Stop for five minutes and let Phil Plait refresh your perspective about what awesome feats humans are capable of. Let him infect you with his enthusiasm for scientific discovery. His energy is inspiring. If the video doesn’t embed, you can see it here.
Thanks to Dale for sharing this.
Today Claire and I visited a new yarn store, Green Planet Yarn, in Campbell. They feature yarns that are organic, plant-dyed, US grown, fair trade and recycled fibers. I ended up buying one skein of yarn to make a scarf that will teach me a new skill. While there, Claire modeled a baby hat that one employee was designing, and she looked very adorable. Once the hat is done maybe she’ll model it for a photo. She was a hit there and enjoyed every minute.
While there I also picked up a pamphlet describing the Mother Bear Project. The pattern can be purchased for $5, and it’s a great way to use up old scrap yarn. Check out the photo gallery. It’s inspiring!
And if you live in Santa Clara, it’s possible for you to catch it too. At the end of the summer, Claire will receive a free book, and since I’ll participate, I’ll get one too!
On June 14 will be the third Worldwide Knit In Public Day. From the website:
Knitting is such a solitary act that it’s easy to knit alone somewhere and sink into your work without thinking about all the other knitters out there. Neighbors could spend all their lives never knowing that the other knits. This a specific day to get out of your house and go to a local event (with your knitting in tow) just for you and people like you. Who knows you might even bump into your neighbor! Consider this a spark, to ignite a fire; getting all of the closeted knitters out into fresh air.
In the past some people have used this event as a means to show the general public that ‘not only grannies knit!’ and while that’s great and all, keep in mind that without those ‘grannies’ we wouldn’t have the wealth of knitting knowledge that we do.
WWKiP Day is really about showing the general public that knitting can be a community activity in a very distinct way. In some places there are many different knitting groups that never interact with each other, on WWKiP Day they come together in one place, making them hard to miss.
When I started knitting it was already so popular that it doesn’t seem like a too-solitary activity to me. I suppose it doesn’t hurt that some of my friends own a yarn store and live and breathe all things knitting-related. Not everyone has that, though, so I can see the point of having the day. To find one near you, check this link.
I LOVE LOLcat stuff (I Can Has Cheezburger?). Well, there is a political site for similar humor and I couldn’t resist sharing.
In 2006 I began knitting for the Snuggles Project. I was working for Hands On Bay Area; I wanted to establish a monthly project where creativity was involved and also allow opportunities to socialize and build friendships. It started off well, but when I left the job the project lost momentum. No problem. It’s something one can do anywhere.
The point of the Snuggles Project is to knit or crochet small blankets to donate to animal shelters. I have a lot of machine-washable yarn (it was donated), which is what shelters need. When I want to knit but am really tired (or want to talk with others instead of keeping track of a pattern), I knit something simple like this:
This Snuggle is 17 x 17 inches and was knit with one skein of Lion Brand Wool-ease Thick n’ Quick on size 13 needles in the American Moss Stitch pattern.
I’ve got another one started. You’ll be seeing posts on this project often.
