Portland update

Knitting continues, but it's not looking good at this point. Jamie completely stymied any attempts at knitting yesterday by refusing to nap, and then I discovered I had actual work that needed to be done, so .. not a stitch yesterday.
I continue to miscross single stitch cables, so every so often, I have to stop, drop those and recross them. Which I am getting good at.



I made a mistake, though, at the very beginning. The Fool is a long, lanky guy, and if I knit this to 14 inches before the armholes, as the pattern says, the Fool will be sporting a belly Aran. As I told Edward at our gig this weekend, when I held the sweater up to measure on him for comparison, next Olympics, I'm picking a guy with a shorter torso to knit for. Edward volunteered. He has been admiring the color of this sweater since I cast it on. I think 16 or 17 inches may be in my future. Maybe 16 inches, and I'll count on Blackwater Abbey's tendency to grow when washed.
Over the weekend, we all went to Valparaiso*, Ind., for another contra dance gig. The Fool and I played with our other band, the RoarSharks, Rachel called, and Edward entertained Jamie and ran the soundboard. Jamie likes the RoarSharks, because I play percussion, not guitar, and it's a lot easier to mess with my stuff when it's a pile of drums and shakers. Here he is sitting in with the band, happily thumping away on my snare drum during sound check.**



Walter, the fiddler, looked at the Fool sadly and said, "I don't think he's going to grow up to play the fiddle."

*I totally know about the great yarn shop in Valpo. Rachel and I checked it out when we were there for a gig last month. I'm not in any great need of yarn these days, as I am finishing projects and anyway, I have a gorgeous basket of sock yarn on the mantelpiece for inspiration, but ... wow. What a cool shop. I could see falling down pretty hard in there.

**Yeah, he's wearing one shoe. One fell off in the car, and the Fool didn't bring it in, and then when we asked Jamie if he wanted to take off his other shoe and be in his socks, he said "no," so he went around lopsided for a while. Toddlers are weird. He also likes clomping around the house in his boots, so, whatever.