Scraps

Today seems like a good day for some unconnected items...

The game review I mentioned in this post is now published on Kristin's site. You can read it here.

The striped scarf should be proof positive that joining skeins is no longer a big ordeal for me. Since I had to cut the yarn and tie the tail with the other color every six inches, I got plenty of practice.

I have a lot of ends to sew in. All of them, in fact. I need to get a quick lesson from Kristin in how to do this, and then I can truly say I have eleven FOs to date.

How did I manage to knit eleven scarves in two months? Seriously, I thought that knitting seven in time for Christmas was going to be more than I was capable of doing. I'm beginning to think it's a major reason why I've been able to stay sane in an otherwise busy and stressful time.

Speaking of which, last night I hit the wall that I subconciously knew I was approaching. It brought yesterday's post to its logical conclusion, although how it happened caught me completely off-guard.

Yesterday's second screening was for the live-action version of Charlotte's Web. I didn't know why, but I felt anxious on the way to the theater. That developed into a rambunctious mood as a few of us trying to survive the screening schedule compared stress levels and vented before the film started.

Charlotte's Web was the right movie at the right time in that I know the story, even if I had forgotten a few of the particulars, and wouldn't have to think. It was the wrong movie in that it took every ounce of diminished strength I had to keep from openly weeping for the last fifteen or twenty minutes of it.

I'm going to assume that everyone knows how it ends, but if not (and you care), skip ahead to the next paragraph so that I don't spoil it for you. I was moved by the common decency of the film and its characters, but what had me fighting turning into a quivering mass was when Charlotte tells Wilbur that she is going to die and that she feels honored to have known such a good friend. I'm pretty sure that the shots cut to more extreme close-ups between the spider and the pig as the conversation goes on. I'm not kidding when I say that I really wanted them to stop it because it was killing me inside. It was like every cut and every word was shooting right through me. I thought I'd made it through the worst of it, but the rest of the movie I was on the verge of falling apart.

It really is a beautiful film about friendship, and it's supposed to be sad and happy. Still, I'm not sure that it's so powerful as to wreck me like it did. I've teared up at movies before. It's not a regular thing, but if something is good enough and hits the right buttons, I'm not immune to shedding a few tears. This was something else, though. I had trouble holding it together talking to Kristin on the way to the parking lot and finally let loose on the drive home. I'm guessing that physical and mental weariness combined with an expert tearjerking film laid me flat.

Really, I have a stronger constitution than the impression I may be giving. I feel better this morning, but thinking back to those scenes chokes me up a little even now. Maybe it's something about talking pig movies. Babe didn't have this effect on me--I can't think of any movie that's wiped me out like that--but it moved me quite a bit too.

I can't end on a teary note, so I'll wrap on a question for you all. Does anyone know of any good knit hat patterns for men? I'd like to make one that matches the scarf I'm going to knit for myself. Something basic style-wise and knitting-wise. It's not too cold right now, but I know I'm going to need something before long.

Next...beginning Kristin's scarf.