I didn't know what it would be like. I freak out a little when meeting new people, and I had almost talked myself out of going in the first place. But I talked to Rachael on Ravelry and she said she would try to make it, so I decided it would be worth dealing with the nerves.
I arrived early-ish. So I bought a hot chocolate, since I love their hot chocolate at KenapocoMocha, and I sat down with my knitting.
I had brought a new project that was knit two, purl two ribbing so that I could enjoy myself or freak out and not destroy a project I really care about, like my practice Digitessa sock. The practice Digitessa is something I started when I discovered I wouldn't have enough yarn for a full pair and thought that I would use up the remaining chunk of nasty sock yarn I had left over from an unfortunate purchase back when I knew nothing about sock knitting. It is truly nasty, although a pretty color, and it feels like woolen sandpaper.
The new project was the Swirling Gauntlets (you can see them here on Ravelry). They are a relatively simple knit I think might make my life a bit easier by keeping my hands from cramping up as I knit when they get too cold. My house gets chilly sometimes.
So I sat down and started my ribbing, then 7:15 came along and I thought, no one else is coming. I didn't care, I love the coffee shop, and I love having Internet that goes fast enough for me to upgrade Windows Vista and actually enjoy Ravelry instead of wrestling with it to get a pattern.
I resolved to learn Portuguese, and then I looked up and saw Rachael! I met Rachael at MC, and we bonded over a love of Sci-Fi and knitting; a few years ago we went here together (that's us, right there!) and on other knitting pilgrimages since, because that's how we knitters roll. Yeah. I used rap lingo. I can do that.
We rehashed many of our knitting projects since we had last met, she showed me her February Lady sweater, and we stayed until the shop closed.
And since I saw Rachael, I remembered that I had failed to do something rather important during the months that I was without a digital camera altogether. I forgot to share pictures of one of Rachael's designs.
So, this morning, I broke out the tri-pod, learned to set the timer on my camera, and posed for some pictures.
Here are her Coralline Socks:
I used Koigu KPPPM in their PG02132 colorway, which is a variegated orange with some purple and green. I thought it looked like coral my brother had seen on his Bahamas trip, when he went to look at sea snails for fun and profit. Well. Not so much profit. He counted conch for a class at MC.
In case you were wondering where my pasty, pale, naked white legs are, don't worry. There right there, underneath the dark knee socks I put on to accent the Coralline socks. I know you miss seeing the ethereal glow of my Anglo-Saxon skin, but what can I do? A girl has to show off lace patterns sometimes.
I love the socks, I love the pattern. So here they are, even if the pictures had to wait until I got a new digital camera for Christmas.
Oh, you were wondering why I ended up needing a new camera? (Try to ignore my bum up there.)
My camera had it's battery bricked when I went to Spain and fried it on different voltage when my converter died. At first it held a charge for a few hours at a time, then only about three minutes. I tried to get a new lithium battery, but the exact size and shape and voltage was no longer available through the camera company. So the camera was worthless, and still is in its drawer, collecting dust.
Dad then took the other digital camera to a mountain in Guatemala, then to Colorado, then to the Church of the Brethren's annual conference, then to a series of other places I have forgotten because he never told me where he was going in the first place. Other people who go to our church would say, "hey, is your dad coming home from Place X soon?" And I would stare at them, thinking, "wow, my dad went to Place X? I thought he was just working extra late!"
I really liked my old camera. It was a Nikon Coolpix, and it must have been one of the first digital ones. The lens would flip around to face you if you wanted it to, so I could pose for pictures with it on a tri-pod and know where my mark should be.
This one is good too, it is a Canon Powershot A1000IS. It is much fancier than the old camera. The old camera had less than half as many mega pixels than this one does. And this has an image stabilizer, which does away with my need for a tri-pod in the first place.
I have Shaky Hand Syndrome. Self-diagnosed. My doctor (actually several of them) calls it a tremor. I like my name for it better. It makes me sound less like a geriatric patient.
Anyway, getting the new camera has awarded me with the novel opportunity of travelling with a camera again, allowing me to take many, many pictures of corpses in North Manchester (I saw it yesterday shoved into a garbage bag as if that made it better, having a bloody torso in a garbage bag than out in the open. It just makes it look like a cover-up.), the joy of knitting, and my daily life. Not to mention fancy socks.
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