I feel like much of what I have posted online and what I have said to people lately begin with “now that I’m done with grad school”… After that usually comes a statement about something that I am enjoying or something that I am going to do that I couldn’t do for the past two years because grad school and a full time job took up most of my time. The freedom I feel now goes beyond the feeling I would get at this time every year as a teacher when I finally reached summer break. This feeling of freedom is different because it’s not going to last for only two months and then go away in August when school starts again. This freedom is hopefully permanent. I have finished grad school and I am leaving a job at the end of this month that has sucked the life out of me for 19 years, but more intensely for the last two.
Not too long ago, at the point where grad school was close enough to being finished that I could feel an excitement and intense yearning for it to hurry up and be over, I started a to-do list. I’m a big fan of writing actual to-do lists on paper. It helps me stay organized and keep things from jumbling around in my head. This particular list was labeled my “After Grad School To-Do List” and it contained all of the things I have wanted to do for the past two years but didn’t do because I had to focus on homework and other projects for school. Some things on the list are specific, such as ‘start running again’. That one I have already done. I ran 2.5 miles this past Friday and though my thighs are still screaming at me, I am happy that I ran and am eager to keep doing it. Other items listed are more broad, such as “knit more”. This one is my current favorite and the pick for part 1 of this little series I’ve created.
I have been an avid knitter and crocheter for many years. Crocheting has been a skill since I was a single-digit age because I learned from my mom. I taught myself to knit back in 2006–I only remember that year because I can envision the living room I sat in when I was learning. It was the only year that I lived in that apartment, so 2006 it was! I could write a very lengthy post here about my journey as a yarn addict and the projects I’ve made, awards I’ve won (well, award, singular, but first place at the state fair!), and certainly, all the knitting friends I’ve made along the way too. But for the sake of simplicity, I am a knitter. I have had very little time to devote to the hobby, thanks to school, but now that it’s behind me, I have thoroughly been enjoying my time either reclined back on the couch or with my feet propped up in a chair in the backyard under our Magnolia tree (how southern!). I could also spend time expanding on the topic of which I prefer, knitting for other people or knitting for myself. Currently, I am a big fan of making things for other people, however, I have been working on a blanket made up of sock yarn scraps. The blanket is full of colors, which make my heart happy. It’s going to be a while before it’s done because sock yarn is thin and this blanket is going to be, well, blanket sized. But I am happy working on it because I love picking the next yarn to use and wading through all of the choices I have available. I can’t wait until it’s finished because it is going to be the perfect blanket for tossing over my legs while lounging on the couch in front of the fan watching t.v. It’s not cold enough to make me want to turn off the fan, but it’s the perfect temperature for a light blanket like the one I’m making.
So I submit now to the ‘files’ of things that are making me happy: knitting on my sock yarn blanket.
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