The Beginning or How I Came to Want to Beat Knitting

This Christmas I told my boyfriend I wanted to start knitting. It seemed like a good past time for all that time I spend on the subway or rotting my brains with reality TV or annoying the boyfriend when he is type type typing something away on the computer in a language that I don’t understand or getting blown up online by his friends. I also thought it would make me less of a consumer and more of a maker. Boy, was I wrong. I’m even more of a consumer now. It seems I am constantly in need of more yarn, more needles, more patterns. Doesn’t matter that I’m only on my second knitting project – I have big plans. You see, I’m going to beat knitting. As if it’s a video a game, I want to progress through each level of knitting: double cast on – done; garter stitch – don’t bore me; rib stitch, seed stitch – done and done; cable stitch – done (or, um, in the process). Bring on the knitting in the round on circular or double-pointed needles, bring on the intarsia. My first project was a scarf for the boyfriend, Z. On my way to AZ for Christmas I knitted up my first swatch in garter stitch and decided to make Z a 2x2 rib stitch scarf. Z had gotten me Debbie Stoller’s Stitch 'N Bitch: The Knitter's Handbook and some beautiful Merino yarn from Knit, a very helpful store in the east village.

He must’ve looked very cute (and lost) in the knitting store by himself with no knitting knowledge. My entire family was amazed that although we can no longer bring water on the plane, there was absolutely no problem with bringing knitting needles. In case you wanted to know, knitting needles are also allowed in women’s prisons although I’m not sure about men’s prisons. Z and I pretty easily learned the knit stitch at home from the book but learning purl while sitting on the plane trying not to stab the person next to me with needles, the book perched precariously on my knees, and the ball of yarn threatening to fall off the seat and run down the aisle was not the easiest of feats, but within about two weeks my boyfriend had himself a very warm, soft wool scarf. It was also a pretty freakin’ expensive scarf. And that was the beginning of what is quickly becoming an obsession.