As some of my Ravelry friends know already, my plans for May were somewhat disrupted. Instead of travelling in the outback, I had to go to Sydney, following the discovery of a brain aneurism. Yep, not exactly what one wants to hear after having a CAT scan, but – looking on the bright side – I’m lucky they discovered it now, rather than on an autopsy, as they can be fatal if they burst.

I’ve seen the neurosurgeon in Sydney twice, had a cerebral angiogram and an MRI, and now I’m back home for a short while, waiting to hear when I’ll be going to hospital. The good news is, I’ll be having the less intrusive procedure – inserting a stent and coils through the artery from the groin. The bad news is, that’s because they can’t do the full clipping surgery (which is cure rather than treatment) because the aneurism is the wrong size and shape, making that surgery too dangerous. So, the procedure I’m having will take about 5 hours, under general anaesthetic, but all going well I’ll only be in hospital for a couple of days, and can then fly home and resume normal life – with some daily blood-thinning medication.

My strategy for dealing with all of this – and keeping my blood pressure down! – has, naturally, involved yarn 🙂

I called into Tapestry Craft in Sydney, and added a little to my stash:

Kid Seta yarn

Grignasco Bambi yarn – probably destined to become some more lacy fingerless mitts.

I also knitted to while away some of the time:

The first Conwy sock for me is finished, and the second on the way. The yarn is Heirloom Argyle 4ply, and although it doesn’t show well in my quick photo, its a lovely heathered green.

And I’ve done about 6 pattern repeats of the Swallowtail shawl, using The Knittery’s luscious silk/merino lace yarn.