How It Starts

Since I have started knitting again, I have been hearing about other knitters' stashes. My first thought was, Well, that will never happen to me. I don't buy yarn unless it is for a specific project, so my so-called stash consists of only leftover yarn and soon-to-be-used yarn. That doesn't count, does it?

And the sweaters I bought at Goodwill don't count, either, since I haven't frogged them yet. Right?

Nevermind that my daughter came over one day and brought The Boyfriend and pizza and we had to eat on the couch because every other ordinarily suitable surface was covered with yarn and yarn projects. (The couch stays relatively clear because 1) the coffee table holds a lot of yarn, and 2) my scoliosis makes sitting on the floor uncomfortable.)

And nevermind that Saturday afternoon I tidied up the living area by shelving knitting books and relocating knitting projects, in anticipation of my standing date with my SO, but by Sunday afternoon, said living area looked like a yarn explosion. (How does that happen, anyway?!?)

One of my recent no-brainer projects has been to knit dishcloths out of Lion Brand cotton yarn, experimenting with different stitch patterns. A favorite color combination has been "seaspray" and "maize", so I stopped at Joann's to buy some more. They had the seaspray but not the maize. But I really like red, so I added that to the seaspray in my basket. And they had some nice variegated shades. And I want to make myself another scarf, in black wool and eyelash yarn - STOP! I made it out of the store with just four balls of the cotton yarn. (I am so disciplined!)

Then I stopped at Hancock's because I knew they would have the maize. But they had some other colors and color combinations. I had neglected to pick up a basket, so eventually I had a ball of yarn stuck on each of the five digits on my left hand. This caused a cramp, so I stopped picking up yarn and headed for the cash register. (Pain helps enforce discipline.)

So now I have a bunch of cotton yarn that will be turned into dishcloths as time allows. Does that constitute a stash? Or the start of one?

Do I need an intervention?