Hockey socks

I finished my socks. Lace Ankle Socks from Homespun Handknit I’ve been referring to them as my Hockey Socks, since a good deal of the work on the second one was done while watching the last three games of the Stanley Cup. It took me ages because I kept screwing up whenever Edmonton scored, and they did that a lot. Well, until Game 7. I’m still upset. They’re a bit loose around the ankles (the socks, not the Oilers – although I did wonder about their ankles during the first period of Monday’s game), but I’m not sure whether this is because I have freakishly narrow ankles and heels or whether it’s some fault in the pattern, yarn, my gauge, etc. Probably a bit of both. I really like them, except for the ankle bagginess. Well, and I don’t like the toes. I’m not wild about the heels, either. Ok, I guess I’m not nuts about the way these turned out and I really just like socks in general. I’m very fond of knitting socks. The way they keep my feet warm, the clever way the heel turns, the satisfaction of knowing the second sock tedium will not triumph over your desire to wear the second sock, etc. I hereby resolve to knit different heels and toes from now on. This is a big deal for a girl who used to cry every time she re-arranged her bedroom as a child, and isn’t very comfortable with change as an adult. It was a moment of grim determination when I told myself that I’d try a toe-up sock. Or a sewn bind-off. Imagine the possibilities! Imagine the danger! What if I don’t like it? Gasp. Horror! We've been getting frequent thunderstorms for the past few days, so the light has been awful for photographing lace. I broke down and took the above photo because I wasn't going to let the weather stop me from showing off my latest FO. This was the scene yesterday afternoon around 3:00: I usually don't mind thunderstorms -- in fact, I'd say I love them. But thunderstorms in Ohio are an entirely different animal from those on the Eastern Shore of Maryland (where I grew up). Tornadoes happen here! You know, those large, destructive things that spring up in the blink of an eye and can kill you? Yeah, we get those. It makes me nervous enough to not enjoy the thunderstorms as much as I used to. This is what it looks like outside of my living room right now: I'll be in the basement with the cat if anyone needs me.