The Knit Hits the Fan

With less than a month to go before "December madness", I am knitting like a madwoman. I finished a scarf for my son's friend Abby (sorry, no photo). No, I do NOT have time to vacuum :) The scarf was not exactly planned, but, having knit the Alien Illusion scarf for Ben, in lime green and black, his friend Abby was really taken with it. Well, who can resist a compliment to her knitting? I had to make her one. It is a surprise, so please don't tell anyone!

Oh, and these socks from Louet Gems, a really nice yarn to work with!!!! For Ben (shhhh).


I am now on the THIRD Fair Isle glove, and, being a new Fair Isle knitter, it is different from, and nicer than, the other two.

I promised Ben a zipped hoodie with the Misfits logo on the back. I have the yarn, I have the pattern, but I haven't started it. Being sixteen (next Monday) Ben will only wear BLACK. My (not)favorite color to knit. No mercy for this middle aged mother with incipient cataracts. Oh, and I still have to start and knit my daughter's two surprises, which I will not describe here since I'm sure she will read this. Oy vay!!!

Back from the Big Apple

Well, it's been two trips since my last post, actually. After LA, it was a week in Sun Valley. While there I finished the second Fair Isle glove and started the third -yes, I'm learning as I go and three will match two better than one- and who's on first?

In Sun Valley I visited Isabel's, the only yarn shop in town. I had planned on starting Teva Dunham's Lace Leaf Pullover with some yarn I'd scored from Knitpiks. I felt like a real idiot when I discovered that the yarn I'd bought was so far from the right gauge as to be unusable. Isabel had some lovely Rowan Big Wool Fusion. The sweater is knitting up quickly. I have the top and bottom of the body done (they get grafted together) and tonight I will start the first sleeve. I haven't knit a sweater in a LONG time, but it seems already to be exceptionally cold here this winter. Maybe it's because we're keeping the thermostat at 66 degrees. Yikes! and we ran out of fire wood today. Karen, don't say I didn't warn you....

In New York much had changed since I was last there in 1999, but much is the same. I got right into the routine of walking aggressively and quickly. Visited many museums: Natural History, including the new Planetarium, Metropolitan Museum of Art - twice, and MoMa (my personal favorite). Here's a photo of two chairs in their design collection:


Ground Zero. What can I say? It brought me to tears. I saw it and I still can't believe it. I remember taking an elevator once in the World Trade Center to about the 140th floor or something. It was fast and noisy and scared the crap out of me. It was like being in an airplane going straight up. It was the only time I was up in the towers, although I've been in the Plaza a bunch of times. I have now seen the hole in the ground with my own eyes and it is still unreal. Everywhere in lower Manhattan there are signs and reminders of what happened and the lives lost. I was moved and angered and, finally, baffled. I suppose I should mention here that I have lived most of my life in New York City; it was MY town those sickos bombed.


I met my dearest high school friend, Robin, for lunch and espresso in Greenwich Village. This had to have been the highlight of my trip!

Saw two shows: The first show was Blue Man Group. It was silly and funny and totally meant for tourists. Not that there's anything wrong with that :)

The second show, which dazzled me, was a revival of Sweeney Todd starring the amazing Patti Lupone and the mesmerizing Michael Cerveris. This new production was still in previews last Saturday night, but wow, what a production. It is a far cry from Hal Prince's original staging. This is a stark, cool and unusual rendition where the actors are also the orchestra. If you can get to see this, run, don't walk, to the Eugene O'Neil theatre! This is a demanding show, for, dare I say it, sophisticated theatre goers.

All for now, I need to knit.