There are some weeks that I sit not quite sure what to blog – but really wanting to share something to give those of you who didnt make it on a Wednesday night or those of you who are still thinking about coming to meet us a flavor of what happened. Then there are other days where I think to myself – oooo blog post!
First off let me say that it has become quite clear to many of us that Wednesday nights have become almost mandatory. The idea of hanging with the ladies and laughing, or being silly, or even sitting back and just absorbing everything provides us with a real break from the rest of our lives that just feeds your soul. How do I know this? Well Julz came without knitting this week – just to hang – fear not, I corrected the situation by promptly tossing my clapotis at her and telling her go ahead knit a row or two. Coming without knitting is not unusual anymore. Face it, we’ve all discovered that working on anything complicated while we make each other laugh is just a recipe for tinking and frogging when you get home….so time and time again we prove that its about the group dynamic. I’m thinking SnB is therapy…with a little knitting thrown in.
I cant remember too many of the specifics from Wednesday – and some were just too innuendo laden or outright crass to blog….we were in particularly rare form…I’m guessing we’ve gotten so good at knowing how each others minds work that it was almost funnier to let the straight lines just hang…that in and of itself seemed to keep most of us in near hysterics for the evening.
Each week several of us will have a story to share – some knitting – some not. The act of sharing is after all a bonding experience, not to mention it always makes you feel better about your own life when other people deal with crap that is either embarrassing, frustrating or just ridiculous. So in that spirit, I share with you here in cyber snb land – perhaps knowing what you are missing will serve as inspiration to get you to the Sand Bar on a Wednesday – (or make you run for the hills)
I will begin by saying that I have been working on my sherbert modified clapotis feverishly – purchasing the yarn last year at Rheinbeck, I really wanted to use it for something. It’s totally neon – I believe Melissa termed it carebear on crack colors. I modified the regular clapotis pattern to make it a little thinner because I only had the one skein and happily knit away.
Thursday night is one of my favorite TV nights – good knitting time dont you know. I got home from work on Thursday and got dinner started – freak out time – none of the electric starters on my gas stove were working. Well this isnt good – I’m all about cooking and now I had to light the burners by hand. OK, no panic, until I went to turn the fan on. Nope thats not working either…WTF?? Quick call to Jennair customer service. I spoke to a very cool woman named Leylani no not Hawaii …..from West Virginia, freakish name / accent combination but I digress. I discover that unlike for example a garbage disposal there is no reset switch. Well this blows but I’ll call the appliance repair guy in the morning and I manage to pull of this amazing chicken with chive sauce for dinner.
Friday morning I call the local appliance place and discover that there is no central internal fuse in the cooktop. They tell me it is suspect that both the starters and the downdraft are out. Yes I’ve already checked all the circuit breakers last night. Smart appliance people say – try plugging a hair dryer in the cooktop outlet and see if it works – nope it doesnt – thanks Ray’s appliance for saving me a service call by helping me figure the problem has to be electrical.
Next call to the electrician. The regular guy doesnt have any time til next week, well that does not make me happy. I’m now all about googling to find someone who will come out the same day. Yay, and success, they’ll be here this afternoon. Dont worry – I’m almost at the end…and the moral
Remember Thursday night is good knitting night and I finished my clapotis (with I kid you not 1 inch of yarn left – and it is not because I was skillful at estimating). 
So proud of my accomplishment I set out to block my new creation. I pull out a towel and my iron and plug it into the kitchen outlet right next to the cooktop. Whats this???? The iron isn’t getting hot? The outlet isn’t ground fault – hmmm but the one next to it is….click…reset… The iron goes on and my brain starts to race. It couldnt be that easy could it? I plug the cooktop back in and turn the fan switch Woooossssshhhh on it goes. Try a burner next…click click then it lights. Woo freakin hoo…its all working! Quick call to the electrician to explain and manage to cancel the service appointment in time avoiding the fee. Mind you that is two avoided service calls today which I could easily translate into found money and a justified yarn purchase. All is well that ends well….and what the hell is the moral of the story you ask?
Simple – ALWAYS block your knitting!