Since we are all self-isolating, I thought this might be a good time to revive this blog. The need to feel connected is strong.
I’ve seen many posts that point out that as fiber artists, we have been preparing our stash for this moment. I can back this statement up. My daughter and her partner have moved into the room formerly known as my craft room. In cleaning it out, I was forced to confront my stash. It wasn’t my finest moment. I now have witnesses to my hoarding tendencies. As they loaded bags, some unopened, into plastic bins, I, inwardly and outwardly, cringed. I can’t even bear to post the before and after pictures they took.
On the plus side, the room looks great and provides them a comfortable space in our tiny house. On the downside, I now have multiple bins that I must sort through before I get my room back and have to fit it all back in there.
There are other changes and compromises we are forced to make. All of us now work from home. Space is limited. Wi-Fi is, for the most part, stable. We have limited storage, refrigerator, and freezer space and I’m feeding 4 adults when there used to be 2. Shopping is difficult, cooking is a challenge. Do you eat 3 meals a day, 7 days a week at home? I certainly don’t. We are planning a once a week take-out or delivery night.
Here’s the deal, my daughter (28) and her partner were planning a 9 month trip across Europe. They were scheduled to leave March 17. They made all the plans, bought everything they needed, gave up their living space, and well, you can figure out what happened next. A 2-night stay before taking them to the airport has turned into a ‘for the foreseeable future’ stay. That said, I like having them here, it’s nice to have other people to talk to and they encourage me to work out with them or take a walk. It’s just a very (very) small house. We’re working through it all though, we have a large screened deck and now that the weather is getting nicer, it has become an escape, a workout room, a place to chill.
While I see people talking about all the knitting they are doing, I can say that, for me, not so much. I am working 8-10 hours a day at my job and when I finally log off, I’m toast (as usual). The nicest part is that I don’t have the commute – the hardest part is I don’t have the commute. My commute, although annoying, gave me the opportunity to decompress before talking to my husband. Now my family gets to overhear my conference calls or listen to me bitch during lunch. You’d think I’d be ripping through my projects since I can knit during conference calls but I’m just overwhelmed and distracted right now. What I can do is test knit small items like hats, cowls, mitts. So that’s what I’m committed to doing. First up is a cowl pattern by the lovely Leedra Scott.
We are learning to live with our new normal. My regular lunch bunch knitting group is still meeting, virtually, at least once a week. I am working to set up other knit nights and virtual happy hours with friends both near and far. Netflix Party should be up and running by Tuesday, 3/24. These are things I plan to continue #whenthisisover.
I miss agility training and trialing with Jack. I can do some training with him in the yard but it’s HIS yard and he’s very distracted. I’m planning to take him to the dog park this week and practice my social-distancing there. We’ve been taking daily walks in the neighborhood. I still plan to attend a class on Canine Massage next weekend – it’s outdoors and there are only 8 students so we will have lots of room and fresh air. It’s at a private home and the trainer is driving in from out of state. My fingers are crossed that it doesn’t get canceled.
If you’ve read this far and are still with me, thanks! I’ll be back soon and hope to have some new knitting to show off.
Old Dog, New Tricks 