Yeah, yeah, yeah
I know. I had big plans for my brother’s sweater. I was going to finish the body the other day. I only had two inches left, so I was pretty confident about meeting this modest goal. Well. Erm. I still have an inch to go on the body. I haven’t had much knitting time lately. I’ve been splitting my time between work and writing. Oh, and this pesky thing that those of us suddenly in grad school after years in the working world like to refer to as “classes.” Weird still, being back in school.
Tomorrow (today by the time most of you read this) the boy and I will pile into a rental car and head upstate to my cousin’s wedding. You know what that means. Car knitting! Maybe I’ll arrive at the wedding with a yoke in progress to show my brother. I’ll post pictures of the sweater progress on Sunday. I know. Exciting. I hope you can wait that long to see photos of a mostly black st st sweater.
I’ve spent all day alternately writing and avoiding writing, and I’m feeling a bit loopy as a result. Forgive me. I could have gotten a lot of knitting done while avoiding writing, but to do that would have been to admit that I was avoiding writing. So instead I played solitaire. I made lists of themes and images popping up and repeating in my freewrites for the novel (I freewrite my first drafts of everything). These lists are pretty much useless because of the way I write, but they made me feel productive and anyway I love to make lists. (Some recurring images/themes: layers, blue, green, distorted images, water, garbage.) I made a new playlist on my iTunes. It’s the soundtrack for my main character–the music she would be listening to or hearing in her head as the story unfolds. She likes Cat Power and the Long Winters. And only one song by Bruce Springsteen: “Atlantic City.” She also likes “Reelin’ in the Years,” but I wish she didn’t. I’ve been listening to her playlist as I write. I’d like to report it’s helping, but it’s too soon to tell. I’ve done a few more pages today, and at least three paragraphs of that are keepers.
So tomorrow the wedding. I love my family, but I hate weddings. Hate bar and bat mitzvahs. I’m not a dress-up-function person. Forgive me. Or don’t. Tomorrow I will have to wear heels and my mother will pinch my cheeks and say I look pale and beg me to put on a little makeup. I will not. Mascara and lip balm are about as far as I go. Billy will be wearing a suit. Oh joy. Can’t we just have a picnic instead?
I like going to weddings where I am “and guest,” and know no one outside of my date and perhaps one or two other people. Otherwise, I get the “when’s it going to be your turn?” (“so nu?” optional) and I hate that. I want to channel my inner banshee and scream, “NEVERRRRRRR!” and then cackle and run off…THEN they’d never bother me again. So: here’s hoping you got a LOT of car knitting done!
Posted by: Em
I love it that she has a soundtrack! Love it love it love it! I don’t let my characters have music, aren’t I mean? I’m too frightened that I’ll conform right around the songs, getting maudlin with the weepy ones and hard-ass with the rockin’ ones. Makes me feel like I have less control over the writing. I think that’s just me being scared, though. I think maybe I’ll give my protag a song or two and see what happens….. Have a great (or as good as possible in a dress) time today.
Posted by: Rachael
Refuse to wear pantyhose or wear makeup….God I can only hope our MOTHERS don’t meet each other bloggin’ cuz they’ll sigh and say…
we tried, Lord knows, we tried…
(giggle)
Does your Mother send you the makeup samples she gets for being a frequent flyer? I get them every year for christmas….honest to GOD…and SOMEBODY keeps signing me up for the free pair of silkies pantyhose….hmmmmmm.
Hope you get MILES of blissfull car knitting!
Posted by: greta
I was lucky. When I was in high school and wanted to wear makeup, my mother would say, “You don’t need makeup! Why do you want to wear it? It’ll ruin your skin!” If she ever saw me in heels, she’d say, “They’ll ruin your feet! Where are the Birkenstocks I bought you?” Do you want me to send her over?
Posted by: alison
I like going to weddings where I am “and guest,” and know no one outside of my date and perhaps one or two other people. Otherwise, I get the “when’s it going to be your turn?” (“so nu?” optional) and I hate that. I want to channel my inner banshee and scream, “NEVERRRRRRR!” and then cackle and run off…THEN they’d never bother me again. So: here’s hoping you got a LOT of car knitting done!
Posted by: Em
I love it that she has a soundtrack! Love it love it love it! I don’t let my characters have music, aren’t I mean? I’m too frightened that I’ll conform right around the songs, getting maudlin with the weepy ones and hard-ass with the rockin’ ones. Makes me feel like I have less control over the writing. I think that’s just me being scared, though. I think maybe I’ll give my protag a song or two and see what happens….. Have a great (or as good as possible in a dress) time today.
Posted by: Rachael
Refuse to wear pantyhose or wear makeup….God I can only hope our MOTHERS don’t meet each other bloggin’ cuz they’ll sigh and say…
we tried, Lord knows, we tried…
(giggle)
Does your Mother send you the makeup samples she gets for being a frequent flyer? I get them every year for christmas….honest to GOD…and SOMEBODY keeps signing me up for the free pair of silkies pantyhose….hmmmmmm.
Hope you get MILES of blissfull car knitting!
Posted by: greta
I was lucky. When I was in high school and wanted to wear makeup, my mother would say, “You don’t need makeup! Why do you want to wear it? It’ll ruin your skin!” If she ever saw me in heels, she’d say, “They’ll ruin your feet! Where are the Birkenstocks I bought you?” Do you want me to send her over?
Posted by: alison