5 Reasons Why I Started Knitting

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1)  I love yarn. Every time I walked into Michael's and saw all those cozy and colorful yarns, I longed to turn them into something. 

2)  I had writer's block. If my writing friends read this, they are going to make fun of me because I always say there is no such thing as writer's block. There is only a loss of confidence or a lack of focus. I still think this is mostly true.  Either way, I needed to do something that would allow me to think through my plot structures, or to not think at all, on days I was overwhelmed with revising my manuscript.

Knit at the Pool!

3)  I was bored, especially at my daughter's swim practice or during my lunch breaks as a substitute teacher. Knitting helps me pass the time. 

4)  I wanted to create something that didn't take me months and months to finish, such as my newest novel.

5)  I wanted to relax. I can see why they call knitting "the new yoga." And I don't even have to twist my body in circles, just the yarn!

My First Scarves!

And here you can see my first attempts at knitting with needles. I'm sure I will get better, but to be honest, I'm not real worried about it. 

I AM NOT ASHAMED to let you see my bad stitches because I AM NOT A REAL KNITTER. 

I am a writer! Every writer (every person!) needs a hobby.

Not everyone writes books, but many people write in journals simply to get away from it all, to work out their problems, and to relax. It's the same for me, only in reverse!

What about you? Do you have a hobby? How does it help you and why did you choose that particular hobby?

-Tina

Kids, Coats, and Growing Up

Today's April snow day reminded me of this post from the past, especially when I watched my daughter step out of the house without her coat!

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by Tina Ann Forkner


We were headed off to get our Christmas tree and just as everyone was on their way out to the truck, I noticed that nobody was wearing a coat. The kids all claimed they didn't need coats because they were wearing layers, Never mind that temperatures have been below zero around here for days. 


I can never get my kids to wear coats anymore. I'm lucky if I get them to wear a sweatshirt. And those scarves to keep their necks warm? Those are for snowmen or to wear as a fashion statement, but only if you're a girl. 


Don't they know what can happen if they don't wear their coats? The dreadful possibilities are endless. They can freeze to death walking from the car into school, they can get extremely chilly on the playground, and I don't care what the scientists are saying these days because my Mom and my Grandma always told me you can catch your death a cold if you don't wear a coat. Kids need coats!


So what is it that frustrates me so much about my kids not wearing a coat? Besides the fact that I told them to do it? I guess it's the same reason I worry about them remembering to look both ways before crossing the road, or when I'm two minutes late picking them up for school. Sure, they'll probably be okay, but what about the one time they're not? 

Kids don't know how vulnerable they are. They don't feel like they need a coat. They are unconquerable, and if you don't have tweens and teens yet, just wait. It's next to impossible to force them to put a coat on if they don't want to wear one. 


This morning it's below zero (again) outside. I bet there will be a discussion about coats and it frustrates me to no end that I probably won't win. They'll walk out of the house dressed in 'layers' or they'll carry their coat in their hand, but don't they know what can happen? 


Of course they don't know what can happen, and really neither do I, and in my heart I know that the coat struggle is really just a snapshot of a bigger picture. 


I wish I could keep my kids safe all the time, but I can't. I wish they could stay little enough for me to make them wear a coat (and those cute little mittens and hats and scarves), but I can't keep them from growing up. 


Like a friend once told me, sometimes you just have to let them go outside without their coats on and see what happens. 


-Tina

This post was also highlighted at BlogHer awhile back. Check it out: Kids and Coats: A Battle to Let Go

Read a Poem

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I have always loved poetry. I wrote it before I became a novelist and I still try my pen at it on occasion. I hope poetry in general gains popularity in the new generation. My favorite poet is Emily Dickinson, but my favorite poem ever is probably The Lady of Shalott, by Lord Alfred Tennyson 

Painting by Waterhouse, based on The Lady of Shalott, by Lord Alfred Tennyson

"She left the web, she left the loom, She made three paces through the room, She saw the water-lily bloom, She saw the helmet and the plume, She looked down to Camelot."  - See more at: http://www.poets.org

Do you read (or write) poetry? Have a favorite poem? It's my goal to read a poem a day this month. 

-Tina