by Kat | Feb 13, 2026 | General, In This Moment
And we: spectators always, everywhere,
turned toward it all and never looking out!
Everything overfills us. We put it in order. It falls apart.
We order it again and fall apart ourselves.
— Rainer Maria Rilke, A portion of the Eighth Elegy from the Duino Elegies, translation by Mark S. Burrows
This has absolutely been my world since last November… overwhelmed by everything, trying to make sense of the senseless, and everything, everywhere falling apart. And let me tell you… being immersed into profound grief when the entire world is a shite show… well, there were some moments that I wanted to crawl in a hole and pull the dirt over me and just be done with it all.
From the end of November through all of December and most of January, I barely could keep track of what day of the week it was. And most days I did not keep track at all. I was thankful for the technology that reminded me when to get out of bed, when to take medications, and when to “begin winding down” from the day.
But, somewhere in January I began to notice different things. The sky in the morning was the first thing I really noticed…. it was not really black anymore but a beautiful indigo gradient. I don’t think I ever remember noticing this phenomenon before, although I am certain it has done this for millennia. And each day, despite the unbelievable cold, I was so eager to get outside to see those early morning skies.
Something had an order and it did not require any work from myself at all. I could just be there to experience it.
And then something even more miraculous happened as February inched in… I had what I classify as a “normal” conversation with my son. We talked about everything and nothing and then more nothing. And I felt a huge worry begin to melt… I guess I did not realize that my worry for him was as overwhelming as it was, and I knew it was overwhelming… but wow… once that change happened, I realized how much of a burden that was.
And I am happy to report that I am mostly back to keeping track of the days. The world is still a shit show. Lots of things still don’t make sense. I have filled the hole in and moved past it. But I am less concerned with putting things in order that I cannot control… and as for being a spectator? Well, the shit show continues… but so do those glorious indigo skies and I am betting next week I will have some snowdrops popping up in my yard!
Header photo by HASAN ZAHRA
by Kat | Feb 9, 2026 | General, In This Moment
Whew, after a very mild start…we plunged into the deep end of winter. Yes, it has been cold and wintry here in the south hills of Pittsburgh! But as we inch past the half way point, I am finding some uplifting things to bolster my days! Daylight being the best and brightest of all the things!
My early outings with Frankie (not really walks as it has been much too cold to do that, but we do amble about a bit) have a sky that is now a deep indigo rather than being black as night! And this past week, the hints at the coming sunrise have been gorgeous despite the bitterly cold air temps. Now, these have not been wildly colorful sunrises, but beautiful pale pinks and oranges… almost like a watercolor painting in their translucence. And yet they are so fleeting… a moment there and the next gone. A good reminder that though this weather is here today… it too will soon be gone and so I am savoring these wintry days.
And yes, these bitterly cold days have been accompanied by loads of bright sunshine and I love every bit of that! The angle of the sun is perfection right now, it streams in the windows brightening every single room! It is the best thing about this time of year and I will take these cold sunny days over cloudy milder days.
My thoughts were filled this past week with all the bulbs that are tucked away beneath the snowy blanket. At this time last year… (and for most previous years as well) I had snowdrops blooming. We are supposed to have a big warm up this week and I have been thinking that it might be fun to have snowdrops sprouting up with a bit of snow still on the ground!
And speaking of the weather, I have had an idea rambling around in my head for a long time and I think this might be the year for it to step beyond the thinking stage and into reality. So I have been doing some “prep work” since January… charting temperature highs and lows and jotting a note or two about the days weather. A couple of years ago Jo Avery (who is all kinds of inspiring when it comes to temperature textiles) created a book of the temps and weather. I like the idea of making it really just as simple as she did… a small square reflecting the high temp, a circle reflecting the low temp and a few stitches to indicate the weather. Right now I am working on figuring out fabrics… unlike hers (which is measured in Celsius) I will need to have “ranges of temps” in the Fahrenheit scale. Believe me, I have contemplated using Celsius, which would make things much simpler however my expansive knowledge of temperatures on the Celsius scale is limited to 0°C and 100°C. Anyways, I am closer to gathering all the bits… and I hope to begin this shortly after I finish The Great February Bang Out a Sweater-a-thon! (I knit a lot over the weekend and still have miles to go before I get to the sleeve divide but more on that on Wednesday!)
Header photo by Ylanite Koppens and though it has been too cold for any snowman making in my neighborhood, I am hopeful that this week’s warm up will provide the requisite moisture for the snow to hold together and some snowpeople begin popping up!
by Kat | Jan 16, 2026 | General, In This Moment
It has certainly been A Week has it not? I am not a person who worries about things beyond my control… but 15 days into a New Year and I am worrying about all the things. People… so many people. Places… so many places. And things… as in what new things will pop up over night that will increase my worry level?!
So I am seeking escape… I know, I am well aware of the insane amount of undeserved privilege I have to do that… because all that worry… well, it does not change anything. (Nor apparently are any of the calls I am making to my elected representatives… that whole representative democracy thing? Yeah, it’s not working so well right now.) But I digress… back to The Privilege of Escape… I am doing that, full on.
“Trust remains the coin of the realm in politics. A President who is trusted, by the people, by the congress, by the press, by foreign countries, is a President who can get a lot of good things done.” — David Gergen, West Wing, Season 3, Episode 18
To aid me in my escape from reality, I have been watching The West Wing for the first time, yes you read that correctly…I never watched it originally. Steve says this was my Era of Not Knowing Anything… i.e. having 3 kids all very close in age meant that much of the world twirled by very oblivious me for a considerable period of time! Anyways, I am well into season 3 and episode 18 kind of stopped me in my tracks. (In fact, I immediately rewatched it!) It is a “reality infused” episode with a bunch of actual White House people (including President’s Carter and Ford) inserting some timely quips. I don’t know how timely they would have been when this episode first aired, but let me tell you… the quotes were timeless as their relevance today is shocking. (This quote particularly struck me as I realized that most all of my worries focused on the lack of trust in our current government that is being experienced by a lot of people all over the world!)
Anyways… I thought perhaps you also might not have watched West Wing. Perhaps you were in the same time warp I was in back when this was on television… or perhaps you did watch it then however maybe you need to rewatch it now!! And, as luck would have it, all seasons are available currently on Netflix. It is very good TV… the writing… the acting… it is just so good! (and it will give you something to do while you wait for the next episode of The Pitt! Ha!)
Be gentle with yourselves and spread some kindness as you go about your weekend…oh, and if you are queuing up The West Wing, let me know!
See you all back here next week!
Header Photo by Zulfugar Karimov
by Kat | Dec 22, 2025 | General, In This Moment
Greetings fellow Word Focus-er’s,
Next Monday, December 29th, will be our final word update for 2025. The link up will be up early and will remain open for the week. I am eager to read your final update for the year and I am excited to share with you how my word closed out for me this month!
Now for the changes for next year. First… if someone is interested in holding space for those of us who share our word focus, I am happy to pass the baton but I won’t be hosting a link up here and if someone wants to take over the link up, I will gladly join them but there won’t be a link up in 2026 at As Kat Knits.
I can’t believe we are just days away from 2026… this month has raced past, hasn’t it? I had wanted to get more things done than I had the wherewithal to accomplish… but it felt so good to let those things go. My “do” for today includes a bit of knitting and queueing up Holiday Inn to watch (and sing along with!)
Happy Monday everyone, I will be back on Wednesday with some making updates!
Header photo by SHVETS production
by Kat | Dec 15, 2025 | General, In This Moment
It’s a bitterly cold winter wonderland out there this morning. (And I mean 3°F bitterly cold) However, the snow is lovely… it is the sparkly snow that shines in the darkness. (and that my friends, is the only positive thing about having to trek out in this bitter cold!)
All the big tasks for the month have mostly been completed… and so today, I will turn my focus to doing some prep work for my 2026 stitching project and the only other thing on my list today is to make a big pot of soup… it is absolutely soup weather today!
Over the weekend I cast on a new sock – not a grief sock but socks that will replenish the pair (or two) that have recently moved to the “unrepairable” bag. And maybe… just maybe… I will make it to the heel turn before Wednesday’s post is up.
I hope you are facing a Monday with a gentle list… see you all back here on Wednesday!
by Kat | Dec 8, 2025 | General, In This Moment
Is for wrapping…
Yes, today begins the Big Wrap-a-thon so the Shipping of the Boxes of Fun can happen later this week.
Once I have all the wrapping completed, I will try and finish the bits of in-process Christmas decorating and then I can resume some Gnome-knitting. I have to tell you… Gnome Knitting is the stuff of delight right now (Christmas decorating… not so much.) I am eagerly awaiting each clue… and I think that the story Sarah Schira has crafted for Gnandad’s Great Adventure might be the best one yet… and is hitting a much needed spot this year.
And through this all, I will be thinking about the Reading Rilke program from last night. I am discovering that Rilke is perhaps the best balm for grief… ever. Or perhaps it is better to say, Rilke is a good person to be in grief with.
And on that cheerful note (sorry about that) I will get myself to wrapping. See you all back here on Wednesday with some Gnome Making.
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