Social Knittings VS Solitary Knittings

I came across this topic while watching the latest episode of Lets Knit2gether .

I noticed that a lot of the people interviewed had mentioned that they learned to knit on thier own, as a solitary endeavor but made it sound undesirable. WELL...knowing me, I have to offer up the opposing view that PREFERS to knit alone.

I really don't enjoy going to knitting "circles"...who has time to talk when you need to pay attention to a pattern? Who has time to chat when you are not as skilled to be able to knit while not watching every stitch you knit? I've gone to our local knitters guild which is a hefty 300+ group and I find the meetings to be overly crowded, noisy, and just plain boring...at times painfully so!

They do invite venders to the meetings, but I have noticed that they seem to bring the most expensive yarns they carry! Not all knitters are filthy rich, and not all knitters knit because they have oodles of money to blow on yarn that will end up being thrown in a "stash" and most likely never used! I sure don't have oodles of extra money to spend. I've ended up spinning most of what I knit (because I can get 10 times or more as much yarn out of a $50 fleece than I can from 3 skiens of overpriced yarn for the same amount of money-and that would probably not be enough to knit what I would prefer to knit out of it...therefor spending even MORE money to finish a UFO started with it)- but besides that, I usually cannot afford anything from the guild venders. I am just dissapointed from expecting too much. I became a member with high expectations...I really should not do that! LOL

I for one prefer the solitary part of knitting alone. It gives me a chance to slow down and reflect (if I am not following a complex pattern). I feel the same about spinning. When I spin, I tend to go into a meditative state and I am able to reflect.

I'm the odd ball...I like being alone-because then I can actually get something done and be more productive than listening to or spreading local gossip (or bitching about what we heard on the news this morning, or how the president is so good or so bad...there is nothing anyone can do about it, why waste precious time bitching about it when we could be finishing that UFO!! LMAO).

Although I do enjoy the OCCASIONAL outting to a late night knit at a coffee shop/deli/yarn store that is Sow's Ear in Verona WI, but my attendence is a rarity anymore because it has just become unnessecary and boring to me. Not to mention the local gossip hounds are usually in full roaring swing by the time I arrive...bleh...the noise, the drama, the crowds....I just don't find it enjoyable. One lady who goes talks so damned loud that it hurts my ears! And she talks about shit no one really cares to hear more of, or she talks like she knows the president personally. They really ought to say something about that because it is driving away potential business. When I did go, I always bought something to eat and drink, never any yarn because I feel they have overpriced a lot of stuff that I get get cheaper elsewhere-but STILL-I bought SOMETHING from them even if that overpriced piece of what I would not call a real sandwhich isn't enough to satisfy me.

Until next time...