Several months ago, I read about the West Coast Men's Knitting Retreat in Seattle, Washington. Since I am "Small Town Knit Guy" and the only man in our local Knit and Crochet group, I thought, "How nice it would be to get together with other men who knit. However, being a public school teacher with an obsessive yarn habit, I knew a cross country trip was out of the question. Then an unexpected surprise came. About two weeks ago, a scholarship contest was announced for the Men's Fall Knitting Retreat (MFKR). All it took was a nomination from someone who knew you or yourself. Not being one to toot my own horn to get a prize, my wife nominated me. For those who are on Ravelry, the nomination can be seen on the Fiber Beat page there.
Now comes the waiting. August 6th was the deadline for nominations and I was checking Ravelry and Fiber Beat website everyday, to read the other nominations and check for news. I left last Sunday afternoon to visit friends in Fredericksburg, VA. My wife and I busied ourselves with shopping and talking with old friends. I got some great deals on yarn: novelty, beaded, Patons SWS, and the real find of the week....At the Goodwill store, my friend's daughter found a cooler full of yarn (I was teaching them how to knit while we visited). She wanted the yarn for knitting practice, lots of worsted on top of the cooler. Her mom said 10.99 was too much, so she came to find me. Upon digging through the cooler, which was taped across the top (no lid) I found a cone of lace weight yarn, A 5 POUND CONE of lace weight yarn!!! (and a little white lace weight wound in a 3 strand ball. Needless to say we bought the yarn cooler. I gave the girls the worsted and I took all the lace. What a find!!
So back to the scholarship...On Tuesday night, in between shopping, talking and knitting, I checked all the sites again. The Scholarship committee chair wanted my phone number. I gave it to him and said I would await his call. To make a very long story short: my wife's nomination won me the scholarship!!!. I can't believe that in a month I will be attending the MFKR in Seattle, WA. In Small Town Murfreesboro, NC, I am the only man I know that knits. Now I finally get to meet others who share my passion for knitting. Check back for updates as the Retreat approaches.
Now comes the waiting. August 6th was the deadline for nominations and I was checking Ravelry and Fiber Beat website everyday, to read the other nominations and check for news. I left last Sunday afternoon to visit friends in Fredericksburg, VA. My wife and I busied ourselves with shopping and talking with old friends. I got some great deals on yarn: novelty, beaded, Patons SWS, and the real find of the week....At the Goodwill store, my friend's daughter found a cooler full of yarn (I was teaching them how to knit while we visited). She wanted the yarn for knitting practice, lots of worsted on top of the cooler. Her mom said 10.99 was too much, so she came to find me. Upon digging through the cooler, which was taped across the top (no lid) I found a cone of lace weight yarn, A 5 POUND CONE of lace weight yarn!!! (and a little white lace weight wound in a 3 strand ball. Needless to say we bought the yarn cooler. I gave the girls the worsted and I took all the lace. What a find!!
So back to the scholarship...On Tuesday night, in between shopping, talking and knitting, I checked all the sites again. The Scholarship committee chair wanted my phone number. I gave it to him and said I would await his call. To make a very long story short: my wife's nomination won me the scholarship!!!. I can't believe that in a month I will be attending the MFKR in Seattle, WA. In Small Town Murfreesboro, NC, I am the only man I know that knits. Now I finally get to meet others who share my passion for knitting. Check back for updates as the Retreat approaches.
Congrats, Rusty! When I heard the news, I knew you'd be thrilled. Have a great time!
ReplyDeleteRusty, as a small town knitter guy myself, I know what that kind of isolation is like. I hope you have a great time with the guys. You'll come back inspired, recharged, challenged and totally fired up. (And they're a great group of guys, to boot.)
ReplyDeleteI love seeing people so excited about things! This will be my first time at the retreat to be with other male knitters. It will be a pleasure to meet you.
ReplyDelete-wyett