I don’t know if any of you remember these socks I’ve been working on for a while, off and on. This is the picture I took of them on February 11.
This is that handspun yarn, I know I’ve told you about it at least a couple of times. In the couple of weeks after that picture was taken, I got both socks knit to the brink of finished. I had only about an inch of ribbing left on the second sock, and to bind off on both of them.
These are the socks that I drag around with me for in-between knitting moments, for knitting in meetings, in the car when I’m the passenger, for odd moments standing in lines or other stolen bits of time. I suppose it was bound to happen at some point.
It’s been about two weeks now since I had one of the socks in its pretty little project bag with me on a morning trip to school with the girls. I had a parenting meeting while they were each in their respective pre-school classes, and I had the chance to knit a bit on it while I talked and listened to the other moms. That day, I had a bunch of various crappe with me, and I made stops pretty much all over the school building. Somehow, by the end of the morning when I pulled the van back into the garage at home, my sock and its bag and with them the perfectly good Addi Turbo needle – were gone. Disappeared. Missing.
No panicking, I thought. I must have left it around somewhere in one of my normal spots. I stayed calm and called the teachers in Julie’s classroom, in Sophie’s classroom and the office secretaries. No one had seen it, but they all enthusiastically promised to keep an eye out for my knitting. Surely I’d have the sock back by the following week, right? Uh, apparently not.
For the last two weeks, the teachers have all looked up at me with expectant smiles when I arrive with the girls, asking me if I’ve found my sock. Sadly, I’ve shrugged my shoulders and shaken my head. It could be worse, I’ve told myself. It’s just a sock.
Finally, I’ve come to terms with the reality of the situation. The sock’s not coming back. It’s really gone.
Luckily, I’d spun up 8 ounces of wool, which came out to almost twice as much yarn as I would have needed for a pair. Of course, a giant ball of yarn was attached to the lost sock, but still I have more than enough left to make a third sock.
The joy of the project is somewhat lost at this point after this stupid experience, but I’m too stubborn to give up now. I’m kind of secretly hoping that maybe now that I’ve started the third sock, someone will come forward with the lost one.
I would be upset if I lost my socks-in-progress, but I cannot imagine how I’d feel if I’d actually spun the yarn for it too. Gah, what a loss!
Bummer. Did you check the school’s lost and found? I spent a lot of time at my kids’ lost and found bin when they were in grade school. But I was usually looking for their stuff. Lot’s of time I found what I was looking for.
I second checking the lost and found. How many times have I told people exactly what I am looking for and they don’t find it… but I look and it’s right there…
Really, go to the Lost and Found and look for yourself…after all, it’s the handspun, the needles and the project bag… and the knowledge of your sock floating out there somewhere…
“now that I’ve started the third sock, someone will come forward with the lost one”
You know it won’t show up until you FINISH the third sock.
Yes, I’ve been checking the lost and found bin every time I’m in the building since. As much as I hate digging through crusty sweatshirts, hats, mittens and miscellanea, I’ve found our lost things in there before too.
Getting my husband to buy more more addis is how my missing addis turn up;)
That is a tragedy indeed! But worse than losing a sock of handspun yarn is losing your husband (who has dementia) in Wal-Mart. I finally found him wandering the parking lot, thank goodness. I hope your sock will turn up and soon!
Blogless Mary Lou
p.s. I’m getting one of those child locator gps things for my husband!
I left a second sock on the bus one day and it was never turned in. I’m not sure what the person who found it planned to do with half a sock and some dpn’s unles they just threw out the bag without looking inside.
Oh no! That’s so absolutely disheartening!
I’m glad you have enough left to make a third sock, but still… so very sad.
You know the weird thing about all this? Someone, somewhere, has a half finished sock to call their own now. If it was found by a knitter, then lucky them (although I question a knitter who would keep someone else’s half knit sock!).
Someone I know lost a single completed sock in starbucks one day. Who keeps a single hand knit sock? Who doesn’t take it back to Starbucks and hand it in? We hoped it was found by someone with only one leg.
O I do hope your sock gets turned in. Handspun? oh my. That bites.
Leah
Oh, ouch! Thank heavens you have enough to make another sock, but still, ow!
Your missing sock is sure to turn up now that you’ve started the third sock. Recently, I ordered a book, loved it and ordered a second copy to give as a gift. The book arrived and I put it away waiting for the gift giving event. When the event came, I pulled out the hidden book, wrapped it, and gave it away…only to discover, I’d misplaced my origional copy. After a month of looking, I gave up and ordered another copy. The missing book appeared within a week. So, you see, there is something messing with our minds. As soon as the hunt is given up, whatever it is that is doing the messing, forgets the game and allows the lost item to be found.
A project bag with not only the in-progress 2nd sock but the finished 1st sock went missing for me for almost a full year. It finally reappeared. Don’t give up hope yet!