An extra toothbrush doesn’t solve it

I got home from Calgary last night and I’m leaving for Maine tomorrow, and I had forgotten, in the few months I had off from work travel, how much I dislike these fast turnarounds.  It always makes me wish that I had a go-bag, like they do in that tv show where they’re always flying off at a moments notice to investigate a crime because they’re they only ones who can do it. They have a private plane, too, so it’s become a well developed fantasy of mine. The call comes – and off they go. They just say “I’ll get my go-bag”, and it’s pre-packed, and they all look so good all the time.   (What show is that? I only get to watch it in hotel rooms in the states where I can’t resist the allure of US Netflix.)

I like the idea so much that I’ve done what I can. I’ve got duplicates of all my toiletries, and they stay in my suitcase so that I don’t have to rustle them up, and there’s chargers and a few other things, and truthfully I’ve thought about having a few sets of clothes in there, but I go all over and the weather’s always different and sometimes I need nice clothes and sometimes it’s jeans and one year I sort of tried it, but I stopped when a really nice knitter came up to me in the airport and said she knew it was me because she recognized that shirt from lots of pictures.

The big problem is the knitting stuff. Speaking engagements – now I could totally have a go bag for that – but if there are any workshops or classes, now we’re talking handouts and tiny balls and we have not yet begun to touch on the problem of my personal knitting.

This last trip – the one to Pudding Yarn in Calgary (I had a wonderful time there by the way, thanks for asking. It was hard work but the shop owner is awesome, and the students were really clever and kind, and the weather was gorgeous and I got to visit the Bow River. What more could I want?) I took the sweater I’d just started, and some socks that I’d been working on for just a little bit (and two balls of sock yarn and some extra sweater stuff in case I knit faster than I ever have before.)  Calgary is pretty far away, so I got some great knitting time in as I travelled…

girlonfiresout-2016-09-21

and I had two evenings on my own…

girlonfiresit-2016-09-21

Pattern: Girl on Fire  Yarn: Two Grey Dogs

girlonfiresstep-2016-09-21

Needles: 2.25mm. Model: Sam. Worlds greatest Knitwear Model.

More than that, the Rhinebeck sweater (Little Wave) saw lots of action.

littlewavecoming-2016-09-21

That’s about 20cm of the whole sweater – and that’s about half of the body done. Then there’s just the sleeves, and the yoke and I have 23 days until Rhinebeck. I hate to say it, but it’s all going so well that I feel like I should put tons of yarn in my suitcase for this weekend.  I can see now that it’s the knitting that’s going to stand between me and a real go-bag – but I can’t see how it’s workable if part of your scene keeps changing and getting used up? I feel like the police in that show just don’t knit.

 

 

115 thoughts on “An extra toothbrush doesn’t solve it

    • Yes, Criminal Minds. And one time Penelope Garcia knitted on the plane on their way home, but she doesn’t usually travel with the team…so she didn’t have a go-bag; she had to go home and pack.

      • She pulls out her knitting in a few episodes. I love Garcia! The actor even knits a few rows in an episode and looks like she understands what’s happening, which is awesome as well. Kristen Vangsness is a welcome breath of fresh air to a dark, but interesting show.

    • This has nothing to do with your blog, and I already sent it to you on FB, but since we are not friends there, you may not see it. I have been following your blog for years; I own most of your books; and I have supported your bike ride. So I feel as though I know you. I actually met you in Montreal, at a book launch at McGill. And now, to the point of this post:

      I have to send you this. And you must read it. It is hilarious!
      For years, I have been using the word – which is not a real word – “embiggen” because of you. I love it!
      Anyhow, somebody wrote a kind of translation of the Trump/Clinton debate last night – which I did NOT watch. In this translation, Trump said: “You are going to embiggen taxes whereas I am going to lower them.”
      It is a good thing that I had nothing in my mouth when I read this, or there would have been quite a mess.

  1. Why one bag? Winter, summer, fall/spring clothing bag, current knitting bag, silk or wool teaching bag…one suit case. And who cares how many times you have worn a shirt if it is comfortable?

    The socks are pretty!

  2. Criminal Minds for sure. I had to stop watching a while back, most of the show was fine but the stories were getting creepier and creepier. Yes I know it’s based in real life, yes I know there are creepy people in real life, but I just didn’t feel good watching it anymore. I sort of miss it, in a weird way.

    However go-bags I’m familiar with. For a while I was taking hubby to London for eye surgery and checkups every couple weeks. Retinal trouble – so sometimes it was VERY short notice. I packed a bag of “bathroom essentials” and then I just had to throw a shirt, socks, comfy pants for the hotel, wunderwear into it. Knitting got dropped on top and we hit the road. A little harder if you’re wanting to look good, I just needed to be presentable. Maybe pack 2 bags ahead when you’ve got back-to-back things happening?
    Chris S in Canada

    • Yes, exactly what you said. I felt like I didn’t want to meet the people those shows were based on. Didn’t even want to think that there were really people like that who could harm my children and grandchildren. Loved the actors, had to stop watching.

      I had to touch the umbrella. It’s raining. How does it know?

    • Love the show. Love Penelope! Could not take the nightmares. I do miss it as it is very well written and full of suspense, twists, and turns.

  3. Why not set up ziplock bags with predetermined yarn and patterns (perhaps even needles if you have extra) as knitting go-bags? If you include smaller items from your Christmas list, you could potentially kill two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.

    I’ve done this with some of my stash, and it helps me stay organized.

  4. I kind of have go-bags for knitting. When I am running out the door for around-town stuff, I grab the current sock project bag. When I am going on a long trip, it is the sock project bag plus a bigger bag (currently full of sweater). I could easily stick another skein or two into the sock bag for a longer trip (or if I am nearly done), but the big project bag could be an issue. But then, I am not a fast knitter.

  5. For years, I’ve kept yarn & needles stashed in the car trunk for emergencies. This spring, we had way too many quick trips to the ER and unanticipated procedures, so I actually needed it. Based on that experience, I’m replacing it with some much nicer yarn for next time.
    How about a few ziploc bags with sock yarn and appropriate needles? Could go anywhere, anytime.

    • A cotton drawstring bag with a Ballband dishcloth lives permanently in the pocket of my car door. I live in a city with a river down the center so at any time a drawbridge could be up, plus there’s waiting rooms. I keep the dishcloths for last minute hostess gifts. Very handy.

      • I have one packing list for a long drive from VT to West Virginia (for a week, bring your own sheets and towels). And I have grab-and-go knitting projects. But the clothes! I have put my pride away. I have my all-black “airplane clothes”, since I doubt I’ll meet familiar ‘outgoing’ faces on the return flight and I will wear one ‘destination’ outfit per three days. As soon as the trip is planned, I decide what that/those outfit(s) will be. Yes, I have packed jeans when I needed shorts. But it was less packing angst. If you have those basic days taken care of, the rest seems to come easier. And I don’t TAKE gifts for the grandsons. I mail them ahead.

  6. So maybe I’m a little obsessive, but I have “car” knitting that stays in my car in case I’m stuck in traffic or at a park or anywhere unplanned, and I have “work” knitting that only gets worked on during meetings, and I have “appointment” knitting that lives in my bag. Saves having to remember to grab something as I walk out the door! I’d definitely have “travel” knitting stashed in my suitcase if I traveled a lot!!

    • I leave a small bag with my mitered sock yarn blanket in my car. Someday it will be too big, however, at this point it is fine.

      Many years of business travel (high tech sales) I always kept a craft,project in my luggage. It varied from time to time as to type, however, my comfort depended on my art as a relief from the constant travel.

  7. She is the best knitwear model ever. I wonder if that was even remotely on her radar when you started blogging. I have a feeling not….

    🙂

    I tend to keep a skein of sock wool and needles set aside for unplanned travel. Inevitably I end up with a last minute trip or something that will give me 3-5 hours of knitting time but the sock I’m working on is at the toe and I need to try it on, or I really don’t want to wrangle a pattern because it’ll be dark or or or… thank heavens for socks.

    And a spare case of toothbrushes, because those things get lost constantly.

  8. I’ve heard of a knitting store that makes lots for people tot bake away on weekends. (Pattern, yarn, and needles, thought I’m not sure how they get around swatching.). You could swatch then make some for yourself in ziplock bags and put a couple on your go bag. This is now I handle trips, that way I don’t have to search in the go.

  9. I know I keep on saying it, but ……. think ‘uniform’. Solid colour trousers/skirt (black, brown , green or khaki) and matching solid colour t-shirt (long or short sleeve) topped with one of your fabulous hand-knit cardigans or shawls or cowls or scarves. The matching tops & bottoms make a superb backdrop for the chic post-apocalyptic rags you would like your wardrobe to be, and layering adapts well to variable climates.

  10. Ah . . . but you are missing part of the go-bag equation. Go-bag items don’t stay unused, after all– you have to wash your go-bag underpants and replenish your go-bag power bars. The idea behind the go-bag is that you have a set of things that is never used for anything but travel, so it is always ready and waiting on you. I.E. you wash and replenish at the end of each trip and it goes back into the bag, so you are already all packed up. The two rules of go-bags are that you don’t “borrow” items from your go bag for your regular life, and you always replenish/wash/return promptly at the end of the trip. From the partner of one of those road-warrior crime solving types.

  11. I have a list next to my bed. I can pack 2 kids and myself in 5 minutes. Husband packs for himself.
    This may be my super talent because knitting certainly is not.

  12. What’s that Elton John song?
    “Reality . . . it’s not for me . . . it makes me sad . . .”

    Just kidding! If there’s anyone who can pull off a Rhinebeck sweater in 23 days, it’s you Stephanie.

    Beautiful socks!

    • We all know Stephanie could manage to finish a laceweight fisherman’s sweater for Yao Ming in like.. a week.. so Rhinebeck Sweater is totes in the bag.

      /punning

  13. They had go-bags in The Newsroom. Reporters had to grab their go-bags and get to the hot spot, no time to stop home to pack… Loved that show.

    Honestly, I have to pack quickly for lots of trips, too, and I love gallon ziplock bags, the poor woman’s version of all the pretty bags at yarn stores. I keep one with toiletries ready to go, many bags with ongoing projects… the projects are all over the house. The bags keep the dust and pet hair off and keep instructions and materials together for work at any time, and are easy to grab and throw into a travel bag. It isn’t exactly a go-bag, but at least the important stuff is easy to grab and run.

  14. If you do a lot of these fast turnarounds, it may be that you need not one, but TWO go-bags — the first one travelling with you to Job #1, and the second one packed and waiting at home, ready to grab and get out the door to Job #2.

    Sorting and laundry and repacking can wait until you’re finally back home again to stay for a while.

  15. Just popping by to say: remember when the kids were… well, kids… and you had a “diaper bag”? That sorta thing? Extra outfits in case of a milkshake/booger disaster, baby wipes for the obvious and/or sticky hands/faces/shopping cart handles/blah blah blah… Well, maybe a go-bag is a diaper bag for adults. I pack my diaper bag with diapers and wipes and enough knitting to get me by. You know, because with a Threenager and an infant I so have time to knit on the go…

    • Love it! Threenager. Many years ago I had a Twonager–he read the manual (terrible twos) and was a pro at it. He’ll be 43 in December–they do grow out of it :-).

      • I was actually missing the nappy bag (Aussie for diaper) always ready. Now I have the rugby league bag 8yr old and the dancing bag 6yr old – I should make a go bag for me!
        PS. Steph – how is your lovely sister?

  16. You can totally do this! Two go-bags, each with undies, sleepwear, travel-friendly slippers, maybe socks or hose. Swap the clean bag into the suitcase when you get home, then wash the used stuff. Same thing could be done with “staples” (jeans, t-shirts, slacks, etc.) in neutral colors, so all you would have to worry about would be special items — sweaters, dresses, patterned tops, tiaras, etc. And the knitting du jour, of course.

    And, speaking of getting that sweater done in time for Rhinebeck, do you have all your blocking supplies ready? Are you sure the yarn and pattern will block to the correct dimensions? (Or, will it turn out you’re knitting a lace ballgown or a toddler’s sweater?)

    • She IS a knitter! And in one episode (I think when they went to Alaska) she knit on the plane! LOL Yeah, I was totally trying to figure out what she was knitting. And the actress must actually knit because she was too natural and smooth with it.

      • I knew it! Thanks for telling me. I can always spot a fellow knitter! And thank goodness the actress knits too. Films and TV are ruined for me when people clearly don’t know what they’re doing.

  17. Oh yes I like Garcia on criminal minds. I totally forgot about her knitting. But like that about her too. And often actors pretend to knit. Why don’t they get a lesson or three before filming? Like actors who get riding lessons or martial arts training before shooting the film. Just wondered.
    I have recently started to use heavy/thick ziplock bags as project bags. Never knew I needed that but now I find myself having 4 or 5 different projects going on. I am evolving as a knitter.
    Love the color of your sweater.

  18. I totally have a go to bag. I can’t remember why I started it, but when my daughter was blue lighted into hospital it was fabulous. It’s part ‘I want to be spontaneous and take off for the weekend’ and part just in case (har har). It has complete sets of clothes and nightwear for us both, toiletries, meds, Chargers and a random selection of crayons and so on for Her Ladyship. It has emergency snacks. It has emergency cash and copies of passports, driving licence, travel insurance and house insurance. It has a post it note in the lid of things I would need if there were a real emergency and I had to just go (keys. Phone. iPad. Coat. Knitting. Credit cards. Passport). I also keep my knitting, iPad, kindle and notebook in a small bag next to my bed, so that’s easy to grab too. I like to be prepared!

    I’m thinking about printing off a pattern and getting together some sock yarn and dpns to go in the suitecase, too. I never thought of emergency knitting, but now I think it’s absolutely the way to go. I’m doing it right now.

  19. When my father-in-law passed away unexpectedly (he was ill but we did not expect it to end that fast) my husband was visiting with him – 8 hours away by car. I managed to get self, daughter and luggage onto a plane and fly out, but guess what I didn’t pack? I was off to the 5-and-10 for yarn and needles (if you’re used to really good needles, what they had was appalling) and I knit sanity washcloths for a week.

  20. The problem with having a knitting go bag is determining the yarn to put in there. It has to be something nice enough that you like to knit with it but not so nice that you are raiding it when you aren’t traveling and leaving yourself with nothing when you will need it. Same thing with the needles.

  21. Beautiful sock, well-modeled! Little Wave looks great, coming right along. I still can’t get over the Blackwater Abbey yarns; I’ve been thinking about the Forest green or Moss for days.

  22. I keep 30g of quivit and lace needles in my briefcase, just in case. I pet it occasionally after a rough day of travel. It’s there to knit up when inspiration strikes or I REALLY need to take the edge off. Or the current knitting du jour breaks down…

  23. Have SO much fun in Maine! That looks like a dream of a retreat. Ahh, maybe someday I’ll go. Maine is our summer spot but I’m dying to see it in the fall. It’s so beautiful and magical – enjoy!

  24. First thing I plan and pack for every trip is the knitting! Which project(s), which bag(s), first – then on-the-plane versus on-the-trip. I usually like to have a new project that’s just for the trip (obviously less travel frequency than SPMcP) but already cast on and a few rows done. But then, my trick to push myself to finish a WIP is to make the second project an overdue WIP that needs focused attention to finish. On a trip, can’t throw it back in the basket and get something else out – must finish the project!

    I really don’t understand how people travel without knitting… it baffles me. 🙂

  25. I like the idea of ziplock bags with yarn, pattern and needles all inside. Then its just a matter of grabbing a sufficient number of bags and heading out!

  26. I mostly have this down. I have a go bag ready with essentials for me where I just have to throw in a few articles of clothing. I’m a big believer in layering and I believe in black, grey and white as my basic colors. My hand knits are usually my color accents. As far as knitting goes, I knit out of a tote bag, usually a big project (lately a sweater) and a small project in a separate bag, usually a cowl. It usually only takes me 10 minutes as long as laundry is done!

  27. You think you have the Worlds Greatest Knitwear Model. Cookie A. has one who climbs trees in her socks! Actually that is probably her. That is her personality. Charming pattern. I must try it some time.
    Julie in San Diego, where we had a week of leftovers from a Mexican Hurricane. Weather like Houston on a good day, Yuck.

  28. All I can add is make sure you pack the under clothing. I’m famous around here for unpacking and immediately trying to find any kind of store for panties. 🙁

  29. Wow! My fall is running out FAST! Spinzilla is 11 days away and then Rhinebeck happens! And then Christmas…( I did’nt just say that did I? Sorry) and a baby outfit before November. Your socks reminded me…”you have sock to knit for Carol and John”.
    Have a wonderful rest of 2016 Steph! If we survive this next round of elections, see you in January 2017.
    bjr

  30. I thought this post was leading up to your clever solution for not knowing where your bra was. “It’s in the To Go Bag!” Either way, lovely knitting, glad Waverly hasn’t yet sprung its trap–still lulling you, that’s what it’s doing.

  31. All of hubby’s travel work clothes live in the suitcase under the bed. He pulls it out adds underpants and toiletries and off he goes. Work pays for laundry if you’re gone more than 3 nights, so it all comes home clean and already packed.

  32. Lovely socks, Steph!
    Lovely feet, Sam!
    No go bag to report but I do come from a family of champion packing-list writers. I treasure one from 1967, written by my stepfather before he married my mother, which has all the things you would expect, such as ‘suit’, ‘tie’, 5 prs underpants’, and then ends laconically with ‘fees’ and ‘ring’. If I add that I also have a list he made of the cubic capacities of all the teapots in the house you will see what sort of slightly OCD background I came from … can’t say it’s rubbed off. Still, one can dream…..

  33. So criminal minds got too creepy real. What are favorite netflix/amazon prime favorites? We just finished the first season of miss fishers murder mysteries. End was a bit intense. We watched downton abbey & Mr Selfridge- both great. Psych was funny murder mystery series. I need more fodder for knit/spin nights.

    • Have you tried Sherlock? I love it but my husband doesn’t like Benedict Cumberbatch for some reason. So I watch without him. Also like the Tudors and anything else along that line.

      • Thanks for the suggestions Wendy & Anne. I’ll check them out.
        Go knitting has become socks for now. My basic sock recipe on my phone-needles &:yarn in a quarter zip lock. Needles have gone into a cardboard holder so wooden double point don’t break. They’re nice and easy for while I’m at he Hospital with dh.

    • not sure if these are on Netflix/amazon/etc. but I’ve enjoyed all of these on one or another PBS type station so they are likely easy enough to find.Call the Midwife; The Choir; any in the British doc series of Victorian Pharmacy, Victorian Farm, War Farm, etc; Land Girls; and yes midsummer murders is awesome. Also: Frost, Foyle’s War, Heartbeat, Inspector Linley Mysteries. Not sure why, but the British seem to do the series thing really well. There are also some great Canadian products – Little Mosque on the Prairie – Corner Gas – Murdoch Mysteries – a current one called Still Standing.

      Tons of stuff out there, have fun finding some or all of these and I hope you enjoy them.

  34. If I had a go bag, it would have a pair of socks that were cast on but not “really started” in it. And extra yarn, just in case. Probably lots of extra yarn and no toothbrush, because you know, you can buy a toothbrush just about everywhere!

  35. My go bag is for visiting my very ill friend – has knitting, wipes, pen, tissue, prayers, and a book for me to read aloud to him.

    • You are a good friend.

      You’ve got it covered other than maybe chocolate and/or special teabags he enjoys. If that’s allowed of course.

      Chris S in Canada

      • Thanks!
        Chocolate would be for me…
        He likes me to sit by his side & knit while he tells me little stories from his life. I’ve been writing them down for his grandsons to enjoy someday.

    • I have tried to reply a couple of times – didn’t pass the human test – good grief.

      I’m trying to say you are a good friend. If it’s allowed, perhaps adding chocolate or special teabags he enjoys would be a thought.

      Chris S in Canada

  36. I know what you mean about the “go bags”. We live in the Washington DC area and my husband thinks we need these in case of emergency evacuation. The best I can do is a “basic necessities ” list and then seasonally change out our clothes. Sock knitting remains unchanged. 2 socks worth at a minimum. And if I’m at home when we grab and go, I’m grabbing all I can

  37. For years I kept a packing list for camping trips and one for hotel trips. I planned for what I knew was going to happen and that was that. I stopped when a few too many monkey wrenches got tossed into my path one year.

    Now when I go on a class trip, I take everything for teaching in one wheelie suitcase with file bag and toss a few essentials into a backpack to wear as well as a current small project. Most of the time I’m helping people fix mistakes or change up something they don’t like or that doesn’t work. I have one case for knitting classes, one for crochet classes and separate ones for other seasonal or fad classes.

    Love the socks and the amount of work done on your Rhinebeck sweater. Being taller than most women I know, that is only half a body for me. But I’m confident you can get quite a lot done in spite of traveling.

  38. I have always thought a Knitting Kiosk at the airport would be dreamy. Few needles, few markers and few kits. It would be so comforting to have wool at the airport.

    beautiful sock and knitwear model.

  39. Two winters ago, bad weather kept me two days longer than planned in the tiny Oklahoma town where Middle Niece and her family lived, and then got me an extra-long layover in Kansas City. I usually take only a carry-on, but I ALWAYS make room for plenty of knitting — usually socks or a shawl. Having something fun to do makes disrupted plans much less irritating. If I’d run out of yarn in OK, I probably would have had to break my Wal-mart boycott and buy dishcloth cotton that hurts my hands. Not knitting is NOT an option.

  40. I didn’t read every last comment for this post as of today, but I read more than half and I’m sort of afraid to mention it in case you’ve addressed this issue somewhere else, Steph, and I’ve missed it because I’m just not paying attention . . . But. Straight needles? For so many stitches that your sweater is forming a pretty ruffle because they’re jammed up together like salmon spawn? And you’re TRAVELLING with this project? Um, forgive me but wouldn’t a circular be easier, even for back and forth knitting? I can’t stop my travel knitting (socks) from leaping like lemmings off their dp needles and I’m boggled at the thought that you’re apparently unfazed by the possibility of stitch loss on your sweater in progress. And doesn’t your neck ache from carrying the weight of the project on your forearms rather than in your lap? And I’ve had the experience Elizabeth Zimmermann once mentioned of having a straight needle shooting off into the gear box on the car (I wasn’t driving). Hasn’t it happened to you? Just wondering . . . (Apologies for two wilderness creature similes in one comment.)

    • Even though I’m obviously not Stephanie I’ll chime in here to say I’m one of the knitters who far, far prefers straights to circulars and use the latter only when absolutely necessary. Maybe Stephanie’s the same!
      I have no trouble traveling, including flying, with my straights as long as they have knitting on them. And I’ve rarely lost a few stitches from an end, which was easily fixed. (I learned to knit by “propping” a needle under 1 arm and it’s still my preferred method. Doesn’t work well with socks, though! haha)

  41. I have a basket of next projects. It is mostly for socks, but there are fingerless gloves too. In each zip lock bag is the yarn and the pattern. My 20 or so most favored next projects. Just went away for work. I dipped into the basket, threw in some needles and that was my back up knitting.

    I also keep a toiletry bag that I don’t have to add anything to, so I less packing problems.

  42. Haha! I’ve never watched Criminal Minds, but I have coworkers that call me Garcia because I’m an analyst and am always pulling data for them (I guess she does that?). I had no idea she is a knitter!

    Don’t get cocky about Little Wave. That’s asking for trouble. Cute socks!

  43. My trips are not a frequent as Stef’s but I keep a bag partially packed with cosmetics, first aid supplies and a spare care of eyeglasses. I broke glasses twice before I learned that lesson. It can be a real crisis to be in a strange city and need new glasses immediately. I also have sock-in-progress bag in there. It is a treat to get back to these socks when traveling. Alas, we have an SUV not a multi-million dollar Gulfstream G-4.
    I agree about the graphic violence on Criminal Minds. I have stopped watching it also. I see it as a trend on TV. Bones used to be great with the interaction of the characters, but is now full scenes that make me turn away. Perhaps the networks are simply not paying for great scripts & writing and filling in with “action” scenes?

    • Well, the writers of mystery series books do the same thing. Suddenly, the violence gets more graphic and gory. I stopped reading Patricia Cornwell for that reason, and Kathy Reichs (originator of Bones) does the same thing. Seems like they need to spread their wings, or try to see how far they can go.

      • I had to stop reading the Scarpetta novels also. The last one I almost read started with a young female tennis player who had been abducted. Couldn’t do it, got about 10 or 20 pages in, put it down and never went back to her. Is it possible there are folks out there like that? Yes. Do I need to read about it in great detail, when I get a lot of the nasty stuff in the daily news? NO. Haven’t read Kathy Reichs for a while either – similar reasons. My reading material has changed dramatically in the last 10 years and I think I’m better for it. Fewer bad dreams, less stress, etc.

        One of the reasons I like the Murdoch Mysteries on CBC, and the Maureen Jennings books. There is a (admittedly Victorian) restraint that makes me feel entertained, not scared or soiled.

        Chris S in Canada

  44. I can’t believe I missed the fact that there was such a wonderful knitting retreat so close to me in Maine–not that I could’ve gone, but it’s nice to dream! Lovely weather this weekend: hope fun is had by all!

  45. I don’t have a go back but we visit family fairly frequently so I always have a travel toiletries bag, Chargers and a packing cube with underwear and pjs in so I just have to put whatever clothes I need (and knitting) into the bag before we go. It saves a bit of time and makes sure I don’t forget toothpaste or underwear which has been known to happen.

  46. I was at the Pudding Yarn class on Monday (I am up to 40 sts/minute lever knitting and have ordered a knitting belt!) but I was thinking that had to be a really intense couple of days for you… and then to turn around and fly somewhere else immediately? Gah. I barely had the energy to get to work the rest of the week…

    I love the idea of a Go Bag but I don’t travel enough to make it worthwhile. I have a version for outdoor trips but the seasonal variation means I have to repack four times a year – plus there are cycling, hiking, and ski components to consider!

  47. I didn’t realize how important a good and patient knitwear model is until I finished a sweater for my three year old this weekend and she refused to stand still.

    I hope someday she can be as awesome as Sam (or I might stop knitting her stuff).

  48. Why not have a go bag that includes everything except daily wardrobe. Toiletries, pajamas, underpants, socks, emergency needles and yarn. Then you would only be throwing in a few outfits here and there. On laundry day repack the go bag and settle it in the closet!

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