Mossy Cottage Knits

Sittin' and Knittin', Part II

Honk! Hack! Snarf! Snork! Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Snurf. Oy.

Lovely, no? But that’s what I sound like on Day Three of The Cold From Hell. But I’m well enough to be back at work, and well enough to post, which is all that matters. Although, the truth be told, I am a little peeved. Cuzzin Tom moves to frigid Mongolia and I get a cold. How does that work, exactly?

While my goal today is to continue my narration about last weekend's Knit-In, first I have to say, only my Dear Readers could make my mentioning of The Mysterious K and an accordion in the same sentence sound like something titillating, wink, wink, nudge, nudge. So, let’s just get right to it and answer the question, What did TMK do during the Knit-In and how did an accordion fit into the picture?

Before she even set foot in Mary’s house, The Mysterious K had been saddled with three jobs: Taker of Photographs, Provider of Music, and Provider of Tofu Chocolate Pie, all of which she did to completion and with enthusiasm. On the tour of the house that Mary gave us, however, TMK discovered that not only is Mary’s husband as gaga about music as she is, he has his very own Music Salon full of music-y gadgets: electric guitars, keyboards, African drums, an accordion, and software for composing and overlaying musical tracks—TMK’s idea of heaven. And, yep, that would be about where I lost her. For the first hour or so, while the knitters and I sat downstairs, a strange cacophony of hooting and tooting and honking and pounding and drumming and squawking trickled down from upstairs. Think the Whoville music from "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas." Then the music ceased and TMK came down the stairs looking slightly cross-eyed and giddy. She now has plans to buy an electric guitar to join her Martin guitar and her keyboard. Which is a problem because she stores all of these items in the guest room where I sleep when she is snoring too much her back is acting up and I have visions of my doing a skull-cracking header some night when I'm innocently heading to the bathroom for a 2am pee.

On to the knitting part of the day...

Below, two pictures showing your blogmistress modeling two Half-Assed Hats knit by Mary—and no, I had consumed no alcohol, although perhaps I was a little buzzed from the brownies. The first hat was knit in a rich, color-saturated terra cotta yarn with colored flecks and the second in a similar but dark blue version. In the photos with me are Karen and Rebecca...and the Dulaan t-shirt!

MaryB knitting, at last count, item number 16!:

Below are my two favorite photos showing everything that Mary and I have knit or collected—including everything from my onesy-twosy box—and everything that people brought to the Knit-In to the contribute. To put things in perspective, this is a—well, there’s no polite way to say this—big-ass table and every inch of it was covered, sometimes two items deep. I didn’t do an actual count, but I think we’re talking maybe 60 items all told. And, since the time these photos were taken, I have added the Slicker-Yellow Mittens, a cabled hat (thanks to two days in bed), another pair of Kool-Aid dyed mittens from Feralite June, and three more scarves from a co-worker. (In photo #2, the person admiring our handiwork is Feralite, Guilder and Dulaaner Diana.)

TMK and I both agree that this photo of the coffee table depicts the essence of the “busyness” and "hominess" that pervaded the party: yarn, patterns, a teapot, sodas, plates, mugs, grapes, apples...

And lastly, a funny photo of Shy Ellen, pretending to be horrified at having her picture taken, but really showing us the mini-crisis she, well, pardon the pun, had on her hands. She was using some yarn she had dyed—in truth, by her own admission, overly dyed, using the “if a little is good, then more must be better” philosophy of dyeing—and the more she knit the more screamingly magenta her hands became. She promised all of us—and the unknown child in Mongolia who will be the proud owner of her hat—that she will double and even triple-wash the hat before she mails it.

On Monday, I said my drive home seemed to symbolize the essence of the party, but I was wrong. The true essence of the party came late in the afternoon when June came up behind me, gave me a big, warm shoulder squeeze and a firm smooch on the check, and said, from the heart, “Thank you for starting this project.” A project that benefits both the people working on it and the people who will receive the objects created...gee, do ya’ think that’s what Cuzzin Tom had in mind?

May the compassion of White Tara infuse your knitting, everyone!

Posted by Ryan at March 25, 2005 11:31 AM