Wednesday, January 26, 2022

January's End

On this Wednesday, the breeze is blowing and the air is cold. Little precipitation has fallen this month so the blue sky is welcome color in the landscape. Temperatures bounce between bitter and almost balmy. It feels like an odd sort of winter but maybe that is just the way I feel. I have made good progress with my knitting. 

Today I link with Kat and the other Unravelers to talk about fiber and reading. Two spindles of Polworth rest before plying and I had a bit of unraveling but nothing serious. The Anker's Cardigan - My Size begins to look like a sweater. I separated the sleeves from the body, knit an inch or so, and tried on the sweater. It fits which is good because this is fingering weight yarn on small needles and that yoke ribbing took some time. I left the stitches on the needle in an effort to save time. If you predicted I saved no time, you would be right. Some front stitches popped off one side of the needle. Somehow the edge stitch pulled out two rows down. I put the stitches back on the needle, fiddled with the edge stitch and knit another two rows. I didn't like the look of the edge so I pulled all the stitches off the needle and frogged down to two rows below the errant stitch. The sweater is back on track with the edge stitch corrected. I can drop down in the middle of a row to pick up or fix a stitch. I have fixed cables several rows down but edge stitches are a different story.  

I worked on the prairie shawl. Already it has eleventy-million ends but I don't mind weaving in the ends. I like closure and finishing a project. I knit in some odd pieces of a skein of Anzula that I used in another shawl. The clay color is a good addition. If you look close you can see a few rows here and there. Colors are so interesting. I pulled one other skein and a mini skein from stash and thought they coordinated well but when I knit them into the shawl they didn't go well at all. I enjoy playing with odds and ends in shawls of multiple colors. What can I create with what I have?  

I'm reading These Precious Days, a collection of essays by Ann Patchett. Patchett is a strong writer and I'm enjoying them. I haven't read the essay which Patchett used as the title of the book but I keep thinking about what those words mean to me. I'm rereading The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates. It is  this month's selection in my local book group. Last year I listened to the audio and it was excellent. Reading the hard-copy and knowing the story, I notice some of the subtle fore-shadowing that I missed while listening. The subject matter is hard but the story is beautifully written. Coates vocabulary choices make me think differently. Do you reread books? 

I read a little ray of hope in our local newspaper on Sunday. Our House Representative in Washington is a man who has been in office a long time. I don't vote for him but he is an incumbent and enjoys success in our district. Running as a Democrat against him is a big leap of faith. Right now a state legislator, Senator Patty Pansing-Brooks, is running in the primary in order to oppose him in November. In an article about her campaign she was quoted, "I'm going to make it a journey of compassion and hope." I'd love to see that on a yard sign. Her words made me think of Leonard Cohen's song/poem, "there's a crack in everything, it's how the light gets in." I don't know about you but these January days I am looking hard for the crack and the light. 

Stay warm and well. 

Late afternoon light 
 
Bread recipe that I made into rolls. I omit the seeds on the outside because they just fall off. Bake at same temperature for shorter period of time - 15 - 17 minutes.  Hearty rolls that are great for dipping into soup or slicing and toasting. 

Ravelry Links







9 comments:

  1. Glad you got that edge stitch handled - and that the yoke is now behind you! I do re-read - I find that knowing the gist of the story frees up my mind for noticing other things - how the story is told, maybe why it's told that way, and all kinds of choices the author makes to have the book work the way it does. I'm careful though - some books I've loved haven't lived up to my memories on re-read. I have to be ready for that.

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  2. I like the springy color of your sweater and the colors in the shawl. I re-read, but rarely. A couple of real favorites like The Shell Seekers, The Shipping News and Anne of Green Gables have been good re-reads. I enjoyed Anne Patchett's first collection of essays for a second time after I read These Precious Days. Those rolls look delicious and I hope your temperature lands somewhere between bitter and balmy.

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  3. I have never been able to fix dropped edge stitches to my satisfaction, and sometimes it actually ends up being faster to frog and reknit a handful of rows than to fuss with trying to get a few stitches right. The sweater will be so nice when it's done and well worth all the effort.

    There are some books I have read multiple times, and lately I've been rereading books I first read long ago. Sometimes I feel a bit guilty rereading when there are new books I want to read as well, but well-loved books are always worth it, and often I find that I get different things from a book on a reread, especially if it's something that I first read a long time ago/at a different stage of my life.

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  4. BRAVO to you for getting the sweater fixed up and ready to move forward! It's a beauty -- and will be so nice when you're finished and wearing it. I don't re-read books as often as I'd like to . . . I am reading Ann Patchett's new essay collection right now, too. I just love her writing.

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  5. Edge stitches are a completely different story! I would have done the same thing. I love the color of the yarn in your sweater.... it looks wintry! :)

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  6. Other than poetry or essays or nature books I don't re-read. But lately I've been thinking of books I loved and wondering if I should re-read (Ahab's Wife, The Poisonwood Bible just to name two). Your shawl is so pretty and I'm glad you were able to get your sweater edge "fixed." I'm in awe of folks who can do that. Those rolls look delicious and perfect for going with soup (this weekend?). I have printed the recipe - thank you for the link.

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  7. for some reason I do not mind burying threads...not sure why! Lovely anker and the shawl is in such soothing colors.

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  8. Love how the shawl is coming along. I don't follow politics, but "compassion and hope" sounds like an awesome campaign! I think we all could use more of that these days :)

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  9. Jane I think you are a great knitter. Your shaw1 and your sweater are rocking it!!!!

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