When ADD Strikes...

I'm actually not entirely comfortable with the term ADD because it implies a fault or disorder. In reality, most situations in life are just too dull to hold the attention of our active minds. We need stimulation... in some form or another (and no, I'm not talking economic... although I could say plenty about that too). Now a couple of my sons have the "H" factor in the equation so they're always looking for physical stimulation in the form of sports, somersaults in the living room, and antagonizing their brothers until a good ol' wrestling match ensues.

I don't have that "H" factor though. Nah... I'm pretty good here on the couch for, well, more than I care to admit. But I do need to feed my brain. With everything going on around here, that's usually not a problem. But some days... well some days I need a little more entertainment and I might redesign my blog by poking around in html templates that I have no busy messing with but provides me with hours of stimulation while I attempt to change a single margin through trial and error.

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Now one of the worst things that can happen to me, is to end up with a whole day to just relax. That happened last week and so I poked through the several knitting projects thinking I was going to finish a sweater or pair of socks (not that I'm even close to either of these but I'm not very realistic either). But nothing was good enough. What I really wanted to do was cast on 375 stitches using an unfamiliar cast-on for a new shawl.



So I started Ene's Scarf from Scarf Style with some Malabrigo Sock yarn in Alcaucil. Interestingly enough, Alcaucil is Spanish for artichoke... which seems odd for a blackish yarn. But I've noticed when it's in the right light, it most definitely has some greenish undertones. It's really beautiful.

Anyway, I cast on in groups of 25 which were counted and recounted consistently. In the (very lengthy) process I learned that my ability to count to 25 is consistently superb. However, my ability to count to 15 (the number of groups of 25 I needed to equal 375 stitches) needs improvement.

I'm glad I stuck with it though because I'm really enjoying this pattern. It's a triangular shawl, but knit from the outside in towards the center neck so each row gets a tiny bit shorter!

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One of my great ADD treats occurred a couple of weeks ago when The Loopy Ewe announced that they had put together a special Valentine's Day kit that was going to posted in their "Sneak-Up" that week. It was a beautiful kit that included a beautiful skein of specially dyed red Tempted Yarns sock yarn, an adorable project bag from 3AM Enhancements, a pattern, and a measuring tape. What's not to love about a special, limited edition kit? Forget whether or not I actually needed anything included, let me assure you... I needed this kit.

And... all I had to do to get one, was stay near the computer and refresh the "What's New" page at The Loopy Ewe every so often (5-15 minutes) throughout the day until it came up! Then snag one as quickly as possible and check out before they sold out. (Things fly off the shelf at TLE!) Weeeeee!

But it was worth it...



Don't you think? :-)

Happy Valentines Day Friends!