Ten on Tuesday: justification edition

Today is the Top Ten Reasons Why I Knit.

Hmm.

I am kind of stumped. I learned to knit at the ripe old age of 3, so it has never occurred to me NOT to knit. Let's see what I come up with...

1. It keeps my hands busy. Idle hands and all that, but I am really not great at sitting still.
2. Focus. I wouldn't self diagnose as ADD, but I am a creative, very intelligent woman- my mind wanders.
3. Babies look cuter in handknits.
4. On my worst day, i can feel brilliant because I can turn two types of heels without instruction.
5. It connects me to my godmother, Shirley, who passed away when i was 20. I miss her every day and my heart aches to see her again.
6. I have a lot of yarn and its not going to knit itself.
7. My knitting and a cup of tea can stop me from eating after dinner.
8. It lets me go to knitting groups, where the people i meet are amazing!
9. This blog would me a lot more boring if it were just me and the cat, no knitting.
10. I am exactly have Irish and half Norwegian-  if i didn't like to knit, i think my DNA would compel me to anyway. ( cables and color work are my favorites, go figure).

On Waxing... and Waning

I started this in an email to a friend, but I thought it might be very appropriate to put here. I'm at sixes and sevens. Restless. Without direction. Blocked. Stagnated. 

Sixes.And.Sevens. 

Some may (or may not) know that I lost my job in February. I was only there 3 months and while I'm not happy to not be working, I am happy to not be working there. Long story (don't feel bad- I'm not telling anyone what happened) and let's just say I cried, I breathed out and I cashed a check. 

And I've been okay since. Daily work searches, emailing people, applying online for jobs, networking, networking, networking... and then cleaning, organizing, cooking, cleaning, prepping, tidying, laundering, knitting, quilting, knitting... rinse and repeat.  Easy right? I'm collecting unemployment and it's (barely) paying the bills (not all, but most). Until this week. This week was the wall. Week 10. 70 days of not working. 10 40-hour weeks of not having officemates. Not having lunch at my desk. Not having a commute. 

This week. No, this week has been the week of yoga pants, no direction, a lot of coffee, job hunting slow-down and all around... well, sixes and sevens. I don't know what to do with myself. 

It's not like I don't have anything to do. At this EXACT moment of writing this I could be doing (and SHOULD be doing) the following:

• writing my final paper for COM701 (love my professor and don't want her to hate me)
• cleaning the bathroom
• cleaning the kitchen floor---does anyone else have those awful leafy things coming into their houses? From the oak trees? Know how to get them out of grout?
• prepping dinner
• making a pot of coffee for PC when he gets home
• changing the cat box
• feeding the cat
• vacuuming
• doing my COM725 homework
• visiting my mom
• swapping my wardrobe from fall/winter to spring/summer
• gathering up things to donate
• balancing our checkbooks
• calling our health insurance

Instead, I'm writing my blog post and sharing some new FO photos with you. I knit up this sweet, sweet sweater for a friend who lives in crazy-hot North Carolina and just had her second daughter. Ava. Isn't that a beautiful name? Big sister is Maya--- also a stunning name and a stunning little girl. :)

Ava is going to be battling two things in North Carolina: heat and air conditioning. So, a sweater was necessary. Last week (before ennui set in), I sat down with needles (US 3), pattern (Baby Valentine Sweater- Rav Link) and 2 balls of Dale Baby Ull yarn, in a lilac color. 2 nights later, I had this:

Close up of the heart lace

No sleeves! Perfect for layering and doesn't inhibit chunky little baby arms. 

Look for some changes next week to the blog. A while ago, I spent some time with a graphic designer to re-oomph the blog; I think next week's post-semester end project will be swapping the closets AND revamping the blog. Chhh...chhh...changes!