It’s been a minute…or ten. Don’t judge me (too harshly). I seriously can’t believe it’s been almost a year since my last post. Last August marked the beginning of my final semester of graduate school – spoiler alert – I aced it. So now I get to put “MS” after my name, and I recently finally scored a dream role at a prominent research hospital that focuses on meaningful research that means the world to me. I get to help keep research patients safe while the study team works on finding cures for devastating diseases. Finishing my graduate capstone last December was a wild ride that I’m not sure I’m interested in repeating for a Ph.D., though I’ve been invited to do just that by ASU. I’m holding off for now, though. I needed a break from classes, so I took this past spring off.
At that point, enter politics. Namely, the chaos of my career field – medical research – and the uncertainty of student loans. To be safe, I jumped into an AS degree in IT to hold off those payments until the bipolar government had a chance to calm down and get its shit together. Spoiler alert – it didn’t. It neither calmed down nor got its ADHD rave squirrels in a row. But I digress – this is a knitting blog. Or it was. I’m not entirely sure what it is now, or what it may be becoming, much like life itself. I’m here for it regardless.
So, in the interest of not adding political fatigue to everyone’s lives, back to knitting!
There has been much knitting and many projects since last August. At this point, I have created multiple scarves, hats, and beanies for multiple people, a hooded scarf, a French neckerchief, a Lisa Frank style headband, multiple dog sweaters, a buttoned wrap, and a completed pair of socks that my husband threw in the washer & then subsequently the dryer (as one does), not realizing the horror that would ensue in the form of my teary eyes and disappointment as one of them now fits an infant and not myself. I used a Cascade superwash yarn, so the washing machine was fine, but the dryer was not. It’s ok though, it gives me an excuse to buy some sock yarn that is both washer and dryer-friendly! I’m thinking these will make some darn cute Halloween socks!
I have now worked with everything from lace-weight yarn to bulky, and have loved (and occasionally hated) them all at some point or another. I have worked with silk, cashmere, tweed, mohair, wool, alpaca, cotton, linen, and llama. I took on my first colorwork project and fell in love with the process! I can’t wait to knit more colorwork items!!
I even ventured into the world of crochet for the girls with the Woobles. They’re super cute and fun to do, and I’m teaching Tori how to crochet using these. Charlie moves at approximately the speed of sound, so she has found it’s just not her thing (and that’s totally ok). She may change her mind as she gets older and develops a little more patience, but if not, that’s ok too. Knitting and crocheting aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. Lately, I find myself really being drawn to weaving and looms, so that may be something I venture into later this year. Seems like a nice way to spend an autumn day on the back deck.
Speaking of adventures, I attended my first-ever AL Fiber Festival as a VIP guest last autumn and loved it, though it was meltingly hot out. This year’s event is supposed to be held in a few short months (November) at Cahaba Brewing Co – come check it out if you want to see what all the fuss is about. See the pretty yarn, must squish the pretty yarn. Just do it. You won’t regret it (unless you have an unfortunate allergy to wool or have the misfortune of choosing a rough tweed to squish…I don’t much like those myself, they give me a serious case of the ick). No one there will judge you for ogling and subsequently squishing all the pretty yarn, because they’ll all be too busy doing exactly the same thing.
Last but not least, this little guy joined the chat (of my life) and has become my best little buddy. Introducing, 4H Farms’ Thor Thunderpaws.
And, also introducing…4H Farms. Also known as Honey, Hounds, and Hens Homesteading! Our website will be coming soon. Yes, that’s right – we have been as busy as the honeybees we are working to raise, getting set up with laying hens (yes, we will be selling eggs) – so far, we have a good collection of Wellsummers, Barred Plymouth Rocks, and Blue Ameraucanas, so we’ll have dark brown and blue eggs for sale once they start laying, which should be very soon (September-ish). We have also been working to establish an AKC purebred line of longhaired miniature and tweenie dachshunds to carry creams, dapples, piebalds, and chocolates…AND…last but not least, we’ve been learning and trying to get set up for honeybees! We’ll be selling our homemade honey products starting next year, sometimes combined with our homegrown peppers of varying heat levels, and of course, I’ll be offering some homemade knitted (and possibly woven?) goods. The plan is to have all items available for purchase on our soon-to-be new website. Stay tuned!
