Casting your first knot

Yay! I've finished making my first scarf yesterday. It is fairly shorter compare to scarfs found in stores but the yarn I used is very stretchable so that made up for the length. Needless to say it was a "proud beginner knitter" moment. :)

I started to find knitting more enjoyable. Even though what I know now is still very basic, allow me to share the steps as I continue learning my new hobby, starting from making the first knot or casting the first knot.

A. Get the yarn and needles ready.

B. Pull around 12" or about 30cm yarn from the ball.

C. Making a loop

 

(1) Put 2 fingers under the yarn, (2) Wrap it around towards yourself.

(3) Grab the piece underneath, pull it through and (4) You'll find a circle or a loop after this step.

D. Casting the 1st knit

(1) Insert the needle into the circle.

(2) Pull the loop gently and fasten the yarn to the needles. You want it to be able to slide on the needle as you knit, so remember not to secure it to tight.

* Take note of the position of the hands. One of the hand is holding the yarn and the other is holding the needle.  The easiest way to do this is to hold the needle high and put your left hand in between the  yarn with the loose end next to your thumb and the other on the index finger. Hold the "tail" with the rest of the fingers and pull your needle down. You'll form a sling.

E. Casting the 2nd knit

(1) Insert the needle through the yarn on your thumb and (2) Pull it towards your left index finger. (3) Insert the needle through the yarn on your index finger and (4) Bring it back to the thumb and insert it through the loop. (5) Pull it up with (6) Your left hand pulling it the other way.

F. The 1st row

Keep practicing step E until you get comfortable with it. Once you are comfortable with it, repeat the step 19 times to make the first raw of 20 - that is 1xStep D and 19xStep E.

Happy 484th Birthday, Jakarta!

To at least 20 million of Indonesian's population, Jakarta is home. To the rest of the population, Jakarta is the capital. And to all Indonesians, Jakarta is the country's economic, political and cultural center. And I fall in the category of those 20 million people. I call it home too.

Jakarta is a province that serves as a capital with a special name of Special City District of Jakarta which is abbreviated to D.K.I. Jakarta in Indonesian. It is divided to 5 cities with each city being governed by a Mayor and the province itself is governed by a Governor. It is no doubt the most populous province in Indonesia and I think it holds the same reputation in Southeast Asia and according to www.worldatlas.com/citypops.htm, Jakarta sits at no. 6 in the most populated capital cities of the world category.

As a province in the 3rd world country, Jakarta has gone through and is still going through a lot of things. Through the Pre-Colonial and Colonial periods to Independence, Jakarta sure has had its ups and downs but through it all, Jakarta has survived, is surviving and today it is 484 years old.

Some may wonder how Jakarta is older than Indonesia, which is only turning 66 this year. Let me take you down memory lane, learning how its birth date was declared and how it formed its name.

• It all started in the 14th century when Jakarta was called Sunda Kelapa or also known as The Kingdom of Sunda. They made an alliance treaty with Portugal by letting the Portuguese build a port in 1522 in order to defend against the rising Sultanate of Demak from Central Java.
• In 1527, Fatahillah, a Javanese General attacked and conquered Sunda Kelapa and changed the name to Jayakarta (meaning victory town). History records that this happened on June 22, 1527.
• Then the Dutch came and changed the name to Batavia on March 4, 1621. The colonial era started.
• August 8, 1942 the Japanese came and changed the name to Jakarta Toko Betsu Shi.
• 3 years later the Independence Era, marked with Indonesia declaring its freedom on August 17, 1945. The name was changed to Pemerintah Nasional Kota Jakarta (Jakarta City National Government) and it kept on changing a few more times before it settled on Jakarta.
• In 1956, looking back at history, the city parliament declared June 22, 1527 as Jakarta's birthday.
• In 1961 based on government decisions, Jakarta was called Special City District of Jakarta.
• August 31, 1964 based on government decision, Jakarta served as Indonesian's capital city.

There it is, the history of my beloved home.


Happy 484th Birthday, Jakarta!

Wishing you nothing but the best.

My first handmade scarf

A lot of my friends and some family members are surprised to know that I am able to create something with my two hands. I was known more as a social butterfly rather than a crafty girl. Let's just say, art and crafts are not my thing. Making knitting a hobby had never crossed my mind either, not until recently. To be honest, it was actually something I had given up hope on a long time ago.

I was first introduced to knitting when I was in Shanghai, at least 4 to 5 years ago. One of my house mates started doing it and I thought to myself 'Hey, that's a good way to kill time!'. So one day I walked around the wet market near my apartment in Cao Yang District, Shanghai and found that they sell knitting supplies. Don't ask me why they sell yarn and knitting stuff in a wet market. I think that is just how things work there. I quickly approached the seller and bought some yarn and needles. I told her that I was a beginner, I knew nothing about knitting and to my surprise she patiently explained the steps. I spent some good hours there trying to make the best of the free lesson offered, making sure I knew what to do for when I am doing it on my own. Being a social butterfly that I am, I find it hard to find time to knit and the desire slowly faded away. I quit!

The topic was brought up in one of the morning chats I had almost 6 weeks ago with Dottie, a 73 year old lady who comes to the gym 4 days a week and always sits next to me on the bikes. She said "I am retired, a widow, live with 2 dogs, I have to keep myself sane. I need to do something." One of her ways to keep her sanity is to give free knitting lessons every Wednesday in a public library.

Free lessons? Who wouldn't want a free lesson? Again I thought it was a good way to kill time since I am now jobless and I was still waiting for my USA working permit at the time. I gave it some thought. After thinking it through, I finally went to Michael's to buy some yarn and needles.

Now it is just a matter of how to get myself to the library. I don't drive, I have no car and it is about a 30 minute walk under Orlando's heat from home to the bus stop. I do have a bike, but again, it is at least a 45 minute bike ride under the sun. Arghhhh... it is too late to quit now that I have bought the needles and the yarn and I quit once, I don't want to be a quitter.

Who do I turn to for help? You Tube! I learned how to cast on the stitches on my own and I have been knitting for at least 1 month now.

Knitting is now a different story. It is the new hobby I enjoy and love. My first handmade scarf is half way done and I can't wait to put it on this coming winter.

Hello World!

Welcome to my page!

I seized memorable moments in pictures and in my mind, never in writing. As a matter of fact, writing was never my strongest skill. Growing up I hated writing class and the feeling usually escalated on the last week of Summer Holiday due to assignments given by my language teacher. Somehow all the language teachers I had throughout my primary school years always asked their students to conclude holiday activities in writing, of course there were rules to follow - the number of words, the page requirement, etc...

I guess the question now is what got me into writing?
You know how they say a picture is worth a thousand words? It is true and I agree but I have been so blessed in life that pictures alone are not enough to tell the story. So here I am trying to share my stories, not only in pictures but also in words.

I do hope that through this blog, family and friends will know me better as I learn more about myself and discover all of my potential, as I venture on.