New Knitting And The Declaration That I’m Not a Cat Person

In my very first post on this blog, I wrote that goodness and civility and beauty are worth the extra effort.

I was muddling over this idea of extra effort today as I was teaching myself a new knit stitch for another scarf for another son. I began with the Herringbone stitch, and I was so chuffed at the effort I was putting in. But it ended up being *too* much effort. I never realized what a yarn hog the herringbone stitch is. And now I have a greater appreciation for the effort. But I have switched to the much easier Hurdler stitch.

I don’t feel entirely bad about not putting in excessive amounts of effort. The point of creating a knit scarf is to show love to my kids. My son learns that he is valued and worthy of something that took time. It’s also to give my hands something to do so that I’m producing something during times of passive watchfulness.

On the home front, we’ve managed to figure out our washing machine. We prepped and washed all of the newborn diapers. My daughter helped me strip them. We soaked them in hot water and laundry soap in our bathtub and swished them around with a wooden spoon occasionally for four hours. (Something recommended on a European diaper washing instructional website….We’re going to give the European instructions for washing a try…) It made me feel like a renaissance washerwoman. We get our kicks where we can.

Here’s the beginning of a baby blanket I’m making for Boy #4 (who we sometimes affectionately refer to as Poky, because in the children’s book, The Poky Little Puppy is the slowest out of the 5.) It’s the arrow stitch and is wondrously easy to crochet. But it’s a yarn hog as well. What is it with me choosing really yarn-heavy stitches lately? I take comfort knowing that our little one will stay extra warm under this in the winter when he arrives.

We have some holly growing close to our front door. It’s a massive bush/shrub, about 8 feet tall. I want to figure out how I can use our natural resources in decorating and gifting for Christmas this year, and all I can say is that holly is a whole lot spikier than it looks on Christmas postcards. I am uncertain about how to use this for decor, but I believe my hands will be poked many a time.

Tonight, I spent time on Pinterest contemplating art for a while. I find a lot of artists, especially modern ones, of whom I was previously unaware on Pinterest. But it’s also a frustrating source because I liked one picture that HAPPENED to have a cat in the painting, and now Pinterest thinks I’m a crazy cat person. I don’t like cats. But the algorithm has spoken. There will be cats in my Pinterest existence from now until kingdom come.

I’m not entirely satisfied with my art contemplations tonight, aside from the cat issue, as several of the paintings have left me a little melancholy. Many of the paintings I viewed were winter scenes or scenes that contrast the darkness with light shining out of windows. But I think it worthwhile to contemplate beauty. And that’s where I’m ending tonight.

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