Acceptable Losses

I've always thought, rightly or wrongly, that I wasn't worthy of any book written by Elizabeth Zimmerman.  Let's face it:  she's the Great One, the one who took it all to a whole new level through diligent "unventing" of the craft.  And I, being a humble sort of knitter and the kind who hasn't exactly discovered the basement level yet, figured that I'd best leave that to the more skilled of our tribe.  EZ is for the Good Knitters.

However, a number of people to whom I've made this observation assured me that this was really not the case.  The Zimmerman is for all.  We should love The Zimmerman, embrace The Zimmerman.  I fought it.  But who can hold out in the face of such reassurance?  Besides,  The Zimmerman and I do share a few qualities.  I, too, am a devoted Continental knitter and rarely use anything other than circs if I can help it.  Why, we are practically sisters if you don't take that whole "devotion to gauge" thing into consideration!  And, as it so happened, I was in possession of a gift certificate to a certain on-line bookstore...

So, I took the plunge!

It arrived in short order and, today, I settled down with Elizabeth for the first time.  Like anyone else who reads her work, I was instantly charmed by her way with prose.  Such a gift this woman had with words!  Clever, endearing...I was hooked.  Eagerly, I forged ahead to her first suggested project and the descriptions of how she made this work of Aran knitting happen...

And then my head exploded.

OK.  That's not really true.  I exaggerate.  How could I be writing this if my head had really exploded?  That's just silly!  No, it was really more of a small aneurysm, the blowing out of one or two smallish vessels near the back of my head.  And, as there wasn't really much being stored back there save the combination to my junior high school locker and a few questions I had with regard to the origins of pickled pigs feet, there was really no cause for alarm.  I wasn't using that stuff anyway and can call it Neuro-Housekeeping.  

I'm pretty sure that this is one of those "it's not you, it's me" situations.  The Zimmerman remains great.  I am just not ready for such greatness.  Maybe once the summer vacation starts and I have a little more time on my hands for knitterly reflection, this will all gel nicely.  Meanwhile, I've decided to set The Zimmerman aside for a bit and let my noggin heal up before I try to decipher it all again.

I an effort to re-discover my self-esteem before the weekend drew to a close, I did what anyone might do in these circumstances.

I made eggs.

Nice scrambled eggs, baked in the oven with tomatoes and lots of fresh herbs.  Sliced up, they will make for lovely breakfast sandwiches to take with me on the morning commute.  Just add a couple strips of veggie bacon and some cheese, toss it all between two halves of a toasted bagel...yummy!  And simple.  Which is within my skill set.  

I also did some spinning, knit upon the Airy Scarf and watched Shaun Of The Dead.  These are all things that I can do with ease and which make me feel like a competent member of society, one worth keeping around.  

Oh, and I took a nap.  But I think by now we are all duly impressed with my Napping Magnificence and to speak more of it would seem just a bit braggy.  Let's just leave it at that, why don't we?

But, rest assured, The Zimmerman and I are not finished with one another.  We shall meet again when the time is right and the planets have aligned in such a fashion as to make my brain more accepting of her words.  

I just need to wait for that buzzing sound in the back of my head to subside and for my right ear to stop bleeding...

SA