Trying to Avoid Writing a Paper That's Due Tomorrow

It's 10:30 p.m., and I am exhausted. I still have to read a few articles and write a paper for my education and leadership class. I am also watching/listening to Primetime, listening to the how the massacre at Virginia Tech affected the students there. It is horrific.....how can anyone have so much anger and evil inside of him? Please say a prayer for the victims and their families, and for the survivors and their families.

Have not knit in such a long time. Lots has been happening. I've been really busy with work and school. Also, my children's former nanny passed away. She was a wonderful woman; she came to work for us when my eldest daughter was 3 weeks old. She taught me how to hold my baby, bathe her, feed her. When I found out she had lung cancer, I committed myself to being with her every weekend. I anticipated about 8 months.....she lived less than 6 weeks.....will write more about her later.....

I have so much yarn. I sorted them out and put them in huge bins months ago....I have 6 huge bins plus a yarn tree....and that is AFTER I gave yarn away! I don't really use acrylic but for some reason, I seem to have a lot of it. What is up with that? Anyway, I've decided to start knitting again....even as an exercise in futility. Also, I was reading about homeless families, and I think I would like to practice making sweaters by making little ones for little kids. It breaks my heart to read and hear about children who through no fault of their own live in poverty in Skid Row. Their parents have no money, and I am sure their kids would like to have something to wear that is new. At first, I thought I would make stuff for preemie babies (and I may still do this! Just something to greet them to this world), but after reading about homeless families, I think I would like to focus my charity work on the local children who have nothing.

I know what is is like to be poor. When I was out of work for two years, and especially when I was undergoing chemotherapy, I didn't have two nickels to rub together. It was so difficult and so demoralizing. Thank goodness, my ex-husband supported me. I am so grateful to him. Of course, he did it grudgingly....but he did it. Every month he would show up with a wad of money and shove it into my hands and stomp off. It was barely enough, but it was enough.....people wonder how I can stand him and why I don't just divorce him and be rid of him....but I know he is a good man (though an absolutely TERRIBLE husband!!!) deep down (deep deep deep down!) inside and what he did to support me for two years is almost enough to make up for the 9 years of a miserable marriage. Almost.

Anyway, back to my knitting, kind of. My son is moving back home (more on that in a later post) and home being my tiny tiny cottage in Pasadena, that means I have to put all my yarn bins in storage to make room for him and his junk. I will keep only my 78 cone yarn tree with yarn for a couple of projects for me (like my suits that I want to make!!!) and the rest with acrylic yarns for baby blankets and baby sweaters and hats that I can whip out in a few hours for each project. Baby sweaters I can make in a few hours. I will keep my standard gauge machine up...probably my 930.......My last week of class is next week, so maybe I can start the following weekend on a sweater.

Okay, it's almost 11 p.m. Enough procrastinating. I need to start reading the articles so I write this stupid paper. And I have two 20 page papers due one week from tomorrow that I haven't done any research on. Got to get cracking!!!!!