To Be Or Not To Be - That's Not Quite the Question

Aside from some lighting issues, Chaucer's was a pretty decent place to knit, although I think I was the only one who actually knit. Anita cast on and knit a row. Judy pulled her sock out of the bag, and put it on the table. I'm not sure if Debbie even brought any knitting with her, and Patty . . . Patty Patty Patty - Patty bought novelty yarn at Stitches, and a mesh sweater pattern. She was working on her sleeve, which even though it was a bell sleeve, it was starting to resemble a big bullhorn as opposed to a bell. I checked her gauge. Patty, you have to rip, you're three stitches over. Eh, I don't care if I'm a few stitches off. I tried to explain to her that in the pattern that she was doing, a few stitches translated to a few inches. She stared at me - nuh uh. Uh Huh - I tried to illustrate the difference: She still did not believe me. I can't rip, she declared, I'll just keep going. But, Patty, you're a chihuahua, you're making a sweater that will fit a mastiff. She shrugged. And, you're going to run out of yarn. A shrug again - I just can't rip.

To rip or not to rip? In this case, it was a no brainer -- to continue knitting would be the equivalent of continuing to bake a cake after you discover that you forgot to add the baking powder. No, she said, I will not rip. Some decisions in life are really hard, I recognize that - we all go down that long dark road sometimes - keep that one night stand around for a year instead of the next morning, stay in a lousy job, etc. In my line of work, I'm well aware of what the picture looks like when the evidence is overwhelming - sometimes you just have to cut your losses and plead guilty. You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em. Know when to walk away, know when to run. EVERYBODY NOW! You never count you're money, while yer sittin' at the table, ther'll be time enough for coutin' when the dealin's done. Ahem, er, well, here, we're not talking about that kind of decision (but, say, if we were talking about ripping out a 3/4's completed Birch, I might be more sympathetic) - it's only five inches. Nope, she said, I can't do it.

Are you getting a better picture of what happened at the Webs booth when our two worlds collided?

On a more positive note, the garter snake grower has finally finally learned to purl. I put her in a corner by herself last week, and would not let her move until she had mastered purling. So, while still working in acrylic, she was producing a nice rib, and she expressed interest into moving beyond scarves. I handed her a vogue knitting magazine, and told her to look for a pattern that said Very Very Easy Vogue. Paging through, she examined a pattern, and said, oh, I can't do this - I don't know that stitch. What is it? I asked. The pattern says "garter," she said. Patience, patience, I reminded myself - and in a very monotone, measured voice, I said, "You've knit approximately 3 miles in garter stich this summer." Oh . . .

It's going to one long winter.