Wisdom for Friday

I was on a deadly boring conference call listening to people talk about things I didn't understand and had no interest in.  I get to speak for about three minutes at the beginning of the call and then that's it for two hours.

Enter Pinterest.

In no particular order:

The last one goes both ways, finding the right guy works the same.

Happy Friday!

Agnes Knit Along

Never having learned to limit the number of projects on which I am working at one time has sometimes been a blessing and at other times a curse.

I know that some of you know what I mean.

Here's my current list in process, in no particular order...

• Knitting my green lace sweater - I'm down to sleeves only!
• Knitting socks for my oldest granddaughter.  One is done.  The second one is cast on.
• Planning and executing a masculine quilt for a charity request for church
• Layering and quilting a small charity quilt for my LQG
• Planning and executing a portion of a quilt for our vacancy pastor
• Making a chair cushion for my office chair
• Making a cushion for the cat seat in my front window
• Knitting a pair of socks for myself
• Sorting and organizing the church quilt patterns
• Knitting various doll items...
• You get the drift --

So it should be no surprise to anyone that I started a new project!

Enter the Knit Along...

My local yarn shop advertised a simple sweater Knit Along (KAL) starting yesterday.  Lord help me, I didn't NEED another project but then we know need never enters into things when something shiny
and distracting comes along.

I do love this shop!  I appreciate it so much more lately, because one of the two other shops within driving distance of my house closed last year.

 

Cream City Yarn is in Brookfield.  Their yarn is yummy and irresistible.  They can provide you with patterns from Ravelry.com and put them into your library there.  It's wonderful.  So I signed up for Agnes -- the pattern below.  I do not think I'll do pockets, because I don't really need them and I know I don't particularly want focus on that area of my person!  

It was a requirement of the KAL that you purchase your yarn from CCY.  I ordered the recommended Puffin by Quince and Co, in a lovely green called Boreal.

OOOOOUUU, AHHHH!

Coincidentally the sample sweater was in Boreal.   So I know it's going to be luscious. 

The yarn is a bulky weight and we're working on a No. 11 (fairly large) needle.  At the cast-on party, I resisted drinking the wine and eating the snacks and just cast on.  I had too long a cord on my circulars but managed to do a fair imitation of the Magic Loop with what I had in my knitting bag.

After two inches of neck ribbing, I started the body of the sweater and actually had several rows of increasing for the raglan sleeves done when I left after an hour and 45 minutes, so I am hopeful that this one will be actually finished some time soon!  (Wish me luck.)

When I got home I knit a few more rows while watching the news, but I'm thinking I might frog stitch back to the ribbing because I'm not fond of the appearance of the increases I'm using.  Maybe I'm doing something wrong because I'm making holes.  Not good!!

I also didn't remember to take a photo of what I'd done thus far, but since I'm tearing it back, there's time to do that.

Additionally, I could not resist a few other skeins while I was at Cream City.  I did get a free cowl pattern with one of my choices, and I bought some very cool navy/white sock yarn.

With the nine skeins for the sweater, plus the rest of my purchases I think I added a couple thousand yards to my stash.

Just kidding!! Not mine, a random internet photo...

Sorry, I couldn't resist these either...

Knit on...

Praying for Discernment

Since time immemorial, people have struggled to gain leadership positions, in many cases in order to lord it over the people they feel are less than their equals.

I don't usually get political.  I don't discuss my voting preferences, although I would hope that people could tell that I'm on the side of good and fair by how I act and how I speak.

I'm so disappointed in our leadership right now.  The opportunities to do good and be fair are there but no one is taking them.  But we saw this coming, we shouldn't be surprised.  I know I am not.

 

The news is often one-sided.  You don't get the full story in the headlines, and lots of folks don't read the whole story or do their own  due diligence.  If it's on the TV or the internet, it must be true, right?  If it's on Twitter I have to believe it, isn't that the case?

 

 

My ancestors were immigrants.  They didn't flee oppression necessarily but they did come to America to have better lives than they had in their homeland.  Not everyone comes here because they hate us or want to blow us up. 

The Bible says discernment is one of the gifts of the spirit.  Discernment is defined as the ability to  perceive, as in something hidden or obscure, or to comprehend mentally.  I am praying that our leadership develops or receives the gift of discernment so that the downtrodden and the persecuted do not get painted with the same brush as the devious and mean spirited.

 

The current leadership has given the small-minded tacit permission to be cruel and hateful.  You can despise a whole group of people just because of where they live, in spite of laws that say you cannot discriminate on basis of race, gender, age or religion.  I guess hate is the new black, as the saying goes.

 

This is not what America stands for, at least not the America of which I am or want to be a citizen.  Remove the words "under God" from the pledge?  I think it's already essentially gone.  Either that or we're just as bad as the crusaders of the Middle Ages, doing awful things in His name.

But this isn't the first time, and sad to say unless Armageddon comes, it probably won't be the last.  Here is some insight if you're interested...  Linked in on Barring Immigrants

Lord help us...