The Four Seasons B&B just outside Athlone offers guests complimentary tea and coffee in the sitting room “upon arrival.” John and I made it before Kevin did, so we chose our rooms then settled in to the sitting room to enjoy tea (for me), coffee (for John), and biscuits (for both of us). We checked mail, watched TV, and practiced sitting around for a while.
The next morning we got another fabulous B&B breakfast and headed out for Athlone IT. It was foggy and cold, but I had a lot of wool. This is what Athlone IT looked like to the sock:
Our space for this college was the best so far. We were tucked into a corner of the canteen, which resembled a smallish food court. We had lots of space and lots of light, and the result was lots of knitters. Nearly everyone in Athlone knew how to knit, and once word of the giveaway got out packs of women would come by and knit their two rows to enter into the competition. A few people stepped up for lessons, and I think at least one person is a Knitter, but just didn’t know it yet.
We had extra help with the promotion, Hannah, who knits “just scarves” and chatted about knitting hints and tips while we packed up at the end of the day. She also agreed to pose with the sock:
The drive back to Dublin was quick but quiet. John and I took the van (with all the setup stuff) rather than the jeep, but it was a powerful van and we made great time. I worked a couple hours at the shop once I got back, then headed home to sleep before working over the weekend. The sock got finished on the way back to Dublin, and the second sock begun. The next adventure will be Limerick/Galway, and I hope to finish the pair by the time I get home after Galway.
Dixie Stix 