Confession is Good for the Soul

I blame it on having children and the Internet.  Keeping focused on a task for any length of time was impossible when the kids were little.  Getting 5 minutes of uninterrupted time was a luxury.  Getting 15 minutes was a Godsend.  I realized after a while I became conditioned to these short bursts of activities.  I became ADD. 

I used to not be this way. Going 'heads down' on a task was easy. Projects were finished within a reasonable amount of time. I used to quilt. I would make 2 or 3 quilts a year for a now defunct service organization called ABC Quilts. I also made a quilt every year for Christmas to give to a member of my family. One year I even made 4 for Christmas!! Not sure what mental disorder I was suffering from at that time, but I was like a woman possessed. But as the kids got involved in activities, my time by my sewing machine ended and I returned to knitting since it is more portable. Slowly I would cast on and knit while at soccer practices, dance lessons or volleyball matches. My projects were small pieces like scarves or hats. Then I discovered the Internet and blogs offered all kinds of new things to try. Shiny objects started popping up everywhere. I became friends with another knitter at work and she and I would trade project ideas. That's when it all fell apart for me. I jumped at the latest trend. Casting on became a frequent occurrence. My problem was following through to the end. Finishing is just not in my vocabulary.


Just to prove I have a serious problem, here is a pile of fiber that has my attention at the moment.  In there is a sweater, afghan, stole, scarf, and a pair of socks.  Trust me, it's true.

The sweater is the Go Live Minimalist Cardigan.  I am making progress on it.  I'm almost finished with the second front panel.  That leaves the sleeves.  There is a knitting group at work that meets Wednesdays at lunchtime.  I have started joining them and this is my project.  At least 30 minutes a week is devoted to getting this sweater done.

The Great American Aran Afghan is going to be my ADD project.  I figure whenever I need a little diversion from other projects, I can work on a square for that.  I have no timeline for it.  This is the first block, designed by a lady from Cincinnati.  Chosen because that is my hometown.

The stole is the Taize stole I started a year and a half ago.  It is about 1/3 finished.  Again, no timeline.  I work on it whenever it piques my interest.

Last but not least are the silk hankies.  Yes, I fell 'hook, line, and sinker' for that little craze a couple months ago.  I bought 2 sets in 2 different colors.  The blue is going to become socks for Trisha to wear at night.  She has Reinold's Syndrome and needs to keep her feet and hands warm.  The cream colored silk is going to be a helix scarf for me.  I've altered the pattern slightly to make it a bit wider.  It will have a little more ruffle to it since I'm doing 3 short rows per side instead of just 2, as the pattern states.

There!  Now that I've admitted my problem, it is time to make some resolutions for action.  Being realistic, I can't go cold-turkey and say that I won't start another project until these are finished.  I will, however, vow to not start a new scarf until the helix scarf is done.  And I won't start a new stole until Taize is finished.  Another sweater will not be cast on until Go Live is off the needles.  I will not begin another block of the aran afghan until the current one is bound off.

With that resolve, I need to get cranking on the Go Live sweater.  Yarn is being delivered next week to make sweaters for the girls.   Told you I had a problem!! 

No Time to Waste

It's strawberry season in central Ohio.  Actually, it is coming to a close soon.  Last year I made freezer jam, which Blake loved.  He requested more after consuming my entire batch.  This morning I went up to a local pick-your-own farm and brought home 4 quarts.  I made freezer jam with half.  The remaining strawberries are going to become a pie.  My mom gave me her strawberry pie recipe.  It is a family favorite.  Unlike some recipes, it does not use gelatin.   I'll have to think of a good meal to go with that special dessert.

I'm back to making progress on the Taize shawl. It goes to work with me everyday. About 3 days a week I'm able to get a few rows in over lunch. It is approaching the 1/3 done mark. I'd like to get this done by the fall and then keep it at the office. It will be nice to wrap myself in, especially later this year when the project I'm working one reaches its deadline. The move-to-production date is October 1. That weekend will be a long, exhausting one. I don't anticipate being home much between September 13 to mid-November. Having this shawl with me will help.

  

Of course I can't just work on one project.  I'm also trying to make progress on Decimal.  I've finished the body up to the armholes.  I'm now working on the left sleeve.  This is my 'sitting in front of the television' project.  Below are a couple photos of it.  The color in the first photo is closest to reality.  The second photo is a close-up of the sleeve.

Next Thursday my sister Patty is coming into town.  We will be attending Knitters Connection.  We are taking a class from Cookie A on Friday.  I can't wait.  Also, Patty is going to bring her spinning wheel and some roving. She is going to attempt to teach me how to spin.  We'll see how that goes.

It's Been A While

October was busy. Here's a few highlights:

Kristin's volleyball occupied 2 weekday evenings and an occasional Saturday per week. She was promoted up to varsity during the second half of September and played every game until the last two games of the tournaments. Her team made it to the 4th round of the tournaments, losing in the district finals.



Trisha's cross country was every Tuesday and Saturday. She improved tremendously through the season, going from 18:36 for a 2-mile run to her best time of 15:03 during the second to last meet. She has plans to run cross country in high school and will only get faster! Run like the wind, Bullseye!!



Getting ready for Blake's big #12 birthday. He wanted a small get-together this year, which was perfectly alright with me. He had a few friends come over last Friday for pizza, cake, and games. The boys had a great time playing with his new Nerf guns. Unfortunately, his cake didn't fare so well. I'm not sure what happened, but when I tried to ice it, the top layer split. Ed said it was too moist. I think I stacked the layers incorrectly. I should have inverted the bottom layer to have the 2 flat sides meet in the middle. Oh well, it still tasted good. And to a group of 11 and 12 year old boys, it was a work of art.



With all the good, there must come some bad. The leaf below was collected while taking a long walk one Sunday afternoon after a particularly stressful week. My biggest stress came from having to have a diagnostic mammogram. I have been having some issues and my doctor thought there might be a slight chance that the cause was breast cancer. Fortunately, the mammogram showed that everything was okay. The doctor feels it was just inflamation. HUGE RELIEF!!!


The second stress that week came at work. I won't chronicle the details but just say that having to work with a dictator sucks!!! This person was leveling a ton of false accusations against me and trying to get me fired. Fortunately, I weathered the storm. After things calmed down a bit, I had a little chat with the Fuhrer and let him know I didn't appreciate the way he treated me. For the moment, he's backed off. I don't know if standing up to him helped, or he's retreated and planning a more covert attack for next time. Either way, I'm laying low for a while.

Now, for the knitting portion of the show:

Some socks in either OSU or UC colors. Since UC is doing better this year in football, I think I'll honor them with this pair.



The Taize shawl. I bought the pattern and yarn during the weekend after the stressful week. Taize is a particular type of liturgical service. I thought it rather appropriate because I was saying prayers constantly that week.



The Cherie Amour sweater.