November's End

Hello Gentle Readers. I'm sitting in a sunny spot in our living room, soaking up the warmth and quiet afterglow of Thanksgiving. Light wet snow fell on Saturday morning and then again on Saturday evening. As usually happens the day after a snowfall, Sunday was quite cold. Juncos foraged for the seeds in clumps of lazy susans. The stalks are brittle and thin so they bounced about trying to perch. After awhile, they may have knocked the seeds to the ground in order to eat them more easily. Their behavior looked both playful and scrappy.  

Today is Wednesday and the day to link with Kat and other makers. The HusKAL wrap I knit with other customers of Knit Paper Scissors is blocking. It feels like a big finish. When it dries I'll have a weaving-in-the-ends party, take photos, and share a few thoughts. 

I finished spinning this BFL fiber. Four ounces of fiber yielded 423 yds of sport to dk weight yarn pictured at the top of this post. One skein appears more compact because I wound it on a new niddy noddy. I acquired that tool, along with some other items, by way of a birthday gift certificate from my son and his family. My plying could be more consistent. Still, whenever I finish a skein of handspun, I am amazed that I can make yarn. 

I want to give a small present to a service provider so I cast on these mitts. I knit this pattern often because the 2 x 2 ribbed hand will fit a variety of sizes. I also love knitting the leaf/thumb gusset. It ranks right up with turning a heel.  After these mitts are finished, I plan to get back to works in progress. Famous last words, right?

As for reading, I'm listening to Tom Lake written by Ann Patchett and narrated by Meryl Streep. I wondered if listening to Streep would distract from Patchett's writing but it does not. She adds just the right amount of interpretation. I admire the subtle way Patchett, weaves the pandemic into the background of the story. As many of you know, the characters shine and the novel is a beautifully written. 

I'm slowly reading Walking in Wonder by John O'Donohue. Last weekend I read the section on "balance" and am still thinking about it. I was struck by O'Donohue's words about holding contradicting ideas at the same time. He wrote that the mechanism of physical balance in human beings is in the inner ear, the organ also associated with listening. What a connection and message for our time. Mary Oliver's Devotions is also keeping me company. 

And so, speaking of balance, I best move from sitting in the sunshine and to bundling up for a walk. Take a deep breath and enjoy the last few days of November. 

Ravelry Link

Gold Thumb Mitts

Where Was I?

Hello Gentle Readers. Since I last posted, we traveled to Connecticut to visit our daughter and family. Now it is good to be home. A brisk November wind blows out of the north. However, the sun is bright and that makes all the difference. The weather is perfect for Thanksgiving. 

We had a wonderful visit full of adventures with my daughter and her family. We managed to get a photo with all four kids in our summer camp t-shirts. Somehow it never happened in August. We also took a photo of Norah in her rainbow sweater. I was happy to know she is wearing and enjoying the sweater.

One blustery day, Kate, Norah, and I walked around Tod's Point. I've never been in November or at such a low tide. For a few minutes, Norah got out from under the blanket in her stroller to look at rocks and shells. My daughter found a few pieces of sea glass. 

We enjoyed ordinary days, filling them with walks to and from school, games of UNO, baking muffins, and taking fewer photos. Emmett and I remembered our infamous back-to-back photo and he is now officially taller. 

One morning, Lance and I walked to a local coffee shop and then to the park a block or so away from Kate and Patrick's home. It was a beautiful brisk morning and we enjoyed the New England color. See the park photo above. 

Another day, Kate and I took the metro-north train into NYC. We toured the incredible Morgan Library and Museum and then we walked to The Strand Bookstore and all the way back to Grand Central. I logged more than 13,000 steps that day and kept up with my athletic daughter. Excuse the less than stellar selfie. 

Today is Wednesday and the day to link with Kat and other makers. My travel knitting was yet another pair of socks. Before leaving, I knit the ribbing and a few rows of the pattern. I haven't touched them since we arrived home late last Thursday. Truth to tell, I am a little tired of sock knitting so I'm working on the HusKAL wrap. I now have six WIPS, including a Christmas gift. This is at least two too many for me. In my defense, I knew I'd never be able to knit the Hocus Pocus socks in between playing UNO and reading bedtime stories so I cast on the travel socks with an easy familiar pattern. 

I read a hard copy of The Masterpiece by Fiona Davis. This historical novel is not great literature and the storyline isn't altogether believable but I did enjoy the information about Grand Central Terminal. I find Grand Central so interesting with it's blue ceiling, grand staircases, and the clock ticking in the information booth. Although I wouldn't change my life, growing up in small town Nebraska and living in the small city of Lincoln is quite a contrast to the hustle and bustle of Grand Central.  

This Thanksgiving week, I am grateful for family and friends - both near and far, those I see in person and those I know only virtually. I am grateful for a safe trip, two smooth traveling days (no small accomplishment when one is flying), happy times with family, face time and phone calls with our Texas family. I am grateful for a warm house and clothing, good health, delicious food, hot coffee and tea. Did I mention wool socks and shawls? The list is long. I wish you all a good week and if you celebrate, a Happy Thanksgiving.  

Ravelry Link

Herminones Christmas Socks

Simply a Moment - 11.7.23

 

Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 11:07 a.m. 

Hello Gentle Readers. This morning is sunny and mild. I am soaking up the warmth in front of a south window. A breeze rustles the linden leaves that are a dull green with brown edges. The autumn colors of the maples have faded and some trees never did turn. 

My Mom would have loved this bright autumn morning. This is her birthday and so in honor of her I'm sitting in the sunshine with my knitting and drinking a Blonde Vanilla Decaf Latte. I believe she would have chosen strong black coffee with a dab of whipped cream. 

I've written about Mom more than once but I am thinking of her this morning. She was the best kind of mother, gentle and kind, encouraging all four of us to be what we wanted to be at the moment. She held a BS in nursing, a career that combined her compassion with science. Over the weekend I found an old yellowed paperback, (price $2.98!) Revelations: Diaries of Women, that she gave me for Christmas in 1978. In a way it is outdated and in a way not. I like the quote on the back, "To read this book of selections from women's diaries, is for a woman reader, to experience an excitement, a warm recognition, and a dizzyingly expanded sense of possibilties . . ." And isn't that "sense of possibility" what we want for all of our daughters and sons?  I'm rereading parts of the book. 

I received the most touching gift from my son yesterday and tomorrow we leave to visit my daughter and family. Years ago, a good friend gave me the pillow in the rocking chair. In case you can't read the words it says, "A Family is a Gift that Lasts Forever." Now more than ever I appreciate my family, those present and those alive in memory. 

Take good care friends and hold fast to what is good. 

 

Hello November

Hello Gentle Readers. Here we are in November. These days, that feels like an accomplishment. Last Friday brought a cold snap. We even had a few flurries of snow on Saturday. I am not ready for such cold weather but then again it is November. Leaves fall, some turned to the rich autumn colors but others are a dull green and brown. This time of year I think of Carrie Newcomer's recording, "Leaves Don't Fall, They Just Let Go." The predictable seasonal changes bring comfort. 

Today is Wednesday and time to check in with Kat and the Unravelers. I continue to work on the local yarn shop knit-along. This "slanket" is growing and will require a good blocking when finished. I am enjoying the different stitch patterns and textures. Some are new to me and others are not. Unfortunately I ran short of the colorway for the latest section. I'm going over to the yarn shop to look at the finished sample to see how I might adjust the rest of the wrap. I'm sure this is due to my loose knitting and gauge although I did check the gauge of the garter stitch as directed. I have yarns in the other colors so I'll figure out something. As the saying goes, "no one will notice it on a galloping horse." I'm giving myself a lot of credit here as I rarely gallop and never run but you know what I mean.

The sock is coming along nicely. I finished the heel flap, turn, and gusset and am knitting down the foot. I've been listening to the early Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes mysteries by Laurie King while I knit on these socks. They are going to be forever associated with Mary Russell, a strong smart female protagonist who now and again disguises herself to solve the mystery. Hocus Pocus indeed.

I cast on the Creekside Shawl with handspun BFL /silk held double with a strand of mohair. The finished edge will be a familiar simple lace pattern. It's not quite feather and fan but reminds me of it. At the moment, the name escapes me. I'm letting the handspun do the work and it is performing admirably. I'm knitting on size 7 needles. I chose it both as a break from the smaller needles in the other two projects and also because I have always wanted to knit this pattern. Where do those "yens" come from? Patterns appeal to us in different ways at different times. Right now knitting a shawl is comfort and shelter from the news.  

I'm reading Walking in Wonder by John O'Donohue and inspired by his quiet elegant thinking and writing. I read a bit and then stop to reflect and then read a little more. I finished The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths. I won't say much because I don't want to give away the story but I found the conclusion satisfying. Others think differently. I'm going to miss Ruth and Nelson. I'll even miss Cathbird and Judy as well as Bruno and Thing.  

Welcome to November. Stay warm and have a good week. 

Ravelry Links

HusKAL Wrap

A Little Hocus Pocus

Handspun Creekside Shawl