Sometimes life just doesn’t go your way.  You make a mistake or a wrong choice and you feel upset and disappointed. Not necessarily with something big and earthshaking – sometimes it’s just the little things that can really annoy you. It is at those times, you need to take a deep breath, push your reset button and then keep on going.  Want a few examples?

Reset Button Lesson #1: I recently lost a game of yarn chicken, running out of yarn with just 2 rounds and the bind off left to knit on my Diamond Tempest Cowl.  It was aggravating and disappointing. I’ve put it behind me now and the best way to do that was this:

…which is the easiest, fastest and least painful (because it’s fast) way to frog (rip out) a project. Reset partially accomplished.  [I love my ball winder.  The company that makes mine went out of business but you can get one like this or like this, if your local yarn shop doesn’t have them!]  

The other way to help me reset my mindset after that pain in the neck nice lesson in the need for a gauge swatch, was to distance myself from that project for a bit and work on something else.  I finished the Almost Lost Washcloth, using Sun Kissed cotton yarn (a new yarn at The Spinning Room if you are local):

This was quick to knit up and I think I did a pretty good job with my seam (at right about 3 o’clock in the picture).  The picture of the washcloth doesn’t show very well the pretty tonal quality of the yarn – you can see it better in person and in the ball of yarn. There is also a mini version!  Reset fully accomplished.

And now, I’m ready to begin anew:

The correct needle size is now at the ready to make a swatch so I will know that my gauge is correct and not run out of yarn again.

Reset Button Lesson #2:  I was reading The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian and just wasn’t comfortable with the story line.  Very succinctly, it centered around a family man caught up in a Russian sex slave/prostitution case when he thought they were just having a fun bachelor party for his brother. I liked his writing and how be brought the story along, but I just didn’t like the subject, so I put it down. It was disappointing to me because I don’t do that often. I have this idea of not “giving up” on a book. In this case, though, I just couldn’t finish it.

To reset, I picked up Fool Me Once by one of my favorite authors, Harlan Coben, and immediately got drawn into the story and I’m loving it.  Which I knew I would because I love him.  Reset accomplished. [click on those links to purchase on Amazon]

Reset Button Lesson #3: All this talk of pushing the reset button reminded me of one of my favorite salads!  The Reset Button Salad, which I found on the Shutterbean blog, is a great way to reset your diet when you have overindulged over the holidays or a weekend or any random day when peeps and jellybeans are in season (*cough* speaking from experience *cough*).  It has all kinds of wonderful, yummy vegetables and qrains and nuts, and makes you feel very healthy. Reset accomplished. Try it, and take a look at the Shutterbean blog.  It’s great.  Tracy has great recipes, lots of ideas for meal planning, and wonderful photography.

Remember, when you have an annoying little snafoo in your life: Take a deep breath.  Push the reset button.  Keep going.