Like author Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, crytoscopophilia (the urge to look in people's windows as you pass by) is one of my favorite pastimes! No, neither of us is a Peeping Tom; it's not that kind of looking! It's the kind of looking where you catch a momentary glimpse into someone's life...their decorating taste, their activities, their family dynamics... and you automatically begin to infer things or create scenarios about them. It's interesting that Pearl-McPhee is so intrigued by this word and its meaning because she provides the reader with much the same experience, albeit with a bit more detail and a lot more humor, through her essays about her life and knitting.
At the age of four Pearl-McPhee was taught to knit by her grandmother, and she has since created a lifestyle and writing career out of this hobby. I'm a very casual and unskilled knitter, but I do crochet, so I understand her love of color, texture, pattern, and the camaraderie that comes of sharing the love of a craft and the creation of beautiful things with others. Unfortunately, I also understand her "stash" and how yarn can overtake your whole home. Just ask my husband and kids, although I've gotten it pretty much under control at the moment by hiding yarn in and behind furniture. I plan to use the author's explanation of "snacks," yarn that you buy in small quantities just to satisfy your craving and prevent yourself from buying enough for a big project, the next time (and there WILL be one!) I am challenged on whether or not I might need to use up the yarn I already have before I buy more.
But, getting back to the book....You don't have to be a yarn enthusiast (but it makes it more fun) to savor and enjoy Pearl-McPhee's observations on teenagers, fashion, high school awkwardness, bras, deadlines, parenting, etymology, mathematics, seasons, the industrial revolution, and addiction, to name a few of her topics. The author has a successful knitting blog at www.yarnharlot.ca. She is short, disorganized, poorly groomed and dressed (by her own admission), socially awkward, and didn't get married until after she and her husband had produced three daughters. She is, on the surface, nothing like me (well, except maybe for the socially awkward and grooming things!), but I feel a strong connection to her nonetheless. Maybe it's because knitting, despite the fact that it has become wildly popular with the masses, is a traditionally feminine activity, or maybe it's just that her humor targets such universal topics so succinctly. All I know is that I want more!
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