Firstly, I finished my friends' hats:
Girlfriend's got a little Rasta on me but I think it will be ok. As a tip, this is how I store leftover yarn that actually came with a lable:
I reuse the baggies and store my yarn in tupperware bins organized by weight.
I knit love and goodness into them and I hope that in some way that oozes out onto their little heads when they don them and especially if they aren't feeling up to things someday. I am not a very spiritual person but I do believe there is a chi that is in motion between all things and people can choose to tap into it or not. So when I say I knit goodness into the hats, I just imagine the feeling I get when a loved one hugs me and think about that feeling while I'm knitting.
I am doing somewhat the same thing with the Fat Squirrel's Gratitude KAL. I am making a Bone Yard Shawl for my mindful knitting and this is the first time I am doing anything like this. Knitting is a form of meditation for me, as my mind is relaxed but remains focused on what I'm doing. During my time in an ecological research laboratory, I tuned into the podcast Stuff to Blow Your Mind when I could, and they talk a lot about the latest studies on brain activity. They often left me wanting more in depth discussions and the hosts seem to have gotten somewhat out of sync recently, but they introduced me to the term Default Mode Network. My DMN is usually going, "Don't forget about the kitty litter...write more on that blog today...remember that time you messed up at work?...Mom said that thing, but could she actually be meaning this thing?...hey! feel bad about that thing that happened 10 years ago!...five donuts is nothing, I'm walking them off as I walk back to my desk...should probably switch kitty litters..." This is all silent whiling knitting. So when faced with the task of mindful knitting, it is a bit of effort to use my brain and knit like I didn't just start yesterday. At first, I was knitting with a rotation of thoughts directly related to who and what I feel lucky to have in my life much like a See n' Say. Once I got really going, it morphed into thoughts of particular moments in time that brought on that warm, now I know what a baking muffin feels like, feeling in regard to who I feel lucky to have in my life. That is knit into my Bonyard and here is my progress so far:
I have eight garter ridges so far and am shooting for eleven, with a good size 102g ball of yarn left. I have knitted thoughts of my Beau, my family, and friends, and of course my kitties into the shawl, as well as the fact that I have the ovaries, or missing synapses, to ramble about knitting in this blog for anyone and their iguana to see. I love knitting so much!
Knitting the final incarnation of my designed scarf took a back-burner as I knit the Antelopes for my pals. I also managed to completely delete my Word Doc of it (??o_O??) and so have started on that again from my written version. I can't wait to put it on Ravelry!
It was a nice week weather-wise so I gave a lot of attention to another passion, my plants. My laundry room has been functioning as a green-house this winter. It isn't insulated so I've spent only as much time as necessary to move laundry from one machine to the next and to water the plants from time to time. I finally went in there and dealt with the aftermath of winter.
I removed those that didn't make it and swept up fallen leaves and flowers. I fed the hungry ones and moved those previously deprived of sunlight into their own sunny sills. I really can't wait for the move to the porch though and I think they can't either.
I also got in some time in the outside beds weeding out periwinkle and English ivy so the cultivated thyme, fennel, basil and green onions have room to grow. I stumbled upon this gooey fungal friend amongst them.
The internet has informed me that these are Wood Ears. They are very jiggly and I had some fun chasing my boyfriend around with them. ^_^
I just love the weird things I'm finding in the yard. I'm sure each season will reveal something new.
My yard and my neighbor's yard appear to be a major stopping point for flocks of grackles. Large numbers have landed in the space between us and the amount of noise they make is awesome! (If you go to the website, check out the "Calls of Flock" soundbite.) A few have taken a dip in the bird bath I have setup and the color show is just great to witness. I always think to grab my camera but I never want to miss a second of the brief display. Here is one from the internet:
Lastly, I thought I'd share a picture of some stitch markers I made a while ago and a cute picture of Mr. Pickens with some crochet. I made a set of stitch markers as a birthday present for a knitting friend and made several of my own in the week afterwords. They are in various project bags and it's fun to rediscover them from time to time.
Next time, I will show off my shawl and designed scarf! See you then!
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