Olympic Aspirations

I have decided to embrace my inner dork and join the worldwide community of Olympic Knitters. (Perhaps I'm only deluding myself into believing the dork is "inner"; the rest of you probably see it right out there in the open :).

Now, before all the knitters out there jump in and protest, let me explain that some people can knit and be totally cool.
I am not that kind of person, but I'm okay with that.
Anyway, the rules state that I must start something after the torch is lit and have it finished in 17 days when the Olympics officially end. Everyone can pick their own project, but it should be something challenging, yet not impossible for their particular skill level. (For more details and a good laugh, read Yarn Harlot's post here).

I managed to get some of my friends to join up as well, for which I am so excited! We shall see if any of them can rise to the epic Olympic challenge of finishing something in 17 days! Are they up for it? Can they handle the pressure? Are they quaking in fear at the enormity of their prospective task? Do they have nothing better to do like me? (Handyman's out of town and I'm taking full advantage of my temporary widow-hood.)

(They're all throwing things at their computer monitors right now and yelling at me to shut up.)

For my race against my own sanity and the deteriorating condition of the house I've chosen to knit Fair Isle Turtleneck by Gayle Bunn.

I plan to make a few modifications to the neck (as Esther likes to quote me, "you can't sing in a turtleneck"). Also, I'm leaving out the horizontal line of fair isle that begins right at the hips, as I don't need anything horizontal there to draw attention to my already horizontal "there"-ness.

Here's what I've gotten done as of a few hours ago!