hoodie sans pocket

Is this not just the perfect sweater for a six-year-old boy who will be playing in the woods? It's so loud, you can practically hear it and God knows it's easy to see. I bought yarn before I got the pattern and have a skein extra. Can't decide whether to return it, or knit a matching hat for dad. Hmmm - dad wears "gimmee" hats. (You go to the the John Deere dealer and say, "gimmee hat" and they give you a ball-cap with the green deer on it. Or you go to the feed store, or you go to the auto-parts dealer . . .) and I don't know how to knit a cap with a bill on it.

On the other hand, I bet there are kids in the orphange who could use a nice warm orange hat. And I didn't save the receipt anyhow. It's hard to take yarn back to the store. It crys when I try.

Thanks to all of you who have offered such wonderful advice about the quit-writing-and-go-to-work plan. I feel wrapped in care and affection. And you have given me a lot to think about. Yes, if we cut back on our high-flying lifestyle,(yearly cruises) we could get along relatively comfortably on the current retirement funds, unless the unexpected happens. And there's no way to plan for the unexpected. (Will an asteroid hit the earth? No ammount of planning will help with that one. Will a truck hit me on the bridge tomorrow? How can you plan for that?) Do you forego all current pleasures to make sure there's lots of money socked away for the future, or do you gather those rosebuds while you may and make hay while the sun shines?

We took our first cruise for our honeymoon. While on that cruise, we met several older couples who were unable to do much because one of them was in a wheelchair or on an oxygen tank or had impaired vision. And they all said, "We always wanted to travel, but we waited till we felt we could afford it. Then John had his stroke (or Martha broke her hip) and we realized that if we wanted to enjoy life, we'd better get started. but now we can't dance, and most of the food is forbidden on our diets, and the wheelchair won't go onto the beaches. Enjoy yourselves while you're young. there's lots of time to sit quietly at home when you're old and tired."

So there's the question. Live like a grasshopper, or live like an ant? Or, like a spider, should I spread my white lace tablecloth on the lawn and wait for the picnic to come to me?