Hospital Knitting

My husband had a major heart surgery at Stanford Hospital on Monday. It was a procedure that we've known needed to be done for about 3 years now, and after they monitored it closely, about a month ago we were "invited" to the appear for surgery asap. The surgery went will with hopefully few complications (he did suffer a mild stroke, which we hope will not affect him in the long-term). It was our pre-op appointment experience which gave me the inspiration for this entry.

I noticed that there are oodles of people in the pre-op and surgical waiting areas at Stanford Hospital. Dozens of people sitting around, reading the paper, staring into space, or napping while they wait for a loved-one's surgery or appointments (about 6) with all the people necessary when preparing for surgery. It's the same in the ICU waiting area, only then it's whole families, passing 90 minute spans in between the allowed 30 minute visit that occurs every 2 hours (i.e. 8:00, 10:00, 12:00, 2:00, 4:00, 6:00, 8:00, 10:00). As is my habit, I plopped myself down in a chair to wait, and whipped out my knitting. It was mindless knitting (for me, the most soothing kind), so as I cranked out my Baby Genius Burp Cloth, I had a chance to look at everyone else. My thought was "I am lucky. I get to leave the waiting room and spend my waiting time in the comfort of my sister's home," because dh and I had already discussed this. I had told him that the best place for me to wait during his surgery would be knitting on the couch at a cozy knitting store, about one city North of Stanford, but I would be a good wife and wait in the waiting room. Well, he informed me that I should not stay at the hospital and that they were going to send me home b/c his surgery would last about 8 hours. So that was the plan. But I couldn't help to think about all those poor people who did not have a house less than 3 miles from the hospital, to go and try to relax while waiting the results of the surgery (incidentally, the wonderful Stanford policy is that the surgeon's nurse either calls or finds the family in the hospital for updates on the surgery a minimum of every 2 hours, or as needed if more frequently). And so the lightbulb went on....

I think it would be a great idea to have some kind of a volunteer program in the waiting area(s) of the hospital where someone could be offered some needles, a ball of yarn, and simple pattern, say a "Warm Up America" square, a preemie cap, or a chemo cap, to help pass the time. The squares could be then left at the hospital for finishing and/or donation to the children's hospital, chemo ward, etc. What better way to 1) soothe an anxious soul, 2) pass the time, 3) take your mind off your own stressors for a few minutes while helping someone else 4) possibly put your situation in perspective?

I've had some time to think out the possibilities (soliciting donated yarns from a network of lys's in the area and some of the major yarn manufacturers, figuring out whom to approach at the hospital). I even emailed a couple of local knitters--whom I've met on knitlist and found on ravelry. I wanted to know if they knew of any program that existed already. I also googled any kind of hospital knitting, and found that some hospitals do have "knitting baskets" in their waiting areas. I even came across an amusing story about how the knitting baskets in the emergency rooms in some hospitals were viewed as dangerous, and some were removed due to safety concerns. If anyone watches "ER" or the reality ER shows on TV, you'll see their point.

I haven't been able to go talk to the Stanford Auxiliary/Guest Services folks yet--unfortunately I got quite a nasty cold right before dh's surgery, and lost my voice. It's still coming back. But I did talk to a volunteer, also a knitter, who asked about my knitting, and another hospital tech who was on break joined in. The volunteer gave me the name of the volunteer coordinator. (I am not sure if I will start with her, or go straight to Auxiliary.) They both think it's a great idea. In addition, I learned that "Guest Services" for hospital patients & their family, provide many services, including bedside art therapy, book carts, and other things. Even the wife of the man in the bed next to dh's saw my knitting and thought that my idea is good. She even mentioned wanting to go pick up some knitting so she could have something to do while she spends her days with her husband at the hospital. Even some therapist, in dh's room to help the other guy, saw my knitting and said to me "I want to talk to you! I am a knitter too!"

DH is not ready to be released yet, but possibly soon. I've got most of my voice back, too. So I'm going to try to find the right people to speak to tomorrow. We'll be here in California for another few weeks until hopefully dh is stable enough to fly home. Although I won't be able to see any type of program here come to fruition in such a short time, I'm really excited about being able to at least get the ball rolling, I can offer to solicit donations and things even from Hawaii, if needed. (My ravelry contact has already given me the name of a store that may be interested). I hope it works out. Wish me luck!!

PS A few days ago, after learning that dh had a mild stroke (something that is a known risk of the surgery), I had brought a variety of things for him to do to try to stimulate his mind. After he played with his "Tweny Questions" electronic game for a bit (yes, it's fun for adults, too), I asked if he'd like to knit something. He said he would, if it was something small so as not to weigh his arms down--when you have open heart surgery, the arms are very hard to move for a long time. So I taught him how to do a 3-stitch i-cord, since it's part of a thank you gift I'm working on for his surgeon (an anatomical heart pillow). I had to watch dh carefully, but I know he's going to be ok if he can still knit!

I have the best dh...

I'd like to start by saying thanks to the 3 people who commented on the last entry. I had no idea that anyone actually reads my ramblings. If I knew how to reply to the comments, I would :-)

Thanks for your expressions of support & good wishes for dh as he goes through his surgery. He's actually not having the surgery till 6/23, so right now everything is ok. He doesn't seem to feel any effects of his heart condition, which is why I guess they have to monitor him every 6 months--otherwise we'd never know there was something wrong. Last night he told me his condition is similar to what John Ritter had, except they didn't know he had the problem till it was too late.

I forgot to mention this about dh: HE KNITS!!

A few years ago, I knew I had struck gold: On one of our first dates he sat right down on the floor with me at Borders and we spent at least an hour, maybe two, looking at knitting books. He told me that he & his college roommate used to lock their door and knit "sweaters and things" and that they had learned from watching their Aunties knit. Then he just told me last week that he actually took a class to learn to knit while he was in college. [It was the '70's, they taught stuff like knitting (and how much you wanna bet macrame!) in college, apparently.] When I asked him what his girlfriend had to say about his knitting class, he told me that he'd never told her about it--they were together for YEARS!! His comment, "I couldn't tell her all my secrets!"

So, a couple of weeks ago, after dh had shown more interest than usual in my knitting, I asked him if he'd like to knit something. I suggested a bib for our little niece, Malia, and he was sold--he'd do anything for that little girl. So now, dh is knitting a little Mason-Dixon bib. He needs help every now and then when he messes up, and although he says that knitting is not relaxing, I beg to differ. Ok, it wasn't so relaxing when he was fighting with the splitty Cascade cotton I started him out with, but hey, I felt bad about giving him cheap Sugar 'n Cream for his first project. My mistake. After he threw the cone of Cascade across the room, I switched him to Sugar 'n Cream which is not splitty at all (and which would fly much farther, if needed), and we have a lovely "color blocked" effect. Tonight I figured out why he needs help with a big hole in his knitting every few rows. The fingers are still knitting, but the head is bobbing & weaving around and the eyes are shut. Instead of the arms just dropping down with the knitting, they keep going, just more slowly. How much more relaxed than that can a person get??

Non-standard Measurements

I've spent the last few months thinking about this--I'm always without a measuring tape/ruler whenever I need it most. Just like Stephanie Purl McPhee's rant in "Yarn Harlot" (Archaeology chapter), my house is also a black hole of measuring tapes. (Those and the mini pocket knives which work so well for needlework because they have a tiny scissors, tweezers, and a tiny nail file all in one.) So I got to thinking, if I can memorize the measurements of a few standard items that I usually do have with me, I can employ those things to measure with.

Here's a few of my "personal" measurements

my hand span: it's about 7.5" (this one is risky--if I'm having a bit of an arthritic day, it can be 7")
my "wing" span, same as my height: 5'
first knuckle of my index finger: 1"

debit card: 3 3/8" x 2 1/8"
business card: 3.5" x 2"
dollar bill (if I had more than a dollar in my wallet, I'd probably go buy a new stinkin' measuring tape!): 6 1/8" x just under 2 1/8"

I should probably come up with a few more items.

I also came up with the idea that if I actually read through my pattern thoroughly before knitting (and providing that said pattern is the copyright safe one photocopy allowed for personal use/purposes of notation and portability), I could actually measure off and mark the measurements needed for the pattern. Say, if I need 1.5" of sock cuff, and later 7" of foot before decreasing for the toe, I could mark off 1.5" and 7" on the pattern. I rarely lose the patterns, just the $#@!! measuring tapes. [Ironically, the one that lives on the desk in front of my monitor hasn't gotten lost for months...but I don't actually knit in front of this computer monitor. My eyes will tell you that I probably should, rather than in front of the teeny screen of my laptop, but that's another story.]

The final non-standard measurement: time. How do you "measure" how much knitting you'll need for a given amount of time? For instance, I'll be away from my stash for a month--how much knitting will I need to bring for that?? I know it depends on how much room I have in my suitcase, how much time I'll have to knit, and what size the projects are, so this one's not so easy. Sure, I'll be close to a bunch of really cool LYSes, but it's frustrating to have to buy a new project when I know there's tons of them sitting at home. This does not help the budget restraints, either, which at this time are an issue.

I'll be thinking about this one as I sit with dh at the (Stanford University) hospital and keep him company while he recovers from major heart surgery in a couple of weeks. Probably not the best time to run out the door to the LYS. I hope that I bring enough knitting to keep me busy--the priority project will be the anatomical heart pillow (from "knit.1" Fall/Winter 2007), which will be the gift of appreciation to the cardiac surgeon. We'll be in California for nearly a month, and my beloved stash will remain at home across the ocean. I can't really run home to get another project.

PS A shameless plug for Fibers in Grass Valley. I emailed Allison last weekend and asked her if she had the back issue of "knit.1". I told her why, and that I'd need the pattern, yarn & whatnot for the project so I could work on it while dh is in the hospital. She not only had the magazine, but she's got the fiberfill, found some yarn that will work, and even offered me the needles. The whole batch of stuff was ready for me to buy by phone and have mailed off before I was even ready with the address where it'll be sent!