Invisible increases vs. conversational finesse

I spent a lot of time yesterday waiting, and when I'm waiting, I like to be knitting. That way, I feel I'm having a nice knit, and the waiting is merely incidental.

Sadly, what I was knitting incorporated a lot of invisible increases. Right raised increases, to be exact - the ones where you pick up the right-hand loop of the stitch below the next stitch on the right needle, and knit it. It makes a little heart-shaped mark that grows less conspicuous as you go along, and though it isn't entirely invisible really, it is quite pretty and does have the advantage of

Not Leaving A Hole.

And outside of lace, that is a really nice thing.

So why the sad?

Well, chances are that if you're sitting around waiting, other people are also sitting around waiting. And I'm one of those people who can't help talking to other people sitting around in the same small space with me.

Even if I could, it's difficult not to attract conversation starters from those people when they are watching you knit something, especially when that something is a gorgeous pinky purple with just enough halo to let even a non-knitter know that they are witnessing a Highly Luxurious Experience.

And let me tell you - much as I love chatting, that is the last thing you want to do when executing a long series of right raised increases every other row for about a million rows without a counter. I somehow managed to forget from one dpn to the next whether or not I was on an increase row and, consequently, increased about half the times I was supposed to on any given set of four needles.

When I was finally done the increases and was either 5 short or 4 over, I had to lump it and rip back about 3 hours' work.

Still, it's goreous pinky-purple luxury yarn! So reknitting it perfectly this time isn't so bad really.

And now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to double check that my row counter is packed for today's round of waiting.