Greetings Dear Unraveler’s!!
December is flowing along… whether I want it to or not! BUT! I have all but one package “en route” to their respective destinations. That one lingering package waiting to be packed up but I have to finish my daughter and son-in-law’s anniversary card! My goal is for this to all be completed and ready for the postman WELL before Friday!
As of Monday night, I was caught up on Gnome Knitting I have not begun the clue we got yesterday but I did begin a hat with MDK’s new yarn, Jane. My initial thoughts are that it is really quite lovely! The color depth, the twist, the hand… all makes this yarn so knit-able! I have cast on said hat and loving how it is knitting up!
I tried to get the true color of this yarn and failed. It is more blue than it looks here…much more blue.
Monday night, I sat down and reviewed my reading thus far this year. It has been a very good year for reading but I was noticing something significant as I looked back on the earlier months. So many books I do not remember at all… so many! Sigh. I have been contemplating this since Monday night… so stay tuned.
Last night, I began the review of my making. I had some pretty spectacular failures on the making front this year… one specifically that has made me a bit “knit shy” about starting a sweater. Problematic since I have a sweater’s quantity of yarn waiting…
But, regardless of forgotten books and knitting failures… reviewing… looking back and really contemplating what I read and made showed me a way I used my time that I think I overlooked! Last night, I was very much feeling like I had found all sorts of time that I did not even think about! Time spent doing things that I love… things that are a balm for my spirit… things that make me feel accomplished, creative, and not at all a Waster of Timel!
This week… I finally (!!) finished the latest in the Department Q mysteries… Locked In. It is a Netgally read that has taken me FOREVER! (This is entirely Frankie’s fault… I have not read before bed since he came to live with us. Sleep is a precious commodity right now.) I did not enjoy this as much as I enjoyed the previous Department Q mysteries, but it did tie up some loose ends from prior stories. I gave it a solid 3.5 rounded up to 4… although, ymmv.
I am also listening to Louise Penny’s latest Gamache mystery, The Grey Wolf. Warning… there is a new narrator and I am struggling with him… mightily. I like listening to the Gamache stories because of the pronunciations… but this will likely be the last that I listen to, I am sorry to say. I have roughly 4 hours of listening time to go… and the story is so good! (even if the narration sucks)
That is it for me this week, I think! I would like to get back to posting on Friday’s… but right now it is just not working.
But, what I am really wanting to know is what is working for you this week!
As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!
I hope you’re still able to enjoy the newest Gamache even with a change in narrator. I read this one on paper so I, luckily, didn’t have the same experience!
I hear you about not being able to remember some of my reading. I am always disappointed in myself when I zip straight to the next book without writing a little something about what I’ve just finished. I’ve found that this practice helps me a lot.
So glad you’re able to take the time to think about your year and where your time went. It’s always refreshing when we realize that we did better with our time than we thought we did!
I’m seeing year-end reviews everywhere – Spotify of course, Washington Post, my Part D drug provider, even Duolingo. It might be interesting to see a year-end review from the grocery store! I’m a big proponent of doing things that you love as much as you are able. (That is how I’m going to get through the next four years.) I think I remember most of my books that i read but I guess I’ll see when I really look over my year in books. What is working for me this week is knitting and reading, just like most other weeks!
I have only listened to a few of the Gamache books, all narrated by the late Ralph Cosham, so I still hear his voice in my head when I read them and could not stand to listen to anyone else. I’m excited to see where your gnome goes next. Looks like you have a little hood knit?
I am reading Grey Wolf on my kindle 🙂 I do love Penny!!! I remember most of my books….I guess. Are you contemplating a notebook with a summary? That would be cool.
I’m hoping to cast on for a hat soon (I need to finish sock #2 first). I often can’t remember books that I’ve read – and I’m not sure why. Is it because they really were not that great? Or is it that I read enough that I can’t remember everything? I will be doing a year-end review in a few weeks…seeing how much I read and what I’ve made during 2024. Thanks Kat for hosting us for Unraveled Wednesday (even when I have not knitted!!).
I’m happy to read your review of the “Jane” yarn. Did you see the comparison of Jane and Atlas on the MDK website? I thought it was enlightening. I’m waiting for Penny’s new book – in audio – so oh dear. I am working on some Christmas socks and not much else – catching up from being away from home. Thanks for hosting us.
I always read the Louise Penny books so I don’t have this issue but I have a friend who listens and he said it took him a while to get used to the new narrator. It’s fun to look back over the year and evaluate what we’ve done!
Y’know . . I have always listened to the Three Pines series, and was looking forward to listening to this new one, too. But then I started seeing all the negative reviews for the new narrator and decided to pick up a paper-copy instead. I haven’t had the time to read it yet, but you’re making me feel that I did, indeed, make the right decision regarding format. Several years ago, I decided to intentionally slow down my reading . . . because I was not remembering so many of the books I’d just read! I found that giving myself space between books (rather than chain-reading . . . kind of like chain-smoking only with books) helped me “solidify” the books in my mind. It has helped, although I still get hazy on details . . .