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Hi, Jan,

You’ve been traveling, but what’s my excuse? I think I’ve been fighting something - have felt like I’ve had a very low grade bout of flu (gee, did I just have a chill? are those my muscles aching? maybe? a nap would be nice…) - and work has been non-stop, though actually quite productive (dear boss is on vacation, as much as I adore him, I do get more done when he isn’t here). Good enough? No? Well, maybe a nice juicy photo-heavy post will make up for it.

First things first - Bea is having a contest. Hie thee there and enter, if only to generate another entry for you dear sister/mother/aunt/whatever. It is for darn tooting I will not win on skill, so I need to depend on my friends.

Second, the big knitting update.

Two things from the weekend - Pearl’s Pi, which admittedly at first looked more like a tart. Since he has been sick I’ve been meaning to knit him one and it also used up some stash. I was pretty happy with how it turned out, especially the fulling. I haven’t been able to catch a shot of him sleeping in it yet, though it is apparent from its current condition that someone has slept in it. I don’t think it was Wilson.

And the second thing, another charity hat. Not too exciting, but it did use up some more stash. I am always amused at how I look in these pictures in the mirror - kind of quizzical, like why does that lady want to take my picture? Especially in this silly hat?

I have also been working on a long-neglected project, the Forest Path stole from Interweave Knits several years back. You can get the actual reference on Ravelry. I call mine Forever in the Forest because I’ve been working on it for so long. I started it in Toronto where Wilson and I were celebrating our 25th anniversary, and then I lost it at Niagara Falls on the same trip, then started it again, and it just hasn’t moved very fast. I blame the bobbles in the lily-of-the-valley.

Finally, on a melancholy note, I ask that you pause and honor Wilson’s Uncle Jim, who left us this week. He was a very smart, very funny, very loyal man who will be missed by his family but recognized for a long time in the wit and spirit of his children and grandchildren and even his nieces and nephews. It was an honor to know him.

Peace and love,

Ellen

Dear Sister,

It’s a spud, I mean, dud. I have finished the Tot Surprise. Surprise it did, in that it is not cute like I remembered the pattern to be. The cotton is way too saggy with blocking - maybe I’ll be wild and run it through the washing machine and dryer and see if we can tighten things up. The colors, which I can blame only myself for, are not working together. I see now that the hot yellow and orange just aren’t right with the cool, grey tones of the green and grey. Well, at least I gained some intarsia experience on it and reminded myself that I really don’t like knitting with cotton, except for dishcloths.

I hope your knitting is going better. This sweater is going to charity. I can’t even bring myself to give it as a gift, but at least it is soft cotton and will keep some baby warm with good intentions.

Happy Vernal Equinox,

Ellen

Dear Ellen,

I’m so glad you had a chance to reconnect with Jeanne and that you posted some pictures from the trip. I know she enjoyed seeing you and it looks like the food was both tasty and fun! We do look a lot alike, don’t we?! As Jeanne looks pretty good for her years, that hopefully bodes well for us.

The last few weeks have really highlighted for me how truly important are the connections between family and friends. I feel like our knitting and this web site have helped us draw our connection closer and for that I’m very grateful. I’m also finding that when I knit for friends and family I feel more connected to them in the process. Knitting the shawl for Marie’s wedding was a labor of love and gave me lots of time to explore my feelings and hopes for her as she builds her life with Heidi. I was pleased to see Karen’s coverage of it at White Coat Knitter.

These links between us and the others about whom we care has certainly made it easier for me to deal with everything that has happened lately and has made me feel incredibly blessed with what I’ve been given — in terms of those I love and who love me, spiritually and even materially. Your thoughts about Joy mirrored mine — and are amplified as I think about the 19 year old Sailor we lost two weeks ago to meningitis and especially as I work through my god daughter Laura Mae’s death. The fact that we four (you, me, Marie and Karen) were able to toast her at Kramerbooks and then commit to finding all the joy we could possibly find in the wedding the next day did make it easier for me. I was able to make it to Massachusett’s to be there for Cheryl for the viewing and the funeral — so very sad, but such an enormous outpouring of sympathy and love from the community. She would have been 16 in a few weeks.

I am knitting a scarf and hat to warm Cheryl’s body and soul in one of the colors of Laura’s brilliant blue eyes. As I used Marie’s shawl to meditate on the joys of her future, am using this knitting to meditate on Laura Mae and what she gave us while she was part of this world. The yarn is “Kid Seta” by Madil and it is easy to imagine one is knitting a cloud. Cheryl is Catholic, I hope it will make her think of the heavens and give her some warmth.

From the funeral I headed out to Colorado Springs and due to many weather and operational delays had loads of airport knitting time. I finished the front of the Classic Silk Lace Top from the May-July 2007 issue of Cast On. It’s in Elann Callista, a very nice cotton, linen, viscose blend. I had previously finished the back, so now we just have to see how long it takes me to do the finishing.

If you look closely, you might make out the doggie prints from where Max immediately assumed I was spreading out a blanket on which he could sunbathe. I wouldn’t allow him to do that, so he and Ruby decided they would curl up in the mulch. I snuck this picture from a window after I went inside — had I gone outside to try to get a better angle they would have started bounding around the yard expecting me to throw something for them.

Spring has definitely made inroads into the Tidewater — my camellia is blooming beautifully, though it’s kind of wet and the flowers are browning quickly. Even so, they’re beautiful and they help me remember that all things renew in their own way.

Love, Jan

Hi, Jan,

Here is the promised ribbing and some color blocking. We have finished the back and are heading down the left front. Some stripey surprises await us.

I hope to get a lot of this done while in the air on my way to LAX tomorrow. I’m looking forward to seeing a land of no snow, but more to seeing Jeanne and Frank for supper at a crab shack tomorrow night.

I crack up the way she calls us both “Sis”. Maybe that is what she did when she was 12 and we were infants. I’ll have to work the trade show floor very hard on Friday, then I take a redeye home that night, so I plan to do substantial playing tomorrow with “Big Sis”. My one worry is I seem to be congested and tired and sneezing more than I should - oh, universe, please don’t let me be getting the viral infection that has been laying people low right and left at work.

Love,

Ellen

Hi, Jan,

The clocks moved forward, so why am I waking up 2 hours early? I’m sure part of it is the usual Monday insomnia, bracing for the week (this one includes travel), but part of it was an itch to finish Spring Arrival. Meteorologically, it is ahead of schedule, but I will consider it a harbinger of spring. (Karen and Patty, I am sure you agree that spring isn’t here yet - K reports shoveling about 19″ yesterday, and I’m sure it is much the same for P. And March snow in Ohio isn’t like the couple of inches of Minnesota fluff that I scraped off the driveway last week, either.)

So here it is, before and after blocking. I’m quite pleased. I overcompensated for what I considered a pinched look of the border on some completed Tulips cardgians I’ve seen. I didn’t switch down needle sizes at all and the edge wanted to flip a bit, unblocked. I hope it behaves better blocked, and next time I knit it I’ll move down one needle size or throw a few decreases into the edge.  Lindsay Pekny has given us a great pattern in this one - genius combination of colors in such a fun and quick knit.

I’m using SA as a token for a good week. I hope that transfers to you, too.

Ellen