I’ve been thinking a lot about thinking lately. Many of the students with whom I work have difficulty managing their time and finding the best place to study and reflect. It’s my job to help them discover, or rediscover, that place. One day recently several students were gathered in our office and we were all talking about where we do our best thinking and come up with our best ideas. Many different places and spaces were bandied around. I have two: when I’m blow drying my hair and when I’m knitting.
For a long time I thought it was the heat penetrating my brain and getting that blood flowing, but I think it really is the noise of the dryer blocking out all other sounds leaving me to just hear my own thoughts. Well, maybe it’s a combination of both. I’ve learned to jot down a few notes or key words so that I can remember later. Seriously, I have come up with some brilliant ideas and even written whole papers during the blow dry!
In 2003 I discovered knitting and wrote about it being my savior in the first post for this blog. It’s become much more than that over the past 10 years. I’ve always been a fiber artist, but never expected knitting to have such an important impact on my life. When I am stressed, I knit. When I am happy, I knit. When I need to get unstuck, I knit. When I want to give someone a hug, I knit them a hug.
They way in which I knit can tell you a lot about what’s going on in my life. When I am jumping from one project to another, things may be a little chaotic. Periodically, I set goals for myself to actually finish one by one everything that’s in progress. Usually that means that things are calmer and completing each project gives a sense of accomplishment and after the goal is met, I allow myself to buy yarn for a new project. Projects that are simple and mindless are nice when I’m with my knitting group since I am also teaching others to knit. These are projects I can put down and then easily pick up where I’ve left off. More complex projects like color work and lace are left at home. These projects are nice when you want to escape from your thoughts and focus on math and the beautiful designs that develop. I often find clarity in my thoughts when I put these projects down and go back to solving whatever issue is at hand.
We had some cancer in our family recently and knitting helped me get through the days waiting for test results and sitting in the hospital and helping out after the hospital stay. I did not purchase any new yarn during this time, but was able to use up quite a bit of my stash. I am still finishing some projects, but did allow myself to use that $20 credit at my LYS for something new.
Here’s what I’m working on for a very special little lady who requested a hat and gloves in “HOT” pink with white snowflakes.
This is Snawheid by Kate Davies. In my opinion, Kate is the queen of colourwork (spelled with a ‘u’ just for her). I love that she always provides some sort of historical reference or I learn a new word or two. Kate has a lot of admirers and I’ve occasionally commented on her blog, but I want to say here that she is a most amazing woman. She has overcome adversity like nobody’s business; she is an academic which is why I never miss her blog posts and I’ve learned more about Scotland and it’s environs that I ever expected; sometimes she posts good recipes; and, she has the cutest black lab ever, named Bruce. Kate Davies, you inspire me!
And now, ladies and germs, this is what just arrived in the mail.
That’s right, 8 skeins of Cascade 220 for Gita. Gita is only available through the Craftsy.com class by Faina Goberstein, Sizing Knitwear Patterns. If you’re on Ravelry, check it out here. The lovely model, Eve, is one of my students. I have signed up for the class, but must finish Snawheid and another Faina design that I started last summer and put down when my mom got sick. I AM going to stick to my goal and finish these two projects before moving forward! There, I’ve said it publicly. Don’t hesitate to smack me if I stray.
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