Tag: knitting

Peace and Quiet

I’m a whole week into my media cleanse and it’s been great for my mental health. I almost hate to admit it because I never thought my scrolling was that excessive. Okay, lately it had felt excessive, hence the cleanse. But normally I wouldn’t have called myself terminally online. But the change was so stark and immediate that now I worry I was so zombified by the internet I’d stopped even noticing.

And the difference has been stark. With no social media and no TV/streaming everything has slowed way down. I suddenly have so much time to get chores and projects done. Nothing feels rushed. My body has calmed down and my imagination and intuition are speaking to me in ways they haven’t in years. Also, surprisingly, I’m burning a lot more calories. A few years ago I lost a bunch of weight and I use my smartwatch to keep track of calorie burn. I don’t feel like I’m exercising harder but I guess I’ve been up and about more this week looking for ways to entertain myself without my phone.

Of course, sometimes the anxiety hits hard in all this silence. Still no luck in the job search, our oven suddenly broke, my kid fell for an online scam and lost an uncomfortable amount of money. These are the anxious moments that send me to scrolling and without that, I have to use actual coping skills. Which are way better for me and more effective in the long run but they take more effort. When cheap distraction is just a click away, it’s hard to resist.

But I did resist. Yay for me! Instead of scrolling, I picked up some old projects. I started playing Sims 3 again (which is still staring at a screen, I guess, but in a more active and creative way). I finally got back to a card-by-card tarot study I started months ago. I kept putting it off because I didn’t have time to sit quietly and just contemplate a Tarot card. Seems pretty obvious now why I never had the time . . . I also started writing a little fiction again. Just little bits and bobs for myself at this point but maybe someday it will add up to a novel. I’ve always loved to write but I’ve never actually written a novel, not even a shitty one just for myself. Maybe with all this media-free time on my hands I’ll finally start one.

I’ve also been listening to a lot of music and working on the world’s simplest shawl. Seriously, I’m usually drawn to more complicated projects with lace or cables, stuff that stretches my skills a bit and claims my full attention. This is just a big triangle in garter stitch, which I’m finding very peaceful and meditative. Okay, right now it’s a small triangle in garter stitch. But it’s growing.

So that’s been week one. My original plan was four weeks of greatly reduced media and I’m off to a great start, ready for another week. Let’s hope I’m still feeling great about it next Sunday. Until then, I wish you tranquility and creativity.

Just Let Me Wallow in Nostalgia

It’s been a hard week. The stress has been getting to me and all I want to do is read horror novels and listen to everything I liked back in high school. Violent Femmes, Throwing Muses, Pearl Jam, Primus . . . jangly emotional punk and grunge were key to my vibe back then. (Along with more dark and mellow bands like Dead Can Dance.) Listening now takes me back to those halcyon days when life was actually worse than it is now, but I also had way fewer responsibilities. I could just hole up in my room and be sad back then, and now I have to soldier on and keep people’s spirits up and actually be responsible for things. *sigh*

Instead of holing up in my bedroom like an angsty teenager this week, I finished and blocked the scarves I’ve been working on.

That is the Silky Scallops pattern by Joan Marie and the Context pattern by Kristin Briney. Both in leftover Midnigh Dreary sock yarn by Crow and Crescent yarn. I wore the only light grey sweater I own today so I could model them for you. You’re welcome. They were a good way to practice my lace knitting skills and they’ll be nice in the fall when the weather turns chill again.

Aside from the knitting, my week was pretty routine and low energy. I’ve been pulling a divination card or two every day, as I usually do, and even the cards are low energy. I think every card this week was about worries, burdens, feeling scattered and blocked. Today’s card was the Five of Pentacles–hardship and insecurity. Yeah, they’re really reflecting my own sour energy back to me lately. Since I’m a grown-ass middle-aged adult and not an angsty teen, I’m committed to working on getting out of this funk in the coming week or two. But I’ll probably still be in the mood for musical nostalgia for a while. Maybe this week I’ll push forward into college-age nostalgia. Tool, Deftones, System of a Down . . . that was my Nu Metal phase, clearly.

There was one unexpected bright moment to my week. Last week I said I had to do a small repair before I could finish painting, remember? Well, as an early Mother’s Day gift my youngest kid decided to patch that hole. Amazingly, thanks to some DIY my husband did ages ago, we had everything we needed to patch that hole and I just didn’t know it. I’ll still have to buy a little more paint but I can totally finish that project now. It was very cool of her to fix that for me and saved me a lot of work. She did a great job.

And that’s my week. I’ll try to be more chipper next time. Until then, I wish you a week of your own favorite tunes from high school.

Bluegrass Birthday

I missed writing last Sunday because I was out of town. Last weekend was my Dude’s birthday; I took him to the Bluegrass Meltdown in Durango, Colorado. Durango is a lovely little place to spend a couple days. It’s got a cute little historical district packed with nice restaurants and shops to explore (including at least four bookstores we browsed through), and an easy path beside the Animas river only a few blocks farther along. We were able to park behind our hotel and walk anywhere we wanted all weekend.

The festival itself was fun. It was small, with a lot of little known bands and local talent playing cozy little venues where you could get right up close. To be honest, I don’t know a lot about bluegrass music. I just occasionally like that folksy regional type of music, full of banjos and mandolins and fiddles, and it seemed like a nice excuse to visit Durango. After last weekend I’ve probably heard enough mandolin to last me quite a while, but we enjoyed ourselves. I actually bought Shelby Means‘ album on vinyl and my Dude bought a CD by Michael Prewitt. I guess that qualifies us as bluegrass fans? I don’t know.

My assortment of photos also features the only two western shirts I own. It was the closest I could get to a proper bluegrass outfit. I’m middle-aged and lazy and don’t look all that alternative, but in this crowd I was very much on the young side and the staff seemed just the slightest bit confused by my dark purple hair and spider bites. They were all polite, though, and none of the actual audience seemed concerned.

You can also see our gorgeous room in the Strater hotel, full of cool antique furniture. I like that hotel because each room has different furniture and wallpaper. You never know quite what you’ll get and I like the surprise.

Anyway, after our fun weekend trip, it was back to reality and back to frugality while my husband continues his job search. We had some repairs done in our garage that were mercifully cheap. We played board games with friends. I finished that Alchemist slipover I was working on. I was too busy to take nice outdoor photos but I did pose in front of the bathroom mirror for you. The darkest picture is closest to what the color looks like in person but my phone washes out the color trying to catch the detail. I am good at many things but photography isn’t one of them.

It mostly turned out as expected and I like the fit of the collar. The open sides and breezy fit aren’t what I usually look for but I like it. I think it will be a fun layering piece and I would be excited to try different fasteners under the arms to switch up the look a bit.

I do have a whole lot of yarn left, so I chose a couple of free scarf patterns to use it on. I don’t actually wear scarves that often but I like making them, and both patterns are small enough that I could use them in my hair if I wanted to. My curls are usually pretty tame in this desert air but it’s nice to have a scarf or headband around when they misbehave.

And that’s the last two weeks for you. Hopefully the next few will bring us quiet days, good weather, and a new job. Until next time, I wish you tranquility and good weather as well.

First Week of Spring

Ostara was Friday, so spring has officially sprung. I celebrated with food, as I usually do. I made a nice risotto with a spring greens salad. I did not take any pictures so I’ll leave that meal to your imagination. I will admit, though, that I totally cheat at risotto. I live at high altitude, so proper stovetop risotto takes a lot more time and I’ve never been too successful at it. Ever since I found the Barefoot Contessa’s oven “risotto” recipe, I’ve been riffing on that. I’ve drifted away from the original recipe over the years and I switch up the ingredients according to the season and the vibe I’m craving, but the oven method works well and makes things so much easier.

But enough about cooking. Spring is the season of air, and here in Northern New Mexico that’s pretty literal. We get some serious wind this time of year. Still, it’s warm enough to walk the dog without a sweater and the trees are lovely with flowers and new green leaves. Nights are still cold and it’s not quite hot enough for air conditioning, so we’ve had the windows open. I’m typing to the sound of chirping birds. It’s pretty cozy.

As spring warms up I’m, ironically, knitting a sweater. I’m making the Alchemist Slipover by Wool & Pine. I honestly don’t remember saving this pattern on Ravelry but I’m glad I did. So far it’s an easy project and it should be a cute layering piece when I’m done. Right now it’s just a large violet swatch but in a couple of weeks it should really look like something. I’m loving the color, Crow and Crescent’s Midnight Dreary. I love dark subtle violets and blues but I also fell in love with the Edgar Allan Poe reference. I’m a sucker for literary tie-ins.

As usual, my phone has dialed up the brightness on my knitting by a million percent, making the color look a lot lighter than it really is. Next time maybe I’ll borrow my kid’s camera and see if that captures the color better.

From now on I’ll aim to write a bit every Sunday here, and of course my sister and I post reviews every Friday on Darker Books. This week’s post might feel a bit like I’m marketing Ina Garten or shilling for Big Knitting but seriously, none of those people know I exist. I just want to give credit where it’s due and spread the word about things that have worked for me. I hope your Ostara was lush with new beginnings. Until next time.