Auspicious Days

1. It has been four days in a row without screwing up the shawl. I am doing nupps now (rhymes with “soups”) and I love them very much and they aren’t even a pain in the arse, but Nancy is not kidding when she says to do them “loosely”.

Begnupp3309

She means it. She really does. Fear not the sloppiness, for it shall reward you on the next row when you have to “p5 tog”.

2. I am working on updating the tour page, because right now it’s all of last years stuff. For now I can tell you this:

Saturday March 14th, Madison, Wisconsin. I’ll be speaking at the Knit in that the Madison Knitters Guild (truly, one of the really great guilds out there) have planned. Information on how to get in is here. (There’s a PDF to click on there, it takes you to the registration form. Click on the “Classes Descriptions, Schedule, & Registration Form” line.) I think most of the classes are full, but I’m pretty sure you can still get in to hear me speak. I’m doing a lot less this year, and it’s been a long while since I was in this neck of the woods, so I’m thrilled. Totally thrilled. Hope I see you there.

March 30 – April 4th. Camp Knitty-ha-ha. (AKA – sock camp) at the Port Ludlow Resort. This is for Sock Club members only, (I think. It’s possible Tina can be bribed.) but I’m teaching there and who only knows what we’ll get up to. Buckets of fun, undoubtedly.

May 30th – June 7th Saskatchewan Stitches Conference (Haus of Stitches.) I’ll be speaking and teaching in beautiful Muenster, Sask. and I’m really excited to be doing such a great Canadian event. It’s nice to get on a plane and not need my passport, and this event promises to be really interesting. Info on what, specifically, I’m doing there, is here., but do poke around. There’s a lot of really great stuff.

3. Today is Ken’s Birthday. Ken is my best friend and the dude who makes this blog go. Without Ken, this blog would crash and burn on a regular basis because I have no idea what I’m doing. Ken is the guy who holds my hand though upgrades, and baby steps changes in the way I have to do things so I don’t freak out because I have to learn another piece of html. I love him for a whole lot of other reasons too, but if you enjoy this blog, then maybe you want to join me in wishing him the happiest of days. Happy Birthday Ken! (I’m going to start your birthday dinner soon. Promise.)

304 thoughts on “Auspicious Days

  1. Ken – Have a most excellent birthday. And many, many, many thanks for “making blog go.”

  2. Happy Birthday Ken! And Harlot, please come to Colorado. Please, please, please.

  3. Happy Birthday Ken!!! Enjoy a most excellent dinner but I did just get a Movable type error when I tried to post this.

  4. Happy Birthday, Ken!! Many happy returns for the day!! Eat lots of cake and ice cream, open presents, and generally enjoy yourself!
    And thank you for making the Harlot’s blog go. It brightens our days!

  5. happy birthday, ken!! thanks for keeping the blog in tip top shape so we all get our daily dose of harlot ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. From all of us- thanks Ken and HAPPY BIRTHDAY! ps- Steph, the nupps look great! (P5tog?!?@?! what the hezneck?@?! ๐Ÿ™‚ )

  7. Happy Birthday Ken!! Thank you for all your work to make the blog go…..tell Stephanie she should come down to the Atlanta Knitting Guild and bring you….I’ll buy you a beer.
    Oh and those nupps look great (they still scare me…but they look great) ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Happy Birthday, Ken! So glad you are part of the Stephanie Pearl-McPhee team! I am so glad that this blog is around, especially today, when taking a few moments to read it constitues a 4 star vacation from my poor son with a double ear infection, plus a recent addition of a stomach virus. yay. Thanks for propping this mommy up with talk of knitting and humor. ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Happy Birthday to you,
    Happy Birthday to you,
    Happy Birthday dear Ken,
    Happy Birthday to you!
    And thanks for all you do so we readers don’t have to experience yh withdrawals.

  10. Thank you for your wonderful comments about the Madison Knitter’s Guild. It’s “my” guild and I think it is wonderful too. Everyone should have such a guild. We look forward to your visit. Happy Birthday to Ken–with gratitude for his awesome skills with computers and with needles!!

  11. Happy Birthday Ken!
    I always thought nupps rhymed with cups. Who knew? They have been my downfall pretty much, though, no matter how they’re pronounced.
    Your shawl is looking quite lovely. Can’t wait to see the finished product.

  12. Happy birthday Ken. The blog cheers me up on a regular basis.
    LOVE the shawl ๐Ÿ™‚

  13. I, too, have become enamored with the wee knitted nupps (noups?), and agree that great care must be taken to make them very loose, or they shall turn and bite you in the ass with it comes time for “p5 tog.”
    Also a marvelous birthday wish to Ken!

  14. Happy Birthday to the Blog Guru!!! Thanks from all of us for “make blog go”. (That deserves a piece of cake all by itself!!!)

  15. The shawl looks beautiful – so delicate. Are you putting in life lines as you go, or are you living life dangerously?! Happy birthday to Ken too – he does a great job!

  16. Happy Birthday Blog-Man! And really – nupps rhymes with soups? How did I not know that? I’d always heard it like cups. Sounds much prettier your way.

  17. Happy Birthday !!! May the next year bring you peace and joy in all you do.

  18. Happy Birthday Ken! We appreciate what you do for all of us, especially for the YarnHarlot blog. Many happy returns, can’t have enough HTML’s (Harlot that makes us laugh!)
    Patti

  19. Happy Happy to you, Ken! The Blog is thankful for all you do. Go, blog, go!

  20. Happy Birthday, Ken! Thanks for making the blog go, and Stephanie not so crazy.

  21. Have a truly happy birthday Ken!
    In this case, it’s behind the great woman’s blog, there’s a great man.

  22. Happy Birthday Ken! Your hard work is much appreciated. Best wishes for a great year ahead.

  23. Eeeek! I’m going to your Saturday class at the Saskatchewan Stitches Conference and I am beyond excited! There is a whole crew of us from Saskatoon Knitting Circle coming so be prepared for a bunch of loud and excited Saskatoon people.
    ๐Ÿ˜€
    And Happy Birthday Ken!

  24. Many happy returns of the day, Ken! Especially to someone who keeps this day-brightener alive and well ;)!

  25. Stephanie, the shawl is incredible, but I have to admit I still don’t understand “nupps.” In any case, please pass on our felicitations to Ken, the Blogmaster extraordinaire! Long may he wave.
    I’m waving back now ~~~~

  26. Happiest of Days, Ken. We, The Blog, salute you.
    And you’re welcome to tag along with Steph and Rachel H in August to Aurora. We have lots of beer and food…
    (that’s still pencilled in, right Steph? It wouldn’t be August without Aurora…)

  27. Happy Birthday, Ken! May you have delicious cake.
    I hope that Saskatchewan trip is awesome. I’d so be there if I didn’t have a Real Academic Meeting Thing to do that week, darn it all.

  28. I’m going to miss you by a week. You’ll be in Wisconsin while I’m in the Pacific Northwest; by the time you get to the PNW, I’ll be home in LA. Can’t be helped. Last time you were there, I missed you by two days.
    Glad you and the shawl have reached a detente.
    Happy b’day, Ken!

  29. Happy Birthday Ken. I’ve enjoyed this blog tremendously although this is my first comment. Thanks for helping to make it go.

  30. I’ll get to see you in Madison!! Hooray! (Will you be signing? I still have a few of your books that aren’t signed…)
    Happy Birthday Ken!! Thank you so much for Making-Blog-Go!

  31. Happy Birthday to you, Ken, and I hope this is the start of a great year! Looking forward to seeing you, Stephanie, in Madison (have my fingers crossed that you don’t have to go through O’Hare!)

  32. Happy Birthday, Ken! Thanks for all your hard work… knitters of the world appreciate you!

  33. Your lace shawl is so amazing. I’d be terrified to cast one on.
    Happy birthday, Ken. I’d be lost without Ms. McPhee’s blog! ๐Ÿ˜€

  34. Happy B’day to you, Ken with thanks for helping our beloved Harlot with this whole blog thing. ๐Ÿ™‚ What would we do without our “fix”!? And you make it possible. Thank you.
    The shawl is gorgeous, and I’m glad to know how to pronounce nups, ’cause I was thinking it wrong. ๐Ÿ˜‰ Now if I ever get brave enough to make a large lace item, I’ll at least know how to say nups. ๐Ÿ™‚ May the rest of the project go as smoothly as the last four days have!!!

  35. Happy Happy Birthday, from all of me to you, I wish you happy birthday, may all your dreams come true! (add the clapping and then speed up your tempo to at least 5* the fastest you can go :D)

  36. Happy Birthday Ken!!! Thank you for being the technical power behind this wonderful blog. I hope you have a really yummy birthday dinner, and lots of delicious birthday cake.

  37. Happy Birthday, Ken! Knowing technology is an important skill, but being able to explain it to a bright but non-techno-geek so that she can use it is a special gift! (When I need something explained I am safest asking my 14 year old rather than my web programing husband.)

  38. A very happy birthday to you, Ken! All Steph’s readers appreciate you so very much, even when they don’t know that they do!
    Make Blog Go! Go, Blog, Go!

  39. Many happy returns of the day to Ken!
    And thank you for pointing out the proper pronunciation of “nupps”…I had no clue. ๐Ÿ™‚

  40. Happy Birthday, Ken! Very few people can say they have a part in bringing happiness and entertainment to so many. May your next year bring you the joy you help Stephanie bring to us!
    And, Stephanie, the shawl looks fabulous so far. Can’t wait to see the finished project.

  41. Happy birthday, Ken and thanks for keeping the blog running happily. What would we do without it??

  42. Happy Birthday, Ken! Thanks for all you do for Stephanie and keeping her with us.

  43. Happy Birthday Ken!! Thank you soooo much for making this blog a part of my life. LOVEIT! I wish I had a best friend with talent in Html…some girls have all the luck. P.s. Stephanie…your shawl is so beautiful and I am so glad you share those tough times. It makes me feel better about my own. Have a great party the bunch of ya…cheers!

  44. Happy Birthday Ken, By the way I think its the coolest birth date ever created. Maybe because I share the date too.
    Glad to See you are moving well on the lace! 4 whole days! WOOT!

  45. Happy Birthday to Ken! Thank you so much for all your work on this blog (which makes my day on a regular basis)! Many many happy returns to you. ๐Ÿ™‚

  46. WOW. Someday I hope to make lace that beautiful. I guess it is just do it.
    Happy Birthday Ken. Thanks for all you do for the Blog.

  47. We’re very excited to have you in this neck of the woods!! And we’re also doing our darndest to get things warmed up a little for you too.

  48. Happy birthday, Ken.
    There is a special place in heaven for those who keep computers and blogs going, year in and year out. I am certain this is true. I just got my computer back from the saint that knows how to keep my over seven (maybe eight, who can keep track?) year old computer zipping along.
    These pictures of lace and stories about perseverance in casting on (this is why we all love you, Steph!) are making me think I need a new book, a next project. Nupps (however you pronounce itโ€”I just learned how to say Clapotis) look like too much fun. I’m loving my Peacock Feathers Shawl! I’ve gotten a lot done waiting for the return of my computer.
    I read somewhere that serious sock knitters have 3 socks on needles at a time…
    And when are you coming back to Michigan?

  49. Happy Birthday, Ken!! Thank you so much for all you do for the blog!! Yarn Harlot – WHEN are you coming to Fort Lauderdale?? It’s in the 60’s today and we consider that cold!!

  50. Oh MY….a blog oversee-er person…that is more valuable than…… cashmere. A smoothly run space is to die for!!!
    SOOO… a BIG Happy Birthday, you Most Valuable Person..and I’m sure your mother thinks so, too, just for you being born.

  51. Happy birthday Ken!
    The lace looks lovely. I hope it keeps coming along smoothly.
    Any chance you will be making it to the East Coast in the coming months?

  52. Happy Birthday, Ken! Behind every great knitter is a fantastic best friend, and I know you do your job well. Take care, and have a wonderful year.

  53. Happy Birthday Ken! With software updates occurring so frequently now, it is a challenge.
    And the shawl looks great! The title of yesterday’s blog made me laugh out loud. The pattern is stunning – it is worth a few ‘false starts’.

  54. Happy Birthday Ken! Hope your birthday supper is great!
    Please, please, please try to get a stop in the Maritimes on your schedule this year! Nova Scotia is Fibre Heaven…….

  55. Happy Birthday Ken! I’ll raise a glass of red wine in your honor tonight. And maybe have a piece of chocolate to go with it. But it’s totally all in honor of you and your tech skills. Honest.

  56. Happy Birthday Ken!!! Enjoy your birthday dinner. I’m sure Steph will put the shawl down long enough to get it started :o)

  57. I’ve never commented before, but I love your blog. It makes me feel like I’m not completely bat crazy with my love of fiber. That or it’s just that I’m not the only one… So, go figure that you come to Madison 2 months after I move to Utah. *sigh* Oh well, I’ll see you eventually…
    And Happy Birthday Ken!

  58. Happiest of Birthdays, Ken! It’s so great that you put up with all of us because you love Stephanie so much. We appreciate all you do!
    Steph, your shawl is looking loverly. (But there is NO way I’m going to be able to correct myself to say “nupps” to rhyme with “soups”!)

  59. Ken make blog go. Blog make Harlot go. Harlot make Ken dinner. Cosmos nod, say good, keep rolling along.
    (Pork chops?)

  60. Birthy Hap Day, Ken! Long may you wave. . .
    Steph— you’re going to Madison!! Please greet my Evil Twin, Dale-Harriet, for me ๐Ÿ™‚ I know she’ll be there to see you. I just KNOW it. Darn, I envy her!
    From the Sock-Shaped State (I live in the heel!!),
    ==Marjorie

  61. Rather than e-mail everyone who wants to see nupps in action, here is a link to Nancy Bush on video showing how it is done:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRGVsd3Hy4M
    I did bunches in one of the lily of the valley shawls a few years back and it was a blast. Yours, of course, oh superstar Harlot, is just gorgeous!
    And to Ken: may all fiber creatures sing your praises, and all knitters wish you Happy Birthday!
    Now if I could find myself a local computer enabler…

  62. “It has been four days in a row without screwing up the shawl.”
    Wow. Either you are VERY bold and reckless to say such a thing right out loud in front of everyone, or you’ve given the Knitting Jinx a powerful sleeping draught. I’d be awful nervous right about now, if it were me. I’m spitting through my fingers for you, just in case.

  63. If Ken is responsible for ‘make blog go’ then I think you, Steph, should be responsible for ‘make Ken cake’ and possibly ‘make Ken drink.’

  64. Happy happy birthday, Ken! Thanks for everything you do for all of us, and thanks for being such a great friend to our own dear Harlot. I’m not sure we’d survive without her blog any more!
    The shawl is looking really beautiful. I cannot wait to see it finished and blocked — it’s going to be just gorgeous. Is this a just-for-fun knit or is there some higher purpose in the shawl’s future?

  65. Anyone with the name Ken (my dad’s name) must be an outstanding guy!! Happy Birthday to ewe!

  66. Happy Happy Birthday Ken !
    Can’t believe you are going to Haus of Stitches !!!
    I bought all my Philospher’s sweater kits there when we lived in Saskatoon….
    What must we do to entice you to the Maritimes ..?
    I must start harassing the wool shop owners…!?!?!
    The Shawl does indeed look great. :o)

  67. Happy birthday Ken! I hope one of your wonderful presents in a pair of hand knit socks!

  68. Congratulations on your shawl progress, Stepanie. To Ken, dear friend, blog builder, and all around good guy, wishing you all the best on your special day.

  69. ken, happy birthday from the Blog. We really appreicate all you do, otherwise we wouldn’t get our daily dose of the YH.
    And the shawl is lovely, I’m working on the Triinu, I notice your NUPS are much tidier than mine. Now thats something you don’t hear everyday, I bet!

  70. How can ‘nupps’ rhyme with ‘soups’? Visually that makes no sense whatsoever and I can’t make myself believe it.

  71. Hi,
    I’ve signed up for all your events in Saskatchewan. Yup, signed up & paid before they even had their information up. I’m absolutely stoked. I’m going to meet you finally! Can I bring my book(s) for you to sign?? Can’t wait – only 101 sleeps!
    Doreen
    Oh yeah, Happy Birthday, Ken!

  72. I’d been hoping you’d come back to Wisconsin, but obviously we didn’t coordinate our calendars. You’ll be in Madison the day I head to Florida. And not only that – I’ll be in Portland the week before the Sock Summit, so I’ll miss that too.
    Ah well, I’ll keep reading the blog (thanks Ken) and enjoying the daily tidbits from the calendar. (I especially liked your substitution for the groundhog – LOL)

  73. Happy Birthday, Ken. We may not ‘see’ you, but you are definitely appreciated.
    YH – Thanks for the pronunciation tip, I would’ve rhymed with ‘up’!

  74. Happiest of Birthdays, so far, Ken!!!! (Don’t want to ruin any upcoming potentially fabulous ones! ๐Ÿ˜‰ ) Enjoy your day and I hope you have a blessed year!

  75. From what Stephanie says i assume we would not be here as “the blog”” soooo for goodness sake a BIG thank you Ken and have a wonderful new year ahead of you. Enjoy your din din–Happy Birthday. Stepahnaie if you say nupps like soups why wouldn’t it be spelled as noups ? the Engish language and spelling is strange is it not ?

  76. I just threw salt over my shoulder to try to fend off potential tears due to your tempting of the knitting deities’wrath. Yes, that’s plural. Perhaps they’ll overlook it, as you’re following Nancy’s nupp protocol so willingly.
    Happy Birthday to the Blog Master, Ken!

  77. Hippo Bird-day Ken!
    Thanks for keeping the Harlot doing what she does best…
    And nicely done on the lace – I’m about to cast on my first lace project with my toes crossed.

  78. I am so happy that you are back on track. That shawl is going to be gorgeous!
    I wanted to let you know that you have convinced me that I need to do a lace shawl now. I did one on my own during the 80’s, but put it away because I did not like the finished product. So, now I am motivated to get it out again.
    You also have got me back building a stash. I actually got rid of mine by making a bunch of hats this winter for chemo patients. I vowed that I would never stockpile yarn again. But, here I go. It started out with a few balls of sock yarn for next winter. Now I am just ‘looking’. Here I go again!

  79. happy birthday, ken! you make the harlot’s blog so readable and pretty! huzzah!

  80. I too have been discovering nupps this week, but I fear p5tog and have been doing them the cheater’s way: sl 3, p2tog, pass 3 sts over. That way I’m dead sure that all 5 of those bastard loops have been dealt with.

  81. Happy Birthday Ken! (and way to go on the nupps… makes me think I should take the book off the shelf and do something more than read and ogle it…)

  82. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN!!
    you dont realize the family that you keep connected but running this thing called yarn harlots blog.
    thanks so much jackie

  83. Happy Birthday Ken! Thank you for being the technical side of Stephanie’s brain for her.

  84. Thank you very, very much, Ken, for “making blog go.” (We all remember those horrible days last year when it didn’t or wouldn’t or couldn’t.) Do you realize how many women love you for that alone?

  85. Happy Birthday, Ken, and many more! I am just one of many who need my daily “Harlot” fix…and we wouldn’t get it without your Web magic!
    …and I also think you should aim higher! Maybe a sweater, instead of dinner! ;-D

  86. Happy Birthday, Ken! Hope it’s the best one yet. Thanks for making the blog run smoothly.

  87. Phhht. Not even remotely to do with anything, but your “loose” nupps made me laugh because my husband bought me a “loose” Wedge Antilles on EBay. Alas, it had much less to do with Denis Lawson in dishabille, and more to do with the fact that my action figure arrived sans packaging.
    Take that in whatever manner you like. (Praying for Spring Break before my brain becomes any looser than it already is.)

  88. Good luck on the continuation of the nupps. For verily, I find them a pain in the arse. Beading is a nice alternative. Although yours look pretty…

  89. Many happy returns of the Day – Ken – blog and cycling friend of Stephanie.
    Will remember nupps thymes with ‘soups’, very interesting.

  90. You…are…coming..to…SK?
    *blink*
    Saskatchewan? SERIOUSLY?
    *dies*
    *is revived*
    *runs off to sign up for the conference*

  91. Rhymes with soups? Seriously? Thanks for the heads up.
    PS – happy birthday Ken!

  92. Happy Birthday, Ken! Thanks for all that you do. My DH is a computer guy, too, and I really do mean thanks for ALL you do.

  93. Happy birthday Ken!! Thanks so much for everything that you do!!
    But P5tog? Really? It’s possible? I’m shocked. Really, I am. I struggle with p3tog. Wow. ^^;;

  94. Like many before me,
    HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN!!
    Somedays I don’t know what I would do without being able to read here…

  95. Thank you, Ken, for your years of “make blog go”. Without your able assistance, patience, and marvelous enabling, we would miss out on our daily dose of Steph. And that would be a huge loss to the world.

  96. No! You’re going to be in Madison one week before I’m home for spring break! Poor timing!
    . . . And last time you were in Madison can’t have been that long ago. I think it was (literally) the day before I first read your blog. Over the summer. When I still, you know, lived at home.

  97. Happy Birthday Ken, and many more!!! We out here in blogland appreciate your efforts!

  98. Wow! Ken shares a birthday with my middle son! I’d be willing to wager though that Ken didn’t go gaga over Thomas the Tank Engine Legos though. He’s probably moved on to other delights. Thanks for keeping this all going!

  99. I’ve wondered if Ken was still around! You used to talk about him a lot more.
    Happy Birthday Ken!

  100. I totally wish I had a best friend like you, Ken! At the very least I can wish you a wonderful birthday and I hope you enjoy your … porkchops, yes?

  101. Hoping you are having a wonderful birthday Ken! We appreciate you for all you do to keep this blog going! I have a brother named Ken, so you’ve got to be a good guy! Many blessings!

  102. Ken, the happiest of birthdays. Wishing you bright days with good friends, good fibre and no software glitches!

  103. Happy Birthday, Ken!
    Thank you for helping to make my day brighter by helping Stephanie with the blog. May you have many more birthdays for her to blog about.
    Best wishes!

  104. Ken, you are THE MAN! Have a wonderful, wonderful birthday and enjoy your birthday dinner!

  105. Madison is at least twice as thrilled that you’re coming to visit us. I can’t wait! The Knit-In classes filled up quickly, I’m glad you’ll have plenty of space.
    Happy Birthday Ken!!! Mine’s in a few days and I like to pretend its in the Spring, usually hard to do in Wisconsin but with the weather we’ve been having…

  106. Is this like a knitter’s April Fool’s?
    Nupps rhymes with soups?
    I can’t believe it.
    Tomorrow you’re going to tell us it’s all a joke, and you will have been laughing at all of us all evening… right?

  107. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN! I’ll have to join the others in saying Thank You as well for making it possible for the rest of the world to enjoy Stephanie’s wit, humor, and damn fine writing!
    Also, Thank You Stephanie for making it possible for a non-RSC member to sneak into Sock Camp. After your mention of bribery and such, I immediately emailed RSC to ask for the possibility of my coming and they responded rather quickly that YES!, there a few spots open and I would be most welcome. I’ll be moving out of the NW by the end of the year and this will be my last opportunity to participate as a local. Today’s post was downright providential – Thanks again and now if only that same providence can work its magic so that I can attend at least one class with you, I will go to my grave happy!
    Best,
    Chi

  108. Happy Birthday Ken !!!
    Thank you ever so much for keeping the blog going !!!
    Have a wonderful and blessed day !!!

  109. Happy birthday, Ken!
    Also, I notice that California’s not on that list. Wouldn’t you like to come to San Diego? Just think warm beaches… ๐Ÿ™‚

  110. Happy Birthday, Ken. I’ll drink to that!! Hope you enjoyed your special day.

  111. Today Today Today Today
    Today is somebody’s Birthday
    Today Today Today Today
    Today is somebody’s Birthday
    It’s not the pickle’s or the pear’s
    It’s not the elephant’s or the bear’s
    Today Today Today Today
    Today is Ken’s Birthday!!!

  112. Wait a minute – does nupps really sound like soups? I’ve been pronouncing it wrong all this time! Happy Birthday Ken!

  113. Happy Birthday, Ken!
    Sounds like “soups”? This is one of those things like “feed the fiber sideways” that no one ever bothers to tell us!

  114. *starts the whispering*
    texas texas texas
    really soon, or after september
    we’ll wait months if we must…
    come for a winter break
    please? ๐Ÿ™‚

  115. Happy Birthday, dear Ken. Thank you for doing all that you do for your friend and her (our) blog.
    Cheers! How many “bumps” this year? ๐Ÿ˜‰

  116. Not just Dinner…
    Our Ken needs CAKE CAKE CAKE!!
    and BOOZE…the GOOD stuff!!!
    BACK RUBS, and foot massages,
    and good music…
    Ken, We the Blog…Salute YOU!!

  117. Happy Birthday to your best friend Ken, may he ever grace the little things that make your blog work!!! He is a wonderful guy. I know this because today is my birthday, too, and I am wonderful.
    The scarf is finally going beautifully–congrats. I would love that book, but just acquired Folk Shawls, Arctic Lace, and Knitting Triangular Shawls. Think I am done for a while. I certainly have enough patterns for a while, eh?

  118. Happy, Happy Birthday, Ken! Hope it was memorable.
    And beautiful lace, Stephanie, just beautiful.

  119. Ken – you rock – thank you for making this blog (that brings me happiness!) happen. Happy Birthday. Oh, and Ken – I just thought of you the other night while looking through the book “Socks, Socks, Socks” – and I saw the socks with the poem knitted in them – and I thought “I think the yarn harlot knitted those for Ken one year” – as if I know you people… crazy, huh?
    Happy Birthday!

  120. Happy Birthday Ken!!!! Thanks for all your hard work and dedication. Stephanie, your shawl is beautiful!

  121. I never comment, but this needs a: (think arm movements:) KEN! KEN! KENKENKEN!
    thank you and happy birthday.

  122. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN! (and many many thanks).
    Thanks also to Stephanie; among many other things I have learned on this blog, I now know how to pronounce “nupps”. Maybe one day I will actually do them.

  123. Happy Birthday, Ken!
    Thank you for giving the blog to Stephanie back when, and sharing her with all of us. We like following along with your stuff too (the beautiful fair isle outing for your niece).
    All the best for the coming year!

  124. Happy Birthday, Ken! We appreciate all you do to keep Stephanie’s blog going.

  125. Happy Birthday Ken! We thank you for all your hard work in bringing us our Harlot’s wisdom and good cheer. Have a wonderful day!

  126. Happy Birthday Ken and thank you for standing by Stephanie all these years so we can read her blogs. She keeps my days going most of the time. She is my newspaper with my coffee. I hope your dinner with Stephanie will be grand. The knitting looks great. Glad the slump is gone. Maybe that means Spring is coming. A friend of mine, and Alpaca owner said she is calling today “March forth”. Doesn’t sound like a bad idea. This has been a loooooong winter.
    Have a great day Ken!!!!

  127. No wonder Ken is such an awesome dude. The 3rd of March is also my brother’s birthday. They have much in common, except for the knit. Today my daughter turns 13 and my dad turns 78. Pisceans are some of the best people I know (except for the Geminis of course.)

  128. Happy Birthday, Ken. Dude, you are a saint, to make thousands of women happy on a daily basis because we can get our daily Harlot. Try explaining that to the guys at the bar!

  129. Ken what a wonderful thing you do. We all need someone that makes things “go.” Have a wonderful birthday.

  130. You know, even though I know how to pronounce nupps as noops, I still say nuh-pps. I also say pah-tons, not pay-tons, so I guess there is just no teaching me.
    Happy birthday, Ken!

  131. thanks ken for underpinning this most enjoyable blog! bonne fรชte!

  132. Happy day AFTER your birthday, Ken. Thanks for keeping us all blogged together.

  133. Love the style and the simplicity – so easy to read, and even my teenager – who learned to do basic knitting and sewing under duress – loves it. It gives us a wonderful place to connect on days when he really isn’t happy about school and such.

  134. Happy Belated Birthday Ken!
    (And a knock-on-wood for Stephanie so that her streak of mistake-free days continues.)

  135. Happy Belated Birthday Ken.
    Hope your birthday was GREAT in everyway!
    Stephanie – See you in Madison, Wisconsin
    on March 14th.
    I will bring beer!

  136. Happy Birthday Ken…..may you have the best. Thanks for keeping this blog going, we all enjoy it so!

  137. Happy Birthday, Ken!!!!!!!!! This calls for BEER!!! Or Tequila. Whichever!

  138. Happy Birthday to Ken and Best Wishes for a great year! Thanks for making the blog happen — I depend on this blog for an almost daily laugh, so I’m grateful for you making blog go.

  139. For DT @ 2:59 March 3rd. No Cape! Didn’t you see the incredibles? We want to keep Ken safe. Hope your birthday was a happy one Ken. We, in our house, wish you many more and say a big thanks for helping give the gift of the Blog.

  140. Happy Birthday Ken! Is the shawl for him?! lol p.s. shawl and gorgeous needles make a lovely pair.

  141. Joyeux anniversaire Ken! I’ll drink a nice fresh Caรฏpirhina for you tonight…

  142. Ken, you are bringing little bits of joy into the lives of people you don’t know and won’t ever meet… what a lovely good deed. Thank you so much.

  143. Happy birthday Ken! I hope the birthday dinner was a lovely celebration! Nice nupps Stephanie! ๐Ÿ™‚

  144. The shawl will be lovely! Glad you are back on track (the right track). I checked my book to see which one you might be working on, given your maximum yardage … very nice! And, I am much more interested in trying one myself now that I know they are nups (as in soups, rather than nups as in cups). But my lace stash is low…hmmm wonder how to remedy that (-;

  145. Happy Birthday, Ken! Thanks for everything you do for the blog! (Sheri, you and I can be uncool together. I had to rely on Stephanie’s pronounciation guide. I’m glad to have company.)

  146. Happy Birthday, Ken!
    I recently did the Swallowtail Shawl and didn’t do the nupps loosely enough in the first row… so I had to pry them off the needle with a crochet hook. I hope you were slightly luckier and/or wiser than I was… ๐Ÿ˜€

  147. Joyeux Anniversaire, Ken! I do so very much appreciate that you are seriously instrumental in bringing our beloved Yarn Harlot into our lives. You and she work so well together –her writing, your technical/psychotherapy/friendship skills. A Partnership to admire.

  148. Happy Birthday, Ken Who Makes Blog Go! You and my cat Zander and horse Shaveya share the same birthday, though I seriously doubt that you’re only 11 years old like they both are (coincidence).
    I always thought nupps rhymed with UP. Thank you for clearing it, er, up.

  149. Happy, happy b-day Ken! Your hard work and dedication to this blog are sooooo appreciated by so many of us fiber-obsessed folks out here in blogland! Beautiful shawl Stephanie!!!

  150. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEN!!!! Thanks for helping us all get our fiber fixes from the Harlot.

  151. I can’t believe I did something before the Harlot did! I’m speaking, of course, of the lovely Estonian nupps she’s doing on her shawl. I recently completed Evelyn Clark’s Swallowtail Shawl and showed it off at Stitches West – and during one of my lace classes I demonstrated to the instructor and some of the students how to knit nupps – yes, you have to do it VERY loosely, then when it comes to the P5tog, slide those stitches down onto the cable portion of the needle and finesse your right needle through those 5 stitches and pick (or throw) your purl stitch. They look much better once they’re blocked (as does most lace).

  152. Yea! Birthday wishes for Ken! We non-techies really appreciate you. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

  153. Happy, now belated, Birthday Ken!
    Nups rhymes with soups? I’ve been saying in wrong for a long time now. Man. Who knew?

  154. A very happy birthday to Ken, along with my deep gratitude for making the blog go! It’s a bright spot in my life, and I thank you both for it.

  155. Groan! Madison, Wisconsin, March 14th??? Criminies!!! NOW you tell us!!!! Damn. Yes, you very well better get your tour dates posted!
    Damn! I told my friends that the next time you were in Cheesehead country, I WAS GOING! I have to work that Saturday (at a QUILT shop, no less), and can’t get out of it no way…
    DAMN.

  156. It’s a day or so late, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KEN-DUDE!
    I had to do p-3 together for an entire shawl… night. mare. Good for you for taking on 5!

  157. so this shawl that you are making. The yarn looks remarkably similar to the yarn you used in the great swatch shawl of March 2004. Do you see the resemblance? By the way, does it fit through a wedding ring?

  158. Happy Birthday Ken, thank you for loving Stephanie so well. Thanks for making the blog go too. Wheeoo that shawl is so finely knit…it must feel like a feather.

  159. Wish I could see you, when you are in WI. I might call that Guild to see what is the deal if you don’t want to take a class.

  160. I usually get to read these so late that it seems silly to comment, but it’s never too late to say thank you, is it? The blog appreciates all that you do to keep it running! Thank you, Ken, and Happy Birthday!

  161. I had no idea “nupps” rhymed with “soups.” Thanks for saving me from certain embarassment in knitting circles.

  162. Dear Ken, heres wishing you a very happy birthday and all that you would wish for yourself!!! many happy returns!! Love from Penny

  163. Hey!
    I’ve never commented before but found your blog a while ago and read trough it all-all-all. You have a fantastic sense of humor and mad knitting skills ๐Ÿ™‚
    Anyways, I think your blog was the first one where I saw how popular Estonian knitting is. It makes me proud to be Estonian :P. And here comes the explanation of why I really came out of my silent reader status and began to write this comment (and honestly, if I’m not the first one to say this here, forgive me, I just didn’t have the energy to read through _all_ the comments before making my own…). “Nupp” _does_ rhyme with “soup” but… there’s something different about it also. In “nupp” the “u” sound is shorter and the “p” sound longer, kind of like when you say words like “cap” or “pot” or “cup” or “knack”… You know, just in case you feel like being _very_ precise about these things ๐Ÿ˜›
    Anyways, keep up the good work!

  164. Happy Birthday, BlogSupporter Extraordinaire Ken!
    But… nupps rhymes with “soups”? Not “cups”?
    Must go lie down now.

  165. Happy Birthday to the man who “makes blog go”.
    Steph,
    You have inspired me to actually start one of the shawls in Nancy’s book. I have been ogling them since I got the book. Now the only choice is pink or gray.

  166. Happy birthday to you; happy birthday to you; happy birthday dear Ke-en; happy birthday to you!

  167. Happy, Happy Day Ken (a little late). thank you for being the man behind the blog so to speak.

  168. Fear not the nupps. There is always more than one way to skin a cat. On the purl 5, slip 3 or 4 stitches to the right hand needle and then purl the 1 or if 2 purl two together then pass those you slipped over one at a time. Just remember to count your stitches [how many of the five you slipped]. Not necessary to do it loosely on the right side rows with this method. GOOD LUCK!

  169. SK conference looks awesome. Because I’m essentially a 12-year-old girl, I saw that there was bra-making at the conference, and assumed that the teacher names ChiChi had to be the one who was teaching it. *snerk*

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