By The Pricking Of My Thumbs...

No, nothing wicked this way comes.  At least nothing I can see galloping over the horizon yelling, "Yoo-hoo!  Sheepie!  I'm a-comin' for ya!  Didn't you get the message I left on your thumbs?

(I am planning a post detailing the recent tortures visited upon me by the resident felines, not the least of which being their reaction to the setting back of the clocks last night.  To start one's Sunday at 3:30 in the godforsaken morning in order that the intricacies of Daylight Savings Time might be explained is unpleasant.  It also doesn't do much to convince them that breakfast time isn't right around the corner.  But that is another post for another day...)

No, I am actually going to present you with something of a unique and almost happy nature.  Here on this very fiber-blog, I am going to display for all the world to see....A FINISHED OBJECT!!!!

Yes, that's right.  I finished something.  Actually, I have finished a lot of stuff lately, but none of it is the kind of knitting that is bloggable at the moment.  Today, however, I can proudly display a morning's work and not have to hide in the shadows over the matter.

Frankly, I think the whole thing deserves a great, big TAH-DAHHHHHHH!

::sound of crickets chirping::

The blogoshpere falls silent for a moment and then can be heard the sounds of uncomfortable shuffling and throat-clearing.  This is followed by general muttering and whispers:


"I'm not doing it!"


"Well somebody has to say it."


"I did it last time!"


"You're ever so much better at this sort of thing..."


At last, a reluctant member of the crowd is shoved forward.  


"Um...Sheepie?  That's nice and all.  But it kind of looks like you just crocheted a rectangle, turned it sideways and stitched up part of the sides.  Then you stuck it on your hand.  Not that we're judging or anything, mind you.  It just sort of seems like, skill-wise, you've taken a few steps backwards.  Maybe...a little...um...


OK.  Yes.  It is a rectangle.  But I can explain.  If you can just give me a minute to explain is all!  See, the first thing is that I've been knitting a whole lot over the past few weeks and a great deal of that has been with cotton.  I have knit so much, in fact, that I have worn a hole in my thumb.  Yes, that's right.  My thumb!  I'll bet you feel all kinds of bad now dontcha, Judgy McJudgerson?

Actually, I knit a little rough patch onto my thumb and then picked at the skin until I tore a piece off and that hurts something wicked.  But this is a "six of one, half a dozen of another" kind of situation, I think...

Either way, I'm off the knitting train until my thumb grows new fingerprints and whatnot.  I'm thinking this will last at least until I can wash my hands without my thumb feeling like it's on fire.  Crochet seemed like a logical thing to do and I also have another very good reason for crocheting a rectangle. Or two.

I had an appointment with The World's Greatest Stylist And Life Coach yesterday.  I could tell when I walked in that she had a few things on her mind.  The first was that she recently lost one of the fingerless mitts I knit for her a while back and that it is greatly missed.  She was wondering if I might do another pair.  I agreed quickly because a good stylist and life coach is not the sort of thing that comes along every day.  You knit mitts for these people.  This agreement was, of course, before I decided to flay my own thumb, but I have a month to heal before my next appointment so I should be in good shape.

The other thing she wished to discuss was crochet.  She learned as a wee little thing at her grandmother's knee back in China, (or something like that) but has forgotten how.  She thought she might like to take it up again and was wondering if I might do a quick refresher lesson sometime.  Again, I weighed the value of a day out of my weekend against the whole stylist/life coach thing and came up firmly on the side of Okey-Dokey!

Since she likes fingerless mitts and will probably need a simple project to fire up the old motor memory, I figured a sample done up in baby-type yarn would be a good thing to drag along as a prototype.  So that's why I'm crocheting rectangles and acting like it's a good thing.  See?  I told you I could explain this!

Actually, I sort of don't hate them.  I'm even thinking that, as project go, they are kind of a quick-fix, instant-gratification thing.  I might even do a more fancified version to toss into the Oh-My-God-The-Holidays-Are-Coming pile.  This will also keep me busy while my thumb heals.

Of course, I'll probably wear a hole in my pinky finger or something, but I don't think that rhymes with anything that will bring wickedness down upon me...

SA