Mark Newport

På University of Michigan var der en strikkeudstilling af Mark Newport. Heldragter i acrylgarn. Håndstrikkede.
Jeg mangler ord.....

At University of Michigan there was a knitted exhibition by Mark Newport. Whole-body suits in acrylics. Hand-knitted. I have no words......

Mere Ann Arbor. Med garn! / More of Ann Arbor. With some yarn!

Om morgenen får jeg lov at køre med, når min mindste nevø skal i skole. Han går i Elementary School, hvilket han er helt utroligt glad for.
Der er mange flotte træer på vejen, og som det ses, er farverne helt utrolige lige nu!

In the morning, I get to join, when my youngest nephew is taken to school. He is in Elementary School, and he really loves it.
We see so many beautiful trees on the way there, and as you can see, the colors are amazing right now!

Hans skole har en fuldstændigt gigantisk græsplæne og legeplads, og det er garanteret godt for koncentrationen, at børnene spæner rundt derude i frikvarterene.
Han elsker ihvertfald skolen. Laver lektier uden brok. Har verdens sejeste lærer (som strikker!). Det er dejligt at opleve!

His school has this gigantic lawn and playground, and I bet you it's good for the concentration when the kids have the ability to run around a bit between lessons.
He definitely loves his school. Does his homework without complaining. Has the coolest teacher in the world (she's a knitter). It's really nice to see!

Mens børnene så er i skole, laver jeg sjove ting. Som at tage i garnbutik! Min svoger vidste, hvor denne lå (mærkeligt nok) og var gerne guide.
Der var fint, lokalt garn på tilbud, så det kom med hjem. (Altså ikke det hele. Kun det flotte røde!)

While the kids are at school, I make fun things. Like visiting a yarn shop! My brother-in-law knew the location of this one (strangely enough) and was willing to be a guide.
They had pretty, local yarn on sale, so it went home with me. (Well. Not all of it. The red yarn!)

I hjørnet havde de "dansk garn" i denne fine, gule farve. Jeg har aldrig set noget lignende i Danmark! Det er ren uld og virkede ret kradst. Pudsigt oplevelse.
Da jeg så kom hjem og fortalte min mindste nevø, at jeg havde været i garnbutik, sagde han "Hvor meget har du købt?" Hvad er DET for et spørgsmål?????
Han kunne godt lide det røde garn, men syntes nok, der var lidt rigeligt. "Hvordan skal du nå at strikke af det, moster, inden du skal hjem igen?"

In the corner, they had "Danish yarn" in this bright, yellow color. I never saw anything like it in Denmark! It was pure wool and a bit itchy. Strange.
When I got home and told my youngest nephew that I went to a yarn shop, he said "How much did you buy?" What kind of question is that????????
He liked the red yarn, though, but found that I bought plenty. "How are you going to knit all of that before you go back home?"

Michigan Wolverines

Ann Arbor er byen, hvor University of Michigan ligger. Faktisk havde der ikke været nogen by uden universitetet....... Universitetet har adskillige sportshold, der alle hører under Michigan Wolverines, og et stadion så stort, at alle byens indbyggere kan være derinde på en gang!
Deres farver er blå og gul, og selvfølgelig kan man få alt muligt med deres logo. Selvfølgelig!

Ann Arbor is the town of University of Michigan. Actually, there would be no town without the university....... The university has quite a few sports teams, all belonging to the Michigan Wolverines, and a stadium so big, that all citizens of the town can be inside at once!
The official colors are blue and yellow, and of course you can get almost anything with their logo.

Når jeg nu var i den meget store hobby-butik, var det jo nærliggende at købe tykt garn i blå og gul, så de kære børn kunne få huer i de "rigtige" farver til den kolde, kolde vinter!
Min nevø ville gerne have striber, og tro mig - på pind 8 går det rigtig hurtigt! Han ville også gerne have et "M" på, og det var lige lidt sværere med det.
Heldigvis fandt jeg nogle tynde vanter hvor M-et var lige til at klippe ud.

Since we went to Jo-Ann's, it was the most obvious thing to buy thick yarn in blue and yellow, so the sweet kids could have hats in the right colors for the cold, cold winter!
My nephew wanted stripes, and believe me - with 8 mm needles it's really fast to do! He also wanted the "M", and that was a bit harder.
Fortunately, I found the thin gloves with the M ready to cut out. 

Bagefter blev det pænt syet på, og huen blev heldigvis straks godkendt. Faktisk gik han med den det meste af aftenen. Kun med pauser, når hjernen var ved at nedsmelte!

Afterwards, the M was sewn on nicely, and the hat was accepted immediately. Actually he wore it all evening, only taking breaks when his brain almost had a melt-down!

Huen var nem. Pind 8, 60 masker og rib i 2 ret, 2 vrang, derudaf. Derefter strikkede jeg masker sammen over et par pinde og hæftede ender.
Den er varm, kan jeg godt fortælle, og den bliver helt sikkert et hit til vinter!

The hat was easily done. 8 mm needles, 60 stitches and rib-pattern with knit 2, purl 2 all the way. Afterwards, I decreased over a few rows and sewed the ends.
I can assure you it's really warm, and I think it will be really nice this winter!

Detroit

I går tog vi voksne til Detroit, mens børnene var i skole. Det var med en del spænding vi kørte derhen, for hvad kan man forvente sig af en by, der er gået konkurs?
Første stop var Michigan Central Station. En kæmpe, kæmpe bygning i et område med lave huse, så den var nem at finde.
Meget mærkeligt at se så stor en station. I fuldstændigt forfald. Med 5 spritnye vinduer?

Yesterday, we adults went to Detroit while the kids went to school. We had been excited and anxious to go there, since we didn't know what to expect from a bankrupt city?
First stop was the Michigan Central Station. A giant building in the middle of an area with low houses, making it very easy to find.
Really weird watching such a huge station. In total decay. With 5 brand new windows?

Næste stop var downtown Detroit. Vi kom forbi en cafe, hvor de havde mange forskellige kaffebønner at vælge imellem. Det, man valgte, blev frisk-malet og så var resultatet en af de bedste kopper kaffe jeg nogensinde har fået.

Next stop was downtown Detroit. We passed a cafe, where they had many different kinds of coffee beans to choose from. What you picked was freshly grounded and the result was one of the best cups of coffee I ever had.

Vi tog til Detroit Renaissance Center, som er 5 høje tårne, restaureret af General Motors. Man kunne komme på en guidet tur rundt i bygningen - gratis! - og det skulle vi selvfølgelig prøve.
Centeret lå lige ned til en flod, hvor man kunne se Canada på den anden side! Faktisk var vi nord for Canada, hvilket ikke helt gav mening......

We went to the Detroit Renaissance  Center, which is 5 tall towers, renovated by General Motors. You could take a guided tour around the building - for free! - and of course we had to try that.
The center was next to a river, where Canada was clearly visible on the other side! Actually, we were north of Canada, which didn't make sense......

På den guidede tur kom vi helt op i toppen af det midterste tårn, som er hotel. Vi kom op på 72. etage, hvor udsigten var denne her. Smukt, ikke?
Måske skulle man have prøvet en dag, hvor skyerne hang lidt højere på himlen!

With the guided tour, we went to the top of the middle tower, which is a hotel. We went to the 72nd floor, and the view was this. Pretty, right?
Maybe we should have tried another day, when the clouds were higher in the sky!

Om aftenen tog vi i Jo-Anns - en KÆMPE hobby-butik. Tænk Panduro hobby størrelse stor Bilka, så har I cirka ideen!
Jeg blev guidet ned til garnet af hjælpsomme nevøer, og har nu købt tyk uld i Michigan-farver til et par huer. På pind 8 når de vel snart at blive færdige......
Der blev også købt pynt til væggen, som I kan se, men desværre nåede niecen forbi og puste inden limen var tør!

In the evening, we went to Jo-Anns - a GIANT craft-shop. We actually don't have anything this size in Denmark.
I was guided to the yarn by some very helpful nephews, and bought thick wool in Michigan-colors for a few hats. Using size 8 mm needles I guess they will be done soon.....
Some decorations for the wall was bought too, as you can see, but unfortunately, my niece happened to blow at it before the glue dried!

Min dejlige dragt var vasket og tør, og blev både leveret og brugt af nevøens abe, Buddy (udtales bu-di). Lækker, ikke?

My lovely suit was washed and dried, and was delivered and used by my nephews monkey, Buddy (pronounced boo-dee). Nice, right?

Et par timer og en masse majs senere..... / After a couple of hours and a lot of corn........

Efter en meget tidlig vækning, kom jeg ud i lufthavnen til dagens helt store overraskelse. Min rundrejse-billet var aflyst! (Fordi jeg ikke havde brugt første del af den.)
Takket være en meget sød og hjælpsom dame i lufthavnen, kom jeg dog til Detroit til aftalt tid og blev hentet i lufthavnen. Det var et glædeligt gensyn!

After waking up very early, I arrived at the airport for the biggest surprise of the day. My ticket was cancelled! I ordered a round-trip, and since I didn't use the first part of it, it was cancelled.
Thanks to a very sweet and helpful lady in the airport, I could go on to Detroit as planned and was picked up in the airport. It was wonderful seeing each other again!

Dagens anden store (og klart sjovere!) overraskelse var den fineste kage, som min niece på 12 helt selv havde lavet og pyntet som forsinket fødselsdagskage. Mums, den var lækker!
Jeg fik også en gave. En heldragt, som er rigtig god foran fjernsynet. Den er vildt varm og blød, og er desuden velegnet til at gøre diverse teenagere utroligt pinligt berørte over at være i familie med mig.....

The second big (and definitely more funny!) surprise was a wonderful cake made by my 12 year old niece (all by herself). It was  delayed birthday-cake. It was so yummy!
I also had a present. A one-sie, that is really great for an evening in front of the TV. It is really warm and soft, and also great for embarrassing teenagers, who will regret they were ever born into a family including me.......

Bagefter tog vi ud på en gård til efterårs-sjov. Der var en kæmpe labyrint af majsplanter med denne nuttede edderkop foran.

Afterwards we went to a farm for some fall-fun. They had a giant corn-maze with this cute spider in front.

Der var også en "corn box" - en slags sandkasse fyldt med majskerner! Det var virkelig sjovt og dejligt at sidde og ligge i majsene. Først blev niecen begravet.

They also had a corn box - a box filled with corn! It was so fun and nice sitting and lying in the corn. First, my niece was buried.

Hendes lillebror fik også en tur. Han var noget bedre beskyttet med hætte!

Her younger brother tried as well. He was better protected with his hood!

Jeg prøvede også. Det var rigtig sjovt. Meget imponerende, at man bagefter kan fjerne en hel håndfuld majs fra sit tøj!

I also tried. It was so much fun. Very impressive how afterwards, I could collect an entire handful of corn from my clothes!

Deres storebror blev grundigt begravet.

Their bigger brother was buried quite well.

De der strømper til min mindste nevø? De passede lige nøjagtigt.

The socks for my youngest nephew? They fit him spot-on.

Faktisk måtte de gerne være en smule længere, så han kan passe dem et stykke tid, men han ville ikke lige tage dem af igen.....

Actually, they could be a bit longer, so he can use them all winter, but he didn't want to take them off again......

Efter en god gang majs ser de knap så nye ud, men mon ikke de stadig lige kan få lov at blive lidt længere?
Billetten? Det løser sig heldigvis. Godt nok med nye billetter, men med en god portion held fandt jeg nogle billige nogle, så det går..... Så må jeg arbejde lidt ekstra, når jeg kommer hjem!

After a good old corn-rub they look a little less new, but I guess they can still become a little longer before I go home.
The ticket? It seems to work out okay. I have to buy new tickets, but with some luck I found cheap tickets, so I'm okay........ When I get home, I will have to work a little extra!

På vej videre / Going on

Jeg fik set akvariet. Med hele 3 eksemplarer af verdens største fisk, hvalhajen. Den er KÆMPE!

I got to see the aquarium. With a total of 3 of the worlds biggest fish, the whale-shark.  It's HUGE!

Der var også albino-alligatorer. Lignede faktisk plastik. Meget flotte og lidt mærkelige. Ligesom menneske-albinoer havde de lilla øjne og dårligt syn.

There were albino-alligators as well. Looked a bit like plastic. Very beautiful and a bit weird. Like human albinos, they had purple eyes and impaired vision.

Kongressen er forresten slut. Det er strømperne til min mindste nevø forresten også! De er blevet fine, og jeg er meget spændt på, om de passer. Han får dem om et par timer, så jeg skal ikke vente i spænding længe.
Det er (igen) wollmeise, og farven hedder Amazonas. Ret flot farve, synes jeg.

The conference has ended, by the way. So has the socks for my youngest nephew, by the way! They turned out nice, and I am excited to know if they fit. He will get them in a couple of hours, so I don't have to wait very long.
Once more, it's wollmeise, and the color is called Amazonas. I really like this color.

Atlanta

Den amerikanske CF kongres er altid hyggelig. Selvfølgelig er der mange mennesker, og selvfølgelig er det overvældende, men de gør en dyd ud af at der er tag-selv-morgenmad på kongressen og så kan man sidde og spise og snakke og læse postere som man har lyst.
I år er morgenmaden så opgraderet med havregrød! DET er skønt! Der er bare ikke noget som havregryn til at holde en gående i flere timer. (Der er lige sprunget et brombær i også)

The North American CF conference is always very nice. Lots of people, of course, and somewhat overwhelming, but every single year they prepare breakfast at the conference center, and then you can sit and talk to others while you eat, or go around reading posters if you like.
This year, breakfast is upgraded a bit with oat porridge! THAT is great! I don't know anything like oats to keep you going for hours. (A blackberry jumped in, by the way.)

Atlanta havde OL i 1996. Downtown er præget af dette og af kongres-centeret. Nå ja. Og af pariserhjulet! Der er også et meget stort akvarium, som jeg har fået anbefalet, og som jeg håber der bliver tid til at se, inden turen går videre.

Atlanta held the Olympic Games in 1996. Downtown is mostly the Olympic park and the congress center. Well. And the Ferris wheel! There is a very big aquarium, too, that I heard recommended. I hope to manage to see it, before I go on.

I aftes var det jo fredag, og der var gang i gaden! Der var bl.a. denne hestevogn, som jeg sjældent har set magen til......
Jeg ved ikke helt, hvordan de der heste kan opføre sig så roligt i al den trafik, men det gik fint.

Last night was Friday night, and the city came alive! We saw this horse-wagon. I never saw anything like it......
I don't know how these horses can be so calm in all the traffic, but everything went fine.

I middagspausen nåede jeg lidt shopping. Gap havde af en eller anden grund 40% rabat, så der kom et par gaver med videre. Et par smæk-bukser til den næste baby, der er på vej til foråret hos en anden nevø. Jeg synes sådan nogle er vildt nuttede!

During lunch break, I had time for a little shopping. For some reason, Gap had 40% off everything, so I bought a few presents. Overalls for the next baby arriving in spring, when another nephew will become dad. I really think these are too cute!

Der kom også en julegave til min ældste nevøs datter. Mon ikke hun vil blive fin i det her?

I also bought a Christmas present for my oldest nephews daughter. Don't you think this will be pretty for her?

Konference-start

Konferencen er kommet godt i gang. Som altid er der nærmest pingvin-koldt indenfor. Vi er vel i USA! Udenfor er der skønt varmt, og receptionen blev faktisk holdt udenfor. Så hyggeligt! Der var picnic-tæpper på græsset, og for en gangs skyld havde man ikke lyst til at gå igen.
Men solen gik jo ned, og vi skulle finde noget rigtig aftensmad.....

The conference started yesterday. As always, the inside feels like the South-Pole. It IS the US, after all! Outside it's nice and warm, and the welcome-reception took actually place outside. Very cozy! There were picnic-blankets on the lawn, and for once you didn't feel like leaving.
But the sun did set, and we had to find some dinner......

Der blev et par strømper færdige (jeg manglede kun en halv fod). Det er selvfølgelig wollmeise, farven er Türkise Markise, og de er blevet dejlige.

A pair of socks are done (only needed to make half of one foot). Of course it's wollmeise. The color is Türkise Markise, and they are really nice.

Mønsteret på skaftet ser sjovt ud. Jeg fik det hos Jane i Ho, og må vist gerne afsløre, hvordan det er lavet.
Man kan næsten se det, når det er strukket ud, ikke?
Det er 4 omgange ret, 4 omgange med 3 vrang, 3 ret, 4 omgange vrang og 4 omgange 3 ret, 3 vrang.
Meget enkelt!

The pattern on the leg looks funny. I got it from Jane in Ho, and I guess I can reveal how it's done.
You can almost see it yourself when it's stretched!
It's 4 rounds of knit, 4 rounds of purl 3, knit 3, 4 rounds of purl and 4 rounds of knit 3, purl 3.
Very simple!

Men totalt sjov effekt! De næste strømper er selvfølgelig igang. Til min mindste nevø. Skulle MEGET gerne være færdige til søndag, så han kan få dem!

But the effect is so funny! The next socks are started. Of course. For my youngest nephew. They NEED to be done by Sunday, so he can have them!

Good morning Atlanta!

Så er jeg kommet til USA. Morgenhimlen ser lovende ud, ikke? Tasken er pakket til første dag på kongres, og jeg glæder mig. Meget.
Her i Atlanta er det dejligt varmt. I Michigan er det på vej til koldt. Jeg kan betro jer, at jeg var den eneste i Atlanta lufthavn i går med tyk uldtrøje! (Der var ikke plads i kufferten pga. alt slikket.)

Now I've arrived in the US. The morning sky looks promising, don't you think? The bag is packed for the first day at the congress, and I'm really looking forward to it.
Atlanta is really nice and warm. In Michigan it's getting cold. I can assure you that I was the only one in Atlanta airport yesterday wearing a thick woolen cardigan! (The suitcase was filled with candy.)

Flyveturen gik godt, med film og strikketøj. Jeg slog op til fødselsdagssjalet og startede forfra og var så tilfreds. Der er nået en god bid, og jeg synes, det ser lovende ud.
I dag skal der dog strikkes strømper......

The fligth went well, with movies and knitting. I started the birthday-shawl and re-started it before I was happy with it. I did quite a bit, and I think it looks promising.
Today I'm knitting socks, though.....

Bliv ikke uvenner med vietnamesere! / Don't mess with the Vietnamese people!

Nye navneskilte / New name-tags

For mange år siden, da jeg arbejdede på børneafdelingen i Odense, købte jeg et meget fint, håndlavet navneskilt. Det forestiller Peter Pedal og den puslespil-brik, han senere sluger så han får ondt i maven og kommer på hospitalet.
Jeg har brugt det de sidste 14 år, faktisk! Det har været ved at blive væk et par gange, men uden held. Dog har jeg kun brugt det på børneafdelingen, altså......
Lige nu arbejder jeg 2 steder, og så er det altså svært, når der kun er en enkelt Peter Pedal!
Så for ca. 1 måned siden bukkede jeg under og bad den meget kreative sygeplejerske på Hvidovre om at lave et skilt med Kylling eller Ælling. Jeg ventede og ventede. Meget tålmodig, hvis jeg selv skal sige det!
Der skete dog ingenting, andet end at der kom en kasse med nye navneskilte, hvor man bare kunne vælge og så få sit navn på. (Og betale, selvfølgelig)
De var så fine!!!!!!! Som I kan se, gik det helt galt. For hvem kan vælge mellem en minion, den fine ugle og snemanden Olaf? Jeg kunne ikke!
(Det først bestilte navneskilt er nu også på vej, fik jeg at vide, så jeg må vist finde nogle flere steder at arbejde......)

Many years ago, when I worked at the pediatric department in Odense, I bought a very beautiful, handmade name-tag. It has Curious George with the piece of jigsaw puzzle he will later swallow, cause him a stomach ache and get him to the hospital.
I've used it these past 14 years, actually! I almost got lost a few times, but had no luck. So far, I only used it in the pediatric departments, though......
Right now, I'm working at 2 different hospitals, and it's kind of difficult only having one Curious George!
So about a month ago, I gave in and asked the very creative nurse at Hvidovre if she could make me a name-tag with Kylling or Ælling. I waited and waited. Very patiently, if you ask me!
Nothing happened, though, except that a box of new name-tags appeared. Everyone could pick one and have their name put on it. (And pay for it, of course.)
They were so pretty!!!!!!!! As you can see, it went totally wrong. Who can choose between a minion, the beautiful owl and Olaf the snowman? I couldn't!
(The first ordered name-tag is actually on it's way as well, I was told, so I guess I have to find a few more places to work.......)