Almost Finished

Hello Gentle Readers. The changing light is February's gift. The northern hemisphere tilts toward Spring. It does lift the spirit. Here in Nebraska, the sun shines on warm February days. Monday I walked under a bright blue sky. Not too far from home, I stopped to watch a large red-tailed hawk circle the sky. Sunshine articulated his stretched feathers and illuminated the bright rust of his tail.  At that moment I understood why this buteo is called red-tailed. Later in the day, the light reflected the beauty of the bare linden. It's nice to have a respite from the grayer skies.

Today is another Unraveled Wednesday and link with Kat and the Unravelers. I worked on two knitting projects this week. Most evenings, I knit on this shawl. Over the weekend I ripped out a few inches to adjust the color sequence or I might be finished. I didn't mind backtracking because this is such a comfort knit. Who knows whether I will wear it out in public but it will be great on a winter evening. I am now knitting the garter stitch border with the darkest shade. Then it will need a spa-blocking treatment. 

I cast on a scrappy sock because I needed a small project that I could easily pick up and put down. I also want to TRY and whittle down some sock yarn stash. I'm using the small two stitch cable motif from the Candy Floss pattern. 

I am almost finished listening to True Biz by Sara Novic´. Interspersed within the story is information about the history of deafness, American Sign Language (ASL), deaf education, and culture. This perspective of deafness is broader than that the public school system where I taught. I am learning things I didn't know and that is a good thing. Listening to the book is so interesting, considering the characters and subject matter. There is a special sound added to indicate dialogue is being signed between characters. 

I'm also reading Night and Day, Virginia Woolf's second novel. This book is reported to be Woolf's work that is most structured like a traditional novel. I like to read early work of writers to learn more about the way their writing developed and changed over their lifetime. Night and Day certainly shows the promise of Woolf's later writing. Last night I read some laugh-out-loud lines as well as some elegant insightful character descriptions. Woolf may not be for everyone, but this novel been on my to-read list for quite some time. I finally ordered a used copy so I can take my time. 

Happy Valentine's Day. I hope the day brings some special moments to you. 

Ravelry Links

Solstice Shawl

Scrappy Socks