US Passport Agency--A Cautionary Tale

Like most knitters, I live in constant fear of having my handiwork confiscated by government agents. Some people shudder at the thought of Jack Bauer cutting off that Russian guy's pinky; for me the ultimate horror would be watching my work being ripped from the needles and cast aside.

Well, dear reader, today I came close...too close. A last minute need for a passport for DS (OK, so I've known he was going away for Spring Break for months now--gimme a break) necessitated an emergency trip to the US Passport Agency on Hudson Street here in NYC. I'm not proud to say I've been in this situation before (shut up), so I knew it would take awhile, so naturally I looked forward to some knitting time. First pass-through, no problem...but on the pick-up the security agent dug in my bag, pulled out my 16" Addi circ holding my precious warshrag (probably a good thing it was not the Terror Alert Ballband from last summer pictured above, but it makes my point better than the sweet little colors of Spring-inspired number I'm working on) and insisted on keeping it. I'm not inclined to argue with authority in any case, but the bomb sniffing dog and machine gun toting ninja police standing by were pretty convincing.

Anyway, it all worked out in the end and my knitting was returned intact upon exiting, but if you ever have to do the last minute passport thing, make sure you bring something else to do while you wait...and wait...and...OK, I know I have no one to blame but myself for procrastinating, but oy, the agony--a girl can only do so much Sudoku.

The last minute passport thing is pretty cool, BTW. You call to make an automated appointment (lines are perpetually busy so you need to do this in the middle of the night, seriously), show up with the application you've printed off the internet, requisite proof of identity, and an airline ticket showing you're traveling within the next 14 days, and they do a same day or next day turnaround. Just don't bring any knitting you're afraid of losing. Whew.

Knitting for a Cause--Part Two

Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, the Yarn Harlot, will be speaking at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC on March 22, and is trying to gather as many knitters as possible in a kind of shock and awe event to confirm the power of knitting. Details here. From Stephanie's blog:

The new book comes out soon and since it's a book about knitting as a destination and the community of knitters that populate it, we thought that this would be an excellent time to make a point. We would like to show the media and the muggles exactly how many knitters there are, how seriously we take it, and exactly how large a demographic they are ticking of when they discount our numbers and our buying power by ignoring the things that we tell them. Essentially, I don't care if they think we are stupid. I don't care if they think Sock Clubs are stupid, and I will still sleep at night if they laugh at us. I just want them not to openly mock us and impede our attempts at commerce or community.

Shameless (if well-deserved) self-promotion? Perhaps. But also sounds like a fun way to get together with pointy sticks and represent if you're in or near NYC. Since I am, I have no excuse.

Knitting for a Cause--Part One

For the starry-eyed Democrat knitters among us, a group has started up dedicated to knitting their way through the Presidential campaign of Barack Obama. Is Obama experienced enough for the job? Time will tell, but remember that JFK had limited congressional experience under his belt when he was elected. Does Obama smoke? Meh...so do I sometimes. In secret. In the bathroom. Is America ready for a Black president? Yo, we already had Bill Clinton (and yes, if Barack fails to make it to the nomination I sure as hell will be knitting for Hilary). Anyway, join up if you're inspired, and in any case keep knitting for change.