Update

Hello, poor neglected blog!

Yep, I'm still alive, and still (just about) crafting. I never expected to be too busy to post here, and I find myself missing my blog and all the blogs I love to read. I'm not making any promises about posting more regularly because I know as soon as I plan something it flies right out the window, but I hope to be around a little bit more.

I feel like I should have more to update, having been absent for a month, but nothing is springing immediately to mind. Maybe I should make a list. I like lists *laughs*

• I've just come back from a week's holiday with my mum. Had a fabulous time, read a lot of books and generally did little more than lie on the beach for a week. It was a much needed break. 
• I've been working really hard on my business, having a great time doing all sorts of bits and pieces, and hopefully will have some exciting news to share soon. 
• Knitting has been happening, albeit not much *sigh* I'm nearing the end of my Celestarium though, and I can't wait to finish so I can show it off. I started another shawl, but I've made a mistake and can't figure out where it is, so it's in timeout while I decide between fudging and frogging ;)
• Other crafting - I have been doing some other crafty bits, some painting of unexpected items (like shoes, I must take pictures and share) and a couple of other things I will post about at some point (I'd say "some point soon" but let's not be too optimistic *laughs*). I've met a great lady who does lino and screen printing workshops, so I'm hoping to book myself on one of those soon
• I have an interesting decoupaging project on the go at the moment, and I will be posting about that soon (no, really!)
• My yarn stash continues to grow, because if I can't knit I can at least buy... Yeah, I'm not sure of the logic either *laughs*

Now I'm off to get reacquainted with the blogs I haven't read in too long - I hope I haven't missed too much!  And because I don't like posting without pictures - here's one of my new yarns ;) Pretty, huh?

Tidying

I thought it might be about time I had a bit of a clearout of my knitting basket:

It seems to be overflowing a bit *laughs* I think it's because everytime I tidy up, anything knitting related just goes into the basket. Very lazy of me, I know ;)

So I cleared everything out of it...

And now it is all neat and tidy, with WIPs in project bags and everything else put away where it should actually live.

I'm taking bets now on how long it stays this neat *laughs* I give it a few days ;)

Oh, and the John Lewis bag and colourful yarn you can see in the top picture will have their own post, because new yarn deserves it *grins*

Para... Para... Paradise

I mentioned yesterday that cunning boyfriend and I went to Paradise Wildlife Park with his kids at the weekend.

I took lots of pictures, many of which were hampered massively by glare on windows and the fact that the sun was so bright it was hard to see the screen on my phone *laughs*

Starting with my favourite pic - the Zebras (side note, boyfriend and I once had dinner at a restaurant specialising in exotic meat - Zebra was the tastiest one we tried - of course I didn't mention that to the Zebras we saw at the park!)

These otters were so cute - they would line up together and all stare at a person taking a picture - it was as though they were posing *laughs* I got a shot as they were rearranging their formation.

This Tiger went from chilling out and enjoying the sun to having a bit of a staring contest with kid the elder. I was laughing too much to get a picture of that part ;)

I was particularly taken with the squished face little marmosets, I still can't believe how many varieties there are. These 2 were my favourite - they look like grumpy little old men *laughs*

 Kid the younger was absolutely fascinated by the giant Sulcata Tortoise.

Do you know the O RLY owl meme? This one:

We saw him in the flesh *laughs* Check it out:

Weird looking guy, huh?

And I can actually bring this post right back to knitting - when we saw the rabbits I told the kids about angora , and then we saw the alpacas, so I told them that yarn could be made from them too (honestly, I don't think they were that impressed *laughs*)

And then there were sheep...

Very interested in the approaching bag of food:

Suddenly more interested in the camera:

*waves*

Hello, poor neglected blog ;)

I swear, all my posts lately seem to be commenting on the fact that I'm not posting much - maybe I should try and do something about that *laughs*

I'm happy to say that this is mostly a result of me building momentum with my freelance business, which is getting busier than I expected and taking time away from activities such as blogging - not that I'm complaining of course!

I think some of that stems from the fact that I had got into the habit of blogging first thing in the morning, so now if I haven't posted by lunchtime, I don't post at all. Hopefully recognising this will help me break that habit *laughs*

I'm also not crafting as much as I once did. Partly of course due to the new business, and partly because boyfriend and I moved in together. Because he has 2 lovely children, when we didn't live together he would spend the weekends at his house with the boys, and while we'd all meet up I still had a lot more time to myself that I would spend knitting.

Why is this relevant? Well, obviously it explains why there is a lot less knitting content for me to post, but it also explains this next part...

I miss blogging, but with less knitting content I have less to post... Unless I broaden my scope a little bit (I know I do post about other crafting, and cooking at least). So, prepare for slightly more general posts. For example, this weekend we all went to Paradise Wildlife Park, but more about that another day ;)

Working Away in the Background

My poor blog is feeling very neglected of late *frowns* I've been working hard on my freelance business, and I'm still trying to get the balance right.

In case you missed it - I recently left my job to set myself up as a freelance writer - a move both exciting and terrifying ;) I've been dedicating time to writing my novel, which had been languishing during a busy time at my old job. I've been drafting articles to pitch to magazines. And I've been networking to try and build my contact base and meet potential clients.

All of which has affected my crafting time, and subsequent blog fodder, which is something I'm finding frustrating. I write because it is something that I love and I wanted to try and make a career of it, but crafting and creativity is also part of what feeds me and I need to find my way back to that a bit more.

I do have some finished objects, and a trip to the Warner Brothers Harry Potter Studio Tour, to blog about. And I really want to catch up on the blogs I haven't been reading as much recently. I miss you guys ;)

Still Here... Just!

I've been very quiet on here recently, I know, and I haven't had much to show either.

Both of these things are connected to how much I've got going on at the moment. I'm leaving my job tomorrow, and next Friday boyfriend and I are moving in together. There's so much stuff to sort out that I haven't been doing much in the way of crafting!

I'm very excited, but also daunted by how much there is to do in the next week. We're moving from 2 small flats into one house, which is great in terms of having so much space, but stressful in terms of logistics *laughs*

As for the job - well, I'm taking this opportunity to do something new. More about that later, when things have settled down a bit!!!

Busy Weekend

You may think of me, through this blog, as someone who likes reading and knitting - generally pursuits enjoyed in a sitting down position.

You would be right.

And yet... Somehow, yesterday, I ended up doing this:

A day out with cunning boyfriend's children ended up with me attached to a rope harness, clambering across wobbly bridges, tyres and tightropes!

Not my element, I must admit, but it was pretty good fun. Boyfriend and his eldest went on the advanced, high up course, and the youngest and I tackled the smaller, less terrifying course *laughs*

In itself this would be a feat of physical exertion most unlike me, but earlier in the day we'd been to another activity place where we were spies infiltrating a terrorist missile launcher. Lots of fun, but a surprising amount of climbing, crawling and laser avoiding *laughs*

Unsurprisingly, I'm a little stiff today!

Woo Hoo!

Ok, today gets a very quick post before I dive back into blogging about the usual stuff, because I am too excited not to share...

I passed my driving test!

I know 28 is quite late to start driving, but for years I had no desire to learn, and then I'd got pretty comfortable getting around using public transport. But it was about time I got on with it, so I did, and this morning I passed my test.

I was shaking like a leaf, and so not expecting to pass, and I'm still on a bit of a high *laughs*

I bought a car a little while ago, so I could practice driving under the supervision of cunning boyfriend, and now I can burn those L plates and roam around under my own steam.

Watch out those of you in the UK, I might pop round for a cuppa now that I can ;)

Hi Again

Hey everyone, I'm back *grins*

It's been a few weeks since I posted and I was going to wait until Monday as I don't post at the weekends, but I've missed blogging and this morning really had the motivation to post. So here I am ;)

So, what have I been up to? Well, I went to Norway for a week with cunning boyfriend. I've read a lot of books, finished 3 of my WIPs and generally tried to relax, reduce pressure and be kind to myself.

I was surprised to have finished 3 projects, as I have not been pressurising myself to knit at all (something that came from taking a blogging break I think). Some days I haven't picked up the needles at all and that's been good. And taking off that pressure gave me back the enjoyment of knitting and suddenly all sorts of progress was made (including finishing boyfriend's second sock, that he has been waiting for since February!)

I haven't got round to taking pictures of them yet, I'll save them up for a few weeks worth of FO Fridays I think *laughs*

In the meantime, here are some pictures from my trip (I have some much better ones that boyfriend took, but I'm waiting for him to watermark them before I share!) Also, I found a yarn store in Bergen and purchased some Norwegian yarn. More about that next week *laughs*

Difficult Post

I think that most people who read blogs, especially those like this one, know that what you read is only a small snapshot of the blogger's life. I tend to write about the crafty, happy, fun things that I have going on. But that's only a small part of the story really.

I don't know why, but today I wanted to talk about a few things that I don't really mention. Fair warning, this will be pretty different to my usual posting style, and is definitely not a carefree post.

Regular readers might have picked up on the fact that my dad passed away a couple of years ago. It's not something I talk about on here, but it has obviously had a huge impact on my life. He was very young, only 47, and we were extremely close. In fact, I didn't start knitting until after he died, so this whole blog is a part of me he never really knew, which breaks my heart.

Since then, I have struggled with depression. Again, not something I talk about, as this is a happy place. But it is a part of my life and I decided this morning to come out of the closet, as it were. There is still some stigma attached to mental health issues, and I feel a little strange talking about it, but it is not something I am ashamed of. I'm working on getting better, but it is a slow process. Anyway, this will probably be my last post on the subject, I genuinely do prefer this to be a happy blog and I write about the things that I want to share and remember. But I also want to pull back the curtain just a little. Wow, that sounds over dramatic, doesn't it?!

At its heart, depression is an insidious liar. It makes it difficult to find the joy in things - which is why having this blog is awesome, because I have an outlet for the little things that make me feel good. Sometimes I read back though my old posts to remind myself of that, and the comments on those posts mean the world to me.

Sometimes I find it hard to post, which is why my usual 5 day a week schedule has been lacking for a little while. Sometimes I find it hard to reply to comments, for which I am sorry. I like to acknowledge every comment I get because they all mean a lot to me, but one of the things depression does is make it difficult to reach out to others, and difficult to get the energy to do very much at all. Which is also why I have been pretty lax about commenting on the blogs I read and love every day - something else I am sorry for.

Depression is believed to affect at least 1 in 10 people over the course of their life. That's a pretty huge number, yet it is something that doesn't get talked about. I get why, it sucks and I hate that it is part of my life right now, but not talking about it perpetuates some of the misconceptions people have. There is a huge difference between being a bit low, and being depressed. When I'm low, knitting perks me up. When I'm depressed, even looking at my knitting makes me feel like a failure because it's just sitting there not getting done and I convince myself that I'll only mess it up anyway.

I honestly don't know what the purpose of this post is, I just know that it has been on my mind for a little while and I wanted to get it out there. I have read some famous bloggers talking about their own struggles with depression, and seen that it has helped people to know that it can affect anyone. I'm obviously not a famous blogger (I wish!) but if this post helps or informs a single reader then I feel good.

Like I said, this is probably my last post on the subject. However, I am completely open and happy to answer any questions people have. I don't have a problem in talking about it - in fact, the more I do talk about it, the less power it has to keep me in the dark, alone. So if you have questions, let me know (if you don't want to post them in the comments, email me nat.howells @ gmail . com, or PM on me on ravelry, I'm pinkundine there)

I have a post planned for tomorrow and then I'm going to take a short break. Mainly because it coincides with some time off from work, but also because I think it might relieve some of the pressure I put on myself to blog, and the disappointment I feel when I can't think of anything to say.

If you read this far, thanks! I know it's a long and serious post, but it feels good to have got it out there.

Um... Works Not In Progress Wednesday!

So, I have no progress to show this week!

This is partly because the weather is so gorgeous that knitting is the last thing on my mind ;) Finally having some sun has a great effect on my mood but a stalling effect on crafting. But I'm ok with this, I like the sun *laughs*

I have done a couple of repeats of my Starpower socks (naming credit to Vanessa *grins*) and that's pretty much it.

See, I'm even recycling the picture, because not enough has changed to warrant a new one *laughs* I do like this picture though, it really shows off the yarn and the pattern nicely.

The weather forecast is lovely for the rest of the week, so I don't imagine I'll get much more knitting done. I am reading a lot more though - sitting in the garden in the sun with a book is one of my favourite things *smiles*

To read about actual crafting progress, head on over to Tami's and Ginny's *smiles*

Timewasting

I think one of the reasons my knitting progress has slowed somewhat is due to my current inclination to play mindless games on my iphone/ipad when I need to wind down. So I thought I would post a quick overview of the timewasting activities I have been engaging in *laughs*

The first one I downloaded, after my brother insisted, was Fruit Ninja (or, as my mum likes to call it "that smashing fruits game" *smiles*)

Such a simple concept, swipe to split fruit, get more points for slicing combos and lose points for hitting bombs. Easy, brainless and an excellent way to de-stress.

Since then I have also downloaded

Same concept, only this time with zombies *laughs* Instead of bombs you have to avoid hitting the humans. Stupid and fun, just the right kind of thing ;)

Another one I can play for ages is Coin Dozer

It is exactly the same concept as the arcade machines filled with 2p pieces. Drop coins to try and push more coins (and prizes) off the end. Surprisingly addictive for such a pointless game!

I can spend hours trying to beat my high score on Temple Run...

You have to run along the temple walls, jumping over obstacles or ducking underneath them. And collecting coins. Another one that is such a simple concept but that I spend many hours playing *laughs*

I do have a couple of slightly more social games...

and

 If you play, my username is pinkundine (I'm easy to find, I have the same username pretty much everywhere *laughs*).

So, that's a little tour of the reasons I haven't been knitting as much lately. Mindless, pointless and addictive games ;)