The kids ate my Christmas gift

As a child, it's easy to think of things to blame for falling short on assignments. I know that Christmas gifts are neither mandatory nor do they have to be extravagant. I like to give them as far as my budget is able. In fact, I like to make things for people quite a bit but am so self-critical that I will often make a few things that never end up under the tree. I have no dog to blame, no pets of any kind, and if I have time to type these posts I certainly have time to knit a few more rows, let alone time to fold the two baskets of laundry in my bedroom.

This year, I decided to make a couple of cute things for a couple of cute sisters, but wasn't happy with how one of them turned out. It was a scarf and the stripes I wanted for it would be most easily accomplished by knitting it sideways, along the length of the item. That always makes me nervous because I like looooooong scarves and knitting it sideways meant that the length would be fixed, for better or for worse, unless I got tricky and brave with a crochet hook.

Well, it did turn out too short for my taste. I ended up leaving the poor thing on the back of the couch, where my kids found it. It made the most marvelous draw bridge, stretchy arm, whip, rope, and harness they'd ever used, the end result being my sad little scarf being left for dead in a withered pile in a dark corner of our crooked hallway, to be discovered only after that magic moment revered through all time, known merely as "bed time." Of course, once everyone is all tucked in, you can't go thumping around chastising them for ruining all my hard work.

I stared at it, examining the broken strings on one side that were already unraveling a large portion of the edge, where jewel-pink ribbon yarn hung limp and lost and frayed.

I smiled slightly, torn between outrage because knitting does take time, and relief that I could go get more yummy yarn to make what I really wanted.


teehee

Readers, how long do you like your scarves? See the poll on the right side of this page.