Early Start on Winter

I'm getting an early start on winter. Found a bag of stash in the closet, and I'm now working on a pair of blue wool ankle warmers. I think I've still got a bag of ankle warmers in the car, so if you encounter me at the postoffice or farmer's market, and you're feeling a spring chill, I can take care of you.

Most of my ankle warmers are made of synthetic threads, acrylics, but a few pairs are knit with wool yarn. Wool demands special care in washing, so if you'd rather not bother, stick with a synthetic thread. Some folks are allergic to wool, but if you are, you probably already know it.

Knitting as Fast as I Can

I'm knitting as fast as I can, and can hardly keep up. The warmers in "Aspen Print," a muted camouflage, are more popular than I would have imagined. I'm getting better about sewing up the finished knitted warmers.

I like the knitting, because my fingers go on automatic pilot and my brain is spinning up another chapter in my current book project. Knitting is fun, sewing is tedious.

It's All in the Name

It's all in the name. Next season, I'm going to offer "boot toppers" to my writing friends. Men get cold ankles, too, but they are loathe to don anything so sissy-sounding as ankle warmers.

Gotta educate those guys.

Some people LOVE ankle warmers.

About ankle warmers, there are only TWO points of view.

I take a perverse pleasure in observing how some people respond to the offer of a pair of ankle warmers. Some people are very hesitant about accepting even a gift of ankle warmers. I can see their minds working to formulate a way they can graciously decline without hurting my feelings.

The people with the other point of view really LOVE having something to keep their ankles warm. One friend who received a pair sent a message that she had hardly had the ankle warmers off for three days (of inclement weather). Another friend e-mailed that she wanted to buy two more pairs!

Well, the ankle warmers are for sale, in exchange for a contribution to the Kansas Authors Club District 2 Conference 2010 fund.

And I'll keep knitting and writing. Three or four dozen pairs of ankle warmers, and a 95% finished "cozy" mystery manuscript, not a bad accomplishment for 2008. And I have a design for 2009!

My Newest Poem

I sit
and knit.

Lots of ankle warmers. Last month I went to hear Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, who has made an astonishing writing career about knitting. She has written several books about knitting. Not how to knit. Not how-to books with patterns and instructions, but about what sets knitters apart from non-knitters.

I knit. A lot. I knit with a writing pad on my lap. If a stray thought about the book I'm trying to write comes into my head, I hasten to get it down on paper. While waiting for stray thoughts, I knit.

Sadly, I must be getting more knitting than writing done. Why else would I have bushel baskets full of ankle warmers? And I've only gotten to page ten on the novel I'm writing.

THE MAN IN YOUR LIFE HAS COLD FEET?

He needs a pair of camouflage ankle warmers.

These are fun to knit. It's fascinating to watch the greens and tans and browns and blacks meld into a pair of cool (no, not cool, but warm) ankle warmers.

If the guy in your life has cold feet, maybe he needs a pair of camouflage ankle warmers.

EVERYBODY NEEDS A PAIR -- MAYBE TWO

Don't go around all winter with freezing ankles. You know the feeling -- your toes may be, well, not warm and comfy, at a temperature barly tolerable, but your ankles . . . with only the thin protection of your socks . . . while the frigid winds whip under your pants cuff . . . it's enough to shiver your timbers.



Your ankles need a pair of ankle warmers. Where can you get ankle warmers? I knit mine. Any color I want.



My favorite pair are blue. I dressed hastily one morning. Instead of hiding my ankle warmers under the cuff of my socks, I pulled them up over the legs of my jeans. Thought I looked dumb. Kept my boots under the table. Even in a drafty room, my ankles stayed warm. Was so relaxed, I forgot I was wearing them.



We engaged in friendly conversation when we rose to depart. I was surprised at Marian's question: "Where did you get your legwarmers?"



My reply: "What color do you want?"



Blue is her favorite color as well. I knit two pairs, one pair slightly bigger. Now Marian can be toasty warm, top to bottom. Like me.