Can this Much MS3 Joy be Normal? Part B

Last Friday I bound out of bed, grabbed my laptop, and I had **NO** internet. Knowing that desperate times require desperate measures, I went fishing for a wireless network, any wireless network, that would let me download the new MS3 Clue. One of my non-password-protected neighbors obliged and I had my adobe file! Yes!

And then the printer wouldn’t work. It was like one of Job’s (more minor) trials! Arggh! So I went over to Kinko’s, printed out my clue, and breathed a mighty sigh of relief. All-in-all it was 45 minutes of high drama, but when I got home I was as happy as a mouse knee-deep in corn nuts.

“Good grief,” my son said “This Mystery Shawl thing is like crack cocaine for knitters.”

Of course I argued the point. A little. But I started thinking about it: Why exactly do I like this project so much?

I just watched the movie “High Fidelity,” with John Cusack. His character has a penchant for making “Top 10 Lists.” So here’s my

Top 10 Reasons MS3 is Highly Addictive:

1. Decadent yarn and pretty beads fulfill the frilly, girly side of a suburban mom who is starved for Glamour.


2. The pattern is a challenge, but each challenge is a manageable 50-row “bite.” (Okay, sometimes a 100-row “bite,” but those are spread out over 2 weeks.)
3. Melanie’s impeccable design aesthetic. Just like Chanel or Dior or Erte -- Melanie’s talent makes her incapable of creating something ugly, or pedestrian, or drab. I literally can hardly wait to see where she will lead us.
   
4. The online group is comprised of 99.99 % Good Folks and only .01% whack-a-doodles (based on my general eyeballing of the group’s posts). The spirit of the group is kind, helpful, and fun.
5. I’m finally learning 2 things I’ve always wanted to learn: Fine lace work and beading.
6. Group member’s photos of stoles-in-progress never fail to inspire and amaze me.
7. Feeling a kinship with thousands of knitters working on the same project, world-wide. I like imagining the thousands of hands -- in every color hands come in -- eagerly interpreting this pattern -- sending wisps of wool and bright, starry beads out into a world that needs beauty and creativity and warmth.
8. Dollar-for-dollar, this is one cheap date. I don’t know if I’ve never had so much fun for $35 (what my MS3 yarn & beads cost).
9. Learning how to read charts and read my own knitting. Three weeks into this shindig, I’m still making mistakes. But -- thanks to the group -- I’m learning invaluable tips on how to prevent and fix problems with a minimum of agita.
10. Two words: calorie free

Tomorrow: Why does a girl who does not spin have all of this roving?: