The Knitting Universe

Just some random thoughts today.  I am slowly moving into hibernation since the weather is holding nice for a while.

Patty and I went to a local state park and hiked on one of the trails there on Sunday.  It was a lovely day-a little bit of wind and just the right temperature.  I was a little bit nervous when I came to the bluff.  We have a topography here of carst limestone.  We have lots and lots of bluffs that just drop off to a steep decline.  I walked quickly past that so Patty wouldn't explore the edge. 

I am knitting something of my own design.  I used a basic pattern for a recipe, then I took off with that.  We will see how it turns out.  I am knitting in the round, round and round and round.  Then when I get closer to the yoke, I will add some colorwork.

I wrote down a quote from Cast On.  It is a podcast with Brenda Dayne.  There are "looking moments" in knitting-usually at the end.  This is when you look at something you have made and you are marveling at how good it looks and how skilled you are and how much you love the yarn and how great you feel.  I like that.  I wish I wasn't so critical of what I do.  It is marvelous when I spin the yarn and knit the garment.  Or when you knit something that is made of a gorgeous yarn that is so soft and cuddly.

I am spinning this yarn that is made from "stretched merino".  I am not enamored of this process of messing up a good fiber.  It is supposed to give the look of silk when finished.  Well, it does look silky in the sheen, and it is "heavy", but merino is supposed to be soft and poofy and squishy.  This is not that.  It is easy to spin, though, and I guess that is a good thing. 

CJE and I spent the day Saturday going to the LYS in Bentonville,and we did some sitting and knitting.  She said that someone mentioned to her that she seems to be knitting a lot.  She told them "When I am sittin', I am knittin'"  I guess in a perfect Knitting Universe, we would not seem to be so strange when we knit all the time.  It would not seem so strange if we only go to functions that have places to sit and knit while you listen to the speaker or to the music or whatever.  It would also be nice to have someone who knows the language too. 

R and H are going to go to Mt. Magazine to celebrate their first anniversary.  I hope the weather holds out for them.  They spent New Year's with R's cousin Shelley King in Austin.  She is a professional singer/songwriter, and they were her guest at her gig New Year's Eve.  I hope they had fun.  My brother told me they stayed out really late, although he and his wife did not participate in any late night stuff.

It is funny how both of my brother's daughters look so much like my mother.  I showed some friends a video of Shelley, and the picture of my mother on my shelf.  They couldn't believe it.  And the younger daughter looks more like mother because she is so thin.  She has certain mannerisms that I recognize as Mother's.  Weird, huh?

I did some yard work last week, and my sinuses paid for that.  It was just a little bit cool, with some wind, and all the mildew, dust, and whatever particles flew up my nose.  I guess I just wanted to be out in the sun.  It was so nice last week.  We are having sunny, cooler weather so far this week.

So enough of this stupid random thought stuff.  I am going to go sew.  Have a good week.  We are moving into the first week of 2012!