Knitting Class, etc.
To keep myself sane this fall, I joined a knitting cass in Montpelier. It gets me ot of the house once a week, is an excuse to drive all the way to Montpelier, a city I love, and forces me to interact with other people. My first class was this past Wednesday; I had cramps, was recovering from a cold, and had very little voice, but I went anyway to remind myself of the basics - casting on, knitting and purling, etc.
It was pretty fun, although the instructors have dubbed me "the shy one," since I didn't talk. We started on a dishcloth, which is a good first project - no one cares if you make a mistake on a dishcloth! There were two patterns, a simple one and a basketweave one, and I'm doing the basketweave. It turned out that I've been knitting longer than anyone else in the class (since I was 12 or 13), even the instructors (who both learned to knit 4 years ago). However, I know nothing about following patterns or doing anything beyond the basic stockinette stitch, nor have I ever kitted in the round, so there's a lot to learn. Next week we're starting a hat.
It's been a long time since I've been in a group of women, and it was not as refreshing as I'd hoped. In the past I've sought out feminist groups, and even founded one, and I'd gotten into the habit of thinking a group of women means a feminist haven. So the heteronormativity of this knitting class took me aback. It seemed almost aggressive, the assumption of husbands and children and traditional gender roles.
In other news, Chunks just caught another mouse (she got one yesterday at around this time, too). At our vet's advice, we let her kill and eat them; as Dr. Martin said, "mice are a whole food!" However, I think my in-laws think I'm hard-hearted since I no longer ty to save the mice and release them outside. (They were taken aback by my suggestion that we eat the guinea fowl, alas. Apparently their interest in local and sustainable food doesn't extend to animals, since they'll order factory-farmed meat in restaurants. Hmm.)
Anyway, those are the highlights of my week. Last week I emailed Chapter 2 of my dissertation to my committee; only heard back from one out of three. Feeling a little discouragd there. At least I've got my knitting to fall back on.
It was pretty fun, although the instructors have dubbed me "the shy one," since I didn't talk. We started on a dishcloth, which is a good first project - no one cares if you make a mistake on a dishcloth! There were two patterns, a simple one and a basketweave one, and I'm doing the basketweave. It turned out that I've been knitting longer than anyone else in the class (since I was 12 or 13), even the instructors (who both learned to knit 4 years ago). However, I know nothing about following patterns or doing anything beyond the basic stockinette stitch, nor have I ever kitted in the round, so there's a lot to learn. Next week we're starting a hat.
It's been a long time since I've been in a group of women, and it was not as refreshing as I'd hoped. In the past I've sought out feminist groups, and even founded one, and I'd gotten into the habit of thinking a group of women means a feminist haven. So the heteronormativity of this knitting class took me aback. It seemed almost aggressive, the assumption of husbands and children and traditional gender roles.
In other news, Chunks just caught another mouse (she got one yesterday at around this time, too). At our vet's advice, we let her kill and eat them; as Dr. Martin said, "mice are a whole food!" However, I think my in-laws think I'm hard-hearted since I no longer ty to save the mice and release them outside. (They were taken aback by my suggestion that we eat the guinea fowl, alas. Apparently their interest in local and sustainable food doesn't extend to animals, since they'll order factory-farmed meat in restaurants. Hmm.)
Anyway, those are the highlights of my week. Last week I emailed Chapter 2 of my dissertation to my committee; only heard back from one out of three. Feeling a little discouragd there. At least I've got my knitting to fall back on.