Unraveled Wednesday | 3.27.24

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.27.24

Greetings dearest Unravelers!

We have reached the final Wednesday of March… and I am trying to figure out the March Lion/Lamb conundrum. March has had some very curious weather in the ‘Burgh and it seems that the Lamb/Lamb version is how my March will end… but perhaps that is not so bad.

The making this week has had some unraveling…sigh. That sock… I was worried about pooling but in the straightway down the leg I fell in love with the Wabi–Sabi striping that the yarn was brilliantly doing! And then came the heel flap and gusset where all those lovely “stripes” fell into two distinct pools of color… purple on one side, green on the other, which I thought was pretty darned ugly. But I knit on hoping I could get past the ugliness of it. In the end I could not so I ripped it back, put in a row of stitches for an afterthought heel, and continued those delight stripes down the foot. My love is back for this yarn! I had completely forgotten how perfect Helen’s Shepherd sock yarn is! It has an almost cottony feel to it and it creates a lovely fabric at my “sock gauge”!

I have one finished Valkyrie Hat… which I soaked and it is blocking on a wee ball of yarn. Up next… some Valkyrie horns for that hat!

My main love this week continues to be stitching. It is the thing I think most about every day (even though I don’t spend much time stitching, I do spend a LOT of time planning pages…) I finished another page in for my book… and I LOVE it! Those circles were just so fun to do!

I am thinking that this “design” will soon be translated to a larger version to make a pillow! It was just all so fun to do!

The current page (in the header photo) has an “oops” bit of fabric… I used this fabric to make a hat for Winston when he was a baby and this cut did not “match up” the plaids perfectly, so into the scrap bag it went. A piece showing the delight of circles… I have a few more Colonial Knots to add yet today and a new page begins tomorrow!

The reading this week though… oh my goodness. It was just perfection! I think I read the best book I will read all year over the past couple of months. I have slowly savored On Time and Water. I borrowed it from the library and have been so lucky that I could renew it not once but twice! But this is a book that needs to live in my library, so I have ordered a copy for myself. If you are at all interested in the question: “Is 100 years a long time?” and as you are contemplating the answer, dear Andri has some thinking for you! (My answer: I don’t think 100 years is very long at all but when I asked Genevieve… well, she thought it was a very, very long time.) I highly recommend Mr. Magnason’s brilliant book!

I was so lucky to get an advanced digital copy of a new mystery series, Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor. I really enjoyed it! The ending was unexpected and there are some very mysterious characters! I can’t wait to see where the next book goes (and yes, I am eagerly anticipating it!!) Agony Hill will be published August 6… so you won’t have too long to wait!

And there you have my making and reading catch up with you all… what about you? What is exciting you this week?

As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!


Circles of Time | March 2024

Circles of Time | March 2024

This month I have been spending much of my time contemplating the idea of “deep time” or perhaps the concept is better explained as circles of time. The idea, at least to me, seems a bit like the ripples created when you drop pebbles in a pool of water. The water ripples out further and further…and that place where those ripples interconnect… well, that is where time for me has gotten very interesting!

Rilke, of course, has give me some incredible inspiration… dear, dear Rilke.

Widening Circles

by Rainer Maria Rikle

I live my life in widening circles
that reach out across the world
I may not complete this last one
but I give myself to it.

I circle around God, around the primordial tower.
I’ve been circling for thousands of years
and I still don’t know: am I a falcon,
a storm, or a great song?

Published in Rilke’s Book of Hours: Love Poems to God. Translated by Anita Barrows and Joanna Macy. (You can listen to Joanna read it here. Her voice and these words…perfection!)

And so I have been thinking about the circles of time in my life this month. I brought Andri Snær Magnason along with me as I have been reading his brilliant work, On Time and Water. He has provided volumes to think about in this small yet weighty book! I have been slowly savoring it. I have kept going back and rereading parts as I contemplate his thoughts and the circles of my life and the depths of time. As I ponder my circles, my children’s circles, my grandchildren’s and their children and grandchildren’s circles… will they have any time at all? All these thoughts on circles of time has made me think about how interconnected I am to the past, the present, and yes… especially to the future, because things I do today will absolutely send out a ripple.

I “give myself” gladly to the circle I am in… and whether I complete this circle or not, it will interconnect with another circle and so on and so on… for thousands of years. And I think that just might be the great song of my life.

And time is like an image painted half by water —— and half of it by me. — Steinn Steinarr

I would like to thank Carolyn for keeping a space for us to share our thoughts, our progress, our struggles, our hopes!

See you all back here on Wednesday.

Photo by Jakub Novacek

 

A Gathering of Poetry | 3.21.24

A Gathering of Poetry | 3.21.24

Welcome to the March Gathering of Poetry… the day when Bonny holds a space for us to share our love of poetry.

I have nurtured the habit of reading some poetry every day. I have been doing this now for a couple of years and the impact that opening a book of poetry, noting the date, and reading a poem or two is dramatic. The space I hold for poetry almost feels sacred… it is intimate… just me and the words of the poet. It is just a few moments, but they are the most impactful moments of the day.

The poem I am sharing today is one I read some time ago… but it is a poem that has stayed with me and every spring I think of it again. Barbara Crooker is the poet… and I think she is brilliant. You can find more about her here and find some of her poetry here. I found this poem in The Path to Kindness: Poems of Connection and Joy. 

Forsythia

by Barbara Crooker

What must it feel like
after months of existing
as bare brown sticks,
all reasonable hope
of blossoming lost,
to suddenly, one warm
April morning, burst
into wild yellow song,
hundreds of tiny prayer
flags rippling in the still−
cold wind, the only flash
of color in the dull yard,
these small scraps of light,
something we might
hold on to.

Forsythia by Barbara Crooker in More in Time: A Tribute to Ted Kooser, University of Nebraska Press, 2021.


Image used courtesy of Borabelle *

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.20.24

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.20.24

Greetings Gentle Unravelers and Happy Wednesday!

I have finished my *third* pair of socks this year! What??? I don’t know who these socks will be for, but they are going in the Gift Bag for someone! I am going to cast on another pair pronto… I have some Vintage Lorna’s Laces in the most delightful colors. I am a bit concerned about pooling, but I am going to give the yarn a go! Same pattern, I think… Hermoine’s Everyday Sock is such a fun knit!

I also have the start of my Valkyrie!! Barely… but yes, started!

But really, stitching is on my mind… lots and lots of stitching! I have another page completed! (all the work time on this one was in the appliqué of the flowers!) I recently had the opportunity to take a Dream Bird class from Jo Avery and I learned some incredible tips for the appliqué process. I wanted to cement them in my mind, so I took the opportunity with a page.

I really want to learn EPP (English Paper Piecing)… and have been watching videos and IG for some inspiration. Once the 100-day project is finished, I am going to give it a try with a small project (no quilts… yet, lol!) One small project to dip my toes in is a good place to start!

The reading dam broke this week, and I have three finishes! And this week, I find myself back in St. Denis with the intrepid Police Chief Bruno Courrèges… it feels good and of course, there is a murder! Haha! I am also reading another Netgalley book, Agony Hill by Sarah Stewart Taylor (another murder mystery… with some mysterious characters as well!) The cure for any reading slump for me is to settle in with a good mystery… and double mysteries are even better!

There you have my week! What about you? What are you thinking about this week!

As always, If you wrote a post to share please leave you link below and thank you!


In my backyard | 3.18.24

In my backyard | 3.18.24

Today is a day for celebration! It is the last full day of winter!!

And yet…I have savored these 13 weeks slowly and thoughtfully as I read one essay a week with Margaret Renkl. It was the most aware winter of my life and I am celebrating every moment of winter as it draws to a close.

But!!

I am also full of excitement to welcome the arrival of spring tomorrow! My hope is that the next 13 weeks as I immerse myself in spring will be as full of delights as the winter weeks were!

No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn. ― Hal Borland

I love this quote from Borland… he has some of the best wisdom as one moves from one season to another. Especially as the “edges” of seasons can overlap each other a bit. I won’t be shocked if winter pushes back on spring a bit and I have loved the spring-like days that have been creeping into winter!

About mid-February, we jumped on the Bird Buddy band wagon and have had loads of fun with it. And while I am contemplating some modifications to deter the bigger birds, thus far it is providing maximum delight! I discovered we have a Titmouse who has a little yellow band… so that is kind of fun! (I also reported my banded bird sighting!) I am laughing out loud at the antics of the Common Grackle! I am not sure there is another bird on the planet (or at least in my backyard) with a better stare down! And although the Bird Buddy has not gotten any woodpecker snaps, they are loving it as well! As does our local squirrel family, of course!

The deer also are enjoying the new feeder… no snaps of them yet either, but I live in hope! Saturday morning, I was delighted to see a ‘trail’ of deer fur across my back yard… they must be shedding for the spring! The birds made short work of it as the morning sun dried the frosty ground… some wee baby birds will have lovely soft nests! Making sure I am taking in all that is around me has opened my eyes to things that probably happened before, but I was not looking for them so I missed out on the wonder and the joy!

Somehow, Margaret Renkl’s wisdom each week astounds me anew (I had previously read The Comfort of Crows) but as I read “Praise Song for a Spring I Was Not Alive to See” I was profoundly struck by how similar her thoughts are with the thoughts of Andri Snær Magnason, as he talks about sitting in the same space with his 94 year old grandmother and his daughter as they contemplate the daughter’s grandchildren and the connection between them all. (I am savoring On Time and Water currently.) The idea that this coming spring is a spring my dearest Nana would have experienced as a young girl… and that someday Vivi’s grandchildren will experience the same spring. (at least that is my hope that there will still be spring in the future.) These are thoughts that fill my heart with deep joy as I contemplate a connectedness that moves beyond time.

And of course, there’s this…

So many birds are singing and singing and singing. — Margaret Renkl, The Comfort of Crows

And there you have a glimpse into my backyard as I bid winter a fond farewell and welcome spring with open arms!

Happy Last Day of Winter everyone!

 

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.13.24

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.13.24

Greetings dear Unravelers and Happy almost mid-March!

I am absolutely not loving how quickly these days are moving along!

I do have that first sock done and I immediately started the second sock so I have something to “mindlessly” knit at night. It was a good choice to pair the yarn with Hermoine’s Everyday Sock pattern. It is easy to keep track of how many more “repeats” to do before the heel and how many on the foot before the toe… so the second sock is even more mindless!

But outside that sock knitting, not much making has been happening here… at least on the knitting front.

I am keeping up with my two stitching projects though. Carolyn asked a very good question on Monday… she wondered if I kept my time to 15 minutes… or if I went over. If I include my “thought process” for each page, I go way over the 1.25 hours of stitching time! I have sort of fallen into a rhythm of thinking about where the next page will go as I am stitching the current page, I then try and put those thoughts together (sometimes on paper), pull some fabrics and set them aside. But for the actual stitching of each page… I try very hard to block out the cutting/pinning/stitching portions to 15 minutes per day. Sometimes, I might flow over a bit… but other days the stitching might be done in 5 minutes. So I think that 15 minutes is a good average for each day!

Page 11… Farm Traffic!

My reading has settled into a very, very slow pace and I am not at all upset by this! I have been trying to find some time in the afternoon to settle in to read but I have not found success yet. So no finishes this week.

What about you? What are you thinking about this week?

As always, if you wrote a post to share please leave your link below and thank you!


Sometimes Monday | 3.11.24

Sometimes Monday | 3.11.24

Welcome to the Mondayist Monday… the Monday after the Spring Forward time change. Are you all back on track yet? I am better than yesterday but still not feeling “right”.

Yesterday, Old Man Winter reminded us all that Winter Is Not Over. We had wild winds and white-out snow squalls that popped up through out the day. I found it curious that 30°F feels a LOT colder after a string of 60°+ days… and with the wind chill I was bundled up like I was heading to the Arctic Circle for Sherman’s walks yesterday. (In sharp contrast to my insane neighbor who was sporting a t-shirt and shorts when he was outside!)

There was no “Oscar Watching” here yesterday…it might have been fun, but honestly I was struggling to stay awake after dinner and was counting the minutes until bedtime!

There was a big moment that occurred last week though… on Thursday I hit Day 50 in my 100 day Journey! Yes, I am half way through this journey… 10 pages done and I am still having so much fun!

Halfway there!

And with that I will get back to my “usually” scheduled Monday Tasks… See you all back here on Wednesday!

Friday Finds | 3.8.24

Friday Finds | 3.8.24

Happy Friday everyone!

I am still on fire from Joe’s speech last night… it was so so good! Yes, I stayed up past my bedtime to watch the entire thing! (My favorite moment… Joe putting SCOTUS on notice! LOL The Best!!)

But there were some “finds” this week that have been tumbling around my head!

First, Helen’s Closet new Nelson Pants! I thought they were so cute, but then I saw Helen on IG and they have become an obsession!

 

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A post shared by Helen’s Closet (@helens__closet)

Obsessed, I am telling you!

Next, there is a new Mystery Gnome coming… and I can’t wait! (Good thing I have a Valkyrie to bide my time with! Cast on will be happening this afternoon!)

Finally, this popped up in my email this week and I am very intrigued! My plan is to give them a try this weekend! I will report back next week as to how they come out!

Happy Friday all! See you back here on Monday!

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.6.24

Unraveled Wednesday | 3.6.24

Greetings dear Unravelers and Happy Wednesday!

The making had a slight interruption this week with a blast of balmy weather it made sense to get out into the garden while the sun was shining! And despite it feeling unbelievably wrong to be out in shirtsleeves in March… I did get almost all the “pruning” done and I got a great start on the weeding! (Although, I left all the dandelions for the bees!)

But!! Despite spending quite a bit of time outdoors – I do have a finished Gnome!

Cher-gnome-ble… ready to wander!

Seeds, at the ready!

Dear Cher-gnome-ble… the bringer of spring! I really like him… his cape is so fun! I also gave him a bag filled with seed packets at the ready to sprinkle where he roams! The pattern called for only one arm, but as you can see, Cher-gnome-ble has two… it makes sprinkling those seeds easier! This pattern is from the latest set that Sarah Schira released. As you can see there are a number of Gnome Options and I have printed out the “viking” pattern and have been contemplating ideas for him her. What I immediately thought of when I saw the pattern was Brunnhilde from Wagner’s Ring Opera. So I think there will be another gnome… with a musical theme!

I really love these colors and the pattern helps to break up any pooling that might happen!

I cast on a new sock on March 1st! I am knitting socks and reading with @earthtonesgirl #ilovebooksandsockknittingkal24

 

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A post shared by Denise DeSantis (@earthtonesgirl)

Socks and reading… seemed like a natural thing to participate in! I am starting with a skein of Miss Babs Yummy 2-ply in the Deep Sea Jelly Fish color way, and my sock pattern… I thought Hermoine’s Everyday Sock was a very bookishly perfect sock! And I am listening to The Bookbinder as well… I like this pattern (I am almost at the heel where I need to pay a bit of attention) and I am really enjoying this WWI story as well! Once this pair is done, I plan in casting on another pair as I have an over abundance of sock yarn and socks are perfect companions for an audiobook!

I have two finishes this week… Ariel Lawhon’s The Frozen River and Rachel Khong’s Real Americans (which will be published April 30, 2024) I liked both books… Real Americans maybe a bit more… the writing was just so beautiful and the story is different… very different. Real Americans has lingered with me… this would be an excellent book club discussion book! And The Frozen River piqued my interest in finding out more about Martha Ballard!

And there you have my week! What about you? What are you working on this week?


Currently | March 4, 2024

Currently | March 4, 2024

It feels like we might be through the bulk of our “false spring starts” and might be leaning into actual spring! And although we do have some chillier overnight temps in the forecast for next week, most days are in the 50’s (and warmer!)

I am really ready for this change of season. Here is a peek into the things that are filling my days and my thoughts!

Baking (still) —

I have found a very good sourdough rhythm and I am baking a loaf roughly every 10 days or so. I have found the “sweet spot” of dough hydration. (82% for a “white loaf” and a bit higher for a loaf that has a higher percentage of whole wheat flour) I have also figured out fermentation times… for the temperature my house is currently. All that will change with the changing seasons and warming weather! I have a “baking journal” in which I record every aspect of each bake, so I am hopeful that the warming weather won’t be too much of a hurdle!

Reading (less) —

Inadvertently, I found myself reading less in February… thanks to that visit with my doctor and a frank discussion about my insomnia. Who knew that reading on an iPad would have such a significant impact on my sleep… certainly not me! So I ended February with only 6 books completed… but I had a significant improvement in sleep and a noticeable improvement in the quality of my reading. I remember more about the books I read… and I really liked the buffer of time between books that I gave myself last month. Even though the goal was to sleep better… having the unexpected result of reading better was an added bonus!

Adjusting —

I don’t really remember the moment that it suddenly occurred to me that Sherman is getting old (he is 11) but since last fall he has struggled with ongoing and almost continual ear issues. Ear infections, inner ear problems, loss of balance, and complete hearing loss… makes for a depressed pup. I have been working on hand signals with him, but it is as slow-going as he is! He has become the “barometer” for weather changes as his stiff joints are stiffer when the weather changes. Our walks are slower because he needs a slower pace so he does not trip and fall. He is happiest when we are close… and so of course he remains the best “sit and knit” companion on the planet!

Re-adjusting —

In January, I tried something “new” with my calendar/word journals… and it has been an epic failure. (Apparently teaching this “old dog” something new is as challenging as it is for Sherman!) Anyways… Yesterday, I removed the word journals from my calendar notebook and put them back in their “word notebook” and it felt so right! I got February all caught up and started March. I need to remind myself that sometimes the way I do things is the “best way” and I don’t need to fiddle with it! (Not always, but sometimes!)

And there you have it… a peek into what I am focused on right now! See you all back here on Wednesday!

Happy Monday, everyone!

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