At last!

Who would ever think that rain could cause so much excitement. Only fear of blinding the neighbors (and a smattering of modesty) prevented me from dashing out in the yard and dancing naked in it.

It has been so dry here that all the vegetation that wasn’t irrigated was dying. The area had been plagued with forest fires. Smelling smoke from these fires – some two states away – has been a daily occurrence for several weeks … a genuine nightmare for those who suffer from allergies. Rather ironic considering other parts of the country are experiencing heavy flooding. We didn’t get enough rain to eliminate the drought conditions but it certainly was a help.

I am astounded at how lush everything looks the day after a rain. My ginger plant doubled in height overnight. I actually have a semi-green yard again. Everything looks refreshed, revived and rejuvenated. Even the ants are happier. Hard to believe a chemical as simple as water – two hydrogen atoms, one oxygen atom; H₂O – could cause such an immediate change in life.

Has the rain a father?
Or who has begotten the drops of dew? – Job 38:28

I love knitting in the rain. The sound of the raindrops coupled with the rhythmic clicking of the needles is soothing to the soul. While my little one was playing in the rain, I knitted peacefully on the porch. One of those rare moments of absolute, parental joy. Should have recorded a video.

Spring Cleaning Update

I am still furiously working on my Spring Needle Cleaning. I must confess, this is a lot more fun than normal spring cleaning.

Currently, I am working on the long forgotten sweater vest I started for Hubby before Christmas [note to self: do not attempt to knit sweaters for Christmas gifts if you actually want to have something to put under the tree]. I am sure that Hubby will be positively thrilled to wear a nice warm sweater in July since we live in a place where the average July afternoon temperature exceeds 92^oF. What a thoughtful wife I am! Lucky for him, the person who sets the thermostat at the church building is notoriously hot-natured – evidenced by the collection of blankets, throws and wraps that stay scattered on the pews.

It is about three-quarters of the way complete. The back is finished and the front is almost at the half-way mark as you can see from the second photo. The color is a little truer in the second photo but I have yet to get a photo that looked very close to the actual burgundy color of the yarn. My camera apparently doesn’t like reds.

Barring some knitting disaster, I should have this finished sometime this week. Maybe I will pretend that it is a Father’s Day present. I am ashamed that I have had it OTN for so long. But at least it was only there for months, instead of years.

I have noticed a definite improvement in my knitting skills since this project was cast on. Hopefully, this trend will continue and one day I will be as good as the knitters I see in the books, magazines and blogs. I have to constantly remind myself from time to time that I cannot expect to be a master knitter after less than a year. Sometimes my perfectionist nature gets in the way of my common sense. I have improved tremendously and I am pleased with my progress.

Knitting has provided me with a sense of fulfillment that no other needlework has – and I have tried them all – crochet, tatting, cross-stitch, embroidery, needlepoint.
Oddly, knitting and I had a bumpy start. I took a class at the local library with my daughter. I did complete my hat but it was unbelievably too small (when the hat that is supposed to fit your daughter is too tight for her doll you know you have gauge issues). Then, discouraged by my first failure, I put knitting down and forgot it – literally. A year or so later, I stumbled upon some beautiful yarn on the clearance aisle and I picked up the needles again. Once I finally remembered relearned how to cast on there has been no stopping me. I have knitted nearly every day since I picked the needles back up last fall – even if it was only a row. (I don’t remember the exact date when I started knitting again but I consider Halloween to be my knitting anniversary date because that is about the time when stores start clearances on their fall colors).

Since that time I have been surprised to find fellow knitters everywhere. I discover them at church, I bump into them in stores and I find them on the internet. The one common trait of all those knitters is their willingness to help another knitter. I have learned so much from all you knitters out there. Thank you for sharing your knowledge, your experience and your encouragement.

Now how exactly did I end up here when I started out talking about rain?!