What I am at? Knitting and a new WAM feature

"What are you at?" 

"This is it."

You and your friends might say that to one another as you drop by their kitchen or their shed today. Chances are, they've got an interesting project on the go.

They could be fixing an old car, making snow globes out of jam jars, or upcycling driftwood into lawn furniture, and once you get past the classic greeting, your buddies will talk your ear off about what they're at.

On Weekend AM, I want to know about some of your cool weekend projects, so I can tell our listeners about them. 

So – to start, let me tell you about what I'm at. I'm obsessed with knitting. If my preoccupation wasn't so harmless, it would be weird.

On paydays, I head directly to my favourite wool supply shop to get my fix for the week. My computer has a window permanently opened on my favourite pattern website. I stalk craft shops, feeling the inside seams of socks.

Analog distraction needed

Now, I'm not a crafty person, but a particular incident ensnarled me in this woolly, tangly web.   

While browsing on my iPad one evening, I was intrigued by some beautiful photos of a Facebook friend's knitting projects. At the same time I was checking two email accounts on my cell phone, and watching television. I clearly needed an analog distraction.

So, about this time last year, I enrolled in a four-session beginners' knitting course at the Anna Templeton Centre in St. John's. I wound up missing one of the classes — but I learned enough to get hooked.

All you need are the basics

If you can cast on, knit, purl, and cast off, you can make a lot of stuff.

I started with a lumpy, wobbly scarf. Then I knit a basic toque in the round that was nearly wearable. They may not have looked the greatest, but making them felt — good.

Soon, I was picking up the needles every day. I found myself looking forward to evenings so I could sit down and let time disappear into skeins of wool.

My scarves got less wobbly. I made acceptable toques. I graduated to fingerless gloves.  

Once I learned the basics, I went back to the digital world – for more knitting. There's a vast array of online resources: free patterns for all skill levels, instructional videos on stitches and techniques, and the knitting blogs — oh, the knitting blogs.

I could have spent all my time on the internet reading about knitting, rather than actually picking up needles and yarn, but that wasn't the point.

Into the woolly rabbit hole

I figured out basic mittens. By July, I was attempting my first pair of socks.

I knit in cars, on airplanes, on beaches, in waiting rooms, and of course, on the couch while watching television.

By November, I had signed up for a course on the Holy Grail of knitting: the Newfoundland trigger mitt.

Over the Christmas holidays, I binged on what I now call Knitflix.

I watched the third season of Homeland while making a seed stitch hat. Marvel's Jessica Jones was accompanied by a baccalieu-patterned mitten with a picket fence top.

It wasn't until recently that friends started sending me stories about how knitting is good for your brain, and how it can even create a sense of well-being. Which may explain my addiction.

So, I know I'm late to something the rest of you already know. That having something on the go — a project, a job, an invention that's completely different from how you spend the rest of your day, is great for the body and the soul.

What am I at? This is it. The knitting.  

What are YOU at? Email me and let me know.