Tag Archives: travel

Yellowstone!

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I just got back from a week in Yellowstone, and even though I missed all the Olympic Gymnastics coverage, I had a really fantastic time.

A big group of our friends (9 people!) rented a big ‘ol cabin outside of West Yellowstone.  We spent the days hiking,Beaver Ponds Hike (26)And boating, Boat day (8)And making friends with horses.Wilderness Edge (27)We spent the evenings playing ukeleles (because we’re dorks),Wilderness Edge (19)And playing board games (also because we’re dorks).Wilderness Edge (17)It couldn’t have been more delightful.

We even saw a bunch of sand hill cranes, and three badgers (but we didn’t get a good picture of them).Beaver Ponds Hike (24)And, since we stayed about 45 minutes from the edge of the park, I had a nice long drive every day to work on my knitting (I’m halfway through the collar/button band-just sleeves to go!).

If you haven’t been to Yellowstone, you have to go!  (Actually, if you have been, you should go again.) It’s one of my absolutely favorite places to visit, and I can’t wait to go back again.

Knitter Aboard

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Last week, I was a little bored (OK, a lot bored).  My friends had all left after our long weekend at PAX, my husband was at work, and I was sitting at home, twiddling my thumbs.  My day job is on a little break right now, between the end of summer and the beginning of the fall semester, so I have lots of time to sit around and watch TV.

Maybe too much time to sit around and watch TV.

So, I picked myself up off the couch and said, “Enough!” I decided to have a day down on the water, and the easiest way to do that here is to go for a ride on the ferry.   I know this isn’t something that everyone can do (I lived in the Illinois for most of my life… I understand “landlocked”), but if you have a chance to get away from your usual venue with a cup of coffee and a skein or two of yarn, I highly recommend it.  (If the ferry isn’t an option for you, try a train, bus, or just going down to a favorite park or local coffee shop.)WP_20140905_002There’s something refreshing about getting away from your house (and your dirty laundry, and the floors that need vacuuming) .  It always opens up my mind for fresh ideas, and makes my projects seem even more fun than usual.  (Getting away from a speedy internet connection doesn’t hurt, either.)

WP_20140905_008Expanding my horizons (literally) always helps me get out of a rut.  And, there’s no better place for people-watching than public transportation.  You never know what you’ll see that might inspire your next project.

WP_20140905_002So, get out there!  Explore the world, and enjoy some knitting on the water (or on the road, or on the rails).

Always Be Prepared

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I was never a boy scout (because of rather obvious genetic reasons), but I would like to think that I would have been a good one.  After all, I am great with knots, I look damn good in a neckerchief, and I am always prepared.

I’m especially prepared when it comes to my knitting.  I always (always always) have a little stash of emergency knitting.  You never know when it will come in handy,  Maybe you’ve just finished that big sweater you’ve been working on, and you don’t know what to work on next.  Maybe you are halfway through that unending afghan for your cousin Sue’s wedding, and unless you put it down for a little while, you’re going to cut it in half with a pair of kitchen shears out of frustration.  Or maybe you’re stuck inside your parent’s condo, hiding from the stupid cold weather for a week straight after your plane ride home was canceled because of a Polar Vortex freezing the entire contiguous United States (except, for some reason, Seattle).

My emergency knitting project is always socks.  Socks are portable, and require minimal futzing.  No seams to sew, no buttons to mess with, nothing to measure (once you know your sock number).  At home, I have a whole box of sock yarn, ready to be knit up whenever I need a small, useful project.  And, when I travel, I always throw a skein or two of sock yarn into my bag, just in case.

WP_20140108_006(Sorry about the picture quality.  While I was prepared enough to bring extra knitting, I neglected to bring my good camera.  So, you get a photo taken by a potato.)

And lucky I did, too!  I finished the sweater I was working on more than a week before the end of my vacation.  The last few days, I’ve been busy, knitting away on my emergency socks and watching way too much Portlandia with my Mom.   Not a bad way to spend  the Great Snowpocalypse, if I say so myself.

What’s your emergency knitting project?

So Fluffy!

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I was lucky enough to spend last week at a family reunion up on Whidbey Island.  We rented a gigantic house (think “The Godfather”) and spent the week hiking, beachcombing and generally having a fantastic time.

But one of my favorite things we did was to visit Fern Ridge Alpaca Farm, which was near where we were staying.  We got to meet a whole mess of alpacas (probably about 20 or so).  They are adorable little(ish) dudes.  We got to feed them and pet them.  They are ridiculously fluffy.

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Did you know that alpacas are often raised with guard llamas?  That’s something I learned.  They’re fierce (although they look like they need a good set of braces)!

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I was able to buy the softest, most beautiful chocolate brown yarn, and a big bag of light gray roving from the super friendly owners of the farm.

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The best part was that I got to meet Electra, the alpaca that my yarn came from.  She was super pregnant, skittish, and a little dopey looking.  But I’ll give her some leeway, since she produced such beautiful yarn!

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Now I just have to come up with something really special to make from her yarn.  250 yards of worsted weight Alpaca.  I’m thinking something with cables.  Any thoughts?