Ah, excellent....

It's been a week to endure and grin, whether I feel like grinning or not. Did a road trip to St. John, NB Monday and Tuesday, to present for and hour and a half on my favourite topic--how to get boomers motivated to take on new life challenges, post job loss, post depression and the 'what the @!*# am I doing with my life anyway'? Been there, done that, continuously re-inventing myself and with more revenue sources would be happy to do so even more enthusiastically. So driving 1000 kms in two days isn't my favourite way to spend time, but as a) I didn't do the driving, and b) I got to knit most of a sock in good company while Amie drove, I have nothing to complain about. Besides I was out of the office-cave for two days and spent those two days in daylight--what a concept!

Meanwhile on the knitting front the shawl project continues to grow (at last, attempt 7 is working). If my other six attempts had been successful, I'd be done by now, but we'll call this a learning experience. And another shawl I'm contemplating will be started in January so I have a year until my deadline, not two months and I don't know what I'm doing. I love knitting denial, it is so very entertaining.

Sunday afternoon, listening to opera on the internet, having already schlepped firewood to the porch, laundry in progress and knitting soon to be.

My biggest frustration, always, seems to be that I can think up so much more I want to do, try, play with, than I have time to indulge. I've had my painting stuff out and ready to play with for months and have yet to put brush to pigment. I've only been at the spinning wheel about 2 hours in the last month, I need to map out my new web site and revamp content for the present one; I have a dozen knitting projects I'm just twitchy with wanting to begin; there are a stack of books to read; I've not written anything except blog posts (and haven't they be massive and often?) since the summer. One would have to wonder what one does with one's time.

Do we have a time theme here? What me, the 60 year old Capricorn late bloomer boomer worried about time? Nah, couldn't be. For the record--I don't want to work at a job, I want to play, all the time, everyday: as a writer, painter, weaver, spinner, knitter, gardener and amateur chef. I don't have time for a job; but without one I don't eat, so what to do, what to do??? Oh joy, your other name is Old Age Pension! Four more years....

Where does the time go?

Every weekend I have a long list of things I WANT to do and a much shorter list of things I actually accomplish. For nigh on a month now I have been struggling to get a stole project to work to my satisfaction and I'm still not there. That means the piece has been frogged now 6 times. Each time I try a different something--tension, yarn weight, or pattern. Each time my very inadequate understanding of lace knitting comes along to bite my behind. I'm getting into a bit of a panic now as this is a project for Xmas giving and I'm no where near where I should be by this time--ie. I don't have anything that works. Yet I've knit for hours over the last month trying to make this work. I'm usually good with technical challenges so don't give up easily. There's something about knitted lace that seems determined to defeat me.

This morning I decided to try something else so will frog back the current 12 inches of stole and give it another go. Last night I tried a different pattern--and don't like the look or the feel of it with this yarn. To further complicate my life I'm working with my own dyed yarn, and have had fun with that--3 dye lots now, only one of which I think works. I have one more skein that may go in the pot this afternoon and with luck it will be close to the dye lot I've got two of to make this work and give me the yardage need to make a stole, not a doily. One dye lot has already been over-dyed and won't work for this project, and one I think I can incorporate as a design element? or whatever. If push comes to shove I'll over dye the finished piece and bring everything together that way. Who knew this would be so annoying and persistently challenging. Apparently I'm unable to read gauge, yardage count or needle size--but then that's not exactly news. Note to self--read the instructions and pay attention! Would it be too much to expect that I could do what the pattern says? Rebel good, untutored knitting rebel, not so good.

I'd hoped to be able to use the new 'Harmony' needles I bought from Knitpicks, but I don't have the requisite size yet. Nice needles though, so will consider getting more sizes eventually.

I took some pictures in the woods on a walk with Pia and Freya (the dog) last weekend; now these colours and leaves are gone, what with a wicked wind and rain storm this weekend. Undoubtedly winter is not so far off. The time changed last night so it was dark today by 5:30. I've never accepted the time change concept, having lived much of my life in a part of the country where it is not entertained. Twice a year this clock fiddling annoys the crap out of me, still. It's been ten years of this nonsense and I'm not at all resigned.