Knit and Plenty

Stop the Trot.

Aside from being a fitting little image for Thanksgiving, I have to say that this little gobbler happens to portray exactly how I have been feeling lately about my knitting.

Too many projects. Not enough time. And I'm not so sure my heart is exactly in the right place.

So tomorrow has come along at just the right time - to remind me to be grateful for all of the wonderful people in my world and all the glorious bounty in my life. To not sweat the small stuff. To not rush through the stitches. To stop and feel the cashmere.

It's a great day to eat too much, and curl up on the couch with the kids, and my sampler scarf or socks that rock and slowly, one stitch at a time, count my blessings. I bet you will, too!

The 50 Yarn Line

For the many fans of the Gridiron, last Sunday marked the beginning of the 2006-2007 football season, and its hilarious that, as obsessed as I am with a hobby, I can't fathom how anybody can spend so much time with a hobby. Of course, with knitting, you are actually doing something not watching someone else do it, and you end up with something when its all over. But perhaps its time to focus on the similarities. After all, there's nothing like kicking off a new project and tackling a difficult pattern. Frequently, there will be a two point conversion from straight needles to circulars, or even the need to go for the extra point (the cable needle.)  Certainly there have been times that I've made such forward progress that a sweater will go from a half back to a full back, without any clipping. And in the end, if you are rushing and not blocking - you risk ending up with a tight end.

So, maybe the thing for me to do is to picture Steven Jackson running down the field with a free skein of Lobster Pot Cashmere under his arm. Believe me, there'd probably be a little unnecessary roughness.

PS : I guess if we're going to get behind a team, it should be The Rams. Their cheerleaders are even called Embraceable Ewes!

A Record Goes Up in Flames

A few days ago, newspapers in South Africa announced that a bookkeeper named Alta Tucker had broken the national record as the fastest knitter by knitting 178 stitches in 3 minutes. The previous record was 162 stitches. That's pretty damn fast.  But Alta probably won't need to be jetting to the UK in October for the World Competition, because (get this) the world record is 255 stitches in 3 minutes.

So, I tried it. And I'll be damned if my needles didn't burst into flames.

Not.

The best I could do was 80 stitches in 3 minutes - using cashmere on Addi's.

I didn't want to get on an airplane anyway.

Shrouded in Mystery

I thought this would be the perfect little accessory for masking my eyes post surgery. Do you think anyone will notice?  I think I'll call it a CRO-SHROUD. 

(No, I didn't really make this - and I am also sorry to tell you that I forgot where I found the picture because I know you all would have wanted the pattern!)

My eyes are still pretty swollen, and I will have to be the mysterIous women behind sunglasses for the next several weeks. I still haven't picked up a project in more than six days - the longest knitting hiatus I have taken in quite some time. So, you can tell me if this is a totally insane reaction: but instead of wanting to get back into my projects, I hate every project that I have waiting for me! Why is that??? This is a real mystery to me. It's like I am mad that they didn't work on themselves or something during my absence! How dare they just lay there on the needles - waiting for me to return. Or do I feel guilty that I abandoned them? Or now that I have taken a breather, and dare I say it, have gained a little distance and perspective, perhaps having 8 simutaneous projects just feels a bit overwhelming.  And yet, I know that once my sticks are back in my hands, the mystery will be gone - and the beautiful insanity shall begin anew!

Are we masking the problem?

Ok - I have to admit that the whole Avian Flu threat is starting to freak me out. You can't pick up a newspaper without some glaring headline about how doctors in this country - or scientists from that University - are telling us that we are NOT prepared. Now granted, part of me thinks that some of the timing of these headlines is also intended to mask Bush's latest BIRD brain scheme to go to war with Iran - but I'm also thinking, "IS ANYBODY LISTENING????" I get these horrible images in my head of Vincent Price roaming the streets as the  last man on earth.

Well, here's a way that we knitters can save the world!  Why not start knitting up some attractive masks? They are bound to be all the rage for fashion influenza. Use a soft, breathable cotton. Perhaps a fair isle pattern. It could be the perfect application for all the acrylic in the world!

Now THAT'S stupid   clever!!!

Brimming with Stash

It's the last day of March - the final hours of Major Knitter's March Madness - a fellow blogger's spirited drive to collect sock yarn for a project that she is planning. I hear that packages came from far and wide, and that everyone looked deep into their hearts and stashes to send along an errant skein or two. I can just imagine what her house might look like right about now! Congratulation, Major - once again you have led a battalion of good soldiers through a fun and rewarding effort.   And to all the rest of the troops (in the knitosphere and around the world): have a safe and peaceful weekend.

Generation Necks

Last week, I met a wonderful knitter named Arlene. Arlene and her husband spend their winters in Florida and their summers in Guilford, CT. She noticed me knitting, poolside, and we immediately fell into a dialogue about our shared passion. She told me that her mother was a knitter who made beautiful cold weather items from good quality wool for practical purposes. We talked about how much yarn has changed over the years, and how all the new fibers have spurred a whole new level of creativity. She shared with me a few of her creations [click on shawl picture to see the beautiful detail], which, not surprisingly, she sells under the name "No Nude Neck." 

Her daughter, from Atlanta, has also inherited Arlene's talents - and even her 12 year old granddaughter (who was visiting grandma at the time) has started making scarves.

Even though knitting dates back to sometime before the 11th century, I feel oddly reassured when I hear about generations of knitters.  We should all do our part to pass it on.

And the winner is...

Thanks to everyone who voted yesterday for the Best Picture of the Year. It looked like Muknitch was the clear favorite for awhile, as it seems it was a subject near and dear to many of our hearts. I thought it would be Berocco Mountain. But in the end, it was Stash that took the prize. As Jennifer cleverly commented,"Why can't we all just knit along?"  I also want to give thanks for all of your warm compliments. I think it is so cool how we share Olympics, and contests and current events.

And speaking of movies, this coming weekend, I am looking forward to going to see Failure To Launch. It seems to be my motto lately when it comes to all my unfinished projects.

Thanks again for playing along.

It's Oscar Knit!

Are you ready for the Red Carpet? I am.
Now, Cast Your Vote (via comment):
Which of these do you think should win the Oscar for Best Picture?

Berocco Mountain - A touching love story about a strong worsted weight yarn named Suede who falls for Lavish, a fanciful eyelash, who just wants to ride along with Suede into the sunset.

Good Knit and Good Luck - A crisply paced docudrama in which a seasoned TV reporter takes on the conservative crochet movement of the 1950's, attempting to help a group of knitters who are blacklisted when they refuse to make poodle-covered gin bottles and toliet paper cozies.

Clapotis - A riveting bio-pic about an avant-garde author who travels to the Midwest, wraps himself up in a little French shawl and quickly reveals everyone's biases.

Stash - A moving morality piece set in L.A. that asks the question: can leftover skeins of acrylic and remnant wool all live together in a world without their labels?

Muknitch - All hell breaks lose in this action packed thriller as knitters are taken hostage by the Harlot's Olympic challenge.

And the Oscar goes to....

Sticks and Flicks

I am usually taking the weekends off from blogging - but this weekend, I have to make an exception because tomorrow is the Academy Awards. There's probably only one thing that i like to do as much as knit, and that's go to the movies. So, tomorrow I'll be posting a list of The Best Pictures of 2006 (from a knitter's viewpoint, of course) and I wanted to invite you to stop by and cast your vote.
See you tomorrow.