Ahhhh Venice. I didn't expect to love it as much as I did. Not the traditional tourist spots, suffocatingly crowded, where even the pigeons posed for pictures. I preferred streets less travelled. The hidden piazzas and the glimpses of daily life:    …in an unusual city where everything is boat dependent. Order some yarn and…

It's not often you get to continue a good dream. Once you awaken, it's back to the cold hard slap of reality. Let me take you back to dreaming about the feast of colour and comfort. Driving south from northern Germany we discuss the meaning of the name Wollmeise. The literal translation is wool bird,…

Not just the yarn, the store itself, many a knitter's dream. Mine came true. After planning a roadtrip with friends from Bremen, Germany to Venice, I asked if Paffenhofen, home of Rohrspatz & Wollmeise, was within reasonable distance of our planned trip. It was meant to be, five minutes off our route on the autobahn,…

Pattern: Willow by Amelia Lyon Yarn: Patons Kroy Socks Stripe, 2 skeins Colour: Cyan Needles: US Size 5 Thoughts: Great pattern! Being a woman of a certain age, with a tendency toward overheating, I've avoided knitting cowls, thinking their close fit might inhibit my ability to pull one off quickly in hot desperation. Au contrare.…

Once again, and in consideration of the this year's blue Christmas, we are going for minimalism. I'm liking it. The best part for me is the cleanup. The ceramic Christmas tree and Nativity take about five minutes of work to dismantle. The essence of the holiday without the stress. We're still hosting our annual Danish…

Location: Bremen, Germany. Sweet little Nativity sheep in the Schnoor. I believe next door to the place I found the hat from my last post. Bremen is special to us, not just for the location, but for the family we have become close to as the result of the German exchange program in which our…

Here's the story of the 10,000 mile hat. While strolling Bremen's Schnoor with my friend, Ingrid, she showed me a hat, knitted from Noro Silk Garden, with a price tag of 79 Euro. She told me she's contemplated buying it for two years now. What's a knitter to do? Offer to knit it, of course. …

In the Pacific Northwest, when prolonged rain stops, within 15 minutes you'll observe cabin fevered people leaving their houses; modern ark passengers after the flood. Walking, washing cars, raking lawns of fallen cedar fronds.  On Sunday I followed the pack and headed for  the trails of the North Shore mountains. I found, that although sunny, it's…

….or what I've learned from my mother's death, including, excuse the expression, some cold hard facts: 1. That expression in post title really happens. 2. The cost of medical treatment is high, the orthopedic surgeon's bill alone was $50,000. 3. Some cemeteries close for the winter, not based on temperature or the ability to prepare…

  Elsa Hernandez Lesinski-Brenner, passed away November 15th, in CRVNA  Hospice House, Concord,  after complications from surgery, with her daughters by her side.    Born in 1929 in New York City, her careers included professional Latin dancer, early childhood educator, community volunteer and loving mother. Married to Hendrick Lesinski in 1950, they became parents to two girls.…