Fibery Exhibitionism

I’ve been knitting for almost ten years now, and my skills have developed considerably from the time I started. Like any artist, I’m proud of my accomplishments and try to take advantage of opportunities to showcase my work. Usually this comes in one of two forms, either posting pictures on various social media outlets (primarily Ravelry, Twitter, and Facebook) or dragging the knitted goods around with me and showing them to anyone who looks even remotely interested. This year, I took advantage of another method of showing off my work, I entered several pieces into the county fair.


I come from (and still live in) rural Wisconsin and I can remember while growing up, the county fair was an extremely big deal. It has lost some of its luster now, but still includes a variety of events, including a needle work contest. Every year, I think about entering items into it, but usually not until after the entry deadline has passed.

This year, I managed to be on top of things and got the entry form in on time (and by on time I mean the day before it was due). I decided to enter pieces in five categories (knitters are limited to one item per category). I entered my Invisibility Wrap, my Llama Chullo hat, my Spatterdash fingerless gloves, my Carry-All Tote and my Cubist socks shawl. That seemed to offer a fair cross-section of my knitting abilities.

By the time I dug out the pieces, washed and reblocked the ones that needed it, I was pleased with my entries. I felt there were a couple of pieces that had a chance of winning a ribbon. I dropped off the pieces at the fairgrounds and went back Friday after the judging had been completed.

I was surprised to find that out of five pieces, I had won five ribbons. Yup, every piece had one something. My Llama hat and my Carry-All tote both took firsts, with the Llama hat also winning a Special Merit Award. The socks, Invisibility wrap, and Spatterdash mitts all took seconds.

Entering the pieces in the fair wasn’t about winning ribbons, and with my prizes adding up to a grand total of about $9, it certainly wasn’t about the prize money. However, I would like to think that it wasn’t just about ego, either. For me, a big part of knitting is the tradition. Knitters today are doing basically the same thing that they’ve been doing for generations. We might be doing them for different reasons (because we want to rather than we need to), we might have newer tools, and a wider variety of materials available; but the process is still the same. Generations of knitters have been making socks, mittens, hats, purses, and other things. And generations of knitters have been entering their best work into county fairs and other exhibitions for the feeling of pride that comes from knowing that you have a skill and you are good at the skill.

And, a lot of it is ego.

 

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Door County Weekend

Peninsula State Park

Husband and I decide to take a little mini-vacation together this summer. Seeing as how the last time the two of us took a weekend away together, without other family, and without needing to was way back when Husband won a two night stay in the Dells at a work Christmas party, when he still worked at the resort, so it was at least 4 years ago, we figured we were due for a little get away.


We opted to take a trip across the state to Door County (for those unfamiliar with Wisconsin geography, Door County is the peninsula that divides Green Bay from Lake Michigan, the "thumb" of the hand that is Wisconsin). We had spent a couple of days there right after our wedding, and always talked about going back, but never gotten around to it. We knew from previous experience that it is a pretty dog friendly place, so I tossed out the idea of bringing Pippin along. We had only attempted to travel with Pippin once before, an ill fated camping trip cut short by spending an night of storms in a tent with a thunder phobic dog and were pretty nervous about doing it again, so decided that we better only plan on making this a weekend trip, just in case.
The first step in all of this was to find a dog-friendly place to stay. It didn’t take too much searching before I discovered the Beachfront Inn in Bailey’s Harbor. Not only did they allow dogs, they offered a special package catering to guests with dogs. Excellent. The package included a two night stay at the hotel, a gift certificate to a local restaurant that had dog-friendly outdoor dining, a day pass to a state park, and a gift certificate from the Door County Visitor’s Bureau. It all sounded good, and they had one dog-friendly room available for the weekend we needed. We booked the stay and I started to research additional animal-friendly things to do.

Day One

In the car and ready to go!

It’s a four and a half hour drive from our home to Bailey’s Harbor. That’s a long time in a car for Husband and me, and an impossible amount of time for Pippin. I needed to make sure we provided him with enough chances to get out, stretch, and bathroom. I worked out stops about every hour to hour and a half on the way, which seemed just about right for Pippin. When we packed up the car, we made sure that Pippin had the whole backseat to himself (with the exception of my knitting bag and his supplies), and found a canvas seat cover to protect the back seats.

Our first stop was in Steven’s Point, where we picked up lunch, and ate and visited with Husband’s aunt, uncle, and cousin. It was nice to catch up with everyone, and Pippin enjoyed a bowl of water, some ice cream, and a walk around their yard.

Stop number two was in Appleton, at the Outagamie County Dog Park. This was Pippin’s first experience with a dog park, so we were a little bit nervous about it. Our concerns turned out to be pointless, as Pippin thoroughly enjoyed himself at the dog park. I think he would have been perfectly happy to stay there all weekend.

We continued on our way, making a third stop in Sturgeon Bay. Fist Husband took Pippin for a walk while I browsed at a local yarn store, Spin of Door County and bought myself a lovely skein of handpainted sock yarn. The color way is called sea wash and it combines teal blues, greys, whites, and browns. We also stopped at Stove Dog Bakery; which, as the name suggests, if a canine bakery and store. Pippin left there with a bag of homemade cookies, a new bandana, and a walking harness. The staff there was wonderful, letting Pippin browse with us, supplying a bowl of water for dogs, and allowing us to remove the harness from the packaging in order to make sure it fit Pippin (he tends to fall between sizes for doggie clothing).



The beach at Beachfront Inn

Finally, just before dinnertime, we checked into our hotel in Bailey’s Harbor. To say that the Beachfront Inn is merely dog friendly, would be an understatement. From the welcome treats in our room, the off leash beach area, and the lobby where the owner’s dogs allowed visitors, this was very much a hotel for dogs and the people that love them.

Dinner that night was just down the block from our hotel at the Harbor Fish Market and Grille. Pippin enjoyed his own bowl of water, complimentary dog treats and a hamburger, without a bun, served on a bed of kibble.

Day Two

After a lousy night’s sleep (unfortunately, our hotel room was directly below a patio, and the scraping of chairs scared Pippin and kept us up), we headed out to begin our day. First stop was for breakfast, a little place in Ephraim, called Good Eggs. It was basically a little place in a converted garage, but the food was fantastic.

Checking out Eagle Bluff Lighthouse

The majority of the morning was spent at Peninsula State Park. We drove along Shore Road, making several stops to enjoy the beautiful scenery, including one at the Eagle Bluff Lighthouse. We then parked by the Eagle Tower, and enjoyed a hike through the woods and along the lakeshore. While the nice breeze off of Green Bay was nice, it still was pretty warm out there. By the time we got back to the car all three of us were beat!

Eagle Bluff Lighthouse

We grabbed lunch at a place just outside of the park, Julie’s Park Motel and Café, which had a dog friendly patio. Pippin enjoyed both his bowl of water and the dog treat given to him by a complete stranger. We then decided to head back to the hotel to catch a nap and escape the hottest part of the day.

With renewed energy, we headed out to explore downtown Fish Creek. We grabbed some frozen custard at a little shop called Not Licked Yet, where Pippin enjoyed a complimentary doggie ice cream cone. I was a little bummed because we had missed the Heritage Days celebration, but we browsed through several of the little shops until it was time for dinner. We had decided on a place in Fish Creek called Gibraltar Grille. They not only had a pet friendly patio, but run a monthly “Dog Pals” contest on Facebook. The food there was amazing; I recommend the Scallops and red pepper risotto, which was delicious.

Cana Island Lighthouse

We enjoyed the cool evening breeze off of Lake Michigan while exploring a county park beach and the Cana Island Lighthouse just outside of Bailey’s Harbor. The lighthouse and grounds were beautiful and the wind coming off of the lake felt refreshing after the hot day we had. Despite our midday rest, we were exhausted from the day and headed back to the hotel.

Enjoying the wildflowers at Cana Island

Day Three

Day three we headed for home, but not before enjoying some fantastic pastries and coffee at the Door County Coffee and Tea Company in Carlsville. We had wanted to hit a couple of shops near there, but we got going a little too early on a Sunday morning. We did, however, browse at the coffee shop where I picked up some coffee beans (roasted on site) and some local cherry jam. We also hit a store called Grandma Tommy’s, where we grabbed some local cherry wine before heading out for home.

You could tell Pippin was tired for most of the ride home. We made a second stop at the Outagamie Dog Park in Appleton, and another at a rest area, but the drive was pretty uneventful. We were all happy to be home.

All in all, it was a pretty fantastic get away for us all. I was impressed with the number of pet-friendly places for us. We’re already planning on going back next year, but this time renting a cabin and staying for a little longer.

Sock in progress

Surprisingly, despite the long drive, I didn't get much knitting done. I did some work on my sweater (for which the deadline has now passed) and started a new pair of socks. The socks are a pattern called Michigan Lakeshore, which seemed fitting considering that we were staying on the shore of Lake Michigan. They are made from Adorn sock by Three Irish Girls. The color way is Father Time, a blend of blues, brown, grey, with a little green and white mixed in.

The grounds at Cana Island Lighthouse

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It's Going to Be a Great Day!

There are few better ways to start a Saturday than to find a box from Knitpicks waiting on my front porch. Contents include some Wool of the Andes Tonal in Gypsy Queen (red) for the Milk Run Shawl (Rav. Link) and some Comfy Worsted in Celestial (blue), white, and black for a Tardis iPad sleeve, and my replacement needle tips in size 8.

Life is good.

 

Relearning the Weekend



It will be a fingerless glove, someday.

I’m still getting used to the idea of having weekends free. For years, having a weekend day off when I didn’t have anything else to do was pretty much unheard of. Even during my brief teaching career, when I wasn’t working any weekends, it always seemed like we were going somewhere or doing something. Weekends last this last one are still new to me (though I will probably see more of them, I’m trying to arrange my schedule so that I have two weekends per month totally off from both jobs. Normalcy will be somewhat restored this coming weekend as I work at the bank on Saturday morning and at the store Sunday morning, but the following weekend should be free (which, if my calculations are correct, might mean I have to work the Superbowl, but that’s not going to happen, even if nobody I care about is playing)

Anyways, Friday night I closed over at the motor bank, and stopped on my way home for some Chinese food (yippee for working two doors down from the good Chinese restaurant). Husband was gone for the weekend curling with the local Lion’s club (don’t ask…I never do). I started working on my latest pair of socks, but the pattern/yarn combination wasn’t working for me. I browsed around and found a different pattern to try and set those aside. I did manager to get some more of the lacy flap on the Spatterdash fingerless gloves done.

One morning's progress.

Saturday, I slept as late as Pippin would allow, which turned out to be 8:30 (which is funny because he always seems to sleep later for Husband). I proceeded to spend the day doing what most would consider absolutely nothing, but I considered absolutely perfect. I knit, and knit, and knit. By the end of the day, I had completed the cuff and leg of the sock I started just that morning. I also enjoyed having complete tv control. I adore Husband, but we don’t always enjoy the same things. I tend to sit quietly and let him run the remote, and sometimes look forward to having the opportunity to watch what I want. I took advantage of this chance to finally get to check out the AMC series, The Walking Dead, which I had been hearing great things about. It did not disappoint, but then again, I’ve always been a fan of zombie apocalypses. Not really sure why, but something about being part of a heavily armed band of survivors battling the walking undead is appealing to me.*

Saturday evening brought dinner with my mom and stepdad, I’m not one to turn down a free steak when one is offered to me, playoff football on the television and a couple of drinks with a friend. Nothing too exciting, but a good day overall.

Sunday, I overslept and missed mass, and Husband was back from curling much earlier than I expected (but when you only curl once a year, your team doesn’t usually make it to the finals).  We headed over to my parents for the Packers/Giants game, where Husband decided that I wasn’t rooting for the Packers to win, which added to his sullenness and pouting.

Completed sock, three days start to finish!

At this point, I do feel the need to defend myself. I will admit it, I am a Giants fan, (not really sure how that happened, but even good kids from nice families go astray) but my first loyalty is to the Packers. Yes, it is close to a 50/50 split, but the Packers win out. However, I don’t really enjoy watching those two teams play each other, and won’t really cheer for either team, instead I used the opportunity to sit quietly and make additional progress on the sock. Husband interprets this as a sign of disloyalty to the Packers, and if you’ve ever encountered Husband after a Packer’s loss, you know better than to argue.

Husband was sullen for the remainder of the evening, both over the loss and my perceived disloyalty. I figured it wasn’t the best time to point out that if his theory was correct, he really was denying me the opportunity to celebrate that what he felt was “my team” had overcame the odds and is continuing on to the NFC championship, and a quarterback that I’m a fan of who gets a crap load of criticism any time he makes a mistake had an excellent game. And his denying me a chance to celebrate wasn’t really fair because I would have never done that had the Packers won (again, this is all just going along with the faulty logic that I would prefer a Giant’s victory over a Packer’s, which is not the case). Instead, I let husband stomp around the house muttering things about supporting the 49ers (which again, had his theory been true and the game went the other way, I also would not have done). That pretty much made Sunday night a big fail after a fantastic weekend. (I’m guessing some of you might be surprised that I would risk the wrath of husband by posting this on here, but he reads my blog maybe 50% of the time, plus I’m pretty sure he knows that he was being ridiculous.

*I feel the need to offer a bit of a side note hear, if my posts sometimes seem disjointed and rambling, it is usually because I don’t really edit them too much. Posts are usually a bit of a dumping ground for whatever is going on in my head. I tend to get off of the topic.