Christmas in Idaho: Knit 1, Purl 1

Leslie and I had been yarn shopping in the Boise and Meridian areas on our day off from work. It was 54°F out and sunny. We were going to take a walk around the neighborhood when we got home, but Leslie suggested we go to the MK Nature Conservancy instead. I had never been there, which surprised Leslie; all of the time I have been living in Idaho, I hadn't taken the time to see this place. So after yarn shopping, we came to this place near the Idaho Fish and Game Offices in Boise.

Even though it was sunny outside, there were only one or two other people in the park when Leslie and I arrived. So we had the place pretty much to ourselves. The MK Nature Conservancy is a beautiful place with smooth-as-glass ponds and natural plants and fauna for all to see. There are several places for wild animals to seek shelter, like birdhouses, beaver dams, and twig shelters, to protect them from the cold, rain, or snowy conditions that hit this area in the winter. Several signs are posted along the paths that tell you about the animals that live in each shelter. It was December 13, and it felt like April. We human animals were only clad in polar fleece jackets to protect us from the elements. I kept saying I couldn't believe it was December and that I was going up north to Donnelly to be in the snow and real winter conditions. Leslie laughed at my comments.

The MK Nature Conservancy was built in 1990 from funding from the Morrison-Knudsen Company and is owned and run by Idaho Fish and Game. It is a small park that can be walked in about a half an hour and is open 9 to 5 seven days a week. People are advised to leave any animals they see alone and not to run into the woods or water and disturb their environment. It is a place in the middle of Boise that is well worth your time when you visit the City of Trees any time of the year.

My friend Leslie and I love to knit. It is Christmas time here in the Treasure Valley, and we elves have been busy knitting up a storm creating beautiful presents for our loved ones' stockings. Monday was our day off from work, and Leslie thought it would be a great idea to go browsing in a couple of yarn shops in the Boise and Meridian area.

We first stopped at Lisa's Yarn Shop in Meridian. Located in downtown Meridian, Lisa's is located in an old house near Main Street and has many yarns from South America and other areas around the world. Leslie was looking for sock patterns, and I was looking for yarns that are in my Patternworks Catalog, seeing if they were cheaper here. There were some yarns that are in the Patternworks Catalog at Lisa's that are a little more, but you are not paying for shipping.

The lady working in the store was very nice to us and helped Leslie look for sock patterns for her skill level. There were also other people in the store knitting and getting knitting advice and help.

After leaving Lisa's, Leslie and I went to Craft Warehouse on Fairview Avenue and did some damage there before heading to downtown Boise to Drop A Stitch. Drop A Stitch is located in the historic 8th Street Marketplace area and is in one of many of Boise's old factory buildings.

Leslie and I were greeted warmly by the lady working in the shop and were left to browse around and touch and feel yarns and completed projects on display throughout the shop. Drop A Stitch has many expensive yarns, such as Koigu and Mano a Uruguay, but you feel like a kid in a candy store seeing all of the yarns and colors. Leslie and I looked at more pattern books for about 15 minutes. I found this beautiful pattern for a halter top in one book, but I don't think the lady there would have copied it for me, so I will look online for the designer and pattern.

For Leslie and I, going into yarn shops can be dangerous and addicting. We have dropped a lot of money into yarns. I always joke that we will have to build an extension to Leslie's sewing room to house all of our yarns and material.

You don't have to be an expert to go into Lisa's or Drop A Stitch. There are classes every week, and the people who work at these places are very nice in helping you choose yarns, patterns, and supplies and help you with any questions you might have.

On my only day off after Christmas last week, I decided to get off the couch and go yarn-shopping. I have been making a vest from bulky yarn and needed toggles for its buttons. I went looking all over Meridian and a little bit of Boise and struck out everywhere.

Knit Wits was my last destination in my hunt for toggles, but I struck out there, too. I was very impressed, however, with the service from the owner and her assistant while I was visiting there.

Knit Wits has been in the same spot in Boise, Idaho for 35 years. It has many varieties of yarns, needles, books, and magazines for one to browse through. The most popular line of yarns are Plymouth and Reynolds Yarns, and a serious knitter like me can be like a kid in a candy store looking at everything.

The owner recommended that I go to a place called Caledonia's for my toggles. It is located downtown, but it was getting close to rush hour, so I decided to go there another time. I did spend some more time looking for yarn and settled on buying six balls of peach Encore DK yarn, which is an acrylic/wool blend, for a future project. It only cost $3.99 a ball, and I was happy, since peach is a yarn color that's difficult to find. Happy with my purchase, I decided to get out of Dodge before causing more damage to my checking account. Before leaving, I did meet the store mascot, a cat that the owner rescued as a stray. She was very shy, but I said my hellos and left.

I would highly recommend Knit Wits for its friendly service and wide variety of yarn. Located between the closed Wave Restaurant and Popeye's, it's a great place to go yarn-shopping or browsing.

Being a frequent patron to the Ada County Library in Boise, Idaho, I was happy to see during one of my visits that they were going to have a Christmas program with the Idaho Shakespeare Company on Friday, December 3, 2004. So, I rounded up Mom and the other "three hags," my friends Leslie, Linda, and our next-door neighbor Marleta, for a night of fun and free entertainment. 

Before the show, however, we stopped at one of our favorite restaurants, Bolo's, for some well-needed sustenance. The food was as always hot and delicious, and the conversation varied between geneology, my new haircut and color, and other hot topics.

We arrived at the library by 6:45pm in two cars. Linda and Leslie had arrived ahead of Mom, Marleta, and me and were able to save us seats on and around the library's sofa. The Idaho Shakespeare Company's performance of Stubby Pringle's Christmas began right on time at 7pm in the library's main upstairs room. There were only three Shakespeare performers up front with guitars and minimal props. 

Idaho is cowboy country, and Stubby Pringle's Christmas is a cowboy Christmas tale about a lone cowboy who saves Christmas for a pioneer widow and her daughter.

Stubby Pringle was a mean old cowboy who was on his way to a Christmas party at the local church on Christmas Eve. His saddlebags were loaded with presents for the church ladies, and it was cold and snowy. On the way to the church, he came upon a little cabin in the middle of nowhere.  Stubby saw that it was occupied by a pioneer widow and her daughter, and they were hungry, cold, and didn't have anything to celebrate Christmas. The woman begged for Stubby Pringle's help, so he reluctantly went outside to his horse and saddlebags and retrieved the fabric and food and chocolates and returned into the cabin. Then Stubby went outside again, "kicking the door shut behind him with his boot," and chopped a bunch of wood for the woman and her daughter and brought some inside to start a fire.  Then, Stubby let the woman open the presents, and she was so thankful to Stubby for the fabric that she right there sewed up a little dress for her daughter to keep her warm.

After a while, Stubby Pringle left the woman and her daughter warm and happy and headed to the church for the party. Coming upon the church, Stubby Pringle saw a strange man in red leaving the church on a sleigh. It was Santa Claus, and he saw Stubby and yelled, "HO HO HO!! MERRY CHRISTMAS, STUBBY PRINGLE!! Good deeds don't go unpunished!

The Idaho Shakespeare performance of Stubby Pringle's Christmas only lasted a half an hour, but it was worth it. However, the seating could have been better, in that the couch and chairs around it could have been moved to where the bookshelves were not blocking our view in spots. Mom and Leslie got stiff necks trying to crane their necks to see the performance, and a couple of times, we had to tell some kids to sit down so we could see what was going on. After the performance, cookies and beverages were served downstairs, and Leslie, Linda, Marleta, Mom, and I helped ourselves to a bunch of cookies (there goes the diet) and headed home with our bellies full and our hearts happy! 

 

 

 

Leslie got three free tickets to the Meridian Symphony Orchestra's Christmas concert from her lawyer friend Steve Scherr, who is a French horn player in the orchestra. His law partner, Dave Wynkoop, is a cellist, and they sponsored this concert and many other performances of the MSO that are performed throughout the year.

It was only the two of us going to this concert on Saturday, December 4. Mom had to go back home to Donnelly to free her dog-sitter Dad from our zoo, Linda was going to a formal ballroom dance, and Marleta was resting and grieving over the loss of her old dog Mugsy.

With Christmas carols playing in the car, Leslie and I set out for the concert at the Meridian Middle School off of 9th Street. Gene Autry's edition of Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer came on, and we sang along, but Leslie was singing a different edition called Randolph the Lonesome Cowboy (words to that song to follow on another entry). We giggled like little schoolgirls driving along downtown Meridian's roads.

The auditorium at the MMS was filling up quickly, but Leslie and I were lucky to get seats on the aisle in the middle of the auditorium before it was too late. We looked at our programs to see what carols were to be played and estimated this show would last about 1.5 hours.

The show began at 7:30pm with the Boston Pops edition of Sleigh Bells. It was just as good as the Pops' edition complete with the whinnying horse at the end. The MSO's edition of Stille Nacht was hauntingly beautiful and mesmerizing. I found myself in a trance listening to it. Did you know that Stille Nacht is only played on Christmas Eve in Austria and that it is forbidden to play it commercially there? The audience was entertained my many anecdotes and histories of the carols by the MC, who was a violinist in the orchestra.

Leslie and I especially loved Vivaldi's Four Seasons: Winter symphony, The French Christmas Suite, and Russian Christmas Music, which was written in 16 days by Alfred Reed in 1944 for a national radio performance promoting American/Russian unity during World War II. Leslie and I really enjoyed this performance, but we wished that people had taken out their unruly children like the MSO requests on their programs during shows so that we could really enjoy that carol.

The MSO performs in Meridian about 4-5 times a year, and they only charge about $4-$6 for tickets. They are next performing "Celebrate the Heritage of the British Isles" on March 5, 2005, at the Mountain View High School Auditiorium.