Well, one doesn't have to be Einstein to figure out the following equation:
E=MC
Where E = Explosion of Blog Stats
And MC = Marilyn the (Knitting) Curmudgeon
No, there's nothing missing. I left out the "squared" part, because it's definitely not square to be nominated for a Thinking Blogger award. In fact, it was completely unexpected, and completely and utterly flattering. Probably undeserving, on the whole, but damn it, I'm putting the button here anyway:
I'm also not one for memes in general, but I really do like the idea of the Thinking Blogger, and I know that quite a few of the blogs I read (both knitting and non-knitting) have been nominated, deservedly so. There are some thoughtful, thought-provoking writers out there. I'll confess to reading fewer and fewer blogs of any sort these days, for a number of reasons (not the least of which is sharing computer time), and I prefer to read blogs that push me in other directions, whether it's on to another blog or to a book or a recipe I might not have discovered on my own, or by sharing an experience I might never have -- by letting me live vicariously through the blog.
I'd thought about sharing some of my favourite non-knit blogs here, but I changed my mind -- I think maybe it's a better idea to share the blogs of folks who happen to be knitters, but who are also a whole lot more than that. My knit-blog circle is made up of folks who I found because searching for "knit blogger" is a good place to start, but they remain on my favourites list because they do more than knit -- they cook, they write, they give me glimpses into other places and other lives, they share ideas, and they very often offer up encouragement or support. Sometimes their ideas or opinions make me uncomfortable, but that's a good thing -- they force me to look at my own thoughts and examine the source of that discomfort.
In general, though, the bloggers I most enjoy reading inspire me by their enthusiasm and positive approach to everyday life. Bad things do happen to these good bloggers, but they seem to be able to write about it and share it in a way that doesn't make me feel like a voyeur, but that manages to inspire me or presents me with a model for my own future life mis-steps and mishaps.
And some of them are damned fine writers, too.
Anyhoo -- here are my additions to the growing cadre of Thinking Knit Bloggers:
1. "Ad rem et ad unguem" -- "To the point, with great precision". Bear in mind I've had exactly one year of high school Latin (which I adored, but the Powers That Be decided that Latin was a dead language, the learning of which was of no use to us in the Modern North American Consumer Driven World, and cancelled the course), but I think I've got the gist of it right. Actually, I suspect it's a bit of a pun, as the "ad unguem" literally means "to the fingernail", as in putting the point to the finger, ie, knitting. Knowing Véronique, I wouldn't be surprised to find out I'd guessed correctly.
I first encountered Véronique on an excellent French list devoted to traditional knitting (which I don't read very often these days as it tends to make me maudlin and homesick for France), and, frankly, I wish I could write like she does. In English. Oh, well, in French, too, but I doubt there's much hope of that at this point in my life.
Véronique is responsible for my believing that knitting Henry VIII would be a Good Idea -- it started as a knit-along on the aforementioned knitting group, and I'd be willing to bet I'm the only one who never finished. One day...one day...
She is an amazing, knowledgeable knitter with a sharply honed sense of humour -- I never fail to laugh out loud when I read her. In fact, in her latest entry, she comments on the steeks in her Rheingold sweater causing a bulge, the very same problem I had with Henry VIII, which caused me to wonder if it were the steeks or the sleeves themselves. But it's her description that had me burst into laughter:
"ce sont les steeks entiers qui donnent cet aspect épaulettes à la Goldorak"
In one phrase, she hits my own problem on the head, makes me re-think my solution (re-knitting the sleeves as opposed to just trusting that trimming the steek will suffice), and throws in a perfect pop-culture reference.
If you understand no French at all, put it through a translator -- it'll be worth it for the knitting knowledge alone. Véronique writes thoroughly and thoughtfully about what she's working on, right down to examining the little details of a pattern that don't quite do what they're supposed to, or could be done more skilfully, or that (heaven forfend!) turn out to be an Actual Error in the pattern.
2. "Fuzzy Logic Knits" -- "IF sticks are 'pointed' AND string is yarn THEN knitting is 'very likely to occur' " -- when I first read this I wanted to cry, because I hadn't thought of it first, and it's a most excellent blog name. Lee Ann's writing is lively, spirited, sometimes impertinent (but in a good way), and she's another blogger with a wicked sense of humour. And thanks to her sidebar, I found "Le Conjugueur", a handy-dandy on-line verb conjugator, for those moments when I desperately need to know the imparfait of the subjonctif of the verb "rouspéter" in the first person ("que je rouspétasse", in case you're curious).
3."Witty Knitter" -- I don't remember when I started reading Mary-Helen's blog, probably almost as long as she's been writing it. I especially enjoy reading her accounts of going to the theatre -- I love the theatre and I miss being able to go so much. And invariably, M-H writes about books I want to read, or a recipe I want to try, or provides a link to a blog that is perfectly in line with things I'm curious about at the moment. A recent entry about a restaurant meal had me salivating, and I'm very much looking forward to the accounts of her upcoming trip (especially Hong Kong, as I doubt I'll ever get there).
4. "Twosheep" -- I enjoy reading June's blog for a number of reasons, but most particularly because she writes about spinning in a way that I can understand (mostly, but more on that in a minute), and that makes me want to keep working at it. A recent entry on spinning silk hankies had me honestly wanting to dig out the ones I have squirrelled away, dye them, and then learn how to spin them. I had to stop myself, as I just don't have the time right now, but I'm so grateful that June wrote that entry, as now I know when I'm ready to play with the silk hankies, I'll have an excellent, illustrated guide to doing it to refer to.
5. "Unconventional Wisdom" -- okay, before you all cry "nepotism" here, yes, it's The Other's blog. And yes, it's mostly not about knitting. However, The Other takes an occasional dip in the knitting pond (he pondered the decision by J&S to severly cut the colour range of its yarn), and I know he's working on a post about spindles. Because I asked him to. Because I was curious about spindle weight and shape, and bam, there was a post on June's blog that I didn't completely understand, and I started asking even more questions about it all, which he promised he'd work up in a post so that All Would Become Clear to me.
Which it usually does -- The Other takes what I consider a healthy interest in my hobby. He has no desire to learn how to knit (nor I to teach him), but he is curious about what I'm up to, and honestly does find the odd technical thing interesting. If we could afford to get him a few additions to his workshop, he'd be building me Better Knitting and Spinning Gadgets (as he's constantly looking at how things like spindles and wheels and swifts and whatnot are made, and trying to figure out better, more efficient designs for them). I'll be encouraging him to share more of this knowledge on his blog in the future, simpley because it benefits me.
There, that's five -- I hope these folks won't consider it a burden to have been nominated, and I don't expect them to actually do what the "rules" ask unless they really want to, but I did think it was a a good opportunity to add a few more thinking blogs to the pool.
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