Knit Picky: March 2007
 


"properly practiced, knitting soothes the troubled spirit...
 and it doesn't hurt the untroubled spirit either."
~elizabeth zimmerman

Monday, March 26, 2007
3 comments
Sad

*A Serious Post*

I know that most of us tend to use our blogs to vent, to share, to laugh. And I think that's wonderful. But today, today I would like to use it to ask people to send as many thoughts/prayers/good vibes as you can to the family of the KnittyRef out here in California.

I am so far behind on my bloglines, so each day I've been trying to read through just one of those that I've missed out on for weeks or months. Today I was reading through the KnittyRef's site and discovered that she passed away last Tuesday.

I don't know how many of the people who read this blog ever read her blog as well. The KnittyRef was an amazing woman; she battled ovarian cancer for over 4-1/2 years, but she was as far from self-pitying as a person could be. She was funny and charming and always, always caring for others. A more selfless person dealing with so much personal trauma and drama, you would be hard-pressed to find.

So today I am thinking about the online knitting community and the phenomenal blogosphere that we have created (each in our own small way). We get to 'know' or 'meet' so many wonderful people with whom we would otherwise never have crossed paths. We get to share in joys and tragedies. We can support someone from across the globe, because knitters are some of the most amazingly generous and thoughtful people I've ever had the pleasure of knowing.

Unfortunately, the double-edge of the sword is this, today. A woman who I enjoyed reading about, who was always so stoic and selfless has died. And I never got to know her 'for real', never spoke with her directly, and can never really express to her family how I felt that we were sort of friends--even if she didn't know it! Her husband (The Hubster) really supported her blog, and often wrote posts when she was too ill from the chemo. I've sent him a message of condolence, but as in all cases such as this, it is so inadequate.

I am the absolute worst person as a leader (example: this blog), but would anyone be interested in doing something, putting together something for the KnittyRef's family? They are having a memorial service for her on April 1st. Perhaps we can get together and send flowers. Or make something for her family. I would really like to do something for a knitter who touched my life in such a small but poignant way.

What do you think?


posted by Stephanie at 5:09 PM

Tuesday, March 20, 2007
2 comments
By The Skin of My Teeth

Ha Ha

So I've survived another surgery. Just. I was out of work yesterday due to the residual pain and weakness caused by the surgery. It was an ugly weekend, I'll tell you what. Today's better. Still pain in the surgery sites (lower jaw where the wisdom teeth were extracted), but overall feeling better.

I'm beginning to wonder if a full set of teeth is really worth all this trouble.

Ah, I should quit jawin' away and get back to work. There's a lot for me to sink my teeth into. I don't want to procrastinate too long and find myself too long in the tooth to be of use. Geez, to get me to quit with the cliches is like pulling teeth!


posted by Stephanie at 11:54 AM

Friday, March 16, 2007
3 comments
Popping In to Say Hi

Hey all my (3?) loyal blog readers. I miss you! Do you miss me? Say you miss me.

SAY IT!

Ahem.

So, here's my life currently:

  • get up (late)
  • go to work
  • work (late)
  • come home
  • work on the old apartment
  • shuffle through the mess that is the new apartment
  • go to bed (late)

Sounds fun, huh? I bet you wish you were me.

So there's not much knitting going on. Ooh, but my jawbone is still coming through my gums on the left side and now it's happening on the right. I'm that lucky one in a million who has this problem. I'm going to see the oral surgeon again in a few minutes and should find out whether I'm having (minor?) surgery to open my gums and shave down the jawbone. Guess how I feel about that. Go ahead, guess.

My cousin is trying to have her baby boy, but her doctor won't let her deliver before her due date. She's been in extreme labor pain since Tuesday but she's not dilating enough. They said that they will do a C-section tomorrow. I am so upset on her behalf! The baby is stressed, the mother is stressed, my aunt is beside herself. Ugh. Stupid doctor.

Work's still challenging. Eating up all my time at work. Work at work? So very wrong.

My step-grandma is back in the hospital. The chemo meds make her so sick that she doesn't eat or drink, and then she ends up in the hospital extremely dehydrated. She's going home today, and my step-aunt is going to be her nurse and my parents are having a hospital bed delivered there. She is so tired of fighting and being sick all the time. And I don't know that I could possibly blame her for that! It's such a brave and no-doubt draining thing to fight what the doctors consider the inevitable. But I don't want her to keep fighting for the sake of the family. She has to know that we will be okay so that if she's ready, she can let go. I HATE this. I had to watch my grandmother go through this 6 years ago and it is horrible.

Wow, sorry to bring you all down like that.

Tomorrow I'm going to a yarn tasting with my friend Laura--surely that doesn't violate my yarn focus challenge, right? I mean, I'm just tasting it; I don't get to take whole skeins of it home. (How I wish that were the case!)

I really need to update this blog with information on my Stitches haul, my star-sighting at Stitches, and Wicked. Those have by far been the highlights in an otherwise exhausting 5 or 6 weeks! We should have DSL in the new apartment soon and I'll give it a shot.

I hope to be back before another two weeks lapse my lovelies!


posted by Stephanie at 12:10 PM

Thursday, March 01, 2007
3 comments
Dear Blog,

Oh how I miss you! I would love to share all kinds of important things with you. Alas! I am so flippin' busy, I don't have time to knit, let alone write about it.

If I had more time I'd tell you about how I got to go to Stitches West at the last minute (driving 6 hours each way, and spending Saturday night in San Jose). I'd tell you about all the gorgeous sock yarns I bought from coveted names like Lisa Souza and Koigu, plus a few that were new to me. And the fun little accessories and goodies, including Lambchop in a pink velour track suit jacket.

Or about how, following my wisdom tooth removal early in February, the holes (for lack of a better name) are not healing properly and my gum tissue actually got worn away and exposed my jawbone on the left side of my mouth and how I'm in constant pain from that. Or about how we maybe get to move this weekend. Or how my awesome friend is taking me and another friend to see Wicked this Saturday just because she love us! Or how excited I was to see that ISE4 is taking registrations already--and you better believe I signed up immediately.

Just know that it's not you, it's me.

I will be back as soon as I can with pictures of the Stitches haul. Fortunately for me, having signed up for the YFC Secret Pal bought me one extra day to shop during the challenge, so my whole weekend at Stitches eats up my second and bonus free days--and I got some cute little things for my YFC pal to thank that person properly for that extra shopping day! ;)

Love,
Me


posted by Stephanie at 12:24 PM