another turn

here we are - early november once again. maela has turned over a new year as have i. 7 & 33 are we. we're settled in the reds and golds and noticing more and more bare trees now - knitting in one hand, wine in the other, and enjoying the lack of motivation to leave our nest of blankets on the couch. i'm on the ebb now - being pulled out to sea on steady back current. i'll float on my back and ride it because it's my time for rest and peace before the flood comes again and i itch day and night with too many plans and ideas for my flesh to contain.

for my birthday we headed north - chicago bound - for vogue knitting live. mae insisted on attending. in her words, "you're not going to that stupid knitting thing without me!" so, she woke up at 7am, dressed in some of mama's knits that she would normally toss on the ground, arms folded, and kick to the side in hopes of wearing something with neon colors and peace signs because when you're a little girl today you sometimes have to put your foot down. last year she said in her sweetest voice, "no more mama-made clothes, kay?" but this day was special and if there were other yarn-crazy ladies there, she was determined to be dressed to impress. hubs made the drive without complaint and quickly reminded me of how charming and approachable he can be. when we first arrived it was very early and nearly empty. everyone was friendly and chatty and he was eager to boast about his talented wife (the awkward lady over there not speaking to a soul). whispers of the cute little girl in all her knits floated on the air "i wonder if her mother made that?" and "oh, what a sweet hat!" but i kept a steady pace with eyes straight ahead.

i spent a few moments at the yarn tasting tables (dangerous place. too many beautiful yarns and needles to wrap my head around) and i tried my hand at square needles for the first time. no, they are not for me if you're wondering. those square edges were digging into my thumbs. blah. then it was time for some fashion shows. i was most excited about this. mae insisted we sit in the front row which was fine by me - hubs pleaded with me to let him "tap out" and i gave him that look that wives give husbands so he decided to play on his phone defiantly. just as we were getting settled i heard someone yell my name - huh? who do i know here? then i saw allyson from hollaknits.com and my instagram friend, kirstin emerging from the seats on the opposite side of the runway. it was a sweet albeit short encounter.

i'm not particularly shy and i'v always worked in management - dealing with the public - making connections and putting people at ease with a big smile and abundance of knowledge, but knitting breaks me. it's a mystery of sorts. i CAN NOT act like a normal human when dealing with knitters or talking about my knitting. i thought it could be different there in chicago with dealers and the endorphins created by pounds and pounds of yarn. i thought wrong. hubs and mae headed to the field museum and left me to "enjoy myself" so i meandered strangely from booth to booth and only purchased yarn for mae's christmas gift.

i was glad to come home. hubs surprised me with a stop at portillo's on the way - if you're italian and from chicago like me, you know portillo's. i was exhausted and a tad defeated when we finally collapsed onto the bed, but we pulled the layers of downy blankets over us and promptly began looking through the #vklive photos on instagram (because that's the sort of thing we do). hubs said, "this lady said she liked my hat. she stopped me and was looking at it." i glanced at his phone. "really? that lady?"

"ya. the one with the red hair."

"that's vickie howell."

"ok...."

"she had some knitting show on tv & has her own yarn line."

"oh. well, she liked the hat you made!"

(insert eye roll) like i said, hubs is surprisingly charming and approachable. he doesn't cease to amaze me.