Yesterday's news was the unexpected arrival of a package from Carol Sunday. Had I ordered something and completely forgotten about it? Senility, indeed. But, no – it was a present from Carol herself, her Aberdeen mitten kit. I was moved to tears.

The present includes the pattern, which I can download from Ravelry. It's beautiful, but complicated. If I just add it to the HALFPINT list, Subcategory Already-in-Stash, I fear it will remain there forever. My thought at the moment is a brioche scarf – or fisherman's rib, or whatever you want to call it. K1, k1b, on and on, no purling. Nothing is more soothing.

But might the Aberdeen pattern, or part of it, eventually figure in a yoke? I am hugely enjoying Kate Davies' book of that name – and I haven't even really got to the patterns yet.

You might not think it, looking at Carol's Aberdeen pattern on-line, but there are eight or nine different colours, beautifully gradated. I could either eyeball the quantities and turn around in the middle of the scarf, or I could just start at one end and knit to the other – and I think that's my choice.

I can't set the Unst Bridal Shawl aside, so it's Archie who will have to wait. Perhaps I can alternate evenings between him and the scarf. I will wind up like the late and much-missed Judy Sumner who had different WIPs for every day of the week.

Here's Archie's sweater at the moment -- not at all a god photograph; you can't even see the placket. But it shows you roughly how far I have progressed:

I had another disaster-free evening with the Unst Bridal Shawl last night. I've looked it up – there are 50 scallops per side, as I thought. The pattern lasts for 12 rows. A losenge on the outside edge expands and contracts. Between that and the shawl is a column of faggoting and then a very simple 4-row lace pattern, repeated three times (obviously) per losenge, then another column of faggoting, then the join.

My current plan is to persist with two-scallops-per-evening, but to add another four rows each time – another repeat of the simple lace pattern. That will give me an extra scallop every three days, if arithmetic serves, and will speed things along a bit.

Non-knit

I wrote two more Christmas cards yesterday. Not good enough. I have been giving a lot of thought to your suggestions about life. I think my best plan, for the moment, in order to squeeze an extra hour-per-day from the 24, is to plan meals by the week and shop accordingly. We have excellent local shops within easy walking distance. My practice is to lie in bed in the morning thinking of what we might eat today, and then, later, shop for it. It's a pleasant outing. But I could cut down.

For now, however, I'll struggle with Old Slowcoach to bring you those photographs.