Ravelry Stash update

Update on the stash I have listed on Ravelry:
195 different kinds of yarn - includes different colors and different packaging (ie: a Ball of Lily Sugar'n Cream is not the same as a Cone of Lily Sugar'n Cream)
379.49 skeins of yarn - Yes, I'm entering partial skeins
76,076.2 yards of yarn = 43.225 MILES

Calculations:  if one square inch of knitted fabric uses up one yard of yarn, on average,
This is ONLY 528.3 square feet of knitting.
Now, really, that doesn't sound so bad does it?
I know, it's only the tip of the iceberg.
Hmmm, will have to add the photos later, not seeming to let me do it here and now.

Wherefore art thou, dear lost UFO?

4) I don't even know how many UFOs I have, or where they all are.
a) Should I spend some Saturday, or a sleepless night, sorting UFOs to find which ones have all their parts?
b) As I am sorting out and straightening out my Stash, should I come up with a way to store the UFOs? And maybe an easier way to access them in the attic?
c) Ravelry. Could this be my salvation? Or just another obsessive / compulsive distraction?
i) Could I make a fortune by selling the rare vintage yarns I have to Ravelers and eBayers that really need them?
ii) If my stuff was on Ravelry, and accessible from my smart(alec) phone, Would I be inclined to buy less?
d) If I had all my Stash - and all my UFOs in one place at one time, would negative things happen:
i) The world as we know it be at an end?
ii) The attic would explode from the pressure? (Insurance does not cover that)
iii) Would the men in white coats come to take me away because my significant support people decide I was a danger to myself or others?
iv) Would my DH ever understand?
e) If ...., Then ... Would positive things happen?
i) The attic would be fully insulated and we would save a fortune in energy costs.
ii) The rest of the house would seem spacious and airy.
iii) Really never need to buy anything again, retire debt-free to knit full time
iv) Become totally inspired to finish all the UFOs
v) No Christmas shopping required - everyone gets a FO that was a UFO.
vi) All the people I've ever promised anything to see that I am good for my word and love me even more than ever before.
vii) Lucky Seven - That guilty feeling would go away.
viii) Peace Reigns around the Earth!

Knitting UFO excuses

3) What about those projects where I did come across a UFO later, only to cannibalize the needles and stitch markers for another project? Not too long ago, I used to do that.
Why would I do that? What makes one project more worthy of finishing than another?
a) Lost the pattern
b) Lost a needle or other required tool
c) Lost the yarn and might find it again
d) Ran out of yarn and need to buy more
e) Ran out of patience with the pattern because it was:
i) Boring
ii) Too Difficult
iii) Poorly written directions
iv) Not turning out as expected
f) The intended victim outgrew the UFO, or made a disparaging remark about knitting, fiber, color, style........
g) The yarn wasn't right
i) didn't survive the swatch & wash test: faded, bled, shrank, felted or fell apart
ii) didn't survive the knitability test: itched, scratched, or was otherwise not worthy of knitting.
iii) not right for the pattern: couldn't get gauge, didn't showoff stitch properly, too many colors for the stitch.
h) Got side-tracked onto another project
i) a new magazine / book / Knitty / pattern came in the mail / email / bookstore
ii) a new yarn seduced and distracted
iii) a gift giving opportunity was looming, and the victim really "needed" something besides what was on the needles
iv) Oh, let's be honest, I'm just too easily distracted by anything.
g) The project, or it's component parts, got "lost" when:
i) We cleaned house
ii) We moved
iii) We cleaned out the car
iv) We went on a trip
v) Reorganized storage
vi) Someone was sick, hospitalized, Born, in crisis
h) Priorities Change
i) Stuff Happens

Not doing so well on the 12 step Fibe-holics Anon program

Well, after the dust of March Madness has settled, I've had a chance to evaluate the fluctuations in my stash over the last few weeks. My search for Jayhawk Crimson and Blue yarn for my Jayhawk Jaywalker Socks did NOT help to whittle down the stash. I seem to have totally lost control, again. It seems that every March, I totally loose control. Really, it's the only sports that I ever really follow. I start watching about the time they post the stuff to pick your brackets, and by the time they're at the Final Four I can't leave the TV for a moment. And in between games, I go foraging for yarn! Why is that? What was I thinking? If I was a drinker, I would probably be having horrible hangovers for the whole Championships. In a weird way, it is a lot like drinking in that I don't seem to realize what I'm doing while I'm doing it.

You know, a rational adult (notice I'm not counting college students) does not go out and say "I'm going to spend all the money I can get my hands on to get so totally drunk that I cannot even remember what I was doing, where I was, or who I was with". Right? Do they?

But here I am, "coming to" the week after the Championships with a "Yarn-Over". I have holes in my memory as to why I bought yarn that I'm finding that I obviously obliviously stashed around during a 3 week spree of LYS SEX. I have bags in my car that I have no Idea How to smuggle into the house.

I could blame it on the extra traveling that I was doing. Yeah, that's it, I'm only in some of those cities Once A Year. I HAD to go to the Best LYS in Town while I was there. Right? You can't go to New York and not go to Times Square, Chicago and miss Marshal's, Minnesota and skip the Mall of America? No, that would be Un-American. So, when you're in a town with a great Yarn Shop, you MUST GO there. That's just all there is to it.

So, this weekend, I can either do the TAXES or I can list all my stash on Ravelry and eBay so I can pay my taxes.
What a Decision.
I really am going to have to count on the Ravelry groups to help me Bust this Stash. Maybe I can knit Basketball stuff? Those nets surely use up some yarn.

Ravelry ?

https://www.ravelry.com/account/login
Has anyone out there been using the Ravelry site? I don't even know what it is really, but I signed up for an invitation. About 5 minutes later, I typed in to "check my place in line".

• You signed up on Today
• You are #111471 on the list.
• 5680 people are ahead of you in line.
• 4 people are behind you in line.
• 93% of the list has been invited so far

Then I notice that the title line on the page that gives you this information is "antsy".
Good humored Snarkiness? Right back atcha:
How good must this be? Wow! Is this what one would call a phenomenon?

organize. Organize your projects, stash, needles, and more.

Is this an answer to my prayers? Or what? Man, this is worse than waiting for - what? I don't even know what I'm waiting for.

And then, I notice It's In BETA. So this isn't even the final product yet, and we're all lining up to get it? Man, that's serious HYPE! Or not......... We shall see what the future holds.

Lionbrand Yarn has a Charity Search

Do you use Lion Brand yarn? I've got a ton of it in my stash. Yes, lots of the "real knitters" aka "yarn snobs" will tell you that it's inappropriate for serious knitting. But, let's be real; it's affordable, available, trendy or classic, reliable. Lion has textures and colors that everyone can relate to. They have the traditional basic afghan yarn to the trendy hot colors that come and go faster than a teen changes moods.
Anyway, I never noticed it before, but their website has a whole Charity Search area. You can look up charities several ways. Just type in your location, and how far you're willing to go to send or deliver your craft, and they'll fix you up with a list of what group in your area needs what. Or, you can type in your interest: say "hats", "chemo", "Veterans", "Prison", or "transplant" and it'll search for those words in the name of the organziation and their description and requests lists. In just a couple of minutes, I found seveal nearby ministries that need finished crafts as well as some that are asking for YARN ! So, if you bought tons of Lion yarn when you were first starting out and now you've moved beyond that phase: You could Donate the Yarn. Stash Clearing! What could this do for my OCD-hoarding thing? And now that I'm doing my taxes, I bet it could be a deduction IF I can Document it Properly (Get A Receipt).
Something to think about.
And, while you're there, they have lots of free patterns and even a stitch finder.
Peace - Out........