Sunday at Work?

I spent a couple of hours yesterday at work holding a craft activity at the museum. Our first visitor was a little girl who made a gingerbread man using iron on felt to a quilted background. He was very cute. Sometime later a man stopped by and also made a gingerbread man. In between those visitors were able to knit. I got about 3 inches done on the last sock I need for a Christmas gift.

We were joined for part of the time by a museum volunteer, who needed help in making her sock. She had made socks many years ago, but had seen me using some self striping yarn and decided to try again using the new yarn. She was also wanted to try constructing a heel in the method that I usually use, which is an after thought heel. Just knit in the round using a number of stitches that can be divided by four. When you reach the area that you would do a normal heel with a heel flap and gusset, just knit one half the stitches using a contrasting color of yarn. Turn, then purl back on those stitches. When you reach the end, drop the contrasting yarn, pick up the main yarn and continue knitting in the round. Finish the toe as usually. Now back to the heel. Pick up those stitches on either side of the contrasting yarn and knit another toe.

While we knit, she was telling us about her upcoming vacation to visit her sister. They will be meeting in Quebec. She also spoke about the last time they met there, when they were both in their mid-seventies. They attended a winter carnival, where they tobogganed and ice skated. Of course, they had to rent their equipment and wanted a senior rate. But, not too many seniors wanted to rent anything, so their was no rate in place, so instead they were given the children's rate. Can you imagine 70+ year old women, skating and sledding with families of their grand children's age. What characters, good for them, I hope I can do the same thing at their age.