Feeding the Monster

Well, well, well…What do we have here?

I just love starting a post like that! But, is that a finished skein I see?

It is! It is a finished skein!

I only started this spin months ago. Saturday night, I made the decision to finish spinning the singles given the fact that I don’t have very many fluffy trophies from this past year. Definitely going on the resolutions list for next year.

That said, I’m still reading that book on stillness and it concerns me a bit that the need for accomplishment many times comes from negative places within that haven’t completely healed yet. I do think there’s truth to that.

But what a rush!!

Does that sound a little addict-y? It probably means I still have a ton of inner work yet to do. I believe I am a junkie, in a sense, with a slight bent toward perfectionism. Pressuring myself beyond what is healthy to get things done is not new to me in any area of life. And letting myself off the hook for being human is pretty much a foreign practice to me. So, calming the inner monster might take some doing. Give me time.

At the end of the day, I still want to spin (and a couple other things) and have some handspun and knits (and a couple other things) to show for it. So sue me.

I used to watch movies both on and off Netflix and knit and spin until I felt satisfied-or I had a new skein or project in-hand. That practice still works because I spun this right in front of the tube watching my current favorite movie!

I know, I know. Focus is not an indie movie and there’s enough profanity in it to make a sailor blush. But, I’m a sucker for a good comedy and Will Smith’s brand of humor always makes me laugh. Girl Child and I love the soundtrack too. Win, win! Margot Robbie’s comedic delivery wasn’t too shabby either. Besides all that, do you remember that episode of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air where his performance made everybody tear up-and for the first time everyone came to the realization that The Prince was a real actor…That day, I became a fan for life.

At any rate, finishing this skein felt so good that I have personally instituted Saturday Night Spinning. I don’t know how much I’ll get done since some Saturdays are busier than others. But, I figured, it would still be a nice thing to do for myself. I also figured, I’d invite you all if you feel like joining in some time. Let’s make it a virtual date! Of course, if you find yourself on an actual real-world date and have to sneak a spin when your date’s not looking, let me be the first to applaud your dedication to your craft. :)

It’s pretty simple. On Saturday nights:

• post a pic of your spin (whether that’s five minutes or five hours)
• say what you’re doing while spinning (the clean versions folks :) ) …
• and how long you spun yourself happy.
• use the hashtag #saturdaynightspinning

Understandably, Saturday night spinning photos may not be the best-looking photos and some audiences are more forgiving than others of cell photos and photos on-the-go. So feel free to post yours on your microblogging platforms like Instagram, tumblr or twitter.

Seems great minds think alike because I found an Instagram tag for #sundaynightknitting too. I think they were on to something there…I hope they don’t mind getting some company!

While I may still have to tame the junkie within, I do believe that achieving stillness for me incorporates creative activities like spinning and knitting (and a couple others, lol).

So, yes, I’m feeding the monster. But only in bite-sized portions. ;)