Your knitting, that is. You never know when that nice smooth traffic flow is going to come to a screeching halt, leaving you mired in creeping, crawling traffic for hours.
Paranoid? I think not.
That was the scenario on Tuesday as I was heading south to Richmond to meet the client for the current job-on-the-burner. I left at 10:00, with the intent to be in Richmond in plenty of time for a 1:00 meeting. Well, as I hit the outskirts of Falmouth on Rt.17S, traffic slowed. Then it stopped. It inched forward. And stopped again. And inched forward. And stopped. After about an hour, I could see the entrance ramp to I-95S. It was blocked by a sheriff's car. The traffic on I-95 wasn't moving. I whipped out the map, looked for an alternate route, then whipped out my knitting, as it was clear that it was going to take another hour to get through Falmouth proper and Fredericksburg. So I had the experience of knitting while driving, which might qualify for Extreme Knitting, but I didn't have a camera with me. So what was the problem? It turned out that a couple of tractor trailers and some cars had the audacity to get intimate with each other, causing two lanes to be shut down.
Grrr. I arrived at the meeting around 2:45. My body felt like it was tied in knots, I was hungry (no time to eat), and jazzed from a trip that took twice as long as it should. What was supposed to be a "meet-and-greet" turned into an interview and I don't think I answered their questions very well. The people from the company looking to hire me did an excellent job of supporting me. But I'm not optimistic. The recruiter called on Wednesday to my impression of how it went. I haven't heard anything since then.
In knitting news, I came close to finishing one of Mom's socks while sitting in traffic. My main focus has been on the baby blanket. The yellow yarn finally came in, so I decided to see how it all goes together. I've almost completed the first kitten panel. It's looking pretty good, although the tension on the left side of each kitten is wonky. The stitches seem loose, even though I'm trying to get the tension as tight as I can. I'm hoping (Ha! Hope springs eternal!) that everything will even out in the washing and blocking.
What's that you say? The baby isn't due until March? What about all the Christmas knitting? Not to worry! After I complete the first kitten panel, I'll set the blanket aside and start working on the Christmas knitting. I've done some swatching and wrote out the pattern for one hat. The gauge for that hat will serve at the gauge for the mittens, so I'm almost done, right? And if this job doesn't come through, I'll have plenty of time!
This weekend will also afford some good, enforced knitting time. Tom is running in the Steamtown Marathon in Scranton, Pennsylvania on Sunday. The sock will go with me and so will the hat. Who knows? Maybe I'll have some FOs by Monday!
Time to check the bucket in sunroom. It's raining like there's no tomorrow and the roof is leaking. So is the basement. What's with the rain this year? It's either non-existent or else when it rains, it's a veritable deluge. Why can't we get a nice, gentle rain that lasts all day?
2 comments:
I've done that. When I was driving up to the Vede Valley, I got stuck in Rush Hour comming through Phoenix. Well, actualy along the outskirts of Phoenix. A drive that should have taken me maybe an hour, took me closer to 4. My mom finished the cuff of her sock, and I got a good portion done on my shawl, all while inching along in traffic!
I think you have the right idea. Always keep some knitting in the car!
My non-knitting friends joke about me always having my knitting, my knitting friends and I share the "They just don't get it" look. Never mind the Amex, but when it comes to knitting don't leave home without it.
And speaking of extreme knitting, have a photo to send but I can't get to your email.
Post a Comment