This week I came up with a new plan to trick myself into doing more writing. I bribed myself with new pens — Pentel EnerGel 0.7mm pens in purple and blue liquid gel ink — and gave myself permission to start using a journal that proclaims on the cover that “Anything is Possible.” So far, the plan is to only allow myself to use the pens and the journal on the weekends, until such time as I truly can’t take the wait any more and insist on having half-hour free-writing sessions during the week.
We’ll see how it goes. And for those whose neurology is as unconventional as mine, you may be intrigued to know that the blue (cyan) EnerGel pen is made in Japan, while the purple (violet) EnerGel pen is made in Mexico. I am not making this up. And now you know, too.
I don’t have any progress to report on actual typewriter maintenance. I did purchase a can of something called PB Blaster that is supposed to help with loosening the tight screw on the spool cover, but I haven’t had enough time to devote any of it to the Galaxie II. Maybe next weekend — or maybe not, if I have to go out of town (see below).
I haven’t found any time to do any reading for the Impossible Read, either, but this weekend I purchased two of the books on the list (The Old Man and the Sea and A Tale of Two Cities) and two of the movies I’ll watch between groups of books (The Sword in the Stone and Aladdin). That doesn’t really keep me moving forward on the project, but it does make me more prepared for forward progress when I have some. It will be a long time before I need a copy of the next text, which is Grendel by John Gardner, which I am reluctant to purchase because I think that I already have a copy that I can’t find.
I’m also collecting DVDs for a Kevin Smith movie watchathon over spring break at the end of March. At first I thought I would watch Clerks-Clerks II-Clerks III, but now I’m wondering if the order should really be Clerks-Mallrats-Chasing Amy-Dogma-Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, and then Clerks II and Clerks III. What do you think? What do you think Kevin will suggest? (I’ll ask him.) For this project I’ll blow the dust off one of my other blogs, Take Five Movie Reviews, and link to it from here.
Knitwise, I cast on for a new project this week. The yarn is Patons Classic Wool, worsted weight, which I bought three skeins of by mistake when I was searching in vain for Plymouth Encore last fall to use in the recently finished Stripe Scarf.
This pattern, by Madison knitter and knitting designer Elizabeth Morrison, is called “Habit Forming” and is modeled on the pattern sheet by Friend-to-All-Knitters Franklin Habit. The pattern, which is a free download on Ravelry, was designed with Noro Kureyon in mind — whether or not you choose to edit the colorway — but I think this grey wool will look rather elegant. I have been finding it easy to sit down and knit two rows of the pattern at a time to take a break from the other items on my task list, so it’s slowly growing. I’m finding that breaking some tasks into tiny chunks is allowing me to devote larger chunks to other tasks. Imagine that.
I did mention earlier that the Stripe Scarf was finally completed. After I found the Perfect Box™ it was also shipped, but unfortunately I didn’t have the apartment number for my son. USPS returned the package to me, I obtained the apartment number, and I re-shipped the package. It arrived today (!) to some acclaim. Or perhaps it arrived yesterday and the acclaim was sent today. ANYway, the scarf has made it to its requestor. Will it snow again this winter? Who knows, but it sure has been cold. I do like knowing that Liam can now be more bundled up against the cold and the wind.
I think the Habit Forming scarf will be for me. The knitting itself is therapy, and it’s been a little while since I intentionally made something for myself to wear. (As you can imagine, I already have several hand-knitted shawls, hats, scarves, cowls, and pairs of socks.) Lately I have been trying to find patterns that will give me some pleasurable knitting and allow me to use up bunches of yarn. “You know, I could make myself a scarf” hasn’t exactly been the first thought on my mind. But now I’d like to give myself a nice cozy gift.
This week’s post has been brought to you by the memory of my grandmother, Elizabeth Christine (Chris) Walker, who departed this world earlier today at the age of 101-1/2. She was a force of nature and there will never be another one like her. She also loved the slippers I knitted for her over the years; I stopped making them because she became unsteady on her feet and I didn’t want her to slip. On Ravelry, where I haven’t updated my project records in several years, I found photos and notes for ten pairs of slippers that I knitted for her — so there may well have been more. She did wrap herself up in a throw that I knitted for her. Rest in peace, Grandmother.
Chocolate Sheep 