I knit the blue, brownish-gray, and pink stripes like I had planned, but had a gut feeling that the brown didn't add anything worthwhile even while I was knitting it. I finished it and continued on to the pink stripe just so I could show Ryan and see if he felt the same.
He did. We talked about it for a while and he suggested that since the blue was only mildly bright and the pink was highlighter bright, maybe two blue and then two pink stripes would look good. Since I was ripping out the brown anyway, it sounded like something worth trying.
Washing my hands, wiping down surfaces, and feeling distracted hasn't left me with much ability to focus on reading. The World That We Knew got whisked back to the library because I wasn't paying attention to when it was due, so I'll have to borrow it again someday. I did start another book that I'm excited about, Why Fish Don't Exist. A dear reading friend recommended it, so I was thrilled to be accepted to read it from Netgalley. It's about taxonomist David Starr Jordan. Never heard of him? Neither had I so I will certainly learn a thing or three.
What are you making and reading this week?
I think you are right, Bonny, whatever we do during this period will forever remind us of the coronavirus, but let's just hope that it reminds us how lucky we were to come out of it so well. You and Ryan will know when the hitchhiker is to your liking. In the meantime, your experimentation serves as a distraction, doesn't it? I have been somewhat stuck in my reading to Maisie Dobbs books, which I suspect would not appeal to me as much in other times. It's nice comfort reading for me these days. Not knitting much. Hang in there, it looks like this interval may be much longer than we wish!
ReplyDeleteI think your plan for 2 blue and 2 pink stripes is a good one and your attitude about the project is even better. I'm finding it somewhat difficult to focus on reading but I sense that's about to change.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you lost The World That We Knew before you could finish -- I hope you'll borrow it again because it's well worth finishing! I'm excited to hear what you think of your current read. I'm familiar with Lulu Miller because she was one of the original cohosts of the Invisibilia podcast (which I also highly recommend if you're looking for new things to listen to).
ReplyDeleteThis time period is going to mark us all. Just like people previously talked about where they were when Kennedy was shot or when the planes hit the Twin Towers, in the future, we'll all talk about where we were when the coronavirus hit.
I will echo Sarah in my sadness about The World That We Knew... it is really an excellent book! (But I too am struggling to stay focused to read!) I love Ryan's suggestions on the striping! (and really love how those bright colors just pop out the speckles in the yellow yarn!)
ReplyDeleteI'm not actually reading much . . . yet. My mind is just not focused at the moment. I am listening to Apeirogon, though, and it's written in a style that is actually perfectly suited to short-bursts-of-focus! I think Ryan's stripe idea is a good one, and I can't wait to see it. Cheery colors and comforting knitting is what I crave right now, so I think your latest Hitchhiker is perfect in every way! XO
ReplyDeleteThose blue bits are a lovely addition.
ReplyDeleteOh My Oh MY OH my I Envy all that amazing working garter without ONE error. Love your colors. I got all excited thinking your book was about taxidermy. Dont ask! Im re reading the FAR SIDE comic coffee table book ...need humor!
ReplyDeleteoh my goodness I LOVE the striping....I must do this on mine :) Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThe pink was just a little too bright and two blues sound right! We just had a 5.7 earthquake. We were very afraid and Smith is staying home today. We feel very unsettled. Stay well, Bonny!
ReplyDeleteExcellent decision on the stripes! I can't wait to see the end result. I'm still just listening to Say Nothing, just started our next Read With Us selection and am Night Shifting away! I've got a nasty bout of arthritis in my thumb which is making me a little cranky!
ReplyDeleteI have a couple of projects I associate with Desert Storm as I sat and listened to the radio and knit.
ReplyDeleteI had kind of forgotten about Desert Storm. Now every knitter around the world will most likely also have a coronavirus project or two.
DeleteGood progress on the hitchhiker. Redoing is often part of my knitting process especially when I'm adding in colors on my own.I think you and Ryan make a good design team. I am listening to a mindless mystery series because the characters and plot lines are familiar. The Gaslight Mysteries by Victoria Thompson aren't great literature but they are set in the turn of the century NYC and that adds a little spice for me. It's a little challenging to concentrate on any long plot.
ReplyDeleteWhen I started reading the post I thought you were gonna be through knitting Hitchhikers ... laughed out loud when I read through! I do love those stripes! and how wonderful that we are able to create something beautiful with our hands and hearts right now.
ReplyDelete