After Kaity got home from her friend’s house, we had lunch at Ingredient and did some shopping at the Merc.  A storm rolled in as we got home, so we watched “Up In the Air.”  The storm dropped the temperature 15F, outside.  We took advantage of the mid 70′s temperatures and went for a very pleasant walk on campus.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Note the babies on the backs of the musicians.  Totally Lawrence.

Rainbow car

Kaity calls this the "Mordor car"

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Dragon Wagon

This one was designed by a high school senior in Baldwin, a town just south of here, as part of community senior project.

Bottle cap car - now with working propeller

This one has been in the parade before, but it has a few new accessories this year.  It’s a real distraction driving down the street, with that propeller spinning in the breeze.

And not all entrants were of the four-wheeled variety.  Kaity’s friend, Ian, used the dragon his mom designed for the school production of The Hobbit, and transformed his tricycle.

Ian and his dragon-cycle - note the snazzy riding outfit

Dragon-cycle

That’s what I love about downtown, there’s always something going on, and you never know what it might be.

Freezing Rain

Since yesterday, we’ve had temps in the low 30s, and rain that turned to sleet overnight.  West of us, they’ve had lots of snow, and the governor has declared a state of emergency in 62 counties.

Ice Storm

So much for Spring. Looks like a good day to stay inside and knit.

Mini Mochi Sock Yarn

I waffled for days, trying to find the right pattern for this yarn.  It’s not self-striping, but has bands of color that blend into each other seamlessly, and I wanted a pattern that would do the yarn justice.  After digging through Ravelry to see what other knitters had done with this yarn, I settled on Cookie A’s Monkey Socks pattern, partly because the examples I’ve seen look great with this yarn, and partly because I’m an anthropologist and like the name.

I started the first sock on a Size 1 magic loop needle.  After three repeats, I tried it on, and could barely get it over my heel.  Not good.

Too tight

My size 1 needles are 2.25 mm in diameter. Checking the pattern specs, the designer recommends US 2, 2.5 mm needles, which I didn’t have.  All of my sock needles are either size 0 or 1.  So I made another trip to the LYS to pick up the right size needle.  I decided to splurge on an Addi Turbo, and picked up a size 2, casting on again from the second ball that evening.  After two repeats, I tried it on.

Too Loose

Sigh.  Turns out that Addi (a German company), sells 3.0 mm needles as US size 2, while the pattern says a US 2 is 2.5 mm. No wonder they were too loose.  I remeasured my other needles, hoping that I might have one that was 2.5 mm.  I discovered that my very first magic loop needle, a gift from a swap partner in England, is the right size (even though it’s listed as a US 1). I ripped out both socks, and cast on again last evening while watching Season 5 of Buffy.

Lesson learned: Ignore the US size numbers, which lie, especially at the smallest needle sizes, and go by the diameter measurements.

Good music

Everyone was decked out in their best “Irish” garb.

How many green fro wigs do you see?

His shirt says "Irish Craic Addict." Craic - "fun, enjoyment, abandonment, or lighthearted mischief; often in the context of drinking or music" - Oxford English Dictionary

There was lots of music.

Junkyard Band

And my favorite, the bagpipers (carrying a Scottish flag).

Scottish Flag

Bagpipers - yay!

A few rainbows appeared (no word on the location of the pot’o'gold, though).

Somewhere over the Rainbow

My rainbow is bigger than your rainbow

And finally, what Saint Patrick’s Day parade would be complete without

Zombies?!?

Just another day in downtown Lawrence.

Snow!

We ended up with 2.5 inches, nothing major, just a little reminder that it is technically still February.

Purpose: Shopping for Christmas Dinner

Outside Temperature: 23 degrees Farenheit

Bikinis before Christmas?!?

We can’t even enjoy our Christmas dinner and have a week to regret it before making our New Year’s Resolutions?  Thanks, Target.

We went for the first time this year (I think this is probably the only parade in town that I’ve never been to). The horses were beautiful, and there was a lot of interesting history.  The Nicodemus Buffalo Soldiers led the parade.

There were plenty of carts and wagons, including the minature kind.

Elves (and snowmen and reindeer) passed out balloons.

There was even an old stagecoach.

Overall, a fun and interesting way to spend a Saturday afternoon downtown (there are lots more pictures in our 2008 Christmas Gallery), and one more reason to love Lawrence.