Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Happy 6th Birthday to my live-in Zen Master


Six years ago at this exact moment, I went into labor with the coolest, funniest, and most incredible human being I've ever known. I won't go into specifics on the labor, cuz nobody wants to hear all that, but I will say that I cherish every second of it all to bring this unique and special child into this world.
When I was pregnant with Perrin, I read this book called "Everyday Blessings: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting" back when I was a more devout Buddhist than I am today. It was refreshing and honest, and there was one part that rings especially true for me today. The author compared children to zen masters in that they are ever evolving, adapting to what is around them. "They are undeniably present. They are constantly learning, developing, changing, and requiring new responses from us. As they grow, they seem to challenge every place that we might be holding an expectation, a fixed opinion, a cherished belief, a desire for things to be a certain way." Children teach us about the world, about ourselves, how to be in each moment without obsessing about what will happen in the next. Perrin has been my greatest and most faithful teacher in this way. He embodies both consistency and unpredictability. He lives in a world apart from ours, and some days I want so desperately for him to spend more time in ours, and on others, I envy him the ability to exist inside himself without thought or care to the chaos that surrounds him. He is beautiful and strange and has many gifts to give the world. I can't wait to see what he does next.

Friday, February 05, 2010

Just the knitting

This post contains no mention of anything that doesn't involve yarn and needles and sweatery goodness.

The Montera Heather Tuck Bodice or some such nonsensically named sweater has been completed. The sewing was every bit the pain in the ass that I suspected it would be. In the 4 years I've been knitting, this was only the 2nd sweater I've attempted to knit in pieces and sew together. I'm a huge fan of the top-down sweater knitting in one piece b/c I am not gifted in the art of sewing. The following picture may make it appear that I have, indeed, successfully constructed a nifty little cardigan, when in fact, the inside looks fairly jacked up from my ineptitute. However, it looks pretty decent from the outside, and honestly, who in the universe would ever flip it wrong side out and inspect the seams? Only another knitter, and I tend to avoid letting those peeps look too closely at my construction.
So, here are the deets.
Pattern: Montera Heathered Tuck Bodice Cardigan from Classic Elite #9105 Saturday Afternoon Booklet.
Needle Size: US 8
Yarn: Naturally Caron Country. It's a lovely charcoal merino/acrylic blend. Pretty damn soft and fairly decent to knit with; a bit splitty at times, but nice to work with.
Honestly, that's all I'm going to talk about in this post. No talk of any neurological unpleasantness at all :) Just my obsessive knitting addiction.