One Year Anniversary and A Finished Project

Who you are in your journey is who you will be when you arrive. --Geneen Roth

I'm very pleased to be able to share a finished project. It seems like (and it probably is) eons since I finished something, so much so that I was wondering if I should even call this a knitting blog anymore. But never mind that... here's a finished thing for a change: a long, drapey cowl knitted in laceweight Blue Faced Leicester wool. I used the Aperture Wrap by Purl Soho, which was the perfect match for this gorgeous skein: 

I was bound and determined to get this thing finished by today, and so I buckled down all week and made sure I finished a few repeats every day. It's not blocked yet, but I think it really just needs a little soak to even out the stitches and that should be enough.

It's been frustrating to take photos of this project because my phone kept adding too much contrast between the light and darker colours of the yarn. I think this shot is the closest: it's a combination of pale and medium grey, with hints of the palest green here and there. I fell in love with the yarn in the skein, and I'm so glad I still like it as a finished project:

I knitted it as a long rectangle with a provisional crochet cast on, and then grafted it together with a Kitchener stitch. I can never remember how to start a Kitchener stitch graft. It usually starts with me fumbling around with my knitting needles and then sitting motionless with my darning needle in my hand for a few minutes while I scan my brain to find what to do... and then I usually graft the first two stitches before I panic and fumble around holding my knitting with one hand while madly searching for instructions online with another. After all that, I think I did a pretty darn good job with it:

Of course, it is far too warm to be wearing squooshy wool cowls, even if the air-conditioning in the office is a bit... overzealous at times. Still, I think I'm going to get lots of wear out of it once the weather gets cooler. I've been wanting more of a neutral neck warmer for a while now. My only regret is that I don't have a matching hat. Plenty of time for that project, I guess.

Meanwhile, today marks one year since we moved to this house. I can hardly believe how quickly time has flown. I guess this really is our house now because as I was searching in the couch cushions for a stitch marker, I found one of Seymour's bones stashed in there. You know he's feeling secure when he starts stashing stuff:

I admit that I find this anniversary a bit tough. I suppose it's pushing me into that dreaded space where I think about where I was this time last year, both physically, mentally and emotionally... and the inevitable comparisons come. I'm not as fit nor as fast as I was this time last year, and I'm feeling pretty bad about it. Logically, I know our bodies change all the time, but sometimes the ol' brain just doesn't let up. I suppose there's not much I can do except keep trying... and to try and enjoy things as they are, whatever comes...

Like these beautiful lilies which bloomed this week. Gosh, I have a pretty garden. Have a great week!