Thursday, March 5, 2009

I Cleaned!!!

It's not that I'm excited that I cleaned, as you might infer from the explanation marks, but it has been so darn long since I cleaned it actually felt good.  Hard for me to believe, because I am not a fan of the cleaning.  My favorite kind of cleaning is when I am able to hire someone else to clean for me.  That way it's all done at once, instead of in dribs and drabs, and the intoxicating smell of Murphy's Oil Soap wafting through the air makes me smile. 

My favorite thing I did today was a little rearranging of the stash.  Every couple of months it's necessary to return to the stash closet all the balls and skeins of yarn I have pulled out thinking I would use them, but then a better ball or skein came along and the first yarn was relegated to a basket to be dealt with later. 

 I also find several sets of needles during the putting away process, which is always a nice thing.  I have been wondering where one of my size 8 Knit Picks Harmony wood needles was.  The other one is in my knitting bag, and I couldn't figure out how I could have lost one, so I've been using two different wooden needles when I need size 8' straights.  It turns out there was another set just like it in one of the baskets with a lace scarf which I had begun, but abandoned part way through.  I ripped it out and returned the mismatched set of needles to my knitting bag, so now I have 2 sets of size 8 needles.  It's good when such small thing as finding a knitting needle can bring joy into one's life.  While putting the yarn away, I also came to the realization that in general I do not enjoy scarf knitting.  There were more abandoned scarves than any other project. However, I have a lot of yarn that isn't good for much else, so maybe I need to look for some inspiring scarf patterns.

Another thing I did during the stash rearrangement was to throw away a mitten and an almost completed sock.  It felt so good to just throw them away, not unravel them, not think I will finish this project some day.  I threw them in the trash with a small degree of glee, because I will no longer be held hostage by the idea that I have to finish a project I am really not enjoying.  It's not as if there is any lack of potential projects.  I think I could knit for several years without purchasing another pattern or ball of yarn, but what fun would that be?

Perhaps one of the reasons I felt inspired to clean is the slightly warming temperature trend which seems to be occurring.  It was possible to walk down the steps into the back yard for the first time in months.  It was a wonderful feeling, but I was also able to see all the work that is awaiting me this spring. Remember when there was green and flowers and unfrozen water in the outside world?

 I have the best intentions in the fall of separating plants and getting the garden put to bed, but I invariably wait too long and the snow begins to fall.  All those years of living in New Jersey have given me an unrealistic view of when winter begins.  

Better put myself to bed.  Work tomorrow and then a trip to Saranac Lake to bring home Caitlin and two months worth of laundry.  And I do believe I might be bringing home some new fiber to dye as well.  Fun, fun, fun.

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