There are so many fun projects pulling me in so many different directions. Socktober. Snowmelt KAL. Hale-Bopp KAL. Loopy Academy. I can’t do everything . . and then there are all the spring gardening chores and work with the fruit trees.
But, there’s a shawl pattern, Meet Me in the Middle, I saw yesterday and a KAL that starts February 19 and goes through the end of March.
Even if you are not a knitter, please click on the link and read the designer’s words. She lives in southern Siberia but what she wrote seems so applicable to our situation here in the United States right now.
There is so much political strife and division and anger and hostility, it breaks my heart. Yesterday I was telling Vince about some things happening on Ravelry and I was telling him how uncomfortable I feel there these days. It isn’t because of fact that there’s so much disagreement over the election but it’s because some people have chosen to use words that I just don’t want to see in print or even hear spoken. If I were in my favorite restaurant or at my favorite any thing and those words were spoken on a regular basis, I would stop going. Vince said “I guess you’re going to have to find a new place to hang out” and that made me sad . . I’ve learned so much through Ravelry, met so many nice people and, whether I’m being a prude or whatever . . it just doesn’t feel the same for me right now. Hopefully things will calm down and I will feel differently soon.
But, just when I was feeling a bit of despair, I came across the Meet Me in the Middle shawl, read the words from this Siberian knitter and felt a bit more comfortable. I’m going to do this KAL . . even if it means not doing Sock Madness. I need to associate with knitters who want to work together, with knitters who realize it’s ok to have different opinions, that calling names and saying bad words is NOT working together.
So, check it out. If you go to the knitter’s Ravelry group (link on the pattern page), there’s a code (or there was last night) where you can get the pattern for free.
Now . . to dig through the stash and see what I can find to use. I’m sure I have two skeins of some fingering weight yarn that will work just fine for this project.
Helene says
Your words ring so true and honest to me. I too am so tired of the name-calling, hate, belittling, and distrust that has gone rampant in our nation. I want to just hide in a little corner away from the nastiness. The words of the shawl designer are lovely. I’m glad you’ll be joining the knit-along and i hope you’ll meet some lovely knitters.
JudyL says
I don’t understand the hateful actions. Not everyone (maybe no one) is thrilled with the election and with the way things are going but I think it says more about those who are being hateful than it says about Trump or his followers. I feel bad for people who have never learned you don’t win every battle. I feel bad for people who are so angry that they are letting it consume them. I feel bad for them. I’m sorry for them but I don’t want to hear or read vile, angry, hurtful words!
Joyce says
I haven’t encountered anything like that on Ravelry, and I hope I don’t! The groups I’m in go out of their way to make sure everyone feels comfortable and that areas of dissent are off limits. I’m sorry you’ve not had that experience in Ravelry.
JudyL says
Lucky you but I don’t know how you missed it. The owner of a very popular yarn shop had quite a bit to say one day and I left the group. She later removed the “potentially inflammatory content”. I’m not mad at her . . her shop, her Ravelry group . . her opinion and her right but it’s also my right to choose where I shop and it will not be that shop ever again. There is likely never going to be an election where 100% of the people are 100% happy with the outcome but to say hurtful and hateful things . . not good.
Also, the most popular pattern on Ravelry (front page of “patterns”) has the F*** word plastered across the front of it so if you go to “Patterns” to see what’s new, that’s what you see. Again, the folks who created Ravelry seem fine with it and it’s their playground. I choose to stay or I choose to keep my mouth shut and play along but it’s not the fun place for me that it once was.
carol fun says
Yes I too am fed up with all the political nastiness that is pervading blogs and IG and FB, etc. Everyone it entitled to their opinions but I’ve had to quite following some people because the rhetoric is just too much. There isn’t any discussion, it is just people shouting their side and refusing to listen to any other point of view…They preach tolerance but don’t seem to practice it. I just want to knit and quilt and cross stitch and look at pretty stuff… save the arguments for another day. I’ve even suggested to some people that they have 2 separate accounts …one for the art/craft… the other for the politics…they don’t want to do that so I ‘m not visiting them any more… and it makes me sad.
Very pretty shawl… I’ve purchased the pattern and I’m printing it out now… surely I can find some yarn in my stash…thanks for posting this! I read your blog everyday and love checking into your life… thanks for sharing. .
justquiltin says
Hmm what might I have in the stash that will work? I saw that pattern in my highlights on Rav. I do like that designer’s patterns – there’s a hat of hers I want to make also and I still want to make a sweater with her winter weeds design on the back. If I wanted to try variegated I’d be tempted to use my Winter Wollies club fabric from January – plenty of yardage but I’ll have to think on that.
and I agree with you about Rav and the rude comments, rude patterns that have cropped up – I’ve dropped out of several groups because I’m not on Ravelry to discuss politics, or who has the worst boss, or say rude things about one’s own family members – I’m there to talk knitting and yarn, etc.
marcille says
I just need to say, Amen!
Melody Wathor says
Thank you, Judy. MI feel the same way.
Lisa G Boyer says
Yes, I feel the same way. I don’t understand all these so-called “tolerant” people being so intolerant. And the language! So disrespectful of roughly half the country! So full of rage and hate. I have unfollowed half the blogs and sites I used to visit, and it breaks my heart. I don’t need a dose of anger every morning when all I want to do is immerse myself in handmade happiness.