I’m still tingling, to an extent that it’s hard to think about knitting. The tension was incredible. The last time we won the Calcutta Cup – by a very similar score – England were beaten and demoralised at the end, as I remember it, and although it was exciting, it was bearable. This time, England were ferocious – and brilliant -- to the very last moment. The possibility was alive and real, right up until the final seconds, that they’d get the ball and get through our line. Alexander rang up just after the final whistle to say that he had nearly vomited.

I spoke to Rachel before kick-off. She lives in a house full of rabid Englishmen, and she said she actually hoped that England would win, so miserable would her men-folk be otherwise. I haven’t dared approach her since.

The Scottish Rugby Union will never know what it owes to my Blogreaders, but I know, and your support was much appreciated.

I wonder if it will be possible to go see the Cup at Murrayfield. I was sorry, when this happened six years ago, that I never tried to find out. It’s one of the oldest sporting trophies in the world, possibly the oldest. It’s obviously of Indian manufacture, with a sweet little elephant on top. The story is that the original contenders contributed their rupees to be melted down to make it.

Non-Rugby

I’m glad to hear that Tom Lehrer is remembered. Mama Lu, I’ll follow up that link. I had the good fortune in my youth to hear the man himself, at some NYC night spot, before I had heard of him. I later got at least one record, and knew it pretty well by heart.

Thanks for the support on the subject of sheep, too. Once I saw a Cambridge University extrance exam – they don’t have such things any more – on which appeared the question: “Could you tell which activities on Mars are games?” I often think about it, and perhaps in another ten or twenty years, I’ll be ready to write my essay. One thing is certain, although I’m not sure it’s relevant: lambs play. They get together in childish gangs as soon as they are fully mobile, and they play.

Knitting

I’d better put in something on the subject.

I mentioned the other day that The Knitting Curmudgeon had offered the opinion that it is the excellence of amateur knitting design out here in cyberspace, which has driven the magazines into their current state of torpor. In her latest post, she has a useful list of on-line pattern sources. I’ve got to bookmark it somehow, or even print it out.

Thanks to commenters for the remarks on decreasing. It looks as if I’ve got the wrong Montse Stanley, for this purpose. Mine is “Knitting Your Own Designs for a Perfect Fit.” But I couldn’t find a “decrease bind-off”, as I now know it’s called, even in POK. My copy of the Vogue Knitting Book is in Kirkmichael, assisting with the collar of Rachel’s striped Koigu. I’ll look there as soon as we get back.

For the Nudibranch – which, incidentally, is now finished – this bind-off worked very well. In fact, everything worked very well. I’m delighted with the result. Lorna in the pattern instructions suggests going to Google, clicking on “Images”, and typing in “nudibranch”, to see the colourways nature suggests.

Today I’ll take some deep breaths and try to calm down and resume the Princess Shawl.