slow fingers

A,
Babies are so exciting! I have a friend here in Arizona who is pregnant, and my first thought was of what to knit her. My mind immediately leapt to baby sweater, although after thinking about how the baby would be due in May, and how the baby would be living in Arizona, I decided that a sweater might be a little inappropriate given the circumstances. My plans were headed in the direction of knitted toys as well. And oh my goodness. Bunny with dress is about the most adorable thing I've ever seen. So cute.

Speaking of knitting gifts, I've been trying to finish up some Christmas gifts before I go back to WI in January. And as I was working on Christmas presents this morning, I was thinking about the world's fastest knitter and how long it would take her to knit the projects that I am working on. I mean, look at her go! She's absolutely amazing. When I read other blogs I often wonder about the productivity of these knitters and feel humble and slow in comparison. I certainly can't knit a hat in an hour, and I don't even want to know how sadly I would fare in comparison to this world-fast knitter. I used to tell James that they should make a show on TV similar to project runway, only make it about knitting designers. He told me that it would be slow and no one would be able to make any project within a reasonable amount of time. (He also said no one would watch it) But hey! If we just gathered up all of these world-fast knitters we could make it happen, don't you think? I would watch it.

Besides being a "slow" knitter, I am also a slow reader. In comparison, I guess. Kate was always a speed reader. I swear she could read a hundred pages in an hour. Maybe not so much, but I was always impressed. You can definitely make it through your classes with much more ease if you can speed read. And honestly, I've been a little jealous. But not too jealous. Because unlike knitting projects, I view good books as a limited commodity. There are only so many amazing books in the world, and the rest are closer to mediocre. And once you get your hands on that one amazing book, who wants to speed read through it? The best books that I have ever read, I've almost hesitated to read them, because I don't want them to be over. Because once you've read them they're gone, and there's nothing like reading a book for the first time. My favorite author has several books out that I haven't read yet, but I'm saving them for later in life, because I know he's old and won't publish many more books, and I want to savor each page.

So how is reading like knitting? Well, I guess there's a little bit of me that always wants to be the fastest and the best at everything. If I can whiz through it, it means I'm an expert, right? Well, I have come to accept my reading. But that knitting, wow. Think of how productive I could be. Think of how many new projects I could start. Think of all the yarn! Truth be told, I see knitting much differently than I see reading. There really are more projects that I want to work on than I have time for. The more I knit, the more ideas I have, and the less time I have to finish them. Here's me wishing I could finish another Christmas gift this afternoon, and realizing that most likely I will progress no farther than an inch or two.

When my fingers are cold they move so much slower. Perhaps that is my clue for the day. You know, the one time I played well in viola seminar, I warmed my hands in thrummed mittens until the very minute that I needed to play. And it was beautiful. Perhaps I should do the same here, prepare my hands for extra knitting strength and speed by prepping them with thrummed mittens. You see? In a round-about way, knitting begets knitting. Thrummed mittens beget more thrummed mittens and once I am warm, perhaps I will be able to crank those gifts out like a world-class knitter.

Hope your hands are staying warm. Let me know which adorable toy you are going to create.

Karen