My Swift and My Stash

I found my swift and ball winder today.

Three years ago, when I moved into this apartment, I put most of my furniture, books, and belongings into storage. I didn't really plan on being here more than a year, and while I brought all my yarn (then a mere 10 bins), I packed the swift and winder into a box that I never opened or unpacked (I also found one of my favourite lamps!). I sort of knew it was in that particular box, but it was somewhat inaccessible, and I usually wound my yarn at the store where I bought it, at least those hanks that I was going to knit right away. The stuff I got on my major yarn whoring tours (like the Seattle trip), well, since there's no knowing when that will get knit up, it remains in hanks. And since I'm a bit embarrassed to bring strange yarn to my LYS to wind, I've been doing it by hand. But no more! I can wind it at home.

If, that is, I can find a surface to attach them. What with 24 bins of yarn cluttering up the place, there's scarcely room to swing a cat, never mind wind some yarn. I'll figure it out. It could be my impetus to declutter the area around my desk. To further insprire me, I shall put up a red dragon!*

The flag of Wales

****************************************************************************

In other news, I've come to realise I really do have a yarn problem. Yesterday one of the bins fell from its perch on the top of a high tower of bins. I was at work at the time, and no one was hurt, the bin is fine, and the yarn all accounted for. But still, I've got too much damn yarn in a space that is too damn small. I've got to start knitting my stash. Some of it will be put to good use in my holiday knitting. But when all of that is done, what about just opening a bin and saying, “Hell, I can make a dozen hats, a sweater, and some scarves with all the yarn in this bin,” and then just setting to, and knitting all the yarn til that bin is empty. And then moving on to the next bin, and saying the same thing, which would be more like, “Hell, I can make three sweaters, five scarves and a whole bunch oʼ chemo caps.”§

Could I do it? How long would it take me to knit a bin of yarn? Six months? A year? Longer? I am in my early 50s, and with 24 bins, this could quite literally take me the rest of my life, or a damn good chunk of it, anway. In a really visceral way, I understand what SABLE truly means. I literally have enough yarn that could last me the rest of my life. Gods below! I don't have time for blog posts (or work, or eating, or sleeping, or going to the gym)! I've got to start knitting!

Some of my bins of yarn, with a bag of roving on the big grey one

*The red dragon refers to the flag of Wales, and reminds of us of their national motto, Y ddraig goch ddyry cochwyn, or, in the vernacular, The Red Dragon lends impetus. That English translation is somewhat wussy, especially after all the stirring throaty [ch]s of the Welsh.

§This means that I'll have to knit up my stash of Cascade Pastaza, which has been, sadly, discontinued. I love this stuff for hats, with its 50-50 blend of wool and llama. Once it's gone, it's gone forever. On the othe hand, this stuff isn't going to last til Doomsday, so I might as well get it knit up now.