06 February 2007
Welcome to Frogsville
Welcome to Frogsville, population: The Somewhat Cowl.
One minute everything was going smoothly and the next, I noticed that I had been knitting backward for an inch. At first this seemed like a fixable problem. I turned the sweater around and started ‘backwards knitting’ to get back to where I first messed up so I could start again. No dice. Weird holes appeared in the fabric and strands of yarn hung like streamers between stitches. I could have put it down for a day or two in order to gather my wits and figure out how to fix it but on Thursday at 11:30pm, I was pretty sure it was hopeless so I took a deep breath and I ripped the whole thing out. Four months of work unraveled in 20 minutes (that’s one month of work unraveled every five minutes). Now it’s a big ball of black yarn waiting in limbo to be reincarnated. And it will be reborn as the Somewhat Cowl…I just need some time away from it to psych myself up for starting again.
While I wait to gather the moxie to start the Cowl again, I decided to try socks. They are the basic ribbed socks found here: http://www.spunmag.com/article/060421socks made in a fab green Koigu colourway that mom brought me from White Rock. I had a hell of a time with the heel and emailed Kate (the designer) with my question. She replied and sent a link to socks 101 found here: http://www.knitty.com/issuespring05/FEATsocks101.html.
(But guess what…between my question and her answer, I felt intrepid and followed my intuition and I figured out how to do it!!)
I love how interactive the internet is. It’s such a strange community. I can be alone on the computer and with an email I’m transported to an ethereal knitting class. It’s a weird combination of isolation and togetherness, isn’t it?
**
I’ve got some guilt pangs…today I have two sorta midterms that I should be studying for if I could figure out how to study for them. In my first class this afternoon, we’ll be writing an in-class essay on the structure of Freud’s “Five Lectures”. An hour and a half later I’ll be watching my classmates debate which is the better novel “Jane Eyre” or “Wuthering Heights”. After the debate, the class will write an essay on which debate team won.
On a somewhat related note, Freud’s “Five Lectures” are some good reading! My favourite Freudian nuggets are Dream Interpretation and Free Association and I’m trying to incorporate them into my writing life. Freud’s “Repression & Resistance” are sisters of the writer’s Inner Censor. My Inner Censor is really strong…I’m a cruel self-editor. My goal is to blast through (or sneak around) my Inner Censor using Free Association and some Dream Association. My dreams are usually so vivid and bizarre that I shouldn’t have much trouble there.
In the past week or so, I’ve experienced a surge in my interest in writing. Since going back to school, I haven’t made much time for writing. In the past week, I read “On Writing” by Stephen King and “Writing Down the Bones” by Natalie Goldberg. Stephen King made a strong impression on me. Since Friday, I have been writing 1,000 words/day to build my writing muscles. Last night, Joe and I talked about how to direct my writing and how to find my voice. After the brainstorm, I made a list of traits I want in something I write and a list of traits I want to avoid. I hope that helps unravel my mind and loosen up my creativity.
Thanks for tuning in today! Let’s plan to meet up for Beavertails and hot chocolate, you fabulous person!
Erika.
One minute everything was going smoothly and the next, I noticed that I had been knitting backward for an inch. At first this seemed like a fixable problem. I turned the sweater around and started ‘backwards knitting’ to get back to where I first messed up so I could start again. No dice. Weird holes appeared in the fabric and strands of yarn hung like streamers between stitches. I could have put it down for a day or two in order to gather my wits and figure out how to fix it but on Thursday at 11:30pm, I was pretty sure it was hopeless so I took a deep breath and I ripped the whole thing out. Four months of work unraveled in 20 minutes (that’s one month of work unraveled every five minutes). Now it’s a big ball of black yarn waiting in limbo to be reincarnated. And it will be reborn as the Somewhat Cowl…I just need some time away from it to psych myself up for starting again.
While I wait to gather the moxie to start the Cowl again, I decided to try socks. They are the basic ribbed socks found here: http://www.spunmag.com/article/060421socks made in a fab green Koigu colourway that mom brought me from White Rock. I had a hell of a time with the heel and emailed Kate (the designer) with my question. She replied and sent a link to socks 101 found here: http://www.knitty.com/issuespring05/FEATsocks101.html.
(But guess what…between my question and her answer, I felt intrepid and followed my intuition and I figured out how to do it!!)
I love how interactive the internet is. It’s such a strange community. I can be alone on the computer and with an email I’m transported to an ethereal knitting class. It’s a weird combination of isolation and togetherness, isn’t it?
**
I’ve got some guilt pangs…today I have two sorta midterms that I should be studying for if I could figure out how to study for them. In my first class this afternoon, we’ll be writing an in-class essay on the structure of Freud’s “Five Lectures”. An hour and a half later I’ll be watching my classmates debate which is the better novel “Jane Eyre” or “Wuthering Heights”. After the debate, the class will write an essay on which debate team won.
On a somewhat related note, Freud’s “Five Lectures” are some good reading! My favourite Freudian nuggets are Dream Interpretation and Free Association and I’m trying to incorporate them into my writing life. Freud’s “Repression & Resistance” are sisters of the writer’s Inner Censor. My Inner Censor is really strong…I’m a cruel self-editor. My goal is to blast through (or sneak around) my Inner Censor using Free Association and some Dream Association. My dreams are usually so vivid and bizarre that I shouldn’t have much trouble there.
In the past week or so, I’ve experienced a surge in my interest in writing. Since going back to school, I haven’t made much time for writing. In the past week, I read “On Writing” by Stephen King and “Writing Down the Bones” by Natalie Goldberg. Stephen King made a strong impression on me. Since Friday, I have been writing 1,000 words/day to build my writing muscles. Last night, Joe and I talked about how to direct my writing and how to find my voice. After the brainstorm, I made a list of traits I want in something I write and a list of traits I want to avoid. I hope that helps unravel my mind and loosen up my creativity.
Thanks for tuning in today! Let’s plan to meet up for Beavertails and hot chocolate, you fabulous person!
Erika.
