Your opinion please

I am well aware of the saying that if you knit a boyfriend a sweater/jumper he won't be your boyfriend for long and wondered whether my bloggy mates might be able to help with a dilemma around this theme. Cute neighbour guy who has been a constant in my life for the last 10 weeks would really, really like me to knit him a sweater. I have shared the superstition with him which he believes to be utter tosh and part of me goes along with him. BUT.. do I want to tempt fate and go ahead and knit him one!! I know it would be a test of faith to do so, after all I believe this was meant to be and it is all working so nicely that truth be told I would be a bit upset should it suddenly fizzle out. Yet if it's going to last then it will regardless of a jumper, won't it? So I was just wondering whether anyone can help. he doesn't want socks or a beanie. Do I say fiddlesticks to superstition, I laugh in the face of such foolishness ha ha, or do I bow to the weight of those who have gone before and already wept their tears?

You know someone really cares when

despite not terribly conducive weather, a lawn the size of a small country a million other things they have to do and a lawn mower that's decidedly temperamental they offer to cut your grass.
It was a mammoth job, and one that I had been putting to the bottom of my very long to-do list for at least 8 weeks. Hey I reasoned more to myself than anyone who actually cared, in winter grass doesn't grow much and besides I didn't have a spare 3days, to get stuck in unless of course it involved knitting a lawn. That I might have done. I thought about bribing/threatening the children but frankly three of them are bigger than me and the smallest couldn't manage on her own. I bemoaned the fact slavery was abolished several hundred years ago but moaning didn't get the grass cut surprisingly. Then last night inspired by a glimpse of sun I decided to tackle several spiky plants the size of triffids clearly intent on taking over my home sometime in the next week and went to cute neighbour guy to borrow a spade. He lent me the spade but then came down to see what needed doing. At this point I was doing my best independent female routine which doesn't really work as I weigh less than a bag of cement apparently.



Cute guy then says, I'll do all of this tomorrow. And he did. And he told me to go and knit while he did it all. It took three hours. My hero. It would have taken me three months at least mostly because I would have been distracted after the first five minutes and got involved with something else, then I would have gone for a drink, then something to eat, then... you get the idea.
I am so pleased and excited at having a nice garden again. I even got the hammock out for a while despite it not being the best weather yet. Spring is on the way though and now I can enjoy being outside again.
But there's more if you can bear to read on. A few weeks ago we went to a DIY store, I know, not my first choice of shopping experience but cute neighbour guy wanted to choose some paint for his bathroom and he convinced me to go with the lure of pink pegs. I had a great time but alas not a single pink peg to be found. I was disappointed because I needed the pink pegs to motivate me to finish a project. Then yesterday when I called in to spend some time with my cute neighbour guy he presented me with pink pegs!!



My joy was complete. I offer no apologies for being a simple easy to please soul. So here is the finished item and a picture of the pegs.



My neighbour is awesome.

The Rules For Being Human : Pearls Of Wisdom

The Rules For Being Human : Pearls Of Wisdom

Another FO and an update

It has a been a busy time for me, trying to meet all my regular commitments and failing spectacularly. I have managed to keep up my knitting, things would be looking dire indeed if I had needed to sacrifice knitting time. So I have another FO. This has been made in Sirdar's Balmoral, in the purple. I fell in love with the colour the instant I saw it and even though it was way out of budget at $11 a ball, I had to have it. The jumper is a Zhivago pattern, from their book of weekend knits which incidentally doesn't mean you can knit the patterns in a weekend. I wish. No the patterns are more casual and suited for weekend living. I first knit this pattern about five years ago in a beautiful deep teal. I loved it. Unfortunately so did my daughter and eventually she was able to persuade me that she was the right size for it to be reluctantly handed over. She loved it. She wore it as much as I had and then mysteriously it disappeared. Perhaps it had been stolen by a Zhivago loving bandit, perhaps the dogs had mauled it, perhaps another sister had cut it into mini blankets for bratz dolls. We went with the first choice as there were no traces to indicate the other two possibilities. We have since come to the conclusion that it was most likely a washing accident perpetrated by the one who has now left.
So I resolved o make myself another one or two. I have already cast on in Zhivago sage green for another one. And daughter has agreed to buy the yarn so I can knit her one of her very own, as mine won't fit her any more.


I have no idea about the date on the picture they were both taken the same day. Perhaps eldest daughter's camera was fixed on the wrong date.

The best thing about the purple jumper apart from how nicely it fits, the cable panel which is also on the back and what a gorgeous colour it is, is that it was knitted on cute neighbour guy's mum's needles. He's so amazed by the fact. I have been spending quite a lot of time at the neighbours, just being neighbourly you know how important it is to get to know people who live nearby. At least now I no longer need an excuse to go by. And he makes me a cup of tea while I drone on about all wonderful things knitting related, like how I found The Yarn Harlot's meditations for knitters book in the library. Score!! I have to keep reminding myself he's not as interested in the stuff as I am, but whenever I glance at him he's smiling so that's a good sign right? Besides, he's found a very effective way of changing the subject and while I really love wool and yarn, I am liking his tactics a lot. We keep pretending we'll be bored with each other soon, after all how many cups of tea does it take for the attraction to wear off, but then I remind him just how long I've loved tea, and he says perhaps it will be about the same time I get fed up with knitting. We both feel pretty confident that's never going to happen. Besides he just gets cuter.

The time has come

to remember that this is supposed to be a knitting blog, and not romance update central, although there have been developments with wonderful neighbour guy. First let me share a project recently finished after being on the needles for three years. Three years! I have no idea why it stayed there so long, I only had the sleeves to do and I was already halfway through one. My memory is hazy but I think it might have been on the needles when I joined the navy and so was left during training and never picked up again.

So about two months ago in my yarn colour co-ordination exercise which was really another word for procrastinating about actually tidying up I came across it again, remembered how much I loved the colours and yarn (Zhivago, a mix of acrylic and tencel) and committed myself to finishing it. As you can see I did. I love it. It fits beautifully, the colours are so fresh and vibrant just right for dull winter weather and it's so soft to wear. It makes me think of ocean breezes and summer days.

To other things then, the needles from gorgeous neighbour guy belonged to his mother who passed away fifteen years ago from breast cancer. I thinking the gift of these needles is actually quite a big deal for him and I don't think he intends to lose contact with them!
We meet several times a day. Usually when I happen to walk past his house and I have discovered many reason to go that way so far I've;

1. put something in the bin by the bus stop,

2. checked the bus times,

3, walked the dogs to the end of the road

4. Walked up to see if daughters are on way home,

5. Posted several letters to fictional friends

We will ignore the fact I have a bin at home, I don't use the bus I use my newly up and running motorbike ( courtesy of gorgeous neighbour guy) or the car, dogs are totally pooped from too many walks, and daughters are already home.

The best bit and the bit that makes me feel a lot less like a stalker is that on my return trip past his house he always happens to be outside, and he always invites me in for a cuppa. We have spent a lot of time having cups of tea and long chats not to mention some kissing ( shhhh don't tell the kids). It would seem that this is indeed the start of something very special.

what are the odds

Of there being a good looking single guy living just four doors way from you who not only happens to like you but gives you knitting needles to boot. I kid you not that's exactly what has happened. I didn't even know this man a week ago when he happened to smile and say hello as I trundled on past with littlest one on the way to school. He does have a rather cute grin! He said hello again as I returned from the school trip and somehow we got talking about firewood of all topics, well it is winter in NZ and it was a cold morning. I mentioned that I needed to get some and he offered to assist. Always a welcome offer. Anyway he was good to his word and on Wednesday a large box of firewood arrived on my doorstep. Naturally I went up to thank him and he then offered to get the pink motorbike back on the road. She's been sadly neglected since Manila and the battery had gone completely flat. I was delighted as I've missed the thrill of zipping along on two wheels. So the bike is fixed, hurrah, but I am making a long story endless which wasn't my intention. To thank him I invite him for a coffee, I know living on the wild side as always, and we get chatting. He's very good at talking and asking questions. Somehow I end up telling him about my knitting addiction. Not usually something I share so early but hey the moment felt right and he jumps up and dashes off. I sit stunned for a minute wondering what aspect of knitting he had a sudden aversion to, the dreaded acrylic word maybe, flashbacks of crazy maiden aunts and lurid colours of Christmas jumpers past. I had barely time to recover when he's back carrying a container full of needles. This is where I feel I may have scuppered things a little because I could barely contain my excitement. I love steel needles for some projects and these were all steel, and lots of 8's and 10's, all I could think of was how many more projects I would be able to cast on with these new needles. Clearly he now thinks of me as totally insane with a very odd penchant for steel needles. I wonder whether he'll take to hiding behind the curtain as I stalk, sorry, walk past. Oh well, I can dream that he will think I'm awesome until then.

Single life

It's funny being single again. I knew it had to be and that it was the right time to walk away but the reality is quite different. In many ways I love it. I like watching what I want on the TV and having control of the remote. I like throwing on some old clothes to slob out on the couch without worrying how bad it looks, I love having the whole bed to myself, apart from the cat of course. I love being spontaneous and doing random things because I don't have to consider anyone else at home. The children are so accepting of my ways and are used to going with the flow. I love sing star Sundays, and lazy reading mornings.....but....there is a part of me that longs to be in partnership again, a part that needs someone else to share things with, someone to be in balance with. I know it's early days yet there is a part of me that is scared of how it will all pan out. How does this dating thing work when you're nearly forty? Is it now OK to call a man or do we still wait for them to take the first step? I have so many questions that at times it feels like my head might spin off into orbit. .
It's not that I need a man to make me whole, I know that I can and do manage on my own. I want one.
Then I stop and remember Rome wasn't built in a day. Jumpers don't knit themselves, stitch by stitch, row by row they grow. Each day passes and brings with it new experiences and one day someone special, someone just right will walk into my life. Single life is about getting ready for that day, enjoying the journey and making the most of life