Columbus Continued

Nothing like waking up at 6:30 am on a working vacation to attend a technique class. My phone so very nicely woke me up and not my roommates. I showered, dressed, and grabbed up knitting homework (yes knitting classes have homework), show badge and necessary paperwork. Oh, and my own personal knitting too. Coffee in hand I walked over to the convention center for my first ever knitting class with Sally Melville. She is a blast of a teacher, great stories and a wealth of knowledge. Did you know that the Peruvians are the world's fastest production knitters? Neither did I. Sally showed us how it is they knit, in actuality purl, so quickly with strands held around their neck. My hands got two hours between 8 and 10 am to practice two color knitting with two hands. By the end of it all though, I could think of nothing but breakfast and a trip to Jeni's ice cream stand in North Market.

Ginevra tried to get in on the breakfast of Champions. But I wouldn't let her. "Back off B!$%&, it's my 


almond macaroon


with salty caramel


and toasted almonds


ice cream sandwich."

This is how the battle ended. I was a happy monkey.














And then it was back into the hustle and bustle of the convention floor. Bree, Stef, Amy and I wandered around in a whirlpool alternately looking for one another or a booth or finding something interesting that caught our eyes and wandering off into the whirlpool of yarn, needles, designers and more.

Amy and Mary Catherine Black are both wonderful designers. Both have designs in the pipeline and Mary Catherine just did an interview over on the Malabrigo Blog. Eventually we ran out of steam (Stef and I first) and then Bree and then Amy and Mary Catherine. Wandering down the High Street Stef and I came upon a wine shop with a lofted bar. Little food and almost half a marathon of walking makes for a low tolerance for alcohol and my aptitude for directions went down the tube. It took some "Marco Polo-ing" for the two designers to find us. Once they did it was a riotous and raucous eve.

We tried several places to find food, one was packed with knitters, and graduates of the college, one was scary skivy (and their kitchen was closed) and the last was a hike away but nearer the final destinations of our hotels.


The last place, The Elevator was an old bank building and rather a neat spot. The last beer of the evening that I had was a delicious and refreshing watermelon ale. Yes, it tasted like the fruit, especially if you burped.


After tottering back to the room I turned on bad hotel t.v. (I love bad hotel t.v.) and watched Iron Chef: Battle Spinach.




The next morning despite a raging headache found me awake again at 6:30 am for another class. This one I was much less prepared for (I'd done my swatching homework thank god) but I had a time getting showered, dressed, and all put together. I had a million bags and everything was helter-skelter.

Amazed I made it to the class before anyone else though. These are the lengths I go to be punctual. Class finished and it was back tot he floor where Stefanie and I started at one end in the 1600's and wound our way through every aisle so as not to miss anything. Some of my favorites: Scarlet Fleece, Ysolda Teague(her booth was just about the cutest I've ever seen complete with photo booth and afternoon tea), Imperial Stock Ranch, and Sajou. It was all so overwhelming. So much to see and so many new people to talk to. I was on double duty. I wanted to scout a few new things for the shop I work for here in Chicago and I wanted to look for vendors for The Wool Dispensary. And my other side mission was to eat as much Jeni's Ice Cream as my body would allow. I accomplished all three missions with aplomb. A celebratory dinner was had then a celebratory trip to Jeni's where the line stretched around the block. Ginevra kept us entertained by donning a mustachio nose warmer and going incognito. She's so famous you know, she was afraid of being recognized.

But we made it through with out the paparazzi jumping out of any bushes and back to our hotel safely.










Monday morning brought no classes and a leisurely walk around the show floor. We were done sooner than we thought. Stef wanted a more direct route home and while her and Amy plotted with the GPS I went to Jeni's one last time for six pints of ice cream, a cooler and some dry ice to get it all home without a soupy mess in the rental car trunk. Hef guarded the ice cream all the way home. What a good elephant!

Amy, Stef and I said good-bye to Columbus, Ohio and drove six straight hours back to big city of Chicago. Not without a stop at Qdoba in the middle of nowhere Indiana. It was a good time had by all and no one killed each other there or back. And I think we all are going to get something out of this convention down the road.