Big yellow orb

The oddest thing happened today. The marine layer burned back, and lo and behold, there in the sky was a giant blazing orb. I was so busy trying to figure out what all those shadows were out in the yard that it took me a few minutes to realize the ramifications of orb appearance, but I got there. Yarn photos!

First, the socks I've been working on.
I've finished the first one, and promptly cast on for the second (this is my hard and fast rule for avoiding second sock syndrome). I haven't gotten too far with the second, due to a distraction of which I will soon apprise you, but I will.
I absolutely adore the fabric of these socks. The hand is drapey and heavy, in the most wonderful way. I made them on the tighter side so they wouldn't sag.
They're knitted out of South West Trading Company Bamboo yarn, using size 2.5 needles. The pattern is Lacy Cable Socks, from Veronik Avery's book Knitting 24/7, which I really quite love. I am not finding this pattern as memorizable as I might (this is not surprising, given my issues with chart memorization), but I quite like the results; I should mention that I modified the pattern (of course) to be smaller, using only three repeats instead of four.

I bought two balls of yarn to knit these socks, knowing in my heart that 250 yards of yarn really was enough for a pair of socks for my (smallish) feet, but worried nevertheless that I'd run out. When I finished the first sock, I weighed it and weighed the yarn that was left in the ball, and saw that I would, indeed, have enough (plus a titch more). So I wondered what I might do with that second ball of yarn (note that returning it to the store didn't even really cross my mind; am I the only one with this problem?). I was wondering along when Anne told me she'd just finished this beauty. (Remember how I said that she is a font of temptation? See why I said that?) The petite size takes 275 yards, each ball of this yarn is 250, and I should have some leftover from that second sock, so, throwing caution to the wind, I cast on.
I'm almost done with the lace part at the bottom. I'm hoping I'll have enough yarn; I'm pretty sure I will, but it'll be a photo finish for sure.
That middle bit just charms me to pieces (as such things often do). The best bit is that once I get done with the lace (tonight), it's on to the garter stitch section, just in time for tomorrow's long fieldwork day up in Tehachapi; with luck, I'll know before I drive home whether I've got enough yarn or not. Keep your fingers crossed for me, OK?