A Smidgen of Madrona and a Significant Day

The Madrona Fiber Arts Retreat happens in Tacoma, Washington on President's Day weekend every year. I live only about an hour away, and I have attended every year since 2009. 2016 was no exception, but this year my attendance was brief.

I decided back in November not to register for any classes, a first for me. My friend Angela was  coming up from Portland, so I decided to drive down for part of Friday to spend some time with her. I left for Tacoma on Friday, mid-morning, got stuck in a huge traffic jam on the way, and arrived just in time for lunch. (Funny how leaving later in the morning to avoid traffic doesn't always work.) I got to spend some time with my dear friend, Nancy, at lunch and for a while afterwards, and once she went back to class I found a quiet corner and knitted and people-watched until Angela arrived. Once she checked in, our first order of business was to go and browse the market. I enjoy doing this every year. I often don't buy much, but I get vicarious pleasure from seeing what my friends purchase. Angela didn't disappoint; she picked out some gorgeous yarns! I was pretty predictable and purchased a skein of my favorite Hazel Knits in the 1984 Lipstick colorway. Isn't it delectable?

After our market adventures, Angela and I met up with Nancy and we went to dinner at our favorite Japanese restaurant. After a satisfying meal and conversation, I headed home.

So that was Madrona this year: short and sweet. 

Today is Leap Day, a very significant anniversary in my knitting life. On Leap Day 2008, I joined Ravelry. At the time, joining didn't seem all that significant. I had been told that it was a great source of patterns and full of project and yarn information, but I had almost no inkling of how important the forums would become in my life. Through Ravelry I learned about knitting podcasts, and without Ravelry's podcast groups, I would never have met Nancy, Angela, Sarah, Barb and a several other wonderful knitting friends. In addition, Ravelry is probably responsible for transforming me from an occasional knitter to a knitter with a capital K. I never would have guessed back in 2008 that Ravelry would send my life in a completely different direction. So on this Leap Day, my "second" (eighth) Ravelry anniversary, I want to say a big THANK YOU to Jess and Casey for creating this wonderful community!