Now Norma Knits

Two Posts in Two Days -- The Beginning of a Trend?

Cookie asked:  Yeah but did you eat at the diner? ;^)

Well, I'm glad you asked, Cookie. We sure did. We ate at the [old] Eveready Diner on Friday night, and I am sorry to report that everything was bad that night. Everything! If that had been the first time we had gone there, we never would have gone back. Thankfully, we had a long history of happy meals there, or we would not be able to forgive the cocktails that tasted like cough syrup and were spilling over the sides of the glasses. (Tip to makers of margaritas: If it's splashing over the side, the salt rim is washed away, and Norma, for one, is not happy -- even assuming that the drink was palatable otherwise, which it really wasn't.) In addition, that was my first taste of alcohol since being on these meds, and it really did not sit well, so that was my mistake.

The mac & cheese was at best uninspired (and we've had some really killer mac & cheese at that place in years past). The burgers were likewise rather tasteless and unimpressive.

We could not understand a word that came out of the mouth of the server. Correction: I, you will recall, am a professional listener. And so I had to translate everything he mumbled to my tablemates. Sandy just started saying, "Yeah," to everything he said, and I'd translate after he left. The whole night was just a bit of a disaster. 

It's not just that they were super-busy, because they have ALWAYS been super-busy all those many other times we've gone there and enjoyed great food, great service, great cocktails. It appears that they have sent all their good staff and good food over to the brand-spanking-new one that they built directly across from the fairgrounds.

That's me and Jenn walking in for breakfast at the new place.

It was fabulous.

All the same fixtures and decor and menu as the original, but so clean and new and shiny, with the same great food and wonderful service we've come to expect from the Eveready. 

Win! (With a caveat: We only ate breakfast there -- twice. So I can't report on lunch or dinner success or failure.)

We are hoping that our bad experience that Friday night was just a fluke.

Hey! That's two posts in two days! I have vowed to try to do better with the blog. It is so easy to get out of a good habit, isn't it? I've even saved up some content so I have more to blog about later. (Smart me.) 

 

Popping Out of My Cave To Say Hi

I know it's seemed like I've been awfully quiet -- well, because I have, I guess. I've apparently alarmed a few, but don't worry:  I'm still here and kicking strongly! It really is rather pathetic, though. This formerly-every-single-day blogger (for several years running) is so rusty at it that I could not remember some of the commands in the Typepad software and it took a while to make this post. That is just sad.

But since we last spoke, let's see, I have....

1. Passed the Certified Realtime Reporter, Certified CART Provider, and Certified Broadcast Captioner exams. (Caveat: These are PRELIMINARY scores only! To be verified by the officials before they are OFFICIAL. You know. They have to check the security camera and the audio recording to make sure I didn't cheat, etc. I wonder if the "what the fuuuu..." that I once uttered will be used against me? I shouldn't joke. Heh.) These are long overdue and I should have taken them years ago, but I'm just getting around to it. You know how that goes. I've signed up for them a few times in the past, but then would get booked for a really great job that I could not pass up, and had to cancel them. This time I managed to fit them in. So now I have so many initials to put after my name, it's longer than my actual name.

2. Underwent a cardiac stress test with echocardiogram. That was fun. Not so much. But apparently it all looked unalarming and good enough.

3. Recorded into a log every single piece of food I have eaten, every single thing I have drunk, and every step of exercise I have done since I got out of the hospital. Taken and recorded my blood pressure, ditto.

4. Done a lot of CART work. A lot. 

5. Went to Vermont Sheep & Wool, trudged through the cold drizzle and mud for a couple of hours, and even bought some yarn. 

5. Went to Rhinebeck (!) and roomed with my traditional crew of lovely ladies:

Jenn (Nipperknits), Sandy, and Leigh

We have roomed together just about every year since 2004.

(Except that I couldn't go last year. I'm not bitter at all.)

Needless to say, we had a blast. I forgot my camera the first day, so I have appallingly few photos, but I did manage to get a fabulous one of Kay the second day:

We were underdressed for the weather the first day, and got chased back to the hotel by the cold and rain showers, so we missed out on seeing a lot of folks we wish we had seen. And we made a conscious decision to shop and eat and drink tea in the actual town of Rhinebeck. What a treat! All these years, and we've never really patronized the lovely little shops on the Main Street, as it were. We are so glad we did. I got two pieces of gorgeous jewelry -- one for me and one for a gift for Mr. Jefferies' sitter (Shhhhh, don't tell her. She doesn't read here, so I'm safe.), and we each got a few other great things. We ate a very special dinner at The Terrapin. So.good. SO good.

What else do I have to tell you? 

Oh! I got a new sweater kit for you-know-who:

And some lovely buttons for a sweater I hope to knit someday. I will knit again someday, won't I?

What number was I on? Aw, never mind. Bullets it will be from now on.

• I finally managed to mail Martin's package to him containing the two baby sweaters and the little hat I made way back last spring. You remember the ones, eh? This and This. They were received, and Martin was over the moon. I'm desperately hoping they still fit the baby boy, and hoping for pictures of him wearing it someday soon. 
• And well, because not enough of my body has started falling apart already, I had laser surgery today on one of my eyes, and the other is scheduled for Monday. It was for the condition as described in this YouTube video, should you wish to watch it. I love to watch it just to hear the name of the doctor speaking on that video. 

• Now, I know you really just wanted to see a photo of His Royal Highness, so here you go. Not a very glamorous one, but it's the best I could do in the failing light after my eyes were dilated and then one of them lasered. 

 

The (Tangible) Things I Brought Home From Rhinebeck 2009

I had the unrealistic plan of buying nothing, but you know how that goes. I did spend more than nothing, but I didn't damage the budget too terribly bad, I think.

A really great tote bag:

It's great-looking, well made and well designed, with two outside pockets, two inside pockets, and a drawstring-topped liner in contrast color, as well as a carabiner on the side. From Sliver Moon Farm.

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Some really interesting soap:

 

They had me at "gin & tonic."  From a very cool Rhinebeck business called Merriweather's.

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Some Trekking sock yarn for Paula, because she is Trekking-deprived and I was on a mission.

 

This one doesn't count against the budget, since it's for Paula.

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A sweater kit to make a couple sweaters for you-know-who:

Charcoal grey alpaca, no less. From Style Hounds SoHo. I know I said I wouldn't, but if you saw this lady's pooch sweaters, you would have caved too. And I chose charcoal grey because it just seems to match a sophisticated little city-and-country Yorkie with a posh and proper name like Mr. Jefferies. However, for a small dog like Mr. J., the kit makes two sweaters, and I wish I had had my wits about me to ask her for two different colors. (she had a great selection) What is a guy gonna do with TWO charcoal sweaters, hm????  Perhaps I will have to use two different stitch patterns.   
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And a sweater's worth of Green Mountain Spinnery Mountain Mohair in Moss Green (I have in mind the sweater pattern Gaelic Mist for this yarn, a finished model of which I saw and admired this weekend)... 

...which they packed for me in a nice canvas tote.

 

And just before I was ready to hit the hay for the night before a very busy work week, I remembered that I forgot to photograph the pewter Celtic buttons I also bought for the green sweater. I'll save that for another day, and now I've got to get to sleep.

Size Matters

Recently my friend Joan asked me, "Norma, how much bigger would you say the New York Sheep & Wool Festival is than Vermont's?"

My original answer was "five times."  Then I realized that my knee-jerk answer was geared more towards my estimate of the relative acreages of the two fairgrounds, though even that is now a question in my mind.  As I was driving down to the festival on Friday, I was thinking more about the question and revised my estimate to 10 times larger.  And all day yesterday I was thinking and thinking and walking around and revising my estimate.  Perhaps 15.  No, maybe 20 times the size.  

I tried to capture in images the size of this madness as well as I could yesterday, but it's very hard to do.

 

 

This year, the crowds seemed smaller to me than last year. It was crowded enough, mind you, but the bathroom lines were not as long and the crowds maybe not quite as crushing. Last year's weather was stupendously gorgeous, and this year was nice enough, but very cold. Perhaps that means that the locals didn't come out in such huge numbers? I did notice that there seemed to be fewer tour buses parked on the far side of the field -- is it a function of the bad economy, or is that just my faulty memory? 

Also, Leigh and I decided to tackle the grounds in a different order than we have in previous years, and maybe by doing that, we avoided some of the unpleasantly huge crowds. I don't know, but I do know that despite the cold (thankfully I was dressed "just right" for the cold, whereas I know that a lot of people were suffering from it) yesterday was thoroughly enjoyable -- no question about it!

 

I've attended NY S & W for several years running, I've attended Maryland Sheep & Wool a few times, and the Vermont and New Hampshire festivals. Each one has its charms. They have some similarities, and some very substantial differences. New York's festival remains one of my favorites. It's big -- very big. The grounds are charming and extremely well appointed, the festival seems very well run, the town of Rhinebeck is beautiful, and though the crowds in the barns and vendors' booths can feel crushing at times, there is room outside to breathe and walk comfortably. 

There's an almost staggering variety of things to do and see -- quirky little oddments of entertainment such as the circus-style guy in black tights walking around on two big horses last year (I didn't see him this year) and the Bolivian musicians, to dog shows and various and sundry fiber demonstrations, and on and on.

And though it is big, it is still possible to run into several groups of friends all throughout the day and have comfy chats. And the food -- ohmygod, the food. There is everything from regular old fair food to gourmet lamb chops with sauteed spinach, artisan cheeses, gourmet coffees, wines and desserts.  

If you've never been to this festival, you really are missing out on something special. 

Off To Rhinebeck and I've Given Up Cake

So I'm off to Rhinebeck today for the New York Sheep and Wool Festival, where much merry-making and overindulging is the theme of the weekend. 

Forgive me if this post is a bit more odd than usual (I know it's a high bar I've set for myself, but...), but I am giddy on the plastic fumes of my new Discover card which arrived YESTERDAY. Yesterday!  Barely 24 hours after the reported loss. Those people know how to do business, I'll tell you. They overnighted it via UPS without us asking them to. Now THAT is service. Hello, Amazon VISA, which is going to take five to seven business days -- I'm talkin' to YOU. Turns out Discover is based in Salt Lake City, UT, and not only that, but I spoke to a young man right there in Salt Lake City -- and I don't mean Salt Lake City, India, either. A real, honest-to-goodness on-American-soil, English-speaking nice young man who thanked me for being a loyal customer since 1988 when I called to activate my new card. Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about. One more thing for me to love about Salt Lake City. (Another is JetBlue, and several others are the individuals in my huge crowd of wonderful women friends out there.)  

So I HAVE A CREDIT CARD that I can use to do such essential things as check into my hotel and eat.  Really it's just the hotel thing, and the fact that I hate to carry much cash and I really don't even hardly know how to use a checkbook (Joan can attest to that fact, since I tried to forge her check at Vermont Sheep & Wool -- am I right, Joan?)  I kid. But STILL. A very good feeling to have that little card on my person. Truly. Now there is just that little issue that not every place takes Discover, but at least the hotel and the eateries I plan to frequent, I think, will. It's a big help.

Now, what's all this about me giving up cake? No, despite the fact that I continually whine about That Ten Pounds, I am NOT going to turn down a piece of chocolate lava cake at the Eveready Diner. No way, no how. I mean another kind of cake:

 

The yarn cake.

I've just about had it with the yarn cakes from yarn-winders. No matter how carefully I try to wind them up, I always end up with knots and tangles and problems pulling from the center-pull ball. I always seem to have to rewind it into a regular ball. What a PAIN. So though it takes a bit more time and effort, I think I'm just going to skip the multiple steps of winding the things on the ball-winder and then doing it over anyway, and go primitive again, with the plain-old round ball of yarn. Yes, I do know about the nostepinne, but I think plain-old plain-old ball-winding is just more my cup of tea. 

Look:  Here's evidence of knitting activity:

 

(Don't you love those 'shrooms?  I do not know if they are edible or not, and I'm not about to find out. The extra skeins of the luscious blue yarn came, along with the Discover card. BONUS. Look at that gorgeous blue, nice ROUND ball.)

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I know this looks a bit weird because it's not blocked out, but it is an almost-completed left front of the Lush Shaped Cardigan. The back is completed, in case you had forgotten....

 

... though Mr. Jefferies made it a bit challenging to photograph.

Hello. I'm super-cute, and I'm about to eat your lens.

  

All About My NYC Yarn Crawl

There's so little to tell. I only went to one store. Isn't that pathetic? But at least I chose a winner.  And it had the added benefit of a next-door latte, a pumpkin tart, and a wonderful gab with Kay and her daughter who has A+ skills at Sitting and Pretending Not to be Bored and Unhappy When Mothers Gab.  That girl has awesome skill and talent!  She could win gold in the Olympics in that sport!  Not only that, but when a stranger comes along who is admiring and trying to furtively touch The Mom's handknit Shadow Box, she even cheerfully models it for said stranger who *gasp* has never heard of Ravelry.  Hopefully she remembered the word, because she did not write it down, but Kay urged her to JOIN.  Seriously! You mean there really is a knitter left on this planet who has not joined Ravelry? And we met her. Not only that, but when I was in Purl, the helpful and cheerful staff kept asking people if they were there for the yarn crawl, and many of them said no.  You could tell they were wondering why it was so sardine-like in there.  Made me feel so very cosmopolitan.  There I was, having flown down from Vermont for The First Annual NYC Yarn Crawl.  

I really did intend to hit more of the shops on the crawl, but instead I spent all of Sunday with the kids and the dog.  Not much surprise there, I suppose.  And it was a blast.  The weather was wonderful, we walked miles and miles, and though my best NYC walking boots were in the repair shop, I managed to make it through with only a couple blisters and minimal aches and pains, thanks to plenty of "are you gellin'"-type inserts in my shoes.  

I know you want me to shut up and show you what I bought already!  So here it is:

 

Two skeins of splendid, exquisite softness known as Swans Island Certified Organic Merino worsted-weight yarn in Indigo.  This is such gorgeous stuff, I'd like to take a bath in it.  It's made in Maine, and the stunning dye is natural indigo.

The softness is amazing, but as we knitters all too sadly know, the tradeoff with such softness is often that the knitted item pills like a mofo. This yarn has a bit of a tighter twist, and I'm hoping that prevents the pilling. Fingers crossed. I bought it with something very specific in mind, but after I got home, my idea morphed slightly.  The new idea will require more yarn, and I promptly called Purl and ordered two more skeins.   

I've already cast on for the first part:

Look familiar?  Yup, another Palindrome. And since I cast on and knit and ripped out and recast on and reknit a total of four times the other night, in order to get the width I wanted, and the yarn held up really well to all of that nonsense, I have high hopes that it will not pill and be ratty in no time.  I sure hope it won't, because it's meant for something special, and I certainly don't want it to turn into a schmatte suitable only for wiping down the car after a few wears.

And after mucho waffling, the decision has finally been made:  I will be going to Rhinebeck, though I may be walking around with a tin cup asking for donations, since I freakin' lost my freakin' wallet at UVM last night. So all the credit cards have been canceled and I have to start over.  Off to the DMV for a new license today, unless someone miraculously has turned the thing in and I get it before I go to start to recreate my life.  It's the return of WTF Wednesday.  *siiiiiiiigh*

EDITED TO ADD:  The wallet is sitting safely in someone's office.  I will pick it up later today.  Dang it, though, all the credit cards are canceled.  But still, this is the best sort of outcome, and I got the call before I went to get my license replaced.  Big whew.

Answer to Yesterday's Question: Yes, Apparently.

Well, a little adversity adds to the storytelling and the fun memories, I suppose.  But Joan is my witness: I am a magnet for the bizarre. It's almost as if I'm walking around carrying a sandwich board that says, "Blogger needs work. Please give me something to write!" and the universe is ever-so-kindly obliging.

Ergo, if you wanna have a good time, call 5FR-EAK-SHOW, and go somewhere with me.  Guaranteed to be memorable or your money back! 

So after we had finished with one building, we hobbled through the mud and walked into a barn where there was a nice display of really great-looking felted items -- an amazing big dragon and some artistic figures of various kinds.  I was admiring a very realistic-looking (well, except for the twee Christmas froufrou stuff attached to it) felted Sorel boot. I picked it up to show Joan, because it was tight in there, and she was using a walking stick and having trouble negotiating the place.  A voice from somewhere behind me said, and when I say said, I mean shrieked, "Lady, can't you READ?  It says do not TOUCH."  I started to turn around and said, "What?"  She said, "ARE YOU AN IDIOT?!"  

Stunned, I dropped the felted boot and looked to see where this was coming from, with a huge smile on my face and a giggle.  I have a lot of friends with slightly sick senses of humor, and it could very well have been one of them.  But no.  It was just that Halloween had come to Vermont a bit early.  It was a lady sitting behind a barrier that we later not-so-affectionately referred to as "The Troll Lady."  

The sign that said "Don't touch" was a handwritten Sharpy scrawl on a piece of lined notebook paper, stuck onto the shelving with a little piece of masking tape at hip level (whereas the items on display that I was admiring were up at eye level) and curled up from the rain.  

Who ever heard of NOT TOUCHING THINGS at a fiber festival?  It's a TACTILE experience.  And if you don't want items to be TOUCHED, particularly at a fiber festival where touching is very much a part of the experience, put them behind glass.

So I put it down, and then she screamed at me to NOW, STAND IT UP! My sense of humor evaporated -- *poof* -- and I told her I shouldn't TOUCH IT, so I wasn't going to STAND IT UP. Joan and I both said, "We should LEAVE now," and made sure all the other booth minders in that barn heard us.  And we did leave, looking at their uncomfortable smiles as we did so.

We were still talking about it in the lamb burger line, and the nice lady with a slight southern accent (wish I'd gotten her name and photo) in front of me said, "Where was she?" so I told her which building and where.  She says, "Hold my place.  I'm going to go TOUCH EVERYTHING in there."  So I followed her in the pouring rain with my camera in hand, to record the fireworks for y'all.  

Our new compatriot in crime goes in with a great flourish, after I had pointed out to her the troll lady, and starts touching EVERYTHING (it was the cutest thing EVER, and made me giggle).  But the troll lady saw me, recognized me, and she slithered out of there, away from the display of felted items, past me, and, without making eye contact, said in a very teeny, grudging voice, "I like your sweater."   

Memo to Vermont Sheep & Goat Association, with huge apologies to the remaining vendors whose booths we did not visit because we were turned off from the festival and left shortly after that, because none of this was your fault:  If this had been my first-ever fiber festival, I would never go to another. Also, if this were my first visit to Vermont? NEVER, ever AGAIN.   Welcome to Vermont, indeed.

BUT!  I bought some wonderful things, and let's forget all about Troll Lady so I can show them to you.  

 

I wish I could photograph this clearly and without a glare, but I can't seem to manage it.  It was labeled "Celtic Agate," and it is stunning. I also wish I could tell you the name of the vendor, but I don't seem to have that info, either.  It was the first vendor we happened upon that took credit cards, and I said to Joan, "I'm going to buy something here, JUST BECAUSE they take credit cards," and lucky for me, WOW, this stunning pendant was there.  Score.  

 

Once again, the photo does not do this luscious "Autumn Flame" sock yarn justice.   It's Ivy Brambles SockScene 100% merino from Yarn and Fiber.  

Now, I know what you're thinking -- "You don't knit socks!"  

True, but I planned on making a cowl with it.  Well, as great fortune would have it, in the next booth I stopped, I got to try on one of Anne Hanson's wonderful neckwarmers, Spiraluscious, at the DyeDreams booth.  I loved it, and I also loved the sweet KnitSpot kits she had put together -- choose your pattern, choose your yarn, and it all came packed in a great see-through plastic tote bag.  Very neat.  Joan got one, and I would have, but I had already bought this yarn at another booth. I bought the pattern from KnitSpot as soon as I got home. 

Except for one other thing that I can't blog about, that's all I got at the festival, except for a few hugs and laughs and getting screeched at by Troll Lady. And that was followed by a wonderful meal -- complete with a really weird (but highly positive) experience of its own -- at a grill and pub in Waterbury called Arvad's.  Highly recommended.

Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival 2009

Because I am normally so prone to sugar-coating things, I'm really having trouble writing this post.  

Bwahahahahahhahaha.  

Sorry.  

I really crack myself up.  

Hm...

Where do I go from here with this, I wonder, because I love Vermont so much. Despite the fact that my very favorite bumper sticker in the whole wide world says

WELCOME TO VERMONT. NOW GO HOME.

...I don't really mean it. I want you to come and I don't want to speak ill of my state or what it has to offer in any way. And I want to support my local vendors as much as possible, as well as those poor out-of-state vendors who paid whatever it is they paid to set up their booths at the godforsaken Tunbridge Fairgrounds site and tried to offer up their wares (and especially the ones who have entered the 21st Century and accept credit cards, because there is no ATM machine on the Tunbridge Fairgrounds, gah). 

Granted, if the weather had been perfect, it might have been a charming and sweet little site for a fiber festival, assuming one had remembered one's checkbook or cash.  Alas, the weather was not perfect.

 

Here we have the poor people at the entrance booth and table, standing ankle-deep in cold water and mud, trying to sell VT S & W logo stuff.  The lady advised, "Get it now, while you can!  We are SELLING OUT!"  Um, well, maybe not so much.

And here I am, getting a cold shower under a leaky umbrella:

 

BAD HAIR DAY

This site is not suitable for inclement weather.  Full stop. We stood in line freezing our biscuits off in the pouring rain for 20 minutes in order to get a lamb burger, but when we were almost at the front of the line, we asked ourselves, "Where will we eat it?"  There are a handful of picnic tables on site, all out in the open.  There was no place to sit down to eat under cover.  We were sick of it all.  We left at that point and drove north for a fabulous lunch in Waterbury, and then home.

Luckily for me, this was not my first fiber festival (because if it had been, I would be put off from fiber festivals forever more), and especially not my first wet and cold fiber festival, because I was prepared.  This time, at least, I did not almost die of hypothermia.  I didn't therefore have to go in desperate search of already-made knitted woolen items to purchase, which are in curiously short supply at a sheep and wool festival.  Props to my Peace Fleece sweater, my Noro Silk Garden scarf, and my handspun fingerless mitts. The leaky umbrella had to go into the trash when I got home, though.  

I wore my favorite leather Ariat boots with the wool Trekking socks that Cari made me all those years ago, and they served me well.  But thermal duck boots or Wellies would have been a better choice, and I definitely would have preferred to not subject my favorite boots to all the wet and muck.  I love those boots to death, and they are many years old. That model is sadly no longer made, so I was really upset that I was putting them through this torture:

 

Mud and puddles (almost) everywhere, and no attempt made by the fairgrounds people to ameliorate the problem with hay or boards or wood chips or the like.  Very frustrating.

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It was great seeing a few of my local friends, and I saw the sweater I now know I want to knit with my Shaba green Peace Fleece:

 

Isn't she cute, even though her lips are blue?  She's meowkat in Ravelry. Her sweater is not knit in Peace Fleece, but I know it would be perfect in it, and I love it.  The pattern (Rav link) is in Vogue Knitting Holiday 2004, and I've already ordered it.  I have a mod or two in mind for mine.

Yay for Ball & Skein! and yay for Nightingale Fibers and yay for Dye Dreams and for Yarn and Fiber Co., and others. I did buy a few truly wonderful items from vendors that would accept credit cards and borrowed a check from Joansie to buy one thing as well. But oh man, at the end of the day I asked Joansie, "If you had not been with me today, and I had written all this in the blog, would you have believed that it really happened?"

Joansie: "No."

I'm tired.  You'll have to wait 'til tomorrow to hear the answer to this question, asked by a lovely stranger in the lamb burger line ahead of us who later tried to become my partner in crime:

"Do you cause trouble everywhere you go?"

 

Winner of the Red Needles

We had 36 reported donations to the Red Scarf Fund since I started the first phase of the fund drive, the raffle of the Signature Arts needles, last Thursday. For this part of the drive, the amount of your donation didn't matter -- just that you notified me you donated.  Each donor was assigned a number -- it was simply chronological based on the time of email you sent notifying me of your donation.  I plugged it into the Random Integer Generator, and this is the result:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

19

Timestamp: 2009-10-03 07:12:08 UTC

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And donor number 19 is....... drum roll, please.........

MARIANNE!

Congratulations!

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I'm pleased to report that we raised over $1,000 in this phase of the fund drive. Great work everyone; thank you for playing; and congratulations Marianne.  

Now I'm off to the Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival for the day.  Joansie is driving, so I can knit on my blood orange scarf.  Should we have any fun at ALL (or even if we DON'T, hahahahahahahahahahaha) I'll be sure to let you know all about it.  Hoping I don't have camnesia.....

A Day In New Hampshire and Related Ramblings

Thank you for all the lovely compliments on my wilted-flower photos of me and the red sweater.  In case I was not clear yesterday (heh), I love the cardi, and I think it's much better in person, as these things always are.  We really should have taken the photos at the beginning of the day when we were all fresh, but we were too busy having fun and running into groups of people and talking and eating and catching up and hugging -- as you do -- and even doing a little bit of shopping.  I'm sure that last one comes as quite a surprise.

I washed the cardi yesterday, and damp-dried it in the dryer, and I wonder if it's possible to love it even more as of this morning, because it came out of the wash-and-dry process even more beautifully finished than before.  I've become an even bigger fan of Calmer.  I think I want all my sweaters (just kidding -- I'm still a wool devotee), and certainly all sweaters made for others, to be made in this yarn.  This is a yarn that the most picky non-wool-loving gift recipient would love.  And of course it carries the price tag to go along with it.

Here's a nice photo that Sandy took of me and Gale Zucker when we first got there and things were a wee bit more fresh:

Gale was sharing space with Woolybuns Chris, and that booth was our first stop.  I bought these sweet cards from Gale, and Paula got some of Gale's excellent beach glass buttons.

About the shopping, I personally didn't do too much.  Read my lips:  I.don't.need.anything.  Sandy, Paula and I, who mostly stuck together throughout the day, did not even get to all the barns and all the booths and tents.  New Hampshire's has always been, and still remains, my favorite of all the festivals.  It's low key and comfortable, it's countrified, it's got enough, but not too many, vendors, and the crowds are low.  We focused on friends instead of stuff, but of course that also means that we missed seeing some people, too.  I had festival-goer's remorse on Sunday morning when I realized lots of other good friends and vendors were there, but I missed seeing them because of taking this approach. 

I didn't buy much, but I did get a NH festival t-shirt.  As soon as I got home, I promptly modified it into the Flashdance version for gardening. The lady who sold it to me got a kick out of my telling Sandy that I was going to make it into a slut t-shirt.  I had to explain about the SL,UT.  She loved the story.  While I was shopping at the festival table, Sandy breezed through that building.  When she came back, I asked her, "Is there anything I need to see in here?"  She responded, "Meh. It's all spinning stuff and sock yarn."  "Alrighty, then," I said, "Not my things.  So we're done."  The lady behind the table, with a big giggle:  "You two are a pair."  

Yes.  That we are.

Paula bought a sweater's worth of Green Mt. Spinnery Mountain Mohair in a wonderful colorway called "Mesa."  After she had done the deed -- that is, this deed:

...she liked that yarn enough that she wanted to get some for her own sweater. 

So yes, there it is, looking like so much caramel-colored fusilli in that bowl.  That's the yarn that was formerly the sweater Marta.  I drove to NH, and Paula ripped.  When I pulled the car into the parking lot two and a half hours after we left home, she literally had one more row to rip.  And so it's done.  What's going to be made next with that yarn is still in flux.  I've washed the yarn to get the kink out, and I bought two more skeins to add to it, because I'm thinking of making a much longer sweater.  The dye lots are not the same and the difference is somewhat noticeable, but I don't at all mind alternating them while knitting, or using the different dyelot for collar and button bands or something, if need be.  I've been thinking about using it for this design [Ravelry link.  I can't find a direct link to it otherwise. I hope you are on Ravelry so you can see it, and I apologize to those who aren't, because it's really great.  BUT I would lengthen it, as Katiska did -- (scroll down).  Love her version of it. And of course I would not do a hood.][It is pattern DROPS 109-3.]

We ran into Grumperina Kathy and her hubby when we were trying to decide if I should buy the extra two skeins in the different dyelots, holding it out in the natural light, and they weighed in on the dyelots.  As Kathy (whose taste and instincts are impeccable, as we all know!) says, "As long as you go into it with intention and planning...."  Yes, indeed.  I'm actually going to swatch.  I know!  Crazy, huh?  But I really do think that sweater will look good in this yarn.  Only time will tell.  And I also believe that that garter yoke and sleeve will help to nicely blend the two dyelots of the yarn without any issues.

Speaking of lengthening, I am just sick to death of sweaters that are too short. Sick to death, I tell you!  I am a quite short person, so I've always assumed I needed short sweaters.  But after trying on all of Cheryl's sweaters, who is quite a bit taller than I am, and finding to both our surprise that they all fit perfectly -- I don't understand it, but apparently because of my body shape, I need more length in my sweaters even though I have a short torso.  *scratching head*

I guess it's to do with my wide shoulders and big arms -- and possibly the front porch.  I dunno, but these are the things that we learn through trial and error and through experience knitting, I guess. Claudia has made the comment that she is getting a kick out of seeing Now Norma Knits actually turning into a knit blog.  Heh.  Me, too. 

...Which segues into the comment I made when I ordered my friends to get in line for this photo:

 

That's Martha, Terry, Paula, Claudia, and Sandy (Who is looking off at left field again!  Snap out of it, Sandy!!!!) She was probably close to passing out from the heat, because she wore her beautiful Town & Country cardigan all day.  The things we knitters will do to show off our knits -- honestly!  And then on Sunday it was only 40-something degrees, but we weren't there.  That's New England, and that's New Hampshire Sheep & Wool, for you: Pack a halter top, a wetsuit, waders, sandals, a parka and mittens, because it could go either way.  And that's just before lunch.

But anyway, it was so great to see Laurie and Manise and Mamacate and her kids, and Cheryl and Dale and Carole, and Lucia and Ruth, and Jean and her whole family, and Kim, and Jo and her family, and Kris and Thea and Julia and Marcy and Alison (who saved me by showing up at just the right moment with French fries) and oh, dear.  When one starts these lists, one quickly starts to worry, "Who am I forgetting?" and one quickly starts to get link fatigue.  So I'll end with the usual disclaimer:  "And those are just the ones I REMEMBER!"  Or it more properly should read:  "I hope I haven't forgotten anyone, and if I have, I hope you will forgive me."

The comment I made when taking that photo above was something to the effect that I've decided to go back to my roots and try to be a more legitimate blogger; to stop forgetting the camera, and to do a better job of chronicling these things!  Well, that lasted all of three seconds.  That above was the only photo I really took. 

Illegitimate blogger, I guess that makes me. 

Sandy took this one of me before her camera battery died:

 

Moo.