Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better. — Samuel Beckett
This quote is my mantra for knitting this week. Yes, I have tried. Yes, I have failed. Yes, I tried again. Yes, I failed again. My attempts are not always better, but I still keep trying…as you can see from my foibles this week!
The foot looks long because it is!
This sock… sigh. I started once, but the pooling and looseness of the fabric meant I ripped it out and started over. Second start was fine until I got to the heel. Can I just say that counting really matters in knitting and if you are 3 stitches off on heel placement… well, it matters! lol So, that got ripped back and knit again. I kept wondering why it was “off center” but never sat down and counted. (Also, knitting while Zooming with the Exhuberant Jillian is a great way to make lots of mistakes, just saying.) Anyways, I ripped that back Monday morning and started the heel again… counting correctly this time! Then I got to the portion where I can start the cuff ribbing … and started until I realized that in order for this shortie sock to fit well, I will need some short rows on the heel side of the cuff, sigh. That meant a bit of tinking back the couple of rows of ribbing I had done to raise the back cuff. AND!! At long last sock ONE is done! Hopefully I took good notes so I can do the second one with no ripping back and just some speedy knitting! (That birthday is fast approaching!)
The faded blue sweater body with the charcoal grey button bands!
My initial color thoughts… I need 5 colors.
Although, maybe I did not pick great hues…
At some point today I am going to be doing some coloring to determine colors for my Daytripper Cardigan! I have the body and the collar/button band colors decided… I just have to figure out the remaining 5 colors… wish me luck! (Or at least lots of fun coloring!)
The reading this week was so good! (and I am almost finished with another Gabriel Allon mystery!! So, I mean it when I say SO GOOD!)
The tale of two stories, expertly woven together! I knew that Chicago had a World’s Fair but I knew little beyond that. I never knew that Chicago was called the White City nor all the fascinating details around the fair construction. This book is a history lover’s dream… I learned so many things I just had no clue about! Add to that this intertwined story of a string of disappearances and murders that happened and you have a mystery that unfolds with the fair. I highly recommend listening to this book… and the ending where the author shares how he went about gathering the information he used to write the story! Thank goodness for libraries!
The task of writing about the sometimes ugly side of humanity cannot be an easy task… however, Sarah Moss does so and she does so so well that you just can’t stop reading. I saw myself in her writing, and so many people I know there as well. This book made me stop and think. It made me nod my head in agreement and consider the way that people, by nature, just irritate each other! The writing is just so beautiful and the humanity so real. I highly recommend this brilliant little story!
That’s all I have for today… what about you? Is your knitting always successful? If not, do you keep trying?
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Each morning I begin my day the same way…before I can just sit with my thoughts I take Sherman out. He is a fine and quiet companion in the early morning… and he does not mind my silence while I listen to The Writer’s Almanac podcast and this morning’s edition was just spectacular. It’s Billy Collins’ 80th birthday today and if you want to listen to Garrison read a lovely Billy Collins poem you can do that here!
Listening to poetry really is a very good thing to start my day.
Another good thing I listened to this week was this episode of On Being. I think I knew some of these things, but boy did it help to hear someone talk about the stresses we’ve been living with… and how do we re-emerge when this is all over.
The On Being discussion on stress really helped in light of a conversation I had about gauge on Saturday with Sarah and Jane. You might have read about Kym’s gauge struggles so I felt a little déjà vu when I sat down to swatch for the Daytripper Cardigan… a MaryJane Mucklestone design… which, by the way, is the same gauge as 3 other MaryJane Mucklestone sweaters I had previously knit. I got gauge on each of them with absolutely no issues. This time? oh boy. I have a stack of swatches to show how I struggled with it! First I thought just do some knitty maths and go with my original swatch… good in theory, but the maths and the sizing did not work out for me. End result, while I have not measured my last swatch this morning, pre-washing it was on gauge. That swatch? Knit with a US 11 needle… on the bright side, my sweater will knit up even faster now! So even in struggles as you work your way out good things can be found!
Another good thing was this photo my daughter shared… and I just laughed right out loud!
Vivi, the chicken wrangler!
Finally, buds are appearing on my forsythia and lilac bush in my yard. It makes me smile to see them! Happy Monday everyone! See you all back here on Wednesday!
“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul
And sings the tune without the words
And never stops at all.”
― Emily Dickinson
I am ending this 100 day journey from winter to spring where I started, but with a new understanding of hope.
Hope exists in us, it is always around us, it is whispering to us. And if we sometimes pay attention we discover that like the increasing minutes of light… hope grows more hope!
Perhaps it is easier to be hopeful when your friends and loved ones are getting vaccinated. Truly, I did not realize what a weight I was holding waiting for the vaccination damn to break. Today more than 100 million American’s are either completely vaccinated or are on their way to being completely vaccinated. And while I am sure there are a plethora of idiots like Rand Paul… I will feel less stressed encountering the maskless. (and watching Dr. Fauci take down Mr. Paul just made my day!)
Perhaps it is easier to be hopeful when there is an hour and 37 minutes more daylight than there was on December 21st. But I really enjoyed the gradual changes that happened in the world around me… from a hushed, quiet winter to a spring full of exuberant birdsong! From snow covered ground to snowdrops blooming! From cold winter winds bringing snow to open windows welcoming the warming winds and spring rains!
Cicadas are the ones that can really teach us about patience and hope! (Also a fun fact…17 years ago there was no iPhone)
An invasion is coming. This spring, trillions of cicadas will emerge from the ground around us, announcing their arrival with a cacophony of sound & piles of molted skin. Brood X – which arrives every 17 years – should appear sometime in May #nature#wildlife 🪲 pic.twitter.com/FMtEAcgIf1
Last thing… The New Yorker magazine tweeted this article written by one of my favorite authors, Paul Auster, this morning. He wrote it in 1995… and it is very much read-worthy!
“If nothing else, the years have taught me this: if there’s a pencil in your pocket, there’s a good chance that one day you’ll feel tempted to start using it.” Paul Auster reflects on experiences that shaped him as a person and a writer. #NewYorkerArchivehttps://t.co/fafYR1vzHY
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! This is the holiday when you should try and knit with some green yarn (and absolutely not try to drink any green beer!) Sadly, I am doing neither but I am knitting! Ha!
I thought if a knitter had written the Irish blessing it might look something like this:
May the stash yarns finally whisper to you.
May your patterns never curse you.
May yarn chicken never beat you.
May the wisdom of EZ always surround you.
~ An Irish-ish Knitter’s Blessing
The making this week finds me still on Sleeve Island although I am close to departure! I also am in the slog of sock knitting for my evening television watching knitting… just round and round and round and round. It is a wee bit taller today as I knit quite a bit last night, but there are still miles to go before I start heel construction!
I started another Hitchhiker but it is in time out right now while I ponder the beads on the points. I am not sure they are worth the effort as they don’t seem very visible to me. What are your thoughts?
I also began contemplating banging out a Daytripper Cardigan. The pull to do so is strong! And I might have enough yarn in my stash to do so… I know, so it is likely I will do some swatching as soon as I make my departure from Sleeve Island!
The reading has been varied this week. I have just two finishes, (but I am so close on a third!)
Oh boy. This story. This story unfolds with in a department store and Klara being selected as a companion for Josie. Klara is fascinating to me… her perception of all around her, and her manners being far superior to the “real people” around her. We discover that Josie is ill and there is an undercurrent to push Josie’s mother and Klara closer together. And soon we discover why and that is where the book kind of derails for me. I felt very uncomfortable thinking about where Kazuo takes us. The writing is good, but the story is unnerving.
This book is just darling, really… darling is the perfect word to describe it! It is a collection of letters written between a book collector and a book seller and the relationship they forge over the years. It is funny, poignant, and easy to follow (I listened to it). The banter is fun as is thinking about a time when everything wasn’t instant…
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I haven’t done a “weekending” post in eons. Thank you, Pandemic Living for making weekends utterly unsharable! How many different ways can you say… ummm, we did the same thing as every other weekend.
Well, this weekend was the not like the previous weekends, so I thought it was “share-worthy”!
We started out on Friday heading off to IKEA… it was busy. So busy. Too busy. Pre-pandemic, I would not have even given a thought to all those people… but now? Being in a group of people is just not comfortable… so we rushed and did not get everything we came for…sigh. So we went back first thing on Saturday. However, we were smarter about our second trip. I looked up where the things were that we needed to get, made a list and we were in and out in less that 20 minutes and only saw 4 people. Why did we need to go to IKEA you ask? Well, we needed to replace our outdoor table and chairs. And we needed rubber backed rugs. The remainder of Saturday involved deconstructing the old patio furniture and building the new patio furniture. We also put the awning up on the pergola so we are ready to go on the next “moderately warm day” to eat outside. It was the perfect day to do all that work. It was sunny, but not at all warm. I wore a lopapeysa and was NOT too warm at all! We got a bigger table so I need to rethink the patio plants, but I am excited for the possibilities! Oh, and Sherman… well, as you can see he was took his supervisory role seriously, NOT! Ha…rather, he soaked up the sun and slept during the work. Thankfully, we completed the task with out his help! LOL
New table and benches!
I also picked up another Råskog cart from IKEA to give some semblance of order to my “spinning corner” in the living room. (versus having things just laying around on the various flat surfaces) I spent some time on Sunday putting it together and organizing it. I think this is going to be an excellent addition and I love that I can see things, but they are not laying around!
Everything in a place!
Finally, we purchased 8 rubber backed bathroom rugs. Yes…8. Why so many you ask? Well, recently Sherman has struggled to walk on the wood floors. He slips and falls all the time. So I had a conglomeration of rugs and/or towels down for him… but they slipped around almost as much as he did! So, now Sherman has a non-slip “path” to get from the dining room to the living room and he LOVES it! We probably won’t win any house decorating awards, but a happy pug makes me happy.
The Sherman Super Highway!
There was also a bit of Happy Houring, some corned beef cooking, and… perhaps best of all… I managed to get COVID vaccine appointments this afternoon for Steve’s dad, Steve, and myself! Shot one will soon be done and I am so incredibly happy about that! AND! We survived time-change (but back to zero-dark thirty to walk Sherman, sigh) Hahaha!
Happy Monday, everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend too!
Let the rain sing you a lullaby. — Langston Hughes
We had a delicious taste of spring in Pittsburgh this week…warm temperatures, sunshine, and yes… some rain. It pattered on the roof all night and reminded me how lovely it is to be tucked into bed when it rains. It is the perfect invitation for sleep! Overnight my grass was suddenly green and it smelled so good outside! In the hushed winter world there are not any smells…but spring rains bring a smell overload!
And what could be more hopeful that the changing of the seasons. The forsythia bushes have taken on a yellowish-green hue as they wake from their winters nap. The maple tree in the front yard has been waiting patiently all winter for the right moment for its buds to open…and her wait is almost over. Those buds are a lovely red that looks even redder against a blue sky!
But this gives me such hope!
Last night President Biden gave me so much hope and I will gladly encourage everyone to get vaccinated when it’s your turn! (and in case you missed him last night…here you go!)
It makes me happy to hear about friends that I have worried about getting vaccinated. It makes me happy that Steve’s mom got her first shot this week! It makes me happy to hear about YOU getting vaccinated. And it makes me very happy to think about celebrating freedom from this virus on the 4th of July. And it will make me extraordinarily happy when it is finally my turn! Sometimes the best hope of all comes in a little glass vial.
Have a great weekend everyone! See you all back here on Monday!
When confronted with a birthday in a week I will remember that a book can be a really good present, too. — Stephanie Pearl McPhee, At Knit’s End: Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much
I finally began those socks again… and this time I decided to use a toe up sock pattern… sort of. I will do increases until they are wide enough for Steve’s feet and then knit on. Fortunately he does not like tall socks, so once I get to the heel all the hard work will be done! That is if I get through the fiddly bit of the toe! Ha! I need to get them done because a birthday book would not be at all appreciated, lol!
However, what I am focused on is a sweater! Yes, I am back on Sleeve Island again this week. This time I am knitting away on Purl String sleeves. This sweater will be the perfect thing for spring so the urge to get it done is strong. However complicated the knitting of the sleeves are… there are decreases every X rounds, and something else happening every Y rounds. Which means there is lots of counting… sigh.
A priest has been murdered and, of course, there are a collection of suspects. DI Strafford (Sinjin) begins the task of unwinding the lies and alibis… but does that lead to the killer? An excellent and well-told story.
I don’t remember what directed me to read this book but I am so glad I did! If you need something to take your mind off Pandemic Times… this.is.the.book! The Life and Times of Ignatius J. Reilly are something to behold. I laughed… lots. The characters in the book are just magnificent – I loved the fallibility of them! I hate to say this, but boy… I have one or two of these characters in my life! I highly recommend this glorious book!
I read this book after I watched the Netflix series, but that did not diminish this story at all. It is brilliantly crafted, it pulls you in from the opening sentence and carries you along to the very last page. I know less than nothing about chess but that did not diminish the story either. I loved all the bits with Beth strategizing. I fell in love with Beth and all her faults! If you have not read this book, you should…now!
Yet another Brown book that I need to purchase so I can re-read parts as needed. I especially loved the parts on allowing oneself to be happy… to find joy… to live. I highly recommend this book!
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But February made me shiver… — Don Mclean, American Pie
As I put this look back together Don Mclean’s song kept echoing in my head. A melancholy song for a melancholy month… a month of some hard emotional lifting. A month that the weather, miraculously, matched my mood.
But as I look back, I see glimmers of hope… increasing daylight, a gift of flowers that remind me how very much I am loved, a brilliant young poet who speaks to my heart, not one but two finished objects, and a wee doggy who is simply the best companion – especially on the hard days. Oh, and the snowdrops closed out the month, gently reminding me that these melancholy days are not permanent.
“You can cut all the flowers but you cannot keep Spring from coming.”
― Pablo Neruda
This week hope began to leap forward in a most glorious manner! My little snowdrops have come up and while their little flowers are not open, these hardy little flowers are the most pleasant bits of green in a very brown garden! Mine look very similar to the image above. No open blooms yet…they are waiting for a warmer day! (Which might happen here next week… 70’s are in the forecast!!)
And how about the hope that the COVID-19 vaccines are giving? When I listened to President Biden on Tuesday, I burst into tears at his news. Tears of hope. Tears of joy. In that moment I thought of all of us who have been unable to physically see our families during this pandemic… it has been so hard and seeing that light growing so much brighter at the end of this very long tunnel was exactly what I needed.
Finally, I leave you with this… since winter solstice way back on December 21 we have gained almost 2 hours and 14 minutes of daylight. (at least here in Pittsburgh!)
Have a good weekend all… it is Get the Taxes Done Weekend here. Wish me luck, lol! See you all back here on Monday!
“SABLE- A common knitting acronym that stands for Stash Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy.”
― Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, At Knit’s End: Meditations for Women Who Knit Too Much
This week I present my new favorite sweater! It was a long time in the making, but wow do I like it! I like it so much that I have plans to make another.
I have this vintage skein of yarn from Briar Rose Fibers (thanks to being a premier SABLE member) and once I find some mohair to go with it, I will be knitting a second sweater! (if you all have color suggestions for me, I will gladly take them!)
Anyways, back to my sweater…the fit is really lovely, but next time I will knit 2 more repeats of the “pine cones” before beginning the bottom ribbing as I’d like an option with a bit more length. The sleeves are long and I am surprised how much I like them this length! I only did 7 sets of sleeve decreases (versus the 10 the pattern called for) and for me that was just perfect. I worried about how it would fit at the shoulders, but it sits perfectly and there is no slipping or sliding off! The pattern is incredibly well written and it is easy to follow. I highly recommend Ririko’s Evening Dew Cardigan.
On top of all of that, I managed to spin up a bit of fiber and I finished the yarn from last week. Sarah was right…a soak helped, but some bits still need a bit more twist, so I will run this through my wheel again. The other skein is Warm Woolen Mittens I (sorry, no longer available on their site) from HipStrings and I just love how it turned out!
I have yet to re-cast on those socks… and I need to get going on that pronto! But….
This lovely little diversion arrived this week from Lisa at Fibernymph Dye Works… my first installment in the Backyard Birdwatchers Club! This is chickadee (with a small bit of contrasting fiber dyed to match their speckled eggs!) and it is just gorgeous. It is BFL and I can’t wait to spin this up!
The reading was so good this week… and there was so much of it! Insomnia is good for something…oy.
I think this book is a simplified version of Marie Kondo – minus the joy. The author immediately suggests not reading the book cover to cover (perhaps her best suggestion, lol) but rather pick and choose the areas you want to work on. I did not find many useful suggestions, but she does make some suggestions that are helpful (perhaps not so much helpful, but insightful.)
Archive 17 by Sam Eastland
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
It felt good to get back to Inspector Pekkala and this book takes him back to Siberia to uncover a mystery and find the Tsar’s hidden gold stash for Stalin. There are some unexpected twists and turns, but Pekkala prevails… sort of. I won’t give any of the story away, but it is a fun read!
Vera and a murder…what’s not to love? This latest installment in the Vera series does not disappoint. I have so enjoyed watching the development of characters as this series has progressed. I highly recommend this series!
Whew… that was a lot of stuff for a post! What about you? How was your week?
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson
Summerwater by Sarah Moss
