Done!!!

This past Friday morning I was composing a blog post (not this one) as David and I were sitting at the Tucson airport waiting to board a Southwest flight to Chicago.  This would be the time for a very appropriate collective groan.  We planned this trip to see Anne a long time ago and we had goodies for her in our carry-on bag.  I was writing about those goodies and planning on posting after the trip.

Well, as most everyone knows by now, there was a fire at the air traffic facility in Chicago and nothing was going in or out.  Such a bummer. Anne and I cried our tears, and we promised to reschedule as soon as possible.  After some typically infuriating time with American Airlines and some less infuriating time with Southwest we replanned the trip for the end of October.

So David and I found ourselves with an unexpectedly free weekend at home, and aside from restocking our refrigerator we got busy with our respective hobbies.  And that’s when I finished this:

Woohoo!!!!  This was a labor of love if there ever was one.  Endless and tedious but in the end oh so worth it.  This shawl was made from Quince and Company linen yarn that after blocking is soft and beautiful.  Here’s a better look:

I was afraid that after I blocked it and opened up all the lace (the fun part really) my mistakes would be glaringly obvious.  Not so! I’m sure there are mistakes but they’re certainly not obvious. I guess all that ripping and redoing paid off.  Here’s what this gorgeous pattern looks like up close:

If you can spot mistakes, shhh, don’t tell me.

I have to admit, that while I chose this gray/blue color because it’s fairly neutral it is a little blah.  Oh well.  I also really have no idea how to wear this.  I’ve never owned a “shawl” or should I call it a “wrap”?  Some folks can jauntily arrange wraps or shawls or whatever over their shoulders but for me I think it will take some practice.  For my first attempt I went for the ancestral (i.e. “shtetl”) vibe:

I’m not gonna lie, there’s something about this I like.  I certainly wouldn’t have to worry about how my hair looks!  Ok, never mind.  How about this:

Definitely a work in progress.

So in the end, the change of plans this weekend provided me with a good opportunity to practice acceptance and not cause unnecessary suffering for myself.  It was so disappointing to not be able to see Anne as planned and the whole airport thing is frustrating and maddening, but all of it was completely out of my control.  In the past I would probably have obsessed about it all weekend but not acknowledged my sadness and anger.  This time I did the opposite.  I let myself feel the full impact of my disappointment and frustration and then I got on with it and enjoyed the weekend.

Good for me.