Anime Iowa - Thursday

I decided to make an account of the entire weekend, so updates will lag behind a day or two.

Thursday Pre-Flight:

In D/FW Airport, awaiting my flight to Iowa. The T-Mobile hot spot charges $10 for a day pass, so I have to go without Ravelry while I sit here. After receiving a charge of $15 to check my suitcase (and knowing I will have to pay another $15 on the way back), my financial prospects look dim for the weekend. So much for trying to treat myself with a skein of yarn from an LYS in the area!

Carrie and I have done a lot of work for the charity auction on Saturday. We are supposed to be on the same flight, but I am early and haven't seen her yet. Every time we run an auction, I am astounded at the sheer amount of time we have to spend getting signature lists, chasing down actors and figuring out pricing. This sounds incredibly boring when I see it typed out, but I can't help feeling satisfied and excited when everything is displayed. I hope all goes well. Carrying unsold items home is a huge disappointment.

Craft-wise, I am considering putting a project aside for work-knitting. There is no time to do such things on a regular basis, but I always knit when I am in the booth recording. No one seems to mind the clicking of needles in between lines. Perhaps next year I will plan a garter-stitch scarf to start in January. I will force myself not to work on it unless the need arises. This way, I will have a year's worth of shows and characters stored in the stitches; a knitted memory of sorts.

This brings up another idea. I typically relegate certain types of projects to specific situations. Simple stitch patterns are for social gatherings at home, socks are for times when I travel and complicated colorwork or lace stays at home or keeps me occupied when I can fully concentrate. My life is based on the security of routines, so why not plan projects around regular day-to-day events? I could create hats and gloves when the weekly gatherings with Michael and Joshua resume. Every time I wear the item in question, this will bring back memories of watching Doctor Who, drinking too much red wine and talking about everything and nothing until someone checks their watch and exclaims at the obscene hour. I could have a project I work on only during the times I travel to conventions, such as today. I assume this will be an easy sock project that will remind me of reuniting with old friends, making new ones and visiting strange places filled with brightly-colored costumes and the indistinguishable chatter of hundreds of voices at the same time. Most conventions pass by in the blink of an eye, so trapping each moment into a tiny stitch is a way to slow down just long enough to enjoy myself. I am so busy living in the future that I forget sometimes.

Thursday Post-Flight:

After rejoicing at the prospect of rainy weather on my dying lawn, I should have realized this was not a good sign of things to come during a flight. Turbulence was horrible and caused a poor little girl in front of me to get sick. Once the smell hit the cabin, I had to strengthen my resolve not to follow the vomit train to its destination.

We were picked up and quickly whisked to a food co-op to get some healthy snacks before hitting the hotel. I bought a bottle of wine (yeah, real healthy), but no corkscrew (typical). After joking about finding an LYS, I spotted one within the same complex. After begging the staff to take me back there on Saturday, I checked into the hotel, said hello to a few people, and piddled with charity auction items. When I picked up my badge and bag of goodies, I met a number of people, including Laura, who works on staff and is responsible for the Knit Like a Pirate website. Knowing there are knitters present makes me feel far more comfortable in a strange place.