Cold weather makes me want to …

• wear sweaters
• dig out the wool socks
• eat soup
• watch football
• KNIT!

If you're a fan of the sticks and string, you probably already receive Classic Elite's e-newsletter. If not, yesterday's had a very cute little FREE hat pattern in it that I wish I'd seen before I began making the one that's currently on my needles.

To be fair, one of the designs is simple enough to not need a pattern. I like the little visor-type brim on the other one, however, and I really appreciate that someone else took the time to figure out how to make it happen. That pattern is definitely in my queue.

FANCY!

The hat I've almost completed is a very simple slouchy beret (from the book Homespun Handknit – link goes to the revised e-book; I'm using a pattern from the original printed version) done in a glitzy black/grey/silver fiber that's almost knitting itself. I cast on Monday and will cast off today. And I only managed to complete a couple rounds on it yesterday.

It was, and is, SO cold here in southern WV that I thought I'd surely be able to wear a sweater to the prison last night. The one I wanted to wear is a wool/cashmere blend I knit years ago (I'd have to go over to the garage-office to find my records of what I weighed when that photo was taken. AND IT'S TOO COLD TO GO OUTSIDE!) The sweater much roomier now.)

I've rarely worn it. Because it makes me too hot.

And, yes, it was too hot to wear last night. I switched to a couple layers of cotton shirts and was much more comfortable. (The room where we have our AA meeting at the prison is usually very warm.) That grey sweater would be perfect for door-to-door Christmas caroling or sled-riding – two activities I haven't done since I was a child.

Nearly every AA meeting offers an opportunity to share sobriety milestones. I was happy to share mine with my group last night, and they were happy for me. And somewhat astonished that anyone could go 23 years without a drink.

I shared with them that all I've ever wanted to be was comfortable. Not physically, which is why I made the wardrobe switch last night, but emotionally. And while early sobriety was definitely uncomfortable, it was never as bad as the end of my drinking career. I liken it to the period following surgery or childbirth: right afterward the bad days outnumber the good, after which they even out and soon – sure enough – the good days outnumber the bad.

If the bad days ever start taking over the good ones again, believe me I'll do something different. My experience – and that of countless other recovering friends – has shown me how to act and react when bad things happen so that the bad days never need overtake the good ones.

Take that hat I'm knitting, for instance. It will be delivered to a female friend of the family who will soon be undergoing brain surgery to repair an aneurysm. (The sooner the better, but there are complications which necessitate a delay.) You can't have brain surgery without having your head shaved. You just can't. And having your head shaved, if you're a woman, is, well, bad.

Knitting a hat for someone facing brain surgery (or debilitating chemo treatments or just because) is what knitters do. And it's also what this alcoholic does. Not just for their comfort, but for mine.

Thanks for your kind comments yesterday. My 24th year is off to a great start.

And I hope both of you have good, good days.