Back to 'normal'...
and so I have now been home from Europe for two weeks.  I began to notice around the middle of my first week home that I was no longer feeling moody, sleep-deprived and jet-lagged.  My sense of humor was returning, and I was much less emotional. I had begun to lose the ten or more pounds of fluff that I gained through the long flights to and from.  I looked into my mirror and recognized my face and hair. :)  My knees didn't ache any more, and the altitude of the Alps wasn't affecting my breathing.  I guess I'm getting back to 'normal', whatever that is.  I wouldn't have believed that I could be so affected by travel as I was on this trip.  I guess I'm just not getting any younger.

What a wonderful experience I had!  There is so much more that I'd like to write about the countries and the people, but I just cannot find the words to convey my feelings about much of the trip.  I am forever changed by my visit to Europe, as any experience will change us, and forever grateful to my friend for making it possible... I only hope that I was at least half as good a guest as she was a host.

There has been fiber therapy to help with the readjustment.  I've begun a new pair of socks for one of my groups on Ravelry.  The group is "Sock Madness Forever".  There will be a series of challenges issued via sock-knitting patterns for the duration of "Sock Madness 6" or "SM6" as it's known in the group.  The first is well underway now: a toe-up pattern with cables with a special twist...a random method is used to determine when each cable is knit, making for a very interesting pair of socks!

Toe-up is not my usual choice, but it does have its advantages.  The heel is much different from my usual heel flap and Dutch or French heel-turn, and I've never had much luck with this technique, but I'm ready to try it again now.  The group is very helpful, even offering kilt-clad cabana boys with endless supplies of chocolate to make the trials easier.

(yes, I assume that the cabana boys are mostly imaginary, but it doesn't hurt to hope)

As of this evening, I am about two inches up the legs and have several more inches to go.  I have one more week to finish this pair. If I'm successful, I'll be assigned to a team of knitters for the next trial.  If I am unsuccessful, I will still have access to the patterns for the group, but will be ineligible for the prizes.

I finished a pair of socks on the trip:



Blockhead pattern in an old Opal Rodeo color



and started another pair:

Basic ribbed socks in Opal Petticoat

 I finished this pair for my husband in January:

Another Opal, I think this one was one of their test-dyed skeins

I suspect that I will be doing a lot of knitting with Opal yarns in the future!