Thinking Ahead

Ever know something your WHOLE life? Just KNOWN it?

Ever have a premonition, or a dream that later came to pass?

It's a rather freaky feeling when these things happen. Call it a premonition, call it deja vu: it's still a very odd sensation when it happens.

Why does it happen? Divine revelation? Clairvoyance? Paying better attention to the universe than everyone else?

Who knows. I don't. But I go with it.

And I know. And will thus be ready.

I know, it's patchy at best

It's not that I have nothing to say. I've always got SOMETHING to say. And I've got opinions on most things.

Problem is, I have great ideas when I'm nowhere near a computer to write these up, or I start something, and it gets tricky and complicated and I draft part of it and leave it for later and never come back.

It's not that I'm ignoring you. I just can't remember that fantastic blog post idea I had last night while fixing dinner, now that I've actually got time to write it up.

But, I'm sure it'll come to me. Something always does.

Requiem for a Crochet Pattern Web site

As you know, I both knit and crochet. I do a lot of other things too, but these are my primary year-round hobbies. I am not fond of Ravelry for reasons I will not get into here, but I do have a list of other great Websites bookmarked, where I can look for inspiration and, often, free patterns.

In the course of trying to help a friend find a pattern for a pineapple motif for a bedspread or table cloth yesterday, I looked to one of my favorites, and found that the site was gone. Celt's Vintage Crochet was no more, and Celty left a scathing note behind. I personally was appalled at the reason for her taking down her site: that others were pirating the patterns she'd worked so hard to preserve and that she offered for free, and selling them. Yes, the Almighty Dollar has reared its ugly head again, and there is another casualty.

I don't blame her for being disgusted and frustrated. I don't blame her for taking down her site in the wake of this. I do wish that I'd managed to save out some of the patterns that she so lovingly provided, and this for purely selfish reasons as now I'll have to hunt for them in other places, and I don't consider that my odds are too high of locating many of them.

I think what disgusts me most is that, within our community of knitters and crocheters, we are not immune to selfishness and the kind of dishonesty that would allow someone to take another's work and claim it as their own.

And so, I raise my glass to Celty and Celt's Vintage Crochet. To Celty, for having the courage to take her site down and tell people why. And for Celt's Vintage Crochet, in memory of a good thing that was spoiled by too many bad apples.

Strange connections

Every time I hear the name JAY, I'm reminded of Jay and Silent Bob. I could not tell you why. I couldn't be counted among their myriad fans. In fact, the only movie of theirs I've ever seen is Dogma, which I found funny though a number of my friends found flat out blasphemous.

But seriously. Why do I connect the two? I should be more likely to think of my junior high crush, or a family friend. But no. I think of Jay and Silent Bob. Go figure?

So, thoughts? Weird connections you make? Inquiring minds want to know.

Merry Christmas!

Why it's become a taboo phrase in the past several years, I don't know. But I say it proudly, and frankly, don't think it can be said enough.

I celebrate Christmas, in all it's religious glory. I refuse to debate the finer points of the telephone effect on a 2000+ year old story, nor will I discuss, at this point, what Biblical scholars think are the confirmable points. For me, it is the birthday of Jesus Christ, a baby sleeping in a hay-filled feed trough in a poor stable somewhere in the ancient Middle East. I know, with all the ads and shopping and media coverage and such, many people think that Christmas begins the day after Thanksgiving and ends on December 25. In reality, begins tonight, and carries on through the Twelve Days of Christmas, to the Feast of the Epiphany, when, as the story goes, the Three Wise Men arrived to view the Savior of the World.

And so, I wish you peace. I wish you joy. I wish you love. I wish you happiness. I wish you all the blessings of the Christmas season.

I wish you a Merry Christmas!

Respect

My mother has a saying. Well, she has many, most of them which originated from her mother, and which get trotted out from time to time as the situation calls for them. Today, however, I'm talking about one in particular:

"Someday, you, too, will be old, and only in the way."

We use this one a lot. We use it when we're walking down the street — my mother at her best arthritic snail's pace while leaning on my arm for balance — and some pretentious yuppie type (or a herd of their equally pretentious and ill-mannered children) either huffs and blows and never considers uttering the words, "Excuse me" in an effort to get past us or nearly knocks us over trying to go around (and still doesn't say anything). We use it when I point out that she's telling the same story for the 14,000th time that day. We use it when people look at her funny for one reason or another, often because she can't hear very well and either she or the people she's speaking with are projecting rather loudly. But mostly, it's because someone is being rude and impatient while my mother is doing her best to walk, which can be a real challenge some days.

I often wonder whose way I will be in. And unless I turn out to be like the 100-year-old nursing home resident who was strangled by her 98-year-old room mate, I really can't see that I'll be bothering anyone much. (And I should hope I have enough visitors in the home to annoy someone. Just sayin'.)

(I also like the slightly different takes on this story available in the Boston Herald and the Daily Mail. Intriguing.)

This brings me back to my point, though. And I do have one. It is the lack of respect for the elderly that grows worse in the United States on a daily basis. Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange is a chilling depiction of youth in charge, their desires running essentially unchecked in spite of the efforts of a few. A little of "the old ultra-violence" was all the entertainment Alex DeLarge and his Droogs needed on any given evening. Youth, in their eyes, is more important than anything. How close do we come to this kind of id-riddled behavior now, where personal responsibility is not enforced? Where a parenting philosophy of "Don't tell the child no, you'll stunt his/her creative growth" is now growing into its hormonal teens and on into what should be a responsible adulthood? Where educational philosophy of equality and no one failing and "I'm OK, you're OK" takes the place of genuine accomplishment? Where it is common practice for older workers to be laid off or forced into early retirement, to be replaced by those younger and perceived to be smarter, hipper, more adaptable? Even reports of pending and proposed health care reforms will lead to lack of care for the elderly.

Makes me wonder if I'll ever be able to get old enough to be in anyone's way.

(Note: I will do something about health care later. I'm finding way too much information to use at this time.)

Tea Cozies (or Cosies, if you prefer)

I have the perfect tea cosy.

It came from Harrod's several years ago, when they first went live with their Web site. It's quilted, it fits both my big and my small tea pot, and it will keep the tea drinkably hot for as long as 4 hours, depending on how much tea is in the pot.

The problem is, it's beginning to fall apart. The seams are coming undone, and the inside is terribly stained from years of daily use. The further problem is that I can not seem to find another one like it. There are all sorts of tea cosys available, but either they are not quite the right size, not the right thickness, or fancier than I want. I've even got some patterns for them, such as the Kureyon Kozy on Knitty, and a whole book of Wild Tea Cosies, which I like a lot but have not had a chance to explore making. I'm also learning to quilt, and since I sew by hand, something small like a tea cosy might be a perfect starter project for me.

The final problem is that I'm unsure what to do.

So, the quest continues. Do I attempt to find the time and resources to make one? Do I keep looking and hope the right one will appear? Do I just bite the bullet and buy one that will do for now? Or do I go back to my tried and true method of keeping the pot warm, which I used for years before I got a tea cosy: sitting it on one thick, old dish towel, and wrapping it up in another?

Decisions, decisions....