Yarn Along

Jan. 8, Christmas weekday.




Crocheting my first hat after practicing with rounds and granny squares throughout the holiday.  I like the color, shape, and texture of this yarn, though it's nothing fancy--a cheap, acrylic off-brand.  Good for a beginner making mistakes.  I tend to do several of one pattern or item before moving on to a new, more complex one.  I learn by repetition and rhythm.

I finally finished Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card last week.  War books are easier reading for me than things like Jane Austen.  I attribute it to my Germanic and mythological interests.  I'm guessing most thirteen-year-old girls wouldn't read the Odyssey over Pride and Prejudice.  I still haven't read Pride and Prejudice.  I should just turn in my lit. degrees now, right?

Ender's Game was interesting, and hard to place.  I thought it pretty graphic, though no more than A Clockwork Orange, 1984, and other negative utopian classics.  I'm guessing the reason why I noted the violence in Ender's Game is because of its association as a young adult novel, my fore-knowledge of the author as a practicing Mormon, and, most importantly, the fact that the main characters are all children.  It resonated with a similar uneasiness as The Lord of the Flies, that children should be exposed to and capable of such evils, even genius children.

I think I liked it.

One of its strengths is that it's very straightforward and doesn't try any of this fancy modernist framing or unreliable narration.  I was caught off guard over and over by how non-complex the complicated motivations and characterizations were--and no, that wasn't a stutter.  Ender's Game is probably the first novel I've read that has genuinely complex and intricate depictions of human nature and the psyche portrayed with deliberate clarity rather than confusion.  I'm betting that's why it's so popular, because it's accessible.  One could even say there's a clear moral order.  While not directly depicted in the novel, it's there like a light from the outside, casting shadows and coloring the whole of the story.  My only complaint is that the tone and plot revelations in the end were jarring and gave me the impression that it was tacked on after the fact to smooth the way for sequels.

Had my latest doctor's visit today, and tests came back positive for lingering mycoplasma, which explains the constant illness.  It's like mono in that way, but you might have heard of it as walking pneumonia.  The doctor prescribed a special antibiotic because the typical ones aren't effective for treating mycoplasma.  I'm still convinced in my bones that there is a deeper problem going on here, because this kind of infection attacks the very young, the very old, or those with weakened immune systems.  Which is basically what I've been saying all along.  I feel the wake of it almost every day.  Thanks for your continued prayers.   xx


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12 comments:

  1. Granny's are a wonderful way to start crocheting, I think. I used a yarn similar to yours when I first started knitting because I didn't want anyone to see my uneven stitches. As my confidence and my knitting grew, I began to love to see the knitting, watching the yarn flow and realizing blocking helps even the stitches. Happy Stitching! (Stitching helps take my mind off problems, and I get something accomplished at the same time, ((hugs)) )

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    1. Thank you, Leslie, I'm kind of astounded when I step back and look at the finished product. Like--"I made this? Cool!" It's a wonderful craft; I'm eager to learn knitting next, but I want to improve my crocheting first.

      And I agree, there's something healing and therapeutic in stitching and making in the old way.

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  2. I loved the Ender's books when I was in high school. I liked the parallel novel better though, Ender's Shadow. It follows Bean and develops his character more. Cool yarn. I like the effect it creates.

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    1. thanks for the recommendation; I might read that one first, then, before I consider reading the sequels.

      I like the yarn, too, almost so that I don't want to use it because I can't see its kinkiness any more!

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  3. oh dear; I hope you feel better soon... praying. lovely hat. HUGS...

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    1. Thank you, Elizabeth! I'm feeling better today! xx

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  4. The whole thing about Ender's Game is that the novel was never intended to be a stand alone story. The original short story was. I referenced an essay Card once wrote about the Book of Mormon, trying to prove that Joseph Smith couldn't have written it. I think the arguement was silly, but he gave a very good tutorial on how to write science fiction (and generally complex stories) well.

    Oh, I love your hat! I am in the process of getting a crocheting blog set up... and I know I still owe you a write up on Jewish folk tales. :)

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    1. Thanks, Hevel, that might explain the impression I got from reading it. I can see how an excerpt from the center of the book would do very well as a stand-alone short story.

      Let me know when your blog is up! I could use a resource and it's always helpful to discuss difficulties with people when written instructions fail. :P

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    2. P.S. That essay sounds super interesting, do you remember the name of it?

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    3. P.P.S. I know you've been ill, so don't push yourself! There's no hurry to publish the Jewish folk tale post! <3

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    4. Crochet blog is up and running at http://becauseicrochet.com but it's still a work in progress.

      I seem to recall the essay was published in A Storyteller in Zion, but Kevin thinks it might have been in one of his Hatrack River newsletters. I don't think I have the book any more, and I'm 100% sure my binder of Hatrack River got ruined in the basement flood last year and got tossed. http://www.hatrack.com/osc/books/storyteller.shtml

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  5. Love the hat, even if the yarn is acrylic--looks cozy and soft! :) And I'm sorry to hear about your illness; hoping and praying things get better for you.

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