Diff'rent strokes

Thank you to the blogistas who responded kindly and tolerantly about touch, much appreciated! Different strokes and folks, all that. I think it's important to avoid being dismissive about people whose perceptions are different from our own. 

Speaking of which, I notice how different my two knitting groups are. Both officially coalesce around knitting, crochet and sometimes stitching. But they're such different environments.

One is where we discuss anything but what we're making beyond show and tell, with people who are definitely buy the pattern, buy the yarn, make the project. 

The other has artists, opera singer, spinner of own yarn, freeform stitcher, where I can bring in things like the fabric book, the pinloom or spurtzler, knowing they'll be interesting and seized on to try. Talk there is largely fiberarts, relationships, different from the other more impersonal group. 

I love both of them, while marveling at the difference. Neither is competitive, though, which I value since knitting in particular tends to bring out the dogmatic if you don't look out! Like miniature making, it plays to the perfectionist approach, so it's good to be aware.

I wonder if that's why some knitting groups work well for new participants and some aren't ready to welcome them, despite what they say. I still encourage anyone to try though. A couple of meetings will tell you if it's a good fit for you. And if it isn't, not your fault!

And these are the projects I'm officially involved in. Moving from one to another, butterfly style, sipping and flitting, flitting and sipping.

Fabric book, embroidered leaves page

First of two jackets, edging with bias tape

Fusion quilting

Glove for the Sock 'n Glove Ministry

Socks for the Sock 'n Glove Ministry

And this bead and gold work piece I forgot about until I was looking for something just now.

I also came across a cool idea for resist dyeing which I have to try.. no end of interesting rabbit holes to plunge into around here.

Cool day, but I still sat out a while,  reading about the bishopric of Barchester

And here's maybe smart weed, still flourishing 

The temperature having gone to the 30s overnight, I switched on the heat, mainly to make sure it's working. It's working.

Happy day, everyone! 

Thoughts on touch, and other vital issues

I read today about hugging, touching, getting a massage and yet again feel like the little match girl outside the shop window. I hate casual touching, can't bear the thought of a massage, and hug sparingly.  

I come from a family who don't grab each other to show their bonding, and I think it may be an inherited trait, maybe in the DNA.  I cringe at the concept of the pedi!

There's pressure around this, around the notion that all humans need touch to thrive, and that touch is  healing. Maybe so, but it's on a scale, I'm guessing. I've been told outright that there's something wrong with people like me. Oh, no!

My need is minimal. During the pandemic when we weren't touching at all if possible,  some people really suffered withdrawal.  I only fleetingly missed it, in fact I was hugely relieved not to have to duck out of hugging and  friendly handshakes.  I'm a believer in consent -- your need to touch me doesn't supersede my need for you not to!

I think it's related to touch sensitivity. A hand on my arm is like an electric shock, unless I'm reciprocating. Interesting thoughts, and yours are welcome, too,  including disagreement if it's considerate and not dismissive. 

Moving on, today is a better energy day, after several naps yesterday and a full night's sleep. I think I'm very lucky there, from what I hear of people for whom sleep is a rare and wonderful event. Being relatively pain free is a big part of it, lucky there, too. 

I think the free weight exercising I've done for years probably helped there. My rheumatologist, who's actually my bone doctor, tells me it's very likely it kept the joints jointed.

Meanwhile, the cosmos are still blooming away, whipped around in the fall wind,  they don't care, what an example. All the other flowers are finished, so the remaining butterflies and bees are crowding onto the cosmos, last chance around for pollen. They're practically handing out numbers.

And good news on the tipping I reported to management recently: one lot of junk around the lovely hollow tree has been removed, and the other, the boxes and furniture spilling everywhere, is clearly in the process. They're even emptying the patio.

 So I emailed my thanks to the manager.  He'll have a pleasant email to come in to tomorrow.

And here's a couple of thoughts

Happy day, everyone! Pick the thoughts you like and go with them, judgment-free zone in operation!

One thought I went with was the National Popular Vote issue. My state, NJ, already uses the popular vote for President, not the electoral college. 

I emailed my state legs.  to encourage their continuing support. Rather than try to abolish the EC, better put workarounds in place to render it irrelevant. We need more states to do this.  Just sayin. And here's how: