Sock!

Here proudly displayed is my sock. Actually it's Jamie's sock as I made it for her using some of her favorite colors. That's right - I made this sock with my own two hands (and four needles, yarn, and a bit of elastic).

For about the last two months I've had such an urge to do things. I think it's carry over from my summer of living outside my little brain. After such adventures and experiences, it's hard to go back down to the library's basement and be excited about this nuanced idea or that subtle intellectual argument. But I digress. The point is that in mid-August, I took up knitting again for the third time. My mom brought me my bag of stuff, and after I'd finished off the twenty-third dish cloth of my knitting career I decided I needed to expand my abilities. I wanted something do-able that wouldn't take too long, but I wanted something that used more than just a stockinette stitch and some yarning over. (Forgive me oh you knitters if I butcher the lingo.)

You would be surprised at how difficult it is to find the right supplies. The store which shall not be named did not have double pointed needles and Michael's only had some of what I needed. I had to splurge at a yarn shop where I realized that knitting is by no means a cheap hobby. If I would have bought the yarn that the pattern really called for, I'd be out a pretty penny.

But my mom keeps reminding me that knitting really isn't about saving money. Lo and behold, she's right. It's as if having something to do with my hands, being busy in this way, slows down my mind paradoxically enough. It's soothing and productive. It stops that nagging guilt that whispers, "You should be doing something." Ha! I respond - I am doing something.

Now I should also say that this is major improvement from the six inch blanket I knitted for my Barbies when I was in grade school. It doesn't even have any holes (though I think I butchered the Kitchener stitch I was supposed to use to tie off the toe)! Now I'll admit, the heel is a little bit funny looking. I have a slight idea of how to alter the pattern next time, but the bigger problem right now is that I'm not sure if I want to knit the other sock. I must press on.

In the meantime, does anyone have any suggestions for my next (inexpensive) project? Not too hard but not too easy - perhaps mittens? As a side note, here's my latest brainstorm to attain cheap yarn: Goodwill has half off everything on first Saturdays. I could buy sweaters and unravel them...