Helen writes this morning, speaking of a Strathardle neighbour: “I have become xxxx’s friend on Facebook which has opened out a whole new world. It’s a bit like being dead - you see your places and your life, but with other people in the photos.”

She spoke to Archie yesterday. He sounded cheerful, she said, and not eager to prolong the conversation. The exeat is in less than a fortnight now. I am so looking forward to seeing him.

Knitting

Well, I got my places in Franklin’s classes. Once I had noticed that the classes were restricted to seven learners, I was sure I was too late. Like Serena, who says she had prepared her runner-up speech for yesterday (sweet!), I was planning how to go on with the conversation once they told me I was on the waiting list. But in fact I got the last place in the reading-old-patterns class in the afternoon, and the penultimate one for lace in the morning.

Woo-hoo!

I am not at all sure that I am up to six hours of such excitement in one day (as you say, Shandy). But London is exhausting, full stop. I’ve got to do something in the morning; hanging around Rachel’s house isn’t really an option – I might as well spend the time with Franklin.

Even if Loop passes on every penny to Franklin, £700 is not really enough to make a trip to London from Chicago worthwhile, even a brief one. But if he was coming to London anyway – he likes London – it’s not bad for a day’s work. Maybe he has some other gigs.

Actual knitting

I paid attention to my own blog entry for yesterday and took out the mitre I was working on – the one on the wearer’s right shoulder, at the back, where the work turns to start its downward journey. And lengthened the back piece so that it now equals two mitre-edges (more or less). Then I re-did the mitre, and have nearly finished with the right-hand edge-of-neck piece. Today I should begin the second double-mitre in the front.

I also considered my own question of yesterday, about the overlap. The answer, for the moment, is that there is none. The garter stitch strip is (meant to be) completely symmetrical. When it’s finished, you pull it forward to overlap by an inch and a half. At some subsequent point, the back is raised about an inch. That may make up for the overlap. I am surprised, but I have utter faith in Glover’s engineering.

Soon I will have to introduce buttonholes. I’m no good at them, and I don’t like wearing things buttoned up. I considered leaving them out. But I think it would spoil the elegant geometry of this thing to have it flapping about, so I will do as I am told.

Much of today’s time will have to be devoted to winding a third skein. I think I have plenty of yarn, so what I am doing is knitting with the substantial balls and making a collection of the tiny ones which can be employed at the end if need be. It will be interesting, in a grim sort of way, to see what the moths have left me this time. I continue to hope that I’ve been unlucky so far and the next skein will be intact.