Knitters really are the nicest people

I just wandered over to Wolgaarde, my friendly neighborhood yarn store.  I didn’t go yesterday because I knew it was a relatively small shop, and in small shops, people tend to greet you and ask if they can help you in any way.  And I hate having to ask, “Sprekt u engels?” because my Nederlands is niet so goed.  So yesterday I went to department stores to get comfortable with going back into stores by myself.  And today I headed out to Wolgaarde.  I was in heaven.  The store is full of Katia and Lana Grossa.  I went nuts in the sale bin (though not too nuts, since I only had a ten and some change on me).  But I snatched a couple of skeins of LG Silk in a nice natural color—for a crocheted belt.  I consider it an early birthday present.  It’s tomorrow, you know.

The woman at the store was especially nice.  She spoke English without reservation (sometimes I run into people who are rather smug about it, though I can’t blame them—it just makes me feel bad), and we chatted for a while.  She was saying that some people had recently come into the store and told her that Delft must be heaven.  I told her I agree—if it’s not heaven, it’s quite close.  And today it’s even closer—because I found my LYS.

Eureka!

I have found it! After searching for weeks and weeks, I've finally found Delft's yarn store back. It's called Wolgaarde, and it's apparently right next door to the crusty pub where our friend, Crazy Nick has taken us before. It's just a couple of blocks from our hotel. I'm giddy just thinking about it.

Still racing...

Two days from now, we'll be on the plane.  My fuzzy peach shell still isn't finished.  But as is usually the case for me, I ran into a bit of a bump in the road.  I perfectly stitched up one shoulder.  Even Paul was impressed with the invisibility of the seam (thanks to the forgiving yarn I'm using).  And, due to my last neck-hole disaster, I took a minute to check to see if, after stitching the other shoulder, I'd still be able to get my huge head through. 

Negative.

My reaction was to throw the top across the living room.  Paul then figured out how to carefully un-seam the shoulder while I worked on the baby blanket that I got guilted into making for a friend.  As I've said before, people I know really need to stop having babies.  I have a poncho and a shawl to knit for myself!

Anyway, after Paul's careful unseaming, I had to start over.  And since I hate finishing, I'm doing it a little at a time.  On Monday, I did the shoulders and finished by nice, long scarf (pictures coming...).  And last night I did one side seam.  Tonight we go to the gym, but I hope I'll still be able to finish the top on Thursday.  Or maybe during lunch breaks.  But I'm determined to finish before we leave... 

The clock's ticking...

A race against time

We leave for Delft a week from today.  In fact, a week from now, I'll be checking in at the airport.  Before I leave, I have a scarf that needs tassels and a shell that needs to be finished.  The tassels shouldn't be a problem.  It just takes a little time and patience.  The shell, however, is going to take some time.  I'm close -- I'm well into the armhole decreases -- but it's still a race to the finish.
 
The girls are coming over tonight for our monthly knitting night.  Lisa wanted to be sure we got together again before I left, and that's a good thing.  It'll give me a night to relax, and it'll give me some dedicated time to sit down and work on my shell.
 
I'm also getting my projects ready for the trip.  I'm rolling fuzzy scarf yarn into balls, to make it easier for working on the plane. 
 
And then there's that packing stuff.  I'll do that as soon as I have my knitting finished...

Back to the land of the connected

Well, the cable guy came yesterday (FINALLY!), and I think -- after a number of unseen hassles -- we finally have everything fixed. The cable guy is my new best friend.

Meanwhile, the trip to Europe is fast approaching. We haven't started packing yet, which people find to be rather shocking. But we've done it so many times that it's a snap for us now. Shove a bunch of stuff in our giant backpacks and go. The painful part isn't the packing -- it's trying to figure out how we're going to get to London and what we're going to do (and where we're going to stay) once we get there...

A few months ago, I checked online and found a yarn store in Delft, and now I've lost it again. Darn. I'll have to find it back before we go -- or I'll have to do a lot of wandering around once I get there.

On the knitting front, I finished most of my red scarf -- I just need to finish the last of the tassels. The fuzzy shell is getting there, though I need to work fast if I'm going to get it done before we leave. And the crocheted dishcloth is nearing completion. I'm getting better at the crochet thing, but I still don't think I enjoy it as much as knitting.

The girls are coming over on Friday -- so we can get some knitting time in before I leave. Let's hope I can finish a few projects then...

Sweet temptation

I had to go to Hub Mills today. I had to. I just needed one more skein to finish that fun scarf that I have to take with me to Delft. So I had to go. But oh, the sweet temptation that is the Hub Mills Factory Store! I can never just buy the one thing I need. But really -- they had Weekend Cotton on clearance sale, and I've never tried it, so I got a bright orange skein for a quick fun hat. And I figured that I needed an extra skein of wool for a felted bag -- don't want to run out in the middle of a project! So I got some wool, too. Three skeins. That's not bad, right?

This morning, my Internet connection was down, meaning I couldn't work, so in my boredom, I taught myself to crochet (well, not exactly -- I retaught myself, since I learned the basics when I was about eight). I had to learn because of that shawl that the woman at Romni in Toronto was making when I visited the in-laws last month. She told me how to knit it, but hers was crocheted, and I wanted that exact shawl. So I taught myself to crochet just for that shawl. Now I suppose I need to stock up on more crochet hooks... But where am I going to hide them all?

The holiday weekend just ended, and boy, are my hands tired!

I definitely kept busy over the weekend. It started on Thursday, when I started my En Fuego shawl. I was going to announce that on Friday, but, as usual, I couldn’t get online.

On Saturday, Paul went into Boston with his cousin, who was visiting for the weekend, so I planned a yarn store crawl for myself. Unfortunately, Hub Mills was closed (which was disappointing, since I actually needed something from there), so my crawl consisted of one store. I’d heard a lot about Woolpack, so I decided to make the drive—and I was glad I did. It was such a bright, open, friendly place, and I ended up walking out with some Brown Sheep wool for another felting experiment and a copy of Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles. I’m determined to learn this sock thing.

Yesterday I was telling Paul about the sisterhood of knitters. New England is anything but a friendly place to live, but I’ve found that people are always friendlier when you’re carrying a skein of yarn. In most stores out here, no one will even acknowledge your presence unless you literally trip over them. But in the yarn stores, people are always happy to see you—and they’re just as happy to help you out. And fellow shoppers will actually speak to you, too—and that’s a serious no-no in New England. So thank goodness I’m a knitter! And thanks to the friendly knitters I’ve come across since I moved here—you’ve made life in New England a little less hellish.