Getting Back to It

I'd like to begin by apologizing for the long space in posts here. I can guarantee it won't be the last one, but we'll just see how it goes. It's been a busy spring so far, and I can't believe it's already April 1. By the way, did anyone catch the April Fools' episode of the Martha show yesterday? So weird.

In the past few months I've been able to do some traveling -- some short-distance and some much farther. I've come to appreciate airports and the fact that someone really needs to go in there and install many more seats per gate. I cannot remember now how many times I've had to stand around or sit on the floor waiting for a plane. Of course the people who install those seats assums that waiting passengers will sit side-by-side, but that is sadly not the case. Hardly anyone will sit directly next to a stranger, especially during flu season, and especially if that stranger has a lot of carry-on luggage or is a member of the opposite sex. But anyway, I've seen new parts of the state, and I've been to Madison, WI and to Florida, and overall had a great time.
I'm still keeping a list of possible blog posts, and I'm also keeping a small notebook that works well for writing things down right when they pop into my head. There's little stuff like things I need to do and groceries I need to buy, and also bigger stuff. And there's a list of my knitting projects -- present and future. And the list keeps growing. I've become addicted to www.knitty.com and at this point have looked at every single pattern on the site. I learned how to knit a sock, but haven't actually done so for lack of sock yarn or really tiny double pointed needles. I'm working on my first sweater right now and also this huge shrug/wrap thing that's red and soft and a whole lot of fun. And I have so many more ideas, and I'm slowly starting to come up with ideas on my own instead of just constantly borrowing other people's genious all the time.
I think the past few weeks in particular have been a little about renourishing my creative side. It gets lonely when the schoolwork piles up and the cumulative sleep hours plummet. But I've tried to take time to read things I want to read, like Haven Kimmel's Something Rising (Light and Swift). If you've never read Haven, I strongly suggest it. Something Rising is the second book in a trilogy of novels about life in small-town Indiana. She writes in a way that is intellectual yet very real, a way that notices everything and everyone, a way very similar to the way I often think about things, which I think is why I like her work so much. She's also written a couple of memoirs about her own small-town life in Indiana, and I've only read the first. But I hear the newer one is pretty good too. I can't wait till next year when the third book of the trilogy comes out, and I'm kinda thinking I want to read the first two all over again before then.
I've been trying to integrate creativity into my life a little piece at a time, although it hasn't been as intentional as it probably sounds. I spent one afternoon painting pottery and one at an author reading, and I've been trying to read parts of the New Yorker or literary magazines or whatever. I've extended my creativity to cultural awareness and went to the farmer's market last weekend and bought organic shampoo this week. And like I said, this isn't all as intentional as it sounds -- mostly reflections on what the past few weeks have been like for me.
And it's all enjoyable, taking control of parts of my life one little piece at a time -- taking it back from school and work and everything else. It's good stress relief. And sometimes I figure I need focus like this to keep me from getting lost in my own stress and to keep some of my self-discipline in order.
So with that update I must go prepare to dance. Perhaps I will have something more focused later this week.