Monday, October 8, 2007

So this is hello.

Hi. This is me. I like to call myself autumn's daughter, as my birthday is in October (the third) and I think that this led to my fascination with fall leaves, pumpkins, apples and the like.

I am a thoroughly addicted coffee drinker. I suppose it could be worse- I could be addicted to infomercials or cheap booze, but coffee is my poison. I love lattes, mochas, anything that sounds pseudo-Italienne, and more expensive than its worth.

I am also in love with knitting. It is my constant companion. It has seen me through final exams, lost loves, frustrating lines, impossible deadlines, and my world disintegrating and being reborn. I love that companionable hum of wool laced through my fingers, and the scent of raw alpacas. I love the warmth of birch needles, and the subtle touch of color in heathered yarns.

More about me? Well, I sing. Opera to be specific, but I guess most of the time I'd rather listen to Etta James than Birgit Nilsson. Not that I don't love Birgit, but I can only take so much intensity at once. Etta soothes me soul and brings me back to earth. In a way, so does knitting.

In my day to day life, I am juggling coursework- geology, statistics- courses I hate- along with practicing the technique, the finessing of my voice into something lovely and beautiful. But the work of singing is rarely as beautiful as the result. Made up of endless repetition of exercises, the methodical memorizing of words, the tedious diction... well, it can get to be too much for me. That's when I pick up the sticks and reconnect with my inner crafter.

Or, when I am flying high before a performance, jittery beyond hope, literally quaking in my boots, I've got knitting backstage to give my hands something to do. It brings me back to life, to the cycle of life... from grass to sheep to wool to sweater, it seems so natural to me, and reminds me that a colleague's hissy fit in the dressing room is not my problem. It reminds me to keep me feet on the ground when to going gets tough, and to remember what life is really about- the joy of living, the pleasure of sensory beauty, the ease with which everything thrives. It reminds me that life is good, and earnest, and fun. This is why I knit.











1 comment:

Kay-From the Back Yard said...

We share the October birthday, coffee addiction and I like Etta James, too. Classical and jazz music are part of my daily listen. And of course, Knitting. What else is there?