stash vs. sofa

It sounds like a cheesy horror movie. To many a knitter, it would imply that their stash of yarn is taking over all sitting space on their sofa. However, for me it means I have to decide between adding to my stash of yarn or getting a sofa.

I couldn't fall asleep last night. First, I couldn't stop thinking about possible designs for the redoing of the poncho for my friend. But then it got worse - I started thinking about money. I am currently owed around $2400 in reimbursements from my workplace, and, as you may imagine, that doesn't make the bank account balances of this grad student incredibly hefty. I have enough money squirreled away to survive for many a blissful month, especially since my car is now fully paid off (WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!), but there are also several things I'd like to have money for in a couple of months. Being that I've been incredibly not-responsible in my spending since Christmas-time (that season has a tendency to encourage me to spend more for some very strange reason...this year it stuck), I've landed myself in a situation where I feel more than a little guilty about not so much how much money I've spent but on what I've spent my money!

And the big culprit...YARN.

I thought it would never happen, but it surely did. I am addicted to yarn. Yesterday I was feeling stressed about two big writing projects I'm supposed to have completed today, and on the bus ride home I kept thinking, "I'd feel so much better if I'd stop in a yarn store..." That is not healthy. That is, first of all, a sick, twisted mindset the culture of America encourages, and following the culture is never a good thing in my humble opinion. And that is not true, either - going into the yarn store...feeling the yarn...buying the yarn... That won't in any way, shape, or form make me feel better about getting my writing done! Best case scenario: I waste more money on yarn (and can't afford to buy that new printer cartridge I'll need to actually print out the writing). Worst case scenario: I buy the yarn and feel the necessity to knit it into something starting RIGHT NOW, and I spend the rest of the night knitting and getting no writing done.

I decided not to go to the yarn store yesterday, which was really good, because Microsoft Word kept crashing as I was doing my writing, and that obviously put a damper on the speed of my progress. Finally I came to the end of the day, lying in my bed, not able to sleep, and I decided...I really would like a sofa for my new apartment (this one, in fact - if you've never been to IKEA or their website, you should), and I won't be able to afford that if I continue frivolously spending my money, especially on yarn. And I have way more than enough yarn to keep me knitting for a long time (plus tons more yarn that various non-knitting friends have told me they would like to donate to me). So...

It's time for me to decide between adding to the stash or saving for a sofa. Since it would be extremely nice to have a sofa upon which to sit while I use up my stash...I am selecting the latter option. Goodbye, yarn stores, at least for a while! (And judging from the slowness of my knitting and the size of the trunk and closet that hold my yarn...it could be a long while...)