Once again, it’s the sailor’s life for me…..sailing down the Chesapeake, watching the season gently change to fall down here, getting back to knitting.
We spent a week getting to Hampton and Norfolk, Virginia, where we’ve been stalled for almost a week. There is a lot to do here. In Norfolk we visited the Nauticus Museum which includes the battleship Wisconsin which served in the Pacific in WWII as well as in the Korean War, Viet Nam and Desert Storm. Long history. Across the harbor from Norfolk is Portsmouth, and one night we went to see the movie “Captain Phillips” at a lovely restored theatre there. I doubt there are many places more perfect for seeing this movie, with the harbor full of the same commercial and military ships that participated in those terrifying events.
I have found it rather depressing to see so much real estate and equipment devoted to war, but the alternative is equally depressing…. There is also a memorial to General MacArthur in Norfolk which we visited.
We have had a quick trip home to Connecticut to say goodbye to our favorite Uncle Dick, who has passed away after a long illness. He spent much of the past two years in a hospital, which is tragic for anyone, but especially so for someone who was so full of spunk and life. His funeral was probably the most upbeat funeral I will ever attend. We celebrated his quirky sense of humor and remembered all the practical jokes he participated in during his 60-year marriage and the rearing of their five children. It was great to see all the cousins and their expanding families. That is certainly the upside of losing someone….pulling in the long tethers of family and friends who are dispersed for so much of the time.
I spend some of each day knitting. My sister and I are knitting sweaters for her two daughters. They are matching sweaters, but each in its own colorway of Adriafil Knitcol yarn, so they look quite different! It’s wonderful to be knitting with my sister again, even though it’s somewhat vicarious, through texts and phone calls, since we are not physically with each other. The sweaters are Polly Macc’s Brother/Sister design, and they are turning out really cute! The short sequence, space dyed yarns are so much cuter than what was used for the cover of the pattern booklet!
We each have enough yarn left over to make matching hats, and I’m thinking hard about a design that will have ear flaps and long ties, maybe pom poms on the ends of the ties….maybe with I-cord as a border… on the days when I have internet access I am enjoying searching for idea inspiration on Ravelry.
It’s raining this morning, so we are just sitting here having coffee, enjoying the internet. Probably this afternoon we will venture back past Norfolk to enter the IntraCoastal Waterway for the final leg of the journey to Beaufort. We should be there in about a week. Then I’ll head home….
