I need some JuJu

I seem to have lost my knitting mojo at the moment. Although I have a list, nothing is inspiring me and the things I am currently knitting are not working right. Last night I decided to knit Leah's java sleeve. I could whip it up in an evening. I'm seeing Leah on Saturday night so I wanted to get it done in time for Dinner Group. I had some leftover chocolate brown yarn (her request--to be adorned with pink beads) and started knitting. It was coming along beautifully until I realized that I didn't have nearly as much brown yarn as I thought. Her java sleeve was going to be one inch wide. I got so annoyed that I tossed it and decided to get going on the neopolitan socks again (a.k.a the socks I will never ever knit again). Once again I ripped some of it out (although not that much) and the yarn pattern is looking kind of strange where I am decreasing from the heel. You would think I had never knit a pair of socks before. Seriously, I'm sure I've knit 25 pairs of socks--this should not be that hard. It is still my goal to get Leah's java sleeve done before Saturday, but it's clearly not going to happen tonight.

I've started another Cinderella that I'm planning to give to Mike's mom for Christmas, or her birthday, or something like that. She will love it and it is quite satisfying knitting for someone who will truly appreciate your work. But her little bald head is just sitting there in the basket...I have a couple new ideas for my Etsy site, my mom wants a new pair of socks (I wonder if she'd like neopolitan?), I've begun Gordon's hat....believe me, I have things to do, but the mojo is missing.

So, what have I been doing with my time? Well, my garden is coming along fabulously! I love this time of year for the reason that you can literally see things grow before your eyes. I'm out there almost every day and it truly is satisfying. I've been selling stuff like crazy on Craigs List (you need some serious JuJu to be successful with Craig and for some inexplicable reason I've got that right now), and I've been reading.

I've never talked about reading before because, well, it's just a part of who I am. For me, reading is like breathing or eating ice cream. I need to do it every day or I will wilt. Every so often I will run across someone who is not a reader and it truly baffles me. I was the kid who sat up at night with the flashlight. I was once accused of cheating on a test in the 6th grade because I was bored and reading a book in my lap. I always have a book in my bag. I always have stacks of books on my "nightstand" (they are on my nightstand, and the floor around the nightstand). I sometimes

have a hard time decided what to read next because I have so many choices. So often I will have multiple books going. I leave my books all over the house and we have bookshelves in the living room, office, and our bedroom. Mike and I both have plans for more shelves in the living room after we become rich and famous (and replace our garage door and finish building our barn. And replace our kitchen sink. And kitchen floor. And finish painting the trim in the house....). To say that books are important to our family is like saying fish need water. It just is.

My kids are becoming readers and I could not be more proud. This is Ryan's bookcase:

And considering the way the rest of my house is decorated, it comes as no surprise that his books are literally falling off the shelves. My Library Catalog on the side of my blog is such a small representation of my reading life. I could make a full time job of cataloging my books. So I decided to start with the present and move forward. With my new Etsy venture I have had little time for reading, so I've been staying up too late reading because I cannot and will not go to bed without a book.

So, how will I get my mojo back? I'm sure it will come. And I'm sure it will be soon. But I'm trying to take advantage of the other obsessions in my life and enjoy them while I can (and you probably thought I was going to say I would spend more time cleaning my house! ha!). Maybe all it will take is a good trip to the yarn store. And there just happens to be one of my favorites around the corner from Barnes and Noble!