Write about a quilt or a blanket.

My first cable knit!! Woo hoo!!!

Since November, I have been working on a knitted afghan. The pattern for the afghan came from a class I signed up for at a local knitting store. I paid $100 for the class, which meets once a month for six months. The afghan has 12 squares, each knitted with a different stitch and pattern. We would learn two stitches each month.

I missed the first class because of a hernia surgery, so I went by the knitting store to pick up the materials that had been handed out. I'm pretty much a self-taught knitter, and have worked my way up to intermediate-level patterns. I opened the materials and could not make heads or tails of it. It was so confusing, I waiting until the next class so I could talk with the instructor.

I went to the second class. There were six students (including me) and one teacher. All of the other students are women much older than I am, as is the instructor. The class was held at a small table in a tiny area between the bathroom and the storage closet. There was almost no room for all of us. If one of the staff needed to get to the storage closet, or if someone needed to get to the bathroom, we all had to stand up (which was excruciatingly painful because of my recent surgery) and get out of her way. It was not an environment conducive to learning.

The area was freezing and I was so uncomfortable I couldn't concentrate.

The chairs were small plastic folding chairs, the ones found at outdoor weddings and picnics. I find these chairs wildly uncomfortable on my best day, that alone a couple of weeks out of hernia surgery. In short, I was in so much pain from sitting in that chair for two hours that I could hardly stand up when it was time to leave.

Finally, the instructor was a dingbat. She may be a good knitter, but she hasn't a clue on how to teach. To make it easier on herself, she went around the table and gave everyone individual instructions on each of the stitches. It took forever, especially since many of the students didn't even know how to knit and purl! Finally, I just listened in when the teacher worked with another student, followed along and figured the stitch out for myself -- I was tired of waiting for my turn!

There is probably another dozen things I can think of to complain about the class. But that's not the point of this prompt. However, it is because of this class that I have an afghan to write about.

Frustrated with the class, I determined that I would still have an afghan. But I would design it myself. So I went to the library and found some books with different stitches. Three of the books were so cool, that I bought my own copies on Amazon.com.

In designing my own afghan, I've had to learn how to count a pattern. It was pretty difficult, and I encountered some snafus, but now I'm pretty comfortable with this skill.

I've discovered there are a lot of different stitches, and that just plain old knits and purls can make some pretty intricate patterns!

I've purchased and learned that a row counter is invaluable.

I've taught myself some good strategies for the k4tog (knit four together) stitch -- that was a tricky one!

I've learned how to recover dropped stitches without tearing out the rest of the rows to do it.

I've learned how to read my stitches.

I've learned how to work a kick-ass cable!

I've completed 10 of the 12 squares. I'm in the process of blocking the squares I have completed to help me decide which stitches I should use on the last two squares.

I've already spent 20-30 hours each on the squares I have finished. That's a lot of frickin' time. While knitting I've exhausted all seasons available on Netflix for the following shows: Midsomer Murders, A Touch of Frost, Downtown Abbey, Disappeared, Solved, Doc Martin, The Last Detective, and most of The Vicar of Dibley and Reno 911; I'm currently half-way through Wire in the Blood. When I tire of British shows, I switch over to The X-Files and Law & Order and Law & Order: SVU. There have been some full-length movies peppered in. My favorite stared David Duchovny and it was called Goats. It's the kind of movie that's right up there with Raising Arizona and A Dog's Breakfast -- worthy of multiple watchings over one's lifetime.

Because of this project, I am no longer afraid of knitting patterns. I've learned that if I can't figure the stitch out from the pattern, I can find on U-tube someone teaching how to work it. Bless the people who put these instructional videos online!

I figure I've got another 100-120 hours or so left on this project -- the two more squares to design and knit, then blocking (I've blocked eight so far . . .), then I have to sew all the squares together. Then I plan to make a matching pillow. I'll choose my two favorite patterns from the afghan, and stitch them for either side of the pillow, then sew it together, then put tassels on the corners of the pillow (IF I have enough yarn left for tassels).

My favorite time to knit is when it's snowing outside. I open the blinds so I can watch the  snow falling. I'll make myself a hot chocolate and top it with whipped cream. I've got my animals next to me or sometimes in my lap. It's a very zen place to be -- with  wooden needles in hand, 100% natural fiber yarns (my favorite is alpaca, but I'm using Peruvian highland wool for my afghan), and intricate pattern, a good show on Netflix, and nothing to do but knit!