Loose Ends...

Maybe it's just the codeine...  OK.  It's probably just the codeine.  But, I seem to be at loose ends with the knitting.  I suppose that it's easier to blame it all on the cough medicine.  I could just leave it at that and move on.

But with two different sock projects on the needles and one so close to the finish line that I can almost feel the snuggly warmth on my tootsies, you'd think I'd be a bit more motivated.  Even with narcotic cough medicine coursing through my veins.  

I've also got the crocheted purple blob with which to entertain myself.  That would be a nice diversion should I be so inclined to succumb to the hooks.  But, it's been a mere blip on the radar today.  

Then there's the spinning.  Frankly, that's been more appealing today.  I've spun 'n spun 'n spun.  In fact, I was full to brimming with good intentions.  I thought I'd have a full bobbin off the wheel and on the lazy kate by late afternoon.  I even entertained fantasies of starting the plying process tonight.  I kind of overestimated how much spinning a body could stand in one day, though.  The downside to spinning a finer single is that four ounces of fiber takes ten years to spin.  Or twenty if you take breaks for snacks and using the restroom.  

That may be something of an exaggeration.  But it feels like ten years since I started this project.  Still...it's awfully pretty.  There's grays, browns, and blues and the whole thing is comprised of silk and merino.  It wanted to be spun nice and thin.  When all is said and done, I'll be happy with it.  But, at the moment it feels like this is one of those yarns that I'll be spinning well into my retirement years.  

When the spinning and knitting "blahs" hit, the best thing to do is stop fighting it.  You need to just let it go and watch a movie or something.  Or nap.  Napping is good and sort of a requirement what with the codeine and all.  

You can also do some prep-work.  Fiber prep is like a hopeful sort of gesture.  It's the knitter's way of saying, "One day, I will pick up those needles again and when I do...look out world!!!"  Even if you only do a teeny little bit of dyeing, it's like striking a blow for disgruntled knitters everywhere!

Here's the results of yesterday's Fiber For The Future endeavor:

Smooshed up merino straight out of the pot.  It is in serious need of de-smooshing.  

I suppose if I were a better person and not someone trying desperately to rekindle my desire to knit something, I would have done a better job of getting the VM out of this before tossing it in the dye pot.  It's a work in progress.  And when I say, "work" that is exactly what I mean, although it has been a labor of love.  This is a very small part of the gigantic fleece that Cathy sent me last summer when I was going through a similar sort of slump and looking for a project.  It had been a while since I'd processed a whole fleece and was up for a challenge.  This fit the bill.  It all but laughed in my face and defied me to tame it.  But, with patience and the will to not let the fleece be the boss of me, it has come into shape beautifully.  We have since bonded, the fleece and I.  I don't just feel affection for it, I feel actual love.  Whatever it becomes in knitted form, I will have earned it.  

I didn't have much of the spruce dye left so this is not going to be enough to amount to anything all by its lonesome.  But, I do believe the deep color will add some "pop" to a blend of some sort.  We'll set it aside and see where it will fit later.  

It feels like I should have more to show for two days of weekend.  Especially since one of those days was spent trapped in the house while the winter snows piled up outside.  But, when the knitting muse chooses to take a snow day, there's really not much you can do about it.  I've got my spruce merino all dyed and ready for when she decides that it's time to report back to work.  

In the meantime, I'll keep spinning.  You never know when some yarn will come in handy...

SA