December 31
Greetings! I hope you all had a great holiday week. As stated on the last two News Pages, bags will be uploaded at 6:30 tonight instead of our usual 8:30. Next week though we'll be back at our regular time.
Paul and I woke up Christmas morning to an empty house for the first time since we had the boys. But it was nice and relaxing and we got a good walk in before the boys arrived and the festivities began. It was damp and foggy, creating rine ice which was really so beautiful, it was like a magical dreamland. So another year draws to a close and I want to thank you all for your patronage, kind words, continued support and overall appreciation of what I do. I know I love what I do, but to have you all there sharing it with me .... week after week... makes it all the more heartwarming. A few months ago I received an email from a publication asking me if I was interesting in advertising with them. I researched the magazine and found that it was sent to shop orders specifically for wholesale. I don't wholesale the bags, and emailed back saying so.... but noticed that the magazine was a subsidiary of Vogue Knitting. So I added in my missive that if Vogue Knitting ever wanted to show my bags on their 'products' page that I'd be delighted. Why not... right? You never know...... Two months later I heard from Faith Hale who creates that page for each issue, and she did indeed invite me to send two of my bags to Manhattan to be viewed. They came back to me soon after, and I was thrilled to hear that they had been accepted and had gone through their photo shoot! The Winter issue is with subscribers now and on some of the news stands though it comes out officially on Jan 5th. The response has already been great, so let me welcome all new knitters! A week from tonight I plan to offer up those two bags ......
That pretty, freshly wrapped yarn is from Vyarns on Etsy. I found her through Ravelry and am thrilled with the luscious shades of green. Already started is a shawl. More on that later .....
I had to get new all season tires for my car yesterday, and what was supposed to be a quick switch lasted 3 hours. Seems I'm not the only one who waited so long. So, I missed my little window of sunshine, but didn't know if I'd want to be out anyway as it was all of three degrees. I missed some work time as well, but am still happy to odder up six bags on this holiday week. Two nights ago I just had to be in the moonlight and even though it was two below zero, I strapped on my snowshoes and ventured out. I was w-o-n-d-e-r-f-u-l. Cold, but I was warm, and it was still.... save a bit of wind, an occasional creaking tree and the sound of leaves finally letting go and landing on the hardened snow. Balance found.
My sister arrives from Maine on Saturday and we move our mom on Monday. She'll be a bit closer to me and will receive more appropriate care for her memory issues. It's weighing heavy on me today though I know it's the right thing to do.
January... named after the two-faced Roman god Janus. With one face looking to the past, and the other to the future we're reminded of what has been and start to think about what will become, but ultimately the reminder is to live in the present, and to be present.
I can't help but think back on all the knitting I did in 2009, see some of my favorites! I wish you all a joyous 2010. Knit on good women & Happy New Year!
Warmly,
Martha.
