Oct 12 2006
Metro-SOCK-ual Chronicles
…Where Lolly braves the wilds of the nation's capitol, and the public transit system, with her trusty sock by her side…
I was off to a school-related workshop on Tuesday night, and I took my sock along with me on the Metro train into DC. Any other public transit knitters know that people STARE at knitters… like they are mesmerized by the knitting motions. It is an unusual phenomenon, and has held true in my years of riding the train and knitting. And nothing seems to draw the stares more than the double pointed needles. Maybe people are afraid I will use them as a weapon… who knows.
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Yes, I took a picture of myself on the train with my sock. No, there was no one else in the car at the time. There is about a 5-minute lull where I can get this picture – from my stop (at the end of the line) to the following stop, where lots of people get on. I snapped the picture just in time too, right before anyone saw me. My second Lace (Not So) Knee High is even further along at this point, into the lovely lace panel!
See the headphones? That is to keep the weirdos away. (Yes, I know I am a weirdo too for taking a picture of myself on a train with a sock WIP… but these are different weirdos altogether).
Let me explain: I am not adverse in any way to sharing my craft with the casual stranger. I have had many nice people compliment my work, ask about knitting classes, or simply smile and nod. However, I had one particular encounter with a woman a few months ago that I just can't shake…
…It was bad from the beginning. She was a protestor – not that that is automatically a bad thing – but she was in support of something that I am very much against: Her t-shirt actually said (and I kid you not!) Make War. She was decked out too: pins and buttons and picket signs. (Okay, no more politics, I promise…) The train was not full, and yet, she came over and sat right next to me. I was working on my Trekking XXL #108 socks. She was inches away from me and was staring at my knitting. I shuffled to give her some more room (and to get a breath for myself) and she took that as a cue to strike up conversation. Let me preface this by saying: I am a nice person. I will not be mean to anyone unless insulted or provoked in some way. And although I don't remember the exact wording, this is definitely the way the conversation went:
"Is that hard?"
"No. It is not too bad."
"It looks awful."
[flustered] "No it doesn't! This is only 1 inch of the cuff, and it looks exactly like it is supposed to look."
"I meant 'awful hard'. So, it's a sock, right?"
"Yes."
"Is that wool? the scratchy kind?"
"It is not scratchy at all. It is called merino."
"Lemme give you this… [fumbles around in one of her bags] Here is my address. I want you to knit some size 8 socks for me, and some size 4 socks for my daughter. Pink for her, and purple for me, and I don't want the scratchy kind. You can mail them to that address."
"Excuse me?" [I totally heard her, I just couldn't believe what she said]
"You do make socks for others…"
"Um, no. These are for me. I only knit for my family and friends… and I don't take orders! I can't believe that you would say that to a complete stranger!"
I stood up, did not look back, and promptly got off the car at the next stop. I could not believe the audacity of this woman! I moved one car up, and thankfully there were no other propositions there!
I do wish I had seen the look on her face, however…
The point is: make things for people who will truly appreciate the work that was put into your craft. Someone who will value it, cherish it, and take good care of it. Sometimes that person is you, and you alone. Sometimes it is your mother, your sister, your dad, your best friend, but don't EVER make things for weirdos on the train.
PS-I was holding on to this story for weeks and weeks - I couldn't wait to post about it for Socktoberfest 
HATERS! on a TRAIN! Omigosh, I am flabbergasted and cannot believe her! Poor Lolly! I’ve no doubt you handled yourself with class, but weren’t you just thinking . . . for a wee minute . . . about lodging a DPN where the sun don’t shine?
Word up, Lolly. I’ll live by your words of wisdom. You did exactly the right thing. It’s not always about being nice.
Oh my goodness, I cannot believe her audacity either! How incredibly RUDE! I thought you handled the situation very well. And the photo of you is wonderful.
oof! I’ve knit socks on Metro a number of times but never had anyone ask me to make them socks! crazy people!! I would have reacted the same way! Poor Lolly! heh.
[I don't think Trekking XXL is merino though.
]
Boo to bad experiences! I have these HUGE headphones (not little earbud, but DJ/Studio looking monsters) that I wear on the plane for that exact reason. Everyone wants to talk to me about what I’m working on. But I’m not the chat to random strangers type. The funny thing is, my headpones look like those crazy high quality ones, but they’re all show. They were $20, I just bought the biggest “don’t talk to me” ones I could find.
Ha – you are right, Jess
Trekking is NOT merino. Oh well, I don’t feel bad about lying to her.
Holy crap.
Oh DUDE! I would totally have taken her address and put her on EVERY SINGLE PEACE LOVING (PRO CHOICE) MAILING LIST I COULD FIND!!!!
LOL. Just kidding. Maybe.
You gotta give her props for the humongous balls she’s carrying around.
My hater train story is the woman who TOOK MY KNITTING OUT OF MY HANDs and showed me all the ways I was doing it WRONG. That piece of knitting has always been tainted for me. I probably should’ve just ripped it and given the yarn away.
Oy! Can you believe some people? I’ve had co-workers tell me they want socks and I just say, “Ok, but they’re gonna cost you like $200! And you’ll have to wait until I get around to it!” People think you can just whip them out in a couple of days! And don’t get me started on sweaters!
This is one of the funniest things I’ve ever read. Hey, rude though she was, you can be sorta grateful to her for the excellent blog fodder!!!
Wow. It is hard to believe this is a true story. I mean, I believe it, but it is hard for my brain to imagine someone like that weirdo–from the t-shirt to the sock demand–all so bizarre. Ha ha, I like Cara’s idea about the mailing lists!
Oh geez! I have gotten the stares on the subway here in NYC, but never a request for a pair (or two!) of socks! As if you had nothing better to do than to knit socks for complete strangers for FREE!
How awful! I think I must give off antisocial vibes or something, people rarely bother me when I knit on the train. Hmm, I’ll have to see if I can snap a Socktober picture in a nice empty (train) car sometime…
That proves what a nice girl you are. I would have told that pro-war nutjob off, smacked her with one of her own signs and set her on fire.
And you’re a cute weirdo that knits socks. Nothing at all wrong with that. The world needs more of us.
You know I have never had anyone do that to me in public. But I do get offers all the time for making things and money exchanging hands.. which is really nice. Some people though.. geez there is weirdos everywhere. Love the sock so far. I need to get busy on my sock.
That is hilarious (scary, but hilarious). Thanks for sharing!
that’s a great story! i’ve had weird looks on the bus before – sort of, ‘WHY is that girl knitting?!’ but no one has had the audacity to demand custom handmade knitting from me before! you did well to get off the train when you did.
Ha! Even Lolly is a freak magnet! Glad I’m not the only one…heh…and I don’t even knit on public transportation anymore.
Some people! Some people don’t get it! Some people think everything is about them! Some people don’t deserve well….
Thank goodness you left. No telling what she would have done next!
I was trying to remember my worst metro experience (used to live there) but realized that was stupid of me, because it would just make me angry or upset. A few months before I learned to knit I was behind a knitter on the plane. I sat in an awkward position much of the flight so I could watch her knit, and she likely didn’t know I was staring at her work.
wow! that’s an amazing story! perhaps she forgot her meds. i am saying that in all seriousness, and with great sympathy, not to make a mean joke. because most people operating with full rationality would not do that. i think.
It sounds like you dealt with it in a good way. What a odd request from a complete stranger!
I’ve actually had 2 complete strangers ask me nicely if I would knit them something….saying they would pay for it. I just smiled and said “No” and told them I only knitted for pleasure – never take orders. It was like they couldn’t believe I would knit for fun……thought I sold whatever I made.
OMG what a psycho.
That is a crazy story! I can’t believe she didn’t even offer you money, though!
Here, here girl. Your the best.
Oh my gosh! Lolly, you. CRACK. ME. UP! YOu are definitely hands down one of the nicest people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. That woman, the audacity! I think you handled yourself very well and smartly got off the train…before a DPN ended up becoming a WMD…just to practice making war on her. Heh.
I agree. Only knit for those who will appreciate the gift.
Happy Almost Friday!
Wow! Some people. I think you handled it perfectly.
Some people are insane! I’ve never had that sort of person. Well, I did have this one aquaintance who always asked when I was making her a pair; it got extrememly annoying after a while and I’m glad I don’t see her anymore. I usually have people asking me if I sell my work and I politely tell them that I don’t think I would enjoy it if I did it for money.
You are much nicer than I am, I might have pretended that I didn’t speak English. I have had some encounters, like a woman in the waiting room at my doctor’s office who thought I was available to teach her to knit, at least she wanted to learn to knit for herself. I was knitting on the Metro last night, fortunately, no one was interested and I got a lot done!
That has to be the most forward, out of line, rude comment from KIP that I’ve heard. wow. The audacity of some people. But you handled it beautifully. I’m not sure I would have been so nice.
Wow!
Sheesh!! The nerve of some people. I think you handled it in a much nicer fashion that I would have!!
Oh, for crying out loud, I can’t BELIEVE she had the nerve to say that to you! To DEMAND socks for free? Good for you to tell her to stick it!
I gotta say, I think this is an experience that all artists have. I draw and paint, and I’m an art major in college; I draw constantly during class (all of ‘em) and people CONSTANTLY ask you to draw them, or paint them, or something like that. I usually just tell them I don’t do portraits, but this something-for-nothing entitled attitude has mystified me ever since people didn’t grow out of asking me for drawings past elementary school (yeah, I’ve been drawing for a long time)! I’m sort of surprised that she would go that far because a lot of people really think knitting takes FOREVER (and it kind of does) but drawing is relatively quick. Oh well, I guess there was bound to be one person that X-TREEM.
That’s awful. I have had strange men ask me for socks on the bus, and sweaters too of course. I find that extra creepy, that men will assume that a woman will just do something domestic and servile for them. As if.
That is really weird!
I like the colours of your Sock in Progress though.
Laura hit it. The woman is obviously mentally ill. Sad. But smart of you to leave the train and end the discussion. Sitting alone in a subway car and having someone choose the seat right next to me would have freaked me out!
AACK! What an interesting story! What a horrible woman! Yikes!
Sister! All you needed to do is look at her and say, “Oh no you DIDN’T!”
Wow! That is one of the most major “empress syndrome” stories I have heard. I made up the name of the syndrome. It seems fitting somehow….I shall order thee about and ye shall take direction…or something…anyway, Wow! The chutzpah is impressive….
Wow. Your story was “head on” as I just told someone the other day that I don’t knit socks for anyone but my family. Thanks for sharing.
Yeah, she was definitely a weirdo. I cannot believe that. My Lord, some people…
OMG!
What a perfectly horrible, rude, selfish woman! Your reply was completely appropriate. Good for you!
All knitters are subservient little gals just eager to please every dang person they meet! Didn’t you know that, Lolly?
She wants the war so bad, I’ve got to wonder what she’s doing here, riding the train.
Sheesh.
don’t ever feel bad putting up barriers to weirdos. that’s what headphones are for–even if you aren’t listening to anything!
This is why I’m hesistant to knit on the NYC Subway. Commuter rail, yes. subway, not so much.
However, brilliant comeback!
What a great picture of you Lolly!!! Your new sock looks great.
I can’t believe, ohhh. my. I mean really!?! How did you not use your spare dpn to talk with?!? or poke her?! Goodness.
I’ve had lots of people watch me knit in public. My favorite was a little girl that wanted to sit next to me, so she could watch me knit. She was so sweet!
Yikes! and not even an offer to pay, just where to mail em when you’re done! What crust!!
I would not have been as nice Lolly!
ew! what a freaky weirdo.
I’ve never had a knitting-related public transit incident, but not long after I moved to Chicago, a woman on the bus kept leaning out into the aisle so that she could stare and then wiggle all of her fingers as if she was putting a spell on me. It went on for about 30 minutes. My husband and I will still wiggle our fingers at each other for a little laugh nearly 13 years later!
wow… that is insane! i’ve never had anyone flat out tell me i should make them something (aside from coworkers… and really they were joking until I said “ok..what color?”). when i was riding on the train and bus, people would definitely stare.. but mostly people are just like “omg, what are you crocheting?” (lol.. hello, people, it’s called KNITTING) and lots of “my mom/grandma/aunt/whoever does that.. i could never learn. blahblahblah” i did have a lady give me a card – she apparently just started a company and wanted people to knit things, but that’s not my deal. if i feel like I “have to” then i don’t. simple as that..
and one guy kept staring at me while i was knitting in the round, on huge pink dpns, on a sleeve for a child’s sweater. ehehe that was amusing.
Whacked.
I wonder what she would have thought if you’d asked her to paint your house. Not that you’d want her anywhere near where you live! But still, you know what I’m getting at. No conception of the labour involved.
That’s just too weird for words!
dude. that’s a total wth?!
a woman who works at an office i visit sometimes (dr. office, and she’s the person you turn your chart into and pay …. and i told my doctor that she doesn’t “represent well” and is too casual with the patients) had the audacity once to say to me “so, whacha makin’ for me?!” i told her she was the low woman on the totem pole and at the end of the line for even a glimpse of consideration. she just smacked her gum and stared at me.
and, i totally understand about the headphones. i learned that trick traveling cross country on greyhound years ago. you don’t even have to be playing music, the earphones are usually enough to discourage conversation. usually!
Alrighty then….some people are just plain strange.
You handled that well!
I was LMAO!!
Thanks for sharing!!
We all need a good laugh as often as possible!!
You handled the situation very well, and I cannot believe the audacity of that stranger on the train. I always feel uncomfortable when being confronted by people like that, its like they have no limits on their boundaries or others. I like your sock by the way, I cant wait to see the end result.
Holy cow! That is the weirdest thing I’ve heard in a while! Some people have more nerve than brains, obviously.
WOW! That’s … yeah, that’s just… wow.
Honestly, I don’t know whether I’m more appalled by her behavior or her T-shirt. What a total package.
And I can’t imagine how hard it must’ve been to sit on such great blog fodder until the appropriate Socktoberfest moment!
A friend of mine was knitting at the diabetes clinic. The nurse admired her knitting, and then told everyone in the waiting room that my friend would knit socks for them. Jeanne’s stock line for this is “I’ll teach you all how to do it yourself.” She got no takers at the diabetes clinic.
Bizarre! Switching cars was an excellent idea.
Dang that woman had a pair! I can’t imagine someone actually telling (not asking) me to make them socks! Some people, you just have to wonder:|
Whoa! That reminds me of a time when a woman I had just met wanted me to knit socks for her teenage daughters for Christmas. She brushed straight passed my polite, “no more room on the Christmas knitting list, but I’m willing to teach you,” told me the girls’ shoe sizes and handed me an envelope with her address. I didn’t knit socks for her daughters, and she doesn’t have a very high opinion of me. That’s okay. I’m busy knitting.
Total psycho, with no concept of boundaries, definitely – I don’t call it brave or balsy, though, more like clueless and illmannered with an overly indulged sense of entitlement. And seriously…. “MAKE WAR” ??? what the heck? Send that freak to the frontlines and see how she takes it when the bullets whiz past her head. It’s not a nice sound, even if it’s only a 22 and the guys are trying to shoot rats instead of in your direction… trust me.
Yikes! That’s the most nervy psycho public transit encounter I’ve heard of! Hopefully posting about it will help you shake it.
What a crazy story! I’ve never had anything like that happen to me when knitting on the bus here in Albuquerque, but then again, it’s the bus, and most of the people are not exactly in their right minds to begin with. I do get a lot of stares though…but mostly I get a lot more looks in all of my classes. The international students look at me like I’m from another planet, I just want to retort back, “you think I’m weird? You’re the one who doesn’t wear deodorant!” Anyway, here’s to knitting in public, and all the weirdos it can attract
Aww, that poor woman sounds certifiably crazy and totally lacking in social graces. Poor thing, she sounds like she honestly does need help. (I mean, Make War? Seriously?) I am attempting to knit a sock for the first time in months. I don’t know if I can actually do it.
I cannot believe that woman! I mean, I’ve had people touch my yarn inappropriately/without asking/tug off needles, but I’ve never had a woman quite that crazy. I think you handled it beautifully!
Wow! She was definitely an “unbalanced” person. I probably would have laughed in her face out of sheer disbelief. Your actions were definitely justified.
Oh dear…. She was definitely a weirdo!!! I just cannot stop laughing here….
What a horrid woman!
If it will make you feel better I will share with you a True Rude Story of my own.
Setting and stage blocking: Lovely Saurday morning in early winter, neighborhood coffee house, myself seated at window table working on a gift for Xmas, waiting for a friend to join me. I am wearing handknit sweater, jeans, knit socks and Birkenstock clogs. Fifty-something, full-bellied man in khakis. steel-rimmed glasses and commercially made navy sweater at next table, reading paper.
I knit and sip coffee. Man reads, glances over at me, smiles.
Close approximation of conversation:
MAN: “What are you making? My mother used to knit.”
ME: “I am making a beret for a Christmas gift.”
MAN: “That’s nice.”
>
MAN: “You know, with all the radical feminists out there, it’s really nice to see a woman with old-fashioned family values who’s not afraid to be seen doing traditional women’s work in public.”
>
ME: “Um…what makes you think you can guess my values or my politics from my hobby?”
MAN: “Well, I’m sure no femi-Nazi would be caught dead knitting a hat.”
ME: “Did you say Femi-Nazi?”
MAN: “Yes.”
ME: “That’s what I thought you said. I think Rush Limbaugh is a pompous, atavistic ass, and he certainly isn’t a gentleman.”
Man becomes silent. At that moment my flagrantly gay male friend — who I was waiting for — arrives to join me for coffee. Man makes face and returns to paper.
it is too weird that people think that the knitting is too hard to learn yet never hesitate to ask a knitter to make something for them.
i love KIP and i mostly knit in ferry or long bus journeys (where i dont need to catch a stop) and i always put my music louder to stop them to think that i am a grany and avoid their attention. i got too many weird stares and even last time while i was knitting on circulars with hot neon pink yarn a guy kept staring at me and it was the hardest knitting i ever did…
Oh my God, I can’t believe that people would actually do that kind of thing! You handled it really well though, I would’ve been stunned!
HOw rude!! People do expect you to be able to knit things in 5 minutes. I will show projects to friends and they are like- “you’ve been working on that for two weeks- aren’t you in the same place as the last time I saw it!” I makes me want to scream! I wish I could knit all day eveyday, but that is the only way I could churn out things that quickly!
A funny example of knitting requests:
I am a middle school teacher and all my students know I knit (who doesn’t actually- I tell everyone that will listen and needles are in my hand at every waking moment possible). They allllll want me to knit them something and are extemely offended and think I don’t like them when I don’t!! Too funny!
Last year, I actually taught them to crochet- most of them only learned to chain, but they loved it! You should have seen some of my “hard, ghetto” boys fighting over a crochet hook and fuzzy pink yarn!!
That’s a hilarious story!
Just this week I had a man turn his whole body around just to face me and stare at me knitting on the train. I decided the next time someone gawped I would put my knitting down and stare back, which I did, but he actually stared me out! I ended up picking up my knitting again and blushing furiously.
I love the title for this post. I don’t think that you aren’t a nice person. I think you are very nice, but this person was obviously deranged. No need to keep her going with her obvious deusion. I can’t believe the nerve of some people!
hahahahaha
what a weird woman!
Wow… I would have… I dunno. It’s not like you’d walk into a building, see a janitor and say, “Listen, here’s my address, come over around 8 pm and mop my kitchen floor. This is what you DO, right? Mop floors?”
Whatever, the woman sounded like a communist. I get pissed when I go to my local food co-op and as SOON as I get out of my car, some woman (who has just finished loading food bags into her trunk) says to me, “Are you going in? Here, take this cart back.” I don’t want to be mean, but if I’m going to do you a favour, I’ll be the one who offers to bring your stupid cart back. Don’t demand of me (a stranger) to do something for you.
I guess I should be glad that there is no public transportation in the suburbs! People never cease to amaze me! What a hoot – at least Ms. Make War wasn’t packing! Thanks for a morning laugh!
How awful…and different from the woman I chatted with at Starbucks this morning as I turned a heel on a dreaded second sock. She was bemoaning the fact that she found knitting difficult and I was trying to encourage her to try it again…in between managing her 1, 3, and 5-year-old kids… Did you consider accidentally poking her with a needle?
OMG….I can’t believe some people! There are several of those (although, not complete strangers to me and not quite as rude) who keep demanding things from me. I simply tell them that wool doesn’t grow on trees and if they want to pay me, I’ll do it. I may stop saying that though. Oh, how I hate rude people!
BTW, I have a theory about the train-staring. I think it may have something to do with the rhythm of the train and the rhythm of the needles. It’s mesmerizing. Like a blinking red light when you’re sleepy. You just can’t look away. (Of course, I could be way off. It could be because we knitters are that odd, but I don’t think so.)
I can totally see that happening on the Metro. I ride it (and the Marc and a Metrobus) every day…and I could tell you stories upon stories about the weirdos I’ve encountered. And I’ve only been riding public transit for about 5 months! Kudos to you for switching cars…and standing up for yourself!
The only person I take knitting “orders” from is a close friend of mine. She’s a very picky person, so when she sees something I’m knitting and mentions that she’d like one too, she’s sure to get it as a gift.
I am currently scraping my jaw off of my office floor. Unbelievable!! I have had strangers joke with me before – “here is my address – it looks like that sweater would fit me perfectly” etc. but never a serious demand! Wow – some people.
:O !!!! Whoa! That lady has some stones.
I’m very impressed that you had the wherewithal to respond the way you did, I probably would have sat there stunned.
Have you ever done the Pomatomus sock pattern? I need Pomatomus pom poms at the moment.
OMG! I am speechless. I knit on the Metro all the time and, yes, there have been odd conversations and curious looks but never anything even close to what happened to you. People are nuts!
Oh my goodness! Yikes. Sounds like you handled it perfectly. Oh, that just proves my suspicians about those pro-war people….
The audacity! Oh, my goodness! I mean, they talk about entitlement, but holy smokes! It sounds like you handled it very well… and seriously filled we Socktoberfest sockers with ire, based on the number of comments!
oh man! haha that is hillarious! i think you really would have gotten your point across, had you made the infamous “face” we made at your house hahaha…hillarious! speaking of which, can you make me a pair of socks? :-p haha jk
Wow, that lady had some nerve. Socks take a long time to knit…idiot!
Re: people staring at knitting, my Dad does it to me now and has for the 20 years I knit. He finds it mesmerizing……
Good for you to tell her NO!
What a strange experience you had.
I knit in public all the time, and I like people to ask me about my knitting, but never had anything happen like that.
I think I would have done exactly what you did.
LOL! I don’t even know what to add. INsane.
That is a total WTF moment. You just have to wonder what runs through people’s heads sometimes. Although, if she’s all gung ho for war, it’s safe to assume that she’s not the most logical, rational person. I’ve been lucky that most of the people who’ve made comments to me on the Metro/Bus have honestly been curious or very nice.
Once, at Stitch n Bitch, an older gentleman approached our group and said “wow, this is the largest group of pregnant women I’ve seen.” WTF!!!
Weirdos on trains suck! And trust me, Lolly no one would ever accuse you of being mean. EVER!
I’m so jealous you got a metro car all to yourself. Love that!
Cannot believe that crazy woman. The nerve of some people!!
I am impressed by your self-control, keeping that story locked up! Too funny–makes me miss public transportation.
Dude! Good for you! The nerve of some people. You remember my crazy encounter, right? Gotta love the public… NOT! I’ll stick with tech. services any day!
OH MY!!! 8-o
Well… you can’t get anything unless you dare to ask, but… she COULD have asked NICE!!!
That woman has big cajones…in a crazy bad way. You certainly had a lot of self-control handling this situation. I’m still laughing at the comments and what a wierd experience you had! I probably would have responded like Scout mentioned earlier…”Oh no you DIDN’T!”
OMG. I don’t know how you managed to sit on that story for as long as you did!
That is so funny! I have a funny KIP story, although it doesn’t quite compare to yours — I took DD to her orthodontist, and the assistant and the ortho got to commenting on the sock I was knitting, next thing I know the ortho is giving me his shoe size — I said, “I am NOT knitting you socks!” (size 12-1/2 no less.) But then I reconsidered and offered to swap them for the braces. He declined, but wanted to tell me all about his woes with store-bought socks. Weird.
I would have been forced to use my ‘drop-dead-and-crawl-away-from-me-now-look’ on her. Geez, how rude. I hate it when people think just because you are making something you’ll do it for them too. I DON’T THINK SO!! I have a small circle that I knit for and I don’t expand it!! lol
I’ve had my share of weird encounters with my knitting on the metro, but nothing to compare to that. Like Roseann, I would probably have pretended not to speak English. I actually do that all the time when someone is bothering me: “Jag tala inte Engelska!”
Why is it that some people think that knitters should consider it a privilege to knit for them? A member of my staff said to me a while back: “You knitting is actually good. I might let you knit me a sweater.”
As if!
The nerve of some people!!! All this and a bad attitutde to boot! Good answer on your part. You go girl!
I am still in shock about what that horrid woman said. I have to keep reading it over and over. Sorry but that takes *ahem* BALLS to be that rude!
=:8
Holy crap! Some people really are clueless, arent’ they? You are such a class act – who knows what would have come out of my mouth.
You look awfully cute in your pictures!
The nerve!
I can’t even believe someone could be so obliviously rude and self-absorbed to just demand socks. Like you just wave a magic wand to knit them! =)
About three weeks ago my husband was talking to a two of his co-workers about my knitting. The first one ask him to have me make her a pair of socks and the second one asked for a scarf because they both “always wanted something hand knit”. They also requested them to be made in 100% cashmere too! He came home to tell me about the conversation exited because he “found me my next project”! I was so shocked about the requests I spent a good amount of time venting about how rude that was of them and how holiday knitting for FAMILY is all I will be doing for the next few month. I even got made at him and scowled him to not offer up my hobby out again! Poor guy, he’s still pretty sensitive about that! He even knows how long even a simple project can take and how annoying it can be for me when anything envolving any shaping doesn’t go as planned! Thankfully he didn’t tell them about my knitting freak out, but I still think it is rude (In any situation) to skip being polite about the desire for something and going straight to the “I want it and you will make it for me” part! I have also never met the women who asked for these things so that didn’t make the situation any better either! And … end rant! Thank you Lolly for your great blogg and a post that I can related to so!
Public transport is full of crazies. I don’t bring my knitting on the light-rail because I usually don’t get a place to sit the hours I ride it, of course that doesn’t stop the crazies from commenting on whatever book I’m reading like I give a sh**.
I’m sure that Portland’s light-rail only has a fraction of the weirdos that DC does… so I feel for you.
The sock looks great! I hope to get started on the second half of my pair this weekend.
That’s so nuts!
I have an unfortunate (or not) tendency to just laugh when people say insane things like that. I’m afraid it may make me seem bitchy. Oh, well.
that is nearly unbelievable! people never cease to amaze me. . .
good for you for not taking any crap from her.
Awww, now I’m totally sad and all about sockless wierdos and their daughters. Maybe her feet got really cold while she was out protesting and stuff.
Where I live, weirdos just ask for money, or cigarettes. You must have a better class of weirdos down there.
Wow – people have some nerve don’t they! I rode the train to DC for 4 years and I saw some freaks. I didn’t knit at the time – but I was approached for a lot of crazy reasons!
The socks are going to be awesome!
Oh dear, that’s just wierd! I’ve had folks strike up conversations with me about my knitting, but no one’s ever demanded product… Great Socktoberfest story!
What the?!!
People can be so very strange.
What next?
Lolly, you are such a trooper! I don’t think I would have been able to handle the situation with such grace. Just recently I was on the subway knitting a (socktoberfest) sock and the guy sitting next to me was so entranced by my knitting he asked me out. Even though he was sitting to my left watching my left hand with my WEDDING RING on it! I guess I could give him the benefit of the doubt and assume he didn’t see the ring, and was actually appreciative of my craft.
Oh my gourd! I cannot believe she had the nerve to ask you that! I am just in disbelief that people exist like that!
The important question is – do you still have her address??
We could have some fun with it
Arrrgghhhh! That’s all I have to say….
Lolls,
Come to Berlin and we’ll takle those wierdos together!!! There are so many here!!
I can’t help but ask-have you lost weight? Your pictures look like it.
Oooo, people like that drive me crazy! The other night at our knitting group, we actually had a guy come up to us and inform us that the latest craze in knitting was to make codpieces. What the hell???? He looked so smug, like we should be laughing at his cleverness and fawning all over him. What a weirdo.
That is one of the strangest encounters I’ve ever heard of. My mouth would have been hanging open in disbelief.
That is a funny story! I’ve not had that experience yet on the Metro. Only a couple people asking me what I was “crocheting” when I was knitting some socks.
I think I spotted you walking past Bread and Chocolate yesterday in DC. Was it you? I would have said something, but both of us were walking pretty fast in opposite directions. And it wasn’t til I was past you that I thought, “hmm, that scarf looks familiar…”
Honestly. It was the Multidirectional Scarf that made me recognize you. Beautiful scarf!
he he! what a freak! you became very reasonable, i could be rude against such a “case”…
Loved your story, Lolly! And also Dez’s story about a knitter’s personal politics…I’ve been there before! But please don’t be too hard on the stare-ers out there…after all, I remember being totally mesmerized by watching someone knit in public once. I never said anything to her, but she did come to mind (several years later!) when I picked up the DVD that actually taught me to knit! I now consider myself an ambassador of the craft when I knit in public…but I don’t take orders either. I just say. “You couldn’t afford to pay the price I’d ask even if I only charged a dollar an hour…and I won’t work for that!” They usually laugh and say they understand! Happy sock knitting! Terrie
That is hilarious! I dont’ know if I would have been so contained in my response!!!!
I love that you said you couldn’t believe she’d say that to a stranger. Maybe she’ll think next time!
As my husband says, “who has more fun than people?” You’re a veritable diplomat.
I had a friend once who arrived at my house with fabric and a pattern and announced that I was going to sew a dress for her. The fact that I was packing to move to grad school didn’t phase her. What finally did it was when I handed her a community college bulletin with the sewing class pages marked.
That was weird! Strange how she would give a complete stranger her home address at that.
Oh… *wow*. Amazing. Your response was so perfect. When I was working at a yarn store, I heard way too many stories of people not respecting their own time enough, and not letting folks know how out-of-line they were when they made this sort of assumption. (And you would not believe some of the requests I got.) You rock my world.
Oh geez, that’s such a funny story! I’ve been knitting on the NY subways for 3 years and I’ve never gotten more than “That looks hard” from anyone. I’m not sure what I would have said or done but I applaud you for quickly and succinctly stating your position. Some people never leave ***their*** own world where apparently everyone else does their bidding. Ick!
Well yes, she was pushy, but I don’t understand why everyone seems to think the woman was horribly awful. After all, did you have any clue how much work went into a pair of socks until you made them?