And so the Summer goes.....

The community college where I teach celebrated graduation on May 14th--and it is a celebration.  I'm so proud of my students and what they've achieved because the majority of them are handling high-hour work loads, busy families, and full-time classes.  I know that feeling, having returned to college after my youngest entered elementary school, and the blessed awareness that one part of the educational journey has been successfully completed. 

Our college president, a Scotsman by heritage, instituted an inspiring "tradition" for faculty and students as we enter the graduation hall--he has the playing of the pipes (bagpipes) and drums lead us in for this time. Just imagine--a fine May evening, back-dropped with beautiful mountains highlighting the twilight, a river just over the field, and the lovely sense of coming summer in the air.  Mix in excited family members, beaming students, and smiling faculty--and down the path comes the Virginia Highlands Pipes and Drums, filling the air with music that feeds the soul, especially if one's ancestors came to these blue hills from Scottish shores.  It is a marvelous evening. 

So, I should have left the evening exhilarated....and for the most part I did.  But it has taken a week of rest to recoup from the semester and the demands thereof.  Like so many community colleges around our state and nation, we had a hefty enrollment increase coupled with a lack of funds to meet the demand.  Translation:  I faced overloaded classes that revolved into, at least for this English/Literature professor, many late hours of grading essays.  Yeah....yeah....I know the solution could be to assign less writing, but that doesn't help the student develop a clear analysis process.....and when my students move on to that 4-year campus, I want them to be ready.  That's my job.  

But rest and renewal did come after graduation and with it the vision of all the things I need to do here at home.  It's the positive after-effect of knowing that the light I hoped was at the end of the tunnel actually was at the end of the tunnel.  My garden shows good evidence, but don't look anywhere else.  The house is still waiting.  I've learned after many years, those needs won't go anywhere--they will wait.

Even so, I do appreciate the energy I've regained, and it turned up in a great place the other night--Supper!  Having also been raised with a healthy dose of "make-do" perspective, I was viewing the remains in our frig and came upon the leftover cheese, some wonderfully tasty sausages (made from chicken, mind you), and on the counter, some bright red plum tomatoes.  I've always had a special fascination with bread as well, and the possibility of a hot, juicy dish swirled in my mind--a cross between bruschetta and focaccia with all the trimmings.  It worked, too---delicious!  Leftovers are looking good as well.....

I also turned an eye to some much needed organization---one attempt that was noted here some months ago--and I rallied my spirits to tackle that stack of printed knitting patterns that grows persistently as I explore more temptations.  Some dent was made in the stack's size as I sorted these gems into brightly marked binders--they look so nice with their printed covers.  In the effort I was reminded of the sweaters and an enticing shawl I want to make for myself, but the bear I'm knitting still needs a head--and my return to it will be the third time I've tried to "get it right."  How can one bear be such a challenge???  Has anyone else had such problems with a knitted toy??

Alongside this little fellow is another gift, in Carolina Blue, that I can't show until after a shower that's coming later this summer.....and then September will be here, along with the bear's new holder--a baby boy we cannot hardly wait to see.

Yep--it's amazing what a few days of consistent sleep and good food will do for mind, body, and soul.  I'm going to go find some bagpipe music to relish, look out at my backyard filling out toward summer, and count a few blessings.....what a gift is this time.

Seeing the forest ....and the possibility.....

I don't remember when I first met Peter Rabbit--yes, THE Peter Rabbit--but I wasn't a young one.  I also don't remember where I met him.....but like so many others, when I saw him, I was smilingly and irresistibly drawn to this curious fellow.  Later it was his creator that I admired, but I kept returning to his stories and his friends, especially as my girls grew and came to be curious about Peter and his antics.

Not quite a year ago, I came upon Linda Lear's biography of Beatrix Potter--and found a friend.  The life of this woman writer and illustrator is fascinating, in a quiet way, and I'm sure that's what drew Lear into the lengthy study she has created of Potter.  But for me, the pleasure has been finding a kindred spirit--a woman who looked at the world with both an eye to keen observation and a bent to the joy that comes from that looking.  While she loved the real creatures that inspired her child-literature, her pleasure in a good wink is just as obvious.

And she loved the land--the beautiful Lake District of northern England and the hills of Scotland--so much so that her estate went to the National Trust of England, ensuring that her lands would be protected and accessible for the generations to come.  Mercy, I love this woman.

But the kinship is the gift.  Potter loved fungi.  She studied them and drew them and pondered their existence with a keen eye to scientific detail and questioning.  She marveled at them..and I'll bet she smiled at them.  I do.  There's that element of possibility that resides in a good fungus, and I get the feeling, when I see one, that something has to have just taken place right where it stands.  I just didn't see it.

But I can imagine it. 

As I read about Potter's draw to the study of fungi--a growing fad in her era in England--I could see how much her clear handling of specifics and her objectivity in her study informed her writings for children.  Her images bring real nature to rest in a perfectly believable fantasy world of rabbits with blue coats and ducks with kerchiefs. In this time of so much contradiction and falsehood reeling out on printed pages, the sweet paradox of a purposeful fantasy informing a real world is an immediate source of pleasure.

So Potter was with me on my too fast trip to Big Sur....she smiled, I'm sure of it, when the little ground squirrel caught us off guard and waited to see if we might have a bit of something for him as he scoured the ground and bushes.  I could see a little tam o'shanter sitting a bit cocked on his head and a crisp little comment setting us straight.  If you walk on his path, you better have some crumbs with you.

We didn't...and good thing, too, because we were in a natural reserve and definitely wouldn't want the wrath of rangers sending us home.

I'm not trying to "cutesify" the natural world or bring unwarranted personification to this amazing little creature.  But in reading about Potter's life, her choices, her disappointments and perseverance, and her great sense of being, I think we need a bit more of that understanding in this world where so many false dealings make us wonder if anything's real.  The joy of a good story, and the knowing that goes behind it, just does a body good.

In just a few months, we will welcome a sweet baby boy into our lives.  I can't wait to introduce him to Peter and all the others, and to share the natural world with its wonders--a few fungi here and there, a bevy of bugs to explore, a bright leaf and the look of the sun shining through it.  I know I'll be smiling and laughing and Potter would understand completely.  She's a good friend.

It's What Date.....????

So, I look and see the reality check....it's April!!  I felt as if I had waited so long for spring, what with all the snow, and now March--usually the month that feels the longest--is gone, everything is growing, and I am woefully behind in all my projects!  The pace of days has moved so quickly, I was even surprised by my amaryllis, which had popped into bloom without my notice of even the buds!  Shame, shame on me for sure....but the plant is forgiving and bloomed anyway.....giving the pleasure of both enormous flowers and the beauty blends of pink, white, and green....just superb.

I've had the pleasure as well of seeing some other images on Dropped Stitches....such wonderful photos Erin Wallace adds to her blog, along with her very honest prose.  Check out the site and the tremendous "eye-candy" this talented photographer and stitcher gives her viewers....

Back to that project-confession.  I've joined the ranks of those who learn making a gauge swatch is---REALLY IT IS--the best path.  Just a week or so ago, I started a sweater for Daughter #3--couldn't resist either the pattern or some perfect merino I found at Knit Picks.  Knitting continental style has helped ease my tight hold, so I confidently went into mode, casting on and knitting away, ignoring that little voice that said, "Hmm....you better check...."  Now about 3 inches into the sweater's form, I measured....and I'm off....by about 1/2 inch on the gauge measurements....which translates into about 2 and 1/2 inches on the final measurement....which means--yes, I know--it won't fit in the end.

Yes, I'm frogging it and starting over.....yes, I'm going to knit the swatch on needles a size up.....and yes, I've learned my lesson.

Please tell me I'm in good company......!!!!  And any advice, other than what I've already learned about swatch samples, would be delightful!!!

Spring Break......the real deal....

Can it really be the middle of March??  Last week was Spring Break for me and my students at the local community college where I teach.  We all needed that week, even though the winter had snatched 7 days from us.  Feet flew off campus as Friday before last the unofficial nod for blessed release sent us grinning wide-mouthed into our respective vehicles, ready to.....sleep later, chill out with friends, find some great food, catch up on gotta-watch films, and.......not struggle over classes. 

In "finding my ground" as a teacher just a few years back, I was determined not to do the things I had hated in school--much like the child who vehemently swears not to make her children do some of the things her parents have insisted she do. Fortunately, that task has been easier as a teacher than it was as a mom.  One cardinal rule I have developed is that I never (emphasis on NEVER) give homework over the break.  As the first week of class gets off and running, I let them know that the break week, which seems so far away, is completely theirs and they will only have homework if they choose to have it.  Some, alas, still do as they procrastinate and then have to decide if the grade is worth the effort they'll have to make over break.  But those that have chosen to keep a steady pace walk out of my class with bliss wrapping around them--they have no work for me on those days.   So it was, last Friday week.....and those less wise were still smiling because at least they had a week to catch up.

And me......well, I went to California to visit Daughter #3 and family.  In a whirlwind of driving and seeing and laughing and eating, the hubby and I saw the coast of California from the Napa/Sonoma Valleys down to Big Sur and all points in between.  What an amazing week, and everywhere I turned there was inspiration, from the silver blue of the Pacific to the brilliant sky shade it turned as it churned against the rocks,

to the emerald greens of the fields beside the ocean (absolutely gorgeous!).  I could go on and on, but I know this luscious nature palette is going to influence yarn choices for some time to come!

Of course, having a week to spend with my daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law was sweet icing on that delightful "cake."  As we trooped around San Francisco, I couldn't help but marvel at how clean everywhere/everything was--and how attentive vehicles were to folks on and in the streets.  We easterners could learn a bit for sure...and while the kids haven't talked me into moving to California, I'll have to say I'll be glad for another opportunity to go back.

 On both the way to and from the great golden state, I had a chance to just about finish the little purse I started for that same daughter.  It will hit the mail, I hope, by the end of the week.  And I came home to a wonderful package of double-pointed needles, including the #9s for Baby Bobbi Bear.....and some circular ones for a cute little sweater, also for a daughter.  Those slippers?  Well, I think they may have to go to the beach with me to get made! 

I can't get over how much some of you knitty folks get finished!  I snatched a brief look at some blogs while I was gone and saw so many beautiful pictures of finished sweaters (Javajem) and mittens (Jenny's blog...and Cloudberry) and socks (also Cloudberry) that I am envious of how well you all manage time and family and jobs and friends....maybe I'll catch up in summer.....though, I doubt it.  In any case, you're all inspiration for sure!

So here's to getting on with it....finding some knitting/crafting time (because it surely makes me a happier person!) and getting these papers and projects graded.......right after I add a couple more rows..... 
 

Spring IS coming....right after this next snow....

The saying, "Great Minds run the same course," is an oldie but goodie....and I've often used it as smiling commentary with friend or family when we are generating ideas on the same path.  This past week I've had several "smiling moments" to myself, though, as I take on a task only to find that several others in this blogging world are going that same journey. 

Just a few days ago, I was taking stock of my stash, which by the way is growing, growing, growing, and I had to admit I need to be a very busy woman in the next few weeks....well, months....okay it may take me a year, but then I felt much better as I viewed other blogs where pics of great yarns flowed down the page and honestly, they made me want to go find more.  You folks have to stop that temptation--well, no don't.  There's no harm in dreaming unless it further challenges my monetary resources.

Other "same paths" popped up as well.  We all seem to be having that urge to sort and identify or clean up and make that stash a bit more manageable.  I had already given in to the "must organize books and pattern" bug, and with my realization that that attempt really was laughable at that point, I turned to other things.....like starting felted bag #4 for Daughter #1 and dreaming about some nice little felted slippers that had long ago enticed me into buying the book they were in:

 

Now here's the thing:  I bought Felted Knits by Beverly Galeskas while vacationing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina....in the midst of August.  The image of those softly rounded slippers drew me in, and I'm guessing as much because of the superb photography as my tendency to very chilly feet in the cooler months.  So while it's warming UP toward spring, I'm tempted to give this pattern a try??  Go figure.  

I do love, though, the pattern for the purse that I now have memorized.  The issue of Creative Knitting (Nov 2008) from which this little gem came bears evidence of my effort, with its dog-eared pages and permanent center crease formed by my tucking it into various bags to carry along.  

My Baby Bobbi Bear is waiting for the arrival of some needles I ordered--finally--after looking in every store around that could have possibly had the #9 double points I needed.  Of course, I couldn't order just the #9--heavens, the shipping would have been wasted and the site, eKnittingNeedles.com, was offering a special and.....you know the rest of that story.  I will not need to buy any (ANY!) double point needles in any size for a long time...if ever.  And I suspect that there are some great minds out there that have followed THAT same path as well.  What a comfort!!

Inspirations and realities...and more subtle guides....

Amazing, isn't it, what a few glimmers of sunshine will do ?!  With the peeks we got from the Great Star over the weekend, our snow began its slow-melt and some people around here are thinking that the snow storms are over.  I've reminded them of the 10-incher that fell one mid-March and the fact that I may be able yet to say, "That's what you get for thinking."

No matter--nothing could squelch my energized response to get a start on organizing the wealth of patterns I've gathered over the last year or so.  Several folders, packed with these "hopes," stared at me from my desk and one of my knitting bags, so I decided it was time to sort and punch my inspirations.....much to my little German Pincher's curiosity....

She surveyed the scene--all of these funny looking piles of paper--and then decided...well, obviously she had better things to do.....

 

She patiently occupied herself as I cleaned up my messy attempt at managing all of the free patterns I've gathered over the last couple of years...and the reality check was clear:  I need several more binders to hold all of these many "hopes."

After facing the fact that I needed a trip to the office supply store and it was too late at night for that task, I did what any savvy knitter would do--I started browsing blogs.  Need I say much more, except that there is temptation with every turn I take--well, every click I make.  It was a simple task to take in glorious yarn eye-candy from several great sites.  I've found some wonderful bloggers who post superb pics of both projects and possibilities, and on this particular adventure I spent the rest of the afternoon ooohing and awwing over them, including Javajem's wonderful color combinations and the beautiful lace and honeycombs on brooklyntweed.  

Impasse exists here, though, as I look at even more "starts" I'll need to tuck into my bag.  How can I start another (yet another another) project???  Although I have finished purse #2, now ready for the great felt washing so it can go to Daughter #1, my Baby Bobbi bear--for Grandbaby #2 (Yah!!!!)--sits waiting for attention because I have to secure those #9 double-pointed needles I mentioned in the last post....I can hear the voices saying "You knew there was a reason and that the circular ones wouldn't work all the way." 

 

I also need some #7s (circular 16 in. and 29 in.) for a sweater I'm dying to start....and the list goes on.  Where's a girl to go to get great needles (I've been favoring wood/bamboo) at a reasonable price?  I can attest to places like Michael's not carrying them--the store carries every other size--but of course the "other" is not the one I need.  Any suggestions would be greatly welcomed as I wrestle what I know so many also juggle--tool need and tool costs!!

In the meantime, I guess I'll just have to start that pair of reading gloves I found on Ravelry (mercy, I  LOVE this site!) that I DO have the needles to make and use a skein of yarn I couldn't resist a couple of weeks ago.....organization and project finishing will have to wait their turns.....I'm dancing into a new reality!

And the snow goes on....and on...

I had to laugh several times this past Sunday on a comment a new couple in our church made at the end of services.  Having moved to the Alleghany Highlands last July from the sunny land of Arizona, they told everyone they almost considered moving back after this latest snow storm blanketed the area.  You have to understand--this kind of "pile--up" only happens here about every 10 years or so....at least that's been the pattern for a few decades.  But with a steady 20 inches still hanging around, one has to wonder!  The scene has changed just a little, with our home now sporting some pretty impressive icicles.  The grey sky and chilly temps remain obvious reminders that things may be changing but not quickly.

This forced slow-down has created some definite shifts in life-style.  We've gravitated to soups and hearty chili more so than usual, and it seems I just can't get in a hurry.  I'm having to remind myself that while the snow is still present, the roads are clear and school is on!  But that evidence of change is present in the halls at my college as well.  This morning as I contemplated the day's events in American Literature, one student stopped by just to bring me a cupcake, and she shared that she had made them for no particular reason--just seemed like a good idea.  Of course, I was tickled that she came to my office to share, and the sweet little gift made me smile the rest of the day--even after I gobbled it down!

I've also not been able to shake the urge to pick up my knitting needles for a few minutes...at anytime during the day and have even considered sneaking them into my work bag......oh me!  But the persistence to knit more has led me to start another small project--something I swore in January I would not do---"Finish what you start first" was the resolution that is now long gone.  But with the news of a second grandbaby reaching our ears a few days ago, what can I say??  I reached for an adorable little toy pattern, and this one will be my first attempt at knitting one.  My daughter--the soon to be mom--had picked out this little fellow in a knitting shop in Kill Devil Hills, NC, called The Knitting Addiction.  "Bobbi Bear" from Blue Sky definitely tugs at the heart with his simple form--and I've had lots of good experience in felting with Patton's Classic Wool, so I thought I'd give it a shot.  Besides, it was the closest in suitable color and texture in the store I had stopped in to get some yarn :)

The pattern calls for #9 double-pointed needles, but all I had was #9 16in. circular and I'm giving it a go.....we'll see...looks and feels fine right now!  I'm thinking I may have to incorporate a #9 dbl-pt when I get to the little legs....maybe.  It's an adventure for sure because my experience with dbl-pts is limited, and I would love some suggestions for using them...although I already know that practice does, in this case, bring a bit more perfection.

So that's my temptation....a tiny little bear in soft wool!  I'm a pushover--but don't tell my students!

One other quick note--I'm a little behind on this great aspect of "sharing" blogs, but I have thoroughly enjoyed several connections I've found....one in particular is a great spot to find wonderful inspiration and just good sharing....if you're interested, check out Implausible Yarn, and she's got a great little give-away going!  Enjoy!

Winter wonder......and more snow!

The buzz phrase for the Alleghany Highlands right now is "Here we go again!"  Outside the snow is coming down and showing no signs of halting.  Weathermen on three channels sing the same tune--"Five to eight inches are expected....."  Put that on top of the seventeen inches that waited on the ground and here we are....again.  One brave fellow stated in his report, "There's a chance of it staying with it."  Ya think?????  How long does it take two feet of snow to melt....when the temp isn't predicted to go above thirty for a week????  And just how much room does the water table have down there????  If it takes ten to twelve inches of snow to equal an inch of water.......that's some kind of melt!!

I think about all those plant roots of my perennials and flower bulbs, and the snow really is a gift--not only will the moisture be a benefit for that springtime bloom that seems hard to envision right now, but I know that blanket is also protecting those same plants from bitter cold that could freeze them into oblivion.  Shall I count my blessings?  Yes, I believe so.

The day stretches ahead with so many possibilities.....the ever present grading I have from so hardworking students.....the purse I'm knitting and hoping to finish this week.....the list of "need to do" that remains in the forefront.......and again, I've been given a day to get some of those things completed.  I can't complain--especially with all those great skeins of yarn that also call from the basket with even more suggestions of things I can do.  

Getting started.....

When I look at my interests--writing, quilting, knitting (really fiber arts of any kind), gardening....and on--getting started has never been a problem for me. Getting finished--now there's the hitch! I was not born project-oriented. You can then imagine the state of my sewing room, but I'm getting better I think.

Most of my day is filled with teaching and the resulting pile of grading that comes with helping college students define their composition skills, their literature awareness, and their art analysis ability. I have a special spot for future teachers--leading me to be their advisor/mentor--and I am constantly amazed and encouraged by both the depth and wealth of their ideas and hopes for their teaching choices and careers. The future is in their good hands!

When I take time for other things, I gravitate toward stitching of some kind unless the weather's beautiful and warm, and then I'm outside enjoying the garden and the mountains right outside my back door. At present that view includes watching the Blizzard of 2010 fall on my Virginia mountain home--we already had 8 inches on the ground, so if I do a small bit of math and look at the predicted 2 to 3 inches per hour for about 10 hours, we're in for the long haul. So be it. The homemade hot cocoa mix is on the counter and ready. I have plenty of work and stitching to do. The winter beauty is wrapping us in that blessed peaceful sound of falling snow. "Blessed" is definitely the key word here.

In the knitting realm, sometime ago I was bitten by the felting (or fulling) bug and after some basic attempts at coasters and small bags, I tried a small purse....and then showed it to my daughters......you know what happened. I finished request #1 a couple of weeks ago and started on request #2........with yarn bought for request #3......and some for the friend that saw it, which is request #4. I think I'll hide my purse!

I did take some time for myself and knitted a hat to wear, which was very good timing as well, considering the two feet-plus snow that is gathering outside. Initially, I feared I had wasted both time and wool, but my husband--smart man that he is--suggested I take the odd-shapen piece that emerged from the washing machine and stretch it over our medium saucepan for a form. It worked!! Perfect fit! He's quite a guy!

Funny how these projects multiply, but then that's part of what I love about stitching, as I know others do as well--giving the result to ones we care about!

Well, I've gotten started with this blog....we'll see where it goes. I have to go hop on those papers to grade....or maybe a bit of knitting.