Tuesday twaddle the post holiday edition

Since I offered up no photos of the Stitch n Pitch at Petco, I feel compelled to provide links to local bloggers who had better camera karma than I did on Saturday. For actual pictures see the 3 September postings at The Purly Gate and Bird's Nest Knits.

I was working on the Baby Bobbi Bear's leg last night down the Shake's when one of the bartenders from The Field popped round with his girlfriend and checked out/commented on the progress. I finished the other leg this morning but now that I'm actually at the add stuffing phase, I'm considering a couple of steps backward before finishing it up.

You see, I just don't like the way the head is working out. The same increases and decreases that shape the front and sides of the head also shape the back of the head and that's just not a winning look in my book.

In the photo to the left, the bear's cute face is facing right and its saggy partially stuffed bum is to the left. The bugs me bit is the back of the head pointy protrusion.

I did some web surfing to see if anyone else noted the same weirdness in the head shape and also double checked to see if I'd just executed the pattern instructions incorrectly but both searches came up with nothing.

I could just do the judicious use of sewing thread for a bit of post knit sculpting but I'm seriously thinking of frogging back and knitting the back of the head flat since that would also let me tighten up the decrease line on the front of the head.
Since I know I have local buds who have the pattern for this or the Bobbi Bear but haven't knit them up yet, I'm most likely going to be giving in to my pattern tampering instincts. As a side benefit, the pattern rework delays the inevitable task of picking up 24 stitches for each arm.

Since I started writing this I've already frogged and have started rescuing the now live stitches. I've shoved the stuffing down into the body of the bear so here's the now headless bear shown from the less saggy bum side.
This shot shows the increases and beginning of the paired decreases from above and highlights what creates my problem with the final product.

Today is shaping up to be a very theoretical Tuesday. In theory I was going to have buddy Brent's stuff safely stowed at his new place and not in my place and truck -- didn't happen. This means that instead of having a totally open Wednesday I'm still on the Sally stow it and schlep stuff list before heading up to KnitNite.

In the tentative Tuesday plans side of the house I was supposed to have dinner with another friend and since I've not heard I'm thinking that's another in a series of no follow through stories.

I'm a bit less disappointed about this one being a non-starter than some others but I'm not loving the trend.

Speaking of trends, sometime between mid July and the end of August, not only did Bountiful Books close its doors after a 15 year run but the house that sat on the corner of Herbert & Robinson vanished. I don't have a before picture but Google maps have a satellite view as of today but here's the on the ground reality from just last week.