An act of petty cruelty

 I witnessed an act of petty cruelty today that has left me rather shaken. 

I was at Jay Cooke State Park, walking down to the swinging bridge to get my weekly photo, when I saw two teenage girls watching the tiniest snake I’ve ever seen sunning itself on the sidewalk. From where I was, about 10-15 feet away, it looked like an earthworm.  Suddenly, a woman returning from the bridge walked right up to the girls, looked down, and deliberately stomped on the baby snake. I looked right into her face and noticed three things: she had dark hair, she was wearing a black sundress, and she was grinning as she walked away.

"Oh, I think she might’ve just killed it!" one of the teenagers exclaimed in dismay. 

"Is it a snake?" I asked when I reached them a couple of seconds later.  The proportions were all wrong for an earthworm. Far too slender and quick-moving to be a worm.  

"Yes," the girl answered as she walked slowly away.  

The snake, which was no more than 4" long and maybe 1/4" wide, didn't appear badly damaged. I didn't see any blood, but it flipped momentarily onto its back, exposing its red belly, which is not the behavior of a healthy snake.   I spent a few moments moving the snake off the sidewalk - it was so tiny I couldn't get ahold of it on the cement, so I scooted it off the sidewalk and into the grass where I was finally able to pick it up and place it in the shade, where it could either recover or die unmolested.  

That woman's actions harmed and probably painfully killed a tiny harmless snake (her behavior may well have been illegal, too - killing wildlife in a state park?), but horrified three other people who aren't going to forget her vicious act.  

I will be honest: I wanted to assault that woman. And call her obscene names.  But I did neither because I was just frozen.

... In which the family makes mixed media postcards together

Reverse side (modified rubber stamp)

My family is fortunate enough to live near my favorite place in the world: Lake Superior.  Chris and I have been coming up to Duluth since before we got married (and in fact, when we got stressed out from wedding planning, we escaped up here the weekend before the wedding).

Then, almost 2 years ago, I started a photography project, taking a weekly photo at Minnesota Point, a park/neighborhood in Duluth that separates Lake Superior from Superior Bay.  At the end of the year, I created a slide show that puts a year of the stark beauty of the place on display:

A big social outlet for me is a group on Ravelry (a site for knitters/crocheters) called Remrants, and they do a "RAK" (Random Act of Kindness) postcard exchange every summer.  On a whim, I decided to sign up, and I had the great idea to make our own postcards. I wanted it to be modeled after the photos in the slide show, and I wanted to incorporate sand collected from that beach, and paint it using watercolors moistened with actual lake water collected from that spot. I had also wanted to use leaves from that bush, but that didn't work out.  

Kivi's block and initial print.

But somewhere along the way, my daughter joined in the planning. She had taken a print-making class her senior year at University, and and I don't know if it was her idea or mine, but she hand-carved a block depicting the bush (without leaves) and a few wisps of beach grass. I LOVED it.   She also hand-carved a tiny ore-carrier ship out of an eraser, which I loved, too.  

Samples of paint, print, and sand.

We made a trip out to the point to collect some sand and water, and ... Kivi and I made a few test samples, and ... then I trouble getting it going. 

Finally, we got set up and had set aside weekend time to knock them out.  I went for a walk, and when I returned, I found that Kivi had gotten started with the water colors (and yes, she used lake water to moisten the paint), and invited her dad to join her, and between the two of them, they'd finished half of the 32 I needed (31 for the exchange, and one extra). And to my delight, no two were alike. They'd experimented with the (lake) watercolors, seeing what kind of sky/water/beach effects worked best.   

The next day, I did the remaining 16, continuing their experimentation.  Once everything was dry, Kivi did the printing, continuing to experiment and hone her skills.  After the ink had dried for 24 hours, Chris and I did the leaves using acrylic paints and dotting tools in one evening.  Then in two more evenings, I spread glue and sprinkled sand on the beach.  

It's funny - I can see where each of us brought our own talents to the table. Chris was clearly the bolder leaf-maker, willing to push the technique in dramatic ways. I got some good ones myself, but mostly because I emulated what he was doing.  The watercolors had moments of beauty from each of us (but it's often hard to identify which were done by a specific person) and of course, there's Kivi's print.  It ended up being fun, kind of a pain in the ass, but satisfying, too.

Here are all 32 (click to enlarge):

The time Chris jumped over a cliff in pursuit of a bear

Chris and I got married in April of 1997, and two weeks later, we went on a pretty awesome honeymoon - a 17-day 6700 mile (10,800 km) road trip from our home in central Missouri, to Los Angeles, then up the Pacific Coast (Highway 1/101) to Vancouver, then home again. We stopped at national parks or forests in Colorado, Utah, California, Oregon and Wyoming.

Somewhere in the Pacific Northwest in the early evening, when I was sleepily gazing out the window at the lovely views, Chris suddenly screeched to a halt and pulled over.  

"What are you doing?" I asked, feeling a bit more awake.

Chris had already unbuckled and was on his knees facing backward, grabbing for his camera in the back seat. "Bear," he muttered, and was out the door, which he didn't even bother to close, leaving it hanging open.

I watched him sprint across the road, put one hand on the guard rail, and vault over it, dropping straight down, and out of sight.  

My heart skipped a beat. Did Chris just jump off a cliff? 

Hoping I wasn't a widow after only two weeks of marriage, I got out, walked around the car and closed his door. Then I walked across the road and peered over the guard rail.   

Fortunately, the drop wasn't nearly as precipitous as it'd appeared from the car - only dropping four or five feet, then forming a steep slope that, with care, a person could pretty easily traverse. Chris - clearly in one piece - was already at the bottom of the slope, and was scurrying toward the woods.  

I watched him disappear into the woods, and waited for him to come back.  It was probably only a couple of minutes, but it felt like forever, but he emerged from the woods, and picked his way back up to me.

"Did you see the bear again?  Did you get any photos?" I asked, relieved he was safe.

"Yeah, I saw him. I took a couple. Don't know if they'll turn out." 

I shook my head, and ruefully told him how it looked like he'd jumped off a cliff, and we laughed together.

Alas, the photos didn't turn out. The bear was nothing more than a dark blur - not even recognizable as a bear. Chris was disappointed.  

We moved to New Jersey in 1999, and sometime in the early 2000s we heard there was a bear in our rural area, but we never saw it.  We moved to Minnesota in 2004, but bears tended to avoid the Minneapolis suburbs, and the only wildlife we ever saw were the stray cats, possums, and raccoons that enjoyed our compost pile. 

When we moved to northern Minnesota in 2020, we knew that bears were more common up here than near the Twin Cities, so Chris's hopes were renewed, and finally, last summer, when he was driving through the lovely Cloquet Forestry Center on his way home from town, Chris saw a bear on the road. There was no traffic, so Chris stopped in the middle of the road, held up his phone, and snapped three photos before the bear ambled off into the woods. This time (probably because the photos turned out), he didn't bother following the bear into the woods and simply continued on his way. 

Chris's first successful photo of a bear in the wild.
Black bear in the Cloquet Forestry Center in July 2023

However, this summer our next-door neighbors have been seeing a young bear in their yard and even captured a few videos, much to our (good-natured) jealousy. We very much hoped it would make its way into our yard, too, and yesterday, it did!  I was enjoying my morning coffee when movement near the compost pile just outside my coffeehouse window caught my eye; at first, I thought it was a black dog, but I didn't know of any black dogs in our neighborhood. I leaned over to get a better vantage and ... 

"Oh! Bear!" I whispered and fumbled for my phone. The young bear, which was maybe the size of a German shepherd, heard me through the open window, and by the time I'd located my phone, the startled (and very shy) bear was running away, and I got only one good look at it before it disappeared into the woods on the other side of the gravel road. I didn't even have time to launch the camera app.

I went outside and across our driveway into the house to tell my husband what I'd seen, and he immediately followed me and looked around the area.  

"Next time, be quiet," he lectured me, "and get a picture!" 

"You could set up a game camera," I suggested.  

"That's a good idea," he answered, and set one up in the arbor vitae next to the compost pile.

No bear pics yet, but I'll update this article if we do get one.  For now, you can read up on Ursus americanus.

Knitting Pattern: The Riveter

Note: Click on any image below to enlarge it.

Me, modeling the kerchief

Inspired by the famous Rosie-the-Riveter "We Can Do It!" poster from World War 2, I designed a knitted version of the red-and-white polka-dotted kerchief worn by Rosie:

J. Howard Miller, 1942
Public Domain

During WW2, millions of men were sent overseas to fight the Nazis, leaving labor shortages stateside, and American women rose to the occasion and and began doing traditionally-male jobs. Even women who didn't work outside the home entered the workforce (some for the first time), making massive contributions to the American economy and the war effort, helping the Allies win the war. 

Rosie the Riveter (Vultee), 1943.
Public Domain

Besides Miller's 1942 "We Can Do It!" propaganda poster, there were other posters and ads released encouraging women to join the workforce. Much of the propaganda assumed that it was temporary - that once our men came back from the war, the Rosies would leave the workforce and return to the home:

Monsanto Ad, 1943.
Public Domain.

And many were forced out of the workforce, but in the end, only temporarily (today, women make up 58% of the American workforce).

There was even a song about Rosie:

Today Rosie is a feminist icon representing the women who strive not just to get by, but their efforts to create a world in which we are *equal* partners to the men in our lives, that we can do anything we set our minds to ... even holding the highest office in our land. 

I am using this pattern as a fundraiser for Kamala Harris. Between now and election day (November 5, 2024), I am giving the pattern away for free to incentivize people to donate the difference (or whatever you can afford) to the Kamala Harris campaign.

Here is how to donate:

1. Send a donation directly to her campaign (here’s one place you can send money: https://kamalaharris.com/ ).
2. Optional: Send me a message telling me about your donation so I can squeal in excitement. <3

Be careful where and how you donate so you don't inadvertently donate to a scammer. Act Blue is handling donations for Vice President Harris's website at https://kamalaharris.com. If you prefer to type it yourself, it's https: // Kamala Harris. com but without spaces. However, you MUST spell her name correctly. If you misspell it, a fake anti-Harris page loads.

If you have any questions about the pattern, ask your question in a comment at the bottom of this post, along with your email address. I have comment moderation turned on, and will reach out to you privately via email, then I'll delete your comment without publishing it, to avoid exposing your email address to spammers.  If you are on Ravelry, you may also choose to reach out to me via PM.

You may (of course!) also choose to simply download the pattern without donating. Here is the link to download it (after Election Day, I'm raising the price to $7):  download from Ravelry for free.

Liberty Ship Scaler, 1943. You can see a scarf peaking out
from under her hard hat. Public Domain

Women at work on a bomber, 1942
Public Domain

About the pattern:

Note: This pattern has not been tech-edited (yet!) and has only been partially tested. I'm a tech writer by trade, so it's in good (if not perfect) shape. If you find an error, I'd LOVE it if you'd let me know, so I can fix it sooner rather than later.

The headscarf is knitted flat from the bottom up, and is intended to be custom-fit to the wearer as you knit it (and so I recommend you use a 24" (70cm) circular needles rather than long straights). 

You can use any yarn weight, from light fingering up to heavy worsted/Aran, and the white polka-dots are represented with beads (I like the white pearlescent ones as a nod to Kamala's pearls, but any color is fine), either pony beads for heavier yarn, or large seed beads for thinner yarn, and the border and ties are knitted in seed stitch to echo the original offset polka-dot design. 

The pattern includes:

• Written and charted instructions.
• Two different very simple lace patterns to choose from (a plain one that looks more like the poster, and a diamond lace pattern that hints at a bandanna design).
• A three-tie version that allows you to tie it at the top of the head as Rosie does, and also at the nape, and a two-tie version that ties only at the nape.
• Blank chart for your own designs.

Techniques used in the pattern:

• Increases
• Beading as you go
• Long-tail cast on (LTCO)
• Cable CO knit / purl

Wearing it like Rosie

There are a couple of ways to tie the kerchief:

Clockwise from upper left.

1. Drape the kerchief around your shoulders, right-side DOWN, bottom tie dangling down your back, top ties draped in front of your shoulders. 
2. Bring the top ties up to the top of your head, and tie them (single cross only) like a headband.
3. Pull the bottom tie up the back of your head, and forward, tucking it under the top ties, and pulling it forward so it drapes in front of your nose.  Neaten and flip the edges so they aren't inside-out.  Tighten the top ties so they are both secure and comfortable
4. Flip the bottom tie from your nose, over the top ties so that it's pointing toward the back of your head
5. Tie the top ties again, this time over the bottom tie.
6. Neaten, tighten, artfully tuck.

Here's a video tutorial. The tying starts at about 27 seconds in, if you want to skip forward:

Another way to get to the same end result:

1. Drape the kerchief on your head right-side UP, with the top ties at your shoulders, and the bottom tie draping down over your face/nose.
2. Pick up the top ties and draw them up to the top of your head, and tie them (single cross only), so that they hold down the bottom tie. Release the top ties so they drape on either side of your head.
3. Pick up the bottom tie from your nose, and flip it back over the top ties, so that it points toward the back of your head.
4. Pick up the top ties again, and tie them in a knot. From there, pick up with step 6 in the first set of instructions

And finally - admire your results!

Anna Bland at work on
USS George Washington Carver, 1943.
Public Domain

Welder works on aircraft parts at
Offutt Air Force Base, NE, 1940s.
Public Domain

All Things Knitting

My Available Designs

• The Riveter (free until Election Day, requesting campaign donation).
• The Argus Hat: Pattern, Custom Fitting the Argus Hat (for sale)
• A Beanie BB-8 (unfinished, not for sale)
• Mighty Marty American Doll and Cat Apron (free, but request a charitable donation)
• The Sherlockian (free, but request a charitable donation)

My Unpublished/Unfinished Designs (must have a Ravelry account for access the links, but there are some select photos at the bottom of this post):

• MVP
• The Wild Rumpus Hat
• The Stegosaurus Shawlette
• The Deathly Hallows Illusion Hat
• The Electric Pool Party Hat
• The Iris Tam

General Knitting Techniques used in my designs:

• Knitting Increases
• Beading as you go
• Long-tail cast on (LTCO)
• Cable CO knit / purl

Miscellaneous Knitting Techniques:

• Periodicity TOC: Variegated Yarn Technique Series (unfinished, but includes good info).
• Gradient yarn blending, and applying it to a pattern
• PomPom Magic - Part I: Stripes
• PomPom Magic - Part II: Going Dotty and Losing Your Marbles

Miscellaneous Knitting Stories and Other Stuff:

• My Knitting Yarn (AKA: how I got into knitting)
• My Yarn Books
• Hats, photos, and my address book
• Knitting is some dark magic

Irrelevant/Outdated Knitting Articles:

• Call for Test knitters: The Riveter Headscarf (you know the one - Rosie's "We Can Do It!" red and white scarf)

A Selection of My Best knits:

The Argus Hat (my design, link above)

The Riveter (my design, link above)

Wild Rumpus Hat (my design, unpublished)

Iris Tam (my design, unpublished)

The Argus Hat (my design, link above)

Sean's Simple Harvest

Chad's Chouette

My Salem Slouch

Norberta Shawlette

A Trio of Jayne Cobb Hats

Paul's R2D2 Hat

Wonder Woman Wrap

Knitting Techniques - Increases

I most often use m1 and kfb increases in my patterns (I'll add to this page when or if I ever use other increases in my patterns.

Make 1 (m1)

First, a pneumonic: "I left through the front door, but I'll be right back." I didn't come up with that - I read it on Ravelry somewhere, but it's a lifesaver. Left-leaning M1s (both M1L and M1PL) are worked by inserting the left needle from front to back.  Right-leaning M1s (both M1R and M1PR) are worked by inserting the left needle from back to front.

Conceptually, all m1s are made the same way: 

• Lifting the top strand of yarn that connects the last stitch knitted (on right needle) to the next stitch to be knitted (on the left needle)
• Placing the strand on the left needle (it looks a little like a tight yarn over at this point)
• Working the strand as if it were a twisted stitch.

Note: to borrow from Debbie Stoller's description of how to twist (or not twist) a stitch:

• When knitting normally, you always knit or purl through the leading leg (ie, the portion of the loop that is farther to the right).  This may or may not help, but to me leading leg appears longer than the trailing leg when doing M1s or working YOs on the next row. When working a normal stitch (not an increase) this is typically described as the front leg.  
• When you wish to twist a stitch, you knit or purl through the trailing (or shorter) leg. When it's a regular stitch, it's often called the back loop (ex: k tbl).

Make 1 Left (M1L) or Make 1 Purl Left (M1PL) - "I left through the front door":

• Lift the top strand connecting the last stitch on the right needle and the first stitch on the left needle by inserting your left needle from FRONT to back under that strand. 
• Knit or Purl as appropriate through the trailing leg, which happens to be the back leg in this case.

Make 1 Right (M1R) or Make 1 Purl Right (M1PR) - "but I'll be right back":

• Lift the top strand connecting the last stitch on the right needle and the first stitch on the left needle by inserting your left needle from BACK to front under that strand.
• Knit or Purl as appropriate through the trailing leg, which happens to be the front leg in this case.

For more info on M1 increases (including pictures) see:

• Knits: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/make-one-right-m1r-make-one-left-m1l/
• Purls: https://blog.tincanknits.com/2024/03/20/m1p-how-to-make-1-purl-stitch/

Knit-Front-Back (kfb)

• Insert the right needle into the front loop (leading leg) of the stitch but, leave the stitch on the left needle.
• Insert the right needle into the back loop (trailing leg) and knit. 
• Slip both stitches to right needle.

As American as Apple Pie - Armchair Critics and Simone Biles

Agência Brasil Fotografias,
Creative Commons Attribution 2.0

    There are few things more American than apple pie, but apparently one of them is to criticize others.  (Oddly, the people who seem most likely to say, "You have no right to judge me!" frequently seem to be the same ones who don't hesitate to judge others. But I digress.) But there's a person out there who is being judged, and judged, and judged. Not just on balance beam, but in the court of public opinion.

    I'm talking about a woman whom I idolize just a little bit: Simone Biles, who though she be but little, she is fierce.  She's our very own GOAT (Greatest of All Time for my older readers) gymnast, who at 27 is still winning gold in a sport where people start to wash out by 20.  

    But just in the last several weeks, I've seen people criticize Simone Biles for:

1. Her hair

    Apparently, people think her hair needs to be perfect when she's flying through the air at the Olympics, and at her wedding a year or so ago.   The only appropriate thing to say to a woman at her wedding is, "You look GREAT, and I'm so happy for you!" or as she wins a gold medal at the Paris-freaking-Olympics, it's "You did GREAT, and I'm so proud of you!!!"   And seriously, if people are criticizing her lovely thick hair, what must they think of my unkempt, frizzy, graying, and quite obviously thinning hair? 

2. Her medals

    Holy shit, people are angry because her husband (while wearing her medal) posed for a picture with her. It was cute and funny, and don't you remember that in the 1950s, girls wore their boyfriend's letter jackets? Hell, I came up in the 1980s, and girls were STILL borrowing letter jackets from their dates.  Yeah, it's hers, and yeah, he's wearing it, but honestly, you think people are going to get confused who earned it? That if he puts it on and dreams of winning gold, that it somehow diminishes her win?  Besides, if she had a problem with him wearing it, I doubt she would have happily posed with him, nor posted the picture (which is really cute and fun).

3. Her attitude on the podium

    I kid you not - in the video of her team atop the podium being awarded the gold medal, the women were standing with their hands on their hearts, eyes sparkling, smiling, excited, and happy.  They gazed respectfully at the flag, but instead of feeling pride and joy on their behalf, people online bitched that the American gymnasts were too snobby to sing along with the anthem, like the athletes from other countries. There is no winning, because if they HAD sung, people would have complained they weren't solemn enough.

4. Dropping out of the LAST Olympics

    Jesus, people, maybe we should just trust Simone when she says it was too dangerous for her to compete.  The "twisties" are a real thing, and they are incredibly dangerous.  When someone is tumbling through the air, they need to know where their body is, and she didn't. I'm no gymnast, but I am a pretty good swimmer (not world-class by any means, but I did the swim team and lifeguarding thing), and one time I was once playing in the ocean and got tumbled by a wave, and suddenly, I couldn't tell which way was up, I was running out of air, and for a few terrifying moments, I thought I was going to drown in waist-deep water.  Now imagine yourself flying through the air and not knowing where the ground is.  Or imagine driving a car, and your brakes go out.  You really think it's so unreasonable for someone to refuse to drive the car until the brakes are fixed? Yeah, it's a shame she had to drop out, but better that, than sticking the landing on her neck instead of her feet.  Yet, people claimed she failed her country.  I say her country failed her.  People value loyalty so much... yet where was the loyalty to her, one of our greatest athletes?

5. Bringing down Larry Nassar

    She joined the voices accusing the respected Olympic team doctor of sexual abuse.  I really don't get it, but people -- instead of sympathizing with the victims -- often side with the abuser, assuming the victims are just out to get him.  Simone, due to her popularity and success, gets more notice, has more power to be heard.  For many, however, sexual abuse is still something shameful, something to be hidden, and they just cannot approve of the public discussion.  

    In the end, the real issue is that Simone Biles is an outspoken Black woman. She shares memes of her Black job, she claps back at people criticizing her hair, and she puts people in their place when they cross her very reasonable boundaries.  God forbid a woman tell people how to behave, let alone a Black woman.  

    But you know what? She's setting an excellent example for all women, showing us that we no longer need to suffer in silence, that we shouldn't put up with the jerks, that we should take down the abusers, and that she (and we) can set and enforce boundaries.  I don't just idolize her gymnastic talent, but her fierceness, too.  This out-of-shape, middle-aged woman wants to be just like Simone Biles when I grow up.

    I know that with this post, I've joined the ranks of judgemental folks, and yet here I am, clutching my pearls and saying this: you guys can be real assholes. And maybe now I'm one too for saying this next bit, but you need to sit down, shut up, and mind your own damn business.

    And most of all (and I can't believe this needs to be said but apparently it does), when an athlete wins a gold medal, you should be saying things like: "You did GREAT!" or, "Congratulations!" or, "Thank you for your service to our country!"