It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas

Still building this blog - another new experience for me.  Trying to get links and buttons and things to favorite sites operational.

In the meantime, Christmas tree is up and decorated.  Started my Christmas cards.  Baked some cookies. Got a lot of shopping done.  Wrapping is being done as I write this - not by me, I'm a lousy gift wrapper.  Husband, on the other hand, learned when he worked at a local department store in his youth - they recruited anyone who wasn't on the sales floor to learn and do gift wrapping.  So, since he's the pro..........

In my knitting world, I submitted a sock pattern to a yarn company who put out a call to designers.  Keeping my fingers crossed.  My first design was published in a book called Think Outside The Sox.   I entered a contest on a whim, and while I didn't win in any particular category, I was included in the book.  So now I think I'm a designer.  Could be I'm only a "one hit wonder", but I like my second design very much, and so do the gals in my knitting group, and some of them are designers so they must know what they're talking about, right? 

That's all for now.  Just getting the hang of using this space before the New Year.  May post now and then before the 1st of the year, but nothing regular. 

In The Beginning.....

I will try to explain what I hope to do here, though I'm not really sure myself yet.  The pictures of  Lake Nokomis will be part of my focus (and hopefully they will BE in focus).  I'm not looking to become the next photographer for National Geographic, but I am hoping to improve my artistic eye.  

I never considered myself artistic at all.  I can't draw or paint.  I am not a musician, can't carry a tune to save my soul.  But I knit.  I knit all the time.   I first learned when I was about 10, but only got serious about it in the last eight years or so.   And I'm good at it!   I've started doing some design work.  I'm good at putting colors and textures together.   I'm artistic!  Who knew?  

I'm hoping this  photography exercise will improve my knitting skills (color, texture, symmetry, asymmetry), improve my photography skills, get me outside everyday, and bring the beauty of The Lake into my life everyday and maybe into yours.

And the self discovery part.......... I'm not a writer.  I love reading but I absolutely hated writing book reports as a kid (but then, did anyone REALLY like writing them?)  I have never kept a diary or journal.  I didn't   do baby books for my kids.  Putting my thoughts on paper scares the #@%& out of me.   Same with public speaking.   So, this is my forum, whether anyone reads it or not.   I will discover if I can learn to express myself, both in pictures and on paper.  

I may not be back much until New Years Day, so look for me then.