Six months, no waiting (I warned you!)

This year is flying by. This surprises me, given how rough it has felt. I guess that's how things go sometimes though. I've been thinking about this blog, and coming back to it. I love the idea of sharing my knitterly creations with ....anyone, really. But fact is, I get distracted mid-project and don't finish it, or take a long time, and then forget to take a picture when it is finished. So I've been thinking about other stuff I'd like to write about. Like book reviews. Since I've sent off my thesis to my advisor for its first draft review, I've devoured numerous non-thesis books. But I analyze, it's what I do. I'd like to put some of my thoughts on the things I've been reading down. Let's try this again.

In which things get personal

Things have felt...transitional for about two months, and I'm finally starting to feel like I'm getting settled into a routine, settled into the job and the way I'll be living here. As is always the case with a blog or anything public/private, the question is what is too private or personal. I know I haven't been doing this very long, and I'm still not sure if anyone's even reading, but this is where things are and this is why I haven't really been talking on here:

I spent a week at an orientation set up by my employers, to help prepare newcomers to teach and live in South Korea. And everything was fine and I was excited to see my school and was meeting other foreigners and networking some new, albeit probably temporary friends. Then the orientation ended, abruptly as it so often does, and I was at my new school. And depression set in. I went through a fairly bad bout of it in high school, as I know so many teenagers do, but it just hit again, worse than I'd had in a long time, and settled. It's still there, in the background, and I feel like I've been running for the last month trying to stay ahead of it.

Part of it is culture shock, I know. For anyone who doesn't know, the four stages of culture shock are: you love it, you hate it, you live with(in) it, you leave it and return to your home culture. First time I was out here, I got the honeymoon phase and, except for a few bad days, went straight from that to the live with(in) it stage. I hated rice for about a week, but never detested being here. This time around, it's more like I skipped the honeymoon first stage, and went straight into despising everything. And that's rough, when I'm still adjusting to a new school, to not being near my friends and the dear boyfriend (whose birthday it is, stateside, today. It's already the next day here), to not be able to see what's enjoyable about being here. I have great classes, great experiences, that don't feel as great as the bad stuff feels bad.

So I keep trying, knowing that this too shall pass. I knit, because if it doesn't make me feel better, it relaxes me. I've got multiple FOs to show off from the month I've been here, that I've entirely started and finished, and they just keep rolling out. But that'll have to wait for another day, as I'm at my sister's apartment right now, sans camera. Soon though. Maybe tomorrow.

I'm still alive!

Promise. This month has been a whirlwind of spending time with friends before I left, finally leaving for Korea, going through the orientation that the public schools have us go through, and finally getting to see my school and apartment for the next year. I'm still very much getting settled in, and looking forward to when I have a routine instead of a messy apartment. I had a rough couple days when it finally hit me that I won't be seeing DB until December and that I may not see anyone for whom English is their first language more than once a week for awhile, but I'm getting better. My little sister, who will be teaching at a private school (like tutoring) out here will arrive late Monday night, so I'll see her Tuesday. I may also start teaching Tuesday. So things are getting where they're supposed to be fairly quickly, moving towards "normal."

My plan for today is to bum around until 10:00 AM local time, when I will talk to my family. Then I'm going to take my thesis research, some knitting and a "for fun" book to Hoegi (two stops away from mine by subway) and find a coffee shop I can occupy for several hours. I'll try to do pictures of apartment and etc. soon, but I'm still working on unpacking cords.

It's not what you think....

I purchased my first Barbara Walker book recently, and it arrived in the mail today. Having been an avid knit-blog reader for years, I'm well-aware of who Barbara Walker is in the knitting world, and have made at least one thing derived from one of her patterns. So imagine my confusion/amusement when I accidentally bought one of her books without noticing it. It took Amazon's handy suggestion feature, as well as a trip to Wikipedia to confirm, before I accepted it.

The book? Feminist Fairy Tales. Nothing (externally anyways) that has the least to do with knitting. This isn't so much a thesis-intended book, as one I came across in my readings that seemed worth checking out as a "for fun" book. 'Cause, you know, nothing to do with my thesis whatsoever, fairy tales and feminism...

I finished a pair of mitts for my grandmother. While she was out here for my little sister's graduation, she noticed I was wearing a pair of garter stitch mitts and suggested something similar would be good for her arthritis. I've been starting and restarting a pair for her for a couple months, and finally just went (impending departure is a good motivator, apparently.) I settled on the Nalu mitts, done with Rowan Tweed DK. I'd like it if they were softer, but haven't washed them yet, so that may help. I wanted to finish them before tomorrow, since I'm going down to my parents' house for the last time before I go. This way, I don't have to be responsible for getting the mitts to my grandmother.



Because I go soon (12 days), I realized that there are various things I wanted to make before I go. The mitts were one, but I also make a pair for DB each year because he's SO hard on them. I know I'll never EVER knit him a sweater or socks, so mitts let me express my knitterly affections without hating him and whatever it is I'd make for him. The first Christmas we were together, I made him a pair of convertible mittens that he never wears because they're "too hot," so no more fingers for him. But his hands are so big that I could fit both of mine into ONE of the mittens I made for him, but he still stretches them out when he wears them.

So my current project is making the second and third of Queen City mitts for him. I doubt I'll have any problem getting them done before I go, at the rate I've been doing mitts.

Last Minute Knitting

Two weeks, 3 days. I've been avidly working on what I intend to be an 8-foot scarf (really, I want to make mitts to go with it, so I may make those and knit the scarf until I run out of yarn.) I'm forcing myself to put it aside though, so I can make fingerless mittens for my boyfriend and my grandmother before I go. The scarf is on bamboo needles and is easy to compact, so it'll make for good flight knitting when I go anyways. As I said though, I'm also packing and doing various last-minute things, so will be sporadic for the next few weeks, probably until after the week-long orientation I have once I get there. So brief missives for now.

3 weeks

In three weeks from today (in a purely technical sense, as I think given the time change it'll be three weeks and a day in that sense) I'll be in Korea. This is really kind of sneaking up on me. And given the way things change in an instant, I'm not just packing up what I'm taking with me like I thought. See, one of my roommates is in the process of a divorce, and given custody and whatnot, is probably going to be moving into the space that DB and I now occupy once I leave. Luckily, given that I have lived here since I first returned from Korea 2.5 years ago, I only really have what I brought back from Korea and what I've accumulated since then. With the exception of the computer and etc. that I'm typing this on, that's really mostly books and yarn. Those are either easy to box up, or coming with me. So this is what it looks like now. My life is being reduced to three distinct piles--packing boxes for the garage, luggage for Korea, and trash bags to either donate or throw away. Also a disturbing level of chaos. If I get the inclination, I'll take a few shots of the yarn I'm bringing with me, with explanations of intended projects. Seoul has amazing public transportation, so I'll have lots of time for sitting and knitting. Now if I can just convince myself to start packing.

Wedding Pictures (Picture heavy)

The wedding was on Saturday, finally, and went off pretty much perfectly. There are a lot of things I wish I had gotten pictures of, especially my DB and the other best man (yes, two best men) giving their toast. They did a bit of a comedy routine before getting to the nicer emotional stuff, and it went off perfectly and, according to the maid of honor, almost made the groom cry. That's what happens when you ask two writers to be your best men.

So I wanted mostly to put up some of the favorites of the pictures I took. Also, the shawl. Now, to explain, it was about 97 degrees Fahrenheit and humid, which it is never humid in Colorado. (On a side-note, DB had his hair straightened before the ceremony--you cannot tell in these pictures. That humid.) If I had taken any pictures of the audience just before the ceremony, everyone was in the back three rows for the shade. So no shawl came out, until towards the end of the night when I specifically asked for a few pictures. They're mediocre pictures because I really didn't want to bogart the bride for very long. Here goes (Click pictures to go to Flickr):

A certain best man and me (isn't he handsome?)

The beautiful couple towards the beginning of the ceremony

The couple at the end of the ceremony with one of the flower girls

The two best men and maid of honor walking back (This is probably my favorite non-Bride picture. I love how happy the three of them look, especially our friend on the left.)

The bride's rendition of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Sorry for picture quality--I think you can still see how much fun she's having.)

And finally, THE Shawl!