Defying Gravity

It's uncanny. Call it a Law of Nature. Certain things *ALWAYS* seem to happen, no matter what I do.

When cutting out a new sewing project, for instance, at some point I will inevitably spill my box of pins.

When hand sewing, at some point I will inevitably drop my needle in a random direction and have to hunt all over for it.

And when knitting cables, I will inevitably keep losing track of the @#%&^!! cable needle.

I have been known to slip cable stitches off the needles into mid-air and perform the twists manually, just in order to avoid having to use, and more to the point keep track of, a cable needle.

It's become sort of a sad joke in my life, really.

Things like this bring out my native Slavic fatalism in a big way. You know what I mean: you're not paranoid, those really ARE German Panzer units on the horizon...

Peggy Tudor has some delicate cable work that requires careful attention, and the assistance of a cable needle can be invaluable. So lately, in connection with the thistle panels, I have frequently had to stop & grope around next to me and/or UNDER me, because the silly thing has slipped away & made another bid for freedom.

I have tried all of the obvious fixes, like sticking it in my knitting, or in the skein, or on my lap, or in my mouth. None of them seem to help.

Frustrating doesn't even begin to touch this.

So I was complaining about it last week at that gathering of knitters in Louisville, where the entrelac concept for my Spring Bouquet yarn got its big vote of confidence. The ladies made various creative suggestions, and I admit I was rather dubious at first.

But yesterday, after tracking down the elusive cable needle for the third time in approximately 11 minutes, I finally decided that enough was enough and put one of the ideas to use.

I got some stray bulky yarn out of my stash, and knitted a small seed-stitch rectangle, just the right size to hold the cable needle securely, so that I can pin this object to a convenient spot on my clothing while I am knitting and always have it to hand.

I am happy to report that this embarrassingly simple solution works like an absolute charm. It has *SOLVED* my perennial problem. Gravity is no longer a predatory influence on my cable knitting.

Take that, Isaac Newton!!