March 19, 2010
Ahead On The Feet
After coming in late on the first two months of my self imposed sock club, March roared in like a lion and turned out to have plenty of time in it for socks and they were finished this morning, with time to spare, since (and I feel I must point this out) is the morning of the 19th. 
That means that I finished twelve days ahead of schedule - and I even like the socks, which is extra awesome - and in Stephanieland, coming in twelve days ahead cancels out coming in late the other months, since even added together I was less than twelve days late, therefore I'm still early, even on average. 
Roger sock pattern from Knitspot, and Numma numma's Toasty sock yarn in Nutella. 
These are, like all the socks I'm knitting in the self-imposed sock club, socks that are going into my long-range-planning box, perhaps to ease the strain at Christmas. If all goes well, I should be twelve pairs up by December, and that, my knitterly friends, makes me just about giddy. I've always contributed to that box throughout the year, but not in this sort of a structured way, and I have high hopes that it's going to pay off bigtime. Hugetime. I think that these twelve (theoretical) pairs of socks are going to bring joy and light into my holiday season in a way that makes me feel like laughing out loud right now, even though it's nine months away. (I'm a mother. I've waited nine months for something to pay off before. I don't mind the wait.)
I finished the legwarmers too (they're drying) I've ordered a book to make my next sweater, but it won't arrive until Monday at best, and suddenly I feel at loose ends. I have the whole weekend and I can't decide what to do. I could:
A) Show a little backbone and go back to the Bohus. I let it slip because I'm at the boring stockinette part, but I could just suck it up. I know it won't knit itself, but it's also not going anywhere.
B) Toss in an extra pair of socks.
C) Spin for two days.
D) Something else I didn't think of yet.
Votes?
March 18, 2010
More of a chronic condition
Tomorrow Joe's going away with his mum. They've been planning it for a while - off to the US to see the Grand Canyon and visit a relative, and Joe's mum is psyched. (Joe is too - let's be honest.) Her kids - all four of them, travel with her in turns, and this trip has been set in stone for a while. Since they leave in the morning, today they have to provide Homeland Security with "advance travel information" like your passport number and expiry date, and where you'll be while you're in the United States - and Joe being Joe, today was the day that he fetched his passport from his underwear drawer (where all right thinking people keep important documents) and was about to hop on the phone with his mum to give her the information, when he happened to glance at the expiry date of that wee book, and notice, much to his horror, that it was a date in the past.
When he recovered himself sufficiently and regained the power of speech, he called the passport office to see if anything could be done, and they said for him to come right down with all his paperwork, and see what could be sorted for him. They warned him though, that getting a passport renewed on the same day was strictly a mission for "emergencies" and not to get his hopes up. Passport Canada's website advised that the 24 hour service (which really wasn't even fast enough for us) was only available with proof of travel (got it) and that "Passport Canada will take appropriate action on a case-by-case basis." Not too hopeful, since the last time either Joe or I checked, being a moron wasn't really an emergency, but more of a chronic thing.
Down we went, and after the requisite wait, we found ourselves in front of a nice lady at the wicket, and Joe launched into his tale of woe. How his stupid mistake was going to spoil his mum's vacation, how he'd clearly taken leave of his senses, how upset his mum would be, how he really loved his mum and she was nice, how, when she found out he hadn't checked until this morning she was probably going to tell him his was stunned as a bat, and how he would disappoint her, how... how there just had to be a way (not to put it to bluntly) how there had to be a way to keep him, a forty-one year old man, from getting into trouble with his mummy.
The lady didn't even blink. Took the papers, screened Joe's old passport, told Joe they'd do their best and to come back at close of day, one and a half hours later and see what happened.
We left the building, hitting his references on speed-dial to warn them the call would be coming and would they be so kind as to be sure and answer the phone, only to discover that Passport Canada had already called his references- before we were in the car. Joe returned, ninety minutes later, to face the music, and he had already reconciled himself to the idea that it was unlikely that the fact that he was a bonehead was an emergency that could conquer a bureaucracy the size of the Canadian Government, and was already planning what he would say to his mum.
I called minutes later to ask him if he'd gotten it? Was it okay? Did it work? Was it possible- and all Joe said to me on the phone was "Steph, you're not going to believe this. I love this country. Apparently the risk of disappointing your mum IS an emergency. I have a passport."
You could have knocked me over with a feather. I imagined them scurrying around, all the people at the Passport Office, calling the right people, doing all this stuff, all of them saying "Oh, man, we've got to get this done or his mother's going to kill him" and suddenly I figured out why it had worked. Joe's a nice man, and everybody has a mother.
March 17, 2010
Erin Go Bragh
Finishing green legwarmers to start a green sweater out of wonderful Irish wool. Vegetarian Irish Stew on the stove. Soda bread in the oven. Sun shining.
Happy St. Patricks Day!
March 16, 2010
Detroit Done
I'm gone and back to Detroit, and I had a great time. You can say all you like about the place (and I know people do) but I tell you this, the people are the best. I had several experiences that were awesome, and they were all human related. From the friendly, welcoming service everywhere I went, to the knitters and the folks I met every where I went, Detroit's people outshone it's architecture (which is pretty awesome) and it's casino's. (I actually really hate casinos, so I don't think it's hard for me to have anybody outshine that. Poor example.)
Things that were awesome.
1. The Detroit river. All full of ice, with Canada on the other side. 
2. This big ex-ferris wheel, where instead of tearing it down, they covered it and turned it into a giant tire. I don't know why I loved it, but I did. 
3. The city itself is very pretty, and if you look, there's some wonderfully beautiful things. This is the third floor of the library where I spoke. 
3. The knitters. 
I'm pretty easy to please, no matter where I go I like the knitters, so I suppose this one was a big of a gimmee. I loved the requisite first sock knitters:
Jennifer, Meg and Lisa, who went over the top and presented a first sweater. 
And there was Steven, 
who not only knit his first socks, but knit them for me, which was pretty outstandingly touching. (I've had a good look at them too... they're perfect. They look nothing like first socks. Darned good knitting, even though he had to put a rush on them and finished them right there.)
There were babies too, Amy and Moira and Sara and David - who looks so charming in his sleep that I forgive him for not waking up to amuse me. 
Juliet knit me a carrot. (Very charming vegetable.)
I got to meet SpillyJane (maker of fine mitten patterns) and Knitterella and French Press knits. 
4. Awesome thing the 4th: This is Brenna. 
Brenna is notable because she met me in the bathroom and admitted right there that she had successfully defeated the urge to Kinnear me while I was in there. I loved her instantly, for having the urge, for admitting it and most of all... for resisting it. Other people have not been so strong.
5. I got two more washcloths, a St. Patricks day one from Jason (who was wicked on Twitter while I was planning this) and a UP one from Kristine.
(UP is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I felt good that I knew that.)
6. I left my iphone in a cab, and the unbelievable cabbie picked it up, waited until I called it, answered and drove it to my hotel, then demanded nothing from me but a hug for bringing it. I gave him money anyway, but the point is that he was totally going to do if for no reason other than that he was decent. I loved him.
7. Our lady Presbytera of the comments, who was my faithful native guide, and Alice, who showed up out of nowhere and was a pleasure to see, especially since she shared my love of the Olympics in grand style. 
8. This. 
Next time I'm going to Motown. Thanks for being awesome Detroit!
