Vols Win, Shawl Progresses

It was a long, nail-biter, but my beloved Tennessee Vols Mens' basketball team won their first round game at the "Big Dance." Winthrop was tenacious, but a last second miracle shot by Lofton put the Vols ahead and guaranteed another game and another chance at victory. The arrival of Bruce Pearl in Knoxville has brought about a mighty miracle both on and off the court. It's been fun to watch the same guys who repeatedly lost last year suddenly come to life and upset the big win teams. It's been 6 years since the Vols won a game in the NCAA tournament. I find great inspiration in this, as I try to overcome my own "formidable opponents" in my personal life. As Pearl has shown Vol fans, attitude is everything. After all the hard work and discipline, ya gotta believe you can do it. Believing is the hard part. After that, the doing gets easier. Not easy, mind you, but easier.

I have found my new found love of knitting lace to be a perfect companion for watching my favorite sports on TV. This was confirmed knitting Kiri during the olympics. When the game is a little dull, I focus on knitting. When the game is so intense I feel like exploding, I knit like a mad woman and I feel like I'm a little bit more in control-- of myself at least. Yesterday's basketball game was close from start to finish. Too close! I managed to knit 2 more repeats on my coral lace shawl as a result of this "madness." This shawl pattern is really wonderful (Wiseman, 2001. Knitted Shawls, Stoles, & Scarves, pp. 62-64). It is really quite simple to knit and would be a perfect 1st lace shawl for just about anyone because it doesn't have all the complicated manuevers of many lace patterns. There are only 3 stitches: knit, purl, and sl1 k2tog psso. That's it! Add a few yo s and you have lace! It's very dainty in laceweight yarn, but I suspect this design would be just as wonderful worked in a DK or WW yarn on larger needles. I will probably try this as my mom wants a warm shawl to wrap around her neck and shoulders during little naps in the recliner. Just another project to add to my list. It's a *long* list!