I'm Still Alive. I Think.

This blogging thing has gotten way off track. Part of it is that I hate to blog without picture content, and I can never find the camera when I need it. Well, that's not always true, but getting pictures done and uploaded is my biggest obstacle. I'll try to stick a couple of random ones in, just so I feel like I've done my bloggerly duty.

Life pretty much feels out of control right now. We have a wedding gown, we have a mother-of-the-bride dress, we have the reception hall, we have a cake ordered. So now we have to order the flowers, then knuckle down for the really big job, which is the food for the reception. We're not doing a full-blown dinner, so it will be finger foods like little sandwiches and such, and bite-size dessert thingys. It's mostly a matter of deciding what we'll have, asking friends to help out with the making of everything, then figuring out how and when to get it all to the reception hall. Now I know why people have these things catered, but it's not in our budget.

On the needlework front, since this blog is supposed to be about how I'm finishing UFOs (hush--I can hear the snorts of derision from here), I have three projects that I am focusing on at the moment. One is a Jo Sharp cabled cardigan that I originally planned to make almost knee-length. It may end up being hip-length as called for in the pattern. I do need to set some limits for myself! Another is a needlepoint pillow from Ewe & Eye & Friends, which I'm doing for my bedroom. Said bedroom is on the list for repainting and decorating after The Wedding, so I want to finish a few things for the decor. Third project is a pair of socks. How could I not have a pair of socks in the works??

Why three projects? Why not just work on one at a time? Well, the cardigan takes a lot of concentration and marking off rows, because I'm doing two different cables while increasing. I have to have silence while I work on that (which is why progress is so slow and it will not be knee-length!) The needlepoint is mindless and can be done while I listen to the TV or any other hideous yammering going on around me. But that's not portable, so the socks are the portable mindless project. See, there is a method to my madness, at least in the needlework department.

I figure the house will be trashed until at least a few weeks after the wedding, because Missy is starting to go through the boxes that have been stored in our basement. The boxes contain what we moved out of her house during her divorce, so she's figuring out what she has in the way of kitchenware and dishes and such. Those boxes are stacking up around the edges of various rooms. In other rooms, decorations and tiered dessert plates are piling up, awaiting The Big Day. So we hit the middles of the rooms with the vaccuum cleaner, clean the bathroom occasionally, and keep the dishes and laundry done. Otherwise, housework is not at the top of the priority list.

So that's the life for the moment. Maybe next time I'll have pictures of the three projects. And I'm planning another giveaway, so stay tuned. Speaking of tuned...here is a picture of something else I'm trying to focus on right now, not very successfully:

 

Ah, my lovely violin. The brief moments I spend with it are not enough, but I'm trying to do at least a little every day. The goal is to finish the 2nd Suzuki book by the end of May, and I'm about halfway through it. So I need to get off the computer and start working on those scales and etudes! 

Falling Waaaay Off the Wagon

The new computer is finally up and running, so pictures should be forthcoming. I'm probably the only person on Ravelry who has stash and projects listed with no photos whatsoever. Kinda defeats the purpose, doesn't it?

Unfortunately, I had to blow away the contents of the iPod because it was acting wonky, so I had to hook it up to the website and restore it to its original settings, whatever they were. (They certainly did not include the amusing trick of simply scrolling through all the songs instead of actually playing them.) So now I have to reload all my CDs, re-download my books from Audible.com, and save the purchased songs to CD from iTunes on the old computer, before it goes completely belly-up.

So....knitting and stash content. Let's see...I bought more sock yarn. And a Jo Sharp pattern book. And some great Rowan wool/silk blend for less than $4 a ball. And I ordered Lamb's Pride yarn to make a knee length cabled cardigan. Oops, I slipped.

That was on Friday. I haven't bought anything since then. But that's probably because I haven't transferred my bookmarks from the old computer, so I can't go shopping online.

And I haven't been working on a darn thing from The List. I've secretly been knitting a baby sweater from some Linen Isle that I got at half-price a couple of weeks ago. (Sorry. Didn't tell y'all about that one, did I?) And last night I pulled out the fiber that Nancy from Fuzzarelly Fibers sent me and started spinning laceweight on the new Jenson wheel. (Lovely angora, silk, and merino blends--and the angora is from her own bunnies.) That was a soothing, satisfying experience. I must remember to have a spinning project on The List at all times.

So why have I slipped so far off the straight and narrow that I swore to stick to way back in my first post? I blame Ravelry for part of it. You just can't get on there and start looking at everyone's projects without getting the itch to start some of them for yourself. And the blogs! Oh, my my my. Look at what I found yesterday. Just look at those shawls! How can I see those and not give in to the urge to start one for myself? Heaven knows I have plenty of laceweight yarn in the stash, because I shop here. I've got silk blends, cashmere blends, angora blends, supersoft merino, and the fiber--well, I could be spinning superfine laceweight for the rest of my life and not use it all up.

I think part of the problem is something I could see coming--I haven't finished anything in a while, so I don't feel like I'm making progress. I got my little projects done in a hurry, but now I have to slog along on the bigger ones. Starting something new gives me the false impression that I'm actually accomplishing something. In a way, I suppose I am. If I already had the stash and I start using it, at least it's part of the way toward being done. But then I'm back to having 30 projects piled around The Chair again.

At least I've gotten the sewing room straightened up quite a bit. I can finally walk around in here, and if I want to use the small loom, I can get to it now. I've located my skein umbrella and ball winder, so once I figure out where to set them up, I can start winding sock yarn balls. Best of all, I can get the closet door open, which means I can once again gaze lovingly upon the silk fibers that I had forgotten were in there.

Mission for tonight: make new List, which will include spinning and a couple of smaller projects that I need to dig out of the stash. And take some photos!