Japan's nuclear meltdown

I grew up with the threat of nuclear oblivion. I remember 3 Mile Island, Chernobyl. I've paid attention to the times/places developing nuclear material. I have really good friends and family members who relied on nuclear for work or service. I remember interviews with survivors of Heroshima and surviving tourists watching tests in the deserts of the southwest.

I watch what's going on in Japan, and I mourn for the innocence of a generation behind me, who didn't really, really understand how sticky and dangerous this stuff is. For the dust that will fall all over the world and how that will change, in little and large ways, our globe and our global awareness.

I turn inward and send my thoughts and deepest intentions for a healthy earth, for peace.

Socks

I've been knitting socks. Like crazy. I am on a "pre-40" quest to bring my lifestyle, health, and body, in alignment with my interests and ability to keep up with my Tot.

This isn't the time to buy clothes.

So I'm knitting socks.

People think it's amazing that I'm knitting socks. We have a Monday noon craft time here in our building, and people are so excited that I'm making them, they are really almost freaked out. I've been literally knitting since I was... 10 or so. And doing all kinds of other tasks long before that, including crocheting book marks for everyone in the world, and making corkscrew things for one of my dad's projects (snakes for Medusa. Really.)

So, here's to my quest to wear only hand made socks until I have to buy a whole new wardrobe....

Friday. Finally.

I'm traveling for work this weekend and into next week. I'm turning over the keys to my mom and hopefully my daughter will eat and sleep enough while I'm gone.

I'm going to refill my music player, load up the socks I'm working on, and enjoy the long travel day getting out of Iowa to get to the east coast for a one day conferece, then a travel day back home. Detroit has not been my friend in the past.... we'll see how this one goes. Ever the optimist, it should be ok, right? I'll get to sleep without having to keep an ear open. Sigh. Sounds marvelous. That and grown up drinks. Woo hoo! I can tell it's been a while that I've been the single mom.

I'm looking forward to the ever so slight warming of temperatures so that I can really think about the garden. And getting out to paint.

Painting has been missing as I've been tending to my almost-two-year-old. It's something I haven't quite made peace with doing for only 10 minutes at a time. It takes 10 minutes to set up. We'll see how it goes now that she's getting bigger. I figure bells on her shoes, a bucket to put stuff in, and I could have a few more than 10 minutes at a whack!!!

Until then, knitting, music, and lovin' my chica...

One pair off, one pair on...

Socks. I've decided I'm going to knit a ton of socks. Use up much of the yarn I've been hanging around with. Until it's painting season, then, I'm afraid, my little friends will be either benched or I'll have to switch to cotton.

I've knit enough that I can actually form the socks to my liking, but not enough that I can make one up from scratch. I'm loving the ones I have on, though. I was able to complete them without once having the needle yanked out by my Bambina.

My mitten thumb was not so lucky. I had a hole in my mitten. Which, after about 10 years, is probably ok. So i first did the honorable thing and darned it.... and was two stitches from done, felt the thumb with the double thickness of worsted weight and thought, "I could just reknit a single thumb." So I cut off my thumb....

Now I have (nearly) perfect mittens again, happy feet, and itchy fingers.... come on lime green socks!

Connecting to creativity & caring

I've been knitting a ton, recently. Socks and hats. Haven't knit a scarf in a while, but there's another one (several) in me.

I care. A lot. And I'm really creative. And when I'm doing a lot of both, I find I need to do as much or more for me. So I've been caring for the physical space I live in. I've been tossing, recycling, removing stuff out of our house. I've been there for almost six years with the random haul out in between. But stuff creeps in, as stuff is wont to do. So I have to get stuff out.

I'm going to turn 40 in a few months. And I'm determined to really deeply "get" caring for myself. For my own sake, for my body's sake, for my soul's sake.

My reward will be a child who does the same for herself.