Question For Today
So, knitting can delay memory loss! That is great news. But, I wonder, can knitting also stop my migraine from getting worse? The answer is no, sadly.
Uggggh (says the bloggerista/knitterina who promptly heads for a silent, dark room).
Things I Have Learned
In the past week I have learned that:
- The majority of my friends here in the UK are either bloggers who knit or knitters who blog. I had a really nice birthday lunch the other day and counted just three non-knitters (although all three are bloggers). Interesting.
- I really, really like edamame and it could very easily turn into an obsession (except my stomach aches today).
- My taste in books has become somewhat predictable. I finished reading Andrew Crumey's Sputnik Caledonia and thought it "freaking amazing" (yes, I've lost my critical vocabulary). I searched the net for reviews and came across The Guardian's review. It thought the book read like a cross between Alasdair Gray's Lanark and Jonathan Coe's What a Carve Up!. Those two novels happen to be two of my absolute favourite contemporary novels.. whoopsie.
- Sweden belongs to a parallel universe. How else can I account for the fact that I've met two Swedish women this past week - one of whom is me in another universe (she has long red hair; I don't) and the other a parallel universe version of my bestest friend back in Denmark (she has tattoos; bestest friend doesn't)? Very, very strange .. and fun.
- The world is a scary place. This past week has seen big smackdown drama on everybody's favourite knitting forum and me wising up to the fact that Twilight fans of a certain age enjoy making felted wombs (and the wombs apparently sparkle when you open them up!). You get nutters everywhere - especially among amateur goldfish enthusiasts, I've reliably been told - but who would have thought crafters could be that .. well, special?
- And who knew that foxes love playing on trampolines? I didn't but it makes life a little bit better.
I'm off to a hospital appointment this afternoon but hopefully I'll be able to join my knitting group tonight. I have yarn to show off and an almost completed cardigan (I swear: Forecast (rav link) has been the quickest project ever).
It's also nice to have ttime and energy to blog once more.
What She Came For
A note to Cail Bruich: when you advertise gravad lax with salad and rye bread, do not serve sour-dough bread. It is not the same. Also, consider serving the sour-dough rye bread with a smidgen of butter. Just saying. Ah, I am nursing a post-birthday hangover (although not due to any alcohol consumption - perish the thought! - just general enthusiasm). So many of you have sent me birthday greetings - thank you so, so much - and I will make sure to get back to each and every one of you. It might take a few days, but you'll get a personal thank you.
However, someone is having a very special birthday today! Happy birthday, Charles!
Still So Young To Travel So Far; Old Enough To Know Who You Are
I have always wanted to cut a Virginia Woolf-esque figure. Tall and graceful with a certain Bloomsbury bookish air. Sadly I am much too silly, disorganised and plump to ever fool anyone.
Except my boyfriend seems to totally buy into this dream, bless him.
For my birthday he has given me a 1920s knitting project bag. The embroidery is ever so fine - done in wool on jute (I think) - and the bag is lined with fine linen. It is absolutely gorgeous in the most perfect early twentieth century Bloomsbury intelligensia way. It's possibly the best present I have ever been given.
He also gave me a needle-felted scarf in black, orange and sky-blue. Needle-felted!
I've been given an absolute tonne of wool by friends and family: Drops Silke-Tweed in creme and mustard; Kauni Effektgarn in a red-burgundy colourway; 2-ply wool in deep indigo-purple and grey, Sandness Sisu in green and red, worsted merino in a stunning dark fuchsia and a full cone of orange 2ply alpaca. Not to mention all the Rowan Felted Tweed I need for Flyte.I don't think I'll ever need to go wool-shopping again.
And people have also given me perfume, jewellery stationery, book vouchers and books! And the sun's out! Aww..
A huge thank you to everyone who's been part of making this one of the nicest birthdays I've had in a long time.
Monday Morning
All photos by Other Half who gleefully went out to play in the snow take photographs before he had had breakfast.