Last full day in Asheville

Oh yeah- five days of teaching in a row... something millions (or at least many many thousands) of teachers do every single week... it was wonderful, seeing the Lightbulb Moment for so many of my students, learning as much from them as I hope they learned from me, laughing and talking, and knitting...but five days... man, I'm tired.

 I wandered the mall for a bit before my last class began this morning. I'm pretty sure that the above is frah-gee-lay.

 As far as I can tell, the palm trees growing inside the mall are real. And in need of a trim.

I feel the need to duck as I say this, but Chick-Fil-A was a disappointment. The sandwiches weren't bad, but they sure weren't exciting. And the nuggets weren't any better than McDonald's.

On the other hand, this is the *light* serving of Salt and Pepper Catfish fillets (with hush puppies, fries, and 1,000 calorie cake, which has a cheesecake filling) from Harbor Inn. Gotta love North Carolina takeout. And just in case you wondered, I was only able to eat about half of the fish, and about 1/3 of the cake.

Remember Michelle from yesterday's Hat Design class? She went home and knitted her hat last night. This was not only her first original design, it was her very first stranded project! Go Michelle!

Michelle took today's Nordic Stocking class today. Didn't she do wonderfully? And don't be fooled by how much Linda got done- she hadn't knitted in the round for years, and had never done any stranded work. By the end of the class, she was knitting on her own, following the chart, and finding and correcting her own mistakes. She was thrilled and I was thrilled for her.

Sandy didn't want her picture taken again, but she got a lot done on her stocking, especially considering that she was working in the shop, and trying to teach her own students, while taking my class. That's some kind of multitasking (I think she deserves a Major Award!).

The stocking on the left is a class sample, the one on the right is the one I knit during class, and the one in the front is the Object Lesson to be more careful in choosing yarns.

I've had an absolutely wonderful week here in Asheville. Lisa Mackey, of Friends and Fiberworks organized an amazing retreat, and has been great and gracious hostess. Vickie Clontz was a super roommate. Kim Gough did everything she could to drum up interest in my classes. Sandy took classes and steered people my way, and Nancie McCraw dropped in to catch up as often as she could. My students were cheerful and willing, and they all were Well Above Average!

I have my suitcases organized and I'm as ready as I can be for a 4AM  wakeup call. I'll be flying out early, and hopefully getting home in the afternoon. I'll check in as I can.

Oh, tomorrow night is the American Idol Season Premiere- I have no idea whether I'll actually be home on time, and if I am, if I'll have the oomph to watch, much less recap. I'll try to record it and get a recap up as soon as I can.

Too pooped to post

Hoo boy, I'm tired. It's a good tired, it's 4 days of teaching excellent students in a town that I love to visit, but still... tired. So tonight's post is going to be mostly pictures...

Pretty red leaves...

Future azaleas (rhododendrons?)

No shots of the Blue Ridge Mountains because I can only sorta see them in the distance from my motel (or on the walk to the mall).

Hat Designer Michelle.

Stocking Designers Kim and Sandy. Sandy kept saying how bad her design was. Sandy needs new glasses.

One more class tomorrow- an all day Nordic Stocking class, and then I pack up for home. It's been a wonderful week (and I'm not kidding about the Genius Students), but I will say that I'm relieved that I won't be teaching 5 straight days again for awhile...

Winter Retreat Sunday (and a little Saturday)

Yesterday, Vickie and I went to Biltmore Village, which is a group of lovely shops and restaurants just across from the entrance to the Biltmore Estate (sadly, I did not go to Biltmore itself). We ate at an amazing Mediterranean restaurant called Rezaz.

This was my lunch: Atlantic Snapper with mussels in tomato salsa, with fresh steamed spinach. It was fantastic! My only regret was that we couldn't try some of the wines (I had to work later...)

We wandered through Bellagio, which is a cross between a gallery and a boutique. Many many beautiful things!

After our leisurely lunch, we came back to the retreat to teach our afternoon classes. I had a couple of exceptionally creative ladies in my Writing Patterns for Publication class. I expect to see their work in print very soon!

Today, I had a six hour steeking class, one that I dusted off after a 5 year hiatus. It went extremely well.

Behold: New Steekists!

After class, I walked over to Papas and Beer for Shrimp Enchilandas Mazatlan and a dark local beer.

I didn't notice, when I ordered, that the plate held enchiladaS (PLURAL). The above could have easily fed 2 people. I would have left the excess, but my server was so sad about abandoning such good food that I brought it back to the motel room. Maybe I'll reheat them for supper tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, it's going to be my longest teaching day: two Fair Isle design classes, one from 10am-2pm, the next from 4pm-8pm. I may not have the oomph to post tomorrow night. If not, I'll check in on Tuesday morning.

Saturday morning change of plans

My morning class was cancelled, but after looking clearly at the time schedule, and seeing that I would only have about 3 hours, I decided to skip Biltmore this time around (the $60 cab fare also factored in the decision). So, I wandered about the mall where the retreat is being held, and explored the booths a bit more.

 This is Friends and Fiberworks- the store that is hosting the retreat. It's huge and wonderful.

 This yarn followed me home. You can't see the sparkle in this shot, but trust me, this is 550 yds of rayon bling. It's going to be a very pretty shawl.

 Though the mall food court isn't exactly exciting, the Cakeball booth certainly makes up for it!

This is the hat that Susan finished in class yesterday. Isn't it gorgeous. She is only the 3rd person ever to complete a hat in a single class. Yay Susan!

I'm going to wander Asheville and shop a bit with my roomie, Vicki Clontz, of Annie's Keepsakes. We'll have lunch (maybe at Tupelo Honey), and see the sights, and then come back for our 4:00 classes (mine is nearly full, so there's no chance of cancellation).

I'll report back tonight.

Oh, it's still chilly (frosty in the morning), but otherwise beautiful. The promised storm did not materialize, for which I am very grateful.

Friends and Fiberworks Winter Retreat Day 2

I woke up this morning to find Asheville in a Winter Storm Watch... just like South Dakota... sigh...
But though it was frosty, and there was snow up in the hills, there were blue skies and white clouds here. It's still cold but not below zero, so it's all good.

 One lovely thing about teaching classes in a small, sort of empty mall, is that I got an entire storefront for my classroom. This is my home for the duration.

 Yep- they expected me.

 Lots of room. So far, class size has been small, but the people are as wonderful as ever.

Susan and I finished our entire hats in class today! Didn't she do a wonderful job?

 The vendors had lots of pretty...

...lots and lots of pretty. And the mall food court has Cakeballs. Can't ask for much more.

So far, no one has signed up for my morning class tomorrow. If that remains the case, I'll find a way to Biltmore, just for a peek before my late afternoon class (which is nearly full).

As I said, it's all good!

Friends and Fiberworks Winter Retreat- Day 1

You know how we've had a warm and dry winter? How the high temps have broken record after record? How we've had  no snow or ice? Well that ended yesterday, which means that this morning's drive to the airport was a bit hairy, what with 43 miles of glare ice and all. Luckily, South Dakota planes have not forgotten how to fly in the cold.

All of my flights were on time, and all of them were smooth until it came time to descend, at which time every airplane bounced all over the sky. None of the landings were the worst I'd ever experienced, but the three of them were the three worst in a row. Happily for me, I do not get airsick (as opposed to the lady across the aisle from me, who filled her shopping bag... several times). And I do not become irritated at growling and barking dogs on planes, though I was definitely surprised to hear Fido behind me.

I did become irritated, however, by a conversation that I could not help but overhear in the Minneapolis airport. A man thanked a soldier in fatigues, who was leaving his family to return to his unit in Kuwait. So far,so good. But the man continued to ask pointed and personal questions, about pay scales, benefits, injuries and death, which was bad enough, but it really became uncomfortable when the questions turned personal- many about the soldier's soldier wife, and the soldier's children (remember that these men were strangers). I nearly turned around and whacked the guy when he asked about how the soldier's soldier wife went about breastfeeding while on duty. Seriously. But the soldier answered, and better yet, deflected, all queries with good humor. Our service people- heroes and gentlefolk, able to deal with life and death situations AND jerks in airports.

I'm going to hunker down and read tonight (I started The Night Circus on the plane- what a fascinating and unusual book). My motel is right across from the retreat venue, and I've already been across to scope out the facilities (verdict? Yarn Heaven). Tonight I rest, tomorrow I go to work. I can't wait! Stay tuned for pictures!

O hai, Winter! We thought you forgot us

You'd think we lived in the tropics or something, given everyone's reaction when we woke up to this:

Of course, we've had the warmest January on record (it was 60 degrees yesterday. That's 60 degrees ABOVE zero), and it's been at least a couple of months since we've had even a hint of snow.

How quickly we forget.

At any rate, we're not supposed to get more snow this week, and so far, the weather looks good for all of my flights tomorrow, which is all I'm (selfishly) worried about. If nothing else, even if Winter kicks in with a vengeance, it won't last too long. I hope.

I may or may not check in before I leave in the morning (I'm taking the early flight as always, which means I'll be on the road around 4:00am). I should be in Asheville by mid-afternoon. There is still room for more students in my classes at the Winter Retreat. I hope to see some of you there on Friday!