Actually, an apology and two whines.  First of all, I wanted to apologize to blog readers for insulting my postal carrier by calling her a lazy bitch in a blog entry a couple of weeks ago.  Sad to say, it never occurred to me how misogynistic that term is, and it was lazy and ignorant of me to use it.

Fine Whines

So first of all, I continue to be annoyed with my postal carriers.

This past Monday, whilst awaiting delivery of yarn (see below), I concurrently saw the postal truck at my mailbox and got the USPS text saying it was delivered to my mailbox.  I finished shaving and ran down to get it.

Not there.

Not on my doorstep.

WTF?!?!

Had it been left in someone else’s mailbox?  Had it been delivered to one of the neighbors townhouse doorsteps?  Had the carrier scanned it in and then forgot to leave it?

I went to my next door neighbor’s doorstep…not there…neighbor on the other side…not there…next stoop, I noticed a package…looked to find it was MY package on her doorstep (addressed completely correctly, btw).

I might actually have to complain to my postmaster…incorrectly delivered mail has come into my box at least once a week, which hasn’t been the case for years up until recently.

Second whine…in comments on the blog entry a couple of weeks ago, Kate left a comment about my use of the word bitch to describe a woman:

I like your blog and have followed it for years and I enjoy the knitting content and your queer perspective. But I was disappointed to hear you refer to a woman as a bitch. Perhaps you have the kind of relationship with her where you talk to each other this way, but putting it on your blog without context makes you look like a misogynist. And mail carriers work very hard. In all kinds of weather. So, yeah, not a fan of that remark. Really disappointed.

I’m hopeful she’s as open to feedback as I am.  I have a couple of options she might want to consider when giving feedback like this:

1. If you’ve been following a blog for years and enjoy it, you may want to reconsider having your first-ever comment be criticism.
2. If you still decide that your criticism is valid and you want to leave it after reconsidering, you may want to send a personal e-mail so it doesn’t look like public chiding.
3. If you still opt to leave public criticism as your first-ever comment, you may want to frame it in a way that makes it more of an opportunity for educating someone…for example, stating, “You may not be aware that using that word to describe a woman is seen as misogynistic…” might have been a kinder way of phrasing it.

I hope you all know that I am open to criticism and opportunities for learning about myself.  Those who have read this blog a long time know that I have made mistakes and have sometimes been called to account for them. And I’m grateful that Kate pointed out my insulting characterization of women…and I am sorry for having been so ignorant.  My unconscious misogyny was not meant to offend.

New Yarn Source!

Doug, one of the Ramkins (newbie at the Men’s Knitting Retreats) at this past May’s knitting retreat donated a beautiful cedar sachet to each of the guys at the retreat and also donated a pattern design to each of the workshop leaders.  I’m always amazed at the generosity and support for the retreat.

But little did I realize, he also runs an on-line knitting web site!

https://www.theperfectblend.online

And I don’t mean to be genderist, misogynistic, or anything else, but the site has a very masculine feel to it, which appeals to me very much.

I also fell in love with the colors of some of the yarns he carries.

I ended up ordering some on Friday and was thrilled when it arrived this past Monday (thrilled when I finally found it on my neighbor’s porch!).

My photos suck…those two silvery colored hanks are really silvery…they look more white in my photo, but they’re lustrous and I can’t wait to see how they knit up.

You know me…when I find a source for yarn about which I’m excited, I always want to share it with y’all.

Current Knitting

The Teddy Bear Baby Blanket is finished!

Even though the Teddy Bear squares are a different size than the hearts on the earlier blanket, the total finished size of the blanket is the same.  I love how these two blankets turned out and hope the babies and parents will get enjoyment from them.

I started a new Interlocking Crochet Scarf in VERY deep, broody colors (including one of the yarns from The Perfect Blend Online shipment that came in on Monday).

It’s not quite halfway finished but I’m loving the pop of jewel colors…I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to be handling such visually and tactilely enjoyable fibers in my hand.  I am blessed.