No, really, I am still alive

I'm just not knitting.
I know. Read that again.
I'm just not knitting.

No, I'm not sick. I'm just not knitting.

I think this is the longest break I've ever taken from knitting since I was 18! My sister Deanna was up for the long weekend, and I was hoping to have her other sock finished to hand over (she even brought up the other one, in the hopes of having a pair - guilt trip!!!) but nope. She said it's because I was knitting like a freak before Christmas. I'll go with that.

So today, I picked up the needles for the first time in well over a month. I did a little bit on her sock, and a little bit on my scarf. Then I drank too much wine and needed to stop or else I'd make major mistakes and need to pick back and it would not have been pretty.

Anyway, knitting now continues. Funny how quickly I realized that I really, really missed it. It's more than just keeping the hands busy. It's the whole process. Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (aka the Yarn Harlot) says there are 2 kinds of knitters: the process knitter, who knits for the pure joy of it; and the product knitter, who knits to be able to say 'I made it'. I think I'm a combination of the two. The process fascinates me. I love watching needles & yarn create something amazing, something wearable. I don't mind giving away what I've made (at least to those who appreciate it!). It's wearable art! But I also love being able to tell people who compliment what I'm wearing that I made it. I love the looks on their faces. Usually they don't believe me, which makes me giggle. But it also makes me sad. We're so far removed, as a society, from the things we wear, that it's almost incomprehensible for most that there are still some people out there who can make clothing. Kind of like people who go to the grocery store or butcher to buy their meat and can't even connect it to the cows/pigs/chickens that they see in the fields when they drive by. Does that make sense?


Two funny stories from this weekend, one knitting related and one not.

Knitting story: I was looking at the mittens my sister was wearing, thinking I could totally knit them, and planning to copy down the design. I asked her where she got them. Turns out I knit them for her! I totally don't remember making them. That's hilarious.

Non-knitting story: We were having lunch at Wendy's before they left and I fist bumped my almost 4 year old niece and said, "Word." She came back with "Door." I adore that child.

Remember that ADD thing I mentioned?

Yeah. It struck again.
I have a sock almost finished that should have been finished for my sister for Christmas.
I have a gorgeous silk Estonian lace scarf on the go.
I have a cabled jacket & hat that I cast on for my niece but was sane enough to recognize that I wouldn't be finished it in time for Christmas, so put it aside.
I have a very complicated sleeve & neckline to do on Donegal for my dad.
And what did I do today?
I cut out the pieces for my quilt.


It's not bad enough having regular ADD. But knitting ADD is worse. I think there's a PhD in there somewhere.

Mantra

I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.
I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.
I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.
I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.
I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.
I will finish Deanna's sock before casting on a new project for me.

Oh, damn.

A Knitting Christmas in Giving & Receiving!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas - I know I did! Lots of visiting and playing time with my darling niece, food and family and some shopping as well! Plus...
I can finally show what I made for Christmas presents!
For my Dad I made the Canadian Living Reindeer Sweater. I don't think he'll ever wear it. He's very picky and it is rather big on him. I should have made the XL instead of the XXL. Oh well. When he was up here he tried on an Alice Starmore pullover that I had hibernating because it was so huge on me, and it fits him perfectly. So I'll finish the arm and the neck and he can have it.

My sister Deanna got a pair of mittens that I made in the summer (modelled here by my mum):


And she also got a pair of socks. Well, she got a sock. The other one is half done and I'll mail it to her when it's finished in a couple days!


And now, for the getting!
My sisters and I all take after our mother in different ways. She & I both like to theme things. When I'm having a dinner party, I'm much more organized if I can theme it, like Indian or Tuscan or something.
My mother does Christmas and birthdays that way.
This year all my Christmas gifts were knitting themed! Could be because everything on my list was knitting related, or that all knitting gifts are guaranteed to please me, or simply because that's what I do.
So I got a giant bag full of knitting stuff. Much of which was secretly bought while I was with her. Did I mention she's a brat?
Stitch holders and a froggy container to hold odds & sods (please ignore the dog hair in the picture; it's inescapable):


A cute Xmas tree ornament that I will leave up all year long. Also bought when I was with her:


Adorable earrings!


The silk that I was drooling over when she took me to The Little Red Mitten in St. Thomas! Brattykins had the lady slip it into her bag when I wasn't looking!!!!!! Oh, I can't wait to do something with this!!


A very clever swift that isn't an umbrella swift - it's got pegs that you space out according to how big the skein is, and you sit it on top of the table to make your ball.


And, last but not least, Knitted Lace of Estonia, and the Yarn Harlot's Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much. I was killing myself laughing while reading it. And even my non-knitting brother in law was laughing later on, when he picked it up and started thumbing through it. Possibly because he recognized me in some of the essays.


And here is my gift to myself. Anthony is my hero.

YESSSS!!!!!!

The giant gift is done!!! My back is killing me from sitting on the floor for 4 hours sewing it up, but that MF is done!!!!!
Pics posted after Xmas. Just needed to share the jubilation.

Insanity

Most people who know me will agree that I am, in fact, quite insane. The nicer (or maybe gentler) ones will say perhaps 'quirky' or 'different' instead of insane, but it all boils down to the same thing. I am insane.
And it's only going to get worse. Today is December 16th. That is 9 days until Christmas. If my math is correct. I am insane, after all.
So therefore, I have 9 days to finish 2 Christmas presents that I cannot specify because at least 1 of the giftees reads my blog, so you're going to have to take my word for it that 9 days left to finish these gifts is insane.
Okay, deep breath and off to knit again. If I weren't insane already, I would be well on my way.

Why?????

I have been without a car this week. I need a new engine. Yes, you read that right. I was running with no oil. And no warning lights came on. And it didn't act differently. Because nothing normal ever happens to me.
So, being trapped inside this weekend meant lots of Christmas knitting, which is good, because we're only 3 weeks away.
But, naturally, disaster struck. I got home this evening courtesy of another teacher who lives up the road and works in Bracebridge as well, and there was a trail of yarn leading from the living room to the bedroom. With a great sense of foreboding, I headed into the bedroom, where Rosebud was cowering beside a little lump of knitting. (Aside: if she knew I was going to be pissed, why did she do it at all?????) None of the knitting had been torn out, thankfully, but she ate the bamboo needle. My only pair of 6mm. And no way to replace them.
The knitting was on the coffee table. Along with a pair of chopsticks that had been used for last night's dinner and forgotten to be taken to the sink. Did she eat the 99 cent pair of chopsticks? NO! She went for the $10 needles.
And, of course, the small Christmas project is at school, so I can't work on it.
Now I'm all fussy.