The Knitting Fiend

I know many of you probably don’t read “Dear Cheryl” in the Chicago Tribune, but today’s article described bad dates. As usual, the people Cheryl interviewed did not follow proper etiquette during this date.

I, Lucia, want to educate the public on proper etiquette during bad dates. Let me begin by using Jasmine’s bad date; she describes it thusly:

“…….I met him at a restaurant and he bought me a drink. Not once did he ask me if I wanted any food!

“Then, he spent some quality time complaining about his ex-wife. We discovered that we knew a woman in common. He mentioned that his friend had wanted to fix him up with her. He proceeded to ask me if she was still single. It was clear he considered her a potential date! At that point, I couldn’t leave fast enough!”

Get up and leave? Such bad manners. You can’t just walk out on your date!

Here’s what you should do if this happens to you:

When it becames clear your date is trying to figure out if another woman would date him, suddenly brighten up. Act really excited and blurt out,

“I have an idea; let me give her a call!”

Pick up cell phone; dial. Say,

“Sally, I’m on a first date with ‘guy’. We’ve been sitting here in a restaurant for an hour and haven’t ordered any food. He’s been complaining about his ex-wife, then, he mentioned you. When he realized I knew you, he asked me whether or not you might consider dating him. So, I thought I’d ask.

Would you consider stopping by and filling in for the second half of this date?”

Now, you may stand up, say “Gotta go”, and leave.

Shelly from Santa Barbara wrote to ask this question: “I am a new knitter. I want to make a scarf for myself. Do you have any suggestions about what color I should choose?”

A knit flamer derides the question posting as follows:

First of all, Shelly from Santa Barbara need to be slapped for taking the time to write such a mind-bogglingly stupid question. Second, Berroco needs to be slapped for answering such a mind-bogglingly stupid question. Way to totally dumb down the new letters. Yah, it’s the “Newbie’s Corner” but still. At least answer questions that vaguely techincal in nature. Not some twit who apparently has no idea about what colors she likes.

In fact, Shelly’s question is not “mind-bogglingly stupid!” It’s a good question. In fact, anyone over 40 can probably guess the answer. It is:

“Select a color you like, but, pick a color that is neither very dark nor very light. “

Guess what? I can even give you a reason for my answer:

If your eyes are less than perfect, it can become difficult to see stitch detail if you knit black or white yarn; black tends to be particularly difficult. Because new knitters don’t understand how stitches should look, it’s especially important they select colors that permit them to see the difference between a knit and purl, and a twisted and untwisted stitch.

I don’t know about you, but I would have a hard time telling some stitches are twisted if the fabric were pitch black! If I can’t see it, how can I expect a beginner to tell the difference?

This week:

• 
  Laura of “Disco Knitting” shows us how to follow a lace pattern in a car. For specifics, visit: How To Follow A Lace Pattern in the Car.

  My advice: This tip is for passengers, not drivers!  
   

• Boston Knit-Out & Crochet 2005 will be sponsoring a festival on October 2. Here’s the most important bit: they also have a meet up table set up so bloggers can meet each other. If you aren’t a blogger, you might be more interested to know the first 150 people to to sign up for a door prize raffle will receive a free copy of Knit ‘n’ Style and, during the event, Interweave Knits will be holding a scarf contest for the best original design.  
   
• If you haven’t seen this yet, you don’t know what you need to read more blogs. Here’s an enormousknit pink bunny resting on an Italian mountainside. The wool item was crafted by numerous grannies, and will, supposedly, remain on Mount Fava for 20 years. During that time, hikers will be permitted to climb all over it. For more information, visit Anova.com. 
   
• As usual, Gail, aka “That Gail”, has posted some adult fare at her web site. If you are faint of heart, do not click or scroll to see her bootie.