A Year of Me Knitting

I've hardly ever knit anything for myself - a scarf, a few pairs of socks, a couple of hats. But for over 10 years of knitting that's not much. Don't get me wrong - I love knitting for other people. Two of my best friends, my DIL, my mother all have knitted sweaters that I think they love. My Grandson and a few of his future friends have baby cardis (I can't stand the idea of children, especially my own grandchild, groaning as their mothers pull a wooly sweater over their little heads which gets stuck halfway over thier faces - remember? And if he says "no, not Granny's sweater' I will cry, so its cardigans for all babies from me). Booties, blankets and bears have all gone to other homes.



So 2011 is going to be for me! I will just think about knitted gaments that I want. I'm going to finish at least one of those quilts that are at various stages of completion, for my bed. And I will crochet some pot holders for my kitchen. I also need a new felted hand bag, thank you very much. I have a 'stock' birthday present project for one and all this year that only takes a few hours to make - and costs various amounts depending on materials - everyone will get one (happily, I hope).




So for now I'm working on the Pavement Jacket from Modern Top Down Knitting by Kristina McGowan. I'm working on the body now - big rows as I am knitting front, back and front at the same time on the long circ. And also knit the Pigeon hat form the same book in a lovely grey 2 ply mix that I bought in the states - now where is that ball band? Its Crystal Palace Yarns - Panda Silk.

I've completed a lovely little scarf in Mini Mochi - Crystal Palace Yarns again.

So far a pretty decent start considering I work and go to uni. I should have a wardrobe to last me years after 2011.

Little Sweaters

I had the best time knitting little sweaters in December before I went away for 6 weeks to visit my most precious family in the US. I knit nothing while I was there - way to busy playing 'catch the tiger' and 'pop goes the weasel' and reading Hop on Pop and Noisy Animals. But now I'm home and knitting happily away with one of the three balls of wool that I bought while over there (I showed a massive amount of restraint). I am also knitting a jacket - a complicated one - for myself that will take me a few months to finish.

The Jaxon jacket was for the most beautiful 13 month old on the planet - really! and the little white one for Neve - a very sweet baby of a friend. Both were a complete pleasure.

Sweater for Daisy Mae

A little Bendi cotton sweater for a new little girl. And an old dog who is my heart.

BTW - I have a new BookViews blog - come over and check it out and tell me what you think

No pictures - just books.

I just remembered that I signed up for a blogish book club a while back and have not posted on it at all. Shame! So... mostly I have been reading Spanish language books which are slow and not very interesting to anyone else but I have read a couple of novels too. I read Great Expectations by Dickens - my first Dickens. It was so much better than I thought it would be when I started it. You get used to the old worldly language quickly and then the quirk and delight of Mr Charles shines through in a big way. What a clever writer. No wonder this book is on the canon list.

I also read the latest Janet Evanovich - Wicked Appetite. Well, it is formulaic and silly. Evanovich can really write in her genre - she is one of the best in the "light-hearted" section of the book store. And there are some classic moments but it is the same old JE without much new. It only gets two and a half stars from me, I'm afraid.

Now I am in the middle of a huge committment 'Fall of Giants' by Ken Follett. Again, it is not very taxing but satisfying all the same - all 800 pages of it. And we are not talking Harry Potter sized pages - these are grown up pages. But it is one of those books that is easy to read but hard to hold therefore not the best bed-reading tome.

I am really ready to have a meaty book that I can sink my literary teeth into so I just got the 2010 Booker Prize winner 'The Finkler Question' by Howard Jacobson from the Public Library and that will be my next read. I am looking forward to it.

Another little fun thing - I won a contest on the ABC - The Books Alive Suggest a Read contest. I wrote a little review of Wolf Hall and won! I was on the radio and everything and Nettie assured me I sounded OK. Well, last week I recieved a box full of the the 50 books that were recommended by Books Alive as the 50 books you can't put down. (Some I can't even pick up!!)(oh, I know, I'm a snob but I am over 50 and I am not wasting my time on bodice ripping romances - sorry!) So now my next to the bed pile has grown considerably.

If you are interested here is the link to my review - Wolf Hall

Happy reading everyone. Rhonda

New Favorite thing to Knit!

These went to my daughter in law but I think everyone in my life will get a variation for their next birthday/christmas/just-because present!

I might even try to sell some - what do you think?

Lovely spots in front of the heater and in bed!

Bookclub in Blogland

I met my friend Nettie not long after I came to Canberra when I joined her long established bookgroup. It was wonderful at the time and I made some great friends. Knitting also became a passion-in-common. Recently she posted about a bloggy bookclub and I love the idea. I am in my second year of part time uni and working part time and I would love a place to discuss what I am reading and see what others are reading since I no longer have the space or time to commit to a regular bookgroup meeting.
My biggest problem with my past bookgroups was I often had to read books I didn't want to read. I admit that every once in a while I didn't fancy reading a book and it turned out to be something I enjoyed. But not very often. I'm afraid that I also was too vocal in the group and felt like I dominated the conversation sometimes. It is a flaw that I have tried to work on. And it used to actually piss me off when half of the members had not read the book. There were plenty of reasons - good and bad - for the lack of reading but it really upset me. Silly on my part, now that I think about it.
Sadly, after I left the book group I never found another that I wanted to join and now there just isn't time. If I take a lit class at school then I do not have time to read a book group book as well.
But never-the-less I love reading, I love learning, and I love listening to what other people have to say about life and books. I have read a lot of books in my life and could never decide on just the 5 I would take with me on the deserted Island. Shakespeare's complete works would have to be one. Tristram Shandy is a close second. But the last three would take so long to decide upon that I would miss the boat completely. I now have an ebook reader (don't worry - I still love the sound of turning pages in my bed at night) and if I could count that as one book I would be a happy girl - there are already 100 classics on it.
So I have signed up for the bloggy bookclub at Krafty Kula.
This month I am reading Great Expectations. I have never read Dickens. Shame! It was never on the list of classics at my school, having grown up in the states. I have not taken any classic lit classes yet and it was never suggested during my bookgroup - probably because you all read it at school. I am in chapter 3 and finding it incredibly clever and witty. Dickens is a wordsmith and a very good one. I love the images of place that are already filling my mind. I love the character development that is already established. And I love his sense of humour. I am starting to understand his place in the canon of classics. Can't wait to read more.
I am also reading the last of the millennium books - the girl who kicked the hornets nest but feeling a little bogged down by it. Will keep reading tho!
Can't wait to hear what you all are reading. Cheers.