Meditation

I'm not fond of being surrounded by "drama" - either at home or at work.  I've worked and lived with people during my life who simply can't function if they don't have everyone around them dancing to their tune.  I tend to seek equilibrium, balance, and calm assurance whenever possible.  I think most knitters are like that - and probably partly due to the meditative nature of our art.  I would love to cultivate the habit of real meditation, and intend to do so at some point, but for now, the meditation of putting one stitch after another on the needles, counting under my breath when needed, and observing a lovely pattern emerging will be my calming activity.

ON MY NEEDLES
I'm still working slowly on my Rising Fog shawl, which doesn't seem to hurt my wrist if I don't work too long, and on my Miss BB sweater -- 1 1/2 sleeves are done.  I should have time to work on those during meetings at the state Episcopal Convention this weekend.  Other than that, all is on hold as I baby my wrist.

Busy Weekend!

This was a weekend of celebrations!  First, the kickoff of the Bicentennial Year Celebration for Colby College on Friday night, with more celebration of that event on Saturday afternoon.  And we topped off the weekend with a retirement party for the two women who, for many, many years, ran the camp my sons attended as children and worked at as young adults.  The party ended with a lovely, brief evening prayer in a lovely, small, round chapel in the Episcopal Cathedral.  Prayer, songs, and hugs all around.  It was nice seeing colleagues from the Board of Trustees of Camp Bishopswood and seeing the young staff I've had the joy of getting to know over the past few years -- all there to celebrate these two women who've left an indelible mark on all of us.

Falling Behind - A Bit of a Rant

Well, I've already missed 3 days of the 40 days of writing.  Oh well.  Where have I been?  Mostly at work, I'm afraid.  There is no excuse for missing Wednesday, but on Thursday I didn't get home from work until 11 pm - way past my bedtime.  And last night was full of celebration -- dinner, guest speaker, music, and a "ball" at Colby College, marking the official opening of our bicentennial year.  It was lovely, and fun, but again a late night.  And, now, all of a sudden, it is the weekend!

The weekend always brings a unique tension to my life.  My husband has already commented that I need to clean the house - to which I retorted something that I'm thinking you can guess.  But, the fact is that I wish I had more time to do just that - have a highly clean home.  I'm always falling behind on the housework - not because I hate housework.  I just don't get much time to do it.  So, things pile up on the counter in the kitchen, on the table in the dining room (not just my stuff -- right in front of me is a piece of mail addressed to Don that has been laying on the table for a week now), at the bottom of the stairs (to be taken upstairs), and in other odd places.  Sigh.

I'm behind on e-mail at work because I spent the only "free" time I had this week catching up on several weeks of counseling notes.  I haven't really started to think about Christmas, in a vain attempt not to find myself scrambling at the last minute.  Oh, and I really need to spend some time paying bills this weekend - almost forgot!

Of course, I'm not spending enough time knitting to suit myself.  And, I'm going to fall even further behind with that as it seems I have tendonitis in my right (dominant) thumb.  I had a meeting about a Jan Plan program we co-direct with the college physician yesterday and he's pretty sure it is tendonitis and that I should give it complete rest for at least two weeks.  Right.  Not happening.  But, I guess I could try to put aside my knitting for two weeks. Maybe.

I think I'll do some quilting today.

Cold Weather

There is something about cold weather that makes me want to do two things -- knit and sleep.  I can tell that we're in the midst of a change of seasons because I can't seem to get enough sleep.  I should be staying up to watch the Presidential debate that will start momentarily, but after I jot these thoughts down, I'll be off to bed.  I'll catch the news tomorrow and see how it went.  Mostly, I'm having difficulty getting up in the morning.  Probably it is the gray, cold weather we've been having that makes me want to stay right in bed.

I also find myself wanting to knit all the time.  Even while knitting on one project or another, my mind is wandering off to other projects I would like to start.  Most, of course, are things I "should" make - usually holiday gifts or that pair of mittens I promised my husband last spring.  I could have dozens of projects on my needles if I didn't keep a tight hold on myself.

Speaking of which, there's that slouch hat pattern and yarn I got to go with my son's dreadlocks.  I think I'll go find that, brush my teeth, and climb into bed.

Birthdays

Today is my 55th birthday.  I suppose it is a momentous number, but somehow it doesn't feel that way.  Just another birthday.   I don't ever say anything at work about my birthday - it prevents having to eat stuff I don't want to eat, so it was a quiet day full of... work (actually, it is fall break and having students away from campus means I actually did get some work done today without any interruption).  My husband took me out for dinner, which was lovely.  The glass of wine has me feeling relaxed and sleepy.  I took us shopping for my gift yesterday - a Wii - and Don set it up for me last night.  I learned this evening how to work it and now have to keep my promise to get up in the morning and do a dance or Wii-Fit workout.

My family did take the time out of what was a busy, stressful weekend to celebrate my birthday yesterday at my sister's house and it was nice to see everyone who was there.  The one thing that would have made it perfect would have been to have my father there, but he was in need of a nap, so we sent him a serving of ice cream afterwards.

I'm very thankful, at 55, to have a loving partner/best friend in my husband, a comfortable home full of lots of great memories, a sizeable yarn and fabric stash, an extended family of siblings who work hard at staying close, two lovable cats, and my health.  I'm a very lucky person.

Satisfaction

I don't know if writing about finishing projects helped motivate me to actually finish a project, but I'm proud (and relieved) to have done so. 

At least two years ago, I hired someone to wallpaper our stairway and upstairs hall (very small and mostly doorways).  I underestimated the wallpaper I needed, and the man I hired was unable to quite finish the job.  I ordered more and was determined to finish it myself since all that was left was the hall and wouldn't involve figuring out how to get way up to the ceiling over the stairway.  Well, time passed and my sister (who is my favorite wallpaper assistant - my siblings and I were all well-trained by our father in the construction assistant role) came to help me finish the job.  I was extremely disappointed to find that I still didn't have enough wallpaper to finish the job.  Furthermore, I was appalled to find that the wallpaper was now not available.  Anywhere.  Except in another colorway. Aaarrrgh!

I've just let the unfinished wall sit there, reproaching me every time climbed the stairs (several times every day), for two years.  Yesterday, I decided I would finish the job, even if it meant piecing stuff together.  I did have plenty of coordinating wallpaper that we had used in the room downstairs that the stairs open into, so I decided to use that for the wall at the top of the stairs and then pieced the one half-strip that had to match.  I did the little strips over the doors and FINISHED THE JOB!  So, so satisfying.

ON (AND OFF) MY NEEDLES:
Here are a few photos of projects I have not yet finished.

Rising Fog (which is a bit bluer than it looks here - really, really pretty):

Miss BB - the color is a bit more purple in real life, with this rose/gold color as highlights:

And, a finished project I had (already) forgotten about.  A colleague and I made coordinated Prayer Shawls for a couple who have just retired from long standing roles at the summer camp my sons attended.  Mine is in Ultra Alpaca in rust/brown heather:

Starting

Thinking about finishing things yesterday, I have to admit that one of my problems is that I love to start new things.  In honor of that tendency, I started a new sweater yesterday.  I've been wanting to do a good 'ol wool sweater for a while, but hadn't found just the right pattern to go with yarn I already have or the right yarn to go with patterns I already had.  Until two nights ago when I was catching up on the Yarn Harlot's Blog.  She has an annual habit of starting a new sweater to wear to Rhinebeck (a sheep and wool festival in upperstate NY that I am so going to attend the first fall I'm retired) less than two weeks before the event.  I'm not going to be able to knit mine as quickly as she will knit hers, but I both loved the pattern and was intrigued by her strategy of knitting the sleeves first.  I'm part way into my first sleeve and really liking the idea of knitting this sweater "backwards" (usually you start with the back, then the fronts, and then the sleeves - at least, that is how all patterns are written).

ON MY NEEDLES
Miss BB is going well in Cascade 220 Heathers in a purple-ish mix color.  I picked up this yarn on my 50th birthday boondoggle trip to Webs' tent sale.  That would be 5 years ago, so it is time to find a good use for it and this is it!

Finishing

One of my challenges in life is finishing projects.  My professional avocation is full of projects that take forever to finish and, even while finishing are melding into the next project, giving the impression that each is never ending.  It makes the possibility of retiring in 4-6 years very enticing.  You would think that I would compensate at home by finishing projects promptly, but I find myself surrounded by unfinished projects here, too. I'm beginning to think this is all going to push me over the edge, though the enticement of retirement seems to hold promise for a cure at home too.

But, today I am actually wearing a recently finished project:

OFF MY NEEDLES
Purple socks -- Asymmetrical Cables by Cookie A. in Sock Knitting Master Class: Innovative Techniques & Patterns from Top Designers by Ann Budd.  I'm wearing them as part of my outfit to support "Coming Out Week" at Colby, along with an equally purple scarf.

Mesmerizing

I know that some people in my life wonder what exactly I see in knitting.  Yes, it results in nice things to wear or give away, but, really, what is so interesting about it? My brother-in-law says I "knit like it is my job!" because I always pull my knitting out at family gatherings.  One explanation I shared with him is that keeping my hands busy keeps me from eating continually since so many of our gatherings involve delicious food.  That made sense to him.

The real reason?  I'm mesmerized by the repetition and by the slowly growing fabric in my hands.  I rarely knit "plain vanilla" patterns, so there is usually a texture pattern or a color pattern that is emerging with every row.  I'm similarly captivated by computer games, like Mahjong, but those endeavors don't have, for me, any tangible result.  I've added those apps to my iPad a number of times, spent an evening playing them until way past my bedtime, and then removed them from my computer so that I won't be tempted to play them so easily.  I prefer the slow, steady engagement in knitting, and enjoy the products of my indulgence.

Knitting is my meditation - it is automatically calming and allows me to clear my head.  It soothes me.  And is low-calorie.  I think I'll keep knitting.

ON MY NEEDLES
I've got another sweater,  Silvretta, on the needles that I hope to get back to soon.  The yarn is a blend with only a little wool, which I find harder on my hands.  With my current wrist situation, I've put the project aside for now.  The fronts and backs are done and were an interesting exercise - they are knit out from the center of the back and come to a point in the front (kind of a swing front) with a lace edging.   I had to really work hard to keep track of the rows and edging patterns, which is a good mental challenge, but this was definitely not a social-situation knitting project.

In contrast, I also have a cowl project on the needles which is practically knitting itself.  It is so easy (but not completely plain) that I can knit it without paying a lot of attention, so lends itself nicely to social situations.  The cowl was a free pattern.  The yarn is Quince and Co. Tern.

Injured, But Still Knitting

I have an annoying wrist injury. Right wrist, inner side, around that little bump of bone.  Sometimes it zings me, but mostly it just annoys.

While I wait to get an appointment with a wrist specialist, I've been paying close attention to see what  makes it hurt more or less.  There's very little consistent pattern except that knitting seems to make it feel better.  Go figure!

So, on I knit.

ON MY NEEDLES
Way too many projects, actually.  But here are the highlights:

 Rising Fog by Bonnie Sennott is a rectangular shawl/wrap in lace knitting (I think that's the right term - every other row is purled).  I'm including some lovely irridescent beads and enjoying the pattern.  I started it while hanging out at the hospital two weeks ago when my father had bypass surgery and even knitting all day didn't make my wrist worse.

The Braids Cardigan is a project I started a few years ago (I know, I can't believe I haven't finished it yet).  The yarn is Webs Colrain in Grape Jelly, which is a lovely yarn to work with.  I pulled it out recently and got the front bands knitted on, including one-row buttonholes.  Now I need to find the right needles and get the sleeves done - knitted down from the top so I'll be able to put it on and wear it as soon as they are completed.

And, with 39 more days of writing, more projects to come!

40 Days of Writing

Perusing Facebook last night, I cam across a link to the 40 Days of Writing project which starts today.  Now, my friend who posted it is someone I would call a "real" writer.  I also shared the link with one of my sisters who I also think of as a gifted writer.

Today, I worked my way down through my top 10 blogs and was dismayed to find that only 2 had posted anything in the past few days.  That, combined with the germ of the idea of writing for 40 days reminded me that it has been MONTHS since my last post on my own blog.

So, here I go with an attempt to blog for the next 40 days.