Winter Olympics

I love the Winter Games, both sports and knitting. Four years ago I designed and knit myself a coat. I was a fairly new machine knitter and wanted to stretch my skills. I had a great time and was a successful medalist. This year is a different story. Much like the weather in Vancouver my life has been experiencing some unfavorable conditions for an Olympic competition.

Right before Christmas I was experiencing some really painful backaches, but between the holidays and the standard female issues, had to put off the visit to my doctor until January 4. When I went in I insisted on a full female exam, which like most women I truly despise. Nothing makes your day like having your doctor ask you if you are sure that there is no way that you are twelve weeks pregnant. I pointed out that Christmas would be moving to July if that were the case. (Never let it be said that I'm not a smart a.. in the face of potential problems.) Additional testing and consultations with a GYN resulted in me being scheduled for surgery to remove a defective part on the fifteenth, three days into the Games. In the run up to this, I had all a complete physical which said I was incredibly healthy, great heart, good cholesterol, clean lungs, everything else checked out A-OK. Just a bad part, one the warranty had evidently run out on. And I'm cleaning my house, cross country skiing, shoveling snow, dealing with parental health issues. In other words living a normal life.

I had let a several friends and a few family members in on my health issues, but not my mother. About the time this all happened she was having health issues of her own, a newly diagnosed diabetic, she was having a hard time getting it under control. I was forced to tell her on the eleventh, when she called to tell me that she had scheduled a meeting with the dietitian for herself, my father and me for the seventeenth. My sister drove me to the hospital and stayed with me all day, our pastor waited with her through the surgery.

My understanding of the events that morning are that they opened me up and the endometriosis was so bad, that the intern thought it was really cool, and the team couldn't believe I had actually been able to cross country ski the day before. The surgery was extensive to remove the diseased tissue and separate it from my healthy organs. A complete hysterectomy was performed. When I woke up in recovery, it was later than I expected and my only question was how much was removed? (Everything) My first question to my sister, was Do I get to keep my hair. (Yes).  I spent the day in and out of consciousness and hooked up to a morphine pump.  What was supposed to be an overnight stay, last four days, and the one week recovery at my sister's house became ten days.  Needless to say I didn't meet my Olympic challenge.  But life happens.

Let's see if I can figure this out

Several years ago, Ruth Lantz, who is on the board of Ohio Designer Craftsmen, proposed to a group of her friends that the publicity art project for Winterfair be a knitted cozy for a VW Bug. She talked to people that she knew and got the yarn and some enormous needles donated. Several of us batted around ideas of how to accomplish the task, before deciding to create paper pattern pieces of the body panels for individual knitters to fill with knitted fabric. So one breezy evening Ruth and I took a large roll of bumwad aka tracing paper and some markers and draped a friend's Bug to make the pattern pieces. Pieces and yarn were handed out along with instructions for the decorative pieces for the public participation part. The results were published in the Dispatch and you can view the article here. I want to thank Tim Feran of the Dispatch for his help in getting permission to link to it.

Recently I discovered that the project had been nominated for two Bobbie awards on Ravelry, Most Unusual project and Best Group project.

Winter wonders

It's been a while since we actually had enough snow to be able to cross country ski. Don't get me wrong, it snows in Central Ohio, but usually not enough at one time nor does it last very long. So when we had several inches arrive around the 8th and 9th, I looked at it as Mother Nature's birthday present and tried to make the most of it. I think I got in at least eight hours of skiing over 3 consecutive days.

This is Big Darby Creek in the Prairie Oaks Metropark. I'm skiing along looking for access to the creek and skied over not realizing until I was about 20 feet away that the creek was actually partially covered in ice. I watched a little bird hopping along on the ice on the other side for several minutes.

The next day I went back via a different route and took my gear and enjoyed a hot lunch along the creek.


Not a bad spot to spend lunch. And hot cheesy noodles hit the spot.

A New Year

I don't do resolutions any more. I never remember them. It almost sounds preachy but at this stage of the game, I would like to think that I've learned a few simple truths/lessons. (See Grandma I really did listen.)

1. Treat everyone fairly, like you'd like to be treated. Usually you'll get it back. Aka, do unto others ... It should be without saying that it doesn't matter, their religion, gender, native language, etc.

2. Everyone pulls their pants on one leg at a time. Regardless of how much those pants cost. You should never be afraid to talk with anyone as if you are equals. In general, you are.

3. It costs nothing to be polite. (Well maybe a bit of ego sometimes but ... that won't kill you.) And it will get you much further. And polite, but stubborn will get you your own way in the end.

4. Listening is important. It's just about the most important communication skill you can cultivate. And about the easiest. I always think of it as a subset of number 3.

5. Be flexible in achieving your goals. There are usually several ways you can get there, and someone else may have a better idea. See item 4. It costs nothing to take advantage of what someone else has learned.

6. Keep learning. It does your brain good, keeps you flexible and makes you a more valuable person. Curiosity is a good thing.

7. Ask questions if you don't understand. The only stupid question is the one you are afraid/forgot to ask.

8. Don't lie. Period. If people know that you are honest and try to be fair it makes life a lot easier.

Do I manage to do these? I would like to think so, but sometimes it is hard. Sometimes you get tired. Sometimes you have a bad day. Sometimes you have to deal with people or situations that make you really uncomfortable. But at the end of it all, I want all parties to be able to say, it was honest and fair.

Solstice

Finally, the shortest day of the year. Now the days will get longer, even as the weather grows ever colder. Cookie baking is almost over. The trees are half put up.

I will put it in writing, I hate putting the lights on my trees. It takes me forever, and by the time I get done I don't feel like dealing with the ornaments. I love how the tree makes the room glow. I like looking at it. I don't even mind taking it down for the season, but I really don't like the initial installation. And this year I couldn't manage to bribe any of the kids with the promise of cookies. (No, they wanted cash. Not in the unemployment budget.) So I'm listening to music, or books on tape, drinking hot cider and sucking it up. The lights are on the main tree, and the ornaments are started. I just haven't made up my mind as to a theme. Antique ornaments, space ships, buildings colors, travel souvenirs, I just don't know. Yes, I know this means I have way too many ornaments. And yes I'm procrastinating by writing this post.

Done

One of the results of the studio re-org was 7 large bins of WIP. I have been slowly working on turning them into DONE projects. Recently completed a cardigan in SWTC Phoenix. This is one of my patterns. It has set in, 3/4 length sleeves, a shaped torso and garter stitch edging all around. Since I never bother to button a cardi, I didn't put in button holes. Also in the done pile a lace scarf handknit from quivit, a pair of socks in a lace pattern, my own design; a hat in yummy yak yarn with a braided band; and several scarves.

No wonder

Winter seems to have arrived in my neighborhood, or at least it is now consistently below freezing every night in the long range forecast. And after a long relatively warm fall the sudden drop in temps is down right COLD. I actually had ice in my recently emptied water garden containers late this afternoon. (Okay so it rained after I emptied them last week.)

Despite the brilliant blue skies this afternoon, I actually hauled in the planted containers that overwinter in my unheated garage. It is detached from the house so it does get cold, but the plants don't have the temperature shocks of being in the sun and then below freezing temps. It's a block garage and it just seems to stay a fairly consistent temp all winter. The plants live and their clay pots don't break, so I'm happy.

I just looked at the thermometer in the master bedroom and it says that the room is 74 deg F. I know that thermostat downstairs is set for 70. But the upstairs got new thermal paned, tight fitting Pella windows when I renovated it about 9 years ago, so it stays much warmer. No wonder I like working up here.

And the work on UFOs continues. I've been making real progress on the top down sweater from Knitting Classic Style. This is the cover sweater, and I happen to have about 30,000 yards of undyed chunky yarn from the family sheep. Yes this is more than 17 miles of yarn. I need to find more patterns for this weight... Or I need to felt whole flocks of sheep.

Also working on my braided hat from Bijou Basin. Oddly enough the only modification I've made was to graft together the ends of the braid that forms the band. Yes, it was fiddly, and probably a bit anal on my part but there will be no sewn seam on this hat. It feels warm in my hands. And that's pretty nice right now. I really should take some more pictures and post them.