Tag Em and Bag Em

Here is the beginning of what became a pile of 20 zipper bags.  Not signifigant, except that the little tags attached to them had to be sewn on one at a time, amounting to 40 trips under the sewing machine needle, and a kajillion wee threads to snip.  It's a "little" job I've been blowing off for about 4 months, during which time I told my self quite convincingly that there would be plenty of time for it later.  Later arrived yesterday with a thud.  The dining room quickly became my own private sweatshop.

So why go to this much trouble?  Why does each project in the book have to travel in its own  little zipper bag?  Why does each bag have to sport my label and the project name, which corresponds to a hang-tag on each sample?

I have no idea, except to tell you that I have OCD for real, and I just don't know when to stop.  In my attempts to organize and protect my book samples, I have begun to act like a parent sending the children to summer camp for the first time.  I have tried to anticipate each sweater's every need while it is seperated from me, stopping short only of moth-prevention (though I am still wondering if I need to address that).  Who will take care of them?  Where will they be stored?  Will they get wrinkled/crushed/folded/spindled/mutilated?  What if someone tries to steam them and they get ruined?  I have completely lost perspective.  Does knowing this excuse my overzealous behavior?  Probably not.  So I just plead "Artist" and smile sweetly.  I just want it how I want it.  And the labels do look pretty cool.

I'm not suffering too badly.  Here is "Still Life with Gin, Tonic and Felted Roses", to illustrate that I do know how to celebrate.  This moment marked the completion of all the book knitting, at 2AM on Monday 10-20, to be precise.  I felt like it must be time for a little something.  Then I slept on my face without twitching for 4 hours and woke up in time to make my children pancakes before school.  I wanted them to celebrate, too. 

Now there are just a few more ends to weave in before the sweaters and I take our trip to Interweave Press on Friday.  Wonder what that will be like!

And Now, A Word From Our Sponsor

Good evening viewers.
In response to my desperate plea for backup/fresh horses. My esteemed associate and sometime spouse has gamely agreed (okay, I did have to throttle him) to write a guest post for me.  This is damned neighborly of him, as my whole life careens towards publication deadline.  Proof positive that backup is just another service P. Huff provides. So without further ado, the fascinating insights of my favorite non-knitter, to wit:

As she mentioned, my lovely wife is up to her eyeballs in fiber-related activities and emergencies, so fine readers, you get to hear her dutiful husband’s thoughts today.  Note to others: don’t acquire kittens while writing a knitting book. They cause serious yarn carnage…often.

My infrequent musings will ask questions and look at woolen joy from the Non-Knitters (NKs) perspective.  The idea is to stimulate conversation and further understanding between the thread enthusiasts and the prominent NKs in your life.

I’m a film-buff, always have been, always will be.  My tastes are quite eclectic and varied (insert film genre cliché here) and true viewing passions lean toward the geeky side (classic martial arts, midnight horror films, all things Star Trek and Wars.) One of the proudest moments of my life was watching Mary explain to a mutual friend why Star Trek: First Contact was superior to the final two films in the series.  I swear, I got tears in my eyes.  

This is the first movie I took her to when we started dating.
I had already seen it three times...she went out with me anyway.

With two young children and plenty to do we don’t make it to the theaters as much as we used to.  We see 90% of our films at home, and…watching fast-moving films with an avid knitter could actually drive me to…turn.off.the.tv.  I promise you, no one wants that.

Here’s my problem; film is a visual art.  It relies on images moving at a rapid pace, often if done well, without dialogue.  If a viewer of said film is focused on finishing “at least four more rows” logic dictates they will not be able to actually ‘watch’ the movie they are supposedly interested in seeing. How does my wife resolve this? By asking me every thirty seconds “what happened? What did I miss? Why are they there? Who’s that? Is THAT what they look like” etc. This gets veeeeeery old reeeeeeeeal fast.  I’m annoyed after the opening credits finish, and there’s two hours to go. I’ve made my concessions: marriage is all about the give and take, and I’m capable. I have grown used to watching movies with the lights on, it’s not my preferred method, but I am happy to ruin a little of the cinematic ambiance that darkness provides so the Mrs. can continue her projects.  I watch foreign films on my own on nights when she has gone to bed early.  Knitting and subtitles do NOT mix, and I acknowledge that listening to an unknown tongue for 120 minutes would be highly irritating. I’ve found that romantic comedies aren’t as taxing for either of us, as most of the conflict and resolution is through dialogue, and we all know how most of them end before they start. 

Knitters, I need some suggestions, from you and especially from your NKs.  Today’s question: “How do you get through a film without grabbing one of the knitter’s size ten needles and using it irresponsibly?!”

I’m not one to pose questions without offering at least one solution. Here’s mine: Two “what did I miss because I wasn’t watching” questions per half hour of film.  This keeps the knitter informed, and lets the NK focus on the film’s merits, or lack thereof.

Okay, my first post is almost finished.  Knitters? How do you watch movies with your NKs? Any comments or viewing tips are appreciated.

Thanks,

Phillip

That Whooshing Sound

is the noise made by my first deadline blowing past.  10-15-08 was originally the day that all my samples and patterns were meant to be complete.  Fortunately for me, I gained a few extra days by deciding to deliver my stuff to the publisher, rather than ship it.  The sweaters and I are going for a plane ride!  I am cautiously optimistic that the items for delivery will be in knitted, rather than yarn form, but please don't quote/jinx me. 

Tune in next time for the story of how I made yarn.  You'll laugh, you'll cry; It's better than "CATS".