SO lately I have been watching a ton of television in the evening and when I watch, I generally eat. And when I eat, I gain weight and get sick. Gaining any more weight is definitely NOT part of my plans and developing diabetes is out of the question so I have been trying to develop other strategies for my television time which do not involve eating. I have tried folding laundry but I must say that did not last long. What has worked as an eating diversionary tactic is crafting.
So I come to the title of this blog entry...My name is Marianne and I have been a "Hooker" for about 15 years now. CROCHET people! I also enjoy knitting but for the last 5 years I have primarily been a crocheter. It all started when my husband told me about a job opportunity at a small liberal arts school called St. Lawrence University in Canton, New York. When he actually got the job, the reality of exactly where we would be living slowly began to become apparent. "20 miles from the Canada" "The North Country" "Way, way, Upstate New York." "How do you feel about...WINTER?" Michael asked. In my California Girl mind, WINTER really had no meaning. My experience with winter did not even involve a coat. We are talking about a woman who wore shorts every single day of the year. I had to borrow a coat to go to New York the year we visited Michael's family for the first time. It is not that I had never been in a place where they annually held winter, more that I never thought of MYSELF as having to live with winter everyday. "Southern California Babes" like me, don't really DO winter...Oh, we dabble with cold, and rain and even occasionally, snow...but we don't really DO things like down comforters, snow boots and mittens...heck, I rarely wore socks let alone long pants.
We had to move across the country and have Michael ready to teach in six short weeks. I gave notice at my job and we began the hours and hours of packing...And I began to ask questions. Lots of questions. "Huh, so they have winter in Canton." "How long exactly IS winter?" "We are going to have to get parkas and boots right? "HOW LONG did you say it is winter?" "Canton's USDA gardening zone is WHAT???" "Are you telling me that it can actually get colder than freezing?...DID you say -40 degrees F?? "Why is my Mom crying about Rochester, NY? You get the idea...SO I began to think...what am I going to DO with myself in the house all day long. Because in my mind, people in WINTER sit in their houses, under a down comforter and the do...what exactly??? Well, they must read nap a great deal build wood fires and WHAT else? And that is when I came up with the idea that I should learn all of the hand crafts...knitting, cross stitch, crochet, tatting, sewing needlepoint...I would learn them all! And that is exactly what I did. Well, I didn't exactly stay in the house under the comforter but I did learn all of those hand crafts. Which brings me back around to "HOOKING."
Did you know that the one of the reasons prostitutes are also called "hookers" is because of crochet? It is true. "Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna, in her 1844 exposé The Lace-runners, questioned a manufacturer's wage policies only to be told that he expected women to supplement heir income by engaging in prostitution." And the term "hooker" was coined. This quote comes from a terrific blog called "Wine and Windows: My view from the middle." You can read more about it on Liz's Blog "Wine and Windows: My view from the middle." http://wineandwindows.blogspot.com/2009/03/history-of-happy-hooker.html
So yes, I am a "Hooker"...what of it? I am posting a picture of my giant and ever growing pile of crochet projects and part of my cotton yarn stash...At the moment I have a two ball a night habit...so much better than growing my double chin.
