Inspiration

Where do you find yours?

I got a healthy dose yesterday from MamaCate’s Zen entry. I, too, have monkey brain – or gorilla brain – whichever one never gives you a moment’s peace – EVER. I’ve tried the whole stare at the flickering candle meditation route and my brain thinks it’s a license to go absolutely berserk. I need something PHYSICAL. It used to be pottery – throwing pots on a wheel. You MUST concentrate or else it won’t work. Then running. Trying not to die is a sure way to turn off the thoughts in your brain. (I NEED TO DO THIS MORE.) And, of course, my zen of choice these days, knitting. This one is the most successful of my endeavors to be sure. I can get a mindless knit for when I’m feeling okay. I can tackle something more difficult for when I need to concentrate – and always – it’s a physical endeavor that keeps me busy. Idle hands are the devil’s tools. I am THE poster child for this idiom.

I’m one of those white coat anxiety people – you know the ones who get nervous before they go to the doctor because they’re sure it’s bad news (honestly though – when am I NOT anxious?). Not too long ago I was sitting in the GYNs waiting room (never a fun time) and I was knitting. Forty-five minutes later I’m naked in the examining room, still knitting (got to keep warm somehow). When the nurse took my blood pressure, it was the lowest it’s ever been. That good healthy low. She was impressed, and I told her – it’s the knitting. Calms me down. Only Xanax does a better job. 😉

Most important about Cate’s post is that I’ve FINALLY gotten FBS! I have one more freaking repeat to go, but last night was the most enjoyable repeat yet. I finally SEE the pattern. (I know, I’m a little late to the game.) I understand the purpose of each stitch, each YO. I wish I had paid more attention earlier, because it would’ve saved me a lot of time. I barely made a mistake in all ten rows, and when I did, it only took me a couple of stitches to realize it. NO FROGGING ENTIRE ROWS! I’m looking forward to finishing the final repeat today – and hopefully the entire shawl tomorrow. It’s got to be blocked and packed by Sunday night.

Anyway, Cate was much more elegant about it than I was (she doesn’t mention anyone getting naked) so head over there and check out her post.

While there wasn’t any knitting going on this weekend, there were a few moments of inspiration.

We bought my nephew a big box of 1000 LEGO Bricks (apparently you’re not allowed to say LEGOS.) They were so tiny they barely filled the giant lego box they came in. What impressed me about the toys were the colors – they were muted and pleasing and my nephew and I spent a great deal of time getting the colors in just the right order. He insisted the red HAD to be at the top. He used to be all about blue, but lately it’s been red. He built the same, but completely different, red robot about ten times this weekend. LEGO bricks are a good thing. I’m thinking of a cardigan – solid sleeves, solid back, striped LEGO fronts for him. What do you think?

I was also flipping through the Anthropologie catalog. Gotta say – been to the store, get the catalog and I’d be hard pressed to ever actually WEAR anything they sell. I’m a khaki/jeans/t-shirt kind of girl myself. BUT, I do love to look at their sweaters – they have a lot of sweaters that don’t seem like they would be that hard to make. And looky here what I found on p. 19 in the “fall in love again and again” catalog:

Of course, they’re not selling this sweater – they’re selling the frilly ridiculous pink thing (straight out of Rowan by the way) on the mannequin/model standing to his right. I cropped her out. But, let’s look at the sweater on this guy. Is this not PERFECT for the sweater I’ve been wanting to make for my dad? Picture it in a grayish brown tweedy Jo Sharp with a V-Neck. Now my dad’s not so tall and he does have a decent gut – but I think it will work! I especially like the ribbing around the sides. I may have to incorporate that into my Bohemia cardigan. These cables are super easy to find in my cable books for sure – they all look familiar – and I think the middle panel will split into a v-neck quite easily. Inspiration! Yay!

Someone in the apartment upstairs is drilling away like freaking Marathon Man (don’t worry Jen – we WON’T be watching that one) and now my teeth are killing me.

Go! Away with you! Find some inspiration!