Knitting? Piano? What?

I've been thinking, always a dangerous thing with me. I started this blog a while back with the intention of using it as a record of my knitting projects. I love the knitting blogging community and wanted to be a part of it.

Now, with the existence of Ravelry keeping records isn't quite as important. On ravelry I have my lists of projects, yarn, what I plan to knit in the future and have easy connection with other knitters.

The title of my blog refers to the piano and I wonder if it's not time to include a little bit of that part of my life on this blog.

I think a lot about how music and knitting are alike. They both include making something with your hands. Music, however, fades the moment you stop playing, unless of course you've recorded your performance. Knitting is more tangible, unless you decide to rip everything out and remove all proof (except for the now curly yarn) that anything existed there except for a long string.

Both music, playing piano specifically since that's my instrument, can be done at different levels and that's perfectly okay. Someone who knits beautiful scarves can get just as much satisfaction from their creation as someone who knits intricate aran sweaters or lace shawls. Conversely, someone can be content playing simple hymns or long to play more complicated pieces. The act of creating is what binds all of these things together. That, and the longing to make something beautiful.

I often think about playing a Mozart Sonata when I'm looking at lace. The simple stitches that become so beautiful when opened up in the blocking stage are much like the simplicity of a beautiful musical line when played with the heart.

Bottom line, it's about doing our best. Taking some simple yarn spun by us or someone else or taking a beautiful piece of music that was written 200 years ago (or last week) ~ they're both about making those things our own and then, often, giving them away.

I have no idea where I was going with this except that, I am going to allow myself to venture out a little more into the world of sharing more than I'm really comfortable with. Sharing my thoughts is not something that comes easily to me which is always a surprise to those who know me. I've always chosen to express myself with music (and always will) or by knitting a beautiful or just useful object. I give someone the gift of something I've knitted or play a song for them and guess that they will then know how important they are to me. I'm learning, as I get older, that I am actually not good a communicating. When asked to say or describe how I feel about something, I just clam up.

That happened to me just this evening. I was sharing with someone that I was frustrated with a certain situation. He started asking me questions. "What's wrong? What have you done? What hasn't happened" and I sat there and sputtered. Me! Someone who has always prided herself on my communication skills sat there stunned. I realize that I have lived most of my life going from one feeling to the next without much of a thought as to how to express that, except through playing the piano, or again, knitting something beautiful.

All of this is to say that I hope this blog becomes a way for me to not only keep track of projects and day to day happenings but also to ponder their meaning.

So that brings me to this week at work. I teach piano at a university as an adjunct professor. This is the beginning of the semester and everything is all shiny and new, just like it is when you first wind yarn into its own little ball. So much potential there. It's always exciting to help students select the music they'll study during the semester. The world is open. They haven't yet reached that frustrating stage where they just can't make their fingers play a certain passage. They haven't discovered that a particular piece is going to take much more time than they anticipated. Everything is fresh and full of promise. Just like starting a new project.

Sometimes things go smoothly for them, just like sometimes projects just seem to knit themselves. Music gets learned, notes get memorized, fingers are made to behave. But that's usually not the case. About halfway into the semester, right when progress is being made things will come to a grinding stop. Life intrudes into the practice room. Papers have to be written, books read, people dated and it seems as if the music that was so loved in the beginning has been written just to annoy them.

Isn't that the way many knitting projects are? We cast on with such great anticipation. This is going to be a great scarf/shawl/pair of socks and we're going to finish it in a week, maybe a month, tops. Then, we notice our gauge is off. And what happened to that stitch? Oh, no, I'm going to have to rip out twelve rows! and desperation sets in.

However, in both cases, knitting and piano, students and non students, after taking several deep breaths the decision is made to continue on. In the case of students, they have no choice. They have to continue or fail the semester. We always have a choice to continue knitting or not but so often that choice is to finish what we began and we appreciate it all the more for the grief that we went through with it.

We get to the end of the semester, the student performs, and cheerfully accepts the complements that befall them. And we, as knitters, smile when wearing or gifting an object and say "thank you. It was tough but I finished it and I'm glad I did."

So what am I knitting and what am I practicing these days? On the knitting front, lots of WIPs. I don't really like to have several things on the needles at once. I like to always have a pair of socks in my purse for those wonderful moments when I've got a spare minute or two. Also, a bigger project that stays at home. And I do have those things on the needles now. One is a pair of socks for MrWonderfulHusband and the other is a sweater (can't remember the pattern now but I'll put it up with the projects specs) for LBelle. I'm using Baby Alpaca Grande for the sweater and it is simply luscious yarn, in spite of having two knots in the first skein. I'm using size 13 needles so I do expect to have it done by next week. Then, there is the ubiquitous Clapotis. I have three friends who convinced themselves that they could not possibly knit a clapotis without my help although two of them are very advanced knitters. Someone at our LYS (don't get me started on that) told them that it was a hard pattern. So, in order to help them, I decide I should knit one along with them. This one will be given to my SIL. She has wanted one since she saw the first one I knitted. Mine is out of silk garden. She is sensitive to wool so I'm knitting hers out of Blue Heron. I like how it's turning out but can't wait to be finished with it and retire my clapotis knitting skills, if not for good at least for awhile. This is my seventh. I know, I'm one of those. What can I say.

On the practicing front, I'm preparing for a recital in April and will, I promise myself, finalize what I'm playing by the end of the week so I can get to work. I know that I'm going to title the recital "Gotta Dance" and it's going to consist of well, dances pieces for the piano. I'm sure all of you will just be on pins and needles until I tell you what I'm playing.

As part of my 101 things I am learning all of JS Bach's WTC. I'm reluctant to spell out the words because I've already had people googling the phrase and landing on my blog. I imagine that when they're all set to learn more about Bach, they're rather taken aback to be directed to knitting and posts about my dog. Oh well. Look at the title of the blog. That's what I'm practicing just to do it. One prelude, one fugue every week for 48 weeks. That Bach never gets old.