Join my crazy sock club. Why wear boring socks?
Ban boring socks! <<< feel free to chant that. :-)
I prefer to wear short socks for everyday; my daughter likes the no-show length. These "plain" socks fit the bill perfectly. The pattern is a simple plain stockinette that can show off all that wonderful self-striping or self-patterned yarn you have stashed away. Since these knit up quickly, ahead a make several pairs. You'll never have to subject your feet to boring socks again.

A few technical notes for these shorties:
- knitted top down
- the ribbed cuff can be knit a coupe more rounds if you prefer your socks to peak out above your shoe a little more. (just remember how many rounds you do so your can duplicate it on the second sock
-Dpn's, circulars, short circulars, and magic loop techniques for knitting in the round work well. Use what is most comfortable.
- the ribbed instep hugs your foot nicely so that it doesn't feel "baggy" or bunch up in a gym shoe.
-I recommend using wool or wool blended sock yarn for these socks. Cotton or alpaca just doesn't have the same springy quality that socks really need. There are a few brands of yarn that make a specific blend of cotton/wool or alpaca/wool that is designed for sock knitting and are labeled as such. I haven't tried any of these yet.
-reinforcing thread can be carried along with your yarn to stregthen the heel and ball/toes section of the sock with out making any changes to the pattern.