Another Shawl on the Needles

Saturday was a day spent with community projects. It was "Take Pride in Washington" Day, when groups and individuals come together to pick up litter. I arrived at the park shelter at 9 a.m. and signed in as an individual. There were lively cubscouts roughhousing, as boys will do; church groups; science classes, and then, individuals like me. It was very well-organized. I received my orange "Take Pride" t-shirt, a pair of cotton gloves, two big orange trash bags, and my assignment. My route was the recreational trail, which suited me perfectly. It was a very chilly and windy day, though the sun was shining. As I picked up trash along the trail my garbage bag kept blowing around, making it difficult to get the trash in. At one point, the wind caught the bag and all the trash I had picked up (about 15 pieces) blew OUT of the bag, littering the trail and making a worse mess. I chased after it and got most of it. What I didn't get, I figured I would pick up on the way back. I filled the bag 3/4 full on my journey. Mission accomplished. I also brought home my second bag with the intention of de-littering my neighborhood on a day that is not windy and cold.





In the afternoon I joined with my fellow pipers to play a charity event at The Goose Pit, a bar in Banner. Banner is not a town, but a fork in the road. The event was to raise money for medical expenses for Doc Holloway. I don't know the man but apparently he loves bagpipes and has been a supporter of our band. We were received well by a motley crew of pleasant folk who said they could listen to us until midnight. Uh, 30 minutes was enough!





Now to my knitting...having finished my Clapotis, I was momentarily stunned and without a project. Usually I am planning the next project while finishing the current one. Unlike many knitters I do not work on multiple projects at the same time, preferring to finish one first unless it is very difficult work. Then I like to have something mindless on the needles also.

Who could resist this beautiful yarn? It is Mountain Colors "Bearfoot" in the colorway called "Pheasant". If you have some of Knit Picks Harmony Needles, this yarn has the same colors. In the photo below my needles practically disappear. For that reason I changed to regular needles.





Apparently I am in shawl mode, as this is now the third shawl/stole in a row. First, the Truly Tasha Shawl, then the Clapotis, and now Meadow Flowers Shawl from The Knitter's Stash. The construction of Meadow Flowers Shawl is similar to Tasha only with a small and easy pattern sprinkled throughout, just to keep me on my toes. The yarn is a little too busy for this pattern but I'm going ahead with it. I leave on Wednesday for a business trip to Ohio and I need a project to take with me. I am driving myself so there won't be any time to knit in the car but there surely will be moments between meetings and in my room at night when I can pick up my needles and relax. A basket in my car holds several audio books from the library and I'll make sure my I-pod is charged and full of knitting podcasts.

I also began a pair of Jaywalker socks by Grumperina. More on those later.