There are two places in this world I most like to spend my time; yarn shops and book stores respectively. Unfortunately for me, I do not have much extra money at my disposal for books or yarn, so most of the time, I look at the knitting books for patterns I like, but rarely buy them, and I drool over the different types of yarn I find in my local lys but can't afford anything more than $5-$6 per ball, depending on the project.
Today, I found myself at Barnes and Noble. I had an hour to kill before I picked-up my daughter at preschool and what better way to do that than perusing knitting books. This is no easy task due to the fact that they do not have the knit/crochet books alphabetized at the Barnes and Noble in Cary. Does anyone else find this unusual? It's plenty irritating, that's for sure.
Nonetheless, I did find some books I have wanted to thumb through. I've decided that I really must have the 1-hour booties pattern in Stitch and Bitch Nation, I love the baby bolero in One Skein and would really love to have those dish cloths in Mason Dixon Knitting. Of course there is Stephanie's book Knitting Rules....decisions, decisions. Well, the $15 in my pocket and my need for the sock cheat sheet in her book made me walk out of there with more Harlot. What can I say? No surprises there:)
Since I would rather not prostitute myself to buy yarn and knitting books, I am collecting all change in a jar for extra spending money. I will let you know whether or not this idea works. I understand from others who have done this that the dollars can build up pretty quickly. I'll let you know.

Kelly Found!

Well, all of you out there in Knitter Land, Kelly has been found. This is she, the doll I told you all about that I knit and Emma and I both spent much time putting together. Remember how upset I was at losing her and how I braved my oldest daughter's bedroom with a gas mask in order to find her? Do you also remember my concluding that the surest way to find Kelly was to knit another doll? Well, it turns out that an even more sure way of finding Kelly was to have said eldest daughter clean her room. Yeah! Really! She was in there the whole time! I'm just happy we found her and that the $10 pack of fat quarters won't go to waste. I can make clothes for her now!

I really did need this piece of good news, especially after the aforementioned sock-frogging episode of yesterday afternoon. That's okay too, though. I enjoy a good heel-turning:)
Good stuff does occasionally happen to me!

Ang

Rrribit, rrribit....

No...it isn't summer yet. That isn't a frog you hear.....
That's the sound of my ripping out the first Mother's Day sock! I was just finishing the foot and getting to the toe decrease when I saw something so horrible, I let out a frightened yelp! A dropped stitch in an otherwise perfect sock, and guess where?....the turned part of the heel. *you know*, one of the weight bearing parts of the sock...otherwise, I so would have fudged it in. Sigh....
Back to the heel again. Now where did I put that bottle of Jack?

Yoohoo!

This is Sam. He's my son. He's 18 and he's an actor. We found out yesterday that he got a part in a movie, an Indy that begins shooting next month in Charlotte. I'm so proud! His agent called him last night to give him the news and we haven't been able to peel him off of the ceiling yet. I'll let you know film name and
release date when I know.

"The events in our lives happen in a sequence in time, but in their significance to ourselves, they find their own order....the continuous thread of revelation."
Eudora Welty


Lately, I have adopted the practice of writing morning pages. I get up at around 5:30 and begin writing before I engage in any other activity. Morning pages are 3 pages of stream of conciousness writing. There is no wrong way to do them. You simply write whatever comes into your mind, good or bad, fragmented thoughts, grumblings. They are not meant to be art or serious writing. They are brain drain; just keep the pen moving for three pages.
I came to the morning pages because I want to work as an artist and also because I have been feeling down, lacking inspiration, blocked. But, because of this practice, my morning ritual, the fog is beginning to clear. My writing is freeing somehow. I seem to be getting rid of all the junk that is in my head and what is left is myself. I am getting beyond the everyday worries and fretting and getting to the fear that has paralyzed me so. I am also becoming strongly aware of my Censor, a nasty little critic that seems to be with me always. The "shoulds" in my self-talk are indications that the Censor is at hand. It says things like "your house should be cleaner," and "you should be thinner," or "why are you writing this, no one will be interested, they will all think you are strange." I am learning to consider that maybe nothing that the Censor says is the truth. Who says I 'should?' Who's should is that? I am discovering often, not my own. So then the "shoulds" are beginning to disperse and the valid feelings I have about what I would like to do become goals rather than shoulds. I can plan and take attainable steps to meet a goal. Goals are positive things.
And so, I am continuing to write every day, three pages, stream of conciousness, even if I wake up grumpy and write "I have nothing to say, I have nothing to say, these morning pages are dumb, why am I doing them. I could use the extra sleep...." and so on. I let my Censor rattle on if it wants to, knowing that I will never go back and read what I wrote and neither will anyone else. These pages are sacred in the doing, but once written, forgotten.
So, you see, I have found a way around and beyond the Censor. I am dumping the junk and getting to the other side, where my artist child lives, where I can once again find joy and fulfillment working with my heart and hands, in my chosen arts, writing and knitting. My hope is that through my writing, I will find my life's work and feel comfortable calling myself an artist.

If you are interested in working with morning pages and other tools to recover or strengthen your creativity, read "The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron. This book is very well written and is a cornerstone of many an artist's creative life. Ms. Cameron's writings are useful for any kind of artist, painter, sculptor, poet, weaver, or for anyone who would simply like to live more creatively. I have provided a link on this blog under 'Books about writing.'

Happy Easter to everyone!

This is the new skin for my blog. I have finally gotten some work done and it is looking closer to what I wanted. I would like to find a free background image (knitting if possible) to go around the name of my blog. If anyone knows of any graphics I can use, how to insert or where to find, please let me know in comments.

Thanks! Hope everyone enjoys their long weekend:)
Ang

Knitting in the bathroom... again

I went to my local yarn shop yesterday in search of a nice Spring colorway for a pair of socks which shall be hereafter referred to as 'Mother's Day Socks,' as I intend to give them to my mother for mother's day. In light of the fact that she refused a nice dish cloth that I knitted for her new kitchen with the exclamation, "That's too nice to wash dishes with," I asked her if she would actually wear a pair of socks should I knit them for her. She said she would so here they are on the needles. The yarn is one of my favorites, Lana Grossa Meilenweit Fantasy in colorway 4820. I love everything about this yarn. The patterns are so nice, the colors are fabulous and you can knit a pair from one 100g ball.

My husband is a brain turmor survivor and normal lighting bother's his eyes so that when I want to enjoy the pleasant colorway of my sock yarns, I sometimes knit in the bathroom, the only room in the house where the light is not dim, or outside on sunny days like today.


Here I am outside now. I am knitting while I ignore watch Emma and her friend Jackie play. I think this is a better picture of this yarn. Daylight is definitely more flattering than my bathroom at any rate.




Here are Emma and her little friend helping me knit garden. Aren't they precious? Notice the plant flattened by my kitty, Boo. My plants are always his favorite place to nap.



With all their hard work, the girls found time to pick some flowers for me. Aren't they pretty? The large white one is a rhododendron.

Favorite Yarns

In the course of learning to knit and the excitement of coming across different patterns using various yarns, I have added some choice favorites to my ever growing yarn stash. These include, but are not limited to: Berroco's 'Plush,' Cascade's 'Fixation,' and Lionbrand 'Wool-Ease.'
What are some of your favorites? Leave a comment and tell us about them!

This is the best part of spring in North Carolina. The beautiful, blooming azaleas. Azaleas are part of the -ea (pronounced 'eeya') family of flowering shrubs. No self-respecting southerner would have less than 2 of these plants in his yard at any given time. We have 3 of the 5 listed here. They are as follows; azaleas, camelias, hydrangeas, magnolias, and gardenias. Begonias don't count as they are, technically, a flower, not a shrub. Wisteria is a vine and magnolia is actually a tree, but work with me here. I think that about does it but I'm sure that if I forgot one, you all will let me know:) Anyway, the azaleas in my yard are white and pink and we have about 6 shrubs abutting our cottage. We also have a camelia and 2 hydrangeas in the back. I enjoyed them quite well today as I was outside for some of it cutting back the monkey grass for new growth. The temperature was a warm 80 degrees, but there was a nice breeze, so it was great for the kids to play out while I worked away. The air smelled clean and I drew in deep breaths often to enjoy it. The sky was cloudy, but allowed enough rays of sunlight to dance through so that the light was perfect, not too bright. Is it any wonder that gardening can be as relaxing and fulfilling as knitting. Hope you all have a wonderful day like mine!

Here is a wonderful piece written by Lene at Dances with Wool called "Every day Wear." I found the link at the Harlot's site and read with awe. I could not possibly add anything to what she had to say about the objects we knit except that her writing is lovely and that I am making my son a sweater. Enjoy.

Ang

Kelly Update: Doll still MIA

Well, I made it out of Katie's room alive but a little ill. Kelly was nowhere to be found.
I have decided that the surest way to find this doll, and those of you who have children know from experience that this is true, is to knit another one. A little known tenet of Murphy's Law states that when a cherished object is lost, be it a pacifier, a blanket, a favorite teddy bear, or, in this case, a knitted doll, the object will only be found after said object has been replaced at significant cost, trouble, and tears. So, I need to knit another doll. It is already on the needles. I think this one, though, should be a little different than Kelly. For example, maybe she could have blond hair and green eyes. That way, when Kelly inexplicably shows up a few days from now, she'll have a friend waiting.

Gotta go. I have alot of utensils to wash and I gotta find a place for all these tape measures....

Ang