The Hurry Up Slow Down

Why is it that some days, some weeks actually, the more I try to hurry or get this or that accomplished, the slower things seem to move for me?  It's like I can't get ahead no matter what I try to do.

Or so it does seem to be at times.

Last week, for example, I had planned -in my mind -that I was going to bake a batch of rye bread probably around Friday to have fresh bread for Mother's Day and some then to freeze as well. Guess what didn't get made?

I put my embroidery stuff up on the shelf about 10-11 days ago in order to give my right thumb and index finger a bit of a rest as they were both getting really raggedy from way too many pricks with the darned needle. And, in the interim, I started to play with some of the yarn I happen to have in my stash. Seemed like a really good idea to me.

I have had this pattern waiting in the wings for about 3 years now that I wanted to make a cape for myself from the leaflet. I had initially purchased this particular leaflet oh, about 40 years ago now and had made this particular cape before -made it for my Mom and was quite pleased with the way it had turned out. I was not then (nor am I now either) a very fast knitter but back then, I also had a 6-year-old and a 6-month-old to tend to, along with a house, husband, a growing Avon Route as well so didn't have much time to spend sitting and just knitting then. As a result, I had started this particular project in early spring that year (1974) with the grand idea in mind I could have it finished in time for Mother's Day that year and could present it to my Mom then for that occasion.

You know, don't 'cha, that old adage about the best laid plans of mice and men? Well, that sure applied to my timetable with respect to making that cape! Mother's Day arrived and I was no where near being finished with my project so I thought, oh well, I'll get it done for Mom's birthday (which was in November). Surely that would give me enough time? Wrong again. November came and went and no finished cape so I moved the plan up that the cape would be my Christmas present to her but even that whizzed by and the cape, although much further along, closer to being completed, still wasn't done.

I finally managed to get it completed in late January of 1975! Took me close to a year to get it done but I was very happy that I did finally finish it and gave it to my Mom as a very belated Mother's Day, Birthday and Christmas gift.

I had a lot of trepidation about giving this to her though as she was very much a perfectionist about all things hand made and prior to making this cape, anything I had tried to make for her came under really heavy scrutiny and often, she would even be seen taking seams out, resewing things -stuff like that which had a tendency to anger my ex-husband and needless to say, it did hurt my feelings at times when she would get a bit overboard on the perfectionism stuff.

Amazingly, she liked the cape! I was astonished, really I was! But she liked it, wore it a lot over the last four years of her life then too. I don't know today what eventually  happened to the cape after she passed because I can't remember giving it to someone else and definitely can't picture that I would have possibly discarded it because for me to throw something out, it has to have virtually no usefulness whatsoever left in it! I tend to be very much on the "packrat" side of life. Not quite up to being a hoarder although my kids accuse me of hoarding embroidery, knitting or crochet supplies and kits, etc.

Anyway, over the years, I had somehow managed to lose or misplace the leaflet with this particular pattern in it. Once I got my own computer and learned about things like Vintage Shops online, I went on a search and destroy mission and lucked out when I found a little place in Oregon that had two children's/babies knit pattern books along with this particular leaflet I'd been hunting and so I ordered the three items. I've now been keeping this leaflet under close wraps (so as to not lose it again) and planning to remake this particular cape for myself.

This winter, I found some yarn on sale that looked like it would work to use to make the cape, so I purchased more than enough quantity to make it. Last Sunday, I decided with the embroidery stuff on hiatus for a little while, the time had come for me to get brave and try again to make myself this cape.

I started work on it and things were progressing -not exactly by leaps and bounds, but moving along all the same. That is until Friday evening when it all came to a stop as I completed the 23rd row of the pattern and realized there was an error some where along the way. Actually, I had made some earlier errors in the pattern but had found them early on -except for one that I had to rip clear back to the ribbing at the neckline -but anyway, I had cleared those errors, reknitted up to row 23 and boom! My count was off by 2 stitches which I couldn't find where I had erred to end up with these two extra stitches on my needle. What was even more disconcerting was that in the beginning of that row, it appeared there that I would end up short stitches, not with two extra ones and being sort in that part of the pattern would throw the entire appearance of the finished product way off center!

I posted of my dilemma on a knitter's forum site I subscribe to in hopes someone who participates there and is a much more accomplished knitter than I would see my post and be able to offer a solution. Although I did get a tiny bit of feedback on that site, no one -thus far -has come forward to offer me any type of suggestion to fix my problem! So there I am now -stuck!

What really annoys me about this though is that when I made this cape 40 years ago, I had no problems interpreting the pattern -just mainly had delays due to lack of free time to work on it. Today, I have a good bit of "free" time to spend and here I am, confounded by the damned pattern! Go figure that one out, will ya?

So, the cape stuff is now on top of my mantel, waiting patiently -unlike me, as I am very impatient about this mess -but anyway, that's where it is right now. In the meantime, I picked up some other yarns (since I have a pretty healthy supply of that substance to choose from) and have crocheted 3 wash clothes and a place mat since Sunday! Not any major feat for anyone who is a really accomplished crafter-knitter-crocheter person but good for me because I tried two new patterns and got them  finished then without any major ripouts or screwups!

I'm still in the process of trying to learn more too about how to go about applying for a reverse mortgage -not sure how to start that process yet -as I think this may possibly be the only solution possible for me to remain in my family homestead for whatever length of time I may have available to live independently. So far, I haven't come across anything that sends up alarm signals to me -as my one couÇin warned me about things that he had heard about this process that could be detrimental but I'm trying to be very cautious about how I proceed with this idea.

Last week was also a very upsetting week for both Mandy and for me with respect to Kurtis. His behavior issues had resurfaced and he was becoming borderline for even possibly being suspended -if you can picture a first grader being suspended! Well, it could happen! Or, he could possibly be held back too and have to repeat first grade because of his poor choices and bad behavior. That would be a shame too as academically, he's doing very well. Just has a whole lot of difficulty following behaviorial directions though. Thankfully, none of the behaviors this time involved mooning other students or teacher like we had to deal with back during the winter months! Just hope thing finally settle down for the kid because he is basically such a little sweetheart.

Mother's Day here, came and went -older daughter and grandson came up for dinner and my son joined us for Sunday's main meal then too of baked chicken breast with provolone cheese and ham, candied sweet potatoes, creamed corn and two different desserts -strawberry shortcake or chocolate-peanut butter cream pie! Just the type of meal any diabetic really needs, isn't it? Heavy duty on the carbs and starches and sugar content!

So that brings me pretty much up to date with today now. Still having frequent bouts dealing with the depression but I keep telling myself to work through it, things will iron out, eventually -just hoping that it irons out without scorching too much in the process though!

Hope everyone else had a great Mother's Day celebration with family surrounding you. I am very blessed in that all three of my kids, all three of my grandkids too, are close enough to where I live that we were able to be together. This will probably be the last year we will be able to do that with relative ease once Mandy and the children move down towards Harrisburg sometime this summer.

Maya told me one day last week that she doesn't want to move away from here and she hopes her Mom changes her mind about this. Well, I wish she would have a change of heart about that too but I don't really think that's ever going to happen now. Just hope whatever move she does make that it all works out for the best for her.

And that's pretty much how my last week here as moved along!

Hope yours has been a whole lot better!