Well, who’d ‘a thot it? We won. It’s the first time in thirty-something years that Scotland has won in England (although we ran them close two years ago, with a hard-fought draw.) (Alexander says it doesn’t reeeely count, as there was no crowd there to cheer England on. It’s still better than losing.) (And the cup will still come back to Edinburgh.)

 

It puts a good deal of pressure on the knitting schedule. Great-grandchildren take precedence, so I must finish the shawl and knit the Polliwog. But then there needs to be something more than a scarf or hat, to commemorate the Calcutta Cup 2021. The unfinished vest you see above was based on the colours in a painting by Edward Hopper, called, I think, “Gas”. Perhaps I can choose another picture this time, not necessarily by Hopper. The secret, I discovered then, is not to have too many colours.

 

This year is the 150^th anniversary of the first Calcutta Cup match – it’s the oldest trophy in rugby, and one of the oldest in any sport. Back in the days when I drove a car, and when trips to the supermarket were happy adventures, I used to drive past the spot where it happened.

 

Never mind the result: it was interesting, and very pleasant, in these stressful times, to watch rugby being played. It’s a very physical game. Nobody wore masks. They certainly didn’t stand two metres apart from each other. It was the way life used to be. I gather this weekend was a Big Football Occasion in the US. I hope you had the same pleasure.

 

Here’s a picture of wee Hamish, watching his first Calcutta Cup. It was sent to me early in the match, when Scotland were leading by three points, which means nothing, especially early on.

 

2301 steps today. Could be worse. 5 ½ scallops done, of the edging on the final side of Gudrun’s hap. I got a bit of knitting done during the match. Despite the early advantage just mentioned, I assumed until the last 20 minutes that of course Scotland would lose, and knit peacefully on.