Friday, April 12, 2019


My cable television seems to have reverted to Greenwich Mean Time – i.e., the programmes being shown just now should have appeared an hour ago. I hope “Pointless” hasn’t been squeezed out altogether.

But without it (so far), I haven’t done much knitting. I’ve finished the decreases on the first sleeve of the baby sweater, and am knitting the final 8 rounds of garter stitch.

I have also done some more thinking about a final wedding shawl. There is nothing in “A Gathering of Lace” which is quite right, although I hesitate over the Mediterranean shawl. There is nothing – no finished project, just-do-this-and-don’t-worry – quite right in “Heirloom Knitting” either. I very much like the idea, presented towards the end, of a “frame” around the centre of a square shawl, but I don’t feel up to the effort of planning one for myself.

Maybe I’ll just have to buy and print Sharon Miller’s “Spring Shawl”, take it to Lerwick with me, and see what happens.

Non-knit

I attempted “Daniel Deronda” on Netflix but I don’t think I’ll go on with it. Andrew Davies (the adapter) at his best actually illuminates a novel, but that isn’t happening this time. Also, Hugh Bonneville is cast as the Baddie, Mr. Grandcourt (wonderful name). I love him – not for Downton Abbey but for “Twenty Twelve” and “W1A” (in both of which he is a bewildered BBC executive) and for “Notting Hill”. He is a perfectly good actor, but I simply cannot believe in his badness. Gwendolen would be lucky to get him.

And, Shandy, I cannot persuade Netflix to come across with HKHWR. I can get Masterpiece Theatre, all right. Is there something I should know?

(Sure enough, I got my “Pointless”, an hour late. I finished the first baby sweater sleeve, and made a small beginning at picking up stitches for the second.)

After a bit of floundering around, I have settled down (I think) with Tessa Hadley and “The Master Bedroom” for my next read.  I don’t think I’ve read her before. “Edith’s Diary” was disturbing at one point – the account of a disturbed child – and all the other characters were boring, at least to start off with.

Now for some Grammatica Avanzata, an hour later and tireder than I should be.

4 comments:

  1. I was not watching HKHWR on Netflix. I just googled it and it appeared as an option as four episodes. I fear there are many more such to beguile the time. "Northanger Abbey" has already been watched

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  2. Have you considered the Queen Susan shawl on Ravelry? That should be at least a bit of a challenge for you.

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  3. I am not a Tessa Hadley fan, although I have a reading friend who keeps trying to change my mind. I have somewhere a hap book, maybe from the Shetland times? Perhaps there is something in that. I’ll look for mine, rather thin book, more like a magazine, as I recall.

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  4. Anonymous3:07 PM

    How timely--Ravelry's eye candy this week are shawls. Not that many they show are necessarily what you are looking for-although one is a semi-circular lacy version that could come close. At the bottom though is a link to their search, which could harbor some inspirations.

    Best regards,
    Laura

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