Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Conquering our Fears and More knitting fun


Wow here it is already August 5th and I have yet to blog. I wish I could write that happily our paperwork has moved forward and we are preparing for our move...this is not the case. Currently our paperwork is lost in space with no expected date of return......

Moving on from that mess.........
As I have said before I have been knitting up a storm it is very therapeutic and keeps me from going postal. hehehehehe

Before I fill you in on knitting adventures I want to talk Fear. Yes that big ugly word conjures up such nasty thoughts most of us can hear our blood pressure soar. I have made efforts most of my life to conquer even the slightest hint of fear. "We have nothing to fear but fear itself" or another one of my favorite quotes ever " People often fear what they do not understand" which I believe wholeheartedly is true. Now am I one of those loony people who thinks that a person should have no fear what so ever ? NO !!!! for goodness sakes there are all kinds of healthy fears that motivate us to do great things for the world or others or for ourselves. There are also scary things in the world we should fear..... and of course as a mother my children find new ways to put fear in me almost daily...remember I have those 3 boys...... heheheheheh

Now I had a fear of math..... so I took math classes I even got a very hard earned B+ in a serious math course in graduate school and statistics..... also..... I feel better having tackled that challenge I no longer fear math just try to find short cuts :)

I had a serious fear of spiders....... I couldn't even walk near the glass showcases at a pet store..and forget about me stomping one in the house even if it was microscopic.... I didn't want the kids to acquire any unnecessary fears so I had to learn how to hide my fear for them. I can now safely squish certain size spiders in the house on my own with no squealing or ewwwwwwing. I can walk past a display at a pet store at a safe distance. I would like to someday not be afraid of them..... I even bought T a folder for school which has a spider picture on it ( he wanted it..boys and bugs you know) I can even tolerate the plastic ones now that seem to come in any bug kit that H has....... The boys will never have a pet tarantula though.

Funny enough this past weekend I was at a friend's house and she was telling me she is claustrophobic. I have had other friends with this so I know a little about it and I can sympathize that this is very frustrating for them. I have to say I was very surprised she didn't strike me as the claustrophobic type. Now now before you get upset I know that sounds like a stereo type but it isn't. When you hang out with friends you get a feel for things they like and dislike very quickly and Jess and I have been friends for awhile the subject has just never come up and I was surprised. Not surprised in a judgemental way at all...... so having said that. We all started talking about fears ..I don't know a person who doesn't have a fear of something large or small and it doesn't matter what it is we are all human and it makes sense. fear can even bring us together.

Having started this long story...it does have a point.... and I am about to begin remember I have  5 days worth of writing pent up :) I also haven't left anyone a super long voicemail message in at least a few days so bear with me while I ramble on a bit :)

I LOVE knitting as you know and I tend to go for funky fun projects for the kids etc. I like "quick" projects that can be done in a week or two and this is relative. I have always wanted to knit a sweater... but I haven't for FEAR it would turn out lopsided or funny or in knots... that pesky FEAR of mine that I 'm not good enough for ( insert insecurity of the day here X) but finally I found a sweater pattern for beginner sweater knitters.. yes it has sleeves ( Oh the shock) and it even has a tricky hood !!!!! I DID IT I KNIT A SWEATER !!!!!!!!!! it took me 2 weeks now I only get an hour of knit time here and there so in real people time it could be a few days. I KNIT A SWEATER !!!!! the sleeves are the same length and fit the sweater... the picture is above !!!! I have to tell you though that in person the yarn is gorgeous the colors are so pretty in the picture it looks yellow but it is more red purple hues it is really soft beautiful yarn the picture doesn't do it justice... the sweater is for S. I am starting P's sweater tomorrow..... in a different color with out the hood new sweater pattern. I know I knit one now I am trying another pattern. I don't think I am a sweater knitter though I will make one for P so the twins have them but I think I like the fact that I make unusual funky things. so hat's off to my fellow knitters who are excellent sweater knitters. both my grandma's could knit sweaters my Grandma S knit gorgeous I mean perfect baby sweaters. All my kids wore them and they were flawless. My other grandma could knit beautiful adult sweaters some I wear still today..... so t least I know I challenged myself to knit a sweater. I think my knack is for funky and wild patterns of the fun and whimsical kind. I have now knit instarsia and a sweater I have knit with 3 needles and tried challenging patterns.... while I will not be making sweaters after P's I do feel like I have crossed a threshold....... I can become an advanced knitter who knows what wild thing I will attempt. I have conquered a knitting fear this week.. They say we should do something that scares us everyday..... I think we should try to conquer a fear large or small every week :)

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