non-isolationism

pattern writing is not something

that i would do alone

by any means.

i design,

but there are

oh so many people involved

and my ideas would surely be lost,

in the swirl of the details,

without all the help.

as i wrote ‘asa‘ out,

the line-up went something like this:

1st there was wallace & gromit in ‘a close shave’

inspiring the super bulky yarn & thick stripes.

next my cousin j, who

held the corners of my sketch flat

against the warm ocean breezes of vacation

while i snapped quick photos at dusk for the official proposal

and a larger

troupe of cousins

were hugely responsible

for entertaining me with their rowdy laughter

while i knit, and reknit,  until the swatch was ‘just right’.

fourthly, it took spud and chloe supplying

all the necessary super bulky to knit the final sweater.

(they’ve just added new colors to all 3 of their yarns.

check them out here & here & here.

gorgeous, no?)

fifthly, it took the camaraderie of m

sitting on the livingroom floor very late into the night,

as we scribbled out rectangles & math formulas (& laughed at our ‘skills’)

to accurately determine just how many yards each different size sweater required.

then, of course, my faithful friends at taunton s’n’b

who helped me make a final choice of buttons when i teetered,

on the edge of resorting to ‘eenie, meeni, miney moe’, in the depths of indecision.

and up 6th is a for the super fast, super helpful test-knitting

(in bright pink and yellow, no less.  how girly fun!)

while over the oceans from me, j was creating the schematic.

brandy fortune was up next taking the photos

that produced the final, adorable, pictures.

along with the rest of the gals

for their tireless efforts

to put out the consistent, high quality

on-line magazine that petite purls always is.

then, after all these fingers in the pie,

the pattern finally sees the ‘light of day’.

and if those who came in contact with it to this point

were willing to be honest about any weaknesses in my original idea

and to enhance the strengths of the pattern as it came together,

then there is satisfaction at the end of the process for me.

in the case of ‘asa’

there was also an afternoon visit

to my favorite lys where i loaded up

on new yarns that fueled fresh ideas to start the process all over again…

‘laughter’ taken from 8:21 in job.

and out.

[first turn up the base, squash the muddy mid-tones, and fiddle with the high end

… until you get the sound just right.  now you’re ready to ‘listen’

to my ride home from vacation which was uncharacteristically childless

since there were 3 cars and 3 grown-ups

and i somehow ended up quietly

behind the wheel

by myself.]

‘feel the rain on your skin

no-one else can feel it for you’

(unknown late 80’s artist)

‘sooner or later you sleep in your own space

either way it’s ok, you wake up with yourself’

(billy joel ‘my life’)

*insert smokin’ tom petty harmonica here*

‘when we were weak, we told ourselves we were strong,

and when we were very weak we told ourselves we were very strong’

(‘fresh air’ with terry gross)

‘baby, i’m ‘n luv wi’chou.’

(random reggae because i so am a radio channel surfer)

‘teen age hopes knock, knocking at the door

leave you with nothing while asking for more’

(indie rock)

‘what you are is what you are or were’

(80’s weekend angst)

‘don’t go changing, to try and please me

you’ve never let me down before.

don’t imagine, you’re too familiar

and i don’t see you anymore…’

(just a little more billy)

*note the mad bass and the swirl of the leslie (organ) in this next one by ‘the who’.

it’d be a shame to miss it since only the smallest clip has become the csi theme song*

‘… get down on our knees and pray we won’t be fooled again…’

‘smoking guns – hot to the touch

would cool down if we didn’t use them so much.’

(hall & oates dance/pop)

‘and even as i wander i’m keeping you in sight

you’re a cool breeze in the window

of a long, hot summer night

and i’m getting closer…’

(reo speedwagon)

and then i was at the grocery to stock up the empty fridge feeling ‘confungry’

(confused and hungry as defined by motel 6 of  “we’ll leave the light on for you” fame),

but almost home, sweet home.

‘ready’ taken from 14:8 in first corinthians.

i am here.

i am not bike riding, although some of my cousins are.

and i am not driving, because all the places i want to be are right under my feet.

i am just being, soaking it all in.

‘being’ taken from 2:7 of genesis.