KnitCrit

(C)onsternation

If you have a parent, are a parent, have a spouse or a friend, are employed, or are a basically sane human being, then you have been frustrated.  In the past couple of months my frustration has reached a different, higher level.  I have not had the time to post to my blog.  I haven’t had very much time to ride my bike.  My house is a mess and our little second home on the Northern Neck – that I love – has been neglected.   I have knit some, but not at a pace that makes me happy.  I needed to find a word that describes how I have felt and consternation seems to fit best.  It is a level of frustration that causes anxiety and dismay; often from an unexpected source.

The source of mine is my work.  It’s been tumultuous, as we did not have a CEO for many months, right at a time when the organization has grown exponentially.  I was hired to get things in order and to improve the internal systems, particularly those related to financial activity.  My best intentions have been met with unexpected barriers and while I will not bore you with the details, the bottom line is that I have needed to spend hours and hours on very detailed reconciliation work. 

There is light at the end of the tunnel.  I will be back to blogging more often.  I liked this A to Z concept and I am determined to stick with it.

As I type this, I am at the little house and I have not worked this weekend.  My husband and I got out for two, good bike rides.  I have knit several hours and listened to a few favorite podcast episodes.  Some time has been dedicated to updating my knitting project photos for Flickr and Ravelry.  We have cooked three wonderful meals with local ingredients purchased at the Farmer’s Market in Irvington and the White Stone Market.  It is sunny and beautiful outside and I am beginning to feel the weight of stress peel off of my shoulders.

Silliness has set in, which is a good sign.  I leave you with a sample: a silly photo taken before starting on our lunch prep today, which occurred after a strong bike ride.  The best cold beer ever is one in a frozen glass after completing an exhilarating workout. 

Blogging

So, my last post was Anticipation.  Now it is Blogging. 

See the pattern?  Of course you do. 

Why am I doing this? 

I seem to always do things with a theme, an order, or at least with the establishment of a relationship.  I am an accountant; debits equal credits; end of story.  My brain doesn’t compute anything that isn’t related to something else; a known variable within the formula that leads to a finite solution.  Organization.

My Blog was begun almost three years ago.  At that time, my plan to combine my love of cycling and knitting together fit into what I considered a missing link in the online knitting community – pattern critiques.  The theme provided the incentive and the order to do first one post, then the next, etc.  I re-knit each of the projects through writing about them.  The yarn ball rating at the end was fun, too.

Then along came Ravelry and the perfect online place to post pattern critiques, by thousands of users!  I began looking at every pattern of my favorites and my friends’ projects, and their favorites, too.  Soon, there just wasn’t the need, or the enthusiasm on my part, to continue the Blog for knitting pattern critiques.

However, the Blogging bug had hit and I wanted then and now to write from time to time – about knitting and cycling and a multitude of other topics.  The Knippets are something I like, but damn if Twitter hasn’t taken the place of quick ditties about life; for me, primarily knitting and cycling.  I’ll continue the Knippets because I like them and it is, after all, my Blog. 

The current theme, therefore, while not catchy or punny or even creative, will give me the discipline to ponder the next post.  It will begin with C, of course, but what will it be?

I just decided, too, to include a photo or link or something that relates to the topic.  Here's a really cool site that is kind of like Wikopedia for song lyrics: A-Z Lyrics Universe.

Maybe eventually I'll get around to a graphic revision.  It needs that, too.

Thanks for reading!