2023 Year in Review and 2024 New Year's Resolution

Another year has come and gone.

I read and reviewed a total of 17 books this year. Just when I thought I have reached an all-time low last year with 31 books, I break my own record this year by doubling it south. It certainly is not impressive, but that's pretty much my average these days.

Year 2023 @ 17 (-14 YOY)
Year 2022 @ 31 (-14 YOY)
Year 2021 @ 45 (-5 YOY)
Year 2020 @ 50 (+4 YOY)
Year 2019 @ 46 (-16 YOY)
Year 2018 @ 62 (+10 YOY)
Year 2017 @ 52 (■ YOY)
Year 2016 @ 52 (-22 YOY)
Year 2015 @ 74 (-23 YOY)
Year 2014 @ 97

Crochet: Scarf: Chevron Scarf

This is my first serious attempt at crocheting a scarf. Did I just mention "serious"? Yes, I did. Well, that's because I have some vague impressions of a feeble attempt at doing the same, though one of a different pattern, many years ago. I think that scarf was made of double crochet stitches, and no, I cannot remember what happened to that scarf. It is most likely that I have threw it away.

I started this project on 21 Dec 2023 but didn't think that I will be able to complete it before the year is out. So, once again, I am surprised at the speed and ease of my ability to move things along. Strictly speaking, I started this project one day later, on 22 Dec, as I unraveled all that I have made - at least 21 rows - to start all over again. Expectations pile high as I intend this scarf to be a gift. So, when I deem the tension too loose or too tight, I unravel the rows. And when I feel that the scarf is not wide enough, I unravel the rows again. I think I may have unraveled at least three times before I feel satisfied enough to continue on.

This is the first time I work on a V shaped pattern. I came across this Chevron scarf pattern from Crochet to Calm: Stitch and De-Stress with 18 Simple Crochet Patterns by Interweave Editors. Crochet to Calm is a fun, easy to read book. There are inspiring pictures, interesting patterns and clear instructions on how to go about with the projects. This Chevron pattern uses single stitch and back loops to create texture for the scarf. Perhaps because I have never worked on V shaped pattern before, I find it amazing how skipping two stitches can lead to a very different look and feel of a scarf.

A scarf is an easy project to work on, one that can be completed with relatively less time as compared to crocheting a shawl. But even so, I don't think I will be crocheting more scarf any time soon, unless I have someone really special to give it to.

Review: Calm Christmas and a Happy New Year: A Little Book of Festive Joy by Beth Kempton

3 stars for Calm Christmas and a Happy New Year: A Little Book of Festive Joy by Beth Kempton.

I bought two non fiction books in Scotland last month - yes, two out of sixteen books altogether. I have already read and reviewed the first non fiction Cider with Rosie. This is the second one. Priced at GBP7.79 for a hard cover, it is an absolute steal. And the best part is, I cannot find any visible damage on the book, the very reason it was marked down from GBP12.99.

This book shares with us what it means to celebrate Christmas. It is in fact, a book for life, not just for Christmas. Filled with personal stories, it offers good advice for slowing down and staying calm to enjoy the Christmas magic during the festive season.

Perhaps it is the timing or the season in one's life, I find that chapter 6 on honoring the melancholy resonates the most with me. Indeed, grief is a part of life, and sometimes life can be hard, and hard to understand. As quoted, according to Caroline Abrahams, charity director of Age UK, "Loneliness is a feeling people experience when the relationship they have do not match up to those they would like to have. When this feeling persists it can have a negative impact on wellbeing and quality of life."

On the theme of loneliness, the author shares some really good tips on how to deal with it. Loneliness is often invisible. Most people will not tell you that they are suffering. As such, we cannot tell someone else's emotional experience, and it is not just during the Christmas season, it could be any time of the year - the shadow of loss, the beating heart of sorrow, the searing pain of loneliness and the full ache of wishing things are different. We can only help to reduce the pain of loneliness and elevate spirits by being kind to one another.

If I ever read this self-help book a second time, I hope I will feel differently when I come to chapter 6 again.

Crochet: Shawl: Classical Attitude Shawl

We all need a break from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives. Yet, I have not felt the need nor the mood to start a new crochet project in the first half of this year. It was only in late October, due to the state of my mind at that point in time, that I felt I am badly in need of doing something repetitive and meditative. On 22nd October 2023, I picked up my crochet hook, took out my big skein of gradient cotton yarn and embarked on this repetitive meditative journey. A self-healing journey, or so I hope.

Since it has been such a long time I last crochet, I find myself at quite a loss to begin with. For a start, I have difficulty remembering how to do a magic ring. In the end, I turned to YouTube videos to help me get started. The good thing is, once I have the magic ring completed, I find myself picking up momentum and ready to brave through at the speed of a freight train. Oh, scratch that, I exaggerated. But the truth is, I am glad to have decided to crochet again. Crocheting a shawl is both fulfilling and rewarding. Not only do I get to have a beautiful piece of practical end product, I get to enjoy the peace and calm and meditative effect of the process.

I thought it will take me many months - at least three months - to complete this lovely shawl due to the many inevitable interruptions here and there. Yes, I brought this project along with me to Scotland in November for two weeks, hoping to be able to spend some time on it while on vacation. In the end, I hardly crochet while I was there except on my flight to and back. So you can imagine how surprised I am that I managed to complete this pastel colour shawl last night - 18 Dec 2023. All in all, it took me four days shy of two months to complete this project, and before the year is out. I am indeed very pleased with myself.

This Classical Attitude Shawl is a work of art - simple yet elegant. It is brilliantly created by Hobbii and available for free download at their website Classical Attitude shawl. The pattern is designed to provide both familiarity and variety to keep the person working on it relaxed and entertained at the same time. If you are looking to crochet a shawl with a meditative stitch pattern but one that is not so repetitive as to be boring, this is the one for you.

Review: Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee

4 stars for Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee.

I bought a total of sixteen books from my vacation to Scotland last month, mostly from secondhand bookstores in Edinburgh. Cider with Rosie is one of them books that I lugged back home from afar.

While holding the book and contemplating my purchase, I thought the author is a girl until I read the short introduction after the cover page. Then I started to wonder if author Lee's wife is someone by the name of Rosie. I decided there and then to buy the book, to read for myself and find out in good time.

The book is a recollection of early boyhood. Laurie Lee's account of his childhood is full of joy and gratitude for youth in a rich and sensuous world located in a remote Cotswold village. The writing is welcoming and fresh, of an era and landscape that has mostly vanished from today's world. Each sentence tells of first hand account mingled with the sense of hearing, touch, sight and smell. It is a heartwarming and wondrous record of a life lived.

Having finished Cider with Rosie, I can't help but consider if I want to pursue his two other autobiographies in the same series: As I Walked Out One Midsummer (1969) and A Moment of War (1991). But when I turn my head to look at my collection of books, I see the rest of those fifteen recently-bought books waiting for me, and I tell myself, I better read those first.