Tonight I was thinking about hobbies and interests. I've cycled through a lot of crafty obsessions over the years: sewing, quilting, mixed media art, rubber stamping, silversmithing, embroidery, crochet..... But the most enduring one is my beloved knitting (and now its close relative, spinning, of course).
I think this is partly due to it's portability; partly the sheer usefulness of the product that follows so much happy activity; partly due to the community of Ravelry and the instant lessons on YouTube but most definitely due to the weekly therapy that is my Thursday knit night in the pub.
We're definitely not the kind of knitting group that non knitters would think of. With indie dyers, knitting designers and artisan crafters amongst us, our day jobs vary as much as our ages - from 20s to 40 plus - as do our lives outside of knitting. No tight perms or pursed lips and minds broad and open are the order of the day when we meet.
We've been a group for almost 4 years and we've survived changes in venue; members joining, leaving and returning; unexpected personal pictures and lots more. There's a core of members who have changed from 'other lovely people who knit' to friends who support each other through good and bad. These are the ones who make me cry - once when one of them unexpectedly returned home but more often through sniggering at something a bit rude if not extremely dirty. There's nowhere else where I experience a cramped diaphragm from laughter on a regular basis and nowhere else where I know I can get a range of viewpoints on any problem, all delivered with love, friendship and a kick up the bum if necessary. Thursday knit nights have become sacrosanct and I wouldn't have it any other way
