I was Determined and Successful . . .but.. . .

I waited for the sunrise and found the yarn. I started the cowl. The yarn fought me (100% linen is surprisingly springy. It likes to "squirm" off the ends of the needles, so I'm working on a much longer double-pointed cable than originally planned for - it's . . . interesting), and so I had to frog and re-start the cowl 6 times. I'm now 1/3rd of the way through the cowl.

I'm definitely less stressed now. I have also found out from the comments of our choirmaster over the last couple of weeks that he's expecting that this isn't the last semester. It's nice to know.

But . .
I've had to drastically slow down on the cowl.
It's very nice, and I'm happy that I'm working on it,
But . .

To be honest, I've started working on some of my stored cross-stitch projects. I've ignored them for a few years and for the past few weeks I was constantly thinking about completing a few of them so I can see if their charm is still the same as it was when I bought them. I've pulled out a few things I had originally wanted to frame when finished, and I deserve to complete those at the very least.
(there's 2 sets of 4 small pieces, a rectangular piece, and about 6-7 others.)

But . . .
I don't know exactly how long I'll work specifically on them - or if I'll even finish any of them.

I'm very much enjoying working on all of them, so I'm taking each day as it comes. While I'm working a little bit (about 1/2 an hour each) on a few projects every day
(I'm constantly rotating the projects, so it's not necessarily the same few projects).
There's a specific project I'm singling out for working on after 9 p.m. - for all that it's got a limited colour palette, it's quite lovely.
(No, I'm not saying what any of them are. I feel I'll jinx all my work and plans if I say what they are - silly, I know.- but it is what it is.).

But I will say, while I am doing a lot of cross stitch, I am doing a little knitting every day- still (though it tends to only be between 10 - 30 mins of knitting, at least I'm doing something.).

I don't know what's going to happen with my knitting "plans" of 2016, but anything's possible.

Later.

I need to be determined. . .

I'm a bit upset. There's a genuine chance that the choir I've been a member of for 15 years is in it's last semester. We're very low on members (10) and no amount of advertising or promotion for the last 3 years has done anything to gain members. It's a very sad state of affairs and I'm not at all happy about it. I'm really sad, if I'm honest.
I want so much for our choir to keep going, but every time we lose members there comes a point where the cost of meetings goes up and so we have to pay more money (it's now £70/term (10 weeks/term)). If it goes up again this time, there's a very good chance I can't afford to go anymore. I don't know what to do.

Which comes to the point/reason for my title. . .

I have a de-stressing mechanism. I either start knitting a new project and/or I buy yarn.
For the first de-stressing mechanism, . .
Well.  I have plenty of projects to knit upon, seeing as I still haven't been able to decrease the number of projects I have to finish (about 50). I do try, but life is stressful, and there's *so* many lovely patterns I want to knit (that, and I keep adding them to my queue, which now has 1111 patterns. . .and growing *sigh*).
So, I almost immediately start a pattern for everyone I finish. Ah well. As I always say: "At least I'm not bored".
And as to the second one. . .Well , , ,I really, honestly, *CANNOT* buy anymore yarn for the next two years.
This isn't because I'm on a budget.
It's simply because I have enough yarn in my stash (most of it isn't listed) that I don't have to buy yarn for the next *FIVE* years.
I also have 3 boxes of bundled projects of various types (e.g. shawls, wraps, scarves, a sweater, a coat and a couple other things I can't remember) with pattern and yarn ready to go (roughly 15 projects).

But if I'm honest, I do have a way to de-stress . . .
But . . .
I have to be determined, and use some of the stash yarn for a project I want to knit *now*.
It's a beautifully interesting cowl (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pfeilraupe) in a soft sportweight yarn (whatever fibre "you" want to knit it in) and I have a linen DK that I think will work (a minor problem with getting the yarn out of the stash - but - it's about 4:30 am while I'm writing this, and I'm waiting for the sunrise so I can go get the linen yarn - there's reasons for that.). Unfortunately, my stressed out little brain *still* wants very much to go buy yarn for it.

Ah well.

I have to be determined - and happy - to not go buy any yarn. Seriously determined. It's driving me mad. I think I'd better go and start listing all of my stash. It might make it much easier to not want to buy yarn. . .
I sure as hell hope so.
Onwards.

Later.

Addition to the last post

Well, I was perusing my queue on Ravelry, and for whatever reason, I was reminded of a shawl I've been drooling over for a few years;

Aquila Shawl by Sari Anstrom

It's a Finnish pattern without an parallel English transcription, but so many people have knitted it (175 on Ravelry), that there's quite a few sets of English translations of the stitch meanings for the chart. That'll do for me. I think it's a stunning design, and I've not knitted it before now because I wanted to find just the right soft greyed-brown yarn. Which, really, I've not been able to find no matter how much I wanted it. So, because I want to knit this lovely beastie, I'm going to use my skeins of white no.8 crochet cotton and see what happens. I've wound up half of it (it came as a bunch of 10 10g mini-skeins). The reason is that the pattern says to repeat section/chart A until half the weight of yarn is used and then knit the other section/chart. I figure I'll get a nice length of shawl for everyday use. I might decide to dye it, and I might not. There's a lovely white one in the project display page, and I'll be happy if mine looks anything like that one.
Anyway, time is wasting, and I've got to go knit.

Later.

Onwards!

The project round-up of 2015.

Well, I was ticking along, knitting a little everyday, and honestly, until about October, I thought it would be something of a damp squib. I had felt like I'd done nowhere nearly enough, and my finished project list reflected this. Then three days after my "musings", something took hold and I became a knitting daemon and by the middle of December I was rather proud of myself. One project I really was determined to finish didn't get done, and I'm rather sad about that. But, it's a good contender for finishing in 2016 (got lots of seaming to do and it's awkward, but not impossible).

Onwards for a good chance of finishing 16 projects in 2016. As last year, I plan on finishing at least 3 long-term projects - with no pressure. I can do it, I can do it, I can do it. . . .


Well, here it is again, my completed (and not-so-completed) project lists of 2015.

Projects Completed in 2015 (long-term projects marked *):

Flip-Top Mittens
Camera Case
Nori Shawl
Quant #2
34 Leaves Shawl* (started 2012)
Ten Stitch Twist Blanket #1
Clapotis Shawl #2* (started 2007)
Secret of the Stole II * (started 2008)
Ditty Bag #2
99 Percent Hat
Queen's Garden Shawl
Lap Blanket for the Cold
Brea Bag* (started 2012)
The "Almost Lost" Washcloth #1
The Final Multnomah+ Shawl (#3)
Leafy Washcloth #1
Helen's Washcloth #1
Summer Mystery Shawl (#2)
Mermaid Jacket * (Finished just under the wire. Almost literally. I finished the last i-cord sleeve edging on the 30th.) . I still have 1 hole to repair, but all the knitting and sewing of seams is complete. I'm so happy!). (started 2011)

Projects Started in 2015 (But not finished):

Ten Stitch Blanket #2
Papyrifera Shawl (I had great hopes of this being an Christmas gift, but I lost "oomph")
Feather and Fan Scarf (it was a project to use some angora wool)
I Flap My Wings and Glide Shawl
Taliesin Shawl (Granted, I started it in December 2015 - and even with the best will in the world, I couldn't finish a 1600m cabled shawl in a month.)

Projects Worked on in 2015 (but not finished):

The V-Necked Sweater (I'd hoped to get this finished in 2015, but to be honest, I lost "oomph" in October. I'm hoping this will be finished by July 2016.)
Beaded Muir Stole
Indian Shawl
Icarus Shawl
Cherry Leaf Shawl
Saroyan #2
More-Than-a-Triangle-Shawl
Grey Rhodion Stole
The Spider Web Half-Hexagon (+1) Shawl
Funchal Moebius Cowl
So Long Duster
Jack Skellington Hat
Orenberg Shawl
Spring Blossoms Square Shawl
Foreign Correspondent's Scarf
Luna Flickering Flames Skirt
4-stitch Scarf (it used to be "3-Stitch Scarf")
Construction of the Cotton Square Blanket

Projects I'm hoping to Start in 2016 (provided I finish other projects) I have both the yarn and the pattern for each project:

Sagrantino Shawl
Hemlock Ring Blanket
Ecotone Shawl or Mariposa Shawl (I love both shawls but even after months of trying to decide, I just don't know which one to knit with the yarn I have designated - I guess I'll have to swatch both and see. *sigh*)
2-Colour Under Dutch Skies Brioche Shawl (This is also my "learning new knitting technique" project for 2016, as I haven't yet done Brioche Stitch in any form at all)
Leftie Shawlette
Semele Shawl
Igneous Stole
Storm Cloud Shawl/Shawlette
Holden Shawl #2
A Cardigan for My Father (I forgot the name of the pattern. Oops.)
A Diagonal Blanket #2 for my father, smaller than the first one.

As always, I've got to go knit.
ONWARDS!!!!

Later