can see the pattern a little:

The center section is 33 repeats of the same 15 row pattern.  {deep heartfelt sigh}  This one may be a bit of a slog before it's done.  I'm also anxious to get back to my Spider Queen and my Shetland Tea Shawl, both of which have been languishing while I got some of this shop knitting done.

The Tuesday night knitting group is trying out a new meeting location tonight.  It'll be interesting to see how it goes.

In Other News:

We finally got to meet with my dad's doctor.  The news was a little better than I expected.  He does have a cancerous tumor in his right kidney, and the kidney needs to be removed.  But the cancer does appear to be confined to the kidney, and my dad's in reasonably good health otherwise, for an 81 year old guy.  He also has a kidney stone in his other kidney that they're going to take care of before the nephrectomy surgery.  That part will happen on Monday next.  The theory is, take care of the kidney stone while he's still got 2 kidneys.  That way, we won't have to worry about it causing problems when he only has one functioning kidney left.

My dad continues to declare that he feels fine, and wishes he didn't have to have anything done.  It's tricky to ask an 81 year old guy to undergo such procedures.  I hope we're making the right decisions.  Sometimes you just have to hope for the best and jump off the cliff.

To end on a lighter note, Jasper got caught in the act of being A Very Bad Counter-surfing Dog the other day:

He's a Very Bad Dog.

Comments

[Anita]

Best wishes for your dad--the news sounds much better than you were expecting, and I hope the procedure goes well.

As for Jasper...I see this caption in my head.
"Barkeep, how about another round?" LOL.

Gorgeous scarves--I'm immersed in class models not so lacey, so I'm a bit jealous! :-)

[Jane]

Jssper is a very cute dog! I'm glad the news about your dad seems so much better than first thought.

[Beth]

You whipped out that scarf in nothing flat! The color (on my monitor at least) is gorgeous - strong but not overwhelming. ~Very~ nice.

Best wishes for your dad. Your best is all you can do. No one can ask for more.

[Flourish]

Beautiful scarf!

[Valerie]

Beautiful scarf & stole! Best wishes to your Dad.

[Marnie]

Ok, firstly, the knitting; Beautiful. I have 2 skeins of that yarn in a beautiful blue color that I'm waiting to use for something special. You have me thinking.

Secondly, glad to hear your dad is in better shape than first thought. I'll be sending wishes of health his way.

Finally, Jasper, you know I have a crush on him. Knowing he's a smart little trouble maker does nothing to quell that love.

[stephanie]

Best wishes to your dad! I think it's a great sign that he feels healthy. My 85-year-old grandmother had major surgery a few months ago. We were all nervous about it, but she came out great. I bet your dad will feel even better once he gets that kidney stone removed.

[Laurie]

The time to decide to NOT have surgery like that is 1. if some other illness the person has is likely to kill them first or 2. the person decides that death is preferable to surgery and recovery.

While there is nothing easy about nephrectomy recoveries, positive attitude really helps. AND it surely beats the alternative.

Best of luck. It sounds as good as it gets, going into surgery.

[Elizabeth]

Had fun last night at Jatema. Hope you enjoyed the place. It was really great to see the scarf in person!!
We will still send you good thoughts for your dad and your family! My grandmother will be 90 in Feb., nothing really slows her down. They will call occasionally to say she has fallen down but it doesn't seem to phase her - it is all about the attiude!
Have a great day and talk to you soon!

Elizabeth

[Dorothy]

Your lace (and dog) are beautiful! I agree about the Fiddlesticks patterns. I only have one so far (The Lily of the Valley), but she does do a great job. Best wishes to your dad - hope he comes through everything ok.

[Michelle]

I'm glad to see your lovely Douceur et Soie scarf. I have some on the needles and wasn't sure what it would look like knitted up.

My thoughts are with you and your Dad, I wish him the best.

[Glynda B.]

Oh my gosh, isn't that Whisper scarf something? I love that color.

Had to laugh about Jasper. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Good luck to your dad. Hoping the best for him.

[Caroline in NH]

Lovely scarf. I love Fiddlesticks patterns; just finished Creatures of the Reef, now working on Flirty Ruffles.

Re: counter surfing - I speak from experience when I inform you that Aussies are particularly suited to this form of exercise. ;D If you get tired of it, line up some mousetraps on the counter. Works great, til you snap yourself with 'em and decide they're not worth it! LOL!

[Sandy]

I've tagged you ma'am. Only play if you would like.

Good luck Monday.