Mason-Dixon Knitting arrived at my doorstep at the exactly perfect time.  Lately I've done so much evaluation of my works-in-progess, so much ripping out (usually accompanied by thoughts such as:  "I live in LA.  When on earth did I ever, ever think I was going to wear a horizontally striped turtleneck pullover made out of Silk Garden?  When?" or similar), so much  yarn reclaiming.  My tendency has always been, in knitting, to start whatever project I wanted, with no regard toward the finishing of everything else.  It will all get done.  Someday.

While this works to keep the inspiration flowing, it does nothing to improve my general stick-to-it-iveness.  Also, it does nothing times infinity to help me keep the percentage of square footage of my apartment that is occupied by yarn down to an acceptable level.  I'm not talking about acceptable to most people; most people don't understand the concept of stash, and the joys therein, and their level of yarn-square-footage-percentage acceptance most likely isn't actually acceptable at all.  I'm talking acceptable to me.  I love yarn.  I have lots of it.  I'm fine with that.  But when it isn't organized, when I don't even want to look over at the yarn area because of the almost finished projects that I really should finish because I want to start something new, when I start feeling guilt about knitting, it's time to rip.

Ripping out projects to reclaim the yarn is so freeing.  I can see what I want to work on again (I should mention, that Silk Garden pullover?  Did not make the cut.  Even though I loved Emily's so much, and was convinced when I saw it that the weather in my beloved former Bay Area really isn't that different than the weather down here in LA... love was not enough to keep the sweater together).  I feel all organized and spring-cleany.  I've been knitting more.  I am thisclose to being finished now in several projects that have been in progress for... well... let's just say I'm finishing up the baby blanket for my niece.  She's pictured in the last post.  I clearly am a horrible person with no fortitude or tenacity whatsoever. 

Which is why I was so pleased to read the Mason-Dixon book.  Because, as much as I'm enjoying this complete overhaul of my WIPS (since I already admitted the dirty truth about the baby toddler blanket, I may as well mention that I had 15 of them.  Works in progress.  Why would I have ever thought that was acceptable?), as much as I love spring cleaning, as eager as I am to go to Target and buy a million Rubbermaid bins in varying shapes to contain the yarn, I need a quick fix as much as the next gal.

So, upon opening my copy of the book, I was at first a little intrigued by the dishcloth.  Having worked for so long at my favorite LYS, I've seen many knitted washcloths.  I've helped select stitch patterns, I've found yarn that will go with various scents of soap, I've oohed and aahed at rolls of dishcloths in baskets.  But I've never really wanted to make one.  Why would I knit something and then use it to mop up spills and clean my dishes?  That makes no sense to me!  After reading the essay in Ann and Kay's wonderful book, I saw the light.  Seriously!  I want useful knits!  I want to be greeted with handknit goodness when I go to wash the dishes!  That sounds so much better than what greets me right now- which is dirty dishes.  I have loads of cotton scrap leftovers just begging to be used.  And, most importantly, most crucially of all, I really, really need a quick knit fix.  Big time.  So I grabbed my cotton, sat down, and a (satisfyingly) short time later hopped up again with a finished project.  Just a dishcloth, true, but it was DONE with the ends weaved in and everything.  I promptly filled up my washbasin and put it to use, too.  I only had to hesitate for a couple of seconds before I could bring myself to toss my knitting in with the dirty dishes.  Also, I admit that all the dishes got an extra rinse before I put them in the washbasin.  I didn't want them to be too dirty, not for this first wash.  I used my thrifty, quicky little knitting project to wash my dishes and I felt so Little House on the Prairie I was fit to bust.  So I promptly sat down and cast on another.