I Should Have Known . . .

The other day I was knitting along on my sock project.  I had the pattern - or what I thought was the pattern - all worked out in my head. As I was working around and around, I had a sneaking suspicion that something was off.  The sock I was knitting didn't look quite like the one pictured in the pattern.  Or maybe it did.  Or maybe it would start to look like the picture if I knit a little bit more.  

That's the conversation I had with myself round after round after round. I could have stopped to consult the pattern and take another look at the picture.  That would have been the logical thing to do.  Instead I kept working until the leg was finished and I was ready to start the heel.

Of course when I finally checked the pattern, I realized I had memorized the wrong sequence of rounds.

The only option was to rip back to the cuff.  I believe in getting right back on the horse that threw me, so I checked and double-checked the pattern to make sure I understood the correct sequence.  Then I sat down and re-knit the leg.  It's always a good feeling when I've knit up all the yarn I had to rip out.

This sock looks a little wonky, but this is how it should be.  In case you're interested, the pattern is Dehnungsfuge.  This sock is a crazy combination of vertical and horizontal ribbing, and working the pattern is a good mental exercise.  

And now I'm off to knit the heel.  I'm going to follow the pattern
closely . . . just in case there are any unexpected twists and turns.