Back On the Needle Again

...the knitting needle that is.

I am not a technophobe, a luddite, or a strict believer in the Unibomber Manifesto (although I do recommend that everyone read it. It should be required in schools, in my humble opinion. There's some good shit in there...but I digress).

I'm not a technophobe, but I try to approach the CASUAL USE of certain technologies cautiously. I've lost loved ones -- not literally mind you, but figuratively -- to phone and screen addiction. Over the course of quarantine, I've almost lost myself to it.

First, I tried a deadline. No phone until after 5 pm. This was fine in winter, when it got dark at 4:30 and I was dozing off by 9 pm. Not so great in summer when the sun is out until 10 pm and I don't crash until midnight.

Then I tried limiting apps, like stupid games or anger-inducing social media. (This left me with Pinterest, the weather app, and Instagram...) Next I tried using the phone's built-in screen time limiting devices, like blocking certain apps until certain times, turning off screen color, that sort of thing. It's one click to bypass these, by the way.

Finally, I picked up the knitting needles again. I quit knitting after I made a lovely shawl/sweater thing for my sister. I could do sweaters, blankets, scarves, hats -- a whole host of things. BUT I have issues knitting on DPNs (double pointed needles), which meant no socks. I'm way to irresponsible to knit on DPNs. The one thing I wanted to fucking knit was a sock, though. So I gave away the needles and yarn and moved on with my life.

Quarantine has a way of bringing us back to our roots.

On a whim I grabbed some lovely wool blend yarn and some tiny needles. The needles were too tiny for a rusty knitter, so I thrifted some slightly larger tiny needles and got started on a flat knit sock pattern I found for free in MAKE magazine. (Online of course. Yay screens, I guess.)

I've finished the first pair. They are lovely! I got more yarn, which is also lovely. Although I'm not sure about the bamboo. It's soft, but may be hard to work with.

I got on Pinterest for a few minutes and pinned a whole bunch of free patterns, ranging from socks to sweaters to a cute baby Yoda doll.

I put yarn and more needles onto my barter/thrifting list.

I made a fucking knitting bucket, for ball's sake.

I listened to the entirety of Amanda Palmer's "Art of Asking" in one afternoon sitting on the balcony and knitting.

I'm becoming a monster.

But that's okay. A knitting addiction is much better than a phone or screen addiction. I can talk and participate with my friends and loved ones while knitting. I'm creating instead of mindlessly consuming. Something useful comes off the needles when I am done. Something I can keep, or donate, or give to a friend.

Is knitting radical? Probably. Whenever we do something ourselves we are doing something radical. We are tearing down the corporate world that feeds us mindless consumerism and is destroying our planet.

Fuck your sweatshop-made socks, I'll knit my own, thankyouverymuch.

If you have enjoyed my writing and would like to support my project, the rEvolution Collective, please visit my Patreon Page. We are working to create an environmental education center and community in Northwest Washington State. 

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