RIGHT NOW, HELL LOOKS GOOD

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I'm in Cleveland, the temperature is 11 degrees. It feels like - 20. I've turned up the heat, and I keep popping up to check the thermostat - it can't be working right. I know, there are many people in even colder temps, but that doesn't matter - I"M COLD.

Florida never appealed to me before. I visited my grandparents in Orlando several times (both before Disney invaded, and after - I'll have to blog about that sometime), and it was muggy and full of bugs. Right now, I would give anything on the planet to be there.

I recently knit a shawl. I know, that's so retro, but it feels good right now. As long as my upper arms and upper back are covered, I feel warm. This is the second one I've made recently, and it does a great job of trapping the body heat. I knit it a little loose, using the following pattern I developed.

Use large needles. You want a stretchy, loose knit.

Cast on 240 stitches, knit 1, purl 1 for the first row. Then, in the next row, reverse that, to create a popcorn stitch. Do that for 8-10 rows, whatever looks good to you.

Then, knit 4, purl 2 to the end of the row. Next row, purl 4, knit 2 to the end. Repeat . At the beginning and end of every 5 rows, knit or purl 2 together. After the shawl reaches about 15-18 inches in length, start knitting or purling 2 together every 3 rows at the ends. Do that for another foot. Then knit or purl 2 together every row.