A simple weekend with simple pleasures - it was wonderful.

We had a Namaste Knitters meetup in DC on Sunday. The Namaste Knitters is a group that I moderate on Ravelry to bring together knitters and crocheters who love yoga. Sung-Ji offered to host our DC group at the Inspired Yoga studio downtown. We knit, ate some delicious treats and drank yummy teas, and did some light yoga in the beautiful studio space. This was the first meetup of the group, and we will definitely be doing it again - we had such a good time together! If you are interested in joining us, stay tuned to the Ravelry boards for more information about our next get-together. (Left to right: my BFF Bec, Manda, me, Sung-Ji, and Heather)

The other simple pleasure of the long weekend was our weekly walk in the woods. The weather was unseasonably warm - near 70 degrees - and Kris and I hit the trails mid-morning and explored some great places in the nearby Patapsco Valley State Park. The park is located in Baltimore County, Maryland, about 15 minutes from our home. We have been to the park many times before, but the hike today offered us more time and better weather to venture onto some new trails. I am not quite sure how far we hiked, but we steadily climbed a steep hill, made our way to the top and around the other side. The hike in entirety took about 2.5 hours.

We saw a small waterfall, quite active with all of the rain we have had lately, and also saw a large group of deer - maybe 20. Once we pulled the camera out, most of them hitched up the white tails and jumped away. Four remained and watched our every step. The river used to be much bigger, but has been dammed and re-routed. There are signs of the river’s past all over. There was once a large mill located on the banks of the river - late 1800s/early 1900s - and several structures from the mill days remain. They are now in dilapidated states, but interesting nonetheless.

How did you spend your weekend?

Sure, you can travel to the other side of the world to see some beautiful sights, but you can also look right in front of your eyes…

Adams Morgan Day, Washington, DC

I had a lovely Sunday with my dear friend Becca.  She was away all summer, and is now back to DC, working hard in grad school and planning a wedding on the side.  We were discussing afghan colors yesterday - I am thinking about a Log Cabin sort…

The weekend was a welcomed rest from the hustle and bustle of recent weeks.  Saturday was quiet and peaceful.  I finished a wonderful fiction book, The Hungry Tide, that transported me to the Ganges delta region, weaving a story with strong characters, and a general education about the land, the animals, and the culture of the people in that area.  I was entranced and was sorry to see the end of the book.  I highly recommend it.  I have since moved on to another book that came recommended to me from a new friend at last week’s SAA conference.  I picked it up and am already 50 pages in.  It is 1491, written by a journalist who traveled the Americas extensively researching what the “New World” was like before Columbus.  I have learned more in the first 50 pages than I did in any of my American History classes… amazing and cutting edge. 

…and the knitting!  I am working hard to stay on track with my current knitting, despite all of the temptation to start something shiny and new.  I feel like I need to put blinders on - there are just so many great things out there!  (my current obsession, and one that I will no doubt make time for:  Garnstudio DROPS’ assymetrical cardigan - Pam is working on hers, and Nicole finished hers in four days!)  I am also planning a cable-spectacular vest (did you see Isel’s beautiful vest?).  Right now, I am in the home stretch on my Easy Street pulli, and almost finished with the Kat Beret.  

You may even see a finished knit this week…

This year’s Smithsonian Folklife Festival offered a stunning spectrum of colorful crafts. The festivities focused on three particular regions: the Mekong River of Southeast Asia, Northern Ireland, and Colonial Virginia. All of the regions had large displays with performance art, visual art, cooking and food demonstrations, history and archaeology, and large craft displays.

1. Resist Dyed Fabrics, 2. Embroidered Child’s Dress, 3. Embroidery Yarn, 4. Making pom poms, 5. Dye Tent and Me, 6. Embroidered Shoes, 7. Bec and Embroidery, 8. Woven silk textiles, 9. Silk Weaving Demo, 10. Silk Yarn on a Swift, 11. Silk woven textiles, 12. New Year’s Procession, 13. Northern Irish Wools for Carpets, 14. Northern Irish Cross-Stitch, 15. Detail of Thai Murals, 16. Vietnamese Basket Weaving

I particularly admired the Mekong River countries’ textile and needlework traditions. The use of color was truly inspiring! Once again… I am seriously considering this weaving thing…

It was a beautiful day to spend with my dear friend, Becca. We have been friends since college, studying abroad together seven years ago (almost to the day!) She is returning to Israel for a 2-month course, and this is the last time I will see her before she goes. It was a lovely way to spend the day together…

After a few false starts, the blue zig zag scarf for my International Scarf Exchange pal is coming along quite well. I always run into problems when I have to cast on hundreds of stitches. I use stitch markers, and I still lose count. This one was a challenge in particular because of the yarn’s texture. I stuck with it though, and now I am nearing completion.

Two more rows of the light aqua, and then I add the fourth and final blue periwinkle colorway. I hope my pal likes this scarf - her questionnaire did not provide a lot of information about her preferences. I think I will be lucky to have enough yarn leftover to make another (perhaps a little smaller) version for a headband, belt, or summer scarf.

The scarf will be ready very soon, and I will have time to post it before the deadline. My pal lives in Asia, so the sooner I can mail it, the better. I haven’t heard from the knitter who is making my scarf in quite awhile - I hope I have a scarf to look forward to as well!

… … …

The long weekend started off with a Friday night show in DC. Kris and I went to see one of our favorite singer/songwriters, Damien Rice, at Constitution Hall in the city. We got there early enough to do some sightseeing before the show. Across the street from the concert hall is this little place… You may recognize it.

I have lived in the DC area for many years, but this is only the second time I have been to the White House grounds. The first time was as a child to view the “Nutcracker Christmas” tour during the Bush, Sr. administration. We didn’t go inside this time, but we played tourist and snapped some photos.

Woman feeding the birds & squirrels, Lafayette Park

Damien Rice put on a wonderful show. There was no opening act, so he just walked onto the candle-lit stage and started to play his guitar, and later the piano. His albums take up permanent residence on our .mp3 players, so it was a real pleasure to see and hear him live. (links to some of his videos) It was mellow, thoughtful, passionate, and the perfect way to spend a Friday night.

More Bookshelf Photos

On the bus towards Georgetown with Jenna and Suzanne

Beginning a collection - project plans!

New brown cotton dress

Bella begging to go outside

Wren cardigan cast on with Berroco Zodiac