San Francisco

If you follow me on Instagram, you have some idea of what I was up to last week. The Bearded One and I drove up to San Francisco to tour the city and find a place to live. During the long Labor Day weekend, we walked 33 miles and wandered through Cow Hollow, Marina, Pacific Heights, Russian Hill, Knob Hill, and SOMA. We saw the city from the top of Twin Peaks and were reminded about hills after living in LA for a year. It was a lot of fun exploring a city that I’d never visited before with the thought that I’d soon be living in it. Picked a great weekend for it since everyone said that this was the first time they’d seen the sun in weeks. Plus, the temperatures hit 70º several days in a row and the fog stayed at a minimum. 

Looking forward to living in a city where I can decide if I want Austrian or Chinese for dinner. The sheer number of yarn shops doesn’t hurt either. 

My favorite meals in the San Francisco (in no particular order):

21st Amendment - Good food and amazing beer in the South Park neighborhood. The seasonal ‘Hell or High Watermelon Wheat’ is not to be missed.

Roam Artisan Burgers - A local chain with great burgers and fries. 

Leopold’s - Delicious Austrian food and beer. ‘Nuff said.

Tacolicious - Walked past this place and it smelled so good we went back to get dinner. Tasty margaritas too.

Surprise Shawl

Nothing says “Why don’t you wind some yarn and cast on for that shawl you’ve been dreaming about for months,” like hearing about a surprise road trip first thing in the morning. So, I wound 2 skeins of yarns, printed the pattern, got presentable, and hit the road. 

The shawl in question is the Stripe Study Shawl which Ravelry tells me has been in my queue since February 19, 2011. It took me ages to finish other shawls I had on the needles and then pick the yarn. The blue is Plucky Knitter Primo Fingering (Tavern on the Blue) which waited patiently for me to decide on Madelinetosh Merino Light (Antler) as it’s partner. I love how the two look together and how much the cream is starting to pop against the ever widening blue stripes. 

For the next few months, this shawl is going to be selfish knitting, pure and simple, since the birthdays and holidays coming in full force. A few short rows here and some stripes there should take the edge off.   

On the Road and the Beach

This was what last Wednesday looked like. The dashboard and miles and miles of open road as the Bearded One and I took a much needed vacation to Savannah and Tybee Island, Georgia. Sock knitting and colorful yarn also played a large part.

After awhile all the miles and trees and exits started to look the same.  The sock-in-progress did too but it was much more interesting than the ever repeating mile. The humble little sock, if anything that bright could be called humble, also taught me a neat trick. When the light was just right, I could see my reflection and my knitting in the passenger side window. I got to keep an eye on my knitting and the outside world without having to choose between the two when something interesting - that river for one - came by.* So long as the pattern is simple and repetitive, such as stockinette or ribbing, knitting by reflection shouldn’t be too hard. I wouldn’t want to try it with fair isle though.

Eventually, we made our way to Tybee Island and the beach. The waves were small but there were dolphins, shells, and nice weather. Also, painful, stinging jellyfish but they were few and far between. 

I also managed to avoid my traditional beach sunburn.  85 SPF sun block is apparently the way to go.

I’d also recommend watching the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean if you get the chance. It was a nice start to a day spent wandering Savannah and local yarn shops. More on that later.