Writer. Editor. Teacher. Maker.
I want to share with you all about a documentary on PBS that will air tonight. "Two Square Miles" is about the struggles that a small town, Hudson, New York, faces as the community searches for common interests. A woman whom I respect a great deal, Maija Reed, has a cameo appearance on the program, and the program will also show her workplace, Time & Space Limited. I plan to watch it, and I hope you do as well.
And. Some big news is on the way.
I hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving. I enjoyed my little break from school, and it was difficult to get up and out this morning. I think many of my students felt the same way. That end-of-the-semester buckling down is starting to kick into gear, though. It’s my favorite time of semester. I love seeing the students piece together all of the things we’ve worked on for the previous twelve or so weeks. Next semester I have the opportunity to teach a novel or novella to my freshmen. Can I tell you that I’m frozen in terms of selecting a novel? I love so many books, and I’m also worried that I’ll select a book that most of my students have read already. So, I"m torn among books such as The Things They Carried, Jane Eyre, Wide Sargasso Sea (do you think you can get that if you haven’t read Jane Eyre?), Grendel (must one have read Beowulf to get it?) or maybe a shorter Steinbeck novel. I’d like to read something by a woman, as male writers are certainly well-enough represented in most readers. I’d love to hear your suggestions. This class isn’t a literature class, but rather a composition class in which we use literature as a springboard for writing.
So let me know. What book did you love when you were around 18 years old?
I finished my Malabrigo Christmas Fetching mitts for my cousin. This yarn is so, so, so very nice to knit. I have a confession, too. I’ve never "gotten" those "I sniff yarn" buttons that I see around blogland. Until Malabrigo entered my life. The faint aroma of vinegar that comes off of this yarn makes me so very happy. So. Very. I didn’t do the picot edge, but I think I will on the next pair. Did you see the pair Cookie made for Scout? Loverly!
Here’s the start of a baby sweater I’m making out of the prototype of Scout’s Needles on Fire yarn. I think it’s my favorite of her yarns (at least until I go look at the others, then I won’t be able to decide!). The colors are unlike any other that I’m seeing from handpainting artists. I think this will be a sophisticated sweater for a little peanut due in the next few months. I started with the Mason Dixon Knitting kimono, adjusting the stitch number to accommodate the finer yarn. Now I’m thinking I want this to be a cardigan. I have an image of perfect little swank buttons bringing out the purple or light pink of the fabric. I’ve got my sketch book by my chair so I can mess around with schematics.
It’s kind of fun to switch between this dainty project and the chunky meathead hat. Little needles, big needles. Thin yarn, chunky yarn. While I have a lot of grading to do this long weekend, I’m going to try to get a lot of crafting time in. I can’t wait for winter break when I can paint and sketch and spin and sew and knit and crochet my days away. Until then, though, I’ll do my best to balance work and writing and crafting and family time.
I’m thankful to have such variety in my life. I’m thankful for so much, and I’ll certainly spend my knitting time tomorrow thinking about everything and everyone making my life so rich and wonderful. Including my bloggy friends.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Two weekends ago Neal and I stopped by the local Grange for its fall rummage sale. I picked up a pyrex pie plate, six linen napkins (to be used for sachets), and this sweet lady, all for two dollars. She was the first thing I saw when I walked in the door. I’m not big on tchotchkes, but I couldn’t resist her. Now that she’s had her photo shoot, she keeps me company on the little side table next to the chair where I write, grade, spin, and knit. I wonder what she’s got on the needles?
So, yeah, we’re pretty much in agreement. D.C. is the Bond of my dreams. I’m not alone.
Can I continue to think like a pre-teen? Guess what’s on Bravo? (Like how I know all the tv stations now?) Bridget Jones’s Diary. Neal has gone off to sleep, so it’s me and the dogs. I’m going to make a hot chocolate, get starry eyed over Colin Firth (call me fickle if you like), and alternate between my project out of Scout’s prototype Needles on Fire yarn and my festive Meathead hat.
I visited my two LYSs today and picked up yarn for some felted slippers and the Meathead hat, as well as a fabu button and suede handle for a felted bag I am finishing.
Ok, gotta go make that hot chocolate. Hope you’re having a cozy night, too.
Just try to tell me this is not the sexiest Bond ever. Just try. With all due respect to Neal, I think I’ve got a new crush.
Now that I’ve changed my name, my initials are B.A.A. Get it? Baaaaaaaaaa! Get it now?
Ok. Maybe it seemed funnier in my head.
49 years and still in love.
Scout asks, I do.
1. How and when did you learn how to knit/crochet? Who taught you? You know, I always say that I learned to crochet when I was 19 from my Gram. We were in the back seat of my parents’ car on a road trip to a family reunion in Ohio. She was making delicate little doilies and curtain pulls, and I wanted to learn, too. She was a terrible teacher, and my mom laughs when we talk about that trip. She recalls how I argued with Gram that she had to let me fix things instead of taking the crochet away from me and doing it herself.
The story is true, but it wasn’t actually my first crochet. Sometime when I was around 14, my mom taught me to make hairpin lace. It’s one of the only crafts my mom did, and I’d forgotten that she taught it to me until I made my Funky Scarf this fall.
I didn’t learn to knit for almost another ten years. In November 1997 Martha Stewart Living had an article about knitting. I’d wanted to do it for ages, but had been busy with quilting and college. I decided that I could teach myself (I did teach myself quilting after all), so I went to the moth-ball smelling yarn store in Peekskill (which has since moved into a delightful, bright, fresh-smelling location), bought a skein of purple wool and some needles, and stood at the counter as Janet, the owner, cast on for me. She showed me to knit English style, but I didn’t get it. Then she showed me Continental, and I was enamoured. I’ve recently read that those who start with crochet often find Continental the easier method. I made a lot of errors with that scarf, so I took a class in January 1998 and was on my way.
2. How has this craft impacted your life? (besides financially!) Since I can remember I have always been passionate about making things. There were the dolls made out of rags, the cigar box movie theaters, the brown bag puppets. I’ve also always liked fabrics and fashion. Knitting gives me the satisfaction of creating stylish items. I mostly knit for others. I like putting time into a gift for a loved one. The more precious time becomes to me, the more I like doing this. Knitting gives me a way to relax if I’m worried or stressed, a place to bond with my friends. Really, if we weren’t getting together every week for knitting, I doubt we’d get together every week. Something would come up and hanging out would get delayed. Knitting also helps me to be more patient. For one, I’m a slow knitter; there is no quick knit for me, just a less slow knit! If I have to wait (like at the DMV, for instance) I have my knitting to occupy me and entertain me and keep me patient.
3. Pick at least one person to talk about who you have met through the knit-world and why you are thankful to have met them. Feel free to get all mushy. I can’t pick out individuals. Instead I want to talk about two communities. The first is my Albuquerque SnB. The first time I went it was me, Laurie, and Beth. I left for the summer not long after those quiet meetings, and when things started up in the fall, Scout and Carole were there. Soon we were taking over half the restuarant–the knit the Guild knitters joined us, we DID take it over! I had hooked up with Noelle through Knitters not Quitters, and she started to come to Tuesday nights at Flying Star. I began Friday night craft nights once a month for my UNM friends, and often Cari and Noelle would come to those as well.
There was a lot for me to love about being in New Mexico. It was exciting to live on my own, away from all family and having to handle things by myself. It gave me space to heal from the end of my marriage. I was learning constantly in my graduate program. I was surrounded by stunning natural beauty. But despite developing friendships at school, without my SnB friends, I would have had a different experience.
The graduate student population I was with was a lot of fun. I made some friends I will have for life. I craved a place where comps and literature were not always the underlying focus, though, and SnB gave me that. I’m more than a student, after all. I’ve been successful in my work before I decided to leave it for school. I was older than many of the other graduate students, which didn’t always matter, but I loved that I could talk about childhood stuff and Scout and Carole were right there with me. I loved that I could talk about something that left me uncertain about how to act, and Mona would decisively say the right thing. I loved meeting Molly and Amy and Lauren and Carmela, and everyone. I loved that I had a place that wasn’t about the pressure of my daily, overcrammed life, a place where I could fondle yarn and dish about patterns and blogs. I loved the strength of the friendships I developed there. Every Tuesday at 7, I feel just a little lonely now.
I’m lucky, though. I moved back to the area where I grew up, and two of my best highschool friends still live nearby. They’re both knitters, and we try to get together every week. Cae is an exquisite knitter. She’s made some of the loveliest items I’ve ever seen. Sara is an adventurous knitter. She sees a pattern, decides what she wants to change and makes it her own. Like my SnB pals, they help me to be a better knitter, and I have a blast hanging out and chatting about whatever is going on in our lives.
4. Comment and let me know when you post this in your blog so I can read them all. Go tell Scout, too, ok?
Another fun meme to distract me from grading. Seen at my pal Carole’s. Oh, and I scored 100% on the Grammar quiz, too. Phew.
Now if you’re going to play, leave a comment. Here are the rules: You.Can.Only.Type.One.Word. No. Explanations.
1. Yourself: curious
2. Your boyfriend/girlfriend (spouse): loyal
3. Your hair: conservative
4. Your mother: funny
5. Your Father: devoted
6. Your Favorite Item: necklace
7. Your dream last night: unknown
8. Your Favorite drink: grapefruitsoda (ok, I cheated)
9. Your Dream Car: train
10. The room you are in: cozy
11. Your Ex: creative
12. Your fear: childbirth
13. What you want to be in 10 years? novelist
14. Who you hung out with last night? lovies
15. What You’re Not? competitive
16. Muffins:cookies
17. One of Your Wish List Items: Subscription
18. Time: fickle
19. The Last Thing You Did: cleaned
20. What You Are Wearing: khakis
21. Your Favorite Weather: snowy
22. Your Favorite Book: Shakespeare
23. The Last Thing You Ate: soup
24. Your Life: changing
25. Your Mood: content
26. Your best friend: sister
27. What are you thinking about right now? secrets
28. Your car: gray
29. What are you doing at the moment? multitasking
30. Your summer: change
31. Your relationship status: committed
32. What is on your TV? Austen
33. What is the weather like? drizzling
34. When is the last time you laughed? dinner
