“Time you enjoy wasting..."

"...is not wasted time.”

It’s been a little while since my last knitting post. This isn’t because I haven’t been knitting, it’s just that I haven’t got a finished object (FO) to show off. I only have a work in progress (WIP).

I’m about halfway through my Carnaby skirt in Cascade 220 (colour Jet) (link to the pattern is here):

I’m really enjoying the pattern and the wool, but as it needs to be large enough to go around my plump posterior it’s not the quickest of knits! Additionally I have this terrible habit of picking at my cuticles and the skin around my fingernails and the forefinger on my right hand is currently flayed to the knuckle:

As this is the finger that the wool gets wrapped around while knitting…

…I’m sure you can understand why I’m finding it too painful to knit for too long of an evening. I only have myself to blame though!

I’m obviously disappointed I’m not being more productive but, since I knit primarily because I enjoy knitting, I’m not going to beat myself up over it. If I cause myself pain while knitting Carnaby I will never think fondly of the finished skirt when I wear it.

I’m also disappointed with the number of books I’ve read so far this year. I wanted to read 52 books and graphic novels over the year, averaging one a week. This sounds ambitious but I have achieved it in previous years. Years before I started knitting...

I have a fast reading speed and, in PK (pre-knitting) years, I read a lot. I wasn’t living with CB and I spent my free time in the evenings reading (and smoking). I now spend my time working my way through TV series (most recently was American Gods season 1, RuPaul’s Drag Race season 9, and The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt season 3) or watching CB defend the world on the Playstation (currently Shadow of Mordor, I think) while knitting. (I have also given up the smoking.)

This has inevitably taken its toll on my reading time, which was essentially reduced to the hour I spent in total commuting to work each day. Now I’ve moved Oop North, I walk to work. So when do I read, Philly-Fans? In truth I haven’t cracked my book open in weeks. My reading total now we’re half-way through the year is static at 15. This is slightly misleading as 5 of those have been weighty tomes, but I doubt it will go much higher.

I know I shouldn’t feel disappointed. It’s just a meaningless challenge I set myself after all. I should spend my free time doing whatever I what to do at that time. I just can’t help it. There’s a little bookworm in my head constantly lamenting the sheer number of books I have yet to read, the number of literary adventures I’ve yet to go on, and the number of characters I will fall in love with (and will break my heart over when they inevitably die) and it’s hard to argue with him!


*Quote from Marthe Troly-Curtin