Happy New Year!

Oh dear, I have been so remiss. I really didn’t mean to disappear over the holidays, but things got insane in my personal and academic life, and something had to give. Sadly, it was knitting.

I didn’t finish any of the handmade gifts I was working on this Christmas. I didn’t even start most of them. Since they were mostly for my immediate family, who saw firsthand the stress I was under, there was no issue giving them cards with an image of the pattern and yarn I was planning for them, to be given at some point before next Christmas.

I didn’t finish most of what I planned for this year. Looking at my knitting resolutions, it’s tempting to be discouraged.

I didn’t knit a pair of socks every month, I didn’t dye my own yarn again, I didn’t learn the techniques I planned (though I made some progress with the Christmas gifts I did start), and I let scores of WIPs languish. I didn’t post the mini-pattern I meant to, I didn’t write posts on mordanting and dyeing (those will come soon, though, since I have to write about them for lab reports due next week), and I didn’t even mention the rank horror that was indigo dyeing.

The only area where I succeeded this year was not buying any more yarn (except for gifts), and here I slipped up a touch too. I didn’t even have time to round up all the things I knit in 2008 and make one of those sexy mosaics I keep seeing on all my favorite blogs.

I’ve decided, though, to be okay with that. Knitting isn’t a chore – it’s something I do to relax and unwind. To the extent that I enjoy learning new things, using nice materials, and creating beautiful objects, knitting is a very satisfying diversion. I will work harder to keep this in mind in 2009.

As such, I do have goals for 2009. I have plans, ideas, visions, and dreams. To begin, I will catch up with 2008 knits, and we’ll go from there.

I hope you all had safe and happy holidays, and I look forward to getting back in touch soon!