NOTE: Both Heathercentric posts have evolved to contain more fun!
Finally! Today was the day we'd been waiting for. It was the Big Event that finally made Heather come visit:
Franklin's photo shoot for the 1000 Knitters Project, a collective portrait of our community. Mr. Habit is a hysterical writer and cartoonist. He spins (sorry) lurid tales of Delores, a smoking, hard-drinking, promiscuous sheep, and Harry, a shy ball of sock yarn. Photography is just one of his many talents. This one was at
Wool Gathering, a cute shop in Kennett Square. I ran into some blog readers, Sandi (who's come to my Fiber Nights), and even a client! Click on the outside pic to see the sheep purse.
I showed off my red mohair shawl. I had to wear my sheep sneakers, too, although of course they weren't in the pic. See how long that scarf is? He's up to the low 500s now. Heather sported her Mmmmmalabrigo scarf. It's actually still on the needles, behind her back. Shhhh, don't tell!
Girlie is of course not a knitter, but she sat and chatted with Franklin about her tats when he asked. She showed him the rest of Hello Kitty and was rewarded with a dropped jaw and a glistening brow. Then she broke out her her hook as an act of civil disobedience for the Crochet Liberation Front.
Afterwards the three of us continued on to Amish country: Intercourse and Bird in Hand. The scents were, um, fertile. We saw lots of incredible old buildings, folks traveling by horse & buggy, and even more traveling by motorcycle. The no-helmet thing is always a Darwinian shock. Lots of gorgeous quilts and quite a few hideous ones, including machine-made copies for stupid tourists. How can you not see the difference?
In one of the junk shops, which was packed to the faux rafters with little wooden signs saying things like "Kiss the cook," we spotted a pentagram-shaped votive candle holder that was mounted upside down. Girlie explained to the owner that some of her customers might construe that as satanic. In the process, she identified herself as pagan. The woman actually thought she meant she was in a biker gang and had never heard the original use of the word. Heather and I exchanged wide-eyed stares and somehow managed to help her remount it (
from the provided iron loop) right side up and get out of the store without laughing in her confused face.
We also found a wool & weaving shop where they did their own dyeing. Great colors, but the base wool was rough as unshaven legs.
Of course on the way home we hit
Rita's. Root beer gelati...mmmmmm!
Another great day, zooming around randomly, following our noses. Wonder what'll happen tomorrow?
Fred, that last one's for you.
Today Matt & I went cruising around randomly and stumbled upon the Hagley in Wilmington, DE. This is where the DuPont family first built their gunpowder factory in 1802. Inside is a collection of highly detailed dioramas, with real gears and water pushing stuff around. The second floor is a beautiful display of wartime factory posters. The top story discusses DuPont's evolution into a chemical firm.I'm sure when active it was a noisy, filthy, hellish place, but now it's a lush green park with a fascinating history. Right along the Brandywine River (their power source) are the ruins of the old buildings and demonstrations of the simple machines used there. The workshop is still active, complete with drive line across the ceiling. They make gunpowder daily and test it (we happened to catch the test - it was a good batch!). 
