Knitting Quote of the Day

"...the two for the most part sat silent; the old man with his head back and his eyes closed, his wife occupied with her knitting, and wearing that appearance of extraordinary meditation with which some ladies contemplate the movement of their needles."

- Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady

I don't believe I have read any James since high school (Daisy Miller), but I was looking for something to read in the St. Louis airport and this came to hand. It is slow going, but I was caught by the phrase, "that appearance of extraordinary meditation". James was a good observer. He said "some ladies", leading me to infer he was also acquainted with the sort who can stitch away without looking down at all. Alas, I am not one of their number. To be able to read and knit at the same time would be a rare treat. I know it has been done, but my mind is a "one thing at a time" sort of mind.

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My yarn stash is never going to appear on Ravelry because it's too many odd balls and bits and bobs strewn about in various locations and I'm just never going to get it lined up for pictures.

But I have been having fun putting my books up, a few at a time. It's so easy: go in, search for a title, click, and a picture of the cover appears on (or at least near) the shelf. Of course, some don't look exactly like my books, because they have the latest editions, and in several cases I don't. And a number of my prize possessions aren't in their data base, at least yet. In a way, it's a little scary seeing what 20 years of collecting adds up to. No wonder that in real life I have books piled on the floor and under the bed.

BTW, my name on Ravelry is baxterknits, what else?

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Have I been doing any actual knitting lately? Well, yes, I am working on a sock, but I don't have a picture handy. So here's more New Orleans.