…okay, so it wasn’t Bruges, but it was close.
Dear Ellen,
I spent last week in Europe as U.S. representative to the NATO Command Control Consultation Board. It sounds pretty fancy-pants, and I have to admit the simultaneous translations via earwig is pretty cool, but the board sessions quickly become very dry and, yes, boring. On the other hand, Brussels is very interesting! Great scenery, great food, great chocolate…all in great supply. The Grand Place was having a plant sale that added some great color to our photos. We ate in a restaurant with a sheep mosaic on its walls. 
On our walkabouts we came across really cool costume ideas…and the infamous mannequin pis. You can find this little guy made out of chocolate, various gummy candies and imprinted on everything from beer steins to mouse pads.
As usual, I did some knitting on the airplane…finished up the first sock of a pair based on the flame stitch pattern. It has some “love” in it…a clever term a friend uses to refer to mistakes that she has decided can go uncorrected. The pattern was tricky to convert to a full chart and I was tired. No one will really notice. I was glad to get home, but I head out again on Friday for Ohio…the second sock will get some good attention on that trip!
Love, Jan
Jan and Ellen are identical twins who have always had an innate fashion sense. Crafting is an integral part of their lives and they stay stitched together sharing their love of knitting, family and community.
May 18th, 2011 at 7:32 pm
That is a nice a-sortie-ment of sheep. (That one was for you, Alison.)
The sock is great. I saw no trace of love at all in it. Maybe I can take a closer look this weekend - can’t wait to see you at the wedding, where neither of us have any real responsibility!
May 18th, 2011 at 8:00 pm
We had one of those little statues fountaining into our pool when I was a kid - I think my parents thought it was pretty funny
I love those socks! Good luck with the Ohio trip.
May 18th, 2011 at 10:07 pm
Gee, you must have met up with my dear friend Michael B. again. I miss seeing he and his wife back in VAB. Would love to see you as well - I think maybe you need to let NATO know that Phoenix has some great options for big international events - yeah that’s it, events.
Glad you enjoyed Brussels
May 19th, 2011 at 6:29 pm
Sounds like a whirlwind trip! There is something to be said for having boring meetings in interesting places, though. Glad you got to do some sightseeing in between sessions!