Here we go, off to Strathardle. I hope this can be a two-nighter, and that we’ll therefore be back by the weekend. There are dozens of little plants to be set out, but I ought to be able to put in an hour’s work this afternoon to get started. I’m scared, but the weather is good: I’ll feel better when we’re on our way, and better still when we get there.

I finished knitting Relax2 last night. It fits! Kristie, it will certainly be part of my costume when we go to Shetland. I haven’t decided yet whether "oversized" suits the octogenarian figure. But of course I don’t have to knit Milano for myself – I have a generous stock of daughters, daughters-in-law, and granddaughters.

I found the BSJ patterns – both the mimeographed one from the Sunday Times, and the Schoolhouse Press leaflet with a range of sizes. And I spent some time with the stash – where is the bag with Louet Gems Marino and Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sport? Did I give it away in one of my recent purges? That was rash.

I spent a little time on the internet in pursuit, and was overwhelmed by the range of Lorna’s Laces colours at Jimmy Bean. “Unicorn Parade” might make a jolly baby sweater. And can I resist the temptation to knit a pair of socks for Rachel’s husband Edward Ogden, in a shade called “Ogden”?

But for now, I did resist. When Relax2 was off the needles, I spent the rest of yesterday’s knitting time winding a ball of Pakokku. I’m going to take it to Strathardle and cast on a BSJ. Will one skein be enough?  Relax2 has to be tidied up and blocked when we get back.

And on top of all that, look what Mary Lou gave me! I’ve got to knit that one. And it opens the possibility of some interesting pooling. I will do the preliminary work on Pakokku numbers as I knit the BSJ – assuming that all Pakokku skeins are dyed on the same principles, which may or may not be true – and then consider whether Mary Lou’s stitch count would allow for (or even require) a little adjustment to produce some striking effects.

The thought in that paragraph is rather condensed. I’ll expand it as life goes on.

Non-knit

I’m continuing to do well with the Ian Rankin thriller I mentioned the other day, “Black and Blue”.Goodness, how the world has changed in 20 years! The author says in the introduction to the paperback edition I have that it was written in 1994. It was published in ’97, and perhaps already sounded a bit out-of-date. There is/are no internet, no mobile telephones, no digital photography, and people smoke in pubs. Tempora mutantur et nos mutamur in illis. (Times change, and we change with them.)

See you at the weekend, insh’Allah.