Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Color Tune-Up

These are the skeins I decided to give a color tune up. The right one is Corriedale, center is BFL and the left is Brown Sheep white top, leftover from another project from a couple years ago. It doesn't fit with any skeins I have. As you can see, they're pretty unappealing skeins.

And so much better now. I used a quick bath in Cornflower blue for the left one and just gave the other two some more color conviction. They're ready to become more hats. Mim asked me how I can stand to make the same things over and over. You need to understand that I cannot sit still. Projects like these just keep me from ripping my cuticles off when I watch TV. I knit them in self defense.

Book group was great tonight. Our book was Wallace Stegner's, Crossing to Safety. He is such a wonderful writer and as founder of the writing program at Stanford, he had students like Ken Kesey, Edward Abbey and Ernest Gaines. The discussion turned personal at the end, and it seems that everyone could identify with one of the four characters, most noteably the controlling, aggravating yet likeable protagonist, Charity. She was so powerful that her character over-shadowed the first person narrator, Larry. It seems that everyone has had a Charity in their lives.

From the first chapter, you realize that everyone has gathered because Charity is terminally ill. It's like Titanic. You know the ending - the ship sinks. The story is one of complex relationships and expectations. It's not about Charity's end but her living. She lives with such passion that she faces her demise with the same energy. I finished the book last night and couldn't help but reflect that the father of my kids passed away yesterday morning. He was everything that Charity wasn't. He didn't love himself or his life, and though he was enjoyed his friends, had no hobbies and no passions. He actually stopped living a couple years ago and his body just caught up to his mind yesterday. At 61, he lost his battle with congestive heart failure, a product of a lifetime of smoking. I'm not sure I've ever read a book that was so timely.

5 comments:

Valerie said...

It's been ages since I read Crossing to Safety, but I remember the feeling tone of the book more than anything. So your comment on the timeliness of reading it just now makes a lot of sense.

I'm sorry for this sadness in your life right now.

Mim said...

Good news bad news, at least he is not suffering anymore. What a way to live and not ever really enjoy life.

bspinner said...

Love your yarn!! I'm sure they will make up into great hats! I'm with you when I'm watching TV I need something in my hands and a simple hat pattern is one of the best.

Sara said...

Sorry for your loss, and your children's loss.

Interesting insight.

Wool Enough said...

Amazing work with the yarn dyeing, especially that leftmost skein. I had no idea it was possible to make such a drastic change.

"Crossing to Safety" sounds intriguing. I will definitely request a copy from our wonderful public library.