Friday, July 22, 2016

Woot! FOs 16 & 17 Plus News

This post puts me back in "regularily" scheduled posting. Well, maybe not scheduled but the subject matter is back on point. Today I'm updating my knitting news.

I can't remember if I told you that I finished my Zephyr Cove. I did and it turned out really nicely; have a peek:

It took 646 yds and was FO 16 :) I'm on a roll this year!! Also, because I finished this in June, it made me eligible for the draw in the monthly KAL in the Romi group :) And I was one of 2 winners for the month!! I chose the Simee Dimeh pattern as my prize; now I just need to find enough colors to make one!

And there's another FO too! I finished the bag I was designing :) Here is Watch the Clock:
And the special thing about Watch the Clock is, you can knit one too :) I have the pattern for sale on Ravelry as of Tuesday (the 19th of this month). Check out the pattern page on Rav for more details.

Something to add about Watch the Clock: this is the first design I've ever included charts with. I used the incredibly easy and clear Stitch Fiddle to make my charts. I'm so pleased with their site!!  If you need to do any charting, I highly recommend them.

I'm currently working on Vertices (Rosmary (Romi) Hill; Ravelry download) in two colorways of KnitPick Stroll Fingering. For Color 1 I chose "Spectrum Handpainted"; color 2 is "Train Station tonal". It looks like rainbows and storm clouds; hence my project name lol :) This one is a fairly quick knit and the garter st sections are great for tv/ movie watching. It's also an adaptable pattern: it's written for different weights of yarn and you can do options for doing all one color or following the striping. Here's my latest progress pic:

And about sums it up for today :)

TTFN

Monday, July 4, 2016

Thank You

The post I had go up yesterday, was a silly one. The one I'm writing today isn't. I'm writing this on paper; it's around 6:30am NDT on July 1, 2016.

100 years ago this very morning one of, if not the, bloodiest battles of World War I was fought; the Battle of Beaumont Hamel, the first Battle of the Somme.

As I now live in Newfoundland that has special significance. The very fabric of the Dominion of Newfoundland was changed that day. So many young men lost, lives altered. I encourage you to watch any of the specials the CBC has put together; to somewhat understand what it means to the people of this island, that at that time wasn't part of Canada (Canada and Newfoundland were officially united on April 1, 1949). Newfoundland paid a terrible price. Links are at the end of this post.

The causes of WWI (aka The Great War, The War to End War, etc.) are many. The terms imposed against Germany at the Treaty of Versailles on November 11, 1918 in many ways paved the road for WWII. But many people here ask why the first happened at all. Why were those men sent to the slaughter on July 1, 1916?

I'm a rare case amongst my generation: I heard firsthand accounts of WWI as achild from my Grandfather. He was born in Belgium in December 1907. He wasn't yet 7 years old when Germany invaded in 1914. His father died in mid-October, leaving a widow and two small boys, one nearing 7, the other just 3.
My Grandfather and his younger brother ages 4 and about 6 months; spring 1912?
WWI wasn't something I just heard as a footnote to WWII to school, it was part and parcel of my Grandfather's childhood, much the same as the Depression was to my maternal Grandfather's.

There's no excuse for the men of the Newfoundland Regiment to have been sent over the top that day. The British commanders had word that the Germans knew about their plans and deeply entrenched on their side; it shouldn't have happened.

But there was a reason those men were there. For most it probably had more to do with the paypacket than any idea of "King and country". I'm sure some were aware that innocent people had had their homeland invaded, and the thought of their own wives and children/ mother and siblings/ grannies and sweethearts in that situation was enough to want to do something about it.

Simply stated, if the combined British, Irish, Scottish, Newfoundland, Canadian and American troops hadn't gone over, I for one, wouldn't be here today.

Today has dawned with bird song, a brilliant blue sky and puffy white clouds. Later, I will join others in remembrance of a horrific event that changed the lives of every family on this island I now call home. It almost feels odd for it to be so peaceful this morning. Today, while Newfoundlanders remember their fallen, I'm thinking of a boy who was 8 years old 100 years ago today, already the man of the house. And I'm remembering one of the most important things he ever told me, some 70 years later: when others are remembering their loss, we must remember to say "Thank you".

Thank You

Newfoundland at Armageddon
Trail of the Caribou