Knitting in the Fetal Position......

So I did go to the Knitting Workshop this past weekend in Toronto and I am really glad I did despite my various ailments. I stayed at my best friend Carole's house. Carole, as always, was a superfantastic host. She rocks. Not only did I have a fabulously appointed room to sleep in, Carole made me lunch, she made me breakfast, she ordered in Chinese, she took care of my every need. Carole is the reason people love their friends. Kind, compassionate, caring and an amazing listener...and she didn't mind putting on my socks for me! A true friend. Carole and I first met at the Gone Stitchin' Retreat five years ago. It was just one of those relationships that took off at once. Carole is a bit quirky (see photo with my uncompleted, unfelted clog on her head!), a bit different, but then so am I. She is a good head and totally totally loyal. She is also a fantastic knitter. On Saturday we had different classes. I went to Colour Placement and Focus on Embroidery with Fiona Ellis. Fiona is not only a fabulous teacher, she is also a hoot. Very patient, very positive and always had nice things to say, even when I knew some of my embroidery was really, really ugly (the reason you won't see that photo on my blog). On the other hand, Fiona totally LOVED ( yes, loved) the colourway I worked up in the Fairisle class (said it several times and again at the end of the day!). I think I might just have to make up a hat, mitts and scarf with the pattern and colours (Fiona wanted me to make her a sweater in the same colourway). They were very good classes. On Sunday Carole and I took the same classes which was a lot of fun. In the morning we took Two Faced Knitting with Diane Martin. Seemed easier than double knitting which I am not totally in love with anyway. Diane was a hoot and the class was great. The project to be completed is a headband and Carole and I have pledged that we will finish it. Our afternoon class was Conquering Cables with Joan Kass(see photo with Carole and Susan, who was brave enough to sit with us; we love Susan - she is also an amazing (and fast) knitter. Joan rocks. She is an excellent teacher and I totally enjoyed the class even though I have had a fair amount of cable experience; I learned a few more things and some nifty techniques. that is something that I really like about Joan; she is such an organized and innovative knitter, and always has some really cool tips and techniques for knitting. We made a nice little swatch of cables (see photo). Of course coming home from Toronto I started feeling really ill. Pushing myself is always a tricky thing (never realized how stressful socializing is for my body - aside from travelling, classes, etc). By Monday, every part of me was in pain and puffy, particularly my left knee and my right flank. I had an appointment at my Doctor's (Dr. Maria Schleifer of the H.O.P.E. Clinic in Toronto) and she put me on a totally different supplement and diet protocol. Everything is to focus on stabilizing my auto-immune system which is totally out of whack. The diet is fun - instead of what I can't eat I will focus on what I can eat (much shorter list) - chicken, fish, brown rice, fruits and veggies (as much organic as possible of course to eliminate chemicals, etc. being in my blood stream). By the time we got home last night I felt so crappy and needed help to get up the stairs to bed. I am still in the fetal position (my knee is three times it's normal size and I am so sore all over) but wanted to post (Ed is not looking at me with a happy face let me tell you). Oh yes, and I did want to post the progress on my second Jaywalker; walking a little bit slower than the first but supportive of my current state. It is always good when the knitting understands and supports you!