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Dear Ann,

I could use a truly lazy Sunday, but Lisa Downstairs has raised the prospect of venturing up to the New York Botanical Garden for the last day of the Frida Kahlo exhibit.  Driving or otherwise getting around town on Marathon Sunday is not a recipe for a day of indolence, though, so maybe I’ll cry off. Frida Kahlo, though–a powerful pull.

Aside from Frida, here’s what’s on for Sunday:

To Knit

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I’m making serious headway on my Monomania cardigan. I got the a kit for this cardigan from Neighborhood Fiber Co. at Vogue Knitting Live in January 2014. Ann Weaver, the designer of Monomania, was wearing a grayscale version, and she let me take it to the bathroom to try it on in front of a mirror. Belinda went with me. Both Belinda and Ann declared that Ann’s fit me perfectly and I should definitely not make the next size up. (I’m making the next size up. I’m a lifelong upsizer.) It’s a nice rhythmic pattern and I love the feel of this crisp sportweight on US 4 needles.

To Listen

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Maira Kalman.  Beloved author/illustrator/artist/duck portrayer Maira Kalman has a new book out, Beloved Dog. Listen to her radio interview with Leonard Lopate (be sure to watch the short video in that link).  (P.S. She’s a knitter!)

To Read

More Maira. If you’re unfamiliar with Maira Kalman’s work, the illustrated blog she did for the New York Times, And The Pursuit of Happiness, is a delightful place to start.

To Watch

The Marathon! It’s wonderful morning TV to knit along to, right up there with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade later this month. As the day goes on, my neighborhood (NYC’s Upper West Side) fills up with runners exiting Central Park, hailing pedicabs, walking in a daze. I love the festive atmosphere, the elegiac weariness on the faces of some of the Mylar-bundled finishers. It always brings back memories of my two glorious runs in the back of the middle of the pack, in 1992 and 1994. Great days.

The Mets! There has never been a more knit-friendly sport than baseball. Game 5 of the World Series between the Mets and the Royals is tonight.

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Miranda. Many may know Miranda Hart as Chummy in Call the Midwife on PBS. She also writes and stars in her own sitcom, Miranda.  The show is one what-I-call belly laugh after another.  It’s on IMDb and Hulu. SUCH FUN. (Bear with: catchphrases abound.)

Have a lazy Sunday, even if you have to work at it.

Love,

Kay

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33 Comments

  • Love Miranda. Such fun. And so wonderfully funny.
    Let’s Go Mets!
    Enjoy your Sunday.

  • You should try watching cricket. You can even knit socks watching cricket.

  • Thanks for the (Miranda) tip! It’s going to be a Lazy Sunday after all.

  • Miranda is great! As for the extra hour – one must knit, of course. Or nap.

  • Baseball is knit friendly. Especially if your team has no infield, you can pretend you need to fix something in your knitting and not look. I grew up going to Mets games with my dad because they were so awful he got free tickets. Sentimental journey, since they almost always lost back then, too!

  • I need to check out Miranda. I’ve never heard of her. Other than cooking lunch, I’m hoping for a relatively lazy Sunday. It is raining here so a perfect day to hunker down with my knitting.

  • Maira’s chronicle of George Washington evokes so many of the same feelings I have about the founders of our country. I admire them so completely. Is it easier to revere people in the distant past? Can you imagine what the Internet would have made of Thomas Jefferson’s tangled story? He might not even have made it to the White House.

    Also:

    To create a document that holds up 228 years as our constitution? I am a fan of strong writing, and that is STRONG WRITING.

  • Maira was also in this weekends Wall Street Journal. They asked her what she had done that day. She had a wonderful response.

  • Thanks for enlightening me to BELOVED DOG! I am a sucker for anything dog and when I listened to stories of Pete I know he was somehow linked to my B.G, Daphne and Charlie. Those doggie genes do get around!

  • Also a habitual upsizer. Hit the what I call “wall” last winter when I noticed the sleeves of my new sleepshirt were brushing my knees. Just one of the reasons I hesitate to knit a sweater.
    Frida…oh, that would be tempting! She was a visual law unto herself. Generally I make an effort to look at the work of an artist as the work, without mentally adding in all the anecdote and apocrypha. But with Frida Kahlo, I can’t do it. It’s the person I wish I could know.
    And I thought the movie with Salma Hayek was superb.
    Have a great day, whatever you do 🙂

    • Quinn–the exhibit was actually a bit disappointing. No art! Just an “evocation” of Casa Azul. The atmosphere this afternoon was great, though, so no regrets. A gorgeous day to be in the garden.

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  • Whoa- the Mets?!? I assumed the geography of your childhood would make you partial to Kansas City, and for some reason I thought the Bronx Bombers were your NYC team. The first baseball game I ever saw was at Royals Stadium, where Reggie Jackson’s grand slam helped the Yankees crush the Royals. AL all the way!

    • You are right, I grew up with the Omaha Royals, and the Yankees are our family team (hubs grew up in Washington Heights and attended the Bronx High School of Science). But I root for the Mets against anybody except the Yankees, and have fond memories of 1986 and Bobby Ojeda and Mookie Wilson and the gang. My Mets love is unrequited, I’m sure! Hoping they stay alive tonight.

  • Thank you, thank you for pointing me to where I can watch Miranda (free!). I’ve been looking for her series on the U.S. interwebs for so long.

    • I was surprised to find it, too! More episodes than on Hulu, too, I think.

  • I watch Miranda on Acorn TV. If you have not signed up for Acorn, than I have to ask, “What are you waiting for?” British TV at its Best! Plus some Australian, New Zealand and Canadian programs too. Plus you get all the fun of figuring out their accents too!

    After watching Chariots of Fire in High School (not saying how many years ago) I went out and bought Vangelis on CD. Good stuff. Maybe I should watch Chariots of Fire again, what do you think?

    • Absolutely! I’d love to watch it again myself.

  • I watch Miranda on Acorn TV. If you have not signed up for Acorn, than I have to ask, “What are you waiting for?” British TV at its Best! Plus some Australian, New Zealand and Canadian programs too. Plus you get all the fun of figuring out their accents too!

    After watching Chariots of Fire in High School (not saying how many years ago) I went out and bought Vangelis on CD. Good stuff. Maybe I should watch Chariots of Fire again, what do you think?

  • Best movie song EVER. Thanks.

  • Love the Monomania, and its opportunities to play with color! (And chevron stripe width. ) I also like a couple of Ravelers’ plain sleeve versions. Also love Miranda as “Chummy” and would enjoy seeing her in something else…self-scripted sounds ideal. Thanks!

  • OMG! Such FUN! and Bear with can be frequently heard coming out of my mouth. That show is HIGH-larious! I “heart” Miranda Hart!!! (Is that a pun?)

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  • What a good & satisfying post- a glimpse at that sweater (I was with you & Belinda when you jumped all in on in and purchased he kit and it did look excellent on you). And then you said some other things that I enjoyed but were instantly eclipsed because: CHUMMY IN HER OWN SHOW. Can hardly wait to check it out. XOX
    ps Loving your daily posting. You two are inspiring me to try to make it a solid month myself. Day one, done.

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  • Modern Daily Knitting is “what I call” fabulous! As is Miranda, and my beloved NY Mets, who played their best and worst game ever, last night. On to 2016 for them, and tomorrow for more MDK!

  • Any chance of being able to follow the blog on Bloglovin’?
    I just can’t do blogs in the inbox, it gets out of control.

  • Oh boy, I think I’m going to be hooked on your blog…. I’ve loved your books.
    And now, really , I have to get back to packing for the weekend. A weekend of Knitting with Knitting Friends at the Pt Reyes, CA hostel!!
    Best to you both.

  • Welcome Back! you were missed. Bear with, bear with indeed!

    So happy to find fellow “Miranda” fans — I just watched the end of Season 3 — new guy or Gary???
    It is such a tonic to laugh aloud, and I love how she breaks the “4th wall.”

    Also – nice to read someone referencing our own (WNYC’s) Leonard Lopate into the far reaches of the interwebs. Big fan of his show. Great conversation and great guests – leaves one feeling enlightened and entertained. My knitting projects are often carried around in my WNYC totebag.

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