Tuesday, April 7, 2020

Lessons Learned in a Viral World. And Knitting.

I’m learning lots about myself in the midst of this new reality of sheltering in place, unfounded toilet paper hoarding, and social distancing.  For instance, I’ve learned:

·      if you actually intentionally eat leftovers instead of ignoring them in the fridge until they’re practically growing penicillin, you can survive on a very conservative supply of food.
·      I enjoy being confined to the house we paid way too much money for.  Seems like I’m finally enjoying a return on our investment. (The Husband does not, which does create some drama, but really only for him – I just roll my eyes at him when he's not looking)
·      I’ve discovered the joy of using FaceTime so I can see my mom’s precious face.
·      over the years, I’ve purchased way more books on Amazon’s Kindle and BookShout than I’ll ever have time to read, even during self-isolation.
·      I’m becoming a Microsoft Teams ninja, a skill that I fully intend to add to my CV.
·      it is, in fact, entirely possible to use only 2 squares of TP at a time.
·      my efforts in building my yarn stash over the years have completely paid off in this time of financial uncertainty – I have enough to knit for ages.

Random Pinterest Graphic


And what about knitting?  Well…

I’ve actually only completed a pathetic two pairs of socks pre-COVID since the first of the year:

Charade by Sandra Park

Piece of My Heart Socks by DKissinger

Both were knit with Knit Picks Stroll Glimmer in Frost and Cosmopolitan, respectively.

When I found myself with a bit more time for knitting due to the outbreak and the fact that I am in the final stretch of completing my master’s program, I knew I wanted to start a substantial project, but suffered from what I call “knitter’s block.”  In other words, I couldn’t decide what I really wanted to knit.  This isn’t really a new thing for me.  I often suffer from “knitter’s block,” so I naturally did what I always do in such a situation:  I made a dishcloth.

Grandmother's Favorite Dishcloth
Knit with Premier Home Cotton in Rustic Blue


Hey, it’s what you do when you need to knit but can’t make a decision. 

The good news is, once I finished the dishcloth, I received clarity on what to knit next.  I’m making a sweater for my son.  I’d purchased the yarn a while ago but never started because of the demands that school placed on my time.  Now, I was ready to jump in.  I modified the pattern slightly as it calls for a garter stitch hem which was not going to work for my son who is a professional and would need something a bit more conventional, so I did a tubular cast on with provisional waste yarn.  

Since it's a gift, I'll give you the pattern later
Knit with Knit Picks Wool of the Andes in Cilantro Heather


I’ve done this type of cast on before, and all was going swimmingly until I went to cut out the provisional waste yarn.  I blame the poor lighting in my living room.  When I thought I was only cutting the provisional yarn, I also managed to cut the tail off the project yarn (the bit you’d normally weave in at the end). 

I'm tail-less!


As you can see, I placed a stitch marker on the edge because I was afraid it would unravel, even though it doesn't appear it's going to.  I’m not quite sure what to do.  I really don’t want to frog it and start over, so for now, I’m pushing onward and will hope and pray that when I stitch the ends together from the tubular cast on join, it will somehow reinforce things and keep it from unraveling. 

I’m open to feedback if you have any insight or dire warnings.  About the sweater.  Not toilet paper.  I'm all good there.

Stay safe!

L.

1 comment:

  1. There is a deep life lesson somewhere in the yarn metaphor. I just feel its coming! It seems many of us are trying to keep from unraveling!

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