Knitting Away

I'm in a moment of deep avoidance.  Home alone, I should be taking advantage of another hour or two of quiet to get some work done.
     But I'm just not feeling it.
     So now I'm fantasizing about starting a new knitting project, a project just for me.  Knitting is a real source of pleasure for me, and it also makes a statement.  It states that I have (or will take) the time and inclination to be creative, that I can actually engage in something so (relatively) slow, that I have allowed myself to engage in a tactile world.  Maybe it's because I haven't been engaged in a project recently that I'm feeling out-of-sorts.  Or maybe it's because I have a ton of marking to do.  That could be it as well.

     A friend recently wanted to commission me to make a pair of socks (for a third party), and she wanted to pay me.  It was hard to come up with a price.  It's one of the reasons I don't knit for money.  To those of you who don't knit - it ain't cheap!  I told her a pair of socks (in particular the pattern she fancied) could take between 8 and 10 hours, and I gave her a figure.  Let's say it was well below the Canadian minimum wage.
     She was surprised.  Not surprisingly, she has decided against the socks.
     People don't realize the time it takes to make something, especially if you've got a (paying) job in addition to your crafting habit.  I once knit a beautiful mohair shawl for a friend and was kind of crushed that it didn't get the reception I'd anticipated.  I was younger.  Now I'm a little more seasoned, which means that I both have lower expectations and don't knit as freely for others anymore.   I plan on knitting less gifts this year, but my plans often change.
     I've been using needled and Twist Collective as inspiration points.  They both suggest an existence that seems entirely at odds with my current state.  I read the blog and the publication respectively, and suddenly I'm ready to move to the country.  It's another city mouse/country mouse moment.
     In the meantime, however, I'm just hoping to knit myself to a better state of mind.