Need a Plan

As with the lotion, I am feeling bogged down by many multiples in my house. Things tend to linger, and the longer they linger the less I see them and thus the more likely they are to linger (there have been hoarders in my lineage). These things turn into visual noise, which causes a feeling of anxiety and distraction, which leads me into a never-ending cycle of trying to solve the problem. Thus: many lotions, many knitting projects, many books being read simultaneously, many lipsticks, many many many. I long for a simpler way of being. I'd love to have a favorite lotion, a favorite lipstick, a singe work-in-progress, a "the book" I'm reading...

So the question is: to finish the multiples until there is only one left or to discard those that I'm just not sold on?

Some issues will go one way and some the other.

Today I'll address knitting. I'd like to destash. I'd like to produce many beautiful items. I want out from under the list of plans, the pile of wish-I-coulds. I can't do them right now, so I extend the list so far out into someday that by the time I get to start a new project I don't want to make those projects anymore. I need to discard my somedays and focus on what I am making now so that when I am done with the current project I can choose a new someday for that day.

Does this make sense? The fact that I can't explain it better is a symptom of the problem. Distraction. Noise. Guilt. Regret. Why go about a hobby that I love in such a way that it makes me unhappy? But how to fix it?

A destash plan. A knitting monogamy plan.

1. Mason's present: Mason is my nephew-to-be. He will be in August, but his shower is in June. Which is soon. So I need to finish his item. I will keep it out so that it gets worked on in free moments. I plan to finish it by the end of May.

2. Linen scarf: I finally gave in to the urge to get some Louet linen yarn. It's not cheap, but it is wonderful (opinion based on a washed swatch at the shop), and I've had a hankering for a summer scarf. I did not give in to that hankering while at the Gap this week so that I could instead knit myself a summer scarf from the linen I'd been wanting. So far, so good. I finished the first ball of yarn and went on to the second... I'll wait until I get to end of this ball before deciding if I'll need a third. It's just stockinette, which usually bores me to tears... but I've been enjoying it this time. Perhaps because I can read while I work on it...

I'm reading Into Thin Air, which I am loving. I already read The Climb, which chronicles the same incident on Mt. Everest, but it's really interesting to read another side of the story. I'm actually considering reading a third account written by one of the women on the tragic expedition of May 10, 1996. Or perhaps a book about some other expedition. At the moment, my interest in Everest seems fairly limitless. If you think you might be interested, I highly recommend both of the books I mentioned. And if you're interested in what's going on on Everest right now, check out The Outside Blog. There's a 13-year-old American kid up there right now and he's currently near the beginning of his summit bid. Go check it out!

I digressed. Here's to simplification!