What Keeps You Warm in the Middle of the Night?

Are we cold yet?

I don't know about you, but I think the novelty of snow and ice is wearing off. I don't really mind the outdoor temps so much. But my workroom is cold.

• Frozen-tootsies cold
• Chilblain-hands cold (I so need to knit myself some fingerless gloves. In my spare time. Ri-ight.)
• Sink-into-your-bones cold
• Draft-along-the-floor cold
• Cats-have-vacated cold
• Constant-state-of-mild-discomfort cold
• Thermostat-malfunctioning cold (Nope, that's not it. I checked. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks...WOOF!)
• My-studio-is-ten-degrees-cooler-than-the-rest-of-the-house cold
• Who's-going-to-buy-the-house-Eskimos? cold
• Keeping-the-heating-bill-less-than-the-national-debt cold

Are you getting the picture, or shall I continue?

• Wrap-yourself-in-shawls cold (not that that is a bad thing, mind you...)
• Having-erotic-dreams-about-making-out-on-the-beach with-the-surfer-boy (only I can take or leave the boy. Hold the beach!) cold
• Can-you-knit-in-a-warm-bathtub? cold
• Attempting-to-knit-on-and-wear-my-woolen-designs (at the same time) cold
• Where's-a-warm-cat-when-you-need-him? cold (Answer: lying on the heating vent - must be nice!)
• Send-out-the-St.-Bernard-dogs-with-the-cask-of-brandy cold
• Breaking-up-with-someone-in-an-email cold
• Donald-Trump cold
• Leona-Helmsley cold

(No THAT'S cold!)

Need I say more?

I didn't think so...

So what keeps me warm?

• Woolen socks
• Wrist Warmers (if I had any. See above.)
• Malabrigo hats
• Hot cocoa (with whipped cream & sprinkles on top)
• Candy hearts
• Homemade anything
• A steaming hot cup o' java
• Purrs
• Family
• Readers
• Knitters
• Helping someone else
• Blog awards
• Flowers
• Ravelry
  
• Hot baths
• Hotter showers
• Big honkin' pot of four alarm chili (or at least three)
• Baking
• Down comforters
• Memories
  
• Cashmere (mmmmmm!)
  
• Friends
• Friends
• Friends

Did I mention friends?

• Giving away yarn

Wait a minute, did she say, "Giving away yarn?"

She did.

Leave a comment, telling me what frosts your butt...

Or warms the cockles of your heart (Just what are cockles, and where in the heart are they located? For an answer, click here.)

And I will randomly select someone to receive a Sunflower Designs care package guaranteed to make you feel warm all over.

Ready?

Set?

GO!

Coming Attractions

Let's see...

There are twenty-four hours in a day.

Take away:

• Eight hours for sleeping.
• At least one and a half for eating
• One half for email maintenance
• One half for Ravelry upkeep
• One half for blog reading
• One hour for computer intractability
• One half for bookkeeping
• One half hour for cleaning

Hey! I never claimed to be a Martha (Stewart); I'm more of an Erma (Bombeck), myself...

• One hour for cuddling up with hubby (if we're lucky)
• One hour for running errands
• One hour for personal hygiene (don't worry;no details)
• One hour for cooking

And that leaves...

seven hours.

NO...

CAN'T BE...

REALLY?

Well, I was going to tell you I had time to write OR knit, but clearly I have time for both.

Who knew?

Anyway, here is some serious yarn pron to keep you happy while I go back to my knitting.




Candy Cane yarn left over from Christmas. Going to be something very festive, come next December. That's all I can say...



Handmaiden Swiss Mountain Cashmere & Silk in Spring. Was going to be a large leafy scarf or small leafy stole, depending on whether you are a half-empty or half-full kind person. Only there wasn't enough and I can't get more. So am putting this aside for now...

In favor of this! Same color, different (read: cheaper) fiber. Still yummy. This is Handmaiden Mini Maiden, wool & silk blend. Enough yardage for the project mentioned above.







More Mini Maiden in Stone








Just look at that variegation. I LOVE Handmaiden...









And this last is some of Kim's new Opulence Yarn in Amethyst.







I think it looks like boysenberry jam...









Right now, I feel like Morocco is the grownup equivalent of that old school bus standby, "100 Bottles of Beer on the Wall." You remember, right? Only now the lyrics go something like this:

400 rows to go on the shawl
400 rows to go...
Knit one stitch
And try not to b**ch
399 rows to go on the shawl...

The Only Thing We Have to Fear...

“In my life I suffered from many terrible things, and a few of them actually happened.”
-Mark Twain

I have a new title: Lace Muse. This title was conferred upon me by the lovely ladies of the Beginning Lace Group on Ravelry. I was browsing the new groups last week and happened on this newly formed group of neophytes, whose banner reads, "Scary Lace." Now I know a bit about lace. I certainly don't consider myself an expert, but I do think I am at least marginally competent.

So I joined up. Why? Because I thought I could help.

I started a new thread called, "I'm happy to help out..." And the thread has 37 posts in 11 days. I answer all questions to the best of my ability and they have ranged from charts vs. written directions, to what needles to use, to gauge considerations, to yarn recommendations, to pattern suggestions, to emergency tinking advice, general encouragement, and grief counseling.

I have made many new friends already and know that I have helped at least a few, as they have told me so. I find myself entering other conversations in the group (at their behest) and now I am...

the Lace Muse. Go figure.

The other day, I stumbled onto a thread that had devolved into statements like, "Lace has always intimidated me" and "I also have tried, but am frustrated. " How sad.

So I got out my pom poms, hitched up my cheerleading outfit and reassured all of them that the rewards outweighed the risks, and they should not be scared. Lace is a learning process, like anything else in life. Once you become accustomed to its rhythm and symmetry, the pieces begin to fall into place.

A lot has been written this January about "fearless" knitting. I think it is an important topic. Sometimes, we let the "what if"s come between us and the life we could be leading.

What if I make a mistake?

Then you frog back and correct it and your sock looks like this:



but it's temporary...





What if I make a mistake in my pattern math?

Already did

But my test knitter caught it...




What if I drop a stitch?

All the newbies are astounded ( but somewhat reassured) that the Lace Muse makes mistakes too. As do we all...



What if it doesn't fit?

Frog it back and reknit it so it does:

There is still plenty of winter left once you finish the hat...



What if the pattern isn't working for me at the gauge specified?

Knit it at a gauge you are comfortable with, and do more repeats if it is too small.

And knitting questions are the easy ones. Try these on for size:

What if he doesn't love me?

What if he does?

(Which one of those questions you find scariest will vary from person to person, I suspect...)

What if no one buys my patterns? (That's one from my closet of horrors)

What if everyone does, and I become famous like the Yarn Harlot and people follow me everywhere and I no longer have time for my family, because Oprah just listed my shawl as one of her 2008 "favorite things, and I'm sold out until 2010?

OK, maybe I'm getting carried away here...






What if I run out of chocolate?







Uh Oh...






What if I run out of yarn?



So not gonna happen...





What if I run out of ideas? (Whoops, there's another from the closet. Or was it hiding under the bed?)

The point is:

We don't know the answers. We can only ask the questions.

And when the questions begin to overwhelm us (usually late at night), we need to step back from the edge, take a deep breath, and conquer the "what if"s...

with a good, hearty "So what."

Because if we live our lives in fear, we tie ourselves up in knots, and what should be a grand adventure turns into a test.

We forget why we are here:

• To love fiercely with our whole hearts
  
• To bind up each other's wounds
• To create beauty out of chaos

To bring the holes and tangles of our lace, of our lives, into harmony.

To live dangerously fearlessly.

All the News That's Fit to Print...

And some that isn't.

Not much to say tonight. Would love to stay and chat, but Morocco calls. Had a bit of a setback today. Thought I had only one more pattern repeat before reaching the center panel, however, have stretched, measured, compared with other shawls I have and have decided to do another 6 repeats to increase length.

Frustrating, but something this enthralling (thanks for the word, Lucia) deserves to be done right the first time.

So, back to the long haul. Hopefully I'll have something new to show you in a couple days.

SIGH!

As to that news?

I have dropped my prices in order to be competitive within the market. So Celestial is now $5 and Cherry Country is $8. And no, I'm not going out of business; you don't have to call within the next ten minutes; this is not a limited time offer; and I don't have to pay the tax man on everything in inventory at the end of the month...

I am talking with Evelyn at Knitty Noddy about carrying my patterns. As Martha would say, "It's a good thing." Evelyn is a delight and I have been ordering from her, seems like forever. She has a great selection of yarns and her service is unsurpassed. Cross your fingers and I'll let you know if it pans out.

I have spent some time researching alternative yarns to suggest for the four designs that are currently available. You will find those recommendations in the sidebar, under each pattern picture & info. I hope this will help all of you who might like to knit with something from your stash, or who simply need a little advice on making the pattern your very own.

Cheryl's Arabian Nights is coming along splendidly. She is enjoying the pattern (WHEW! THAT'S a relief...) and the stole is everything I envisioned. So exciting to watch someone else bring something new to the project. I will definitely be using test knitters from here on out. Her input has been invaluable!

Now though, it's time to go back to knitting...

SLAVE, SLAVE, SLAVE...THAT'S ALL I DO FOR YOU PEOPLE... (yeah, right! LOL)

Magnificent Obsession

It's very clear
Our love is here to stay ;
Not for a year
But ever and a day.

The radio and the telephone
And the movies that we know
May just be passing fancies,
And in time may go !

But, oh my dear,
Our love is here to stay.
Together we're
Going a long, long way

In time the Rockies may crumble,
Gibraltar may tumble,
They're only made of clay,
But our love is here to stay.
- George Gershwin

Sooner or later, I reach the point in a project where the bloom is off the rose. I'm just not feelin' the whole infatuation thing anymore...

The honeymoon has ended...

The thrill is gone...

Elvis has left the building...

And he's taken his knitting needles with him.

Not gonna happen...

Not this time.

Because I gotta tell you, people...

I'm obsessed.

How obsessed? My hubby has an office party tonight with:

• a stand up comedian
• cooking classes
• rumba lessons
• a live band
• a gourmet buffet
  
• a dessert bar, including an ice cream sundae station
  
• an open bar

All provided free of charge. That's F-R-E-E, as in "If it's cheap, it's cheery: if it's free, it's fun!"

And I don't want to go. All I want to do is cuddle up with Morocco...

And my husband...

In that order.

What's wrong with me, people?

It is such fun to watch the pattern develop and I am almost to the beginning of the center panel, where the Persian windows and beading make a return appearance.

I feel like a teenager,waiting at the bottom of the stairs for his prom date to make an entrance. What will she look like? Will her outfit match my expectations? And the really big question...



Will the corsage match?

And will tonight be THE night? When she shall be revealed in all her glory?





I'm sorry.

Cinderella wants to please. She really does. But she just can't go to the ball tonight.

She already has a date with long, warm, & handsome...

( Just look at the curves on that baby...)

Brag Book

Well, due to popular demand, I am hauling out the brag book today, because...

Y'all want MORE pictures!

Here is a lovely shot of my youngest.

Now, if you're observant, you may notice a slight alteration in McGregor's Garden. (Do you like that better than Mr.McGregor? The appellation "Mr." just seems so formal for such a whimsical little bit of knit.)




Last you saw him, he looked like this:



But while my back was turned, he grew up. See how much more sophisticated he looks now?

Hey! At least he didn't dye his yarn purple or start sporting a nose needle!

It seems that Peter Rabbit wants to be a cable when he grows up (the leg of the sock.) And he didn't feel that staid old stockinette really represented his identity as this stage in his growth. So, Peter chose to present himself as a twisted stitch.

(It's all about image, don't you know. He seems to think making himself sound dangerous will attract all the lace topped socks.)

He is still, however not confident enough to come out from behind the hedgerows.

I'm not surprised by his shyness. He is, to date, the only boy in the family. And he lives under the shadow of his enormously popular sister...

So for all you Moroccan fans out there, this one (OK,maybe a few more than one) is for you!





Persian windows








Portcullis: usually used as an allover pattern, adapted here to a single motif.(note the tight vertical lines formed by knitting through the back loops.)






Palm leaves radiating out like fans swaying in the heat, brushing the flies from the faces of the harem girls.









The sea of minarets call to the faithful.







The waves formed by the beaded medallions along the edge break upon the shore of the Arabian Sea.



Isn't she a lovely Arabian princess?



Now, c'mon...

We KNOW better.



After all, she was born in Indiana.

Pretty young things DO like to put on airs, don't they?




And now, I get to brag a little bit about ol' Mom...

Over the weekend, my Hugs & Kisses scarf and Moroccan Days were featured on Lime n Violet's blog, "Daily Chum." Thanks guys!

And I have received an award from my cosmic twin - La Cabeza Grande! You rock, twin!

I'd like to thank my agent, my personal trainer, my bodyguard, my parents who were always there for me, and all the little people who made this possible...

Yep! I am the proud recipient of the extremely prestigious "You Make My Day" award.

WOOT!

It's a shame the ceremony was canceled this year, due to the writer's strike. Don't get me wrong. I am in complete solidarity with my fellow writers, but enough is enough, people! We want our Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy!

(Hell with MTV. All they play anymore is America's Next Top Model.)

In the spirit of the award, I hereby nominate ten other worthy recipients. Go forth and multiply.

Cheryl of "Jung at Heart" - for loving my babies as much as I do. Go check out Morocco's sibling; she is a thing of beauty

Annie of "Sheepish Annie" - for making me laugh day after day

Kathy of "As Kat Knits" - just for being the wonderful person she is, full of love for life

Ruth of "Knitting on Impulse" - for her splendid creations and her even more splendid photos.

Amy of "Live, Learn, Knit" - for her compassionate prose and steadfast values(except for this Patriots thing. What's up with that? Well, I guess everyone is allowed one aberration...)

Kim of "The Woolen Rabbit" - for obvious reasons (see above) Thanks for the chance to let my muse fly free!

Margene of "Zeneedle" - for her laid back attitude and her understanding of what is important in life and what to let go of.

Tiennie of "Tiennie Knits" - for both her personal generosity and for providing me the chance to have more fun than any one person should be allowed last month.

Sherri at "The Loopy Ewe" - because...well... because she IS Sherri after all...

And last, but certainly not least, Pat from "Pumpkin Knitter" - for being the first person to post about knitting one of Sunflower Designs' patterns. You'll always be special to me, Pat, because...

you ALWAYS remember your first.

Now all of you get to "pay it forward." Go ahead; steal the button...

You know you want to...

Just remember: with great recognition, comes great responsibility. Now YOU have to award ten...

Good thing there are so many terrific knitters out there.

I think that is plenty of grist for the mill. Back to Morocco (before vi ambushes me - that girl is seriously infatuated people - and GOD BLESS HER for it!)

And They're Off...

What's going on at Sunflower Designs?




A little bit of this...








And that...





And a whole lotta this other thing...

I think this is officially a butt-load of charts.

It took all day, but Morocco's pattern is in the bag

Or the laptop, as the case may be...

So now the race is on.

Can Susan stay ahead of test knitter Cheryl? Who will finish first?

(I know, the suspense is killing you!)


Of course I have a head start...

So in the interest of fairness, I put Moroccan Days aside in favor of another design project for Woolen Rabbit.


A while back I told Kim I wanted to design some rabbit socks for her.

She sent me some of her new fiber in a lovely purple, but I decided the lettuce shades of a skein I already had in stash were just perfect for what I had in mind.

That's Woolen Rabbit sock yarn in Rosemary & Thyme

After many false starts, I came up with these:


See the bunny?

There, amidst the garden rows?



How about now?

I'm calling the pattern Mr. McGregor, after the farmer of Peter Rabbit fame: The finished sock will feature a vertical lace pattern and more bunny ears on the leg. I think I will top it off at the cuff with a little curly endive ruffle.

But I just couldn't resist the thought of Peter hiding in the cabbages on the foot of one sock...

As to Morocco, I got several more repeats in on the body over the weekend, but there was one casualty:


WHOOPS! Gonna have to fix that. No idea where I snagged it.




Better get back to work; I think Cheryl's rounding the first turn...

Eye Candy Friday

Many of the phenomena of Winter are suggestive of an inexpressible tenderness and fragile delicacy. We are accustomed to hear this king described as a rude and boisterous tyrant; but with the gentleness of a lover he adorns the tresses of Summer.
-Henry David Thoreau

Laying On Hands

Jesus and Satan have a discussion as to who is the better programmer. This goes on for a few hours until they come to an agreement to hold a contest, with God as the judge.

They sit themselves at their computers and begin. They type furiously, lines of code streaming up the screen, for several hours straight. Seconds before the end of the competition, a bolt of lightning strikes, taking out the electricity. Moments later, the power is restored, and God announces that the contest is over.

He asks Satan to show what he has come up with. Satan is visibly upset, and cries, "I have nothing. I lost it all when the power went out."

"Very well, then," says God, "let us see if Jesus fared any better."

Jesus enters a command, and the screen comes to life in vivid display, the voices of an angelic choir pour forth from the speakers. Satan is astonished.

He stutters, "B-b-but how? I lost everything, yet Jesus' program is intact. How did he do it?"

God smiled all-knowingly, "Jesus saves."

************************************

This morning I got up, turned on the Today show, knit for several hours on Morocco, then decided it was time to get on line. I walked to my desk, pushed the power button on my laptop...

and nothing happened.

"BUGGER" does not cover this.

It doesn't even come close.

Now I back up on a regular basis: every Saturday night. However, when I thought back to all the design work I had done since last Saturday, I wanted to sit down and cry.

• All the charts for Inland Sea
• Corrected charts for Morocco
• Beginning directions for Cheryl, my test knitter (I have a friend who believes in revelation by typo. The first time through I typed "teat" instead of test. Hmm... maybe I am taking this whole "who's-going-to-raise-my-baby's-twin" thing too literally...)
• Correspondence with suppliers, with family, with friends

I was NOT a happy camper!

• I tried unplugging it. Nope...
• I tried cleaning it. No Ma'am...
• I tried blowing compressed air into its innards. Nada...
• I tried disconnecting everything and reconnecting it. Zip...
• I tried putting it in a paper sack, going out on the front lawn, waving it around in a circle over my head, and clucking like a chicken...

Wait a minute. That wasn't me. It was Dick Van Dyke.

My ever helpful hubby suggested removing the battery and replacing it. Of course, first I had to find it...

The digital thermostat was starting to sound like a piece of cake.

Upon locating the battery 20 minutes later, I removed it, placed my hands upon the lid, and, before reinserting the battery, said a variation of the prayer I say whenever I begin my meditation:

"Come Holy Spirit. Come as the fire and burn. Come as the wind and cleanse. Convert and consecrate my life to my great good and your great glory."

Only I substituted "my computer" for "my life."

Crazy? Maybe.
Sacrilegious? Possibly.
Effective? YOU BET YOUR SWEET ASS IT WAS!!!!!!

That little electronic gizmo trembled under my hand, gave a little "whirr" of contentment, and sprang to life under my fingertips. Hallelujah! We have seen the promised land!

Now I don't know that God directly intervened. I sort of hope he has better things to do. All I know is, my computer is on, I am in business, and...

What was that third thing?

Oh yeah. Now I remember.

My files are fully backed up. On a Thursday, no less.

Because, while Jesus may indeed save, I think he could use a little assist from the peanut gallery now and again...

Just to be sure.

Decisions, Decisions...

"When you come to a fork in the road, take it."
- Yogi Berra

I hate making decisions.

Decisions can be enabling; they can move us forward into fresh endeavors; they can encourage our eyes to see new vistas; they can open windows.

Unfortunately, they can also close doors. And that's the rub. I just hate to rule anything out. I like to keep my options open.

Besides, what if I make the wrong decision? What if I say goodbye to someone who could change my life? What if I turn down a job that could take my career to new heights? What if I say, hear, do, feel...

The wrong thing.

I confess to having extreme procrastination syndrome. (I wonder if that is a tax deductible medical condition?) It's not that I don't want to do things. the problem lies rather in the fact that I can't decide what to do first.

Or second.

Or after that.

Whether we are speaking of chores, errands, work responsibilities, or Ravelry, our queues are too long. We don't know which project to tackle first.

When my kids were babies, priorities were easy. Their well-being came first, my sanity came second, and my husband's and my time together came in distantly third.

After that, all bets were off.

Priorities today are more complicated. I have sixteen waking hours today. So do I:

• knit on current projects
• design future ones
• Write up the patterns
• research ideas
  
• post on my blog
• work on the estimate for my next writing gig
  
• read other's blogs
• market my finished patterns
  
• network with other knitters
  
• clean my house
• cook a home meal
  
• pay bills
• wash clothes so I have clean underwear
  
• get the house ready to put on the market
• make my Xmas returns
• take a shower
• shovel the driveway
• catch up with friends

And if I knit, what do I work on first?

• Moroccan Days
• Drizzle
• Sedona
• Inland Sea
• Another temporarily snoozing UFO

Sometimes it is easier to drift.

Unfortunately, it is also less productive.

Design decisions are just as difficult. I do a lot of trying out and frogging back at the start of a project. The sea green shawl ( called Inland Sea) is on its fifth iteration. First I did 4 purl rows to draw the line between the sand stitch border and the cabled part of the shawl. Then I decided 2 looked better. Rip.

I did simple diagonal ribbing on the second section, but it looked clumsy. Rip.

I changed to a cabled ribbing. Better. Then I decided to wave rather than cross the 3 stitches. Aha!

This is why I don't use test knitters more often. If someone else knits it, the decisions must be made up front, before you send the pattern out. Not worked out as you knit. Once you send that pattern, you close the door.

That is hard for a visual thinker to do. A chart can only tell you so much. I need the feel of the yarn under my hands to jump start the creative process. I need to listen to the yarn for a while, until it tells me what it wants to be.

I feel like I am taking a flyer on the Arabian Nights version of Moroccan Days. I am picking the beads based solely on a snapshot Kim sent me of the other colorway. I am trusting that someone else's vision will complement my own. I am hoping that the center panel will look right, before I can see if I like it. I am trusting my writing capabilities to adequately communicate the directions.

I am allowing someone I have never laid eyes on to bring up Morocco's twin. Would you do that with one of your babies?

But I have no choice. My days are full. My fingers cannot keep up with my brain. And my brain cannot keep pace with my muse. Something has gotta give.

So, I have made a decision. Yay me! Pattern goes out tomorrow. I'll close my eyes, push enter...

And send my baby out into the world on a wing, a prayer...

And a high speed Internet connection.

********************************

WIP shots of Inland Sea

Silver and Gold

Silver and gold, silver and gold

Everyone wishes for silver and gold
How do you measure its worth?
Just by the pleasure it gives here on earth.

These days I have the best of both worlds:

Drizzle & Moroccan Days
Shadow and Light
Rain and Sunshine
Silver and Gold

Both are beautiful in their own way.

Both are an integral part of life.

I remember a funeral I once attended. The deceased was a photographer and died fairly young, leaving behind a grieving husband, a daughter, and one tiny grandchild.

The presiding minister observed during the eulogy that photographers never take pictures at high noon. Why?

Because, at that hour, there is no shadow, and without the shadow, the subject of the photo loses its definition.

I am enjoying both my creations this winter, and taking to heart what they have to teach me about this "bleak midwinter." I love the bright, clear days (like today.) Who wouldn't?

But at the same time, I am learning to embrace the darker days, the twilight days, the days when snow falls, swift and silent, even the days when Indiana serves up a cold, steady rain. And there are many such days.

Many, many such days. SIGH...

I may dream of sunny Morocco (or even Florida. I'm not picky.)
But I try to be present in the moment.

Even if the moment happens to be dreary.

I might even head outside to take pictures. I might NOT know enough to come in out of the rain.

And a shawl pattern might evolve out of it.

Drizzle is coming along swimmingly (How's that for a nice WET adverb?)

I have temporarily stopped work on Drizzle for the most part, in order to concentrate on knitting up Moroccan Days, writing out her pattern, working out those last little glitches before handing the pattern over to my test knitter, for the Arabian Nights version.

But that doesn't mean I have nothing to show for it!

Here are some WIP pictures, to wet whet your appetite:

Close up of Bottom border: seed stitch and open areas with floating beads.








Close up of beginning of lace patterning. See the raindrops?







Extreme close up of beading








I know this one is out of focus, but the sparkle of the beads and the soft color gradations of the yarn show to their best effect.

Now you see the raindrops, don't you?

So much for rain. What about sun?

Moroccan Days is moving along. Ran into a little glitch when I had to figure out how many repeats to do, and how to make it all come out even.

There will be another (possibly wider) repeat of the end border beaded window motif down the center of the shawl, to cascade down into a beautiful back view. So I have to reconcile 10 row repeats with 12 row repeats AND the 46 row end border. Things would have been so much simpler had I thought ahead and made the border 48 rows wide.

(Too math wonky to go into here, but trust me. I made problems for myself by not having the 12 row beaded edging pattern line up at the end of the border.)

But hey! Who doesn't love a challenge?

Right?

Right?

Anybody?

Guess this is one of those "embrace the shadow" moments.

Or, to steal a line from A League of Their Own...

"It’s supposed to be hard. If it wasn’t hard, anyone could do it. It’s the hard that makes it great."

Yeah, right...