Numbered!

Here's one of the last three pairs of
lettered socks I own.  WrightSock doesn't
make these socks anymore - RATS.

Well, actually, I numbered the first few batches I ordered, but the later ones I lettered. 

What am I talking about?  Socks!

Specifically, running socks.

When I was running, I didn't do a lot of the stranger things other runners do, like refuse to throw out any of my old running shoes, but I did number my socks.  That Man probably thought I'd completely lost it, but it was a harmless enough foible, and he wisely left me to my special brand of eccentricity.

The idea is to label your socks to keep them matched up as a permanent pair.  So, when you put on a pair of socks, you know that both socks have exactly the same amount of wear on them.  Then, when they wear out, the pair can be thrown out instead of only pitching a single sock.

Yes, just a tiny bit obsessive, but when you've registered for a half marathon, you do what you can to avoid blisters and keep your feet happy. 

I'm not supposed to run anymore because of my knee replacement - at least, that's what the surgeon and the hospital's post-operative instructions said, and that sort of stinks because I liked how running made me feel. 

So now I need to find something to replace that craziness.  I really enjoy long-distance, endurance sports, so I'll probably return to walking, hiking, and biking.  I had started training last year for walking events, but then got sidetracked by That Uncooperative Knee and the home health care I ended up providing for the past fifteen months. 

However, That Uncooperative Knee has apparently decided to become That Cooperative Knee, and I'm looking forward to getting out on the roads and trails. 

Maybe I'll order myself some socks....

My Big Feet - Again!

The stay home orders have given a lot of us extra time to do things we'd normally put off.  Some people are writing.  Some people are decluttering.  Some people are painting walls.  Some people are painting paintings.  Some people are sewing.  Some people are crocheting.  Some people are knitting.

I have a not-so-secret vice - buying sock yarn.  I LOVE knitting socks.  Socks are interesting to knit and super portable, plus, when you're finished, you get to wear them!  I don't know that I'll ever have the time to knit up all the sock yarn in my stash, though.

Crazy stripes and interesting colors are my favorites.  I used to wear my hand-knit socks to work - meetings and all - sort of my little bit of nonconformist belligerence.  Nobody could see them under my slacks, but I knew they were there, and that's what counts!

Anyway, I've worn through the toes and heels of a few pairs, but lately, it gradually dawned on me that when I wore my socks, the ends of my big toes ached at the end of the day.

I knitted all my socks exactly per the pattern's directions.  But...

I HAVE BIG FEET.

So why the heck did I make my hand-knitted socks the standard women's size?

Maybe they were too short?

Well duh!

I tell you - NO BRAIN.

So I started knitting my socks longer in the foot, and that fixed my problem - no more sore toes!

EXCEPT...

There were still four pairs of older socks that I absolutely REFUSED to get rid of.  I liked their colors and designs, and I still wore them, but at the end of the day, my poor toes ached.  I kept avoiding wearing them, but I couldn't get rid of them, either.

After ruminating on the problem for several weeks, a plan emerged - I'd make the socks longer!  Because they are knitted from the cuff down, I cut off the last couple of rows of knitting at the toe of each sock, found the end of the yarn, tugged at it, then unraveled the entire toe to the place where you start shaping the toe.  I rolled the loose yarn into a ball, picked up the stitches, and started knitting.

See the black toes!!!

When the raveled yarn ran out, about two rows into the new toes' shaping, I attached black sock yarn and continued to the end, adding about an inch to the length of each sock.

So here's the result!  Four additional pairs of COMFORTABLE socks, with a minimum of time and effort.

Now, to the yarn stash!  Gotta start making more socks!!!