Best Quote I Heard All Day
History is the version of past events that people have decided to agree upon.--Napoleon Bonaparte

Funny how now that Reagan's dead, the media forgives all.

Knit List History OR YMBAKLOT
The past few days the Knit List has had a thread about KL old timers or, as they abbreviate it, as they must incessantly do, YMBAKLOT (You Must Be A Knit List Old Timer).

Yeah, I am one of them old timers. It was nice to be mentioned in a couple of the posts. Of course, I don't post on the KL anymore, but I do have fond memories of the old list, when it ran off of the UMN server and there were probably not more than a thousand or so people on it.

When I first joined KL in 1996, it was run by Jill McAllister. A bunch of excellent knitters were on the list, people like Avital Pinnick, Chris Erickson, Liz Clouthier, Kim Salazar, and piles of people who not only knew their stuff but spent time writing about it. I believe our own QueerJoe was also on the list back then, although I more remember ignoring Leigh Wichel's lengthy, egocentric posts as the list's Pet Gay Boy.

Sure, there were interminable posts about Peeps, people's illnesses, and Marie's ratties, but by and large, it was a comfortable community where people generally asked intelligent questions. None of this constant "I'm going to Kalamazoo, does anyone know any LYS there?" crap. I do remember starting a flame war about Martha Stewart, since as far as I'm concerned, she's still a Jersey girl from Nutley who's forgotten her roots.

Many of the original people who posted no longer do. And little wonder why, since the dumbing-down of knitting is clearly manifested on the Knit List, as well as on Knit U. When people are too damned lazy to Google, they don't deserve spoon feeding from those of us who are industrious.

I started my original web site in 1998 as a shelter from the sticky-sweet morass that the KL had become. This blog is a continuation of that. I rant about the dumbing-down of knitting because my philosophy in life, given to me by my 5th grade teacher, Mr. Laskowich, is: "If you want to be a garbageman, be the best garbageman you can be."

And to answer the KL poster who asked who were the Evil Twins: Chris Erickson and Lisa Schweitzer (did I get her last name right, Chris?). In case anyone wants to know.

The best thing I got from being on the KL was my friendship with Chris. Scarcely a day goes by that we don't e-mail each other back and forth. We've shared an awful lot over the past seven years besides knitting. I've met her in person once--she lives in Michigan, I live in New Jersey. But I couldn't have a better friend.

Born To Run
NJ's state anthem. Really, it was once proposed in Trenton. Never got anywhere.

The other day, when it was 95 degrees and I had to run to the supermarket, I drove out the back of my complex onto Alphano Road. Never mind what you see on The Sopranos, New Jersey is a lovely state if you know it well. Right off of Alphano Road is a massive valley that was obviously once a lake but is now filled with sod farms (and Godlewsky's Nursery, with great plants and great prices).

I had the camera in my bag and I couldn't resist taking a picture, which doesn't do the lush green justice.

And then it was back to my little townhouse.


I don't open the door to Jehovah's Witnesses but I do give out candy on Hallowe'en.

It's rare and handy, my little fiber nest.